i locals await the start of the football mat | Forum

Mitchell Starc summed up Australias glee about the WACA pitch, and a commanding day one display, after his four wickets had helped spearhead the hosts to an early jump on South Africa in Perth. Chris Conley Youth Jersey .Though he had scooped plenty of wickets in unhelpful conditions in Sri Lanka before being rested from the South Africa ODI tour, and was then laid up by a deep cut sustained in a training mishap, Starc was evidently delighted to be operating in conditions where all members of the Australian side felt very much at home.Better than last year, Starc said - with a grin - of the pitch, following the bore draw with New Zealand in 2015. There was a bit in it for bowlers throughout the day. We even saw a couple jump off newish cracks towards the end. At the same time, [it is] a really fast outfield and a nice wicket if batsmen get in.Its a lot nicer to bowl on than Sri Lanka, thats for sure. All youre after is an even contest between bat and ball, and there was something in it [the pitch] throughout the day. If you put the ball in the right areas and made the batsmen play, your catchers were always in the game.Therell be enough in it throughout the whole Test match if youre willing to put the ball in the right area often enough. At the same time, if batsmen get in and want to take the game on, like Davey did tonight, theres plenty of runs out there. You couldnt ask for more from the opening day of the summer.The wound Sarc had sustained is still open and requires daily cleaning, and he did not quite hit full pace across 18.4 overs. Nevertheless, his peak speed, just shy of 150kph, was slippery enough when allied to the bounce and pace on offer. Im still trying to get some of that rhythm and smoothness back, he said, but to get through 18-and-a-half overs for the day felt good. My speeds were reading okay as well, so personally I was happy with the role I played.We bowled really well in partnerships for most of the day. There were stages where we bowled a little bit too short or a little bit too full, where they got away and batted well with a couple of partnerships. But to bowl South Africa out for under 250 was a pretty good day for the bowlers.Helping too, was a fielding display far sharper than those in Sri Lanka. Mitchell Marsh plucked a sharp chance in the first over, before his brother Shaun later snaffled a stunner at short leg off Nathan Lyon. The ground fielding was also impressive, making South Africa work for every run.Theres been a little bit made of our fielding, Starc said. We always put a lot of work into that, and to hang onto some tough chances from the very first over probably lifted the boys a bit as well.The day was rounded off by David Warners acceleration, something Starc was able to enjoy from the vantage point of a dressing room far more relaxed at stumps than it had been in the morning.The way he can change the game with his little flourish of runs is where he does so well for us, Starc said. To be none for 100 with Shaun Marsh building a solid partnership with Davey is fantastic for the team. Quincy Williams II Jaguars Jersey . Uniteds eighth defeat of a wretched campaign means Liverpool, which currently occupies the fourth and final Champions League place, could go nine points clear of its fierce rival by beating West Bromwich Albion on Sunday. Charlie Adam scored both of Stokes goals at Britannia Stadium either side of Robin van Persies equalizer, with a miserable day for seventh-place United capped by first-half injuries to centre halves Jonny Evans and Phil Jones that forced them off. Taven Bryan Womens Jersey . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. http:///...rnette-Elite-Jersey/ . Belfort (24-10) needed just 77 seconds to down Henderson in the headlining bout of Saturdays "UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson" event at Goiania Arena in Goiania, Brazil. The fight served as a rematch of the pairs 2006 meeting, which Henderson won by decision. Indias richest mine of footballing talent lies in its north-east. More than 30 percent of Indias top-flight players from a region with little over three percent of its population.ESPN Indias exploration of football in Indias north-east which began with revisiting the life of the countrys first football captain Talimeren Ao, found that his home state, Nagaland -- multi-layered, mysterious, complex -- remains one of the most under-represented in Indian football. Only one player from Nagaland has featured in the I-League, the countrys top-flight competition to date.A journey to a village south-east of the capital Kohima aimed to look at Nagaland football in a microcosm and understand how the sport survives. Without manicured grounds or a sustained regular league or a string of role models but with the commitment of a few determined to drive change and a purity of love that endures among its people.Phek district in southeast Nagaland, is postcard country, picturesque villages surrounded by terraced paddy fields a land rich in biodiversity and often marked by conflict. The heart of Chizami village, 85 km east from Kohima, beats for football in more ways than one.Chizami, with its 600 households and population of around 3000, is a typical Naga village with church, school and tight sense of community. It is best known for Chizami Weaves, a unique livelihood project with local women weavers, but the man running a unique football project hopes it will become the home of a new generation of professional footballers from Nagaland.Under-12 trainees of the Life Sports grassroots football programme at Chizamis rudimentary turf ground for their early training. Life Sports, established in August 2008, ran a successful senior football team in local competitions until 2012 before moving onto grassroots football development as a means of giving young footballers a chance to make a livelihood from the sport.Colo Mero, director, Life Sports, whose football programme aims to provide modern training to village footballers and give them an option to make a career in professional football. Involved with students from his colleage days, Mero, who calls himself a social entrepreneur, says he runs his businesses to support his sports activities. He studied philosophy at the North East Hill University in Shillong and also served as Chaplain and Lecturer at Japfu Christian College, Kigwema from 1996-2005.Mero and his trainees gather to raise a cheer for football just before the morning training session.The ground in Chizami may be turf but after a round of rain turns muddy and difficult to play on, yet local football players throw themselves into the game.The Life Sports session completed, Ayhuunsha Akami walks her seven year old son Wemetso Akami (in blue shorts) and his friend, Litse I. Jawaan Taylor Jersey. Thopi -- at six, the youngest trainee in the Life Sports project (in red) -- home after their early-morning training.Back home, Wemetso (in blue) and Litse rush out of their kit to wash and prepare for the day ahead while Wemetsos mechanic father Sote Akami tries to fix a broken motor part.Wemetsos mom Ayhunsha serves him and Litshe their morning meal of pumpkin and rice before taking them to school, while Wemetsos brother Wemecie (in school uniform) looks on.After the Life Sports trainees have left, the Chizami sports ground is busy with the inauguration with the villages annual sports competition complete with a Games torch. The annual meet will open with a football match.Hymns sung by local youth, some football competitors themselves, form part of the opening ceremonies of Chizamis annual sports meet in the presence of visiting dignitaries and elders of the village council.Flagbearers march away after taking the athletes, each bearing the colours of the teams representing the six khels, a Naga name for the localities within the same village. Naga villages have always functioned as independent units, with every khel given equal representation in the village council and play important roles in decision-making in matters related to village governance.The team from the Mechutheza khel (in red) huddle before the start of their match against Pfutsepa, which will open the annual sports meet in Chizami. The players crossed hands mimic the crosshatch gable design on top of the building, a traditional symbol atop Naga dwellings.Pfutsepa and Mechutheza go to battle in a rain-soaked slushy field, a Pfutsepa midfielder giving it all in order to drive a ball that was barely moving on the field due to the soggy conditions.A feast of local pork is being prepared on large woodfires for the dignitaries and elders of the village council attending the inauguration of the annual sports meet alongside the local ground, Chizami.Chizami locals await the start of the football match while the girls shy away from the gaze of the camera.Khwetelhi Thopi became the first player from Nagaland to play in the I League first division on loan to Aizawl FC from his club Rangdajied United of Shillong in 2015. He lives in Shillong today but belongs to Chizami. After completing his education, he returned to the sport he loved at the age of 20 and trained along with Life Sports at Chizamis local ground before setting out to make a career as a professional footballer. ' ' '