VANCOUVER — The BC Lions made it three straight wins with a dominant display on defence against the Toronto Argonauts on Friday evening. The Lions limited their East Division counterpart to just one touchdown and got four sacks to claim a 27-22 victory at home.

It wasn’t the return to Save-on-Foods Field at BC Place that Nick Arbuckle would’ve hoped for after winning the 111th Grey Cup in Vancouver in 2024. With Arbuckle returning from a one-game absence, he and the offence failed to get into rhythm against an improving BC defence. The visitors had just two trips to the red zone and were held to 28 yards rushing as Lirim Hajrullahu was leaned on with five field goals.

Jackson Findlay picked off Arbuckle in the first half for the first of Toronto’s two turnovers. Mathieu Betts recorded three takedowns on Arbuckle, including a critical strip sack as Toronto tried to put together a touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter.

After a five-touchdown outing in Week 16, Nathan Rourke ran in for a pair of scores and guided his team to victory in the second half despite throwing three interceptions in the first. He finished his day 16-24, with 235 passing yards and an additional touchdown through the air to Justin McInnis.

With Toronto’s loss, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats officially punched their ticket to the playoffs.

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A BC two-and-out on the game’s opening drive set up what would be a first half headlined by plays on defence. Toronto responded with a field goal drive to take an early lead.

Combine the two-and-out with a Willie Drew interception on Rourke and it was just the start the Ryan Dinwiddie would’ve wanted to see from his defence on the road. But backed up on their goal line following the pick, the Argos gave it away to make it interceptions on back-to-back plays as Findlay read a deep ball from Arbuckle to register his first CFL interception, bringing Rourke and company back onto the field. Sean Whyte finished off BC’s second possession of the ballgame with a 30-yard field goal to level things at 3-3.

 

With the Argos back on the field, Mital created yards after the catch on a 33-yard pickup. An unnecessary roughness penalty against Mathieu Betts then brought the Argos into the red zone. The Lions’ defence almost produced another turnover after Tomasi Laulile got a strip sack on Arbuckle, but Spencer Brown was able to recover it for his team. With third and 11 looming, the Argos were forced into another field goal, going up 6-3 after the first quarter.

Early in the second, Benjie Franklin made a diving interception on Rourke for his fourth pick of the season as the BC pivot overcooked a pass. BC’s defence helped out their quarterback with their second sack of the evening to force the Argos into a punt.

Butler ripped off a 45-yard run to help get his offence going as the BC running back made it a 1000-yard rushing season on the play. Not long after that, Rourke faked a handoff and rolled to his right to deliver a touchdown pass to McInnis, capping off a four-play scoring drive.

Later in the second, another big play helped get BC to their next score as Rourke aired it out to Keon Hatcher Sr. for a 58-yard play. Later in the series, with Rourke trying to evade the pressure from Toronto’s pass rush, Aaron Casey brought down the BC quarterback for a loss of 15. Whyte was called on to make a 47-yard field goal, putting BC up 13-6.

The Lions made it three straight stops on defence but shortly after, the Argos’ defence made it three first-half interceptions on Rourke. McInnis tried to make a catch across the middle but the ball tipped off of his gloves and Derek Slywka made the grab. With the final play of the half Hajrullahu nailed a 50-yard field goal to make it 13-9 at the break.

Hajrullahu continued to pile on the points early in the second half with his fourth make of the game, cutting the deficit to a single point. After punting it away with their first possession of the half, Rourke and the Lions got into gear on their second go of things. McInnis caught consecutive passes for first downs for gains of 17 and then 30 and then Rourke looked Hatcher Sr.’s way in the end zone, drawing a pass interference penalty. Rourke muscled across the goal line for his eighth rushing score of the season to make it 20-12 late in the third.

The Argos got three points closer with Hajrullahu’s fifth field goal, his third from 50 yards out. Going the other way, the Lions created some separation in the scoreline with a second straight touchdown drive. A pair of calls against the Argos gave BC 55 yards, setting up Rourke at the goal line for his second rushing score. Whyte’s extra point put the home team up by a dozen at 27-15.

After both teams punted, the Argos had to make something happen down two scores with just over eight minutes remaining. This time it was the BC’s defence turn to help out with some penalties. Fouls cost them 40 yards on the six-play Toronto drive which was rounded out with the away team’s first touchdown of the evening, a seven-yard pass from Arbuckle to Makai Polk. That score plus Hajrullahu’s extra point brought them to within five with 5:46 on the clock.

Toronto regained possession following a BC two-and-out, giving the visitors the chance to go into the lead after the three-minute warning. The Argonauts were able to get to midfield but then Betts came up with a pivotal turnover for his team. The BC defensive lineman snuck up on Arbuckle’s blindside to produce a strip sack with Josh Woods recovering. Back with the football and trying to see out the game, Rourke powered through a Wynton McManis tackle attempt on third and short as BC would claim a 27-22 win.

Awaiting the Toronto Argonauts in Week 18 is a test against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at BMO Field on Saturday, October 4. Later that evening, the BC Lions will take on the Calgary Stampeders at home.