Two weeks into the season, Matildas coach Alen Stajcic is delighting in the impact of the W-Leagues foreign legion on the womens domestic football competition.A total of 30 internationals spread across the league has, to the national team bosss eyes, lifted standards across the board.That means more players pushing into national team calculations for next years international program, but Stajcic is welcoming the challenge of fitting everyone in.The harder it is the better. Im happier when the job is hard, he told AAP.I want to see players coming through, pushing the players that are already established in the Matildas team.The really, really pleasing part has been the performances of some of the Matildas.Katrina Gorry was outstanding last week for Brisbane Roar as was Mackenzie Arnold and Clare Polkinghorne; Caitlin Foord similarly for Sydney FC.At Melbourne City, players who are already at that level are performing at a high level again. Theyll all drag the league standard up.Punters are liking what they see as well, with crowds up around the country, except Melbourne.Four curtain-raisers played so far have attracted at least 2,000 people each while the stand-alone opener to the season in Brisbane attracted over 3,000.And unlike last season, the winner doesnt appear to be a lay-down misere.City - who won the double last year after a perfect campaign - might top the table after two rounds but didnt carry a championship-winning swagger in either of two tight wins.Stajcic believes the rich depth of foreign talent - capped at four per team - across the league has broadened the list of potential title-winners.They adds quality; quality at training, experience and extra competition for places, he said.Its everything you want in an elite environment.We want our domestic players pushed and players that they can learn from and play against because we want the best possible competition we can get.The big question is always the balance of how many foreigners do you want in a team and at the moment weve got the balance right.Hopefully down the track we can progress and not rely on foreigners as much and give more of our youth a go, but now the league is in a position where a lot of youth players have their opportunities and the internationals add a lot of value.Cheap Fake Vans . 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Rousey will put her perfect 8-0 record and hardware on the line against another undefeated fighter, 7-0 Sara McMann in the main event of UFC 170, which will be held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas Nevada on February 22nd.STORRS, Conn. -- American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco noted the difference on Tuesday.His conference, which a day before had been facing the potential loss of two or even four of its highest-profile programs to the Big 12, finds itself in a stronger position after the Power Five league decided not to add anyone, he said.The silver lining in this, and it wasnt always great over the last six months ... is that we got a lot of attention, Aresco told The Associated Press. The brand has never been better known.Of the 11 schools interviewed as candidates by the Big 12, seven of them: UCF, Cincinnati, UConn, Houston, South Florida, SMU, and Tulane are members of the AAC. Three other league schools, Temple, Memphis and East Carolina, were dropped as candidates earlier in the process.Aresco said that kind of exposure helps him make the argument that his league plays at a Power Five level and should eventually be considered part of a Power Six.I think we can build on that and build on our `Power Six narrative, he said. Now, we can resume, reinforce and refocus. I think if the perception is there that we are on that level, we have a chance.Aresco said part of that will be approaching ESPN soon about the possibility of re-opening the Americans TV contract. The league is in the midst of a six-year, $126 million deal with ESPN that expires in 2020.The Big 12, by comparison, has a 13-year, $2.6 billion television contract it signed in 2012.Aresco said he hopes ESPN will be willing to talk about a new deal before the AAC contract hits the open market in 2019.We need a contract that is closer to what the P-55 has than what we have now, he said.ddddddddddddIn the meantime, schools such as UConn, which wont see the hoped-for financial windfall from joining an actual Power Five conference, said they will have to do a better job raising money at the institutional level.UConn athletic director David Benedict said Tuesday that means better ticket sales, fundraising, local media contracts and sponsorship deals.The nice thing about today is that were in control of our own destiny, he said. We dont have anything that is holding us back from moving forward, because were not waiting for someone that we dont have any control over to make a decision that really is going to have an impact on our future.He didnt comment on whether the Huskies are interested in considering other conference options, such as rejoining the Big East for basketball, but said the school is committed to making the American the best conference it can be.Cincinnati football coach Tommy Tuberville, meanwhile, said he still believes his school will get another shot at the Power Five over the next five or six years.This is not the end of the line, he said. Theres going to be huge turnover, theres going to be a realignment, theres going to be things happen.But Aresco said that while he doesnt have a crystal ball, he believes there will be substantial period of quiet before there is any more talk of conference realignment, and for the American, thats a good thing.That will give us a chance to continue building the brand, he said. ' ' '
