Guy, thank you for the feedback on my post. I was kind of farbissiner / sour / cranky when I posted my comments this morning. Even though the day got much better, I still wonder about the beta testers and what they shoot.
I shoot a lot of sports for my kids and their friends. I noticed that I have to use my "skills" more with the a900 when it comes to flag football because of the way the kids run, than with swimming. I usually shoot with the previous version of the 70-200/2.8G that I bought from Marc. I never use the extender because I don't think the glass is as good as in the lens itself.
I wanted something wider because the flag football players tend to run towards the sidelines, where sometimes, most times, the 70 end is too long. I tend to stand on the sidelines so the shots are not blocked by the players, coaches, refs. If I stand farther back, I can get better sideline shots but I am frequently blocked. The shots I posted on the "Fun with Sony" forum were mostly shot on the mid range to longer ends of the 70-200/2.8G though some were shot with the 70 end.
I looked at the stats between the older and newer versions of the 70-200/2.8G, and the newer version is much faster. It is not worth twice what I paid for the lens though.
The Sigma 18-35 will be a bit short on the long end. I only carry one camera body - FOR NOW.
Thank you for your help and comments.