ada had no lineup surprises, scratching injured forward

If the detour leads to the ultimate destination for Tim Cahill and the Socceroos, Australians wont be worried at all about the route the national team has taken to the Asian Cup final.Australia takes on the United Arab Emirates in the semifinals on Tuesday at Newcastle, 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of Sydney. Organizers no doubt would have preferred a semifinal at a heaving former Olympic stadium in Sydney on Australia Day, Jan. 26, but the Socceroos missed out on that by losing their last group game 1-0 to South Korea.The South Koreans instead took that slot — at Australias marquee stadium on the national holiday — for their semifinal against 2007 champion Iraq.Australians widely expected, then, that their team would be meeting defending champion Japan in the 33,000-seat stadium at Newcastle, in a rematch of the 2011 Asian Cup decider. But the UAE ensured that wouldnt happen with a surprising quarterfinal win on penalties over the four-time champions.And so both teams will be aiming for their first continental title when Australia hosts the UAE, a team that is growing in confidence and self-belief.Cahill produced two spectacular goals to deliver Australia a 2-0 quarterfinal win over China last week.The United Arab Emirates earned their place after a thrilling 5-4 upset win on penalties after their quarterfinal with regional powerhouse Japan finished 1-1 after extra time.While Australia has enviable attacking options with the likes of Cahill, Massimo Luongo, Robbie Kruse and captain Mile Jedinak, the UAE boasts the most prolific forward in the tournament in Ali Mabkhout, who has found the net four times.The 35-year-old Cahill has three goals this tournament and has captured the imagination of home fans with his uncanny ability to turn a game with pinpoint headers and inspired shots at goal.UAE playmaker Omar Abdulrahman, meanwhile, has proved a formidable foe this Asian Cup.Abdulrahman is a good player, so is Mabkhout up front, Australia coach Ange Postecoglou said, before adding that he was more concerned with the threat posed by the team as a whole than by individual players.They are probably one of the few national teams in this region, and particularly the Middle East, who have been pretty stable in terms of their coach and their team, Postecoglou said. They look more cohesive than some of the other sides that tend to chop and change a bit. That is where the danger lies, rather than with the individuals.Australia and the UAE have never met in a competitive match, and their last two friendlies have ended in scoreless draws. Australia joined the Asian confederation in 2006 and its best run at the continental championships was a runner-up finish to Japan in 2011, when the UAE finished 13th.Two quarterfinals were decided on penalties but that didnt concern Postecoglou, who didnt leave any doubt about his approach in the knockout stage.What they do becomes a little bit irrelevant ... we want to dictate the game, he said. So whether they sit back or come at us, we have to make sure in either scenario we are the ones on the front foot and dominating the game.UAE coach Mahdi Ali said the win over reigning champion Japan had given his team renewed confidence.Of course ... its a great thing it will give the players more confidence and more motivation, Ali said. We fought for the 120 minutes for this game and thank God that we win this game.He knows, though, that the game against Australia will rise to another level.Of course playing against Australia in Australia will be a very tough game, Ali said. It will be a very tough game and the stadium will be very crowded and we hope that we do the same in the next game (as we did against Japan). Diamondbacks Jerseys China .com) - Cincinnati Reds pitcher Mat Latos had an arthroscopic procedure performed on his right elbow last week, the teams official site reported Wednesday. Arizona Diamondbacks Shirts . 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On the worlds biggest stage, Jonathan Toews and Sidney Crosby made good on their strong tournaments and controversial roster pick Chris Kunitz sealed the victory as Canada won its second straight Olympic gold medal in mens hockey with a 3-0 win over Sweden on Sunday. Canada did not trail at any point in the final or over the course of the entire tournament and finished as the first undefeated gold medallist since the Soviet Union in 1984 in Sarajevo, beating Norway, Austria, Finland, Latvia, the United States and Sweden along the way. Until Sunday, Toews and Crosby were two of Canadas best players through the first five games but did not have a goal to show for it. Canadian coach Mike Babcock brushed off concerns about a lack of offence from his forwards, figuring they would come but hoping the stars wouldnt "run out of time." Toews, who opened the scoring with a deflection in the first period, and Crosby, who beat Henrik Lundqvist on a breakaway in the second, delivered just in time. Putting up two goals meant Sweden would have had to score as many goals in the third period as Canada gave up in its first five games of the Olympics. That defensive dominance continued against Sweden, which was without first-line centre Nicklas Backstrom, a late scratch. NHL stars accustomed to more offensive roles continued to display the kind of hard-working defensive intensity Babcock needed out of them, limiting Swedens scoring chances in the process. Goaltender Carey Price made 24 saves for his second straight shutout to cap off his impressive tournament in which he allowed just three goals in five starts. By beating Sweden, Canada became the first back-to-back gold-medal winner since the NHL began sending its players in 1998. It was the first time Canada won gold in two straight Games since 1948 and 1952. And this didnt take a fortunate bounce Quality chances came fast and furious in the games first few minutes. Crosby generated the first one 57 seconds in when he batted the puck down and found Patrice Bergeron for a shot from between the circles that Lundqvist got in front of. Canadas Jamie Benn and Swedens Niklas Kronwall traded shots before Bergeron picked off a pass from Johnny Oduya three minutes in and shot it right into Lundqvist. Swedens best chance of the first period was a minute later, when Gustav Nyquists shot from close range hit the left post behind Price. Canadas starter looked behind him to see the puck inches from the goal line before covering it up. Bergeron continued his tremendous start by shooting off the shaft of Lundqvists stick and hitting the post 11 minutes in. That helped Canada turn the tide after being on the receiving end for a handful of shifts. It was the line of Patrick Marleau, Jeff Carter and Toews that has been together the longest thaat got Canada on the board at the 12:55 mark.dddddddddddd Carter skated down the right wing almost to the goal-line and found Toews streaking to the net. Able to keep his stick free from Patrik Berglund, Toews got it on the puck and deflected it off the inside of Lundqvists right pad and in. With Martin St. Louis inserted onto the fourth line in place of Patrick Sharp, Canada generated a couple of scoring chances and got a power play after Matt Duchene drew a penalty on Swedish defenceman Jonathan Ericsson. Unable to score in those two minutes, Canada went on the kill late in the first into the second after a Kunitz high-sticking penalty and got the job done. Canada had the lions share of chances throughout the second period, save for a couple of opportunities by Loui Eriksson and Erik Karlsson, who came into the day tied for the tournament lead in scoring. Karlsson also made a good stick check on Crosby to thwart the captain in open ice. But Crosby wasnt going to be denied at the 15:43 mark, when he poked the puck away from Ericsson at Canadas blue-line and blew right by Alexander Steen to get a breakaway. Crosby had just enough time to think, go backhand and bank the puck off Lundqvists left pad an into the net. It didnt have the drama of Crosby beating Ryan Miller for the golden goal in Vancouver four years ago, but as he raised his arms in the air it looked like Canada couldnt be beaten on this day. Kunitz, who made the team because of his natural chemistry with Crosby, did it all by himself to provide Canada with breathing room. Kunitz took the puck away from Daniel Sedin, skated over the blue-line and beat Lundqvist clean at the 9:04 mark of the third period. Because Canada gave up just three goals all tournament, that set off quite the celebration on the bench. Eleven players, including backup goaltender Roberto Luongo, won gold for the second straight Olympics. Crosby, Toews, Rick Nash, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Marleau, Bergeron, Duncan Keith, Shea Weber and Drew Doughty got to celebrate twice. Some of the biggest contributors in getting Canada to the final came from newcomers, including Carter and Benn. But two of the three goal-scorers against Sweden -- Crosby and Toews -- were the same ones who scored to beat the United States in Vancouver in 2010. NOTES -- With Backstrom out, Sweden inserted defenceman Henrik Tallinder into the lineup because it did not have an extra forward. The Swedes were already without captain Henrik Zetterberg because of a herniated disk. ... Canada had no lineup surprises, scratching injured forward John Tavares and healthy defenceman P.K. Subban along with third goaltender Mike Smith. ... Brad Jacobs gold-medal-winning mens curling team was among the 11,076 in attendance at Bolshoy Ice Dome and interviewed on the video screen at the first intermission. ' ' '