By Canadian Press

Justin Medlock’s 43-yard field goal gets Blue Bombers past Roughriders

Sep 4, 2016 | 3:30 PM

REGINA — Justin Medlock came up clutch in his first Labour Day Classic.

Medlock’s game-winning boot from 43 yards with two seconds left in the fourth quarter gave the Winnipeg Blue Bombers a 28-25 over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Sunday for their fifth consecutive victory.

Medlock, in his first year with the Blue Bombers, converted on seven field goals for Winnipeg and was mauled by teammates at midfield after the successful kick. 

“He’s as automatic as it gets,” said quarterback Matt Nichols, who holds for Medlock on kicking attempts. “If he doesn’t make all of those kicks then we don’t win this game. He’s a huge weapon for us.”

Medlock, however, was staying modest post-game.

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“(The offence) got me into good position and I just had to do my job,” said Medlock. “That’s the biggest thing.”

Saskatchewan’s Kendial Lawrence returned a punt 86 yards for a touchdown to tie the game 25-25 less than a minute before Medlock’s kick. The Riders needed a convert from Tyler Crapigna for the victory, but the second-year kicker missed his attempt and set the stage for his counterpart on the opposing sideline.

Crapigna finished the day by missing two field goal attempts and the convert.

“It’s a little rough, but we have a whole new unit working here this week that we didn’t really get too many reps with, getting a new guy on the other day,” said Crapigna. “We’re going to fix it out, get the kinks out this week and we’ll be back again next week.”

Veteran Roughriders quarterback Darian Durant said he tried to put himself in Crapigna’s shoes after making a costly mistake.

“Sometimes you just want to get by yourself and you know you messed up and you just want to forget about it without hearing anyone,” said Durant, who threw two interceptions in the fourth quarter. “I’ll just let Tyler get over it the best we can right now. We have his back and we’re going to need him to make some big kicks down the stretch.”

Winnipeg’s (6-4) victory snaps an 11-game losing streak to the Riders on Labour Day weekend. The Riders (1-9) have lost five straight.

The Blue Bombers led 16-3 at halftime and appeared in control. Medlock connected on three field goals and Quincy McDuffie hauled in an 82-yard touchdown reception from Nichols.

But the Roughriders rallied in the second half and were led by Durant, who compiled 399 passing yards on the day.

Durant drove Saskatchewan deep into Winnipeg territory in the third quarter and capped the long drive with a four-yard touchdown strike to Caleb Holley. Holley hauled in the two-point convert and Riders trailed 19-11 after three quarters. Holley led the Riders with 10 catches for 121 yards.

A four-yard touchdown run by Durant, followed by another Durant rush for a two-point convert drew Saskatchewan even on its first possession of the fourth quarter.

“That second half we came out and played some good football,” Durant said. “We played the type of football that it takes to win games. For us to fight back like that, to come back and tie the game … it still hasn’t sunk in yet.”

Medlock responded and gave Winnipeg a six-point cushion — 25-19 with four minutes remaining — with field goals on back-to-back drives.

Weston Dressler, a two-time CFL all-star and Grey Cup champion over eight seasons with the Riders, returned to a sold-out Mosaic Stadium in a different jersey for the first time. The slotback had seven receptions on Sunday for 77 yards. McDuffie led the Blue Bombers with 153 receiving yards.

Andrew Harris, the CFL’s leading rusher, ran for 80 yards on 15 carries.

An incident occurred post-game with an unidentified Blue Bombers coach reportedly collapsing. The team tweeted that “precautionary measure were taken post-game to ensure a coach’s health — everything is fine.”

Notes: Both teams will meet again on Saturday in Winnipeg for the Banjo Bowl. … The Roughriders are winless (0-6) against West Division opponents in 2016.

Craig Slater, The Canadian Press