Vancouver Whitecaps confirmed the departure of head coach Martin Rennie on Tuesday, less than 48 hours after his second season in charge ended with the club sitting seventh in Major League Soccers Western Conference, three points outside the playoff places. Air Max Plus Ireland . In the weeks leading up to the end of the season, speculation was rife that the Scotsman would be replaced so the news comes as no surprise. Its a move that may even have happened if the Whitecaps had managed to sneak into the playoffs. Rennie has trumpeted his teams achievements loudly in recent weeks. This year, they set the clubs highest ever MLS points total, scored the most goals, won the Cascadia Cup against their rivals Seattle and Portland, and beat the Sounders, LA and New York for the first time in MLS. Brazilian sensation Camilo secured the leagues Golden Boot and the club won the MLS Player of the Week award a league high seven times. There was plenty to shout about, and on a number of occasions at BC Place this season, they played some scintillating soccer to entertain and engage the fan-base. However, those achievements mean very little without reaching the two main goals of making the playoffs and winning the Canadian Championship. The Whitecaps came close to both, but close wasnt good enough for Rennie to keep his job. Its true that the club has made progress in each of the seasons Rennie was in charge, but this year, that progress just wasnt big enough to keep up with the teams around them. The fact is, in an extremely competitive Western Conference, the Whitecaps slipped back. Their progress was much smaller than other teams such as Portland and Colorado, who took big strides forward. Its not just about the seasons record. There were other issues at play. Rennies team selections often provoked much discussion, including his desire to play Japanese defensive midfielder Jun Marques Davidson, especially at home. There was the regression of 2012 number 2 draft pick Darren Mattocks, the lack of playing time down the stretch for youngster Gershon Koffie and teenager Kekuta Mannehs thunderous impact when finally handed starts late in the season. Also at times, the Whitecaps looked as though they were trying to fit square pegs in round holes, until they finally switched to a 4-4-2 diamond midfield system late in the year. The fact the Caps lost their captain and highest paid defender Jay DeMerit just seven minutes into the new season, and were without their DP striker Kenny Miller for long stretches due to injury clearly didnt help. The Whitecaps never really had a settled side because of injuries and also the coachs choice. Did Rennie know what his best 11 was and the best way to utilize them? It seemed he was still trying to figure that out late in the year. Of course, with any team and any coach anywhere in the world, there are bound to be questions about player selections and formations, but theres little doubt these questions played into the mind of those making the decision. Although Whitecaps ownership has decided to go in a different direction, Rennie still deserves much credit for what he has achieved during his time in Vancouver. He leaves the Whitecaps in a much better position than when he arrived at the club following a dismal expansion season. Over the last couple of years, they have established themselves as an MLS club, assembled a much stronger squad and made the playoffs for the first time in 2012 after turning around one of the worst teams in the league. The Whitecaps are still missing a couple of key pieces that will need to be found in the off-season, but they have a young, dynamic squad that can be a contender for the foreseeable future. Players like Camilo, Gershon Koffie, Kekuta Manneh and Russell Teibert have the potential to be big stars in Major League Soccer, and there are more coming through the Whitecaps pipeline with the likes of Sam Adekugbe ready to step into the first team squad next year. Rennies hiring of some strong assistant coaches, Paul Ritchie, Carl Robinson and Jake DeClute assisted the development of many of the clubs younger players. They were all very shrewd hires by a thoughtful, intelligent head coach. So what now? I think starting completely from scratch would be a massive mistake. There is some momentum. The Whitecaps arent too far off with the squad they have had assembled, so whoever takes charge should be willing to add to what is already in place rather that start again and try to do things a different way. Air Max Plus Ireland Sale . But qualifying for her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts after years of falling short in tough Manitoba provincial championships is as good as consolation prizes get for the 29-year-old from Winnipegs Fort Rouge Curling Club. Wholesale Air Max Plus . And it showed Thursday night. The Canadiens, playing in their second game in as many days, however, got a good performance in the end from their backup goaltender as he filled in for an injured Olympic gold medallist . http://www.airmaxplusireland.com/ . Smith has spent the last three seasons with the Rockies, playing both left and right field, and has a .275 batting average with 51 homers and 181 RBIs in 487 major league games.NEW YORK -- Baseball players and management hope to reach a new drug agreement this week that would increase initial penalties for muscle-building steroids and allow a decrease of suspensions for some positive tests caused by unintentional use, people familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. For future suspensions, the deal also would eliminate the loophole allowing Alex Rodriguez to earn almost $3 million during his season-long ban, the people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity in recent days because talks are ongoing. The sides hope to reach an agreement by Sunday, when the Los Angeles Dodgers open the U.S. portion of the major league schedule at the San Diego Padres. While the lengths have not been finalized, a person involved with the talks said Wednesday the most likely penalties would be about 80 games for an initial testing violation and a season-long ban for a second. "It will be a significant deterrent because players will know theyre not going to just easily walk back into a lineup," Travis Tygart, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, said in a telephone interview. "It probably is the best policy in professional sports." For use of a limited group of substances, the sides were discussing giving the arbitration panel that hears appeals grievances the authority to reduce suspensions by as much as 50 per cent if the player proves the positive test was caused by unintentional use, the person said. "What were all here for it to rid sports of the intentional cheats, those who are intending to defraud both the fans and their fellow teammates, the integrity of competition," Tygart said. "You want to have provisions in place that allow for whether theres an inadvertent or a truly non-intentional situation which may arise." Since the 2006 season, the Major League Baseballs drug agreement has called for a 50-game suspension for a first positive steroids test, a 100-game ban for a second and a lifetime penalty for a third. Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig called for tougher penalties last March, and then-union head Michael Weiner said players would consider them for 2014. Weiner died in November and was succeeded by former All-Star Tony Clark, who has led the negotiations. Major League Baseballs investigation of the Biogenesis of Amerrica anti-aging clinic led to 14 suspensions last summer, including a 65-game penalty for former NL MVP Ryan Braun of Milwaukee and a 211-game ban for Rodriguez, which was reduced to 162 games in January by an arbitrator. Air Max Plus Free Shipping. The section covering violations not related to positive tests, which was used by Selig in the Biogenesis case, will be clarified but still will allow discipline for "just cause." Many players have advocated stiffer penalties as a deterrent. Arizona pitcher Brad Ziegler spoke out after Jhonny Peralta, who served a 50-game suspension, agreed in November to a $53 million, four-year contract with St. Louis. "We thought 50 games would be a deterrent. Obviously its not. So we are working on it again," he tweeted then. "It pays to cheat... Thanks, owners, for encouraging PED use." Some players said suspensions should lead to larger monetary losses. San Diego Padres outfielder Will Venable maintained last summer "somehow having to forfeit or void your contract that youre under is something that needs to be the main focus of the penalties." But for the majority of players, that would go too far. "Id venture to guess that even though there are concerns on a number of levels, that we will never end up in a world where player contracts are voided as a result," Clark told the AP during a January interview. Addressing positives caused by inadvertent use was a factor in the talks. Philadelphia infielder Freddy Galvis was suspended for 50 games in June 2012 for a Clostebol Metabolite, which he later claimed was contained in a foot cream he used. Reliever Guillermo Mota, then with San Francisco, was suspended for 100 games in May 2012 after taking a cough syrup with Clenbuterol. The new deal also will state that a player receives none of his salary during a season-long suspension. The current deal said a player loses as many days pay as games he is suspended. Since players are paid over a 183-day season this year, arbitrator Fredric Horowitz ruled Rodriguez was entitled to 21-183rds of his $25 million salary, or $2,868,852. "Thats fantastic," Tygart said. "You hit them in the pocketbook, and thats really where the cheaters are most deterred from attempting to steal money from the other players." China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Online Stitched Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Outlet College Jerseys For Sale Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys For Sale Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '