n over a fellow top-eight side was in round 16 at home

THE MOST FEARSOME FINALISTS?North Melbournes win over St Kilda means the AFLs top eight is all but finalised. However, competition for the right to host finals and a coveted top-four berth is ongoing and fierce. To come up with a form guide as September approaches, AAP has ranked the contenders based on results against fellow top-eight teams (despite the protests of coaches, beating Essendon is probably less meaningful than beating Hawthorn).1. GEELONG (W:8 L:2, 126.5 per cent)2. SYDNEY (W:5 L:4, 112 per cent)3. HAWTHORN (W:5 L:3, 92.9 per cent)4. GWS (W:4 L:3, 116.5 per cent)5. ADELAIDE (W:4 L:5, 101.2 per cent)6. WESTERN BULLDOGS (W:3 L:5, 86.2 per cent)7. NORTH MELBOURNE (W:2 L:5, 83.5 per cent)8. WEST COAST (W:1 L:5, 91.8 per cent)WHAT ELSE?*Geelong are guaranteed of finishing minor premiers on this ladder. The next time they face a top-eight side will be in week one of the finals*Sydney are the only top-eight team to have tackled both Hawthorn and GWS twice. Theyre 1-1 against each premiership contender*Hawthorns defeats came in rounds one, six and nine. Two of them were at the MCG*The Giants are yet to drop a game at home against fellow top-eight sides*Discounting two defeats to Geelong, Adelaides average losing margin against fellow top-eight clubs is nine points*The Bulldogs average winning margin in their three triumphs listed here is also nine points*North have lost their past five matches against top-eight teams, a slump that started with their first defeat of the season (against Sydney in round 10)*West Coasts sole win over a fellow top-eight side was in round 16 at home against North. They face GWS, Hawthorn and the Crows in a tough run to September. Morten Andersen Jersey . Hamelin, who triumphed in the 500 on Saturday, edged out Victor An of Russia by 0.021 seconds to maintain his lead in the World Cup standings. Russias Vladimir Grigorev was third. In the relay, Canada took control six laps from the finish line to beat Russia and the Netherlands. Rickey Jackson Jersey . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. http://www.shoptheofficialsaints.com/Customized/ . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. Archie Manning Jersey . The Nashville Predators were glad their captain was still on their side. Weber had a goal and two assists, and Roman Josi scored the shootout winner to lift the Predators to a 4-3 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. Willie Roaf Jersey . PAUL, Minn. The Turkish Airlines Open returns for a fourth year on the European Tour this week. ESPN has the lowdown from the Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort...The FieldDont let the withdrawals of Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed from this weeks Turkish Airlines Open fool you -- there is still a lot to play for at Carya Golf Club.And what an opportunity it provides for the European Tours stars in the opening leg of the three-tournament Final Series.Masters champion Danny Willett heads to Antalya just 260,000 ranking points behind Henrik Stenson in the Race to Dubai. With Stenson not making the trip to Turkey, Willett has a real chance to close on the Open champion in the season-long standings. Willett, meanwhile, has had just two top 10s since slipping on the famous Green Jacket at Augusta, and just three players finished worse off than him at last weeks WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai.Indeed, McIlroy has conceded the Race to Dubai to a straight fight between Stenson and Willett: Those boys can battle it out. Over the course of the season, they have had big wins and played well. They are two major champions, so Im OK with that, he said.Willett revealed he had little intention of pulling out: Its a fantastic tournament which has gone from strength-to-strength over the last few years, he said.Two-time champion Victor Dubuisson will defend his crown this week, while Padraig Harrington, who recently won his first European Tour title since 2008 when he lifted the Portugal Masters, will return to Turkey for the first time since 2013.Also in the field of 78 is Ryder Cup players Lee Westwood and Andy Sullivan, as well as fellow Englishman Tyrrell Hatton, the winner at last months Alfred Dunhhill Links Championship.ddddddddddddThe CourseDesigned by the company founded by five-time Open champion Peter Thomson, Carya Golf Club is home to Turkeys first heathland golf course, inspired by similar courses in the UK on which Thomson enjoyed so much success.Located roughly 20 miles round the Mediterranean coast from Antalya, the par-72 course, hosting a Tour event for the first time, measures 7,127 yards from the Championship tees.Undulating sand hills give way to holes that swirl through a pine forest, skirted by more than a million heather plants for the distinctive feel.Advice? Be tactical. This isnt a long hitters course. Find the fairway, attack the large greens.Factfile- When the Turkish Airlines Open was first held in 2013, Turkey became the 41st different nation to host a European Tour event.- It is the first time the event will be held at Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort. Between 2013 and 2015, it was held round the corner at the Montgomerie Maxx Resort.- The 2016 Turkish Airlines Open will kick off the European Tours three-event Final Series. Next up is the Gary Player-hosted Nedbank Challenge, followed by the traditional season-ender, the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.- Victor Dubuisson has two European Tour titles to his name -- both at the Turkish Airlines Open. In 2013, he held off the likes of Woods and Justin Rose, before returning to win again in 2015.- Frenchman Dubuisson is a total of 55-under-par at the Turkish Airlines Open and has made €1,953,529 (￡1,758,661) at the event -- roughly a quarter of his total career earnings. ' ' '