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Apr 28 '19
Having plucked Aaron Mooy from the A-League for Socceroos stardom, Ange Postecoglou is on the lookout for the next young star of the local league to make a case for the national team. Cheap Nike Zoom Wholesale .Postecoglou, who believes the standard of the A-League is better than many European leagues, has already handed out several Socceroos debuts on the back of outstanding domestic form.Mooys exploits at former club Melbourne City made him an irresistible case for Australia, where hes now close to the first man selected.Alex Gersbach (ex-Sydney FC), Jamie Maclaren (Brisbane), Josh Risdon (Perth), Mark Birighitti (ex-Newcastle) Jason Geria (Melbourne Victory) and ex-Adelaide pair Craig Goodwin and Jimmy Jeggo have all also been called up in the past year.As the Socceroos inch towards qualifying for a fourth consecutive World Cup, the national team coach is eager to tap into more local spark.The guys who are playing at some of the bigger clubs, if they play every game for a club like Melbourne Victory theyll be playing at a level where Ill be taking notice, Postecoglou told AAP.If you look at the history of the A-League, its guys who have one or two solid years and all of a sudden really blossom into it.Weve rarely seen guys come out of nowhere and burst onto the scene and go really well.Its guys that have been in the system maybe one or two years and feel really comfortable at that level and take their game to the next step.Postecoglous remarks suggest a number of players could press their case.Among them is Brandon ONeill, who last season leapt into the limelight from near-anonymity thanks to his outstanding workrate and skill in Sydney FCs defensive midfield.ONeill is already building a solid partnership with off-season signing Josh Brillante, a fringe Socceroo looking to build on five international appearances made prior to a rough two years in Italy.Former Brisbane and Olyroos centre-back James Donachie is also hoping to capture Postecoglous attention with consistent minutes at new club Victory, where teammate Lawrence Thomas will start the season as No.1 goalkeeper for the first time.Midfielders Jacob Melling (Western Sydney) and Steven Ugarkovic (Newcastle) could also be in the mix.Two of Postecoglous former sides will kick off the A-League season, with Roar hosting Victory at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night. Nike Zoom Wholesale . Deulofeu injured a muscle in his right leg in Evertons 4-1 win over Fulham in the English Premier League on Saturday. Barcelona says that its team doctors will "co-ordinate" with Evertons medical staff as Deulofeu recovers. Nike Zoom Shoes Buy Online . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. http://www.cheapnikezoom.com/ . Mitch Holmberg added a goal and three assists. Connor Chartier also scored for the Chiefs (3-0-0). Luke Harrison spoiled Garrett Hughsons shutout bid with a power-play goal at 13:17 of the third period. The Spokane goaltender finished with 28 saves, including a Brandon Fushimi penalty shot in the second period that would have tied the game 1-1. Ohio State didnt win the Big Ten, but the Buckeyes will play for a much bigger prize. Their national title hopes are still very much intact.Thats rare, but not unprecedented.Ranked second by the AP and third by the playoff committee, the Buckeyes will take on Clemson in a national semifinal . Ohio State is the first team in the playoffs three-year history to be included despite failing to win its conference.During the Bowl Championship Series era, however, three teams made it to the title game after falling short within their conferences. Heres a look at how it happened:NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS (2001)Why They Didnt Win Their Conference: The Cornhuskers were undefeated heading into their regular-season finale at Colorado, but the Buffaloes drubbed Nebraska 62-36. That prevented the Cornhuskers from even playing in the Big 12 championship game.We really had a big dream, Nebraska QB Eric Crouch said after the game. Those are over with now. This is going to be a tough one to swallow.What Happened Next: Nebraska fell from first to fourth in the BCS standings after the loss, trailing Miami, Florida and Texas. Florida lost to Tennessee the following week, and Texas fell to Colorado in the Big 12 title game. Tennessee briefly held the No. 2 BCS slot before losing to LSU in the SEC championship game.Nebraska, which hadnt played at all since being routed by Colorado, ended up back at No. 2 in the BCS standings, just ahead of Colorado and Oregon. Both major polls had Oregon No. 2.What Happened In The End: Nebraska was ranked No. 4 in the AP poll when it took the field for the BCS title game at the Rose Bowl. The Cornhuskers were overmatched. Miami led 34-0 at halftime and went on to win 37-14.---OKLAHOMA SOONERS (2003)Why They Didnt Win Their Conference: The Sooners went unbeaten during the regular season but were routed 35-7 by Kansas State in the Big 12 title game. Cheap Nike Zoom Shoes. .Im not going to sit here and lobby for any bowl, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said afterward. We just got whipped. They outplayed us in every part of the game.What Happened Next: Stoops didnt need to lobby. Oklahoma was No. 1 in the BCS standings before it lost to Kansas State -- and still No. 1 afterward. The Sooners ended up facing LSU in the BCS title game. Southern California was left out despite being No. 1 in both polls.The Final Result: Playing in its home state at the Sugar Bowl, LSU held off Oklahoma 21-14 to take the BCS title. USC, which beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl, won the AP national title.---ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (2011)Why They Didnt Win Their Conference: Alabama hosted LSU in a matchup of unbeatens on Nov. 5, with the Tigers prevailing 9-6 in overtime. Neither team lost for the rest of the regular season, so it was the Tigers who represented the SEC West in the league title game.Id be honored to face that team again, LSU coach Les Miles said after the victory over the Crimson Tide.What Happened Next: Alabama fell only one spot to No. 3 in the BCS standings after losing to LSU, but there were a few undefeated teams still to contend with -- Oklahoma State at No. 2, Stanford at No. 4 and even Boise State at No. 5. Stanford and Boise State lost the following weekend, and Oklahoma States double-overtime loss to Iowa State on Nov. 18 opened the door for an LSU-Alabama rematch in the BCS title game.The Final Result: In another defensive struggle, Alabama held LSU to five first downs, beating the Tigers 21-0 to claim the national title.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 .---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister ' ' '
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