Pirate Galaxy » type of outreach from law enforcement to the comm

When James Tedesco broke the news to Canberra CEO Don Furner that he was back-flipping on his big-money three-year deal, little did the club know it would ultimately be the making of them.With a rag-tag legion of discards, journeymen and no-frills imports, Ricky Stuart and his coaching staff have ushered in the second coming of the green machine.Just one game away from the clubs first NRL grand final berth since 1994, the question is being asked, how did they get here?Especially given just a few years ago the club was on the canvas after a devastating series of knockbacks from some of the games biggest stars.Tedesco famously backed out of his move to the nations capital after being seemingly signed, sealed and delivered. Penrith Josh Mansour spurned a lucrative offer, as did Melbourne forward Kevin Proctor.The club also lost a tug-of-war with Brisbane and Anthony Milford departed which, combined with missing out on Tedesco, opened up salary cap space to secure a number of unheralded players starting with Blake Austin.It hurts, particularly the ones that say yes and then change their mind, Furner told AAP.Its a real kick in the teeth but you pick yourself up and keep on going.We then started looking at Austo (Blake Austin) because Wests Tigers kept Tedesco and they had (Luke) Brooks and (Mitchell) Moses so Austo didnt have a set position there.Out of something bad came something good.Having played a majority of his career off the bench and covered just about every position, Austin wasted no time in establishing himself as one of the games premier five-eighths upon his arrival in 2015.Its the sort of Moneyball recruiting which caused the Raiders stocks to skyrocket.Joey Leilua quit Newcastle after a spat with then coach Rick Stone.His partner on the Raiders lethal right edge, Jordan Rapana. was pulling beers in a pub and playing park footy after a Mormon mission and failed attempts to make it in rugby union.Hooker Josh Hodgson was considered Englands fourth-best hooker before coming to Australia and is arguably now only behind Cameron Smith as the games best rake.And the Raiders wouldnt have jagged Aidan Sezer from Gold Coast had it not been for Daly Cherry-Evans signing with the Titans - only to later backflip.While Furner would like to say its all down to smart planning from Stuart, assistants Dean Pay and Mick Crawley and recruitment manager Peter Mulholland, he admits good fortune has also played its part.Theyre all different, they all have different stories about how they got here, Furner said.Some of its by planning and some of its by luck. Its a bit of both.We didnt know we were going to get Joe Tapine at the start of the year, we didnt know the whole Parramatta thing was going to blow up and Junior Paulo got squeezed out.That wasnt planning - we were just in a position to take advantage of that.So not only is the future looking bright for Canberra, it appears that way for a long time.Of the clubs top 17, all of them, save for Rapana, Edrick Lee and Paul Vaughan are contracted until the end of 2018, granting the Raiders great stability and propping their premiership window open for several years.The important flow-on is that Canberra is now an attractive destination for off-contract players, an idea that seemed highly unlikely a few short years ago.The people that bag Canberra came here on a school excursion when they were 14 and they got off the bus and it was cold, Furner says.But the blokes that are here now are 24, 25, 26. Its a great place when youve got young kids. Theyre not 18, 19, 20 and wanting to get into the nightlife of Kings Cross or Gold Coast.But if youve got blokes that are a bit older and bringing up children, its such an easy place to live.Our facilities are unbelievable, its in close proximity to anywhere we go.Those guys are speaking highly so when Elliott Whitehead is calling Josh Hodgson asking Should I come to Canberra?, Josh Hodgson is on the phone saying Mate, come. That helps.And winning.Custom Belgium Jerseys . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. Kevin De Bruyne Belgium Jersey . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. http://www.soccerbelgiumteamonline.com/Michy-Batshuayi-UEFA-European-Belgium-Jersey/ . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. Simon Mignolet Belgium Jersey . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. Yannick Carrasco Belgium Jersey . -- Playing time has been limited for Maxim Tissot this season, so the Montreal Impact defender made the most of his first scoring opportunity on Saturday.DETROIT -- The Detroit Pistons helped convene a town hall meeting Thursday night that included area youth, representatives from law enforcement and several athletes from the citys pro teams.The event ended later than scheduled -- which was a sign that the discussion was constructive.I think what we all wanted to get out was, as an organization, as a community, as a city of Detroit was: What can we do to help? What can we do to be better? said Tobias Harris of the Pistons. There was a lot that was said, a lot of points that were taken. A lot of opinions, but all coming from the right area and the right space.There were representatives from all four of Detroits major pro teams involved with the event. The town hall portion was closed to the media and general public, but some participants spoke to reporters afterward.Ike McKinnon, former police chief and deputy mayor of Detroit, said events like these can be significant because young people look up to athletes. There are obvious benefits to this type of outreach from law enforcement to the community.I think the biggest thing is gettting a sense of trust, McKinnon said.dddddddddddd If we can get trust, thats most important.Harris echoed that sentiment, saying it was important to hear from law enforcement.We have to have a firm understanding of both sides, he said. They leave their house every morning not knowing if theyre going to come home alive. ... That was said, and I think everybody really took into that also.Jocelyn Benson, CEO of the Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality (RISE) also was in attendance. RISE is a nonprofit organization that tries to use sports to improve race relations. She said its important to move beyond symbolic protests and take concrete steps to create change.This event was one such effort, and it was no surprise that the Pistons were heavily involved. Detroit coach Stan Van Gundy has made it clear that he supports his players in their attempts to make a social impact.I think everybody has to be better and want better and try to do better, Harris said. ' ' '