The Ottawa Citizen from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • 23

SPORTS SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 1999 B5" THE OTTAWA CITIZEN Villa blows chance at top spot 9 m. 1... 1 and Blackburn had a player sent off for the third Saturday in a row. This time it was Jason Wilcox for a late tackle. Cameroon international defender Rigobert Song made his debut for Liverpool and countryman Marc-Vivien Foe took his place in West Ham's mid-field in a 0-0 tie at Wimbledon.

Paolo Di Canio, playing his first game after an u-game suspension for pushing over a referee and then transferring to the Hammers from Sheffield Wednesday, entered the game as a second-half substitute. Spencer Prior scored the only goal as Derby won 1-0 at Sheffield Wednesday, while Middlesbrough and Leicester fought out a 0-0 tie at the Riverside stadium with goalkeeper Kasey Keller making many fine saves for the visitor. First-Division leader Sunderland went down 2-1 at Watford, only its second away loss of the season. Peter Reid's team remains seven points ahead of second-place Bradford, which could cut that to four by beating Birmingham today. Scottish league leader Rangers gave away a two-goal lead and then hit back with two more in the final four minutes for a 4-2 win at struggling Aberdeen.

Rangers are nine points clear of Kilmarnock, which was held 0-0 at home by lowly Dundee. Defending champion Celtic faces St. Johnstone today and has 16 points to make up on Rangers. The Associated Press Goal differential keeps Chelsea in top spot LONDON Aston Villa squandered a chance to regain top spot in the Premier League when it lost 2-1 at Newcastle yesterday, while last-place Nottingham Forest won for the first since time since August, gaining a 1-0 victory at Everton. Goals by Alan Shearer, his first in the Premier League for 18 weeks, and Timuri Ketsbaia downed Villa at St.

James Park, although Paul Merson replied with a 25-metre strike. The result means Chelsea stays top on goal difference and can move three points clear by winning at defending champion Arsenal today. If Chelsea loses, third-place Manchester United, which has two points fewer, can go top by winning at next-to-last Charltoa Forest stays at the bottom despite the win at Everton, but now is only one point behind Charlton. The only goal came from Pierre van Hooijdonk, the striker who refused to play for the team at the start of the season. Forest's veteran manager Ron Atkinson fielded all his recent signings, including former United States captain John Harkes, as Everton's dismal home form continued.

The Toffees have scored only three goals in 12 Pre- LLL THE ASSOCIATED PRtSS Newcastle Unlted's Warren Barton, left, clears the ball from Aston Villa's Julian Joachim during their Premier League match yesterday. hit the Sky Blues' first and set up the second for Noel Whelan before substitute Steve McManaman, who has negotiated a deal to move to Real Madrid next season, replied a minute from the end for Liverpool Blackburn slipped below Coventry at third from last after a 1-1 tie with Tottenham at Ewood Park. Matt Jansen scored on his debut, but Spurs leveled through Steffen Iversen, mier League games at Goodison Park and are sliding close to relegation. Of the other teams in trouble, Forest wasn't the only team to win. Second-from-last Southampton stunned fifth-place Leeds 3-0 with goals from Moroccan forward Hassan Kachloul, Matthew Oakley and Egil Ostenstad, and Coventry downed another highflying team, Liverpool, 2-1.

Dutch midfielder George Boateng Thunder makes statement Thunder 78, Colts 66 By Wayne kondro The computer ranks the Algonquin Thunder at the top. The coaches' poll pegs them at third, while the national college rankings place them sixth. However, it's hard not to conclude that the computer may be on to something after the Thunder overcame a frigid shooting first half to pound the Centennial Colts 78-66 last night at the Ron Port Athletic Facility. The difference was depth. Brothers Geoff and Adam Eisenstat and point guard Roland Tiamuh came off the bench to ignite a second-half rally in which Algonquin overcame an u-point deficit and won going away.

Now 8-3 in Ontario Colleges Athletic Association Central Division play, but coming off an overtime loss to Seneca on Friday night, the Thunder were ice cold to open yesterday's contest, falling behind 25-27 after missing a series of open jump shots and layups. Although Algonquin rallied to tie it at 32-32 when Jeff Armstrong and Andrew Foster steals on the press yielded fast-break buckets by speedy forward Abraham Osman, the Thunder fell behind 42-32 at the break after Ian Bryan stripped Enrol Fraser for a layup and Chris George and Duanne Cross tipped in a pair from the paint. However, the Thunder began pounding the ball inside to Jamie Trofimczuk early in the second half, and then Tiamuh and the Eisenstat twins took control of the contest by igniting Algonquin's offence. The trio forced a series of Centennial turnovers leading to fastbreak buckets as Algonquin took its first lead, 51-50 with 9:58 to play and then ran away with the victory. Algonquin coach Hugh Lynn said the Thunder's depth eventually wore down the Colts and made it difficult for Bryan and Duane Elder to free themselves for easy jumpers from the perimeter.

"We got back about three in the morning (Friday) night and our legs were tired," Lynn said. "We didn't have the spark that we normally have." 1 Trofimczuk paced the Thunder with 14 points. The twins each added 10, as did Abraham Osman. Elder paced the Colts with 20. Bryan added 16, while Duanne Cross tossed in 10.

Although the Thunder are ranked first in the computer, they're only rated sixth by John Abbott College athletic director Steve Shaw, who determines the Canadian Community Colleges Association rankings after discussions with representatives of each of the five leagues in the country. Last year, the ranking system kept Algonquin from obtaining a wild card spot in the national playoffs. However, under a slightly modified system this year, the wild-card spot will go to the team that finishes second in the Ontario conference playoffs, provided, of course, that convenors across Canada decide Ontario deserves a wild card in the national tournament. 67's get stung as rally falls short Reign is over for Merklinger Anne Merklinger and her team from the Rideau Curling Club in Ottawa came up short at the Ontario Scott Tournament of Hearts women's curling championship at Niagara Falls. Merklinger and teammates Audrey Frey, Theresa Breen and Patti McK-night, who reached the national final a year ago, were ousted in the Ontario semifinals yesterday by a 5-3 loss to Kim Gellard's rink from Unionville.

Gellard and her teammates then grabbed a spot in the nationals with a 5-3 win against the Janet Brown foursome from the Sutton Curling Club in the provincial final Curtis Cruickshank was solid in goal for Sarnia, making 32 saves, and was named the game's first star. Szuper turned aside 21 shots. The 6s, who began their four-game road trip through the OHL's Western Conference with an 8-5 win against the Windsor Spitfires on Thursday, end their trek with a game against the London Knights this afternoon. After that, Ottawa's next action will be Thursday night, when the 67's play host to the Barrie Colts. That contest was originally scheduled for Jan: 15, but the Colts successfully asked to have it postponed, saying travel conditions in the Barrie area were too Disputed goal late in third period gives Sting victory Sting 4, 67's 3 A disputed goal late in the third period gave the Samia Sting a 4-3 victory against the Ottawa 67's in an Ontario Hockey League game last night The 67's argued futilely that Sarnia's Kevin Malcolm had been offside when he came out of the penalty box and took a pass that led to a 2-on-i break and Peter Sarno's game-winning goaL Sarno lifted a backhand shot over Ottawa goalie Levente Szuper.

However, the goal stood, and the Sting escaped with the victory in a game during which they had blown a 3-0 lead at the Sarnia Sports and Entertainment Centre. Greg Willers, Ryan Hare and Ivan Novoseltsev scored the other goals for Sarnia (27-14-5), which is second in the West Division standings behind the Plymouth Whalers. Dan Tessier, Matt Zultek and Mark Bell replied for Ottawa, wheh continues to lead the Eastern Division with a 37-7-3 record. The 67's had defeated the Whalers 2-1 on Friday night, handing Plymouth its first home-ice loss of the regular season. 3 EX 1 "HOLY HOT WHEELS BATMAN!" LATEST MOST UP TO DATE MEDICATION FOR THOSE UNABLE TO OBTAIN OR SUSTAIN AN ERECTION OR WHO SUFFER FROM PREMATURE EJACULATION OR LOW SEX DRIVE 0 Restore your sex life 9 Experienced doctors in and overcome a totally professional impotence, weak and confidential erections and environment private premature ejaculation waiting rooms.

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