World Cup 68 RP Thread

[Valanora]

"The Marauders are not really... Marauding are they?"

"No, it is a bit more like raiding. Striking victories they are but not doing it with any sort of thump or emphasis."

"They are leading the group all the same, three from three and no goals conceded. Only a handful of the one hundred ninety nations competing can still lay a claim to that. Who would have ever suspected that the Marauders would have some sort of defensive prowess, with it constantly being the weakest cog in the machine?"

"Hey, I have lived long enough to see much stranger things happen than the Marauders finally figuring out how to play defense and if they hold on to the ball enough, the opposition can't score."

"You make it sound all so simple you know."

"Things are often more easier to say than do, as actions speak far louder than words. A priest may preach of all the tenets of Elune but what if they do not then follow them in their own lives, how can they expect their followers to?"

"That is a tenuous analogy at best sir."

"You can not silence me, you can not silence the truth!"

"LOL, ok then."

"And you can't stop me from dancing either. Cause if your friends don't dance then they are no friends of mine!"

"You've completely gone off your rocker haven't you?"

*The last half of this RP was inspired by a Skype convo I had last night lol

[West Angola]

NAMIBE CHRONICLE

CAN ANYONE STOP PASARGA?


Sporting Minister David Castle addresses reporters Tuesday following the win over New Alderaan-Coruscant

NAMIBE- the feeling in the Sporting Ministry could generously be described as harried. Despite victories over Praxeologicalia and New Alderaan-Coruscant, West Angola’s sheet remains marred by the embarrassing 5-1 drubbing at the hands of Pasarga, a score that is by no means unique in the Pasargan schedule. Scoring an unthinkable eighteen goals in their first three matches, Pasarga has steamrolled their first three opponents with ease, and appears well on their way to an extremely easy victory in group six. Left scrabbling for the second and third positions are a host of nations, among them West Angola, Swyftlandyre, and Hutt River. Of the three, only West Angola and Swyftlandyre have faced the wrath of the top seed, as Swyftlandyre was shut out six-nil last night in an embarrassing result for the home side. If Hutt River suffers a similar result when they take on Pasarga in their next match, then all three return to somewhat even footing to battle it out for second and third, hoping to snag a playoff spot and eventually force their way into the World Cup proper.

Beyond the top three also-rans, a handful of surprisingly strong sides are making early noise, as fifth seed Zenic currently sits with two wins and a loss with a plus-five goal differential. The Zenic side scored five goals a convincing shutout victory over Juan del Pastel last night, and even managed to score twice in their lone defeat at the hands of Hutt River. Together, Zenic and Pasarga’s high-octane attacks have scored nearly fifty percent of Group Six’s goals (29 of 60), and Zenic is expected to pad that sheet still further when they take on Praxeologicalia, who has given up nine goals in their first three matches. West Angola, meanwhile, must take on Swyftlandyre in a battle to determine which will hold the momentum going into the matches against Hutt River, which will occur immediately after for West Angola and two matches later for Swyftlandyre. A win for West Angola would move them into an even points tier with the loser of Pasarga/Hutt River, although either team would very likely have a higher goal differential should that occur. A win by Swyftlandyre would move them as high as third, vaulting the team over West Angola and possibly Zenic as well, and likely take West Angola out of contention, as happened in World Cup 67 after they lost to third-seeded Mizuyuki.

Whatever the result of the next match, however, much of the credit or blame will likely be laid at the feet of the new coaching system. West Angola’s new diversified coaching staff has been a subject of controversy among fans ever since it was announced, with some supporting the move as a chance for Phillip Garren to concentrate more on the overall state of the team and allowing more personal attention to the players, while others say that the move promotes disunity and lack of teamwork. Both sides have claimed differing results from the three completed matches as proof, with supporters citing successful execution between the three areas of play in the wins over Praxeologicalia and New Alderaan-Coruscant, and detractors pointing to the defensive breakdown against Pasarga. However, both sides concede that only time will tell in regards to the long-term viability of the system, and Sporting Minister David Castle appeared to confirm such this morning when he said “it’s far too early to tell whether the system is a good fit or not. Rest assured that the Sporting Ministry will examine all available data and evidence before making a final decision after the conclusion of the World Cup cycle.”

  Group 6                          Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Pasarga                            3    3   0   0    18    3  +15     9
2 Hutt River                         3    3   0   0    13    4   +9     9
3 Zenic                              3    2   0   1    11    6   +5     6
4 West Angola                        3    2   0   1     8    5   +3     6
5 Swyftlandre                        3    1   1   1     3    7   −4     4
6 Praxeologicalia                    3    0   1   2     3    9   −6     1
7 New Alderaan-Coruscant             3    0   0   3     4   15  −11     0
8 Juan del Pastel                    3    0   0   3     0   11  −11     0

[Astograth]

Urko Airola's mouth was dry. His lips were cracked. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, below his dark green beret. He lay flat on the roof of the building gripping a sniper rifle, waiting. His watch read 12:58 PM. The heat was unbearable, though not for a Ducal Guardsman. After all, he'd been trained not to merely bear the unbearable - but to excel in it.

He and his partner, spotter Gorka Latorraga, were Echo Team, and part of the extensive security deployment that awaited the Grand Duke throughout Letzama. At 13:10 he and his party were scheduled to leave Letzama Castle as part of a motorcade. Their car, a long white open-topped Lantzia limousine with three rows of passenger seats, would pass Airola and Latorraga's position at the intersection of Erran and Hamabiteko at approximately 13:17, on his way to a lunch banquet at the Ducal Palace, which was considerably more lavish and less centric than the dark, spartan confines of the old Castle at the heart of the city.

Echo Team waited. They were on the roof of a nine-floor office building, closed for the day due to the occasion. It was the tallest building around, and across the wide Erran street from a small park, from which extended a residential area. The motorcade would be coming from Echo's left and then turn away from them, rounding the park to head straight ahead on Hamabiteko before turning right into Yurratz. Latorraga was in constant comms and visual contact to ensure everything was running smoothly and there were no threats to security.

There were threats. Except not really, so Team Echo was to ignore them. They were under the strictest orders, from the highest possible power.

A sizeable crowd had gathered on either side of the road, especially on the park, which led up from the street in a grassy slope of some thirty metres, on which parade-goers lounged under parasols. Several groups were having picnics. Along the right side of the top of the slope, the side that faced Hamabiteko, stood a long and low stone wall partly obscured by the low-hanging foliage of a line of trees immediately behind it. There were a few people there, as there were supposed to be, but most in this sector had chosen to watch by the much more extensive stretch of road on Erran street.

Airola estimated some eight hundred people on either side of Erran, for about one hundred metres up to where the motorcade would turn into Hamabiteko.

His watch read 13:04.

“All teams, this is Oracle. Possible detour by Lion. Stand by.”

“Echo here. Roger that, Oracle,” said Latorraga. Oracle was headquarters. Lion was the monarch. An unplanned detour would be a very bad thing; Airola tensed. Minutes passed.

“All teams, this is Oracle. No detour, continue as planned. Repeat, no detour. Continue as planned.”

“Echo here. Roger that, Oracle. Any reason for possible detour?”

“Lion wanted to go to airport immediately. Convinced otherwise. Continue as planned, Echo.”

The airport? Why would the Grand Duke want to leave so quickly?

His watch read 13:10.

“All teams, this is Oracle. The Lion has left the den. Repeat, the Lion has left the den.”

More minutes passed. The crowd milled below, curious faces peering and pointing but reassured by the distinctive berets of the Ducal Guardsmen. Latorraga spotted no threats, but expressed bemusement over the lack of police containing the crowds. Oracle reassured them, stating there had been a violent assault of a car dealership half an hour previously on the other side of the city; police were stretched thin, but a tactical helicopter unit was on standby in case of any disturbance.

The clock ticked. Letzama baked under the sun.

13:15. “Oracle, this is Echo. Lion spotted. Repeat, Lion spotted.”

The motorcade advanced slowly. The limousine at its centre shined bright white. In the first row of passenger seats should have been the Minister of the Interior, head of the Captains General, with his wife, but due to his sudden absence was replaced by the Countess Warden of Letzama and her consort. In the second row, new Captain General of the Akialden Goi Ormart and his wife. Third and final row, Grand Duke Lastur and the resplendent Grand Duchess Odara. The six of them smiled, waved, and joked amongst themselves. The crowd loved them, and ticker tape thrown from second-floor balconies floated down Erran street. Toward Urko Airola and Gorka Latorraga.

13:17. The limousine passed in front of them. Airola stared down his sights. Latorraga reported no actual threats. The limousine began to turn on Hamabiteko, where it would round the park for a short bit before turning on Yurratz.

Airola tensed.

“Echo. Green.”

Neither Airola nor Latorraga heard the shots; the crowd certainly did. Shots that came from the low wall on the side of the park that faced Hamabiteko, where few had chosen to stand. In a brief instant there were screams and confusion, but Team Echo knew better. They knew three Iturributans stood behind that wall, obscured by low-hanging foliage, and that they were firing blanks with rifles secretly provided by the Ministry of the Interior via intermediaries. This, the Iturributans did not know and did not realise. Nor would they.

The wind was dead. The heat was solid. Airola held his breath and fired.

[Qazox]

QSPNWC68.com

Moral victory! We didn't get beaten by 50! Insert generic non-victory 'victory' speech here.

We lost, call it what you want, but we lost to Polar Islandstates 1-0, on a goal by Wolff in the 56th minute. Yes, Qazox kept the Terns in check for most of the match but in the end... they were better than us. Now with two straight losses, these youngsters need to recover soon or else slip further away from playoff contention.

[Kandorith]

Kandorith, To Victory Again!

By Lisho Yaru

The Kandorese team is holding a third place after a win against Menukten, which became quite a remarkable and memorable match. The 4 - 1 victory was very welcome after the 0 - 1 defeat against Audioslavia; which has shown that Kandorith kan not be de-motivated by a small defeat. According to Coach Xíanjí, the team is on his usual schedule and he assures he will keep the players motivated and well aware of the game they have to play. The current outlook for the team is looking bright as the fans are becoming more and more excited when the team is playing. small town restaurants and bars are filled during the Kandorese matches with shouting and parties throughout various streets in the whole of the nation. Once again Xíanjí has proven that football is becoming the most popular sport in the nation.

Group 11                           Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Vaugania                           3    2   1   0     7    2   +5     7
2 Kitsunia-Deesse                    3    2   1   0     7    3   +4     7
3 Kandorith                          3    2   0   1     6    2   +4     6
4 The Paradystopi Lymryk Isles       3    1   2   0     9    7   +2     5
5 Audioslavia                        3    1   2   0     2    1   +1     5
6 Menukten                           3    0   2   1     2    5   −3     2
7 Costa de Ouro                      3    0   0   3     0    6   −6     0
8 Springmont                         3    0   0   3     4   11   −7     0

Huajian Kanzo Worries


In the thirteenth minute it seemed disaster struck for the Kandorese team. The nation's heroic goalie collapsed during a rather weak defensive position of the team and gave Menukten an easy goal and a forced early substitution for Kandorith. Huajian cried in agony while being carried off the pitch with still unexplained symptoms. Xíanjí when asked about the strange happening on the pitch answered the media calmly. "Well to be honest it is a complete mystery, ev en our medical experts stand baffled and can't find anything wrong." He said. "I don't know what happened and how it happened, all I can tell you is that he is doing fine and he could basically play the next match, although as a precaution I am holding Seiji Sakabara ready if Kanzo feels like he isn't ready or up to playing the next match yet. And of course I will completely respect his wishes." He answered to the question if Kazo was able to play the next match.

Even though he seemed to collapse completely due to some mysterious disease or sudden attack; he appeared fit and well again during the interview with his coach later that day. Kazo also ensured he would be fine the rest of the qualification rounds. The Kandorese medical experts are still puzzling what happened, some replies even went as far as 'witchcraft' was involved. If it was witchcraft, we don't know. All we know is; Kazo is fine and fit to play again and we are left with a mystery which happened and ended on the pitch.

[Albaie]

The Road To The World Cup

Gathering The Team

Frank Muacka 26 Center Back Dubrack's Town Celtic 70 caps 3 goals

" Forward march. " He roared and pointed his sword forward. The men of 1st Company Imperial Fulton Grenadiers marched forwards at a steady pace. " Present arms. " He barked and the men of his company pointed their LY21's forwards. " Firing line. " He commanded and the 93 men remaining of his company formed into their firing line. He could see the enemy coming through the trees in ragged rank. He felt a smile cross his face at the irregular nature and pitied their ignorance. The first of their men broke through the trees.
" Fuck regulars ! " He heard the man scream and turn to run but it was too late.
" Fire at will. " He cried at the top of his voice before the sharp bursts of gunfire tore from the three ranks to his left. The irregular rebel troops couldn't stop their run and his men mowed them down as they broke from the tree line. The rebels started to try and run back and Muacka put a hand onto the shoulder of young Ensign Tommy Yerku the 13 year old Ensign who bore his trumpet. As the boy played the trumpet the firing stopped and Frank looked out across the small stretch of earth filled with bodies. He strained his ears and heard it. The trumpets of the cavalry making their feint onto the enemy left to push them into the gap on the other side of the trees. " Forward men forward onto victory. " He cried and with a cheer his men started running forwards. Frank was the fastest in the company and as their Captain he should be at the front anyway as he tore off in front of them. He ran past dead bodies and wounded soldiers trying to escape his oncoming men. Frank was the first of his men to come out onto the other side of the trees and marveled at the sight.

The Battle of Rupul Plain was a marvel. The rebels were in full flight from the oncoming Imperial Infantry while the Imperial Heavy Horse was pushing them towards the hill he was now occupying. If he remembered rightly from the battle plans this was Junkul Hill and he watched from above as the troops he had just repulsed trying to outflank the Imperial Army charged down hill towards their oncoming allies fleeing from the Imperial Heavy Horse. " Line quickly line ! " Frank roared and roared again as his men came out of the tree line and formed a single man line across the top of the hill. Frank stood next to Ensign Yerku and watched as the enemy got closer and closer. They were barely fifty yards away. " Aim for their bellies men " He screamed. He could see the detail in the leading men's faces as they got closer and their belief in being able to break this thin green line was enviable. " Fire. " He roared. The sound of the guns was deafening. He watched as the men in the front line were mowed down by his soldiers. He could see the terror in the men at the lead of the mass couldn't decide to carry on their charge or fall back and head into the arms of the Heavy Cavalry bearing down on them. " Carry on men carry on for God and the Emperor. " He roared pointing his sword forwards and he knew his men couldn't hear him but his war cry comforted him. That's when he heard the clash as the Heavy Cavalry crashed into the the rear of the enemy.
" Sir shall I call for a stop to firing ? " He heard his ensign squeek beside him.
" Yes call for a advance. " He replied and as the familiar call went out his men stopped firing and slowly advanced guns facing forwards. The enemy finally gave way and started throwing down their weapons and kneeling down screaming for mercy. " Halt advance. " Frank shouted and his line halted as the Heavy Cavalry stopped their slaughter and their commander rode out and approached Frank.

" Captain Muacka I assume. " The officer said dressed in the uniform of the 3rd Brigade Heavy Cavalry while wearing a black breastplate and a fine wolf trimmed cloak while his helmet was crested with fine feathers.
" Aye and you are ? " Muacka replied watching as a single officer rode up the hill dressed all in black.
" Lord Sackville 3rd Brigade commander and may I say you were always a favourite of mine. " The man replied and Frank smiled as he remembered his footballing days. The lone officer rode up to him.
" Captain Frank Muacka ? " He asked.
" Aye why ? " Frank replied as the man reached inside his pocket an pulled a note.
" Imperial command. " The man replied passing the letter to Frank.

To Frank Muacka
You are to report to Sturte House by Saturday morning. You are to play in Albaie's team for the next World Cup. You are excused from all duties and to are get to Dubrack's Town as fast as possible.
Emperor Michael II

Frank read the message smiling. Looked like Deberen was up to his same old tricks as always. Frank turned to Lord Sackville.
" Looks like I'll be your favourite again. " He said showing him the message. Frank looked at the lone rider all in black in a peaked cap as he rode thundering away down the hill.

[Nouvel Ecosse]

[M-SHOT]Talking Head Style. Pierre Van Miller. "We had shown our potential in that 4-4 draw with Annar that we could score plenty, but then we in the defence had really proven where our team's weakspot lay. We were open at the back, Javier Dan and I stuck on our own. Too many of our attackers were neglecting their duties in tracking back. Which is perfectly fine if you are Leandro Cardoza or Darren McFadden, you know, target men we need up the field, but if you are Curt LaFleur or Sanchez or Holt-Ash then we need you back. Thats not me calling them out or anything, they are just examples. But if one player doesn't cover, or then another, that is where our problems start to arise. And it was never the same players. The perfect example is their second goal. We had just returned from a goal down... (Cut to V-OVER)[/M-SHOT]

[FOOTAGE]Highlights from the match, interspersed with video footage of Pierre Van Miller leading the defence.

[V-OVER]...And the team was all back, ready for the restart. The referee blows the whistle, we win it and Darren goes racing up the wing. He passes one of their defenders and blasts it off the boot of another for a corner. He then takes the corner, a poor one compared to his usual standards and he acknowledges this, and they break. I'm left solo, Javier and Dan racing back as an onslaught from Annar's attack come charging towards me. I should have done better, I recognise that, but I was alone against two of their players. They left me fore dead and then scored, and we were back to where we were three minutes previous. If it wasn't for Leandro I don't know what would have happened.[/V-OVER]

[FOOTAGE]Cuts to shot of Leandro Cardoza taking a punt from thirty yard and the ball hitting the bottom right corner, swerving and dipping through weaving players blocking it from the goal. Focus on celebrating Leandro Cardoza, massive smile engulfing face. Background turns to azure blue, name appears in Arial Font at 25 degree angle to face.

[MUSIC]"Respectable Psychopath" by rock group Velociraptor Rex begins.

[M-SHOT]Leandro Cardoza in an Attico's pub, surrounding by fans all singing his name. "I wasn't always this well-loved. When I was really struggling, as the team was struggling, and Leigh Donovan was especially struggling, I didn't exactly have much confidence. I was in this very pub when Norrie Stewart was sacked, the man who had only given me three appearances off the bench. Now look where I am, down to both my side, Dynamo Nova Tangiers in Taijan whom I captain, and Pierre, who has really put his trust in me. When I was in this pub during Stewart's sacking, I wasn't even recognised. Now I get stopped in the street, people want photographed with men, crowds form."

[FAN 1, M-SHOT]"I hadn't even seen Cardoza play when he appeared. He was one of those fringe players whom I tend to ignore for the national side. One of those players there to just fill up the numbers. But I remember getting angry with Donovan, getting upset with continually bad performances. Leandro was a breath of fresh air."[/M-SHOT]

[FAN 2, M-SHOT]"I'm a season-ticket holder with Endeavour, y'know, and I always thought he would make it. He just needed his break, was all. And playing in Taijan, which I see some of through the satellite, it really opened my eyes to his true potential. I wasn't surprised when he started scoring regularly for the national side."[/M-SHOT]

[FOOTAGE]Leandro Cardoza's hattrick against Annar from different, alternative angles. Music intensifies.

[V-OVER]"That game against Annar. Yeah, I pulled a flyer, except what I regret is that I wasn't there for the defence. What's the point in scoring a hattrick and Sanchez getting another if we aren't there for our team at the back? We really tried to set that right against Wesleyia. I think we really achieved what we wanted to do in that game."[/V-OVER][/MUSIC]

[Brenecia]

Kingsgarden. Only a few years ago it had been the most decrepit stadium in the entire country, and yet ironically the national one. It had gotten so bad that Union Park had eclipsed it as a home stadium - even before the refurbishment.

But Union Park had been a fortress for the Brenecians during the rebuilding process - and the record spoke for itself.

14 Played
11 Wins - 1 Draw - 2 Losses
18 Scored - 5 Conceded
11 Clean Sheets

CE8 Qualifiers
Brenecia 1 - 2 Northern Sunrise Islands
Brenecia 0 - 0 Noburu Taiyo
Brenecia 2 - 0 Polkopia

WC67 Qualifiers
Brenecia 3 - 0 Alta Belleza
Brenecia 1 - 0 Sicoutimont
Brenecia 1 - 0 Kitsunia-Deese
Brenecia 2 - 1 Horusland
Brenecia 2 - 0 Kintratar
Brenecia 2 - 0 Swansea City
Brenecia 0 - 2 Valanora
Brenecia 1 - 0 Super Llamaland

CE9 Qualifiers
Brenecia 1 - 0 The Licentian Isles
Brenecia 1 - 0 Buyan
Brenecia 1 - 0 Kazamatsuri

Still, even the unsentimental Fiona Sylver had to admit that new Kingsgarden was a thing of beauty. A gleaming steel structure, 58,000 decent seats... and it seemed like the stage was set for Mytannion to break it in with a first defeat.

After the match, Slatesaver had a lot to think about. Granted, that match would always be a long shot, but the Mytenar front four simply outplayed Chenoworth and Sylver in midfield (both in their thirties - a gamble to bring on Erin Camden for the captain had more success, and stemmed the tide in the 60th minute) and the partnership of Mortlock and Greig was undone too easily by a player of Haugen's calibre. The Patriots were a solid side, but they had to punch above their weight if they were going to make the World Cup...

Yes. The World Cup. Despite Brenecia's low ranking in the world, Slatesaver firmly believed his side could make it. Hell, they were seeded for third - why not? All they needed to do after that was win two series of playoffs. Anyone could win a match on their day. Slatesaver had a point to prove, one he'd proven with Treason and was eager to prove again - big money withered and died in the face of discipline and bravery. His players may not have been headliners, but they could take anyone on their terms, on their day, stick to a plan and win.

They were going to go far under him.

[Pasarga]

"Steroids, it has to be. How else can you suddenly explain them looking like world beaters three matches in a row after looking so lousy last cycle?" The topic of conversation at The Last Crescent was once again turning to the state of the national football team, a very popular conversation. The patrons were perplexed at how quickly their beloved national team side had turned themselves into the front runners of their group and in such a vintage display of attacking football after the previous cycles' inconsistencies.

"Well to be fair, they looked like world beaters back in the Cup of Harmony as well and put out a nice account of themselves in the Copa Rushmori. Maybe last World Cup cycle was just a fluke indeed?" Chirped in a young woman from the bar, her pigtails giving away her youth and how the pint glass in front of her had given her really big eyes. She was new to the pub but certainly seemed to know her stuff about the national team.

"Maybe, yet with this being the manager's last cycle in charge of the squad, you think she was just going to walk away without a bang? I am telling you, she is supplying the team with steroids to get them to perform like this. Look at Valanora, even they are not banging home the goals like our squad does and they have Hawk! Something just is not right here, not to mention the manager prefers defense and counter attacking tactics" The gentleman responded back, his brown hair spiked off to the right side, trying to look younger than the mid thirties he really was.

The lady shook her vigorously, her pigtails bouncing to and fro as she did, as if they extra emphasis in her shaking would make the point stand taller. "Aide is too honorable of a person to resort to such lows and tricks to get the squad to play good. Remember how everyone doubted her when she was hired and Pasarga was about to host the World Cup and yet she shocked everyone and got the side into the knockout rounds? Well it is clear she knows how to inspire these players and get the most out of them. You just need to give credit where credit is due."

"Maybe you are right little girl but all of these goals have to be a huge question mark you have to admit. I know Tobias is a great striker and all that, his name being blown up in the press for all that he has done for club and country, but not even one world class player could have such a huge impact on a team, it's impossible!"

The young lady merely grinned at the gentleman before responding to him in glee. "First off, I am no little girl, I am a lady of our great Queen! I am twenty one I will have you know mister! And secondly, yes they can, especially when it is a striker who is hitting their prime years and has been developed since they were just a wee lad by the best club that our country has to offer. Everything about Tobias screams that this was going to be the World Cup cycle when he became an international superstar and he has failed to disappoint yet. Rejoice at that, that Pasarga has produced a bonified superstar of the game, just a few cycles after heavy suspicion there would not even be a Wanderers side for him to play for! That is what inspiration is and what it can do for a person, a team, a nation!"

[Chiata]

The Secret War

Part 4

NIA Command- Nor' Del, Chiata

Pfc. Roberts- Sir, you may want to look at this.

Col. Landray- What is it?

Pfc. Roberts- A newspaper.

Col. Landray- You're wasting my time to look at a dang peace of media garbage?! What is it, something funny in the comics section?!

Pfc. Roberts- No, sir.

Col. Landray- Well what is it, spit it out!

Pfc. Roberts- It's a newspaper from Carialus. Of course, it has been translated from French. The article is on the front page.

Carialus Bugle

Murders in Chiata!

Yesterday evening, two citizens of Carialus were visiting Chiata to protest against their oppression of our glorious nation. The names of the two Carialites have not been given out for the privacy of their families. As the two Carialites were protesting, they were grabbed by five CPF (Chiatan Police Force) officers and were forced onto the ground. Acting in self defense, one of the Carialites was able to steal a gun from one of the officers and neutralized the officers. The two Carialites then moved into an apartment building and barricading themselves in, all the while knowing that even though their acts were out of self defense, that they we be tortured and murdered by the Chiatans. Ten CPF officers attempted to murder the two Carialites. However, clumsy as all Chiatans are, the officers were easily neutralized. After ten days of a standoff, leaving 57 CPF officers neutralized, a demolitions team came in and blew up the entire complex. Experts estimate that this killed around 50,000 Chiatan civilians. Even worse, the blast killed two Carialus citizens in cold-blooded murder. Of course, the Chiatan government has denied this incident, but you can't trust those dirty Chiatans. Do not let these peaceful protesters die in vain. Let them be a martyr! Remember the blast!

Col. Landray- That's a bunch of garbage! They made up pretty much everything!

Pfc. Roberts- There's something even worse too, this means there is another spy. The only way Carialus could learn of the spies deaths was through the word from another spy, one that new of the interrogation. That's only You, me, and Sgt. Mathill.

Col. Landray- It sure as heck isn't me! So it's either you or Mathill. One of you has got to talk!

Pfc. Roberts- With all due respect sir, you can't simply excuse yourself. Fallow regulation...

Col. Landray- Shut up, Robert. If that's even your real name.

Pfc. Roberts- Sir!

Col. Landray- Lt. Chester, get in here!

Lt. Chester- Yes, sir?

Col. Landray- Pfc. Roberts here is being insubordinate. Take him to the MPs.

Pfc. Roberts- Know you have it all...

Lt. Chester- Yes sir!

Pfc. Roberts- Wait, no!

*Roberts is dragged out of the room.

---In Landray's Home---

Col. Landray(on the phone)- Cpt. François, une jeune recrue a eu vent de notre opération. Heureusement, je l'ai eu Cour marshalées. (Cpt. Francois, a young recruit has caught wind of our operation. Luckily, I got him Court Marshaled.)

Cpt. Francois- Dieu merci, les Chiatans ne doit jamais savoir sur nos activités. Compris? (Thank goodness, the Chiatans must never find out about our operations. Understood?)

Col. Landray- Oui, monsieur! Terminé. (Yes sir! Over and out.)

[Mytannion]

Dobroslav Stojanovic didn't know how many more times he was going to get to do this. He was sat in the changing rooms, among his team mates and he realised he felt a confused mixture of emotions. He was getting to the stage now where these things meant more to him, you know, the little things, the being a part of a team and being with your team mates and preparing for a game as one unit. He already knew he would miss it all.

He felt a bit of regret, there was one seat that was filled by young Thorkil Bechinie von Lazan, the young winger who was making waves of all varieties because of his performances for CDSA Decraa. Stojanovic had always believed he was too young, too raw to be here already. He was barely a man and yet here he was, being carted all over the world to play a sport which meant he was under intense public pressure and constantly in the public eye. That wasn't all too regrettable though, what was regrettable was that Thorkil shouldn't have been put in that position. That seat should have been filled by somebody else, someone who would have been getting to a similar stage in his career to Dobroslav, but it had all been cut far too short.

Poor Ismet. He should have been sat there, sharing a joke with friends, laughing before the game as he so often did before he changed.

Stojanovic also felt some contentment. He knew he could be proud with his career, particularly with the national side. He had amassed a large total of caps and had scored a fair few as well, he had won the Cup of Harmony twice, the Copa Rushmori once and had qualified for a handful of World Cups. It had been good, he had been relatively successful and because of that, he could feel relatively content. It perhaps hadn't been as smooth with Atletik Thessia, but there had still been glory and it had paid dividends staying loyal to die Stadtbewohner even when he had had lucrative offers on the table from elsewhere, he enjoyed hero status at the club… A couple more such successes and he would probably be firmly in the legends category.

There was something else as well though, something different and it was something Stojanovic ha always had. It was hunger, sometimes it drifted away from him, this hunger - but now it had returned in a bigger way than ever. Usually when he won a trophy he could be satisfied, he could be pleased and the hunger for more glory waned. But with the magical win in the Copa Rushmori, something legends like Hjik and Famoc could never do, it had remained, Stojanovic wanted something else and it had taken a while for him to work out exactly what it was.

He wanted the full set. The titles that were possible for him to win in his career with the national side were the Cup of Harmony, Copa Rushmori and the World Cup. Stojanovic had won the first two and he might only have one more chance following the current one to win the World Cup, but he realised it was something he wanted more than anything. He wanted to be able to say he had them all. They might be ranked 18th in the world, but they could beat anyone on their day. Stojanovic always made sure his younger team mates knew that.

There was one final emotion that Stojanovic hadn't perhaps dealt with before. He couldn't put his finger on what it was, though. It was a strange cocktail of fear, confusion, dread, foreboding and lack of direction. It was linked to part of the hunger, he knew he may only have one more cycle in him before it was too late. He'd be nearing 35 at the next World Cup, meaning he'd be nearing 39 for the one after that. Did he have enough time to mount a challenge for the biggest one of them all? And what would he do after football? After it was all over? He felt a bit lost, but he put it all to the back of his mind.

After all, he might not get too many more chances to do this.

[Apox]

Forged in Fire - Part Three

Sparks of Revolution
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six

Forged in Fire
Part One
Part Two

In the deep south, the news was being registered with some concern. As the closest province to Old Guard, the county of Olfa was worried of a large influx of Old Guardians. The people of Olfa were suspicious of the other counties of Apox at the best of times, and therefore, the prospect of being flooded with irradiated immigrants was quite alarming to most.

The major of Urbanista, the largest city in the region, Karl Thornton had send out a public decree saying that refugees from Old Guard would be welcome on a temporary basis, until they had somewhere more permanent (and preferably outside of county lines) to settle. He was even eyeing up the largely empty deep south shoreline to move any Old Guardian refugees to.

All this talk of refugees and yet another cataclysmic change in the region was also concerning. The Olfa National Party had been jostling for some time to allow the county to accede from mainland Apox, and this catastrophe could result in a surge of support for the party. The ONP also had a fairly militant side which always needed to monitored, they could kick off at any time.

In the direct aftermath of the Old Guard implosion the ONP had dropped strangely silent, which was always worrying. It meant they were planning something, something big. In a rundown building in the old industrial sector of Urbanista, which was little more than a crumbling wasteland these days, the “Big 4” of the ONP were meeting shortly after the implosion had hit the news feeds of the country.

Sat round the table in the dusty living room was Joe Carlton, Jeff Jones and Neil Wright all of whom were underground members of the ONP, continuously treading the thin line between living a normal life and being sentenced, as well as Representative John Barnes, who was only secretly involved in the Big 4, in order to maintain his public political career.

“This is our time to strike,” said Joe, hot-headed as usual, restlessness flowing through him. John sighed, before replying with,

“We can’t just rise up now. We aren’t prepared enough and we don’t have the support. This is the perfect opportunity to level for Olfan independence, but we have to wait until things are ready. If we try to rise up now, we’ll blow the whole thing.” Jeff nodded sagely, the older man having experience with these sorts of things, having been involved in one of the many uprisings in Old Guard.

“I agree with John. We’ll know when the time is right. What we need to do is work out how we’re going to rise up, what are targets are, where we need to focus our attacks on. Timing and a well operated plan is critical in situations like this.” Jeffs words clearly struck a chord with the group, as there was nodding and agreement all round at this.

“Right, that settles it. I need to head off, I’ve a regional meeting to attend to, can I leave you guys to get it sorted out?” The other gents nodded as John stood up and walked towards the door, stopping as he reached it, “We’ll meet-up at the specified time, right?” More nodding and he went, the sound of the front door closing following shortly after. Neil went into the kitchen to make himself a sandwich or something, leaving Joe and Jeff alone in the room.

“What time do we make our move?” asked Joe, impatiently. Jeff sighed, and gave him a knowing look.

“Give it time.”

[Farfadillis]

He was given a bit more than ten minutes of playing time because of his performance the match before, replacing Tuzzio. There was a throw-in, which Fôx executed. The ball got to Terán. He heeled it to him. Now he had the ball. He looked up and saw Dandalleion running. He could help equalize now! Getting a point away from home could surely be useful, it all rested on his shoulders - and Dandalleion's. He got ready to kick the ball to his teammate's direction when... well, a Cosumarite tackled him just in time.

What happened after that was cataclysmic for the team. The guy passed the ball to a Cosumarite player who then dribbled Courtemanche, replacing a Mêndêlöíndçêl with a minor injury that didn't seem likely to make him miss any matches, Alaminos, Mata and then Fakkotti with some extraodrinary footwork. Then BAM, he scored. A perfect right hook on the teams' face. Farfadillis was almost knocked out.

It was all his fault, all his fault. He turned around, looking down. He could already imagine all the Farf supporters screaming things at him back at home. Why had he allowed the opponent to get the ball so easily? Why didn't he react a split second earlier, setting up Dandalleion, who would've most likely scored? Maybe he wasn't really worthy of the chances he was getting. After all, if you can't perform under pressure, who needs you? He was trying to replace Tuzzio, who usually became a hero under pressure! He couldn't wrap his head around his failure though, even if he was emphasizing it too much.

Roga passed the ball to Dandalleion and play restarted, he just wasn't on the same state of mind of the previous match, though, so little could he do. Roga would manage to score after getting a fantastic assist from Dandalleion, but that would be it. Farfadillis would lose a vital match. He did not like to think of the World Cup as slowly drifting away... because of him himself...

... Going back to the hotel to pick things up before leaving for the airport, he saw a little piece of paper that had been left on the bed. He hadn't been sharing his room with anyone else, so surely someone had sneaked into his room to leave it there. He could tell it was aimed for him; from a distance he could see a picture of him, taken during the match. Right after the fourth Cosumarite goal, to be specific. He didn't really like that picture, obviously. Still, as inquisitive as always, he just couldn't help but read it. He had the time left, after all. He was in no specific hurry, as sad as he was.

Let this picture forever remind you you're in a long rollercoaster, and the ride has just begun. Euphoria, success and praise are all temporal and rarely ever last much, with sadness and failure rearing their ugly faces whenever given a chance. Let this picture forever remind you, however, that these can last just as much as euphoria and success if you focus enough. Today you're a hero, but who knows anything about tomorrow? Today you're a villain, but who knows anything about tomorrow? Let this picture forever remind you a footballer's life is a life of strife, of disagreement, of conflict and of controversy. People will be ready to jump at you, but it is you and only you who can fight back. You're only just getting started, and in two matches you have already experienced one of many vertical loops to come. You have found out that doing badly once erases anything good you might've ever done.

But think for a second, does it work the other way round, too? Of course it does, just focus more and more, and forget mistakes. Even better: learn from them. A good footballer knows how to. What makes the difference between the good and the great is the ability to pick themselves up and dust themselves off, continuing as if nothing had happened. What makes the difference between the great and the legends is the ability to pick themselves up and dust themselves off, then strive for something better. You desire to be a legend, everybody desires to be a legend. You depend on yourself and only yourself; hold that as a rule to which you should always abide.

Let this picture forever remind you of defeat. Of cruel, dreadful defeat. Of staring into the abyss. Many will say it's not a big deal, but what do they know? Only someone who has been there knows how staring into that abyss feels. Only someone who has been there knows how looking down, indignant at one self feels like. Furthermore, only you can truly understand yourself.

People will say things - nasty things. They will go on and on about you; it's just how it works. But let this picture forever remind you that looking down just means you have to straighten up, just means you have to forget and realize that another chance will arise.

Let this picture forever remind you that you and only you... are you.

He sure had many things to learn. But, he had time.

[San Jose Guayabal]

NEWS
- SJG 2-2 Eura, all details
- The Licentian Isles vs SJG, the previous details
- 10,000 Acquans arrived to SJG for asylum

SJG keeps solid, tied with Eura and now a travel to The Licentian Isles

Wrote by: Emilia Saucedo.
Follow on Instapic: @Saucemil145
03/25/14
4:50 PM (Guayabalian time, GUT-6)

San Jose Guayabal played a very good game last night in the city of Vladivostok, in the presence of more than 145,000 fans who packed the stadium from early morning hours in order to reserve the best space and see a game highly anticipated by the Guayabalense fans, the game against Eura was crucial to continue the good start of the tournament for SJG in the WC 68 Qualifiers, this time two plays of cunning and speed helped to show a very tenacious play from both sides, in the end both of the teams had to settle for a point each, as the match ended with a score of 2-2 showed a good game by both teams.

The game started very interesting for both sides, Eura team, led by the Audioslavian Sporadic Kelly, a talented former player who played for great teams as XXV de Maio in Cafundeu, besides being skilled in national teams like Audioslavia and apart winning the WC 66 with the national team of Eura, no doubt this has been your most important achievement, plus Eura was with the same base of players with which they won the WC 66 as Skorji Oslograd and John Spartan, both name players that were key to glory in world football.

Meanwhile, on the side of SJG breathed an atmosphere of confidence and motivation in the team, who showed sure what they should do in the field. Coach Emanuel Inzer placed the starting lineup with which he played the first game after them constantly train without having played for the second match in order to better prepare for this game and next against The Licentian Isles, another key to the interests of SJG game.

The game started with possession for the Eurans who obviously began to impose their nest on the court from the first moment of the match, with dangerous plays as a shot from long range by Ashtree, which went just wide of the goal of Henry Hernandez in just 3 minutes.

For 10 minutes , the game took on a new pace , now both teams were trapped in the half court , struggling to retrieve balls or make inroads into the rival area, the first opportunity to score SJG was by Saucedo, that in a managed to take the challenging backlash mark Heath and Curren to be Waller front of the keeper , but unfortunately could not make a play because of a slip when kicking the ball.

17 minutes, SJG had a corner where Fraser gave a header and the ball was the goalpost defended by Waller , looking slightly ahead of SJG at that moment of the game, which was very even by both sides.

And 15 minutes later, at exactly 32 minutes, Saucedo recovered a ball in the defensive area, later to make a counterattack and then performed a precise pass from about 50 yards to Sean Fraser , who was fully able to continue the move and Fraser received the balloon to be hand to hand against Waller, which was defeated by a powerful shot with his left foot Fraser team which stood SJG 1-0 forward from Eura, a very good score to get through the first time and then at 15-minute break .

The crowd was in a state of trance, a crazy unprecedented environment was breathed in the stadium, people supported with drums and flares to the national team as well as with the famous song " Let's go Guayabal ....." as well as famous and well-known " beer bath" when people explodes with joy by throwing his beer into the air.

For the second time, Emanuel Inzer ordered the court to Mattias Passarelli , instead of Daniel Coco whom he was very tired and received applause from the fans that still supported admirably.

SJG players started with possession of the ball, trying to make plays most dangerous and assert condition at the homefield of SJG Eurans who were a little wary of attack due to the momentum shown by players SJG , fighting for every ball , despite having made ​​a very strenuous game you could see the very high spirits and good SJG group harmony collective to make good plays, meanwhile Eura was beginning to show more aggressive and wanted to start to attach conditions to the national team of SJG.

After the first 7 minutes of the second half , in specific 52 minutes, began to lay Eura SJG conditions for a foul outside the area by James Moreira, John Spartan scored the 1-1, calming the tempers in SJG a powerful low shot that beat the goal defended Henry Hernandez.

After that time Eura tied the game, the visiting team dominance showed through headers from Oslograd and Sinclair, but Henry Hernandez could stop to keep the tie. This condition does not draw hard for a long time, 62 minutes 1-2 Oslograd scored for Eura through a close play where beat Mattias Passareli speed and then James Moreira in a dribble and then shot in the gently lower right corner of the goal from Hernandez.

SJG did not want to stay on in the result, by the incessant public support. They continued to fight to get them on the tie, through powerful shots Rodolfo Zelaya who had literally been inactive in the match, because the action took place mainly on the left when he performs his functions on the right side of the court or counterattacks of Jonathan Faña , who has shown a bit inactive in terms of goals in this WC 68 Qualifiers.

Then 71 minutes into the game, Saucedo again showed his talent to orchestrate rapid to affect defense kickbacks , this time he ran around the right side to the area of ​​a corner , where he gave the ball to Sean Fraser, head who scored the 2-2 draw against the helpless reaction Waller and the terrible pressure on Sean Feeney , returning joy to the fans of SJG also noteworthy that Sean Fraser is a goal to even the maximum scorer in the history of SJG football therefore exceeded only by teammate Jonathan Faña.

After that goal, SJG managed to win more soul impulse to try to achieve the goal that put him ahead of the score , through powerful shots on goal by Jonathan Faña and Leonidas Bregoo passes to Saucedo tree looking toward the latter score some headed goal, taking advantage of their clear size advantage (Saucedo is 2.03 meters high).

Eura tries in the last 5 minutes to get the three points to his favor, but the timely intervention of Henry Hernandez and appropriate movements SJG defending champions prevented the WC 66 could win the game , preserving the tie 2 -2 to the end of the game, where players from both teams exchanged shirts and greetings to each other , as well SJG applause from the audience earned by the excellent match made.

SJG vs Licentian Isles, the preview.

Yesterday late at night, the National team of SJG sailed from Vladivostok on a direct flight to Monfort , the capital of The Isles Licentian then by bus to Abingdon from a town near the capital and then stay at the Hotel Royal Crown and practice his matches at the stadium of the University of Abingdon and then make the respective recognition field , The Gardiner-Stewart Stadium at approximately 6:00 PM local time (ECT- 3), ( 9:00 PM in SJG ) where they will have workout about an hour and a half in the field and then move the seat of concentration.

According to the RFALI (Ruler entity of football in The Licentian Isles ) put on disposal have been 4500 tickets fans SJG also noteworthy that a group of 2500 Licentians living in SJG will go to watch the game at the stadium.

In the field of tactical preparations, Emmanuel Inzer not pursuing any variation to their tactic also will use the same starting XI that played against Eura, who are already recovered after such strenuous game due to regenerative training sessions and rest and relaxation muscle, because the group is very smooth and works very well as a team, also is confident of getting a good result away to help them to score more points on the leaderboard and stay on top of the standings.

Meanwhile in the other team, all it shows from a perspective of optimism in their favor, because according to their coach statements of Gethin Ramsey, they will fight for the three points and start finding the proper way to play with what they plan their same starting lineup as always, he does not want surprises and no SJG underestimated because of its mood and moment of form.

The Licentian Isles starting XI
1 - Shay Jamieson - 27 years - Dinamo Esca (MYT)
2 - Sam White - 25 years - Real Ile Perrot (SIC)
3 - Donald McLauchlan - 25 years - Matthew City Rangers (NSI)
4 - Sam Hill - 29 years - Surtsey Island Gulls (PIS)
5 - Dennis Munro - 28 years - Bastion (EUR)
6 - Grant Torin - 28 years - Munnerput TU (EAR)
7 - Patrick Maclean - 21 years - Highmoor Academical
8 - Ruaraidh Donaldson - 35 years - Abingdon Celtic - C
9 - Josh Brown - 29 years - Abingdon Celtic
10 - Aran Miller - 22 years - 1896 Ebor (MYT)
11 - Danny Leighton - 26 years - Issington (APX)

San José Guayabal starting XI
1- Henry Hernández (25 years) AC Tallin (Valladares)
2- James Moreira (19 years) Nhorton vo Mirrun (Paradystopia)
3- Daniel Côçô (20 years) SK Nasjonale Hauker (Polar Islandstates)
4- Meyson Salume (18 years) Truro (Greater Maritime Union)
5- Rudy Valencia (23 years) Holdenburg City (Eura)
6- Sebastián Núñez (20 years) SK Nasjonale Hauker (Polar Islandstates)
7- Leónidas Bregoo (20 years) Athletic Club Rumiatzi (Astograth)
8- Árbol Saucedo (21 years) Avenida Leal (Farfadillis)
9- Sean Fraser (25 years) FC1. Bjarnarey Flotilla (Polar Islandstates)
10- Rodolfo Zelaya (25 years) Northbrook Diamonds (Polar Islandstates)
11- Jonathan Faña (27 years) Fillydelphia HC (Equestrian States)

BREAKING: 20,000 Acquans migrated to SJG.

In breaking news, more than 20,000 immigrants from the Rushmori nation of Ossidiacqua have arrived at SJG due to a better life for the poor quality of life in this nation and also by the recent coup provoked in that nation.

The Acquans are heading to the planned-city of Ojo de Agua
to start populting the recently built city by the government
to bring housing to them.

According to provided by the Minister of Migration SJG statements, they provide asylum to migrants who live in a dignified manner, plus the promise that the government will constantly renewing the city of Ojo de Agua, where Acquans reside in the SJG, plus they provide priority in getting their nationalization, residency and work permits enabling or any other proceedings for the correct and proper place in society.

According to various opinion polls, the population agrees to provide facilities and asylum to immigrants by 95% percent, so all fear of racism or discrimination may be terminated.

[Kernansquillec]

Opinion: Why Kernansquillec shouldn't be playing in green and white

We've all been used to seeing our national teams - be it in football, handball, basketball, hockey... - playing in green and white. The 'national colors'. But are these two colors really the two colors that represent Kernansquillec?

Let's start off by looking at what the green and white are supposed to represent. The White is a symbol of purity and of peace. It is what keeps Kernansquillec together; thought even if that peace has existed on the flag for quite a while now, it didn't seem to be very real during the War of Independence. The Green is a symbol of freedom as well as being a reference to the Kernansquillecan horse. Green is after all the color of the grass that horses eat and as such their strength comes from the green. So the Green is a symbol of freedom and strength.

The Horse of Kernansquillec is an interesting topic. The constellation that represents it is part of the flag and the horse is one of Kernansquillec's national symbols. A horse is even on the Kernansquillecan Football Association's logo. The horse in itself represents the search for freedom but also power, hard work and class. On it's own it is the most powerful symbol in Kernansquillec and it has been used thought out time, even before Kernansquillec was founded.

So it all seems great. So why change it?

Well to start of with there are somethings that are missing. Democracy for one. In none of these symbols do we see some kind of defense of democracy, or even justice for that matter. These are two key elements to Kernansquillec and Kernansquillec's culture and heritage. It seems disappointing not to include them.

What's the alternative then? Well the green and white have to go for a start. Kernansquillec has losted its right to act as a defender of peace after the War of Independence in which so many people died. That search for freedom doesn't really exist either in really with many living in their own small worlds, not seeking to live a fuller life. The horse also has to go. The freedom aspect is all ready out-of-date and the noble side of the creature is irrelevant as well considering how Kernansquillec no longer has nobility in our country and also how many people are struggling to just stay alive at the moment. Trying to make them think that the most important thing is to act in a 'noble' manner in such a situation is just plain insulting.

So we get rid of everything and start afresh.

We need a flag of red, a flag of black, a flag of fire, a flag of reflection. Red to pay tribute to the blood loss that has occurred in Kernansquillec. Black to pound home just how dark those days were, and how bad the situation is still today. Fire, represented by orange (or maybe yellow) is needed to show how destruction can happen out of nothing and act as a reminder that giving too much power to the political elite will inevitably end in the destruction of the values citizens hold most dear. And finally blue, the color of deep reflection and of democracy. Deep reflection is needed to find solution to the national problems our country faces, but also to find way of making each and everyone of ourselves better from the inside outwards. Blue is also the color of democracy, the key to allowing Kernansquillec to become a great nation. For too long democracy has been too far away from the people. It needs to come closer to them.

Red, black, orange, blue. These are the true colors of Kernansquillec.

The national symbol needs changing as well. The humble snail is the right choice in my opinion. While some may dislike it, it is a remarkable creature. It takes it's time, not worrying about insignificant things. It has beautiful architecture with a shell to protect it from the outside world, while also staying in direct contact with it. This is our true national symbol.

So Kernansquillecans, rise up and demand that your government give you more power, more of a say over what your future should be like. Demand this most basic of changes that will allow us to bring democracy back to Kernansquillec! Free Kernansquillec!

Statement from the Prime Minister's office: We have no intention of changing a flag that is part of Kernansquillec's traditions and history. Kernansquillec is and will remain a democratic nation that listens to and takes care of its citizens. While our recent history may be very painful and the road to recovery is going to be a long one we are confident that we are on the right path and we are confident that the majority of Kernansquillecans are with us.

[Felix]

World Cup 68 Qualifiers: The World Cup Qualifying Stage Is A Wild One.
By: Steven Smith

The World Cup, the biggest tournament in the multiverse. Many nations go in and most don't make it out. No, they don't actually die off (although some nations have) but their national team do not make it to the final 32. Think about it, 180+ nations vying for 31 or 30 spots (depends on how many nations are hosting), so you are bound to see some teams that are favourties to fail in qualifiers and not make it. It happens to every nation, including us (although, admittedly we weren't really favourites per se in any of the other groups we were in till now), I mean we crashed down hard on the 65th edition after a great WC 64 campaign. But we aren't the only one that had a crazy qualifier...

Nations like Pasarga, a nation that were second seed in our group, did terrible as they finished 5th in the last WC qualifiers and Valladares, a nation we faced in our first World Cup qualifiers, had troubles back in the 64th World Cup qualifiers (we provided some of it by the way). So I could go on and on about it but I already proven my point. Giants can fall. But along with the downfalls of giants we have seen massive revivals of teams we didn't expect would revive so soon or teams that haven't be here in this stage for long, thriving . And this World Cup qualifiers campaign is no exception. I mean look, by matchday three we witnessed these things...

1. A resurging Pasarga, after a terrible World Cup qualifying campaign last time around this team made strides to rebuild itself as a footballing power. It started in the CoH and just went on from there. In their latest World Cup go around they have started their first three games with the following scorelines, 7-2, 5-1, and 0-6. For a nation that struggled to score last time, this is amazing. And they have just started, just wait until the later matchday where they hope to score more goals. If they qualify for the final (which they will if they continue this pace) they will, without a doubt, be a serious contender for the greatest trophy of them all.

2.The rising power of Chiata, these guys have been considered minnows in the past and were still labeled as that as they entered the latest edition of the World Cup, but these guys aren't minnows no more, right now they lead their group, and sure we are in matchday 3 heading to 4 but still, a team like this right now shouldn't be where it is but it is. If Chiata can play like they play against the small team but with the big boys instead they could make a surprise run into the playoffs.

3. The downfalls of Audioslavia and Farfadillis. Alright before you fans of Audioslavia and Farfadillis bag on me I just want to say one thing. It is surprising where they are, does that mean that they are in trouble in the future? Maybe, maybe not. But both Audioslavia and Farfadillis aren't suppose to be in where they are considering their rank, both teams are in the top 10, yet they are in 3rd or 5th place. And sure they are only 2 or 3 points behind but it's who they gave up their points to is worrying. It's to the Chiatas (no offense Chiata fans), the weak teams that they should be dominating. In fact, Farfadillis is going to lead up to my next surprise team. Cosumar.

4. The unexpected return of... Cosumar? Look, I haven't really heard of this team but I am 90% we faced this team before, heck, these guys might of been the reason why we got knocked out of contention for the World Cup. I dunno, but I do know this, this team is starting to make waves. Look at this, they beat a number 9 team, they beat Farfadillis, yes, those guys. 5-3 nonetheless and now they are leading their group.

Now, before all you sports experts managers and football players rip on me and say that it's the only the third matchday! Yeah, it is, but even the earliest of matches have significant importance in a qualifying run. The more points you have the less you have to depend on other teams for World Cup survival. You see, being dependent on other national sides to qualify is a sign of weakness. No, I am not calling Audioslavia or Farfadillis weak, but if they don't dominate their matches, expect them to miss a World Cup berth or at least be in the danger zone for it.

---

World Cup 68 Qualifiers: Back To Winning.
By: Steven Smith

Felix easily dispatched minnows Itanpavia with the scoreline reading 3-1. The poor Itanpavians looked rattled in a crowed Stadio Altomare containing 94,285 people in the stadium. The Felixians got out a native horn (similar to a vuvuzela) from the Indios region (where the Keji live) in Felix and blew it away causing the nosiest environment in Stadio Altomare history. The win gives us a crucial three points as we slowly start to free ourselves from the other group 5ers. Next up it's Charruterra, a win there would surely help our cause. We will get to them later but let's focus on this, the match review.

The first half, like the whole match, was Felixian controlled, I mean we outclassed the opposing team in everything, the possession rate, shooting accuracy, pass count you name it, we controlled it. And that dominance resulted in a early goal for the Felixians. Constança Rios gave Felix their first strike in the 7th minute off the pass by Andres de Colorado. The goal sent the crowd wild. As Rios jumped up with her fist in the air. The next goal came 3 minutes later as Chloe Álvarez got some open space and shot out a wonderful shot. The poor goalkeeper didn't stand a chance.

The rest of the first half saw Felix relaxing a bit as they weren't so brutal in their attacks, but nonetheless there was still some shot opportunities presented by the Felixian side. Especially near the end of the first half as Nickolaus Dürr made a shot attempt from 27 yards that just hit the post as the fans released a loud noise of, "oohs and ahs". Halftime score? 2-0.

Felix maintained their dominance over the weaker team as they started the second half with another goal as Rios got her second goal in the 49th minute off the pass by Jacinto Crespo a player that made his first cap in that match. 3-0 and the fans at this point knew that Felix was going to win the game, they were loud and rowdy. Near the back of the stadium flares were lighted as the fans began to chant songs. Further intimidating the Itanpavian players.

The last goal coming from the match came at the 78th minute and was from a corner kick as one of the midfielders found an open spot and gave Itanpavia the only shot at goal and the only goal for the team. Tomasz Francis, their star player was shutdown by the Felixian side. Many pundits agreed this match wasn't his best and they hope he can recover after been defeated in many different ways.

The whistle soon blew out for the last time as the extra two minutes of stoppage time passed. Felix won and convincingly so too might I add and got a crucial three points. Next up, as mentioned earlier is Charruterra. The team is currently third and are 3 points away from Apox and Felix. They started off badly but has since recovered and has been looking good as of late.

But the Felixian side after resting their main starters, looks to turn off any hopes of a Charruterrana rise in Group 5. The starters are the same as the Apox match. With our goalkeeper, Matías Ciriaco, getting the starting nod. Felix is playing at home again but this time in Stadia Volker in Volker, Felix. The stadium will be another intimidating stadium to play in as there will be a lot of nationalists there ready to cheer on the team. That's all we got this week, until next time.

In other news...

>> Felixian Navy is slowly taking shape, plans have been made to make a Northern Fleet and a Southern Fleet...
>> President Tamara Van Der Ven returns to Felix after a summit in Mizuyuki.
>> Refugees from Ossidiacqua begin to arrive in mass in Santa Maria.
>> Nationalist Party warns the new refugees will bring crime to the capitol.
>> NP rally to occur in Bridgeport, home to the biggest Starbladyi population in Felix.

[Schiavonia]

The Schiavone Scribe
CAUTION AHEAD OF DARVALE CLASH
Shot players cast shadow over Sloths match

Security in Schiavonia has been stepped up in anticipation of their match at home to Darvale after four members of the Darvale team were shot whilst training prior to their game against Greater Watford.

With Schiavonia a pacifist nation with just one entry point for visitors - The Jetty, through which five thousand Darvale fans are expected to pass in the coming days - those coming in from Darvale will be subject to rigorous security checks.

Kenny Sanderson V, Schiavonia's ageing leader, knows that it is a very delicate matter indeed.

"What has happened to the Darvale players is tragic, and we will do everything within our powers to stop it happening again here," he told reporters yesterday. "It is not something that we would normally do, because the atmosphere in Schiavonia is usually enough to put the most raucous of visiting fans into a positive mood.

"However, it is expected to be a lot more tense this week, with the death of four of our opponents' squad. There will be a sombre atmosphere at The Field, and there will be the warmest of welcomes for our visitors, especially the players who are so brave for playing on in such circumstances.

"But to have a repeat in our homeland would be scarring for all involved. We cannot and we will not have it!"

There will be four minutes of silence before the game to commemorate the deaths of Donovan Maform, Lucas Roppet, Anthony Arben, and Mavis Huberman. Maform was particularly the most noted Darvale player, due to being similar in physical appearance to the legendary Starblaydia striker Simeone Di Bradini.

[Yttribia]

OOC: To the scorinators, please change my style mod from -1.15, to -2.05

Part One
Part Two
Part Three A
Part Three B


How long had it been without a meeting? Two weeks, to make that answer clear. And in those two weeks, governor Richard Vivas, of Penedès, had a lot of his citizens to support, and a lot of money to generate for himself. Vivas, was, better yet is, an eccentric business man turned politician who won his governorship on the basis that he would double the average income for a citizen in his region, which was basically a bunch of cities stuck together, forming one of the largest metropolitan areas in the region. Vivas was one of those people, in which you love him, or you hate him. His constituents loved him, mainly since the region is at such great heights, but most of the nation hates him, due to a "variety" of reasons, but they're just "jealous" that he can't help them out. A cold Thursday morning in Obersinn, and Vivas was on his way towards the city hall, where all of the meetings were being held. He noticed the doorman who held his door open was freezing. He decided to walk back to him, and get up a nice conversation up and running with him.

"You look a little cold, sir. What time did you get up so you could start opening doors?"

"At around four in the morning, sir."

"And how much do you make per year? And for how many hours do you do this?"

"Well, I usually don't tell people, but around thirty thousand, give or take. I do this twelve hours a day, sir."

"Twelve hours a day? No holidays, or sick days?"

"No sir, I truly enjoy my job-"

Just as the doorman was about to finish his sentence, Vivas hands him a check.

"Hold up, sir! Is this a typo of some sorts? And, why are you giving me the check, I really-"

"Yes you do. I mean, for Pete's sake, you stand out here for twelve hours every day, with no holidays, nearly every single day, and they only play you that much? You deserve a paid vacation, and here's a list of places I've enjoyed over the course of my life. You really deserve a good backrub, mate. Thanks for being one of society's unsung heroes."

The doorman looked at the six-figure check, and was absolutely stunned that he had that much money, until he realized he was Richard Vivas. Vivas then walked past the main lobby, and found his way into the conference room. He was one of the last people to arrive, and quickly arranged his stuff in order.

"Good morning everyone, hope you guys enjoyed your two weeks off from this hellhole, and spent it with friends, family, or in Giorgio's case, dinosaurs."

The conference room laughed, while Giorgio began to recite his Rosary in his mind, out of pure anger. After the laughter settled down, Richard began to open up his briefcase, and took out some documents.

"Assuming most of you were busy watching the football matches, I on the other hand, happened to actually collect data from my citizens, and according to them, what we got was a list of issues most important to them."

A few hundred papers were placed out, all neatly stacked, and formatted in a simple yes/no style format, with various color coded pie charts and bar graphs.

"Each issue takes up around one to two pages, with the top question being a broad statement, and the other statements showing any specific modifications they would have implemented along with the question stated above. Now, I know that this data is taken from my citizens, but this is what could possibly appear if the same questions were asked in a nationwide poll."

Laureen, one of the governors, is highly impressed with the extremely rapid collection of the data.

"My god, how the hell did you even collect data in such a quick manner?"

"Simple, its called wiretapping."

The entire room drops what they're doing, and take a look at Richard.

"Guys, I'm just messing. Ever heard of online polls? We make sure that each user is only able to answer once per IP address, and in case there are multiple people that live under one IP address, an option is given for multiple people."

"Wait, there are people who could manipulate the system, and choose the option that more people live under the household, when..."

"Actually, our results are about spot on to the people connected to the Internet in our region. Lastly, there were fifty issues my citizens voted on, but about two-hundred and fifty sets of these results. One of each issue shall be given to you, and you will read through each of the statistics. If you think your constituents will like the proposed idea, then set it atop the respective paper on the table. As I already have some statistics, and you were all lazy watching football, mine counts as one. In order for issues to be brought up to discussion later today, set the report atop a pile, and each pile with at least four reports, will be debated soon. Understood? Let's get to work."

The five other Federal Council members were looking through each of their fifty players, stacking a sizeable amount of papers, and some threw out others.

"Let's see, gun control, gender equality, and human rights are all important for Fontvieille, so I'll stack them here. Legalities, not so much."

"Honestly, why the hell would Obersinn need health regulations, this one's going straight into the rubbish bin."

"Really, a ban on gambling? Vauchel is run on gambling! You can't have that banned? If you did, we'd disappear faster than those pesky Bustards did when we beat them at home in Yttribia!"

"Well, most of my constituents believe a ban on gambling is a good cause, and that it would reduce drug dealing rates, casino murders, and the likes of it. If you don't agree with it, be my guest."

"Well, for three!"

After several hours of debating on which topics to debate, and eventually add in the new constitution, most of the Federal Council has set up their issues that most of their constituents would agree on. However, Marchegiano was still choosing a few issues left in his pile.

"Well, looks like we'll be talking about the following topics next week: gun control/gun rights, marriage equality, border control and whether or not someone born in Yttribia is Yttribian, monetary funds, and that's about it. We have most of the issues that we plan on fixing into our constitution already chosen. Anyways, we have a few more issues left to place on the table, and then we can call it a night."

"Wait, Richard, who will be discussing this issues with?"

"The citizens themselves, they'll help rewrite our constitution."

"So wait a minute, I came here all the way from Vauchel, just to join in your damn circlejerk, and how 'we all have a chance to shape history', and that nonsymetrical crap I've had enough of. So, we're finally going to have a break, praise the heavens for that mighty fine decision."

"Actually, Aubert, we're going to be holding a national town hall, in which people can ask questions via the internet's various platforms, including Imondo, and Vesper. Is that made clear?"

"Well, fine..."

"Alright, it appears that we all have one final issue left in our hands, and that's...income equality."

Richard was highly worried about the fact that income equality was the last issue put up, due to the fact that he is notorious for not revealing his secrets to a major influx in income wealth.

"Ah, the one issue Mr. Blabbermouth hasn't spoken up about. It's such a shame that something highly beneficial to the nation is being kept as if it were a deep dark secret. I mean come on, do you have anything against the regions? I mean, it's nothing surprising that Urellans make one third of what the poorest citizen makes in Telino, and that Urellan makes around 90,000 Periodens, mind you. So, why don't you want to reveal your money making secrets?"

"Well, Giorgio, I-"

"Doesn't matter, Richard. We'll let you answer the citizens on that topic, come next week. Anyways, you honestly don't want to see me in my zone. Submit these topics to the Internet-majiggy, whatever it's called. See you all on the television, friends."

Giorgio begins to stand up from his chair, and starts to walk outside of the conference room, by pushing open the door with his cane. Everyone in the conference room looks at Richard with high suspicion, and place all of their papers relating to income equality above his, with only Richard himself not placing a paper over that file.

"Well, something I intended to keep only in Penedès is going to spread like wildfire."

Richard throws his briefcase, and runs his fingers through his hair in an act of desperation.

"Fuck."

---

Yttribian goalscorers - G. Mynatt, 11', T. Hyme 26', 39', M. Fairclough '61, V. School, 90+1

Formation for Next Match

[Annar]

At least they hadn't angered the psychotic team-executing leader-worshiping madmen. Or whatever you were supposed to call them if you were being diplomatic. The tie would hopefully be okay. Hopefully they wouldn't come for revenge. Vimes had enough to worry about. The Rincewind-bot, which had been dangerous, had been labeled. The label had said "Prototype, dangerously unlethal" [i]Dangerously UN-lethal[!/i] This was really not good.

He had seen another shadowy figure. This one had actually got a shot off before Vimes took it down. Well, nearly before. He had knocked it off target. It didn't make sense. Someone smart enough to make these shouldn't be hindered by something as simple as one alert person. The facts were there, but they were stupid. As that pompous idiot Sherlock Holmes would, "The game was afoot." Holmes was stupid, too.

[Kinitaria]

Talking Tactics
The fans' tactics blog

What's going on with our defence? Not to engage in too much hyperbole, but a team of our calibre should see leaking five goals at home as a national disaster. The game against the Northern Sunrise Islands was a disgrace, and the team have been rightly slated from all corners for such a blindingly inept performance. That game was bad enough in and of itself, but to follow that up by going to Lymantatia and shipping four means that the team are rightfully deserving of the scorn that has been heaped upon them in recent days.

What, then, is the problem? Our tactics aren't radically different to those employed in the 67 cycle with stunning results, but it's the players that have changed, and more specifically, the defence has a whole new look to it. The retirements of Karl Sala and Doran Lupei forced Melody Pond's hand, especially given that she was left without a single right-back in the squad, and she's been forced to go looking for replacements for the defensive line that have served the nation well for the best part of two decades.

No-one can doubt that Birka Sulemcev and, in particular, Tondro Shildir have been impressive in their own right in the Premier Division, but one could question whether they were ready for the step up to international football so soon. Of course, it is difficult to suggest an alternative. Fans were wholly in favour of Shildir getting a chance to show himself at international level. Some wanted him to be thrown into the AOCAF team, but at that point, it looked as though Melody wanted to give the last remnants of the old guard the chance for one last hurrah before they retired in dignity. This particular plan got us a commendable finish in the regional championships, but in hindsight, it's easy to question the logic of Melody in not testing out the players she wanted to take us through to the World Cup. I'm sure the fans would rather have another finals appearance than a half-decent run in a competition we were never likely to win.

It might also be worth considering the fact that our tactics haven't changed a lot. It could be the case that other teams have simply started to figure out what works against the Kinitar defence. The defence has, for a long time, been seen as the weakest area of the side. Even when we've looked good, such as when we went on a run of one loss in some 22 competitive games around the time of the ultimately unsuccessful 64 and 65 qualifiers, it was the defence - then composed entirely of the 'old guard' - that let us down as we crashed to defeat in the playoffs.

Is there something in Kinitar football culture that prevents us from producing defenders of the highest calibre? Tofiq Yurovič, the first manager of the Kinitar national team, was known to employ a defensive 5-3-2 when he was the boss at Tirinthea, at a time when most of the rest of the league was looking to produce exciting, attacking football. Upon ascending to the national team's hotseat, he adopted an attacking diamond 4-4-2 that was very unconventional by his own standards, but fit in with what the fans wanted of their team. It was also what the country's top players were used to, and players like Luka Sabčot and Lupan Mihalcič were able to fit into that system with ease, being so used to playing with that style at their domestic clubs. Sure enough, we played some incredible attacking football and it wasn't that unusual to see us score seven or more on occasion. That spark seems to still be with us, as we steamrollered Ratastan 5-0 in our first game of this cycle.

We can see that the attacking impetus we've enjoyed over the past few years has not left us. Our attacking players are, in my opinion, some of the most exciting to watch anywhere in the world. We're still creating plenty of chances up front - Limcič scored a stunner against Lymantatia, for example, and our second against NSI came from some wonderful, free-flowing team play after at least 20 passes. The deficiency is clearly at the other end of the field, then? Not necessarily - Vacarestič and Halil on the wings (in particular, though other players are often guilty of this too) have been noticed straying too far forward on several occasions, leaving us vulnerable on the counter-attack. This is a particular problem where Vacarestič is concerned, not least because he's 36, is playing in his last ever major tournament, and has completely lost the lightning pace that saw him terrorise opposing defences when he was in his prime.

But, whatever we say about Vacarestič, at least he's still got a goal or two in him. At least he can still charge at an opposing defence, he still has his tactical awareness, and he can still ping in goals from anywhere in the final third. He's not a defensive player, and he's not brought into the team and expected to be given a defensive responsibility. You cannot blame the forward line for events such as the one leading to NSI's fourth goal, when Shildir charged out of position to deal with a dangerous ball upfield. As a full-back, if you commit to the ball like that, you have to be winning it every time. If you miss the ball, at least take the man with you. That's been standard practice for years. He ended up missing both, and giving the NSI winger a free run on goal, which he accepted without hesitating.

Although it might seem like I'm giving Shildir a lot of stick in this post, that's not my intention. I'm trying to highlight the failings of the entire defensive line, of which he is a particularly egregious contributor. That doesn't mean that the others can get off scot-free, though. Sulemcev seems to struggle to hold the line, and was playing two Lymantatia forwards onside by himself on at least two occasions. Of course, they scored both times. It's also a bit hypocritical of Melody, having frozen Ciprian Marin out of the first team for so long, to now throw him in and expect him to organise the defence, which is tantamount to reassuring him that he's undroppable. He's been a consistently solid performer for club and country for years now, it's hard to deny that, but he doesn't have the captain's influence that Doran Lupei had previously, or even Yulian Kovačev before him. He doesn't project a personality in the way you would want a leader to. He doesn't have enough charisma. I wouldn't be particularly inspired if I had to look to Marin for motivation, even if I would expect him to clatter an opponent when necessary.

The last line of defence has also been a source of concern to us. It's hard to pin a lot of blame on Alčer, because he's often been left helpless by the four in front of him, but at the same time, we are beginning to see the legacy of our goalkeeping policy. Jaren Kozak, before he retired from international football earlier this year, was undroppable. Rightly so, too, as he was by far the best we had to offer. However, Pond seemed to stubbornly resist rotating him out, even in friendlies or dead-rubber games, and so Kozak picked up some four caps through eight years of being in the squad. It means that now, when we need to look to him to perform, he's not used to the rigours of international football. He had very little to do against Ratastan, but was put under a lot of pressure by NSI and seemed very shaky when trying to command his area. The NSI forwards noticed that very quickly, and adapted their strategy to give Alčer very little time to do anything.

So what do we do about it? I see it as being a simple case of giving Melody time to sort out her squad. Let's not forget, this is the woman who took us to our only ever World Cup finals. It won't do her or the team any good if the fans start to turn after two bad games. We've had much worse in the past - look to the 6-2 defeat against Sargossa, or two 0-0 draws against then-unranked Zwangzug. I personally trust that she knows what she's doing, and that she can turn it around in time to mount a serious challenge for a second consecutive qualification.

But, we also have to trust that this bad run doesn't go on much longer. We've seen in the past how easy it is to knock the confidence of this bunch of players. For all that we might say that multi-millionaires should have stronger countenances, the truth is that it doesn't make much difference if you're performing badly on a regular basis and being abused by the fans for it. The Kinitar Football Federation are not known for their patience, and if Melody delivers an abject qualifying campaign, she will be faced with having to explain herself to the higher ups.

[Kinzar]

We scored 7 goals? We scored 7 goals.

By Kevin Gallant

Wow. So, how about that for all of you people out there who say soccer is boring because there is no goal scoring? Unfortunately, there were only 33,551 people in the stands at Hudson Stadium for the contest against Neuereland, but hopefully when word gets out about this score, that will chance a little bit. That score was not a misprint, the Wildcats did indeed score seven goals in this franchise, setting a new national record, and maybe we can consider this another step forward for Wildcat soccer. It was a lowly nation in which we were able to trounce, and it was one less goal then scored by groupmate Glaser on the day, but this is a remarkable accomplishment, and best of all, the team didn’t do it by drawing penalty kicks due to diving. (The one penalty kick in which they converted was very much legitimately given).

It all started in the games 2nd minute, when a long ball (in other words, this would be like a 50, 60-yard pass play in gridiron), from Eddie Dancer hit Chris Shannon in perfect stride, and through great individual footwork (in other words, think of it like he evaded about six would be tacklers if he were a running back), he got through the defense, and fired it by the goalkeeper, who should be glad that no one knows his name. After all, the Wildcats made him look foolish all game long, and even converted in the games 9th and 15th minutes (another by Shannon, and one by Ross Kincaide), to put Kinzar up 3-0. The fans couldn’t believe their eyes, but any excitement was short-lived as Neuereland cut the lead to 3-2 by halftime. Whatever was said during the break allowed Kinzar to find their swagger again, and they scored three quick goals again, in the 51st, 56th, and 59th minutes (Shannon’s 3rd, Kincaid’s 2nd, and Zarius Floria scoring), to take control of the match and they never let up. This seemed destined to be the final score until a late penalty kick was awarded to substitute Michael Northcutt in the 86th minute, and he converted beautifully to get the extra point and give Kinzar a win, 7-2.

Seven goals, by your Wildcats. These kind of results are not as rare as they may seem to be, it’s just those in the media who want to put down this great game everytime they have a chance want you to think that games always end 0-0, or if you are very lucky, maybe 1-0 or 2-1. That is not the case, and as I alluded to, you even had Glaser score 8 goals last night. Furthermore, we saw 10 goals scored by Nouvel Ecosse last night. Throughout the scores, you see 6's and 7's in various locations, but even many 3's and 4's. They do score goals in soccer, so if you love this sport as much as I do, or even almost as much as I do, tell these talking heads in the Kinzite media to take their criticism of soccer for no goals being scored, and shove it up (where the sun doesn’t shine).

[Eura]

OOC: A few months before the Askoy Airliner Crisis, the Euran authorities had captured the former Mytanar dictator Natella Kalinina alive in rather fortuitous circumstances. The Sargossan government was outraged. The Mytanars delighted. The Euran's suspiciously quiet about it all. So let us travel back two years in time, like I've been doing for that crisis, and visit the final stage of the interrogation of Natella Kalinina.

'Its a remarkable room this, isn't it?' Natella was awoken from her slumber by a man in a suit; the interrogator again? Yes...no. It was a different man. He was older. Didn't wear sunglasses. He continued to address her as he knelt in front of her while she lay on the floor. The easily opened isolation unit had been disposed of while she was knocked out, which allowed him to lift up a strain of her hair and inspect it. Her once beautiful blonde locks were beginning to fade, frayed and straggly. 'This room cost a lot of money to build for the Ministry of Intelligence when it was commissioned about a decade ago. Originally it was going to be a specialist facility for training individuals to resist interrogation and mental torture. Too many recruits suffered permanent damage for it to continue in its original role, and now its my own little funhouse.' He got up, and clicked his fingers. 'Get up, girl.' She didn't respond, simply staring off into the distance. 'I said get up.' She spat desperately towards his shoe, not getting anywhere close to hitting it but sending the message she intended regardless. 'Oh, I see how it is.'

The mysterious man sent unbelievable pain through her arm as he smashed his previously innocent looking office shoes down on her wrist, smashing the carpal bones on either side and breaking it instantly. She tried not to scream, instead letting out a suppressed wheeze that sounded like a balloon being inflated rapidly. 'Do you want to get up now? Get up and you'll have morphine within fifteen seconds. Don't get up and you will never be given treatment during captivity for that wrist.' In her time here, Natella had learned that occasionally she did better for herself if she let these bastards have some small victories. She gave an inch, which wasn't something she was used to. Natella dragged herself to her feet, and almost immediately two medics swept up behind her and injected morphine into her right arm without resistance before strapping a highly advanced cast around it. The new interrogator had clearly planned to do in this particular bit of her anatomy. It was planned, vicious, cunning, and incredibly brutal...just the sort of traits she would usually admire. Not today though.

'Do you know who I am, by any chance? Recognise me.' Finally Natella allowed herself to speak. 'No. Euran shit stain serial number four million or something, what do I care?''
'A worthy guess, but incorrect I'm afraid. I'm referred to around here as the Chairman.'
'What?'
'The Chairman, of the Office of State Intelligence. This is my facility. The interrogator who kept you company for the past few weeks is my employee.' Natella was shocked. Had she really been here for weeks? 'Really? So he was as useless as I told him he was.'
'No, he did a lovely job.' The Chairman nodded to his assistant, who played an audio recording using a touchpad device.

'MYTANNION IS DEAD, NO, FUCKING NO, MYTANNION IS DEAD! IT'S ALL DEAD! It's all...it's all...' *Thump*

...

'Sir, subject is out.'
'Out?'
'Passed out sir.'

'Sounds like you're losing the plot, Natella.' Her face turned red, but she wouldn't be letting herself get wound up again. In the last week since that recording (the Chairman's planned interrogation, which she did not know about of course, was delayed) she had been broken down further. Natella had given up. She still didn't give a fuck about what they thought of her, or what they did with her now. But she had forfeited the energy which usually defined how she acted. She was sapped of her youthful, fearsome approach to the world. She just wanted to drift through the events going around her and hope someone put a bullet in her soon. Her fear, though she would never admit it or think it consciously, was that she was going to realise just how final her defeat had been before she could die. She had been having dreams of what could of been - of that bitch Elita losing it and shooting her in the hotel room. Or even better, of the capture event failing miserably. There had been a few fantasies where the two bastards got gunned down in the lobby.

'I'm not losing the plot. I'm...fine.'
'You hesitated.'
'Sorry, I was distracted by your foul fucking existence. Fuck off.' The Chairman simply laughed as they stood facing each other. She hadn't noticed it, but the two doctors and the assistant had seemingly faded away. She wasn't hallucinating, surely? Natella would have killed to wake up from a bad nightmare at this stage. 'Look Natella, I am not here to tease you like my subordinate. I'm here to educate you about what happens next.'
'You fuck off?'
'No. You're going on trial.'

She seemed to freeze in the spot like a rabbit in the headlights on a highway. Natella had feared this, but she didn't actually think the Euran's would give the savages who judged her badly a chance to big themselves up in public. In shock and pain, all she could muster was one word in response. 'What?'
'A trial. You will be going before a preliminary hearing in front of Euran military officials very soon. They will be deciding, amongst other things, how your trial will be conducted, by whom, and under what laws. All avenues of action are under consideration. The only two things I know for sure are that the trial will happen, and that you will not win.'
'I...i...'
'You what?'
'I...good. Good. Its about time. My achievements deserve celebrating.'
'Yes, yes dear, you tell yourself that. The trial will most likely be conducted in Bastion rather than your homeland. It seems they've gotten over you already.'
'Fuck you. The traitors will never forget me.'

The Chairman chuckled to himself and shook his head. 'Well to be honest, rather a lot of them died in their war of liberation. The rest just...well, they just don't really care about you any more Natella. You were a bad dream. They know for a fact that you'd rather see the nation die than your regime fall, as do I. Unfortunately for you, they're determined to prove you wrong.' Natella decided not to respond to this infuriating comment. It was something the Euran's had chucked out in every "interview" so far. She would never believe it. Mytannion is dead, she told herself. No more. Kaput. 'I expect they will send a representative though, Natella. A token gesture. The actual trial won't take place for a while yet. The evidence is still being collated properly and will be presented with maximum accuracy.'
'Why do you think I care?'
'I don't think you care, I know you care.'
'No I don't. You have done all you can really do to me. What is there to be insecure about? I think I know. I think the motherland is going to shit. And I don't believe what you say. There is no way you can manage it, and I'll find out the truth.' The Chairman simply smiled and turned to leave. 'Let me assure you of something Natella; you won't be finding out anything from the outside world. And your motherland is doing just fine.'

As the Chairman left the chamber, he sighed and returned to the analysis room with the one way observation window. The room was empty, as he had requested that it be vacated before he went in there after the interrogation. The Chairman knew that all that mattered was that Natella believed Mytannion was in a good state, and that would be easy as she would be denied access to the outside world or news of it. No bullet in Zweig's head, no instability. But in reality it seemed that the only thing going right there after a few years was the football. He'd been thinking about this all day, and the evidence of that was laid all out over the table. Pictures from Euran military intelligence and various media outlets from across the country, labelled by his analysts with insight. The Chairman wasn't particularly upset by what he saw.

What worried him is that his successor might be - because the man in question had a weakness for the west Rushmori shithole. The Euran military was playing a holding role, its substantial peacekeeping force carrying out limited infrastructure reconstruction while preserving the government by its very presence. But as the months and now years had gone by, more and more "hot" incidents had occured. Men were getting killed, and they were not allowed to fire back. They'd have to leave at some point, and there would be little that the Chairman or his successor could do for Esca's unstable government and ramshackle military. If Doyley was going to succeed, he could not allow Eura to be dragged into the Mytanar quagmire any further. He had to get over it as soon as he had returned from a short trip that the Chairman had allowed him to take, to say goodbye to the country, and that damned woman.

One particular photo, with one particular note jotted down on the back of the print, had caught the Chairman's attention and summed up the battle the Euran government had faced in justifying the perceived abandonment of Mytannion once Zweig was dead.

Happy holidays in motherfucking Mytannion. Disabled Peoples Army tank after Esksoborsk or w/e they call it. Sad kids. Told the editor of Emplor to cut that shit out.

[German American States]

Eagles Roll Against Landpolis

KALTSTADT- Die Adlerschaft picked up another win against unproven competition, beating Landpolis 3-0 at Kalstadt Arena.

The game was the third for the Eagles, coming off of their loss against the monks of the Dreamed Realm. They hoped to bounce back against another new and relatively unskilled squad, this time coming in the form of Landpolis. Another great tifo put on by Die Schwarzarmee put a great energy into the small stadium, and the German Americans hoped to put on a show.

Throughout most of the first half and the entire match, Die Adlerschaft played a throwback style to their play in World Cup 66. They slowed down the pace of the game and played with incredible patience, passing circles around the confused Landpolis defense. The States struck for the first time in the 30th, as Hans Wippenbeck made a nice run down the wing, cutting inside down the end line, and dishing out a nice cross on the ground to Konrad Meisenhal, who beat the keeper on the right side to get the Eagles up. In the 39th, Gunnar Baumgartner made a nice upfield tackle. The ball fell to Erik Rogalski, who curved a shot from the penalty spot around the keeper for the second goal.

Going into half, the States were showing their dominance over their relatively weak opponents. They decided to make some subs(Off:Krohn, On: Tremmel, Off: Meisenhal, On: Wakefeld) going into the second half. The Eagles kept their old ways again, with the patient play. In the 67th, the Eagles made another blistering attack as Wakefeld had a nice tackle to set up a 2-on-1 breakaway just at the opposing third. As the lone defender made a move on Wakefeld, he dished it off to Tremmel, who made a cut inside and lofted one into the top netting to put the icing on the cake.

Let's take a look at the tables:

Group 20
German American States 3–0 Landpolis
Chiata 2–2 The Archregimancy
Kinzar 7–2 Neuereland
Glaser 8–2 Perlasilangan

  Group 20                         Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Chiata                             3    2   1   0     9    4   +5     7
2 German American States             3    2   0   1     9    6   +3     6
3 Glaser                             3    1   2   0    11    5   +6     5
4 The Archregimancy                  3    1   2   0     8    4   +4     5
5 Kinzar                             3    1   1   1     8    4   +4     4
6 Perlasilangan                      3    1   0   2     5   12   −7     3
7 Landpolis                          3    0   2   1     2    5   −3     2
8 Neuereland                         3    0   0   3     2   14  −12     0

The top is still pretty tight at the moment, so the States will look for some separation in the next matchday.

[Legalese]

This is the understated cutoff for Qualifying Matchday Four. Thank you for your patience, scores will be along shortly.

[Audioslavia]

From Audioslavia to Yttribia We ran out of Z teams already
The Runners and Riders from World Cup 68
Part Four

You can imagine the scene: The research department of whatever company makes those snazzy cards and stickers every time a World Cup rolls around. They've lined up the photos for all the teams, now they just need to put down the numbers.
"This can't be right" says one of them, frowning at a monitor screen. "Says here that Paradystopia have never qualified for the World Cup.
"Course they have" replied another, through a mouthful of weak camomile tea. "Look again"
The first speaker is right, though. Paradystopia are one of a handful of World Cup 68's applicants who are well known enough for any prospective opponent to cringe at the thought of having them in their group, but who have never actually made it to the big show themselves.

The above scenario is, at best, completely unrealistic of course. As anyone who's ever dabbled with sticker collecting in the run up to the World Cup can tell you, the information on them adheres to a very fickle definition of the word 'accurate' - not that this writer can talk, of course, having previously stated that the Rushmori nation of Zenic was situated in Esportiva - aplogies about that by the way. We have also, previously, referred to Jeruselem as the 'odd-balls' of the World Cup. While they certainly adopt a 'don't ask, don't tell' policy regarding reality and all its various idiosyncracies like 'footballers wear clothes' and 'maybe high heels and DD cup breasts aren't too conducive to athletic prowess', they are nothing compared to Paradystopia in the bonkers department.

This very department (full title: Paradystopi Department for the Advancement of Bonkers Behaviour and Horseradish Surveillance Technique Reasearch Department, or 'PDABBHSTRD', which is coincidentally a swearword in Kjeligsted) has recently ordered a range of new kits for the national team from Audioslavian kit suppliers Kirola, with no less than forty-seven instances of the phrase 'all work and no play make jack a dull boy' scrawled on each sleevve. When Wight left this reality one suspected there would be a gaping hole in the surrealist departent. Paradystopia were on hand to fill that hole with blancmange. And then re-purpose that department as the Paradystopi Department for the Advancement of Bonkers Behaviour and Horseradish Surveillance Technique Research Department (North East).

As for the actual strength of the team, the pink-clad Paradystopi are, one suspects, a dead cert for a playoff place, though whether they can traverse the hellish two-tier playoff system and reach their first World Cup finals is anyone's guess.

The Royal Barangay may not exactly be a familiar enough name to be included in this category, but the Sangti team that were rebranded in their favour certainly were, despite having only been around since cycle sixty-five themselves. The TRB team, traditionally clad in a cascade of yellows and blacks of the more avant-garde Kirola selection, admittedly haven't really been close enough to qualifying for the Big Cup since their inception to warrant their lack of qualifications being a surprise, but the sheer amount of talent at the disposal of Barangayans makes them a formidable foe for all but the world's elite teams, and even your average Tern or Bull would think twice before taking the side lightly.

German American States are another side famed for their black and yellow outfits, or at least are now after having endured a full cycle in a rather garish Kirola number. The GAS team have barely been around long enough to truly claim to be more experienced than the likes of The Royal Barangay, but anyone who witnessed their audacious attempt to qualify for World Cup 66 at the expense of Starblaydia - a feat they were achingly close to completing despite their junior status in world football, will tell you that buried in the wiring of Der Maschine is a startlingly advanced prototype for the future of football.

"Advanced prototype for the future of football" is a title one would bestow on Maklohi Vai only if one had spent the previous thirty years living in, say, a cave in the antarctic with no means of contact with any civilisation more advanced than a penguin. The Vaians, when they aren't canoeing or fishing or doing that scary war dance, are a football team that defies logic. They had started off as the whipping boys of the World Cup, managing fourteen games without a win in qualifying and another four in the Cup of Harmony. They were 'supposed' to stay on the same lines, but the team had other ideas. While lacking the intense training regime of the German American States or the vast population pool of the Paradystopi, they did have, at any given time, at least eleven tall, broad shouldered and athletic footballers all with a keen grasp of the game at international level. Maklohi Vai have grown from their modest beginnings into a team that, like the aforementioned GAS team, have an air of future world champions about them. A successful run in World Cup 68 would be the first step on that journey, and a first step towards slapping in the chops some of the dumber members of the Audioslavian press who would use tired south-islander stereotypes to describe a team, and culture, that in many ways knocks our own into a cocked hat. Well, maybe not the team, but time will tell on that count..

It's supposed to be the 'World' Cup, but detractors, those more interested in general or international incidents might well argue that, well, only three continents really go in for the so-called 'World' Cup, and only a handful of participants outside of Atlantian Oceania, Rushmore and Esportiva are even registered, let alone competitive. It is, of course, much easier for a member of the 'big three' regions to be successful in the World Cup. The regional tournaments are fine breeding grounds for competitive football and there is an infrastructure there, in terms of international travel, freedom of transfers and club competition, that keeps the wheels of the World Cup cycle turning.

Nevertheless, there are plenty of nations from outwith the main regions that thrive on the national scene, and while the more famous and successful - Aguazul, Liventia, The Holy Empire, Archregimancy, Zwangzug and the like - are either no longer involved in the tournament or lying in wait to be covered in future articles, here are four teams that are more than capable of bucking the trend of the three-region domination of the World Cup and qualify, and maybe even, in the future, establish themselves as contenders for the title itself.

Saintland is as good a place as any to start. Keen proponents of the 'World Changers' region, it is rumoured that they were partly responsible for bringing the World Cup, or at least half of it, to the shores of the Free Republic next summer. The side had a really rather impressive debut tournament back in cycle 64, have since qualified for the tournament on one occasion, and will be a good bet for a spot in the knockout stages come June. Barunia, too, were first-time qualifiers recently, and the sky-blue Suns have ambitions far beyond their modest first-round exit from World Cup 67.

Of the above four, Mizuyuki are perhaps the most impressive of the newer teaams, having managed a fantastic record of two qualifications from four tournaments so far. The exotic easterners from the Aurora region, easily identifiable by their vibrant colours and commendable adherence to pretty, attacking football, have as much claim to the future of world football as any of the aforementioned teams, and even aside from their unmissable kits will be a team one does not want to miss out on seeing in the summer.

Super-Llamaland, by contrast, have hardly set the world alight since a failed attempt to make it to Astograth and Carpathia/Ruthenia back in cycle 62 marked their first foray into world football. The team, dubbed the 'Tigers' despite quite [i]obviously[/b] being llamas, and particularly cumbersome ones at that, lack the talent pool of the Mizuyukis and Saintlands of the world, but a world ranking of just outside the top fifty has been hard-earned, and a spot in at least the playoffs is more than an achievable goal for the side. Though few teams will be dreading the prospect of a playoff against the 'Tigers', even fewer will find themselve coasting past an occasionally creative, and always watchable, Tiger/Llama side.