Canadas rugby sevens team faces more challenges this season than finding a replacement set of size 15 boots for Adam Zaruba, whose luggage did not join him upon touching down in Australia this week.The Canadian men arrived at the Gold Coast Sevens with the weight of expectations after a record sixth-place finish in last seasons IRB World Series. They will likely surprise no one this season.I think thats one of our big challenges this year, acting Canadian coach Ben Herring said Wednesday from Australia. Maybe last year teams didnt treat us as seriously as they should. I think people will be under no illusions that we can perform at a good level.It makes it harder for us in that teams will be making sure they put on their best performances here. But thats great for us because thats where we want to be. We want teams to take us seriously and play with an intensity that they would treat any of the top sides. Weve got to deal with that. Were prepared and we come ready for that. Herring, Rugby Canadas technical coach and performance analyst, is in charge of the team while newly hired coach Liam Middleton of Zimbabwe goes through immigration red tape. Kieran Crowley, coach of the national 15-man team, had been guiding the sevens squad in the interim but he is back in B.C. for the IRB Americas Championship, which starts Saturday in Langford.Geraint John, the Welsh coach who took Canada to new highs last season, is now at the Australia helm.Under John, Canada reached the final in Glasgow and placed third in Las Vegas in 2013-14.For Herring, sixth overall is Canadas benchmark. We want to improve on that for the season.The opening Australian stop on the nine-event circuit is a one-off. The other eight are split in four sets of two a week apart, starting with stops in Dubai on Dec. 5-6 and South Africa Dec. 13-14.That may help a Canadian team that is hurting at the moment. Nanyak Dala, Nathan Hirayama, Phil Mack, Mike Scholz and Sean White were all unavailable to Herring due to injury.Despite the injuries, Canada has depth that was carefully nurtured under Johns tenure. Herring has also brought the uncapped Zaruba — who got new boots thanks to resourceful team manager Brian Hunter — and Jack Smith to Australia.The senior guys are surrounded by some guys who are just super-pumped up to here, said Herring. So the energys actually been really high.New Zealand is the defending World Series and Gold Coast tournament champion heading into play Saturday and Sunday at the Cbus Super Stadium.Canada opens in a group with Argentina, England and the U.S. England placed fourth in the 2013-14 season standings while Argentina was ninth and the U.S. 13th.There is more at stake on the circuit this season with the top four teams qualifying for the 2016 Olympics where the sport will make its Games debut. One team will advance from each of six IRB regional competitions, with another coming from a world playoff. Brazil, as host country, qualifies automatically.I dont think anyone here needs any extra incentive when we play the U.S. but there are those extra things there, Herring said. Ideally we want to strive to not take it down to a one-off (qualification) game but if thats what it comes down to, thats further down the track I think.First and foremost for us is to just keep performing on a regular basis on the circuit and part of that is beating U.S.A. consistently.Herring, 34, is a New Zealand native who played for the Highlanders and Hurricanes in New Zealand from 2001 to 2007, and for the Leicester Tigers in England from 2007 to 2009. He was an assistant coach at Leicester before moving to Japan to coach the NEC Green Rockets.While Canada enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2013-14, its campaign started poorly with rocky performances in Australia, Dubai and South Africa.Other teams have the advantage of longer pre-Series sevens camps while Canada splits its players with the 15-man squad. While Herring says he had two good weeks to prepare with his squad, at one stage ahead of the tournament Canada had just four fit players available for training.The Canadian womens sevens team will also be Down Under, playing three weekend games against Australia as part of its preparation for the Women’s Sevens World Series, which opens Dec. 4 in Dubai.The Canadian women, third on the circuit last season will spend most of October training in Australia.---Canada MenJustin Douglas, Abbotsford RFC, Abbotsford, B.C.; Sean Duke, UVIC Vikes, Vancouver; Mike Fuailefau, Castaway Wanderers, Victoria; Lucas Hammond, Toronto Nomads, Toronto; Ciaran Hearn, Castaway Wanderers, Conception Bay South, N.L.; Harry Jones, Capilano RFC, North Vancouver; John Moonlight (capt.), James Bay AA, Pickering, Ont.; Jack Smith, James Bay AA, Lakefield, Ont.; Conor Trainor, UBCOB Ravens, Vancouver; Jake Webster, James Bay AA, Lindsay, Ont.; Jordan Wilson-Ross, James Bay AA, Alliston, Ont.; Adam Zaruba, Capilano RFC, Vancouver.Canada WomenElissa Alarie, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue Rugby Club, Trois-Rivieres, Que.; Emily Belchos, Markham Irish RFC, Barrie, Ont.; Hannah Darling, Peterborough Pagans, Warsaw, Ont.; Arielle Dubissette-Borrice, Toronto Scottish RFC, Toronto; Bianca Farella, Town of Mount Royal RFC, Montreal; Paige Farries, Druid RFC, Red Deer, Alta.; Julia Greenshields, Sarnia Saints, Sarnia, Ont.; Magali Harvey, Club de Rugby Quebec, Quebec City; Sara Kaljuvee, Toronto Scottish RFC, Pickering, Ont.; Jennifer Kish, Edmonton Rockers RFC, Edmonton; Ghislaine Landry, Toronto Scottish RFC, Toronto; Kayla Mack, Wild Oats RFC, Saskatoon; Mandy Marchak, Capilano RFC, Winnipeg; Kayla Moleschi, Williams Lake Rustlers, Williams Lake, B.C.; Karen Paquin, Club de Rugby Quebec, Quebec City; Nadia Popov, Aurora Barbarians, Newmarket, Ont.; Kelly Russell, Toronto Nomads, Bolton, Ont.; Ashley Steacy, Lethbridge Rugby Club, Lethbridge, Alta.Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter nike vapormax φθηνα . -- Craig Anderson has quite a record against his former team, the Florida Panthers. nike vapormax plus greece . 25 against Miami. Hillis left Browns Stadium about two hours before kickoff, a decision that has led to speculation he was upset over ongoing negotiations with the club on a contract extension. http://www.vapormaxgreece.com/ . -- Novak Djokovic benefited from an erroneous call and claimed he didnt realize he had broken the rules. nike vapormax plus γυναικεια . Blatter also told reporters Saturday after meeting with Qatars emir that the decision to award the tournament to the desert nation is "not reversible." There have been calls to move the tournament because of Qatars intense heat. nike vapormax ανδρικα . The Tinkoff-Saxo rider was still dealing with the right shin he broke in a crash which ended his Tour de France on Stage 10. He hoped to defy his doctors and race in the home Grand Tour he won in 2008 and 2012, but he says there have been complications in his recovery.CLEVELAND -- One swing by Dayan Viciedo provided a dramatic turnaround for the Chicago White Sox. Viciedo hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning off John Axford, lifting the White Sox over the Cleveland Indians 4-3 and stopping a four-game losing streak. After the ball cleared the right-field fence, Viciedo pointed to Chicagos dugout, which erupted in celebration. "That was for the team. That was very exciting," he said. Other than Jose Abreus major league-leading 12th homer, a solo drive in the first inning, the ALs highest-scoring team couldnt manufacture any runs. Corey Kluber struck out a career-high 13 in eight innings, including a team-record seven straight. He allowed three hits and two walks, leaving with a 3-1 lead after 110 pitches. "Its good for the guys to just stay with it," Chicago manager Robin Ventura said. "Even though it looks bleak, you can still make a little bit of a comeback." Axford (0-2) walked Gordon Beckham leading off the ninth, but struck out Abreu. Adam Dunn walked, and Viciedo homered on a 2-2 pitch. "I was looking for a pitch I could make good contact with," Viciedo said. "He made a mistake, and I made him pay for it." Axford gave up the homer on a 96 mph four-seamer. "I fell behind in the count to too many guys, and it didnt work out," he said. "I put two guys on base without me even challenging. I just couldnt find it. The home run was on a fastball. Not a very good pitch, obviously." Indians manager Terry Francona, citing pitch count and the narrow lead, didnt second guess himself for pulling Kluber. "If anyone got on base, he was going to come out of the game, and I didnt think that was fair to him," Francona said. Kluber had no problem with Franconas strategy. "Thats not my decision. I trust Titos judgment," he said. Axford has blown two saves in 11 chances, both against the White Sox. He gave up a walkoff homer to Alexei Ramirez in the ninth inning on April 13 at Chicago. Daniel Webb (2-0) pitched the eighth, and Matt Lindstrom threw a one-hit ninth for his fourth save in seven chances. George Kottaras, the Indians backup catcher, became the first player to homer in his first two plate appearances for Cleveland.dddddddddddd Andre Rienzo allowed three runs and seven hits in 4 2-3 innings. Klubers streak began when he struck out Gordon Beckham and Abreu for the final two outs of the third. He fanned Dunn, Viciedo and Ramirez in the fourth, and Jordan Danks and Tyler Flowers struck out beginning the fifth. Leury Garcia broke the streak by walking on a 3-2 pitch, and Kluber struck out Alejandro De Aza. Kluber fell two strikeouts short of the AL record set by Doug Fister for Detroit against Kansas City on Sept. 27, 2012. Tom Seaver holds the major league record of 10 for the New York Mets against San Diego on April 22, 1970. Clevelands previous mark was six by Bob Feller, Bartolo Colon, Chuck Finley and Mitch Talbot. Four of Abreus five hits against the Indians this season have been homers. The White Sox broke an eight-game losing streak at Progressive Field, where they had gone 6-20 since 2013. "It hasnt been good to us here so to be able to come back and take one like this is pretty nice," Ventura said. The White Sox returned to Chicago to start a four-game, home-and-home stretch against the Cubs on Monday at Wrigley Field. "It was a much-needed win, obviously," Lindstrom said. "Now we can go home and start to put together a pretty good series against the Cubs. Kottaras, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Columbus on Saturday when Yan Gomes was placed on the paternity list, hit solo homers in the third and fourth. Kottaras had been 2 for 25 (.080) in the minors. Lonnie Chisenhall had an RBI single for Cleveland in the third. Indians centre fielder and leadoff hitter Michael Bourn missed the game because of tightness in his left hamstring. NOTES: Indians DH Jason Giambi (cramp in right calf) didnt play. ... The White Sox added OF Moises Sierra, claimed off waivers from Toronto, to the 25-man roster. LHP Frank De Los Santos was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte. ... The Indians optioned LHP Nick Hagadone to Columbus. ... Chicago 3B Conor Gillaspie (bruised left hand) homered on a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment at Charlotte and could return this week. ' ' '
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