CURITIBA, Brazil -- A little under a year after the sudden death of star striker Christian Benitez, Ecuador has unearthed a new goal-scoring dynamo. Enner Valencias two calmly-taken goals that secured a 2-1 comeback win over Honduras on Friday took his tournament tally to three and put the team in second spot in a group that is likely to be won by France. Valencia, who plays for Mexican club Pachuca, only consolidated his position in the Ecuador starting lineup after Benitez died from a heart problem last July. "He hasnt even celebrated a year with us, I think hes grown a lot, improved a lot," Ecuadors coach Reinaldo Rueda said of his new star forward. Valencia, who is no relation to his captain Antonio Valencia, hopes the "joy" that the win has generated will help inspire the team in its crucial final Group E match against France, which has tallied eight goals and conceded two in a pair of dominating wins. Ecuador has three competition points, level with Switzerland but ahead on goal difference after the Swiss lost 5-2 to France earlier Friday. Honduras, which has never won a World Cup match, isnt completely out of contention despite its two losses but it faces an uphill battle ahead of its last group game against Switzerland. "We still have that possibility, though it is remote and we will fight for it," Honduras coach Luis Fernando Suarez said. Rueda praised the Honduras team for its tenacity and expressed the hope that his former charges could do Ecuador a favour by beating the Swiss. Rueda steered Honduras at the last World Cup in South Africa. Should Honduras beat Switzerland, Ecuador would only need a draw against France to progress to the knockout rounds of the World Cup for only the second time. The first time Ecuador qualified for the second round was in 2006 and, coincidentally, the team was then was managed by current Honduras coach Suarez. Rueda conceded it was difficult to meet his former team in such a crucial match. "For me, its a mix of emotions, professional and personal," he said. Honduras took the lead in the 31st minute with its first World Cup goal in 32 years when Carlo Costly latched onto a long ball following a misjudgment from Ecuador defender Jorge Guagua. The goal ended a 511-minute drought that stretched back to the 1982 World Cup. Valencia equalized three minutes later, tapping in with his left foot from close range after sloppy Honduran defending failed to stop a cross in from the right. Honduras applied more of the pressure leading up to halftime and nearly took the lead. A fierce free kick in injury time from Victor Bernardez forced a good save from Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez. Honduras got the ball in the Ecuador net seconds before the break when a Costly header rebounded off the post into the path of Jerry Bengtson, but it was disallowed -- apparently for a hand ball. The second half was far less frenzied than the opening 45 minutes and Valencias winner came in the 65th minute when he out-jumped the Honduras defence to head home a left-sided free kick from Walter Ayovi. "These are goals in the World Cup, this is something you dream of when you are a young kid and thank God that this dream is becoming a reality," said Valencia. Custom Buffalo Sabres Jerseys . Interestingly, the culprits were not rookies, but well paid, experienced pros. The first gaffe came in the 24th minute of arguably the biggest early season MLS game in history between Seattle and Toronto. Sounder newcomer Marco Pappa, (with over 100 MLS games, and 39 Guatemalan Caps to his name) attempted a back pass to one of his central defenders. Johan Larsson Jersey . Following the Ford Womens World Curling Championship gold medal match that attracted record-breaking audiences to TSN, the networks exclusive live coverage of the tournament begins Saturday at 7am et/4am pt with Canadas opening draw against Denmark. http://www.authenticsabrespro.com/Dale-hawerchuk-sabres-jersey/ . Miralem Pjanic dribbled through the defence to score an extraordinary goal in the 43rd minute at the Stadio Olimpico and Gervinho added another from a rebound in the 65th for Romas ninth straight victory — ending Milans five-match winning streak. Alexander Mogilny Jersey . He reps the 4-1-6The insecurity of Canadian basketball fans is not what it once was with the home grown talent making its way to the big leagues, but it is still nice to see the local kids remembering where they come from once they make their way south. Rasmus Ristolainen Jersey . The 22-year-old slugger, who is no stranger to adversity, made up for it at the end.For the first time in over a decade, the Carolina Panthers are set to open a season without wide receiver Steve Smith on the roster. Smith was cut in March as the Panthers overhauled their 29th-ranked passing offence in the offseason. After cutting Smith, the Panthers allowed receivers Brandon LaFell and Ted Ginn to leave in free agency, losing a trio that equated for 149 of quarterback Cam Newtons 292 completions in 2013 and all but seven of the catches made by wide receivers. The Panthers used their first-round draft pick on wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin from Florida State University, and signed veteran receivers Jerricho Cotchery and Jason Avant to rebuild their receiving core. The Panthers also added Ed Dickson, who joins a tight end room that includes Greg Olsen. Olsen led the Panthers in receptions, yards and touchdowns last season. The Panthers are hoping the new additions to the offence will help the team build off of their 12-4 record, which was secured by the strong play of Newton and the teams stingy defence. The Panthers defence averaged 15.1 points against per game and 301.2 yards against per game last season. Both marks ranked only behind the defence of the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks for best in the league. The Panthers are also looking to further their success on the ground this season and improve on their 11th-ranked rushing attack from 2013. The Panthers should be able to do that if running back Jonathan Stewart can stay healthy after missing 10 games last season. Without Stewart, DeAngelo Williams, Newton and Mike Tolbert formed the teams rushing attack, which averaged 4.2 yards per attempt. Stewart missed most of training camp with a hamstring injury, but is expected to be fully recovered for the regular season. After allowing Newton to rush 111 times last season for 585 yards, the Panthers will likely be more cautious with their franchise quarterback this year. Newton underwent ankle surgery inn March and was limited throughout the Panthers first three weeks of training camp as the coaching staff attempted to avoid any setbacks.dddddddddddd. In his first preseason action, Week 2 against the Kansas City Chiefs, Newton made no rushing attempts and was sacked twice in 12 called passing plays. The next week, Newton rushed three times for 12 yards against the New England Patriots, he was also sacked three times. Newton fractured a rib in that preseason Week 3 loss to the Patriots, further questioning his durability entering the season. Newton is expected to play Week 1, but with questions at wide receiver and a lack of depth at quarterback, his health could determine the success of the Panthers in 2014. Notes: Brand New Line: Retirement and free agency claimed three starters from Panthers 2013 offensive line, leaving the team to find new protection for their star quarterback. Matt Kalil will remain at centre this season, but 2013 right tackle Byron Bell has been tasked with moving to the blind side. Amini Silatolu is slated to squeeze between the two holdovers at left guard, while 2014 third-round pick Trai Turner is likely to start at right guard. Who will start at right tackle for the Panthers remains to be determined. Nate Chandler is listed as the starter on the teams depth chart but missed the Panthers third preseason game with an injury. Gary Williams would get the nod if Chandler is unable to play Week 1. Not settling for second-best: After being the leagues second-best defence last year, the Panthers are setting out to be No. 1 this year. In the offseason the Panthers made moves that could potentially have them reach the top-rank. On the defensive line, the Panthers added pass rusher Kony Ealy in the second round of the draft and retained defensive end Greg Hardy, who had 11 sacks with the team last season. The team also overhauled their starting safeties with the signings of Roman Harper and Thomas DeCoud. 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