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Date:Friday March 23 2007
Cardiff City have gone from a team lacking in striking options to a side with more options than a gopher in the rainforest...
The arrival of new boy Warren Feeney on an initial loan signalled the exit of Luigi Glombard (out on loan to Oldham), but Cardiff have a huge depth of strikers but few established viable options:
Top scorer and first name on the teamsheet, Chops is the main forward and picked up his injury at a bad time for City.
First choice to partner Chopra, their partnership has been good but doubts remain over his goals contribution. Selfless team play and admirable work ethic label Thommo as an improtant cog in the Bluebirds wheel.
Not an inspiring season to date, just 2 league goals for struggling Luton. Has several games to turn it around but are Chopra's boots too big to fill...?
And the rest...
Has deputised on numerous occasions, with no goals, little presence and a generally disappointing contribution. Surely will not get another playing contract with Cardiff and looks painfully slow.
Signed in January and scored on debut. Looks an intelligent player but has shown no menace and failed to link up effectively with any partner. Serious doubts remain over his future and needs to establish a clear role in the side.
On-loan Dutch striker with no first team chances. Left Holland in dubious circumstances and unlikely to stay past May. Big, strong and noticably absent from first team duties.
Pacy and lively looking, signed from Newport County but caused some problems for Championship defences already. Made his way to the bench already.
Highly rated Italian, promised much but hasnt been given many chances. Tall and cultured, he has impressed at times for the reserves but too lightweight for first team action?
Nippy French striker, loaned out for second time this season. He was hauled off at half time in his only league start and time looks nearly up on Bluebirds career. Some promise for reserves and has been praised for his attidude.
Of the six strikers behind the front three, Byrne and Green are those pushing for a substitutes role. From the rest, most will not be with us next season.
Was Dave Jones right to go with depth rather than quality.....?
Date:Friday March 23 2007
Palace Join Watford In Wembley Play-Off (Monday May 13 2013)
Malky To Everton Rumours Persist (Monday May 13 2013)
VIDEO: Cardiff Celebrate Promotion (Tuesday May 7 2013)
Key Man Barnett Departs Cardiff City (Wednesday April 24 2013)
Cardiff City Transfer Speculation Begins! (Friday April 19 2013)
FSF - Twenty's Plenty for Away Tickets Petition (Thursday April 18 2013)
VIDEO: Mackay Proud Of Cardiff Promotion (Wednesday April 17 2013)
Barnsley Excel Against Top Teams ! (Tuesday April 9 2013)
Campbell & Connolly Missing For Barnsley Clash (Tuesday April 9 2013)
Defender Barnett A Revelation For Cardiff City (Tuesday April 9 2013)
|2. Hull City||46||24||7||15||+9||79|
|5. Crystal Palace||46||19||15||12||+11||72|
|6. Leicester City||46||19||11||16||+23||68|
|BWFC: Fag-Packet Maths
» Bolton : 18/05/2013 18:22:00
|Danny Pens 2 Year Deal
» Millwall : 18/05/2013 16:30:00
|Pearson Will Keep His Position
» Leicester City : 18/05/2013 16:04:00
|Moore In World Cup Shot?
» Leicester City : 18/05/2013 15:56:00
|Phillips Not Retiring Yet
» Crystal Palace : 18/05/2013 15:49:00
|Skipper admits to struggle
» Middlesbrough : 18/05/2013 15:40:00
|Play Off Final Tickets Sold Out
» Crystal Palace : 18/05/2013 15:35:00 | http://www.cardiff.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=58232 | 859 |
CBC.ca home Help
Hockey | May 18, 2013
London defeats host Saskatoon 3-2 in the opening game of the Memorial Cup.
Baseball | May 17, 2013
Yankees shut out Blue Jays.
Hockey Night in Canada | May 17, 2013
Recap of Game 2 of the Senators/Penguins series.
Don says other players may have been barred a game for hit against Jarret Stoll.
A closer look at the Pittsburgh Penguins forward.
CBC News: Montreal at 6:00 | May 17, 2013
The Westmount Ravens rugby club grew from 30 to more than 100 players in only two seasons | http://www.cbc.ca/player/Sports/Hockey/NHL+3+Minute+Game+Highlights/?sort=Featured | 135 |
Lippi made right call to omit Grosso
In the space of four short years, Fabio Grosso has gone from hero to also-ran.
Grosso was cut Tuesday from Italy's 30-man preliminary World Cup squad in a move that caught a lot of folks off-guard, driving home the point how far the Juventus left-back has fallen in such a short period of time.
Grosso, 32, was a pivotal player for Italy four years ago, scoring the winning goal in extra time against Germany in an epic semifinal match, and then the decisive spot-kick in the penalty shootout against France in the final.
Starred at 2006 World Cup
Not much was known about Grosso before the 2006 World Cup. The former Palermo star was flying under the radar ahead of the tournament, with the international media focusing more on Italian teammates Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Nesta.
But those of us watched Italian soccer closely were well aware of Grosso's exploits, and were not all surprised when he emerged as one of Italy's best players in Germany - he was by al accounts, one of the best left backs in the world at the time.
So, how and why did things turn so sour for the Rome-born defender after reaching startling heights in Berlin?
It started a few months after the World Cup when he moved to Inter Milan. Grosso never really caught on with the Nerazzurri, as Inter limited his playing time and never really gave him an opportunity to prove himself.
Grosso could clearly see the writing on the wall, so he left Inter after just one season and moved to France, signing with Olympique Lyon. A solid debut campaign was followed by an injury-plagued season that saw him make just 22 league appearances and his stock plummet.
A transfer move to Juventus followed last August with many hoping that Grosso would re-discover his old form in Turin.
Poor season at Juventus
It didn't pan out that way, though. Grosso was a regular starter in what can charitably be described as a leaky Juventus back line that conceded a whopping 56 goals - three more than relegated Atalanta - as the Bianconeri stumbled to a seventh-place finish in Serie A.
His poor form for Juventus didn't escape the attention of Italian national team manager Marcello Lippi, under whom Grosso has been Italy's regular starting left-back.
Grosso might have been a loyal servant for the Azzurri over the past five years, including in the recent World Cup qualifying campaign, but it's obvious from his troubled season in Turin that his best days are behind him and doesn't deserve to go to South Africa.
Kudos to Lippi for recognizing that and not being blindly loyal to someone who helped him win the World Cup four years ago.
"I don't pick players in lieu of past service and that was also the case for [Simone] Perrotta and [Luca] Toni," Lippi said at a press conference.
"I called [Grosso] ... and you cannot imagine how much I dislike doing that. But I have to do it and I do it out of honesty. It hurt me just as it hurt me for the other 14 [World Cup winners] with whom we had some great moments in Germany."
Follow John Molinaro on Twitter
About the Author
John F. Molinaro is a reporter for CBCSports.ca whose chief love is soccer.
John served as senior editor of CBC's 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup website and was the driving force behind our coverage of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. His work on CBC Sports Online's Euro 2004 site earned him a CBC.ca Award of Excellence.
He holds an honours BA in sociology from York University and a print journalism diploma from Sheridan College. | http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/fifaworldcup/blog/2010/05/lippi-made-right-call-to-omit-grosso.html | 795 |
Reid Coolsaet took a risk in the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on Sunday, walked away with a berth in next summer’s London Olympics, and nearly a Canadian record.
The 32-year-old from Hamilton narrowly missed Jerome Drayton’s 36-year-old mark, crossing the line in an unofficial two hours 10 minutes and 55 seconds for a third-place finish. Drayton ran 2:10:09 in Fukoka, Japan, in 1975.
“I decided to roll the dice and [run] with the leaders,” Coolsaet told CBC’s Scott Russell after the race. “I wanted in the middle but because of the wind I had to pick [a race position].
“It was a lot faster than I had planned going out. I thought I’d take a risk today and it kind of blew up in my face at 36, 37 [kilometres]. I didn't think I was running fast anymore and was just happy to be in third overall at that point. Then I came around the corner and saw the clock and was pleasantly surprised to have run a PB [personal best]."
Coolsaet did meet the Canadian Olympic standard of 2:11:29, and will be joined in London by Eric Gillis of Antigonish, N.S., his training partner at Speed River Track Club in Guelph, Ont.
Coolsaet posted his time despite having to take a washroom break at about the 25 km mark.
"It didn't take too much time but obviously I lost contact with the front pack," he said. "Luckily I had a pacer and clawed my way up the next three kilometres and got myself up with that front pack again."
Banner day for Canada
Gillis finished fourth Sunday in an unofficial time of 2:11:28 while Dylan Wykes turned in the third-best Canadian performance.
"I could've just as easily been one second over," said Gillis. "I feel really, really lucky to get that [Canadian Olympic] standard. I couldn't have done it this time last year, I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to go after that. Things are working out well now, things are clicking."
Kenneth Mungara of Kenya won Sunday's Toronto marathon for a fourth consecutive year. He finished in 2:09:51 and Ethiopia's Shami Abdulahi Dawit was second.
"This was a very good day for me but it was very tough because it was very windy and cold," Mungara said.
Coolsaet, who ran more than 200 km a week to prepare for Sunday's marathon, previously ran 2:11:22.5, but that was prior to the official London Olympic qualifying period.
At last year's Toronto marathon, the University of Guelph alumnus recorded the fifth-fastest marathon time for a Canadian.
'It was not perfect out there, but we did what we had to do.'— Canadian marathoner Eric Gillis
Bruce Deacon is the last marathoner to represent Canada in the men's event at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where he placed 44th.
Gillis, 31, ran for Canada at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and finished 33rd.
He moved to Guelph five years ago and made his marathon debut last year in Houston, where he posted a time of 2:13:52, more than two minutes longer than Sunday's performance.
Cool, blustery conditions
"It was not perfect out there [with the cool, blustery conditions]," Gillis told Russell after the Toronto marathon, "but we did what we had to do."
Gillis said despite the weather conditions, he felt very good physically through the first 34 kilometres of the race and was on pace to qualify for London comfortably. But that all changed near the end.
"With 300 metres to go, I wasn't sure," he said. "I just knew I had to put my head down and get up on my toes as much as I could.
"The support [in Toronto] is amazing," Gillis told the CBC. "This is officially a big-city race. I welcome everyone to come, either race, participate, watch, raise money. It's an amazing event."
Coolsaet said also having Gillis qualify for London will prove beneficial to both runners.
"Just the fact that now we can work together for the same marathon again is a huge benefit for both of us," he said. "It works both ways and we're really excited to be able to focus on London from here on in."
Ethiopia's Koren Yal was the top female finisher in 2:22.43, with compatriot Mare Dibaba second in 2:23.25. Vancouver's Katherine Moore was eighth in 2:48.48.
Meanwhile, police said a 27-year-old man died after collapsing while running in the event. He was taken to St. Michael's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.With files from The Canadian Press | http://www.cbc.ca/sports/trackandfield/story/2011/10/16/sp-marathon-gillis-coolsaet.html | 1,069 |
Syracuse, NY (Sports Network) - Syracuse forward James Southerland was cleared to return after sitting six games because of an eligibility issue.
Southerland last played Jan. 9 against Providence and the Orange went 4-2 in the senior's absence. He was Syracuse's second-leading scorer, averaging 13.6 points in 16 games, before being forced to the sideline prior to a Jan. 12 game against Villanova.
Details of the eligibility issue were not disclosed, but it was believed to be related to academics. Southerland had a hearing earlier this week and is eligible to play Sunday against St. John's at the Carrier Dome.
"SO PUMPED UP NOW!!" Southerland tweeted before Sunday's game. "I won the appeal and I'll see you guys at 3 at the Carrier Dome. James is Baaaccckkk BABYYY!!!!"
Eligibility issues have become somewhat commonplace for Syracuse.
Last year, center Fab Melo encountered academic eligibility problems during the season and again just before the start of the NCAA Tournament. | http://www.cbs47.tv/sports/cbaskm/Syracuse%20Orange/story/Syracuses-Southerland-cleared-to-return/FTVgPpCi-EKw7UnaftblWg.cspx | 223 |
West Bend N/A
Fond du Lac N/A
Benson faces Bears, Packers need better run game
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -- The Green Bay Packers hoped Cedric Benson quickly would add a new dimension to the offense, helping to revive a running game that often has seemed like an afterthought under Mike McCarthy.
In Week 1, Aaron Rodgers was the Packers' leading rusher in a loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Benson had nine carries for 18 yards, averaging 2 yards per carry. Rodgers ran five times for 27 yards. Nobody else, including promising second-year back Alex Green, got a touch in the running game as the Packers found themselves playing from behind.
Benson is set to face his former team Thursday night, when the Chicago Bears come to Lambeau Field. | http://www.cbs58.com/sports/local-sports/Benson-faces-Bears-Packers-need-better-run-game-169511966.html | 170 |
|Augusta National's members-only sign means something totally different today. (Getty Images)|
For the first time in its 80-year history, Augusta National Golf Club has female members.
The home of the Masters, under increasing criticism the last decade because of its all-male membership, invited former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore to become the first women in green jackets when the club opens for a new season in October.
Both women accepted.
"This is a joyous occasion," Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said Monday.
The move likely ends a debate that intensified in 2002 when Martha Burk of the National Council of Women's Organizations urged the club to include women among its members. Former club chairman Hootie Johnson stood his ground, even at the cost of losing Masters television sponsors for two years, when he famously said Augusta National might one day have a woman in a green jacket, "but not at the point of a bayonet."
The comment took on a life of its own, becoming either a slogan of the club's resolve not to give in to public pressure or a sign of its sexism, depending on which side of the debate was interpreting it.
Payne, who took over as chairman in 2006 when Johnson retired, said consideration for new members is deliberate and private, and that Rice and Moore were not treated differently from other new members. Even so, he took the rare step of announcing two of the latest members to join because of the historical significance.
|Augusta National Timeline|
"These accomplished women share our passion for the game of golf and both are well known and respected by our membership," Payne said in a statement. "It will be a proud moment when we present Condoleezza and Darla their green jackets when the club opens this fall. This is a significant and positive time in our club's history and, on behalf of our membership, I wanted to take this opportunity to welcome them and all of our new members into the Augusta National family."
A person with knowledge of club operations said Rice and Moore first were considered as members five years ago. That would be four years after the 2003 Masters, when Burk's protest in a grass lot down the street from the club attracted only about 30 supporters, and one year after Payne became chairman.
Moore and Johnson are close friends, both with roots in South Carolina and banking, and the person said Payne and Johnson agreed on the timing of a female member. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the club typically does not discuss membership issues, said it was important to Payne to be respectful of the membership process. The person said prospective members often are not aware they are being considered.
Augusta National, which opened in December 1932 and did not have a black member until 1990, is believed to have about 300 members. While the club until now had no female members, women were allowed to play the golf course as guests, including on the Sunday before the Masters week began in April.
The issue of female membership never went away, however, and it resurfaced again this year after Virginia Rometty was appointed chief executive of IBM, one of the Masters' corporate sponsors. The previous four CEOs of Big Blue had all been Augusta National members, leading to speculation that the club would break at least one tradition -- membership for the top executive of IBM or a men-only club.
Rometty was seen at the Masters on the final day wearing a pink jacket, not a green one. She was not announced as one of the newest members.
Moore, 58, first rose to prominence in the 1980s with Chemical Bank, where she became the highest-paid woman in the banking industry. She is vice president of Rainwater, Inc., a private investment company founded by her husband, Richard Rainwater. She was the first woman to be profiled on the cover of Fortune Magazine, and she made a $25 million contribution to her alma mater, South Carolina, which renamed its business school after her.
Moore was mentioned as a possible Augusta National member during the height of the all-male membership debate in 2002. She and Johnson worked on South Carolina's $300 million capital campaign in the late 1990s.
"Augusta National has always captured my imagination, and is one of the most magically beautiful places anywhere in the world, as everyone gets to see during the Masters each April," Moore said. "I am fortunate to have many friends who are members at Augusta National, so to be asked to join them as a member represents a very happy and important occasion in my life.
"Above all, Augusta National and the Masters Tournaments have always stood for excellence, and that is what is so important to me."
Rice, 57, was the national security adviser under former President George W. Bush and became secretary of state in his second term. The first black woman to be a Stanford provost in 1993, she now is a professor of political economy at Stanford's Graduate School of Business.
"I have visited Augusta National on several occasions and look forward to playing golf, renewing friendships and forming new ones through this very special opportunity," Rice said in a statement released by the club. "I have long admired the important role Augusta National has played in the traditions and history of golf. I also have an immense respect for the Masters Tournament and its commitment to grow the game of golf, particularly with youth, here in the United States and throughout the world."
Rice recently was appointed to the U.S. Golf Association's nominating committee.
Johnson regarded the membership debate as infringing on the rights of a private club, even though every April it hosts the Masters, the most popular of the four major championships, which brings in millions of dollars through television rights for the highest-rated telecast in golf.
In a 2002 interview with the Associated Press, Johnson said the makeup of the club was more about four members-only parties each year than who plays the course.
"Our club has enjoyed a camaraderie and a closeness that's served us well for so long, that it makes it difficult for us to consider change," he said. "A woman may be a member of this club one day, but that is out in the future." | http://www.cbssports.com/golf/blog/eye-on-golf/19834496/augusta-national-announces-for-the-first-time-in-clubs-history-two-women-members-admitted | 1,283 |
2011 Men's Track & Field News
May 27, 2011
Radden Finishes 27th in the 200 at East Preliminary
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden finished 27th in the 200 meter qualifier at the 2011 NCAA East Preliminary. Radden the NEC Champion in the outdoor and indoor 200 meter was seeded 40th heading into the preliminary, but improved 13 spots in the qualifier.
May 26, 2011
Williams Finishes 25th at NCAA East Preliminary
Junior Rashad Williams finished 25th in the shot put at the 2011 NCAA East Preliminary. Williams posted a best throw of 16.78 meters to move up 12 spots from the 37th seed.
May 24, 2011
Radden and Williams Set for NCAA East Preliminary
A pair of Central Connecticut track and field athletes will travel to Indiana University this week for the NCAA East Preliminary Round. Sophomore sprinter Aaron Radden and junior thrower Rashad Williams both qualified for the East Preliminary with their performances during the 2011 outdoor season. Radden will be running in the 200 meter and Williams will be competing in the shot put. To qualify for the NCAA East Preliminary both Radden and Williams had to rank among the eastern United States' top-48 athletes in their events.
May 15, 2011
Radden Finishes Sixth in the 200 Meter at ECAC/IC4A Championships
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden earned a sixth place finish in the final of the 200 meter at the ECAC and IC4A Championships on Sunday. Teammate junior Rashad Williams finished 21st in the shot put.
May 14, 2011
Men's Track in Action at New England Championships and IC4A's
The Central Connecticut men's track team turned in solid performances at the New England and IC4A Championships on Saturday. Sophomore Aaron Radden's 200 meter performance earned him a spot in Sunday's final.
May 13, 2011
Track & Field in Action at New England and IC4A Championships
The Central Connecticut track team's were in action at the New England Championships and the IC4A Championships on Friday. The Blue Devils posted several strong performances including Junior Sam Alexander's second place finish in the 10,000 meter run.
May 8, 2011
Men's Track Finishes Fourth at NEC Outdoor Championships
The Central Connecticut men's track team finished fourth at the 2011 Northeast Conference Championships the Blue Devils scored 114 team points and were led by several outstanding individual performances. Sophomore Aaron Radden claimed gold in the 100 and 200 meter events.
May 7, 2011
Men's Track in the Hunt at NEC Outdoor Championships
The Central Connecticut men's track team had a solid first day at the 2011 Northeast Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The Blue Devils won the 4 X 800 relay and posted multiple athletes in the top-five of other events. As a team the Blue Devil men are in second place with 40 team points, Monmouth is currently in the lead with 51.5 points.
May 3, 2011
Rashad Williams Named NEC Field Athlete of the Week
Central Connecticut junior thrower Rashad Williams was named the Northeast Conference Field Athlete of the Week on Tuesday afternoon. Williams had an extremely successful showing this weekend at the Penn Relays, taking first place in the eastern college shot put.
May 1, 2011
Men's Track at Yale on Sunday
The Central Connecticut men's track team competed in its final tune-up before the NEC Championships on Sunday. The Blue Devils had several good performances at the non-team scoring meet at Yale. Sophomore Anthony Gonsalves finished second in the 3,000 meter steeplechase.
April 30, 2011
Blue Devil 4 X 800 Team Finishes 20th at Penn Relays
The team of sophomore Michael Waterbury, senior Robert Weston, junior Jeremy Schmid, and sophomore Mohamed Hrezi finished 20th in the 4 X 800 meter relay at thee historic Penn Relays. The Blue Devil team finished in a time of 7:39.31.
April 29, 2011
Williams Wins Eastern College Shot Put at Penn Relays
Central Connecticut junior Rashad Williams won the men's eastern collegiate shot put at the 2011 Penn Relays. Williams was one of several Blue Devils competing at the meet. Central also entered three relay teams at the historic event.
April 26, 2011
Radden Named NEC Track Athlete of the Week
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden was named Northeast Conference Track Athlete of the Week on Tuesday afternoon. The Blue Devil sprinter went to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Saturday in search of elite competition. Radden posted a pair of top-10 finishes in at the LSU Alumni Gold Meet.
April 23, 2011
Men's Track in Split Squad Action on Saturday
The Central Connecticut men's track team competed in split squad action on Saturday. Most of the runners were at Holy Cross, but sophomore Aaron Radden, Junior Rashad Williams and sophomore Mohamed Hrezi went to Louisiana State University. Sophomore Nick Lindblom led the squad at Holy Cross as he captured the 110 and 400 meter hurdle titles. The Blue Devils finished third at the Holy Cross meet.
April 16, 2011
Men's Track Second at UMass
The Central Connecticut men's track team finished second at the UMass Minuteman Invitational on Saturday. The Blue Devils scored 104 team points. Sophomore Aaron Radden led the way with wins in the 100 and 200 meter sprint events.
April 12, 2011
Radden Named NEC Track Athlete of the Week
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden was named Northeast Conference Track Athlete of the Week on Tuesday afternoon. It is the first weekly award of the outdoor season for the NEC's 2011 Indoor Track Most Valuable Performer. Radden excelled this past week at the UConn Husky Invitational, winning the 200 and finishing second in the 100 meter dash.
April 9, 2011
Radden Leads Blue Devils at UConn Invitational
The Central Connecticut men's track team continued its early season tune up on Saturday at the UConn Invitational. The Blue Devils were led by sophomore Aaron Radden who won the 200 meters and finished second in the 100.
April 8, 2011
Berube Finishes Seventh at UConn Decathlon Meet
Central Connecticut junior Matt Berube finished seventh at the UConn Decathlon Meet. The various events of the decathlon were held over Thursday and Friday at the University of Connecticut. Berube scored 5,580 points to earn his seventh place finish, UConn's Jesse Chapmen won the meet with a 6,541 point performance.
April 2, 2011
Men's Track Kicks Off Spring at Bryant
The Central Connecticut men's track team opened its season at the Bryant Invitational today. The Blue Devils had several good performances at the non-team scoring event. Junior Rashad Williams finished first in the shot put.
March 6, 2011
Hrezi and Alexander Set School Records at IC4A's
The Central Connecticut men's track team set a pair of records on Sunday at the IC4A Championships. Sophomore Mohamed Hrezi and junior Sam Alexander each set a school record today in their event. Hrezi set his record in the 800 meters and Alexander in the 5,000 meters.
March 5, 2011
Hrezi Qualifies for Finals on Day One of IC4A's
Sophomore Mohamed Hrezi quailified for the finals of the 800 meters on day one of the IC4A Championships. Hrezi was the only Blue Devil to quailify for the finals on day one, but four other Central runners will take to the track tomorrow. Herzi who finished fourth in the prelims ran a time of 1:51.09. He will be part of a nine runner field in tomorros 800 meter final.
February 26, 2011
Alexander Leads Blue Devils on Day One of New England Championships
The Central Connecticut track team opened up the 2011 New Egland Championships on a positive note as junior Sam Alexander took first in the 5K. On the women's side the Blue Devils were led by a school record performance in the distance medley relay.
February 26, 2011
Radden Wins Pair of Events, Blue Devil Men Finish Fourth at New England Championship
Aaron Radden won a pair of events, and the Central Connecticut men's indoor track team finished fourth at this weekend's New England Championships. Radden won the 60 meter and 300 meter dash events. Sam Alexander added a first place victory to help pace the Blue Devils to the fourth place finish.
February 24, 2011
Men's Track Claims Nine Spots on 2011 NEC Indoor Track All-Conference Teams
The Central Connecticut men's track team won the 2011 Northeast Conference Indoor Track Championship last week and now they have claimed nine spots on All-NEC teams for their performances at the meet. Five Blue Devil runners made All-NEC teams, with three of them making it for multiple events. Also, Coach Eric Blake and his staff were voted 2011 NEC Men's Track Coach/Coaching Staff of the Year after the NEC Championships.
February 13, 2011
Men's Track Wins 2011 NEC Indoor Championship
The Central Connecticut men's track team claimed the 2011 Northeast Conference Indoor Track and Field Championship on Sunday afternoon. The Blue Devils totaled 114 points in route to their first NEC Track Championship. Sophomore Aaron Radden was named the NEC's Most Valuable Performer and also took Most Outstanding Track Performer honors for the second consecutive year. Freshman Denzell Jones was named NEC Most Outstanding Rookie after winning the high jump and finishing third in the triple jump.
February 12, 2011
Track and Field Finishes Day One of NEC Championships
The Central Connecticut men's track team finished day one of the Northeast Conference Championships in seventh place after claiming 11 team points behind a pair of top-five finishes. The women's team is currently tied for ninth following the four events of day one.
February 11, 2011
Men?s Track Ready for NEC Indoor Championships
This weekend the Central Connecticut men's track team will travel to Maryland for the Northeast Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. The Blue Devils were picked fourth in the NEC Coaches Pre-Championship Poll behind Long Island, Monmouth and Sacred Heart. Central has a strong team this season led by its distance runners who have won back-to-back NEC Cross Country Championships, but this year's team also features strong performers in the sprints and field events.
February 5, 2011
Hrezi Sets School Record on Day Two of Giegengack Invitational
Sophomore Mohamed Hrezi led the Blue Devils with a record setting performance in the 800 meters on day two of the Giegengack Invitational. Hrezi contributed to a school record in the distance medley relay on Friday and then today set his own school record in the 800.
February 4, 2011
Men's Track Wins Three Events on Day One at Yale
The Central Connecticut men's track team earned three event victories on day one of the Giegengack Invitational at Yale. Sophomore Aaron Radden earned a victory in the 200 meters and also ran a leg of the Blue Devils distance medley relay team which set a new school record.
February 3, 2011
Men's Track Picked to Finish Fourth at NEC Indoor Championships
The Central Connecticut men's track team has been picked to finish fourth at the 2011 Northeast Conference Indoor Track Championships. The leagues coaches tabbed the Blue Devils fourth in the conference's pre-championship poll.
January 30, 2011
Junior Matt Berube Sets School Record in the Heptathlon
Central Connecticut junior Matt Berube set a new CCSU record for the Heptathlon on Saturday at the Harvard Multi Meet. Berube earned an eighth place finish with 4,514 points, his mark is the top performance in CCSU men's track history.
January 28, 2011
Blue Devils Tie for Third at Boston Indoor Games
The Central Connecticut track team finished tied for third at the Boston Indoor Games. The Blue Devils scored 69 team points and tied with UMass Amherst for third in the 17 team field. The Blue Devils were led by victories from Sophomores Aaron Radden and Mohamed Hrezi as well as junior Rashad Williams.
January 25, 2011
Men's Track Earns a Pair of NEC Weekly Awards
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden and freshman Denzell Jones were each recognized by the Northeast Conference for their performance this week. Radden was named Co-NEC Track Athlete of the Week for the second time this season. Jones receives the NEC Rookie of the Week honor for the first time following his performance in the High Jump at the Great Dane Classic.
January 22, 2011
Men's Track Finishes Fifth at Albany Great Dane Classic on Friday Night
The Central Connecticut men's track team finished fifth in the team scoring at the Albany Great Dane Classic. The men's team was led by record setting performances from juniors Sam Alexander and Rashad Williams.
January 15, 2011
Blue Devils Excel at Yale Invitational
The Central Connecticut men's track team continued its indoor season on Saturday at the Yale Collegiate Invitational. Their was no team scoring at the meet, but several Blue Devils turned in good performances. Sophomore Aaron Radden continued to perform in the 60 meter dash, winning the event with a time of 6.83 seconds. The defending NEC Champion in the event has now won both of his 60 meter events this season.
January 11, 2011
Aaron Radden Named NEC Men's Track Athlete of the Week
Central Connecticut sophomore Aaron Radden has earned his first honor of the 2011 season following his two victories at the Army Carleton Crowell Open. Radden was named Northeast Conference Track Athlete of the Week on Tuesday afternoon. The 2010 NEC Most Outstanding Indoor Track Performer, Radden was victorious in both the 200-meter and 60-meter sprints over the weekend.
January 8, 2011
Williams Sets School Record for the Shot Put at Army
The Central Connecticut track team opened its 2011 season at the Army Carleton Crowell Open. Rashad Williams opened his season with a record setting performance. The junior thrower opened his season with a 16.51M throw that set a new CCSU shot put record.
July 14, 2010
Track Standout Aaron Radden Competes at USATF Junior Champsionships
Central Connecticut State University track standout Aaron Radden recently finished fourth in the 200 meters at the United States Track and Field Junior Championships held in Des Moines, IA. Radden posted a time of 21.36 in the finals of the 200 to place fourth. Radden had a standout freshman campaign for the Blue Devils in 2009-10 in both indoor and outdoor track. | http://www.ccsubluedevils.com/sports/mtrack/2010-11/news | 3,048 |
Cochran Leads CCSU In Sweep of St. Francis (NY)
Freshman Emily Cochran recorded career highs of 18 kills on .531 hitting percentage and 19 digs as Central Connecticut State University improved to 6-0 in the Northeast Conference with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-15, 25-15) sweep of St. Francis (NY) at home on Saturday afternoon.
Senior captain Jamie Baumert chipped in with 13 kills on .423 hitting percentage and two blocks in the victory. Sophomore Danielle Gasser totaled double-digit assists and digs, tallying 10 in the former and 12 in the latter. Junior captain Amanda Bayer was the leader in assists with 29, and added seven digs. Junior Tori Vaughan led the way in blocks, recorded three, including the only solo block of the match.
CCSU finished with a team hitting percentage of .321, including an efficiency of .452 in the opening set. St. Francis (NY) recorded a hitting percentage of .019.
The Terriers were led by junior Anisa Lila, who totaled team highs of nine kills and 12 digs in the loss. St. Francis (NY) falls to 2-15 overall and 1-6 in the NEC, while Central improves to 12-9 on the season and remains undefeated in the conference with a record of 6-0.
The Blue Devils will hit the court again tomorrow, Sunday, for a 1:00 p.m. match with defending NEC champion Long Island. The Blackbirds are the only other undefeated team in conference play, with an NEC record of 6-0 going into their match with Bryant this afternoon. | http://www.ccsubluedevils.com/sports/wvball/2009-10/releases/204815692_1 | 342 |
(I LOVE how Doug Collins completely ignored the fact that Crawford trucked Damon Jones, then called a foul on Billups.)
When I hear the name “Joey Crawford,” I ball my fists, get a menacing look in my eyes and prepare for an onslaught of technical foul whistles.
Oh, a player rolled his eyes? Insta-tech. Waived his arms in disgust! He’s outta here! Laughed within a five-foot radius of Crawford? He’s lucky he didn’t get suspended!
Now, the NBA is trying to uniformly Crawford-ize technical fouls. According to ESPN, the NBA will make changes about how the technical foul will be called.
Referees have been instructed to call a technical for:
• Players making aggressive gestures, such as air punches, anywhere on the court.
• Demonstrative disagreement, such as when a player incredulously raises his hands, or smacks his own arm to demonstrate how he was fouled.
• Running directly at an official to complain about a call.
• Excessive inquiries about a call, even in a civilized tone.
You don’t have to be Albert Einstein to realize that these rules will affect the Celtics drastically. It might even be a good thing that Kendrick Perkins got injured. If he hadn’t, he might have racked up triple-digit technical fouls next year, God knows how many suspensions, and millions of dollars worth of fines. And I’m barely exaggerating.
If referees can whistle players for “demonstrative disagreement,” how many technical fouls will Kevin Garnett compile? He doesn’t disagree any other way but demonstratively.
Look, I’m all for cutting down on excessive complaining. When players complain about call after call after call after call, it irritates me. I’ll admit it. But there’s at least one thing that bothers me more, and that’s when an official pulls a Crawford. In other words, when an official gets trigger-happy tossing around T’s and winds up affecting a game. Find another way to stop players’ complaining, NBA. Fine players, slap them around, whatever. Just don’t throw technical fouls around like they’re in style.
The first time this crusade against complaining loses some team a game it shouldn’t have lost, I hope David Stern blames himself. | http://www.celticstown.com/2010/09/24/nba-trying-to-turn-every-ref-into-joey-crawford/comment-page-1/ | 514 |
Five new coaches will have the opportunity to lead their programs to the Conference USA Championship this season. Tulane, Houston, Memphis, UAB and Southern Miss all hired new head coaches in 2012, creating plenty of new faces for head coach George O’Leary and his UCF Knights to get familiar with for their final season in the league.
Houston hired its special teams coordinator Tony Levine as its full-time head coach. Levine led the Cougars to a bowl win over Penn State last season after Kevin Sumlin left the school for the Texas A&M job. The Cougars are truly entering a new era after record-breaking quarterback Case Keenum and Sumlin left in the same offseason. Levine has no prior head coaching experience and will have high expectations, taking over a program that was ranked for much of 2011. Houston was 13-1 last season.
Despite his familiarity with the program, Levine’s experience is limited. There is not a long history of special teams coaches making successful transitions to head coaches, and Levine’s prior experience was in strength and conditioning.
Ellis Johnson has taken over the reins at Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles won the conference last season with a 12-2 record. Perhaps the most notable hiring of the five, Johnson is one of the nation’s top defensive minds with coordinator experience at Alabama, Mississippi State and Southern Miss. Johnson also spent time as the head coach at The Citadel. The Golden Eagles find themselves now in good hands and likely will be in position to compete to repeat as conference champs.
Johnson brings immediate credibility as a head coach. His track record speaks for itself and will likely have the Golden Eagles ready to compete at a high level from Day One.
Garrick McGee left Arkansas in a much less controversial manner than his former boss Bobby Petrino — McGee left for the UAB head coaching job.
McGee was the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for the fourth-best passing attack in the country at Arkansas, including a Sugar Bowl victory. McGee has the most potential of this group and with a few good recruiting classes could have UAB out of cellar of both C-USA and the football subdivision ranks.
At 2-11 last season, Tulane needed positive energy and excitement to bring to its fan base — especially with a new stadium in the works. The Green Wave may have done just that when it landed Curtis Johnson, the former New Orleans Saints wide receivers coach. Previously Johnson worked at the University of Miami in the same capacity for 10 seasons.
For a 2-11 program, where the job isn’t overly attractive to big name coaches, Tulane did well in finding a local face with NFL experience.
Justin Fuente is a mystery hire for the University of Memphis. The former co-offensive coordinator at TCU is the least experienced of the 2012 Conference USA new-coaches class. Fuente is a former quarterback and has experience as both a quarterbacks coach and a running backs coach.
Memphis went 2-10 last season and will need Fuente to get the turnaround rolling quickly, with the Tigers set to make the move to the Big East in 2013 alongside the Knights, SMU and Houston. | http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/mobile/sports/new-faces-litter-c-usa-coaching-landscape-1.2744596 | 651 |
If Luke Russert wasn’t the son of the late Tim Russert, there’s not much chance he would be a Washington correspondent for NBC News. At least not yet.
The younger Russert was just 22 years old when NBC hired him in 2008 soon after the sudden death of his father, the long-time host of “Meet The Press.” To say the kid was green is putting it mildly. His principal media experience was as co-host of a sports talk show on radio.
But, hey, he was Tim Russert’s son. And besides, the network was eager to connect with younger consumers of ... | http://www.cheboygannews.com/article/20130307/BLOGS/303079974/0/news | 135 |
THE DATA DAY: MANCHESTER UNITED V CHELSEA
Two down against Manchester United early on, we rallied to earn a replay the figures suggest was well deserved…
We remain unbeaten in the FA Cup (excluding penalty shootouts) since March 2008, when we were knocked out of the quarter-finals by Barnsley. We have now suffered just one defeat in 38 FA Cup games going back to 2007.
Both teams achieved an 84 per cent success rate in their passing, United completing 460 compared with our 424.
TV's man of the match Juan Mata was our top passer with 68 completed over the 90 minutes and just nine going astray, an 88 per cent hit ratio. Ashley Cole achieved 92 per cent, misplacing just four of 48.
Mata was edged out by Michael Carrick as the game's top man in possession, the England midfielder making 79 successful passes and 10 failed attempts. One of those created the first goal for Javier Hernandez. Tom Cleverley also completed 62, both with an 89 per cent rate.
Mikel made 31 passes to Lampard's 29, having one less touch of the ball (42), while Hazard had 43 touches to Moses's 25, and completed 16 more passes as he came inside off the wing looking for the ball.
The Blues attempted 20 shots to United's 13, bringing eight saves from David De Gea compared with Petr Cech's two forced by the home side, plus the acrobatic effort to keep out a potential David Luiz own goal.
Hazard, Lampard and Demba Ba had three attempts each, matched by Tom Cleverley and Wayne Rooney from United.
His header yesterday meant Hernandez has scored in six of his last seven games against the Blues.
Chelsea crosses found Manchester United defenders 20 times at Old Trafford, blue shirts just five. Rio Ferdinand (16) and Jonny Evans (13) made a combined 29 attempted clearances compared with 19 attempted by David Luiz (12) and Gary Cahill (7). | http://www.chelseafc.com/news-article/article/3105281 | 411 |
Now in its 12th year, the CIF Model Coach Award program is designed to recognize coaches who have served as positive role models in their schools and communities, and who have exhibited the traits apparent in the 16 principles of Pursuing Victory with Honor.
The 14 winners, nominated through their local CIF section office, will receive an award and be honored at their sport's state championship or at an event of the recipient's choosing.
A model coach demonstrates and teaches the six core ethical values: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and good citizenship (the "Six Pillars of Character"). The CIF believes that the highest potential of sports is achieved when teachers-coaches consciously Teach, Enforce, Advocate and Model (T.E.A.M.) these values and are committed to the ideal of Pursuing Victory with Honor. | http://www.chicoer.com/sports/ci_22618176/sidelines-pleasant-valleys-lockhart-gets-state-honor | 172 |
Americans look for Ryder revenge in China
By Talek Harris ,AFPDONGGUAN, China -- America's top golfers will seek revenge for their demoralizing Ryder Cup defeat when they resume battle with the bulk of the European team at this week's glittering WGC-HSBC Champions in China.
November 1, 2012, 1:09 am TWN
Sixteen Ryder Cup players are in action at sprawling Mission Hills for the US$7 million event, one of Asia's richest and the last of four World Golf Championships this year, featuring the cream of the globe's various tours.
With no Rory McIlroy or Tiger Woods, the world's top two who played a lucrative exhibition in front of unruly crowds at China's Jinsha Lake this week, attention will be fixed firmly on this season's unfinished business.
Justin Rose is among a small group of players still capable of snatching the European merit title from McIlroy but for the American stars it's all about pride after their Ryder Cup nightmare at Medinah.
Phil Mickelson said America's loss was one of the worst moments of his career, while Keegan Bradley said a win by an American player — on a course designed by European captain Jose Maria Olazabal — would boost morale.
“I saw some of the guys (teammates) in the airport yesterday, and it made me happy just to see the guys,” said Bradley, winner of last year's PGA Championship.
“I think (an American win) would be great — a win here any time is amazing, and I think that it would help all of the Americans and especially myself.”
Reigning U.S. Masters and British Open champions Bubba Watson and Ernie Els are among 15 Major-winners in the field, which features seven of the world's top 10.
And with damp conditions forecast at the 12-course Mission Hills complex, not far from the Hong Kong border, players are predicting low scores on the Olazabal layout, despite its prodigious 7,300-yard length.
“I wouldn't be surprised to see someone go and shoot 10-under-par this week,” said Ian Poulter, a hero of Europe's win in Chicago, when they came from four points behind on the last day.
“It's that type of golf course ... you're going to see guys being very aggressive and it wouldn't surprise me to see a couple of guys make two eagles on the (par) fives.
“When you get that on this type of golf course, guys only need to roll a few more putts in and you have that 10-under-par number.”
England's Rose and Peter Hanson of Sweden can both seize a chance to hamper McIlroy's pursuit of a PGA and European Tour money list double, while Luke Donald — who achieved the feat last year — is also just in the running for the European crown.
“This is a big week,” said Rose. “The goal this week really is to give myself a chance going into (the season finale at) Dubai ... I have to win this week to give myself that chance.”
Donald said: “Week-in, week-out we play long golf courses. I'm not one of the longest hitters, but I believe that I do a lot of my talking on the golf course with my short game.
“I'm always very good around the greens, and usually the guy who putts the best is the guy who wins. That's how I approach most courses.” | http://www.chinapost.com.tw/sports/golf/2012/11/01/359480/Americans-look.htm | 756 |
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Northern League Saturday round-up
7:11pm Monday 12th September 2011 in Chorley CC
CHORLEY’S bid for second spot in the Northern Premier League was foiled despite their seasonal finale being the only game to beat the weather on Saturday.
Andy Holdsworth’s men faced deposed champions Leyland in what was a direct shoot-out for second – but it was the visitors who claimed a winning draw on a day when two of their men wrote their name into the history books.
Luis Reece became the first Leyland batsman to pass 1,000 runs in a season, while professional Brett Pelser also eclipsed Gordon Greenidge’s pro batting mark of 976 on a memorable day for the visitors.
Reece made 73 off 92 balls with five fours and five sixes as Leyland made 238-6 off 46 overs on a showery afternoon at Windsor Park.
Fresh from a match-winning 144 not out for Lancashire seconds at Hove, Reece batted majestically, sharing an opening stand of 147 with fellow Lancashire Seconds opener Henry Thompson (67).
Rain put a dampener on the derby game but Chorley closed on 137-5 after 27 overs.
Will Moulton hit 35 to reach 600 league runs for the season, Jack Bentham made 36 and Stu Naden was unbeaten on 36 at the close.
Carnforth skipper Adam Hornby smashed an unbeaten 53 including five fours and two sixes in his side’s 156 against Darwen at Lodge Quarry before the rain wrecked the match.
Darwen reached 22-1 before the rain closed in and the game was abandoned. | http://www.chorleycitizen.co.uk/sport/chorleycc/9246762.Northern_League_Saturday_round_up/?ref=rss | 380 |
Rookie Justin Tucker kicked a 47-yard field goal 1:42 into the second overtime as visiting Baltimore stunned top-seeded Denver to advance to the AFC championship game.
Joe Flacco threw three touchdown passes, including a 70-yard scoring strike to Jacoby Jones with 31 seconds left in regulation, to outduel Peyton Manning as the Ravens (12-6) halted the Broncos' 11-game winning streak and avenged a 34-17 drubbing by the Broncos (13-4) on Dec. 16.
Ray Rice rushed for 131 yards and a TD and Corey Graham returned one interception for a touchdown and picked off Manning in the final minute of the first overtime session to put Baltimore in position for the winning kick by Tucker.
Flacco threw for 331 yards and also had touchdown passes of 59 and 32 yards to Torrey Smith as the Ravens beat Manning for the first time in 10 meetings and secured a spot in next weekend's conference title game at either New England or Houston.
Manning threw for 290 yards and three touchdown passes, but he had the two interceptions and also lost a fumble as Denver fell to 13-4 all-time at home in the postseason. The Broncos fell short despite a spectacular performance by Trindon Holliday, who became the first player in history to return a punt and kickoff for touchdowns in a playoff game.
Manning's third scoring pass, a 17-yarder to Demaryius Thomas with 7:11 to play in regulation, gave the Broncos a 35-28 lead. But Flacco found Jones behind the secondary on the 70-yard bomb to stun the fans at frigid Sports Authority Field and send the game to overtime.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Ravens LB Ray Lewis staved off retirement for another week by making a team-high 17 tackles in the fourth-longest game in postseason history. ... Holliday, who set postseason records for both the longest kick (104 yards) and punt return (90 yards) for a touchdown in league history, tasted defeat for the first time in 17 games. He was released by then-unbeaten Houston after Week 5 and signed by the Broncos, who were 11-0 with the 5-5 speedster until Saturday's loss. ... Smith, who had only one scoring pass in the final seven games of the regular season, became the first Ravens player with two TD receptions in a playoff game. | http://www.click2houston.com/sports/Ravens-stun-Broncos-in-double-OT/-/1735736/18111232/-/f776w0/-/index.html | 489 |
Courtesy of CTO Coreespondent Bobby Knight: Several schools are letting out for spring break so for the next several weeks we’ll see more midweek matchups than normal and there are a few good ones coming up on Tuesday and Wednesday. VCU goes on the road to play Duke and North Carolina while Notre Dame welcomes Illinois to South Bend. Pepperdine plays its 5th Top 25 opponent when Michigan comes to Malibu but it won’t all be fun in the sun for the Wolverines. Follow along at the live scoring links provided.
#28 VCU at #4 Duke – 2pm est – Live Scoring – VCU comes into this one riding a 5 match winning streak though Duke will be the highest ranked team the Rams will have faced this season. VCU’s best chance at getting a court will be at 3 or 4 but Duke is too strong throughout the rest of the lineup to really be threatened. I see at least 4 straight set wins for the Devils. Prediction: Duke 6-1
#17 Illinois at #29 Notre Dame – 6pm est – Live Scoring - Both of these teams have been up and down this year but Illinois seems to have righted the ship by winning 3 straight while Notre Dame has won 3 of its last 5. Illinois and Notre Dame have faced 2 common opponents this year in Kentucky and Northwestern with the Illini winning them both at home and Notre Dame losing them both (at Kentucky and home against NW). This will be the Illini’s first true road match of the year (no offense to Ball St) and Notre Dame is going to be fired up and ready for battle; anything other than a 4-3 score would be surprising. The doubles point will very big and could tip the scales one way or another. Prediction: Illinois 4-3
#21 Michigan vs. #5 Pepperdine – 4pm est/1pm pst – Live Scoring - Michigan comes into this one on a 3 match losing streak while Pepperdine has won 3 straight. The matchup at #1 singles will pit a pair of top 20 players with Michigan’s Evan King taking on Pepperdine’s Sebastian Fanselow. King is a perfect 8-0 in the dual season while Fanselow is 9-1. This is a match King has to win for Michigan to have a real chance to pull the upset. Pepperdine’s weak spots have been at 5 and 6 so Michigan’s Barrett Franks will likely be favored over Mousheg Hovhannisyan or David Sofaer. The Waves will be favored in all other spots with Finn Tearney, Alex Sarkissian, and Francis Alcantara expected to win. Prediction: Pepperdine 5-2
#28 VCU at #37 North Carolina – 3pm est – Live Scoring – VCU follows up its match with Duke by staying in the Triangle to take on a UNC team that is coming off a hard fought 4-1 loss to Ohio State. The Tarheels #1 singles player Esben Hess-Olesen has been out of the lineup for close to a month but Nelson Vick has played well in his absence. Vick is 1 of only 2 players to take a set off Ohio State’s Blaz Rola this year and he led the match 2-1 in the 3rd when play was halted. VCU’s Max Wennakoski has been playing some great tennis and comes into this one with a 12-1 dual match record and Alejandro Argente has won 5 straight for the Rams over some formidable opponents. I think VCU will rebound after losing to Duke and come away from this road trip with a win in Chapel Hill. Prediction: VCU 4-2
Check back on Friday and I’ll preview the following matches: USC/Pepperdine, Georgia/Ole Miss, Vanderbilt/Texas A&M, Baylor/Kentucky, and a few others. | http://www.collegetennisonline.com/Tennis/NewsDetail.aspx?nwId=46751 | 819 |
Online Chat with Conor Casey Today at 1:00pm
June 27, 2010
COMMERCE CITY CO - Colorado Rapids forward Conor Casey will be participating in an online chat on ESPN.com on Tuesday Sept. 15 at 1:00pm MT.
Hometown hero Casey is giving Colorado fans a season to remember in 2009. The Rapids striker is having a landmark season and is making a strong case for Major League Soccer’s league MVP and Golden Boot awards as the league's leading scorer to date with 13 goals.
A graduate of Denver’s South High School Casey is rapidly working his way up Colorado's record books and is already among the team’s all-time goal scorers in less than three years in Colorado.
Casey was voted to the MLS All-Star First XI for the first time in his career earlier this season and thanks to his recent scoring touch he has been a steady call–up to the U.S. National Team.
Click here to send your questions to Conor and check back at that same link for Tuesday's chat at 1pm MT! | http://www.coloradorapids.com/news/2010/06/online-chat-conor-casey-today-100pm?quicktabs_news_blogs=1 | 223 |
Talking Points: Short season for Mike Brown
Saturday, November 10, 2012
What's the buzz from the world of sports? Here are some items that will have people talking:
It's safe to say Mike Brown never had a chance.
We say that not only because he lasted only five games into his second season as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.
We say it because the NBA is a superstars' league, not a hardworking coaches' league. Brown is a defense-first coach. That might sell come playoff time when the rings are at stake, but not during the regular season.
We say it because Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Steve Nash aren't getting any younger. Firing Brown five games into the season might seem harsh, but we can understand the impatience of the Laker fans and the Laker players.
Getting rid of Brown now instantly makes the Lakers more entertaining — if only to see if who next will be given the job of steering the Laker mobile back into the NBA fast lane.
In case you missed it — and we're sure most of you have — the Major League Soccer playoffs are down to the final four.
And the best teams during the regular season are nowhere to be found.
The San Jose Earthquakes — the best team during the regular season — were ousted by fourth-seeded Los Angeles. Eastern Conference top seed Sporting Kansas City was dumped by fifth-seeded Houston. In the two-game conference finals series, we have No. 3 Seattle against the Galaxy in the West, and No. 2 D.C. United against Houston in the East.
Think all this spoils the integrity of the MLS product? Consider other American sports. The New York Giants squeaked into the NFL playoffs last season and won the Super Bowl. In 2011, the St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series as a wild-card team. In the NHL, the regular-season champion is routinely ousted from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Major League Soccer honors its regular-season champion with the Supporters' Shield trophy. Its postseason is branded as something separate — the MLS Cup Playoffs.
That doesn't hurt the entertainment value. As Thursday's dramatic winning goals for Seattle and D.C. United showed, the MLS Cup Playoffs are a show that can stand on their own.
Hey sports fans, get out there! Saturday is one of those special days when you don't need to leave Clark County to get in on the action.
We know that many of you will be enthusiastically supporting your favorite teams in Clark County today. But even if you don't have ties to a team, this is a good chance to get out there and be entertained.
The list of options includes three high school football state playoff games, a girls soccer state playoff game, and a Clark College men's soccer playoff game (which is free!). There is even a Vancouver Vipers junior hockey game tonight at Mountain View Ice Arena.
For more Talking Points, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/talkpoints360 | http://www.columbian.com/news/2012/nov/10/talking-points-short-season-for-mike-brown/ | 621 |
Led by the running of Brandon Stephens and the passing of quarterback Nick Sternad, the visiting Cougars got their first win, leading from start to finish.
Stephens led Albany (1-3, 1-8 TCAL-Stone) with 71 yards on 13 carries. He rushed for 3 yards in the first quarter for Albany's first score. The two-point conversion gave the Cougars an 8-0 lead, which turned to 8-7 when Jordon Cowart scored for De Anza in the second quarter.
Stephens rushed for 55 yards on eight carries as Albany had a 14-7 lead at halftime.
Sternad completed 4-of-6 passes for 64 yards in the first half, including a 21-yard touchdown toss to Jarin Panigbatan.
De Anza (0-4, 2-6) running back Jordan Cowart had six rushes for 24 yards and a 14-yard touchdown run. | http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_21867740/albany-22-de-anza-13 | 194 |
"Not 'til we get to 32," he said with a smile after one of the greatest challenges to Miami's run of success.
LeBron James hit the go-ahead jumper with 10.5 seconds remaining to cap a 37-point performance and the Heat escaped with a 105-103 win over the Boston Celtics on Monday night for their 23rd straight win, breaking a tie for second with the 2007-08 Houston Rockets.
Just as Wade isn't looking too far ahead, coach Erik Spoelstra didn't have time to consider that the Heat would lose the game—even when the Celtics led by 17 early in the second quarter and by 13 with 8:27 to play.
"I didn't think like that," he said. "We have to stay in the moment."
There was no panic on a team that was playing its third game in four days and had lost its previous 10 regular-season games in Boston. Not even against a Celtics team that had won 11 consecutive home games, starting with a 100-98, double-overtime victory over the Heat on Jan. 27. Miami split its next two games, losing on Feb. 1 at Indiana. Two days later, the winning streak began in Toronto.
Miami's next four opponents—Cleveland, Detroit, Charlotte and Orlando—have the four worst records in the East. The Heat need 11 more wins to surpass the mark the Lakers set
Spoelstra appreciated what the streak means.
"It's a special opportunity that we have with this group and you don't want to take it for granted," he said. "You want to treat every day as a special opportunity to be with this group, to share these moments together, but more importantly to take a step closer to going after our goal and every day that we improve puts us in a better position in a quest where nothing is guaranteed for anybody."
Nothing was guaranteed for the Celtics on Monday night, despite a career-high 43 points by Jeff Green. He got more offensive opportunities because Kevin Garnett missed the game with the flu and a left thigh strain.
But after James converted an offensive rebound to tie the game at 103, Green missed a layup with 1:07 left. Then, after James made the decisive basket, Shane Battier blocked Green's layup with 7.2 seconds to go.
The ball went out of bounds but Paul Pierce, who had 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, missed a 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds remaining. Wade, who had 16 points, got the rebound and called timeout with 1.9 seconds left. Courtney Lee committed a non-shooting foul on James with 1.1 seconds to play. Battier then threw the inbounds pass off a Celtic and time expired.
"We had to earn that one, no question about it," Spoelstra said. "They really got into us defensively and made it tough for us to get into our offense. They were just coming at us so fast."
But five years to the day after the Celtics snapped Houston's 22-game streak, the Heat extended theirs to 23.
"It means a lot," James said. "I know the history of the game. To be sitting in second place right now ... for us to be there and doing it the way we want to do it, it means a lot."
James added 12 assists and Mario Chalmers scored 21 for Miami.
"I believed we were going to win the game before the game. I thought we were going to win the game during the game. And I thought we should have won the game," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I give them credit. They made some spectacular plays."
The Heat had not won in Boston since the New Big Three was formed—including that double-overtime loss on Jan. 27, when former Celtic Ray Allen returned with his new team.
That was the day Rajon Rondo was diagnosed with an ACL tear that ended his season. This time, it was Garnett who sat out, though Rivers said he would have played if the thigh injury had not been compounded by the flu.
"It was the best team in the league and we took them to the breaking point," Green said. "We've just got to, when Kevin comes back, continue to play like we did today."
Green had 14 points in the first quarter, when the Celtics scored the last 17 to open a 31-19 lead. Boston led by as many as 17 in the second, but Miami went on a 15-6 run just before the half to make it a six-point game and then scored the first eight points in the third quarter to take the lead.
Green had 12 in the second quarter and 12 in the third.
But the Heat still pushed their winning streak to 23.
"No moral victories," Pierce said, "even though it was a close game."
Notes: Miami's win and Atlanta's loss on Monday night clinched the Southeast Division for the Heat. ... Pierce committed seven of the Celtics' 20 turnovers. ... James was called for a technical foul for taunting when he stood over Jason Terry after a dunk. It was James' sixth technical of the season and 39th of his career. | http://www.contracostatimes.com/sports/ci_22821450/heat-beat-celtics-105-103-23rd-win-row | 1,079 |
— Joe Girardi sat there Sunday at Yankee Stadium, rubbing his head, considering Eduardo Nunez, considering Derek Jeter, considering Rafael Soriano's 40 saves after Mariano Rivera was lost. And then the Yankees manager, who doesn't smile enough, broke into a smile.
"I'll check the football scores and the NASCAR race, too," Girardi said after his Yankees had injected their latest dose of small ball into a 6-4 victory that pushed the postseason hopes of the stumbling Tampa Bay Rays into the wild card ICU.
When Girardi got around to those scores, he would find the Giants had pulled out an incredible 41-34 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs. He would find, just as incredibly, the Patriots had lost to the Arizona Cardinals 20-18 on a missed two-point conversion, a holding penalty that negated a last-minute touchdown by Danny Woodhead and, ultimately, a missed 42-yard field goal by Steve Gostkowski that hooked left in the closing seconds.
For sporting know-it-alls and Chicken Littles alike, September is the most dangerous month. It is the month of assumption and supposition and panic. That is what makes September so delicious. No other month produces so many idiots among fans, statistical gurus and media.
On one hand, we have baseball intelligentsia armed with statistical data that proves certain teams will or will not choke in the heat of a pennant race. On the other hand, we have over-emotional — and usually over-served — football fanatics drawing absolutes based on the first or second game of the season. Often, they are made during the game. It's nuts. All you Patriots fans who are panicking because the Pats gagged to the lowly Cardinals in the home opener: Check back in December. We'll punch your ticket to the playoffs.
"Patience," Girardi said of the five-run third inning that made the difference on this day.
Patience in September? What the hell is that, Joe?
Remember when the Yankees were left for old and dying two weeks ago? Well, about 3:45 p.m. Sunday, the Giants were buried, too.
They were down double digits and about to drop to 0-2. And with games at Philly, at Dallas, at Frisco, at Atlanta, at Baltimore, against the NFC East, the schedule screamed the defending champions were already dead in Week 2. Whoops, maybe not. Boos chased Eli Manning into the locker room after throwing three first half interceptions. And then a hilarious thing happened. Eli threw for a career-high 510 yards. The G-Men won in the closing seconds.
Now the Giants aren't dead. They're miracle workers. Tune in next week. It's September.
Our own wacky sports state of split allegiances figures into this. At 4 p.m. there was so much screaming going on with the Giants and Patriots, nobody could hear the Yankees winning for the fifth time in seven games. It's fitting that our patron saint of the moment is Bobby Valentine. The Red Sox manager and professor of wackiness has shot himself in the foot so many times his mouth has been ruled an illegal firearm in six Connecticut counties.
Back in the winter when told about the Yankees' 5 percentage-point lead over the Red Sox in the Quinnipiac annual poll of Connecticut baseball fans, Valentine was asked if he thought being a home-state guy would help close that gap.
"It'll probably go 10 percent for the Yankees, right?" Valentine said.
Bobby V underestimated how much damage he could do.
It's also fitting that Valentine will face only playoff contenders his final 16 games before he gets fired. Nothing but Rays, Orioles and Yankees; yes, the Red Sox will go a long way in determining who makes the playoffs.
With 13 of their final 16 games against teams under .500, the schedule insists the Yankees are in the postseason. ESPN has statistical analysis that has the Yankees 94.1 percent sure of it. Of course, the Orioles are only one game behind the Yankees and the postseason could mean a one-game wild card game at Oakland.
After a lousy weekend in the Bronx, Rays manager Joe Maddon conceded, "The math isn't in our favor." And although the ESPN statistics list the Angels, 2 1/2 games out of the wild card, as only a 25.1 percent chance of making the playoffs, wow, Anaheim is a scary team.
Everybody seems to know what's going to happen. And September so often proves everybody wrong. Look at last September. Who had the Red Sox, with the best record in baseball through August, producing an all-time choke job? And who had the Braves going down the plumbing right along with them? Did Maddon forget about his miracle 2011 comeback?
Numbers are a guide. Numbers also do not tell you about players coming back from injury and young players rising up and making an impact. Even the aging, predictable Yankees could have a different look in October. The wisdom is if the Yanks don't hit the long ball, they lose, and when you go against the top starters in the postseason that doesn't bode well. Nunez changes the equation. Heck, Nick Swisher even had a successful sacrifice bunt Sunday.
"This is the loaded question," Girardi said when asked if the Yanks may play a little different down the stretch. "We have a bunch of guys who are used to hitting 3-4-5 in the lineup and haven't been asked to bunt in years. They're not stealing a lot of bases. Even Ichiro hasn't bunted a lot in his career. With the additions of some extra men, we can do more things and create runs."
Nunez made an error on a routine play Friday. He hit a home run Saturday. On Sunday, he didn't get a hit, but helped manufacture two runs with three steals. The guy can be electric. Girardi also said he has got to stop moving him around and focus Nunez on one position. That would be shortstop.
Derek Jeter has been playing DH. His bruised ankle is clearly hurting more than he's letting on. Girardi said, simply, "We're going to have to see how he feels on Tuesday [after a day off]. I don't think he's a shortstop right now."
So does Nunez have a big role when it matters most?
"Let us get to the playoffs and we can answer those questions," Girardi said.
Ivan Nova was extremely sharp Saturday in his return from a shoulder injury. Andy Pettitte returns Tuesday against Toronto from his broken foot. Girardi would be happy with 70 pitches and five innings. Yet right there, that's a 40 percent change in the starting rotation. And when Wallace Matthews of ESPN went for the reportorial long ball and asked if Hiroki Kuroda might start Game 1 of the playoffs instead of CC Sabathia, Girardi smiled a second time Sunday.
"Let me worry about Tuesday," he said.
There's still a lot of September left. | http://www.courant.com/sports/baseball/yankees/hc-jacobs-column-0917-20120916,0,3638913.column | 1,476 |
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TV SPORTS SUNDAY Little League Baseball-World Series, 11 a.m., 6 p.m. (ESPN2), 1 p.m. (ABC), 4 p.m. (ESPN) Tennis-ATP World Tour, Western & Southern Open, Championship Match, 11:30 a.m. (CBS); WTA Western & Southern Open, Championship Match, 3 p.m....
TV SPORTS SUNDAY Cycling-Tour de France, Stage 14, 7 a.m. (NBCSN) Auto Racing-NASCAR Sprint Cup, LENOX Industrial Tools 301, Noon (TNT) Major League Baseball-Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at New York Yankees, Noon (TBS); Oakland Athletics at...
TV SPORTS SUNDAY Olympics-Tennis; Beach Volleyball; Women's Weightlifting; Women's Volleyball, Brazil vs. Serbia, China vs. South Korea, Italy vs. Russia; Cycling; Synchronized Swimming; Men's Badminton; Men's Shooting, 3 a.m. (NBCSN); Women's...
It was a wild week of wrestling. Congratulations to the area State B champions: Nolan Richie of Webster at 113 pounds; Ben Gillette of Redfield-Doland at 126; Collin Jensen of Mobridge-Pollock at 220; and Robbie Aesoph of Faulkton at 285. Also to 182-...
TV SPORTS Soccer-UEFA Champions League, APOEL Nicosia at Lyon, 1:30 p.m. (FXSP) Men's College Basketball-Florida at Alabama, 6 p.m. (ESPN); Texas A&M at Texas Tech, 6 p.m. (ESPN2); Virginia at Clemson, 6 p.m. (ESPNU); Ohio State at Minnesota, 8 p.m....
TV SPORTS SATURDAY Soccer-Premier League, Chelsea at Newcastle, 6:30 a.m. (ESPN2) Men's College Basketball-North Carolina at Kentucky, 11 a.m. (CBS); Iowa State at Michigan, 11 a.m. (Big 10 Network); Massachusetts at Miami, Noon (ESPNU); Southern...
TV SPORTS Auto Racing-NASCAR Nationwide Series, 300 Miles of Courage practice, 1 and 5 p.m. (ESPN2); NASCAR Sprint Cup, Bank of America 500 practice, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN2), pole qualifying, 6 p.m. (ESPN2) Major League Baseball-Texas Rangers at Detroit...
Its contentious dance is dead, but Perry Hall’s boys soccer team plays on. On Friday, after further reviewing the Gators’ controversial celebration following Tuesday’s 2-1 Class 4A North Region quarterfinal victory at Dulaney, Perry...
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SOUTHWEST GLENDALE — There was no quit in the Glendale Dyrness Automotive little league baseball team, even after the Burbank Cubs jumped out to an eight-run lead in the first inning of a preliminary-round game of the Tri-City Major Baseball...
Tags: Little League Baseball, All Stars, Baseball
BURBANK HIGH — The looming dog days of summer may be a slower period for many teams, but for the Burbank High boys' basketball squad, it's hardly an offseason. The Bulldogs concluded their 2010-2011 campaign back in February with a 41-39 first-...
College Gridiron 365 Blog - Orlando SentinelCollege Football Countdown: No. 17 Mississippi State...
Aug 19, 2012 |Story| Aberdeen News
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Feb 27, 2012 |Story| Aberdeen News
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Nov 4, 2011 |Story| Baltimore Sun
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Jun 10, 2011 |Story| Burbank Leader
Jul 29, 2011 | Orlando Sentinel
Original site for Chris White topic gallery. | http://www.courant.com/topic/sports/football/chris-white-PESPT007834.topic?page=2 | 885 |
|Pietersen v South Africa, a needle clash|
|BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (AFP), 2013/04/19 08:16:13 ,||
That the explosive middle-order batsman reserves his best against the country of his birth can be gauged from the fact he averages 151.33 against South Africa, and 56.55 overall.
South Africa suffered from Pietersen's punishing blade in a home series in 2005 when the England batsman overcame a hostile crowd to hammer 454 runs in seven matches with three centuries.
He is currently in tremendous nick, having slammed England's only century in the ongoing tournament against defending champions Australia in a Super Eights game.
England hope he continues in the same vein in a match they need to win to sustain their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals.
If South Africa win, they will be in the last four.
But lurking beneath the surface is a bitter relationship between Pietersen, who was condemned as an opportunist when he decided to qualify for England after protesting against the quota system in South Africa, and Proteas skipper Graeme Smith.
The two have been engaged in a torrid war of words for two years. "I think everyone knows we don't get on for whatever reasons, but that's gone. It's not about myself, Smith, Andre Nel or Michael Vaughan on Tuesday, it's about producing a big team performance," said Pietersen.
"I wouldn't say that it is the game that matters to me more than the others because the match against Australia is big as well, but it's an important game for me and I look forward to it.
"It's going to be a big game with a lot of needle. I don't know why there is needle between the two sides other than there are some really world-class players on both the sides."
Smith was furious when Pietersen switched allegiances.
"I'm patriotic about my country, and that's why I don't like Kevin Pietersen - the only reason that Kevin and I have never had a relationship is because he slated South Africa," Smith has said in the past.
Pietersen described Smith as a "muppet" and added: "I don't talk to Smith. It's a waste of breath because I don't have any respect for him."
The controversial Pietersen on Monday tried to diffuse a potential explosive situation.
"I saw Smith in India and I saw him in the world series and we said hello," said the 26-year-old.
An interesting tussle is on the cards when in-form Pietersen faces a quality South African pace attack, comprising Shaun Pollock and Makhaya Ntini, on a pitch having pace and bounce. Pietersen has the technique and temperament to play a long innings on any surface, having the shots to demoralise any attack when in flow. He has already played a big role in England's Ashes series win over Australia at home in 2005.
South Africa will like to see the back of Pietersen as early as possible because they will be under pressure if he stays longer at the crease. They are aware he can alter the course of the match in a few overs with his big-hitting.
Pietersen is England's leading scorer in this tournament with 341 runs in seven matches. He has so far scored 1,923 runs in 49 one-day internationals with four centuries, including three against South Africa.
James Anderson has become only the fourth England player to take 300 Test wickets.
Leading wicket-takers... view
James Faulkner seems to love playing against Sunrisers. His figures of 5/20 & 5/16 against them prove... view
S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila have been arrested by the Delhi Police Special Cell on charges... view | http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/666/pietersen-v-south-africa-a-needle-clash | 800 |
England were well on top at stumps on day two of the fourth Test against India in Nagpur, with the hosts struggling on 87 for four, still 243 runs behind England's first innings score.
England were 330 all out in the afternoon session, with the lower order putting up the majority of the runs as they battled to a good score on a difficult deck. India made the wicket look even tougher though, as James Anderson took three of the four scalps.
Joe Root was the star for the Three Lions, scoring 73 off a massive 229 balls on debut, resisting for nearly three session before falling to Piyush Chawla after lunch. The spinner took four of the England wickets to fall, while Ishant Sharma got three.
India would have hoped to get England out for under 300, given they were 242 for seven in the morning session, but Root and Graeme Swann resisted manfully and put on a stand of 60. Swann was out for 56, trying to reverse sweep Chawla having just recorded his first Test fifty since 2009.
England began the day on 199 for five, and they spent the first hour the way they had ended day one: Defending, with the odd boundary thrown in. Root and Matt Prior were in the middle and batted solidly for an hour, before Ravi Ashwin struck to remove Prior.
The wicketkeeper had swapped his helmet for a felt cap, and was seemingly comfortable against the spinners, but Ashwin spun the ball appreciably and toppled the off stump. He'd made 57 off 142 balls.
This saw Tim Bresnan, in the side for Steve Finn, come to the middle, but he only lasted two deliveries before finding himself trapped LBW by Sharma for a duck. This was the fast bowler's third wicket of the innings, and left England on 242 for seven.
Root continued his vigil for the next 45 minutes, joined by spinner Swann, who continued to impress with the bat as he recorded 19 not out at the lunch break. They continued in the afternoon and Swann pulled out some big shots, hitting the first six of the innings.
He was sent packing with the score on 325 though, trying to be a bit too cheeky to Chawla, and missing a reverse sweep just a delivery after hitting the spinner for his second six. The ball struck him in front on leg stump and Rod Tucker made an easy decision to lift the finger.
Anderson and Monty Panesar just delayed the inevitable, and Jimmy was the final man to fall, caught at short leg by Pujara off Chawla.
India's chase got off to a terrible start, as Anderson skittled Virender Sehwag's stumps with the second ball of the knock, sending the veteran batsman on his way for a duck. Pujara and Gambhir then saw out the final half hour before tea by adding 15 and 17 respectively.
Gambhir managed to make 37 off 93 balls, watching as first Pujara and then Sachin Tendulkar fell by the wayside before himself departing. Pujara was unlucky to be adjudged out caught at short leg when the ball had in fact struck his elbow off Swann.
Tendulkar was once again dismissed by Anderson, for the ninth time in his career (the most against any bowler). The paceman sent the ball rocketing into the Little Master's middle stump, his score on two off 13 balls.
At the close of play, Virat Kohli and skipper MS Dhoni were in the middle, trying valiantly to recover from the loss of Gambhir, caught behind off Anderson, and hoping to make sure they reached the follow-on target of 131 without further damage. | http://www.cricket365.com/news/story/8330574/Root-going-strong-despite-India-brace | 778 |
OAKLAND -- The Oakland Athletics have locked down their final two arbitration eligible players by signing Brandon Moss and Jerry Blevins, each to one-year contracts.
Blevins' and Moss' deals will give them a bump in pay for 2013, but they are still under team control beyond that year. Blevins won't be a free agent until 2016, and Moss won't hit the open market until 2017.
Both Blevins and Moss had career years last season. Blevins was 5-1 with one save, but managed to wiggle out of a seemingly impossible situation in that save. Up 6-5 in Anaheim on September 11, the Angels had runners on the corners and no outs. Blevins struck out Kendrys Morales swinging and then got Howie Kendrick to ground into a game-ending double play.
After the game, Blevins could be heard shouting "Where's my pie?" in the A's clubhouse. He deserved one. Because had he not worked his way out of that jam, the A's would probably not have ended up winning the division.
The 29-year-old reliever had a career-best 2.48 ERA and .201 opponents batting average last season. His 54 strikeouts and 65 1/3 innings pitched were career-highs.
Moss, 29, clubbed 21 home runs and drove in 52 runners. Those numbers are very good, then you realize he joined the team in June and they become downright spectacular. Moss hit .291 with 18 doubles, and more than half of his hits were for extra bases. The outfielder-turned-first baseman will likely continue to bat in the heart of the A's lineup and share time at first base with Chris Carter. | http://www.csncalifornia.com/blog/casey-pratt/athletics-sign-one-year-deals-blevins-moss | 354 |
UMHB rolls over Kean University 34-7
Belton, TX – The new-look offense was sharp early and the defense more than made it stand up as the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor football team rolled to a 34-7 victory over Kean University in the 2012 season opener Saturday night in Belton. UMHB improves to 1-0 on the season by winning its sixth straight season opener. The loss drops the Cougars to 0-2 on the year.
UMHB forced a Kean three-and-out on the game's opening possession and then marched 52 yards in seven plays before LiDarral Bailey hit Darius Wilson with a swing pass that Wilson toted 15 yards into the end zone to make it 7-0 Cru just 3:54 into the game. Bailey found Caleb Moore with a five-yard scoring pass on the next UMHB possession to push the lead to 14-0 with 4:57 left in the first quarter. Wilson struck again, this time on a 65-yard scoring run to make it 21-0 UMHB with 1:24 to play in the first quarter. It would stay that way into the half as both teams struggled in the second quarter. The Cru struck quickly in the early going of the second half. Wilson broke off a 73-yard touchdown run on the first offense play of the second half to give UMHB a 28-0 edge and Wilson closed out the Cru scoring with a one-yard plunge following a blocked punt to make it 34-0. Kean's only score came on the ensuing kickoff, when Deandre Fowlkes took a short kickoff and returned it 80 yards for the Cougars only score of the game.
Wilson finished with 165 rushing yards on 12 carries and he tied a UMHB single-game record with his four total touchdowns. Stephen Salinas added 88 yards on 18 carries. Bailey was 20-24 passing for 193 yards and two touchdowns and Jon Ross caught a career-high six passes for 72 yards. Brodrick Crain and Jarred Favorite topped the UMHB defense with seven tackles apiece.
Fowlkes had 44 rushing yards for Kean and caught six passes for 33 yards. Christian Bailoni was 16-33 passing for 99 yards for the Cougars. Daniel Wollman posted a game-high 15 tackles for Kean and Chris VanFechtman added 11 more.
UMHB outgained the Cougars 517 yards to 180 in total offense. The Cru rolled up 313 rushing yards and added 204 more through the air. Kean rushed for just 75 yards. The two teams combined for just one turnover, a UMHB fumble in the fourth quarter.
The game was the first meeting between the two teams and the Cru moves to 12-3 all-time in season openers. UMHB will return to action with an 11:00 AM Central Time kickoff at 3rd-ranked Wesley College next Saturday in Dover, Delaware. The Wolverines are 2-0 on the season following a 17-7 victory over 6th-ranked Salisbury on Saturday. | http://www.d3football.com/seasons/2012/contrib/201209087q5tvh?id=csfxklc7koejy701 | 629 |
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Prep roundup: Top-seeded DeKalb volleyball advances to regional final
The DeKalb girls volleyball team beat Rockford East, 25-10, 25-13, in a Class 4A Rockford East Regional semifinal Tuesday.
The top-seeded Barbs (29-8) advance to Thursday’s regional final, where they will face No. 3 Huntley.
Courtney Bemis led DeKalb with 13 kills, while Courtney Wagner added six kills and three blocks. Madison Lord finished with 18 assists for the Barbs, while Nicole Schladt added nine digs and two aces and Leah Scheri finished with six digs.
If you have any technical difficulties, either with your username and password or with the payment options, please contact us by e-mail at [email protected] | http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2012/10/24/prep-roundup-top-seeded-dekalb-volleyball-advances-to-regional-final/ardw0d2/?list-comments=1 | 172 |
Even after two full seasons away from football because of hip and triceps injuries, Warren remembers how it feels to be one of the most dominant interior defensive linemen in the NFL.
Warren, a 31-year-old, 300-pound defensive tackle, knows enough to realize he's not that same player anymore. But after surviving his first complete preseason since 2009, Warren is confident that he is on his way back to becoming himself again.
"Mentally, it's been overcoming the mental nature of thinking that I'm going to return to the elite form right away. Football is still football, but I've had some humbling moments as I'm trying to learn the defense," Warren said. "I've had my missed assignments, thankfully in practice and not in a game. I think it's just mentally getting over the hump and putting things in perspective in knowing that this thing is going to be a progressive deal."
When Warren arrived in Denver as a free agent after the lockout a year ago, he brought with him a résumé that included 103 career starts and three Super Bowl rings from his eight seasons with the New England Patriots. A Broncos defense long missing a stalwart run stopper was hoping it had found its guy toanchor the middle of the defensive line, even if he had missed all of 2010 after undergoing surgery on his hip.
Then came the triceps injury. Before Warren had suited up for a single preseason game for the Broncos, his season was over.
If there were concerns in 2011 about Warren's ability to return from injury, they were back tenfold during the offseason, as Warren skipped the Broncos' voluntary offseason workouts -- crucial time for the installation of new defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio's defense -- while he and the Broncos renegotiated his contract. He agreed to a one-year deal that would pay him less overall ($1.25 million compared with $4 million), but included $250,000 guaranteed.
"In a sense I came into a new system blind," Warren said.
Warren played defensive end in New England's 3-4 defense. In Denver, he is an interior tackle. Those significant scheme changes, combined with the physical challenges of missing two years, meant that Warren's progress didn't come as quickly as he or Broncos coaches might have wanted.
"The last couple of weeks have been more of what we're looking for from that position from him, so that's been good," Del Rio said last week. "From where we started to having the unknown to where we are now, I think it's been real positive."
When Warren was in contract discussions with the Broncos last spring, he was also in talks with the five women in his life -- his wife, Kesha, and their four daughters, who range in age from 2 to 10. The Broncos were asking Warren to take a pay cut, and he was trying to decide if it was worth sticking around.
Warren's daughters had grown used to having their dad around. A year ago, he volunteered at school, chaperoned field trips and watched the girls play lacrosse, softball, tennis and gymnastics. He finished his degree at Texas A&M in May 2011 -- fulfilling a promise he made to his grandparents and his favorite teacher from high school -- and took an internship with a property management company in Denver last fall to bide his time while he couldn't play.
Warren could picture his future, back on a ranch in Texas, after football. But he and his wife decided the best family decision was for him to keep playing.
"She thought it would be cool for them to see me play, you know? When they're old enough to understand," Warren said. " That was part of coming back."
It appears to be the right decision. Warren is one of two starting defensive tackles in the Broncos' base defense. He was one of the 25 players held out of Thursday's preseason finale at Arizona as the Broncos prepare for the Sept. 9 season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
"The fact that he's coming back from two years off just shows how good he really he is, what kind of man he is, to be able to come back," said Justin Bannan, the Broncos' other starting defensive tackle. "Great player and a great guy, and hopefully he'll have a great year." | http://www.dailycamera.com/broncos-nfl/ci_21454116/broncos-warren-feeling-like-his-old-self?source=rss | 884 |
"I went 'Wow!' " Guber said of the August 2011 meeting. "It was a very profound change. And I think Adidas presenting it to us and giving us the option to be the first one to do this demonstrates our willingness to be inventive."
On Monday, the Warriors unveiled their yellow, alternate uniforms. They will be the first team in the modern NBA era to play in something other than a tank top.
The Warriors will debut the new unis for their Feb. 22 home game against the San Antonio Spurs, which is being aired on ESPN. They will also wear them March 8 vs. Houston and March 15 vs. Chicago.
If Adidas has its way, the new look will be a growing trend.
"It was the right moment, the right team," said Lawrence Norman, Adidas' vice president of global basketball. "Even more important, the right city. When you launch something as innovative as this -- that will change the way the players look on the court and the way the fans support the team forever -- why not launch it in the most innovative part of the United States?"
The new jersey is much less a T-shirt than the next phase in the evolution of hoops apparel.
It's being called the "adizero NBA short sleeve uniform system." And Adidas boasts it as a revolutionary marriage between performance and aesthetics.
The uniforms are 26 percent lighter than their traditional
The shorts -- which have pinstripes inspired by the Bay Bridge -- have been modernized, too. The stretch woven fabric, pricked with thousands of holes, make the bottoms as lightweight and airy as ever.
Bay Area fans will love this part: the uniform is made with 60 percent recycled material.
The Warriors and Adidas, the official provider of NBA uniforms since 2006, worked together for more than a year to bring this concept to life. Several players tested them during their offseason and the Warriors have gone through full practices in them.
"I think it will be a trendsetter," rookie forward Harrison Barnes said. "I think its something it will take people a little bit of time to get used to, but once they do it'll be good. As long as I'm able to shoot and move, that's all that matters."
Representatives from the Warriors and Adidas say they have gotten nothing but positive feedback from the performance end.
The only remaining question is the reception of fans and the basketball community.
Will people take to a shirt jersey? Is this a gimmick waiting to be rejected?
"In the early '90s, I was part of the transition from short shorts to longer shorts," said Warriors president Rick Welts, who established a reputation as a pioneer in his decades working in the NBA office.
"We certainly heard from a lot of basketball traditionalists that short shorts were sacrosanct to the basketball uniforms the way they should be. I'm not foolish enough to think some won't think we're messing with tradition. But I think it's going to be really well received. Over time, I wouldn't be surprised if every team has one."
This jersey was designed with the fan in mind.
The rationale is having a full shirt as the team's jersey allows people to represent their team in more settings. Unlike soccer, baseball and football, basketball uniforms are limited, from a fashion perspective, because they are sleeveless.
The "swingman" jerseys will run about $110, about $40 more than the traditional replicas. The authentic versions will be $300. Both will be available for pre-order at NBA.com and warriorsteamstore.com starting Monday.
Golden State is already in the top 10 in merchandise sales, according to Welts. If fans take to the new alternate jersey, the franchise could see a boon.
"We didn't do this for the sales," Welts said. "This is all about the image of the franchise and being forward."
Welts tried to get the NBA to adopt a short-sleeve jersey once before. In 1985, he saw an opportunity for a ground-breaking uniform with Patrick Ewing coming into the NBA. The Georgetown star was known for wearing a T-shirt under his jersey, sparking quite the trend.
The NBA didn't, and still doesn't, allow players to wear sleeved shirts beneath their jersey. So Welts and then-deputy commissioner Russ Granik worked with MacGregor Sand-Knit, then the NBA's outfitter, to make a sleeved uniform.
"Frankly, with the technology available, we couldn't make it work," Welts said. "It was a lost opportunity. It's taken, what, 28 years to finally do it."
Today's athletes prefer something fitted and comfortable, anything that gives any type of edge. As a result, compression shirts have become a staple in sports apparel. NBA players practice in them and many wear tank versions under their uniforms.
"It's a unique step forward for our product," said Sal LaRocca, the NBA's executive vice president of global merchandising. "There is always an ongoing directive in any company in sports apparel to continue innovating and enhancing. There have been constant developments in sports performance and teams invest millions of dollars in providing things that help players perform better."
This trend inspired Adidas to investigate a short-sleeve jersey idea a couple of years ago.
Golden State, which launched a new logo and uniform at the start of the 2010-11 season, was in the market for an alternate uniform. And Norman, an avid basketball fan and pick-up enthusiast, said he has come to know the Warriors' ownership group as innovative.
In his mind, the collaboration seemed perfect. His instinct was confirmed when Guber and the Warriors jumped at the chance.
"He stopped us midstream," Norman said. "It was the coolest thing. I get chills thinking about it. He just stopped us and was like, 'We are in. Let's make this happen. This is going to be huge.' He just recognized it right away, as if it were a 30-second Hollywood pitch and he only need 10 seconds" | http://www.dailydemocrat.com/ci_22571086/golden-state-warriors-reveal-new-age-jerseys?source=most_viewed | 1,266 |
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Adkins hails "fantastic point"
6:22pm Saturday 29th December 2012 in Sport
Nigel Adkins hailed Saints’ draw at Stoke as “a fantastic point.”
The boss was delighted with a 3-3 draw at the Britannia Stadium despite seeing his side lose a 3-1 lead against ten men.
He said: “It’s a fantastic point away from home.
“You look at Stoke and the Britannia Stadium and they had only conceded three goals at home this season and we’ve scored three and could have scored more.
“It’s always a difficult place to come to, our supporters were great and first half it was only us you could hear because our game management was spot on.
“We came away from home and changed a few of the players around because we knew we’d have to deal with an aerial bombardment that would probably come and the players have been top drawer. We scored some really good goals.” | http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/10131812.Adkins_hails__fantastic_point_/?action=complain&cid=11102240 | 240 |
NHL: Sidney Crosby leads Penguins past Devils
PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz each had a goal and two assists, and the Pittsburgh Penguins picked up their first home victory of the season by beating the New Jersey Devils 5-1 Saturday.
Penguins defenseman Robert Bortuzzo scored his first NHL goal, Brandon Sutter got his first with Pittsburgh and Kris Letang also found the back of the net for the Penguins, who handed the Devils their first loss in regulation this season.
Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 14 shots for the win. Evgeni Malkin and Pascal Dupuis had two assists apiece.
Andy Greene scored a short-handed goal for the Devils. Martin Brodeur was sharp through two periods, stopping 17 of 19 shots, but allowed three goals in the third as the Penguins turned a one-goal game into a rout.
The Penguins had been the only NHL team yet to earn a point at home. They were outscored 9-3 in losses to the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Islanders.
This time, Pittsburgh looked more like the team that shut out the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night as opposed to the sloppy defensive club that showed up during a 4-1 loss to the Islanders on Tuesday, when Fleury was pulled after two periods.
Sutter staked the Penguins to a 1-0 lead early in the second period, chipping his own rebound over Brodeur's pads. It was the seventh time in eight games that Pittsburgh scored first.
Kunitz took advantage of a fortunate bounce to give the Penguins a two-goal lead midway through the period. Devils defenseman Anton Volchenkov whiffed on a breakout attempt in his own zone and the puck slid to Kunitz, who was there to wrist a shot past Brodeur from between the circles.
The Penguins tried to take a three-goal lead on the power play, but the Devils cut the deficit in half with their NHL-best second short-handed goal of the season. Dainius Zubrus sent a spinning feed along the boards to a streaking Greene in the slot, and he went to the backhand to beat Fleury, making it 2-1. Continued...
Letang started the third-period outburst less than 3 minutes in, sneaking into the slot to put a shot past Brodeur. Crosby made it 4-1, finishing a rush down the left-wing boards with a wrist shot.
Bortuzzo scored the first of his career 2 minutes later, when his shot from the point rolled awkwardly between Brodeur's pads.
NOTES: First-round draft pick Stefan Matteau was scratched for the Devils, who are deciding whether to return him to junior hockey after playing in five NHL games. ... Devils D Mark Fayne missed the game with an arm injury, while D Ben Lovejoy, C Dustin Jeffrey and C Eric Tangradi were scratched for the Penguins. ... It was the first of three games between the teams in nine days. . Pittsburgh travels to Washington on Sunday in a game that will be nationally televised on NBC, while New Jersey visits the New York Islanders.
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Keep up to date with the resort's latest news, photos, events and other details. | http://www.dailyfreeman.com/articles/2013/02/02/sports/doc510d7ce9e2f79741375638.txt?viewmode=3 | 871 |
News of Kliff Kingsbury's hire at Texas Tech didn't just excite the Red Raider fan base, it got plenty of current and former players fired up on Twitter, too.
"We [just] got our swagger back. Wreck em TECH. Lets ride," wrote former Tech receiver Danny Amendola, who arrived in Lubbock two years after Kingsbury graduated.
Some of the seniors on the team expressed excitement even though they won't get a chance to work with Kingsbury next season. Quarterback Seth Doege said he's looking forward to seeing what Kingsbury can do with freshman quarterback Michael Brewer, who's widely expected to take over as the Raiders' starting QB next season.
"Pumped about the new Ball Coach Can't wait to see what the old 16 can do with the young 16 [Brewer]," Doege wrote.
Senior safety Cody Davis expressed a little sadness that he won't have a chance to play for Kingsbury.
"Glad to have Kliff Kingsbury back at Texas Tech! Wish I had another year. Excited for the future of this program," Cody Davis wrote.
Sophomore tight end Jace Amaro, who expressed his anger over Tommy Tuberville's departure over the weekend, seemed decidedly more upbeat, especially after one follower predicted he'd win a Heisman under Kingsbury's tutelage.
" 'Tight end Heisman.' That's pretty catchy," Amaro wrote. "Tech fans are one of a kind. #coachkingsbury," | http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/college-sports/texas-tech-red-raiders/20121212-current-former-texas-tech-players-react-to-kliff-kingsbury-s-hire-on-twitter-we-just-got-our-swagger-back.ece?ssimg=820085 | 312 |
LITTLE ELM — Ke’aun Kinner takes the handoff, runs 5 yards, crashes into tacklers and then fights for 2 more yards. The defenders get up slowly, but Little Elm’s senior running back bounces up.
Was it Kinner’s first run of the game? His 20th? His 57th?
“During the game, you don’t really realize how many times he’s run because he makes it look so effortless,” Little Elm coach Donald Stowers said. “We try to tell him to get up slow to get some rest.”
Kinner could use some rest after his last two games. Two weeks ago, he rushed 55 times against Prosper, which tied for the fifth-most rushes in a game by a Texas high school player. Last week, he took over No. 4 on that list with 57 rushes — for 345 yards and two touchdowns — as Little Elm (4-5, 3-3 in 9-4A) kept its playoff hopes alive with a 41-17 victory over Frisco Wakeland.
So how did he feel the morning after?
“I’m sore,” he said with a smile.
But Kinner (5-9, 185) likes the workload. It’s also what the humble, quiet senior expected after Little Elm’s other top offensive threat, senior quarterback Devante’ Pullum, suffered a sports hernia in the team’s first scrimmage.
“Son, you’re going to have to carry this team on offense,” Stowers told him.
Kinner carries a huge load, but he’s helped by an offensive line that averages 270 pounds. “I love them all,” said Kinner, who has rushed 319 times for 2,467 yards and 24 touchdowns this season. He’s topped 300 yards five times and ran for 432 against Sherman.
Pullum, who is playing again but is still recovering from his injury, describes Kinner as a “beast.”
“You know Johnathan Gray?” Pullum said, referring to the former Aledo star who is now a freshman at Texas. “I think Ke’aun’s better than him. That’s my opinion.”
It’s a strong opinion, but there’s no doubting the ability of Kinner, who has recently seen an uptick in recruiting. UT-San Antonio and New Mexico are interested, and Boise State just jumped in. Last week, Kinner got a call from national powerhouse Oregon.
None of that surprises Prosper coach Kent Scott, whose 8-1 team nearly got upset by Little Elm two weeks ago. Kinner rushed for 332 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-27 loss.
“He runs hard, he gets downhill, he beats you to the edge,” Scott said. “In over 20 years that I’ve been doing this, he’s the best back that I’ve ever seen. He’s phenomenal.”
Even a phenom, however, might get worn down after more than 300 carries in a season. But Stowers doesn’t worry about that. After games, Kinner is usually dancing around in the locker room with his teammates.
“It’s like they’re all ready to play another game,” Stowers said.
Little Elm has at least one more game, but to guarantee a playoff spot, it needs to beat The Colony (4-5, 2-4) on Friday. It should be another busy night for Kinner, who averages 7.7 yards per carry despite being the target of every defense.
“He runs with passion,” Stowers said. “He gets everything he can out of every play.
“Even when he’s about to go down, he’s still fighting for that extra yard.”
Follow Matt Wixon on Twitter at @mattwixon
Carrying the load
Most rushes in a game by a Texas high school running back:
Source: Dave Campbell’s Texas Football
The most rushes by a Dallas-Fort Worth area running back in the regular season in the last six seasons:
Arl. Sam Houston
*One regular season game remaining | http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/high-schools/matt-wixon/20121107-wixon-despite-racking-up-112-carries-in-last-two-games-little-elm-s-keaun-kinner-keeps-on-churning.ece | 927 |
By Jim Schutze
By Rachel Watts
By Lauren Drewes Daniels
By Anna Merlan
By Lee Escobedo
By Eric Nicholson
It was last March, during the patch of the calendar most universities cut out for spring break. But instead of beer-bonging his way through a beach week or posting up on the couch, the Florida State University political science and international relations major caught a flight south.
The trip wasn't unusual: Galvan is hardwired for giving. The Tampa native helped open a free clinic for the uninsured in Tallahassee and has taught impoverished Moroccans about the importance of clean water. Working young Salvadorans through their ABCs was merely his latest adventure.
Galvan touched down outside of the city of Zacatecoluca, located in a rural region still bleeding from years of civil war and poverty. A bout of malaria was already swimming through his bloodstream. Soon enough, armed thugs were asking about the American stranger. Be careful, a family member familiar with the area had counseled before the trip, and don't tell anyone you're Muslim.
But Galvan's problems wouldn't come from El Salvador. They would arrive via e-mail just a few days in, sent by panicked colleagues from the Muslim Student Association at Florida State. The campus newspaper had run an ad claiming the MSA was aligned with terrorists. Galvan anxiously waited out the 30 minutes it took for his shoddy Internet connection to spit out a copy.
The ad climbed half the page, its top splashed with bold lettering: "FORMER LEADERS OF THE MUSLIMS STUDENT ASSOCIATION (MSA): WHERE ARE THEY NOW?" Below were ten names, some familiar echoes from the news. Each was followed by lines identifying their terrorist ties, words like "al-Qaeda," "Taliban" and "jihad" shouting from the page.
"I took it almost as a personal threat, because it was citing how all these people were presidents of MSA, and I'm a president of MSA," Galvan recalls.
Florida State's Muslims were used to low-dose bigotry. This was panhandle Florida. Galvan regularly endured barked taunts as he made his Friday trek to the mosque dressed in traditional prayer robes. It was just part of life in the deep-fried South.
But the ad suggested that his group was a pilot program for the terrorists of tomorrow. Nothing could be further from the truth. Normally concerned with sponsoring beach volleyball games and barbecues, the MSA's most political activity was a yearly Fast-a-Thon to raise awareness about hunger. Galvan tapped out angry e-mails to the paper and school administrators, looking for a retraction or condemnation.
He was met with silence. The paper wouldn't print his full-length defense, nor could FSU president Eric Barron be bothered to return his calls. "It was really alarming to us that no one at our university was willing to step up," he says. "We seemed to be alone on this issue."
The ad did reel in the attention of one group: the FBI. Two years earlier, a mosque near FSU had been torched. A few hours east, in Gainesville, Reverend Terry Jones had become a news-cycle regular for periodically threatening to burn the Koran. The FBI wanted a sit-down, worried that some backcountry type might see the ad and reach for a gun.
"In the Muslim community, we've seen how far this goes," Galvan says. "People don't just kill a Muslim for no reason. They do it because they've developed an image in their head of Muslims as an evil threat to their lives and families."
But while Galvan and his friends met with the FBI, a 74-year-old man in Sherman Oaks, California, was most likely gloating over his latest incitement of panic. Over the years, David Horowitz had turned taunting Muslims into a spectator sport. The Florida State ad was just another slash in his win column.
The Switch-Hitting Radical
Like many of the '60s generation, David Horowitz changed his political coloring with seasoning.
His career as an antagonist began in Berkeley with the budding New Left movement, which spliced lecture-hall idealism with radical street work. He edited Rampartsmagazine, the '60s muckraking venture that printed the first exposés on the CIA's role in Vietnam, allowing him to rub shoulders with revolutionary royalty like writer Noam Chomsky and the Black Panthers.
But Horowitz's feelings for the left would eventually sour. He spied hypocrisy in the liberals who flung indignation at Lyndon Johnson yet trumpeted dictators like Ho Chi Minh. This growing unease came to a head in 1974, when Betty Van Patter's beaten corpse was pulled out of the San Francisco Bay. Horowitz believed that Van Patter, who'd kept the books at Ramparts, had been slain by Black Panthers trying to cover up an embezzlement scheme. The killing was never solved.
By the 1980s, Horowitz had switched teams. He founded what would later become the Freedom Center in suburban Los Angeles, producing pamphlets that urged Republicans to take up arms. "The Art of Political War" called for the GOP to adopt an aggressive activist tone that would come to be its trademark. Karl Rove was a fan. The none-too-subtle "Hating Whitey" scorched liberals for unfairly blaming whites for the problems confronted by minorities.
Horowitz had become an early champion of the outraged right, showing a keen ability for spotting minor flares in the culture wars and showering them with the appropriate dose of gasoline. His was a grab bag of evil-liberal targets that would soon make up the hit lists of better-known conservatives like Ann Coulter and Glenn Beck.
The Freedom Center's annual Restoration Weekend, a white-meat gathering of right-wing notables, featured such prominent speakers as Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. Horowitz became a regular on the lecture circuit and Fox News.
His message was designed to incite. Take his 2006 book, The Professors: The 101 Most Dangerous Academics in America,which sought to out the instructors polluting the nation's youth with un-American bias. His logic wasn't built from the finest mortar; the Boston Globe called it a "one-sided screed" that simply targeted "professors who hold political views different than [Horowitz's] own."
But that wasn't really the point. Like most on both the left and right fringes, Horowitz's primary goal was starting fires, hoping they'd burn bright enough to reach the news cycle, where the propaganda points are earned.
Republican sugar daddies took notice.
Benefactors like Richard Mellon Scaife, publisher of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, wrote checks to Freedom Center coffers. So did the Bradley Foundation, which also backed well-known conservative institutions such as the Cato Institute and the Heritage Foundation. In 2010, Politico reported that Horowitz personally took home a total of $461,000 in salary and benefits during the previous three years.
Yet the polemicist's profession is a crowded one. It's difficult to break through the noise when your competition has its own syndicated radio shows and prime-time news slots. So Horowitz found a reliable niche by standing bullish on Israel.
In 2007, he began providing conservative college students with starter kits to hold their own Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week. Horowitz would parachute onto campuses across the country, promoting documentary screenings and appearances by Freedom Center speakers. He showed students how to conduct sit-ins at Women's Studies departments to protest feminism's silence on Islam's oppression of women. According to the center's website, the festivities have been held at 114 schools.
He followed up by purchasing an ad in the New York Times proclaiming "The Palestinians' Case Against Israel Is Based on a Genocidal Lie." Another ad likened boycotts of Israeli products to the first step toward Nazism. He even began to argue that the White House had been infiltrated by extremists, in a Freedom Center publication titled "The Muslim Brotherhood in the Obama Administration."
His work could easily be dismissed as braying theatrics, '60s radicalism re-engineered for the conservative sensibility. "The way that he approaches all of this is very much still in the strategies and rhetoric of the Berkeley left," says Eli Clifton, a writer for the Center for American Progress who profiled Horowitz as part of a report on groups involved in spreading Islamophobia. "It's very much the same hardware. They've just changed the software."
But sometimes Horowitz does more than burnish a nugget of truth into a rockslide of indignation. Sometimes – as in the case of Florida State – he's actually right.
The Murderous Few
Somewhere in a CIA bunker, algorithms spit red-flagged names linked to jihad. More than a few Muslim Student Association alumni are among them. They include everyone from bit players in bungled terror plots to those who've left sizable fingerprints in recent history. These are the names that Horowitz plasters throughout his ads in college newspapers.
Born in America to Yemeni parents, Anwar al-Awlaki served as president of the MSA at Colorado State in the late '80s. Though he reportedly walked a moderate line in Fort Collins, the post-9/11 Awlaki would become one of the most popular clerics in the Muslim world.
His jihadist rallying cries beamed via Internet from Yemen, sprinkled with references to "Joe Sixpack" and other bits of Americana, became must-see screeds for the young and violent. He swapped e-mails with Nidal Malik Hasan, the U.S. Army psychiatrist who turned his gun on fellow servicemen at Fort Hood in 2009, leaving 13 dead. Officials also believe al-Awlaki was the puppeteer behind Umar Farouk Abdulmutalla, the would-be terrorist who failed to ignite an underwear bomb on a flight to Detroit in 2009.
Al-Awlaki became the first U.S. citizen to rank on the CIA's kill list. A drone strike in Yemen took him out last year.
Omar Hammami, crowned the "Jihadist Next Door" by the New York Times, grew up feeling ostracized as a Muslim in a small town in the Bible Belt. He was president of the MSA at the University of South Alabama before dropping out in 2002.
After heading overseas and rechristening himself Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, Hammami became the media face for al-Shabaab, a Somalian insurgency group now affiliated with al-Qaeda. Besides appearing in recruitment videos, al-Amriki recorded rap songs with a jihadist message. He recently earned a spot on the FBI's most-wanted list.
Ali Asad Chandia was a third-grade teacher at a Muslim school in College Park, Maryland, when the feds booted in his door in 2003. The Pakistan native was eventually handed a 15-year sentence for providing support to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Muslim extremist group focused on liberating Kashmir from India. The organization is responsible for numerous attacks on military and civilian targets, including the coordinated attacks across Mumbai in 2008, when 164 people were massacred.
Chandia shuttled group members from the airport when they visited America and let them use his home computer to order Kevlar vests, night-vision goggles and other supplies. His conviction was part of a roundup of the Virginia Jihad Network – also dubbed the "Paintball Cell" for the way it road-tested possible terror ops. Chandia was president of the Montgomery College MSA in the late '90s.
A supporter's role also linked Ziyad Khaleel to al-Qaeda. Throughout the '90s, the Palestinian lived in various locations around the U.S., procuring supplies for overseas extremists. Khaleel's purchases included the $7,500 satellite phone Osama bin Laden used to plot the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya. Khaleel previously headed the MSA at Columbia College in Missouri.
During the 1983-84 school year, the MSA at the University of Arizona was run by Wa'el Hamza Julaidan, the son of a wealthy Saudi family. After college, he ran the Islamic Center in Tucson, where he became passionate about the Afghan-Soviet struggle. In 1986, he headed for that region, serving in the mujahideen alongside Abdullah Azzam and bin Laden. The three would later found al-Qaeda.
This small army of MSA presidents-turned-terrorists has provided Horowitz with powerful ammo among the hard-boiled right, which is quick to see the worst in Islam. After all, more than 50 percent of voters in this year's Mississippi Republican primary still believed that President Barack Obama is a Muslim. Given that sentiment, it's not difficult to spray the entire group as a threat within our shores.
Yet students like Galvan see Horowitz's paintings as crude caricatures done by a rudimentary hand.
Like any college group, the MSA includes all kinds. Some chapters emphasize religion, others social outreach. The MSA at the University of California, Berkeley has produced videos on gay rights. The one at UC-Irvine is known for flexing a militant side. Two years ago, 11 members were arrested for disrupting a speech by the Israeli ambassador.
In short: Broad-brushing the entire group is akin to labeling all evangelical Christians as freaks on par with the Westboro Baptist Church. But Horowitz and his followers are willing to sew these instances into a distinctive pattern. Because that's just good business for David Horowitz.
Lecture-Hall Cage Matches
Punch Horowitz's name into a YouTube search, and you'll find ample evidence of a man who clearly enjoys strapping on the pads.
His campus road shows run from a familiar playbook. They typically begin with an invite from college Republicans to speak, followed by Horowitz's spurring an uproar with ads impugning Muslims in school papers. By lecture day, extra security is required — and Horowitz reliably puts on a show.
While visiting UC-San Diego in 2010, Horowitz scored an on-camera checkmate that's become Exhibit A for Muslim hate on campus. During a question-and-answer period, he tangled with a female student in a headscarf. The woman pressed for specifics on MSA's ties to terrorism. Horowitz ducked the question, instead demanding that she denounce Hezbollah on the spot. "For it or against it?" he barked.
"For it," she replied.
Later, the woman -- claiming she was upset and confused -- backed off the comment. Regardless, Horowitz landed an appearance on Sean Hannity's show to discuss his triumph.
At a UC-Santa Barbara lecture, he didn't just face down a hostile audience; he controlled the crowd's heat as if his hand had been on a thermostat.
The packed auditorium was filled with members of the MSA. One outraged student after the next took the microphone to confront Horowitz. He nimbly grabbed the reins of each question, steering it off in his own direction or bullying students into frustrated silences by demanding on-the-spot denunciations of groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. Shouts of "Fuck you!" and "You're making stuff up!" periodically popped up from the seats.
Horowitz's incendiary rhetoric was on full display at a Brooklyn College appearance last year. "No people has shown itself so morally sick as the Palestinians have," he announced. "No other people in the world have sunk so low morally as the Palestinians have, and yet everybody is afraid to say this." The crowd responded with angry cries.
Horowitz defends the atmosphere at his events by throwing up his hands and pointing to the MSA. "I don't go to campuses inciting people," he says. "I go to speak. I can't have a civil conversation. I have to go with bodyguards, and that's because of the Muslim Student Associations. Their behavior is what's important, not their sophistry in avoiding my questions."
But for someone who devotes a good chunk of his calendar to making students go code-red, Horowitz probably realizes they're an easy – and perhaps the only -- mark for his caliber of agitation.
As Henry Kissinger once said, "University politics are vicious precisely because the stakes are so small." But they're very good for landing you an appearance on Fox News.
The charged atmosphere -- and the readiness of the far right to cheer him on -- allows Horowitz to spin theories with little structural integrity.
One of his favorite conspiracies: that all U.S. Muslim organizations are tied to the Muslim Brotherhood, an Egyptian group with a history of jihad and anti-Semitism that has become Egypt's leading political force. His evidence is woven from the thinnest wool.
The Holy Land Foundation was once the largest Islamic charity in America – until it was caught violating U.S. law by funneling $12 million to Hamas. Five members of the foundation were handed life sentences in 2009 for the crime.
As part of that investigation, the feds found a memo at Holy Land's suburban Dallas headquarters. It was written in 1991 by a Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas member named Mohamed Akram. The text lays out a comical plot to institute religious Sharia law across America by using "our organizations and the organizations of our friends," MSAs included.
Never mind that in a largely Christian nation, there's zero chance that Sharia law will ever come to rule the land, given its Dark Ages approach to basic rights. Horowitz nonetheless insists that Muslim Student Associations take their marching orders from the memo.
"I see it as a recruitment organization," he says. "Its purpose is first to isolate the Muslim students, to create a Muslim center so they're not going to assimilate into Western values. I know this from my youth in Communist front associations. The idea is you create a group that gathers all the Muslim kids, and then you identify the ones who become leaders. Those are the ones who get positions of power in the organization, and those are the ones who go on to do other Muslim Brotherhood tasks."
Yet there's little evidence that the memo was ever put into play outside of the overactive imagination of its author.
"It's one memo that they found that some crazy guy had written that was never in any way accepted by anyone or implemented anywhere, even by the Muslim Brotherhood," says Haris Tarin, director of the Washington, D.C., office of the Muslim Public Affairs Council. "The idea of American Muslims on college campuses who've never been to places like Egypt having some affinity to the Muslim Brotherhood is absurd."
Still, Sharia law has become a bogeyman for even seemingly sensible conservatives. Two years ago, Oklahoma passed a constitutional amendment – with 70 percent of the vote – banning its use in state courts. For Horowitz, it's a topic that reliably kicks up dust at colleges.
Last January, the Ohio State University student paper ran the same "Where Are They Now?" ad that appeared at Florida State. The Lantern's staff was pummeled with e-mails and calls from students. Horowitz chimed in from the sidelines, clearly enjoying the furor.
Freedom Center ads are almost a yearly rite at UCLA, where the Daily Bruin regularly receives alternating waves of attacks and counterattacks. One side clamors for a muzzle, the other wants Horowitz to have his say.
"At MSA, we've met with the communications department and made it clear we don't want David Horowitz's ad published," says Haidar Anwar, a UCLA student who serves as president of MSA West, an umbrella group. "We've brought it up to the dean of students as well. But after we met with them, David Horowitz published another ad."
Muslim Hate: A Cottage Industry
If your business involves pissing people off, it's important to have steady reports of success from the battlefront. Each new episode of tumult adds a fresh coat of paint to your image as an effective instigator. That's what funders want to see.
From 2001 to 2009, groups like Horowitz's received $42 million in donations -- mostly from large conservative charities, according to the Center for American Progress. All that money provides incentive to sharpen one's attacks.
"These people are very deliberate in how they do things," says Tarin. "Some of them focus on college campuses. Some of them focus on law enforcement. Some of them focus on churches and Rotary clubs and senior-citizen homes. It's an industry."
Horowitz swats down any talk about his role in spreading Islamophobia. Because his work is mainly focused on campuses, he can wrap himself snugly in the First Amendment and claim he's just offering up another academic perspective. "If you use the words 'Muslim' and 'terrorist' in a sentence or a paragraph, you're an Islamophobe," he says. "That's just an attempt to silence critics, which is what I am. I am not a person who is hostile to Muslims."
But when you start retailing these ideas outside that campus bubble, the chances increase that you'll not only reach a touchy college liberal, but also that panhandle crazy the FBI feared at Florida State. And Horowitz still has an active hand in such wider messaging. Two high-profile names sharing his brainwaves and support are Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller.
As the guy behind Jihad Watch, Spencer is on the Freedom Center payroll. Geller runs a blog called Atlas Shrugs and was a recipient of a Freedom Center award for courage. Together they founded Stop the Islamization of America (SIOA). Both are full-throttled in their excoriation of all things Muslim -- so much so that the SIOA has landed on the Southern Poverty Law Center's list of hate groups, along with the Ku Klux Klan and the Aryan Brotherhood.
"I think Horowitz is just coming up to the line of Islamophobia and not stepping over it," says Heidi Beirich, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project. "But he's perfectly happy to fund it."
And the rhetoric leaking from Geller and Spencer has found sympathetic ears. After Anders Breivik launched an attack on a Norway youth camp that left 77 dead last year, police found a manifesto he penned on the "Islamic Colonization of Europe." Spencer was cited 162 times; Geller was mentioned in 12 instances.
"Geller and Spencer are probably the most important propagandizing Islamophobes in the world," Beirich says. "These people's voices speak very loudly — not just here in the United States, but overseas. And what they do is make Muslim populations susceptible to hate violence."
Yet despite the link between slash-and-burn rhetoric and Norwegian body counts, conservative activists continue to agitate -- pushing even beyond Horowitz's comfort zone.
This summer, while protestors rioted in Egypt, Yemen and Tunisia over the film Innocence of Muslims, Geller was prepping a series of ads for New York City and Washington, D.C., subway cars. The text read: "In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel. Defeat Jihad."
"Pam, I think she's a very brave woman," Horowitz says. "But she goes over the edge a little bit. The word 'savages'.... I would have used the word 'barbarians.'"
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Check out the hottest list of places and things to do around your city | http://www.dallasobserver.com/2012-12-13/news/muslim-hunting/full/ | 4,921 |
10.05.12Rollercoaster of a ride for Kent at Estoril
The third round of the Moto3 Championship on 6 May at Estoril, Portugal, was a rollercoaster of a ride for Red Bull KTM rider Danny Kent, who crossed the line in eighth position after a mid-race incident caused him to drop back to 17th.
Tedbury- based Kent demonstrated his potential by qualifying fourth and giving him a promising start from the second row of the grid. Kent didn’t quite get the start he was hoping for in the initial two laps, finishing in sixth and seventh respectively. The first half of the race was spent in battle with Antonelli and primarily Fenati.
However, the battle for fifth position with Fenati resulted in the mid-race incident, forcing 18-year-old Kent straight into the gravel and towards the back of the pack, thwarting his chances of a podium finish. Kent however managed to stalk his way up the group to finish in eighth position.
Elsewhere, Red Bull KTM Ajo team-mate Sandro Cortese took his first Moto3 victory from pole position after a commendable battle against Maverick Viñales, while Arthur Sissis finished in 13th. | http://www.dannykentracing.com/news/50/Rollercoaster_of_a_ride_for_Kent_at_Estoril | 257 |
ALDS Game 4 preview: Orioles at Yankees
Here's a preview of tonight's ALDS game between the Orioles and Yankees. Can former Phil Raul Ibanez repeat Wednesday night's heroics?
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Ninth-ranked Tigers travel to Rose-Hulman
January 6, 2006
January 6, 2006, Greencastle, Ind. - The 12-1 DePauw women's basketball team puts its 11-game win streak on the line when it travels to Terre Haute to face Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference foe Rose-Hulman on Saturday, January 7.
The Tigers are 2-0 in SCAC play and ranked ninth in the latest Division III coaches' poll and 10th by D3hoops.com. Rose-Hulman is 7-5 overall and 0-2 in SCAC play.Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at Hulbert Arena and the game can be heard live on WGRE. Game notes are available here. Back | http://www.depauw.edu/athletics/news/details/16842/ | 163 |
Leave a legacy.
These are three simple words that laid the foundation for what has become the most successful football season at Utah State since 1979.
The last time the Aggies won seven regular season games, Jimmy Carter was president of the United States; the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles in Game 7 to win the World Series, and it was the first year of the ever-popular McDonald's Happy Meal.
The last time the Aggies ventured to a bowl game was in 1997. Bill Clinton was president and legendary quarterback Brett Favre won his first Super Bowl title in leading the Green Bay Packers over the New England Patriots.
In 1997, Utah State played in the inaugural Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho. This week, they will head to the same city to play in the newly renamed Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
"They started out this season with a goal to leave a legacy, and that's exactly what they've done," said head coach Gary Andersen. "They've done a tremendous job of taking the next step. This team has been a crew of fighters all year long."
During fall camp, the team, led by the senior class, set a series of goals for the season. With a Western Athletic Conference title and a bowl game in mind, they set off with positive attitudes and driven hearts. However, the season did not start as smoothly as expected. Game after game ended in heartbreak.
More than halfway through the season the team was at a 2-5 record.
Ask any Aggie, fan or player, and they will tell you the Hawaii game was the turning point of the season. At halftime, USU was down 28-7. Starting freshman quarterback Chuckie Keeton was hurt and had been taken to the hospital. After a motivating halftime discussion, the team came out of the locker room with a changed mind-set.
Junior quarterback Adam Kennedy came in and turned the game around. With that, he turned the Aggies' season around.
"Everyone just kind of looked each other in the eye and asked what had been going wrong," Kennedy said. "It wasn't necessarily blaming anyone, but just finding out what wasn't working, and what we needed to do to make it work. Looking at the guy sitting next to you had a lot to do with the turnaround."
Senior running back Michael Smith said the halftime talk was fairly simple.
"We basically looked at each other and realized our option was to win or to lose," Smith said. "We chose not to lose. We chose to fight. We started playing as a team, as one."
Senior defensive end Levi Koskan added when he said the team finally realized the potential they had.
"A couple guys got in each others' faces, and we just realized that we're a great team," Koskan said. "There's no way we should be at the point we're at. We're better than this. We deserve to be better. Let's go out and do something about it."
The Hawaii game stirred something in the hearts of the Aggies. It showed them they could win. They recognized the talent they had. They went on to win the rest of their regular-season games, ending the season with a 7-5 record.
"Anytime that you're losing, you're never as happy as you are when you're winning. They handled it very well," Andersen said. "I think they always thought they were a good football team. They had the mind-set they could win physically and mentally every game."
This football team has fought hard year after year. For this class of seniors, a season like this one has been all they have worked for.
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High School Sports
- Scores & Schedule
Field goals: 22 -51 (43.1%) Free-throws: 12 -13 (92.3%)
Maple Mountain totals
Field goals: 17 -34 (50.0%) Free-throws: 5 -8 (62.5%)
Strong first and fourth quarters bookended Lehi's win over Maple Mountain. Zach Stanley scored a game-high 20 points for the Pioneers while Kelby Crandall had 11 points in the loss.
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PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- Detroit Red Wings goaltender Dominik Hasek escaped having charges pressed against him for a fight during an inline hockey game in the Czech Rebublic, a Czech court official announced Friday.
According to eyewitness testimony, Hasek, skating as a defender for Bonfire Strida, checked SK Pardubice's Martin Sila to the ground. Hasek then sat on Sila and hit him on the neck with his stick. Sila was hosiptalized for three days following the incident.
After a lengthy investigation, police recommended that Hasek be charged with inflicting bodily harm, a crime punishable by up to eight years in prison.
Prosecutor Lenka Strnadova determined that there was no evidence that Hasek caused bodily harm to Sila during the May 18 match in Hasek's hometown of Pardubice.
"Criminal charges will not be pressed," Strnadova told The Associated Press.
Strnadova did not explain how she had reached the conclusion that Hasek did not cause any harm to Sila.
Hasek has denied any wrongdoing since the incident. Pavel Jelinek, Hasek's lawyer, said in a statement that media reports about the incident were exaggerated.
"In fact, Mr. Sila did not have any fractures, not a broken nose, no teeth knocked out, no cuts, not a single scratch or bruise," Jelinek said.
Sila can appeal Strnadova's decision by asking it be overruled by the country's supreme prosecutor.
After the incident, Hasek was suspended from the Czech inline league for one year.
In July, Hasek shocked hockey fans worldwide by announcing his intention to return to the Red Wings, the NHL team he retired from after winning the Stanley Cup with them in 2002. | http://www.detroithockey.net/pressbox/news/2003/08/08/no-charges-pressed-against-hasek.php | 386 |
Troy -- It might not look like the NHL is back yet.
The ice is covered inside Joe Louis Arena, previously booked in advance of the North American International Auto Show. And the turnout for the Red Wings' workout in Troy was sparse Monday morning, with only a handful of the players on hand — a half-dozen or so flew to Phoenix late last week to get in some high-intensity training with other locked-out NHLers.
But it does, at least, feel like hockey season again. And as veteran forward Todd Bertuzzi joked after Monday's workout, that sinking feeling of a season slipping away gave way to something far more pleasant in the wee hours of Sunday morning.
"At 3 a.m.," Bertuzzi laughed. "My hamstrings tightened up, my back went. I knew something was going on."
Sure enough, barely an hour before sunrise in New York, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr made it official, announcing the two sides had finally struck a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement.
That CBA remains a work in progress awaiting ratification, which might not happen until the end of this week. In the meantime, everyone remains in limbo. There's no official word on when NHL teams will be allowed to begin abbreviated training camps, or even when the puck will drop on the regular season, though all signs were pointing to a Jan. 19 start date for a 48-game schedule.
But ready or not, here it comes. And maybe the only good thing about a seven-month layoff between seasons is that many fans will hardly remember what top-shelf NHL games are supposed to look like.
"I'm sure the hockey will be a little sloppy for the first little while," defenseman Ian White said. "But that's what happens when you don't have a regular camp."
That's what happens when you've got the village "idiot" — that's what White called Bettman a couple months ago, you'll recall — being led around by a group of owners intent on squeezing every last dollar out of the players' union. (This work stoppage was brought to you, as always, by the "Lockouts R Us" law firm of Proskauer Rose LLP.) And this is what happens when the union actually hires a professional menace like Fehr to represent its interests, rather than a league-endorsed lapdog as they've done in the past.
As for what happens now, though, that's anyone's guess. Picking a Stanley Cup champion before the season quickly became an exercise in futility in the NHL's salary-cap era. A year ago on Jan. 19, the Los Angeles Kings were two games under .500 and two points ahead of the New Jersey Devils, the team they'd eventually beat in the Cup final.
But even guessing at front-runners this winter seems silly. One key injury or one leaky goaltender or one bad road trip likely will be the difference between a team making the playoffs or making plans for the NHL's new draft lottery.
And with only a week to prepare, Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said, "We're gonna have to get up and running as fast as we can."
So are the referees, of course. (Hope you enjoyed your quiet time, Brendan Shanahan.) And I'd imagine the fans in Detroit will realize pretty quickly what life is like without Nick Lidstrom in uniform. Babcock and general manager Ken Holland both say they're counting on the team's forward depth to help offset the loss of Lidstrom and Brad Stuart on the back end, but we'll see about that — and soon.
About the only thing everyone seems to agree on here is that the 250 or so players who decided to kill time overseas during the lockout — or in the minor leagues here in North America — will have a leg up on the competition. Several Red Wings were playing in Europe, including Pavel Datsyuk, who was up to his usual tricks in Russia's KHL, and Henrik Zetterberg and Damien Brunner, who clicked immediately as teammates in the Swiss National League.
"They're obviously gonna have an extra step on everyone else," Bertuzzi said. "I'm pretty thankful that our two superstars were playing and can carry the load until the rest of us catch up."
They'd better not wait too long, though.
"Since there's only 48 of 'em, every game's gonna be high stakes," White said.
High-stakes hockey? The NHL is gambling that'll be enough to thaw some of the hard feelings after giving its fans the cold shoulder again. But aside from discounted ticket prices and some other cosmetic groveling — White mentioned talk of free "NHL Center Ice" cable packages — the best the league can offer is a six-month marathon repackaged as a sprint.
"I think at first there'll be a few empty seats," Bertuzzi acknowledged. "But, I mean, let's face it: Hockey's a great sport. … I think everyone who's been complaining sees that they're the ones sitting at the bar watching darts and stuff like that, when they could be watching a good ol' hockey game."
So, game on, I guess. Just don't expect a bull's-eye.
Darren Helm works on his deking skills against Josh Block, a goalie from Royal Oak who was on hand at Troy Sports Arena to help out. / David Guralnick/Detroit News
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- Wings' Jimmy Howard stands tall to earn another winner-take-all match | http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130108/OPINION03/301080327/1341/SPORTS0201/Wings--rest-of-NHL-set-to-open-mystery-season | 1,236 |
A teenager in Finland has broken the world record at this year's Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships.
18-year-old Ere Karjalainen managed an impressive distance of 101.46 metres (332 feet, 10 inches) in the competition securing himself first place, Yahoo! reports.
The competition has taken place in the town of Savonlinna since 2000 and is now in its 13th year.
Finland is the home of Nokia and therefore has a huge selection of obsolete phones.
The competition features both men and women's competitions as well a junior contest. Organisers have the help of satellite-based instruments to measure the distances thrown.
Karjalainen won by a comfortable margin as second place thrower, South African Jeremy Gallop, threw a phone 94.67 metres.
> Wife carrying world championships in Finland - pictures
> America's fastest texter is boy aged 17 | http://www.digitalspy.com/odd/news/a400736/teen-breaks-world-record-in-finnish-phone-throwing-contest.html | 188 |
kaht wrote:I went to the Cardinals game on Friday to see Adam Wainwright get his 20th win of the season. He's pulled in the 7th inning to a standing ovation, leaving the field with a commanding lead of 6-1. Win #20 seems inevitable at this point.
The relief pitching proceeds to give up 11 runs in the next 2 innings, crushing his chance of achieving 20 wins for the season.
Oh well, at least they still made the playoffs.
I feel ya. I was, well put in nicer words, very pissed off.
Now we are crappin' up the playoffs... | http://www.discgolfreview.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=14581&start=30 | 132 |
TAG Heuer Ads Feature Actress, AthletesWatchmaking company TAG Heuer mixes beauty and brawn in an integrated marketing campaign unveiled yesterday featuring new spokesmodels actress Uma Thurman, golfer Tiger Woods, tennis player Maria Sharapova and NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon.
"Our prestigious roster of 2005 brand ambassadors and fashion-oriented ad campaign are representative of the brand and create a fusion of sport and glamour as its key message point," president/CEO Jean-Christophe Babin said in a statement.
The 2005 "What Are You Made Of" campaign was photographed by well-known fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier. It was created by Holistic Communications of Marin, Switzerland, and consists of print, interactive and billboard ads as well as direct marketing.
Chantal Todé covers catalog and retail news and BTB marketing for DM News and DM News.com. To keep up with the latest developments in these areas, subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mail newsletters by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters | http://www.dmnews.com/tag-heuer-ads-feature-actress-athletes/printarticle/86359/ | 212 |
EAA, Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In in Colorado Sign New Sponsorship Agreement to Begin in 2009
August 6, 2009 — EAA and Colorado Sport Aviation Inc. have signed a new working agreement that brings higher visibility to the annual Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In and clearly defines EAA’s role in the popular fly-in.
The agreement underscores the shared missions of the Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In, which returns in 2009 after a one-year hiatus, and EAA, the 160,000-member international organization that is dedicated to the spirit of aviation. Under the agreement, EAA will provide extensive promotion and coverage of the Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In, and also serve as a major sponsor of aviation educational activities during the event, among other considerations.
“This agreement provides an outstanding framework to ensure the future success of the Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In, confirms its organizational independence and highlights EAA’s support for grassroots aviation events throughout the country,” said Adam Smith, EAA’s vice president of membership. “We have set the stage for success in our shared missions, which is to promote and grow recreational aviation in all its forms.”
The two organizations had operated under a more informal agreement, which did not provide specific definitions of each group’s commitments and responsibilities. The new agreement, which is in place just in time for this year’s Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In on August 22-23 at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport near Denver, reflects the evolving aviation community in the 21st century.
“We’re very happy to have this agreement signed with EAA,” said Jim Cimicula, Rocky Mountain Fly-In event chairman. “We’re glad to be able to maintain a sponsorship relationship with EAA through our move to Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport. The increased access it brings to the Denver metro area opens new opportunities for both organizations.”
The Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In, now in its 30th year, will be held for the first time at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (BJC), which is near Broomfield and Westminster, Colo., just northwest of Denver. Plenty of room is available for aircraft camping and parking.
Among the highlights scheduled are:
- A full slate of forums on both days of the event;
- Aircraft judging in five categories, plus special awards;
- A huge KidSpace Activity Center for young people, highlighting the fun and excitement of aviation;
- Exhibitors and vendors;
- A daily air show each day, with a twilight show on Saturday, Aug. 22;
- Plenty of grassroots aviation camaraderie and fun.
More information about the Rocky Mountain Fly-In, including admission prices, accommodations and schedule information as confirmed, is available at www.cosportaviation.org.
The fly-in is owned and operated by Colorado Sport Aviation Inc., an organization that is independent of EAA. EAA does not own or control any part of the event or organizing body.
Colorado Sport Aviation, Inc. is an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation dedicated to serve and promote recreational aviation by hosting an annual regional fly-in. Recreational aviation encompasses fun, families, building, restoring, flying, exploring and learning. The CSA's mission places an emphasis on providing at-risk and gifted and talented children access to general aviation opportunities through education, introductory flight experience (EAA’s Young Eagles Program), hands-on construction/technology seminars, Air Academy Scholarships and Flight Training Grants. | http://www.eaa.org/news/2009/2009-08-06_rmrfi.asp | 742 |
Last Updated on Wednesday, 08 August 2012 01:32
The Eagles Under 23 soccer team, of Camarillo, California, defeated the Kansas City Dynamos 2-2 (4-2 PKs) on Sunday to win their second straight USASA national title.
The team became the first team ever to win four age specific United States National Championships.
"Kansas City is an incredibly talented team. Libby Jandl of Duke and Molly Campbell from Notre Dame are two of the best in the country, and from the start it was a heck of a battle, " explained Eagles head coach VinceThomas. "I started my Big 12 forwards and it paid off as Emily (Cressy/U of Kansas) found Amanda (Lisberger/U of Texas) cutting hard to goal. She kicked it to Kelsey (Kraft/ U of Oklahoma) who finished strong.". With the score tied 1-1 late in regulation, both teams came within an inch of winning. Molly Campbell (Notre Dame) one touched a serve that bounced off the post, and moments later Lisberger found a seam through two defenders and hit the left post. With 30 seconds remaining in double overtime, and Kansas City ahead 2-1, Lauren Jackson (U of Kansas) found Haley Boysen on the wing. The USC sophomore blasted a shot from 25 yards away that hit the far post and bounced at a 45 degree angle into the net, sending the game to penalty kicks. The Eagles' Kelsey Kraft, Lindsay Bullock (Long Beach State), and Coco Goodson (UC Irvine) all converted with low, hard line drives, and when Eagles keeper Chante Sandiford (UCLA) made her third diving stop the Eagles thought they had won their 4th National title. The referee, however, ruled that Sandiford had come off her line early and gave the Dynamos another opportunity. When the re-do failed to ?nd the back of the net, the Eagles celebration began."
"I feel so comfortable, absolutely at home in the goal, and I love the challenge of keeping the ball out of the net," said Sandiford, a rising senior goalkeeper at UCLA who will start her third season for the Bruins this fall. When some of her UCLA teammates approached her to play club ball one last time this summer for the Under-23 Eagles, Sandiford couldn't pass up the opportunity. "Their track record is unreal, and all the girls on the team are just incredible soccer players," Sandiford said. "Everything is like clockwork with them, so it's really easy for me to come in and be a part of something that's already so well run. I just have to do my part — keep the ball out of the net — and they'll take care of the rest."
Under head coach Vince Thomas, the Eagles previously won two US Youth Soccer National titles – the Under 14 crown in 2004 and the Under 17 Championship in 2007. They are a six time Cal South State Champion (2004, ‘07, ‘08, ‘09, ’10, ‘11) and a two-time State Finalist (2005, ‘06). A year ago they defeated Arizona Rush Nike in the U23 USASA ?nal to become only the second side in the 32 year history of women’s championships ever to win three US National titles. Colorado Rush (Littleton, CO) won the Under 17, 18, & 19 Championships in 1999-2001.
“It is amazing what this team has accomplished, starting when they were just thirteen”, notes Thomas, “and now – eight years later – they have won more national titles than any other club soccer team in history. From the outset, this group relished competing against the best players in the country – and in time came to appreciate that to win at the highest level you must be very good individually…and even better as a team. Four national titles and six state crowns in eight years is their legacy, but it is their incredible commitment to win that was the difference today and what makes them true champions on and off the field.”
Eagles U23 College Hometown
Haley Boysen USC Moorpark, CA
Charney Burk UCLA North
Judy Christopher UC,
Ally Courtnall UCLA
Emily Cressy U of
Courtney (Coco) Goodson UC,
Lauren Jackson U of
Kelsey Kraft U of
Amanda (Panda) Lisberger U of
Amelia Mathis UCLA
Monique Pendleberry UC,
Chante’ Sandeford UCLA
Kelsea (KC) Smith Pepperdine | http://www.eaglessc.com/about-us/news-archives/eagles-soccer-club-news/361-eagles-soccer-team-wins-record-4th-national-title | 965 |
Northants off the mark at last
Northamptonshire celebrated their first win of this season's Friends Life t20 after coasting to a nine-wicket victory over the Welsh Dragons at the SWALEC Stadium.
The Steelbacks, bottom of the Midlands/Wales/West Group, dominated with ball and bat against a disappointing Dragons side who now have it all to do to qualify for the knockout stages.
It was Northamptonshire's slow bowlers who laid the foundations for victory. Con de Lange and James Middlebrook returned respective figures of 3-15 and 3-16 to limit the hosts to 110 for nine.
That target always looked likely to be within reach for Northants and skipper Alex Wakely struck a classy 54 not out to see his side home in 13.1 overs.
After being put into bat, the Dragons struggled from the outset on a slow track.
Marcus North was the first to perish, clean bowled for one giving himself room trying to drive David Willey.
With only 17 runs coming off the first four overs, skipper Jim Allenby tried to break free of the shackles with successive boundaries off Willey, but the respite was shortlived.
Allenby was bowled by Lee Daggett for 20 and Australian opener Shaun Marsh then holed out to long-on off de Lange.
The home side were in desperate need of a partnership, but their big-name top order failed to deliver.
Martin van Jaarsveld pulled a long hop from de Lange straight down the throat of Kyle Coetzer at deep midwicket, which prompted a middle-order collapse that saw the hosts lose three wickets for just one run.
Mark Wallace was undone by a beauty from Middlebrook, Chris Cooke inexplicably danced down the track to the next ball and was bowled, while James Harris also failed to score before being trapped leg before by the impressive de Lange.
That left the Dragons tottering on 70 for seven and in danger of falling short of their lowest score in the competition - 94 for nine against Essex in 2010.
That looked even more possible when Middlebrook claimed his third wicket by having Robert Croft stumped by David Murphy, but Stewart Walters, who contributed an unbeaten 34, and Dean Cosker put on 33 for the ninth wicket to take the home side into three figures.
Needing quick wickets, the home bowlers, like their batsmen, failed to fire.
Harris went for 19 in his first over, with the hard-hitting Willey finding the boundary at will.
Willey went for a 17-ball 24, going for one shot too many and being caught by Marsh off Allenby, but the Steelbacks were well on their way.
Wakely duly picked up the baton with a brilliant innings. He took a particular liking to Croft, reverse-sweeping the veteran off-spinner with consummate ease.
His half-century came up off just 37 balls and contained seven fours. Coetzer provided able support and Northants reached their target with 6.5 overs to spare.
Coetzer finished the match in style with a six over midwicket off Cosker. | http://www.ecb.co.uk/news/domestic/friends-life-t20/gla-nor,318516,EN.html | 664 |
The Olympics are upon us as is Eliza Doolittle flashing her upper body goodness at the Torch Relay concert in London, exposing good bits of her chest to honor the ancient rite of the running of the flame to the Olympic stadium. It all makes sense. Or it doesn't.
But we still get to see this hottie little pop star showing some sweet puppy views. Enjoy. | http://www.egotastic.com/2012/07/eliza-doolittle-flashes-her-cleavetastic-goodness-for-the-olympic-torch/ | 80 |
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There is a French proverb that states that "to compare is not to prove". At a time when so many great cricketers are nearing the twilight years, that proverb may remind us that it is almost impossible to compare cricketers from across the history of the game because there are just too many variables to factor in. So let's keep it contemporary and ask ourselves this question: is Kumar Sangakkara is the best of the "10,000 Club batsmen" of the modern era, bracketed alongside Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis and Rahul Dravid? On one measure, the number of innings taken to get to the ten thousand run mark, the choice then comes down to Lara, Tendulkar and Sangakkara (195 innings) with Ponting at 196 innings. This sort of conversation is meant for pure debate. There can be no right or wrong answer, just an opportunity for genuine cricket lovers, hopefully liberated from jingoistic bias, to discuss the various factors in coming to their own conclusion.
Of the three batsmen who got to the magical figure in 195 innings, I would mischievously put Sangakkara at the top of the list only because he had the dual burden of keeping wicket for a fair chunk of his Test career, often standing up to Muttiah Muralitharan and having to concentrate on picking the variations. Using that measure, neither Tendulkar or Lara can claim that sort of fatigue although Tendulkar can rightfully lay claim to the burden of carrying India's hopes on his broad shoulders for 20 plus years. I suppose Lara and Sangakkara can also argue the same case, except that the sheer numbers and the level of adulation pale into insignificance when compared to SRT.
Both Lara and Sangakkara batted at No. 3 for most of their career while Tendulkar was a fixture at four. Does this mean that Tendulkar had it ever so slightly easier because he was that little bit more protected against the new ball? You could prosecute that argument I suppose, but it would be purely for argument's sake because it would be splitting hairs. Lara and Sangakkara generally had to bat without the added protection of Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman which might have put more pressure on them to perform.
A counter-argument might be that Tendulkar might have actually got to the 10,000-run mark even earlier if some of those runs had not already been scored by his peers. Imagine a small second-innings run chase when Sehwag knocks off the total singlehandedly - if Tendulkar had batted at three or had a less prolific opening team-mate, perhaps he would have scored a few more runs along the way to get him to that target before 195 innings. Similarly, Ponting too might have been disadvantaged by this because he played in an era when Australia regularly had only small totals to chase, so he might have used up a few of his 196 innings' in knocking off a dozen runs or so.
In terms of big scores, Lara is unquestionably the king of that jungle. He was the one most likely to dominate where he could peel off those massive individual scores. Sangakkara too has a reputation for scoring double-hundreds whereas Tendulkar took a lot longer to climb that mountain.
Of the players mentioned at the top of the article, let's take a look at their Test batting average when playing away from home. Some would argue that this might be yet another filter to determine their relative greatness. Tendulkar 54.74, Kallis 53.80, Dravid 53.03, Lara 47.80, Sangakkara 47.30, Ponting 45.81. Using that barometer, Tendulkar leads narrowly from Kallis and Dravid. Interestingly, of the modern era, Alastair Cook, Allan Border and Steve Waugh have the highest batting averages away from home. Can we draw anything from the fact that all three of them will be remembered for being tough battlers rather than thrilling strokemakers? Does succeeding away from home require a slightly different sort of mind-set and technique? Border and Waugh in particular faced some pretty useful bowling attacks in their day, before the DRS system that regularly reprieves batsmen these days.
To my mind, Ponting sits at the top of the list when it comes to match-winning hundreds in the first Test of a series. I haven't done any number-crunching to prove the point but I'm relying on my gut feeling when making this claim. His record of peeling off influential centuries to shape the direction of a Test series is phenomenal. Admittedly, he too played a lot of his cricket as part of a batting arsenal that was almost as good as it gets (Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Damien Martyn, Mark Waugh, Steve Waugh and Adam Gilchrist) and he was generally front-running because of the quality of bowlers he had in his team too. That is hardly his fault though, so I'm loath to detract from Ponting's greatness (as I am with Tendulkar) just because he happened to play with other high-quality players. In some ways, you can argue that it is to their credit that they maintained their hunger for runs when complacency could have been an excuse.
I still find it difficult to go past Kallis though. Enough has been written of his phenomenal record that requires no justification on my part except to say that we are unlikely to see the likes of him ever again. The modern game will probably never see someone as durable as him, playing all three forms of the game, bowling fast, catching at slip and batting for long periods. For sheer adrenalin and flamboyance though, Lara gets my vote. In the opposite sense, for purity of technique and defensive impenetrability, can we award that title to Dravid? His defensive technique was as much of work of beauty as Lara's parabolic swirl of the blade.
Back to my original thesis though; is there a case for Sangakkara being the best of the 10,000 Club? At a time when the retirements of great players are coming at an unprecedented rate of knots, with arguably Tendulkar, Kallis and Sangakkara not far away from that sad day too, are we being too churlish by even trying to compare geniuses? As much as I love debating that which cannot be measured by sheer numbers alone, I fear that even trying to separate such greatness is almost disrespectful to the legacy these fine batsmen will leave behind them.
"Comparison is the death of joy."
- Mark Twain
Michael Jeh is an Oxford Blue who played first-class cricket, and a Playing Member of the MCC. He lives in BrisbaneFeeds: Michael Jeh
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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Born in Colombo, educated at Oxford and now living in Brisbane, Michael Jeh (Fox) is a cricket lover with a global perspective on the game. An Oxford Blue who played first-class cricket, he is a Playing Member of the MCC and still plays grade cricket. Michael now works closely with elite athletes, and is passionate about youth intervention programmes. He still chases his boyhood dream of running a wildlife safari operation called Barefoot in Africa. | http://www.espncricinfo.com/blogs/content/story/622459.html | 1,571 |
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Two English teams visited Australia in the season of 1887-88, but it is certain that such a piece of folly will never be perpetrated again. Having regard to the fact that eleven-a-side matches are only practicable at Melbourne, Sydney, and Adelaide, it was clear from the first that two combinations would not be able to pay their way, and, though we do not know the exact result of Shaw, Shrewsbury, and Lillywhite's venture, the Melbourne Club frankly admitted a heavy loss over Mr. Vernon's team.
It would serve no purpose now to go into the cause of the blunder, for a blunder in every way it undoubtedly was. The Melbourne club authorities averred that it was well known their intention of bringing out an English team had only been postponed from the previous year, while the Sydney people, who supported Shaw and Shrewsbury, declared that for all they knew, when they asked Shrewsbury and his friends to get up an eleven for the centenary celebration in New South Wales, the Melbourne Club's project had been abandoned. Wherever the blame lay, the effect was to throw a complete damper on the visits of English cricketers to the Colonies.
It is satisfactory to think, however, that, apart from financial considerations, both tours were completely successful, the cricket shown being in every way creditable to the Englishmen. Mr. Vernon's team only lost one match, and in that one they played a first innings of over 300 runs, while Shaw and Shrewsbury's side suffered but two defeats. For one special occasion the two elevens joined forces, and decisively beat Combined Australia - a strong, though not quite a representative, side. The record of Mr. Vernon's combination was indeed a brilliant one when we take into consideration the fact that the death of his father compelled Lord Hawke to return to England, and that Bates's services were lost through a painful accident to his eye - an accident which kept the popular Yorkshireman out of all first-class cricket in the English season of 1888, and from which, it is feared, he can never wholly recover. He was injured while practising on the Melbourne Ground, a ball hit from a neighbouring net striking him with frightful force.
Mr. Vernon's team, with whose doings we shall deal first, was thus made up:
The side got together by Shaw, Shrewsbury and James Lillywhite, but which was generally called Shrewbury's Team, consisted of:
Though we cannot help thinking that the visit was a mistake, it is only right to say that the team played in a style that did high credit to English cricket. They only lost two matches, both against New South Wales; and the batting of Shrewsbury and the bowling of Lohmann and Briggs may rank among the best achievements of our players in the Colonies. Mr. C. A. Smith was captain in the field, and was everywhere most popular. Against the local teams his bowling average was phenomenal, and he has never batted so well.
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Available now at Cricshop | http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/150144.html | 670 |
Agulla hopeful over extending Tigers stay
February 1, 2012
Horacio Agulla hopes to stay at the Tigers © Getty Images
Leicester winger Horacio Agulla still harbours hopes of extending his contract at Welford Road despite boss Richard Cockerill seemingly signalling that the Argentinean winger's days are numbered at the Tigers.
With the inaugural Rugby Championship coming into play this summer, Argentinean players plying their trade in the Aviva Premiership will miss a large portion of the season due to the tournament finishing in October. That, coupled with the November Tests, will mean the Tigers would in all likelihood have to make do without Agulla until December.
But although Cockerill has suggested that due to the international commitments Agulla will not be offered a new deal, Agulla is hopeful of reaching a compromise.
"Maybe the ARU might release us from the November Tests (to play for Leicester)," Agulla told the Leicester Mercury. "If they make an agreement with the RFU, myself and Cockers can sit down and talk again.
"Cockers told me that the door is open. He told me that if something changes, we can sit down and talk again. It's really hard for the club and I understand their position. I spoke to Cockers and asked him to be honest with me and he was.
"But the door is not closed. I will have to wait for some decisions to be made and then see what happens. I would like to stay here, it is one of the best clubs in the world and I am really happy here. The players, coaches and atmosphere at Leicester is unique. Putting Argentina out of the way, if I had to choose now, I would never leave this place. I love it."
And despite the potential conflict between the international and domestic windows, Agulla has revealed that there has been interest in his services. "It is concerning long-term, but at the moment at least I have a few options in France and England," he said. "At least I have something to go to so I can stay focused on rugby at Leicester."
© ESPN EMEA Ltd
"People on the outside think unfounded thoughts on Toulon." Tom Hamilton talks to RCT lock Nick Kennedy ahead of Saturday's Heineken Cup final against Clermont
Will Genia should lead the Wallabies against the Lions, Joe Tomane to win the final wing spot and Israel Folau at fullback, writes Greg Growden
"Has there ever been such a large disconnect between France's club teams and the international side?" Ian Moriarty weighs up the state of French rugby
"By carrying a Great Britain label to the Antipodes, and getting beaten by the Kiwis, they established a tradition which has lasted to this day." Huw Richards rewinds to 1888 | http://www.espnscrum.com/england/rugby/story/158597.html | 579 |
Six Nations - Round 5 Review
Mission accomplished for Les Bleus
March 21, 2010
France captain Thierry Dusautoir leads the celebrations after his side captured the Six Nations title and the much-prized Grand Slam © Getty Images
Super Saturday rarely fails to deliver in terms of excitement and emotion and the latest Six Nations feast day did not disappoint.
A Grand Slam was won, a Triple Crown was lost, we said goodbye to a stadium and hello to a star of tomorrow. Amid all that drama the northern hemisphere bragging rights were set in stone for another year.
The action kicked off in Cardiff where Wales began the day in fear of being dragged into the wooden spoon mire but ended it on a high with arguably their most polished performance of the campaign. Desperately in need of a result to put some gloss on a faltering campaign and a performance to silence those critics who have suggested the side are going backwards, Wales bounced back from their capitulation in Dublin last time out to notch a 33-10 victory over Italy.
Fly-half Stephen Jones was at his commanding best and kept the scoreboard ticking over early on as other opportunities came and went. As usual, the Italians manned the barricades valiantly throughout but the Welsh finally picked the lock in the second half with centre James Hook bagging a brace to cap an eye-catching display and the prolific Shane Williams adding to his record try tally. Italy's efforts were rewarded with a late score for Luke McLean but it was too little, too late.
Teenager Tom Prydie made his Test bow for the hosts and in the process became Wales' youngest ever international - eclipsing the record of Norman Biggs which dates back to 1888. He may have been limited to a supporting role but when drawn into the action he looked nothing but assured and will surely get further opportunities in the summer when this latest Warren Gatland recovery will face a stern test against South Africa and then New Zealand.
The focus then switched to Dublin where Ireland were hoping to wrap up the Triple Crown against Scotland in the last game at their temporary Croke Park home before their move to the new Aviva Stadium later this year. The stage appeared set for an emotional and victorious send off for the Irish and an early try from captain Brian O'Driscoll only emphasised that feeling - but their Celtic rivals had obviously not read the script. The Scots were in no mood to roll over - far from it.
A try from Johnnie Beattie gave the visitors the lead and the trusty boot of fly-half Dan Parks ensured they scraped home. A try from Tommy Bowe offered the hosts some hope but a 78th minute penalty from Parks set the seal on a 23-20 win. The attacking edge may still have been there but the intensity was not with the players subsequently admitting that the occasion had got the better of them. But take nothing away from the Scots who were good value for the victory - the first Championship success for coach Andy Robinson.
Ireland's defeat guaranteed France the Six Nations title before a ball was kicked in Paris but that knowledge failed to ease the tension building to a crescendo at the Stade de France where the game was all about the much-prized Grand Slam. The lure of the Championship crown on the 100th anniversary of their entry into the competition and the opportunity to end a three-game losing streak against England were very much secondary to the prospect of Les Bleus' ninth clean sweep - and more specifically the chance to show they have the mental strength to win big matches.
The French were wary of an England side that had written off by many and those fears materialised in the opening minutes of the game when the visitors produced a refreshingly attack-minded approach which led to a try for fullback Ben Foden. But the rain put a dampener on the game as a spectacle and in particular England's expansive start, forcing countless handling errors. There was also very little flair from the usually crowd-pleasing French who adopted an England-like approach which underlined their determination to get the job done.
For the first time in this year's Championship the French ended the game try-less but they still had the reliable boot of scrum-half Morgan Parra who steered his side home to spark wild celebrations amongst the Stade de France faithful who had obviously come to party. The relief was palpable.
No one could deny that France were deserving of the Six Nations crown having dominated the Championship from the outset. Coach Marc Lievremont has weathered more than his fair share of criticism in the two years since taking charge due largely to his conveyor belt of a selection policy. But that extensive experimentation appears to have served him and his country well. Having since settled on a core squad of players, he now has strength in depth at his disposal with which is set power his side's bid for even greater honours at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand next year.
Graham Jenkins is the Senior Editor of ESPNscrum.
"People on the outside think unfounded thoughts on Toulon." Tom Hamilton talks to RCT lock Nick Kennedy ahead of Saturday's Heineken Cup final against Clermont
Will Genia should lead the Wallabies against the Lions, Joe Tomane to win the final wing spot and Israel Folau at fullback, writes Greg Growden
"Has there ever been such a large disconnect between France's club teams and the international side?" Ian Moriarty weighs up the state of French rugby
"By carrying a Great Britain label to the Antipodes, and getting beaten by the Kiwis, they established a tradition which has lasted to this day." Huw Richards rewinds to 1888 | http://www.espnscrum.com/heineken-cup-2012-13/rugby/story/113138.html | 1,161 |
The East Terrace
Operation Rock the Rose
October 14, 2011
Mike Tindall has been at the centre of the RFU's rebranding campaign © Getty Images
In an announcement that has shaken world rugby to the core the Rugby Football Union has revealed that England's dismal performance off the field during the 2011 World Cup was part of an ongoing rebranding and marketing project.
In an attempt to tap into a 'previously undervalued demographic core', the English team had been following a meticulously plotted 'leftfield behavioural plan' designed to attract members of the public who enjoy 'rock and roll' lifestyles but currently do not follow rugby union.
The RFU were forced to reveal their hand after the final stage of the campaign backfired and lead to a serious police investigation and worldwide press condemnation. Manu Tuilagi's jump from a ferry in Auckland was one of the final phases of what was labelled 'Operation Rock the Rose'.
It was thought the centre's outlandish behaviour would appeal to males between fifteen and twenty-one who 'aspire to fame and success but wish to maintain a feeling of rebelliousness' and who desire to 'project an exciting and somewhat maverick personality onto their peers and elders'.
"Whilst we may have made some errors in judgement," said Caroline Bills, head of RFU Marketing, "We only wished to widen the appeal of the game in England. It is important people from all members of society buy into the brand that is Team England.
"A bigger fan base makes English rugby stronger, increases revenue and makes the game more appealing to media partners and corporate sponsors. We are in a recession and we won't apologise for trying to rebrand Team England and reach new markets. We will not sit back here and let the game in England fall behind."
The RFU admitted the recent riots in London and across England had 'opened' their eyes to a whole new potential rugby market and immediately called in image consultants to devise a way to appeal to the disaffected youth of England.
"Look, the middle classes and so called toffs are already guaranteed to follow rugby union," said Bills. "That's a cast iron guarantee. But the youth on the streets talk only football. Rooney, Tevez and Gerrard are the names you hear when you get down with the young people.
"Nobody on the street is talking about Flood, Moody or Wilkinson. The RFU has to try and reach out to the disenfranchised of England and grow the game. It's all very well sitting back and criticising us in the media but we have to produce results and move England forward."
Operation Rock the Rose began subtly at Heathrow Airport when rather than flying to New Zealand in smartly tailored suits like other nations, they chose to fly in cheap looking t-shirts akin to something worn on a stag weekend. The RFU revealed this was to make England seem like 'regular lads' and not 'ruggar buggars'.
The next phase of the marketing strategy was to give England some genuine 'rock and roll credentials'. It now transpires that the infamous Mike Tindall with mysterious blonde/dwarfs/nightclub incident was part of the RFU's tactic to 'deglamourise' the English team.
"Our market research indicated that Mike Tindall's association by marriage with the Royal Family was reinforcing negative stereotypes amongst many in England that English rugby was a game solely for aristocrats and private school types," stated Bills. "We needed to 'humanise' Mike and give him a bad boy image. What could be more rock and roll than pretty blondes, dwarves, beer and partying?"
The next stage of Operation Rock the Rose was the hugely contentious ball tampering scandal in the Georgian match in which England's management substituted inferior balls for better ones for Jonny Wilkinson to kick conversions with. The scandal brought the wrath of tournament organisers and led to match bans for two of England's management. However, the RFU admitted the original idea was far more outlandish.
"In our original brainstorming session Jonny was going to openly change balls in front of the ref," said Bills. "After England's first try we wanted Jonny to produce a glittery silver ball, akin to a disco ball, to kick with. He was then to produce a pair of designer sunglasses from his pocket, look at the referee and say 'my kicking is so damn cool I gotta wear shades'. But sadly, Jonny refused to buy into the suggestion. Shame, our research indicated it would have brought world wide publicity and much kudos from the angry urban youth demographic."
Bills admits not all of the English management and players fully bought into Operation Rock the Rose. Whilst Martin Johnson tolerated certain off the field aspects of the plan, he refused to allow the marketing team to influence on field play.
"We wanted England to play it rockstar style" sighed a disappointed Bills. "We wanted banana kicks, behind the back passes, up the jumper tricks, triple scissor moves, back-heeled chip aheads…all the cool stuff. It would have done more than anything we could do off the field to enhance our rock and roll image. The problem was however cool we looked off the field we were taking backward steps on it.
"Really, even if we had lost a game or two because of playing in the rock and roll style, would we be any worse off now than we already are? We went out playing dire, unimaginative stuff and won no friends at all and certainly no silverware. We could have rocked the world and won millions over. It's hugely frustrating."
Bills confessed Johnson's refusal to play rockstar rugby led to increasingly risky off field antics to try and compensate. This was why Lewis Moody, England's captain, openly flouted sponsorship rules by wearing a branded gumshield. This was designed to appeal to youngsters who like to 'reject authority'.
Bills refused to be drawn on whether Operation Rock the Rose will continue during the Six Nations or if it will be scrapped.
The RFU did clarify, however, that the shocking 'hotel incident' in Dunedin involving Dylan Hartley, James Haskell and Chris Ashton was not part of Operation Rock the Rose.
"Not even we would sink that low," stated Bills.
© ESPN EMEA Ltd
The East Terrace (www.theeastterrace.com) offers an offside view of life in the rugby world
"People on the outside think unfounded thoughts on Toulon." Tom Hamilton talks to RCT lock Nick Kennedy ahead of Saturday's Heineken Cup final against Clermont
Will Genia should lead the Wallabies against the Lions, Joe Tomane to win the final wing spot and Israel Folau at fullback, writes Greg Growden
"Has there ever been such a large disconnect between France's club teams and the international side?" Ian Moriarty weighs up the state of French rugby
"By carrying a Great Britain label to the Antipodes, and getting beaten by the Kiwis, they established a tradition which has lasted to this day." Huw Richards rewinds to 1888 | http://www.espnscrum.com/super-rugby-2012/rugby/story/152212.html | 1,464 |
Thursday, July 15, 2004JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (July 15, 2004) - East Tennessee State University head volleyball coach Lindsey Devine has finalized the 2004 roster with the addition of Brittany Kessel (Lake Barrington, Ill.) to the team, it was announced today. Kessel, a transfer student-athlete from Kent State University, will add depth and experience to the 2004 Lady Bucs squad bringing a solid volleyball background to ETSU. "I am very happy to welcome another experienced and quality player to our team for the fall," Devine said. "Brittany is a strong competitor and will bring a high level of skill and passion for the game every time she steps on the court. Everyone has worked extremely hard to improve throughout the spring and summer and we are looking forward to an exciting year." Competing in 42 games for the Golden Flashes, Kessel posted a .353 hitting percentage adding 38 assists, one ace, four total blocks and three digs from the setter position. A native of the Chicago area, Kessel competed for the Sports Performance Volleyball Club organization, one of the most highly regarded club organizations in the nation, while also attending Mundelein High School throughout her prep career. The Lady Bucs volleyball squad will open their 2004 season with a trip to Auburn, Ala. to compete in the Mizuno/Auburn Challenge Sept. 3-4 where they will face host Auburn Sept. 3 at 7:00 pm. ETSU will open the 2004 home season with a Sept. 24 match versus Southern Conference foe Appalachian State, game time is set for 7:00 pm.
|Copyright ©2013 East Tennessee State Athletics. All Rights Reserved.||www.ETSUBucs.com| | http://www.etsubucs.com/volleyball/news-print/2004-05/4190/lady-bucs-volleyball-finalizes-2004-roster/ | 356 |
The striker, who signed from Genk in the summer, missed a free header from a Gabriel Agbonlahor cross in the second half, raising questions over his selection ahead of proven goalscorer Darren Bent.
"That was a big moment," Lambert said. "When you have chances like that you have to put them away.
"Darren's threat is going in behind. Christian gives you a different option. That was the only reason we did that. Darren has been fine about it." | http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/other-football/villa-rue-benteke-chance-103713n.19092475 | 102 |
According to a report from VG24/7 today, EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich said he expects "GTA V" to be the number one selling game of the year.
"We are nearly there already, but by the end of 2013, more revenue will be generated through the consumption of digitally purchased software and micro-transactions than physically purchased software.
"We've all seen this trend coming and it should be no surprise on its eventual occurrence, but we suspect that 2013 will be the year that digital revenues surpass physical revenues in the Western Markets," Divnich said.
He also went on to say he believes it will be the biggest seller among all games during the years 2012 and 2013.
"It goes without saying that GTA V will be one of the year’s biggest releases, but I will take it one step farther and say GTA V will be 2012′s biggest release.
"Don’t get me wrong, Call of Duty will undoubtedly be huge, as it is every year and it may even grow, but if I had to call what will be a photo finish race, I will go with GTA V," Divnich said.
"Grand Theft Auto V" releases this coming spring. | http://www.examiner.com/article/new-report-suggests-grand-theft-auto-5-will-be-number-1-says-divnich?cid=rss | 253 |
Was just wondering.. When Dan brough in Shanny and Bruce to run the show, why did they not also bring in new special teams coaches?? Reason I ask is obvious.. It doesnt seem to matter who we have doing the punting or kicking on our team, there are always issues.. Season after season we struggle with long snaps, holds, kicks, and punts.. We also seem to always have a couple kicks and punts blocked every year..
It was noted today how Shuisham has been nearly perfect since going to Pittsburgh.. But he struggled here? I dont understand why we cant do the basics of snap, hold, kick/punt, no matter who's doing the kicking?? I give the ST's credit on their coverage, that seems to be very good, but the kicking portion of our ST's has been flawed for as long as I can remember.. Maybe it has as much to do with the way they prepare and practice, as it does with who's actually doing the on field functions? Does anyone know if the special teams (kick/punt) coaches are the same as years past?? | http://www.extremeskins.com/showthread.php?341287-WHY-did-Shanny-amp-Co.-NOT-bring-new-special-teams-coaches-with-them&p=8034872&mode=threaded | 227 |
AUSTIN, Texas, Nov 15, 2012 (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton on Thursday rejected McLaren team chief Martin Whitmarsh's suggestion that he was having regrets and second thoughts about his decision to leave for Mercedes next season.
The 27-year-old Briton, who lines up this Sunday for his penultimate race with the team that has been his home since he was a 13-year-old karting star, said instead that he was very happy with his choice for the future.
Speaking ahead of this weekend's potentially-decisive United States Grand Prix, Hamilton said: "I'm sure everyone has emotions within the team, but I'm still here giving 100 percent to them for the last two races.
"Of course it's quite emotional for me but I'm very, very happy with my decision."
Last week, Whitmarsh had told the official Formula 1 website that he hoped Hamilton would feel he had 'made an awful mistake'.
He said: "He's not going to say 'hey, they offered me more money'. He's also not going to say that he's made an awful mistake.
"I hope he thinks today that he's made an awful mistake and I hope he thinks that next year. He's made that decision and he has to live with that decision."
Hamilton said: "I was a little bit surprised to hear that because it's definitely not the case... But I've got a great team and I've been with them a long time.
"It is what it is. I'm happy just to be here fighting in the last two races for my team. I just want to do the best job.
"We can still fight them (Ferrari and Red Bull), even though we are not fighting for the championship." | http://www.f1plus.com/en/news/item/2713-no-regrets-for-hamilton-over-mercedes-move | 367 |
HOLY MOTHER OF ALL THINGS, I missed it.
Anyone tivo, rip, and post it? I've been tumbing through the upcoming espn schedule and I don't see a rebroadcast.
I swear I'mma kick myself in the nuts.
Only 3 leagues this year. No sense in rooting for everyone in the NFL. | http://www.fantasyfootballcafe.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=239212&start=100 | 75 |
No spittin', no swearin'...
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by aardvarks » Sun Sep 30, 2012 6:39 am
aardvarks wrote:more than 1/2 of my league has been eliminated LOLBut I'm hanging in there so far (I took Hou and SF) right now i'm leaning Dallas
Users browsing this forum: oddmanout7, reartges and 2 guests | http://www.fantasyfootballcafe.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=519949&start=30 | 116 |
Big stakes in World Cup qualifying matches
FRISCO -- As FC Dallas prepares for Sunday’s must-win game at Seattle, one eye will be turned to World Cup Qualifying today as key FC Dallas players battle for their country’s lives across the region and the United States plays for the World Cup 2014 lives a few hundred miles up the road.
Head coach Schellas Hyndman had stiff words for the prospects of the United States in their do-or-die qualifier tonight in Kansas City against Guatemala.
“The US needs to qualify the way the standards are now and the number of teams being selected from our CONCACAF region,” Hyndman said. “I think we have to not only qualify, but be one of the top one or two.”
For many of the younger players on the FC Dallas roster, the United States qualifying for a World Cup is something they’ve known their whole lives, but goalkeeper Kevin Hartman knows how the mentality of things has changed since that famous qualifying run in 1990.
“I think obviously the level of expectation has changed tremendously since 1990 when [Paul] Caligiuri hit the shot heard round the world in Trinidad and Tobago when we were a bunch of college kids playing against professionals…” Hartman, a veteran of the US Soccer scene said.
“It didn’t look very pretty last week and so now there’s another opportunity only four or five days [removed] to go play in Kansas City and get a result.”
Canada, Panama look to advance
Canadian midfielder Julian de Guzman leads a Canada side that, with a win or draw at Honduras, will move to the final round of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying for the first time since 1998. Speaking to reporters in San Pedro Sula yesterday, de Guzman called today’s match “probably the most important game of our lives.”
For Blas Perez and Panama, advancing to the hexagonal round of qualifying is nearly a formality with only a catastrophic run of results needed to eliminate the Panamanians from qualifying.
FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman knows that while losing a player to injury during World Cup Qualifying is always a worry, the positives far outweigh the negatives.
“There’s only one thought [when players leave for qualifying matches], you want them to do well,” Hyndman said. “You want them to do well because that’s going to continue to inspire them and inspire their teammates. The players work so hard for these opportunities and to qualify for the World Cup.”
“I can’t think of a bigger dream for any player, so you want them to do well.” | http://www.fcdallas.com/news/2012/10/big-stakes-world-cup-qualifying-matches | 579 |
Clearly Russell is not particularly beloved in this neck of the woods. Russell is not making much money so I would not be stunned if the team actually did can him. It would surprise me a bit because his play was atrocious last year as well and we didn't do anything about it. Still, he supposedly was helping the 'deep ball' issue of 2006 and we were winning games and putting up good defensive numbers so that probably led to hesitation to shake things up. Three things are different now:
1. Russell seems to have declined even further.
2. We were burned deep in both games so far.
3. We are losing and someone has to take the fall, might as well be the right person.
What this all leads to is... who should the other starting safety be? Obviously Grant will continue to start. I am not making any FS / SS distinctions because our system does not really distinguish the position and Grant is versatile enough anyways.
Who do you put at Safety?
Jordan Babineaux (36 votes)
C.J. Wallace (8 votes)
Jamar Adams (38 votes)
Other / Free Agent (17 votes)
99 total votes | http://www.fieldgulls.com/2008/9/15/615262/who-should-replace-russell | 242 |
international goals was the milestone reached by Wambach with a double for USA against China PR last Wednesday. The 32-year-old’s goals, which helped secure a 4-0 win for the Americans, leave her just eight short of compatriot Mia Hamm’s world record. Also in pursuit, though, is Christine Sinclair (143), who last week picked up the Lou Marsh award as Canada’s top athlete in 2012. For now, though, Wambach has strengthened her position as the leading goalscorer among active female players, and her goals against the Chinese continued USA’s impressive dominance of this fixture. Indeed, since 2003, the Americans have played their 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup™ final opponents on 19 occasions, winning 16, drawing three and losing none.
years, four months and one day was the age at which Neal Maupay scored an injury-time winner for Nice on Saturday. In doing so, the Versailles-born forward became the second-youngest goalscorer in Ligue 1 history, and the youngest in 34 years, since Laurent Roussey set the record by finding the net for Saint-Etienne in 1978 at the age of 16 years, 3 months and 25 days. Earlier in the year, Maupay came close to another record, debuting just 31 days after his 16th birthday, leaving him second only to Christopher Aurier, who at 16 years and 17 days was the youngest player ever to turn out in the French top flight. The Nice prodigy could certainly not have wished for a more dramatic way to open his senior account, with his winner against Evian coming three minutes into stoppage time in a match in which his team had been two goals down.
Colombian championships is the haul that means Millonarios are once again their nation’s record champions. It has, though, been a long wait for the Bogota giants to add to their title tally, with 24 years having passed since they last laid hands on the league trophy. America de Cali had drawn level on 13 during the intervening years, while Atletico Nacional were closing in with 11. However, thanks to a penalty shoot-out win over Deportivo Independiente Medellin the Torneo Finalización, Millonarios – Colombia’s dominant force of the 1950s and ‘60s – will be competing in the Copa Libertadores next season for the first time in a decade-and-a-half.
goals have been scored by Stephan El Shaarawy this season - without the aid of penalties. Across Europe’s traditional top five leagues, only Lionel Messi (24) and Paris Saint-Germain’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic (16) have been more prolific with spot-kicks taken out of the equation. The 20-year-old's tally is also better than anything Ibrahimovic had at this stage of the season during his time with Milan, and matches the pace set by Andriy Shevchenko’s during his most prolific campaign at the San Siro in 2003/04. El Shaarawy’s latest goal came in a 4-1 win over Pescara in which Antonio Nocerino kicked off the scoring after just 36 seconds with the second-fastest goal of the Serie A season. Elsewhere, Antonio Di Natale climbed into double figures for the eighth separate top-flight campaign, while Andrea Pirlo scored his fourth free-kick of the season. No fewer than 20 of Pirlo’s 49 Serie A goals have come direct from free-kicks, a tally which over the last 30 years is matched only by Roberto Baggio and Gianfranco Zola, and bettered by Alessandro Del Piero (22) and Sinisa Mihajlovic (27).
straight European wins was the sequence that came to an end in Sunday’s FIFA Club World Cup final. Corinthians’ 1-0 victory over Chelsea ended the Old Continent’s recent stranglehold and reclaimed the title O Timão first won 12 years ago in the tournament’s inaugural edition. It also ensured that the FIFA Club World Cup trophy returned to Brazil for the fourth time, strengthening its position as the most successful nation in the competition’s history. Brazil also rule when the old Intercontinental Cup is taken into account, with this latest title edging them on to ten overall, one ahead of Argentina and Italy. England, meanwhile, have been successful just twice, and Chelsea were their latest representatives to come up short. Rubbing salt in the Londoners’ wounds was a red card for Gary Cahill, who became the first player to be sent off in a FIFA Club World Cup final since another Premier League star, Nemanja Vidic, in 2008. | http://www.fifa.com/newscentre/features/news/newsid=1974461/index.html?intcmp=newsreader_news_related_items | 1,006 |
Petkovic delighted with qualification
Young Boys coach
Three goals in the space of four second-half minutes turned the game around in the Swiss side's favour to take them through to the last-32 as group runners-up. And Petkovic felt he had seen some of his side's best football of the season.
"The fans got to see a good and attractive game which we dominated for around 75 per cent," he said. "That was one of our best performances this season, comparable with our 3-2 win over Tottenham in the Champions League qualifiers."
He was, however, referring to the wintry conditions which saw the game temporarily halted midway through the first and second half as the snow persisted.
The lines had to be cleared of snow to let the game recommence and the second halt in play seemed to knock the Swabians out of their rhythm.
"We had a blackout for five minutes after leading 2-1 and that has cost us victory," Keller added.
Nevertheless, Stuttgart still secured the group victory by virtue of their superior head-to-head record with the Swiss and they can now look forward to playing the second leg of their first knockout stage match at home. | http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=1344693.html | 249 |
Nelsen enjoying his horizons
New Zealand defender Ryan Nelsen is relishing the prospect of a reunion with former manager Mark Hughes after his second Olympic campaign with the All Whites. The 34-year-old centre-half will link up with Hughes once more after the Olympics when he heads to Premier League side Queens Park Rangers following a short stint with Tottenham.
It will be the second time Nelsen has worked with Hughes after the Welsh manager launched the New Zealander's Premier League career at Blackburn Rovers. "I owe him and his coaching staff my life," Nelsen said of Hughes after a New Zealand training session on Wednesday.
"He looked past the fact I was a New Zealander playing in America (for DC United). He took me to Blackburn purely on my football ability. He gave me an opportunity a lot of managers would not have had the guts to make."
Nelsen is confident of helping QPR in their attempts to become an established member of the top-flight. "It should be another fun chapter in the twilight of my career," he said. "I have a chance to be part of QPR's aim to become a big club and I am excited about that."
But Nelsen's first priority are the Olympics, where New Zealand are grouped with Brazil, Egypt and Belarus. "You always want to represent your country," said Nelsen. "The World Cup in 2010 was a special tournament and a special time. We have moved on and now this team wants to create history. We want to make New Zealanders proud and hopefully inspire a lot of young kids to take up the sport." | http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=1668694.html | 329 |
It's your first pro debut as a starter on a national stage. An away game against a team your franchise has never beaten. You will face a fortified defense in a hostile environment. All eyes are upon your every move. Your fans are counting on you while odds are against you - according to the experts. You know that your offensive line will not hold their ground on every down and that you must improvise with below par recievers. Your new head coach will be critique by how well you perform, mainly. You were selected in the first round so you are expected to win games.
What's your mindset if your are Ryan Tannehill at game day, before the first snap? | http://www.finheaven.com/forums/showthread.php?324805-Ryan-Tannehill-s-Mindset&goto=newpost | 139 |
An invitation for fame
WGC Bridgestone Invitational (Akron, Ohio), August 2 to 5
In the world of professional golf, the WGC Bridgestone Invitational is one of the top tournaments. Qualifying for the tournament in Akron, Ohio (US) is an achievement in itself, winning will make history. From August 2 to 5, the South Course of magnificent Firestone Country Club will attract the best golfers from all over the world. Tens of thousands of fans will be present to crown the winner of this $ 8.5 million tournament.
Only the best and most successful players of several tours get invited
to play the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
. The top 50 players of the Official World Golf Ranking qualify to play, together with the playing members of 2010’s European and American Ryder Cup teams and winners of Japan, Australasian, Southern Africa and Asian Tours.
Gather the best golfers
The World Golf Championships began 13 years ago in an effort to gather the world's best golfers together more often. In 1996, golf's five world governing bodies – the European Tour, Japan Golf Tour Organization, PGA TOUR, PGA Tour of Australasia and Sunshine Tour – reached an agreement to create new international events. They formed the International Federation of PGA Tours to develop these ‘significant tournaments’. The Bridgestone Invitational
is one of these great events, that in 2011 was won by Adam Scott, beating Luke Donald and Ricky Fowler by four shots.
Success for Tiger
In Akron, 45 minutes south of Cleveland, Tiger Woods has been very successful. He is the only player to win the same event for three consecutive years on two different occasions, having won the event in 1999, 2000 and 2001, then in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
The South Course
of the Firestone Country Club
provides a challenging test for the best players in the world. The course was originally designed by Bert Way in 1929 and redesigned in Robert Trent Jones in 1960. The course was designed from the start to be championship level. It has been the host of over 70 professional tournaments.
It was Arnold Palmer who first gave the sixteenth hole of the South Course its nickname – ‘The Monster’ – after scoring a triple-bogey during the first PGA Championship held at the course. This 16th (667 yards, par 5) is the signature hole at Firestone, with a creek and a pond providing difficulties. An extension of the tee now brings the bunkers into play. The name for this hole stayed and struck such a chord with frustrated golfers; now the entire South course is known fondly as ‘The Monster’.
Hole 16 may be notorious, but the fourth hole (471 yards, par 4) is the most difficult hole on the course. As the Firestone Country Club warns on its website: “An accurate tee shot is required to hit the right-to-left, sloping fairway. The second shot must come in high to hold the elevated green. Par is a good score for this hole.”
Would you like to comment on this article? Please log in on the right hand side of this page or: | http://www.flyingbluegolf.com/Play/european-tour-reports/an-invitation-for-fame | 665 |
The agent of Antonio Floro Flores has said that he won’t discuss a move to Fiorentina unless Udinese are prepared to sell.
The Viola are interested in the Neapolitan striker given that they have sold Alberto Gilardino to Genoa this month.
“There is nothing concrete at this moment in time,” representative Paolo Palermo told Firenze Viola on Wednesday.
“It is Udinese’s intention to keep him. Saying that, things can change very quickly in a small amount of time in this game.
“However, things will only evolve if Udinese want them to. Only after we are given the green light by them could we possibly talk about a transfer to Florence.”
Floro Flores, 28, has scored just one goal in 10 Serie A appearances for the Bianconeri so far this season.
The former Napoli player joined Genoa on a six-month loan last January where he scored 10 goals in 18 games for the Grifone.
Think you know your Italian football? Share your knowledge, tips and comments to win cash prizes in OLBG's tipster competition - £5,000 monthly. | http://www.football-italia.net/node/14295 | 250 |
Inter defender Walter Samuel is reportedly close to a return to first-team action after six months on the sidelines with serious knee-ligament damage.
The 35-year-old has been recuperating since undergoing surgery on his right knee damaged during the November 6 clash with Brescia, and has recently returned to first-team training in a bid to see game time before the season is through.
Such is his progress, it is thought he could be included in the squad for Week 35's trip to Cesena, which would be his first involvement under Leonardo.
The centre-back's return is welcome news for the Coach, whose defence has come under criticism as the team have dropped out of title and European contention in recent weeks.
Samuel's impact is best reflected in the fact that the 34 games Inter have played since his injury, they have conceded 48 goals in all competitions, and gone from having the best defence in the League at the time of his injury to only the seventh strongest now.
Think you know your Italian football? Share your knowledge, tips and comments to win cash prizes in OLBG's tipster competition - £5,000 monthly. | http://www.football-italia.net/print/4958 | 238 |
- Qatar News
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- Asian Cup Group B News
Qatar 2022 World Cup organisers have insisted they are prepared to play the tournament in summer or winter - and that they have the technology to cool stadiums and fan areas even in the he..
Qatar's football authorities have issued a denial that the country is to organise a new tournament for the world's leading clubs.A report on Wednesday said that a tournament fo..13 Mar 2013 - 17:17:24
Scores of migrant labourers facing 'slavery' conditions will likely die to build Qatar's stadiums for the 2022 World Cup, a prominent trade unionist warned Sunday."More laboure..10 Feb 2013 - 11:16:59
Former FIFA presidential candidate Mohamed bin Hammam's appeal against a lifetime ban from all football activity imposed by the sport's world governing body will be heard by the Court..20 Feb 2012 - 22:46:51
- Qatar desperate for World Cup breakthrough
- Qatar may lose 2022 World Cup: FFA boss
- Qatar reaffirm commitment to summer World Cup
- Qatari World Cup chief surprised by criticism
- Iraq to play qualifiers in Qatar - statement
- Qatar denies W. Cup to have 'games of three t..
- Qatar V Russia - Follow LIVE text commentary
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- Platini proposes Gulf World Cup
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- Blatter dismisses Qatar fears
- Qatari delight at historic award
- Qatar to host 2022 World Cup
- Qatar V Bahrain - Follow LIVE text commentary
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- Qatar News Archive | http://www.football.co.uk/qatar/index.shtml | 349 |
Michael Laudrup: back to the drawing board at Swansea
By Graham Hill
Michael Laudrup may have been one of the game’s greatest ever players - but now the former Danish superstar is facing a managerial dilemma. Laudrup built his reputation with Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid. But it is in South Wales where his standing as a top flight manager will be decided.
Laudrup arrived at Swansea City to fill the gap left by Brendan Rodgers who had taken the club into the Premier League and established a mantra of attractive, flowing football. And Laudrup appeared to complete a seamless transition when he took over after Rodgers moved to Liverpool.
An impressive 5-0 win at QPR on the opening day of the season was followed by a home win over West Ham. Swansea, it appeared, were on the up. Since then however, things have taken a turn for the worse.
Laudrup’s side were beaten by an Aston Villa side who had been struggling early on. Swansea then lost to David Moyes’ vastly improved Everton.
And Laudrup, like so many managers before him, found it impossible to take the beautiful game to Stoke City and expect to overcome Tony Pulis’s physical brand of football. Three defeats in a row and suddenly things were not looking so rosy for Laudrup. Before the Stoke game, Pulis joked that he was once told you were not considered a proper manager until you had been sacked three times.
It is a little early to be asking those sort of questions of Laudrup clearly. But he will have to have a rethink. His players are struggling to understand why it has all gone wrong. But Laudrup will refuse to change his principles - keeping faith in the belief that his way of playing will eventually be successful.
He said: “At Stoke it was the third game in the league when we did not score. I think that's more of a concern to me than the two goals we conceded. The thing is we have to score as well because if you don't score, it is impossible to win in football. Three games without a goal was a little bit strange for us after scoring 10 in our first three games, but again that's football and sometimes you've got to find out why.
"The way we play the passing and movement, I won't say it's everything, but it's important to the way we play. I think it's something we really have to look into. In other games we have created chances.”
Laudrup dismisses suggestions that Swansea have already been "found out". The Swansea manager said: "I think in football if teams say they can put high pressure on Swansea, we can still play out there.
“There’ll aways be space because if teams put pressure on us high up the pitch, we should still have space behind their back four, especially if you have pace. So I think it's not that simple to say 'they know how to play us'. We have to admit we have not been playing as well when we have the ball as we were in the first games and so we have to go back to that.
"You could say we could put another man in midfield, but it's about the players we have. That's why you have your style. We have one style, Stoke have another. If you took three or four of our players and put them in the Stoke team, they could not play and the other way round. Nothing is right and nothing is wrong, it's just not that easy.
"We have to do this because it's what we know. We have to find solutions when things are not working and the solution for me is, first of all, when we have the ball, is to play a little faster and move a little more. Maybe not always pass to the nearest man. Home is different, teams sit back more, waiting for the counter-attack.”
Even Laudrup’s players are saying Swansea are a team of individuals.
But midfielder Ki Sung-Yeung believes they will find their way eventually. He said: “If you lose games, a lot of opinion is coming. We’re not individuals. But I think we are just a little bit confused because we won the first two games, and now we’re starting to lose them. It’s important we don’t get used to losing.”
Ki says Swansea will go back to the drawing board. He added: “We know how to play football - but sometimes we have been struggling physically. We have to analyse what we’ve done wrong and look at what we can improve on.” | http://www.football.com/en-gb/michael-laudrup-back-to-the-drawing-board-at-swansea/ | 976 |
Wenger: We have Gervinho so why buy?
By Football News
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says there was no point trying to strengthen his squad in January because the club already has Gervinho.
The Gunners, who currently sit sixth in the Premier League and four points short of fourth, added only left-back Nacho Monreal to their squad during the winter transfer window.
But despite running the risk of missing out on Champions League qualification, the Frenchman claimed that securing top talent in the middle of the season is too difficult - even with the opportunity to scout at the Africa Cup of Nations available to him.
Ivory Coast international Gervinho has been the best player at the tournament in South Africa, a point noted by Wenger.
"We worked very hard on it, we were everywhere. I would have loved to take somebody else but we didn't find anyone," he said.
"In the Africa Cup of Nations, the best player is Gervinho. It's simple. Why should we go there when the best player is Gervinho? We already have Gervinho.
"Manchester United, who did they buy? Chelsea, who did they buy? Liverpool bought. Man City didn't buy - for one single reason.
"For the top, top, top clubs, it's difficult to strengthen your team in the middle of the season."
Gervinho is set to return from the tournament this week after Ivory Coast saw their Afcon 2013 dreams ended by a 2-1 quarter-final defeat to Nigeria.
Wenger just trying to save money once again.
Hes an average player. They need a natural goal scorer. | http://www.football.com/en-gb/wenger-we-have-gervinho-so-why-buy/ | 343 |
The title and relegation battles may be settled, but it is all still to play for in the fight to secure a top-four finish. Arsenal are favourites to record a victory at Newcastle which will see them secure Champions League football next season, while Tottenham are odds-on to keep up the pressure by beating Sunderland.
m starting to think Roman may never actually be happy at the top level. If he wants all conquering fancy football I wonder if he'd be better off buying a lower division side then paying outlandish salaries to attract high caliber players too good for the division.
afa has to be favourite for the Everton job now, surely :) He'll realise his ambition to live and work on Merseyside again, get the best out of whoever plays for them, maybe win some cups and be thoroughly loathed by the toffee fans. What's not to like? Go ead, Ken, gimajob! | http://www.football365.com/blackpool/8434659/Blackpool-sign-Nottingham-Forest-striker-Matt-Derbyshire-on-loan-until-the-end-of-the-season | 185 |
Full report and reaction to follow. Thanks for all your thoughts. Goodbye.
90+4 Steaua Bucharest 1 Chelsea 0. Famous night for the Romanians, but Chelsea will have to play much better in the second leg if they are to progress.
Popa tries his luck from distance, but ball flies just wide. Wastes more time for the Romanians.
Rusescu goes off, to be replaced by Gardos. His job is done.
Four added minutes...
Lampard has his first effort of the game, but fires well wide from distance. One of his poorest showings of the season.
Really nice move from Steaua, passing the ball around well, but the final cross is overhit by Popa, rolling straight to Cech.
David Luiz fires a free-kick from distance. Gets incredible power on it, but it flies just over. Impressive from that range.
Marin does well to create space for a shot, cutting inside and firing the ball nearpost, but it is palmed away by Tatarusanu.
81 The impressive Tanase goes off, to be replaced by Leandro Tatu.
Mata tries to thread the ball through, but it is easily cut out. Story of the night for Chelsea.
Toby Day tries to rally his troops. "Hi, COME ON CHELSEA!!! They should try and at least get 1 goal! I want CHELSEA to win 2-1!!!"
Chorus of whistles around the ground as Chelsea pass the ball around. In fat, it could be the Blues' fans as their side severely lack in creativity.
75 Marko Marin comes on for Chelsea, in place of Hazard, who struggled all evening.
Hazard finds space at the back post, running onto a Torres flick, but he can only fire over from the tight angle.
Rusescu runs at David Luiz, but the Chelsea defender does well to step across and shield the ball out.
Torres again surrenders the ball too easily. Looks like he wants to be elsewhere. Very poor from the talented Spaniard.
Very poor from Chelsea. Just giving the ball away far too often. They are capable of much better than this.
Cech has to rush from his goal to cut out long ball over the top. Chipciu adjudged to be offisde however.
65 Mikel goes into the book for a late challenge. A little clumsy if anything.
64 Juan Mata comes on in place of the very ineffective Benayoun. Needs to inject abit of quality into the game.
Sean Hawdon also far from happy: "Chelsea are having the worst game I've seen them play for a long time."
Matt Calory has been touch via email: "Aside from Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard has been the best midfielder in Prem history. Not showing it tonight. Looks a little fat!"
Tanase again in space after being picked out by Chipciu, but blazes the ball way over the bar.
Scrappy at the moment. Chelsea trying to get the ball down and play, but still being stifled by the Romanians.
58 Prepelita comes on for Steaua, with Pintili making way.
Ball falls to Tanase on the edge of the box, who lashes the bouncing ball wide of Cech's goal.
Hazrad looks set to pull the trigger, but stumbles at the last moment. Unfortunate.
Chelsea really struggling to get going. Cannot get hold of the ball at the moment. Don't look like European champions at the moment!
Tanase sprays the ball wide to Latovlevici, but his effort goes way over the top. Poor from a good promising position.
49 Pintili receives yellow card for leaving his foot in on John Terry.
Tanase almost gets in, but but his shot is blocked. Chelsea must up their game, and fast!
Kenny isn't confident on the email: "Chelsea clueless under Rafa & will go down 2 nil."
Second-half is underway!
Hiruy has been in touch via Twitter: "Chelsea has been atrocious so far, we need a spark ASAP! Lets go Blues."
We apologise of you have had trouble receiving this commentary. We have been having severe technical problems, but should be ok for the second-half!
45 Steaua Bucharest 1 Chelsea 0. Chelsea much better after going behind. Benitez will feel penalty was harsh, but Steaua arguably deserve their lead.
Great effort from Torres. Has had limited service, but lofted ball over the top is taken down well by the Spaniard, who hits a fierce shot too close to keeper Tatarusanu.
Hazard in a great position to pull it back, but his touch his heavy and the ball runs out for a goal-kick.
Tanase with the strike from distance. Plenty of power, but lacking in direction.
SAVE!!! Tatarusanu gets a good left hand to a weak Benayoun strike when in space on the edge of the box. Great move from the Blues.
Chelsea must up their game, sat back far too much so far. Need to support Torres up front!
34 GOAL!!! Steaua Bucharest 1 Chelsea 0. Rusescu Penalty. Cech almost gets to it, but Rusescu put sufficient power on his spot-kick to beat him.
33 Rusescu looks odds-on to get a head to the ball eight yards out, but Bertrand impedes him. Penalty.
33 PENALTY TO STEAUA!!!
Torres runs at the Steaua backline, almost gets in, but a last ditch challenge denies him.
Very cagey affair at the moment, with both sides struggling to put a meaningful attack together.
Oscar almost in, but Bourceanu gets across to dispossess the Brazilian. Goal-kick.
Ivanovic gets his head to it, but the ball rolls harmlessly wide. Got up to early.
Much better delivery, but Szukala gets his head to it first and flicks clear. Corner.
Another free-kick to Chelsea. This time Torres is fouled. Great position for Lampard to cross.
Lampard with it, but it is cleared. Terry hooks it back in, but is cleared once again.
Free-kick Chelsea for a foul on David Luiz. Good chance to put the ball in the box.
Goal-kick to Chelsea as Bertrand sheppards the ball out of play. Good, strong defending.
The Spaniard almost gets in, but doesn't quite have the legs. Better from the Blues.
Torres looking very isolated up front. May have to pick off scraps this evening.
Bourceanu with the long ball for Rusescu to chase, but he can't quite latch onto the pass.
Mikel this time prevents Steaua from breaking. Very much all the home side at the moment.
Ivanovic with the block, when Chipciu looking dangerous once again.
Chelsea now on the attack, with Oscar trying to create from deep.
Lots of pessession for Steaua, but Chelsea pressing well, keeping it all in their half.
Free-kick to Chelsea on the half-way line, lumped into the box, and is cleared.
Bertrand again in the way, but gets a kick in the shin for his troubles.
Corner again to Steaua as Ryan Bertrand makes the interception.
Chipcui has the first strike at goal, but the ball trickles harmlessly wide.
Oscar with the chance to carry the ball forward, but his pass is wayward.
Torres chases down the ball, but it is easily cleared. Steaua look vulnerable at the back.
Corner already for Steaua!
We are underway...
Steaua Bucharest have conceded just four goals in 11 home games this season, and Sky Bet have boosted their price to win 1-0 to 8/1. Cristian Tanase to score first is a 14/1 shot, while Yossi Benayoun to score first in a 2-0 Chelsea win is a tempting 75/1.
The man in the middle is Sergey Karasev from Ukraine.
The teams are in the tunnel!
John Terry is back in the side for the Blues, despite spending much of the Blues' recent fixtures on the bench.
For Steaua, Raul Rusescu could be the dangerman. He is the leading scorer in Romania, and leads their attack tonight.
This is Chelsea's 50th game this season already, and with Sunday's massive clash with Manchester United to come, is it surprising that Benitez has named such a strong side?
Moses and Ramires remain back in London to rest. Ba is ineligible. Ashley Cole is on the bench.
Strong Blues team named by Rafa Benitez, with five changes made from the weekend's win against West Brom.
Steaua XI: Tatarusanu; Rapa, Zukala, Chiriches, Latovlevici; Pintilii, Bourceanu, Tanase; Popa, Rusescu, Chipiciu
Chelsea XI: Cech; Azpilicueta, Cahill, Terry, Bertrand; Mikel, Lampard; Benayoun, Oscar, Hazard; Torres.
The teams are in... Fernando Torres starts!
Get in touch with me to get your views published. You can contact me via twitter: @Pistolpeteh86 OR via email: [email protected]
I'm Pete Hall, and I will be taking you through all the action, as it happens.
Good evening! Welcome to our live minute-by-minute commentary of Steaua Bucharest v Chelsea in the Europa League.
Live updates will appear here from 1800 GMT... | http://www.football365.com/match/3602519/live | 2,094 |
Even in a post-Lance world, word today that the International Olympic Committee had decided today to cut wrestling from the 2020 games came across as a craven stunner. And I won’t be surprised when they back down.
It’s not that I’m a huge wrestling fan. I’m not. But nor am I a regular fan of bobsledding, field hockey, rowing, hammer throw, or, for that matter, gymnastics or Alpine skiing or the 100 meter dash or swimming. At least not normally. And neither are you.
But come the Olympics, I’m totally absorbed in all of these. That’s the point. The more obscure the better. During London, I caught the Dream Team pounding some poor, hapless hopeful before they lined up for autographs. But that’s hardly sport.
I spent a lot more time — thanks to NBC’s excellent iPad app–watching things I absolutely don’t care about at any other time. I spent nearly an entire afternoon watching fencing. And another watching archery. I introduced my tiny daughter to field hockey–and air rifle (that was a bit of a stretch for a 2 year old. You can’t even tell the guns are firing. Lots of quizzical looks at dad.) And yeah, I saw a lot of online advertising during all of that, and didn’t mind (much).
Once they snuffed that flame, though, I folded my fandom like a pup tent, and hiked away, like I always do, forgetting even the most marquee events until next time around. And so did you.
Proof? Take swimming, that most telegenic and Golden of all summer Olympic sports. During the last summer games, NBC devoted a hefty slice of their 272 prime-time hours to the sport, pumping up the drama of Michael Phelps last games, and so on.
Jump ahead to February, 2013. If you feel like watching some swimming (and you don’t) –it will take some work. It can be done, mind you. You can hunt up the live streams of some competitions online. Or you can dig deep into your cable guide. Deep. Like down to whatever 4-digit channel they run the Universal Sports Network on in your neck of the woods. If you can find it, the 2013 Arena Grand Prix at Orlando starts airing — Live! — on February 15. But you won’t do that. Because you don’t care right now. Because this is not the Olympics.
What about gymnastics? That’s a bit more high profile, even in a non-Olympic year. How high? The 2013 American Cup will get TWO FULL HOURS of coverage from NBC on March 2. Wheaties box? We’ll save that for the Games, thanks much.
What I’m saying is that obscurity and low viewership are pretty relative terms by which to measure Olympic sports. By killing wrestling, a sport that has appeared in every game since 1896, the dullards who man the programming calendar at the IOC are going further than they ever have before in showing that they don’t understand their product (and that’s a ways).
Memo to the IOC: No matter what you think, you’re not marketing the NBA, guys. You’re selling the not-NBA (or the illusion of that, at least). The marketability of the Olympics is the whole — the whole exotic, rare, authentic athletic experience where we viewers from all over the world come together to watch nobodies become somebodies for two weeks every two years. And while we are smiling at our TVs, you show us the polar bears and we buy the Cokes. Duh.
By losing wrestling, they’ll lose some of that halo. And in a age of 24-7 SportsCenter, of PEDs and millionaire athlete perks, that halo is a powerful product differentiator for fans and advertisers–the only one the Rings really have anymore.
I’m not worried, though. I give this decision less than a year. Why? Because people who don’t care at all about wrestling–like me–will care about it now. Why? Because this is the Olympics. And it’ll be a little less without it.
More on Forbes: | http://www.forbes.com/sites/danbigman/2013/02/12/why-the-olympics-will-back-down-on-decision-to-drop-wrestling-from-2020-games/?commentId=comment_blogAndPostId/blog/comment/910-11973-732 | 914 |
Francisco Liriano will likely throw less sliders this season. Means that he needs to locate his fast balls. He worked mostly on his fast balls in the winter league. All seems to point that he is going to the right direction.
Question is if he can be consistent all year. Time will tell but I am not about to jump on the band wagon just yet. But I think he will have a better season than last year since he would be hitting free agency. But regardless if we are in contention by the trade deadline or not, lets just hope he has a good season so at least we can get something in return.
From ESPN 1500.
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Francisco Liriano labored a bit through four-plus innings in the Minnesota Twins' 11-7 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday, allowing two earned runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out four.
Liriano threw 82 pitches (53 strikes) and his fastball consistently touched 92-94 -- midseason form.
He will likely make one more start before the regular season, and overall everyone -- including Liriano, manager Ron Gardenhire and pitching coach Rick Anderson -- is pleased with how the left-hander is throwing this spring.
"To be honest, yeah," said Liriano, who has struck out 26 while walking only four in 22 innings this spring. "Everything is working, getting better location-wise."
Anderson and Gardenhire have been more and more adamant that Liriano not shy away from contact -- that he trust his fastball and changeup early in counts, as opposed to throwing slider after slider.
Only a handful of pitchers threw more sliders, percentage-wise, than Liriano in 2011. Throwing fewer sliders could also put less stress on his arm.
"More than anything else we just don't want to see slider, slider, slider, slider, slider," Gardenhire said. "We like to see when he uses all of his pitches. Pitch with his fastball, throw that slider every once in a while and use that changeup. Mix them all in. Use them all.
"The one thing you've got to know with him is he's got a great fastball, and he doesn't have to fall in love with that slider. So if he stays with a good mix like he's doing right now he'll be fine."
Pitching in the Dominican Winter League this offseason, Liriano worked mostly on fastball location, and so far this spring he has thrown first-pitch strikes to 56% of the batters he has faced (in four games tracked) -- which is up from the 49% mark he posted last year.
Getting ahead of hitters is important for all pitchers, but probably more-so for Liriano, who has the ability to make hitters look foolish with his slider -- only if they don't know it's coming.
"That's one of the key things," Liriano said. "I just try to throw more fastballs than I used to and try to keep the slider back for an out-pitch. Throw more changeups and two-seamers, try to control that two-seamer. I think it's a good idea, and it's working so far."
I really don't understand people's optimism about Liriano. What is it in his history (especially since the Surgery) that makes people think he'll become a consistently dominant pitcher? I get that he has swing-and-miss stuff, and can occasionally dominate. But if you just look at his body of work, batters don't swing and miss nearly as often as they should against Liriano, which tells us that his stuff fools few batters. He has a good outing, but then a few bad ones. THAT is his history. Not a history that would come anywhere near to suggesting he would be a consistently dominant pitcher.
When you evaluate a pitcher, you don't just pull one or two good starts out and say that's what he should be. You look at the body of work. Regardless of his "stuff", he just isn't able to put a string together.
The constant hope that he will become a consistent pitcher is like being in a drought and hoping that clouds will always bring rain. SOMETIMES they will, but to say they ALWAYS will is simply delusional. It's that hope that keeps the Pohlads from feeling the need to do force their baseball people to develop better draft, playing, and free agent philosophies. The only way this is going to change is if people simply stop going to games. They'll do something when the money starts to drain from the coffers. The Twin Cities region will support a competitive baseball team. We know that. So stop supporting a lesser product than that.
"the only way this is going to change is if people simply stop going to games. "
If they lose 90-100 again, more change will be demanded. The only problem is that this franchise is very stubborn and inflexible to major changes i.e. Gardy, philosophy.
""You just have to sit and talk about it and keep running him out there. You can only change so many starters. We don't have enough people to change all our starters. Frankie has to figure it out."
- Ron Gardenhire
Why can you only change so many starters, Ron? What happens if Frankie doesn't figure it out?
If Frankie doesn't figure it out, he doesn't. But it will do no good to prevent him from starting. It's not like we're exactly racing for the pennant here.
Interesting article from Fan Graphs notes that Liriano is "missing up far too often with his heaters, likely resulting in his 91% zone contact rate". They also note that his velocity is down a couple MPH. Both these things are resulting in him putting more people on base via walks and hits.
Then, Fan Graphs ends with this...
"I do think there’s a good chance Liriano could be going through a bit of a dead-arm period. After an innings decrease last season, he not only threw this winter — 30 innings in winter ball down in the Dominican Republic — but he also was a bit ahead of the curve during spring training, throwing longer bullpens earlier in the spring, presumably to keep himself fit and to chase away his 2011 demons. The Twins really have no choice but to let the free agent to-be fight it out in the rotation, as one-inning bullpen stints aren’t likely to benefit either..."
And then consider we wouldn't get anyone for him in a trade right now. I think the best thing we can do is try and get the light bulb to go on in his head and for his arm to liven up. Crossing my fingers. | http://www.forums.mlb.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?tsn=76&nav=messages&webtag=ml-Twins&tid=37675 | 1,411 |
Raleigh, NC (Sports Network) - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed defensemen Tim Gleason and Joni Pitkanen on injured reserve, retroactive to Feb. 12.
Gleason and Pitkanen both missed Carolina's 3-1 victory over Toronto on Thursday with lower-body injuries. Gleason has registered two assists in 12 games this season, while Pitkanen has one goal and six points in 12 games.
Also on Monday, the Hurricanes recalled forwards Riley Nash and Jeremy Welsh from the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League.
Nash, the 21st overall pick in the 2007 NHL Draft, appeared in five games with Carolina last season and registered one assist. Welsh skated with the Hurricanes earlier this season and has zero points in two career games. | http://www.fox16.com/sports/nhl/Carolina%20Hurricanes/story/Hurricanes-place-Gleason-Pitkanen-on-IR/DzUopK1JnUimyUy3ouKpIQ.cspx | 159 |
Extra Points: Newton doesn't need Moon's help
Cam Newton was the toast of Charlotte after his brilliant rookie season with the Panthers. But, success in the NFL can be as fleeting as the weather. Wait five minutes and it could change.
Click here to read the full story. | http://www.fox23news.com/sports/story/Extra-Points-Newton-doesnt-need-Moons-help/1NcXhLyeZke0gB5ftRpxSA.cspx?p=Comments | 58 |
Big Rally Earns Titans Split
May 9, 2008
FULLERTON, CA - The Cal State Fullerton softball team rallied to earn a split in its Big West Conference doubleheader with UC Santa Barbara on Friday night, erasing a five-run deficit with 10 unanswered runs to earn a 10-6 victory in the nightcap after falling, 8-5, in the opener at Anderson Family Field.
The Titans moved to 27-25-1 overall on the year and 11-9 in conference play while the Gauchos moved to 29-24 overall and 12-8 in the Big West.
A huge rally in the late innings of game two brought Fullerton back after UC Santa Barbara scored five runs in the first two innings to take the lead.
Tiffany Wright's two-run home run keyed a four-run first for UCSB, which added a bases-loaded walk and an RBI single for the early 4-0 advantage. The Gauchos put up another run in the second on an RBI double by Wright to make it 5-0 as UCSB's league-leading offense got off to a strong start.
However, the Titans clawed their way back in it as back-to-back singles by Torrie Anderson and Sheila Holguin set the table for Crystal Vieyra with one out, as the senior slugged her second home run of the season over the wall in left centerfield to cut the deficit to 5-3.
The game remained that way until the fifth as a pair of errors sandwiched around a single plated Katie Gollhardt to make it 5-4 and the Titans tied the game two batters later on Anderson's sacrifice fly.
Holguin then followed with her second hit of the game, plating pinch runner Courtney Martinez with the go-ahead run and the floodgates opened for Fullerton.
Back-to-back home runs by Kiki Munoz (three-run home run) and Lauren Lupinetti (solo shot) keyed a four-run sixth to give the Titans the 10-5 lead and they never looked back. UCSB tacked on a run on an error in the seventh, but could rally no closer.
Freshman Christine Hiner (14-12) picked up the win in relief, allowing the unearned run on three hits in five innings of work. Ari Cervantes, making only her third start of the season, allowed four earned on five hits in two innings of work.
MeLinda Matsumoto (8-11) was stuck with the loss, allowing seven earned on nine hits in six innings of work.
In the opener, UC Santa Barbara jumped out early and then broke open a tight game with four runs in the sixth en route to the 8-5 victory.
Christine Ramos and Wright each had three hits for the Gauchos, who banged out 13 base hits for the game, and had four players with multiple hits on the night.
An error on a base hit and a double-steal produced two runs in the first for UCSB, which tacked on two more in the second on an RBI single by Ramos and a run-scoring fielder's choice by Jessica Ziegler for the 4-0 advantage.
Fullerton responded with two runs on RBI groundouts by Gollhardt and Munoz in the second and closed to within a single run on a sacrifice fly by Lupinetti in the fourth to make it 4-3.
However, UCSB pulled away with four runs in the sixth on a two-run triple by Ramos, a run-scoring single by Tisha Duran and an error to make it 8-3.
The Titans got two of the runs back in their half of the inning off Matsumoto, who came on in relief of starter Lindsey Correa, on an RBI hit by Lupinetti and a run-scoring fielder's choice by Anderson, but could come no closer.
Matsumoto closed the door in the sixth with a lineout and a ground ball and left runners on the corners in the seventh, getting a strikeout to end the game and earn her first save of the year.
Correa (11-7) earned the win for the Gauchos, surrendering five runs on five hits with seven walks and a pair of strikeouts. Matsumoto allowed just three hits in two innings to nail down the save.
Hiner (13-12) suffered the loss, allowing five earned on 13 hits in 5 1/3 innings before being lifted in favor of Cervantes, who pitched 1 2/3 innings of hitless relief, striking out three.
The two teams reconvene for the final game of their three-game series on Saturday afternoon at 12 p.m. to close out the 2008 regular season. Prior to first pitch both the UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton seniors will be honored on the field as part of pregame "Senior Day" ceremonies beginning at approximately 11:30 a.m. | http://www.fullertontitans.com/sports/w-softbl/recaps/051008aaa.html | 1,039 |
Former Kenyan Premier League side Agro Chemical
has confirmed former KCB Coach James odijo
Omondi as their head Coach.
-We have hired the former KCB Coach as our new Coach, confirmed Agro Chair Joseph Andere to futaa.com
-He has already reported for duty and is currently evaluating the set of players who played last season
Omondi becomes Agro third Coach is as many years. In the 2011 season, the side was led to a second placed finish in the 16-team FKL Nationwide League by Michael Nam who then left to take up the coaching role at Kenyan Premier League side Karuturi Sport.
In 2012, the side ended third in the 20-team Division one Zone B log under Leonard Saleh who is now at division one Zone A side Posta Rangers. | http://www.futaa.com/football/article/omondi-named-new-agro-chemicals-coach | 170 |
Carnes indoor meet wraps up
Published: Sunday, January 27, 2013 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Monday, January 28, 2013 at 12:31 a.m.
Youth gave way to experience on the last day of the 6th Annual Jimmy Carnes Indoor Track and Field Meet as competition in the College/Open division was held Sunday in the O'Connell Center.
While most of Florida's men's and women's squads went to Fayetteville, Ark., to compete in the 2013 Razorback Invitational over the weekend, a handful of Gators who stayed behind competed Sunday.
One of them was junior Caitlin Schuessler, who responded with a win in the women's pole vault.
Schuessler, who competed for UF as a freshman in 2010, is just working her way into form after undergoing back surgery last August to repair a herniated disc.
Her winning effort of 12-1 1/2 was her best indoor mark since going 12-4 as a freshman.
“It's been really good,” Schuessler said. “I had back surgery last summer, so I've just been trying to recover from that and slowly get back into pole vaulting again. I'm healing still, but it's getting better.
“I'm very excited about competing in more meets this year and hope to keep improving.”
In addition, current UF sophomore Arlithia Mackey finished third (43-10) in the women's shot put.
A pair of ex-Gator greats who hold the school's respective all-time indoor shot put marks picked up wins. Kemal Mesic captured the men's title with a winning mark of 63-11 3/4, while Mariam Kevkhishvili won the women's title with a mark of 51-9.
There were two featured high school races — the mile run and 55-meter hurdles — held Sunday.
Miami Belen Jesuit Prep's Avery Lopez scored an impressive victory over a strong field in the boys' mile, taking control early and winning in 4:24.87, almost six seconds ahead of runner-up John Lindsey (4:30.20) from Winter Park.
“I was able to get out quickly, and that's what the game plan was,” Lopez said. “With about 1,200 meters to go, that's when I really took the initiative and started pushing the pace. Nobody was really testing me, so I just kept on building and building on that.”
Emily Edwards (Fort Myers Canterbury) took the girls' mile, winning in a time of 5:04.98 that was just .82 off the meet record of 5:04.16 set in 2010 by current UF junior Stephanie Strasser.
Edwards pulled away over the last half of the race to win by almost 10 seconds over runner-up Anne Kelly (5:14.37), who won the girls' 3,000 meters Saturday.
“I'm really pleased with how it went,” Edwards said. “I'm very happy with the time. This gave me the chance to see where I'm at, so it was really good overall.”
A number of Youth Invitational meet records were set over the weekend.
Among them were new marks by Stanton Prep's Kendal Williams (200 meters, 21.62) and St. Petersburg's Cayman Ellis (pole vault, 16-0) on the boys' side, while Boyd Anderson's Daeshon Gordon (55-meter hurdles, 8.20), Royal Palm Beach's Erin Ford (400 meters, 56.51), Lake Mary's Erica Sergeant (pole vault, 12-4), Boyd Anderson's Kali Davis-White (200 meters, 24.52), and Eastside's Shadayzha Bullock (shot put, 40-5 3/4) all set new girls' marks.
“I think it was outstanding,” meet director Larry Holsey said. “It was a very fulfilling weekend. The kids had a great time, there were a lot of records broken and the fans really enjoyed themselves.”
Also, while not a meet record, the 6.28 run by Gainesville's Tony James in winning the boys' 55-meter dash Saturday is the nation's fastest time this year.
“That lets you know that kids in this area are serious about track,” Holsey said. “It's very popular.”
Complete final results can be found online at www.halfmiletiming.com.
All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged. | http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20130127/ARTICLES/130129607/0/gatorsfootball04 | 981 |
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Defiant Dunne is sticking by his principles
Joe Dunne has insisted he will not abandon his football principles in the wake of Colchester United’s losing run.
Dunne admitted he was left contemplating his future as U’s boss in the aftermath of his side’s defeat against fellow strugglers Scunthorpe United.
However, he has since been given the full support of chairman Robbie Cowling, who has backed him to turn Colchester’s fortunes around.
Dunne said he does not regret what he said in the minutes that followed the U’s loss against Scunthorpe last Saturday, their ninth defeat in a row.
And he is adamant that he will not shift from his philosophy of seeing Colchester play free-flowing football - at every level.
Dunne said: “I stand by what I said - I feel very strongly about what I want to bring to the football club.
“I believe what I’m trying to do is right, as it’s the future of football over the next ten years."
See Wednesday's Gazette for more on this story and all of the latest Colchester United news, including an interview with new U's signing Billy Clifford. | http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/sport/colchesterunited/10164167.Defiant_Dunne_is_sticking_by_his_principles/ | 287 |
OROVILLE – Oroville’s girls basketball team got a bit of payback on their rivals from Tonasket, but it wasn’t easy.
The Hornets held on for a 35-31 victory on Tuesday, Dec. 13, to earn a split of the season series. The Tigers won the first game 10 days earlier, 32-31.
“I was kind of disappointed in our effort,” said Oroville coach Mike Bourn. “But then afterward I found out a number of the kids were sick.
“No matter how you look at it, though, we still have some things to work through, and I think we’ll get there.”
The big difference this time for the Hornets came at the free throw line. After going just 1-of-10 at Tonasket in its one-point loss, Oroville made 12-of-14 from the line to offset a tough shooting night from the floor.
Still, the game was in doubt until the final minute.
“We did not shoot the ball well but I feel the girls played extremely hard,” said Tonasket coach Mike Larson. “We had opportunities to either tie or take the lead but we just couldn’t convert on those opportunities.”
They did convert on those opportunities in the third quarter as Devan Utt scored 10 of her 12 points as the Tigers worked the ball inside.
Bourn was frustrated his defense didn’t adjust more quickly, but once it did, Utt and the Tigers managed just one more basket the rest of the way.
“We buckled down on defense,” Bourn said. “We didn’t give up. Once Kelsey Hughes to front their post (Utt) it made a big difference.
“It’s just a bunch of little things. We can fix them, we just need to decide that we’re going to do it.”
Amber Kilpatrick led all scorers with 14 points for the Tigers.
Naomi Peters had her best scoring night of the year so far, leading the Hornets (3-2) with 11 points. Hughes added nine.
The Hornets’ Saturday, Dec. 17, game at Chelan was postponed due to a rash of player illnesses that would have left the team with a skeleton crew. It has been rescheduled for Jan. 12.
Tonasket 50, Liberty Bell 21
TONASKET – The Tonasket girls basketball team has had trouble scoring points during the early season.
Not so on Saturday, Dec. 17, at least not after a slow start.
The Tigers went on a 30-1 run over an 18-minute stretch to take control of their non-league game with Liberty Bell, and they went on to a 50-21 victory over the Mountain Lions.
“It was nice to finally hit some shots,” Larson said. “It started with our defense, though. Once we buckled down, forced some turnovers and started making layups our confidence grew. We had a lot of girls contribute tonight.”
Liberty Bell took a 4-3 lead early in the first quarter, but didn’t score another basket until early in the fourth, when Tonasket led 33-9,
By then, the Tigers (2-4) were not only scoring off their defense, but outside shots were hitting their marks as well as Baylie Tyus hit a pair of 3-pointers and Amber Kilpatrick and Devan Utt each hit one.
“Devan’s been working on that shot since the summer,” Larson said. “We just haven’t been in a situation where she can use it.
“We got a lot of girls playing time tonight, and when it comes to league play that experience is going to be really important.”
Kilpatrick led the scoring with her second straight 14 point outing, with Utt adding 11 and Tyus eight.
Liberty Bell’s (1-5) Kayla Higbee had eight points. | http://www.gazette-tribune.com/sports/oroville-girls-hang-on-to-edge-tigers/55565/ | 858 |
FIVE GENERALS NAMED TO VaSID ALL-STATE FOOTBALL TEAM
LEXINGTON, Va. -- The Virginia Sports Information Director's Association (VaSID) announced its College Division All-State Football team on Friday afternoon. Washington and Lee had five players honored and all were named to the first team.
Garnering First Team All-State honors were senior offensive lineman David Startsman (Terrace Park, Ohio/Mariemont), junior defensive lineman Liam Murray (Oneonta, N.Y./Oneonta), senior linebacker Lloyd Wilson (Austin, Texas/Stephen F. Austin), junior defensive back Stuart Swann (Macon, Ga./Woodberry Forest) and sophomore wide receiver/kick returner Colton Ward (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day).
In addition to earning first team laurels as a kick returner, Ward also posted honorable mention recognition as a wide receiver. He returned a school-record two kickoffs for touchdowns and averaged 28.0 yards per return. As a wide receiver, Ward tied for the team-lead in receptions (49), despite missing two games with an injury. He averaged 131.2 all-purpose yards per game and led the team with nine total touchdowns.
Startsman earned all-state honors after being named First Team All-ODAC this season. He paced a W&L offensive line which allowed just 21 sacks on the season, including just 14 in the final nine games.
Murray was also a First Team All-ODAC selection in 2004. He helped pace a Washington and Lee defense which finished the season ranked second in Division III in rushing defense and set a new school record with 43 sacks. Murray was second on the team with 61 tackles, 12 of which were for a loss. He also contributed three sacks and forced a fumble.
Wilson earned First Team All-ODAC honors this season after being named to the Honorable Mention All-ODAC team as a junior. He led the ODAC in tackles in 2004, totaling 83 stops, including eight for a loss. Wilson also notched four sacks and had three fumble recoveries.
Swann also posted First Team All-ODAC honors this fall after notching 43 tackles, four pass breakups, two sacks, two blocked punts and one interception.
Washington and Lee completed the 2004 season with a 6-4 overall record, 4-2 in the ODAC. The six wins were the Generals' most since the 1985 season.
-- GENERALS -- | http://www.generalssports.com/information/sports_information/archived_releases/2004-05_Releases/12.17vasid | 524 |
Buffalo, N.Y. – The Geneseo men’s swimming
& diving team wrapped up the second of three days of competition at the
State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Championships pulling
closer to first place. The Knights, who have won 14 consecutive SUNYAC titles,
have scored 476 points through 12 events, trailing first-place Cortland’s total
of 519 points.
The Knights won two events with NCAA qualifying performances in both.
First year Yonghoon Jun (Nanuet/Tappan Zee) won the 100-yard butterfly. His NCAA “B” cut time of 50.00 set a school, meet and conference record.
Two other Knights joined Jun in the finals. Senior Austin Brennan (Stony Brook/Ward Melville) was sixth in 52.30 and first year Andy Schunk (Ardsley/Ardsley) finished eighth in 52.84.
Jun was also a member of Geneseo’s SUNYAC-champion 200-yard medley relay team. First year Kristian Tialios (West Hurley/Onteora), senior Greg Marks (Phelps/Midlakes) and senior Frank Schiappa (East Amherst/Canisius) posted a school-record and NCAA “B” cut time of 1:33.05, breaking both the SUNYAC and meet records as well.
Four Knights reached the final in the 400-yard individual medley. Sophomore Kenny Athans (Victor/Victor) was fourth in 4:12.16, Tialios took fifth in 4:12.51, sophomore Bryan Schaub (Blauvelt/Tappan Zee) placed seventh in 4:16.38 and sophomore John Nasky (Rochester/Brighton) finished eighth in 4:25.48. In the consolation final, junior Paul Jennings (East Northport/Elwood-John Glenn) placed 10th in 4:21.24.
In the 200-yard freestyle, Schiappa was seventh in 1:46.03. Two Knights swam in the consolation final, with sophomore Don McLoughlin (Waccabuc/John Jay) placed ninth in 1:45.92 and first year Ben Greenspan (Williamsville/Williamsville South) finished 13th in 1:47.37.
Marks took fourth in the 100-yard breaststroke (58.54). The consolation final featured four Knights: Jennings was ninth in 1:01.16, first year Tyler Roth (Fredonia/St. Francis) finished 10th in 1:01.33, first year Jordan Gay (Henrietta/Rush-Henrietta) placed 12th in 1:01.77 and first year Justin Ongkingco (Watertown/Watertown) took 14th in 1:02.33.
Sophomore Branden Dahlem (Rhinebeck/Our Lady of Lourdes) placed fifth in the 100-yard backstroke (52.79) and first year Brian Yale (Johnson City/Maine Endwell) was seventh (53.08). In the consolation final, Brennan was ninth in 53.66 and Schunk placed 15th in 56.34.
Geneseo’s 800-yard freestyle relay team placed fourth. Nasky, McLoughlin, Greenspan and Athans posted a time of 7:06.32.
Competition concludes at the SUNYAC Championships Saturday. | http://www.geneseo.edu/m/athletics/58389 | 742 |
Writer: Site Staff
Date:Friday May 4 2012
The out-of-contract, or at least will be, players at Gillingham will have their futures decided shortly.
Andy Hessenthaler, as he told the official website, wants to get the season out of the way first before deciding what direction is taken with the players who will see their contracts end.
The Gills manager will look to 'freshen things up' so this could mean that some players are now 'surplus to requirements' at Priestfield but all will be sorted soon: 'it would be wrong for me to sit down and talk to the players before next week.
'We've got one more game to tackle, we want to win the game and then after that we've got the presentation night next Saturday.
'Then we'll have a bit of time with the players, as a group and individually, after the weekend.
'I've got to sit down and look at the final situation with the chairman. We'll do that first and see what's available, look to freshen things up. There's a number of players out of contract, that will release some of the money hopefully we can use.
'We've gone over budget this year, the chairman's really pulled out all the stops to try and get that promotion. I've got to sit down and see where we're at and go from there. I signed a three-year deal and hopefully the third year is going to be my year. It won't be for the lack of trying, I'll keep putting the hours in to build a team that's going to be successful.'
Instead of just viewing, why not login (or register as a new member) as well and leave some thoughts on this issue below...
Date:Friday May 4 2012
Pre-Season: Gills Add To Schedule (Wednesday May 15 2013)
Pre-Season: Lions Coming To Town (Tuesday May 14 2013)
Payne Set For Permanent Posh Switch? (Monday May 13 2013)
Former Loanee Opts For Portsmouth (Saturday May 11 2013)
That Could've Been Me (Friday May 10 2013)
Hessenthaler Leaves Priestfield (Tuesday May 7 2013)
Trio Honoured By Their Peers (Tuesday April 30 2013)
Gills Winners Named (Monday April 29 2013)
Gills End With A Rare Away Defeat (Monday April 29 2013)
Stats: Burton v Gillingham (Sunday April 28 2013)
|3. Port Vale||46||21||15||10||+35||78|
|Promotion Dream Ended
» Northampton : 18/05/2013 17:34:00
|A Wycombe fan's guide to next season's travel
» Wycombe : 18/05/2013 15:34:00
|More Wembley joy for Mezza
» York : 18/05/2013 15:25:00
|Boyes joins Gateshead
» York : 18/05/2013 13:56:00
|Striker buzzing for City
» York : 18/05/2013 12:29:00
|RUFC - A Look Back At Last Season - August
» Rotherham : 18/05/2013 09:10:00
|No Chance Given
» Southend : 17/05/2013 20:43:00 | http://www.gillingham.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=281598 | 698 |
The European governing body have moved to sanction the club for Sir Alex Ferguson's failure to fulfil media obligations in the aftermath of the Portuguese's red cardManchester United and Nani following the club's defeat to Real Madrid on Tuesday evening.
The Portuguese winger was sent from the field during the Champions League last-16 second-leg after connecting with Los Blancos right-back Alvaro Arbeloa with a high boot.
That decision left manager Sir Alex Ferguson infuriated, and the 71-year-old sent assistant Mike Phelan in his place to fulfil the club's media obligations after the game.
Phelan revealed that Ferguson was "too distraught" with referee Cuneyt's Cakir's performance to face the press in the immediate aftermath, despite his absence contravening Uefa rules.
The Red Devils also face sanctions over their failure to provide two players for press interviews after the game.
The current Premier League leaders could face further disciplinary action should veteran defender Rio Ferdinand's sarcastic applause of Cakir shortly after the final whistle be mentioned in the official's report. | http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2914/champions-league/2013/03/06/3803596/uefa-opens-disciplinary-proceedings-against-manchester?ICID=AR_AB_latest | 223 |
The much-coveted forward arrived in Sicily five years ago but he could easily have ended up in Turin or the Spanish capital, according to the Padova officialRino Foschi has revealed that Palermo fought off competition from Juventus and Real Madrid to sign Edinson Cavani from Danubio in 2007.
The Uruguay international joined the Rosanero in a deal worth 4 million euros before moving on to current club Napoli three seasons later, and he has since established himself as one of the most lethal strikers in Serie A.
Indeed, Cavani is now being linked with a summer switch to one of Europe's elite, with Juve said to be particularly keen, but Foschi has claimed that the Bianconeri's interest in the player is nothing new, explaining that Palermo pipped the Old Lady to the forward's signature five years ago.
“We were already well placed when Juventus made their move,” the Padova director stated in an interview with Tuttosport.
“Our biggest rivals for him were actually Fiorentina and [director of football] Pantaleo Corvino, who wanted to take him to the Viola.
“Real Madrid also tried to sign him. Fortunately, the player’s agent was serious [about our deal for Cavani] and kept his promise with us.”
Juve, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City are all said to be considering making a move for Cavani at the end of the current campaign. | http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/69/transfer-zone/2012/04/16/3041341/juventus-and-real-madrid-both-wanted-to-sign-cavani-from-danubio- | 317 |
Louisville vs. Syracuse :: Oct. 29, 2011 (AP Photos)
Louisville: Has developed into a solid tight end... took the move from wide receiver and made it a positive... showed good hands and ability to get into the end zone... proved to be a tough match-up for the opposition.
2010: Ended the season with 22 receptions for 317 yards and tied for the team lead with five touchdowns... averaged 14.4 yards a catch... caught three passes for 27 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown reception against Southern Mississippi in the Beef `O'Brady's Bowl... recorded two receptions for 19 yards in road win at Rutgers... had one catch, a two-yard touchdown reception to cap the Cards' 14-play, 80-yard drive in the second quarter of an overtime loss to USF... notched two catches for 50 yards, including a 21-yard touchdown that to help clinch the win over the Orange... registered two catches for 33 yards in the win over Connecticut... finished with two catches for 14 yards, including 11-yard touchdown reception versus Cincinnati... notched two catches for career best 67 yards and one touchdown, for career long 48 yards in a win over Memphis... had season-high four catches for career best 66 yards in the win at Arkansas State... caught two passes for 22 yards against Eastern Kentucky.
2009: Played in 11 games... production slipped to just 17 receptions for 202 yards and two scores, finishing fifth on the team... averaged 11.9 yards a reception... recorded three catches for 44 yards against Syracuse, including game-winning touchdown with one minute left in the game... had two catches, including a touchdown at Cincinnati... had three catches for 22 yards at Connecticut... finished with season-high three catches and 55 yards against Pittsburgh... had one catch for 12 yards against Kentucky... played but did not have a catch in the Cards' opener against Indiana State.
2008: Finished second on the team with 30 receptions for 341 yards and two scores... recorded a career-best 64 yards receiving on five catches and one TD against West Virginia... had three catches for 33 yards against UC... had career-high seven catches for 63 yards against UConn... scored first career TD (18 yds) against Kansas State.
Lakota West High School: Played for Larry Cox at Lakota West High School... three-year starter at wide receiver... ranked as the 36th-best wide receiver by Rivals.com... four-star prospect by Scout.com... ranked as the 14th-best wide receiver in the country by Scout... selected to the state of Ohio top 60 list by Rivals and was a preseason top 50 selection... ranked as the 17th-best recruit in the state of Ohio... the 36th-ranked multi-position recruit in the country... caught 36 passes for 723 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior... averaged 20.1 yards per catch... earned first-team Greater Miami Conference and second-team Southwest District honors as a senior... caught 27 passes for 603 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior... averaged 13.0 ppg as a junior on the hardwood.
Personal: Son of Stephanie Chichester and Joseph Lindsey... born 9/12/87... justice administration major. | http://www.gocards.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/chichester_josh00.html | 661 |
MISENHEIMER, N.C. – Using 36 points from the charity stripe with 23 of those coming in the final 2:43, Pfeiffer University rolled past Belmont Abbey College with a season-high 109 points during a 109-98 victory in Conference Carolinas men’s basketball on Saturday night. The Falcons advance to 10-9 overall, 4-5 in league play while the Crusaders dip to 12-7, 6-3.
Midway through the second half, both teams saw their fifth and final tie game of the night at 69 with 9:54 remaining. Starting with a Danny Smith (Baltimore, MD) layup, Pfeiffer would explode out on a 15-0 run to grab an 84-69 lead with 3:44 to play. Elijah Matthews (Clinton, MD) and KC Anuna (Nashville, TN) would drain back-to-back three’s in the spurt while a three-point play from Smith got it to a 15-point advantage.
A pair of Darryl Durham (Atlanta, GA) free throws and jumper by Terrone Sheffey (Dallas, NC) cut the lead back down to 11 with 3:17 left until Jay Council (Camden, SC) got it down to 10 after a quick Smith lay in. After Council’s three at the 2:43 mark, the Falcons would not need another field goal knocking down their 23 shots from the line.
Earlier in the contest, Belmont Abbey would take as much as a six-point lead with 14:26 to play in the first half after a triple from Sheffey. After a layup by Reggie Hollinger (Orlando, FL) put the Falcons up as much as seven, 42-35, with 2:39 to go, a pair of Tyshawn Good (Jamaica, NY) free throws and final three-pointer with four ticks left cut the Pfeiffer lead down to 48-47 at the break.
On the night, Pfeiffer shot 54% from the field and 45% from behind the arc connecting on 13 triples. Hollinger posted a team-high 27 followed closely by Smith’s 2. Anuna and Matthews each put up 20-point nights as Anuna finished at 22 while Matthews concluded with 20.
Belmont Abbey was led by a career-high 28 from Sheffey shooting 47% as a team. Good would finish with 20 on the night as the visitors put five in double-figures. The Crusaders would hit on 11 three’s at a 48% clip and 19-of-23 from the free throw line.
Pfeiffer gets back to action on Thursday hosting St. Andrews in an eastern division matchup at 7:30 p.m. Live stats and video will be available through http://www.gofalconsports.com. | http://www.gofalconsports.com/articlehome.asp?articleID=2664 | 605 |
Bond's Late Triple Gives Islanders 62-59 Victory
drained a three-pointer from the top of the key with 29 seconds left to break a 57-57 tie and lift the Texas A&M - Corpus Christi men's basketball team to a 62-59 win over Southeastern Louisiana (7-7, 1-1 Southland) on Saturday afternoon. Demond Watt had 13 points and 10 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season for the Islanders (6-11, 1-2).
After Bond's three, Southeastern got a layup from David Ndoumba with 10 seconds to play, but Hollis Hill, who played just 1.9 seconds in the game, hit both of his free throws with 8.1 seconds to play to make it 62-59. Brandon Fortenberry's desperation three from the left elbow fell short at the buzzer to give the Islanders their first conference win of the season.
Justin Reynolds had 11 rebounds and nine points, while Chris Mast added 10 points for his second straight game in double figures. Trent Hutchin led all scorers with 18 points in the loss, while Ndoumba added 15 points and eight boards.
The Islanders jumped out to a 4-0 early lead with Bond and Garland Judkins putting the home team on top. Southeastern then stormed back, taking a 5-4 lead, but Chris Mast and Judkins buried three pointers making the home team's advantage three at 10-7.
After several minutes of back-and-forth action, Justin Reynolds' jumper from the elbow put Texas A&M - Corpus Christi up 22-16. Antonio Topps continued the hot shooting, hitting a three in the corner to give the Islanders a 25-16 advantage, their largest lead of the half. Trent Hutchin helped the Lions claw back into the game with a long three pointer making the score 30-26 Islanders at half.
SLU came out of the half on a 5-0 run to take a one point lead before Watt converted a three-point play, giving the Islanders back the edge at 33-31. For the next four possessions the teams traded the lead or were tied. Terence Jones broke the deadlock at the 10:22 mark with a three, following a block on defense by Watt. After a three by the Lions tied the game back up, Watt pushed the home team back out in front by scoring the next five points for a 51-46 lead.
Chris Mast gave the Islanders their biggest of the second half, hitting two free throws, making the score 55-48 with 4:44 left. Southeastern, though, stepped up the defense to post a 9-2 run to tie the game at 57 with just over a minute left, with Fortenberry hitting the tying three pointer to set up Bond's heroics.
The Islanders outrebounded the Lions 31-23 in the game and shot 53.5 percent from the floor for the contest. The Lions went 8-for-16 from behind the three-point line.
Next up for the Islanders will be a road context Wednesday night at UT-Arlington at 7 p.m. | http://www.goislanders.com/sports/mbkb/2010-11/releases/205077775_1 | 653 |
Old Greenwood: New Nicklaus design proves player-friendly
TRUCKEE, Calif. -- When Caleb Greenwood, a crusty mountain man in his 80s, led hundreds of immigrants across the Truckee Route of the California Sierras back in the mid-1800s, few knew this rugged byway, the Emigrant Trail, would become vital in the history of California.
By 1915 Truckee was not only a center for the timber industry, but had also developed into a favorite for winter sports, featuring a huge ice palace for ice skating, a place for toboggan enthusiasts and for ski jumping. When the Winter Olympics were held at Squaw Valley in 1960, just 10 miles away, this scenic North Lake Tahoe area had arrived as a world-class sports haven.
Today, golf is getting a healthy dose of summer attention. Heralded Coyote Moon, a roller-coaster adventure of mountain golf, opened in 2000 and in September 2004 the same company, East West Partners, one of the visionaries behind Beaver Creek Resort in Colorado, and Tahoe Mountain Resorts, unveiled Old Greenwood, its upscale Jack Nicklaus signature design on pine forested, blue sagebrush land where that same Mr. Greenwood guided immigrants more than 150 years ago.
By 2006 they will have an 18-hole private course named Gray's Crossing, designed by Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy.
Old Greenwood, a hefty 7,518-yard, par 72, was christened on August 30 by the threesome of Nicklaus, Jack Nicklaus II and Jacobsen and the gallery was treated to booming drives in the thin air of 6,000 feet. But it was the younger Nicklaus who was said to have nailed one 400 yards on the par-4, 462-yard first hole, out driving his dad most of the day by 30 to 40 yards.
Claude Close of Truckee witnessed the opening day festivities and heard comments about the maturity of the golf course. "Right out of the box people were asking me old the golf course was. They laid down sod on every inch and it shows maturity beyond its youth.
"One of the first things I noticed were greens that have oblique slants," Close continued. "Most golf courses have greens that slope from back to front, but some of these tilt right to left or left to right. Also you will see plenty of water out there, especially on the par 5s, so you have to think about placement. And when the North California Golf Association came out they commented that some of the bunkers, like at the ninth, were flat out coffins, 10 feet deep."
Old Greenwood certainly has enough bite to test anyone, but it is as player-friendly as any Nicklaus design you have ever played -- a comment seldom heard about any of his earlier designs. Spacious fairways, a Nicklaus trademark, are abundant and if your game is on, you can avoid the deep sand traps.
And Mr. Nicklaus used the award-winning formula of lead designer Jim Lipe and Chris Rule to oversee construction even though the 64-year-old Nicklaus made six site visits to the scenic property that's only about 20 miles from his Montreux Golf & Country Club, near Reno, and host of the Reno-Tahoe Open.
On opening day Mr. Nicklaus proved he can play despite his lack of tournament action in 2004. On the 12th, a 551-yard par 5, he nailed a 240-yard four wood to within inches and secured an eagle on his way to a one-over 73.
Manmade water grabs your attention first on No. 6, the 578-yard par 5, that doglegs left. A hollow defines a narrowing fairway about 140 yards from the green and the right is heavily guarded by Ponderosa and Jeffrey pines. Long knockers will go for the green in two, cutting over the pond.
No. 7 is a version of the famous Redan hole from North Berwick. It's 187 yards with a pond left and bunker in front. Redan comes from the 18th century, a French fortification guarded on three sides. This hole has a hill right and bunker front right.
The 17th is a 230-yard par 3 that hangs on the ledge of a cliff with a clear view of North Star ski area. A massive bunker looms behind the putting surface and one front and right. Any wild shots right are gone down a sage-infested sharp slope.
The final hole is scenic, with the clubhouse framed down a tunnel of pines. It's long too -- 451 yards uphill, leaving the novice with a second shot that must be towering and strong to avoid the deep-set sand traps that surround a two-tiered elevated green.
This is upscale golf and surely a haven for second-home owners and retirees who have the money to live in an area known for winter sports as well as summer fishing and hiking. There are home-sites being offered along with resort cabins and a variety of shared-ownership town homes and members will also have access to Jacobsen's Gray's Crossing when it is finished in 2006. The public can also play for $160 when the course reopens next spring. Access is a snap. It's just off I-80, but buffers were built into the design to shield golfers from the interstate noise.
A Golf Digest Academy will be open in the spring complete with practice holes on this spacious 900 acres. There's state-of-the-art tennis and fitness areas, a swimming complex, and conference facilities. Audubon International certification is being sought.
Jacobsen serves as the director of golf for the newly formed Tahoe Mountain Club. The management group oversees East-West's three championship courses in Truckee: the existing Coyote Moon, Old Greenwood, and the private, proposed Gray's Crossing.
Stay and play
Holiday Inn Express
10527 Coldstream Road
Truckee, CA 96161
The Holiday Inn Express is a convenient night's stop to check out Old Greenwood and play Coyote Moon. Reno is only 35 miles away on I-80 and North Lake Tahoe is 14 miles south. Internet access is free in the lobby and a complimentary continental breakfast is served every day.
Truckee is surrounded by wilderness, a place where logging became the key industry for over a century. With the railroad complete, Truckee was located on a major east-west migration route, and in the late 1800s the town gained a reputation as a wild Old West town, with plenty of saloons, a flamboyant red-light district, and a booming timber business. Today, the downtown area has been preserved and is loaded with restaurants and shops. Be sure to investigate the famous story of the Donner Party at the town's visitors center.
Moody's Bistro & Lounge
10007 Bridge Street
Truckee, CA 96161
Enjoy jazz at this favorite local hangout and dine on the Trilogy Crusted Ahi Tuna & Sugar Cane skewered Prawns.
November 6, 2004 | http://www.golfcalifornia.com/departments/coursereviews/old-greenwood-golf-846.htm | 1,475 |
Tiger gets free drop after fan picks up ball
- By Bailey Mosier
- May 4, 2012 12:37 PM ET
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – It wasn’t Tiger Woods’ first miss this week at Quail Hollow, but it was the first miss that couldn’t be recovered.
Woods hit his approach shot left at the par-5 fifth into a sea of fans, but when the crowd parted, no golf ball could be found.
“Nobody saw it but there were a lot of people around,” PGA Tour vice president for rules and competition Mark Russell said. “People said they saw the ball bounce and go in that area and when people got around it, then it was gone.”
Russell made the ruling based on the account of one “older gentleman,” specifically, who said he saw the ball land and bounce. Russell later asked the entire gallery if anyone else had information about what happened.
“I asked the crowd several times. I had one gentleman who was adamant about what he saw and then I had a couple other people tell me, ‘yes, I saw the ball bounce.’”
Nobody could confirm that the ball was ever actually picked up by anyone, but Russell was confident in his decision based on the eyewitness accounts.
“If it would have been bushes or deep pine straw, it would have been a totally different situation. But it was basically bare ground,” Russell said.
Had it been deemed a lost ball, Woods would have had to take a one-stroke penalty and go back to the tee.
But based on all the pieces of the puzzle, Russell was confident in his ruling.
“Think about me telling him he’s got to go back based on that evidence. Then it would be the other way around, you guys would be telling me ‘You lost your mind? The ball couldn’t have been lost over there.’”
One gentleman stepped forward with a conflicting account after the ruling, saying that he never saw the ball drop from the trees. At that point, the ruling had been made and there was no going back.
After all the drama, Tiger managed only a par and another missed birdie opportunity. His 1-over 73 Friday put him at even par for two rounds. The projected cut halfway through the day Friday is 1 under.
- LIVE STREAM: Watch Bradley at Byron Nelson
- SCORING: Nelson Day 3 | Volvo: G-Mac in semis
- Venturi dies at 82 | Twitter reaction | Photos
- Palmer, Nicklaus release statements on Venturi
- Bradley keeps Nelson lead | Rd. 2 at a glance
- Korda leads Mobile Bay through 36 | Scores
- McIlroy leaves agent, forms firm | Timeline
- Only one Irish team to compete at World Cup
- Howell hoping for U.S. Open berth via OWGR
- USGA to announce anchoring news Tuesday
- Video: Man drains amazing office putt down stairs
- Open qualifying: Men's local | Women's sectional
- Instruction: Improve your thought process | http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golftalkcentral/tiger-gets-free-drop-after-fan-picks-up-ball/?cid=twitter_A_gc_TIGERFREEDROP_050412 | 662 |
Photo - Asian Tour
THONGCHAI READY TO TRIUMPH AT BLACK MOUNTAIN MASTERS
Hua Hin, Thailand: Thai hero Thongchai Jaidee has committed to the US$600,000 Black Mountain Masters next month with every intention of ending his season on a winning note.
The decorated Thai, a three-time Asian Tour number one, will join defending champion Johan Edfors of Sweden, England’s Simon Khan and Finland’s Mikko Ilonen at the Black Mountain Golf Club from December 16-19 in what is to be the Asian Tour’s season finale.
A gathering of Asia’s top stars will also help ensure a climatic finish to the 2010 season.
“I’m looking forward to the Black Mountain Masters. I will have a break before going to Hua Hin for my last tournament of the year,” said Thongchai, who finished tied eighth at the Dubai World Championship on Sunday.
“The Black Mountain Masters is a great tournament and I’m looking forward to a good week. We’ll have a strong field in Hua Hin which will make it very exciting.”
In last year’s inaugural Black Mountain Masters, the 41-year-old Thongchai finished tied fifth in front of his home fans. As he is still winless this year, the Thai ace is determined to end his 2010 campaign in style.
“I’m happy with my season. I’ve played some good golf. I’ve not won this year but I’ll keep trying, maybe at the Black Mountain Masters. I’ll be trying my best there for sure,” said Thongchai, who is a 12-time winner in Asia.
“I had some trouble with my putting all year. As I was playing in America, Europe and Asia, I putted on all types of greens and it affected my putting stroke. I’ll be working hard on my putting ahead of the Black Mountain Masters.”
Thongchai reckons the award-winning golf course is the ideal venue to bring the curtains down on another highly successful season on the Asian Tour.
“It’s a good course. It feels like a holiday in some ways as we are in a resort town and I’ll bring my family with me and we’ll stay at the golf course,” said Thongchai.
“It’s a challenging layout. It’s very hilly and you need to know your distances well due to the elevation changes. There are many strong holes on the back nine which will make it interesting for the tournament.”
The full-field Black Mountain Masters will feature a minimum 132 players where the tournament winner will earn a two-year exemption on the Asian Tour, widely regarded now as the third largest Tour in the world behind the PGA Tour and European Tour.
The Black Mountain Masters has also been nominated as the flagship event of the Asian Tour this year which ensures greater world ranking points for the players.
Asian Tour GolfGreedy.com | http://www.golfgreedy.com/tourfeeds.asp?id=406 | 662 |
Help cheer on the Phoenix men's basketball team in their quest for a Horizon League Tournament Championship - ride the fan bus to Valparaiso!
For $55 (adults) or free for UW-Green Bay students, you can support Green Bay in the semifinal game on Saturday, March 9. The cost includes your game ticket.
The bus leaves the Kress Events Center at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 9, with tip off at 7:30 p.m. You will return to the Kress Events Center after the game.
To reserve your spot, please call the Athletics Department office at 920.465.2145 by Noon on Friday, March 8. Space is limited and the trip is subject to cancellation. | http://www.greenbayphoenix.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=22500&ATCLID=206626566 | 154 |
MIAMI - Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade kept his composure when Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo fouled him around the neck late in the fourth quarter Tuesday.
Referees issued Rondo a flagrant foul one after reviewing the play on video, and Wade had pointed words for Rondo's foul with 16.9 seconds remaining and the Heat up 118-107.
"It was a punk play by him," Wade said. "The league will take care of it. He clotheslined me â?? with two hands."
For a split second, it look like Wade wanted to react. But instead, he held the basketball in his hands and did nothing.
"We're in the NBA. I've got my kids watching. So I stopped," Wade said. "I'm here to play basketball. That's what we are, we're basketball players. If you want to do something else, go do something else, boxing and all those other things. Like I said, I was glad I was able to stop myself in that very moment and move on from it."
Copyright 2013 USATODAY.com
Read the original story: Dwyane Wade calls Rajon Rondo flagrant foul 'a punk play' | http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/usatoday/article/1670679&usatref=sportsmod?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7C%7Cp | 254 |
Sep 10 2012
England's second NatWest International Twenty20 against South Africa was abandoned after the weather allowed only one short, frantic session at Old Trafford.
England were 29 for two after 4.1 overs of their reply to South Africa's 77 for five in a match reduced to nine overs per side when steady rain began to fall.
A result would have been recorded had another five balls been bowled - and England would have won had they added another 13 - but South Africa will still lead the series 1-0 heading to the third match at Edgbaston.
The match had been delayed by two and a quarter hours by earlier rain but there was still a certain familiarity to South Africa's batting as Hashim Amla again dominated. The prolific batsman proved his mastery of English bowling covers all formats by cracking seven fours in an unbeaten 47 from 30 balls.
Amla opened the batting after a rethink during the delay to play. Jacques Kallis had initially accompanied Richard Levi to the crease for the scheduled start but it began to rain as Steven Finn prepared to bowl the first ball. Kallis was kept waiting as the game began at a frenetic pace with Finn having Levi caught behind by Craig Kieswetter down the legside off the first ball.
Amla took control by flashing hard and after the three-over powerplay South Africa had 32 runs on the board, but by then captain AB de Villiers had also gone, miscuing a pull to Jade Dernbach at mid-on off Finn.
As has been a recurring quirk this season, Finn dislodged a bail in his delivery stride but unlike previous occasions - and another moments later - dead ball was not called.
England started to slow the rate with the introduction of Graeme Swann in the fourth over. Albie Morkel was the next man out when he failed to clear Jonny Bairstow at cover off the bowling of the recalled Luke Wright.
Amla had a reprieve when he was badly dropped by Eoin Morgan off Swann but the bowler himself showed how it should be done by running back to catch JP Duminy one-handed next ball.
Kieswetter claimed his second catch to remove Justin Ontong off Dernbach before Kallis finally came to the crease at number seven. Kallis had a fortunate escape when one shot landed just short of Dernbach but was unbeaten on 13 at the end of the innings as rain started to fall again. | http://www.harrowobserver.co.uk/west-london-sport/world-uk-sport/2012/09/10/rain-the-winner-at-old-trafford-116451-31807844/ | 513 |
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