(Kingston, Ontario) The presence of Anthony Calvillo and Danny Maciocia would never go unnoticed at a pre-football barbecue. Even more so when said barbecue takes place barely six days after the Alouettes won the Gray Cup.
At tailgate of the Carabins, at the Vanier Cup, many fans therefore asked Maciocia – general manager of the Alouettes – and Calvillo – offensive coordinator – for photos. All this in French, now that Calvillo manages to communicate with fans in the language of Gabriel Grégoire.
“I worked for three years at the University of Montreal, I coached some of the players, I coached with Marco [Iadeluca], recounted Calvillo, a few hours before the Carabins’ triumph. Every team wants to end with a championship. We finished ours last week and we are here to support the Carabins so that it ends the same way. »
Maciocia, Calvillo and Alouettes head coach Jason Maas drove three hours between Kingston and Montreal to come and encourage the Carabins, but also take in the crowds. “AC has ties to the Carabins and Jay wants to get involved in the community. He wanted to do it before he went home on Monday,” says Maciocia.
It was a walkabout, a bit of recruitment too – “That’s Danny’s department!” “, Calvillo defends – but also reunions. Many former Carabins came to make their rounds, and the world of football is a small environment. Irv Smith, a member of the Alouettes from 1996 to 2001, came to greet Calvillo. It turns out that Smith’s son, Kaylyn St-Cyr, plays for the Carabins.
Contact with fans allowed Maciocia to measure even more the impact of the Alouettes’ triumph. “What strikes me are the faces of Montrealers, of Quebecers, who thank us. I find it weird to be told thank you. But it proves how much the city needed it. We needed good news. With everything going on around the world and at home, we needed to feel good. »
For the cause
Speaking of feeling good, the Montagnards do just that, distribute happiness.
The Montagnards are, in a way, the Ultras of the Carabins, supporters who are always present, rain or shine. So there they were, on a grassy field adjacent to the stadium, a field where the grass still gives way to the mud because the mercury remains above freezing, with their kiosk, their caps, their jerseys “Le Jo Show » for quarterback Jonathan Sénécal. It was the good Martin Sasseville, known to the Twitter community as Pucktavie, who tipped us off.
The Montagnards are around a hundred members in good standing, as they say in the underworld. At $40 per year, in addition to profits generated by donations collected in tailgatesthe group has managed, for six years, to offer two scholarships of $1,500 per year to Carabins players.
“We don’t give them to scholarship recipients, but to outside players who need scholarships,” explains Tamylia Elkadi, the organization’s social media manager. It’s to help players stay longer in the program, players who just wouldn’t make it, with work in addition to football and studies. »
The atmosphere was already festive before the match. We guess it was perky four hours later.