Quasselstube » into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-s

LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla.?-- Mason Cox made a name for himself in the AFL this season, and hes aiming for bigger and better results in 2017.The 25-year-old Collingwood big man acquitted himself well in his rookie AFL campaign, kicking 17 goals in 11 games for the Magpies. Cox ranks among the first Americans to play in the AFL, and at a height of 211 cm, hes the tallest player in the league history, just ahead of Fremantles Aaron Sandilands.Cox impressed in his debut at the annual Anzac Day clash against Essendon, kicking the first goal of the match in front of more than 85,000 fans. The former college basketball player from Oklahoma State also booted four goals in a later game against Brisbane.ESPN Australia caught up with Cox for a Q&A session this past weekend at the USAFL national tournament in Florida. Heres what transpired:How do you assess your debut AFL season? It was pretty good. In general, I think it was probably better than most people would expect. Im pretty hard on myself, [but] I try to take the ups and downs together and just make the best from it. Im definitely looking forward to next year and having a bit more of an impact and being a bit more consistent as far as games go. Toward the end of the season, I had a few injuries that split me out of the squad for a bit. Hopefully Ill be healthy the whole year and be able to give all I can to the team.You battled some injuries during the season. How is your health? My health is pretty good. I had hip surgery at the end of the year, pretty much the day after we were done. I cant really do a ton of running on it for another five or six weeks. So Ive been doing upper body [work]. For a guy who likes to go run and clear my mind, its a bit frustrating. Its a bit sore at times, but Ive just got to rest it until it heals completely. ... I [also] had shoulder surgery last year, and thats all healed up and feeling good, so hopefully by the time the season starts Ill be 100 percent again.What have you been advised to work on this offseason? Really just stay in shape. Obviously kick the footy around as much I can, although I cant do a ton of it with the hip. Just get more volume into it at this point to be able to get through a whole game and not be tired and [show up] to preseason well. We have skinnies, where we have to be under a certain fat percentage on the body. So just keep in shape and make sure thats low, so that when we start training and going at it Im ahead of the game.Do you think you will play forward next year or more time in the ruck? Dont really know. Wherever the coaches want to put me, Ill do it. Brodie Grundy had a fantastic year. Hes going to be a tough guy to knock out of the spot. I think Ill play both forward and ruck -- wherever the position is available and wherever they need me, Ill be more than happy to fill that role.What do you think about Collingwood bringing in free agents Chris Mayne and Daniel Wells? Im traveling and stuff, so you dont really even hear about it being in the States. Obviously, Ill meet them when I get back. But Im kind of removed from it all being overseas. I dont really deal with that kind of stuff. I dont really know all the details or all the stats. Ill leave that to the guys who make the big bucks behind the scenes. Im sure theyre making the right decisions.Do you think Collingwood can play finals next year? Yeah, of course. Theres no reason we wouldnt. At this point, its just getting wins and not getting a downfall to our season. Like, weve had a few games where we just kind of lost it. Its frustrating to see, and its frustrating to be a part of when youre losing games. But at the end of the day, were a team that beat some of the best teams in the league. Weve got the talent. Weve got the ability. Its just getting it all together and showing our best every game. ... Weve shown plenty of promise this year. Weve played some of the best teams and come out with wins, so if they can make it to finals and make the Grand Final, why not us?What brings you to the USAFL nationals? I came over here at the last second. I found out my brother was playing here. I didnt tell anyone. I was going to surprise him, so I just kind of kept it under the rug. There are a lot of guys here who ran the combine when I first came into AFL, and it was great to see them again. Those guys had a big impact on where Im at now, and its great to catch up with them. Without those guys, I wouldnt be in the position Im in.Whats your impression of the level of play here? Its pretty good. A lot of these guys had never heard of AFL or ever played it in their lives [until recently]. A lot of the teams are run by Australians who come over here and play the sport they love and try to start their own clubs. Theyre just passionate about their sport. ... They get a group of guys together and teach them the game and just kind of get this community together. These guys go out and train every week and teach them all the skills of this game thats absolutely unheard of to them. Then to have something like the nationals, where everyone gets together and enjoys the game, is cool.Do you think footy has growth potential abroad? I think its going to get a bit more international now. There are a lot more [foreign] players, Americans, Irishmen and Sudanese guys are coming over and playing AFL. So I think the more international people that come through, then it gets a bit more media, and it proves that people can do it. I think the more people that go over there and give it a crack and do well, the more media gets behind it, and you never know where it will go. I think the more opportunities that come up and the more people that do it, the bigger the sport will become overseas and in Australia.Have any U.S. athletes approached you and asked about pursuing an AFL career? Ive talked to a few through the AFL and just kind of talked to them about where Ive been and what Ive gone through, what Ive learned, how tough it was, what to expect and things of that nature. Whenever the AFL gets in contact with them, Im always happy to help, walk them through it and give them an idea of what to expect. Ive been in the same position -- just trying to get your head around all of it. Its one big whirlwind.How do you like living in Australia? Are you picking up the accent? Im definitely picking up the accent. Its one of those things where if you talk with an American accent in Australia, everyone kind of asks you twice what you said. And you kind of get sick of repeating yourself, so you eventually just merge into it and give in. I love it over there. Melbourne is just crazy about footy, and its tough to describe it until you get there with the whole experience. ... Im actually trying to apply for citizenship there now and try to be a dual citizen of America and Australia. [If that goes through], whatever happens down the line, Ill have the option of staying there or coming back to the States. Philadelphia Phillies Shirts . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Philadelphia Phillies Pro Shop . The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling "puts an end to my dreams of being a top player," the 27-year-old Troicki said in a statement. "I worked my entire life for it, and it has been taken away from me in one afternoon by a doctor I didnt know," said Troicki, whose ranking peaked at No. https://www.cheapphilliesjerseys.us/ . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. Philadelphia Phillies Store . The CFLs leading rusher kept adding to his gaudy numbers this season and scored the winning touchdown with just over two minutes to play. The New Westminster, B.C., native plowed three yards into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-saw battle between the two teams with the best records in the CFL. Fake Phillies Jerseys . -- San Francisco 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks was fined $15,570 by the NFL on Wednesday for his hit on Saints quarterback Drew Brees last Sunday. Ryan Willis will replace Montell Cozart as the starting quarterback for the Kansas Jayhawks, coach David Beaty said Monday.[Willis] has shown some real progress for us from fall camp moving along, in terms of how hes studying and the way hes starting to understand, Beaty said on his weekly radio show. I think his efficiency has been a little better for us than even Montell has produced for us.Willis, a sophomore, will get his first start against TCU (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) on Saturday. Thhe Jayhawks (1-3, 0-1) have been averaging 262 passing yards per game.ddddddddddddAs a backup, Willis is 31-of-53 for 374 yards and three TDs this season. Cozart, a junior, was 57-of-90 for 581 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions.I know Ryans excited about it, Beaty said. Were looking forward to seeing him take advantage of that opportunity. ' ' '