heads-up play and then Brock made a beautiful backhand

Two very tall blokes, one very short one, someone with slicked back hair, another with none on his head but a fair amount on his face; ten more men of different shapes and sizes. No, this is not one of those jokes about what happens when they all walk into an eatery. This is a story about what happens when they play for the same sports team - South Africas cricket team.Ask them what they believe was the most important factor for their third successive series win in Australia and they do not talk about runs, wickets, catches or even specific personnel. They put it down to culture. If you believe Bo Hansen, a three-time Olympic medalist from Australia and author of the book Team Culture - Is it making or breaking your team?, that makes complete sense.Culture is a critical factor in the success of any organised group, whether that be a corporate organisation or a sports team. It is one of the most important factors to get right to enjoy sustained success, Hansen writes.Hansen defines culture simply as the way we do things around here. For a long time, that way in South Africa was brash and bold. Allan Donald bursting through; Graeme Smith batting with a broken hand. Then, after the 2015 World Cup semi-final, which sucked the soul out of the system, South Africa forgot what their way was.It was a low point for everyone. Not only the players but I think the whole country. At the time, we didnt quite know what to do, Kyle Abbott, who found himself at the centre of controversy after being left out of the team, said.South Africa meandered through a series in Bangladesh, met their match in India and against England, and melted under the heat of off-field issues. Lets not deny it: transformation was seen as a game-changer. Some said it would prompt a player exodus. Others said it would promote mediocrity over meritocracy. Almost everyone agreed it would be divisive before they considered that it would also provide a window to a much deeper talent pool than South African cricket has ever had access to before.Maybe that was one of the things discussed at the culture camp the team held before the New Zealand series in August. The exact content of the conversations will not, and should not, become public, but whatever it was, it united South Africas cricketers.Abbott is the embodiment of it. Hotly sought after in county cricket, he stuck it out at home and hoped for a chance, knowing that when he got one, he would bowl his heart out. He did so in the fourth ODI against Australia in Port Elizabeth last month, and he did it again in Hobart today. He said his fire came from the new culture the team has created.I was lucky to be in that first team, led by Graeme. That culture was great but times move on and players move on, Abbott said. What we have come to now as a team and our values are totally different to what it was 18 months ago. It was tough for us. We set down our goals and what we stand for and we walk it and we talk it every day. Thats how you turn things around.Faf du Plessis has also referred to living the new culture. It cant be something you pay lip service to, he said. You might start to understand some of what they are talking about if you look at how they live. Many of the players are deeply religious, many are also tied to charity work and are doing everything they can to be just as normal as the common people in their country. The new culture is perhaps about representing their people more than themselves and that shows, not just in the fact that they are more diverse now, more than ever, but in the way they chase excellence.South African sport, in all its colours and guises, has always aimed to be among the best, because sporting prowess is seen as a measure of the countrys worth. The setting of that standard is among Hansens nine characteristics of high-performance culture.His other criteria include personal accountability, clearly defined goals and genuine care, words you will hear coming out of the South African camp. But the qualification that stands out most, because it goes against the grain of the machismo usually associated with sport, is relationship-building and communication. This South Africa team has taken that to a different level.From du Plessis jokes about sharing a bed with his champion bowlers to Abbotts confirmation that all squad members know where they stand, the team is in a good space, which also means some of the drivers of the cultural change are the backroom staff. Incidentally, Hansen places responsibility on the coaches to deliberate on, determine and drive a teams culture.Russell Domingo has flown under the radar so far, speaking only once after the Perth Test, when he confirmed the players had recommitted to the countrys cause. He does not have the profile of his predecessor Gary Kirsten, or make the headlines as much as his counterpart Darren Lehmann does, but he has an astute cricket brain and is well stocked with support staff. Adrian Birrell is as down to earth as they come, Charl Langeveldt has moulded the attack into a skilful and scary pack, and Neil McKenzies reputation as one of the nicest men in cricket with one of the best work ethics speaks for itself.Crucially, the selection panel has also made the right calls, like including Keshav Maharaj on this tour, picking Abbott in Hobart, rewarding Rilee Rossouws form with inclusion. Naturally they will make decisions that will be debated and calls that will go wrong, but they have earned confidence and trust with what theyve done so far, from the public and from the players.We are happy off the field, du Plessis said. And it shows.You only need to compare those words against Steven Smiths angst to see how a team can get stuck in an unhappy rut. Smith said he was embarrassed, and said he needed players who took pride in wearing the baggy green, and that he was tired of saying the same things. That was South Africa a year ago. It took immense introspection to get to where they are now but theyve shown it can be done. And they want to keep doing it.Its important to stay with it and stay nice and humble, and dont think the world has changed now that we have won a few series, du Plessis said. We want to keep working hard and making sure we can get better. We want to go special places. Carlos Valderrama Jersey . Canada is now down to its 22-player limit, although but players wont be registered until Christmas Day. Changes could still be made as a result of a suspension or injury. Jeison Murillo Jersey . The winner Saturday will remain in the elite 10-team field next year. "We talked about wanting to be disciplined and stick with our game plan and good things will come," Draisaitl said, who had two goals for the victors. http://www.nationalcolombiafootball.com/roger-martinez-colombia-jersey/ . -- Anaheim Ducks captain and leading scorer Ryan Getzlaf has been scratched from Sunday nights game against the Vancouver Canucks because of an upper-body injury. Sebastian Perez Colombia Jersey . Miller reached right to deflect Mikhail Grabovskis attempt with just over 2 minutes remaining in regulation, and then made two more saves in the shootout Sunday to give the Sabres a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. Edwin Cardona Jersey . A big centre with all the tools to be an elite player, Johansen paced the Blue Jackets with a standout game Saturday night. He had a goal and two assists for a career-high three points as Columbus beat the New York Islanders 5-2 to snap a five-game losing streak. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- With the complicated math of baseball in the wild-card era, players in the Boston clubhouse were unaware the Red Sox are playoff bound.Dustin Pedroia hit his fourth career grand slam to help Rick Porcello get his major league-leading 22nd win, and the Red Sox clinched a playoff berth by beating the Tampa Bay Rays 6-4 Saturday night for their 10th consecutive win.Boston maintained a 5+-game lead over Toronto for the division title and ensured no worse than the ALs second wild card. While the Red Sox technically have a magic number of one, the Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles play each other three times in the seasons final week -- meaning only one of them can win match Bostons 91 wins.Among the other wild-card contenders, only Detroit can reach 91 victories.I havent heard it, Red Sox manager John Farrell said moments after the game.Porcello was informed of the news by a reporter.Obviously, its big, Porcello said. Its the position that we wanted to be in coming into this last week of September. We definitely want the division going forward.Boston is on its longest September winning streak since an 11-game run in 1949.Pedroia stopped an 0-for-17 skid with a single in the sixth and gave Boston a 6-3 lead with a seventh-inning drive off Danny Farquhar.Everybody is obviously grinding, Pedroia said.Pedroia hit several foul balls, including one off his toe before going deep.You can see why hes as good as he is because he fought off some good pitches and got his pitch (a changeup) and crushed it, Farquhar said.Porcello (22-4) gave up three runs, eight hits and struck out nine over 6 1/3 innings. He just missed getting his 12th consecutive start of seven or more innings and three runs or fewer, which would have moved him past Cy Young (1904) and Pedro Martinez (2000) for the longest stretch during the same season in franchise history.Porcello is first Boston pitcher to have 22 wins since Martinez had 23 in his AL Cy Young Award wiinning season in 1999.ddddddddddddCraig Kimbrel, the fifth Boston reliever, reached 30 saves for the sixth straight season despite allowing Logan Forsythes solo homer in the ninth.Brad Miller hit a two-run double in a three-run second that put Tampa Bay up 3-1 and gave him 80 RBI.Tampa Bay threatened in the second but failed to score due to two nice defensive plays. Pedroia made a throw from just in front of the outfield grass at second base on Mikie Mahtooks grounder to get Corey Dickerson at the plate. Third baseman Brock Holt made a solid play along the line on Alexei Ramirezs grounder and threw him out at first to end the inning.We made a couple of really nifty plays, Farrell said. Petey with a heads-up play and then Brock made a beautiful backhand play to finish the inning.TRAINERS ROOMRed Sox: Farrell didnt rule out 3B Pablo Sandoval (left shoulder) from coming back this year if an injury replacement is required in the postseason. . Knuckleballer Steven Wright (right shoulder) threw at 120 feet on level ground for the second straight day but is not ready to throw off a mound.RAYS: DH Nick Franklin (left hamstring) was in the lineup for the first time since Sept. 15. He did pinch hit twice in-between.LOOKING AHEADFarrell said LHP David Price will start Tuesday and Sunday, which lines him up for Game 2 of the AL Division Series.HONORING BIG PAPIThe Rays will honor Red Sox DH David Ortiz in a pregame ceremony Sunday before his final game at Tropicana Field. He will be just the fourth visiting player to be honored, joining Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Cal Ripken Jr. Whenever somebody takes their time to honor my career I always appreciate it, Ortiz said. Everybody has shown a lot of respect and love.UP NEXTRed Sox LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (3-7) will go against Rays RHP Jake Odorizzi (9-6) in Sundays series finale. ' ' '