sport

1. new england patriots links 1/20/10 - coaching changes: more in store?

   
   
   how long will quarterbacks coach and de facto signal caller bill o'brien be with the patriots? view full size photo » andy hart speculates as to what other organizational shake-ups might be in store this offseason. obviously the most common scenario in new england is all about promoting from within. that leads everyone to believe that either matt patricia or pepper johnson could be promoted to defensive coordinator. my money is on patricia. but there is also a part of me – and this is pure speculation – that thinks we could see some more shakeup than that. unsubstantiated rumors have linked bill o'brien as possibly landing as the playcaller at syracuse with doug marrone, a guy he worked with at georgia tech. i hope this doesn't happen because i think the oft-criticized o'brien is a bright offensive mind and would like to see him get more time with tom brady and co. but i also wouldn't be surprised if pees isn't the only guy who's not back in new england next season. the next few weeks should shed some light, if there is any, in that area. albert breer reports tom brady will miss pro bowl with undisclosed injury. patriots qb tom brady will -- as expected -- pull out of the january 31 pro bowl, after dealing with injuries through the 2009 season.brady dealt with rib and finger injuries right up through the end of the year, and he didn't miss a snap, showing a pretty substantial deal of toughness to get through.he'll be replaced by matt schaub on the afc roster. right now, only logan mankins and vince wilfork will represent the patriots in miami. team talk ask pfw: moving on.  reader mailbag part i and part ii. the nfl announced the names of 53 players granted special eligibility for the 2010 draft. local links ian rapoport informs us that tom brady has pulled out of participating in the pro bowl with an undisclosed injury. his spot will be taken by houston's matt schaub. adam kilgore takes a look back at what has happened to the patriots defense when bill belichick changes coordinators. ian rapoport notes that for now, the patriots will hold on to floyd reese, a key member of their front office who missed out on winning the vacant seahawks gm job. ron borges thinks dean pees might find trouble in denver. he will take over a defense that improved 22 places in defensive ranking in one year under nolan. tough act to follow. albert breer hands out his own awards for the patriots and mike wright takes the most improved player honor after big fifth season. laura london links to a year by year history of bill belichick's draft picks. mike reiss looks at penn state's dl jared odrick as a possible patriots draft pick at number 22. jeff howe says statistics don't tell the whole story of tom brady's 2009 season, and looks at the good, the bad and the ugly. mike reiss notes that there were only a few players on the roster who avoided volatile ups and downs and cb leigh bodden was one of them. christopher price presents a snapshot of where the team stands at runningback: laurence maroney, fred taylor, sammy morris, kevin faulk, benjarvus green-ellis. mike reiss offers his 2009 positional review of the defensive line: ty warren, vince wilfork, jarvis green, mike wright, myron pryor, ron brace. mark farinella recalls robert kraft's press conference after firing pete carroll and sees the same declining trends in place now that led to the axe falling on carroll. mike reiss tackles a bagful of off-season topics in this week's reader mailbag. national news tedy bruschi (espnboston) bruschi thinks new england will choose an internal candidate to replace defensive coordinator dean pees. dan parr presents the pro football weekly and the professional football writers of america choices for the 2009 all-nfl team. wes welker is the only patriot selected. tim graham (espn) gailey brings discipline to laid-back bills. peter king (si) mmqb tuesday edition: four observations on bills hiring gailey as head coach. matt bowen (nat'l football post) why the bills should go after michael vick. michael lombardi (nat'l football post) diner morning news: bills take ‘raider-ish’ route. aaron wilson (nat'l football post) rex ryan almost pulls a namath, tells the n.y. daily news he would be "shocked" if the jets don't win and go to the super bowl. edward lee and kevin van valkenburg (baltimore sun) harbaugh admits flacco played hurt, despite being removed from the injury report.
   
   




2. today in sport ? as it happened | alan gardner and martin rose

   
   
   discuss the day's big issues, send us your favourite links, follow us on twitter and take a look at our 2010 sport calendar8.45am: good morning and welcome to our daily sports news blog. throughout the day we'll update this page with news, links and what's expected to happen in the hours ahead. time permitting, we'll try to wade in below the line, answering your questions and comments. ag9.15am: after coming off the bench to secure manchester united's third league cup in five years, wayne rooney has insisted that he doesn't mind the demands of being asked to win games for club and country:"i don't feel any pressure or burden really," he said. "to be honest i have probably had pressure since i was 16 so it is something you get used to and deal with in your own way."rooney is a doubt for england's friendly against egypt, however. perhaps a good excuse for him to have the week off? ag10.17am: england have just announced a provisional 30-man squad for the world twenty20 in the west indies next month. it includes five uncapped players - middlesex pace bowler steven finn, hampshire batsman michael lumb, yorkshire slow left-armer david wainwright and seamers peter trego (somerset) and chris woakes (warwickshire) - although the squad will be cut to 15 for the tournament which begins on april 30. mr10.35am: here is what we're expecting today:* an england press conference ahead of the egpyt game (1.30pm)* john toshack media day ahead of wales v sweden (1.30pm)* both ireland and brazil have pressers ahead of tomorrow's game* england have named their provisionalworld twenty20 squadmeanwhile on the site today we have:* kevin mitchell's boxing blog* columns on serie a, la liga and the bundesliga* barney ronay on what we learned from the weekend* and our football weekly podcast will be live by 5pmsi12.15pm: sid lowe's la liga blog is just making its way through the system, and the podsters have gone off to record (expect football weekly later this afternoon) ... but while you await those delights, some england (rugby and cricket) news: firstly, danny care has spoken about the disappointment of losing to ireland in the six nations, and called on his team-mates to "come back firing" for the scotland game on 13 march.in bangladesh, meanwhile, stand-in england captain, alastair cook, has thanked his lucky stars for paul collingwood:"he's our most senior player and he showed his class again in the way he saw us home from what was a potentially very tricky situation ... he took the right options again and again and has been doing that for the past 18 months or two years. it's very reassuring having him come in at no4, knowing what he can do."for england fans, is there a more soothing sight than colly out in the middle these days? ag1.10pm: the start of the third edition of the ipl is now just under two weeks away but how much you hear about it is still very much in the balance. the news media coalition has today said international agencies, such as reuters and associated press, will not cover the event unless planned restrictions are relaxed:"without changes international news agencies are bound to consider not attending this year's event to provide editorial coverage ... as many publishers the world over rely upon news agencies for news material the stance taken by the ipl can only serve to limit news and free promotional value of their event and brand."indian news broadcasters have already decided to boycott the 2010 event; and there have been similar disputes in each of the previous editions of the tournament. are you interested in following the ipl? and are lalit modi and co damaging their 'brand' by trying to control reporting so tightly?in other, lighter, ipl news, the mcc's pink ball is to be trialled by three of the league's franchises during net sessions. ag2.25pm: blogs dept. sid lowe looks at atlйtico's weekend win over valencia in his la liga round-up; and barney ronay critiques arsenal's treatment, craig bellamy and a low ebb for bbc punditry in five things we learned from the premier league.news dept. victor cattermole is still hoping to buy pompey; gary neville has said that england and united can't afford to lose wayne rooney; stoke's glenn whelan has spoken about trying to comfort aaron ramsey on the britannia pitch; and zinedine zidane has claimed he 'would rather die' than apologise for his headbutt on marco materazzi in the 2006 world cup final. phew. ag2.55pm speaking at an england press conference, wayne rooney said that he hopes to be fit to play against egypt in midweek. he also offered his opinion on the terry-bridge business, describing terry as a "great player" and adding:"there's been no difference in the team since the squad met up last night. since we've been here we've had no meetings ? it's been the same as a usual england squad."ag3.36pm: rooney shouldn't have any distractions in south africa this summer after revealing that his wife, coleen, will be staying at home. "last time we were all together in the hotel and that was a bit of a problem. my wife's just had a baby so she's not going anyway," said the manchester united forward. mr4.32pm: a couple of european blogs for you if you haven't discovered them already: there's paolo bandini on whether palermo keeper salvatore sirigu could be the heir to gianluigi buffon and raphael honigstein on how bayern have filled their rivals with a dreadful sense of deja vu.5:45pm: that's it blog-wise for the day, but we'll leave you with today's offering of the fiver and football weekly, with that shawcross tackle featuring heavily in both. thanks for your comments and see you again tomorrow.alan gardnermartin roseguardian.co.uk © guardian news & media limited 2010 | use of this content is subject to our terms & conditions | more feeds
   
   




3. to play's the thing ? the enthusiasm that makes sachin tendulkar great | dileep premachandran

   
   
   india's star batsman is as happy piling up runs in cuttack as scoring a century at lord'sone of the advantages of having a partner who isn't especially interested in sport comes in the form of observations that are stripped bare of the fake patinas that we aficionados love to add on. soon after sachin tendulkar's unbeaten 96 had guided india to the easiest of victories in cuttack, i was thinking out loud: "how does he still motivate himself to go to such venues and score runs?" she looked perplexed for a moment. "don't people go to watch the games there?" she asked. "do they pay less money to get in?"touchй. when you follow a sport like cricket, steeped in tradition, it's easy to succumb to what i call the houses-of-the-holy syndrome. when a batsman makes a century or a bowler bowls a game-changing spell at a venue like lord's, the mcg, eden gardens, the wanderers or the kensington oval, there's a tendency to imbue it with mythical qualities. a hundred made at the barabati stadium or the arbab niaz in peshawar isn't viewed in quite the same rose-tinted way.tendulkar, though, scoffs at this particular form of snobbery. for years now, he has been a disciple of the first commandment that the great bill shankly preached; that it's "their [the players'] privilege to play for you [the fans]". unlike the big-time charlies who came to english football and became mice among men during trips to the wintry wastes of wearside and north lancashire, he has made it his business to score runs wherever he goes.his 45 one-day hundreds have been distributed across 31 different venues, with colombo's premadasa stadium having been witness to four, including his first way back in 1994. the 43 test centuries have been spread across 30 venues. apart from the absence of a test hundred in zimbabwe and a limited-overs one in the caribbean, there are no gaps in the rйsumй.in 2009, despite india's threadbare test schedule and being absent from a few one-day games, he has already amassed 1,505 runs, 964 of them in coloured clothes. each of the three one-day centuries has been memorable. the 163 not out in christchurch lit the touchpaper for a tour of new zealand from which india returned triumphant in both forms of the game. in colombo in september, he scored 138 from 133 balls to win a tri-nation tournament. and at hyderabad two months later, he produced one of his greatest-ever innings (175 from 141 balls) against the side that he has always saved his best for, australia. unfortunately for him, the rest of the team chose that day to emulate some of their spineless predecessors, falling down in an ugly heap around him.there were some murmurs of dissent from fans the other night, with poor dinesh karthik being skewered for not being more scoreboard-conscious. but the old-timers in cuttack had already seen him make a hundred, more than a decade ago, in an era when the old firm of tendulkar and kambli was expected to lead india to world cup glory.tendulkar himself won't lose sleep over a landmark missed. he has more important things on his mind, like another world cup on the subcontinent. he was just starting to obliterate school records when graeme gooch swept india out in the semi-final of 1987, and nine years later, his magnificent riposte after aravinda de silva's minor masterpiece on a minefield of a pitch was largely forgotten because of the collapse and rioting that followed.perhaps no other cricketer has been so conscious of the legacy that he leaves behind. having saved a test match at old trafford as a 17-year-old, he then had to endure a decade of veiled insinuations that his batting wasn't really up to snuff in moments of crisis. despite averaging 10 runs more in the fourth innings of matches than steve waugh ? did anyone ever call him a choker? ? tendulkar's fallibility was constantly highlighted, with the epic 136 at chennai in 1999 (india fell 12 runs short) the main exhibit.it was perhaps poetic justice then that he returned to the same ground to draw a line under such loose talk. at chennai last december india needed 387 to beat england over the final four sessions. no team had ever chased down even 300 on indian pitches, and 246 were still needed when he came to the crease on the final morning. he walked off 317 minutes later with an unconquered 103, as india romped home with more than an hour to spare.another box had been ticked in australia earlier that year, with a century and 91 ensuring that india were the last team to win the tri-series that was once such an integral part of the australian sporting summer. but the last page still needs to be written, and that can only happen on home turf at the wankhede stadium on 2 april 2011.when someone suggested a few years ago that tom moody wasn't a big enough name to coach india, a friend of mine said: "he still has two world cup winners' medals that tendulkar doesn't have." the man himself is acutely aware of that, and if india can solve their new-ball woes over the next 12 months, the cinderella ending is still very much possible.so what is it that has kept him going this long? a few years ago, when talking about his first matches in the india cap, he told me: "to be honest, i remember little of my first tour of pakistan. i was just so excited to be part of the indian team. i just wanted to go out and play as much as possible." when i suggested that not much had changed, he just smiled.that boundless enthusiasm, rather than the mountains of runs and all those centuries, is at the heart of his greatness. instead of focusing too much on that pristine back-foot punch through the covers, it's the attitude that every young player should emulate. cuttack or lord's, those that pay to watch deserve only the best.sachin tendulkarindia cricket teamcricketdileep premachandranguardian.co.uk © guardian news & media limited 2009 | use of this content is subject to our terms & conditions | more feeds
   
   




4. vince wilfork's future with the patriots...or not

   
   
   more photos » gretchen ertl - ap browse more photos » by now, everyone knows that nose tackle vince wilfork has had a non-exclusive franchise tag slapped on him.  and, if you're not aware, the franchise tag is a way for a team to "hang on" to a player, a designation given to someone who is about to become an unrestricted free agent.  from wikipedia.org: a non-exclusive franchise player may negotiate with other nfl teams, but if he signs an offer sheet from another team, the original team has a right to match the terms of that offer, or if it does not match the offer and thus loses the player, is entitled to receive two first-round draft picks as compensation. wilfork is entitled to the average of the top 5 player's salaries at his position, a cool $7.003 million.  that's a steal.  now before you climb all over me with the "i'm out here working for a living and you're telling me 7 mill ain't enough..." (i work for a living, too), this is football.  vince has said he doesn't want albert haynesworth money.  albert signed a 7 year deal with the redskins and, if you use the low figure of 4 years and $48 million outlined in the linked article, albert is still at $12 million per year, 71% higher than vince's franchise amount. franchising is usually bad for a player and in this case, it's bad for wilfork because he doesn't get to explore the free agent market and find out what he's really worth.  given he's at the prime of his career, is healthy, and is a premier talent (many teams are exploring the 3-4 alignment), the big man, may have garnered in the double digits for a yearly salary. my sense is it's about the length of the contract more than the money.  oh, don't get me wrong - money is important.  but players at this stage of their career (successful first contract stint), want to capitalize on their success and guarantee longevity as they "slide" into the second half of their career.  who can blame them?  this sport chews them up and spits them out.  why not get what you can? the thought of vince not wearing a flying elvis is sickening to this patriots fan.  but it's a possibility.  there are teams that may be willing to part with 2 first round draft picks if the patriots decide not to match the other team's offer.  is vince worth 2 first rounders?  it depends on how much said team is looking for a 3-4 nose tackle of vince's caliber. if the above becomes reality, that vince ends up on another team, who can step up?  well, 2 names come to mind: ron brace and myron pryor.  second rounder brace was supposed to be the heir apparent, the shot across the bow in negotiations with vince.  surprisingly, sixth rounder pryor became the man to fill the middle when wilfork was out for a few games.  am i comfortable with second year man myron or ron filling vince's shoes?  i'd rather have wilfork, but those two guys, pryor in particular, proved they could handle the job when called upon to do so. like i've said for most of this season, sign the man.  guarantee him $28 million with the possibility to earn $10 million per year for 4 years and see if he bites.  i think that's reasonable.  the guaranteed money divided by 4 years is basically his franchise amount and he can make $40 million in 4 years with whatever incentives the patriots decide to throw in.  sound ok?
   
   




5. bianca wilfork tweets about patriots and vince

   
   
   gotta love twitter.  in an interesting move, vince's wife bianca tweeted under the name mrs75 about hubby's franchise tag: only time will tell what the final result will be. about 2 hours ago from txt for the purpose of alotting more time for us to continue our talks and be able to reach along term agreement. about 2 hours ago from txt with that being said it is my hope that the tag is applied for its true purpose about 2 hours ago from txt the franchise tag has been applied. after six years of dedicated service i do understand this is a business about 2 hours ago from txt as patriotguy2 alluded to in his comments, let's hope it's for all the right reasons.
   
   




6. friday's live sport

   
   
   it's a busy friday of sport with rugby dominating as the six nations resumes, while domestic soccer and racing are also on the menu, together with previews of the weekend gaa and english soccer action.
   
   




7. competition: win a pair of vip tickets for question of sport live

   
   
   we have a huge treat for all you question of sport fans! the popular bbc quiz is hitting the road later this year for the first time ever - and you can meet the captains.
   
   




8. racing's quiz of the year

   
   
   your chance to show off your knowledge of horse racing and win a Ј50 bet with totesportwelcome to our racing-related quiz of the year, the first time we've ever done something like this. who knows what the response will be? if i have to answer all the questions myself, it may well be the last one as well.starting at 1pm, i'm going to add questions to this page in blocks of five. there will be a total of 50 questions and i'll post another batch of five every five minutes or so, so you'll have to keep refreshing your page.if you think you know the answer to a question, post your answer as a comment below, clearly stating the number of the question you're answering and doing your best to spell the answer correctly (i may allow some latitude). so, for example, if the first question was "which sport is currently spending hundreds of thousands of pounds on marketing itself, but has not yet been able to post a video of denman winning the gold cup online?", you would answer:"1. horse racing"the first person to correctly post the answer to a question gets a point. at the end of the quiz, whoever has most points will win a Ј50 bet from totesport and i will email that person to sort out their prize today.the quiz will end when all of the questions have been answered correctly, or at 4pm, whichever comes first. if there's a tie for first place, i'll post a tie-breaking question at 5pm and the first person, from among those that have tied for first place, to post the correct answer will be the winner. if none of you post the correct answer by midnight, i'll probably go home and totesport can keep their prize.if any one person posts multiple answers to the same question, i will only accept their first answer. all questions relate to events in 2009 unless otherwise stated.in the event of any dispute, my decision is final on everything, so don't be starting any aggro. otherwise, usual guardian competition rules apply and i don't expect to see any of m'colleagues on here.i hope you enjoy this wee test of your racing knowledge, though i admit that it's also a test of your internet connection speed.the first set of questions will appear here at 1pm. good luck!questionsthe cheltenham festival 1 tony mccoy produced one of the great rides to drive wichita lineman to victory in the william hill trophy. name the runner-up who was caught in the final strides. 2 which jockey won both the champion hurdle and the arkle on day one? 3 which 10-year-old chased home master minded in the champion chase? 4 which trainer enjoyed a 1-2 in the festival plate with something wells and ping pong sivola? 5 paul nicholls trained four of the first five home in the gold cup. name the only one of the five that he didn't train.royal ascot 6 which jockey rode a treble on the opening day, including victory in the opening queen anne stakes? 7 name the american trainer who flew over with a handful of two-year-olds on a speculative visit and won two races at royal ascot. 8 how many times has yeats won the gold cup? 9 which filly broke the course record in the coronation stakes? 10 which 12-year-old won the final race at royal ascot?which horse started favourite for this year's . . . 11 champion hurdle? 12 grand national? 13 2,000 guineas? 14 derby? 15 st leger?jockeys 16 ryan moore was champion flat jockey this year and richard hughes was second. who was third in the jockeys' championship table? (based on winners betweeen 28 march and 7 november) 17 which female jockey finished highest in the flat jockey's championship table? 18 tony mccoy leads the jump jockeys' table and richard johnson is second. who is currently third? 19 which jump jockey was third in the championship table at the end of last season? 20 which jockey rode most winners on the flat in ireland this year?trainers 21 which top-ten jumps trainer has been sending out winners at a strike-rate of 35% since the end of a three-month ban? 22 which jumps trainer has broken into the top ten this season, having decided as recently as last year to devote his attention to training full-time? 23 which trainer, trundling along on an unusually low strike-rate this jumps season, recently said that blood tests of his horses showed raised levels of a muscle enzyme likely to cause fatigue? 24 which trainer had the ante-post favourites for both the derby and the 2,000 guineas in his yard in april but was unable to get a win out of either horse from may onwards? 25 marcus tregoning had one in his kitchen in march, while richard hannon had one in his bedroom in june. what?owners 26 accepting an award in may, which jumps owner said: "i think we're the manchester united compared to the relegated southampton of flat racing"? 27 which owner sent his filly, a seven-length winner of the nell gwyn, to contest the french guineas rather than the one in newmarket, for which he already had the favourite? 28 the ownership syndicate 'men in our position' are in the top 15 in the owners' table this jumps season, thanks to which horse? 29 which owner fainted as his horse won a group one in july? 30 jesse james, prizefighting, militarist and green beret all went into battle carrying the colours of which owner?horses 31 which horse remains a general 10-1 shot for next year's 2,000 guineas, despite having been third at 4-9 on his only outing in the past five months? 32 which horse gave irish trainer dessie hughes a second consecutive victory in the becher chase? 33 the fifth horse home in the grand national was a 100-1 shot who finished the race with a fractured skull. name him. 34 fans of sea the stars say he has nothing left to prove. how many races did he run in 2009? 35 which horse won the stewards' cup after finishing last in the wokingham?by my reckoning, no one has yet given a correct answer to questions 16 & 17.who said it? 36 "you can't buy the talent i've got. there are probably other jockeys with better brains, but i have a talent to get horses to do things that they don't want to do." 37 "i know now that i have to be stronger if i am to get away from the circle of people that bring you down, and move on. i don't know how many years i have left but i'll be working hard to do things right." 38 "newmarket can make or break a jockey. i thought long and hard about moving there, but the simple reason i didn't is i didn't want to end up down the road drinking in pubs." 39 ''in the next 100 years, no-one will ever own this many horses and have as little money as i do. no-one else will be brave enough to do it." 40 ''hopefully, sir alex ferguson can set me up with one of his nice players after that!"who am i? 41 a 25-year-old jump jockey with multiple grade one wins to my name, i signed up to be first jockey to a gloucestershire stable in the spring. i hoped it would be a step forward but my strike-rate so far this season has been half of what it was for the previous three seasons. i've had just two winners from 27 rides this month and i'm outside the top 25 in the jockeys' table, having made the top 10 for the past three seasons. 42 a trainer who has won at the cheltenham festival, i was fined Ј9,500 in january by the british horseracing authority for conduct they branded "despicable" after they ruled that one of my horses was a non-trier. i responded by accusing the disciplinary panel of "getting personal" and of having "another agenda". 43 a seven-year-old gelding, i was stuffed when sent off favourite at the cheltenham festival but had a better second-half to the year when switched to the flat. i've been beaten less than a length in group ones on my last two starts, picking up Ј180,000 in prize money. 44 i thought i was going to ride my first group one winner at epsom in june, only to be narrowly beaten after suffering interference from the winner. but the winning jockey was suspended, allowing me to step in for one of his rides at royal ascot and get my first top-class victory. by the end of the year, i'd racked up five group ones. 45 a 23-year-old jump jockey, i enjoyed a first taste of the big time with a high-profile success in a tv race ? only to have the state of my teeth ridiculed by the presenter. i had the last laugh when dentists started falling over themselves to offer me free treatment.final furlong 46 whose grand national form figures now read: fpffu33pfc30f7 47 which rider failed a pre-race breath test for alcohol in ireland for the second time in his career? (in ireland, no other jockey has failed such a test even once) 48 denman is part-owned by paul barber and harry findlay. he carries barber's green silks one season and findlay's purple silks the next. whose colours is he carrying this season? 49 "he's so small you can hardly see him!" which jockey was reported to have referred to the trainer andre fabre in such slighting terms? 50 kieren fallon returned to action on british racecourses in september. in which year had he last taken part in races in britain?that's all folks. still waiting on correct answers to 16, 17, 30, 38, 42 and 44, as well as the last five.2pm updatei'm still waiting on correct answers to 38 and 42. someone has given the correct answer to 42 but appears to have numbered their answer incorrectly, so i can't accept it.2.15pm just one answer left!hi gashead. yes, i feel for smidster, but i did specify that each answer had to be matched with the question number and i aint bending on that - though i've allowed a lot of latitude re spelling.i still don't have a correct answer for 38. answers plus scores as soon as i have that, or at 4pm, whichever comes first.2.47pm congratulations to smidster!smidster has won our inaugural quiz of the year. ten of you managed to get on the scoresheet:smidster 11imperialcall 9johnny909 6milliej 6rivercity 6millreef 5gashead1105 3smokincrooky 2demdempster 1drkelso 1smidster missed out on the ferdy murphy question by labelling it with the wrong question number, though he also benefited when rivercity did the same thing over caracciola. smidster also failed to label his answer to 11 with the question number, but he made it clear enough that that was the question he was answering, so i've accepted it.thanks to all who had a go for making that so very enjoyable. the answers are below.talking horses will be here, live, every day except christmas eve and christmas day, so i hope you'll join us. our regular tipping competition will restart on 4 january, when i will try to rustle up another free bet as the prize.a merry christmas to all and to all a good night.answerscheltenham 1 maljimar2 barry geraghty3 well chief4 venetia williams5 exotic dancer royal ascot 6 richard hughes7 wesley ward8 four9 ghanaati10 caracciola favourites 11 binocular12 butler's cabin13 delegator14 fame and glory15 kite wood jockeys 16 frankie dettori17 cathy gannon18 jason maguire19 robert thornton20 johnny murtagh trainers 21 nicky henderson22 tim vaughan23 alan king24 brian meehan25 a fire owners 26 andy stewart27 george strawbridge28 zaynar29 christopher tsui30 princess haya of jordan horses 31 canford cliffs32 vic venturi33 cerium34 six35 genki who said it? 36 jamie spencer37 kieren fallon38 robert winston39 harry findlay40 hayley turner who am i? 41 sam thomas42 ferdy murphy43 kasbah bliss44 tom queally45 liam treadwell final furlong 46 tony mccoy47 paul carberry48 paul barber's49 christophe soumillon50 2006horse racingchris cookguardian.co.uk © guardian news & media limited 2009 | use of this content is subject to our terms & conditions | more feeds
   
   




9. hints of a new order in the world?s favorite sport

   
   
   the success of south korea and the u.s. in the 2002 world cup opened eyes and gave hints of where the power might reside in soccer?s future.
   
   




10. soccer: world cup moments: hints of a new order in the world?s favorite sport

    
    
    the celtics' top scorer, paul pierce, had fluid drained from his right knee wednesday and and is expected to miss two weeks.
    
    




11. michael schumacher: die persцnlichen grenzen testen

    
    
    ein vertrag sporthistorischen ausmaЯes: michael schumacher kehrt zu mercedes und in die formel 1 zurьck, fьr drei jahre. am 14. mдrz 2010 ist die rennpremiere im silberpfeil. das ziel ist der oberste platz auf dem siegerpodest. kein zweifel: diese fahrer-team-kombination hat es in sich. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




12. cristiano ronaldo smites villarreal to become the new god of madrid | sid lowe

    
    
    if kakб belongs to jesus, you could be forgiven for believing that the rest of real madrid's players now belong to ronaldogod moves in mysterious ways. theatrically, dramatically. beautifully, brutally. head held high, neck extended, shoulders back, spine straight, lips pursed. chest heaving. up, pause for effect, down again, air escaping his lungs, blowing sailboats to shore. a prelude, a performance, pulling the world towards him before striking with great vengeance and furious anger. the hush became awe. wonder. let there be light, preferably a spotlight ? and, lo, there was light! a flash and a thunderbolt scorched across the sky, ripping past diego lуpez. if guti boasted the "heel of god" as real madrid finally won at riazor three weeks ago, cristiano ronaldo boasted his destructive power as they defeated villarreal last night.the word of god is the word down madrid's way. iker casillas has long been saint iker, "a fallen angel" with the hands of god. as one column-writing loon put it: "the day he came to earth, light shone upon his house like at the gate of bethlehem when christ was born." when david beckham joined madrid a particularly sycophantic suitor described him as "arriving barefoot, like christ". and from the day ronaldo took the same path, these most devout zealots have had him down as a candidate for beatification, his qualities exalted, his failings excused. meanwhile, across the spanish divide, sport declared that christ's address at the sea of galilee was, in fact, "a prophecy of leo messi". but this was something else. something bigger. this was deification.last night god himself appeared before the santiago bernabйu. shiny faced, oily-haired, pouting and dressed in a madrid shirt but god nonetheless. "yesterday," opens as's match report, "cristiano was not just cristiano but the whole of christianity." marca's cover, meanwhile, declared: "god came dressed as cr9".the heel of god? bah! the hands of god? so what?! ronaldo has his creation, his omnipotence, his omnipresence. the whole package. perfect teeth. nice smell. a class act all the way. today, ronaldo is god. not because, as in richard dawkins's famous description, he's the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it, petty, unjust, unforgiving, a malevolent bully, capricious and megalomaniacal. but because last night ronaldo was omnipresent and all-powerful, the creator supreme, an irresistible force as madrid hammered villarreal 6-2 to go back within two points of barcelona, climb above them in terms of goals scored and rack up a 12th win out of 12 at home.he was god because he "made" and scored the first, tumbling over and then belting in a free-kick so good, so quick, so vicious in its sudden dip, that one radio station began a search to find it a name to go with cruyff turns and panenka penalties. because he created the third for gonzalo higuaнn, racing down the right wing to slide a perfect first-time ball across. because he laid the fifth on a plate for kakб, wriggling through the challenges to leave the brazilian one-on-one with lуpez. and because he made the sixth for xabi alonso, cutting inside from the right and getting brought down for the penalty that he ? very, very reluctantly and not without storming off the pitch in a strop at the end ? let the former liverpool midfielder take to score his first goal for the club.as one editorial inevitably put it, madrid won and convinced ? they managed to "vencer" and "convencer", which is still the task before them. alonso played superbly, marcelo terrified villarreal every time he advanced and higuaнn got two more goals to give him 14, twice as many as karim benzema. but few noticed because last night was all about cristiano ronaldo; last night, he was everywhere and everything, dashing down the line, crashing to the turf, lashing at the ball, sprinting after lost causes, resuscitating moves, utterly engrossing, utterly all-encompassing. if kakб belongs to jesus, you could be forgiven for believing that the rest of the team belongs to ronaldo.while there have been signs of madrid being a more impressive side collectively without ronaldo; while there are times when his almost pathological desire to do it all is counter-productive; while every time madrid win marca says its down to him and nothing to do with manuel pellegrini but every time they lose it's not his fault and everything to do with pellegrini; while he missed his big chance against barcelona, something that royston drenthe was tried, convicted and sentenced for but for which ronaldo was quickly forgiven; and while he did little during wednesday night's defeat in lyon, when he's this good he is irresistible. a beast.last night madrid were given a slight helping hand by jelly-headed referee muсiz fernбndez ? the first came from a free-kick which wasn't, the penalties for the second and sixth look a little generous but probably correct, and there's a hint of offside in the third ? and villarreal's defending was appalling, their back four suicidally high and so slow they're still out on the bernabйu turf making tackles now. but still, ronaldo was absolutely unbelievable; a whirlwind awarded four marks by as. out of three. just before midnight in the cold concrete corridor of the stadium, a villarreal player shook his head sadly and blew out his cheeks. "when he's playing like this," he said. "ronaldo is completely unstoppable. truly incredible.""his performance can be summed up in just one word," insisted one tomбs guasch: "Ўolй!" raising his eyebrows, the villarreal goalkeeper lуpez used as many to describe the free-kick that set madrid on their way: "whoosh!" el paнs's headline simply called him a "colossus." most, though, were using rather more words. "one day, he'll win the ball, cross it in and head it home himself," claimed el mundo. "apart from the absurd paraphernalia that accompanies his free-kicks, he was impeccable. as well as shooting, taking the free-kicks, building the plays and giving passes, cristiano ronaldo is also the one that folds up the shirts, cleans the boots and cuts the grass. the only thing left for him to do is man the ticket office," wrote roberto palomar in marca, "ronaldo did everything. his activity was such that his team-mates just get in the way."it is an uncomfortable and potentially damaging truth but this morning no one cares. and why would they? ronaldo was, el mundo, wrote: "the orchestra man, capable of doing everything a player can do in attack." for those with long memories, the remark struck a chord. the internazionale and barcelona coach helenio herrera famously once said of madrid's greatest ever player: "if pelй was the lead violinist alfredo di stйfano was the entire orchestra." the implicit comparison was the greatest compliment they could have paid him. when it comes to real madrid, no one can compete with di stйfano. not even god.talking points? and so mallorca's home run comes to an end. ten straight wins later, in front of 11,000 fans, the big champions league-chasing clash went sevilla's way. jesъs navas was brilliant again as fourth placed sevilla beat fifth placed mallorca 3-1. perhaps it was inevitable, at least in part a quirk of the fixture list. after all, until this weekend mallorca had not played sevilla, valencia, atlйtico, barcelona or madrid at home. they need to hope this isn't the start of their home form deserting them because away from son moix they are rubbish ? just one win in 12. sevilla had didier zokora sent off for telling the linesman, in english, to fornicate with his mother.? normal service is resumed at atlйtico madrid. a week after beating barcelona they were defeated by almerнa, 1-0. a tad unlucky, mind you. but the copa del rey finalists (which says it all about the tournament this season), are still only seven points off the relegation zone. and 31 points off the top.? barcelona were 4-0 winners over racing santander, with thierry henry getting his first minutes in a month ? and scoring too, albeit with the help of a dreadful wall. racing were without gonzalo colsa, pedro munitis and muhammad tchitй, all of whom had sought out cards the previous week to serve their suspension at camp nou and have a clean slate for other games. in other words, they'd given up before kick-off (as so many teams sadly do, with or without players). some are talking about that adulterating the league, which of course it does.? not as much as those clauses that prevent loan players facing their former clubs do, though. racing's on-loan henrique played against loanees barcelona, while deportivo wouldn't let xerez play with either of theirs. xerez's brief revival appears stillborn. nйstor gorosito's hair is still magic, though.? pennant watch: came on after 68 minutes and again had a few good runs. but couldn't prevent his team losing 3-1 against sporting and remaining just one point off the relegation zone.results: deportivo 2-1 xerez, barcelona 4-0 racing, mallorca 1-3 sevilla, malaga 2-1 espanyol, athletic 4-1 tenerife, osasuna 1-1 valladolid, zaragoza 1-3 sporting, almerнa 1-0 atlйtico, madrid 6-2 villarreal. (valencia play getafe tonight.)latest la liga tablecristiano ronaldoreal madridla ligaeuropean footballsid loweguardian.co.uk © guardian news & media limited 2010 | use of this content is subject to our terms & conditions | more feeds
    
    




13. streusalz: botschafter aus duroplast

    
    
    vancouver ist eine schцne stadt. vancouver will auch eine exklusive stadt sein, inklusive designerkьche von pininfarina im haus und ferrari von pininfarina vorm haus. das aber lдsst die kanadier kalt. de rigeur sind deutsches essen und der trabant. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




14. davis cup: deutsches team auf verlorenem posten

    
    
    die deutschen herren verlieren in frankreich ihre davis-cup-partie. schon nach dem doppel steht es 0:3. die absagen von michael berrer und philipp petzschner bleiben ein thema im deutschen lager. im gegensatz zu den franzosen kцnnen sich die deutschen fьr den teamwettbewerb nicht begeistern. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




15. champions league: robbens traumtor rettet die zerzausten bayern

    
    
    nervenspiel in der toskana: im achtelfinal-rьckspiel der champions league verlor der fc bayern 2:3 in florenz. dank der auswдrtstor-regel setzten sich die mьnchner allerdings durch. van bommel und robben trafen aus der ferne mit rьckenwind. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




16. olympiawetter: ?weder hцlle noch regen werden uns hindern?

    
    
    das wetter denkt noch nicht olympisch: der januar war in british columbia der wдrmste seit menschengedenken. schnee war in cypress zur mangelware geworden. erst kurz vor dem start der wettbewerbe legte sich eine weiЯe decke ьber die pisten. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




17. hurra, sie leben noch?: vernichtende urteile ьber die bobbahn

    
    
    stьrze in der eisschlange von vancouver sind nicht zum lachen. gar weltmeister und olympiasieger sehen die gefahr, beim in der nacht auf sonntag beginnenden wettbewerb nicht auf kufen ins ziel zu kommen. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




18. im gesprдch: rennfahrer sebastian vettel: ?der erfolgreichste ist der glьcklichste?

    
    
    freundlich, frцhlich, friedlich: sebastian vettel scheint die verbissenheit von seriensiegern der formel 1 fremd. im faz.net-interview spricht der 21 jahre alte heppenheimer ьber seine besondere steuerkunst und das nцtige glьck. faz.net - homepage | politik | gesellschaft | wirtschaft | finanzmarkt | sport | feuilleton | reise | wissen | auto | computer
    
    




19. wettmanipulation im sport

    
    
    absichtlich verlorene fuЯballspiele, irregulдre elfmeter, abgesprochene tennis-matches. nicht nur unter experten gilt wettbetrug mittlerweile als grцЯere gefahr fьr die akzeptanz des sports als doping.
    
    




20. le sport de haut niveau admet enfin l'homosexualitй

    
    
    pour philippe bilger, le fait que qu'on puisse s'affirmer homosexuel dans les milieux qui encensent le plus la virilitй et la force est un signe des temps qui changent. et c'est heureux. il y a parfois des envies de billet comme un suspens, une halte entre deux intensitйs, entre des dйnonciations et des aigreurs. on est saisi а l?approche d?une nouvelle annйe par un dйsir de paix, une bontй qu ...
    
    




21. 3darts sport design

    
    
    
    
    




22. sports business: lots of memories, and debris, at old yankee stadium

    
    
    so much has been destroyed that it?s hard to feel even a tingle of fuzzy nostalgia for the house that ruth built and the city is razing.
    
    




23. tv sports: nbc poised to outperform ?06

    
    
    with much of the coverage live, at least in the eastern time zone, vancouver might be an easier winter games for nbc to cover than turin was four years ago.
    
    




24. all the nous of arsenal's sol campbell fails to keep his keeper calm | amy lawrence

    
    
    the veteran arsenal defender supplied order and a goal but it was not enough to overcome a calamitous goalkeeping displayfor sol campbell it was all about having the experience to pull his team-mates over the line. that was how that rugged old warrior martin keown had put it. ­campbell was back at arsenal to impart words of wisdom, instil an instinct for ­resilience and be a bit more ­bloody-minded in times of trouble.ever since the 2004 invincibles were disbanded, the tendency for mental frailty has lurked in arsиne wenger's team ? temperamentally they are like an english rose, pretty in fine weather but quick to wilt in a storm.they were on course for a spell of ­piteous navel gazing after the first of two calamitous errors from lukasz fabianski presented porto with the easiest of leads after 11 minutes. arsenal peered over the precipice.their response after conceding early goals in recent summit meetings with ­manchester united and chelsea did not augur well. now, in the champions league, would they cave in again or buck up to pull ­themselves back into contention?campbell delivered what appeared to be a resounding answer. he sauntered up for a set piece and thumped in a joyous header to secure an important away goal.that is two in two successive champions league games for the arsenal defender. the fact that they happen to be four years and a journey through several divisions apart is a story whose meaning perhaps only he can fully appreciate.it was all going so well. on top of the equaliser the 35-year-old tidied up with all the nous he had accrued over the years. and then the evening tilted, crushingly, all over again as fabianski imploded once more. the second half was trundling along harmlessly enough when campbell pushed a pass back to his keeper from close range. inexplicably fabianksi picked it up. the balloon of what passes for arsenal's defensive confidence deflated.concentration popped. self-pity ruled. campbell looked at the floor. fabianski did not know where to look. and porto looked at the referee, said obrigado and poked an absurd winner into the unguarded net.in the build-up to this game the word wenger chose to describe the prospects for fabianski was "outstanding". out of his depth and a standing target for criticism, the pole endured another catastrophic outing. porto had dug deep underground when building this sunken stadium, but not deep enough to include the trap door through which fabianski must have wanted to disappear.public humiliation is a terrible thing to bear. arsenal's second-choice goalkeeper, 24 and a full international, is of an age when he should be beyond such wobbles. sooner or later wenger has to take responsibility for the goalkeeping situation. both manuel almunia and fabianski have felt crushed by what is expected of them this season and this has manifested itself in mistake after mistake.despite the manager's reluctance to fix problems with fresh signings, this cannot go on. to have one dodgy keeper is unfortunate, to have two is careless.it is hard to envisage fabianski coping with another high-profile game in the near future. a blunder at stoke has already cost arsenal the fa cup, now his team-mates will have to ensure the champions league does not go the same way and a much more gutsy ­performance will be required in the return leg at emirates on 9 march.perhaps, when the emotions have settled slightly, campbell will have a word with him. he knows what it is like to feel overburdened with the pressure of ­top-level football, having himself ­succumbed when he abandoned a premier league game against west ham at half-time having struggled badly.when campbell last appeared in the champions league for arsenal, in the 2006 final against barcelona, he had more than a smattering of high-calibre experience in the team around him. there remained a strong spirit of the invincibles in the starting line-up: jens lehmann, ashley cole, gilberto silva, robert pires, freddie ljungberg and thierry henry.lining up in the estбdio do dragгo he looked behind him at a novice goalkeeper who reacts to big games with a fit of ­jitters. in front he saw a midfield which is very much a work in progress around cesc ­fбbregas, supporting a young striker who is yet to convince the rest of the world he is quite as good in reality as he is in his own imagination.that wenger did not enhance his squad in january, despite some blindingly obvious weak spots, has been a bone of contention for the paying public at the emirates. not that anyone would dispute campbell's value on a free midway through the oddest of seasons for him personally and it is perfectly possible that away goal of his could prove decisive when this tie is settled next month.a league two away-day at morecambe back in ­september was evidently not much fun for campbell but compared with a champions league night in front of the most neurotic goalkeeping imaginable, it must have been more comfortable.sol campbellarsenalarsиne wengerchampions leaguefc portoamy lawrenceguardian.co.uk © guardian news & media limited 2010 | use of this content is subject to our terms & conditions | more feeds
    
    




25. kapellen will prдsident des sportkreises bleiben

    
    
    rainer kapellen steht fьr eine weitere amtszeit als prдsident im sportkreis ravensburg zur verfьgung. der 46-jдhrige erste bьrgermeister aus weingarten wurde am 6. dezember in laupheim zum stadtoberhaupt gewдhlt. ?bereits im sommer habe ich erklдrt, dass mir die arbeit im sportkreis sehr viel spaЯ macht und ich mich fьr eine weitere amtszeit zur verfьgung stelle. daran hat sich auch mit der wahl ...
    
    




26. image fanshot

    
    
    
    
    




27. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




28. riedhausener sportheim erhдlt sein neues sich nach der sonne drehendes solardach

    
    
    es ist kreisrund, dreht sich nach der sonne und erzeugt strom. was ist das? trotz seines futuristischen aussehens, hat dies rein gar nichts mit ?science fiction? zu tun. das was hier in der abendlichen dдmmerung glдnzt ist das zukьnftige sportheim in der gemeinde riedhausen. auf die kreisrunde stahlkonstruktion wurde noch direkt vor den weihnachtsfeiertagen das sich nach der sonne drehende ...
    
    




29. in-box: a country basks in the glow of a hockey gold

    
    
    readers comment on the 2010 olympics, what a hockey win meant for canada, and a new way of looking at the medal count.
    
    




30. ?american idol? beats olympics and endures as gold standard

    
    
    the tv show ?american idol? again surpassed ratings for the olympics on nbc on tuesday night.
    
    




31. inside the rings: placing consistency above the big trick

    
    
    unlike the silver medalist, evan lysacek, who won gold, did not attempt a quadruple jump.
    
    




32. comic book takes unflinching look at a boxing champion

    
    
    the legend of jack johnson, who became the first black heavyweight champion 100 years ago friday, has inspired an online comic-book biography.
    
    




33. medal has ohno in seventh heaven - cnn sports illustrated

    
    
    apolo ohno surged from fifth to third in the final lap of the 1,000-meter final for his seventh career olympic medal. throughout the run-up to the games, ohno has been saying that his hard training and slimmer physique -- he has gone from 159 pounds ...
    
    




34. german football results (ap via yahoo! sports)

    
    
    frankfurt (ap) -- results from the 23rd round of the bundesliga, the german first-division football league (home team listed first): friday's game hoffenheim 2, borussia moenchengladbach 2 saturday's games nuremberg 1, bayern munich 1 cologne 1, stuttgart 5 borussia dortmund 4, hannover 1 hamburger sv 0, eintracht frankfurt 0 mainz 0, bochum 0 sunday's games freiburg 0, hertha berlin 3 wolfsburg ...
    
    




35. michael vick misses eagles practice - nbc sports

    
    
    vick is unlikely to play against the broncos after missing practice every day this week. the eagles' running back rotation remains too muddled for any member to be a confident fantasy play in championship week, however.
    
    




36. arsenal-man united to be 1st live 3-d broadcast

    
    
    british network sky sports says it will broadcast the world's first live sports event in 3-d when arsenal hosts manchester united in the premier league on sunday.
    
    




37. toronto raptors rookie demar derozan tips eric gordon in all-star dunk-in

    
    
    toronto rookie demar derozan has won the inaugural all-star "dunk-in" to earn a place in the slam dunk contest.
    
    




38. indiana pacers center jeff foster undergoes back surgery

    
    
    indiana pacers center jeff foster will miss the rest of the season after undergoing what the team calls successful back surgery.
    
    




39. nfl players association: nfl short-changed low-revenue teams

    
    
    the nfl players assoication is charging the nfl management council with short-changing low-revenue clubs on the amount of money that has been distributed from the supplemental revenue pool, according to the union's filing tuesday with the special master.
    
    




40. carolina panthers add former indianapolis colts starting dt ed johnson

    
    
    the carolina panthers have signed defensive tackle ed johnson, adding depth to their line and taking a chance on a player with a checkered past.
    
    




41. chicago bulls' joakim noah out vs. minnesota timberwolves; could sit longer

    
    
    the bulls' joakim noah is out vs. the timberwolves, and he could sit longer.
    
    




42. shoulder injury to sideline los angeles lakers' sasha vujacic

    
    
    lakers reserve guard sasha vujacic will sit out at least two weeks after suffering a sprained right shoulder.
    
    




43. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




44. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




45. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




46. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




47. the not-so magnificent seven

    
    
    june 8th, 2004 and april 15th, 2005. what do these two dates have in common? well, let's look at the starters' lines for each game: ip h r er bb so hr np 6/8/04 0.2 6 6 6 1 0 3 37 4/15/05 3.1 5 8 8 5 1 2 71 if you're reading this, you probably know who the starter was for last night's game (it was gavin floyd). the other game i've highlighted was the starting debut of ryan madson who, despite his stellar job coming out of the pen over the past year, has not been given another shot at starting. will gavin floyd suffer the same fate? vicente padilla is slated to come off the dl this week and charlie manuel has said that he will be taking floyd's spot in the rotation, with floyd to be sent to the pen. so what's a team to do with seven potential starters? to tell you the truth, i don't know. i do think that madson and floyd should be given a shot at starting somewhere. should one of them be traded? should we keep them and move one of the vets to the bullpen? do we trade one of the vets? do we send them down to aaa so that they can get experience starting games? or is manuel doing the right thing by putting both of them in the pen? if you've got an opinion, please share...
    
    




48. rugby : toulouse champion d'automne du top 14

    
    
    le stade toulousain a battu mont-de-marsan pour conserver sa premiиre place devant le stade franзais, vainqueur de bayonne, samedi 20 dйcembre lors de la 13e journйe du top 14.
    
    




49. national basketball association game capsules - wsb-tv atlanta

    
    
    new york, ny -- (sports network) - dwyane wade scored 30 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and the miami heat held off a late new york charge to snag a 93-87 win at madison square garden, ending the knicks' six-game home win streak. wade added five ...
    
    




50. 2008: the year slaten's saga shook the business - st. louis post-dispatch

    
    
    in a year of monumental change in the st. louis sports-talk radio landscape, the lead bulldozer driver was kevin slaten. he shook the earth with a saga that involved the fcc, the cardinals and courts, and ended up dragging the station that fired him ...
    
    




51. u.s. attorney refutes l.a. times story

    
    
    if the jason grimsley affair was a storm for major league baseball, it's chaos now. the u.s. attorney's office in san francisco said yesterday that a blockbuster los angeles times story naming five players in the infamous grimsley affidavit, "these reports contain significant inaccuracies." what those innacuracies were, they wouldn't say, but the clear implication from u.s. attorney kevin ryan is that the issue was with the names listed in the story. officials declined to say how many names or which names might be inaccurate. roger clemens, andy pettitte, miguel tejada, brian roberts and jay gibbons were listed in the story as players grimsley named during an interview with federal agents. the names were redacted from a search warrant affidavit filed in june, after irs and fbi agents raided grimsley's home to search for possible evidence of trafficking human growth hormone. the daily news also reported that a law enforcement source had told the paper that roger clemens was one of the names, but the news was not able to confirm that information. the news also wrote that the paper had been cautioned by another law enforcement source close to the case that the names might not be included in the affidavit. l.a. times sports editor randy harvey, reached by the news today, said that unless the paper is informed of the "significant errors they claim we made, we have no comment, except to say we stand by our story." - michael o'keeffe and t.j. quinn
    
    




52. broadcasters battling for cable fees - new york times

    
    
    carey has experience on the other end of the table: he ran directv, the satellite distributor, until last june. he has said publicly that fox is worth $5 a month, given its sports programming and prime-time hits. that would make fox even more ...
    
    




53. rugby : toulouse champion d'automne du top 14

    
    
    le stade toulousain a battu mont-de-marsan pour conserver sa premiиre place devant le stade franзais, vainqueur de bayonne, samedi 20 dйcembre lors de la 13e journйe du top 14.
    
    




54. u.s. attorney refutes l.a. times story

    
    
    if the jason grimsley affair was a storm for major league baseball, it's chaos now. the u.s. attorney's office in san francisco said yesterday that a blockbuster los angeles times story naming five players in the infamous grimsley affidavit, "these reports contain significant inaccuracies." what those innacuracies were, they wouldn't say, but the clear implication from u.s. attorney kevin ryan is that the issue was with the names listed in the story. officials declined to say how many names or which names might be inaccurate. roger clemens, andy pettitte, miguel tejada, brian roberts and jay gibbons were listed in the story as players grimsley named during an interview with federal agents. the names were redacted from a search warrant affidavit filed in june, after irs and fbi agents raided grimsley's home to search for possible evidence of trafficking human growth hormone. the daily news also reported that a law enforcement source had told the paper that roger clemens was one of the names, but the news was not able to confirm that information. the news also wrote that the paper had been cautioned by another law enforcement source close to the case that the names might not be included in the affidavit. l.a. times sports editor randy harvey, reached by the news today, said that unless the paper is informed of the "significant errors they claim we made, we have no comment, except to say we stand by our story." - michael o'keeffe and t.j. quinn
    
    




55. u.s. attorney refutes l.a. times story

    
    
    if the jason grimsley affair was a storm for major league baseball, it's chaos now. the u.s. attorney's office in san francisco said yesterday that a blockbuster los angeles times story naming five players in the infamous grimsley affidavit, "these reports contain significant inaccuracies." what those innacuracies were, they wouldn't say, but the clear implication from u.s. attorney kevin ryan is that the issue was with the names listed in the story. officials declined to say how many names or which names might be inaccurate. roger clemens, andy pettitte, miguel tejada, brian roberts and jay gibbons were listed in the story as players grimsley named during an interview with federal agents. the names were redacted from a search warrant affidavit filed in june, after irs and fbi agents raided grimsley's home to search for possible evidence of trafficking human growth hormone. the daily news also reported that a law enforcement source had told the paper that roger clemens was one of the names, but the news was not able to confirm that information. the news also wrote that the paper had been cautioned by another law enforcement source close to the case that the names might not be included in the affidavit. l.a. times sports editor randy harvey, reached by the news today, said that unless the paper is informed of the "significant errors they claim we made, we have no comment, except to say we stand by our story." - michael o'keeffe and t.j. quinn
    
    




56. espn.com has launched many new football widgets that offer scores, stats, and news

    
    
    visit the espn widget center.
    
    




57. espn.com has launched many new basketball widgets that offer scores, stats, and news

    
    
    visit the espn widget center.
    
    


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