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HAMILTON — The Edmonton Eskimos’ last win came down to a game of inches.

But it wasn’t just the inch they needed to score the winning touchdown, but also the one they couldn’t afford to surrender in a comeback bid by an Ottawa Redblacks squad they defeated, 21-16, Saturday.

It took Tevaun Smith making a diving grab to stay in bounds on a 17-yard toss to the back of the end zone for the go-ahead with three minutes left, before defensive back Money Hunter came up with the stop on a 12-yard gain by Mossis Madu on third-and-12 with two minutes left.

OK, make that an 11.9-yard gain, followed by a turnover on downs.

And by the skin of their teeth at both ends of the field, the Eskimos ended a four-game losing streak and now sit poised to punch their playoff ticket with a win over the league-leading Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday (5 p.m., TSN, 630 CHED).

“It feels good, I had guys behind me and we did whatever we can towards the end. That’s the best part about it, when it comes down to that last second of the game when the clock is at zero,” said Smith, who watched fellow Eskimos receiver Greg Ellingson take a 35-yard team loss to run the rest of the time off and concede a safety. “We finished and it’s a great win as a whole team.”