Jesus also struggled.Voicing their frustration, the fans chanted Marta, Marta in reference to the five-time world player of the year who has been thriving with the womens national team.And as the Iraqis rejoiced on the field after

The $70 million Central Broward Regional Park was purpose-built for cricket when it first opened, in 2008. It was US crickets crown jewel, an oasis in a land starved of turf-pitch stadium facilities.Before long, though, the venue took the shape of a white elephant, in the words of a hit piece in the areas major newspaper, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. After it hosted only two revenue-generating cricket events featuring Full Members in its first seven years, restlessness from Broward County management understandably set in, and as a result the facility has begun creeping towards repurposing itself for other sporting tenants, chiefly soccer.At the entrance to the park there are signs hawking sign-ups for FCB Escola, the summer soccer school run by FC Barcelona that has been the chief provider of rental revenue at the stadium for the last several years. Inside the pavilion there are no posters of cricketing icons who have graced the CBRP but framed images of Messi, Neymar, Iniesta and Suarez.Most recently the second-division soccer franchise Fort Lauderdale Strikers announced their relocation from Lockhart Stadium on the north side of Fort Lauderdale to the CBRP, which offers them a more central and upgraded location. They are the main tenant at the ground now. The cricket square was dug up in 2013 and moved 20 yards north to accommodate soccer, not the other way around. All signs point to the realisation that cricket is no longer what the facility is for.Much work had to be done on the pitch and outfield just to get it in shape to host cricket matches for the CPL this weekend. Auckland-based pitch consultant Mark Perham was brought in from Auckland to oversee the preparation of the pitch. A weed-filled outfield also needed to be worked on significantly after recent soccer use to get it back to looking green and clean.This weekend is an opportunity to show fans the CBRP has not been lost to soccer. CPL organisers have made it known that they want to play at the venue every year, and it will take a regular commitment such as that to deter a complete repurposing of the facility for soccer. CPL chief executive Damien ODonohoe has made it perfectly clear, though, that he wants a series of sell-out crowds to make return visits worthwhile.CPL administrators are also confident that the product theyre putting out will be better than that offered by last years Cricket All-Stars roadshow. The cheapest ticket in Lauderhill can be bought for US$23, with two-thirds of tickets priced at $30 or less. The cheapest Cricket All-Stars ticket was $50, though more than 75% of seats were priced at $100 or higher. Tom Moody, the CPLs international director of cricket, says not only is the event more affordable than the All-Stars, but it will be a better product.With all due respect to the Masters competition, youre really looking down memory lane and enjoying the spectacle but from a different position in the seat, Moody said. Youre sitting back and admiring some of the greats of the game that have played over the last couple of decades.You see one form where youre looking back and admiring some past greats in a different generation, played in a different gear. Over the next few days youre going to see the game played thats current, with the best players in the world, playing in overdrive. From an entertainment standpoint, youll be on the edge of your seat for the next week.Whether or not fans hold up their end of the bargain is to be determined. The overwhelming majority of ticket sales online have been purchased by out-of-towners. A ticket sales manager at the main Florida CPL box-office location at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center said a week out from the event that the word was about 100 walk-up tickets were sold in the month and a half since tickets went on sale.Yet there was more success achieved at other satellite sales locations, where tickets were offered by local West Indian expat merchants. Sheila Sawh Gowkaran, owner of Joys Roti Delight - a cult restaurant located across the street from the stadium - said she sold out of her batch of 500 tickets more than two weeks ago. I could have sold 1000 if they gave me that many, Gowkaran said.In terms of local competition from other sports, Miami Marlins are home at the moment and commence with a four-game series against St Louis Cardinals, which directly clashes with the CPL start times. However, CPL chairman Richard Bevan doesnt feel theyll be affected by traffic that could have gone to the CPL games had Marlins been away.I think were only in competition with ourselves in terms of putting on the very best product and making sure the cricket in Florida is played lighter and better, Bevan said. Well communicate that to a world audience over the next few days. Pulling out all the stops, Tridents part-owner Mark Wahlberg tweeted his support for the event, encouraging people to show up in Lauderhill.Barring a dramatic surge in walk-up sales, the expectation is that Thursday nights curtain-raiser may be played in front of a half-full stadium, which may be a disappointment to ODonohoe. The crowd is expected to be better on Friday night, while Saturday and Sunday are projected to be sold out, with few tickets remaining for both days. Time will tell if better success at the gate on the weekend double-header days outweighs less than optimal attendances at the start.The last obstacle is the temperamental Florida weather in the summertime, which is also tropical storm season. The weekend prior to the CPL saw heavy rains each day. Some training sessions for the early-arriving teams were cancelled. However, since Monday there has been glorious sunshine every day. Organisers have their fingers crossed the rain will hold off through the weekend, and the current forecast is for good weather on the first three days, with only Sunday in some doubt.If the scene in Lauderhill is anything like the last visit made by West Indies in 2012, the atmosphere should be thriving. Instead of having to wait four more years, good support in Lauderhill for the CPL might not only encourage the league to come back next year, but a visit by India and West Indies could be in store even sooner.Air Force 1 Blue Sale . LOUIS -- St. Air Force 1 Red Sale . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. http://www.airforce1storesale.com/fake-sf-af1-outlet.html . McPhee said that Ovechkins father Mikhail is in stable condition after having the surgery this week and is no longer in intensive care. "Weve told him to stay as long as necessary with your dad," he said. Ovechkin and his Russian national team were eliminated from the mens hockey tournament in Sochi on Wednesday with a 3-1 quarter-final loss to Finland. Air Force 1 Low Sale . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. Air Force 1 Green Cheap . What general manager Dave Nonis called "short and productive" negotiations ended with Kessel signing a US$64-million, eight-year contract on Tuesday.BRASILIA, Brazil -- Disappointed yet again, the Brazilian fans jeered their own team and saved their applause for Iraq.Brazil, which has never won the Olympic gold medal in mens soccer, failed to win for the second consecutive game, held to a 0-0 draw by Iraq on Sunday.The result leaves Brazil tied for second place in Group A. The team needs a victory over Denmark on Wednesday in Salvador to advance and avoid another huge embarrassment at home two years after the 7-1 loss to Germany in the World Cup semifinals.Neymar, the tournaments biggest star, played below expectations for the second straight game, and promising young strikers Gabigol and Gabriel Jesus also struggled.Voicing their frustration, the fans chanted Marta, Marta in reference to the five-time world player of the year who has been thriving with the womens national team.And as the Iraqis rejoiced on the field after the draw, the fans applauded the team and broke out into chants of Iraq, Iraq.Brazil midfielder Renato Augusto had his teams best chance for Brazil, buut his volley from close range sailed over the crossbar with the goalkeeper already beaten.ddddddddddddBrazil is trying to win its first gold medal in soccer and it arrived for Sundays match under pressure after a disappointing 0-0 draw in the opener against South Africa.The crowd of more than 60,000 started supporting Brazil but it grew anxious as the team struggled against Iraq, jeering the players at halftime and more and more toward the end of the match.Gabriel Jesus, who last week secured a multimillion-dollar transfer to Manchester City, missed a few decent chances early and was loudly booed when he was substituted in the second half.Brazil also had a goal by Gabigol disallowed in the 28th because of offside, and Augusto hit the crossbar with a shot just before halftime.---Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/tales-azzoni ' ' '