Hes either 168cms or 177cms, depending on which media guide you read, and a bantamweights 75kg, but in spite of those physical shortcomings has gone on to forge one of the colossal careers in the AFL.And this weekend, when Brent Harvey steps out for his 426th appearance in North Melbournes royal blue and white stripes against Collingwood, he will join former Hawthorn great Michael Tuck at the top of the tree for most VFL/AFL games played.Its an extraordinary achievement for a pipsqueak who was taken at No.47 in the 1995 national draft and, because of his size, has forever been underestimated.Having played his junior footy at Preston RSL before progressing to the Northern Knights, Harvey was given his first game in the big time by Kangaroos coach, Denis Pagan, in 1996 - in the final round against Richmond at the MCG.There was no hint then that the little No.29 had anything special about him, and certainly not the makings of a 20-year career at the highest level. He picked up the grand total of one handball in the Roos convincing win and was promptly dropped for the next game.A month later, he looked on as his new teammates took out the 1996 premiership.As grainy YouTube footage shows, Harvey was even more of a whippet then as he is now, the North jumper hanging loose on his spindly frame.Yet using his speed, skill and vision - like any smaller member of the food chain, he needed to know where his predators lay - Harvey quickly became a mainstay as a rover/small forward in the Kangas all-conquering team of the late 1990s.By 1999, Harvey was averaging 17 touches a game and come Grand Final day, he positively shone, collecting the ball 21 times and kicking a goal as the Kangaroos beat Carlton to take out their fourth flag.His kicking technique has always been a masterclass in how to execute the most important of footys skills.Few players over the past 20 years have been as dangerous when charging through the midfield and looking upfield for a forward to kick to. Invariably, he chooses the right option; almost always his pass ends up on the chest of a teammate in a better position. This is as true now, in 2016, as it was at the turn of the millennium.Yet for all his brilliance and longevity, Harvey has never been truly embraced by neutral supporters. Of course there is a sneaky admiration and respect for all hes achieved, and everyone understands how devastating he can be on his day, but hes not loved in the way that Gary Ablett is, or say Cyril Rioli.Perhaps thats because hes seen as selfish and hungry for a goal; maybe its because he chirps away at umpires and occasionally sooks when things dont go his way.But that would seem to be small-minded and mean-spirited. Because Boomer embodies much of what is great about the indigenous code: that it is a game able to be played by anyone regardless of size (or, for that matter in 2016, gender).And heres the interesting thing about Harveys height: he appears to have grown steadily from the time he arrived at Arden St in 1995 as a 17-year-old. Then, he was listed in the AFL Media Guide at 168cms. In 2005, he had apparently grown to 172cms and this year hes officially shot up to a towering 177cms.THE BRENT HARVEY FILEMOST KICKS: 29 v St Kilda, Rd 7, 2000MOST HANDBALLS: 25 v West Coast, Rd 3, 2010 25 v Geelong, Rd 19, 2013MOST TACKLES: 9 v Hawthorn, Rd 5, 2010MOST GOALS: 6 v Melbourne, Rd 3, 2016TOTAL BROWNLOW VOTES: 187HARVEY v TUCK: At a glanceIn looking at the careers of Harvey, Tuck and the third member of their 400-game club, Tiger great Kevin Bartlett, its clear they share many of the same physical attributes. They were/are all sinewy, wiry and lean, with not a gram of spare fat on them. They were/are also incredibly durable athletes who rarely picked up injuries. And they could run all day.(The other notable aspect of the table below is the number of free kicks paid to, and conceded by, both Tuck and Harvey. The umpires might have been fewer in number during Tucks career but that clearly didnt mean they blew for fewer free kicks.)So when the Kangas diminutive No.29 runs out on to Etihad Stadium on Friday night, in front of a national TV audience, one of the great AFL careers should be acknowledged. Around 12,460 players have represented V/AFL clubs at the senior level over the past 119 years; only two of them have reached game No.425. cheap jerseys from china . -- Derrick Rose shook off poor shooting early to hit clutch shots late and Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 104-95 preseason victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. nfl jerseys china . Thats not a comment on the suspension that banished the Portland Winterhawks general manager and coach from his Western Hockey League teams bench for most of the 2012-13 season. http://www.cheapauthenticjerseysnflchina.net/ . Ouellette, from Montreal, already has three Olympic gold medals since joining the team in 1999. cheap nfl jerseys . The 28-year-old from Calgary matched his career best after missing just one shot in his two rounds of shooting in the mens 10-kilometre sprint competition. Smith finished in 23 minutes 15. cheap jerseys usa .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. CHICAGO -- Managers head to the mound and point to the bullpens so often in the postseason, it wouldnt be surprising if they need Tommy John surgery.Complete games have gone the way of spittoons, flannel uniforms and pregame infield practice.An average of 9.32 pitchers were used in this years postseason games heading into the World Series, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, up from 8.16 in the 1996 and 5.70 in 1986.Matchup madness rules.A lot of it is just to protect your butt, that somebody else might have the information, so I better make sure that I make the move that they know I should be making instead of the move that I know I should be making, former big league manager Bobby Valentine said.All those pitching changes contribute to World Series games turning into the late, late show.After using a relative restrained three pitchers to win the opener 6-0, Cleveland sent seven to the mound for a 5-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs in Game 2, and they needed 196 pitches to get 27 outs. The nine innings took 4 hours, 4 minutes to play.Through the league championship series, nine-inning postseason games averaged 3:22, up from 3:14 last year. The first four games of this years World Series averaged 3:38.Much of that time has been for trips to the mound.In the past you were looking for five really good starters. Thats always your focal point, Toronto manager John Gibbons said. Things have definitely changed but you can go back the last couple of years and look at the Royals, and the big talk was how they had those three guys late, actually four guys. The starter would go five or six innings and they would just turn it over to those guys. A lot of teams are trying to do the same.Back in the 1976 regular season, games averaged 4.83 pitchers, according to Elias. The figure rose to 5.59 by 1986, 6.88 a decade later, 7.70 in 2006 and 8.30 this year.Decades ago, aces were expected to finish what they started. San Diegos Randy Jones led the maajor leagues with 25 complete games in 1976 and Detroits Mark Fidrych had 24.ddddddddddddThis year, Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox topped the big leagues with six complete games and San Franciscos Johnny Cueto was second with five.Data has revolutionized the sport. When he was managing in the New York Yankees minor league system in the 1980s, Buck Showalter had his wife hand-write spray charts to show where opponents hit balls. Angela Showalter can now relax while watching her husband manage the Baltimore Orioles.Just before the start of this season, Major League Baseball reached a deal with Apple to have iPad Pros in dugouts, and managers have instant access to figures tracking the decline of starting pitchers effectiveness the third time through the batting order.Every manager would like their starter to go complete-game shutout, but I think that theres a certain point in the game where the starting pitcher is not being as effective, and you have other options, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. When you look at analytics or data, those are facts. So where certain options have shown better, then as manager it only makes sense to trust that information as well as your eyes.When they had Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances in his bullpen this season, the New York Yankees were confident any time they led after six innings. With relievers so prized, the Yankees dealt Chapman to the Cubs and Miller to the Indians for prized prospects.Cleveland manager Terry Francona has used Miller in the middle of games to shut down opponents.Right now matchups are en vogue, there is no question, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. Theyve been getting more and more that way over the last couple years.---AP Sports Writer Beth Harris and AP freelance writer Ian Harrison contributed to this report. Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jersyes Cheap Basketball Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '