Chat » a then-record 73 players forego ttheir eligibility.d

LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Phil Macks penalty kick with no time remaining completed a remarkable comeback Sunday as Canada defeated Samoa 22-19 to finish third at the USA Sevens — its best ever finish at an IRB Sevens rugby event. Down 19-0 early in the second half, the Canadian men reeled off 22 straight points to secure the win. "It showed a lot of character," said Canadian coach Geraint John. "The players at halftime were composed. Everybody was composed. We knew what we had to do and they executed. "Thats what I liked about the whole weekend. When we executed I thought we were a very very good side and we showed that we deserved to be in that top bracket. Now the hardest part is weve got to continue and move on from here." Canada stood 13th in the standings after the first three stops on the nine-event HSBC Sevens World Series. But it showed grit throughout the three-day tournament at Sam Boyd Stadium, staging one rally after another, and moved up to 11th spot. It marked the first time since 2000 and only the second time in IRB Sevens play that Canada had reached the semifinals of the top-tier Cup competition. South Africa, appearing in its third straight final, beat New Zealand 14-7 to win its second tournament. The Springboks downed the All Blacks 17-14 last time out in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The victory moved South Africa ahead of New Zealand atop the series standings. England held on to edge Australia 26-24 in the consolation Plate final and place fifth. Fiji finished ninth in thumping Kenya 35-0 in the Bowl final and the host U.S. blanked Spain 31-0 to win the Shield and finish 13th. Going into the third-place game, Samoa had gone 31-3 against Canada in past matches. And the Pacific Islanders were rampant early on as Fomai Ah Ki scored two tries to give the two-time tournament champions a 12-0 lead at the half. Reupena Levasa scored soon after the restart to extend the Samoan lead to 19-0. Then the Canadian comeback began. Conor Trainors try cut the deficit to 19-7 before captain John Moonlight bulled his way over the goal-line to make it 19-14. Mack then crossed the line in the corner only to see his conversion attempt hit the post, leaving it knotted at 19-19 with 30 seconds remaining. Mack completed the comeback, slotting his drop goal through the posts after Samoa was penalized some 20 metres in front of its posts as time ran out. Mack finished with 12 points on a try, penalty and two conversions. "Once we got that roll going in the beginning of the second half, I dont think there was really any stopping us," said John. The fine Canadian showing came despite a string of injuries that kept captain Nathan Hirayama, Sean Duke, Ciaran Hearn, Mike Fuailefau, Lucas Hammond, Adam Kleeberger and Pat Parfrey out of the lineup. Canada opened the day with a 26-7 loss to New Zealand in the Cup semifinal. The semifinal against New Zealand was a tough ask for Canada. The All Blacks career record against Canada was 23-0 going into the game, with New Zealand outscoring the Canadians 726-151. Canada got a break with suspensions to New Zealands George Tilsley (one match) and Sam Dickson (eight) for foul play in its last pool match against Fiji. The underdog Canadians opened the scoring against New Zealand with a converted Mack try after an attack by Moonlight. But the All Blacks, capitalizing on Canadian defensive mistakes, responded with a try by Scott Curry before Bryce Heem scored on the stroke of halftime for a 2-7 lead. New Zealand continued to dominate possession in the second half and the Canadians found themselves on the back foot after Australian referee Matt OBrien called a string of penalties at the breakdown. Tim Mikkelson and Heem added New Zealand tries to make the final score 26-7, with Gillies Kaka adding three conversions. "Theyre a good team," New Zealand coach Gordon Tietjens said of Canada. "A tough semifinal." On Saturday, Canada rallied from 14-0 down to beat France 17-14 in the Cup quarter-final after recovering from a 12-0 deficit to defeat Wales 21-19. On Friday, Canada downed Kenya 17-15 and lost to South Africa 29-0. A Canadian womens development side called the Maple Leafs defeated the Aptoella Angels 17-5 to win the companion Las Vegas Invitational tournament. Andre Drummond Pistons Jersey . The 25-year-old Lu, a regular on the Japan LPGA Tour after giving up her LPGA Tour membership in 2010, shot an 8-under 64 in windy, wet conditions at Kintetsu Kashikojima. Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk Pistons Jersey . "Rob brings a wealth of coaching experience, having worked both in Canada and overseas in player development," Canada Soccer technical director Tony Fonseca said in a release. https://www.pistonsrookiesshop.com/Luke-Kennard-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Napoli beat high-flying Hellas Verona 3-0 to keep up the pressure on the top two while AC Milan had another disappointing night as four goals from teenage forward Domenico Berardi saw relegation-threatened Sassuolo come back from two goals down to win 4-3. Tony Snell Jersey .com) - Nathan MacKinnon scored the winning goal in the shootout as the Colorado Avalanche rallied for a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins on Wednesday. Joe Dumars Pistons Jersey . Hernandez (3-0) struck out 11 and shut down Oakland for the second time in a week, becoming the first Mariners pitcher to win three times in the first nine games of a season. With the usual "Kings Court" for Hernandez home starts expanded to a "Supreme Court" encompassing the entire stadium with yellow shirts and "K" cards, Hernandez gave up four hits in the 28th double-digit strikeout game of his career.The upcoming NFL Draft has no shortage of big name NCAA players, including a record number of early entrants. Mays Draft will see underclassmen enter, forgoing their senior years with hopes of being picked into the pros. How comfortable are you with your team picking an underclassman in the draft? The top of the draft is dominated by names like Teddy Bridgewater, Jadeveon Clowney, Johnny Manziel, Tre Mason, Sammy Watkins, HaHa Clinton Dix and Blake Bortles - all underclassmen. Some would say its to the benefit of these players to stay in school and work on their craft while at the same time pursuing their degrees. However, declared underclassmen do meet the NFLs three-year eligibility rule, with some leaving school as just red-shirted sophomores. Would you prefer your team invest a draft pick on a prospect who isnt an early entry? Teams have being willing to take chances on non-seniors in the past. In the last three drafts, an average of 72 per cent of the underclassmen who declared were drafted. Last seasons draft saw a then-record 73 players forego ttheir eligibility.dddddddddddd While only 52 of them were selected, there were 15 picked in the first round. Of those first-rounders, just four started all 16 games, including Eric Reid, Justin Pugh, Deandre Hopkins, and Alex Ogletree. At every position there are as many cases where it has worked for an underclassman to declare as there are instances where it hasnt. Former Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell serves as an example of the negative in coming out early. After coming to the NFL after his junior season at LSU, he lasted only 31 games in the league, and has not played an NFL snap since 2009. On the flip side, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck also came out as a junior, and already has two playoff appearances in as many seasons. With this, would you rather your team spend a draft pick on a player who stayed in school to work on his skills in the NCAA? Or are you fine with your team taking a risk and selecting a player looking to come into the league early, perhaps still a little raw? As always, its Your! Call. ' ' '