Fanfiktions » the game out of reach with an empty-net goal. Daniel Spro

NATAL, Brazil -- Rock-solid defenders who constantly chase, tackle and bully their opponents have been the key to Greece tactics ever since they became European champions in 2004. A decade ago, that team conceded a miserly four goals at Euro 2004 and its successor only conceded four in qualifying to secure its place at the 2014 World Cup as Greece stayed true to its reputation for hard work and ruthless discipline at the back. That all changed when the squad arrived in Brazil. The teams much-vaunted defence was torn apart in a 3-0 defeat by Colombia, whose display of speed and style sometimes left the Greeks standing around like statues. Greece now faces Japan in Natal on Thursday in a game that could very well put either team out of contention. Japan lost to Ivory Coast 2-1 in its opener, meaning neither team can really afford another defeat if they hope to advance out of Group C. Japan advanced to the round of 16 four years ago but lost to Paraguay on penalties. Greece has bowed out in the group stage in its previous two World Cups. For Greece, the need to rebuild its solid back line will be all the more important at a World Cup that is so far seeing crowd-pleasing flair in attack and plenty of goals: 44 in the first 14 games. Colombia scored in the fifth minute, forcing Greece out of its comfort zone right from the start and attacking with speed on the flanks. Greek frustration was reflected in two of its players drawing yellow cards in the second half. "That wasnt what people expected," Greece forward Andreas Samaris said. "I know what everyone expected of Greece though: that we would have 11 men behind the ball, defend, defend, defend and give everything to keep a clean sheet. "We went out to win against Colombia, and that philosophy will not change. We just hope it brings a better result for us because Japan is now a must, must-win game for us." Like Colombia, Japan is likely to attack at speed through the Europe-based trio of Shinji Kagawa, Yuto Nagatomo and Keisuke Honda. Against Ivory Coast, Japan had the better of the first half but ultimately struggled as the game got more physical in the second half. The arrival of the Ivorians star striker Didier Drogba as a second-half substitute also raised his teams performance and there was only a muted response from the Japanese. AC Milan midfielder Honda said that the team was determined to bounce back against Greece. "Nobody feels good about losing and obviously it was a shock," Honda, who opened the scoring with a powerful first-half strike, was quoted as saying. "But its not a shock that we lost, the thing that shocks me is we lost because we could not play to our strengths. "We gave our opponents front line too much respect. Mentally we were weak but that is not a problem that cant be fixed. A little bit more spirit can turn things around ... of course we still have an opportunity to get through the group phase." Leon Draisaitl Jersey .C. -- Kurt Busch put his chances at "70 per cent" at running the Indianapolis 500 this year because of recent developments that have pushed a potential program along. Mark Fayne Jersey . His actions are much louder on the Fenway Park mound. De La Rosa had another strong home start, going seven solid innings to lift the Boston Red Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. http://www.officialoilersfanstore.com/au...-oilers-jersey/. Meanwhile, the Jets extended their winning streak to four and remain perfect under Paul Maurice. Its the Jets second four-game winning streak of the season, the other coming in mid-November. Edmonton Oilers Jerseys . The Mets made the announcement Sunday night. Parnell blew a save on opening day against Washington and the next day it was revealed he had partially torn right elbow ligament. Boyd Gordon Jersey . - Jordan Addesis shootout goal helped the Plymouth Whalers to a 3-2 win over the Sault Ste.GATINEAU, Que. -- The Charlottetown Islanders won their sixth in a row, using a four-goal third period to beat the Gatineau Olympiques 5-3 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play on Wednesday. Charlottetown (6-0-1) trailed 3-1 going into the final period, and tied the game with a pair of goals from Matej Beran. Troy Vance scored the winner at 18:59, and Alexandre Goulet put the game out of reach with an empty-net goal. Daniel Sprong got the other Islanders goal. Jean-Simon Deslauriers, Emile Poirier and Marc-Olivier Brouillard scored for Gatineau (4-3-0). Eric Brassard made 24 saves for the Islanders, and Robert Steeves stopped 18-of-22 shots for Gatineau. --- TIGRES 5 DRAKKAR 4 BAIE-COMEAU, Que. -- Victoriaville overcame a 4-1 third pperiod deficit to stun Baie-Comeau.dddddddddddd. Petr Sidlik tied the game at 12:57, and Gabriel Gagne got the winner 50 seconds later. Philippe Hudon, Angelo Miceli and Mathieu Ayotte scored the other Victoriaville (6-2-0) goals. Dominic Poulin opened the scoring for Baie-Comeau (3-3-2) in the first period, and Felix Girard and Valentin Zykov made it 3-0 in the second before the Tigers got on the scoreboard. Poulins second goal of the game 1:09 into the third period made it 4-1 for the Drakkar. Brandon Whitney and Steven Veilleux shared the goaltending duties for Victoriaville, with Whitney allowing a goal on 19 shots in 30 minutes, and Veilleux allowing three goals on 13 shots. Simon Lemieux made 26 saves for the Drakkar. ' ' '