Mother Nature helped make sure the CFL's longest Grey Cup drought remained intact Saturday.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers struggled moving into a brisk 30-kilometre wind in dropping a 29-21 decision to the Edmonton Eskimos in the East Division final. The loss -- before a Canad Inns Stadium gathering of 27,493, some 2,000 short of capacity -- means an 18th straight year without a championship for the Bombers.
"I thought we had difficulty moving the ball into the wind," said Bombers head coach Doug Berry. "We really struggled in that part.
"Whether it be with our run game early or our passing game, we just didn't match up today to what (the Eskimos) were able to accomplish offensively."
The loss was a bitter one for Bombers fans. Many had high hopes for the club in 2008 following last year's 23-19 Grey Cup loss to Saskatchewan.
But the Bombers sputtered to a 2-8 start this season before winning six of their final eight regular-season games to post an 8-10 record and finish second in the East Division.
"We really had two seasons," said Berry. "I felt like the second half of the year, we certainly were everything I thought we would be."
The acquisition of running back Joe Smith from B.C. in September appeared to fire up the Bombers. But Smith was held to just 39 yards by Edmonton and lost a fumble.
Even the weather appeared, on paper, to be on the Bombers' side Saturday. The strong north winds are a regular feature at Canad Inns Stadium, where the team had a 5-3 record in the regular season. But Edmonton punter Noel Prefontaine outdistanced Winnipeg rookie Alexis Serna, totalling 462 yards on 11 kicks to Serna's 303 yards in nine kicks, often pinning the Bombers deep in their zone.
Winnipeg's loss could also spell the end of the line for brilliant slotback Milt Stegall, the CFL's all-time leader in receiving yards and TDs. Stegall has said that this could be his final season but didn't close the door on returning to Manitoba for a 14th season.
"I really haven't thought about it," he said. "I was really just trying to keep focused on the task at hand.
"But now some major decisions need to be made, and we'll see what happens."
Stegall had promised fans a victory if the game was a sellout. But some 2,000 of the stadium's 29,533 seats were not sold for the contest.
Even if Stegall returns, the Bombers' front office is likely to look to revamp its offence for next year. The unit averaged a CFL-worst 20.9 points per game during the regular season and was ranked sixth in passing (281 yards per game).