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BASEL, Switzerland -- Canadas Glenn Howard has won in blowout fashion and had a few close calls at the world mens curling championship. Womens Husain Abdullah Limited Jersey Red Nike NFL Kansas City Chiefs . He has come through every time and remains a favourite to play for his fourth career world title on the weekend. Howard preserved his unbeaten record Tuesday by winning a 7-6 nailbiter over Switzerland before posting an 8-5 win over Denmark. Both opponents are playoff longshots but still gave Howard a stiff challenge ahead of upcoming games against powerhouse rinks Sweden and Scotland. The three-time world champion said the quality of opposition is so high at the competition that every game is a real test. "When other teams play well, you can only do so much," he said. "Everybody keeps thinking youre supposed to blow people out. You cant -- if the other team makes a lot of shots, thats the way it works. "The bottom line is you just try to make one more than the next guy and get those wins." Entering with a 1-4 record, Switzerlands Benoit Schwarz had nothing to lose against Howard. The 20-year-old vice-skip played like it and came tantalizingly close to an upset. Fuelled by a vocal contingent of about 1,000 local supporters at St. Jakobshalle, the host team forced an extra end before Howard won it with a final draw to the button. Howard shot just 74 per cent but teammates Wayne Middaugh, Brent Laing and Craig Savill each shot over 95 per cent. "Thats always been the key to our success," Howard said. "I really believe that. Very rarely will we ever have two guys falter. One guy might be down a little bit. But thats the key to our team -- one guy gets down and the other three pick him up." The Canadian skip then defeated Rasmus Stjerne of Denmark to improve to 7-0. Schwarz, who threw fourth stones after Swiss skip Jan Hauser, said it was quite intimidating to play one of the sports all-time greats. "I tried not to think about it," he said. "That almost worked." A matchup that looked like a gimme for Canada turned out to be one of the most exciting games of the tournament. The young Swiss side almost pulled out a win in the 10th end when a triple takeout nearly scored two. The single point tied it but Howard used the hammer to his advantage in the extra end. "I thought we outcurled them the whole game but still I missed a couple of key ones and they made some great ones coming home," Howard said. "It ended up being a good, good finish. "Fortunately we had last rock in the extra end and we capitalized." The daunting task of facing the veteran Canadian rink didnt seem to faze Schwarz at all. The slight youngster, who won world junior gold in 2010, was remarkably composed throughout. If a shot didnt go his way, hed simply flip his shaggy mop of dark hair to the side and carry on. Even the prospect of a game-ending time-clock violation didnt ruffle him. Schwarz was surveying the house before his final shot of the 10th end when his teammates frantically shouted at him to return to the other end of the sheet. He had a scant 25 seconds to get down the ice, grab the stone and throw one of the biggest shots of his life. A teammate furiously cleaned the rock while Schwarz raced to the hack. With the fans on edge, Schwarz took one last glance, got in position and released the stone with exactly three seconds left. He went for the victory and came about an inch away from getting it. "They called the style of game that they had nothing to lose," Howard said. "Very aggressive and I didnt see that coming." Switzerland took advantage of a poor Howard draw in the fourth end to score a pair and added a single in the eighth for a 5-4 lead. Canada fought back with two points in the ninth end before the late drama. "To lose by 10 points or in an extra end is the same," Schwarz said. "So for sure were a bit disappointed." Canada moved into sole possession of first place on a day when two of the contenders suffered losses. The United States crushed previously unbeaten Sweden 10-1 and France upset Scotland 5-3. But Scotland rallied to edge China 7-6 in 10 ends in the late draw to create a three-way tie for second with a 5-2 record. The Chinese and Sweden also have five wins, with the Swedes having lost two straight after dropping an 8-3 decision to Norway in late action. Norway and New Zealand are tied for fifth with 4-3 records. Round-robin play continues through Thursday night. The medal games are scheduled for Sunday. There were pockets of flag-waving Canadian fans throughout the 9,000-seat venue. A group of beaming Howard family members and friends let out a cheer from the top of the grandstand after the victories. Howard scored two points in the ninth end against Denmark and won it with a single in the 10th. His shooting improved to 86 per cent in the afternoon game, a significant jump from his Switzerland percentage. "I wasnt sharp today, I was a little fatigued," Howard said of his early effort. "I dont know if the jetlag was getting to me or not. The best news is my guys made everything in front of me. "They didnt waver and fortunately I made my last one. But the Swiss boys played really well." Canada shot 91 per cent as a team to 80 per cent for Switzerland. "I think every team can beat every other team," Schwarz said. "For sure there are some favourites like Sweden, Canada and Scotland. But in the end, in one game anything can happen." Red/Gold Fadeaway Derrick Johnson Kansas City Chiefs Jersey Elite . The Texans sunk to a new low on Sunday with a 13-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars to extend their franchise-record skid to nine games. Mens Kyle Williams Game Jersey Red Nike NFL Kansas City Chiefs . Blake Griffin had 27 points and eight rebounds, Chris Paul added 19 points -- including a go-ahead layup in the final minute -- and the Clippers beat the Hawks 109-108 on Saturday night for their season-high seventh straight win. "In the locker room, I almost felt like we lost the game, because we expect a lot from themselves," Paul said. LONDON -- Less than a year after pushing to leave Manchester United, Wayne Rooney committed his long-term future to the struggling Premier League champion on Friday by signing a lucrative contract through June 2019. The 28-year-old forwards future at United has been uncertain since Chelsea tried to sign him last year, and he had only 18 months remaining on his current deal. But Rooney now looks set to end his playing career at the club he has been at since 2004 after signing a contract reportedly worth around 300,000 pounds ($500,000) a week. The deal makes Rooney the leagues top earner, and softens the blow of potentially not playing against Europes elite clubs next season. In the first season since David Moyes replaced Alex Ferguson, United is seventh in the league with 12 matches remaining, 11 points from Englands fourth Champions League berth. "Its not a massive concern for me," Rooney said on his personal website. "This is because I know the direction that this club is going in, and if we dont make it this season then we will come back stronger and claim a Champions League spot next season. "Lets not forget we still have a chance this year. Some of the other teams are playing well, but we have a strong squad here and if we have a positive end to the season then who knows what can happen." The England national team star has been at United almost a decade, since leaving an Everton team then managed by Moyes. In 403 United appearances, Rooney has scored 208 goals, putting him fourth on the clubs career list, 41 behind record-holder Bobby Charlton. "Wayne has been the best player in England since I put him into the Everton first team in 2003," Moyes said. Womens Mike McGlynn Limited Jersey White Nike NFL Kansas City Chiefs. . "Since becoming United manager in July last year, I have enjoyed working with him and seeing just how he has developed his incredible talent. As part of the new contract, Rooney will become a club ambassador when his playing career ends. He already is central to the clubs global marketing operation as one of the teams most high-profile players. "Ive been here since I was 18 and this contract will take me through to my 30s, which is almost my entire professional career," Rooney said. "Ive played most of my best football here and am looking forward to hopefully playing even better football in the next few years." Moyes is delighted to have prevented Rooney from joining a rival. "Everyone would want him in their team," Moyes said. "There were clubs who did want him. There were clubs who would have wanted him, but there was never going to be a chance he was going to leave Manchester United, certainly not on my watch." Convincing Rooney to stay, having already broken the clubs transfer record to sign midfielder Juan Mata last month, should help Moyes persuade other players to join as he looks to strengthen the squad. "Part of the rebuilding is making sure that you keep the players you really want to keep," Moyes said. "We are looking to bring the best players in the world to the club. I think Wayne Rooney is one of them. I will be looking to make more signings in the summer and hopefully add to the quality we already have got." wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
