Alastair Cook has said that England will seek to park all of the off-field hype surrounding Mohammad Amirs comeback to Test cricket, despite reiterating his belief that players who get involved in corruption ought to be banned for life.However, he also admits that the distractions may help to galvanise a Pakistani team that is eager to make amends for the controversies of their 2010 tour.Well spend a lot of time talking about it in the build-up, Cook told ESPNcricinfo during a Yorkshire Tea event at The Oval, but once we get out there well just be thinking about playing.Obviously its more of a distraction on the Pakistan side, but we know they tend to get united behind distractions. But all that stuff off the field, weve just got to park it, and were pretty good at that.Nevertheless, ignoring the hype of Amirs comeback is not the same thing as ignoring the threat that he will pose in his first Test appearance since the lifting of his five-year ban for spot-fixing, and Cook in particular remembers the challenge he posed as a teenaged prodigy that summer.Cook was dismissed three times each by Amir and his then new-ball partner, Mohammad Asif - who was also implicated and jailed in the News of the World sting, as he mustered 57 runs in six innings, either side of a cathartic and career-changing century at The Oval in the third Test.It was warm and humid, it was muggy, Cook recalled. When the sun was out it was hot and there was rain around. The ball swung.He bowled brilliantly as a youngster on his first tour, in good conditions he was an absolute handful, he added. But a lot of water has gone under a few bridges since then, so itll be interesting to see how he copes and see the crowd reaction is.But as an England side, weve got to stay away from that sideshow. Whether you agree with him playing or you dont, thats not for us to say as players. Its down to us to play him as a fantastic bowler.Nevertheless, memories of the 2010 Lords Test are sure to come flooding back when the players take the field for the first Test next week, and Cook admitted that the atmosphere on that fourth and final day six years ago, on the morning after the newspapers revelations that Pakistans bowlers had been bribed to bowl no-balls to order, was one of the most peculiar he had ever experienced on a cricket field.It was very surreal, horrible, he said. Did Swanny [Graeme Swann] get a five-for? I dont think anyone celebrated any wickets. It was a disappointing day as we were on the verge of what we thought was a genuine win.And thats the problem when you fix games of cricket, or spot-fix, you tarnish games of cricket for the players, the crowd, everyone. The punishment should be befitting of someone who does that.Guys who are paying a lot of money to watch us want to see a genuine spectacle, they want to know the 22 players, and the two umpires, are trying their best, and nothing should distract from that.My feelings are clear, if you get caught matchfixing, you should be banned for life.England come into the Test series off the back of a convincing 2-0 victory over Sri Lanka but with recent memories of their own 2-0 loss against Pakistan in the UAE last winter - when a near-miss in the first Test at Abu Dhabi gave way to two comprehensive defeats at Dubai and Sharjah. Cook, however, is confident of setting that record straight.They are massively different conditions, he said. Misbah scored about 95% of his runs against spin, I dont think hell be facing as much spin as he did there.Theyve got a very good bowling attack, with a lot of variety, backed up by good spin. But it was a very close series. I dont think 2-0 quite reflected the sides. We are a bit more comfortable in those conditions, but we were unlucky in that first Test. Air Max 95 Ireland Sale . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July. Cheap Air Max 95 Ireland Discount . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. http://www.discountairmax95ireland.com/ . Nine days before the opening ceremony, organizing committee chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said Wednesday that Sochi is "fully ready" and will deliver safe, friendly and well-run games that defy the grim reports that have overshadowed preparations. Wholesale Air Max 95 Ireland .com) - Manchester City midfielder David Silva is expected to miss the next four weeks because of a calf problem. Wholesale Nike Shoes Ireland . Dukurs winning time was 1 minute, 45.76 seconds, a quarter-second better than Russias Alexander Tretiakov. Lativas Tomass Dukurs was third, 1.41 seconds off the pace. Jon Montgomery of Eckville, Alta. Youve heard of Buccis Overtime Challenge? Well, this is Buccis Hat Trick Challenge. Whats the challenge part? Regularly coming up with three hits about the World Cup of Hockey, which starts Saturday with USA-Europe (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2) and Canada-Czech Republic (8 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS). Go, Booch!1. Pay the coaches: Canada has obviously created a buy-in culture with their players at international events. But when you watch a Canada practice, you see how the assistant coaches, normally strong head coaches, also have bought in to their roles. Head coach Mike Babcock runs a fast-paced practice and his assistant coaches have to stay on their toes and keep those pucks ready for the fast-paced drills. Claude Julien, who had his second hip replacement earlier in the year, had to keep scrambling to keep a 2-on-1 transition drill going Friday. He was still winded after practice. For some reason, none of these coaches is being paid for coaching the World Cup. I know its an honor to coach on these star-studded teams, but this is a for-profit tournament, and you would think a small thanks for coming stipend/coaching fee would be appropriate.2. The kid is as advertised: Auston Matthews is already a topic of conversation here at the World Cup. A Team North America management member told me Matthews is getting better every day and has that thick, Phil Esposito body type that makes it hard to get the puck from him. Matthews can handle the puck down low, get scoring chances and find the open man. I shook Matthews hand and chatted with him a bit.dddddddddddd He has big, strong hands and an engaging personality. Hes a little guarded in formal interviews, but as he ages I think he will evolve into a very good and entertaining soundbite. Hes smart and unflappable and looks like a young Jack White. (Fall is here/Hear the yell/ Back to school/Ring the bell.) Matthews turns 19 on Saturday, the day the World Cup starts. Matthews and Team North America play their first game Sunday against Patrick Laine (Lion-AY) and Finland at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. Ill do the play-by-play, Kevin Weekes will be in the booth with me, and Darren Pang will be between the benches.3. Are you ready for this? Many are still in summer golf mode. The weather in Toronto has been perfect. I spent most of Team USAs media time talking golf with the New Jersey Devils forward Kyle Palmieri. Another player mentioned that Jason Day told him that part of his new, lucrative Nike clothing deal allows him to wear other logos on his Nike golf shirt. So there is breaking golf apparel news for you. Darren Pang told me that Corey Perry and Sidney Crosby took Pang aside and talked golf. Crosby is apparently down to about a 10 handicap. Brandon Dubinsky and I broke down the Columbus, Ohio, golf courses. Now, its time for hockey. After a long period of anticipation, the World Cup of Hockey is here. ' ' '