Plaudersofa! » ck in front by nine. It was nine once more on

CARDIFF -- Wales survived a second-half fightback by Italy to launch the defence of its Six Nations title with an unconvincing 23-15 win at Millennium Stadium on Saturday. First-half tries by Alex Cuthbert and Scott Williams combined with flawless kicking by Leigh Halfpenny to give the Welsh a 17-3 lead at the break. Unlucky to be so far behind, Italy dominated the second half, with Michele Campagnaro scoring two tries to leave his team just five points behind with 11 minutes left. However, another penalty by Halfpenny ensured Wales preserved its unbeaten home record against the Italians and saw the fullback finish the match with a personal haul of 13 points. "It will focus the minds for next week," said Wales coach Warren Gatland, referring to Saturdays match in Ireland. "It wasnt an easy run-out -- it was tough, which was the way we wanted it." The Welsh are seeking an unprecedented third straight title since the tournament expanded in 2000, and have been installed as favourites by most pundits and bookmakers. Yet they were given a real scare by Italy, and with the score at 20-15 after Campagnaros second try, there was a real danger that Wales would lose its opening match -- like it did last year to Ireland. In the end, Wales limped to victory and there were muted celebrations by the players after the final whistle. "We certainly made it hard for ourselves," Wales centre Jamie Roberts said. "We have to tighten up those mistakes in our game. If we dont, then well lose against Ireland." It had all looked so different after just four minutes, when covering winger Angelo Esposito failed to gather a grubber kick by Wales flyhalf Rhys Priestland. The ball slithered through into the in-goal area and the inrushing Cuthbert had the simple task of collecting and diving over for a try that was converted by Halfpenny. The Italians didnt buckle, though. And after Allan and Halfpenny traded penalties to leave the score 10-3 after 29 minutes, Sergio Parisse was denied a try in the 35th by the video referee, who adjudged the Italy captain to have knocked on as he challenged for a high ball with George North. Somewhat against the run of play, Wales scored its second try three minutes later when Roberts broke a tackle in midfield before passing inside to centre partner Williams, who cantered over to ground near the posts. Italys comeback was launched in the 43rd, though, when Campagnaro chased down Leonardo Sartos smart kick down the line and dived over just before the ball went dead. Crucially, Allan missed the conversion, then a penalty in the 50th. Halfpenny booted another penalty in the 67th but blotted his performance by sending over a floated pass that was intercepted by Campagnaro, who raced clear from inside his own half to dive over. Italy couldnt complete the recovery, and remains with just one away win in the Six Nations -- at Scotland. "As a captain, I am very proud of what the youngsters achieved today," Parisse said. "They were facing some of the most talented backs on the international stage, but they showed they can compete at this level." Wholesale Retro Jordans . Malone will become an unrestricted free-agent and as per the collective bargaining agreement, the Lightning will be responsible for two-thirds of the remainder of his contract over twice the length of the rest of the deal. Cheap Nike Shoes From China Free Shipping . Karlovic of Croatia used his big serve to beat Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic 7-6 (6), 7-6 (7). Kohlschreiber had lost all of his three previous matches against Istomin but the German broke serve for a decisive 3-2 lead in the third set and held on to reach his first final of the year. http://www.cheapairjordanchina.com/.com) - Devan Dubnyk stopped all 30 shots fired his way and made several big saves down the stretch for his third shutout of the season as the Minnesota Wild beat the Calgary Flames 1-0 on Tuesday. Cheap Jordans From China . Browns owner Jimmy Haslam announced the move with Young on Monday during a speech at a Pro Football Hall of Fame luncheon. Jordans From China Real . The start of the seasons fifth and final major was delayed two hours due to heavy rain in the area. The tournament eventually began, but with water on the greens and the rain persisting, players were called back to the clubhouse less than an hour after the first group teed off.Phoenix, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - Eric Bledsoe scored 23 points, including the final four for Phoenix, to help the Suns pull away from the Chicago Bulls and cap an eight-game homestand with a 99-93 win. Goran Dragic scored 21 points for the Suns, who finished the homestand 6-2. Markieff and Marcus Morris both scored 12 points, with Markieff also contributing a season-high 14 rebounds. I thought our defense played great tonight, said Phoenix coach Jeff Hornacek. They challenged just about every shot. Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Aaron Brooks combined for 66 of Chicagos 93 points and Pau Gasol had 19 boards in the setback. Roses struggles from the floor continued on Friday despite scoring 23 points. He shot 8-of-23 and 0-for-6 from behind the arc. Rose is shooting 28-of-82 (34 percent) from the floor and 5-for-25 from 3 over his last three games. Chicago shot 1-for-14 from outside the paint in the first half and trailed 55-42 at the break. The 13-point halftime lead grew to 15 two minutes into the third quarter before Chicago made a game of it. A pair of 6-0 runs, the second of which Kirk Hinrich capped with a short jumper, gave the Bulls a 67-66 lead before Brandan Wrights layup restored Phoenixs lead after three. The Suns shot 6-for-23 and missed all six of their tries frrom distance in the third.dddddddddddd. The Morris brothers accounted for the first nine Suns points of the fourth, with Marcus canning a 3 and Markieff hitting three 2-point field goals. Later, Markieffs slam on a feed from Bledsoe capped a 7-0 run that had the hosts back in front by nine. It was nine once more on Dragics layup with 2:24 to play but out of a timeout, Butler put in a layup and Brooks stepped into a 3 to force a timeout with Phoenix ahead by just four. Rose and Gasol missed layups on the next Chicago trip but Phoenix rushed a shot, leading to Brooks layup at the other end that cut it to two. Then with time winding down on the shot clock, Bledsoe drove hard into Joakim Noah and got a floater to go off the glass, pushing it back to a two- possession game with 10 seconds to play. His free throws after Butler missed a contested layup sealed the win. It is unfortunate but if we want to get where we want to go, weve got to find ways to win these types of games, Rose said. Game Notes Butler scored 22 points and Brooks had 21 ... The Bulls fell to 1-2 on a six- game road trip, but they have four days off before playing against in Houston on Feb. 4 ... Chicago will head home after this road trip for nine of its next 10 games. ' ' '