VANCOUVER

They’ll play the 99th version of Canada’s big football game on Sunday here. But it’s already been upstaged.

Friday night’s Vanier Cup overtime classic between McMaster and Laval, for starters, is being called the best in the history of that event, and one of the more thrilling three-down battles veteran observers have ever seen. It also highlighted the talents of Mac’s Kyle Quinlan, to some the next Great Canadian Hope at the quarterback position in the CFL.

But nothing — not McMaster’s upset triumph, Wally Buono’s possible retirement, gorgeous new B.C. Place or the final game of Winnipeg defensive lineman Doug Brown — has attracted the attention and chatter of the Battle of the Gridiron Geezers.

That was the scrap between 73-year-old former quarterback Joe Kapp and 73-year-old, cane-wielding Angelo Mosca on Friday at a luncheon involving former players and the public, the resumption of a feud that has its roots in the 1963 Grey Cup game and exploded in fireworks again this week.

Less than 24 hours before this year’s Grey Cup game between the Lions and Blue Bombers, the Kapp-Mosca tussle was the topic everyone wanted to talk about.

“Knowing Joe Kapp, that story doesn’t surprise me at all,” said B.C. quarterback Travis Lulay, named the league’s outstanding player this week.

“I thought that was a pretty cool story.”

What started with Kapp waving a flower — a “peace offering” — in Mosca’s face included a baseball swing by Mosca with his cane that connected with Kapp’s head and evoked a response with a right hand from Kapp that sent the former all-star Hamilton lineman sprawling to the floor and off the stage.

The two men were supposed to be enjoying an amiable reflection on their careers, but it turned ugly, all because Kapp, apparently, still hasn’t forgiven Mosca for his controversial hit on Willie Fleming in the ‘63 Grey Cup.

“I was stunned. I didn’t think he had that much animosity towards me over something that happened almost 50 years ago,” Mosca told The Hamilton Spectator. “I was dumbfounded.”

Mosca said he sensed Kapp was in a surly mood before the altercation.

“It’s kind of sad. I don’t go to bed thinking about Joe Kapp every night. But Joe Kapp must go to bed every night thinking about Mosca hitting Willie Fleming,” Mosca said. “I have nothing against Joe Kapp and I don’t care about Joe Kapp.”

Players and coaches from this year’s Grey Cup teams were both stunned and amused by the incident.

“Honestly, God bless both of ’em,” chuckled Buono on Saturday. “Look, that generation was a tremendously tough, tough generation. It was just after the war, it was about how they were raised, what their mentality was. I don’t think we can comprehend that today.

“You just don’t see those guys being buddy-buddy before a game.”

Given that Mosca was a pro wrestler and is marketing a new book, while Kapp was an actor, appearing with Burt Reynolds in The Longest Yard among other films, and showed a penchant for flamboyant public behaviour during his years as head coach at Cal and briefly as GM of the Lions, those at the luncheon apparently weren’t certain whether the fight was a little piece of theatre designed to enliven Grey Cup week.

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But the cane head shot and the punch were real, and so this wild story seems certain to take its place alongside Grey Cup legends like the Staple Game, the Fog Bowl and the horse ridden through the Royal York Hotel.

“And I thought Italians were tough,” chuckled Buono.

We’ll see if the B.C.-Winnipeg matchup can top what has already occurred on this memorable Grey Cup weekend. The fear among some, of course, is that the Lions will steamroll the Bombers as they’ve steamrolled so many clubs after their 0-5 start and turn this big game into a laugher.

The Bombers, who controlled the ball for 39 minutes against Hamilton in the East final last weekend, will need their defence to be dominant and make the Lions play on a long field all day.

The Lions have more firepower, but Winnipeg’s athletic defensive backfield is capable of making game-changing big plays.

“You can’t prepare for a tipped ball, you can’t prepare for a receiver falling down, you can’t prepare for a sweaty hand,” said Buono. “The only thing that’s nice is we don’t have to deal with the elements.”

Given that the last major sporting event in Vancouver was Game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup final between the hometown Canucks and the Boston Bruins and produced an ugly riot that stained the city’s reputation, naturally Buono was asked if Sunday’s Grey Cup game offered Vancouver a chance to show its better side.

“Yeah, thanks for the pressure,” smiled Buono. “Win or lose, there’s no reason ever for anyone to do what happened. At the end of the day, it’s entertainment.

“I think the Grey Cup has a different aura, a different mood. People from across the country come to see the game, not just a few yahoos with their own agenda.

“It’s about being Canadian and celebrating something that’s been around for 100 years.”

It’s also, apparently, about reliving past glories and grudges. Already, that’s made this an unforgettable Grey Cup weekend.

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