¤ milky moon ¤

MIAMI -- Preparing for his first trip to the World Cup, Rickie Lambert epitomizes the player who never gave up on his dream. Calling him an England striker would have been unthinkable before the last World Cup four years ago when he had just completed another season in the third tier of English football. But the 32-year-old Lambert is now in Miami as part of the 23-man squad heading to Brazil, and is getting ready to represent his country on the sports biggest stage. Enriching the fairytale aspect, Lambert on Monday completed his move from Southampton back to Premier League giant Liverpool, the club he supported as a boy but that discarded him as a player when he was 15. Out of football, Lambert found work in a beetroot factory, earning just 20 pounds a day. "It was absolutely devastating," Lambert recalled Monday. "I can remember at the time thinking I wasnt going to be a footballer -- Id been dropped from Liverpool and it was the end of the world for me. I was so devastated. "At the time, I thought nothing was ever going to feel worse than that, but I can tell people now life goes on and you shouldnt let it hit you too much ... but I never thought Id manage to get back." Following the pain of being rejected, Lambert forced his way through the lower leagues of English football, away from the glamor and riches of the Premier League, playing at Macclesfield, Stockport, Rochdale and Bristol Rovers before ending up at Southampton in 2009. On the south coast, Lambert established himself as a prolific scorer, helping power Southampton from the third tier to the Premier League and an eighth-place finish last month. By that point England coach Roy Hodgson had taken note, calling Lambert up for international duty for the first time last August. It was a dream debut at the age of 31, scoring the winning goal in a friendly against archrival Scotland with his first touch at Wembley Stadium. "Its an unfortunate truth if you want to get recognized at the top level you have to be playing at the top level," Hodgson said recently. Lambert is likely to see limited playing time at the World Cup, where Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge are expected to be the first-choice strikers. But he is likely to earn a fifth cap against Ecuador on Wednesday at the Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, but England could be relying on him for penalties in Brazil, having scored all 34 spot kicks for Southampton and only missing two in his career. "Im living a dream," Lambert said. "There is a buzz about the group at the moment and there is a lot of confidence." Whatever happens at the World Cup, Lambert is likely to make his debut soon in club footballs biggest competition, the Champions League, after completing his 4-million pound ($6.7 million) move to Liverpool. "Its going to be hard to keep my emotions in check the first time I pull on the Liverpool shirt," Lambert said on Liverpools website. "Its going to be very emotional, not just for me but also for my family. These kind of moments are driving me on. When I get these moments, I seem to produce my best performances and Im able to use it to my advantage." Lambert will provide competition up front for Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge, with Liverpool needing more strikers in its squad after qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in five years. "There isnt much sentiment in football and I dont think this move is anything to do with that," Lambert said. "Ive loved this club all my life. I left here 17 years ago -- and I havent stopped loving it since." . The freestyle skier from Calgary finished sixth in the qualification round with a total of 82.00 points. Groenewoud won a silver medal at the X Games last month, just over five weeks after undergoing double knee surgery. . Jannero Pargo scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help the Charlotte Bobcats erase a 21-point deficit and rally for an 83-76 preseason victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Eli ... ls-Jersey/. 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell while figuring out which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. . The traditional pre-Masters event was halted early due to inclement weather. Harrington, who tied for first in 2003 and won in 2004, became the first three-time champion of the event. . Parmelee hit a game-ending shot in the ninth inning and the Minnesota Twins overcame David Ortizs big night to beat the Boston Red Sox 8-6 on Tuesday.TEMPE, Ariz. - Calais Campbell had a huge game last Sunday, and he knows it could have been better.The same can be said of his career.The Arizona Cardinals imposing 6-foot-8, 300-pound defensive end can dominate a game, yet those around him know his best playing days are still ahead.As good as hes playing, Cardinals defensive co-ordinator Todd Bowles said, I think he has another level to get to.Coach Bruce Arians says Campbell, in his seventh NFL season, ranks among the top eight or nine defensive linemen in the league.Hes playing at an extremely high level right now, very disruptive, Arians said. I dont think he ever gets the credit he really deserves.One reason is the position he plays. The Cardinals use a 3-4 defensive scheme. The defensive ends who rack up the big sack numbers play in 4-3 sets.Campbell still is getting his share of sacks and more, though.Last Sunday, he had a career-high three against Seattle, all of them in the second quarter.They usually come in bunches, he said. Its funny how it works that way.Campbell agreed with the coaches assessment that he could have sacked Russell Wilson at least twice more.Very true, he said. I left a couple of plays out there and Ive got to do better. Its something I take pride in — making every play I can, and Ill get better this week.The persistently modest lineman deflected credit for the sacks he did get.My sacks last week were cover sacks, Campbell said. I give all that to the DBs. Youve got a guy holding the ball for four seconds, you should be able to get there in plenty of time.In all, the Cardinals sacked Wilson seven times, a season high for Arizona.I think most pass rush is desire, Campbell said. You have your technique and different moves you work, but for the most part it comes down to just want-to.Even though he missed two games after injuring his knee because an illegal chop block against Denver, Campbell is tied for the team lead in sacks (six), leads in tackles for loss (eight) and quarterback pressures (14) and is second in quarterbaack hits (nine).ddddddddddddFive of his sacks have come in the last three games. All of this while consistently being double-teamed.I think Im starting to get into the zone, he said. I dont think Ive been playing my best ball yet, but this is the time to play my best ball. Im starting to feel really good right now, so hopefully these next few games I can play some really good football.Campbell, as polite and easygoing off the field as he is fierce on it, is in the third year of a five-year, $55 million contract. This year, for the first time, he was voted a team captain by his teammates.I believe hes stepping up big now that (Darnell) Dockett is down, cornerback Patrick Peterson said. His play has definitely gone to the next level. Hes been playing huge for us. With that C on his chest, its a little added pressure, so he has to make sure he plays better than pretty much everybody else on the defence.Dockett was knocked out for the season with a knee injury in training camp.With his three sacks last week, Campbell passed Dockett and Bertrand Berry to go to sixth on the Cardinals career sacks list with 42 1/2. He is three shy of No. 5 Eric Swann.Campbells performance against Seattle made him the first defensive lineman in franchise history to have at least six sacks in six seasons. Despite missing two games, he is on pace for his sixth consecutive season with at least 50 tackles and six sacks.But the numbers that mean most to him, he said, are 9-2, the Cardinals record heading into Sundays game at Atlanta.A good performance is imperative after the 19-3 loss at Seattle.When youre on the field and you lose a game, you want to make sure you bounce back the next week and have a little more desire, a little more chip on your shoulder, Campbell said. For the most part, we dont have to do anything special. Just play football, have our energy and play with good technique and discipline, and were a tough team to beat.___AP NFL websites: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '