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Elliott, Ford help Winnipeg rally past Hamilton

Aug 17, 2012 - 5:02 AM Winnipeg, MB (Sports Network) - Making his first start since 2010, Joey Elliott threw for 406 yards and a touchdown, and Will Ford ran for the go- ahead score in the final two minutes, as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers rallied for a 32-25 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Elliott, Winnipeg's third starting quarterback this season, started in place of Alex Brink, who went 0-2 as a starter. First-string quarterback Buck Pierce is out with a left foot injury. That opened the door for Elliott to win his first CFL game under center.

"Offensively we got into a groove, they were playing a lot of zone and we were able to check the ball down when we needed to. And we were putting ourselves in a lot of second down and medium's," Elliott said.

Chris Matthews caught eight balls for 118 yards and a score, while Cory Watson hauled in 10 passes for 105 yards for Winnipeg (2-5), which scored 17 points off of six Hamilton turnovers.

Chris Williams had five receptions for 160 yards and two touchdowns for Hamilton (3-4), which has lost two straight on the heels of a three-game winning streak.

With the game tied 17-17 heading into the fourth quarter, the Blue Bombers went in front early in the stanza on Matthews' 12-yard touchdown catch.

A single put the Blue Bombers up the eight, but Henry Burris found Williams for an 84-yard touchdown strike and Aaron Kelly hauled in the two-point conversion to tie the score at 25-25 with less than five minutes to play.

Led by Elliott, Winnipeg countered as Ford capped an eight-play drive with a four-yard TD run to put the Blue Bombers up 32-25 with 1:28 to go.

Burris' pass on 3rd-and-1 on Hamilton's ensuing possession fell incomplete, essentially sealing the outcome.

Earlier, a 37-yard touchdown reception in the opening frame and 72-yard punt return in the second stanza by Williams, wrapped around a Justin Palardy field goal and Winnipeg single, gave Hamilton a 14-4 lead.

Palardy added another field goal right before the half to cut the deficit to 14-7 entering the break.

Palardy and Luca Congi exchanged field goals in the third quarter before Chad Simpson's five-yard major tied the contest at 17-17.

Game Notes

This was Elliott's third career start ... Williams' punt return touchdown was his fourth of the season ... Burris was 17-of-25 for 368 yards ... Clarence Denmark caught five passes for 77 yards for Winnipeg.