Tuesday’s six Champions League Third Qualifying Round ties saw Manchester United, Villarreal, Rangers, Real Betis, Wisla Krakow and Valerenga secure first leg advantages, though some of the wins were more comfortably achieved than others. All victories are valuable, but arguably the night’s most significant were those of Rangers and Villarreal, as they were achieved away from home. The Spanish side, making their Champions League bow, scored a potentially decisive 2-1 advantage in England against Everton. This was the Merseysiders’ first European adventure for 10 years and their first European Cup campaign since 1971. Everton struggled to create clear-cut chances but James Beattie missed one of them in the seventh minute. Then, with Argentine playmaker Juan Román Riquelme becoming influential, his compatriot – and one-time Birmingham striker - Luciano Figueroa put Manuel Pellegrini’s side in front on 27 minutes. But the Toffees drew level three minutes before the break when Beattie jumped with Gonzalo Rodríguez to meet Phil Neville’s cross and the ball dropped behind the pair off the defender’s head, Beattie reacting quickest to poke it past Mariano Barbosa. However, Villarreal swiftly regained the advantage Juan Pablo Sorín crossing for Josico to send a fine header flying beyond Nigel Martyn.

Rangers took a significant step towards a place in the lucrative Group stage by beating Cypriots Anorthosis Famagusta in Nicosia. Two goals in six second-half minutes from Nacho Novo and Fernando Ricksen gave the Scottish champions the edge in a close-fought contest. Anorthosis quickly halved the deficit through Nikos Frousos, but Temuri Ketsbaia’s side will have a difficult task at Ibrox on 24 August. Wayne Rooney was the inspiration behind Manchester United’s emphatic 3-0 victory over Debrecen of Hungary. The England prodigy scored the first on seven minutes and made the other two – converted in style by Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo in the second-half. It might have been different if, 30 seconds into the second-half, Peter Halmosi’s seemingly good ‘goal’ not been disallowed for what the ref perceived to be a foul on Gary Neville. A dramatic last-minute winner from Edu gave Real Betis a deserved 1-0 win at home to AS Monaco. There were just seconds left in added time when Xisco Muñoz found the on-rushing Brazilian midfielder who fired past the diving Flavio Roma. It was a fair reward for Betis, whose attacking approach had seen them rattle the crossbar three times and come close on several other occasions.




DOB: Aug 27, 1962 Age: 42 Place of Birth: Weston, Ont., Canada HT: 5-11 WT: 190 Shoots: R NHL Seasons: 19 Signed by Detroit in 1985.

The name of Adam Oates is almost sure to come up when the conversation comes around to one-sided deals in the NHL. Near the beginning of his pro career, the hard-working center from Weston, Ontario, was at the heart of a trade that is often remembered as one of the biggest steals in league history. After the 1988-89 season Oates and his Detroit Red Wings teammate Paul MacLean were traded to the St. Louis Blues for Bernie Federko and Tony McKegney. Within a year Federko had retired and McKegney had been traded away again. In St. Louis, however, Oates fortunes took a completely different turn. Playing on a line with Brett Hull, he quickly gained the reputation as one of the NHL's premier passing centers and established himself as the number-one setup man for his high-scoring teammate Brett Hull. The two became friends as well, rooming together on road trips and living close to one another in St. Louis. Maybe it was the big hype that had surrounded Oates during his time with the Wings that made the eventual trade seem so odd. In 1985, just out of college where he had been a star with NCAA champion Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Wings general manager Jim Devellano and team owner Mike Ilitch, who personally worked out the deal over the summer of 1985, had signed him. Oates was 23 when he signed with the Wings, and despite his college success, he was still an unproven rookie. So the fact that he signed the richest rookie contract in league history at the time, $1 million over four years did not exactly endear him to his teammates and opponents.



A hard worker without a lot of flash who was good on defense and at making plays, the young Oates one of the few NHL stars never to have been chosen in the draft was slotted into the Detroit lineup as a second-line center behind Steve Yzerman. Oates split that rookie year between Detroit and Adirondack of the AHL. His Detroit tenure was short-lived, and it was only within the freer offensive system in place in St. Louis that he was able to come into his own as a playmaking center. After he established his game there, Oates was traded again, this time to Boston in 1992. The Weston, Ontario native spent parts of six seasons with the Bruins where he established a career high 45 goals and 97 assists for 142 points in 1992-93 before joining the Washington Capitals in the late stages of the 1996-97 season. Upon arriving in Washington, Oates was instrumental in leading the Caps to their first Stanley Cup final in 1998. After six seasons with the Caps, Oates was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers at the March trading deadline in 2002. However, Oates tenure with the Flyers would last only 14 games as he became a free agent during the off-season and signed with the Anaheim Might Ducks. Eventhough, he was hampered by injuries during the 2002-03 season, he still managed to reach 1,400 points and ranked sixth all-time in career assists with 1,063 at the end of the season. Oates topped the 2002-03 campaign by leading his Ducks to the Stanley Cup Final, only to lose to the New Jersey Devils in a hard-fought seven game series. He finished with a team-high 13 playoff points. After Anaheim opted not to re-sign the veteran centreman, the Edmonton Oilers did, signing the free-agent in November 2003. Officially announced retirement, April 3, 2004.



The Washington Capitals today signed free agent center Andrew Cassels, who most recently played in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today. In keeping with club policy, terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Cassels, 36, was selected 17th overall (first round) by Montreal in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft. The 6' 1", 185-pound native of Bramalea, Ont., recorded six goals and 20 assists (26 points) and 26 penalty minutes in 58 games with the Blue Jackets in 2003-04.


Two stars who recently found a home in Edmonton, new Oilers Mike Peca & Chris Pronger
The Edmonton Oilers re-signed centre Marty Reasoner, 28, to a one-year deal. Reasoner returns to the Oilers after missing all but 17 games of the 2003-04 season after suffering injuries to his left knee and ankle in November 2003. He had two goals and six assists in 17 games that season. He has 97 career points (36-61) in 234 career NHL games with Edmonton and St. Louis. The St. Louis Blues were busy, signing unrestricted free-agent winger Dean McAmmond, re-signing defenceman Bryce Salvador to a $4.2-million, three-year deal and announcing that forward Eric Boguniecki accepted his one-year, $501,600 qualifying offer. McAmmond, 32, had a career-high 51 points (21-30) in 73 games with the Flames in 2001-02.



Song for the day - "Shut Up & Kiss Me" - MICHELLE WRIGHT