South African cricket has done it again: arrived in a foreign land with a pace attack to savour. Back in the mid and late 1960s - before isolation - Peter Pollock and Mike Procter led their countrys rout of Australia. They would have done much the same to anyone else, given the chance. The production line continued through the wilderness years as Procters heroic deeds inspired fine men such as Vintcent Van der Bijl and Garth Le Roux - along with an array of variously talented other fast bowlers who would have held South Africas place at the top table of international cricket: think Clive Rice and Rupert Spook Hanley; Stephen Jefferies, Kenny Watson and others less noted.It is remarkable that more than two decades without global exposure did not compromise the quality of cricket in the Republic, never mind the desire - quick bowling is hard yakka and not often truly appreciated as such. The Currie Cup may never have been stronger than during the 1970s and 80s, almost certainly because it was the highest level of the game on offer and the provincial players tore into one another as if they were opponents from another land. Transvaal had a fantastic team; Natal were not so dusty either. The pitches were often spicy and fast bowlers dominated on the hard, bouncy surface at the Wanderers and the zippy greentops at Kingsmead. The international rebel sides that visited from 1981 through to 1991 were astonished by the intensity of the cricket and the ferocity and consistency of the quicks. So rewarding was life for the fast men that Sylvester Clarke, the huge Barbadian, signed up for Transvaal and completed the make-up of a unit that became known as the Mean Machine.When apartheid was finally broken down and the ban on South African sport lifted in 1991, briefly Rice and then Kepler Wessels led competitive teams with terrific pacemen. First out of the blocks was Allan Donald; close behind him were Fanie de Villiers, Brian MacMillan, Brett Schultz, Corrie van Zyl, Craig Matthews and Eric Simons. They soon won in England and drew a thrilling three-match series in Australia. Were it not for a memorable explosion of raw power and emotion from Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh in Barbados, they would have collared the West Indians too.Since then, Shaun Pollock and Dale Steyn have been at the head of bowling attacks that have included Jacques Kallis, Makhaya Ntini, Andre Nel, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander. As Kallis has long pointed out, batting in South Africa is no sinecure. The pitches are mainly kind to bowlers, who lick their lips. By this he means the fast men, for South African spin has mainly gone missing. Steyn is in Perth tomorrow, 12 years since he first showed promise on debut against England in Port Elizabeth. There have been few better in the history of the game. He is a terrific athlete with a smart brain and an alarming streak that might otherwise be interpreted as a cry to battle. Like Malcolm Marshall before him, the outswinger is his stock in trade and the inswinger a wicked, inside thigh-stinging addition to his arsenal. He need not break the speedometer to create an impression: he does so with a mad look in his eye, the killer zeal of his body talk, and that chainsaw celebration. Steyn relishes the Australian frontier more than any other and knows that he is running out of years. The present tally is 416 wickets at 22 each. Expect him to ride the threat of a shoulder niggle and play a key part in Perths first encounter of three.Alongside this leader of the band are some worthy players. Morkel loves Perth like the deserts love the rain. The trick will be to keep his length fuller than is obvious or, indeed, than looks exciting. Ball after ball flies through at the WACA but many are wasted in macho expression. Morkel took key wickets last time around; he is a good bet for the same again. Moreover, he has married an Australia girl, once a brave television sports journalist in her own country, and will be eager to confirm the bragging rights.Philander is a fine exponent of the old arts and subtle variations. On the exterior there appears to be little either to him or to his work, but hidden beneath is a craftsman in swing and seam. Perth may not be his venue, unless he can find the strength of a shire horse and operate into the Fremantle Doctor that plays its part each afternoon. That job may be awarded to Kyle Abbott, as willing a shire horse as any captain might find.Last in Steyns merry band is the most important of them all. Like Ntini back in the day, Kagiso Rabada bowls for a nation. He is the governments cause celebre and Cricket South Africas route to justification. But there is no tokenism in Rabadas selection - far from it. He has rare talent, a joyous spring of step, and lets rip at serious pace. With youth on his side, Rabada maintains his performance until the umpires pull the stumps from the ground each day. His eight Tests have yielded 29 wickets at 24 each and a strike rate of 38.9. Only Procter is ahead of him among South Africans who have taken 25 wickets or more. He bowls a natural off-stump line, and earlier this year forced England to nibble away at deliveries they would have chosen to leave alone. In the Centurion Test and at just 20 years of age, he claimed 13 for 144, the second best figures in his countrys history. Sure, this is only the beginning of a young mans life in the game, but the pedigree is clear.These bowlers could be the difference between the sides over the coming five days. Last years pitch for the Test against New Zealand was a drab thing that drew the teeth of every bowler in the game. Almost 1200 runs were scored in the first innings of the match as double-hundreds and mere hundreds were sprinkled around like confetti. The curator will not want a repeat, and thus, the surface should reveal some of its famed character this time around. It is hard to see the South Africans not making best use of it. How AB de Villiers, injured and watching from home, must be pining for this rivalry and the chance to fire such heavy artillery at the Australians. That is now a privilege belonging to Faf du Plessis. No one here can wait. The juices are running. Expect three crackerjack games between old enemies and many good friends.Daniel Jones Giants Jersey . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. Eli Manning Jersey . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. http://www.giantsonlineteamshop.com/carl-banks-jersey-cheap.html . Team physician Dr. Steve Traina performed the surgery Friday. Robinson was injured in a spill underneath the Nuggets basket during the first quarter of Wednesday nights loss to the Charlotte Bobcats. Daniel Jones Cheap Jersey . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Doug Kotar Jersey . -- The Magic have their first victory of the new year.STOCKHOLM, Sweden -- History of some sort will be made in Sundays final of the IIHF World Championship. Switzerland will play for the first gold medal in that countrys history. Sweden wants to be the first host country to win a world title since 1986. Catch all the action live on TSN2 and TSN Mobile TV at 2pm et/11am pt. The Swiss extended their unbeaten run at this years mens world hockey championship to nine wins with a 3-0 victory over the United States in one semifinal Saturday night. The Swedes downed Finland 3-0 in the afternoon semifinal. "To get this far at the world tournament is pretty special for our country right now," said Swiss coach Sean Simpson, a Canadian from Brampton, Ont. "Its quite a thrill for our team, for our country, to be in the final in Stockholm against Sweden. Its quite a big deal." The Soviet Union was the last country to win a world mens hockey title on home ice 27 years ago in Moscow. "Its about time. Its about time," Swedish forward Henrik Sedin said. "No pressure, just fun. "Its an unbelievable feeling. Its something a lot players never get a chance to be part of so its something you dream about when you grow up." Switzerland opened the tournament with a 3-2 upset of the Swedes, followed by a 3-2 shootout win over Canada and a 5-2 victory over the Czech Republic. The wins over what were considered the favourites in the pool gave the Swiss momentum on their run to the top in Stockholm. Sweden finished third at 5-2 in the same pool behind Canada at (5-1-1-0). The Swedes eliminated Canada from medal contention with a 3-2 shootout quarter-final win. Julian Walker, New York Islanders prospect Nino Niederreiter and Reto Suri, with an empty-net goal, scored for the Swiss against the Americans. Goaltender Reto Berra, a Calgary Flames prospect, stopped 29 shots for the shutout. "I have no words for that," Berra said. "I think its the biggest win since a long, long time for Switzerland and also I think for a lot of players it was the most important game in their life today." Switzerland will earn their first medal in this tournament in 60 years. They won bronze in 1953. Loui Eriksson of the Dallas Stars scored a pair of power-play goals against Finland with twin brothers Henrik and Daniel Sedin of the Vancouver Canucks assisting on both of them. Henrik added an empty-net goal for a three-point game in front of an announcedd 11,674 at Globe Arena.dddddddddddd Jhonas Enroth of the Buffalo Sabres made 30 saves for his shutout. Simpson would not reveal whether he would go with Berra in net again Sunday or return to former NHL goalie Martin Gerber. Gerber was in net for a 2-1 quarter-final win over the Czechs. Enroth has made game-turning saves to get the Swedes to the championship game and is expected to return to Swedens net Sunday. Sweden, whose last world title was in 2006, is a more confident team than the one Switzerland beat on the first day of the tournament. The addition of the Sedins after the Canucks were swept in the first round of NHL playoffs boosted Swedens power-play. After scoring just two power-play goals in their first seven games of the tournament, Sweden has scored four in their last two games. Daniel assisted on all four and Henrik on three. "They know what to do," Swedish forward Gabriel Landeskog said. "Theyve played with each other for so long and they know exactly where to find each other and find Loui. "They have that respect as well. Everyone knows theyre world-class players. As soon as they get the puck, people will back off." Finland and the U.S., who finished first and third in the Helsinki pool, will play for bronze Sunday. When asked if winning a world title would erase the sting of an early NHL playoff exit, Henrik replied: "Its two different things. To lose in the playoffs, its obviously tough. To get a chance to do something good, its fun." Simpson has coached the Swiss mens team internationally for three years with finishes of fifth, ninth and 11th at the mens world championship during his tenure. He took over as head coach in 2010 for Ralph Krueger, another Canadian who had been behind Switzerlands bench for 13 years. Krueger is now the head coach of the NHLs Edmonton Oilers. Canucks defenceman Alex Edler joined Swedens lineup with the Sedins, but he did not play Saturday, nor will he Sunday. Edler received a two-game suspension for his knee-on-knee contact with Canadian captain Eric Staal in Thursdays quarter-final. Edler received a major and a game misconduct. Staal is also captain of the Carolina Hurricanes. The NHL team announced Saturday hed suffered a third degree ligament sprain, which would not require surgery. The team said rehabilitation should take three months and that Staal is expected to be ready for the start of the 2013-14 season. ' ' '