Toronto Argonauts: Royce Metchie eager for homecoming
The Toronto Argonauts’ home opener will be a special game for Royce Metchie both on and off the field as he prepares for his debut in Double Blue.
Since Michael “Pinball” Clemons took over as general manager of the Toronto Argonauts, he has made it a point to try and bring players back home.
As a Brampton native, Royce Metchie was an attractive name for the Argos but not just because of his place of birth. The team saw a player that was a seamless fit on their defence.
Going into his fourth season in the CFL, the team he plays for might be different but joining defensive backs coach Joshua Bell and defensive coordinator Corey Mace was a sort of homecoming for Metchie. The connection to the Calgary Stampeders is one the Argos haven’t hidden from given the players and coaches that have joined the Double Blue.
It has been an interesting journey for Metchie as his family lived in Nigeria, Ghana and Taiwan before moving to Canada where they established roots in Brampton as the Toronto Sun’s Frank Zicarelli explains.
Metchie’s older brother Miles was the one who introduced football to Royce and his brother John who was drafted into the NFL by the Houston Texans this year.
“We played basically every sport growing up but football wasn’t one we never really knew growing up in Africa,” Metchie explains. “When we got here, Miles started playing and we would go to practice and eventually all four of us started playing.”
Royce and John talk at least once a week about many things including how their football journey is going, and some observations about their play on the field. It has allowed them to push each other to achieve their dreams.
He now gets to live a new one getting to return home and play in front of many family and friends. Metchie believes he will had at least 30 to 40 requests for tickets and could have taken part of a section at BMO Field and filled it.
It’s that enthusiasm both on and off the field that excited head coach Ryan Dinwiddie.
“He gives us some notoriety as a football player around the community,” Dinwiddie said. “He’s been great in the community and he’s a solid football player. We believe he adds a lot to our room and Corey was a big supporter of him and we felt that he’s made us a better team since the day he signed.”
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Ryan Dinwiddie expected to coach in home opener after getting over bout with COVID
Dinwiddie has not been able to prepare his team the way he would have liked after being forced into isolation after testing positive for COVID. He and his family contracted the virus a week ago and the Argos coach is expected to get out from his quarantine period.
It was reported by the Toronto Sun that if Dinwiddie was not available for the Argos, Clemons would assume the responsibility given his experience as a head coach in the past. Pinball is always at practice talking with the players and observing the team.
Having the Week 1 bye certainly has given the Argos a benefit of not having to wonder what a game without their head coach on the sidelines would have been like.