After missing a pair of field goals, Damon Duval was prepared to take the blame.
Given a chance for redemption, the Alouettes kicker booted two key field goals, then pounded a single, as Montreal churned out a 16-12 victory over the BC Lions on Friday night to end their West Coast jinx.
Duval finished the night 4-of-6 on field goals, the longest 40 yards, and added singles of 42 and 60 yards as Montreal snapped a nine-game losing streak in Vancouver.
"If this game went any other way it's on my shoulders," said Duval, heaving a sigh of relief in a noisy Alouettes dressing room. "It didn't start off well.
"We stuck together. Offence and defence kept pushing. I finally picked things up and got things going in the right direction."
It was a game where the two quarterbacks combined for 50 completions and 550 passing yards, but just one touchdown.
An ugly night looks a lot prettier through a winner's eyes.
"We grinded through," said Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo, who completed 30-of-47 passes for 297 yards.
"Our defence kept us in the game by keeping them out of the end zone. We had enough plays on offence to put us in field goal range."
The Lions offence showed some sparks but never really caught fire.
Casey Printers competed 20-of-40 passes for 253 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown to Jamal Robertson late in the first half. The Lions QB was also intercepted twice.
At times, Printers and his receivers weren't on the same page.
"There was a couple of miscommunications that we had," said Printers. "It's just timing that we have to work on.
"We had spurts when we were playing very well and we had spurts when we didn't. It's just part of the growing process."
Wally Buono, the Lions coach and general manager, was frustrated with the outcome.
"We let a game we could have won, should have won, get away," said Buono, whose team led 12-6 at one point. "We had opportunities to put more points on the board and we didn't do it.
"At times we were not disciplined and at times the execution wasn't exactly what you expected."
Slotback Geroy Simon was Printers' favourite target, catching five passes for 77 yards.
Duval booted field goals of 40, 32, 20 and 15 yards. He had to settle for a single on a 40-yard attempt, then hit the uprights from 47 yards out.
Paul McCallum kicked a 14-yard field goal for the Lions.
Jerald Brown had a big game for the defending Grey Cup champion Alouettes.
After making a critical interception in last week's victory in Edmonton, the Montreal defensive back snuffed out a late BC drive with another pick. He also recovered a fourth-quarter fumble which set up a Duval field goal that tied the game 12-12.
"We just hung in there and fought," said Brown. "Wins aren't always easy.
"It means something when you come together like this and fight. This means we know how to win. We find ways to win. We expect to win so we just keep playing."
The victory, in front of a crowd of 25,162 at Empire Field, improves Montreal's record to 2-1, while the Lions sit at 1-2 and are winless at home.
The last time Montreal won in Vancouver was a 35-25 triumph on Aug. 31, 2000.
"That's history," said Brown. "We can only go by this year.
"We don't worry about how many times we lost in a place or won. We just come out and play."
The Alouettes have played three straight games out West. They remained in Edmonton last week instead of returning home.
Duval said that was a smart move.
"One of the biggest problems from earlier is we are usually starting the game at 10 p.m. our team," he said. "That week in Edmonton helped getting the body adjusted to the time. It felt like a normal game."
Avon Cobourne was a busy man for Montreal. He rushed for 79 yards on 13 carries and had five catches for 43 yards.
Montreal had a couple of great scoring chances but couldn't punch it in.
In the fourth quarter, slotback S. J. Green hauled in a 48-yard pass with two Lions hanging on him to give the Als a first down on the BC 12-yard line. But the Lions defence stiffened and Duval kicked a 20-yard field goal for a 15-12 lead and then belted a single on a punt for a four-point spread.
Montreal capitalized on a BC fumble to tie the game with just over four minutes gone in the fourth quarter.
The Lions were driving, and looked poise to build on a 12-9 lead, when Robertson fumbled and Brown recovered on the Montreal 25.
The Alouettes took advantage to move down the field but had to settle for a 40-yard field goal.
One of the Lions prettiest plays of the night came early in the third quarter.
Just when it looked like Printers was going to be sacked, he squirmed loose and connected down the field Derick Armstrong. The wide receiver laid out to make a 23-yard catch at the Montreal 14.
The drive ended with a McCallum field goal.
Notes: The Lions inducted former coach Vic Rapp, defensive tackle Mack Moore and middle linebacker Tyrone Crews into the team's wall of fame during half time. ... VANOC CEO John Furlong participated in the coin toss before the game. ... The Lions play their next two games on the road, next Friday in Toronto then July 30 in Edmonton. ... Current Lions Sherko Haji-Rosouli, Angus Reid, Davis Sanchez, Keron Williams and O'Neil Wilson are all former Alouettes. ... The Lions will wear their retro 1970s uniforms three times this year, beginning with their next home game Aug. 7 against Calgary.
