[b]
A Hamilton Tiger-Cats held a kicking competition this week.
The Ticats brought close to a dozen kickers and punters to Hamilton for two days of workouts, including an on-field session at Tim Hortons Field on Wednesday.
The participants included a trio of American CFL veterans: Ray Early, who handled the punting duties for the Saskatchewan Roughriders last season; former Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Ottawa Redblacks kicker Brett Maher and former Ticat Delbert Alvarado, who was with the club briefly last season.
Also in attendance was former Alabama kicker Cody Mandell, who has spent time with the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys, and Canadian Brett Lauther, who was drafted by Hamilton in 2013 but saw limited action for the club before brief stints with Toronto and Saskatchewan.
The team is also expected to bring in University of British Columbia kicker Quinn van Gylswyk for a workout in Hamilton before the Canadian Draft on May 10. Van Gylswyk is ranked No. 20 by the CFL's scouting bureau.
That the Ticats are bringing potential kicking candidates to the city instead of working them out in more ideal weather conditions in the United States is telling. Wednesday was wet, cold and windy and Tim Hortons Field has quickly gained a reputation as a tough place to kick. The team obviously wants to see how players perform in adverse conditions.
The most likely scenario will see the Ticats bring several kickers to training camp for a competition that will last throughout the pre-season.
After losing Justin Medlock to the Blue Bombers in free agency in February, the Ticats have been looking for a replacement — or replacements — to handle the kicking and punting duties.
At the moment, Hamilton does not have a single kicker on the roster.[/b]
I have a funny feeling that we will regret letting "Money" get away in FA. I hope I'm wrong but me thinks that this move will come back to bite us in the arse big time this season.
Maybe we can sign this dude Great form and style but his accuracy on long range fgs might be a problem
this guy can punt for 60+ yards as well as kick 60 yard FG's with ease and was 3 for 3 ( 33, 49, + 50 yards) during pre-season with the NFL Lions a couple years back.
sorry to see medlock go but wasnt worth possibly losing E davis or laurent to beat that 175k QB contract of his. For the bombers it makes sense as FGs is what they aim for
Tillman was one of the first to employ an Import FG kicker when he brought Lawrence Tynes to the CFL. I suspect that he would have no problem filling this position again with another young import that non of us have ever heard of.
Will he be as reliable as Medlock...probably not but he would not be making $175,000/year either.
I anticipate serious prooblems ahead if we fail to get a decent kickrer.
This coupled with other players lost to free agency leaves Hamilton with
A team destined to finish out of the playoffs, particularly with the additional loss of Tommy Condell.
Apologies for putting a damper on our prospects and expectations for 2016, but unless Austin and company have any aces up their sleeves, I see a gloomy season ah
Perhaps not this discussion board, but don’t kid yourself, decisions made
by team management behind the scene, are often critical to the team’s success or failure.
So if we had paid Justin Money his $175K, who would you have preferred us not to re-sign: Ted Laurent, Courtney Stephen or Emanuel Davis? (Of those only Big Bad Ted is likely making close to Money’s salary).
Its a good thing that they're bringing them to THF to have a look at them. I'm sure a lot of people noticed how the flags at either end of the stadium blew in different directions. This field will be a challenge for most kickers, so hopefully they find someone who can adjust to constantly changing wind conditions.
opposite [i]sides[/i] of the field blew in different directions![/b] That's a minimum of FOUR different wind directions at THF... lol
Based on that, kicking field goals at THF seems like a case of hoofing it, holding your breath and hoping for the best. Yikes. Maybe it doesn't really matter if we get a good one or not, whoever he is he'll be guessing anyway.
Great form and style but his accuracy on long range fgs might be a problem 
. Bombs away! At least we will have happy QBs and receivers?