Now that the group stage of the inaugural Kia Super League is almost over, with finals day just around the corner, its a good time to look back and assess what we have learned from this exciting new competition. Here are my initial thoughts.1. Tell them about it and they will come Two weeks ago nobody - even, if they are honest, those running it at the ECB - quite knew what to expect from the Super League. It was notoriously difficult to get anyone to say exactly what success for this new competition would look like. Now? Well, lets just say Im pretty sure that Clare Connor, the ECBs director for womens cricket, is sleeping at night again.At the time of writing, there has been an average attendance of over 1000 at the group games so far, and the matches at the Ageas Bowl and The Oval have attracted over 2000 spectators apiece. As someone who is used to turning up to watch womens county games with next to no spectators bar the friends and family of the players, let me tell you, that is absolutely phenomenal.Heres the thing: if you market it right, create a buzz around the teams, and, most importantly, tell people it is happening, people will pay to attend domestic womens cricket in their thousands.2. Different franchise models work in different places The crowds we have seen at the KSL group matches are even more impressive when you consider that, unlike with the Womens Big Bash League, the KSL hosts were starting from scratch, unable to tap into an existing franchise fan base. There were quite a lot of voices prior to this competition questioning the decision by the ECB to take what was actually quite a risk in pushing ahead with a standalone womens competition.What we have seen over the past couple of weeks, though, has fully vindicated that decision. No, these havent been double-header games, but people have still shown up in droves. No, these sides arent attached to mens teams, but kids (and girls, especially) have still turned up wearing their teams colours and gone home with their heroes autographs. Not only is that an incredible achievement, it gives womens cricket something new and different, and the opportunity to forge its own way ahead. I for one am excited to see where that path might lead.Actually theres a good argument that playing copycat to the WBBL wasnt just impractical, given the foot-dragging that takes place every time franchise cricket is suggested within the English mens game, but that it wouldnt have worked anyway. Different contexts require a different approach. In fact, at a time when there are big question marks over the future of the mens T20 competition, this should tell the ECB something important about franchise cricket more generally.3. There is plenty of talent out there Those of us who actually watched womens county cricket prior to the start of the Super League were already well aware of this, but it has been incredible to see players who I am more used to seeing playing in front of 20 people at tiny club grounds launched onto the big stage, with the eyes of the media fully upon them, and flourishing.Whether it be Hampshires Katie George, more used to playing in Division Two county cricket, looking right at home in Vipers world-class bowling attack; or Sussexs Paige Scholfield, coming in to bat at No. 9 for Lightning and ending up top-scoring for her side with one of the highest strike rates in the competition; or Lancashires Emma Lamb, only 18, the most consistent opener in any team in the competition; or Berkshire left-armer Linsey Smith, called up to the competition due to injury but stacking up the most successful and the most economical spell in the entire competition so far - it has all been so wonderful to see. Its pretty clear that we dont really need to worry about whether the current county system is producing any talent.One aspect of the system that should still be a concern is the fact that only 19 players in the whole of English womens cricket are being paid to play cricket at any time other than the two-week KSL window. If we dont want to see incredibly talented young players like George, Lamb and Smith walking away from the game prematurely, some kind of progressive pay scale is needed - and fast. 4. Dont rely on your overseas players One of the unforeseen elements of this competition has been the fact that many of the big-name overseas superstars have failed to perform. Ellyse Perry, for example, started the competition with scores of 17 and 2, as well as conceding 39 runs off her four overs in Lightnings first home game of the tournament. Hayley Matthews, star of the Womens World T20 final earlier this year, has hit 7, 11, 0 and 0 in Thunders four group matches to date. Meanwhile Diamonds two overseas batsmen - Alex Blackwell and Beth Mooney - have almost totally failed with the bat, with scores of 3, 23 and 6, and 0, 9 and 17 respectively. It turns out that adjusting to English conditions when youre flown in just a few days before a two-week tournament in the middle of your off season is actually quite tricky.5. You dont need silly boundaries At international level the regulations for boundary sizes in womens cricket differ from those in the mens game - a minimum of 50 metres compared to the mens 60 metres. The KSL playing regulations, in case you havent read them, take this one step further and actually allow for 45-metre boundaries. This, of course, panders to the school of thought that womens T20 cricket is as dull as ditchwater unless there are sixes being hit every other ball.In fact, so far in the KSL, I dont think Ive seen a single boundary that is 45 metres. Most have been 50 or 55 metres. Weve also only had 37 sixes in the competition. And guess what? People still turned up to watch. And most of the cricket has still been utterly enthralling. Lets learn from that and ditch the 45-metre boundary rule for good.6. It should be on TV Rumour has it that fears about the potential quality of the competition led to a reluctance to allow Sky to broadcast any of the inaugural Super League. If true, that is absolutely crazy and, given the quality of the cricket on show, a huge opportunity missed. If the ECB really wants to build a fan base for these teams, TV coverage must surely be top of the priority list for next years competition. Believe in your product and so will other people. Ultra Boost 4.0 Burgundy . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. Ultra Boost 4.0 For Sale . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. http://www.ultraboost4forsale.com/ . -- Bryant McKinnie came out of his stance and lowered his shoulder into a practice squad player, causing a crisp thud to reverberate in the Miami Dolphins practice bubble. Ultra Boost 4.0 Release Date . Tuesdays surgery at Atlantas Piedmont Hospital was performed by Dr. Xavier Duralde and Hawks team physician Dr. Michael Bernot. Ultra Boost 4.0 Core Black Sale . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury.METAIRIE, La. -- Hardly two years removed from playing college football on a 12-man defence in western Canada, Akiem Hicks is primed to emerge as a full-time starter on an NFL defensive line. Just dont tell him that, because he wont even admit to being encouraged by the fact that he played with the starting unit in the New Orleans Saints preseason opener and is regularly practicing with the first team. "Not yet, because theres so much more to go," said Hicks said, referencing a metaphor defensive line coach Bill Johnson uses about each day of good work amounting to nothing more than a bean in a jar, which has to be full to represent a good season. "I dont have enough beans to be encouraged yet." Maybe not, but his effort in practice on Tuesday certainly seemed worthy of another bean. He was a force in 11-on-11 drills, registering what would have been a sack on Drew Brees if he were allowed to touch the quarterback. Later, during a 2-minute drill, he had two more standout moments. First he batted down one of Brees passes, then he perfectly read a screen pass to Darren Sproles, who Hicks wrapped up for a 4-yard loss in a 2-minute drill. The 6-foot-5 Hicks, who said he now weighs about 330 pounds, is currently playing the left defensive end in co-ordinator Rob Ryans new 3-4 defence (three linemen, four linebackers). Last year as a rookie, drafted in the third round out of the University of Regina (Saskatchewan), Hicks played reserve defensive tackle in a 4-3, then made the transition this year to what Johnson calls "the most physical position on our defence." It wasnt clear whether Hicks would emerge as a starter when 2013 training camp opened because the Saints had signed 11-year veteran defensive lineman Kenyon Coleman, who had played the past two seasons in Ryans 3-4 defence in Dallas. Last week, however, Coleman tore a pectoral muscle, which has likely ended his season. Third-year pro Tom Johnson also is in the mix to start at that spot, though he has missed more than a week of practice with a hip injury. Johnson conceded that Hicks is in position to win the starting job, but stressed that three weeks of evaluation remained..dddddddddddd "Thing Ive said all along about Hicks is that hes raw but he has a lot of versatility," Johnson said. "I thought our scouting people did a great job watching him in Canada to know." Hicks, who grew up near Sacramento, was recruited by LSU out of the community college ranks, but an NCAA violation related to financial help provided by an assistant coach left him ineligible to play in the United States, hence his move to Canada, where he thrived as a stand-up defensive end. "What was hard was to evaluate him versus the people he was against," Johnson said. "It wasnt like if he had went to LSU and stayed. You could evaluate him against guys who would potentially be in this league. It was like guys that were just little kids and he was obviously dominating up there." Big NFL offensive tackles can find him tough to block as well. "Hes a good athlete that weighs (330 pounds) that moves like hes 300 or 290," said Saints right tackle Zach Strief, who has to block Hicks in practice. "Thats something pretty God-given thats pretty hard to find." NOTES: RB Pierre Thomas (left leg), OLB Martez Wilson (left elbow) and OLB Junior Galette (left leg) all returned to practice from injuries, participating to varying degrees. Thomas did the most, taking part in seven-on-seven drills. Wilson participated in a "walk-through" and Galette mostly watched. ... Courtney Roby, a veteran special teams leader and reserve receiver, needed help off the field after apparently hurting his left foot. Payton said Roby had a toe injury. He did not get more specific. ... Jerry Romig, who has been the public address announcer for Saints home games since 1969, and who also handled P.A. announcing for the first four Super Bowls in New Orleans, said his last game on the job will be this Fridays home preseason game against Oakland. Romig, 83, said his voice is fine but back problems have made it tough to get around. His 57-year-old son, Mark, who will take over, said his father wants him to show his own personality. But Mark Romig added, "My mother told me I have to do it just like my father." China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Online Stitched Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Outlet College Jerseys For Sale Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys For Sale Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '