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Australias Grand Slam quest goes on hold this week as they head to Stade de France to face Les Bleus. Michael Cheikas men are two from two up north having beaten both Wales and Scotland, though only Tevita Kuridranis outstretched right hand saw them avoid defeat at Murrayfield last week.France, meanwhile, began their autumn campaign with a crunching 52-8 victory over Samoa. Fijian-born Virimi Varakawa, a prime example of the current debate over the international residency rule, was the star of that victory with a hat trick and his showdown with in-form Wallabies winger Dane Haylett-Petty will be of interest in Paris.But the big question for the visitors is just how their back-up players perform in the spotlight after Cheika made a raft of changes to freshen up his 23. Opposite Guy Noves must surely be revving his troops up at the prospect of a win over one of the southern hemispheres big three and, given Australias lack of experience in some quarters, the French will fancy their chances of repeating their three-point victory from this time last year.Team newsGuy Noves has made five changes to the side that hammered Samoa last week, the biggest of which sees Jean-Marc Doussain get the nod to replace Trinh-Duc at No.10. The back three will feature two Fijian-born players in Paris, with Noa Nakaitaci moving onto the right wing.Cheika hinted earlier this week he would be making changes and that certainly proved to be the case when the Wallabies squad was revealed on Thursday. Up front, there is an all new tight five with Stephen Moores move to the bench seeing David Pocock captain the side. Pocock has moved back to his favoured No.7 jersey with Scott Fardy and Sean McMahon starting at No.6 and No.8 respectively. In the backs, the new faces are Quade Cooper, Kyle Godwin, Sefanaia Naivalu and Luke Morahan.France: Spedding, Nakaitaci, Lamerat, Fofana, Vakatawa, Doussain, Machenaud; Baille, Guirado (C), Atonio, Vahaamahina, Maestri, Gourdon, Picamoles.Replacements: Chat, Chiocci, Slimani, Le Devedec, Chouly, Serin, Lopez, Fickou.Australia: Morahan, Naivalu, Kuridrani, Godwin, Speight, Cooper, Genia; Slipper, Latu, Alaalatoa, Douglas, Simmons, Fardy, Pocock (C), McMahon.Replacements: Moore, Sio, Robertson, Skelton, Mumm, Timani, Phipps, Foley, Naiyaravoro (one to be omitted).Key match-up: Guilhelm Guirado vs Tolu LatuRival captains looked set to face off at hooker this week with until Cheika opted to give Moore a rest and start his skipper from the bench. That means Guirado is suddenly the vastly-more experienced hooker (44 caps) with Latu set to wear the gold jersey for just the second time.Playing his rugby with the likes of Matt Giteau, Drew Mitchell and James OConnor at Toulon, Guirado may have a little inside knowledge of Australian play. He will also look to bring the pressure at scrum time and do his best to upset Latu on the Australians throw at lineout time.Key stats- France have met Australia four times at Stade de France since 2009, splitting those Tests with two victories apiece.- After finding himself on the outer rim throughout the Rugby Championship, Tevita Kuridrani has scored a try in each of the Wallabies Tests in Europe.WeatherParis is expecting a cool night with the temperature expected to be around 7 degrees Celsius. There is only a small chance of rain, while light winds are expected.VerdictThe Wallabies may have been a little lucky to escape with a win in Edinburgh, but there had been earlier signs of the improving shape in their game. If that upward trend continues with their new-look squad in Paris, and their set-piece remains solid, Cheikas side should have too much class for a French outfit still finding its feet under Noves. The lack of experience looks to be a worry for Australia, but given the presence of Will Genia and David Pocock they should still have enough cool heads to prevail.Australia by five. Fake Shoes UK .ca NBA Power Rankings, ahead of the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs. Shoes UK From China . The winner Saturday will remain in the elite 10-team field next year. "We talked about wanting to be disciplined and stick with our game plan and good things will come," Draisaitl said, who had two goals for the victors. https://www.shoesukonline.com/ . Fred Couples, captain of the U.S. side, put it all into perspective. "We know whos in charge," he said. Shoes Online UK Review . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. Shoes UK Online Store . -- Sergey Tolchinksy scored his second goal of the game 3:56 into overtime as the Sault Ste. On Tuesday, the Big 12 authorized commissioner Bob Bowlsby to start exploring expansion candidates.Bowlsby and Oklahoma president and Big 12 board chairman David Boren said the factors the league would consider would include strength of football program, fan base, media market, reputation and academic standing.Through that prism, heres how potential expansion candidates stack up:NOTE: In each section, teams are listed in order of likeliness of being invited to join the league.The favoritesBYU: With the strongest football program of any available non-Power 5 program, the Cougars have been at the top of the list from the very beginning. Along with Houston, BYU topped an ESPN poll of the leagues football coaches, presumably for that very reason. BYU has defeated Big 12 flagships Texas and Oklahoma in the past seven years, and dating back to 1980, only Nebraska, Florida State, Ohio State, Miami, Florida and the Sooners have won more games than BYU. Through the Mormon Church, the Cougars have a national following, with an average home attendance (58,000) that wouldve ranked fourth in the Big 12 last year. Though the campus is roughly 2,000 miles away from Big 12 member West Virginia, BYU would give the conference a presence in the Mountain Time Zone, creating interesting TV opportunities for the league, while, perhaps, bolstering the Big 12s revenue distribution potential down the line. BYU not playing on Sundays would create issues in Olympic sports scheduling, notably baseball, softball and womens soccer; that obstacle and the schools proximity to the rest of the league is why a football-only option could be on the table for the Cougars. That, however, is not preferable for the Big 12.Cincinnati: For the reason BYUs geographys might work against it, Cincinnatis location is one of the schools biggest assets in Big 12 expansion. Whether the Big 12 chose to expand by two or four, Cincinnati could be logically paired with virtually any expansion candidate. West Virginias leadership has been a proponent of Big 12 expansion, provided that through expansion the Mountaineers wind up with a travel partner, like Cincinnati, that makes sense. School president Santa Ono has been working furiously behind the scenes to get the school into the Big 12, though hell be leaving for the University of British Columbia in August. Cincinnati recently renovated Nippert Stadium, plays in a top-40 TV market and has big businesses, notably Cincinnati-based Kroger and Macys, behind its candidacy.The other hopefulsHouston:?UH is all-in on Big 12 expansion, with both president Renu Khator and athletic director Hunter Yurachek issuing statements Wednesday touting the university. I am thrilled to have this opportunity, Khator said, to showcase the University of Houston. Billionaire and UH regents chairman Tilman Fertitta told ESPN Wednesday that, We feel like we have a lot to offer. The Cougars have enjoyed a football resurgence at an opportune time, with Tom Herman delivering a 13-1 record last year. UH also has a massive enrollment and plays in the fourth-biggest city in the country. UH will be making the case that the SEC has begun to take over the city of Houston, and that only the Cougars can deliver it back to the Big 12.Connecticut: The Huskies are situated among several major markets in the Northeast and could help the Big 12 find footing in the region, the way Rutgers opened up New York City to the Big Ten, which might help in future TV negotiations. The question is whether that, along with UConns solid academics and terrific basketball programs, would outweigh the proximity problem and UConns mediocre football.UCF: Central Florida boasts the largest undergraduate enrollment inn the country and operates out of the 19th-largest TV market.ddddddddddddThose are both major positives. There ought to be a home for us in the Big 12, UCF president John Hitt said Wednesday. Theres a sense among some that UCF has tremendous upside and would thrive playing in a major conference, especially with so much in-state high school talent and an up-and-coming coach in Scott Frost. On the other hand, UCF has virtually no football tradition, going 0-12 last year. Its also difficult to envision the fans in Norman and Austin getting fired up to go watch the Sooners and Longhorns take on the Knights.Memphis: FedEx has been dangling millions of advertising dollars in front of the Big 12 in exchange for a Memphis invite to the Big 12. On top of that, in a letter to West Virginia president Gordon Gee, Memphis president David Rudd said that the schools partnership with FedEx would uniquely position [Memphis] to request only a portion of new revenue for several years until renegotiation of the conference media [rights] agreement occurs. In other words, Memphis, conceivably, would be willing to accept partial distribution of conference revenue all the way until 2024-25. That would be worth millions to current Big 12 members and should, at the least, command the leagues attention.Colorado State: If the Big 12 focuses west in expansion with BYU, Colorado State would make sense as a second (or fourth) school. CSU claims the Denver market and could re-expand (after Colorados departure in 2011) the Big 12 footprint into Colorado in a way that doesnt create a logistical nightmare. Rams athletic director Joe Parker has close ties to the conference, having worked at Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Texas, which, as one Big 12 administrator pointed out, is a real advantage for CSU. The Rams are also building a $200 million on-campus stadium that would be ready by the time CSU would join the Big 12.The long shotsTulane: Conference chairman?Boren noted that academic standing would be a component in expansion exploration. That makes Tulane, with its terrific academic profile, a true dark horse. The city of New Orleans could also entice the Big 12 from a market and recruiting point. If the Big 12 expanded by two, Tulane would probably have no chance, but if the league expanded by four, Tulane just might become a factor.Boise State: Boise State has won 10 or more games 13 times since 1999, and the football appeal of the Broncos to the Big 12 fan bases would be stronger than most candidates out there. But would that alone capture the Big 12s attention? Boise doesnt have much else to offer.USF: The Bulls picked an awfully bad time to have an academic fraud scandal. USF was already a long-shot candidate. This latest development could be a dagger to their candidacy.The you-never-knowUCLA: Former UCLA football coach Rick Neuheisel caused a stir Wednesday when he said on Sirius XM College Sports that he wouldnt be surprised if the Bruins gave a move to the Big 12 serious thought. Before you ask why UCLA would consider leaving the comforts of the Pac-12 for the Big 12, remember this: Kansas State generated three times more Tier 3 revenue through K-StateHD.TV than UCLA received from the struggling Pac-12 Network. The Pac-12 grant of rights is up before the Big 12s, and as one industry insider put it, if Pac-12 commish Larry Scott can flirt with Texas and Oklahoma, whats stopping Bob Bowlsby from doing the same with the Bruins? Who knows -- UCLA could be tempted to make a brand-defining break from USC in the same vein of Texas A&Ms SEC move away from Texas. ' ' '