just cruising along for a strong finish

West Coast coach Adam Simpson admits his teams been on the back foot without Nic Naitanui, but he wont be expecting instant miracles once the star ruckman makes his AFL return.The Eagles five-match winning run has catapulted them into equal second on the table, but their recent form line is a concern.West Coast only scraped over the line by seven points against Carlton in round 17, and they were lucky to win against Melbourne in Perth on Saturday.The Demons won the inside-50m count 66-37, contested possessions 160-143, and the tackle count 98-83 - but the Eagles somehow walked away with a six-point win.West Coast will start as favourites against Collingwood (MCG) and Fremantle in the next two weeks, giving them an excellent chance to lock down a top-four berth and the double finals chance that goes with it.Naitanui has missed the past five matches after undergoing surgery to remove the plantaris tendon from each foot.The 2012 All-Australian is now back in full training, and is a chance to return for Saturdays clash with Collingwood.Scott Lycett has performed admirably as the No.1 ruckman during Naitanuis absence, but Mitch Brown and Jonathan Giles have struggled to fulfil the back-up role.Simpson says his team have learned invaluable lessons about how to deal with opposition ruckmen without Naitanui.But the third-year coach cant wait to have his ace tap specialist back in the thick of things.It puts you on the back foot a little bit without him there, Simpson said.But for him to miss probably six or seven weeks by the time he comes back, the expectations - itll take him a while to get back into form.Naitanui said hell try his best to prove his fitness for the Magpies clash.It will probably depend on how I pull up over the next three or four sessions, Naitanui said.Im doing full match sim and training with the boys now.Eagles defender Sharrod Wellingham will be assessed after copping a heavy knock to his leg against the Demons.Wellinghams disposal efficiency was woeful after copping the cork, and Simpson joked: Im hoping thats the reason why he butchered the ball so much.Simpson faces a tough call on the selection front when he tries to find room for defender Will Schofield.Schofield was rested against the Demons, and his inclusion for the Magpies match means either Eric Mackenzie or Tom Barrass could be squeezed out.Mackenzie held Jesse Hogan goalless in a successful return to AFL ranks, while Barrass has been a strong contributor since being called up in round 12.West Coasts hopes of finishing in the top four were boosted when the Bulldogs suffered a shock loss to St Kilda on Saturday night. Air Force 1 Blue Store . -- 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. Air Force 1 Clearance . Halifax beat the Saint John Sea Dogs 7-5 on the strength of two goals apiece from Nikolaj Ehlers, Matt Murphy and Brent Andrews. Jonathan Drouin also scored and had three assists while Zachary Fucale made 17 saves for the Mooseheads (16-8-0), who led 6-1 after two periods. http://www.airforce1storesale.com/fake-sf-af1-outlet.html . Its sharpness matched my mind. This was no night to go to sleep. Air Force 1 Grey Discount . DAmigo scored twice in regulation and added the shootout winner as the Toronto Marlies edged the San Antonio Rampage 5-4 in American Hockey League action. Air Force 1 Blue Fake . The veteran safety was a starter for the Bengals from 2008-2012. He totaled 41 tackles and three interceptions while starting all but four of the 13 games he played last season. CONCORD, N.C. -- Just like that, Jimmie Johnson has a seventh championship within reach.Johnson salvaged a ho-hum season with a strong win Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway that moves him into the third round of the playoffs. The elimination format had not been good to the six-time champion since its 2014 inception: He was eliminated in the second round of the inaugural year, then bounced out of the first round last season.Johnson snapped a career-worst 24-race losing streak while winning for the first time since March.I just knew it was taking way too long, he said of the drought.He has quietly turned it up through the first round of the Chase and became an official title contender on Sunday, a day in which nearly half the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship field had trouble.Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick both had engine issues. Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott were in crashes. Joey Logano had tire problems, and Martin Truex Jr.?had an electrical issue as he left pit road after the final pit stop.Five Chase drivers finished lower than 30th, and Harvick, the 2014 champion, is last in the standings.Johnson, meanwhile, has a record eighth victory at Charlotte and a spot in the round of eight drivers. He doesnt have to worry about tire trouble, mechanical breakdowns or a wild ride at Talladega Superspeedway in the elimination race later this month. Johnson is through to the third round, and many of the top names are in trouble.Hamlin was running second when his engine blew with 25 laps remaining. As the cars left pit road, Truex seemed poised to restart in second, but he appeared to stall and instead restarted 16th.Although Truex salvaged his day and finished 13th -- lowest of the Chase drivers still running at the end of the race -- Hamlin wound up 30th.Dillon was 32nd, Elliott 33rd, Logano 36th and Harvick 38th.The hectic day left only Johnson breathing easy at the end. Not even Matt Kenseth, who finished second to Johnson, is relaxed heading into races at Kansas and Talladega.Would love to have the win, would make you feel a lot better about the next two weeks, Kenseth said.Hurricane Matthew had washed out most of the weekend at Charlotte and pushed both the Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series races to Sunday in an 800-mile doubleheader. Schedduled for both races were Harvick, Logano, Dillon and Brad Keselowski.ddddddddddddHENDRICK RETURNS: This had been a miserable season for Hendrick Motorsports, by its own standards. Only two of its four drivers made the Chase this year, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.?is sidelined with a concussion.Johnson has the only wins for the organization, but Elliott had been sniffing Victory Lane all season.On Sunday, the two combined to lead 258 of the 334 laps, and Johnson and Elliott ran 1-2 for a huge chunk of the race.Elliott was involved in a crash with 75 laps remaining and could not hide his disappointment.We had such a good car, he said. Im devastated that we didnt get the result that my guys deserve.Despite Elliotts finish, it was a good organizational day for Hendrick: Kasey Kahne finished third and Alex Bowman showed early speed before a tire issue caused him to wreck.HAMLIN WOES: During a lengthy red flag, NBC Sports interviewed Hamlin while he idled in his car and said he was just cruising along for a strong finish.Then his engine blew up and a strong points day was ruined.It was Hamlins first engine failure since Talladega in 2013, and he noted afterward that hes always hit with bad luck during NASCARs postseason.Its just my time, he said with a shrug.DILLON GAMBLES: As the long shot in the field, Dillon likely needed tremendous luck or a stroke of strategic planning to advance out of the second round. His team gambled on a late pit stop in taking only two tires, a move that earned him nine spots and into second for a restart.He seemed to get off cleanly at the drop of the flag, but as he shifted, he was hit from behind by Truex and went spinning into an interior wall.Truex accepted blame for hitting Elliott in a frustrated communication over his team radio.I tried to give him a shot and just turned him around like a damn idiot, Truex radioed.Dillon, a rookie in the Chase who is winless so far at the Cup level, figured he needs to get a victory in one of the next two races.We will have to work hard the next two weeks to get the points back, he said. We just have to do a lot, we have to win one of the next two races. ' ' '