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boos for Gay were faint,
Selling the new tentative agreement to the CFLs players may be a challenge, Hamilton Tiger-Cats union rep Peter Dyakowski said Sunday. Cheap Marcus Gilbert Jersey . The players association and CFL reached a tentative agreement late Saturday night on a new contract. The move averted a potential players strike and, if ratified, would secure the league five years of labour peace. But the CFLPA needed more than four hours Saturday night to sell the deal to its team reps during a conference call. Once news of the tentative agreement broke, many CFL veterans voiced their displeasure on social media. "You hire a bunch of clowns and you are probably going to get a circus," tweeted Calgary Stampeders defensive back Jeff Hecht. "How it works in the 21st century: Unions are dead," Calgary running back Jon Cornish, the CFLs outstanding player last year, said on his official Twitter account. Dyakowski, an offensive lineman with the Ticats, says some of his teammates are definitely unhappy but hed expect most to vote in favour of acceptance. However, he admits other team reps will face a tougher task doing so. "Certainly we had some difficulty here with guys not embracing it, to put it mildly," Dyakowski said. "I think in higher revenue markets its going to be that much harder because they see theres money to be spent. "I could see the boys on the prairies being up in arms about this so their reps have their jobs cut out for them in explaining the benefits of this deal." The union was expected to launch a work stoppage Sunday, threatening the exhibition game Monday night between the Toronto Argonauts and Winnipeg Blue Bombers. That contest will now go ahead. If the agreement is ratified, the regular season will start on time June 26. A date has not been announced for a ratification vote. The expectation is enough players will vote in favour, but one CFL star requesting anonymity isnt so sure. "I wouldnt be shocked if the guys vote against it," he said. Dyakowski, who won the CBC show "Canadas Smartest Person" in 2012, believes the deal is the best the union could secure without going on strike. "Is it what we started out going for? No," he said. "But there is always give and take in negotiations. "Ultimately, what we feel we have is the best deal we can achieve without doing significant damage on both sides. No one wants a work stoppage." However, the anonymous player felt the threat of a strike was the unions prime bargaining chip. "We had to miss pre-season games and give the owners a feeling of empty stadiums, refunding tickets, not selling merchandise, food," he said. "When the regular season approaches, at least they have a taste of it. "For us, our training camp pay doesnt change whether we play one, two or no pre-season games." Dyakowski doesnt see it that way. "The prospect of going on strike, it would be a fun adventure for the first couple of days," he said. "But at the end of the day it could just as likely be a two, four or five-month ordeal than just a couple of days of trying to send a wake-up call." The CFL got the players to agree to a $5-million salary cap with nominal $50,000 annual increases. The union initially requested a $6.24-million cap and dropped to $5.2 million before accepting the leagues offer. The CFL also got a major concession from the union on the gross revenue formula that would trigger the renegotiation of the cap or entire collective agreement. The players, who initially wanted the CBA to include revenue sharing, had called for the cap or entire agreement to be renegotiated if league revenues increased by more than $18 million -- excluding the Grey Cup -- in the third year of the deal. The CFL wanted that figure to be $27 million, which the union ultimately agreed to. "We have a lot of guys very upset about losing the revenue-sharing issue," Dyakowski said. "That was near and dear to a lot of guys hearts. "We have five years to work towards it so theres a lot of time for planning and preparation. But I think we have a workable deal, a viable deal, a deal thats good for the teams, a deal thats good for the players and puts money into everyones pockets." Another key bargaining issue for the CFLPA was having independent neurologists on the field for each game. But that wasnt included in the deal. Dyakowski did point to the minimum salary increasing $5,000 to $50,000. And even at $5 million, he said the cap represents a $600,000 increase over 2013. Players will also receive signing bonuses -- $1,500 for rookies and a tiered system for veterans that will average $7,500 each -- and see their average salary boosted to $96,000. During negotiations, the CFL maintained the average player stipend was $82,000 while the CFLPA has contended it was just under $72,000. The tentative deal removes the option year from CFL player contracts, excluding rookies, allowing a veteran to become a free agent sooner and maximize his earning potential. "Its a big win for players freedom that will help younger players earn fairer value earlier in their careers," Dyakowski said. Getting a deal in place is crucial for the CFL, which is entering the first year of a new five-year television agreement with TSN thats reportedly worth an average of $42 million a year. But games had to be played for the league -- and ultimately its teams -- to receive the money. The deal will reportedly net clubs an extra $2.75-million in revenue. Cheap Cameron Sutton Jersey . And while taking highly-touted Simon Fraser offensive lineman Matthias Goossen second overall on Tuesday night will definitely help in an area of need for the club, it was a swap of draft picks that may prove to be his most shrewd move. "When Jesse Briggs started to fall a little bit, you could just see Kyle perk up in his chair. Cheap Rod Woodson Jersey . According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, it doesnt appear the offer was warmly received by the team. Blue Jackets director of hockey operations John Davidson and general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said on Wednesday the team has made offers of $6 million for two years, $32 million for six and $46 million over eight years but each one was refused by the restricted free agent centre and agent Kurt Overhardt.TORONTO - As Rudy Gay took to the Air Canada Centre court for the first time since being traded, moments after being introduced to a chorus of tepid boos, he approached each Raptors starter, slapping hands with his former teammates. They reciprocated, but none of them initiated the round of pre-game pleasantries. On the teams bench sat a quartet of former Sacramento Kings, but you wouldnt know it. Their focus mirrored that of the starters. They meant business. "We all have friends on that team," acknowledged Patrick Patterson, one of the former Kings that came to Toronto in the seven-player trade completed on December 9. "Going into this game, we have to treat it as if theyre the enemy. We have to treat them like theyre the villain and were the superhero, pretty much. We cant be friendly with them. As soon as the game starts, you have to put your hard hat on." The Raptors learnt that lesson the hard way. A month earlier, the two teams faced off in Sacramento, their first meeting since the early-season swap. "I thought the way that we approached the game last time was too friendly, too cool, too lackadaisical, too laid-back," Patterson said, looking back at his return to California. Emotions were high, on both sides, as players embraced their friends and old teammates prior to tip-off, laughing and joking around, having also shared a meal the night before. Only the Kings were laughing 48 minutes later. Embarrassed, the Raptors - a post-trade feel-good story - left with their tail in-between their legs. Dwane Casey questioned his teams disposition and professionalism, Chuck Hayes called it their worst performance since the trade and John Salmons conducted his entire post-game interview head down after a 109-101 loss. Round two would be different, Casey promised leading up to the rematch in Toronto on Friday. From the moment his club took the floor, coming face-to-face with Gay and the Kings, it was clear that message had been received. "I thought the roles were reversed this time," Patterson after his new team closed out their 99-87 win. "I thought we came out the right way, with the right intensity." "Guys were professional, very professional, workman-like, not disrespecting their friends on the other team, but yet still knowing we had a job to do when you walk out between those lines," Casey echoed. "After the game is over you can shake hands, hug, kiss, whatever you want to do, but once the game starts those guys have a different colour jersey and weve got to have that razor-like focus every time we walk on the floor." Like the Kings had done in Sacramento, the Raptors jumped on the visitors riight out of the gate, taking a 29-19 lead into the second quarter. Cheap JuJu Smith-Schuster Jersey. Although the Kings dominated the paint and lived at the free throw line once again, Toronto neutralized their best player early. DeMarcus Cousins, who has owned the Raptors over his career, played just eight first-half minutes, saddled with foul trouble. After losing some ground in the second frame, the Raptors came out in the third quarter and - like they did in the first - outscored Sacramento 29-19, effectively repaying their old friends for last months debacle. "I think we let go of the personal stuff," said Salmons, who has been preaching forgiveness over the last couple days. "We thought we were doing that the first game, clearly we didnt. This time we just let it go and played basketball." Returning from an ankle injury, Terrence Ross scored half of his team-leading 18 points, hitting half of his six threes in the third. Patterson also added seven of his 15 points in the quarter. "Ill tell you what, hes been a godsend for us, as far as stretching the floor," Casey said of Patterson, who hit three of his four attempts from long range Friday. "Not only that, just his intensity, his work ethic, how hard how plays. Hes got a reputation around the league of playing hard. Hes one of our best pick-and-roll defenders because he uses his quickness and then he can go down and stretch the floor out. Its a big plus, not a lot of guys can do that and he does an excellent job of doing it. The boos for Gay were faint, mostly, but consistent every time he touched the ball. The former Raptors forward scored 15 points on 5-of-13 from the field, a shooting percentage reminiscent of his time spent in Toronto. Gay has shot 50 per cent or better in 23 of 38 games as a King after doing so just once in 18 contests with the Raptors this season. Again, the Raptors won as a team. They got double-digit scoring from five players and although DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry struggled from the field - shooting a combined 6-for-24 - the Raptors backcourt duo totalled 13 assists, one fewer than the entire Kings team. Salmons added eight points off the bench, Greivis Vasquez chipped in with four and, although Hayes was scoreless in 10 minutes, his defence on Cousins changed the game in the third quarter. "He has that old man stretch," Casey said of Hayes. "Youve got to be strong to hold your ground against Cousins. Hes a beast in there and now they bring Reggie Evans in, two of the strongest guys in the league. So I thought his brute strength helped him hold his position." With their 34th victory, the Raptors matched last seasons win total in just 60 games. Cheap Arizona Cardinals Jerseys Cheap Cowboys Jerseys Cheap Browns Jerseys Cheap Panthers Jerseys Cheap Packers Jerseys Cheap Jaguars Jerseys Cheap Broncos Jerseys Cheap Texans Jerseys Cheap Colts Jerseys Cheap Chiefs Jerseys Cheap Falcons Jerseys Cheap Ravens Jerseys Cheap Bills Jerseys Cheap Bears Jerseys Cheap Bengals Jerseys ' ' '
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