LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Dodgers designated injury-plagued left-hander Ted Lilly for assignment on Thursday and recalled utilityman Elian Herrera from Triple-A Albuquerque. The moves were made by the NL West leaders before they hosted the Cincinnati Reds. Lilly, 37, was 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA in five starts this season, and has been on the disabled list three times. He missed the first 3 1-2 weeks while recovering from shoulder surgery, then sat out another three weeks with a ribcage strain. He hasnt pitched since June 4 because of a neck strain. "Nobody wanted to do this," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "We all like Ted and we think he can still pitch. It just got to the point where we had to make a decision. He was very classy about it." Lilly, a 15-year veteran and two-time All-Star, was 24-21 with a 3.83 ERA in 58 starts with the Dodgers after joining them in 2010. He was 5-0 with a 1.83 ERA in his first five starts and then signed a three-year, $33 million contract following that season. "Its obviously not the way you want it to end for anybody," Mattingly said. "Teddys a competitive guy, but its been an injury thing. Teddy hasnt been able to stay on the field, and thats frustrating when you cant do that." Lilly didnt think his body could stand the rigours of being a starting pitcher again. He was willing to shift to a relief role, but he balked at the idea of going on a minor league rehab assignment first. Lilly told Mattingly and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt it wasnt necessary. "We wanted to set up a minor league schedule for him to basically try, to put him into the fire a little bit to see how it would look, but we werent able to do that," Mattingly said. "The way our bullpen is situated right now, we didnt really feel like there was a spot for him that would give us the best chance to win. "Teddy still thinks he could pitch out of the bullpen, and I really cant argue with that. It was just tough for us to make a move like that without seeing him try it instead of just displacing one of the guys we have right now." Herrera is batting .290 with six homers, 40 RBI and 14 stolen bases in 80 games with Albuquerque. He has played in three games during two stints with the Dodgers this season. Anton Slepyshev Jersey . The Redskins announced Monday that the quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl championship in the 1987 season will serve as a personnel executive. Adam Larsson Jersey . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April. http://www.cheapedmontonoilersjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-al-hamilton-jersey . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Ryan Strome Jersey . LOUIS -- St. Adidas Zack Kassian Jersey . A statement from the worlds top-ranked player says all checks "were satisfactory and showed positive evolution" regarding the injury, which contributed to his loss to Stanislas Wawrinka in the final in Melbourne.RIFU, Japan -- Unsettled Liverpool striker Luis Suarez scored for an impressive Uruguay in their 4-2 friendly win against Japan on Wednesday. Suarez capitalized on some calamitous defending by the hosts to stroke home Uruguays third goal seven minutes into the second half. Diego Forlans two goals, including a fine free-kick, earlier gave the visitors a comfortable halftime lead. Manchester Uniteds Shinji Kagawa scored a tap-in to pull one back soon after Suarezs effort, but Alvaro Gonzalez restored Uruguays three-goal advantage following a goalkeeping error by Eiji Kawashima. Keisuke Honda responded with a free-kick to make it 4-2. Suarez spent the summer pushing for a move away from Liverpool, but a newspaper in hiss home country on Wednesday quoted him as having had a change of heart and deciding to stay.dddddddddddd Japan, who lost all three of their Confederations Cup games in Brazil this summer, were back to full strength but remain far from convincing ahead of next years World Cup finals. "We havent learned our lessons (from the Confederations Cup). There is still a lot to work on before the World Cup," Kagawa said. Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni, meanwhile, praised the strength of the opposition. "You have to give credit to Uruguay," said Zaccheroni. "They are one of the best teams in the world. They showed that again by reaching the Confederations Cup semifinals this year." Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Joe McDufee has seen just about everything since he started attending Indiana Hoosiers games in 1949.Hes celebrated five national championships and an undefeated season, coped with the firing of Bob Knight, witnessed the rise and fall of the program under Mike Davis and Kelvin Sampson, cheered for the resurgence of the Hoosiers under Tom Crean and will never forget the indelible image of that chair being flung across the floor.Yet when McDufee entered the newly renovated Assembly Hall for the first time in October, the 84-year-old Indianapolis resident was stunned.Its the same old place but its gotten a shine to it, doesnt it? he marveled. Really, really beautiful. The entryway out here just blows your mind.There may be no state in America that reveres basketball history more than Indiana. McDufee, like so many others around the Hoosier State, knew the 35-year-old arena needed a makeover long before an 8-foot metal plate broke away from the ceiling and fell into the seats just hours before Indiana and Iowa were scheduled to play in February 2014.What pragmatists noticed was that other schools were ditching their quaint, dark, sometimes historic arenas for bright, brand new palaces. They added more practice space, upgraded weight rooms and installed new amenities with hopes of attracting prized recruits and top dollars from donors who would embrace the improved fan experience.Assembly Hall, meanwhile, was widely viewed as a link to an Indiana history that should not be defaced or disturbed.Athletic director Fred Glass knew better.So when Cindy Simon Skjodt, an Indiana alum and the daughter of Mel Simon, the late Indiana Pacers co-owner, offered $40 million gift to give the arena a new look, Glass took it and began the quest of turning the hall into a basketball mecca for a whole new generation of Indiana fans.---Every Indiana community has a basketball story.The Big Tens career scoring leader, Calbert Cheaney, played high school basketball in Evansville. Purdues career scoring leader, Rick Mount, played prep ball in Lebanon, about 45 minutes southeast of campus. Before chasing college and pro championships, Oscar Robertson fought for playing time on a hard-clay court in Indianapolis known as the Lockefield Dustbowl. Larry Bird, of course, will always be known as the Hick from French Lick.Bill Garrett went from Shelbyville High School to Indiana, becoming the Big Tens first African-American to log regular minutes. Bobby Plump was the real-life star of the Milan Miracle, Damon Bailey of Bedford remains the boys high school career scoring leader and former Looggottee High School coach Jack Butcher won a state-record 806 games.Indiana has several unique venues. Athletic administrators often tap dance around history while trying to keep up with the Joneses.Butler athletic director Barry Collier faced that dilemma when he realized Hinkle Fieldhouse needed refurbishing. The former Bulldogs player and coach presided over a $36 million face lift on one of the oldest courts still used in Division I basketball. Hinkle hosted Indiana state basketball championship games from its opening in 1928 through 1971, served as a military barracks during World War II and was a movie set for Hoosiers.The project replaced wooden railings with Plexiglas, bench seats with seat backs, new scoreboards and a video board above midcourt that allowed fans to see replays. Administrators tried to leave the character of the building untouched.I dont think its lost anything at all, said 30-year-old Tyler Moore, who attended Colliers basketball camp at Butler. We talked about how much cleaner things like the bathrooms are now, and to be in the Big East and recruit the caliber of player you want, you need have a place like this.Former Purdue athletic director Morgan Burke faced the same task in 2007 when blueprints were drawn for the first major project at Mackey Arena in 40 years.When it opened in December 1967, Purdue hosted one of its most famous alums, John Wooden, and his powerhouse UCLA team. Mount made his college debut that day against reigning national player of the year Lew Alcindor. During the next several decades, the Boilermakers embraced coaches such as Gene Keady and Matt Painter, watched future No. 1 draft picks Joe Barry Carroll and Glenn Robinson and celebrated a three-year Big Ten title run.Burke found a way to add more comfortable seats, a more appealing ticket office and better practice facilities. Since completing the $82 million project five years ago, attendance has increased and Purdue has reclaimed its perch in the Big Tens upper division.As far as the recruits, its all about the show, said Trent Johnson, who graduated from Purdue in 1988 and has had season tickets for 20 years. When they play AAU ball, they already are traveling to Las Vegas, Orlando and Atlanta. They want a certain wow factor. They are pampered. If you dont do it, you risk losing kids to other schools who have upgraded facilities. You need the players to continue to draw the crowds.Not everyone agrees.A half century ago, six Indianapolis men pooled their money together to found the ABAs Indiana Pacers. Their first home court was Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum, where fans were so close to the floor that former Pacers star player Darnell Hillman said he could hear their heartbeats.Over the years, the Pacers moved to Market Square Arena and eventually to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, a spacious NBA facility full of suites and restaurants. Hillman waxes nostalgic when he thinks about the renovated coliseum, which reopened in 2014-15 as the new home court for IUPUI.I think we have to find a way to hold on to that, Hillman said. Thats where the history of basketball lives. This is basketball country. They love the game. Theyre into it from the moment they get to the arena.---At Indiana, the three-story entryway looks more like the entrance to a mansion than a basketball arena with its shiny escalators and elevators and all those open windows. Theres a presidential suite behind the student section, trophy cases on both sides of the lobby, even touch screen technology to learn more about Hoosiers history in all sports.On the north end, the feature attraction is the hanging midcourt section from the playing floor used at Assembly Hall from 1976-95. Look around and fans will find the scoreboard that hung above center court from 1983-2005 and the double-sided stanchions that were once a signature part of Indiana basketball.Inside, all the seats are crimson-and-cream and a new large videoboard can be seen from every corner of the court.I think its fantastic, said Dan Caldwell, a 37-year-old Bloomington resident. I love the mix of the new and the old and I think theyve kept that home-court advantage just with the way the crowd is right on top of the floor and everything. And theyve kind of brought it into the next century so to speak, so yeah, I love it.McDufee believes Indiana made the right call by making renovations to the building he calls home rather than tearing it down and starting over.If they could have built one that seated about 24,000 or 25,000 so all the people that could wanted to be in could be in, that would have been good, he said. But I dont know, theres a lot, a lot of history here and tradition and I love the place. E. J. Manuel Jersey . Barcelona also left injured defenders Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano and Jordi Alba out of its squad for the trip to Glasgow. That means that Marc Bartra will probably start again in the centre of the defence alongside Gerard Pique. 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INDIANAPOLIS -- Tamika Catchings and Lynetta Kizer scored 18 points apiece, Briann January keyed a fourth-quarter run and the Indiana Fever overcame an 11-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Dream 78-72 on Friday night.Catchings was 7 of 9 from the field and Kizer had a career-best five steals. Erlana Larkins added 10 points, 11 rebounds and a season-high five assists, while Shenise Johnson scored 10 points for Indiana (10-12).January made a layup, hit a 3-pointer and then -- after Kizer came up with a steal -- found Kizer for a baseline jumper that capped a 9-0 run that gave the FFever a 66-57 lead with 7:47 to play.dddddddddddd Indiana, ranked fifth in the AP WNBA power poll, led by at least five the rest of the way.Carla Cortijo scored a career-high 20 points for the fourth-ranked Dream (11-11). 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In Game Three of the Eastern Conference Final, the Pittsburgh Penguins found out the perils of falling into a 2-0 hole to the Boston Bruins, losing 2-1 in double overtime to Boston Wednesday and trailing the series by a nearly insurmountable three games to none. In a tremendous game, one of the best of the postseason, the Penguins outplayed the Bruins, outshooting them 54-40, but LW Chris Kunitz was the only Penguin that managed to get a puck past Bruins G Tuukka Rask, who has now allowed one goal or fewer in five of his last six starts. Rask now has a .940 save percentage this postseason, leaving him behind only the Kings Jonathan Quick (.941). While there were some questions raised about which goaltender would start Game Three for Pittsburgh, there was no doubt that Tomas Vokoun was the right decision. He stopped 38 of 40 shots in the game and has a .931 save percentage in the playoffs. Just as he was in Game Seven of the first round against Toronto, C Patrice Bergeron played the hero for the Bruins with the double overtime goal, redirecting a pass from LW Brad Marchand on a two-on-two counter-attack. Bostons first goal was tallied by C David Krejci, the playoff leader with nine goals and 21 points. Bergeron and Krejci had to handle a heavy workload as Bostons fourth-line C Gregory Campbell, suffered a broken leg and ended up playing only 6:51. With Campbell out, and the game going to double overtime, Krejci played 35:46 and Bergeron logged 31:59 to lead Bruins forwards. D Zdeno Chara led all skaters with 42:05 of ice time. Enforcer Shawn Thornton skated just 3:56 for Boston, unable to find the right fit with his centre, Campbell, injured. Among the faceoff leaders, Bergeron had a tough night on the draws, winning 13 of 35 (37.1%). Sidney Crosby (21 of 36, 55.3%) and Brandon Sutter (15 of 25, 60.0%) were best on the dot for Pittsburgh. Marchand was dangerous for the Bruins, tying D Johnny Boychuk with a team-high six shots on goal, while LW Milan Lucic registered a game-high eight hits. Even though he was stripped of the puck by Bruins RW Jaromir Jagr before the winning goal, and finished the game minus-2, Penguins C Evgeni Malkin was the most dangerous player on the ice, registering a game-high 10 shots on goal. D Kris Letang played more than 40 minutes and had eight shots on goal, while Penguins RW James Neal had seven shots on goal. Neal and Letang had the best puck possession numbers of the game for Pittsburgh, while D Torey Krug was tops for Boston. As great as Malkin was, he didnt manage a point and has been held off the scoresheet in five of the last six games. Sidney Crosby was also held scoreless and has been held without a points in four of the last six games. Coming into the series, Boston needed their one-two punch at centre -- Bergeron and Krejci -- to fare well in their matchup against Pittsburghs elite tandem and, so far, its no contest. If the Penguins are going to come back, theyll need their power play, which had scored 13 goals in 11 games through the first two series, to get on track. Through the first three games there has not been a power play goal scored in the series, with Pittsburgh 0-for-12 and Boston 0-for-10 with the man advantage. Down three games to none, the Penguins have to see the writing on the wall. Boston was the last team to relinquish a 3-0 series lead, in 2010 against Philadelphia, but its asking a lot for a team to win four straight against a Bruins team that is, right off the top, winning the matchup of goaltenders and centres. This is the fate that befalls a Penguins team that didnt play well in their first two games at home. Even though they played very welll in Game Three, certainly well enough to win, they didnt and theyre left in a virtually impossible position. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Clint Capela Jersey .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury. Cheap Rockets Jerseys Authentic . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. http://www.cheaprocketsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-james-harden-jersey . A statement from the worlds top-ranked player says all checks "were satisfactory and showed positive evolution" regarding the injury, which contributed to his loss to Stanislas Wawrinka in the final in Melbourne. Cheap Rockets Jerseys China . 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DOHA, Qatar -- Los Angeles sought to allay concerns over Donald Trumps election, Paris played up its glamorous venues and Budapest set itself apart as a midsized alternative as the three cities made their first public pitches Tuesday in the bid race for the 2024 Summer Olympics.With 10 months before the vote, the three candidates had a chance to deliver their message in 20-minute presentations to the general assembly of the Association of National Olympic Committees, a gathering of more than 1,000 delegates from around the world.The meeting occurred exactly after a week after Trumps victory over Hillary Clinton in the American presidential election, a result that could affect Los Angeles hopes of bringing the Summer Olympics back to the U.S. for the first time since Atlanta hosted in 1996.Trumps comments during the divisive campaign about Muslims and Mexicans and some of his foreign policy views might not help the California citys chances with some of the IOCs 98 members, who represent a range of nationalities, cultures and religions.American sprinter Allyson Felix, a Los Angeles-born African-American sprinter and six-time Olympic gold medalist, addressed those concerns during the presentation. Without mentioning Trump by name, her message was clear.We just finished our presidential election, and some of you may question Americas commitment to its founding principles, Felix said. I have one message for you: Please dont doubt us. Americas diversity is our greatest strength.Felix said America needs the Games to help make our nation better, now more than ever.She raised the issue of race and slavery in explaining the history and diversity of the country.Were also a nation with individuals like me, descendants of people who came to America, not of their own free will but against it, Felix said. But were not a nation that clings to our past, no matter how glorious -- or how painful. Americans rush toward the future.I believe L.A. is a perfect choice for the 2024 Games, because the face of our city reflects the face of the Olympic Movement itself, she said.IOC vice president John Coates, of Australia, was among the delegates in the audience and said Felixs words hit the mark.I did think Allyson addressed the Trump issue very well, he told The Associated Press. I think the question was hanging. I thought it was very, very well-crafted.Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, a Democrat who was a prominent Clinton supporter, also took up the theme of diversity and openness, saying his city can deliver transformative games.I see an America that remains actively engaged in the world, he said. I see an America that is outward-looking, ready to play its role alongside the community of nations to address our worlds most pressing challenges.Speaking afterward, Garcetti said an Olympic bid stands on a citys own merits and does not depend on who is the president of the country.Today we just reminded people that any nation is made of its people, not one person, he said. We think that is something that, whether its Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, transcends all of us as Americans. I dont think that the Hungarians or the French or the Americans are making their bid plans based on what the national leader says.Los Angeles hosted the Games in 1932 and 1984. New York and Chicago failed in bids for the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, respectively.This is our third attempt to host the Olympic Games in the past 10 years and for many reasons ... I must say this is the most remarkable U.S. bid I have ever seen, U.S. Olympic Committee president Larry Probst said. We have learned many lessons from our previous bids, and failure can be a great teacher.Paris, which hosted the Games in 1900 and 1924, has been considered in a tight race with Los Angeles. The French team stressed the bids compact nature, with 85 percent of athletes housed within 30 minutes of their venues.In Paris in 2024, we will swim in the River Seine, Mayor Anne Hidalgo told the delegates. We will travel in driverless vehicles. We will celebrate the Games on the Champs Elysees, with the Eiffel Tower and all along the Seine from the Grand Palais to Saint-Denis.The Spanish-born Hidalgo cited her own background as an example of what Paris offers.To be an immigrant, to be a woman, to have dual nationality and to be able to be mayor of Paris, this city has brought me opportunity and freedom, she said. Paris has an incredible force.Budapest, which has never hosted the Olympics and is making its seventh bid, has been seen as the outsider in the race. The Hungarians said they need to build only three new venues and will harness the city center for the Games.Most of all, they said Budapest offers something different.A Games for one midsized global city is a Games for all midsized global cities, across the world, bid chairman Balazs Furjes said. A Games in Budapest sends the message that the Olympic Games are not simply for the mega-city, but for midsize cities, too.The Doha audience included officials from 205 national Olympic committees, dozens of international sports federations and, most importantly, dozens of members of the International Olympic Committee, which will vote on the host city in September in Lima, Peru.Under tighter IOC rules, these are the first of only three presentations during the two-year bid race. The second will be at a private technical briefing for IOC members in Switzerland in July, and the third will be the final presentations on the day of the vote in Lima. 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The sport moved a step closer to returning to South Florida on Wednesday, when Beckham confirmed he has exercised his option to purchase a Major League Soccer expansion franchise in Miami. MIAMI -- Jose Fernandez looked more like himself Friday night.Fernandez bounced back from allowing a career-high nine runs, six earned, in a loss at Atlanta to pitch seven innings allowing just an unearned run to help the Miami Marlins to a 3-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds to begin the final series before the All-Star break.Obviously there was a lot of things to work on from last start and a lot of adjustments to be made, Fernandez said. I think we made a couple, but theres still a lot of work to be done.Fernandez (11-4) struck out eight and did not walk a batter while allowing six hits, lowering his first-half ERA to 2.52. The Reds scored the unearned run with two errors committed by Marlins outfielders.Its a different element when you can strike people out, Reds manager Bryan Price said. When he needed a strikeout he was able to go get it. He has a different gear when he needs an out. Thats what makes great pitchers special.Christian Yelich homered and drove in two runs and Derek Dietrich also knocked in a run for the Marlins, who returned home after a 3-6 road trip.Miamis All-Star relievers both pitched one inning, Fernando Rodney in the eighth and A.J.Ramos in the ninth for his 26th save in 27 chances.The game took only 2 hours and 16 minutes.Thats pretty good, Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. That will help our pace of play report when it comes out.The win assured the Marlins (45-41) of a winning record in the first half for the first time since 2009 when they went 46-44 before the break.I know everybody is excited, but were four games over and four games over is not going to get it done, Mattingly said. Weve got a ways to go. Were getting better. Were capable of more. Weve got a lot of talent here and this second half should be fun. If we play the type of baseball were capable of, weve got a chance to do something special.Dan Straily (4-6) allowed three runs and six hits in six innings for the Reds.I thought I pitched well but not good enough, Straily said. Certain nights you have to go out there and win a ballgame 1-0. I wasnt able to get that done tonight.Cincinnati second baseman Brandon Phillips left the game after being hit by a pitch on the left hand in the seventh inning. X-rays revealed a hairline fracture.It wasnt good enough to stay in the game, Price said. It was real sore. Well have to see where he is ttomorrow with a lot of ice and time to sleep and get the swelling down.ddddddddddddYelichs RBI double in the first gave the Marlins the lead.To me Yelly is one of the best hitters in the game and hes starting to show it more and we still feel theres room for improvement with him, Mattingly said.Adam Duvalls single tied the game in the top of the fourth before Dietrichs base hit put the Marlins ahead 2-1 in the bottom of the inning.Yelich hit a solo homer in the sixth for a 3-1 lead. It was his seventh of the season after hitting seven in 126 games last season.Theres room for improvement I think for myself and as a team weve played well in the first half, but weve let a few get away, Yelich said. Its important to finish up this last series strong and take that momentum into the second half.MARLINS DROP FIFTH STARTERMiami optioned starting pitcher Justin Nicolino to Triple-A New Orleans on Friday and recalled catcher Tomas Telis with the plan of going with a four-man rotation until a fifth starter would be needed on July 19, at Philadelphia.Nicolino, who is 2-5 with a 5.57 ERA in 12 starts this season, might not get the nod against the Phillies.Were looking for the best alternative, Mattingly said. Were not committed to Nico getting the next start. We dont have to make that decision right now.TRAINERS ROOMReds: CF Billy Hamilton (right knee) made a leaping catch up against the wall in center field in the fifth inning, but stayed in the game and had ice on his knee after the game. Its fine and everything should be good, Hamilton said. ... RHP Homer Bailey (right elbow) made his third rehab start on Thursday and will make at least two more before returning to the big league club. It sounds like he felt pretty good, threw the ball over the plate, gave up a few hits and a couple of runs, but thats a distant second to how he felt, Price said. It sounds like things are getting better.UP NEXTReds: LHP John Lamb (1-5, 5.43 ERA) will start Saturdays game against the Marlins after allowing eight runs over 4 1/3 innings in his last start at Washington.Marlins: LHP Adam Conley (5-5, 3.65) will take the mound looking to continue his positive stretch, which includes a 2-1 mark and 2.25 ERA over his past four starts. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Players will be chasing a slice of Cricket Australias digital revenue, arguing the content could not exist without them, when negotiations for a new payment memorandum of understanding (MOU) formally begin in Melbourne on Friday.Ahead of talks that are set to be among the most willing since the threat of a player strike, in 1997, led to the creation of the Australian Cricketers Association, ESPNcricinfo has learned that the players union will be seeking a more expansive definition of Australian Cricket Revenue (ACR), the pool of money from which the players fixed revenue percentage of around 25% is drawn.The last MOU, negotiated in 2012, predated CAs current broadcast rights deals, which included a substantial digital component for the first time. Lavish funds have been spent on the project, including the CA website, a subscription-based mobile app and extensive live streaming services. Yet the players, whose cricket the project covers, only have access to the money brought in by television deals, not their digital equivalents.While the players have been happy to help the project get off the ground over the past three summers, there is an eagerness now to future-proof the next MOU so new sources of revenue are not excluded from ACR. Though the cricketers pay model is the envy of the Australian sporting world, the ACA argues that the players actually get less than a fifth of all money in the game, termed Total Cricket Revenue.There has already been some furious spin on both sides of the argument, which will be led on the players side by the ACA chief executive Alistair Nicholson and on CAs by the senior executive and former board director Kevin Roberts. While CA has said little about the looming talks, even to the point of refusing to guarantee the retention of the fixed revenue percentage model, Nicholson moved onto the front foot on Thursday.Its important that the facts are known because they paint a very different picture to that suggested, Nicholson said. Most think that the players are getting a bigger and bigger slice of the cricket pie. This is wrong. The opposite is actually true. And this is despite the fact that it is the players who have helped grow the game to make it what it is.For the last 20 years, Cricket Australia and the players have worked together as genuine partners in the growth of the game, and the game in Australia has never been stronger. To suggest that players try harder or perform better due to the size of their contracts is not only wrong, but doesnt respect the work that the players put in.In reality, the players know more than anyone that they need to continue to fight to be the best in world cricket, and every time they pull on the Australian cap, they do so with immense pride and respect. The players have outlined their priorities including ongoing investment in grassroots cricket and a greater say on scheduling. This, along with including all cricketers, male and female in the one MOU, provides cricket with a fantastic opportunity to grow in the right way. Kevin Mchale Jersey .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee. 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TORONTO -- Getting skated out of two rinks by a group of players age 23 and younger was the best thing to happen to Team Europe.I thank the kids for spanking us so hard because we had adversity early, which brought us together and clarified what we needed to do, coach Ralph Krueger said.Melding together players from eight countries wasnt an easy job, but post-spanking Team Europe shut out the United States 3-0 on Saturday in the World Cup of Hockey opener. The upset, a shocker on paper, gives Europe a very real chance of getting out of Group A and advancing to the semifinals.It set us up for some fun now in the tournament, Krueger said. We didnt just come here to have one nice game. Weve come here to compete and to be around next weekend.Krueger said Saturday afternoon that his players were ready to look America in the eyes. A team thrown together from Slovakia, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Norway, France and Slovenia didnt look like it could hang with the deep Americans, but Europe was opportunistic and efficient.We realize we cant really run and gun with teams and (our plan is) staying patient and waiting for our chances and help our goalie out and all those things, captain Anze Kopitar said. Its not the flashiest thing. Its actually pretty boring, but it works.Despite self-inflicted mistakes from roster construction and lineup decisions to poor execution and ill-timed turnovers, the U.S. credited Europe for putting together a winning recipe. Slovakias Jaroslav Halak made all the saves in goal while on the wrong side of a 35-17 shot differential, but Europe helped limit the quality scoring chances to almost none.Exhibition play against 23-and-under Team North America and Sweden gave Europe enoughh time to blend together on and off the ice.dddddddddddd Krueger noticed players sitting at separate nation tables for meals early on but began integrating to the point where you dont know whos from where anymore.On the ice, Europe looked like a team in the purest sense of the word.We stayed as a unit of five, and I think the key is staying most of the time out of the (penalty) box, said Halak, who was playing his first meaningful game since March because of a groin injury. For the most part even tonight thats what we did.Gifted a 2-on-0 rush by Patrick Kane on an unacceptable turnover, Germanys Leon Draisaitl and Switzerlands Nino Niederreiter looked like they had been playing together for years. Draisaitl knew to expect a pass back on an uncontested give and go, making the most of a pro hockey rarity.Asked the last time he had a 2-on-0, Draisaitl said: Probably sometime in Pee Wee. I probably missed it, too.Draisaitl didnt miss Saturday, and neither did Slovakias Marian Gaborik or Frances Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. With goal differential a potential tiebreaker, every goal counts, and Europe will try to keep things rolling against the Czech Republic on Monday and Canada on Wednesday.These are going to be tough games, Krueger said. Weve got a lot of work to do.Europe has rightfully welcomed the underdog role at the World Cup, but now its game on with higher expectations.We didnt see ourselves as just a sideshow ever, Krueger said. We have a difficult challenge still ahead of us. We havent accomplished anything yet.---Follow Stephen Whyno on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SWhyno . 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DALLAS -- Devante Kincade threw for 207 yards and one score and rushed for 90 yards and two more touchdowns as Grambling picked up its third straight win, rolling over Prairie View A&M 36-16 on Saturday.Jestin Kelly rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns and Chad Williams caught six passes for 83 yards and one score for the Tigers.Grambling (4-1, 3-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference) amassed 503 yards while limiting the Panthers to 289. The Tigers rolled up 296 yards on the ground while limiting Prairie View A&M to just 84 yards on 22 carries.Grambling picked up 31 first downs while holding the Panthers to just 14.Prairie View A&M (3-2, 3-1) jumped out to a 16-0 lead but Grambling charged back to tie at 16 at the half. It was all Grambling in the second half.Trey Green threw for 205 yards and Demarquo Lastrappe caught four passes for 93 yards for the Panthers. Kevin Mirallas Jersey . -- Charlie Graham stopped 67 shots as the Belleville Bulls edged the visiting Guelph Storm 6-5 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Dries Mertens Jersey . - Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie never doubted he would bring back coach Dennis Allen for a third year despite back-to-back 4-12 records. http://www.belgiumsoccerpro.com/Steven-Defour-Belgium-Jersey/ . LOUIS -- Alexander Steen scored a power-play goal with 59. Jan Vertonghen Jersey . The Masters champion and winner of last weeks Australian PGA has a three-round total of 14-under 199 at Royal Melbourne. "Im in a really good position for tomorrow," Scott said. Jordan Lukaku Jersey . The 18th player to shoot 60 on the tour, Jamieson settled for par on the final hole when his 15-foot birdie chip grazed the edge of the hole and stayed out. After opening with rounds of 66 and 73 to make the cut by a stroke, he had 11 birdies in the bogey-free round. (STATS) -- Its highly impressive that Jacksonville State has not lost to a conference opponent or against a non-FBS opponent during the regular season under third-year coach John Grass.But the Gamecocks, last years FCS national runners-up, cant help but have the postseason in the back of their thoughts while they continue to dominate opponents.The Gamecocks (7-1) head into November on a strong note and with the No. 2 ranking in the STATS FCS Top 25. They only trail Sam Houston State, which held the top ranking for the third straight week on Monday.Its a good sign for Jacksonville State when Grass says, I dont think we can play much better, as he did after a 47-14 victory over Eastern Illinois this past Saturday. It came against the most recent Ohio Valley Conference program to beat the Gamecocks, something their seniors probably remembered from 2013 while they raised their conference win streak to an FCS-high 21 games. They have beaten 28 straight non-FBS teams in the regular season, losing only to Michigan State, Auburn and LSU.Today was just a great team win, Grass said after quarterback Eli Jenkins accounted for three touchdowns and running back Josh Clemons scored twice.Jacksonville State received 15 of the 142 first-place votes in the national media poll.Sam Houston State (8-0) collected the most with 102 after the nations highest-scoring team had its season-high point total in a 66-17 non-conference win over Texas Southern. Coach K.C. Keelers Bearkats are tied for first place in the Southland Conference.The top six teams remained unchanged in the poll -- Eastern Washington (7-1) sitting third followed by North Dakota State (7-1), The Citadel (8-0) and Richmond (7-1). Eastern Washington beat Big Sky Conference rival Montana 35-16 and North Dakota State defeated Missouri Valley Football Conference rival Northern Iowaa 24-20.dddddddddddd The Citadel continued their best start in program history by topping East Tennessee State 45-10 in the Southern Conference.Richmond was idle this past weekend, but the Spiders were happy to rest up for Saturdays showdown against the CAA Football rival sitting right behind them, No. 7 James Madison (7-1). The Dukes, who hold a slight lead in the conferences crowded title race, routed Rhode Island 84-7 -- the most points scored by an FCS team this season.Charleston Southern (5-2), Chattanooga (8-1) and Villanova (6-2) completed the Top 10.MEAC leader North Carolina A&T (7-1) moved up one spot to No. 11 followed by Western Illinois (6-2), South Dakota State (5-3), Cal Poly (6-2), Youngstown State (6-2), North Dakota (7-2), Central Arkansas (7-1), Coastal Carolina (6-2), Montana (5-3) and Samford (6-2).Rounding out the Top 25 were Grambling State (5-1); New Hampshire (6-3), which re-entered after a six-week absence; Harvard (6-1); newcomer Lehigh (7-2), the Patriot League leader; and Stony Brook (5-3).Eastern Illinois and Tennessee State fell from the Top 25, and a season-high 11 FCS conferences were represented in it, led by the CAA with five.A national panel of sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries select the STATS FCS Top 25. In the voting, a first-place vote is worth 25 points, a second-place vote 24 points, all the way down to one point for a 25th-place vote.The Top 25 is released every Monday afternoon during the regular season, except for Sunday morning, Nov. 20, prior to the selection of the 24-team FCS playoff field. A final Top 25 will follow the FCS championship game, which will be held Jan. 7 in Frisco, Texas. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Brisbane Broncos provided yet more embarrassment for Super League as the NRL comfortably wrapped up the 2016 Dacia World Club Series with a game to spare. A 42-12 demolition of Wigan, which followed Sydney Roosters equally ruthless 38-12 rout of St Helens 24 hours earlier, put the Australian clubs 2-0 up in the three-match series, leaving champions Leeds to salvage some pride in Sundays World Club Challenge against North Queensland.Wigan, like Saints, were handed a lesson in clinical finishing and their misery was compounded by the loss of England hooker Michael McIlorum with a broken and dislocated ankle. Shaun Wane believes there is a big gap in quality between the Super League and the NRL Beaten 14-12 in extra time by Bennetts Broncos a year ago, the Warriors were thought to have the best chance of gaining some overdue success for Super League but they were simply out-classed by opponents who not only ran harder and faster but produced some sublime moments of skill to which their hosts had no answer.Half-back Kodi Nikorima, whose younger brother tormented St Helens, scored two of the Broncos seven tries as he deputised superbly for the suspended Ben Hunt.Winger Corey Oates also touched down twice and went desperately close to completing a hat-trick while former Huddersfield and Hull KR full-back Greg Eden scored a spectacular long-range try on his long-awaited debut for the Queensland club. Wigan Warriors Willie Isa is stopped short of the try line Wigan, who have not lost at the DW Stadium to a Super League team for almost 20 months, actually made a promising start with second rower Willie Isa and stand-off George Williams posing some problems for the Broncos defence but once Isa was held up over the line the game began to take on a familiar look.Brisbane scored from their first meaningful attack, with Oates taking Darius Boyds cut-out pass to dive over at the corner for a try confirmed by video referee Robert Hicks as he skirted the touchline. Sean OLoughlin says Wigan will learn the lessons from their defeat to Brisbane The game was held up while McIlorum had treatment on the pitch before being carried off on a stretcher but the Australians were quickly back into their stride and Nikorima pounced for a second try in fortuitous fashion after Anthony Milfords grubber kick bounced back off a post.Corey Parkers second conversion made it a flattering 12-0 but Wigan got themselves right back into it on 21 minutes when centre Dan Sarginson took a flat pass from second rower Liam Farrell to crash over for a try and Matty Smiths goal cut the deficit to just six points.The game was in the balance at that point but it was put beyond the reach of the Super League side Brisbane once more demonstrated clinical finishing to carve out tries for second rower Matt Gillett and prop Jarrod Wallace in a decisive five-minute spell just before half-time, when the visitors led 24-6. Dan Sarginson goes over for Wigans first try The Warriors continued to play with plenty of spirit and endeavour but it was simply not enough against their slick opponents, who struck on the counter-attack to score a fifth try on 52 minutes and put the game to bed.Eden was denied by full-back Lewis Tierney as he went 50 metres upfield but Brisbane outflanked their hosts on the next play to work Oates over for his second try.Nikorima then grabbed his second after following up Boyds kick and Eden went 80 metres to touch down after a break out of defence, leaving Williams 76th-minute try little more than consolation for well-beaten Wigan. Brisbane Broncos Darius Boyd joined Jon Wells at the touch screen to analyse his sides win Do you think Super League can narrow the gap on the NRL? Have your say… Please tell us what you think by giving us your comments below or alternatively, why not Tweet us @SkySportsRL? John Tavares Jersey . 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Its the second straight game Bell has scored in extra time for Kelowna, which beat the Brandon Wheat Kings 6-5 on Friday, and he now has four game-winning goals on the season. RIO DE JANEIRO -- There are a few Rio finales in the pool, while track and field gets underway. Here are Fridays highlights:Mens 100 fly final, 10:12 p.m. ET; Womens 800 free final, 10:20 p.m. ET: Michael Phelps will swim in his final individual race of the Rio Olympics, going for his fourth straight gold medal in the 100-meter butterfly and his fifth gold of the Rio Olympics after winning the 200 IM on Thursday night. On the womens side, Katie Ledecky is pretty much a lock to win the 800 freestyle in her final swim in Rio. She already set the Olympic record in prelims with her eighth-fastest time and has the 12 fastest times by anyone in the event. She could become the second swimmer to win the 200, 400 and 800 freestyle events in the same Olympics (Debbie Meyer did it in 1968) and the third American woman to win four golds at a single Games (Missy Franklin in 2012, Amy Van Dyken in 1996).Complete swimming coverageUSWNT vs. Sweden, noon ET: The U.S. women hope to rebound from a shaky draw against Colombia in their last group-play match in Fridays quarterfinal. The Americans have reached all five previous Olympic finals, winning four gold medals, including the past two. The U.S. is winless in three games against Sweden since former U.S. coach Pia Sundhage took the Sweden job in late 2012 (she took the post after leading the USWNT to gold in London). That includes a draw in the 2015 Womens World Cup group stage and a loss in the 2011 WWC group stage.Complete soccer coverageU.S. women vs. Canada, 2:30 p.m. ET; U.S. men vs. Serbia, 6 p.m. ET: Both American teams return to the court Friday. The U.S. men beat Serbia by 37 points in the 22014 World Cup championship game, while the U.ddddddddddddS. women beat Canada by 40 points in a pre-Olympic exhibition game last month. Breanna Stewart will see a familiar face on the other side of the court, as she faces Canadian and former UConn teammate Kia Nurse.Complete basketball coveragePreliminary action, coverage begins 8:30 a.m. ET: The track and field competition begins Friday with three medal events (womens 10,000 meters, mens 20km race walk, womens shot put) and preliminary heats in the womens 100 and mens 400. In the 100, there are a handful of sprinters to watch: Elaine Thompson of Jamaica, teammate and defending two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Murielle Ahoure of the Ivory Coast and Americans Tianna Bartoletta, Tori Bowie and English Gardner.Complete track and field coverageTournament continues, coverage begins 11 a.m. ET: Rafael Nadal faces Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil before he returns to the court for the gold-medal mens doubles match with teammate Marc Lopez as they face Romanias Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau. Britains Andy Murray faces American Steve Johnson in the mens quarters, while Madison Keys takes on Angelique Kerber in the womens semifinals. In mixed doubles, Venus Williams and Rajeev Ram of the U.S. face Italys Roberta Vinci and Fabio Fognini. After being knocked out in singles and doubles, this is Williams remaining event and one she entered because of the other eliminations.Complete tennis coverageInformation from The Associated Press was used in this story. 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ESTERO, Fla. -- Otis Livingstons deep baseline 3-pointer with 22 seconds remaining lifted George Mason to a 79-75 victory over Kent State in a consolation-bracket game at the Gulf Coast Showcase on Tuesday.Marquise Moore passed to Livingston alone in the left corner with the trey giving the Patriots (2-3) a 77-75 lead. Kent States Jalen Avery then drove through a crowd only to have his layup hit the side of the rim with three seconds left. Moore made a pair of free throws for the final score.Moore finished with 23 points, 14 rebounds and five assists. Livingston added 20 points, Jaire Grayer 14 and Justin Kier 10.Jimmy Hall had 20 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Golden Flashes (3-2). Deon Edwin also scored 20 points and Avery added 10.The game was tight throughout with neither team ahead by more than six points and lead changing hands 18 times. Cheap Sabres Jerseys China . Rob Manfred, baseballs chief operating officer, testified last week during the grievance filed by the players union to overturn Rodriguezs 211-game suspension. A person familiar with the hearing, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press on Saturday that Manfred testified the sport wasnt concerned whether Bosch distributed performance-enhancing drugs to minors because MLBs interest was his relationship with players under investigation. Josh Gorges Jersey . In taking its goal tally to 99 in all competitions already this season, City delivered another demonstration of its lethal firepower at Etihad Stadium to set up a fourth-round match at home to another second-tier team -- Watford. http://www.cheapsabresjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-ryan-oreilly-jersey . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. "It is still taking a little time to sink in what Ive achieved this week as was the case when I won the FedEx Cup but then it just kept getting better and better as the days went on and I am sure this will be the same," he said. Evan Rodrigues Jersey . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration. Rick Martin Jersey . Kozun faked to the forehand and beat Monsters starter, Calvin Pickard, pad side in the second round for the winner. Spencer Abbott also scored in the shootout for the Marlies (25-13-4). To meet John Woodcock, whose grandfather was born before the Battle of Waterloo, whose home in a Hampshire village of antiquity contains a full set of Wisden and countless artefacts, and who has been a journalist since 1950, is to embrace cricketing history. Now that his close friend Richie Benaud has died, there can be no one alive who has seen so many Test matches, befriended so many great players and overseen so many controversies - all with enthusiasm for the game undiminished.Journalism has probably evolved even more rapidly than the game itself during his lifetime, yet Woodcock, who was cricket correspondent of the Times from 1954 to 1987, would choose no other occupation if he were starting out all over again. He doubts, though, whether he could cope with the greater pressures today. In a less hectic, less televised age, he relished the matches, the touring (for the most part), the sunshine, the friends. Particularly the friends, many of them made while sailing four times to Australia and once to South Africa from 1950-1963.Even in the 1970s, the Times had no objection to their correspondent driving from England to India before Tony Greigs tour - with Henry Blofeld, in a 1921 Silver Ghost Rolls Royce. There were precipitous roads, potential diplomatic incidents, copious quantities of whisky, a scary moment or two in the Khyber Pass, opium-smoking through a hookah near Mashad - We coughed ourselves stupid, said Blofeld - back-tyre blowouts, and dinners in exotic company. There were no health and safety concerns, no mobile phones, night matches or internet distractions.More recently, the chief sub-editor in the Times sporting department, as it was always known, was impressed and amused when he rang the Old Curacy in Longparish and was informed that it was a difficult moment to talk as the Bedser twins were just arriving for afternoon tea. A vision of a charabanc from The Oval floated before him. Alas, Woodcock feels there might not have been a place for Alec in the modern game, given the emphasis on agility in the field.Woodcock spoke to Colin Cowdrey on the telephone most weeks, if not days. He shared a room on tour with Brian Statham. Alan Knott asked to use his bathroom in one particular hotel - a rather superior bathroom - and spent so long in it that Woodcock was concerned for his well-being. Knotts fastidiousness was as fascinating to Woodcock, as was the strain that even such a great bowler as Statham felt on the first morning of a Test match.This bond between players and press could not have been more apparent than when Len Hutton invited Woodcock into the dressing room when he was recovering from illness, to watch England retain the Ashes in Adelaide in 1954-55. That would not happen now. We were probably more of a family in those days.Woodcock went duck-shooting with Harold Larwood, partridge-shooting with Imran Khan, played golf with the three great Yorkshire openers Herbert Sutcliffe, Len Hutton and Geoff Boycott (surely a record of sorts) as well as Don Bradman, fished with Ian Botham, and batted with Wally Hammond in his last ever match, at Richmond, near Durban, in 1965.Benaud would make the Old Curacy his summer base, at least until his views and Woodcocks differed on Kerry Packers World Series. The flamboyant Colin Ingleby-Mackenzie, who liked his Hampshire players to go to bed before breakfast, could not have been as nice as he appeared, but he was. Barry Richards was, Woodcock thinks, the finest batsman he saw, better even than his namesake Viv - if that is possible - Bradman having been past his best in 1948.Great cricketing names, and great journalistic names as well. Woodcock would observe John Arlott - he did have a touchy side but what a brain - drink three or four bottles of wine a day yet still be capable of writing four hymns in one evening.dddddddddddd Neville Cardus would summon Woodcock, pull up two deckchairs, bring out two cigars and fetch two glasses of port on his first voyage to Australia. Come and listen to me and dont waste your time dancing, he would say. EW Jim Swanton expected peace and quiet and a glass of whisky when he entered the press box to write his report. Really, you wouldnt expect this noise, he once complained to Hutton, who had retired and was sitting behind him. Did you know that Broderick Crawford arrived at London airport this morning? was the characteristically cryptic response. There was, of course, more than the odd disagreement. The influence of the Times was such that Packer - not at all my sort of chap - had some sharp words for Woodcock, who, as with all the influential correspondents, was strongly opposed to what was regarded as a circus. Greig, too, came to resent Woodcocks having written that it has to be remembered Greig is not English through and through, when, as England captain, he had been secretly recruiting for World Series.Woodcocks comments mattered not only because they were in the Times and therefore read by those in authority, but because they carried authority. This was also the case when he wrote for the Cricketer and edited Wisden. Television had yet to set the agenda. Hard writing, easy reading was the advice Woodcock was given by the sports editor of the Manchester Guardian, for whom he worked for two years before joining the Times. And surprisingly, harder graft went into his articles than ever appeared to be the case. No one seemed to write with such ease and grace, or as Mike Atherton, his successor at the Times, whom Woodcock much admires, puts it, a lack of pretension compared with some sportswriters today.Apart from the World Series, the major controversies he had to cover were the DOliveira affair and subsequent unofficial tours to South Africa. Few people, Woodcock believes, came out with any credit other than DOliveira himself. As editor of Wisden, Woodcock had to decide whether the matches played by Graham Goochs breakaway side of 1982 should be first-class. I said that depended on the board of control of South Africa and was criticised in a leading article in the Guardian. Had I foreseen [FW] de Klerks incredible volte face, I like to think I might have thought otherwise and not seen the sporting bridge between the two countries as having something to be said for it.Some tours Woodcock went on wound their way wearily to an end, although, as a bachelor, being away from home for periods of up to seven months at a time were not so trying as for colleagues who had families.Although, inevitably, there are some aspects of the modern game he does not like - helmets, the reverse sweep, the brutal nature of batsmanship, the lack of identity in Hampshires team - he follows it avidly, his knowledge and memory undimmed. He is unfailingly helpful and generous to the thirsty array of writers, old players and obituarists who descend on the thatched Old Curacy.That said, the postman in decorous Longparish has had to handle letters forwarded by the Times to Woodcock containing some fairly unprintable messages, for he has been nothing if not a correspondent with strong views. None was more specific, though, than the postcard sent on in Sir William Haleys day as editor. Your cricket correspondent is either a pompous ass or a maiden aunt. God preserve him or her from a rugger tour. Fortunately for the game and his many friends and admirers, Woodcock stuck to cricket. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Andy Murray says becoming the new world No 1 feels strange with his hard work set to be rewarded on Monday when the ATP rankings are updated. No matter the result of Sundays Paris Masters final against John Isner, 29-year-old Murray will become the first Brit to hold the top spot and the oldest first-time No 1 since John Newcombe at age 30 in 1974. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just £6.99. No contract. Its just come about quite quick. I wasnt expecting to do it at this stage of the season, Murray told Sky Sports. In an era dominated by the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic, reaching the summit has been a long process for Murray, who has spent 76 weeks at No 2.The turning point came when Murray claimed a second Wimbledon title and successfully defended his Olympic title in Rio. Murray proud of No 1 ranking Andy Murray proud after reaching world No 1 ranking And Murray admits the feeling of reaching the pinnacle of tennis is different to winning his three major titles.Ive played in the latter stages of every event since April and Ive only barely got there so it has been really, really hard, he added.With the Slams and stuff, before Id won one, Id been close a number of times so I kind of felt the disappointment.Id never been close to world No 1 and like I said, I didnt expect to be doing it right now so it just feels strange. Murrays finest achievement World No 1 is Andy Murrays finest achievement, says Mark Petchey Last week in Vienna, he won the Erste Bank Open for his third straight tournament and has lost only three matches since the French Open.Murray will now set his sights on the ATP World Tour finals in London from November 13-20.Check our game-by-game updates from Andy Murrays progress at the ATP World Tour Finals from London skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad and our Twitter account @skysportstennis. Also See: Murrays finest achievement Murray the man to beat Murray proud of No 1 ranking Tennis on Sky Dominic Moore Jersey . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. Cheap Canadiens Jerseys . LOUIS -- Alexander Steen scored a power-play goal with 59. http://www.cheapcanadiensjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-elmer-lach-jersey . 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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Ryan Succop didnt try a warm-up field goal longer that 49 yards on Sunday at frigid Arrowhead Stadium.The?Tennessee Titans?place-kicker didnt figure there was much of a point to it.And Succop was short from 53 yards on the final play of regulation -- but it was washed away by?Kansas City Chiefs?coach Andy Reids timeout. Given a second chance, Succop found the range and lifted the Titans to a 19-17 win that improved their record to 8-6.I felt like I hit the first one good, and when it came up short, there was a second in my mind where I wasnt sure if I could even reach from there, said Succop, who played for the Chiefs from 2009 to 2013. So on the second one, I kind of just had to throw technique out the window a little bit and really go after it and hit it as hard as I could.During the timeout, Succop said he re-tied the shoe on his plant foot to prepare to go at the kick extra hard.Earlier, Succop and special-teams coach Steve Hoffman concluded the kickers maximum distance was probably 47 or 48 yards.At the point of the deciding kick, the Titans could already have been tied and still assured of heading to overtime if Succop had missed the 53-yard attempt.dddddddddddd. But earlier in the fourth quarter, Tennessee coach Mike Mularkey had his offense try for a two-point conversion after Derrick Henrys second touchdown with 3:12 remaining, rather than having Succop attempt the extra point. The Chiefs covered a play that had Marcus Mariota looking to the right flat, and he wound up with a short incompletion.Tennessee got the ball down 17-16 and moved 40 yards in 1:07 to set up Succops heroics.Reflecting on the 53-yard field goal, Succop said that if given 10 chances at the kick, I dont know if I could make one.He did, though.Titans equipment man Matt Thompson retrieved the ball for Succop, and when the kicker got his hands on it, gloveless, in the locker room, he and punter?Brett Kern?marveled at just how cold it still was.Reid was left to second-guess his timeout.Listen, it didnt work, Reid said. Ive got to do better on that. It backfired. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Welcome to an NFL huddle, Mr. Goff .Your assignment, as No. 1 overall pick in Aprils draft who has not gotten on the field yet, but starts Sunday for the Rams against the Dolphins, is simple: win.Doing so against a Miami team that has won four straight makes your task a bit tougher. But never mind, Jared, go out and play like fellow rookie quarterbacks Dak Prescott in Dallas and Carson Wentz in Philadelphia have done.Its been a long time, it feels like, since Ive gotten out there and played, says Goff, and hes right -- it was the preseason when he last took a meaningful snap. Im excited to get back out there and play.Ive been working hard to get to that point. Im glad its finally come, glad theyve given me that vote of confidence and the nod. Im ready to go and proving them right.The Rams (4-5) come off a 9-6 victory at the Jets, hardly a boost of confidence for the offense. So coach Jeff Fisher made the switch.The opponent has looked formidable the past month. After winning last weekend at San Diego, the Dolphins (5-4 ) stayed in California this week to train.Its a different week for us just being away from home and being out of our normal facility, quarterback Ryan Tannehill says. Its definitely a challenge for us, but I think we have the focus to get it done the right way.I think thats one of the benefits of being out here together is we have time to spend together, to go to dinner, to hang out and build that team unity.The action began with Carolinas 23-20 home victory over New Orleans.Cam Newton threw for 192 yards and a touchdown in the game marred by injuries to key players. Newton was 14 of 33 and threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Ted Ginn Jr. to help the Panthers (4-6) pull even with the Saints for third place in the NFC South.The Panthers lost former NFL Defensive Player of the Year Luke Kuechly (concussion), two-time All-Pro center Ryan Kalil (shoulder), defensive end Mario Addison (foot) and cornerback Leonard Johnson (chest) to injuries. Kuechly left the field on a cart while tears streamed down his face. The Saints lost running back Mark Ingram to a concussion in the third quarter.Off this week are the Falcons (6-4), Chargers (4-6), Jets (3-7) and Broncos (7-3).Houston (6-3) vs. Oakland (7-2) at Mexico CityFootball returns to a mecca of futbol, when the Raiders host the Texans at Azteca Stadium -- the first regular-season game south of the border in 11 years.I like to watch soccer, so Im wondering is it going to be like a soccer atmosphere where they have the horns playing and stuff like that, Texans cornerback A.J. Bouye says. I looked at the field just to see what its like and everything. Im already visualizing everything on what its going to be like.At the end of the day, you just got to expect the unexpected, you know, packed crowd. You dont know what type of atmosphere youre going to have or how loud its going to be, so its exciting and you try not to think about it. At the same time, you just try to focus on the task at hand.The Raiders have impressed with their high-powered offense and opportunism in the leagues best division, the AFC West. Dont expect Houstons Brock Osweiler, averaging a league-low 5.6 yards per pass, to keep up with that.Pittsburgh (4-5) at Cleveland (0-10)Sure, the Steelers have lost four in a row. In Cleveland, they are saying So what!The Browns never have been 0-10 i n a season and they enter the game with a 416-416-10 record for the two installments of the franchise. They have never been below .500, but are 14-44 since Jimmy and Dee Haslam took over as owners.To get off this schneid, they must figure out how to beat Ohio native Ben Roethlisberger, who is 20-2 against them overall. The Steelers are 28-6 against the Browns since Cleveland returned to the league in 1999.Baltimore (5-4) at Dallas (8-1)The Ravens and Cowboys each are division leaders. Similarities end there.Dallas is the NFLs hottest team, not having lost since the opener. It has that dynamic offense led by the leagues best line and sensational rookies Ezekiel Elliott and Prescott. Home-field advantage in the NFC is there for the taking.Baltimores only reason for being on top in the AFC North is how poorly the other division members have performed. The Ravens are too streaky, winning three, losing four, then winning two.Jacksonville (2-7) at Detroit (5-4)Detroit is another first-place team with few credentials to be thinking January success. Again, a weak division, the NFC North, has helped the Lions, who play nothing but tight games. All nine this season have been decided by seven points or fewer and Detroit has been trailing or tied at some point in the final two minutes of regulation in each of them.Jacksonville has struggled in great part because it has not had a takeaway in the past five games. Thats tied for the longest drought since the 1970 merger. The Jaguars are an NFL-worst minus-14 in turnover differential.Philadelphia (5-4) at Seattle (6-2-1)Both come off impressive victories, and Pete Carroll could get his 100th NFL win on Sunday. It looks as if hell have regular RB Thomas Rawls back from a Week 2 leg injury, and rookie C.J. Prosise gained 153 yards from scrimmage in the win at New England. They could provide balance to an offense that QB Russell Wilson had humming against the Patriots.Philadelphia won its fourth straight at home by beating Atlanta, but is 1-4 on the road. Wentz has been up and down, though the team has scored at least 20 points in 11 straight games, the longest streak in the league. Defense and special teams have been solid for the Eagles.Green Bay (4-5) at Washington (5-3-1)The previous time they met, the Packers won a playoff game here in January. Now, Green Bay is reeling, losing three straight, the ground game mediocre, the blocking unsteady and the defense keeping them competitive much of the time.Eddie Lacy has missed four games with an ankle injury, and the Packers signed running back Christine Michael after Seattle waived him.Aaron Rodgers will need for his line to come together this week because Washington has three sacks in five consecutive games. Redskins tight end Jordan Reed had nine receptions for 120 yards and a TD in that wild-card game.Tennessee (5-5) at Indianapolis (4-5)Some good things are happening in Nashville, and to punctuate that, the Titans also could end a 10-game slide against the Colts. Marcus Mariota and DeMarco Murray have the offense hopping -- Tennessee has scored 35 or more points in three consecutive games for the first time in a single season in franchise history. Mariota has thrown an NFL-high 17 TD passes over the past six weeks and Murray is second in the NFL with 930 yards rushing.Indianapolis was off last week. It won the Week 7 matchup when TE Jack Doyle caught a 7-yard TD pass with 1:55 to go. The Colts will honor the 10-year anniversary of their 2006 Super Bowl championship team.New England (7-2) at San Francisco (1-8)Coming off that bruising home loss to Seattle, the Patriots might take out their frustrations on the 49ers. Tom Brady, who grew up in the Bay Area, has never played at San Francisco. With a win over a team that has dropped eight in a row, Brady would tie Brett Favre for second in victories by a quarterback with 199. Peyton Manning holds the record with 200.The 49ers come off a strong but losing performance at Arizona. QB Colin Kaepernick should have fond memories of the Patriots: Kaepernick threw four TD passes in his only meeting with them, in 2012, a season the 49ers went to the Super Bowl.Buffalo (4-5) at Cincinnati (3-5-1)Two slumpers. Buffalo has dropped three straight and comes off a bye. The Bungles, uh, Bengals, have won only one of their past five, against inept Cleveland.The Bills have found ways to score, getting at least 25 points in each of the past five games, and are second in rushing behind Dallas with 155 yards per game. QB Tyrod Taylor comes off a strong outing in a loss to Seattle.Since opening last season 8-0, the Bengals are 7-10-1, including a playoff meltdown loss to Pittsburgh. Of note, though: A.J. Green is 36 yards shy of joining Randy Moss as the only NFL receivers with 1,000 yards in each of their first six seasons. Green ranks second in the league with 964 yards and third with 66 catches.Chicago (2-7) at New York Giants (6-3)New York has taken four in a row and has shown a penchant for big plays on offense, defense and special teams. The previous time the Giants won five straight, they also won the championship in 2011.Safety Landon Collins has sparked the defense with four interceptions in the past three games and excellent pass coverage and run support.Chicago has shown nothing on the road, dropping all five contests. The Bears seem to have found a running back, however, in Jordan Howard, who rushed for 100 yards in a loss to Tampa Bay last week. Howard ranks second among rookies with 605 yards rushing.Arizona (4-4-1) at Minnesota (5-4)Whats the deal with these two 2015 playoff teams?For Minnesota, awful blocking and injuries have contributed to four straight defeats. A defense that looked impenetrable earlier this season now looks vulnerable at times, and the kicking game has been woeful.Still, the Vikings are tied with Detroit atop the NFC North.The Cardinals have lost all eight meetings in Minnesota since their move to Arizona in 1988, and havent won at the Vikings since 1977 as the St. Louis Cardinals. For them to make any headway in the NFC playoff race after being a preseason favorite, they must prosper on the road: five of their final seven games are away from Arizona.Tampa Bay (4-5) at Kansas City (7-2)Dont look now, but the Chiefs are tied for the AFCs best record. And they could get back their star pass rusher, Justin Houston from a lengthy injury rehab. Regardless, they are getting major contributions from safety Eric Berry, who had his fourth career interception return for a TD in last weeks win at Carolina, and LB Dee Ford, whose 10 sacks are tied with Buffalos Lorenzo Alexander for the NFL lead. KC leads the NFL with a plus-14 turnover margin.The Buccaneers have won four straight in this series.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLAdrian Beltre Jersey . Philadelphia is 2-0 against the Senators this season and scored five goals in each victory. The Flyers recorded a 5-0 win in Ottawa on Nov. 12 and then earned a 5-2 home decision on Nov. 19. The Flyers have claimed three straight and four of the last five encounters with the Sens overall and Philly has won two in a row and three of its past four tests in Canadas capital city. Prince Fielder Jersey . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. http://www.authenticrangerspro.com/rangers-jason-grilli-jersey/ . -- Tony Stewart is 20 pounds lighter and has a titanium rod in his surgically repaired right leg. Shin-Soo Choo Jersey . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. Russell Wilson Jersey . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. Test cricket is a complex sport, perhaps one of the most complicated ones out there, but at its heart a lot of it revolves around the top of off stump. Any bowler - quick, slow, right-arm, left-arm - looks to end up at the top of off, asking a batsman to watch for the outside edge, while also protecting the stumps. The sheer physicality of fast bowling means a quick usually bowls spells that are around five overs long. Some of the best bowlers in the history of the game have been those who quickly figure out which length and line on a certain pitch will help them end up in the general area of top of off to about a set of stumps wide.The more satisfactory spells of play in Test cricket are produced when a bowler gets that radar right and a watchful batsman looks to negate it: leaving balls outside the line of his right eye - left in the case of a left-hand batsman - and punishing the bowler when he falters in length or line, all the time waiting for him to tire physically or mentally or both. A small error from a bowler produces runs, something similar from the batsman can result in a wicket. Reverse swing, magic balls, unbelievable shots enrich the sport, but a large part of it is about this examination around top of off.For one fast bowler going around today, the top of off is the top of the batsmans shoulder. A batsman can wear all the armour he wants but he will keep getting bounced; this is not about hurting him, this is about getting him to play a shot he cant control. This bowlers short leg and deep square leg can be slightly in front of the crease, affording him two other fielders behind square on the leg side. The bouncers are almost always between the chest and the head. The shots the batsman is left with - the hook, the ramp and the upper cut - are fraught with risk.Then you think in terms of how many accurate quick bouncers a guy can bowl. Surely he will tire? Surely he will lose pace? Surely there will be bad balls? Neil Wagner, though, keeps coming, ball after ball, bouncer after bouncer, with intensity, turning the tables, asking the batsman how much patience and agility he has to keep avoiding the various bouncers, because hooking or ramping them with the fields he has is difficult. And he doesnt stop at five-over spells.For me, I pride myself in being someone who can do it ten overs on the trot, Wagner says. I love bowling. Hopefully I stay fit and strong and my body allows me to do that. I have been doing it for a long period of time in my career, and I can keep going and keep continuing to do it.What if a batsman keeps ducking? I have got to keep bowling it, Wagner says. Thats the toughest thing. Thats when the test of patience comes in. Thats why it is called Test cricket. The longer you can do it for, the harder it becomes for a batsman to keep ducking. Somewhere they have to play a shot or try to play a shot.****Pitches in New Zealand dont deteriorate. They just keep getting better and better to bat on with early moisture going out. A Christchurch Test, against England in 2002, sums up conditions in New Zealand. England were bowled out for 228 in the first innings, but ended up setting New Zealand 550 to win, which they threatened to achieve, thanks to Nathan Astles 222 off 168 balls on a final-day pitch.Twelve years later, on a similar flat track in Auckland, India were gunning down the 407-run target after having scored just 202 in the first innings. Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli were chasing it almost like in an ODI. With India 218 for 2 in 60 overs and with Dhawan past a hundred and Kohli 50, New Zealands only chance was the second new ball. Sixty runs had come from the last ten overs, 23 off the last two. There was a good chance there might not be enough left to defend when the new ball arrived.The ball went to Wagner. It was his job to keep the scoring down and keep New Zealand in with a chance. He had gone for only 29 in 13 overs till then. That had been his job. To bowl heavy and dry outside off and try to frustrate the batsmen so that Trent Boult and Tim Southee could feed off it.When Kohli cover-drove the first ball of Wagners new spell, the 61st over, for four, Wagner went into his zone (When the wicket is flat or the ball is not swinging or the batters are in and feeling comfortable), almost an altered state of mind because what followed was not sane. In the spell of ten overs, he screamed into a heavy wind, bowled 18 bouncers, took the wickets of Kohli and Dhawan with two of them, conceded 26 runs, and gave the big boys vulnerable new batsmen against the new ball. The new Kookaburra swung for about ten overs, in which Southee and Boult took three wickets, but New Zealand still had MS Dhoni to contend with.Again they went to Wagner, who ripped out two wickets with no assistance from the pitch. On a weekday when the Indian supporters outnumbered fans of the host team, Wagner charged in tirelessly and produced four wickets out of nowhere in a sport that is heavily reliant on the surface, the overheads, or the uneven weight distribution on the ball. On a flat pitch on a sunny day with no reverse swing, Wagner willed New Zealand to win a Test amid boos every time he ended up next to the batsman in his follow-through after bowling a bouncer. To see the way he looks back at me or if he is comfortable or not. And just to obviously have a bit of presence. Have them know I am there and I am going to come hard again.When the ESPNcricinfo Awards were conceptualised in 2007, they were a unique concept in a sport dominated by aggregate numbers. These identified not the best batsman or bowler over the year but the single best individual performances. Wagners Auckland effort made it to the longlist of 22 but didnt feature in the 12 nominees for the 2014 Test bowling award.It perhaps sums up Wagner. He is somebody who bowls into the wind, when the ball is not new and when the pitch is not doing anything. He keeps the runs down so that the wicket-takers can strike. He is the dirty-pitch bowler who loses out to Doug Bracewell or the other exciting younger talent when New Zealand play on a greentop. His contribution reflects in the figures of others, and he gets to play when there is no assistance for the bowlers.****When Wagner was just out of school, back in Pretoria, where he was born, he took up volunteer duties in a Centurion Test. He also got to field as a substitute and bowl in the nets. Shaun Pollock remembers him as a line-and-length swing bowler.Going to New Zealand, wickets became a lot flatter and slower, Wagner says. Obviously wind became a factor.You bowl in a lot of strong winds. I had to try and look at different ways of making it t
CHICAGO -- Anthony Rizzo caught the ball for the final out and Wrigley Field erupted.Im sleeping with this thing tonight, the Chicago Cubs first baseman told the pulsating crowd moments later, kissing the prized souvenir. Are you kidding me? Were going to the World Series.Cubs ... World Series? Yes, the Cubbies!Next up, Game 1 in Cleveland.With fans chanting, singing and waving those Ws, shaking the century-old ballpark and jamming the streets of Wrigleyville, the Cubs celebrated a moment many of their faithful wondered whether they would ever see.Kyle Hendricks outpitched Clayton Kershaw, Rizzo and Willson Contreras homered early and the Cubs took their first pennant since 1945, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-0 Saturday night to win the NL Championship Series in six games.Listen to them. Outside before the game was crazy. Inside the game was crazy, Cubs pitcher Jon Lester said.These guys have done nothing but support us from Day One. Its been unbelievable to be here and be part of this. Words cant really describe where Im at right now, he said.Cursed by a Billy Goat, bedeviled by Bartman and crushed by decades of disappointment, those Lovable Losers now have a chance to win it all.Trying to win their first crown since 1908, manager Joe Maddons team opens the World Series against Cleveland on Tuesday night.The Indians havent won it all since 1948 -- Cleveland and Cubs have the two longest title waits in the majors.This city deserves it so much, Rizzo said. We got four more big ones to go, but were going to enjoy this. Were going to the World Series. I cant even believe that.All-everything Javier Baez and Lester shared the NLCS MVP. Baez hit .318, drove in five runs and made several sharp plays at second base. Lester, a former World Series champion in Boston, was 1-0 with a 1.38 ERA in two starts against the Dodgers.The drought ended when Aroldis Chapman got Yasiel Puig to ground into a double play , setting off a wild celebration. And if they bring home the elusive championship?I may make the `W a tattoo, said chairman Tom Ricketts , who once lived across the street and met his wife in the bleachers.Deemed World Series favorites since opening day, the Cubs topped the majors with 103 wins to win the NL Central, then beat the Giants and Dodgers in the playoffs.The Cubs overcame a 2-1 deficit against the Dodgers and won their 17th pennant. They had not earned a World Series trip since winning a doubleheader opener 4-3 at Pittsburgh on Sept. 29, 1945, to clinch the pennant on the next-to-last day of the season.The eternal wait till next year is over. No more dwelling on a history of failure -- the future is now.Were too young. We dont care about it, star slugger Kris Bryant said. We dont look into it. This is a new team, this is a completely different time of our lives. Were enjoying it and our works just getting started.Hendricks pitched two-hit ball for 7 1/3 innings . Chapman took over and closed with hitless relief, then threw both arms in the air as he was mobbed by teammates and coaches.The Dodgers sent the minimum 27 batters to the plate and no one got past first base.The Cubs shook off back-to-back shutout losses earlier in this series by pounding the Dodgers for 23 runs to win the final three games.And they were in no way overwhelmed by the moment on Saturday, putting aside previous frustration.In the 1945 Series, the Billy Goat Curse supposedly began when a tavern owner wasnt allowed to bring his goat to Wrigley. In 2003, the Cubs lost the final three games of the NLCS to Florida, punctuated with a Game 6 defeat when fan Steve Bartman deflected a foul ball.Even as recently as 2012, the Cubs lost 101 times.This time, no such ill luck.Bryant had an RBI single and scored in a two-run first . Dexter Fowler added two hits, drove in a run and scored one.Contreras led off the fourth with a homer.Rizzo continued his resurgence with a solo drive in the fifth.That was plenty for Hendricks, the major league ERA leader.Hendricks left to a standing ovation after Josh Reddick singled with one out in the eighth. The only other hit Hendricks allowed was a single by Andrew Toles on the games first pitch.Kershaw, dominant in Game 2, gave up five runs and seven hits before being lifted for a pinch hitter in the sixth. He fell to 4-7 in the postseason.This day is never fun, the ending of a season, Kershaw said.The Dodgers havent been to the World Series since winning in 1988.Pitching on five days rest, Kershaw needed 30 pitches to get through the first. Fowler led off with a double against the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner, and Bryants single had the crowd shaking the 102-year-old ballpark.Fans had more to cheer when left fielder Andrew Toles dropped Rizzos fly, putting runners on second and third, and Ben Zobrist made it 2-0 a sacrifice fly.The Cubs added a run in the second when Addison Russell doubled to deep left and scored on a two-out single by Fowler.LINEUP SHUFFLEMaddon benched slumping right fielder Jason Heyward in favor of Albert Almora Jr.Kershaws pitching, so I wanted to get one more right-handed bat in the lineup, and also with Albert I dont feel like were losing anything on defense, Maddon said. I know Jasons a Gold Glover, but I think Albert, given an opportunity to play often enough would be considered a Gold Glove-caliber outfielder, too.Heyward was 2 for 28 in the playoffs -- 1 for 16 in the NLCS.SEENKerry Wood, wearing a Ron Santo jersey, threw out the first pitch and actor Jim Belushi delivered the Play Ball! call before the game. Pearl Jam front man Eddie Vedder and actor John Cusack were also in attendance. And Bulls great Scottie Pippen led the seventh-inning stretch. Cheap World Cup Jerseys .com) - The Chicago Blackhawks aim for their third three-game winning streak of the season when they host the struggling Edmonton Oilers in Sundays battle at the United Center. Wholesale Soccer Jerseys . In the response filed Wednesday to the complaint by 30-year-old Alexander Bradley, attorneys say the former University of Florida player is invoking his Fifth Amendment right that protects people from incriminating themselves. http://www.cheapsoccerjerseysshop.com/ . Toronto has dropped games to Indiana and Miami since a five-game winning streak and closed out a three-game road trip at 1-2. Cheap Jerseys From China . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Store . At a Manhattan federal court hearing, attorney Jordan Siev said his law office has gotten more evidence nearly every day to support its lawsuit accusing MLB and Selig of going on a "witch hunt" to ruin Rodriguezs reputation and career. He said the defendants went "way over the line. RIO DE JANEIRO -- The World Anti-Doping Agency and Court of Arbitration for Sport say they have been targeted by hackers, with an attempt made to obtain access credentials for the database which tracks athletes for drug testing.WADA said it learned this week, during the Olympics, that it had been targeted, though it was not immediately clear when the attacks took place.WADA communications coordinator Maggie Durand told The Associated Press in an email that the agency was notified of a YouTube video claiming WADAs website had been hacked. She says an investigation was quickly able to determine that the website had not been compromised, although we continue to monitor activity.Durand says WADAs ADAMS database of doping results has not been compromised, but that so-called phishing emails were sent to users of the database disguised as official WADA communications requesting their login details.WADA did not immediately respond to requests for comment on how many users were targeted by the e-mails, whether athletes had been targeted, or what WADAs plan was if credentials had been leaked. WADA said it had notified all users of the database about the phishing attempt, and posted a warning on the database website.Athletes use the database to enter so-called whereabouts information which they are obliged to provide in order to make themselves available for drug testing outside competitions.dddddddddddd Someone with an athletes credentials could potentially change that information, sending testers to the wrong location, potentially leading to athletes being wrongly blamed for missing a test.Meanwhile, CAS secretary general Matthieu Reeb told the AP there has been an attempt to hack the CAS website. It is not the first time, and certainly not the last time.He says the attempt was apparently unsuccessful but investigations are being made ... to make sure that we have not suffered any damage.Reeb says information on the CAS website is intended for the public and is not confidential.A video posted to YouTube, by a user claiming to represent Polish hackers, seems to show the CAS website doctored to display the message: We forgot the sport is out of the politic (sic). Please forgive us. The CAS site was not accessible late Thursday.Both WADA and CAS have been in the headlines recently over their handling of doping cases ahead of the Olympics, particularly regarding bans for Russian athletes following the countrys doping scandals. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
The college football season is just getting?deep into conference play, and we already have a clearer picture on the best teams. Same goes for the best prospects. In this edition of my Big Board, an Alabama linebacker rises into the top 10, two offensive tackles drop a little bit and there are five new additions.A reminder: General scouting reports on these players wont change week to week, unless my overall evaluation changes. Ill simply be updating performance notes and providing updates on key matchups to come.One asterisk denotes a junior, and two asterisks denote a redshirt sophomore for the 2016 season.1. *Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&MGarrett appeared to have been hurt in the Aggies win over Arkansas, but Texas A&M hasnt released information about his injury. Regardless, hes a brilliant, natural pass-rushing talent who, at 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds, has the length, strength and ability to bend the edge. He has 3.0 sacks this season after totaling 22.0 in his first two, and he looks like a top-five lock if he stays healthy. He comes from an athletic family -- both his brother and sister are great athletes. Evgenii Dadonov Jersey . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Derek MacKenzie Jersey . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. http://www.cheapfloridapanthersjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-keith-yandle-jersey . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. Cheap Florida Panthers Jerseys . Argentina winger Ezequiel Lavezzi and France midfielder Blaise Matuidi scored, with star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic setting up both despite having a poor game by his high standards. Forward Eduardo gave Ajaccio the lead in the sixth minute after being set up by right winger Benjamin Andre, and the Corsican side looked comfortable in the first half, with the lively Johan Cavalli causing problems with his probing runs from midfield. Aleksander Barkov Jersey . Giroud, who wasnt in the starting lineup for two matches after allegations about his private life and a decline in form, scored twice in the first half. Tomas Rosickys chip made it 3-0 before half time at Emirates Stadium, while defender Laurent Koscielny scored an unmarked header in the second half. CLEVELAND -- The Oakland Athletics couldnt contain a power surge by the Indians on Saturday.Starter Dillon Overton allowed three of Clevelands four home runs on the night, as Oakland fell to Cleveland, 6-3.Overton (1-2), who was recalled from Triple-A Nashville before the game, allowed five runs and 10 hits in just 3 1/3 innings, while giving up solo homers to Jason Kipnis, Jose Ramirez and Abraham Almonte. The start was just his fourth of the season for the Athletics.The 24-year-old allowed only three homers over 103 2/3 innings in Triple-A, but has given up six homers in 15 innings with Oakland.Manager Bob Melvin believes the difference involves major league hitters taking advantage of Overtons lack of location.Hes getting a lot of the middle of the plate, Melvin said. They were getting good swings on him.Liam Hendriks allowed Clevelands fourth home run of the game -- a two-run shot to Mike Napoli later in the fourth.Billy Butler clubbed a solo homer off Indians starter Josh Tomlin in the fourth, following some chatter with Cleveland catcher Chris Gimenez.The two exchanged words following a pitch with two outs, before plate umpire Tripp Gibson separated them.On the next pitch, Butler belted a drive that traveled an estimated 440 feet.The designated hitter followed with a bat flip, which began a shouting match between the two players. Gibson stood beside Gimenez as Butler rounded the bases and then issued warnings to both dugouts.Its just tempers flaring, Butler said. It was just a professional disagreement. It all worked itself out.Butler was loudly booed in his next two at-bats aand explained that the incident with Gimenez began over a disagreement involving the strike zone.ddddddddddddI thought the he mightve just been asking for a little too much, Butler said. I had an issue with him. He took a little bit of an issue with me, we got it out of the way.Oaklands only other run off Tomlin came in the first, when Danny Valencia smacked a two-out RBI single to give the Athletics a 1-0 lead.Marcus Semien added a solo homer- his 22nd of the season- with two outs in the ninth off closer Cody Allen.Reliever Zach Neal, who entered the game with a 6.00 ERA, pitched three scoreless innings to finish the game for Oakland, allowing just one hit.TRADE TIMEOutfielder Billy Burns was traded from Oakland to the Kansas City Royals for outfield prospect Brett Eibner prior to Saturdays game.Burns hit .234 with 12 RBI in 73 games with Oakland this season, while Eisner batted .231 with three homers and 10 RBI in 26 games for the Royals.TRAINERS ROOMAthletics: LHP Rich Hill was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand, a move retroactive to July 20. Hes eligible to return Thursday.UP NEXTAthletics: RHP Sonny Gray will replace Hill against the Indians on Sunday. Hes 2-8 with a 6.31 ERA in his last eight starts, but is 2-0 in four career outings versus Cleveland.Indians: RHP Corey Kluber is 0-4 in five career appearances against Oakland. The All-Star got a no-decision in his last start against Baltimore. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- They have been dubbed Bench Force One.Charlottes pesky, hard-nosed group of backups is paying big dividends for the Hornets early this season. They outscored Utahs reserves 41-20 in a 104-98 victory over the Jazz on Wednesday night.Kemba Walker scored 21 points and Marvin Williams had 19 for the Hornets, but it was the play of Marco Belinelli, Frank Kaminsky, Spencer Hawes and Ramon Sessions off the bench that proved to be the difference as Charlotte stretched its winning streak to four games.Belinelli and Kaminsky had 13 points each and Hawes added 11.Theyre good players. They fit together well, Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. They have an identity off the bench with that group. They go to Marco coming off screens and hes hard to guard and then they post Kaminsky and Sessions in the pick and roll.Kaminsky, by far the youngest of the crew in just his second season, shook off a viral infection to post a big night.Charlotte trailed most of the game, but he made an inside jumper to give the Hornets a lead with 7 minutes remaining that they wouldnt relinquish. He later knocked down a 3 from the top of the key.We talk about coming off the bench and providing energy, Kaminsky said. We know it all starts with defense and letting that lead to offense. It looks like were doing a great job. Its been so much fun so far this season.Charlottes reserves are averaging 39 points per game this season despite Roy Hibbert and Jeremy Lamb being out with injuries.Its all about winning, Belinelli said. I think the guys from the bench, we try to bring energy on the court, we try to play together.The Hornets (7-1) have the second-best record in the East behind the NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers.The Hornets overcame a solid effort from Jazz guard Gordon Haywood, who finished with 29 points and seven rebounds. Rodney Hood had 20 points and Derrick Favors added 16 points and 10 rebounds.TIP-INSJazz: George Hill, who came in averaging more than 20 points per game, was unable to play due to a sprained right thumb. ... Haywards 17 points in the first half were the most in a half by a Jazz player this season. ... The Jazz outrebounded the Hornets 46-37.Hornets: Coach Steve Clifford said hes optimistic Hibbert will able to return Friday night. Hes missed the teams last five games with right knee soreness. ... Walker has scored in double figures in all seven games. ... It wont show up in the stat sheet, but Hornets C Cody Zeller battled hard in the paint and drew three fouls while battling for an offensive rebound.STRUGGLES FROM DEEPSnyder wasnt upset the Jazz attempted 34 shots from beyond the 3-point arc. He just wasnt thrilled that they missed 26 of them.Were not a team that takes bad 3s, so if we are taking that many its because theyre open, Snyder said. Some of them were good, clean looks and we just have to make them. Those are shots that we want to take.WALKER STRONG LATEThe Jazz kept Walker in check most of the game, but the Easts third-leading scorer at 24.3 points per game began to find his touch in the fourth quarter.He started to bang some shots on us, but over the course of the game I thought we were really good against him, Hayward said. At the end of the game they just got in a groove, they got in a good rhythm.ON THE ROAD AGAINJoe Johnson isnt blaming the schedule for the Jazzs 5-4 start. Utah has played six games on the road this season.That has nothing to do with it, Johnson said. We controlled the most portion of the game, just in that second half, especially the fourth quarter, we just kind of let it get away from us.UP NEXTJazz: The Jazz, who are 3-3 on the road, travel to Orlando to take on the Magic on Friday night.Hornets: The Hornets will wrap up a three-game home stand on Friday night when they host Toronto. Scott Niedermayer Jersey . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. Andy Greene Jersey . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. http://www.cheapdevilsjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-damon-severson-jersey . Vokoun departed practice on Saturday morning after discovering swelling in his thigh. He was taken to a local hospital where the clot was revealed. The club announced the surgery following a 5-3 exhibition loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Adidas Taylor Hall Jersey .com) - The Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks both take aim at their first wins of the season on Saturday, as the Canucks open their home slate at Rogers Arena. Jimmy Hayes Jersey . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. VERMILLION, S.D. -- Trey Burch-Manning scored 14 points and his two free throws with 16 seconds left helped South Dakota fend off Bowling Green 78-72 on Sunday.Triston Simpson hit two free throws and a jumper to put South Dakota up for good at 75-71 with 32 seconds to play.South Dakota (2-0) led 33-27 at intermission on the strength of a 10-0 run. Tyler Flack emerged from the break and scored the Coyotes first seven points off a 3 and two jump shots.Burch-Manning scored to make it 42-29 with 17:55 left.Bowling Green (0-2) ccalled timeout, regrouped and went on a 14-4 run to cut its deficit to three.ddddddddddddntwon Lillards layup with 7:46 remaining gave Bowling Green a 59-57 lead, its first since 3:02 remaining in the first half. On the following possession, Lillard dished a no-look pass off a drive to the basket to Demajeo Wiggins for a dunk to put the lead at four.Rasheed Worrell led the Falcons with 14 points. 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NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Nashville Predators have signed defenseman Samuel Girard to a three-year, entry-level contract.Predators general manager David Poile announced the signing Wednesday.Girard, 18, has spent the past two seasons with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey Leagues Shawinigan Cataractes. He had 10 goals and 64 assists during the 2015-16 seasons.The Predators selected Girard in the second round of the 2016 Entry Draft with the 47th overall selection. He skated over 20 minutes Tuesday in the Predators preseason game with the Florida Panthers. Juuse Saros Jersey . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Matt Irwin Jersey . Halladay signed a one-day contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday that allowed the veteran right-hander to retire as a member of team with which he broke into the majors and spent the bulk of his distinguished 16-year career. http://www.cheappredatorsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-filip-forsberg-jersey . -- Lou Brocks shoulder-to-shoulder collision with Bill Freehan during the 1968 World Series and Pete Roses bruising hit on Ray Fosse in the 1970 All-Star game could become relics of baseball history, like the dead-ball era. Craig Smith Jersey . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Alexei Emelin Jersey . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. BOULDER, Colo. -- Xavier Johnson and Josh Fortune scored 14 points apiece and Colorado beat Louisiana-Monroe 89-70 Thursday night in a regional game of the Legends Classic.Derrick White and George King added 12 points each for Colorado (3-0), which is off to its best start since opening the 2012-13 season with six consecutive wins.It was Colorados 11th consecutive win at the Coors Events Center.Were not where we want to be, White said. We have to improve individually and collectively. Right now, we are 3-0, which was what our goal was to start. We just have to continue to improve.Jordon Harris had 15 points -- all on 3 pointers -- to lead Louisiana-Monroe (1-2). Travis Munnings and Marvin Jean-Pierre each added 12 points for the Warhawks, who have never beaten Colorado in three meetings.Up by 25 points at the half, Colorado maintained its double-digit lead the rest of the way, going in front by 27 points on Johnsons layup with 8:10 left. Louisiana-Monroe closed the gap somewhat in the late going after Colorado began substituting freely.King hit two 3-pointers in the opening minutes and helped Colorado break out to a 48-23 halftime lead. The Buffaloes led for all but 46 seconds of the period, when the game was briefly tied.BIG PICTURELouisiana-Monroe: Last time out, in an 80-59 loss to Texas, the Warhawks struggled offensively, particularly in the second half and finished by making just 30 percent of their shots from the field. It was more of the same against Colorado, only the Warhawks shooting woes surfaced from the outset. They converted 25 percent of their shots in the first half before starting to find the range in the second half, winding up converting 41.3 percent of their sshots.ddddddddddddColorado: Balanced scoring and depth has been a strength of Colorado in its 3-0 start. Ten of 12 players scored in the win over the Warhawks, including all five starters. And the Buffaloes did not let up despite their big lead. They kept the offensive pressure on Louisiana-Monroe throughout the game.IN TOUGHLouisiana-Monroe met its match and then some in consecutive losses to Texas and Colorado, and coach Keith Richard anticipated the Warhawks would be in tough against the teams, both members of Power 5 conferences. We lost five seniors, five very good players from last years team, he said. Im not surprised by the final score in both games. These are two good teams. Colorado is really good and theyre extra special here in Boulder.MEMORABLE STARTColorado freshman Bryce Peters, who was suspended for the first two games because of a team rule violation, made his first career basket a memorable one. Midway through the first half, he came up with a steal and then raced down the court for a breakaway dunk. He finished with nine points, including a 3-pointer off a feed from White, who rebounded a missed free throw just before the first-half buzzer.INJURY REPORTColorado junior guard Dominique Collier, who was limited to a few minutes of play Monday night against Seattle, could miss four to six weeks with a broken bone in his foot.UP NEXTLouisiana-Monroe: Travels to Cheney, Washington for a game Monday against Seattle.Colorado: Continues play in the 2016 Legends Classic on Monday when it will play Notre Dame at the Barclays Center in New York. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Ama Agbeze, the Sportswoman of the Month, plays live on Sky Sports on Monday so make sure you kick-off your week by seeing what all the fuss is about. Agbeze plays for Loughborough Lightning who will host Manchester Thunder, live on Sky Sports 2 HD at 7.30pm on Monday.She earned 71 percent of the vote to take the January award for Sportswomen, having impressed for England in their three-game series against Australia last month. Agbeze wins Sportswomen award All the details on the January prize Agbeze and co will need to be on top form when the Sky Sports cameras arrive on Monday because their visitors from Manchester are the Netball Superleagues most in-form team.Thunder have won three out of three and are joined at the top of the Superleague by Hertfordshire Mavericks. Lightning, for their part, have won two and drawn in their three outings to date. Monday Night Netball returns when Loughborough Lightning take on Manchester Thunder. Tamsin Greenway asks if Ama Agbeze can make the difference Watch Lightning v Thunder on Sky Sports 2 HD at 7.30pm on Monday Also See: Agbeze: Time to shine Superleague table Jerseys MLB Wholesale . Burke is expected to miss two to three months after breaking a finger in the teams third preseason game. Tinsley, a 10-year veteran, spent the last two seasons in Utah, where the point guard averaged 3. Discount Baseball Jerseys . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. http://www.authenticnflchinajerseys.com/ . You can watch the game live on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. The Flyers had won seven of eight before dropping their last two outings on consecutive days over the weekend. Philadelphia was handed a 6-3 loss by the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon before dropping a 4-1 decision to the Rangers the following night in New York City. Cheap NFL Jerseys . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament. ASHBURN, Va. -- Trent Williams four-game absence is a substantial blow to the Washington Redskins playoff hopes, but a loss they are confident they can overcome.The Pro Bowl left tackle is out the next four games for violating the NFLs substance abuse policy, meaning well-traveled 31-year-old Ty Nsekhe moves into the starting lineup. Nsekhes ability is respected, but theres no doubt it hurts the Redskins to be without Williams against the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals.Definitely one of our leaders, definitely one of the staple cornerstones on that offensive line, cornerback Josh Norman said Monday. Losing a guy like that is kind of hard to replace, but we will because weve got guys here that are formidable to do a job (and can) come in and perform admirably.Williams is able to take part in meetings but not practice or attend games during his suspension, which is up Dec. 5. He was not made available to address reporters as the Redskins returned from their bye week, and coach Jay Gruden said the specifics of his conversation with Williams will remain private.We stand behind Trent, and we know that hes going to be a big help for us when he becomes eligible, Gruden said. You hate to lose a player of that magnitude any way, shape or form. Its going to have an effect on our football team.It could be a domino effect, especially with right tackle Morgan Moses battling a sprained ankle. Moses reported feeling good after resting during the bye week, but theres little margin for error with Williams out and Nsekhe starting on the left side.As for the immediate task of filling in for Williams, Gruden expressed confidence in Nsekhe, who started twice last season and has seen action in spurts this year. Nsekhe said his preparation doesnt change at all despite getting the first-team snaps at left tackle, but playing doesnt hurt.Of course the experience is a tremendous thing, Nsekhe said. Theres nothing that you can simulate in practice or anything like that. Ive been here before, so hopefully I can build on what Ive already done.Moses worked out on a side field during the part of practice open to reporters. Deespite Moses optimism, Gruden wasnt ready to say hell be ready to face the Vikings.ddddddddddddHes still sore, but I think in time hopefully the swelling will go down and hell be ready to go, Gruden said. Hes a tough guy and played through worse injuries, but you never know. Weve just got to do the best we can and get him as much rehab as we can and see how hes feeling come Wednesday.With so much uncertainty, the Redskins signed tackle Blaine Clausell, a 2015 undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State, off the Baltimore Ravens practice squad. Clausell also spent time on the New England Patriots practice squad.But neither Nsekhe, Moses and Clausell can be a perfect replacement for Williams, one of the Redskins top players. This is his second four-game drug suspension after serving one in 2011, but Gruden said this does not affect Williams status as a leader.Moses said he has already talked to Williams about preparing for the Vikings. The Redskins will continue to lean on Williams as much as they can during the suspension while also realizing they have to help him, too.Its just not a leader or a captain were losing. Were losing a hell of a football player, as well, Moses said. Hes still going to be here to be able to help us and hes still part of this team. Its our job as his teammates and friends to stick with him through this tough little time and well get him back.Game notes The team placed TE Niles Paul on injured reserve with a shoulder injury. Gruden said external options will be considered, as Paul was also Washingtons fullback and a special teams ace. ... TE Derek Carrier returned to practice 11 months after tearing the ACL and medial collateral ligament in his right knee. The Redskins have 21 days to activate him from the physically unable to perform list, put him on IR or cut him. ... S Duke Ihenacho (concussion) practiced with a yellow jersey, while S Will Blackmon participated with a wrap on his left hand to protect his broken thumb.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFLCheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Allison Schmitt surfaced from sleep in the middle of the night thinking it might snow on her three-hour drive to central Pennsylvania.She curled her 6-foot-1 body into a ball and wept. Her thoughts cascaded, frantic: I cant do this anymore. I just dont even want to be here anymore.If it snowed, she could drift over the lane line and people would think shed had an accident on her way to see a college hockey game. No one would guess what had gripped her in the moment. She couldnt grasp it herself. She was an Olympic swimming champion, barely treading water.It was the first weekend of January 2015. She hadnt wanted to come back to Baltimore after the holidays. But here she was, training and using muscle memory to arrange her face into the smile everyone expected of her.She had a role: She was Schmitty, always upbeat, a regular girl who just happened to swim fast. She put in the work, and when the bell rang, she was a stone-great competitor. The payoff came at London 2012, where she won gold in the 200-meter freestyle -- one of five medals to add to her bronze in Beijing four years before.But something drained out of her after London and never came back. Shed had two mediocre seasons in a row. She had heard of post-Olympic blues, but why would that apply to her? She had great friends, a supportive family, a top-shelf training group and a staunch surrogate brother in Michael Phelps. She tried to kick through the way she felt, the way she would override pain in the back half of a race, but it just got worse. And the Olympic trials were still more than 18 months away.She was supposed to drive to Penn State to watch Ohio State -- her younger twin sisters team -- play a womens hockey game. She had been looking forward to it, but now she was panicky, exhausted and desperate for relief. There had been enough nights of interrupted sleep, when she would wake up crying, or laughing for no reason, or throwing herself against the mattress.So easy to steer off the road.The thought bubbled up unbidden and mortified her.Oh my God, I think Im going crazy. Allison, stop, youre going crazy. Allison. Allison, will you stop?She grabbed her phone the next day and texted random friends, telling them she loved them, wishing them a Happy New Year, trying to tether herself to solid ground. Or in case something happened. She wasnt sure which.She cried again as she talked herself through the trip: Two hands on the wheel. Dont do anything. She mustered a happy face when she met her parents at the rink, even went on the ice between periods for a contest. None of her three slap shots went in, but she loved taking whacks at the puck like she had growing up in Michigan. The night before seemed surreal. No one would have guessed.Alone again on the way back to Baltimore, she lectured herself. Allison, that was fun, dont do anything. That was so fun, that was so good, you got to see her play, it was a great time.I remember getting home and being so thankful that I had made it home fine, she said.Schmitt, 26, made it all the way to a third Summer Games. She qualified for the 400 and 800 freestyle relays at the U.S. Olympic trials in Omaha, Nebraska, but fell short of the top-two finish that would have enabled her to defend her 200-meter gold. Still, relief flooded her face as she walked toward the stands to meet her family after the ceremony naming her to the team. She hugged her mother, Gail, and wrapped her arms around her aunt, Amy Bocian.Allison offered Amy her podium bouquet of red roses, white lilies and blue thistle. Amy reached out and touched Allisons face, brushing her neck. Then Amy pulled the flowers in toward the silver locket resting above her heart. It frames a black and white image of her own daughter, Allisons cousin April, impossibly beautiful and now beyond her caress.April was also an athlete. She didnt make it home. The shock of her suicide pulled Allison out of a deepening emotional winter. One week after burying her cousin, Allison began talking publicly about her own depression and athletes mental health. She hasnt stopped. The Rio Games, where she will be a co-captain of the womens team, are her next platform.I knew this was a time that I could save the next person who was struggling, the next person who thinks their life is not worth it, Allison said.When she looks back, she can see how she lost her balance on the way down from the London Olympic podium.The same perfectionism, work ethic and craving for structure that drives elite athletes to great heights can leave them aimless and perilously hollowed out after a peak event. Few of the 10,000 who will gather in Rio this month will be inclined to dwell on that prospect before they compete.Studies on depression in elite and college athletes dont necessarily show a higher prevalence than in the general population, but evidence has emerged that athletes as a group are more reluctant to seek advice or treatment.Athletes often resist seeking help because theyre so conditioned to project images of strength and tenacity, said Emily Brunemann, a graduate student and elite swimmer affiliated with the University of Michigans Athletes Connected program, which aims to surmount that barrier. Theyre worried about what their coaches and teammates will think; theyre worried it will affect their playing time. They conceal mental health issues because they can, she said.Anthony Ervin, a Sydney 2000 Olympic swimming gold medalist and freethinking 2016 U.S. co-captain who rocketed to the top of the sport before dropping out, chronicled his post-pinnacle depression, substance abuse and a suicide attempt in his recent memoir, Chasing Water.When youre still in the throes of that athletes death -- when youre in that dark place, when help tries to reach out to you -- you dont think that the help understands, said Ervin, 35, who made a comeback in 2011 and has qualified for two events in Rio. The isolation that it becomes necessary to create as a champion almost becomes the isolation that keeps him separate and rotting in that dark place.Dr. Jim Bauman, a sports psychology consultant for USA Swimming, said its difficult to counsel energized, focused athletes about post-Olympic depression before the Games. He favors more mental health education for coaches at home, the better to spot danger signs.In general, Bauman said, We spend all our time on biomechanics and not enough time on the software -- dealing with pressure and chaos. Instead of saying, Be tough, we should be saying, I want you to be resilient, pliable, able to adapt.He has worked with USA Swimming to develop programs for athletes who are retiring, but theres little in place for those who know theyre continuing.Allisons descent began Aug. 5, 2012, the morning after she swam the anchor leg of the winning 4x100-meter medley relay to collect her fifth and last medal in London. She and other swimmers signed out of the Olympic Village, and a few of them found a flat in London.She made the rounds of media interviews and sponsors, went to other Olympic events, partied with her teammates, shorted herself on sleep. By closing ceremonies, she was coming down with strep throat and so bushed that she and fellow swimmer Cammile Adams posed jokingly for a photo, pretending to nap, during the Spice Girls performance.That deep fatigue was the rumble ahead of a slow-moving storm.Athletes who experience depression after success might find it more difficult to fathom, but sports psychologist Kristin Keim said that, in her experience, winners and losers are all the same a week later. ... Their endorphins and dopamine crash.Keim, a former pro cyclist who works mainly with endurance athletes and has several clients headed for the Rio Games, said its a mistake to take too much time off after competing at the Olympics. She advises her clients to give themselves a modest break but to try to keep their bodies and minds from going into shock. I tell them to go to Peru, go hiking, do something thats still physical, still active, still challenging, she said.Even with a road map, some athletes will flounder amid myriad financial, educational and personal decisions and public attention that often spikes, then disappears.Tyler Clary, a gold medalist in the 200 backstroke at London 2012, said re-entering reality was like dropping a narcotic, cold turkey.Youre on this emotional high that just goes higher and higher and higher, and even after the Games, its still at an elevated level, he said. Everyone wants to talk to you, people you havent talked to in years want to text with you. I had to have two phones for a while because my regular phone was blowing up constantly.Clary had a plan in place and stuck to it, moving from California, where he had spent the previous two years training full time, back to Ann Arbor to continue working on his University of Michigan degree. He stayed out of the pool for three months, put on 30 pounds and experienced what he called an extremely dark period, exacerbated by dread of the next long Olympic cycle.Its a huge cliff at the end of it, Clary said of his own post-Games plummet. You get the mental cold sweats from it, because youre like, S---, this isnt gonna happen for another four years.Allison also had a plan. She would spend three days at home, then go back to the University of Georgia. She was committed to finishing her undergraduate degree after a year away, and wrapping up her swimming eligibility with an NCAA team championship -- the one achievement missing from her résumé.It seemed like a good idea on paper. It seemed like who shed always been.Amid Christmas morning chaos, four of the Schmitt kids ripped wrapping paper off boxes and squealed as one of their parents filmed the scene. The middle girl quietly opened her presents in the background, content to be part of the fun but not the center of it.That was Allison, a buoyant kid who laughed easily and often, on the inhale and the exhale, out of joy or sometimes from nerves -- and still does. She drew energy from the happiness of others but also sponged up their sadness. She remembers being carried away from the funeral of a friends grandmother -- a woman she had never met -- because she was weeping inconsolably.I definitely feel that I would rather help other people than help myself, Allison said. If I see a stranger crying, it breaks my heart. I feel like I feel way more for people than I probably should.The Schmitts home in Canton, Michigan, perched between Ann Arbor and Detroit, often hit a Christmas morning decibel level throughout the year with five kids born within six years going every which way to sports practices and piano lessons. Gails desk blotter calendar was thick with notations to help keep track of it all. There were years where there was not one free day where no one had to do anything, she said. If there was, we would look at each other dumbfounded.Allison found her element early when she followed older sibling Kirsten into the pool. She showed such promise by her midteens that then-University of Michigan and Club Wolverine coach Bob Bowman invited her to train with his gifted group of collegians and young pros that included Phelps. The move eventually propelled Allison onto a bronze-medal-winning relay team at the 2008 Beijing Games.She eased into her freshman year at Georgia without a hitch or much fanfare. She and fellow Bulldogs swimmer Megan Romano became inseparable the following year and continued to talk often when Allison went to Baltimore to train with Bowman and Phelps in the year leading up to London.The 2012 homecoming was markedly different. People thronged the Heritage Park Amphitheatre in Canton for Allison Schmitt Day. She was grateful, but she was on autopilot. Her words to the crowd tapped into an undercurrent of anxiety.Im expecting to go back [to Georgia] and be the same exact person, she said. I dont know if I will be, I dont know if people will look at me different. But Im the same person -- if I came back with no medals or if I came back with five medals -- and I hope people treat me the same.It was wishful thinking. On that same visit, she felt swamped by well-meaning people at her mothers office who wanted photos, wanted to tell her about their kids, all talking at once. Everyones telling me how lucky I am and how they wish they were me, she said. She fled to a bathroom to cry, feeling guilty. Wasnt she supposed to enjoy this? What was wrong with her?Going back to campus was even more disorienting, even though Romano was one of her roommates. Her class had graduated. She didnt know most of the people on the team. She couldnt walk anywhere without being stopped, while Romano stood awkwardly off to the side. Theyd go out to a bar at night and people would offer her shots she couldnt accept.She slept and slept. She skipped classes and practices. There were times she was so distraught that Romano refused to leave her alone, and would either calm her down enough to go train or make excuses for both of them.Romano, who had just missed making the Olympic team in the 800 freestyle relay, struggled to understand her friends distress. She has a better handle on it now. London was such a peak experience that, Youre scared youre never going to feel anything like that again, Romano said. I felt nothing I was doing was helping, but Im glad I was there and had her trust.There were other times Allison shut Romano out, too, pushing aside the dresses in her closet, sitting in a corner and pretending she wasnt there. Or moving her car so her roommates would think she was out.Allison helped Georgia win the SEC and NCAA titles, graduated in December 2013 and returned to Bowmans group in Baltimore, but she went two years without qualifying for a major international meet. She wouldnt return Gails calls and texts, or she would react defensively.Fortunately for Schmitt, someone who understood was able to break through her isolation -- someone who had just hit his own nadir.A newly humbled Phelps emerged from rehab in November 2014 after his second drunken-driving arrest. His drivers license was suspended, and so were his racing privileges. Allison picked him up every day on her way to the pool. He noticed she was unusually muted.They function like siblings bound by years of affectionate teasing and obvious loyalty. Phelps was a two-time Olympian when Allison first showed up to train with Club Wolverine as a giggly, guileless 16-year-old.Allison would entertain her new, older cohort by reading a joke of the day from a cornball book she brought with her. She didnt have a care in the world, Phelps said. If she went in and won, she was happy. If she did a best time, she was happy. If she got her butt kicked, she would come back to the pool and work 10 times harder.Phelps sensed that Allison was struggling, but it wasnt until January 2015 at the Arena Pro Swim Series stop in Austin, Texas -- a meet he attended as a spectator a couple of weeks after Allison had white-knuckled the drive to Penn State -- that he said something.By then, any minor curveball felt like a catastrophe to Allison. She fell apart when her competition suit ripped, and she snapped at Bowman on the deck. For one of the first times in her life, she didnt feel like racing. She swam a poor 400 freestyle heat and found herself in the blocks that evening for a consolation final.Halfway through the race, she did a flip turn and quit.I was just like, F--- this. I dont want to be doing this, she said. And I did nothing in the last 200. I get out of the water. Bob was standing there. He was the last person I wanted to see.Michael was standing right in front of him. And he stops me, and he says, Hey. I know youre not yourself, I know maybe youre going through things. Ive been through a lot, and Im here for you if you need help.Allison cracked. She cried through her warm-down and kept sobbing when she climbed out, crossing her arms tightly around her chest. Bowman, Phelps and Keenan Robinson, the longtime high performance director for the training group, gathered around her by the diving board. I remember everything clearing out and the lights going dim and just standing there, talking, she said.Bowman was chagrined. Allison had called him a few times during her last semester at Georgia, sounding fried, but he had thought it was a passing phase. He had been trying to coach her out of a hole she had dug with two years of erratic training, talking at her, proposing fixes without really listening or looking below the surface.I really underestimated the depth of what was going on, the coach said. That was when we really got aggressive about getting her help.Allison was still ashamed and resistant. She began sessions with a psychologist in Baltimore, slinking into the waiting room hoping no one would see her, engaging in childlike avoidance. Shed fiddle with her keys and zone out, or shed shield her face with a clipboard meant for paperwork.She swam well at a meet that March and decided she would stop going to counseling. This had been a bad blip, she thought. She was fine.No one heard April Bocians warning shot. She snuck her fathers handgun out of its hiding place and fired it into a tree on her parents 11-acre property in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. She wrote in her journal: You are so stupid. You almost killed yourself. God loves you. Love yourself.April was stunning until the day she died, nearly 6-foot-4, with rich red hair tumbling around her shoulders, warm hazel eyes and an impish grin. She was a dominant center on an AAU basketball team and at her small private high school, Kennedy Catholic. Division I coaches began recruiting her as a sophomore. One of them was Michigan State Universitys Suzy Merchant, who brought a dark green Spartans uniform with her and let April try it on.Teammates knew her as a vibrant spirit who danced around the locker room while brushing her teeth. She loved fashion and often wore bright yellow. And, like Allison, April brimmed with empathy, almost to a fault. After she blocked a dozen shots in one game, a family friend overheard her apologizing to the opposing star in the handshake line: Im really sorry if I embarrassed you. You are a really good player. Its just that Im tall.But Aprils compassion was reserved for others. She wrestled with confidence and self-image and gave her parents few clues as to why. Once, as an eighth-grader, she wept uncontrollably while her mother drove her to school. I dont know whats wrong, she told Amy. I dont want to live.She would be fine and then shed withdraw, neglecting school, sleeping through her morning alarm. The Bocians tried counseling, a psychiatrist, a hypnotist, medication. Things came to a head in the spring of 2015. Amy and Tim told their daughter that they would do anything within their power but that she was the only one who could right herself.This is what they recall or have pieced together about what happened next.The afternoon of May 5, 2015, the week after her 17th birthday, April walked out of their house with her little black backpack. It held the gun, which she had handled at least once before, and a Fellowship of Christian Athletes Bible.At 5 p.m., FedEx delivered a pale peach dress April had ordered for the prom.At 6:36, Amys phone rang. The name April Bocian appeared on the screen. Amy was relieved to see it. Then she heard her daughters labored breathing.April told Amy she loved her. She said she was in the back woods. She hung up.The Bocians would learn later that April had then called 911, that the dispatcher had tracked her cellphone signal, that two paramedics had worked on the damage done by a gunshot wound to her chest. Amy and Tim and one of their other daughters, Blake, rushed to a field that bordered their property line, but police wouldnt let them through. A Life Flight helicopter landed nearby. They knelt and prayed.Perhaps a half hour later, they heard the chopper blades slow and stop. There would be no need for an airlift that evening.In the Bible that April took with her, the pages of Acts 16 were smeared with fresh mud. Her parents pored over the passages they thought she might have been reading. Amy read Aprils journal and tried pass code after pass code to get into Aprils phone. After 10 attempts, the screen went black and the phone reverted to factory settings.Tim believes that April realized she wanted to live as soon as she pulled the trigger. He read a story about people who survived suicide leaps from the Golden Gate Bridge. The instant they jump, they regret it, he said. If everyone could know that and get it in their mind ... His voice trails off.He also believes her love of basketball is the main reason she stuck it out as long as she did. But Amy wonders whether the athlete in April cut both ways, glorifying an outsized pain threshold, teaching her to play through an invisible injury and putting her at risk.Its not just the kids that dont fit in or are in a weird group or dont talk to anyone or are too shy or arent athletic -- its not just them, Amy said. Look at her. From the outside, she had everything.Ralph Schmitt, Allisons father, picked her up at the Pittsburgh airport the day before the funeral. Allison had spent the previous night caved in with sorrow, slumped in a giant beanbag chair at Phelps place as he and his fiancée, Nicole Johnson, and their French bulldog, Juno, hovered protectively nearby.How did this happen? Why didnt I reach out? Why couldnt I have said something? Im going through this too, so we could have talked about it. Why her? Shes 17, everything in front of her. It could have gotten better in college.When Ralph pulled into the driveway, Allison opened the back door, fumbling with her bag. Her father stayed put. Neither of them unbuckled their seat belts, as if they knew emotion was about to T-bone the parked car.Allison may not tell you something if you dont ask her, but if you ask her, she basically will tell you the truth, Ralph said.He watched her in the rearview mirror as he asked: Have you ever had those thoughts?Deep thoughts or dark thoughts or suicidal thoughts, I cant remember, Allison said. Im pretty sure he was specific.She stared out the window and answered: Yes.Saying that word was harder than the hours of downloading to Michael and Bob and Keenan, harder than the tortured shrink sessions.She burst into tears, Ralph said. His chest heaved, once, at the memory.They sat, still buckled in, and talked for 15 or 20 minutes. He told me it scared him, Allison said. He told me he knew. I said something like, Im fine now. He said, How do I know that?She blurted out reflexively, Cause I say I am. But Aprils death had shifted something in her. She wanted to be done with denial.Allison was unprepared for the number of kids who showed up at the funeral and how profoundly they said her cousin had touched them. She waited in line to pay her respects by the open casket. April looked peaceful, her porcelain skin and lustrous hair intact. When the crowd dwindled, Allison circled back a second time. She kissed Aprils cheek and thought, Youre not gone. Ill help you.She asked to speak to Amy and Tim privately the next day. They listened as she sat between them and spilled out her thoughts. She felt her silence made her complicit in Aprils suffering. She was going to break that silence publicly. She had already texted her agent: I want to do something for young people and depression.She said, I havent felt right for a long time. Ive been battling something for a while, Amy said. And no one knows how dark its been. Im suffering from depression. But now I realize that I need to come out and talk about it and get help.I think that April probably felt a lot of the things that I felt and am still feeling, and if she would have known she wasnt alone, maybe she wouldnt have done what she did. I should have talked to her because Im the older one. Im her older cousin. I should have looked out for her.Amy and Tim had decided to be open about Aprils death, and to give scholarships through a community foundation to keep her name alive. The stigma, that fear of being different and weak they were convinced had propelled April into the woods -- they wanted to start tearing it down brick by brick.Allison had been hiding behind that same game face. We just said, The thing is to try to help others, and start by helping yourself, Tim said.Amy told Allison, The first person April saved is you.Allison gave her initial interviews about depression to The Associated Press and The Baltimore Sun within a few weeks. She spoke about it openly, confidently, when reporters brought it up at the Pan American Games that summer in Toronto, where she won gold.She wore a bright red dress with lace cutouts to USA Swimmings Golden Goggles award dinner this past November in Los Angeles and was ready with a speech when her name was called for the Perseverance Award. She called for more structured post-Olympic mental health support for athletes.Suzy Merchant, the Michigan State coach, said Aprils death shook her to the core and prompted her to organize a retreat for middle-school girls this past spring. Theres something I havent been able to put my finger on, she said. A trend among Division I athletes. You see them struggling with performance anxiety. Basketball used to be what they do. Now its who they are, and if theyre not living up to their expectations, they get overwhelmed. They go to a place where its hard to help them.In early February 2016, Allison appeared at a Michigan High School Athletic Association leadership conference in Lansing and sat next to a life-size cutout of herself -- a perfect, airbrushed version. She autographed swim caps and photos for a steady stream of admirers. Smile and dream BIG, she wrote. Love yourself.She revealed her imperfect self later that day to a packed ballroom as she laid out the lessons of Aprils life and death.She could have been sitting here with you guys, Allison said, as hundreds of teenagers listened in complete silence, their phones stowed, riveted. No one knew. She didnt tell any of her friends, she didnt tell her teammates she was in a dark place. She would walk out of the house, she would be bubbly, happy, loved helping out other kids, loved helping out other people. Was the star of the team, very funny, no one knew.Her voice quavered, and her eyes filled. She kept going.She brought a crowd to her funeral -- no one here wants to bring a crowd together to be at your funeral, Allison said. Because, if she could have seen how many people loved her, how many people cared about her, she would have asked for help.Me as a 17-year-old, me as an 18-year-old, me as a 20-year-old, didnt know how precious life is. I thought I was invincible. I thought if I walked across the street, any car would stop for me. We always need some help. Im still asking for help. I still have to go see a psychologist. If any outsider sees me, they think lifes perfect. You went to the Olympics. Youve got medals. Youre swimming professionally. Youre getting paid to work out. But if you look at it, everybodys got their own struggles, so make sure you reach out to someone.As applause exploded, Allison darted to the back of the room where her parents and older sister, Kirsten, were standing with tears running down their cheeks.Did I do OK? Allison said, her eyes wide and questioning, ever the people-pleaser.She moved to the Phoenix area last year when Bowman took the head-coaching job at Arizona State University and shares a home with Phelps, Johnson and their baby boy, Boomer. Phelps remains watchful. He anticipated Allison would have a tough time during their altitude training camp in early May, the first anniversary of Aprils death, so he put it on his calendar.He stopped her in the busy dining hall at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado and asked how she was. I could tell from the way she answered that she was B.S.-ing me, Phelps said. I was like, You can pull that off with a lot of people, but youre not gonna pull it off with me. People kept walking by them, carrying food. She told him how hard it was. He told her that was to be expected.Im glad I was there to put my hand out, and Im glad she accepted it, he said. I honestly have never seen her like she is today. Accepting the emotions she had in her body, and talking about them and expressing them, really made a big impact on her.An impact that didnt dent her essence. Allison still smiles easily and often and gravitates toward the positive, the lighthearted, the straightforward and the goofy. She likes to think about the last family vacation she and April had together, when they took paddleboards into the ocean off Nags Head on North Carolinas Outer Banks. Allison had a GoPro camera. She wanted a selfie of the two of them. She held up the camera and tipped and flailed and fell. When she popped her head out of the water, April was kneeling, trying to help.By the time they recovered, the current had carried them away from where the camera had sunk. They dove and searched but never found it. We didnt think of that, to look to see where we were, Allison said.She would like to have the pictures. They would have been hilarious. They would have been poignant. The two of them were so familiar to each other, so alike, so good at masking what hurt. Allison Schmitt wakes up now resolved to keep others from drifting away.Bonnie D. FordFord is a senior writer for ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine.join the conversation follow @Bonnie_D_Fordfollow @ESPN Nike Vapormax Flyknit Pas Cher . The Lightning are 2-0 so far on a four-game road trip, giving the club five straight wins as the guest and improving Tampas away record this season to 11-8-2. Vapormax Plus Homme . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. http://www.vapormaxplus.fr/nike-air-vapormax-moc.html . Louis Blues absence from top spot in the TSN. Vapormax Off White Blanche . The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. VaporMax Off White Pas Cher . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up. PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Tim Tebow made a powerful first impression for the New York Mets instructional league.The former NFL quarterback homered on the first pitch he saw Wednesday in his instructional league debut, against the St. Louis Cardinals.It was fun, said Tebow, who went 1 for 6 and put the ball in play in each plate appearance. I just wanted to have the approach that I was going to be aggressive. Thats something weve been talking about every day and practicing. It was probably a little high, but I got good barrel on it and it went out.The 2007 Heisman Trophy winner drove a high 90 mph fastball over the left-field fence. The home run came off John Kilichowski, a left-hander who pitched for Vanderbilt and two St. Louis minor league affiliates this year.Left fielder Dylan Carlson scaled the fence in an attempt to steal the home run, but his efforts came up short as fans roared in approval.Tebow sprinted hard around the bases at first then slowed to a trot. The 29-year-old flashed a broad smile as he approached home plate, then was overwhelmed by his teammates, who had come out of the dugout to swarm him.Im happy for him. Im glad he found another career that hes good at, former Denver Broncos teammate Chris Harris Jr. said. Shoot, hes already hitting home runs.Tebow also grounded into a double play, bounced out to shortstop and hit a pair of flyouts. He hit a slow roller to third base in his fifth at-bat in the fifth inning, nearly beating the throw from third.The story continues. The majority of people think hes too old and doesnt have enough time, Mets manager Terry Collins said later in Miami. Hes such a winner, suchh an overachiever, he may do something people say cant be done.ddddddddddddilichowski, who played for a nationally top-ranked Jesuit High School team that featured Houston pitcher Lance McCullers Jr., said he was trying to get ahead in the count and thought Tebow might be taking.Just another batter. I tried my best not to think about it, the left-hander said. Most of the times guys will take in the first inning. I just wanted to get ahead in the count and work on some things.Kilichowski joked that he wasnt happy the video of Tebows homer was going viral on Twitter but that theres worse things.In fact, Kilichowski apparently is a fan of Tebows.A Florida Gators fan growing up in Tampa, Kilichowski tweeted out praise of Tebow during the 2013 Sugar Bowl when then-Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel turned the ball over three times in the Gators 33-23 loss to underdog Louisville.Following Wednesdays instructional game, Kilichowski tweeted out to Tebow: I thought we agreed you were taking first pitch (at)TimTebowAdded Kilichowski: He works hard, hit the ball hard, cant get mad at him for that.Tebow said he wasnt surprised by the show of affection from his teammates.Ive got a really good relationship with all the guys. Weve had a chance to hang out the last couple of nights and see a movie last night and have dinner the night before. Weve gotten along really well and root for one another, he said.---AP Sports Writers Arnie Stapleton in Englewood, Colorado, and Steven Wine in Miami contributed to this report. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
What to watch for tonight in Game 2 of the World Series:---TIME CHANGEFans planning to see the first pitch will need to tune in earlier than expected. The start time was moved up an hour to 7:08 p.m. EDT because theres rain in the Cleveland forecast. Major League Baseball announced the shift Tuesday night midway through Game 1.Id rather do that than have the game start at 8, and then get caught in the latter part of the game with some rain. So I think its a good idea, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.Indians manager Terry Francona was fine with the change, too.We can handle that, he said. I dont care what time they tell us to play. ... Im going to be here anyway by 10 (a.m.). So it doesnt really matter.PINKIE POWERAll eyes at Progressive Field are bound to be on Trevor Bauers right pinkie when he starts for Cleveland in Game 2 of the World Series. He sliced the finger earlier this month while fixing one of his many drones. Then in Game 3 of the AL Championship Series at Toronto, blood began dripping onto the ball, the mound and his uniform, and he lasted only 21 pitches.Bauer says hes set to face the Cubs. He threw a simulated game this week with gauze over the finger -- a no-no during actual action -- and there was no bleeding.Im going to go out there and execute to the best level of my ability, and its going to be what its going to be, he said.JUST OK JAKEJake Arrieta gets the ball for Chicago in Game 2 with a mostly unimpressive October resume. He dominated in his first postseason start, pitching a shutout against Pittsburgh in last years NL wild-card game. But hes 1-2 with a 5.82 ERA in four playoff starts since, including a 4.91 ERA in two starts this postseason.The 2015 Cy Young Award winner was solid this season but hasnt replicated last years success. Chicago limited Arrietas innings during the regular season hoping to keep him fresh for a late-October run, though, and the World Series would be the perfect time for a resurgence.MANAGING MILLERIndians reliever Andrew Miller threw two scoreless innings in Game 1, but also tossed 46 pitches -- his most since 2011, when he was a starter.So, will the AL Championship Series MVP get the ball in Game 2?You know, I dont know, Cleveland manager Terry Francona said after a 6-0 win over the Cubs in the opener. I just think that theres a lot that can happen tomorrow. One, we might not have the lead. Two, it might rain. Three, we could have a lead and he wont be available for as much.The Cubs got two hits and two walks off Miller.I liked our at-bats overall against Miller, Chicago manager Joe Maddon said. I liked the fact we got him up to 50 pitches, also. So there were a lot of positives with that. We struck out a lot, but Ill defend the fact that we had some good at-bats.DECISIONS, DECISIONSChicago whiffed 15 times in the Series opener and was shut out for the third time in six games. Will manager Joe Maddon juggle his lineup looking for offense?Chris Coghlan started Game 1 in right field over slumping Jason Heyward, who signed a $184 million contract to join the Cubs last offseason. Coghlan struck out in both his at-bats. With another right-hander pitching for Cleveland, will Heyward be on the bench again?STICKING WITH SCHWARBERCubs manager Joe Maddon said Kyle Schwarber will absolutely start at designated hitter again after the young slugger went 1 for 3 with a double off the right-field fence and a walk Tuesday in his first big league game since April 7. Schwarber, who also struck out twice, had been sidelined since having surgery to repair two torn ligaments in his left knee.I thought the bat speed looked good, Maddon said. You could see on the finish sometimes maybe the brace grabs him just a little bit. I kind of noticed that. Otherwise there was no kind of negative atmosphere surrounding his at-bats. I thought they were outstanding, actually.Schwarber is the franchise leader with five career postseason homers. All of them came when he was a rookie last year. Cheap Bucks Jerseys China .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. Giannis Antetokounmpo Jersey . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. http://www.cheapbucksjerseys.com/ . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Vin Baker Jersey . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. Jabari Parker Jersey .5 million, one-year contract on Friday. Hawkins, who turns 41 in December, will compete with Rex Brothers for the closers role at spring training.As Leicester close in on an unprecedented Premier League crown, we look back at what the pundits said at the start of the season. With Claudio Ranieri arriving at the King Power Stadium to replace Nigel Pearson, the reaction on the whole was of surprise. Few predicted Leicester would stay up, let alone finish top half and beyond, while many noted the Italians lack of top flight success in previous jobs. Leicester will be crowned Premier League champions if they win at Old Trafford Astonished... A huge punt... Incredible... thats what they said then, but now the script has been turned on its head, and Leicester will be crowned champions if they win at Manchester United on Super Sunday, live on Sky Sports 1HD. Phil ThompsonOn Sky Sports: They should really have signed his agent. He got all those jobs for him! I may be quite wrong, but I dont think hes ever won anything. Hes been there, seen it, not done it, at all those places. Nigel Pearson did ever so well, and for Ranieri to get this job was quite incredible. I hope he does well, because he is a nice guy, but hes fortunate.Matt Le TissierOn Sky Sports: With Leicester I think it could be a massive struggle this season. I think he might struggle with the spirit there. Nigel Pearson was replaced by Ranieri in the summer Gary LinekerOn Twitter: Claudio Ranieri? Really?On BreatheSport: Claudio Ranieri is clearly experienced, but this is an uninspired choice by Leicester. Its amazing how the same old names keep getting a go on the managerial merry-go-round.Dietmar HamannOn Twitter: Cant believe Leicester appointed Ranieri ... Great club, great fanbase but Im afraid MK rather than Old Trafford season after next.Harry RedknappOn Twitter: Ranieri is a nice guy, but hes done well to get the Leicester job. After what happened with Greece, Im surprised he can walk back into the Premier League. Leicesters story is one of most surprising fairytales in English football history Tony CotteeOn Sky Sports: Im astonished. I just didnt see this one coming. Obviously there have been many people linked to the job but as far as Im aware, Ranieri wasnt one and for me, it is a strange appointment.They made a massive risk getting rid of Nigel Pearson who did such a good job football-wise towards the end of last season. To appoint Ranieri now, bearing in mind where he has been the last 10 years, is a huge gamble.Robbie SavageOn BBC: Ranieri, good manageer but for me not Leicester.dddddddddddd If you play for the Foxes you need someone you can relate to as a manager. ONeill, Pearson are managers the players can relate to. Id have gone back to ONeill or Lennon. It will be a relegation battle whoever was manager. Big name, bad choice in my opinion. Time will tell. Hopefully I am wrong.Frank SinclairOn BBC: If I was a player at Leicester still I would be excited given the players he has worked with in the past - very excited.But for the next manager at Leicester, the job in hand is stabilising the club. I dont think they are looking to win things yet. If they can be a mid-table team then he will be doing a fantastic job. Ranieri has led Leicester to the top of the Premier League Alan SmithIn the Daily Telegraph: Replacing Nigel Pearson with Claudio Ranieri can only be described as a huge punt. The risk is that City now lose some of the energy, aggression and spirit that pulled them to safety.Paul MersonSpeaking on Sky Sports in September: Leicester have started well and theyll be well safe. They can beat teams and I love the Nathan Dyer signing… he could easily get in Tottenhams team.Stan CollymoreIn the Daily Mirror: Last seasons Great Escape will have instilled incredible belief at the King Power. Having met Nigel Pearson on a number of occasions last season, he was in no doubt that the Foxes would claw themselves to safety. Riyad Mahrez celebrates with Jamie Vardy during a vital win over Crystal Palace Unfortunately, the script has changed. Im not convinced about Tinkerman Claudio Ranieri. Pearson had the dressing room. The players believed in him. Ranieri has a job on his hands earning the same respect.Dont underestimate the loss of Esteban Cambiasso, either. But I think the players believe. That could be enough. It may be just as messy as it was last time, though.Michael OwenOn Twitter: Right then here we go again #Top6Bottom3: Top 6: Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Spurs.Bottom 6: Bournemouth, Leicester, Watford. Lets see yours! Win a t-lab Peloton t-shirt We have five of these awesome t-shirts to give away in our free prize draw - enter now! Also See: Mahrez: Title race not over The German Leicester Souness: Foxes defy logic Why bookies are fearing Foxes Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Francis Alonso scored 21 points, Diante Baldwin added 20 and UNC Greensboro beat North Carolina A&T 86-66 on Tuesday night.Alonso shot 8 of 12 from the floor, made five 3-pointers and had seven assists. Baldwin finished 7-of-13 shooting with three 3-point baskets and added five assists. R.J. White added 19 points for the Spartans (5-2), who have won four straight.Demetrius Troy had 11 points and five assists. James Dickey blocked four of the Spartans nine blocked shots.Davaris McGowens scored 19 points and had 10 rebounds to lead North Carolina A&T (1-5). Raymon Pratt added 15 points.The Spartans jumped out on a 24-4 run to start the game and led 50-18 at halftime. The Aggies shot just 26 percent in the first half and finished 25 of 61 for 41 percent shooting. The Aggies made just 2 of 14 3-pointers and 14 of 25 from the free-throw line. Dani Alves Jersey . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. Thiago Silva Jersey .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. http://www.officialbrazilstore.com/ . -- Adam Snyder returned to the San Francisco 49ers this season because the offensive lineman thought it was his best opportunity to win a championship. Fernandinho Jersey . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Marquinhos Jersey . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. NEW YORK -- The Texas Rangers have achieved numerous things this season.One thing they were not able to get due to a large bullpen collapse Wednesday was tie a club record with their 21st win in June.The Rangers will look to set that mark and rebound from their major league-leading eighth walk-off loss of the season Thursday afternoon when they conclude a four-game series with the New York Yankees.Texas was two outs away from being able to play for its record-setting 22nd win of June and its first four-game sweep in New York but let a 7-2 lead slip away and wound up with a 9-7 loss.Cesar Ramos gave up Brian McCanns first home run in the eighth and Sam Dyson allowed McCanns three-run home run in the ninth and Didi Gregorius game-winner.Obviously when you have your closer on the mound in a save situation, theyre very challenging, Texas manager Jeff Banister said. Four-run lead there in the 9th, and weve been really good at closing those games out.Even though the bullpen now has a 4.84 ERA, this has still been a good month for the Rangers. They are 20-7 this month and can equal the record for wins in a month set in Sept. 1978 (21-10) and matched in June 2010 (21-6).The Rangers also will be looking to go unbeaten in their last 13 series (13-0-1) and improved to 14-1-1 in its last 16. The only series loss was a three-game sweep by Oakland in mid-May but since then Texas is 29-9.The Yankees will be hoping the late dramatics can finally springboard them into marking a run as they will try to reach .500 for the seventh time since May 22.Probably the biggest win of the year, Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez said.New York has never been more than two games over and since getting to 31-30 June 10, the Yankees are 8-9.A win on Thursday will mean the Yankees dont head into July with a losing record for thee first time since 2007.dddddddddddd A win also means the Yankees will not face a double-digit through the end of June for the seventh time since divisional play began in 1969.Theres a sense of urgency, Girardi said. As days tick away, you start to run out of time, and you dont want to bury yourself. Baltimore is playing extremely well. Boston has run into a few bumps here, but theyve played well. Torontos played well. And so you cant mess around too long and expect to be there.A.J Griffin is 3-0 with a 3.08 ERA in seven starts this season and will be on the mound Thursday for Texas.Griffin made his first start off the disabled list and took a no-decision after allowing two runs and four hits in 4 1/3 innings of Saturdays 10-3 win over the Boston Red Sox. He has held opponents to .200 average and allowed three earned runs or less in each start.The right-hander has had similar success in his career against the Yankees. He is 3-0 with a 2.49 ERA in four starts against New York, including April 26 in Arlington when he allowed one run and four hits in eight innings of a 10-1 victory.The Yankees will hope Michael Pineda can continue his decent stretch. Although Pineda is 3-7 with a 5.51 ERA, he is 1-1 with a 3.00 in four starts this month.Pineda leads the Yankees with 96 strikeouts and has at least eight strikeouts in four of five starts this month. The latest instance was Saturday when he took a no-decision and allowed one run and two hits in six innings against Minnesota.Pineda is 0-3 with a 5.04 ERA in four starts against Texas. The last time he faced the Rangers at home was May 22, 2015 when he allowed seven runs (four earned) and eight hits over six innings of a 10-9 loss. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Sky Sports football pundit Paul Merson has given us his thoughts on the race for the PFA Fans Player of the Month award for January. The Premier League shortlist has been narrowed down to three candidates - Tottenham striker Harry Kane, Liverpools Roberto Firmino and Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney.There is still time for you to cast your vote this month (voting closes at midnight, with the winner announced on Tuesday, February 9), and you could win the chance to meet and present the award to the winning player. As well as the Barclays Premier League award, you can also vote for the PFA Fans Player of the Month in the Sky Bet Championship, Sky Bet League One and Sky Bet League Two. Vote now! Vote now for your January Player of the Month And if you are still undecided, Merse thinks Rooneys return to form in front of goal deserves to get the nod this month, despite Kanes outstanding form and Firminos goals for Liverpool.Heres why...Harry Kane - Tottenham Harry Kanes performances have helped Tottenham rise to second in the Premier League MERSE SAYS: What can you say about Harry Kane? Im a huge fan of his. Hes put in some superb performances this month. He scores goals with ease and is a proper centre forward. Hes been outstanding in Spurs rise up the table.Roberto Firmino - Liverpool Roberto Firmino scored four Premier League goals in January for Liverpool MERSE SAYS: Roberto Firmino has taken time to settle into the Premier League but started to find the back of the net in January. He scored two in the draw with Arsenal, including a superb second against the Gunners, and grabbed another double in the thriller at Norwich. However, for me its not his month.Wayne Rooney - Manchester United Wayne Rooney has scored seven goals in his last eight appearances for Man Utd MERSE SAYS: Wayne Rooney is back playing near his best. He has five goals in his last six Premier League games. Hes a player that could hit 10 goals in as many games because when hes hot, he can go on a real streak. Hes that type of player. Hes been outstanding and hes my pick to win it. He wasnt playing that well before but to switch it on and score seven goals in eight games in all competitions is a superb return to form.Have your say NOW - vote at www.skysports.com/pfafanvoteTo be eligible for the prize, voters must be 18 or over and be a resident of UK or ROI. Travel costs are not included as part of the prize. Click or tap here to read the full terms and conditions. Also See: Premier League - Vote Now! Championship - Vote Now! League One - Vote Now! League Two - Vote Now! Marc Staal Jersey . Fred Couples, captain of the U.S. side, put it all into perspective. "We know whos in charge," he said. Jaromir Jagr Jersey . DAmigo scored twice in regulation and added the shootout winner as the Toronto Marlies edged the San Antonio Rampage 5-4 in American Hockey League action. http://www.cheapnewyorkrangersjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-paul-carey-jersey .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. The game started the same way the Vancouver game started the night before, with the Jets taking the first two penalties of the game and killing off the first, but the Oilers getting on the board first, scoring on the second man-advantage. David Desharnais Jersey . The Masters champion and winner of last weeks Australian PGA has a three-round total of 14-under 199 at Royal Melbourne. "Im in a really good position for tomorrow," Scott said. Anthony DeAngelo Jersey .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Michael Birdsong passed for a career-high 327 yards and accounted for four touchdowns to help Tennessee Tech beat Eastern Kentucky 33-30 in overtime on Saturday night.Birdsong was 27-of-42 passing with three touchdowns and added a 1-yard rushing score. Dontez Byrd had seven receptions for 116 yards and two TDs -- all career bests.Trailing 30-27 in overtime, Birdsong scrambled 10 yards to the 15 where he stepped out of bounds. A personal foul for a late hit gave Tennessee Tech (2-3, 2-1 Ohio Vaalley) first-and-goal at the 7.ddddddddddddAfter his 3-yard run, Birdsong hit Alex Carling on a play-action pass for a 4-yard touchdown.Bennie Coney threw for a school-record 464 yards and three touchdowns -- including a 25-yarder to Dan Crimmins with 1:06 left in regulation that made it 27-all -- for Eastern Kentucky (1-3, 0-1). Devin Borders had nine catches for 121 yards and a score. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '
Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive has apologized to Geoff Petrie, saying that he meant no disrespect by his recent comments about the former general manager and acknowledging that all the mistakes are my mistakes.Ranadive issued his apology to the Sacramento Bee as part of a column published Saturday, four days after the unconventional owner criticized Petrie and former Kings coach Keith Smart during an interview with USA Today Sports.I wanted to sincerely apologize to Geoff Petrie and his team, Ranadive told the Bee. I meant no disrespect. I have the utmost respect for what they have done for the franchise and what they have accomplished. I fully understand that its a huge privilege to own a basketball team, and as chairman of the ownership, the buck stops with me. I accept responsibility for everything. All the mistakes are my mistakes.Ranadive purchased a majority ownership of the Kings in May 2013 and replaced Petrie, who had been Sacramentos GM for 20 years, with Pete DAlessandro a month later.As part of his conversation with USA Today Sports, which was published last Tuesday, Ranadive said that Petrie and Smart did not want to be part of the Kings rebuilding process at the end of the 2012-13 season.I had the draft was going to start, and players were going to come in for tryouts, Ranadive told USA Today Sports. There was nobody there. I needed somebody to go and actually work out the players. Nobody wanted to there. Geoff didnt want to be there. The coach didnt want to be there. There was nobody there.Those comments prompted sharp criticism from Petrie, a two-time NBA Executive of the Year who told Deadspin that Ranadives account was a sophomoric attempt at revisionist history.The Kings have gone 90-156 in three seasons since Ranadive purchased the team. The Kings fired DAlessandro after the 2014-15 season, replacing him with Vlade Divac, and are on their third head coach -- Dave Joerger -- in the last four seasons. Paul George Jersey .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back. Glenn Robinson Jersey . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. http://www.cheappacersjerseys.com/ . Scott won the Australian PGA last week in his first event in Australia since winning the U.S. Masters in April. American Matt Kuchar, ahead by two strokes with four to play and even with Scott with one to go, double-bogeyed the 18th after taking two shots to get out of a bunker. Myles Turner Jersey . Luis Suarezs double powered Liverpool to a 4-0 victory over Fulham, and Southampton easily overcame Hull 4-1 to continue the south coast clubs impressive start to the season. Liverpool and Southampton sent Chelsea down to fourth place as the west London club was held to 2-2 at home. Ben Moore Jersey . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times. There is an air of quiet satisfaction at Chelmsford, the morning after Essex sealed their return to the top division of the Championship. Chris Silverwood, the head coach, is in great demand, while club legends such as Graham Gooch, John Lever and Nasser Hussain can be spotted on their peregrinations, shaking hands and exchanging nods. Former captain Brian Tonker Taylor, at the venerable age of 84, was said to have commandeered a taxi to come to the ground.The players had been allowed a minor knees up the night before, sitting on the team balcony and belting out a few numbers, although celebrations will begin in earnest at the conclusion of their match against Glamorgan - and possibly once again after the presentation of the Division Two trophy at Canterbury next week. Promotion secure, the hard work done, Essex are heading in the right direction again. As Hussain jokingly puts it: The home of cricket is back.It will take a lot more hard work for them to stay in Division One, not that anybody here is about to dispute that. Essex have been promoted on three occasions since two divisions were instated only to be relegated immediately each time. But ambitions have been awakened - I dont just want to compete up there, I want to beat people, Silverwood says - and the planning to avert a similar fate next year begins almost straight away.I like dreaming, Silverwood says, the twinkle in his eye discernible despite the presence of shades. I say to the guys, dream and dream big and have the courage to chase it. Thats what were doing out there. The dream of playing for England, the dream of winning trophies and being successful. Lets chase it, lets have a go.Even as the T20 debate seemingly takes a decisive twist away from the smaller counties, Essex have found that the Championship is the stuff that dreams are made on. They are not ready for a rude awakening.Silverwood and his four-day captain, Ryan ten Doeschate, have enjoyed success at the first time of asking, pulling together a dressing room that had a reputation for failing to deliver despite a truckload of talent. Having been assistant coach under his predecessor, Paul Grayson, Silverwood had first-hand experience of seeing Essex stumble - and he remains disappointed by two more quarter-final defeats in this seasons limited-overs competitions - but he did not believe that major changes were required.I was very much a part of that era, working under Paul and Ill always be grateful to him for giving me that opportunity in county cricket. The time was right, we put a structure in place and everybody bought into it - partnerships with bat and ball, little targets, achievable goals - if we do this, this is where well end up.The tone was set by ten Doeschates decision to skip the IPL and commit himself to a full season of Championship cricket. It may not have been the glamorous decision but passing 1000 first-class runs in a campaign for the first time was rich reward. Define glamour, Silverwood grins knowingly.Taking each game as it comes and creating the right environment for players to excel in are sporting clichés but that does not necessarily neutralise their effectiveness. Ten Doeschate chose to focuse on the teams efforts after he had hit the run to secure promotion on Tuesday evening and Silverwood pushes a similar philosophy. The Yorkshire dressing room that I grew up in was very much about the team first, he says.With 18 Championship hundreds, shared between eight different players, and 10 five-wicket hauls, Essex have at last parlayed colllective bargaining power into a season of compelling cricket.dddddddddddd Alastair Cook, who arrived to take part in the celebrations, chipped in whenever England would let him, while the names of the key contributors - ten Doeschate, Graham Napier, Tom Westley, Nick Browne, James Foster, Jamie Porter, David Masters - inspire wide-ranging affection among the clubs passionate (and occasionally belligerent) support base.At any given point someone has dug deep, Silverwood says. Cooky dug deep for us at Sussex, Dan Lawrence dug deep for us at Leicester, when we were in trouble there - no one would have backed us to get the score we did after being 68 for 5. But again the confidence comes through from processes put in place, and playing on better wickets, really, allowing the batsmen to score a weight of runs which the bowlers can then use as scoreboard pressure to put other teams under the pump.It is perhaps ironic that the change to the toss regulations this year has helped Essex to come up with a promotion-winning strategy. Jesse Ryders two seasons of menacing visiting batsmen at Chelmsford were considered to be one of the reasons the ECB instigated change but Silverwood has been all in favour, with Essex posting big totals and then working through opponents with a battery of varied seamers.That will be harder to do in Division One, all the more so due to the retirements of Napier (confirmed) and Masters (expected). Mohammad Amir has been mooted as a potential overseas signing - Hes a good bowler, who wouldnt want him? Silverwood says - and a top-class spinner would also be a useful addition. Essex have barely employed spin this year - Westley, Lawrence and Ashar Zaidi have bowled less than 150 overs between them - with few Division Two sides having produced turning pitches but the situation in the top tier has been markedly different. These will be the topics under discussion between Silverwood and ten Doeschate, not to mention Ronnie Irani, the chairman of the cricket committee who Silverwood says he speaks to most days. Irani may have been occasionally divisive as a player - and his return last year also caused ructions - but Essex have forged a strong sense of common identity over the last 12 months. Where previous seasons have seen promising players depart for challenges elsewhere, this time they are coming back: Varun Chopra and Adam Wheater already re-signed to add some Division One steel.They wanted to come back to Essex because they can see what were trying to achieve, Silverwood says. Theyve seen the potential and theyre excited and want to be part of it. A few years ago the club was criticised because people were leaving us - well, I think we need praising now, because people want to come back. And I find that really exciting because an Essex boy in an Essex shirt will push hard for Essex because thats his county.Theres a hint of Yorkshire about this, too, though Essex, home to Englands two greatest Test run-makers, has a reputation of its own to polish. Silverwood, who is among Andy Flowers burgeoning network of Lions coaches, might also be on the radar at his home county - where there will be a significant vacancy opening up shortly - but he stresses that his current goal is beating Yorkshire rather than joining them. I would love to take the big boys down, he smiles, looking ahead to next season. Essex wont have to wait much longer for their chance. Cheap NFL JerseysWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysJerseys From ChinaWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL JerseysCheap Jerseys ' ' '