MONTREAL -- Theyve composed chants just for Canadian tennis player Eugenie Bouchard, roared for her until they went hoarse, and toasted her wins by fudging their way through "O Canada. Evgeni Malkin Blue Jersey ." Meet the "Genie Army" -- a dozen boisterous Aussies who, despite boasting zero connection to Canada, have become Bouchards unofficial cheerleaders at the Australian Open. Members of the weeks-old squad have jumped, danced and serenaded their way into an unmistakable grandstand presence during the Montreal teens impressive run at the event, where she has earned a semifinal spot Thursday. The devotees, mostly men in their 20s, have also fashioned red-and-white T-shirts that spell out Bouchards name, flapped banners for her during matches, and lobbed plush animals -- each of them native to Australia -- to her on the court following each of her victories. Though they have had little face-to-face interaction with Bouchard, they have certainly commanded her attention in Melbourne. "The crowd here has been amazing, especially the Genie Army," Bouchard, 19, said Tuesday during an on-court interview after beating Ana Ivanovic. She then pointed up to her noisy, personal cheering section. "Ive had so much fun. Thank you guys." The inspiration behind a brigade dedicated to Bouchard came after a bunch of Australian buddies watched her upset Ivanovic last year at Wimbledon, said one of the Army members. In December, as the Australian Open approached, Jacob Wright said the crew decided to become her own booster club, so they started making shirts and penning Bouchard chants. The Genie Army was born. "Shes just a great tennis player," Wright, 20, told The Canadian Press in a Skype interview from Melbourne. "Obviously, shes a good-looking girl as well, and were young guys, but she is a really good tennis player. Its really, really good fun to watch." Their movement has had nothing to do with patriotism, either. When asked whether any of them had a connection to Canada, he replied: "None of us." Wright said they caught Bouchards attention during her first-round match, which was held on a more-intimate court that brings fans closer to the players. Six of them showed up for the event and were lucky enough to have their photos taken with Bouchard, get her autograph, and exchange a few words with their favourite player after the victory. The Genie Army nation was thrilled, Wright added, when Bouchard later told an interviewer she hoped they would show up for her next match. They havent missed one since -- and their ranks have doubled to about 12. Wright said it has been a bit of a give-and-take relationship, with Bouchard thanking her believers in interviews and by making gestures, such as posting a couple of photos of them on her Twitter feed. The connection likely hit its only bumpy patch on Tuesday when she was asked in a post-match interview about who she would like to date, if she could choose anyone in the world. An embarrassed Bouchard, who appeared to be taken off guard by the question, blurted out the name of Canadian pop star Justin Bieber. In TV footage, members of the Genie Army were shown waving off her choice. They remain committed, however, to backing Bouchard for the long haul, even if they initially didnt expect it to last. Wright admitted they never predicted Bouchard, the tournaments 30th seed, would advance to the semifinal, but theyve enjoyed the longer-than-expected ride. Bouchard, in fact, became the first Canadian to reach a Grand Slam semifinal in 30 years. "My voice doesnt usually sound like this, Im pretty husky from a week of just full-on yelling as loud as I can," said Wright, who was wearing a white T-shirt with a red Maple Leaf and a Bouchard autograph. "But yeah, weve just been yelling, chanting -- and overall the response from the crowds been really good." He said group members have also been surprised by the notoriety theyve amassed throughout the tournament, growing so big that they have been interviewed by media outlets and have frequently been asked to pose for photos with other fans. "Well be standing there for 20 minutes or something (after matches)," said Wright, whose group has an online presence on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, where .GenieArmy was trending after Tuesdays win. "Its getting really full of fun." But their primary mission has not changed since Day 1: support Bouchard. During her matches, the crew can be heard belting out custom chants from the bleachers, including a fight song usually reserved for when she first steps onto the hardcourt. "We are the Army, the Genie Army, and we are mental, and we are mad," a clapping Wright chanted as he began a demonstration of the mantra. The gang has even sung the Canadian national anthem, though Wright admits only a couple of them know the words. The first time they attempted "O Canada," he said they received some welcome help from Canadian fans in the crowd. "We started it off, but then we had a lot of Canadians around us, so they sort of finished it off for us," Wright said. "It wasnt a very good rendition." Beau Bennett Penguins Jersey . The Predators announced that Rinne had been cleared for the next step of his recovery after meeting with doctors earlier Monday. Coach Barry Trotz said a meeting was planned for later Monday to set a weekly plan for Rinne. Mario Lemieux Authentic Jersey .ca NBA Power Rankings, but there are changes among those teams in pursuit.NEW YORK -- LaMarcus Aldridge was stunned, suddenly finding himself matched against a version of Kevin Garnett that hadnt been seen yet in Brooklyn. "I think he had one of those flashbacks to when he was in Minnesota and I was coming in as a rookie," Aldridge said. Just as quickly, the old Garnett reverted to just old, and the young Portland Trail Blazers ran right by the Brooklyn Nets. Aldridge scored 27 points, Wesley Matthews added 24 and Portland shot 54 per cent in a 108-98 victory Monday night that extended its winning streak to seven. "This team is good. Guys can get going," Aldridge said. Damian Lillard finished with 19 points and nine assists as the Trail Blazers withstood the Nets blistering start to win seven in a row in the same season for the first time since a 13-game run in December 2007. Portland (9-2) is just a half-game behind San Antonio and Indiana for the NBAs best record. The Blazers will try to complete a perfect 4-0 road trip Wednesday at Milwaukee. Meanwhile, the Nets (3-7) remain one of the NBAs biggest disappointments, shooting 9 of 41 (22 per cent) in the second half. Garnett made all six shots in Brooklyns 40-point first period, then went 2 for 13 from there to finish with a season-high 16 points. "I take the blame for this," Nets coach Jason Kidd said. "We got stagnant on the offensive end, so that falls on my shoulders. We came out flat in the third quarter." Shaun Livingston scored 23 points for the Nets, who stormed out to their best first quarter of the season and then seemed to run out of gas. "Theyre a talented team. Theyve got Hall of Famers on that team and we had to throw our first punch, because we felt like they did that to us in that first quarter," Matthews said. "We came at them defensively and ramped it up." Garnett and Paul Pierce were back in the starting lineup after missing Saturdays loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles with injuries, though Brook Lopez and Deron Williams continued to rest sprained left ankles. Pierce, who had a sore left groin, played as if he was still hurting, managing just 11 points on 2-for-12 shooting. Marcel Goc Penguins Jersey. Neither he nor Garnett spoke to reporters. "Its been a tough month for us," said Jason Terry, who came with them from Boston. "Were going to stay optimistic, man. We have a great situation here and were just going to keep building." Portland turned the game around in the third quarter, limiting the Nets to 3-of-18 shooting and outscoring them 27-12 to take an 83-78 lead. They then opened the fourth with a 12-4 spurt to open a 95-82 advantage when Mo Williams was credited with a basket on a goaltending call. Matthews was 5 of 8 from 3-point range, improving to 30 for 57 for the season (52.6 per cent). He kept the Blazers in the game in the first quarter, when the Nets made 14 of 19 shots for a 40-31 lead. "What won the game for us was turning it on the last three quarters defensively," Matthews said. "Were not going to outscore teams on a consistent basis and win. We have to practice what we preach, which is defence, and thats what we were able to do tonight." Garnett, who hadnt been in double figures yet in the Brooklyn black and white, got there in this one by hitting five jumpers in less than 3 minutes at the start. He took a seat after starting 6 for 6 and then Livingston took over. He made all three of his shots in the period, including a driving, left-handed slam dunk over Robin Lopez that had teammates leaping up off the nearby Nets bench. But they fell apart in the third, just as they have in all their losses. Brooklyn has won the third quarter in all three victories and been outscored in the period in every loss. "We were hot. We had momentum. But you can go cold at any time in the game, so thats where we have to make adjustments," Livingston said. "Were all veterans out there on the floor." NOTES: Aldridge grabbed eight rebounds, ending his streak of five straight double-doubles. ... The Nets were also without reserve forward Andrei Kirilenko, who continues to be bothered by back spasms. ... Brooklyns previous high was 33 points in the first quarter at Washington. The Nets also lost that game after a bad third quarter. cheap nfl jerseyscheap jerseys ' ' '
