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The AFLs chasing pack has smelled blood and theyre coming.Sides are lining up to replace Hawthorn on top of the ladder after the three-time reigning premiers were humbled by Melbourne on Saturday.The next four clubs - Sydney, Adelaide, Geelong and Greater Western Sydney - each recorded their 14th win of the season at the weekend as the finals race explodes.As it stands, every prize remains up for grabs - the minor premiership, the home qualifying final and the double chance of finishing in the top four.West Coast and the Western Bulldogs, four points further back, arent out of the equation either, after the Eagles derby victory and the Dogs win over North Melbourne.The Hawks are a game clear on top but have the worst percentage in the top five, meaning another loss will send them south.The second-placed Swans are best poised to pounce after a 67-point win over Port Adelaide.Midfielder Luke Parker said Sydneys rise had everything to do with their depth.If Im having a bit of an off game then Hanners (Dan Hannebery) and Joey (Kennedy) and Kieren Jack will stand up, he said.If theyre having an off game then blokes like Tommy Mitchell and even the young boys pick up the slack.Its comforting to know that I can play with my confidence but knowing if Im off then someone else can do the work.The Swans will only get stronger with the return of key man Kurt Tippett, who Parker had slated for a for a round 22 return.Last week he was doing some pretty heavy running load and running a pretty good pace, Parker told the Nine Network.Hopefully he gets two games under his belt and hes right to slot straight back in for finals and be back to his best.The Giants survived a scare against lowly Gold Coast, winning by eight at Metricon Stadium, while Hawthorns other rivals did it easily.Geelong eased to a 66-point win over bottom side Essendon on Sunday, while Adelaide boosted their percentage with a 138-point mauling of Brisbane Lions.Crows coach Don Pyke called it a professional showing. In truth, it was terrifying.The leagues best scorers look unstoppable on their day and only play sides below them in a soft run-in.At the bottom end of the top eight, North Melbourne missed a good chance to lock up a slice of September action by losing to the Bulldogs by 14 points.With matches against Hawthorn, GWS and Sydney to come, the unthinkable is still a possibility for Brad Scotts side, which started the year with nine straight wins.Three sides could yet replace North in the finals series.St Kilda, which belted Carlton by 71 points on Sunday, Port Adelaide and Melbourne.The Power and Demons meet next Saturday night in a clash that will end one of their hopes for 2016. Cheap Air Max Sale . The mixed zone is not a place to make friends. Cheap Air Max Website .C. -- Chris Thorburn thinks one of the reasons the Winnipeg Jets have been successful under new coach Paul Maurice is that theyre playing together as a team. http://www.wholesaleairmaxfreeshipping.com/ . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. Wholesale Air Max Cheap . 1, meaning problems for the doping controls at both major international sports events next year. The World Anti-Doping Agency provisionally suspended the Moscow Antidoping Center on Sunday, saying its operations must improve or a six-month ban on the facilitys accreditation will be imposed. Cheap Air Max . Emery skated the length of the ice and fought an unwilling Holtby during the third period of the Flyers 7-0 loss Friday night in Philadelphia. He was given 29 penalty minutes, including a game misconduct. But Emery did not face even a disciplinary hearing with NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan because rules 46. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said his right eye, which has undergone four operations since the start of November, will require another operation after the end of the teams season.But it wont require Zimmer to miss another game, and even though he could have to take extra steps to coach the rest of the season following the surgeries on his detached retina, he said he wont step away from his team.Im not missing any more games the rest of my life, he said.Zimmer coached with a patch over his right eye during practice this week -- a step that prompted plenty of pirate-themed jokes from his players -- and he had to wear two different sets of glasses during Sundays game against the Jacksonville Jaguars: sunglasses that blocked out the vision in his right eye, and reading glasses for when he needed to look at his call sheet on the sidelines.As Zimmer went to shake Jaguars coach Gus Bradleys hand after Minnesotas 25-16 victory, he had to have Vikings security director Kim Klawiter guide him to midfield.When I did take the patch off, Kim was walking me across the field, and I said, I cant see where hes at, Zimmer said. He said, Dont worry -- I got you.Zimmer missed the first game of his 23-year NFL coaching career on Dec. 1 after emergency eye surgery the previous day, and he watchedd from home as the Vikings lost 17-15 to the Dallas Cowboys.dddddddddddd He had another operation the day after the game, and though he returned to work this past Monday, he had to ease back into some portions of his job.Zimmer said he expects he will have to wear an eyepatch on the sidelines the rest of the season, though he admitted his players would likely enjoy that.There was a lot of, Aye aye, Captain [this week], he said.Zimmers return came as the Vikings won for just the second time in eight games, improving to 7-6 on the season and keeping their playoff hopes alive before next Sundays game against the Indianapolis Colts.When we got back in the building, it was just great to have him around, quarterback Sam Bradford said. I think everyone in our locker room knows how much he cares about us, how much he cares about this team, what it means to him to lead us on Sundays. Him being back in the building, it just kind of gave us a boost. When we see our leader like that, probably risking his health for us, it does give us a little bit of motivation to go out there and play extra hard for him.Did Bradford joke with the coach?No, he said. Hes kind of scary with that patch on. ' ' '