Plymouth were held 2-2 at home by Sky Bet League Two promotion rivals Portsmouth as their lead at the top of the table was reduced to three points. Athletics Jerseys 2019 . Yann Songoos diving header gave Plymouth the lead on 21 minutes but Portsmouth were back level before the break, with Kyle Bennett (40) drilling home. Highlights of Plymouths 2-2 draw with Portsmouth in the Sky Bet League Two. The visitors looked to have snatched victory when Danny Rose smashed a shot in off the underside of the crossbar on 86 minutes, only for Connor Smith to grab an equaliser for Derek Adams side a minute from time. That allowed Doncaster to close the gap on the leaders after they beat Colchester 1-0 at the Keepmoat Stadium. Highlights of Doncasters 1-0 win over Colchester in Sky Bet League Two Tommy Rowe netted during first-half stoppage time when he chipped the goalkeeper as Rovers recorded their third consecutive league win.Carlisle and Hartlepool shared five goals in a thriller at Brunton Park, with the home side eventually taking the spoils to win 3-2 and set a new club record of 13 matches unbeaten. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. Jabo Ibehre set the Cumbrians on their way when he scored his fourth goal of the season on 20 minutes as they led at the break.But the real action took place in the second period, beginning with the dismissal of Carlisle full-back Shaun Miller for a second bookable offence. Highlights of Carlisles 3-2 win over Hartlepool in the Sky Bet League Two Two goals were then scored in the space of three minutes, as Lewis Alessandras effort for Pools was cancelled out by Danny Grainger.Hartlepool equalised for the second time courtesy of Padraig Amond but the hosts refused to settle for a share the spoils and Michael Raynes headed home the winner from a corner. Danny Hylton scored his eighth goal of the season in Lutons 2-1 win at Leyton Orient Luton climbed above Portsmouth into fourth place in the table after they won 2-1 at Leyton Orient, with goals from Cameron McGeehan and Danny Hylton putting them two-up in east London. Highlights of Lutons 2-1 win over Leyton Orient in Sky Bet League Two The Os pulled a goal back 11 minutes from time through Ollie Palmer but Nathan Jones side held firm to earn maximum points.Grimsby took advantage of a frustrating afternoon for the teams above them as they climbed five places to sixth, with James Berrett scoring the only goal of the game away to Cambridge.Accrington occupy the final play-off spot after they scored two late goals to come from behind and beat Blackpool 2-1 at the Wham Stadium. Highlights of Accringtons 2-1 win over Blackpool in Sky Bet League Two. Michael Cain looked to have secured all three points for the Seasiders when he broke the deadlock with a free-kick nine minutes from time but Romuald Boco scored from the spot after Tom Aldred had given away a penalty.Boco then grabbed the winner in the fourth minute of time added on as Accrington also climbed five places.The game at Meadow Lane sparked into life 10 minutes from time as Jonathan Fortes low strike put Notts County ahead only for Crewe to make it 1-1 60 seconds later through Alex Kiwomyas first-time effort. Highlights of Notts Countys 1-1 draw with Crewe in Sky Bet League Two At the other end of the table, Graham Westley tasted defeat in his first game in charge of bottom club Newport as they lost 1-0 at Yeovil.County looked to be heading for a point from their trip to Huish Park but Tom Eaves netted from close range on 80 minutes to secure all three points for the Glovers.Exeter eased the pressure on manager Paul Tisdale with a crushing 4-1 win at Barnet. Highlights of Exeters 4-1 win over Barnet in the Sky Bet League Two. John Akinde headed in the opener for the Bees - his eighth goal of the season - but the visitors were back on level terms just before the break as Jake Taylor thumped home.The Grecians edged ahead early in the second half as Lee Holmes fired in following a superb flick by Reuben Reid and, after David Wheeler extended their advantage with a close-range strike, Reid added a fourth from the penalty spot. Highlights of Cheltenhams 2-1 win over Crawley in Sky Bet League Two Elsewhere, Cheltenham held on for a 2-1 win against Crawley with goals from Billy Waters and Jack Munns, while in-form striker Matt Green earned Mansfield a point in a 1-1 draw at Wycombe and Stevenage ran out 2-0 winners away to Morecambe.You can watch Liverpool v Man Utd, plus Englands tour of Bangladesh and the British Masters on Sky Sports. Upgrade now and enjoy six months at half price! Also See: Asamoah back at Carlisle September Goal of Month winners League Two video Football on Sky Oakland Athletics Gear . The stress, the waiting, the whispers about whether he doped during his stellar cycling career, all of it ended when - after nearly two years - federal prosecutors closed an investigation of him last week without bringing any charges. Oakland Athletics Pro Shop . Watch the game live on TSN and TSN GO at 9pm et/6pm pt. Serge Ibaka returned to the Thunder lineup from a calf injury that was supposed to sideline him for the remainder of the postseason and the results were sparkling. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/ . The England international raised his middle finger toward Manchester City supporters during Saturdays game at Etihad Stadium, which Arsenal lost 6-3. The incident was not seen by match officials at the time but the FA charged Wilshere retrospectively after a study of video footage.What is the most important space on a soccer field?Some suggest that it is the zone directly in front of the penalty area – referred to as Zone 14 – where the largest percentage of goal scoring opportunities originate. Others suggest that the penalty area is the most important, as it is where the largest percentage of goals are scored. Still others suggest that the midfield is the most crucial area of the pitch, as it is often where games are "won and lost".I disagree with all three suggestions. For me, the most important space on a football pitch is the space between a players ears.For me, football is simply a game of decisions. The ability to make the correct decisions consistently is what is often referred to as a players "football IQ" or "football intelligence". You will often hear analysts refer to a player having a good "football brain", which is simply a way of saying that a player consistently makes the correct decisions on a football pitch.Does he pass the ball or does he dribble? If he passes the ball, whom does he pass it to? When he passes the ball, how hard does he pass it? Does he pass it to the left side or to the right side of the receiver? Does he pass it on the ground, or does he have to lift the ball in order to get it to its intended target?Players make thousands of these decisions during a 90-minute game, yet the difference between glory and failure can often rest on just one or two. For defenders, the wrong decision often results in conceding a goal.Consider Spains humiliating 5-1 loss to the Netherlands.Just one minute after Spains David Villa had a one-on-one with Dutch goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen – which would have put Spain in front 2-0 just before the halftime break had Silva scored - the Netherlands scored a fabulous equalizing goal through Robin van Persie. The goal completely changed the course of the game, as the momentum heading into the break turned 180 degrees in favour of the Netherlands.As wonderful as the goal was for the Netherlands, from Spains perspective it was a defensive calamity.When Dutch defender Bruno Martins Indi passed the ball to wingback Daley Blind, the assessment of the situation from Spanish defender Sergio Ramos was that there was no imminent danger.However, Ramos failed to correctly assess the situation because he got caught ball-watching. Ramos focused his attention on Blind, rather than on Robin van Persies position in relation to the ball at Blinds feet. Had he seen van Persies positioning on his back shoulder, Ramos would have realized that there was a genuine threat. Had Ramos then decided to run just three or four yards to get back into the correct defensive position, Blind would have opted to retain possession with a safer pass, rather than sending the ball forward for van Persie to attack.The ball in behind Spains back line from Blind was inch perfect, matched in qualitty only by the diving header from van Persie. Athletics Jerseys 2020. The goal completely changed the course of the game, as the momentum swung in favour of the Netherlands – who went on to score four unanswered goals in the second half to pull off one of the results of the tournament.Consider Italys shocking 1-0 defeat at the hands of Costa Rica.Usually one of the most consistent defensive teams at the international level, Italy was badly caught out for Bryan Ruizs game-winning goal.When Costa Ricas Júnior Díaz picked up the ball on the left flank and shaped to cross, Italys Giorgio Chiellini (arguably one of the best defenders in the world) never spotted the run of Ruiz off his back shoulder. Why? Because Chiellini never took his eyes off the ball.Yes, it was clever movement from Ruiz. But Chiellinis decision to focus solely on the ball, rather than on Ruizs movement in relation to the ball, resulted in a devastating outcome for Italy. A tremendous cross from Diaz and a clinical finish from Ruiz was all Costa Rica needed to separate the two sides, clinching the minnows passage to the knockout stage.Consider Ecuadors winning goal in their 2-1 victory over Honduras.One of the key principles of good defensive play is "see the ball, see the man". A good defender always puts himself in a position where he can see both the ball and the player he is marking. Generally speaking, this is a position that is ball-side and closer to the goal that is being defended than the attacker.On Ecuadors free kick, Honduran defender Juan Carlos García committed the cardinal sin of turning his back on the ball when marking Ecuadorian striker Enner Valencia. Garcia had no idea that the ball had been kicked, as he was trying to wrestle with Valencia instead. This left Valencia the easy task of wriggling away from Garcias clutches to head the ensuing cross into the back of the net.While there have been some examples of very good defensive play at the World Cup – Iran, Greece and Costa Rica have all put on excellent defensive performances in various games – I have been surprised at how many individual defenders are making fundamental defensive mistakes.As the game changes – fullbacks are now more coveted for their ability to get forward in attack than they are for their one on one defensive abilities – the characteristics of the next generation of defenders will also change. Speed, comfort on the ball and a wide passing range are all characteristics that the modern game seeks in its defenders.But those characteristics should never come at the expense of situational and positional awareness, tackling, heading, organization and communication. The young players - like Frances Raphael Varane and Uruguays José Giménez – who can marry all of these traits together will go on to be the next "defensive artists" of the modern game. ' ' '