uys to the other side. But thats the joy of it." Hawk

MONTREAL - If its not a must-win game, the Montreal Impacts home opener is certainly one they would very much like to win. After opening the Major League Soccer season with two tight losses on the road, the Impact will play host to the Seattle Sounders before more than 25,000 at Olympic Stadium on Saturday afternoon. It will be a first home game for new coach Frank Klopas, the first time Brossard, Que., native Patrice Bernier will play at home as team captain, and the last that star striker Marco Di Vaio will sit out from the three-game suspension he got for wading into a skirmish in the playoffs last October. "Its the third game of the season, but we need to start getting some points," former Chicago Fire boss Klopas said this week. "Its good to be home. "We definitely felt that we should have picked up some points on the road, but thats the game." The Impact opened the season March 8 with a 3-2 loss in Dallas marked by a harsh penalty awarded to the home team. They followed a week later with a 1-0 defeat in Houston. There was a feeling the team played better in the second game — that the defence was sharper, that better chances were created and that Di Vaios replacement Andrew Wenger looked more comfortable up front. "We have some momentum even if were 0-2," said Bernier, who replaced the departed Davy Arnaud as captain. "Its not like we played bad and got cleaned out. "We felt we progressed last game from the first game and now were coming home. We have to defend our home and weve been very good at home the last two years. This is a game that could send us in the right direction and give us a positive boost." They are up against a Seattle side (1-1-0) with a formidable attack, but which is coming off a 2-1 loss at home to Toronto FC on former Tottenham striker Jermain Defoes pair of first-half goals. The Sounders, old foes of the Impact from their A-League and United Soccer League days, have not beaten Montreal in MLS play. The Impact won 4-1 in Montreal in 2012 and opened the 2013 campaign with a 1-0 win in Seattle. But Seattle has been among the better away sides in MLS, with a 29-28-24 road record since they entered the league in 2009. Di Vaio and midfielder Andres Romero, both with three game suspensions, wont see action until a March 29 game in Philadelphia. In Di Vaios absence, winger Justin Mapp and attacking midfielder Felipe Martins have led the offence. The veteran Mapp was among their best players last season, but Felipe looks to have rebounded from a mediocre campaign and is looking more like the energetic playmaker he was as a rookie in 2012. He has yet to score, but leads the team with eight shots. "I had a few chances," he said. "But the hardest thing is to create chances and were doing that. "The only thing is we have to put it in the net, but that is going to come. Its not after one or two games you have to figure out whats going on. Its just soccer, no? One time a goal goes in and after that it comes natural." Klopas likes what hes seen of the Brazilian. "He missed the beginning of the season with injury last year and that was one reason his fitness level and sharpness werent the same," the coach said. "Hes a guy that sometimes doesnt get the points, but he helps the team in so many ways without the ball, with his work rate and stuff like that. "Ive been very pleased with him and I know he has a lot more room to grow." Bernier, coming off knee surgery, missed the season opener but got in 72 minutes in Houston. The team is still waiting for Bernier, Felipe and designated player Hernan Bernardello to all be at peak form to see what the centre of their midfield can do. Bernardello was injured shortly after signing last summer. The Impact are to play their first three home games at the Big O before moving outdoors to Saputo Stadium. Klopas coached Chicago against the Impact in Montreals first MLS game at Olympic Stadium in 2012, a 1-1 draw. "Its amazing that two years ago I was on the opposite side in the first game here, with a tremendous atmosphere," he said. "I hope its the same, only now theyre cheering for me and our team." Cheap Authentic Air Jordan . According to the CFL Scouting Bureaus January rankings, four of the top five Canadian prospects line-up on the offensive side of the trenches, which is good news for Bombers general manager Kyle Walters. With only one selection in the first two rounds — Walters sent his second-round pick to Saskatchewan in the days ahead of the 2013 trade deadline — the No. Wholesale Authentic Jordans . Henderson (20-3) received winning scores of 48-47 and 49-46, and the other judge scored it 48-47 for Thomson (20-6). The announcement drew boos from the United Center crowd. "Train this hard for this long, its such a long camp and I see my title shot disappear," said Thomson, who fought most of the fight with a broken right hand. http://www.cheapairjordanfreeshipping.com/.ca NHL Power Rankings, finally overtaking the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks, who rank second and third this week. Cheap Jordans For Sale . Wayne and Cindy Tuck of Ilderton, Ont., closed out round-robin play earlier in the day with a 7-3 win over Finland but needed a win over Austria to reach the final eight. Wholesale Jordans . Former San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds made his longshot request of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit upheld Bonds conviction in September.Every day, Dan Hawkins encounters something new in the Canadian Football League. The 52-year-old former U.S. college coach took over the Montreal Alouettes this season with plenty of enthusiasm but little knowledge of the 12-man game. "Its a very fun game," said Hawkins. "Its because of the pace, and all the situations. "Its a long way from your sideline to the other, especially when your bench is at one end and youve got to run guys to the other side. But thats the joy of it." Hawkins is the only truly new head coach in the eight-team league this season. There is a new man with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Kent Austin, but he knows the CFL inside out as a former quarterback and coach. Austin was last seen in the CFL in 2007, leading the Sakatchewan Roughriders to a Grey Cup. And while Tim Burke replaced the fired Paul LaPolice as interim head coach in Winnipeg last Aug. 25, it will be his first start to a campaign with the Blue Bombers in that role. Back for their second seasons are Scott Milanovich of the Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts, Mike Benevides of the British Columbia Lions and Corey Chamblin of the Edmonton Eskimos. Kavis Reed is entering his third campaign with Saskatchewan, while John Hufnagel is now the longest-serving coach with one team in his sixth season with the Calgary Stampeders. Hawkins replaced Marc Trestman, who left the Alouettes to become head coach of the NFLs Chicago Bears after five years and two Grey Cups with Montreal. Trestman also entered the league with no CFL experience, but at least he had many years working with pros as an offensive co-ordintaor and quarterbacks coach in the NFL. Hawkins made his name as head coach at Boise State University, but then posted a 19-39 record over five difficult years at Colorado. He spent the last two years as a football analyst on television. It seems a sketchy background for a new leader of a perennial Cup contender, but general manager Jim Popp saw potential in a coach known as more of an overseer than a hands-on boss. Hawkins calls his style "situational leadership." "I can micro-manage if I need to, and I will, but to me, its fine-tweaking everything and co-ordinating everything, and knowing its not just offence or defence or special teams," he said. "Its how do you win as a football team." To ease the transition, Popp has expanded the coaching staff to 12, and brought in veteran Doug Berry as senior adviser to the head coach. Berry was an assistant in Montreal from 1999 to 2005 and was head coach in Winnipeg for three years. "I think we learned our lesson with coach Trestman," said Popp. "It helps to have some experienced CFL people. "To have Dougs voice in that room, having been a co-ordinator, offensive-line coach, quarterbacks coach and head coach, he has a wealth of experience that he can bounce off people. And hes been in different cities. He can explain about going out west, how the wind is and how the stadiums are. You cant replace that." Already, Berrys been helpful. Hawkins recalled how before a pre-season ggame, he was overseeing warm-up and wondering when the officials would come over for the pre-game meeting, as they do in the U.ddddddddddddS. Berry told him that in the CFL, it is the coaches who go to the referees at midfield for the meeting. "So everything is an adjustment," Hawkins said with a laugh. "We call ourselves the adjustment bureau." Hawkins has large boots to fill after Trestman, while Austin has the weighty task of turning Hamilton into a winner. The talented Ticats have threatened to become an East Division power in recent years, but now they need to win games on the field. They were 6-12 under George Cortez last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2008. They were first in the league in both points scored and points allowed. The 49-year-old Austin, who is also vice-president of football operations, has the credentials for the job. His 10 seasons as a player included leading the Roughriders to a Grey Cup victory over Hamilton in 1989. He was offensive co-ordinator on a Grey Cup winner in Toronto. After coaching Saskatchewan to a Cup he left to become offensive co-ordinator at the University of Mississippi, his alma mater, before becoming head coach at Cornell. Not long ago, there was a coaching carousel in the CFL, with mentors like Dave Ritchie and Don Matthews moving from team to team. Now Austin is the only one who has ever been head coach of another team in the league. Milanovich was Trestmans right hand man in Montreal before he jumped at his shot for a first head coaching role with Toronto last season. The 40-year-old whose specialty is quarterbacks has set the bar high after winning a Cup in his rookie campaign, but will have a chance to repeat with star pivot Ricky Ray behind centre. Burke fulfilled a long-standing dream to be a head coach when he took over the Bombers last season and was confirmed as head coach on Nov. 1. There will be pressure from the outset for the former Alouettes defensive co-ordinator with the team moving into the new Investors Group Field. The Bombers were 6-12 last year and were crushed in both of their pre-season games this year. Hufnagel, another former CFL quarterback, is 59-30-1 in his five seasons in Calgary, including a Grey Cup in his first year in 2008. The 61-year-old was offensive co-ordinator for the Stampeders in the 1990s, then went to the NFL before moving back up north as a head coach. Benevedes had the thankless task of replacing the respected Wally Buono, who remains general manager. All went well in a 13-5 regular season, but the former Lions defensive co-ordinator is 0-1 in the playoffs after losing to Calgary in the West final. The 40-year-old Reed is another who is under the gun in Edmonton. All went OK in his first year as they lost the West final after an 11-7 season, but last year, the Eskimos dropped to 7-11 and were bounced in the first round. Chamblin is charged with bringing the Roughriders back to respectability after an 8-10 campaign as a rookie head coach on a team with a lot of rookie players. Hell have Cortez as his offensive co-ordinator. ' ' '