Melbourne City might have lifted the FFA Cup last week with a win over Sydney FC but they expect Saturday nights A-League encounter with the ladder leaders to be a whole lot harder.Defender Michael Jakobsen says his second-placed side will walk onto the ANZ Stadium pitch with an angry opponent confronting them.Its going to be tougher now, he said on Tuesday.They want to have revenge after their defeat and they play at home. Theyre going to come out 100 miles an hour.In a season of transformative change and tumult at Melbourne City, Jakobsen has slotted in to be one of the constants.He has missed just one match since arriving in Australia and announcing his arrival with a stunning bicycle kick in Citys 4-1 FFA Cup quarter-final success.As Citys lead defender, Jakobsen has had his own challenges given coach John van t Schips see-sawing tendencies between a back three and a back four.Jakobsen said the tactical switch-up was another string to Citys bow, and they wouldnt be disclosing their plans ahead of kick-off against the Sky Blues on Saturday.In the Cup we were playing a back three and (three days later in the A-League) against Brisbane it was a back four, he said.In Scandinavia (a back three) is not that common. Im not used to that. I was in Spain, we did it a bit.But when I came here I was open to new adventures and to learn new stuff so its perfect to try to play that way.Against Brisbane on Saturday night, Jakobsen found himself at the middle of the diving controversy surrounding Bruno Fornaroli and Jade North.The Roar defender has since apologised for diving in an incident van t Schip believed was designed to get his captain sent off.Jakobsen was the player who urged Luke Brattan, in possession, to play on after seeing the referee wasnt going to call a foul.It paid off, with Nicolas Colazo netting the equaliser for City.The referee was standing above him and if hes not whistling then we have to keep on playing, he said.I saw the situation, (North) was right in Brunos face after he went down and I dont like that kind of mentality.Jakobsen - who has played in Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain throughout his career - dismissed the notion that Australian football had a diving problem.Ive seen worse. 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SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Ron Rivera cant imagine the Carolina Panthers without fullback like Mike Tolbert on the roster.The 5-foot-9, 250-pound Tolbert does a little of everything for the NFC champions -- blocks, catches passes, carries the ball and even contributes on special teams. So its hard for Rivera to fathom how nearly one-third of the league didnt even carry a fullback on their rosters last season.I couldnt tell you why teams dont, Rivera said. I think that is one of the missing links in the league to be able to have an effective running game, to have lead blockers and guys who can get dirty down inside.It has worked for Rivera and the Panthers.The Panthers have run for at least 100 yards in an NFL-best 32 straight games, including the playoffs. They were second in the league in rushing last season and first in scoring and reached the Super Bowl before losing 24-10 to the Denver Broncos.That success is why the Panthers didnt hesitate to re-sign the 30-year-old Tolbert to a two-year, $3.3 million contract after he became an unrestricted free agent. All things considered the Panthers might have gotten a bargain for a guy who has been an All-Pro two of the last three seasons.Then again, its not as though fullbacks are the Pokemon Go of the NFL.The Miami Dolphins are among the teams that dont employ a true fullback.Dolphins coach Adam Gase said after careful consideration the team decided they couldnt afford the luxury of having a specialty position like fullback on the roster.Where we kind of ran into the problem was that we liked staying on the ball, we didnt like changing personnel and we always liked the fact of having a guy that could play the fullback role (but) still be a guy that we could flex out plus play in-line, Gase said. Were really being a little pickier as far as we want a guy that can do it all, and then play special teams as well.We didnt want to get stuck in a spot where we had some experience with a fullback when we were first at Denver and he was getting likee eight plays a game.dddddddddddd. We just felt like lets get the guy out there that is going to play 30 plays a game on just offense, plus special teams.The Jacksonville Jaguars stopped carrying a fullback prior to the 2015 season after they hired offensive coordinator Greg Olson to replace Jedd Fisch.Olsons offense simply doesnt use one, relying on backs to find holes and using more multiple tight end sets up front.We dont use one in any of our offensive sets so no sense in carrying one if were not going to use one, Jaguars general manager Dave Caldwell said.Some teams are reincorporating the fullback into the offense.The Philadelphia Eagles have gone back to using a traditional style running game following the departure of coach Chip Kelly. Theyve moved tight end Trey Burton to fullback.But the importance of the position has been undeniably downgraded.A lot of the game nowadays is predicated around the quarterback, said Tolbert. You try to develop him first as a passer, where as in the old days it was more about the run game and defense. Its not that way anymore.Tolbert collected 256 yards rushing and 154 yards receiving last season for the Panthers and scored four touchdowns.He also played on most of the special teams.Tolbert said the key to surviving is changing with the tide and remaining versatile, knowing well that the days of true smash-mouth fullbacks like Lorenzo Neal, Daryl Johnston and Tom Rathman may be over for good.You have to do special teams and pass protect and block out of the backfield and run routes, Tolbert said. You have to be able to do different things than in the past, more than just being a bang-your-head-against-the-wall fullback.---AP Sports writers Mark Long in Jacksonville, Florida, Steven Wine in Miami and Rob Maaddi in Philadelphia contributed to this report.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '