By Canadian Press

Matt Nichols leads Bombers to first win at Commonwealth Stadium since 2006

Jul 28, 2016 | 10:00 PM

EDMONTON — The back-up plan worked out well for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Thursday night.

A switch to Matt Nichols as the starting quarterback paid off as the Blue Bombers snapped a two-game losing skid, coming away with a 30-23 victory over the Edmonton Eskimos on Thursday.

Nichols, who got the nod over starter Drew Willy, was effective out of the gate and put together a long opening drive that saw a 39-yard pass to Weston Dressler set up a one-yard TD plunge by Andrew Harris on a third-down gamble. They added a single on the ensuing kickoff.

The Winnipeg pivot, who was with the Eskimos from 2010 to 2015, finished the game 26-of-33 passing for 304 yards and one touchdown. Winnipeg improved to 2-4.

“It feels great, not only for myself, but for the entire team,” he said.

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“Starting off the season 1-4 is never easy and I think it takes a certain group of guys to come out and not let it affect them. We had a lot of injuries. We already had a couple of receivers down and we lost a couple more tonight, but guys stepped in and were getting open for me. It was an overall team effort.”

Harris, who had 127 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, said the QB change gave the team a bit of a boost.

“It was just a spark for us,” he said. “Matt plays with a high motor and a lot of intensity. You know he is going to compete to make big plays and is passionate about it.”

Edmonton (2-3) lost its second straight, the latest coming after allowing one of the biggest comebacks in league history in its previous game, when the Hamilton Tiger-Cats erased a 31-6 deficit for a 37-31 victory.

“Losing is frustrating,” said Eskimos coach Jason Maas.

“It’s not any one thing. We didn’t start off fast enough to keep up at the beginning but we fought to the end. The bottom line … if we don’t start playing better in all three phases for 60 minutes, it’s going to be tough to win.”

Winnipeg made it 11-0 on a 30-yard Justin Medlock field goal with four minutes left in the first quarter.

After a 35-minute rain delay, Medlock kicked a 34-yard field goal and followed that up with a 28-yarder midway through the second.

Edmonton finally got on the board on the final play of the first half, with a Sean Whyte 47-yard field goal making it 17-3. It was the first points for the Eskimos in 56:22 of playing time, extending back to their loss to Hamilton.

After Medlock nailed a 42-yard field goal, quarterback Mike Reilly and the Eskimos managed to put together a successful drive, capped off with a two-yard TD run by Calvin McCarty.

However, the Bombers came right back with a 20-yard TD pass from Nichols to Darvin Adams.

Whyte kicked a 38-yard field goal to make it 27-13 heading into the fourth quarter, and added another five minutes later.

Edmonton got back into scoring position, but Reilly was picked off by rookie Terrence Frederick, leading to yet another Medlock field goal.

The Eskimos closed out the game with a two-yard TD pass from Reilly to Derel Walker in the final minute, but couldn’t come any closer.

The Blue Bombers return to action next Wednesday when they play host to Hamilton. Edmonton will travel to Ottawa to face the Redblacks next Saturday.

Notes: Edmonton came into the contest with a seven-game overall winning streak against the Blue Bombers, and had won their last eight straight at home over Winnipeg, which had not won in Commonwealth Stadium since 2006… Dressler left the game with a lower-body injury.

Shane Jones, The Canadian Press