Inspired second half sees Freo home

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Bounding ... Stephen Hill is too quick for his West Coast opponents and was instrumental in the win. Source: TONY MCDONOUGH / AAP

West Coast forward Mark LeCras injured his arm and Fremantle skipper Matthew Pavlich was reported in the Dockers' 28-point AFL western derby victory at Patersons Stadium on Saturday night.

LeCras, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, appeared to suffer a serious shoulder injury after copping a heavy but fair bump from Tendai Mzungu.

2.0 (12)	Q1	3.5 (23)
5.4 (34)	Q2	6.7 (43)
11.10 (76)	Q3	7.10 (52)
16.12 (108)	Q4	11.14 (80)

Nick Suban 3	Jamie Cripps 2
Michael Walters 3	Ashton Hams 2
Kepler Bradley 2	Josh Hill 2
Chris Mayne 2	Josh J. Kennedy 2
Danyle Pearce 2	Mark LeCras 2
Hayden Ballantyne 1	Chris Masten 1
Michael Barlow 1
Matthew De Boer 1
Ryan Crowley 1

The 2010 All-Australian immobilised his right arm by wrapping it up in his jersey, but was later seen icing his forearm with fears it could be broken.

The injury capped a forgettable third quarter for the Eagles, with Fremantle piling on six goals to one to set up the 16.12 (108) to 11.14 (80) victory in front of 39,629 fans.

Dockers midfielders David Mundy and Michael Barlow were the joint winners of the Ross Glendinning medal after dominant displays.

Fremantle were left with their own worries after Pavlich was reported for charging Will Schofield.

Schofield took a brave mark running back with the flight of the ball when Pavlich cannoned into him.

Pavlich was already in mid-air when Schofield claimed the mark, and the Fremantle spearhead turned his body when he realised contact was imminent.

Schofield was shaken by the hit, but was able to take the free kick.

The AFL's match review panel is also sure to assess a first-quarter incident when Eagles midfielder Scott Selwood was felled off the ball.

Fremantle duo Hayden Ballantyne and Nat Fyfe were in the area at the time, but it was unclear who delivered the blow to Selwood, who stayed on the ground for around 20 seconds and left the field nursing a sore head.

The likely loss of LeCras for the early part of the season is a bitter blow for West Coast, who are already missing ruckman Nic Naitanui (groin), midfielder Daniel Kerr (knee), Matt Rosa (quad), Mark Nicoski (hamstring) and Sharrod Wellingham (ankle).

And in a further setback, key defender Eric Mackenzie appeared to injure his left hamstring in the third quarter.

West Coast led by nine points at halftime, but were blown out of the water in the third term as Fremantle's midfield took control.

Such was Fremantle's dominance, they ended up winning the inside-50m count 61-38.

Former Port Adelaide midfielder Danyle Pearce performed strongly in his first AFL game for the Dockers, while Barlow, Stephen Hill and Mundy were also key contributors.

Tagger Ryan Crowley restricted gun Eagles on-baller Luke Shuey to just 12 touches, while Luke McPharlin was strong in defence for the Dockers.

Pavlich booted just 0.3 for the match, but Fremantle's small brigade stepped up in his absence.

Michael Walters and Nic Suban booted three goals, while Pearce and Chris Mayne chipped in with two apiece.

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Lyon leads feisty Aussie fightback

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Five-for ... Nathan Lyon bowled well on day two in Delhi. Source: Tertius Pickard / AAP

A bit of aggressive banter goes a long way and it helped Australia rattle India's batsmen on day two of the fourth Test in Delhi, Aussie spinner Nathan Lyon says.

4th Test - Feroz Shah Kotla

22 March 2013 - Day 2, Session 3

India 1st Innings

R. Ashwin	12	41	1	0	29.27
B. Kumar	10	17	1	0	58.82
N. Lyon	22.1	3	94	5	4.24

India have dominated the series and are still in a strong position to push for a four-nil sweep.

However they were made to fight awfully hard for a first-innings advantage on Saturday, reaching 8-266 at stumps in reply to Australia's 262.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar will resume on Sunday on 10 with only Pragyan Ojha and Ishant Sharma for company after Lyon claimed 5-94 including the wicket of Ravi Ashwin lbw from the last ball of the day's play.

Five long years after the 'Monkeygate' scandal of the 2008 Sydney Test, tensions between the two sides exploded in the 51st over on Saturday. India batsman and captain MS Dhoni appeared to be warned by the umpire for running down the pitch.

Australia fielder David Warner became involved in a verbal spat with Dhoni and reports suggested Warner had been warned by the umpires, although an Australia team spokesman said he was unaware of any action taken against the fiery opener.

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Warner's captain Shane Watson stepped in to have a word with his player. Watson also spoke to Dhoni as both captains attempted to calm the situation.

It's understood Warner gave Ravindra Jadeja a spray for taking a drinks break during the over, which led Jadeja to complain to the umpires about Warner's tactics.

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"We do wish that we did do it earlier,'' Lyon said of Australia's sledging tactics.

"That's a way that Australia plays its best cricket, when we're putting the contest to the opposition.

"And no matter who the opposition is, I think it works well."

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Dhoni was out two overs after the incident for 24 at 6-210 but India fought back with a 44-run partnership between Jadeja (43) and Ashwin (12).

"Yeah there was definitely a lead-up (to Dhoni's dismissal)," Lyon said.

"We need to have that aggression. We need to get in the contest and that led to every wicket that fell out there.

"That was how it was with the conflict that went out there in the middle. The aggression that was going on, Dhoni fell away to Patto."

Dhoni's pull shot landed in the safe hands of Watson at mid-wicket off the bowling of James Pattinson in a key blow.

Australia had resumed on 8-231 and were bowled out for 262 including tailender Peter Siddle's career-best 51.

Offspinner Ravi Ashwin claimed 5-57, giving him 27 wickets for the series in a dominant performance.

India raced to 0-59 at lunch off 14 overs. Murali Vijay (57) and Cheteshwar Pujara (52) completed half-centuries after lunch, adding 108 for the first wicket.

However Australia's aggression paid dividends as India lost 6-102 in a collapse before Jadeja and Ashwin made sure the home side's tail wagged, just as Siddle and Pattinson (30) had done for Australia with a 54-run partnership for the ninth wicket.

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Video: heated exchanges in Delhi

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Fiery ... Watson steps in to pull Warner back from Dhoni. Source:Fox Sports

It may have come a bit late, but Australia finally showed the fight they're renowned for as things got heated on day two of the fourth Test against India in Delhi.

4th Test - Feroz Shah Kotla

22 March 2013 - Day 2, Session 3

India 1st Innings

R. Ashwin	12	41	1	0	29.27
B. Kumar	10	17	1	0	58.82
N. Lyon	22.1	3	94	5	4.24

It's probably no coincidence this occured on what was perhaps Australia's most successful day on tour so far, with their aggression leading to eight wickets from their bowlers, including five for spinner Nathan Lyon.

The confrontation that is most likely to attract the attention of the match referee centred around India skipper MS Dhoni and Australia opener David Warner.

The tourists weren't happy after Dhoni appeared to run down the centre of the pitch, complaining to umpire Aleem Dar.

Dar casually warned Dhoni, which the wicketkeeper-batsman didn't take too kindly to, indicating he had no choice but to run down the pitch as James Pattinson was blocking his way.

This kicked things off for the Australian fielders, with Warner in particular getting stuck into Dhoni.

Umpires Dar and Richard Kettleborough stepped in and called on temporary skipper Shane Watson to calm his teammate down, which Watson did, but not before sharing a few choice words with his opposite number.

Words continued to be exchanged throughout the number, after which the umpires wisely, or perhaps fortuitously, called for drinks.

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Late try seals Cheetahs win

Heartbreaker ... Kyle Godwin tries to stop Raymond Rhule's progress. Source: Faith Moran / News Limited

The Cheetahs spoiled the Western Force's first home match of the season with a come from behind 19-10 win in Perth on Saturday night.

The nine-point Cheetahs victory ends the Bloemfontein-based franchise's best ever tour of Australasia in which they enjoyed victories over NSW Waratahs, Highlanders and the Force.

1 Tries 1
Winston Stanley 27'	Willie le Roux 77'
1 Conversions 1
Sias Ebersohn 29'	Riaan Smit 79'
1 Penalties 4
Jayden Hayward 59'	Riaan Smit 25'
	Riaan Smit 34'
	Riaan Smit 70'
	Riaan Smit 73'

It was the Force's first home game of the season after losses away to the Melbourne Rebels, Southern Kings and Bulls before last week's stirring win over the Queensland Reds.

It also marked the opening of nib Stadium's new $95-million eastern grandstand that seats almost 10,000 taking the ground's capacity to 20,500.

The home fans went home disappointed though.

The Force looked relatively comfortable after dominating play in the first half and scoring a try through Winston Stanley, but the Cheetahs kept coming and eventually a late try to Willie Le Roux sealed the result.

The Force completely dominated the opening 20 minutes in terms of territory and possession, but could not put the score on the board with the Cheetahs defending grimly and Sias Ebersohn missing two penalty attempts for the home side.

As so often happens, the Cheetahs earned a penalty on their first foray into their 22 and Riaan Smit had no trouble slotting the goal.

The Force continued to attack, though, and were rewarded with a lucky try to Stanley after Toby Lynn earlier caused the turnover that led to the try when clearly offside.

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Watch the Cheetahs snatch victory from Western Force in our Super Rugby Match Centre, featuring video highlights.

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The home side wasn't about to complain and took a 7-3 lead when Ebersohn converted, but that was cut to just one by halftime when Smit scored another late penalty for the visitors.

The game opened up in the second half but it took almost 20 minutes for the first points to be put on the board when the Force's replacement kicker Jayden Hayward converted a penalty.

He missed another minutes later with the Force clinging to a 10-6 lead and that was cut to one with 10 minutes to go via another Cheetahs penalty goal.

Smit then nailed a long-range penalty minutes later from almost halfway to give the visitors a two-point advantage before Force forward Ben McCalman coughed up possession, allowing second-rower Francois Uys to set up Le Roux for the match-sealing try.

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Ashwin dominates Aussies yet again

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Chief destroyer ... Ashwin dominated the Aussie batsmen on day one. Source: Noah Seelam / AAP

Trailing three-nil in the four-match series, Australia's batsmen showed their usual ability to get starts and get out on Friday's opening day of play, slumping to 7-136 before reaching 8-231 at stumps thanks to some determined efforts from their tail.

4th Test - Feroz Shah Kotla

22 March 2013 - Day 1, Session 3

Australia 1st Innings

P. Siddle	47	125	4	0	37.6
J. Pattinson	11	57	1	0	19.3
R. Jadeja	22	6	34	2	1.55

But Delhi has form as a dangerous pitch and Australia's quicks aim to exploit any terrors in the wicket with some fearsome fast bowling in the fourth Test on Saturday.

No.9 Peter Siddle will resume on a career-best 47 not out with James Pattinson on 11.

Steve Smith played a mature knock of 46 off 145 balls with three fours and two sixes, adding 53 for the eighth wicket with Siddle.

Opener Ed Cowan (38) and No.3 Phil Hughes (45 including 10 boundaries) also got starts.

Hughes was struck on the helmet by a nasty rising delivery from Ishant Sharma and played a ball onto his stumps in the same over.

Offspinner Ravi Ashwin led the way for India with 4-40 off 30 overs, giving him 26 wickets for the series.

Smith says a score of 280 would be a reasonable effort on this pitch.

"It's not too often you see the wicket turning like that the first day of a Test match," Smith said.

"It is going to be pretty tough.

"There's not too many balls that go through the top like the one that hit Hughesy.

"If we'd seen a few more of those they might have called the match off.

"It is going to be good for us to bowl (on that pitch).

"It's not too often on the first day of a Test match you see a ball going through the top like that and hitting a bloke in the grille (of the helmet).

"That would have shaken him up a little bit. It definitely would have shaken me up.''

The tourists made five changes on Friday. Shane Watson was recalled from his one-match "homeworkgate" suspension to take over as Australia's 44th Test captain in the absence of injured skipper Michael Clarke.

Australia boast a strong pace attack of Siddle, James Pattinson and Mitchell Johnson, plus spinners Nathan Lyon and Glenn Maxwell.

In sunny conditions on a dusty, cracked pitch already starting to show signs of variable bounce at Delhi's Feroz Shah Kotla ground, the visitors once again had no answer to India's spinners.

Australia haven't lost four matches in a Test series since the 1978/79 Ashes, which was during the turmoil of the breakaway World Series Cricket years.

Watson's men were well-placed at lunch at 2-94 after losing the wickets of David Warner for a duck and Hughes.

Five wickets tumbled for 30 in a middle-order collapse including the key dismissal of Watson stumped for 17.

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Caviar canters to 24th win

Smile for the photo ... Black Caviar brings up win 24 in the William Reid Stakes. Source: Joe Castro / AAP

Moonee Valley burst at the seams to farewell the immortal Black Caviar on Friday night and she cantered off the local stage with a typically effortless victory in the William Reid Stakes.

The race itself amounted to little more than an exercise gallop for the seven-horse field but Black Caviar's Melbourne swansong was always about the event rather than the race, as it has been for most of her epic 24 straight wins.

The packed house crowd of 25,000 burst into wild applause as Luke Nolen allowed Black Caviar to surge past stablemate Karuta Queen approaching the home turn.

Salmon and white streamers burst across the public lawn moments after Black Caviar crossed the line four lengths clear; a tickertape finale to a night of celebration never before seen on a Melbourne racetrack.

Trainer Peter Moody, paraded before the race like a rock star, said Black Caviar's impact on sport, let alone racing. had been "second to none".

"She put on a wonderful show," he said.

While the Black Caviar story is probably just two runs from reaching its end - one start in Sydney, another in Brisbane - Moody declared her at the peak of her powers.

"She's going super - it's scary how well she's going," he said.

"Just the way she let down and quickened. What do you say. I'm lost for words."

Nolen said his associaton with Black Caviar "has been a wonderful ride the whole time".

He added: "It's amazing to be part of not just a wonderful racing story but a (wonderful) sporting story."

"Thank God she didn't let anyone down tonight."

Like Moody, Nolen said Black Caviar had never been in better shape.

"She felt amazing to me," he said, adding he gave Black Caviar a gentle tap with the whip turning for home "just to keep her balanced and happy and she took care of the rest".

Moody said "you never say never" about Black Caviar racing again in Melbourne - a crack at a fourth straight Patinack Farm Classic in November would be the logical option, if any - but his strong sense on Friday night was that she had run her last race in Melbourne.

There was a profit to be made for some last night. One Sportsbet punter plonked $500,000 on Black Caviar, for a $15,000 profit.

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Dons destroy Crows

Party Time ... Ben Howlett celebrates one of his four goals in Essendon's rampant victory. Source: DAVID MARIUZ / AAP

Besieged Essendon emerged from a drugs cloud to open the AFL season with a spirited 35-point upset win against Adelaide on Friday night.

The Bombers showed tremendous ticker in their 18.9 (117) to 11.16 (82) away triumph at AAMI Stadium.

Essendon didn't score for the initial 20 minutes as they conceded the initial three goals, but then steamrolled the fancied Crows.

3.4 (22)	Q1	1.3 (9)
4.9 (33)	Q2	7.5 (47)
8.14 (62)	Q3	13.7 (85)
11.16 (82)	Q4	18.9 (117)

Taylor Walker 3	Ben Howlett 4
Richard Douglas 2	Alwyn Davey 3
Nathan van Berlo 1	Tom Bellchambers 1
Josh Jenkins 1	Stewart Crameri 1
Graham Johncock 1	Courtenay Dempsey 1
David Mackay 1	Brendon Goddard 1
Jared Petrenko 1	Michael Hibberd 1
Jason Porplyzia 1	Heath Hocking 1
	Nick Kommer 1
	Jake Melksham 1
	David Myers 1
	Brent Stanton 1
	Jobe Watson 1

Utility Ben Howlett sparked the Bombers' comeback and capped a best-afield game with four goals while Alwyn Davey booted three.

Essendon midfielders Jobe Watson, Dyson Heppell and Brent Stanton were prominent and ruckman Tom Bellchambers shaded big Crow Sam Jacobs.

Adelaide struggled for clear winners with Richard Douglas (two goals), on-baller Matthew Wright and defender Brent Reilly among their best while Taylor Walker kicked three goals from limited chances.

Leading into the match, coach James Hird hailed his players' resilience amid the club being investigated for possibly using banned drugs last season.

And his charges demonstrated terrific character to fight back after a fast-starting Adelaide streeted to an early 22-0 advantage.

Essendon didn't kicked a goal until the 27th minute of the first quarter and appeared fortunate to only trail by 13 points at quarter-time.

But the Bombers blitzed Adelaide with six goals to one in the second quarter, with Howlett kicking two and setting up another, as the victors took a handy 14-point break into halftime.

And their lively goalsneak Davey ensured they were never headed by booting three goals in the third quarter, including one from a controversial new law.

Adelaide's Reilly slid into Davey's legs while gathering the ball, only for the Bomber to be given the free kick under the rule which penalises any sliding into an opponent's legs.

The goal helped Essendon stifle Adelaide, who repeatedly threatened a comeback but, after their initial three-goal spree, couldn't kick consecutive goals for the rest of a match attended by 42,218 spectators. 

Goals

Essendon: B Howlett 4 A Davey 3 B Goddard B Stanton C Dempsey D Myers H Hocking J Melksham J Watson M Hibberd N Kommer S Crameri T Bellchambers.

Adelaide: T Walker 3 R Douglas 2 D Mackay G Johncock J Jenkins J Petrenko J Porplyzia N van Berlo.

Leading FOX FOOTY SuperCoach scorers:

Essendon: Howlett (164) Dempsey (124) Watson (121) Stanton (117) Hocking (93)

Adelaide: Jacobs (102) Wright (102) Douglas (91) Thompson (91) Walker (91)

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Pistorius brothers both have court dates

A LAWYER for Oscar Pistorius says his appeal against bail conditions will be heard on Thursday, a day after the culpable homicide trial of older brother Carl begins in another South African court.

Advocate Kenny Oldwadge has told The Associated Press that they have confirmation from Pretoria's North Gauteng High Court that the appeal is scheduled for March 28.

The Olympic athlete, charged with murder in the shooting death of Reeva Steenkamp, is challenging travel restrictions and having to report twice a week to a police station, among other conditions.

Oldwadge and prosecutors say Pistorius is not required to appear in court.

Carl Pistorius' trial is set for Wednesday and Thursday at a court south of Johannesburg. He was charged in the death of a woman in a 2008 road collision.

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French anti-doping chief calls for funding

THE president of the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) on Thursday criticised leading international federations for not taking the fight against doping seriously enough.

Bruno Genevois also expressed his frustration at the time taken to put into place the measures required to carry out the fight against doping.

At a hearing at the Senate, the upper house of the French parliament, into the efficency of the anti-doping system, Genevois said the delay in putting plans into action was one of the biggest barriers to fighting doping efficiently at an international level.

"There is a discrepancy between those who believe (in fighting doping) and those who put it into practice," he said.

"For example, the international football federation (FIFA) dedicates 1.2 million euros ($A1.51 million) a year to the fight: that is 0.09 percent of their revenue of 1.394 billion euros ($A1.75 billion).

"For the Olympic federations, some sources say they dedicate 35 million euros ($A43.95 million) a year, while for tennis it is 1.3 million euros ($A1.63 million)."

Different sporting federations also apply very different methods when it comes to doping controls, Genevois added.

He said that, during the 2010 football World Cup in South Africa, "unofficial sources claimed that just four urine tests and one blood test were carried out for each competing nation over the course of a one-month competition".

"That seems to me to be completely insufficient."

Genevois also complained that the AFLD was set to be seriously hit by a cut in funding from the French government.

"We discovered in mid-February that the subsidy given to us would be reduced by a tenth in 2013," he said without revealing any exact figures.

"It is bad news even if the AFLD understands that those controlling public finances have to make certain choices."

According to Genevois, the government subsidy constitutes 90 percent of the AFLD's budget, which is believed to total around 9.2 million euros ($A11.55 million).

The Senate commission into the effectiveness of doping controls intends to hear in the near future from the organisers of various sporting events, including the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), which organises the Tour de France.

"The commission will hear from some of the leading event organisers," said Jean-Francois Humbert, a politician from the opposition UMP party who is the president of the investigating commission.

"I have no precise date, but I know it is something we will do.

"It has escaped nobody that we are talking a lot about cycling. ASO will be among those called forward."

The commission, set up at the end of February, has six months to complete its report, but should do so before the end of June, when the French parliament goes into summer recess.

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Penrith refuse to rule out Carney

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Carney ... is on the radar of the Panthers. Source: Rohan Kelly / News Limited

Penrith refused to rule out making a play for Cronulla's Todd Carney with the cashed-up Panthers on the hunt for a star playmaker after missing out on Johnathan Thurston.

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Carney admitted during the week his contract talks have been called off because of the drug scandal surrounding the NRL club which resulted in Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan being stood down.

It leaves the NSW State of Origin five-eighth unsigned for 2014 with speculation clubs like Penrith and St George Illawarra are interested in Carney's services.

Penrith recently missed out on North Queensland superstar Thurston and while Cleary didn't want to talk about potential targets ahead of Sunday's home clash with South Sydney, he admitted they were looking for "good players".

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"I don't really want to talk about recruitment today. It's pretty obvious we've been active in the market last year. We've been making a lot of changes," Cleary said on Thursday.

"We're looking for good players but let's leave it at that."

The Panthers lost five-eighth Lachlan Coote for the season with a pectoral muscle tear with Cleary giving former Parramatta and Wests Tigers playmaker Tom Humble a shot at the No.6 jersey against the Rabbitohs.

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"That's the great thing about professional sport. One door closes and another one opens and I'm really confident Tom will do a good job for us," Cleary said.

"It's up to him to stand up and do himself proud and take the opportunity."

Humble, 24, who will make his Panthers' debut on Sunday, is delighted to get a crack in his favourite position after playing halfback in Penrith's final trial against Parramatta.

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"It's a huge opportunity for me to set myself for one position. I've played a utility role at the last couple of clubs and this is a chance to make a position my own," Humble said.

He believes the Panthers' pack hold the key to beating the Rabbitohs who have enforcer Sam Burgess returning from suspension after getting away with a 14-12 win over Cronulla on Monday.

"They don't get headlines like some other packs like Souths but they'll go forward against anybody and I'm looking forward to playing behind them," he said. 

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