The 46th Grey Cup

Grey Cup

The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team. It is Canada's largest annual sports and television event, regularly drawing a Canadian viewing audience of about 3 to 4 million individuals...

was the championship game of the 1958 season

1958 CFL season

The 1958 CFL season was the fifth season in modern Canadian professional football, although officially it would become known as the inaugural season of the Canadian Football League .-CFL news in 1958:...

 of the Canadian Football League

Canadian Football League

The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

 on November 29, 1958. The game was played in Vancouver's Empire Stadium before a crowd of 36,567. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League . They play their home games at Canad Inns Stadium, and plan to move to a new stadium for the 2012 season.The Blue Bombers were founded...

 defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...

 35-28

Game summary

Winnipeg Blue Bombers(35) - TDs, Jim Van Pelt (2), Norm Rauhaus, Charlie Shepard. Cons, Van Pelt (4). FGs, Van Pelt (2). Single, Shepard.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats(28) - TDs, Ron Howell

Ron Howell

Ronald John Howell was a running back for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1955–1962. Howell won the CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award in 1958 and the Gruen Trophy as the outstanding rookie in the CFL East in 1954...

 (2), Ralph Goldston

Ralph Goldston

Ralph Peter Goldston was a running back and defensive back in the Canadian Football League who played nine seasons for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He helped the Tiger-Cats to two Grey Cup wins in 1957 and 1963. He was a 4 time all-star with the Ti-Cats, intercepting 32 passes and returning them for...

, Gerry McDougall

Gerry McDougall

Gerry McDougall is an American Football League and Canadian Football League running back from 1957 through 1967. McDougall was named a CFL Eastern All-Star for 1957 and 1958 while playing for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats....

. Cons, Steve Oneschuk (4).

Tiger-Cats head coach Jim Trimble

Jim Trimble

James W. "Jim" Trimble was a football coach who served as head coach in both the National Football League and Canadian Football League, but his legacy is more connected to football products, thanks to his "slingshot" goal posts...

 stated before the game his team would "waffle" the Blue Bombers.

Hamilton started well, opening a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. Winnipeg had got within one point when the Hamilton coach made a controversial call.

Instead of downing the ball before half time, coach Trimble elected to punt the ball away on the last play. The punt was blocked, and recovered in the end zone by Bomber Norm Rauhaus to give them a 20-14 half-time lead. "We should have won the 1958 Grey Cup but there was a bad coaching error before halftime" said Hamilton defensive lineman Angelo Mosca

Angelo Mosca

Angelo Mosca is a former Canadian Football League player and professional wrestler. He is also known by the wrestling nicknames King Kong Mosca and The Mighty Hercules...

.

In the second half, Hamilton came back to tie, but a Hamilton fumble was recovered by Bomber Gord Rowland

Gord Rowland

Gordon Rowland , was a linebacker who played ten seasons in the Canadian Football League for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In 1997 he was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.- External links :* at...

 which led to a touchdown by Winnipeg fullback Charlie Shepard. Hamilton again fought back to take the lead 28-27. Winnipeg quarterback Jim Van Pelt

Jim Van Pelt

James S. Van Pelt is a former American football player.He played at the quarterback position for the University of Michigan from 1955 to 1957....

 scored on a trick play where he pitched the ball to running back Leo Lewis

Leo Lewis

Leo Lewis was a famed American College football player for Lincoln University of Missouri in the 1950s , who continued his success with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League ....

 who passed back to Van Pelt for the touchdown. A Sheppard punt single closed out the scoring.

Trivia

Winnipeg racked up 187 passing yards and 247 rushing yards from Shepard, Kenny Ploen

Ken Ploen

Kenneth "Ken" Ploen [PLAYN], OM was a star quarterback in American college football and for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League .-College football:...

, Lewis and Van Pelt. Van Pelt scored two touchdowns, four converts and two field goals, a total of 22 points.

Winnipeg hadn't won the Grey Cup

Grey Cup

The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team. It is Canada's largest annual sports and television event, regularly drawing a Canadian viewing audience of about 3 to 4 million individuals...

in eighteen years.

The 1958 Grey Cup game is considered to be one of the ten best Grey Cup games of all time.