Dein erstes Forum » Bozak, his seventh this season. "We were rusty, I

MANCHESTER, England - Ryan Giggs path to becoming the most durable and decorated player of the English Premier League era can be traced back almost 32 years, to the moment his precocious talents were spotted by a milkman on a muddy school pitch in north-west Manchester. "He was just like a gazelle, flying up the wing," recalled Dennis Schofield, who happened to also be a scout at Manchester City. "I thought, Flipping heck, hes good this kid." Giggs was just 8 at the time, but his close control, pace and skills had Schofield salivating. "He is the most outstanding player Ive seen at that age, even now. Like Stanley Matthews," Schofield, now 82, told The Associated Press. Three decades on and the comparison with Matthews could not be more apt. Like the England great, who played top-level football until he was 50, Giggs longevity is going down in folklore. On Friday, the Manchester United midfielder turned 40. His hair is thinning and greying, his turn of pace isnt what it was, and he is used more sparingly by the English champions, where he is now also part of the coaching staff under manager David Moyes. But Giggs the player is showing no sign of decline. From central midfield, he was the driving force behind Uniteds devastating 5-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday in the Champions League, club footballs top and most intense competition. He played 90 minutes, too. And dont be surprised to see him featuring for United against Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday. That would be his 953rd club appearance, all coming for United since his debut in 1991. "I dont know what the younger lads think of me," Giggs said. "When I was 17 and 18, I thought 31 was ancient. Here I am, at 40." Teddy Sheringham, Kevin Phillips (who is still playing in the top flight for Crystal Palace) and Gordon Strachan are the only other outfield footballers to have played in the Premier League in their fifth decade. But none of the trio performed at the elite level throughout their careers as Giggs has done — and no one has come near his haul of titles and medals. The list keeps growing: 13 Premier Leagues, four FA Cups, three League Cups, two Champions Leagues, one UEFA Super Cup, an Intercontinental Cup and a Club World Cup. He is the only player to have scored a goal in every Premier League season, has the most appearances in the Champions League (148), and played 1,021 professional games for club and country. His solo goal in the FA Cup semifinal replay against Arsenal in 1999, where he set off from inside his own half, jinked round three defenders and slammed a shot into the roof of the net, has gone down as one of the greatest goals in English football. Giggs doesnt see himself quitting any time soon, either. Since turning 30, he has undertaken regular yoga sessions, which is an accepted method of keeping in shape even if, years ago, it earned funny looks in the macho world of football. He has also refined his game, playing deeper in midfield rather than on the wings. He relies on speed of thought rather than the speed of his legs, and he is way ahead of the rest. "Hes an unbelievable footballer," Moyes said, "and is even getting better." Tributes to Giggs poured in from across the country on Friday. Moyes said he "undoubtedly" the leagues best ever player and former teammate Mark Hughes — now manager at Stoke — said the success Giggs has had "wont be replicated by anyone." "Maybe he is like a good Bordeaux (wine)," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger mused, "he gets better as he gets older." Schofield believes the natural fitness Giggs is blessed with means he could go on for another four of five years — and he has been right about the Welshman before. Schofield recalls his chance first encounter with Giggs as if it was yesterday. "I was on my milkfloat this day and all these kids came out of school," he said in a phone interview. "I said, Are you going playing? and they said, Yeah, just down the road. "So I parked my milkfloat up and went and watched them. They kicked off and this young lad, 8 years old, playing on the left wing. My, he had some pace on him, good control. Everything." Schofield spoke to Giggs mother, who was watching on the touchline, and invited the youngster to train with a local team, Deans. He spent years nurturing Giggs, taking him on tours to the Isle of Wight where, Schofield reminisces, "parents left their own teams, their own kids who were playing, to come across and watch Ryan play." Then came the moment Schofield has forever regretted. "I got him down to Man City and told the chief scout, When he is 14, youd better be down at his house because there will be quite a few clubs knocking on his door. He told me not to worry, that (Giggs) father has shaken hands on it and will sign for us. "Well, on that morning he was 14, the only people who were at his house were Alex Ferguson and (former United scout) Joe Brown. They signed him on. Our chief scout was still sat in his office, waiting for him to come down to City. And the rest is history." Citys loss was Uniteds gain — and 26 years later, Giggs is still ramming that message home. "I still enjoy training, the buzz before the game, the buzz when we win," Giggs told The Times of London. "As long as that lasts, Ill carry on." Duncan Robinson Heat Jersey .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Packers by 3RECORD VS. SPREAD — New England 7-4, Green Bay 5-5-1SERIES RECORD — Tied 5-5. Chris Bosh Jersey . 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Also, defencemen "were found to be at a higher risk of suffering a concussion than other players, perhaps due to turning their back to retrieve pucks along the boards, which leaves them vulnerable.TORONTO – The shootout has proven a viable saving grace for this years edition of the Maple Leafs. When Reid Boucher shot wide in what would be the Devils final attempt on Jonathan Bernier in the third round of the skills competition Sunday, he handed Toronto its eighth victorious decision in the shootout this season – tied for the most in the NHL. In fact, the Leafs have more victories in the shootout since the start of November (six) than they do in regulation/overtime (five), a fact thats masked, until recently, just how poorly the team has performed in the past two-plus months (12-16-5). But for a team that was teetering on a four-game losing streak – the second longest this season – the winning decision at the ACC, in a reality divorced from the game itself, was nonetheless needed and important. "Well, we can breathe," said Randy Carlyle, following the 3-2 victory, the second in two tries against the Devils this season, both wins coming in the shootout. "Theres been a lot of gasping going on, and even in this game there was a lot of gasping going on how tight it was." It was not a pretty performance in many regards – the Leafs were outshot 38-25 and out-attempted 83-48 – but one that at least offered some of the requisite intensity and desire that had been missing amid the recent slide and quite often throughout whats been a disappointing campaign to date. And they might very well have won it in regulation had it not been for a blown call on Tyler Bozaks apparent go-ahead goal in the second frame. "Guys are a little looser tonight already," Mason Raymond told the Leaf Report shortly after the win. "It feels good. It feels good to get a win." "Hopefully this relieves a little bit of the stress thats involved for our hockey club, and they can get back playing to the way were capable of playing," added Carlyle. Consistency has been a foe of his team so far. The Leafs have reeled off exactly one winning streak since October – it lasted three games, two of which were won in shootouts – winning back-to-back games on just two other occasions. Stringing together heartier efforts against the Capitals and Devils in recent days then is just a mild step in the right direction. The teams response in an upcoming back-to-back with the Bruins and Sabres will indicate whether, in fact, a corner is gradually being turned. "I dont think its an exact recipe you can follow," Raymond said of achieving consistency. "Youve got to build off the things, in my opinion, that you did well, stay positive and believe. I think thats a big part of it is just believing that we can get the job done and go out there and get wins." "I think the last few games our compete level and effort has been way better," said van Riemsdyk, who scored for the second straight game, "and I think if we continue to play in that same mold well have some more results that we want." Five Points 1. Gardiners Development Pt. 1 Carlyle labeled 23-year-old Jake Gardiners performance in Washington Friday night as "the model in which wed like him to play. Gardiner, who had been scratched for just the second time all season one night earlier in Carolina, raised his performance in the eyes of the coaching staff against the Capitals. "Much different Jake Gardiner," said Carlyle, observing improved strength and intensity in the defensive zone as well as better decision-making with the puck. Such is the road to development for a young defender in the NHL. Many ups come with many downs. "Jake is a talented young player and there are steps that he has to continue to take," said Carlyle, who met with Gardiner briefly at the end of Sundays morning skate. "With Jake, he has the ability to move the puck both with his hands and with his feet – he can skate. He would like to make more consistent decisions with the puck and so would we. Weve struggled to find a consistent level for him over the last probably five or six games." That inconsistency led Carlyle to scratch Gardiner last week, a questionable move that blew up in a 6-1 loss to the Hurricanes. But if the sit-down was designed to spark a reaction then it may have achieved some success the next night in the U.S. capital. "I think what happens with young players is they find that theyre always trying to do one thing and maybe trying to do too much of one thing and that sometimes turns into where you skate the puck into areas where you shouldnt and turn over the puck," said Carlyle. "But hes a young player that has got a tremendous upside." 2. Gardiners Development Pt. 2 What Carlyle has done additionally, in the meann-time, is remove Gardiner from the teams top two pairings – he and 19-year-old Morgan Rielly formed the third grouping for the second straight game against the Devils – and thus lighten the burden he is exposed to on a night to night basis.dddddddddddd Speaking to the Leaf Report on Sunday morning, Gardiner described his decision-making with the puck as one needed improvement, an issue again at times on Sunday night. "Dont try and force anything," he said. "I think I was trying to make plays that werent there and I was maybe trying to move the puck a little bit too quickly. When theres not an open guy, maybe just be patient and hold onto the puck a little bit." Gardiner, who played over 24 minutes against the Devils, is averaging nearly 22 minutes per game this season, second on the team. 3. Bolland Front Dave Bolland hasnt played since Nov. 2, when his left ankle was sliced by the skate blade of Canucks forward Zack Kassian. The 27-year-old has missed 32 games with the injury, but is due to finally start skating with the team on Thursday. Bolland recently traveled to Montreal in hopes of having a new boot designed specifically to support the injured area. That boot was due to arrive in Toronto on Monday with the Mimico native then expected to skate before joining the Leafs on a four-game road trip next week. An exact timeframe for return remains unclear. 4. Harder to Play Against? Asked before the game if this version of the Maple Leafs was as difficult to play against as the one that ended a lengthy playoff drought last season, Carlyle responded flatly in the negative. "Nowhere near," he said. "Weve been scratching our heads and trying to figure out why." And if there was one element that remained constant from a Friday loss in Washington to Sundays win in Toronto, it was the intensity of his group. The execution may have been lacking at times, but the compete Carlyle has been prodding for remained. "Thats one thing that weve really tried to put at the forefront in the last three weeks to a month is that our compete level has to go to a level where were satisfied," said Carlyle on Sunday morning. "Thats the one thing that weve said is our compete level has to go up." Carlyle pointed to the simple will required to win puck battles. "We have been guilty of just standing around in those situations," he said. "I call it getting inside. I think to be inside in todays NHL is the key because you cant hook and hold, you have to skate your way to get inside. "When we do it we can play effective hockey and give ourselves a chance to win. And when we dont do it were receiving the game, were standing around. I would say thats the biggest mystery for the coaching staff." 5. Stunted Starts Toronto has exited the first frame with a lead in 12 of 47 games this season, trailing, by comparison, on 17 occasions. Substandard starts have been a source of considerable trouble, often requiring the club to dig out from an early hole without much ultimate success. "All year long, weve [had] pretty poor starts," said Gardiner. "We try to dig ourselves out of it and then we start playing well and its too late by that time so if we can play almost desperate and aggressive I think well have better starts and itll lead to a better outcome." The Leafs started slowly again on Sunday – outshot 7-1 in the opening 10 minutes – but rebounded during the back half of the period, finding the games first goal from Tyler Bozak, his seventh this season. "We were rusty, I thought, for the first 10 or 12 minutes of the game," said Carlyle. Stats-Pack 8-4 – Leafs record in the shootout this season. 13 – Points in the past 11 games for Tyler Bozak, who has 19 points in 23 games this season. 8 – Shootout wins for the Leafs this season, tied with the Capitals for the most in the NHL. 1 – Goals in the past 14 games for Nazem Kadri. 24:23 – Ice-time for Jake Gardiner against the Devils, second on the team to Dion Phaneuf. 62% - Leafs success rate on the draw against the Devils. 2 – Consecutive games with a goal for James van Riemsdyk, who had two in the preceding 15 games. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-4 Season: 21.8% (5th) PK: 3-4 Season: 77.4% (27th) Quote of the Night "I asked him if he could watch it after the game and maybe next time he has a game [with us] he can apologize or something because that was pretty brutal." - James van Riemsdyk, on his conversation with an official following Tyler Bozaks waved off goal in the second period. Up Next The Leafs visit the Bruins in Boston on Tuesday night. ' ' '