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While it didnt generate anything remotely like the attention of Germanys 7-1 thrashing of Brazil at the World Cup, the Palestinian teams 1-0 victory over the Philippines in the AFC Challenge Cup final may have been one of the most significant international football results of 2014.The teams, both outside the top 100, met at the Maldives in May, with the winner guaranteed a spot at the Asian Cup. And so it was a momentous win for the fledgling Palestinian team.And that set the newcomers on course for a big debut against defending champion Japan at Newcastle, Australia, next Monday.While the Palestinians are outsiders against continental heavyweight Japan, subsequent group games against Iraq and Jordan will likely be more important in determining whether the Cup rookies can surprise a continent by making the last eight.Japan is the best team in the group, coach Ahmad Al Hassan said after arriving in Australia. The chances of the other three teams, however, are equal and we will be trying our best to get the best results for Palestine.Following victory in the AFC Challenge Cup, the Palestinians performed strongly at the Asian Games; a largely under-23 tournament that features more countries than any other Asian competition. The Palestinians had never won a game at previous Asian Games, but in South Korea they topped a group containing Tajikistan, Singapore and Oman. Finishing first was rewarded with a second-round match against Japan, resulting in a 4-0 defeat.The senior squad was in good form leading into the trip Down Under, with wins over Taiwan, India, Pakistan and India in friendlies, a 0-0 draw with China and a 1-0 loss to Uzbekistan.There have been issues. Not only will the team be without the injured Swedish-based midfielder Imad Zatara in Australia, but Jamal Mahmoud quit as coach in September after three successful years in charge for reasons that are still not completely clear. Al Hamad, who had spent the previous two years as technical director for the national federation was appointed as the replacement.On top of the changes and challenges of working with limited facilities, the team must constantly deal with the political and security difficulties at home.All but six players in the 23-man squad are based in the Palestinian territories. Holding training camps and travelling overseas has been problematic due to difficulties obtaining permits. The Palestinian federation has complained about Israeli travel restrictions on some of its players in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, a territory ruled by the Palestinian Islamic militant group Hamas.Israel has cited concerns about possible attacks by Palestinian militants as the main reason for sweeping restrictions on movement that affect most Palestinians, including athletes.To be competitive, much depends on the experience of the Palestinian players who live abroad. Ashraf Numan, who scored the only goal of the AFC Challenge Cup final against the Philippines, plays for Al Faisaly in Saudi Arabia.Arab football has improved a lot in the past 10 years, the situation is better in this area than in East Asia and this is our dream to go to the World Cup, the Numan told Australias SBS network. We watched how the Algerian side played in the World Cup at a high level and no-one expected that; this is the big dream for us and at the same time its not impossible.Avoiding defeat in the opening game against Japan would be considered a major success. The big game comes against 2007 champion Iraq, a talented but unpredictable team — as it demonstrated when finishing bottom of its group during Novembers Gulf Cup. That failure led the Iraqi FA to hire a new coach.Following that is a group game against Jordan, also getting to grips with a new coach. 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The 28-year-old from Rochester, Alta., was selected by the Redblacks from the Saskatchewan Roughriders roster in the 2013 CFL Expansion Draft.LOS ANGELES -- The short-handed San Antonio Spurs have been playing slightly better than .500 ball against teams with winning records, so they needed a huge lift from somebody Tuesday night in a matchup of division leaders. They got one from Patty Mills, who scored 16 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter as the Spurs charged out of the All-Star break with a 113-103 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. San Antonio is a league-best 21-7 away from home, poised to extend its NBA record for consecutive winning seasons on the road to 17. "Down a couple of guys, not being able to practice yesterday, and to be able to come in here and put together a 48-minute performance like this was great for us," said Tim Duncan, who had 19 points and 13 rebounds during a foul-plagued 38 minutes. "It was a big win for us, especially on the road against a very good ballclub." The Spurs played without six-time All-Star Tony Parker, who will be sidelined "for the foreseeable future" because of numerous aches and pains (including a bruised shin, groin strain and lower back spasms), coach Gregg Popovich said. The 13-year veteran point guard, who played 11 minutes in Sundays All-Star game, is the Spurs leading scorer and their only player averaging at least 30 minutes. "Were just trying to get him healthy," Duncan said. "I mean, players being healthy is so underrated. When people play through things and they arent 100 per cent, the season becomes a grind. So we want to be 100 per cent so that down the stretch and in the playoffs, when we ask him to do all that we need him to do, hes ready to go and carry that load on his shoulders." Blake Griffin had 35 points and 12 rebounds, Jamal Crawford scored 25 and DeAndre Jordan grabbed 18 rebounds for the Clippers, who ended a run of five consecutive home games that began with a four-point loss to two-time defending champion Miami. "Weve got a lot of work to do to get where the Spurs are and accomplish what theyve accomplished," Griffin said. "They kind of have the model of the NBA and how you want to run things. Guys can be sitting out with injuries, and it doesnt matter. Other guys are going to come in and do exactly what theyre supposed to. Its impressive." Corey Joseph started for the 13th time this season and had seven points in Parkers place. Backup shooting guard Manu Ginobili returned to the lineup and scored nine points in 14 minutes after missing eight games since Jan.dddddddddddd 28 because of tightness in his left hamstring. But centre Tiago Splitter was sidelined for the fourth straight game with a bruised right shin, and forward Kawhi Leonard missed his 12th in a row due to a broken bone in his right hand. All those injuries have presented a stiff challenge for the Southwest Division leaders, who are 8-7 since a five-game winning streak last month. They lead the Clippers by three games for the second-best record in the Western Conference and have two games left on their nine-game rodeo road trip. The Spurs, who came in leading the NBA in 3-point shooting at 39.1 per cent, took a 73-69 lead when Marco Belinelli drained one from in front of the San Antonio bench with 3:18 left in the third quarter. Duncan picked up his fourth foul less than 2 minutes later, but the Clippers never could regain the lead as Mills scored 11 consecutive Spurs points during a 2:26 span to help San Antonio build a 93-81 cushion with 8:46 to play. "He was great for us," Duncan said. "That fourth quarter, he really took over for that 5 minutes and gave us the lead that we needed. We were struggling trying to find points and keep the pressure on them, and he just completely took the ballgame over." Duncan got his fifth foul with 7:03 left, but Popovich kept him in there and the two-time MVP responded with a short hook shot and a 15-footer before Mills added a 3-pointer for a 102-92 lead with 4:35 remaining. "I think my fourth and fifth ones were not very smart. I didnt realize where I was, foul-wise, and I kind of got myself in trouble there," Duncan said. "But they werent able to take advantage of it, luckily, and we all played through it after Pop left me in there." NOTES: Griffin is averaging 35.3 points over his last six games and has scored at least 25 in each of the past nine. ... The Clippers have dropped their first game following the All-Star break in each of the last six years, including a 26-point loss to the Spurs last season. ... The Spurs are 29-1 when leading after three quarters. Their only loss came on Jan. 17, when Portland turned a one-point deficit into a 109-100 victory. ... Clippers F J.J. Redick missed his fifth straight game with a sore right hip. ' ' '