The Calgary Stampeders have done it. Years of frustration were left behind on the football field last night when the Stamps carried home the Grey Cup.

But their final victory over the Hamilton Tiger Cats was anything but easy. In one of the most entertaining games in years, Calgary ended up on the winning side of a 26-24 score, thanks to the last play of the game -- a field goal by Calgary kicker Mark McLoughlin.

Hamilton came into the game as underdogs. But an imaginative offensive plan executed by quarterback Danny McManus and a stellar performance by the Ti-Cats defence nearly toppled the Western champs.

But a precise and effective game by Calgary quarterback Jeff Garcia was able to put the points on the board when they were most needed.

A cold but clear night at Winnipeg Stadium greeted the first-ever meeting between the two teams in the 86-year history of the Grey Cup.

Hamilton got to the final by beating the Montreal Alouettes on the last play of the game in their conference final last Sunday.

Calgary had an easier time, easily topping the Edmonton Eskimos in their encounter last weekend.

Both teams ended the season in first place in their division.

But for Hamilton it was a remarkable turnaround. Last year, the Tiger Cats won just two games. This season, under new head coach and CFL legend, Ron Lancaster, they bounced back to find themselves in the ultimate game.