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Gold Coast coach Neil Henry says claims hes told four of his most experienced players to leave the NRL club are nothing but speculation.Henry has reportedly told co-captain Will Zillman, outside backs Josh Hoffman and David Mead and front-rower Luke Douglas they can find a new club at the end of the season.The Titans boss wouldnt confirm those reports, saying the speculation certainly wasnt coming from anyone inside the club.Im not going to talk about our contracted players, Meadys off-contract regardless and theres ongoing negotiations with players, but I wont talk about speculation, Henry said.Its not from within the club.The Titans have recruited Konrad Hurrell from the Warriors and Nathan Peats from Parramatta since the season started.They also are sure to face pressure to improve a deal for rising star Ash Taylor, who has blossomed into one of the competitions brightest halves prospects with his impressive 2016 campaign.Henry said managing the squad to fit under the NRL salary cap was a process that each club continually had to undergo.Its how you manage your cap around our players, he said.Youve got players who, say, are around the back end of careers and theyre looking to say Im feeling fit, Id like to play another three years ... player managers shop their players, they say hes got one year to go, can I get three somewhere else?They come with a bargaining tool and go well, we can get this over here, you going to extend it?Thats the nature of the cap and how you manage it. .J. Jefferson has been charged with assaulting his girlfriend. . MLS Commissioner Don Garber and Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez also will attend the session, which was announced Monday. The league has discussed placing its next two expansion teams in Miami and Atlanta. . Hazard cut in from the left and scored with a swerving right-footed shot for ninth goal of the season, which proved to be enough for the victory despite Chelseas forwards again lacking a cutting edge up front. . Goals from Jerome Boateng, Franck Ribery and Thomas Mueller extended Bayerns unbeaten run to a record 37 matches. "This record is incredible," Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said. . Anthony Davis had 31 points and 17 rebounds in his seventh straight game with more than 20 points, but that was only enough to keep the Pelicans competitive into the final minutes. Andrew Bogut had 10 points and 15 rebounds for Golden State, which rebounded from a loss a night earlier in Oklahoma City and snapped a two-game skid. STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State-Pittsburgh used to be a storied rivalry, filled with memories for many people.None of them will put on a helmet when the teams play their 97th game since 1893.The two teams last met in 2000 and will play the first of a four-game series on Saturday at Heinz Field. The renewed game comes after Penn State dominated the series from the 1960s until the teams last played. The Nittany Lions were 27-9-1 over that span and consistently the bigger team in Pennsylvania.Penn State coach James Franklin said none of his players have even seen a game between the teams in their lifetimes.I dont think they were watching many games at 2, 3 and 4 years old, Franklin said.But the team has been imparting the history of the title Beasts of the East on its players.Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry Smith played in four Penn State-Pitt games from 1988 to 1991 and relayed a few stories about the history of the rivalry.In turn, theyve become familiar with the big names and roles players like Dan Marino and Todd Blackledge played, Pitts dominance in the 20s and 30s when they met exclusively in the Steel City and Penn States after 1960.Theyve got a better feeling now why the games announcement generated excitement nearly four years ago.Were not naive to the fact of what everybody else is is saying, Penn State receiver Chris Godwin said.Pitt players arent saying anything.By decree of head coach Pat Narduzzi, the Panthers arent speaking with reporters this week. Perhaps Narduzzis hope that players avoid all distractions by staying quiet -- which is unlike other weeks when theyre permitted to talk to the press -- is evidence enough that they want to win badly.Its Penn State week this week, Narduzzi said. I know last week a lot of questions were asked if we were focused or not. Whether we were or not, we got the `W so it really doesnt matter. As far as this weeek goes, our guys will be locked in.ddddddddddddome Penn State players have been looking forward to this game longer than others.Safety Troy Apke is from Pittsburgh and his father, Steve, played for the Panthers from 1984 to 1986.It means a little more that I know my dad played there, Apke said. I think Penn State was really, really good when they played and I think they beat the crap out of them.Penn State cornerback Grant Haley didnt grow up in Pittsburgh but owes his existence to the Steel City. His parents met in medical school in Pittsburgh before moving to Detroit and then Atlanta where Haley was recruited from in 2014.While Haley wasnt a Pennsylvania recruit, Penn State and Pitt have been competing hard for vaunted Keystone State prospects for years despite the lack of a yearly game.Franklin promised to dominate the state in recruiting when he was hired in January 2014. Since then, hes successfully pitched 21 players from each of the past three Top 25 lists in the state. In that time, Pitt has lured 17 to its program.Pittsburgh currently has verbal commitments from four of the Top 25 Pennsylvania prospects in the 2017 class while Penn State has three. Theyre competing for a bunch more as 12 of the Top 25 players still are undecided.Both Franklin and Narduzzi are aware this will be the first true on-field display for recruits still weighing multiple options.Some guys are worried about playing time, Franklin said. Some guys want to go to programs that are going to be winning and winning consistently. A lot of guys want to go to programs that are going to be able to do both, provide a great education, provide an opportunity for early playing time and want to be successful and want to win. So there is no doubt it factors into it. ' ' '
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