VALENCIA, Spain -- Atletico Madrid drew 1-1 at Valencia on Tuesday to claim an away-goal advantage in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey, just days before its key Spanish league clash against Barcelona. Paul Goldschmidt Black Jersey . Atletico midfielder Raul Garcia put the cup holders ahead by nodding in the ball following Vicente Guaitas goalkeeping error in the 72nd minute of the first-leg match. But Valencia kept pressing and after being frustrated by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois on several occasions, Helder Postiga headed home the equalizer deep in stoppage time. Atletico hosts Barcelona on Saturday with both teams level at the top of the Spanish league. Atletico will go into that much-awaited game with an impressive record of 23 wins, three draws and one loss in all competitions this season. It had won seven straight games before this draw. "They barely threatened in the first half, but I had a lot of work in the second," Courtois said. "We tried to hold on for the win but at least we have the away goal. "We know we have a great game ahead of us on Saturday." Atletico rested striker David Villa while centre back Diego Godin was dropped from the squad at the last minute due to a physical problem. Atletico defender Juanfran Torres is suspended for Saturdays game against Barcelona. Valencia remained unbeaten in two games under new coach Juan Antonio Pizzi. Valencia kept the action in Atleticos half for most of the game, without letting Atletico striker Diego Costa roam free on the break. After a stalemate in the first 45 minutes, it needed all Courtois goalkeeping skills to keep Sergio Canales, Pablo Piatti and Sofiane Feghouli from scoring. But Courtois could do nothing when Canales played the ball wide for Feghouli to cross to the unmarked Postiga for the last-gasp goal. "I think we deserved a little more, but we got the equalizer and the tie is wide open," Postiga said. The second leg will be played in the Spanish capital next Tuesday. Paul Goldschmidt Green Jersey . Folaus second-half tries clinched the Waratahs third bonus-point win. The Waratahs took an 11-8 lead to halftime after an indecisive first spell but tries to Folau and Peter Betham in the first eight minutes of the second half gave them breathing space. Archie Bradley Jersey .J. -- Rex Ryan was fired up.Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week, they discuss standout moments from the NHL and NBA Drafts, the Coyotes speaking frankly and FIFAs famous foam. Bruce Arthur, Toronto Star: My thumb is up to the NBA. Heres why. The NBA draft is a show about possibilities, and thats fun. Then, Thursday night, midway through the first round, Adam Silver stopped the proceedings to tell a story about a prospect named Isaiah Austin, whose career ended last week after he was diagnosed with a disease called Marfan Syndrome. Then Silver stepped up to make Austin a ceremonial pick on behalf of the entire Association. They took a moment about the cruel end of possibility, and the NBA made it beautiful. Best moment in draft history, hands down. Steve Simmons, Sun Media: My thumb is up to Don Maloney, general manager of the newly named Arizona Coyotes - and yeah, that sounds weird - for his unusual honesty in explaining why the club has chosen to buy out top-line centre, Mike Ribeiro. Normally youd get a little “blah blah blah” from an NHL GM on why a player was being let go. But Maloney was more than clear here: he said the team didnt want to put up with Ribeiros behavioral issues, could not tolerate them going forward and could not have him part of the team anymore. The Coyotes, who couldnt afford lunch a year or two ago let alone buying someone out, will be paying Ribeiro $2 million a year for the next six years just to go away. Yasmany Tomas Jersey. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated: My thumb is up to one of the great sporting advances of the past decade. Baseballs expanded replay? Advanced stats? Heck, no. Im talking about the so-called felony foam world cup referees have been spraying on the field to mark the spot for free kicks and, more importantly, delineate where defenders can set their wall. This low-tech marvel, which looks like shaving cream and dissipates in a minute, eliminates time wasting and the inevitable cheating by defenders who try to creep closer to the spot. While baseball needed a replay room in New York, FIFA found an inexpensive way to literally lay down the law. The gimmick belongs in the sports hall of foam. Sorry. Dave Naylor, TSN: My thumb is up to the sons of athletes who chose their own path to make a name for themselves. Im refering to the selection of Elfrid Payton Jr. in this weeks NBA Draft, going 10th overall to the Philadelphia 76ers. Payton is the son of CFL Hall-of-Famer Elfrid Payton - better known as SWAC to some - who played for five CFL teams including Baltimore, Montreal and Winnipeg. Like recent NHL draft picks Darnell Nurse and Seth Jones - whose fathers played in the CFL and NBA respectively - Payton put his good athletic genes to use in another sport. Its always a nice story to see a young athlete follow in his fathers footsteps. But its a little more interesting to see them go their own way. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale JerseysCheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '
