OAKLAND, Calif. -- At the beginning of training camp, Andrew Bogut set a goal to play all 82 regular-season games and regain his place among the NBAs best centres. Hes on pace to come awfully close. With his health no longer holding him back, Bogut has been a force in the middle for the Golden State Warriors (29-19) entering Tuesday nights home game against the Charlotte Bobcats. He ranks near the top of the league in blocks, rebounds and defensive ratings, and he has begun to silence the chatter that hes a player who is always hurt. "I havent felt this great in while," Bogut said after Mondays practice, then quickly asking not to jinx his good fortune. "Touch wood," he said. The 7-footer from Australia, who has a well-documented history of injuries, has played in 47 of 48 games -- with his lone absence stemming from a suspension handed down by the NBA for his role in a scrum against Portland. Bogut had played in only 44 games the past two seasons combined. Boguts presence has been especially big considering his primary backups, Jermaine ONeal and Festus Ezeli, have been out most of the season. "Hes been spectacular, protecting the paint, setting screens, rebounding the basketball, being a leader, being durable," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. "If hes not here, youre asking basically a power forward to be a (centre), and to do it for a lengthy period of time is a recipe for disaster. But hes been awesome, and certainly should be in the discussion for Defensive Player of the Year." The Warriors took a big risk by signing Bogut to a three-year, $36 million extension in October that could be worth up to about $42 million with incentives. They also took a gamble when they acquired Bogut in a trade-deadline deal in March 2012 that sent guard Monta Ellis to Milwaukee. Bogut did not play for Golden State that season while recovering from a fractured left ankle. Bogut battled back and knee injuries while averaging a career-low 5.8 points to go with 7.7 rebounds last season, but he was at his best in the playoffs, making a major difference on defence to help the Warriors advance to the second round. Bogut missed the end of the 2009-10 season with the Bucks when he dislocated his right elbow, sprained his right wrist and broke his right hand in a hard fall to the floor. He also missed significant time with an injured lower back in the 2008-09 season. Bogut has repeatedly called both injuries "freak accidents." "People that label me injury-prone, its fair enough, I understand it," Bogut said. "But to say that theyre chronic injuries, those people are idiots. Two injuries that have hurt my career and probably shortened the length of my career and probably a little bit of my playing ability are completely out of my control." Even still, the setbacks have taken a toll -- physically and mentally. At one point while rehabbing his ankle last season, Bogut said he was in a "dark place" and even considered retirement. Instead, Golden States surprising playoff run -- and his big role in it -- left him rejuvenated. He lost about 15 pounds this off-season, and the only real injury scare cost him some practice time in January after he strained his right knee. Bogut is averaging 10.6 rebounds and two blocks per game, and he has the NBAs third-best defensive rating -- which is calculated by how many points are given up per 100 possessions while a player is on the floor. Offence is still something that has eluded Bogut since his elbow injury, though on a Golden State team stacked with shooters, hes not asked to score much. Bogut is averaging 8.2 points, which is sixth on the team, but he leads the Warriors with 64 per cent shooting -- with most of his points coming on pick-and-roll dunks or put-back rebounds. Hes also rediscovering his passing ability -- once considered among the best for NBAs centres -- lately, including tying his season high with five assists in Fridays win at Utah. "Hes talented, man," point guard Stephen Curry said. "Its not often you see a big man get the rebound, push in transition, change directions a couple times, read the defence and make behind-the-back passes and one-handed passes for a backdoor cut. That creativity he has, Ive rarely seen it for a guy his size." Bogut, now 29, has concentrated on becoming a more versatile defender. Hes not just guarding centres near the rim, but often going out against power forwards, including holding down All-Star starter Blake Griffin in a win over the Clippers last week. Bogut believes hes "close" to playing the best defence of his career, and hes making a strong case to be on the first or second All-NBA Defensive teams. The only time Bogut could remember playing this well was before his injury in the 2009-10 season, when he finished second behind Orlandos Dwight Howard in blocks per game but didnt even get a vote for the defensive teams that season. "Hopefully, I can make up for that this season," Bogut said. "But awards are predicated on how the team is, how the success of the team is, so if we go to the playoffs and make some noise, I think all that stuff will take care of itself." Adidas NMD Tarjous . Trailing 2-1 from the first leg, Fiorentina levelled on aggregate in the 14th minute when Joaquin Sanchez Rodriguez headed back a long ball from David Pizarro and Pasqual smashed home an angled volley. Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Suomi . - After sewage backups, toilet overflows and foul smells surfaced the past two years, nothing at the Oakland Coliseum surprises the home team anymore. http://www.nmdhalvalla.com/adidas-gazelle-halvalla.html . "Its embarrassing what were doing here," leading scorer Phil Kessel said Wednesday. The most recent failed season came with even more pain than the six that preceded it. There was no hint of an impending implosion when the Leafs came roaring out of the all-star break with back-to-back games against Pittsburgh -- a 5-4 shootout loss followed by a 1-0 win the next night. Adidas Gazelle Ale . Viewers in the Canadiens region can watch the game on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt and listen on TSN 690. The Canadiens have won three in a row and four of their last five games and recently put the finishing touches on a 3-1-0 road trip. Adidas NMD R1 Tarjous . On Thursday, they signed former Browns linebacker DQwell Jackson. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.When the Canadian womens rugby team won the Nations Cup shortly after he took over the program last year, head coach Francois Ratier held a post-tournament meeting with his players. He asked them what they wanted the teams identity to be and the players had the answers he was looking for. Ratier then chipped in himself by writing down the number of days left until the IRB Womens Rugby World Cup final. "What can we do every day to make it happen?" he recalled asking his players. "And now, we are here." Ratier was dreaming big at the time. Canada had never even reached the podium -- never mind the championship game -- in the six previous editions of the tournament. Now his team has a shot to win it all on Sunday against England at Stade Jean-Bouin in Paris. "We have the passion, we have the rage, we want it," Ratier said. "But then we just have to execute and do it." It has been an impressive run by the Canadians, who have finished fourth on three occasions and were coming off a sixth-place showing in 2010. England, meanwhile, is a 2010 runner-up and has never finished lower than third, winning it all in 1994. The 2014 Canadian squad has surpassed expectations and theyve done it by grinding down the opposition. Canada opened the tournament with comfortable wins over Spain and Samoa before fighting England to a 13-13 draw. Next up was an impressive 18-16 victory over France in front of a sellout crowd that nearly boosted the host side to a comeback win. The Canadians held strong though, with Magali Harveys try standing up as the difference. The Canadian team is a tough, united side that believes it belongs in the mix with the worlds best. Canada has proved that by playing a fast, physical brand of rugby and using a team-first mentality. It takes Ratier back to that meeting a year ago after Canadas 27-13 win over England to win the Naations Cup for the first time.dddddddddddd It was a victory that he said started the players on their current journey. He still remembers the terms the players used to describe the teams identity. "They came back with really simple words," he said. "One of them was Fearless. Which is great, because thats what they are." Canada also defeated England 29-25 earlier in that tournament in Denver. England got some revenge a few months later by easily dismantling Canada 32-3 at The Twickenham Stoop in the final game of Canadas European tour. Harvey and captain Kelly Russell, both recently shortlisted for the womens player of the year award, have continued their strong play in France. Both have been leaders for the Canadian side. "Weve put in the work, so were happy to be where we are," Russell said of her squad. "We have one more goal to achieve here and thats winning it." England lost to New Zealand in the last three finals, but the Black Ferns failed to advance from the pool stage this year. "Its a cliche, but we really have taken it one game at a time," said England coach Gary Street. "If you had said to us at the start of the tournament that we would have the opportunity to play France or Canada in the final then of course, we would have taken it. Were massively looking forward to (the final)." England advanced with a 40-7 rout of Ireland, who will play France in the third-place game before the final. A packed house is expected and with Frances archrival providing the opposition in the championship game, there should be plenty of local support for Canada this time around. "We are not nervous," Ratier said. "We just trust ourselves and were going to play our best rugby. Well see it at the end if its a win or a loss. "But for sure were going to leave everything on the field." ' ' '