...There were not many surprises in the FA Cup third round, but the shock results in the minority were certainly spectacular ones.

Manchester United remain 9/2 second favourites despite whimpering to a goalless draw against non league Burton Albion. This was the second time in as many seasons the Reds have been held by conference opposition, although it will mean a lucrative payday for Nigel Cloughs side when the two sides replay at Old Trafford.

Middlesbrough were also held to a draw by conference North side Nuneaton Borough. Former Leicester City apprentice Gez Murphy scored a 90 minute penalty to level matters after Gaizka Mendieta gave Boro the lead after 15 minutes.

Fulham became the first Premiership side to be dumped out of the Cup, going down 2-1 at home to League Two side Leyton Orient ...more

Warm-up for Soccer Training and Games

...muscles rises to 70-75%. A muscle can only achieve maximum performance when all its blood vessels are functional.Physical work increases the energy output and temperature of the muscle, this in turn leads to improved co-ordination with less likelihood of injury.

A warm-up therefore prepares the body by:

raising muscle temperature towards an optimum level for performance

enabling metabolic processes in cells to proceed at higher rates

and allowing nerve messages to travel faster

Why warm-up is important in soccer coaching

Reasons for conducting a thorough warm-up prior to soccer training and games include the following:

To increase blood flow to muscular tissue

To increase muscle temperature

To reduce muscle tightness

To elevate body temperature

To stimulate reflex activity related to balance and co-ordination

To achieve full joint mobility in the specific joints involved in the activit...more

Soccer The War Game! -Looking Back To Its Origin

...Believe it or not, but the modern day soccer owes its origin to the barbarous war mongering nature of human beings.

There is no proper documentation that can state the date and place of origination of the most popular modern day sportSoccer. However, depending on the socio-historical facts and data we can assume that some type of a ball game was played somewhere in this planet for at least over 3000years now.

The earliest evidence of soccer was found in Kyoto, Japan where a field marked to play a ball-kicking game was found.

There is also proper documentation that supports the fact that the Chinese military forces around 2nd and 3rd century BC (Han Dynasty) played a game that involved kicking a ball into a small net. This was then an essential skill building exercise for the armed forces.

historical evidence also shows that some form of Soccer was played also by the Greeks and the Romans, however, the primitive form involved a larger team on each side. At times t...more

Fantasy Football Success: Three basic Rules

...r. Receivers take a year or two, before they adjust to the NFL. Chad Johnson is a great example. Also, watch for rookies who may explode late in the season, once they've grasped a system. Lee Evans was a star after week nine this past season.

Step two is to manage your team every week, down to the most minor details. If you've drafted for depth, you'll have lineup decisions every week, because you'll have a team full of players scoring points. Check their histories against weekly opponents (a vastly overlooked strategy by novices). Some players simply flourish against particular teams, just as some teams tend to score differently against certain defenses. This can definitely affect your weekly lineup dec...more

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