CFL: Without leave, the Alouettes will have to manage the second half of the season

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            <p>MONTREAL - The vagaries of the Canadian Football League&#39;s 2019 calendar mean that in Week 12, the Alouettes are already enjoying their third and final week off exactly half-way through their season. The Khari Jones troupe, more than ever at the heart of the Eastern playoff race, will have to use tricks to keep everyone healthy.

"When I saw the schedule for the first time, I found it very strange that we enjoyed three weeks off in the first half of the season before playing nine consecutive games," said the head coach during the first half of the season. a telephone interview with The Canadian Press, Wednesday. It is in contradiction with the objective of these weeks of leave, to rest the players. Let's hope we pass through this second half of the season without a glitch. "

Jones and his coaching team will explore every possible avenue to ensure that the team relies on health training by the end of the campaign.

"The biggest challenge for us will be to go there week by week, to see how the players feel. It will be up to us to adjust. Sometimes, maybe we'll have shorter workouts, or even have a market simulation (walkthrough) moreover, or even remove a training from the schedule.

"After returning from this break, I will also have to talk to the players on the training team to make sure they are ready at all times. We did not need these guys in the first half, but I think in the second half, I will have to call everyone. It will be necessary for us to be in good form if we qualify for the playoff games. "

Some teams, such as the BC Lions, had their first week 8 leave. By that time, the Alouettes had already had a two-week break in weeks 2 and 7.

"But I do not think it's unfair," says Jones. Someone must be inactive in week one, it's the same in week 21. As long as we do not have 10 teams, including 5 in the East, it will be difficult to have a balanced schedule. It happened like this for us this season, that's all.

"It's been a bit of an advantage for us in the first half. The first week off came to an end: I had just taken the reins of the team a week earlier and getting this break in week # 2 allowed me to settle down and put things in place that have been beneficial to us afterwards. I think that physically, guys took advantage of this schedule. Now we will play until the end and I think players are looking forward to it. When you play well, you want to keep your pace and play every week. "

On the CFL side, it was argued that several factors are taken into account in scheduling and weeks off, including stadium availability and television demands. The league also schedules more interdivisional matches in the second half of the season. As the West has five teams and East Four, this creates an imbalance that the Alouettes are the "victims" this season.

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