By Joel Gasson

Riders take one on the chin in Montreal

Oct 13, 2014 | 3:22 PM

If you only saw the first quarter of the Saskatchewan Roughriders game in Montreal, then you saw all the team had to offer on Monday afternoon.

The Green and White, led by running back Anthony Allen, actually took a 7-0 lead in this one but it was all downhill from there as Montreal outscored the Riders 40-2 the rest of the way in a 40-9 beat down at Percival Molson Stadium.

Tino Sunseri started the game for the Riders, but wasn’t actually used much out of the gate as Allen ran wild to start the game picking up the bulk of his 126 yards in the first quarter, including the Riders only offence of the game, an 11-yard touchdown reception. Like the rest of the team though, Allen wasn’t really to see be seen the rest of the way especially in the second half as he didn’t pick up a single yard.

Allen said after the game he was pulled out for a fumble early in the third quarter.

“That’s the name of the game, I’ll take the rap all day, I’ll never blame anyone else,” said Allen. “It’s up to me, I have to be able to get the mesh and get the ball.”

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It could be argued that the fumble wasn’t his fault at all, as it appeared that Sunseri perhaps botched the hand-off.

Either way, the Riders were already in full self-destruct mode by then.

The game really turned for the Riders early in the second quarter when Alouettes linebacker Chip Cox got a free run at Sunseri causing a fumble and eventually a 14-7 Alouettes lead. The snowball kept getting bigger from there as the Riders were barely able to convert a first down, let alone get to the Alouettes side of the field.

Sunseri was eventually pulled for Seth Doege, who didn’t fair much better, but the quarterback who continues to say the right things did so again after the game opting to keep his emotions in check yet again.

“I’m all about the team, understanding that everybody has a role, everybody has a situation,” said Sunseri. “I’m just going to go in, make sure I know my role, understand what I know I can do better.”

Sunseri finished the day 7-for-12 for 72 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Doege was 3-for-6 for 37 yards and an interception.

Head Coach Corey Chamblin will again face a barrage of questions this coming week about the quarterback situation with both Sunseri and Doege being mostly ineffective on Monday afternoon, with an added twist. This time, veteran Kerry Joseph could be in the mix to start next Sunday in Edmonton, a notion Chamblin wasn’t thinking about just yet.

“That’s not in my mind set right now, I’m not even thinking about next week,” he said. “I got to finish this one and see where we need to get better.”

Joseph did make one appearance in a successful short yardage conversion.

Another trend emerging for the Riders is their poor play on the road without Durant. The Riders have beat Ottawa at home and nearly beat the Stamps at Mosaic Stadium. On the road, they’ve been out-scored 92-12.

“We just got to find a way to make it gel and find the magic again,” said Chamblin.

The Riders only have three more games to find that magic beginning Sunday when they host the Edmonton Eskimos at Mosaic Stadium.

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