g board." It was an ugly first half that featured

Canada pulled off a number of upsets on the way to a surprise appearance in the Davis Cup semifinals last weekend in Serbia. It was an incredible run that captain Martin Laurendeau feels was actually put in motion with a loss back in February 2012, when Canada dropped a 4-1 decision to a French side anchored by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. "What I liked was the way our guys responded and rebounded from that," Laurendeau said Wednesday on a conference call. "France is very deep, has a great tradition at Davis Cup. It really helped us as a reference point, just a way to approach the competition as a team. "I think it reinforced the bond and the team chemistry with the guys." Canada bounced back later in the year with a solid 4-1 victory over South Africa at Montreals Uniprix Stadium, with singles star Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., leading the way with a pair of victories. The win kept Canadas spot in the World Group and helped instil a feeling that the team belonged at the top level. Over the three ties that followed, the Canadians went out and proved it. The breakthrough season began with a first-round upset over top-ranked Spain in Vancouver. The Canadians returned to the indoor hardcourt at the Thunderbird Sports Centre two months later for an impressive quarter-final win over Italy. Canada then hit the road and pushed a powerhouse Serbian side the distance in front of a raucous crowd at the Belgrade Arena. Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil turned in a game performance in the fifth and deciding match on the indoor clay before falling to Janko Tipsarevic. It was a captivating weekend with plenty of drama and two five-set marathon victories for Canada. The effort should provide a tremendous building block for the 2014 Davis Cup, starting with a World Group first-round tie at Japan on Jan. 31-Feb. 2. "When you go through a Davis Cup weekend like we did against Spain, Italy and now Serbia, it really prepares you for the toughest experience you can go through," Laurendeau said. "So after that, you always feel like you can tackle anything that comes at you and I think the guys have handled that really well. "They really see now that Davis Cup is big, its huge, its very serious and theyre all aware of what we can do as a team. They know we can do great things and theyre really keen on doing that as best they can." Doubles star Daniel Nestor of Toronto is 41 now and continues to rise to the occasion. His five-set doubles victory with Pospisil was one of the highlights of Canadas first Davis Cup semifinal appearance in the modern era. Laurendeau said Nestor has no plans to slow down and expects to be in form for the Japan tie. "Hes going to be looking to be at his peak because theres a Grand Slam (Australian Open) the week before," Laurendeau said. "This guy plays for those big moments so hes going to be doing everything he can to be as fit as he can and continue his contribution. "He only has one shot at winning a point and he always makes every effort possible to be able to give himself the best chance to do that and I dont see anything different for 2014." No. 12 Japan holds a 5-0 record against seventh-ranked Canada, though the two teams have not faced each other in Davis Cup since 1938. Japan is making its return to the World Group in 2014 after a one-year absence. The host city for the Canada-Japan tie will be determined at a later date. Pospisil turned his ankle on the final point of the Serbia tie but it doesnt appear to be a serious injury. "Its not the first time hes gone over on an ankle," Laurendeau said. "It seems like the swelling and the injury is under control. Now its just a matter of the (doctors) figuring out when exactly he can step back on the court. At this stage its day to day from what I hear." Expect Canadas 2014 roster to look much the same as the last few seasons. Its a squad that appears to be positioned for even bigger things in the future. "We went from being qualifiers to being seeded in the main draw in the World Group," Laurendeau said. "Thats big progress, huge progress in just a couple years and Im very proud of the way the guys have done that." Fake Jerseys From China . - The Green Bay Packers got back to work on Friday without star quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Fake Jerseys . PETERSBURG, Fla. https://www.fakejerseysfromchina.com/ . Dane Dobbie had four goals and two assists, Karsen Leung had two goals and two assists, and Matthew Dinsdale scored two and helped on another for Calgary (6-3). Shawn Evans and Jeff Shattler had eight-point games with a goal and seven assists apiece, and Jon Harnett and Geoff Snider also scored. Cheap Jerseys . Rodriguez, who has steadfastly denied using banned substances while with the New York Yankees, made the decision nearly four weeks after arbitrator Fredric Horowitz largely upheld the discipline issued last summer by baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. "I think its a good move for him," former Commissioner Fay Vincent said. Wholesale China Jerseys . -- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have released veteran guard Davin Joseph, a mainstay on their offensive line over the past eight seasons.OAKLAND, Calif. -- With one drive to determine whether Tennessee or Oakland would move right into the thick of the AFC playoff race, Ryan Fitzpatrick stepped up for the Titans. Fitzpatrick threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Kendall Wright with 10 seconds remaining to cap a mistake-free performance that led Tennessee to a 23-19 victory over the Raiders on Sunday. "That would have been a big, big loss for us in terms of what the rest of the season was going to look like," Fitzpatrick said. "We knew this was a gotta-have-it drive at the end of the game and the guys really stepped up." Fitzpatrick also threw a 54-yard TD pass to Justin Hunter and Rob Bironas added three field goals to give Tennessee (5-6) its second win in seven games. But despite the recent slump, the Titans find themselves in a six-way tie for the final playoff spot in the AFC. "We knew going into this one, in our world it was a playoff game," coach Mike Munchak said. "We couldnt fall to 4-7, we knew that. Im sure they felt the same way, so that was a huge drive." The Raiders (4-7) missed a chance to get into that group as the defence failed to hold onto a late lead and Sebastian Janikowski missed two field goals. After Bironas put Tennessee up 16-12 with his third field goal, Matt McGloin led the Raiders on a 75-yard scoring drive. He completed all four attempts and accounted for all but 1 yard on the drive, capping it with a 27-yard pass to Marcel Reece with 6:10 to play. Fitzpatrick calmly moved Tennessee downfield, completing eight of 10 passes. Then facing third-and-goal from the 10, Fitzpatrick found Wright, who beat Tracy Porter on an out pattern from the slot and fell into the end zone for the winning score. "Ryan made a great throw," Wright said. "All I had to do was look it in and get in the end zone. Before the start of that drive we said we werent going to let Rob Bironas come out here and kick a field goal to tie it up. We wanted to go down there and score seven. Wed been in this predicament a lot this season where we had the ball and we couldnt finish. We finally put it together and finished today." The play flittingly came on third down, when Fitzpatrick was at his best on his 31st birthday. He converted 10 of 18 third downs in the game, often in long-yardage situations in his best game yet in place of the injured Jake Locker. He completed 30 of 42 passes for 320 yards --none bigger than the throw to Wright. Hunter and Wright were his favourite targetts, gaining 109 and 103 yards, respectively.dddddddddddd "They just out-executed us, plain and simple," Porter said. "Whether it was game plan, guys out of position on certain things, coverages, landmarks, were supposed to get on the quarterback. We were just out-executed." Fitzpatrick and the Titans capitalized on a blown assignment for the first touchdown of the game on the opening drive of the third quarter. Hunter was left wide open and caught a pass 17 yards downfield before juking Phillip Adams and Brandian Ross and racing to the end zone for the score that put Tennessee up 13-9. The Raiders answered with a good drive before stalling at the 30. Janikowski missed his second field goal as his season-long struggles continue as he adjusts to new holder Marquette King after the departure of longtime mate Shane Lechler in the off-season. McGloin, an undrafted rookie out of Penn State, put the Raiders in position for a second straight win after his three-touchdown, no-interception performance last week in Houston. He completed 19 of 32 passes for 260 yards to earn a third start Thursday in Dallas, but also threw an interception that set up Tennessees second field goal. "Up and down day," McGloin said. "Youre going to have days like that. I thought we missed on a couple of opportunities offensively, but well go back to the drawing board." It was an ugly first half that featured five field goals, a blocked punt, a missed chip shot, a number of dropped passes, a poorly thrown interception and 12 penalties for 135 yards. The Raiders led 9-6 at the break, but could have had an even bigger advantage after Jeremy Stewart blocked Brett Kerns punt with 11 seconds left. McGloin threw a 23-yard pass to Rod Streater on the next play, but Janikowski pushed a 32-yard field goal wide left. That was his second miss from inside 40 yards this season after making 85 of 86 the previous five seasons. "Were not making them, not consistently enough," Allen said. "We have to continue to work to get better there." NOTES: The Titans had two 100-yard receivers and a 300-yard passer in the same game for the first time since Dec. 19, 2004, in a loss to Oakland. ... Raiders TE Mychal Rivera left in the first half with a concussion after a helmet-to-helmet hit from Titans S Michael Griffin. Oakland CB Mike Jenkins (concussion) and LB Kevin Burnett (bruised quad) and Tennessee TE Craig Stevens (concussion) also left with injuries. ' ' '