page_title: BC Lions
section_title: A New Home, the New Western Powerhouse (1983-1987)
hierarchical_section_title: BC Lions / Notable seasons / A New Home, the New Western Powerhouse (1983-1987)
caption_attribution_description: Taken by en:User:Gateman1997 in 2003. Released for public use.
context_page_description: The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League, and play their home games at BC Place.
  The Lions played their first season in 1954, and have played every season since. As such, they are the oldest professional sports franchise in the city of Vancouver and in the province of British Columbia. They have appeared in the league's Grey Cup championship game 10 times, winning six of those games, with their most recent championship occurring in 2011.
  The Lions were the first Western Canadian team to have won the Grey Cup at home, having done so in 1994 and 2011, before Saskatchewan won in 2013, while also becoming the only team to beat an American-based franchise in a championship game, a feat accomplished in 1994. The Lions hold the second longest playoff streak in CFL history, making the playoffs every season from the 1997 CFL season to the 2016 CFL season, failing to make the playoffs for the first time in over 20 seasons in 2017.
context_section_description: In January 1983, former Edmonton defensive coordinator Don Matthews was named BC's new head coach. The Lions also moved into the domed BC Place Stadium, their new home stadium, which opened in June 1983. The quarterback-receiver combination of Dewalt to Fernandez led the Lions' attack, while the defence set a new CFL record of 42 interceptions. The Lions finished 11–5 for the second-best record in team history and returned to first place for the first time since the 1964 season. They stormed into the playoffs, defeating Winnipeg in the Western Division finals, 39–21. The Western Division champions hosted the Toronto Argonauts in the 71st Grey Cup, ending a 19-year absence from the classic. BC Place fans watched the Argonauts defeat their hometown team in a taut 18–17 contest.
  In 1984, the Lions' biggest trade since the Joe Kapp deal brought CFL All-Star James "Quick" Parker to their defence from Edmonton. The Lions again finished first in the Western Division with a league leading 12–3–1 record, but the second straight first-place finish was dampened by the late season loss of quarterback Roy Dewalt to injury. In a repeat Western finals matchup at BC Place, Winnipeg triumphed 31–14 and went on to win their first Grey Cup since 1962. Average crowds in excess of 40,000 in each of the first two years at BC Place reversed the team's financial fortunes, with stockholders receiving early repayment. Lions greats Joe Kapp and linebacker Tom Brown were inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
caption: BC Place Stadium, 1983–2009
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