Promotion » with McIlroy ended while the wedding invitations were in the

LONDON -- New Zealand broke England hearts with a last-gasp converted try to edge their gripping Rugby League World Cup semifinal 20-18 at Wembley Stadium on Saturday. Tournament co-host England was 20 seconds from reaching the final until Kiwis halfback Shaun Johnson slipped his counterpart Kevin Sinfield and wrong-footed last defender George Burgess to dive across the line and make it 18-18. Johnson held his nerve to slot the conversion, his fourth goal of the game, and punched the air before he was swamped by teammates. "We always back ourselves if theres enough time on the clock," Kiwis coach Stephen Kearney said. "We were fortunate." The Kiwis will defend the title in the final against favourite Australia next Saturday at Old Trafford. The Kangaroos, who have played in every final since 1957, demolished Fiji 64-0 to repeat the semifinal results from the last cup in 2008. Jarryd Hayne, who played for Fiji in the 2008 semi, scored three of Australias 11 tries against his old team. The classy Australians didnt concede a point for a third straight game, and have conceded only 22 in five matches. "Weve got a bit of pride in our defence the last few weeks," said Johnathan Thurston, who scored 10 goals and a try against Fiji. He said revenge wont be the priority in the final against the Kiwis, who shocked the Kangaroos in Brisbane in the 2008 climax. "We wont be going in there with that attitude," Thurston said. "Well be worrying about ourselves, preparing the right way. The Kiwis are a great side, its going to be a tough night for us but were looking forward to it." The first semifinal of the Wembley doubleheader, which drew about 70,000, grew into an epic from the opening kickoff. England soaked up intense Kiwis pressure, then led 8-0 before the defending champs tied the score by halftime. New Zealand went ahead 14-8, but England came back to retake the lead at 18-14 with 13 minutes to go. England was close to putting the match away, but the Kiwis were given life in the last minute by a penalty from a high tackle on Sonny Bill Williams by George Burgess. And the individual brilliance of the Kiwis trumped Englands best team effort in years. "Were bitterly, bitterly disappointed," England coach Steve McNamara said. "Its a very cruel way to finish." England barely survived a New Zealand onslaught in the first dozen minutes, when the Kiwis were denied three tries by remarkable defence. When the English turned the pressure back on the Kiwis, the forwards delivered their first try. James Graham fed Sam Burgess, who sliced through two tackles and offloaded in another for Sean OLoughlin to go over. Sinfield converted and added a penalty for 8-0 after 25 minutes. New Zealand finally replied with a try of utter genius. Kieran Foran cross-kicked on the last tackle, and wing Jason Nightingale jumped in the left corner to keep the ball in. The ball was swept right, and Luke threw a huge over-the-top pass that appeared to be bouncing over the right sideline. But Dean Whare caught the ball in mid-air over the sideline and reverse-flicked a pass straight to winger Roger Tuivasa-Scheck, who took advantage of a stunned England to score the converted try. Johnson nailed a 46-meter penalty to tie the score at the break. The Kiwis led for the first time in the 44th when England wing Ryan Hall went to intercept Kiwis fullback Kevin Locke but missed, and Tuivasa-Scheck scored his second try of the match. Johnson couldnt convert but made a second penalty for 14-8. England showed its mettle. Right wing Kallum Watkins caught the Kiwis flat-footed to cut the deficit to two, and Sinfield also delivered the final pass for Sam Burgess go-ahead try. Sinfield converted, and it was 18-14. England had the Kiwis at their mercy twice more, but second-rower Ben Westwood dropped the ball reaching for the tryline, and Hall dropped an intercept. Late penalties kept the Kiwis hopes alive in the last five minutes, and they ended up stopping Englands campaign in the semifinals for a third straight World Cup. "Im pretty devastated," Sinfield said. "The best team lost. To lose in the last 20 seconds is a killer. I dont think by any means we had the game won but I felt we were in control." Cheap Jets Jerseys .com) - Rick Nash scored twice and Derek Stepan chipped in a goal with one assist as the New York Rangers claimed a 5-2 decision over Calgary at the Saddledome. Wholesale Jets Jerseys .com) - Jeff Teague finished with a game-high 26 points and eight assists as the Atlanta Hawks held off the Utah Jazz, 98-92, on Friday. http://www.cheapnewyorkjetsjerseysauthentic.com/ . A lovely summer day in England with abundant sunshine and minimal wind allowed him to attack Royal Liverpool.NEW YORK -- Back in May, in the aftermath of early losses for both at the French Open, good friends Serena Williams and Caroline Wozniacki -- who also was about a week removed from the end of her engagement to golfs Rory McIlroy -- flew from Paris to Miami and hung out. They went to the beach, to a basketball playoff game -- and put photos of the good times on social media. "Serena is a fun girl. Shes so nice to hang out with. Always makes me laugh and makes everyone around her laugh," Wozniacki said. "Definitely a very inspiring person to be around." A few months later, here Williams and Wozniacki are, back at the top of their tennis games and back together, facing one another Sunday for the U.S. Open championship. On Saturday night, Wozniacki re-posted a photo from the night the Miami Heat clinched the NBAs Eastern Conference championship, showing her and Williams wearing caps that read, "The Finals." Wozniacki wrote on Twitter: "The hat says it all ohh yeah!! ... cant wait!!" So when they were palling around in Florida, did they discuss the idea of turning their seasons around? "No. Not at all. Not even once," said Williams, who is bidding for Grand Slam trophy No. 18, and U.S. Open title No. 6, including three in a row. "We never talk tennis so much, since we spend so much of our life on the court. Same with me and (older sister) Venus. Last thing on our minds is tennis. If anything, its to NOT think about a forehand or a backhand." They did chat right before play began at Flushing Meadows, noting that the draw placed the top-seeded Williams and 10th-seeded Wozniacki on opposite sides of the bracket. "It was like, Oh, it would be much better to play each other in the final than earlier on. I was just glad we werent on the same side of the draw this tournament," Williams said. "Of course, we were like, That would be great if we could see each other in the final, because we both, you know, hadnt had the greatest Grand Slam year." That is true. Williams has not dropped a set the past two weeks while stretching her U.ddddddddddddS. Open winning streak to 20 matches. But she lost in the fourth round at the Australian Open, the second round at the French Open, and the third round at Wimbledon. Wozniacki, whose reputation as a counter-puncher is a complete contrast to Williams power-based style, exited in the third round at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and the first round at the French Open. Heres a key difference: Williams is not used to leaving such tournaments so early. Shes reached at least one Grand Slam final in each of the past eight seasons, winning 10 major titles in that span. Wozniacki, meanwhile, will be participating in only the second major final of her career; she lost to Kim Clijsters at the 2009 U.S. Open. "I have definitely learned a lot in those years," said Wozniacki, whose high-profile relationship with McIlroy ended while the wedding invitations were in the mail. "I would love to ... have a Grand Slam under my belt," Wozniacki said. "It would definitely have the media stop talking about my lack of a Grand Slam, so that would be nice." No matter how close theyve become, neither Williams, who turns 33 this month, nor Wozniacki, a 24-year-old from Denmark, expects their off-court buddy-buddy status to have any effect on what happens in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday. "The friendship, while we are on court, is put aside. We are both competitors," said Wozniacki, who has lost eight of nine previous meetings against Williams. "After the match, one of us is going to congratulate the other and were going to be friends again. Its fine." Williams, of course, has plenty of experience forgetting her feelings about an opponent during a match: She has faced her sister 25 times, including in eight Grand Slam finals. "If I can play Venus, I can play anybody. I grew up with Venus. We actually lived together going on 33 years," Williams said with a laugh, "which is kind of sad." ' ' '