Names in the game for Sept. 13, 2005

Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2005 | 10:05 a.m.

Brett Blackwell

An Australian professional football player plans to have one of his fingers amputated in an attempt to improve his game.

Brett Backwell, who plays Australian rules football for Glenelg, a suburb of the city of Adelaide in South Australia state, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Tuesday he has suffered from pain and restricted movement since he broke his left ring finger three years ago.

Doctors had suggested fusing the bones in the finger, but Backwell rejected the proposal.

He said he believed that amputating the finger was the only way to stop the pain and allow him to keep playing.

Steve Thomas

Once a major cog in Toronto's Stanley Cup contending teams of the late 1990s, Steve Thomas arrived at the Maple Leafs' camp needing to prove himself all over again after 21 NHL seasons.

The 42-year-old free agent was invited on a tryout.

"My ego is out the door," Thomas said on the first day of camp. "It's totally out the door. I'll play any position or any role they want me to play."

Dave Larson

An Army parachutist who broke his hip and arm in a hard landing on the field before the Washington State-Nevada football game is recovering and intends to jump again.

Retired Chief Warrant Officer Dave Larson of Hurst, Texas, remained hospitalized Monday at Washoe Medical Center and was scheduled to have surgery on his hip, Nevada associate athletic director Rory Hickock said Monday.

-- Sun wire services