OTTAWA If you want to be head coach of a soccer club in Englands top four leagues, you had better fling job security out the window. Since the current season began in September, 23 coaches have been fired, which is exactly 25 per cent gone in four months.

When Malky Mackay was shown the red card by Cardiff three days after Christmas, he became the sixth Premier League boss to go. It leaves Arsene Wengers 17 years at Arsenal longer than the 19 other coaches put together.

The pressure comes from all directions the moment you begin your first training session. Losing leads to relegation. Relegation often leaves clubs financially destitute. Owners who have sunk countless millions into buying success have that sort of money because they are ruthlessly successful in business. They will not tolerate defeat.

It is a wonder why anyone would take up such a challenge, but they do. The ignominy of it all doesnt even appear to dent reputations. Men who tried and failed and still want to take another crack at it can find a new club even with losing rsums.

Look at someone like Andre Villas-Boas, who arrived with great expectations at Chelsea. Multibillionaire Roman Abramovich took him on after tossing out Roberto di Matteo, who had just led the club to the European Championship. Apparently Abramovich didnt like the playing style di Matteo used to fashion a winner.

On the sidelines, AVB often looked as if he was praying for divine intervention. When it didnt work fast enough, he was gone, too. His reward for being fired? Some $15 million by all accounts and a job across London with Tottenham, another Premier League club. That one ended on Dec. 16, putting more failure cash in the bank. The man need never work again, but Im betting he will. Maybe coaching is actually an addiction.

While winning is the only way a coach is judged, his job is far, far more than being the man directing operations from the sidelines. He has to deal with myriad elements. There is the academy, where prospects are melded into players who fit the club philosophy. There is the medical angle designed to keep players healthy. There are the player personalities, their egos.

Harry Redknapp, one of Englands most respected coaches who has been with a host of clubs in his time, can attest to player troubles better than most. He provides a frightening snapshot in his autobiography, writing about his troubles after taking on what turned out to be an unsuccessful bid to keep Queens Park Rangers in the Premier League.

He talks with horror about players being habitually late for training, many earning so much they were happier to be fined two weeks wages than to show up to work. He describes how it took him only a week or two to realize that 35-year-old New Zealander Ryan Nelsen was his best player. However, Nelsen was so disgusted with the overall attitude at QPR that he couldnt wait to leave to take on the Toronto FC coaching job.

Nelsen told Redknapp he didnt have a prayer of keeping the club up, that it was the worst dressing room he had ever been in and he didnt think there was any way the problem could be solved. Player power personified.

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Heads roll and roll in English soccer

Sam Lanin #39;s Dance Ensemble - Hello Beautiful (1931)
Sam (C.) Lanin (September 4, 1891 - May 5, 1977) was an American jazz bandleader. Lanin #39;s brothers, Howard and Lester, were also bandleaders, and all of them...

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Sam Lanin's Dance Ensemble - Hello Beautiful (1931) - Video

Dedryck Boyata was sent off as Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw by Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.

Alvaro Negredo put the visitors ahead deep into first-half stoppage time before Scott Dann equalised ten minutes into the second period.

City were below par all afternoon and were lucky not to suffer a shock cup exit as Boyata was given his marching orders for two silly fouls.

Manuel Pellegrini made seven changes to the side that beat Swansea on New Years day, though the quality and strength in depth at his disposal meant that they were able to field a strong side.

It was the hosts that provided much of the attacking intent throughout the opening half, however. Costel Pantilimon had to be on his toes a number of times to race off his line and clear the danger ahead of the chasing Rudy Gestede.

City began to find their feet as the half wore on, though, and had Blackburn who had pressed high and in numbers penned in their own half for the final 10 minutes of the opening period.

It looked as if the two sides would go into the break on level terms until an unmarked Negredo latched onto Edin Dzekos knock-down at the far post, turning the ball past a helpless Paul Robinson.

The home side started the second half in a similarly positive manner to which they started the first, and were justly level after ten minutes.

Tom Cairneys floated corner was met by the towering Gestede, whose header could only be flapped at by Pantilimon. Dann was the quickest to react, poking the ball into an empty net from four yards.

Bowyer introduced Jordan Rhodes and DJ Campbell late on, and though Boyata was shown a second yellow for a silly foul on the latter, the hosts were unable to convert their numerical advantage into a vital win.

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FA Cup - Boyata sees red as City held by Blackburn

If its possible to compare basketball to weather, then the Lower Columbia College Red Devils have hit a major storm.

LCC played 40 minutes of drizzly basketball Thursday against South Puget Sound, which resulted in a 65-59 setback to the Clippers in NWAACC Western Division mens basketball on Ted M. Natt Court at Mark Morris.

The loss, the sixth straight setback for the Devils, dropped them to 2-8, 0-1 in league play. The Clippers, who had dropped their last 18 games going back to last season, are now 1-8.

Our team is like crazy weather, LCC coach Jim Roffler said. The sun shines for five minutes, then the clouds come out and its a storm for the next 10 minutes. I can see when the clouds are coming in, but we dont even have enough time to get the lawn furniture in.

The Clippers, who suited six players, trailed 12-7 in the initial eight minutes before scoring 13 unanswered points to grab a 20-12 advantage with 7:30 left. During the Clippers run encompassing six minutes, the Devils missed five shots, two free throws and had five turnovers which were converted into seven of the Clippers points.

We made a lot of bad decisions and fundamental mistakes which kept five guys from working as a unit, Roffler said. Well be a lot tougher and more of a unit and a family if we can get the guys to admit to themselves and their teammates they have a ways to go and quit making excuses.

South Puget Sound, which made 46 percent of its shots in the first half (12-26), rolled to a 29-21 lead at the break.

Rofflers lineups have been a makeshift work in progress all season. Point guard Wayne Tucker is back after missing most of the preseason with a broken foot, but now the Devils are without post players Christian Parrott and JeQuan Knight because of broken hands.

Weve never been a full strength, and it seems like every game we have someone getting back into the mix, Roffler said. How good can you be when youre not clicking on all cylinders.

In the absence of Parrott and Knight, Jeremy Burright stepped into the post and earned praise from Roffler. Burright, who netted two points in the first half, netted 17 in the final 20 minutes to pace the Devils with 19.

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Red Devils can’t stop lowly Clippers

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Toronto Maple Leafs particularly enjoyed a picturesque but cold and snowy outdoor hockey game that probably broke an all-time attendance record.

Left winger Joffrey Lupul and center Tyler Bozak scored in a shootout to give Toronto a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday afternoon at Michigan Stadium in the 2014 Winter Classic.

The game was expected to break the hockey attendance record of 104,173, which was also set at Michigan Stadium on Dec. 11, 2010, at the Big Chill at the Big House college game between Michigan and Michigan State. There were 105,491 tickets sold Wednesday.

"I don't know if we set the official Guinness (World Records) ticket record, but I know we set our own (NHL) record," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.

The old NHL record was 71,217, set in the 2008 Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium outside of Buffalo.

Bettman added that because of the weather, it took some fans 2 1/2 hours to get to Ann Arbor from Detroit. The cities are about 45 miles apart. Bettman said some fans didn't arrive until the second period.

The game was played in a steady snowfall, and the temperature was a little above 10 degrees with a below-zero wind chill. Both goalies regularly had their water bottles replaced because the water was freezing. Due to the snow, the ice surface was shoveled during breaks more than usual.

"It was a little chilly out there, but it got warmer during the game," Maple Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said. "I spent 18 years in Winnipeg, so I know cold."

Left winger James van Riemsdyk and Bozak scored for Toronto (21-16-5) in the first 60 minutes. Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier stopped 41 shots.

"Obviously, we needed the two points. We kind of had to stay focused," Bernier said. "We wanted to have a fun game, but we were able to come out of it with two points."

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Leafs best Red Wings in Winter Classic shootout

It fell in swirling, mad, white flurries, creating the snow globe backdrop the NHL always pines for at these outdoor events.

It made for beautiful television. But it also made the snow shovellers the co-MVPs of the Winter Classic, with their forays up and down the ice every few minutes during stoppages changing the momentum of the game as much as any player on the ice.

Images from Wednesday's Winter Classic

Video: HBO cameras put Leafs under more scrutiny

The Big House was a mad house, for the players, the coaches and the 100,000 or so fans that braved it all in the stands but they found a way to pull it off.

I was watching them shovel it and you could see the piles by the time they were done there they were this high off the ice, Toronto Maple Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf said, raising his hand waist high.

He was still wide-eyed with excitement, his lip bleeding from a high stick, after playing a key role in a 3-2 shootout win over the Detroit Red Wings, a game that will be remembered as the snowiest of hockeys growing number of Snow Bowls.

This wasnt attractive hockey in a literal sense, with players remarking afterward that the unshovelled snow was such a barrier to stickhandling they were skating like peewees their heads down, watching the puck bobble and hop, their bodies exposed should an opponent come barrelling in as they would in any other game.

It was tough to get your head up, Leafs veteran Jay McClement said. Im surprised there werent some bigger hits out there every time you looked down, the puck seemed to stay where it was so you had to keep it on your stick and couldnt really push it ahead.

On the Wings bench, head coach Mike Babcock a veteran behind the bench in his second of these events who has learned to adapt on the fly was watching and pleading with officials for an unscheduled shovel before one key power play.

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Maple Leafs beat Red Wings in shootout at snowy Winter Classic

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Toronto Maple Leafs particularly enjoyed a picturesque but cold and snowy outdoor hockey game that probably broke an all-time attendance record.

Left winger Joffrey Lupul and center Tyler Bozak scored in a shootout to give Toronto a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday afternoon at Michigan Stadium in the 2014 Winter Classic.

The game was expected to break the hockey attendance record of 104,173, which was also set at Michigan Stadium on Dec. 11, 2010, at the Big Chill at the Big House college game between Michigan and Michigan State. There were 105,491 tickets sold Wednesday.

"I don't know if we set the official Guinness (World Records) ticket record, but I know we set our own (NHL) record," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.

The old NHL record was 71,217, set in the 2008 Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium outside of Buffalo.

Bettman added that because of the weather, it took some fans 2 1/2 hours to get to Ann Arbor from Detroit. The cities are about 45 miles apart. Bettman said some fans didn't arrive until the second period.

The game was played in a steady snowfall, and the temperature was a little above 10 degrees with a below-zero wind chill. Both goalies regularly had their water bottles replaced because the water was freezing. Due to the snow, the ice surface was shoveled during breaks more than usual.

"It was a little chilly out there, but it got warmer during the game," Maple Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said. "I spent 18 years in Winnipeg, so I know cold."

Left winger James van Riemsdyk and Bozak scored for Toronto (21-16-5) in the first 60 minutes. Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier stopped 41 shots.

"Obviously, we needed the two points. We kind of had to stay focused," Bernier said. "We wanted to have a fun game, but we were able to come out of it with two points."

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Leafs edge Wings in chilly Winter Classic

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BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) is forced to halt loading ships at Port Hedland as Tropical Cyclone Christine approaches in Western Australia.

A red alert has been issued for Port Hedland and district residents as tropical cyclone Christine intensifies and heads towards Western Australia's Pilbara coast.

Residents from Pardoo to Whim Creek in thePilbara have been told to stay indoors, with the approaching cyclone posing a threat to homes and lives.

Hedland resident Sarah Smith told Fairfax Media on Monday Christine, a category three cyclone, was expected to hit landfall about 11pm Monday.

A satellite image from Monday morning shows the approaching cyclone. Photo: BOM

"We should expect to go on red alert at 9am this morning with a landfall crossing expected about 11pm tonight," Ms Smith said.

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She said a yellow alert was issued about 6.30pm on Sunday which closed all Hedland businesses.

She said supermarket produce was low as residents rushed to stock up on supplies to get them through the impending red alert which prevented people leaving homes and secure buildings.

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Residents on red alert as cyclone nears

Kliff Kingsbury knows who will be quarterbacking Texas Tech Monday night against Arizona State in the 36th annual National University Holiday Bowl.

But the Red Raiders head coach isnt ready to identify his triggerman.

Weve made our decision, but the official announcement wont come until offense takes the field, Kingsbury said Friday morning.

All we know is that the player directing the Texas Tech offense wont be Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year Baker Mayfield.

Mayfield, who went from walk-on to starter before the start of the season, stunned everyone earlier this month when he walked into Kingsburys office in Lubbock and announced he was going to transfer out of Texas Tech.

Mayfields decision still has many Red Raider backers, and Kingsbury, shaking their heads in disbelief.

Why would a freshman quarterback walk away from directing the NCAAs most pass-happy offense?

I still cant answer that and Ive thought about that a lot, Kingsbury said recently.

Minus Mayfield, the choices to quarterback Texas Tech against the Sun Devils are Davis Webb and Michael Brewer.

Like Mayfield, Webb is a freshman who started five games for Texas Tech this season after Mayfield suffered a knee injury in the fifth game of the season. Brewer is a sophomore.

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Who'll quarterback Texas Tech?

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BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) is forced to halt loading ships at Port Hedland as Tropical Cyclone Christine approaches in Western Australia.

A red alert has been issued for Port Hedland and district residents as tropical cyclone Christine intensifies and heads towards Western Australia's Pilbara coast.

Residents from Pardoo to Whim Creek in thePilbara have been told to stay indoors, with the approaching cyclone posing a threat to homes and lives.

Hedland resident Sarah Smith told Fairfax Media on Monday Christine, a category three cyclone, was expected to hit landfall about 11pm Monday.

A satellite image from Monday morning shows the approaching cyclone. Photo: BOM

"We should expect to go on red alert at 9am this morning with a landfall crossing expected about 11pm tonight," Ms Smith said.

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She said a yellow alert was issued about 6.30pm on Sunday which closed all Hedland businesses.

She said supermarket produce was low as residents rushed to stock up on supplies to get them through the impending red alert which prevented people leaving homes and secure buildings.

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Hedland braces for Christine to hit

Roofs have been damaged, trees have fallen and many residents remain without power as Tropical Cyclone Christine tears through Western Australia's Pilbara region.

Christine crossed the coast between Whim Creek and Roebourne about midnight (WST) as a category three cyclone, but has now been downgraded to a category two.

A red alert remains in place for people in or near the coastal areas between De Grey and Mardie, and extending inland to Tom Price and Paraburdoo.

This includes Port Hedland, South Hedland, Whim Creek, Roebourne, Point Samson, Wickham, Karratha and Dampier.

'There is a threat to lives and homes. You are in danger and need to act immediately,' the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) warned.

The Department for Child Protection and Family Support has set up several relocation points including the JD Hardie Centre in South Hedland, Karratha Leisureplex, the Marble Bar civic centre, Tom Price High School gym and Ashburton Hall in Paraburdoo.

People between Mardie and Onslow are advised that the threat of strong winds is no longer expected.

A yellow alert is current for people in or near the inland communities of Marble Bar and Pannawonica.

Residents have been warned to get ready to take shelter as the cyclone approaches.

A blue alert remains for people in or near the coastal areas between Mardie and Onslow, and the inland area from Marble Bar to Newman, and between the Collier Ranges and Three Rivers.

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Cyclone Christine heads inland

DALLAS COUNTY, Mo. -- The Red Cross has responded to a record number of house fires this year. The organization steps in to provide families immediate relief with a place to stay, food, clothing and shelter in the event of a fire.

Just this weekend the Red Cross has responded to fires and helped families in Humansville, Willard and Dallas County as well as other cities in the ozarks, that's more than twenty four people, many of them children.

KOLR 10s Laurie Patton went to one familys home in Dallas county, right outside Long Lane, that was destroyed by fire Saturday morning. The family is now moving forward with help from the Red Cross.

It just spread when we opened up this door, Dennis and Jennifer McDowell are among hundreds of people who have lost all or part of their home to fire in the Ozarks this year.

It just ignited and went from there, the couple scrambled to get themselves and their pets out of the house in the dark.

We had no power in the house at all because it had already tripped the breaker. From the front of the house the damage doesn't look that bad, but the attic and the roof took the brunt of the fire", McDowell says.

The McDowell's 18 year old daughter was at work, or she would have been in the home.

Fire, smoke and water damaged the rest of the home making it unlivable.

The McDowells said the Red Cross put them up in a hotel along with other help.

The Red Cross was very good they were here shortly after the fire department got here they gave us three nights and helped us with some clothes and stuff.

Excerpt from:

Red Cross Responds to Record Number of Fires This Year

By Josh Nacion December 29, 2013 at 11:19 am

Chris Thomsen remembers when he took over as Texas Techs interim head football coach last year going into the 2012 Meineke Car Care Bowl, where he led the Red Raiders to a 34-31 win over Minnesota.

What I remember most is that we got a win, Thomsen said. We won on a walk-off field goal. It was exciting, man.

Now serving as ASUs offensive line coach, Thomsen will be facing Texas Tech from the opposite sideline when the No. 14 Sun Devils (10-3, 8-2 Pac-12) duel the Red Raiders (7-5, 4-5 Big 12) at the National University Holiday Bowl in San Diego, Calif., on Monday.

ASU is still hurting from its 38-14 loss to No. 5 Stanford in the Pac-12 Football Championship Game on Dec. 7. A win would have punched the Sun Devils ticket to the 100th Rose Bowl Game, but they will instead play 157 miles south down the I-15 freeway at Qualcomm Stadium.

A victory in San Diego will cap off only the sixth 11-win season in ASU history.

Im crushed, but thats life, ASU coach Todd Graham said. You get back up and dust yourself and get at it again.

It wasnt a happy ending for the Red Raiders regular season, either. Texas Tech stormed out to a 7-0 record to start the season and were ranked 10th when the BCS standings were first released on Oct. 20. The Red Raiders dropped their last five games all Big 12 matches and took a free fall out of every poll.

ASU knows it has to watch out for Texas Techs Air Raid offense, as it ranks second in the nation in passing yards per game (392.0) under first-year coach Kliff Kingsbury.

Theyre as good as any team we have played offensively, Graham said. I think in that their deal is when you look at the film theyve lost games to teams that are playing in the BCS bowls and some of the best teams in the country.

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No. 14 ASU football heads into shootout with Texas Tech at Holiday Bowl

By Chuck Pleiness Digital First Media

DETROIT Jakub Kindl again found a way to work his way out of the Wings starting lineup.

We just want him to compete hard defensively, be good defensively and not let people behind him, Wings coach Mike Babcock said.

Kindls benching lasted all of two games because of a long-term injury Jonathan Ericsson suffered and hell be back along the blue line Saturday when Detroit plays at Florida.

Ive just got to work harder, compete more, Kindl said.

Instead of calling up a defenseman from Grand Rapids, the Wings will go with the six healthy ones they have.

Ericsson is expected to be out three to five weeks with two fractured ribs he suffered in Mondays 3-0 loss to the New York Islanders.

And just like last season, Kindl has found himself behind Brian Lashoff on the Wings blue line depth chart.

After missing the first three games last season with an injured groin, he was a healthy scratch in four of the next 14, sitting behind Lashoff.

Well hes just a simple player, Babcock said of Lashoff. Hes got to be real good in his own zone. He cant be in the chances against highlights, just cant be in them, and if hes not in them then were happy because hes not going to do much for you offensively.

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DETROIT RED WINGS: Jakub Kindl heads to the bench

A.V. Continues To Ride Talbot, But This Isn't A Goalie Controversy December 27, 2013 1:25 PM

Cam Talbot (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Rangers Inside And Out By Sean HartnettMore Columns

Following the Rangers morning skate in Washington, head coach Alain Vigneault confirmed that red-hot goaltender Cam Talbot will start for a third straight game on Friday night.

This means that highly-paid netminder Henrik Lundqvist will continue to wait his turn. Lundqvist hasnt played since December 20, when he gave up four goals to the Islanders on 19 shots.

Talbot will be looking to earn a third consecutive win when the Blueshirts battle the Washington Capitals tonight at the Verizon Center.

The 26-year-old rookie has posted sterling statistics through his first 10 NHL starts and 12 games played. Talbot has been a very difficult goalie to crack since his October 20 recall from Hartford of the AHL. His superb play has earned him the nickname Goalbuster.

Talbot heads into Fridays meeting with the Caps carrying an 8-2-0 record with a microscopic 1.60 goals-against average. His GAA ranks only second to Josh Harding of the Minnesota Wild. Talbots save percentage of .938 is only bettered by Los Angeles Kingsnetminder Ben Scrivens and Harding.

Some writers and debate panelists have already described the situation as a goalie controversy. Lets make it clear though theres no such thing as a goalie controversy when Lundqvist recently received a seven-year, $59.5 million extension. The weight of this franchise will continue to be placed on the shoulders of Lundqvist.

KING HENRIK HASNT BEEN UNCROWNED BY ROOKIE TALBOT

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Hartnett: Red-Hot Talbot To Make Third Straight Start For Rangers

Burlington Post

In the typhoon-stricken Philippines, a Burlington woman is helping to provide medical care and ensure newborns arrive safely.

Family physician Lynda Redwood-Campbell is leading a Red Cross team in the coastal city of Ormoc.

There are a lot of women delivering babies. Its extremely busy and 90-95 per cent of the people do not have a roof over their heads, she said. For most of them, its a very tough time at Christmas time.

Redwood-Campbell is a team leader with an Emergency Response Unit that includes Canadian, Norwegian and Hong Kong Red Cross groups.

My role is to ensure the team is doing the work that needs to be done, she said during a recent telephone interview from the Philippines.

The Burlington resident said the team has aided many women in delivering their babies and has helped a lot of children.

There was the seven-year-old who contracted potentially-fatal tetanus after stepping on a piece of metal.

Every day, he got a bit better. We gave him medication, said Redwood-Campbell. The good news is that just a few days ago, he walked home.

The team has been helping at a 100-bed hospital reduced to 20 per cent capacity by Typhoon Haiyan.

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Burlington resident providing medical relief to post-typhoon Philippines

Kristofer Hivju aka Tormund from Game of Thrones talks red heads with Brad Blanks
Kristofer Hivju and his beautiful Norwegian wife walk the After Earth Red Carpet. He talks Game of Thrones and what it #39;s like to be a bushy red headed fella....

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Kristofer Hivju aka Tormund from Game of Thrones talks red heads with Brad Blanks - Video

CLIFFSIDE PARK Cliffside Park heads into the holiday break with two more reasons to celebrate than it did exactly one year ago.

The Red Raiders 60-50 victory over New Milford on Monday in non-league boys basketball means a 2-0 record, and that sure beats last seasons 0-5 start.

"Coming in 2-0 into the holiday season, were just happy, and we have that fire inside of us that we just want to come out and win," said sophomore swingman Roy Danis.

Danis is one of several sophomores playing key roles in a program that last season finished 5-21. Sophomore forward Gabriel Valerio scored a game-high 24 points to help the Red Raiders erase a 25-24 halftime deficit.

"It feels great, because losing last year was the worst thing ever," said Valerio. "But I knew eventually we were going to win because we have a good team, but we were young. But it was going to come, and now its coming. "

Cliffside Park opened the third quarter with an 11-0 run to gain control at 35-25. The Red Raiders steady pressure began to bear fruit as New Milford went scoreless for the first 4:32 of the third.

Cliffside Parks 11-0 run featured a put-back by Valerio, a driving three-point play by senior guard Al-Abah-Essola (nine points) and a three-pointer from the left corner by junior Shant Karajelian.

"I feel physically we have the ability to wear some people down a little bit," said Cliffside coach Sean MacIsaac, whose team upset Fort Lee on opening night. "And I think with the team that we played today, we were able to do that."

New Milford (1-1) played well in the first half. The Knights moved the ball quickly, and got six first-half points apiece from senior guard Bobby Blunt (11 points overall), junior guard Joe Poveromo (nine) and senior forward Elijah Cross (eight).

"I thought we played an excellent first half," New Milford coach Mike Mayer said.

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H.S. boys basketball: Cliffside Park feeling good

The holiday season brings with it festive family gatherings, wintry weather, and high school basketball tournaments. Hinsdale Central heads back to Proviso West while Hinsdale South heads west to compete at DeKalb.

Hinsdale Central

Tournament: Proviso West Holiday Tournament

Location: 4701 W. Harrison St., Hillside

First game: 5 p.m. Saturday, vs. Lincoln Park

What to watch: After dropping the season opener to rival Hinsdale South, the Red Devils have won six of their last seven games and moved into second place in the West Suburban Silver conference.

After topping Naperville Central 67-54 Saturday, the Red Devils had a week-long break from game action before the beginning of the Proviso West Holiday Tournament on Saturday. The Red Devils will open the 32-team tournament against Lincoln Park, which started the season with a 2-4 record. The competition gets even tougher in the second round as Central would face either St. Joes, undefeated to start the year, or a tough Nazareth team. The Red Devils have a size advantage few can match with 6-foot-7 forward Matt Rafferty.

The tournament championship, third place and consolation games will be played Dec. 31.

Hinsdale South

Tournament: Chuck Dayton Holiday Tournament

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Holiday road trips for Red Devils, Hornets

It was the day after the Boston Red Sox won the opener against the St. Louis Cardinals in the best-of-seven 2013 World Series, and West Newburys favorite son, John Cena, answered a few questions about it.

That means the Red Sox are up one game in a seven-game series that decides the baseball champion of the world, the politically baseball correct Cena said.

West Newbury, like the Red Sox, is in Massachusetts.

Cena parlayed his superstar status via World Wrestling Entertainment into making rap songs and movie making. No matter what else he does, Cenas main objective remains to be a sports entertainer in WWE, something he does very well.

Just about as good as his nearby hometown team plays baseball. West Newbury is north of Boston.

Im a Red Sox fan, but certainly not as much as I was in my youth, Cena said. Ive kind of grown to appreciate all sports and all teams, but Boston is one of the best baseball towns in the country. Fenway Park is an unreal stadium.

I know its two great baseball environments [Boston and St. Louis] involved in the World Series, and Boston fans will truly rejoice, if Boston can get another crown.

Boston fans rejoiced as the Red Sox won the World Series.

How did the players react? Each shined in his own way. As for star slugger David Ortiz, he glistened, wearing something better than a crown at the towns victory party. Ortiz paraded around the celebratory parade in Boston with a WWE championship belt, provided by WWE and Cena.

After the Red Sox won the World Series, Cena took to Twitter.

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Lions, Tigers and Bears; John Cena, Red Sox and Yankees