Lions win Battle Of The Felines

(Jul 8) - JOSEPH LAVOIE- The B.C. Lions defeated the 1999 Grey Cup Champions last night 33-26 before a crowd of 18,411 at Ivor Wynne Stadium.

This was a surprising victory for many. The Ti-Cats had a 17-point lead at the half after Tony Aitkins scored a 65-yard punt return and Jarrett Smith scored on a 23-yard run off of a blocked punt.

The Lions had a horrible first half after Damon Allen was sacked four times.

The second half was a completely different story. Lion receivers Jimmy "The Jet" Cunningham and Mike Adams scored touchdowns on  43 and 67-yard passes by Damon Allen.

Allen completed 26 of 37 passes, totalling up 394 yards, two touchdowns and not one interception.

On the other side, Hamilton quarterback Danny McManus threw two interceptions, one of which was in the end-zone. He only completed 18 of 41 passes for a total of 198 yards, with no touchdown pass.

"Defence did great, just offensively, it comes down to my calls and I've just got to get the team into the right situations at the right time," said McManus.

McManus admitted that he was foolish with the ball for two throws and blamed the mistakes on "miscommunication."

The Lions tied the game 26-26 on a 43-yard field goal by Jon Baker to bring the game to overtime.

Under the CFL's new overtime format, one team gets a chance to score from the 35 yardline and then the other team gets a chance. A team wins if it scores and the other can't. The teams have four chances to win, or it is resolved as a tie for both teams. The winner gets two points in the standings.

Sean Millington scored a touchdown on a five-yard run in overtime to upset the defending Grey Cup Champs in a thrilling classic.