WATCH ABOVE: Friendly rivalry or in poor taste? Alberta sports fans are split when it comes to A tweet from the Eskimos after the Flames were eliminated from the playoffs. Emily Mertz explains.
EDMONTON — A short message from the Eskimos’ Twitter account Sunday night seems to have raised the ire of Calgarians while getting a thumbs down from some Edmontonians as well.
The tweet – sent at 11:15 p.m. May 10 after the Anaheim Ducks eliminated the Flames – contained the hashtag #QuackQuackQuack and tagged both the Flames’ and Stampeders’ Twitter accounts.
The Flames’ season came to an end in overtime Sunday night, when Corey Perry of the Ducks scored, giving the team a 3-2 win over Calgary and taking the series 4-1.
“It’s sports, let’s not lose sight of that,” said Eskimos GM Ed Hervey, when asked about the tweet. “It’s sports.
“We’ve had a chance to talk with the person who did it. There was no malice intent. It was just good old-fashioned fun,” added Hervey. “This is social media, it’s just what the kids do. Hey, I stand behind our guy.”
READ MORE: Ducks top Flames in OT of Game 5 to advance
Professional sports teams have often played up rivalries – in person and on social media.
In September 2011, the Eskimos bought add space on a billboard at a McMahon Stadium parking lot ahead of the Labour Day game against the Stampeders. The billboard depicted an Edmonton Eskimo fan riding astride a Calgary Stampeder fan like a horse.
In this case, Stampeders President Gordon Norrie laughed off the tweet from the Eskimos in his reply:
And the official Stampeders account didn’t respond directly to the #QuackQuackQuack, but congratulated the Flames after the game:
Similarly, the Flames organization had no direct reply to the Eskimos, but thanked fans for their support throughout the season after the game Sunday night.
READ MORE: Eskimos plant saucy billboard at McMahon Stadium ahead of Labour Day game
Last September, the Eskimos stoked the rivalry with Saskatchewan with radio ads calling Roughrider fans “horrible” and “irritating.”
Still, some people on social media voiced their displeasure with Sunday night’s Eskimos tweet. Meantime, others defended the team.
“Too many people are sensitive at this stage I think,” said Hervey, pointing out that even the most positive posts get negative comments on social media.
“It was in good humour but it’s only humour when it doesn’t affect you, I guess. It’s sensitive when people take offence.”
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