From the start of the game, Saskatchewan dominated the game and led throughout the first 50 minutes. In the first quarter, Saskatchewan's quarterback, Darian Durant consistently moved the ball by mixing pass and run plays against Montreal's top ranked defence. The first Saskatchewan drive led to a Luca Congi field goal attempt that sailed wide, however, on their second possession, Congi was successful in his second attempt field goal attempt to give the Riders a 3–0 lead. Furthermore, the Saskatchewan defence also came up with big plays when Marcus Adams managed to strip the ball away from Montreal quarterback, Anthony Calvillo, while Keith Shologan managed to pick up the ball and ran it to Montreal's 8-yard line late in the first quarter. On the next play, Durant found slotback Andy Fantuz open in the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown pass to give Saskatchewan a 10–0 lead.