Herausforderungen » ended in an emotion-charged 52-point win

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Hes been nosing around it for a while and Steve Mathews feels its time to take the next step. Mathews splashed onto the scene in 2009 in his NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 debut at the Speedway at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario by setting fast time in practice and the race results showed it wasnt a stab in the dark. After qualifying fourth, the now 22-year-old out of New Liskeard, Ontario finished sixth to prove that he could compete with Canadas best stock-car competitors. In three subsequent races on that same half-mile oval Mathews has driven his No. 15 Bill Mathews Motors Ford to two more top-10 finishes and a start from the outside pole position a year ago in the Clarington 200. After 22 series starts - primarily on ovals - across five seasons now, Mathews, who scored a series career-best finish of third on June 15 at Delaware (Ontario) Speedway, has three top-five finishes and two pole wins. While not an indictment on his performance Mathews notes the glaring lack of a victory. Considering the competition, its not a huge red flag, but he thinks its past time to go to Victory Lane. Further whetting his appetite for a win was last Septembers battle at Barrie (Ontario) Speedway. Mathews started from the pole position and had a late-race lead before tangling with some traffic resulting in a disappointing finish in fourth. "I really thought we had that one, but it didnt work out," said Mathews. "When you get that close it makes you want it even more. I have no doubt that well get there. We have a solid team." Cutting his racing teeth on the half-mile oval at Delaware, Mathews believes the two Ontario tracks are similar enough for the experience to transfer. "I began my career at Delaware and the two tracks are fairly similar," he said. "We run the same gear and the setups are pretty close. There are a few differences between the two (tracks), but I feel comfortable there." The relatively flat egg-shaped oval at CTMP creates some setup problems for race teams, but Mathews enjoys competing there. "I like that track," he stated. "It can be a little tricky, but everyone knows it well and will be ready for the race. I dont expect anyone to be surprised." The stakes for the Clarington 200 were raised last week with Canadian Tire Motorsport Parks announcement that they will cease operation of the oval track later this summer to continue the ongoing renovation of the facility by the new ownership group that came onboard in 2011. "I absolutely would love to win the last Canadian Tire Series race there," declared Mathews. Kevin Loughery Jersey .J. -- Marshawn Lynch said Thursday it will be good to get back to football after the Seattle quiet talking running back wrapped up his final mandatory media session of Super Bowl week. Washington Wizards Gear . The recently retired Stern was elected Friday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined with the class of 2014 on Aug. https://www.cheapwizardsonline.com/1449k-wes-unseld-jersey-wizards.html . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. Tom Gugliotta Jersey . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. Antawn Jamison Jersey . 10 VCU 85-67 on Thursday night at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. The Seminoles (4-0) have scored at least 80 points in each of their games. Theyve had 12 months littered with off-field distractions, but Sydneys AFL focus rarely wavers.Michael Talias arrest last Sunday was the latest in a series of incidents to have rocked the Swans stretching back to the final week of July last year.Back then, club icon Adam Goodes opted to take a week off after relentless booing from opposing supporters over several weeks.The debate over his actions had barely subsided before the clubs other indigenous superstar Lance Franklin missed the clubs finals campaign due to a mental health issue.Fast forward into the current campaign and the club enjoyed a relatively uneventful first half of the campaign before the calendar again clicked into July.The leadup to the Round 16 game at Geelong was dominated by the revelation of a feud within the family of co-captain Kieren Jack.A patchy run of form reading loss-win-loss-win-loss was followed by the news that injured off-season recruit Talia had been charged with being in possession of a quantity of a prohibited substance and will appear in court next month.For a club that prides itself on its professionalism and positive image it was another blow and unwanted distraction.The Swans have long been regarded as one of the cleanskins of Australian sport, a supremely well run club with a strong player-driven culture and one that rarely generates a negative headline.ddddddddddddHowever, if recent history has taught us anything, its that the resilient Swans are rarely blown off course for long by gusts of off-field turbulence.If anything, adversity hardens their resolve.The game Goodes opted to miss ended in an emotion-charged 52-point win over Adelaide in front of their largest home crowd of the season.In their first game after losing Franklin they were ferociously competitive in a nine-point away loss to minor premiers Fremantle.The Swans capacity to push distractions aside and produce a performance of laser-like intensity was evident again earlier this month.After days of headlines about the Jack family dispute they produced one of their best performances of recent times in a memorable 38-point victory at Geelong.All of which suggests that Carlton better be beware and brace for a fiercely focused Sydney side at the SCG on Saturday, as the Swans seek to generate positive on-field vibes in pursuit of a high ladder position and a seventh straight finals campaign. 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