REGINA – The Montreal Alouettes defence stepped up in a big way on Saturday night to secure the team’s first victory of the season.

The group recorded four interceptions, two each on Brandon Bridge and David Watford, to hold the Saskatchewan Roughriders offence in check in the 23-17 win.

“I thought our defence really stepped up when they had to step up,” said head coach Mike Sherman, who notched the first victory of his CFL coaching career. “They made plays when they had to make plays. We have a very talented secondary with their ability to get hands on balls… it didn’t surprise me that they caught the ball that well.”

It was a defensive battle from both teams with neither side allowing much offensive momentum to be put together. Montreal and Saskatchewan were limited to one touchdown a piece and it came down to who could execute the other parts of the game plan.

“It was a hard fought game. We lost a lot of guys but it was good to get our first win. It’s always good to get the first win of the season to kind of set it off,” said Als defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman. “We did a lot of good things. Some things we didn’t do as good, we got guys getting injured, but we kept battling, we kept fighting. That’s what the CFL is about… I think we did a good job of closing that game out.”

Westerman, a consistence presence on the Als defence, finished the game with five tackles.

“I think we had a great week of preparation. We really practiced hard, we really worked on our technique.

We really worked on the fundamentals and that carried us throughout the game where at times if things weren’t going right, we fell back on our fundamentals, we fell back on our technique and I think that helped us get that W today,” added Westerman.

Now the Als prepare for next week’s game at home against the Ottawa REDBLACKS, looking to string together a few wins in a row.

“We have a big game next week against our rivals in Ottawa at home and that’s a big one for us,” said Westerman. “We’ve got to be prepared and get ready because we know they’re coming.”