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.Last season we were top of the
Perth Wildcats captain Damian Martin says the talent on show in the NBL is the best hes seen and it will take something special to win back-to-back championships. Custom Muggsy Bogues Jersey .The NBL has been bolstered by an influx of homegrown and international talent this season and interest in the league has also been boosted by the long-awaited return of the Brisbane Bullets.The increase from two to three imports for each club has helped raise the quality of rosters around the league, meaning the Wildcats face a stern challenge to defend their title.Martin has been part of the NBL since 2008 and hes never seen it this strong.Its my 10th season in the NBL and its by far the strongest the league has been as a whole, Martin said.The calibre weve brought in this year has been incredible.The Wildcats have introduced two new imports - Jaron Johnson and Jameel McKay.They join fellow American Casey Prather on a talented Wildcats list.Perth have won an NBL record seven crowns. But they havent gone back-to-back since the Ricky Grace-powered teams of 1990 and 1991.Its motivating to try to achieve that, Martin said.Its been a great seven years Ive been here but that one thing we havent been able to eclipse is the Ricky Grace era when they were able to go back-to-back.If we could do that this season, it would be special.The loss of star centre Nate Jawai to Cairns is a big blow to the Wildcats.Jawai was a 143kg powerhouse who dominated the paint. By comparison, 206cm McKay weighs in at 96kg. Martin said the change in personnel meant the Wildcats would attempt to become a faster-paced team.The Wildcats begin their title defence away to Brisbane on October 6.Star Bullets recruit Cameron Bairstow (shoulder) is under an injury cloud but former Wildcats import Jermaine Beal will line up against his old side in whats shaping up as a grudge match.I did see him in Brisbane. I told him were going for a players dinner and he said hed stop by because its a free feed, Martin said of Beal.Dollas one of the best players in the league. He was a great teammate.Im excited to be matched up on him. It will be weird seeing him in a maroon jersey while were wearing red. Hornets Jerseys China .C. Lions has come to an end. Banks told TSN on Jan 2 that he had no interest in playing out the option year of his contract with the Lions in 2014, and he again made that clear in a conversation with Lions GM Wally Buono last week. Custom Hornets T-shirts . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. http://www.customhornetsjersey.com/ . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover. The King Power Stadium will be the stage for an unlikely but burgeoning Premier League rivalry on Saturday.Leicester City (3-2-4) and Tottenham Hotspur (5-4-0) are not natural enemies in the landscape of English football, with 93 miles and very little in the way of competing history separating the two clubs.But last season changed all that.Spurs appeared to be Leicesters likeliest and closest rivals in their charge towards the title, as more prestigious clubs fell away. But a crucial 1-0 win by the Foxes at White Hart Lane in January ensured that there was always a gap between the two sides. And a string of disappointing results in the final month for Saturdays north London hosts ensured that Leicester did indeed claim a historic and deserved Premier League crown.However, the animosity that sprung up between the two clubs during that run-in has yet to dissipate and will be the underlying theme to this weekends meeting.Weve got a massive game against Leicester, which will mean a lot to everyone for different reasons, so everyone is now fully focused on that, Tottenham midfielder Eric Dier said.I feel like we were in a title race with them last season and they got the better of us in the game at home and that changed where the league went. Its an important game for us.Claudio Ranieris Leicester have struggled to recreate their title-winning form so far this season and are still searching for a first away win of the campaign -- having lost all four times so far on the road. No English champion in the past 83 years have lost five straight away games in their title defence.However, the Foxes did show the early shoots of recovery last weekend, running out 3-1 winners overr Crystal Palace to boost them into mid-table. Cheap Custom Hornets Jersey. And Ranieri says that performance showed signs that the teams togetherness has returned.Against Crystal Palace we went back to our old philosophy, everybody closed, everybody with the same discipline and I recognised them again, said Ranieri. Its important we dont go back and we stay this way.Striker Shinji Okazaki encapsulates Leicesters brand togetherness and the striker ended a run of 13 league appearances without a goal with his strike against Palace. However, the Japan international is wary of Saturdays hosts and the motivation they will take from the disappointment of last season.Last season we were top of the league, but behind us Tottenham were very strong, Okazaki said. I remember the Chelsea game against Tottenham that ended 2-2 so that we won the league. That is a great memory but maybe this will also give Tottenham motivation on Saturday to beat us. I think this makes it a very tough match.Okazaki could be in line for another start, as Ranieri has tended to rest his star players ahead of Champions League fixtures. Leicester have a game against Copenhagen coming up on Wednesday.Andy King is expected to be fit for a return in midfield, but summer signing Nampalys Mendy remains unavailable.Tottenham are unsure if key centre-back Toby Alderweireld will be fit in time for a comeback from injury on Saturday, while first-choice centre-forward and last seasons Premier League top-scorer Harry Kane is highly unlikely to feature as he continues his recovery from an ankle problem. ' ' '
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