Melbourne Citys date with destiny has arrived, and on Sunday night the expansion A-League club showed theyre ready for it.City defeated Wellington Phoenix 2-1 at AAMI Park in a tune-up for the FFA Cup final at the same venue on Wednesday night.Its the first decider in the clubs seven-season history, with club officials eager to see the club fulfil the promise of their investment.But theres an equally hungry competitor in the other sky blue corner, with league leaders Sydney FC travelling south to set up the first FFA Cup final between the top two sides in the A-League.City are wary of Graham Arnolds side, made clear by coach John van t Schips comments after their win over Wellington.Were confident in our own team. Were confident in the way we play, he said.We want to play good football and we want to win the cup, but we are playing against a very strong opponent who are still unbeaten.Theyve scored a lot of goals so its not going to be easy.The Dutchman said Citys success - earned from the penalty spot by captain Bruno Fornaroli - was an important one, and more so with crucial players left on the bench.Tim Cahill, Bruce Kamau and fit-again winger Nicolas Colazo watched the first hour from the bench to be kept fresh for Wednesday.We put a team on the pitch that we knew could win and they showed it as well, especially in the first half, he said.We also knew we didnt have players for the week coming that could play 90 minutes every game. You have to look and see what the best combination is.Well discuss and look at what will be the best team to start.Van t Schip said no-one at the club was in any doubt as to how important the occasion was.It would mean a lot to us, its very clear, he said.Were a professional club so its about winning prizes.We have an opportunity now to win a prize and both teams are desperate to make a point. We want to make a point ourselves.Cheap Cleveland Browns Jerseys . On June 12, just as the sun sets on the magnificent historical city of Sao Paulo the inventors, innovators and purveyors of “joga bonitowill” open their campaign. The opponent, Croatia and all its football might and will. As opposites do attract we are set for a corker of an opener. Browns Jerseys China . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf. http://www.cheapbrownsjerseysauthentic.com/ . The players spoke Jan. 13 during a Major League Baseball Players Association conference call after Rodriguez sued the union and Major League Baseball to overturn an arbitrators decision suspending him for the 2014 season and post-season. Cheap Browns Jerseys . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Cheap Browns Jerseys Authentic .com) - The Chicago Blackhawks aim for their third three-game winning streak of the season when they host the struggling Edmonton Oilers in Sundays battle at the United Center.DAKAR, Senegal -- Former British police officer Ben Hooper hopes to make history by swimming every mile of the Atlantic Ocean from Africa to South America. After more than three years of preparation, he set off on Sunday.The 38-year-old walked down a beach in Dakar and into the Atlantic Ocean, launching a swim for 1,635 nautical miles, or nearly 2,000 land miles (3,200 kilometers), from Senegal to Brazil.This is for my daughter, said Hooper, who filled a water bottle with sand to keep for the 8-year-old who he said inspired the swim. Its been a long time coming.Flanked by two boats and a crew of less than a dozen, Hooper aims to be the first person to swim every mile of the Atlantic Ocean from continent to continent, stepping on land again in March.He says he trained three years as he gathered a crew for the Big Blue, the main boat on which he will eat and sleep when he is not swimming for about eight hours each day through waters infested with sharks and jellyfish.Water has loomed large in his life.I nearly drowned when I was 5 in a swimming pool in Belgium, Hooper told The Associated Press. Ever since ... Ive had this affinity with water. It was the calmest Ive ever felt.Hooper said he had a bout of depression about 3 1/2 years ago and decided to turn his life around for his daughter. So he looked to water.Nobody had swum a full ocean. More people have landed on the moon than have tried this, so at that point I thought maybe this is my calling, said Hooper. If I can inspire myself, other people and raise mooney for charity, why not do it?Inspired by British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Hooper said he hopes to motivate others, especially children, to swim.ddddddddddddFunding for the expedition has taken time, and the launch was set back several times as various crew members dropped out and the boats faced mechanical issues.This will be a major achievement overall, said Nigel Taylor-Schofield, the captain of Big Blue. If anybody can accomplish this, it would be Ben. He is very determined.The crew, including a paramedic, will track the miles, and Hooper has said if he gets to Brazil with the help of currents, he will swim until he fulfills the full Atlantic mileage.The challenges, be it marine life, dehydration, and more, will be vast, but Hooper says his biggest fear is letting the team and his daughter down. Hell listen to a playlist on customized earphones that he said will include eurotrash music, Eminem and The Scripts Hall of Fame. Hooper will also wear various gear that helps camouflage him from sharks, and a tracking device so supporters can follow his nearly five-month swim online.Around 10:30 a.m. on the beach outside the Monaco Plage hotel in Dakar, Hooper and the crew were ready.See you in Brazil, he said, before eventually swimming off into the sunlit waters toward his goal.---http://www.swimthebigblue.com/--Follow Carley Petesch on Twitter at www.twitter.com/carleypetesch ' ' '