Lions Den

For some retirement is something that you look forward to and when the day comes it never soon enough.

Such is not the case with Paul McCallum who at the young age of 46 is back where he was last season and that’s on the field, or rather the turf with the BC Lions.

Retiring is one thing and for most sports athletes it’s hard to get it out of your system and while some actually do retire, others just “coin” the phrase.

McCallum hadn’t touched a football since retiring, but earlier in the week he was back at the Lions practice facility in Surrey, kicking, punting and just being himself enjoying the game.

Not alone as he has lots of support from his team-mates who welcomed him to the squad with open arms.

With the Lions headed for the CFL playoffs and with only one game remaining in the regular season some might say the call wasn’t unexpected.

Lion’s kicker Richie Leone has had issues the past while with field goals and converts and the Lions knew they were in trouble if something wasn’t done.

Done like dinner and the Lions brought in the desert in the form of a McCallumishous treat.

McCallum who spent last season with Saskatchewan mentions he had come to terms with his career being officially over and was enjoying spending time with his Daughter kicking soccer ball around.

While he has had the season off, he’s a pro and we can’t forget that he’s been kicking since he was four – yes four!

While Leone’s had issues GM Wally Buono mentions that Leone will still handle the kickoff and punts, while McCallum will line up for field goals in the 50-yard line.

Buono mentioned that he felt no need for urgency or a move of desperation as he felt that Leone could still be called on for longer kicks if needed.

At the young age of 24 it’s felt that Leone is still an excellent punter with an average of 49.3 yards, but of late has struggled with place kicking.

He recently missed two converts, a field goal attempt of 30 and 45 yards, in the Lions win on the road (24-6) over Saskatchewan this past Saturday.

Any athlete can struggle and when a kicker only hits on just 35-of-51 of his field goal attempts (68.6 per cent) it’s of concern to management as well as ownership.

While the Lions are bringing McCallum back to the “den” it was Leon’s presence that ended McCallum’s last go-around with the Lions in training camp in 2015.

While one might question the fact there might be a “tension” in the Lions Den apparently all is fine as both Q-Backs have become friends over the summer.

While McCallum is in the process of opening a Yoga studio in Kamloops he has offered Leone all the help he can give, which shows a form of true professionalism.

Buono told the media “Whether you bring somebody in or you cut somebody or you demote somebody, there are always messages being sent and it’s clear that we needed to be as competitive in that area (as possible), and we weren’t.”

McCallum made all 36 of his previous playoff field-goal attempts for the Lions, including a team-record 6-for-6 in the club’s 2006 Grey Cup win.

Buono states “For us to bring in somebody like Paul just makes us even stronger.”

B.C. (11-6) hosts Saskatchewan (5-12) at BC Place Saturday and can secure second place in the West Division with a win or tie.

The game could however be meaningless if the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (10-7) are unable to beat the Ottawa Redblacks (8-8-1), who have clinched first in the East Division.

McCallum remarked to the media “The team’s playing well and hopefully I can help them get to the Grey Cup.”