change in the Blues side but in 25-year-olds Jackson and Graham and 24-year-olds Frizell and Cordner, NSW have quality back-

RIO DE JANEIRO -- When Beijing gold medalist Phil Dalhausser teamed up with Nick Lucena less than a year ago for a long-shot run at the Olympics, it was more out of friendship -- and a lack of alternatives -- than anything else.Dalhausser was coming off two straight seasons with injuries. Lucena had never been to the Olympics, struggling to find a partnership that worked.We were playing with the houses money, Dalhausser said Monday after losing in three sets to Brazilian world champions Alison and Bruno in the quarterfinals on Copacabana Beach.Its been a lot of fun, Dalhausser added. I couldnt have done it without him. I wouldnt have wanted to do it with anyone else.At 6-foot-9 and already an Olympic champion, Dalhausser is one of the most feared players in the sport. He won his gold medal with Todd Rogers in 2008, and the pair returned to the London Games, finishing ninth.But last August, already a year into the two-year qualification cycle, his partnership with two-time Olympian Sean Rosenthal had stalled -- in part because of Dalhaussers abdominal and calf injuries. So he went back to Lucena, his partner for a couple dozen events when they were first starting out.Im pretty fortunate to play with him, Lucena said after the 21-14, 12-21, 15-9 loss to Brazil left them in fifth place. Hes one of the best players in the world. I wanted to win this for him.Lucena and Dalhausser first teamed up in 2003, a time when they were traveling all night to play in domestic tournaments and sleeping on the beach outside the gates to save money. After they split in 2005, Lucena played with four different partners that year; Dalhausser went on to become a world and Olympic champion.But Dalhaussers injuries left him with little chance of making it back to the Olympics -- or so he thought.Nobody gave us a chance to qualify, he has repeated often.I gave us a chance, Lucena interrupted playfully, just hours after their Olympic elimination. I dont know what hes talking about.The two played their way to No. 3 in the international standings and a spot on Copacabana Beach with a whirlwind of 13 tournaments in 12 months -- just one event more than the minimum. They cruised through Olympic pool play with a 3-0 record.And that was the problem.When Alison and Bruno lost in the preliminary round, they wound up second in their group. The blind draw lined them up with the Americans in the quarterfinals in a match that could have easily been the final.In the second quarterfinal match, the Dutch team of Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen advanced with a 25-23, 21-17 victory over countrymen Reinder Nummerdor and Christiaan Varenhorst.Fans waving Brazilian flags had to struggle to hold onto them in a stiff breeze that began just as play started Monday. The Brazil and Olympic flags on the poles ringing the top of the stadium came partially loose and fluttered wildly while the poles shook in the wind.Trash swirled around the arena.The Brazilians dominated the first set against the United States and then -- just as decisively -- struggled in the second. The Americans fell behind 12-6 in the third, and then the 6-foot-8 Alison and the crowd took over.With a block to force match point and then a spike off Dalhausser for the winner, the man known as the Mammoth moved within one win of a second straight Olympic medal.Brazil will play the Netherlands in one semifinal match, and Russia will play Italy in the other. The fifth-place finish for the Americans, combined with the 19th-place finish by Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson, ties with Athens for the worst finish by the U.S. men in an Olympics.I have learned so much from the Americans. They are good friends outside of the court, Alison said. Theres respect for them, and they must be celebrated.Teemu Selanne Jersey .C. at the helm of the top team in the Eastern Conference. His tenure as the GM in Vancouver was all too brief. Though he led the Canucks to what was then a franchise record-shattering campaign in just his second season, Nonis was gone and replaced one year later. 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Nick Ritchie Ducks Jersey .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back.NSWs young backrow can help to break Queenslands long-running stranglehold on State of Origin, Josh Jackson believes.As coach Laurie Daley prepares to blood his seventh and eighth Origin debutants in Wednesdays game three, a significant overhaul of the Blues line-up has begun.Long-serving back-rower Greg Birds Origin career is likely over after he was dumped for game three in Sydney on Wednesday, while the retiring Paul Gallen plays his final interstate game.The Blues have a wealth of options in the back-row with Wade Graham making his debut in place of Bird and Tyson Frizell holding his place in the side.After two impressive efforts so far this year, Jackson looks certain to have a long Origin career.On top of that, Boyd Cordner, rated as a possible successor to Gallen as Blues skipper, is missing due to a foot injury for the game three dead rubber.Daley has been criticised for being slow to instiitute change in the Blues side but in 25-year-olds Jackson and Graham and 24-year-olds Frizell and Cordner, NSW have quality back-rowers available well into the future.ddddddddddddThere is not the same experience there was before but Wade and Tyson, they are quality players, Graham said.They are professionals, they have a fair bit of experience in first grade too. They are not overawed. It is exciting to see a new young group come through and they will bring energy and enthusiasm to the game.Jackson did pay tribute to the way Gallen had helped the youngsters under him make the step up from NRL to the Origin arena.In terms of his leadership and the way he plays on the field, you get confidence playing and training with him because he has done it all before, Jackson said. ' ' '