Vermette won the puck along the boards at centre ice and ska

Michael ONeill believes preparing Northern Ireland to play teams at opposite ends of the football spectrum is the toughest task in the international game. ONeills side will host San Marino - a side which has not avoided defeat in a World Cup qualifier in the last 15 years - at the fully redeveloped Windsor Park on Saturday.After that, they will head to Hanover to take on world champions Germany in what is expected to be the toughest fixture of their group. While the Germans are a daunting prospect, San Marino are ranked a lowly 201st in the FIFA rankings and ONeill acknowledges the contrast.He said: That transition is the most difficult part of international football. I always remember the first game in charge where we were away to (Fabio) Capellos Russia. Northern Ireland play Germany on Tuesday just three months after meeting them at Euro 2016 We had to be difficult to beat and then we had to get back from Russia, turn the team around and play Luxembourg here with a totally different approach and different personnel.Were a lot better equipped for that now. I think we also benefit from the fact that its only three months or so since we played Germany in Paris.We know what to expect. Its the difference in terms of changes of personnel that will be important in that game as well. Whilst it is a difficult task - and its made more difficult because theres a day less - our focus is to win the first game.The most important part of any game, more than being tactically ready, is being mentally right and if you win the first game youll be mentally right for the second. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. San Marinos visit to Belfast will see Northern Ireland play a home international at Windsor Park for the first time since a two and a half-year redevelopment programme was completed.FIFA president Gianni Infantino will be part of the 18,000-strong crowd, along with some of the countrys finest sportsmen such as Carl Frampton, Dennis Taylor and Pat Jennings.ONeill joked: Ive not been part of that but weve wheeled out everyone, havent we? These are nice nights. Windsor had a slow death, lets be honest. Northern Ireland will play at Windsor Park for the first time since its redevelopment was completed Bit by bit, it was closed off but the redevelopment has been fantastic and its a fresh start on the back of the teams success at Euro 2016.The most important thing is what is the atmosphere going to be like? The atmosphere will be fantastic. I think it will be a very atmospheric stadium.You can watch Englands tour of Bangladesh, plus Premier League football and the Japan Grand Prix on Sky Sports. Upgrade now and enjoy three months at half price! Also See: Sky Live: N Ireland v San Marino McAuley: NI will take any win Saturday international preview Morris, Paton receive NI calls Greg Holland Jersey . It was a day that saw England slump off a World Cup field once again battered and bruised. This time there was no red card to wonder about, no goalkeeping error or individual mistake. They were thoroughly beaten by something they have nothing of – genuine world class ability. Custom Colorado Rockies Jerseys . New York then missed its next six shots and scored only two points the rest of the night. 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Nadal exited in the first round, a year after bowing out in the second.GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. The Stars not only made their dads happy Tuesday night, they secured a key victory that improved their playoff chances. Antoine Roussel scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period, Kari Lehtonen stopped 26 shots and the Stars beat the sluggish Phoenix Coyotes 3-1 in front of 27 dads who took advantage of the franchises father road trip. "This is a little extra bonus," Lehtonen said of having his pop in the stands. "Its nice to have him here." Shawn Horcoff also scored and Ryan Garbutt added an empty-netter for the Stars, who won their second straight game and moved within one point of Phoenix and two of Vancouver, which holds the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Not bad for a team that less than a month ago was mired in a six-game losing streak. "It was a big win for us tonight," Garbutt said. "We had the dads in town and it was a fun game for the guys to play. Its kind of nice for the guys to be on a roll right now." Antoine Vermette scored his eighth goal in nine games and Mike Smith made 37 saves for the Coyotes, who were thoroughly outplayed in the final two periods despite the games importance. "It was really disappointing," Vermette said. "We have to find a way to win these games." Tied at 1 entering the third period despite a 31-18 edge in shots, the Stars took advantage of a bad line change and Kyle Chipchuras turnover at centre ice. The sequence ended with Roussels wrist shot from between the circles that beat Smith on the glove side at 3:25 for his ninth goal. "We turned over a lot of pucks and in the 1-on-1 battles just didnt do enough to give ourselves a better chance to win," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. It was another solid defensive effort for the Stars, three nights after blanking NHL-leading Anaheim 2-0 at the beginning of a three-game trip. When they arrived in Phoenix, so did most of the players fathers. They watched the Super Bowl together Sundayy and visited a dude ranch Monday.dddddddddddd The fathers then had great seats for Dallas fifth win in seven games and a big victory against another team jockeying for a playoff spot. Phoenix entered the night in ninth place in the West with 62 points, while Dallas was 10th with 59. With eight teams going to the playoffs and Vancouver losing at Boston earlier in the evening, Tuesdays meeting and Saturdays rematch in Dallas meant an opportunity to create space and clinch the season series. "We talked about this morning that two teams that are pretty similar and tight, somebodys going to take advantage of an opportunity and win a game," Dallas coach Lindy Ruff said. "And I thought we were able to push through." Perhaps not surprisingly, there was little to separate the teams in the first period. And while the Stars had better chances early in the second, it was Vermette who continued his hot streak with a breakaway goal midway through the period to put Phoenix ahead. Vermette won the puck along the boards at centre ice and skated in alone, sending a backhander past Lehtonen at 9:18 to make it 1-0. It was Vermettes team-best 21st goal. Shortly after Vermette nearly scored another breakaway goal while short-handed, and with the Phoenix crowd booing what it felt should have been a Dallas penalty, the Stars tied it. Horcoffs no-look backhander from the slot on the power play slipped past Smith with 7:28 left in the second period. Dallas controlled the final period, with Garbutts empty-net goal with 26.7 seconds left putting it away and setting up a happy postgame reunion with the dads. "I think the ones whose sons scored are especially proud of them," Ruff said. "And they get to see it live. That part is good." NOTES: The Stars improved to 12-2-2 against Pacific Division opponents. ... Vermettes career-best, eight-game point streak matches Shane Doans for the longest of the season for the Coyotes. ... Vermette (367) and teammate Keith Yandle (359) extended the third- and fourth-longest active consecutive games played streaks in the NHL. ... The Coyotes have won consecutive games just once since mid-December. ' ' '