The Grey Cup

A year ago, I made quite the faux pas! There was great excitement in town, Calgary had just won the Grey Cup and there was dancing, merriment and sea of red awash in the streets for days. I was very privileged to be invited to a Calgary Economic Development function where The Cup was proudly on display ranked by the victorious players. Complete the professional photographer standing by to take your photo with the hallowed vessel. The chatter in the room stopped and people turned aghast at my prattle “so is this the cup for the ice-hockey?”

This year, I am fully prepared. The Grey Cup is the grand prize for the Canadian Football League This is not American Gridiron, the rules are different (but I do defy any Aussie casually watching their first game to spot the difference!), it is Canada’s other professional sport.
The Calgary Stampeders were soundly thrashed in the semis so missed out on playing for a home crowd. This year, the Grey Cup was between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Montréal Alouettes.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a story in themselves. They are the only professional sports team based in Saskatchewan and have the largest following in the CFL. Record attendances at away games are the norm when The Riders are playing. The fan base, known as The Riders Nation, decks themselves out in green and white. One very odd demonstration of Rider Pride is the habit of hollowing out watermelons to wear as green helmets, causing the Calgary supermarkets to place special orders to ensure supply.

So this year, Calgary is awash with green and white, oh, and watermelons…. The game itself was heralded as a great one. The Riders lead all the way – until the last 10 seconds where a penalty (for having too many players on the field) allowed Montréal to kick for a field goal, score and WIN THE GAME!!

The Riders Nation mourns.