WC 82 RP Thread

[Geektopia]

The match day ends with what some football fans would say as a lackluster tie

SUMMARY

The Geeks managed to create very few, if any, clear-cut opportunities even if the Newions were often forced to defend in numbers, and a goalless draw against the Motherboards will certainly have gone some way to silencing their critics and given the Newions a vital boost in morale before the Round of 70.

[Busoga Islands]

The Busoga Chronicle
The Islands #1 News Source!

A 10-man Islander squad start qualification strong with 4-3 thrilling away victory over Nottinhaps


Players celebrate Mohan Thakshak's late game winning goal

NOTTINHAPS- The Busoga Islands national team has a simple message for the world, one that is meant to unify the nation, and one that is meant to be the theme of this qualification tournament- respect. What does that mean? Respect for the Islands, respect for a small country, respect for these players as individuals. These Islands comprise a small nation, an island nation of around 5.5 million people, surrounded by much bigger powers in the name of Banija, Valanora, and the Equestrian States, just to name a few. The latter nation, of course, is their closest ally and the ties between the two nations run deep.

Why, of course, is respect the theme of this qualification tournament? Well, as they say, words matter, and even if it's the words of one journalist, or even the words of a journalist from one country at-large. These were written at SavojarSports.sj, a line that caught fire and caused all sorts of controversy. They referred to this nation as "a poor man's Banija". That comment, of course, set off a number of players, politicians, and whatever else. Fara Turay, who plays for the Fillydelphia Union in the Equestrian States, got very heated speaking about it in a pre-game press conference. "A comment like that is plain disrespectful." She said. "That reporter, and that whole nation's media, doesn't know the history of this nation- the way people suffered, the way that we were striving for our independence and national dignity, and the way that we have seperated ourselves. We have nothing harbored against the Banijans- but we are not a poor man's anybody. We are not Banijan. We are Busogan, first, and firemost, and most importantly, only." That, of course, was a similar message delivered by the rest of the team- though those who played for Banijan clubs, of course, like Delbin Kasekende, were less intense in their criticism of the comments.

Still, the manager, Starfire, said that it was certainly something she would use to motivate her players. "When you're playing high-level professional sports, the idea of respect is something that is extremely important. Players demand respect- from fans, from each other, and almost above all else. That's why they strive so hard- they want to be respected, and earned. That is so important in this business, and you aren't respected as a professional athlete, by your peers and the wider world, your career will be ending fairly quickly. But when you put on the idea of an international being disrespected, of an entire country being hit- well, that's a powder keg. Players in this sport take incredible pride in playing for their country- as they should. And especially when you're from a smaller country, fairly new to the international stage, comments like that could be seen as insulting."

And, of course, while they wouldn't say, you would certainly bet this is locker room material. Even a glimpse of the locker room that our photographer had saw the word "poor" written in big, large letters across a wall. Though, of course, it could be anything, as we in the media don't have that kind of locker room access to know for sure what was written, and why it was written. Regardless, that was on their minds when they came out to Nottinhaps for their World Cup Qualification campaign opening match.

A couple of major changes from their last AOCAF roster, the primary of those being Ousman Babaja playing in the front. WOuld he fit? A poor match in their lone World Cup warmup, away to Devonta, saw the offense perform but the defense struggle badly in a 5-3 loss away from home. Nottinhaps knew that the Islander defense was prone to struggling, and Kasekende, while an excellent player, is certainly not getting any younger, still wearing the number one jersey at age 37. He's played a lot of extra games for Herzegovina City FC on the continent, and certainly has the most air miles of any player on this team.

The home side went up 1-0 early, when Mohan Thakshak, maybe nervous in his competitive debut for his country, had an awful passback that gave Nottinhaps almost a free opportunity in front of goal, one that any striker in this qualification would have had to hit. A 1-0 lead for the hosts after just 8 minutes, gunning for the upset, saw their home crowd go absolutely nuts, and the Islander drums, up in the upper hand corner, stay silent. The travelling Islander Army would soon have a lot to cheer about though. Fara Turay, the team's #10, was set to go to work. For the next 15 minutes, she was absolutely the best player on the pitch. Pulling the strings on offense, distributing the ball well, creating quality opportunities for her teammates. Babaja himself skied a sitter from the 6, the nerves of a competitive international debut probably getting to him as well.

In the 23rd minute, however, the Busoga Islands finally broke down the door. Ikshu Amitabh, the team's #9, even if most agree Babaja is the better striker of the pair, has already played for this team, at AOCAF LVII. He had a chance to strike from about 10-12 yards out, and did not miss, drilling the ball into the upper corner to tie the game at 1, and put the Busoga Islands back on level terms. From that point forward, the offense, gaining confidence, was playing well. Babaja, on a header, beat the goalkeeper on a header to the near post but hit the crossbar in the 27th minute, and Turay herself forced a diving save from the opposing goalkeeper in the 32nd minute. They were building seemingly towards another goal, in a bid to take the lead.

In the 38th minute though, everything went wrong. Nottinhaps, with the Busoga Islands pushing, had the opportunity to open up the Islanders for a counter-attack, and boy, they came down the field with lightning speed. Upanshu Paramartha was coming back, chasing, trying desperately to get back as his team was opposed. The speedy midfielder was seemingly flying down the back line, and they played a cross inside. He slid, recklessly, to stop the Nottinhaps striker from getting the ball. Except, of course, he missed the ball- he got all body. Though it was right on the edge of the box- a clear goal scoring opportunity for a player who was free. Paramartha was then shown red, and with relatively no complaints- it was expected for a foul like that. While originally called a free kick from 19 yards out, after upon calling the Video Assistant Referee, it was determined that contact was initiated inside the box, and the free kick was changed to a penalty. The penalty was converted on a cheeky chip by the Nottinhaps striker who was fouled, and they led once again, 2-1. This score would go into halftime.

The Busoga Islands were the more talented side, and had the better of the possession- 62% possession for the away side. And yet, it was the Islands who were down one goal, and had to play the rest of the match with 10 men. This was, of course, where individuals on the team had to step up, to play the games of their lives, to be able to avoid the upset and get at least one point away from home. Berihu Abeselome, the right back, played nearly the game of his life. WIth the midfielder ahead of him the one sent off, he was the one who bore the brunt of the responsibility. Now playing a slightly wingback position, and them playing more of a hybrid three back line, Abeselome was flying up and down the sideline. Flying up to help in the attack, and flying back for defense. He got awarded the Man of the Match performance by us for all the mileage that he ran. He even, so exhausted after the match, just fell into a heap on the pitch as soon as the final whistle was heard.

But of course, in this second half, where were the goals? In the 51st minute, a beautiful cross from Abeselome was delivered almost perfectly to the feet of Babaja, who was running around the penalty spot. A brilliant volley for the Lakiska SC striker made the score level once again, and he ran to celebrate with the coach. Abeselome, once again, was at the center of the next goal. Being simply in the zone, he was able to dribble past one player with a spin move, and sent a through ball to Babaja. Babaja then hit the ball across the face of goal, and Jarju tapped the ball into an empty net to give the Islanders their first lead of the game, 3-2, in the 67th minute.

The game, of course, was not over. Starfire was always going to manage this game well, and it was at that point she used two of her substitutions. Utpal Ishan entering for an exhausted Fara Turay, and Mutsuhito Barbarossa, the veteran left midfielder, entering the pitch for the much younger Madhav Oojam- a player who is 10 years his junior. This, of course, for the long slog she knew was ahead- a weak defensive side getting fresh legs, to try and hold onto the lead. However, they could not. In the 79th minute, the dam finally broke, when a Nottinhaps striker rose above the crowd in the box on a corner kick, and headed the ball past Kasekende to tie the game at 3. As they celebrated, the Islanders did not panic- a sign, of course, of a well coached side.

They were always going to push for the go-ahead goal, even if it left them exposed in the back. It almost all went wrong in the 84th minute, when a Nottinhaps seemingly broke behind the Banijan line on a counter-attack, and chipped a shot over the head of Kasekende into the back of the net. However, luckily for the Islanders, the assistant referee's flag was raised high into the air- an offsides call. And it was called correctly, even if just by a step. Other than that, however, it was the Busoga Islands doing most of the threatening. And in the 2nd minute of stoppage time, when 5 minute was added, the moment came.

A corner kick was swung in by Abeselome(who else?), and it was Mohan Thakshak who rose up to meet the cross. Thakshak rose up into the air, met the cross, and gave it a powerful header- which went striaght towards the back of the net. Their goalkeeper had no chance. And the celebrations were jubilant. Starfire jumping into the air, high like only a Pegasus can. The stadium going largely silent, except for the 5,000 strong contingent of Islander fans who were losing their minds. They, of course, held on for the final moments, and they celebrated their stunning victory.

Starfire, naturally, gave all the credit to the players. "This was a fun game, a thrilling one, and a draining one- we deservedly came out ahead. Our players played with heart and passion, and credit goes to all of them on the pitch, especiall Abeselome. He played a game on another level today- if we want to reach our goals, we need players like him playing at an extremely high level. He, of course, is going to need an ice bath. While you never want to go down to 10 men in a match, this was a wakeup call for our squad. It allowed us to come together- to trust one another, to overcome adversity not individually, but as a unit. As they say, in a team, you need a 'one falls down, two pick them up' attitude, and that is what happened. I'm very pleased with the performance today."

What a match. Their next one will be their home opener, a match against Ashaie, who is ranked 356th and lost their opening match, 6-2, to an excellent Valladares squad. The Islanders will be favorites. Of course, the match circled on calendars, and the one everyone is looking forward to, are when Savojarna roll into the Islands on Matchday 4- with what will now be a massively important match, thanks to a few simple words from their journalists.

[Mytanija]

Team to play Mattijana: Kasun; Vukovic, Anac, Apostolov, Isaev (C); Brkljacic, Vukomanovic; Vlahovic, J. Odonelec, Kalinic; Zekic.

Substitutes from: Muminovic, P. Odonelec, Zupan, Todorov, Pogaenik, Gavrilovic, Derajevic.

Tactical notes: Repin goes with a 4-2-3-1 with two defensive midfielders to try and spoil the opposition offensive output away from home. There's a surprising recall for Zekic, with his physical presence and experience believed to be necessary in the lone striker role. The presence of Derajevic on the bench gives a different, although entirely more volatile option off the bench. Todorov and Pogaenik allow a potential tactical switch to the more familiar 4-3-1-2 if necessary.

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RADNIKA ROCKS AS THE HOOPS GET ON THEIR WAY!
OCOKOLJIC BRACE AND ODONELEC’S FINISH AFTER GREAT PASSING MOVE POINT TOWARDS A BRIGHT FUTURE

by Nevenka Planinc

MYTANIJA 3-0 VELESTRIA (at Radnika, Esca; attendance 60,000)
MYT: Ocokoljic 13’, 24’; Odonelec 64’

MYT: Kasun; Vukovic, Anac, Obadko, Isaev (C); Fejzuli, Hrdaljko (sub. Kupresak 60’); Gavrilovic, Ocokoljic (sub. Zgela 45’), Odonelec, Kalinic (sub. Nikic 65’)
VLZ: Banker; Beaver, Avery (sub. Woodhil 76’), Borell; Sa’kiera, Singleson; Utamara, Thirdgray (sub. Iyyrivia 50’), Ingles; Goddard (C), Clark (sub. Davis 50’)

Mytanija opened their World Cup qualifying campaign with a comprehensive 3-0 win over Velestria at Radnika. A capacity crowd welcomed the teams and the atmosphere was noisy and the home fans got to see a vintage performance from the Hoops as they looked to set the tone for what will likely be a gruelling set of eighteen fixtures in what is arguably the tournament’s Group of Death, given the history of several of the top teams and the promise of some of the newcomers. The game was Lev Repin’s first competitive fixture and the new manager will have been very pleased to see how seriously the players took their assignment against lower-ranked opponents, but he also made a statement of intent with the team he named: Ocokoljic and Fejzuli were included, as well as the entirety of the first-choice defence and goalkeeper. This wasn’t a game Repin was going to take lightly.

There has been much talk about the 4-6-0 formation Repin has utilised in a couple of pre-qualifying friendlies and he wasn’t afraid to use it again here in the team’s opening qualifying game either, although the side he sent out actually looked like a 4-2-3-1 at first rather than Repin’s 4-6-0. Some absolutely hate the formation, believing it to be a gimmick and that the first time it comes up against talented and tactically adept opposition it will fall apart. Others believe it is innovative and that it suits the qualities of some of our better players, including – perhaps most importantly – Jezdimir Ocokoljic. Repin isn’t someone who listens to those opinions – on either side of the argument – and he made this clear before the game in a pre-match interview:

“Look, I’m not too fussed what you guys [the media] make of it, I’ve chosen to send the team out in this matter because me and the rest of the coaching staff have looked at the players we have and have looked at the opposition and we believe it’s the best way to beat the opponents that we will be playing. We want to see our players playing in a certain manner, pressing high up the pitch and winning the ball in the opponent’s half if possible and we believe this is the best way of doing that. We’ve used it in friendlies and it has worked to an extent, although not perfectly, but we’re learning and I believe we will start seeing the results we want to see as we get more comfortable with it.”

In terms of team selection, there were a couple of interesting decisions, Hrdaljko was preferred as opposed to a more defensive option alongside Tahir Fejzuli as part of the deep-lying duo of central midfielders. Hrdaljko is a very talented young midfielder and there remains questions as to what will be the best role for him as his career moves forward, such is his ability to fulfil various roles and we saw him in a new one here as he played as a double-pivot alongside Fejzuli who was given a little more licence to roam around the middle of the park to try and create openings ahead of him and drag opponents out of their defensive shape.

Brajko Gavrilovic was unexpectedly preferred to Dalibor Vlahovic, who has largely been the first-choice down that flank when a formation has been used in pre-qualifying friendlies. It is understood that Gavrilovic’s height and potential of a more direct approach was the reason he was preferred against Haroni Beaver instead of Vlahovic, who whilst talented is a different type of player.

Everybody was also excited to see Ocokoljic and Odonelec – so often on the same wavelength when used in the usual 4-3-1-2 – used together in this new-fangled formation Repin likes to use. Ocokoljic is known for being a trequartista and the 4-6-0 makes perfect use of his favoured role. He’s free to drop deep and exploit the space between the centre-halves and the central midfielders and Odonelec is a similar sort of player, although he does provide a nice contrast by being willing to bomb on and get beyond the last line of defence at times.

The general premise of the 4-6-0 formation is to confuse the opponent by putting their players in situations that would be considered unusual, e.g. centre-backs not having an orthodox striker to mark. This is achieved by replacing an orthodox striker or strikers with a pair of players who act as trequartistas or false nines. They have licence – and are encouraged – to drop deep to receive the ball, in the space between the opponent’s defensive line and midfield. When they drop deep it forces the opponent’s central defenders to make a decision as to whether they should follow them and leave a gaping hole in the middle of their defence; or if they should leave them and allow them a lot of space to receive the ball.

There will surely come a time when an opponent decides to just sit a pair of defensive midfielders to man-mark the duo Lev Repin employs in this role, but doing this could serve to hinder the opponent’s offensive output. Furthermore, the role of the wingers in Repin’s 4-6-0 cannot be understated, whenever Mytanija are in possession the wingers immediately look to make darting runs in behind the opponent’s defence, speedy diagonals from the sideline into the half-space behind the opponent’s defensive line, between their centre-backs and full-backs. The duo of false nines aren’t the only thing to watch out for in Repin’s system.

All of this is of course accompanied by a trademark high-press, where the Mytanar forwards (so both wingers and the duo playing as trequartistas/false nines), work in packs to try and force the opponent into an error so they can collect the ball high up the pitch and look to attack from there, nearer the opposition’s goal and further away from their own.

The Mytanar central midfield duo (against Velestria this was Fejzuli and Hrdaljko), join this high-press sometimes too, but at other times will be content to sit and engage with the opponent’s midfielders when they are in possession. When Mytanija are in possession, Fejzuli – as aforementioned – becomes almost a roaming playmaker, whilst Hrdaljko acts as an all-important double-pivot, contributing in both the offensive phase – as a deep-lying playmaker – and in the defensive phase as an enforcer, looking to break-up and fast-paced counter-attacks the opposition might make.

Velestria probably thought Mytanija were coming out in a 4-2-3-1, with Fejzuli and Hrdaljko playing as the two; Gavrilovic, Odonelec, Kalinic as the three and then Ocokoljic as a striker. This probably confused their defence from the very start and is one advantage of the 4-6-0 as it can leave teams wondering exactly what formation/system the Hoops are going to come out in. It will also allow quick changes in formation so that if an opponent is wise to one of the two systems, it doesn’t affect the way Mytanija play until a substitution is made, for example. It gives the team options out on the field.

The usage of Ocokoljic and Odonelec as trequartistas/false nines bore fruit throughout the game and Repin will have been pleased at how well the pair worked together, although he may well temper such thoughts with a recognition of the fact that Velestria’s formation was more-or-less made to be exploited by the 4-6-0. The usage of three defenders against four attackers gave the Hoops an advantage when in possession, although Velestria’s defensive midfield duo of Sa’kiera and Singleson did try their best to provide additional manpower to help their colleagues. But as soon as either Ocokoljic or Odonelec dropped deep and succeeded in drawing the away side’s sole centre-back, poor Viva Avery, out of position, the Hoops were able to exploit the space with incisive passing.

This was exactly how the opening goal came, with Odonelec dropping deep after Hrdaljko had won possession from Utamara in the centre of the park. This movement spooked Avery as Hrdaljko could have immediately played a pass into Odonelec’s feet. Ocokoljic already occupied a position in between Velestria’s back-line and midfield and didn’t seem to be overly dangerous and it was this that probably made Avery believe she could go with Odonelec. Hrdaljko was intelligent though and played the ball out wide to Kalinic who had a little space on the right-hand side. Odonelec had dragged Avery out of position and suddenly Ocokoljic came alive, sprinting into the space Avery had vacated and Kalinic – under little pressure from Matt Borell – played a lovely chipped pass for Ocokoljic to run onto, Sa’kiera sprinted to try and make-up for Avery’s error but Ocokoljic was too fast and the Newrook City forward finished low and hard past Chris Banker to send Radnika into rapturous celebration.

Repin jumped into the air with glee as the ball hit the back of the net and the fans in the stadium did the same, with images of supporters hugging each other in celebration doing the rounds on social media as an example of how this new modern Mytanija is putting old differences aside (all a bit much, if you ask me). On the pitch the entire team – with the exception of Kasun, who was too busy punching the air at the opposite end – ran over to Ocokoljic to join him to celebrate the Hoops first goal of WC82 qualifying and one that got them on their way in the opening fixture.

The manager probably felt a little vindicated in his choice of system with the amount of times the Hoops were able to create opening. A second goal probably should have been chalked up when Kalinic was sent through on goal, clever movement from Odonelec once again moving Avery out – the hapless centre-half being given no assistance by her midfield – this time it was the winger who exploited the space and Ocokoljic found him. Kalinic ran through on goal and shot, but a fine save from Banker denied the Directus man. It should have been 2-0 and the stern look on Repin’s face told the whole world exactly how he felt.

Soon after, Kalinic made up for that miss by providing the assist for Mytanija’s actual second. This came in a slightly different manner as the Mytanar team had Velestria pinned back after a period of prolonged possession. The Hoops continuously recycled the ball, trying to move the Velestrian defence from side-to-side and it was getting a little frustrating. The away side’s nominal back three had become a back five, with Sa’kiera and Singleson slotting in as extra defenders and it was proving tough to break down with assistance from the likes of Utamara, Thirdgray and Ingles.

Gavrilovic had the ball on the left-flank, just outside the penalty area, about ten yards from the by-line. Instead of looking to play a cross in, this time he played a deeper pass, right back out to Tahir Fejzuli who was around 25 yards from goal. Fejzuli shaped as if he was going to shoot, causing Thirdgray to jump to try and block the shot – the problem was that Fejzuli did not shoot and Thirdgray turned his back on a phantom shot, allowing the Sabrefell Moths’ midfielder time to pick a cross. He played in a delightful ball towards the back post, where Kalinic was and Kalinic took the cross beautifully, with one touch taking him down to the by-line. Odonelec, instead of dropping deep, this time made a darting run towards the near-post, almost in anticipation of a low cross. Avery tried to get across to block him. But this time Kalinic dragged the ball back towards the penalty spot, where Ocokoljic was and he made no mistake smashing home Mytanija’s second of the game and giving the team a bit of breathing room.

Up until half-time, Mytanija retained possession well and allowed Velestria very little in the way of respite. Although a couple of nervous moments from Niksa Obadko when pressured by the away side’s captain Goddard may have given Repin some food for thought – the big centre-half perhaps isn’t designed for playing out from the back, not as well as Mojmir Anac at least and these moments against Velestria perhaps provided a snapshot of what it would be like if Obadko was charged with trying to pass the ball from defence against superior opposition. Repin may be more likely to choose the likes of Jernejec, Azanovic or Bobic in those sort of situations.

2-0 at half-time would have been exactly the sort of score-line Repin would have wanted, this was a game Mytanija were expected to win, but perhaps the most pleasing statistic at the intermission was the 67% of possession the Hoops had managed to amass. They had retained the ball expertly and in doing so allowed Velestria very few chances high up the field, any possession the away side did have tended to be in their own half and this was then followed by a hurried punt up the field as the high-press caused panic for those in possession.

After half-time, the home fans were treated to the first sight of young Dejan Zgela in a competitive fixture in a Hoops’ shirt. The CDSA striker, renowned for playing the false nine role domestically, was brought on for Ocokoljic after he had notched his 18th and 19th international goals and was treated to a well-earned rest, with the job half-done. It was a chance for Zgela to demonstrate his talent in a competitive game after impressing in the pre-qualifying friendlies, scoring two goals in three appearances. There are high hopes for Zgela and a belief that he may follow in Ocokoljic’s footsteps one day, with the Nepharim league becoming a favoured destination for some of Mytanija’s top players. The Top League is gaining a reputation as a bit of a talent factory and with the lesser financial rewards available, as well as a lack of UICA football beyond the qualifying rounds, the talent it produces is often quickly looking for a bigger challenge overseas.

Soon after Velestria were making a couple of changes of their own, having seen enough, the away side’s coach Christopher Tajo Mendez, decided to bring on a couple of fresh faces. Brent Davis came on for Augusta Clark, looking to provide a slightly different type of threat up front. In addition to that change, the promising youngster Morgan Iyyrivia of Xyris 07 – a player linked with a few Top League clubs over the summer, with particular interest coming from Arka Snezhnaya and Nyva Zvornik – came on for Evans Thirdgray.

Those changes did give Velestria a degree of attacking impetus and it was the two substitutes who combined for the away side’s best chance of the game: Iyyrivia received the ball halfway into the Mytanar half and took the ball past Tahir Fejzuli with a shimmy, before playing a beautifully weighted through ball for Davis to run onto. Davis cut across Anac, who couldn’t make a tackle for fear of bringing the forward down inside the penalty area and Davis smashed an effort low to the right of Kasun – but the towering goalkeeper got his 195cm frame down to parry the ball away. Petr Isaev collected it and shepherded the ball to safety. Mendez nearly looked like a genius, with his substitutions almost working perfectly, but unfortunately for the Devontan coach, Pedja Kasun had other ideas entirely.

That chance almost shocked Mytanija into life and the substitution of Hrdaljko for Kupresak meant that the home side had a pair of more offensive-minded central midfielders on the pitch. Hrdaljko had been one of the better players on the pitch, but Repin clearly wanted the team to press home their advantage decisively and felt that they had taken their foot off their gas a little. The substitute was involved in Mytanija’s third, but so was almost every player on the pitch as a move that consisted of forty-four (yes, 44!), passes was eventually finished off with aplomb by Odonelec.

It was more of the same from the Hoops as they kept the ball and moved Velestria from side-to-side, Mytanija weren’t afraid to go back in order to move forward and the presence of Fejzuli and Kupresak as metronomic conductors of possession kept things ticking over. The darting runs of Gavrilovic, Zgela, Odonelec and Kalinic kept giving those in possession someone to pass to as they dragged Velestrian players out of position and created space for their colleagues. Gavrilovic and Kalinic would dart inside or try to get in behind and this would allow the full-backs to push up, allowing the ball to advance. Zgela and Odonelec would drop deep and allow the wingers space in the middle, or would look to run behind the defence to create space in the position they had vacated. It was clear evidence of Repin drilling this system on the training ground and the ball retention to go with it was nothing short of sublime.

It was a run in behind from Zgela, moving Avery with him, that allowed space for Fejzuli to receive the ball from Anac. Fejzuli drove forward a little before sending a nice pass into Gavrilovic, who had darted inside into the space Zgela had occupied seconds before, before his decoy run behind the Velestrian back-line. Gavrilovic had been followed by Beaver, but Fejzuli had drifted out-wide to take up that position and Gavrilovic simply stopped and played the ball back to Fejzuli who was now in acres of space on the left-flank. Fejzuli cut inside slightly onto his weaker right foot (of course, it’s all relative with Fejzuli, a man who is talented with either foot), and played a dinked cross into the penalty area – about halfway between the six-yard box and the penalty spot on the right-side of the area – which Odonelec ran onto unchallenged, taking a tough to bring it down and then poking underneath Banker to make it 3-0 to the Hoops. The players once again all came together to celebrate, a huddle forming around Odonelec as he was embraced by his team mates. Field of Roses and Grace echoed around Radnika and there was a celebratory mood over the stadium as Kalinic was brought off after playing a very solid 65 minutes or so.

The poor Viva Avery was eventually substituted off in the 76th minute for Jaden Woodhil. Avery is clearly a talented player, but some tactical naivety from Mendez – as well as the slightly surprising approach selected by Repin (the pre-match line-up could have been taken to be a 4-2-3-1 instead of a 4-6-0), combined to give the Velestrians problems defensively all game and having a four versus three defensively is never a great situation and Mendez didn’t really react to it tactically all game. Avery didn’t get the help necessary and Ocokoljic, Odonelec and Zgela combined to give her problems throughout her 76 minutes on the pitch.

The rest of the game passed with little incident and Repin could be pleased as he shook hands with the Velestrian coaching staff and congratulated his players on the pitch, a job well done and vindication for both Repin and the FSM as the tinkerman and his unusual system worked very well in its first test in a competitive game. Mytanar fans could go home happy too, with a united front being shown to the world – something which is not always the case – and the good result only reinforcing this too. There were flares lit in celebration after the final whistle and the singing went on long into the night as Escans celebrated a solid victory.

PLAYER RATINGS.
STARTING XI
Kasun – 6. The Ararat goalkeeper didn’t have too much to do throughout the game, but he was equal to Davis’ effort after the forward came on and that was the away side’s best chance of the game.

Vukovic – 6. Didn’t have too much to do defensively, although he was perhaps guilty of losing Davis for that opportunity. Other than that the left-back provided Mytanija with a good outlet and took up some nice positions when going forward.

Anac – 6. Perhaps as much to blame for allowing Davis to get in behind as Vukovic, but we’ve divvied up the blame and due to the fact the Hoops kept a clean sheet we’ve given the pair a decent mark apiece. Anac was more than equal to everything else Velestria threw at him, as well.

Obadko – 5. Obadko was good defensively, but nervousness on the ball, almost as if awareness of his own limitations crept into his mind, almost allowed Velestria possession in extremely dangerous positions. Repin will wonder if he may have better options than the Liria centre-back.

Isaev – 6. As always Isaev was Mr. Reliable, he didn’t put a foot wrong defensively and when Vukovic pushed up on the left, Isaev tucked in on the right and allowed the Hoops a solid defensive base to work from.

Fejzuli – 8. Got a great assist for Mytanija’s third and was a calming presence throughout the game. Once he got the ball you knew Mytanija were beyond the away team’s initial press and that the ball was in safe hands (or rather, feet).

Hrdaljko – 7. A 7 may seem a bit harsh for Hrdaljko who was genuinely very good in the double-pivot role, but being taken off half an hour before the end precluded him from a slightly higher score. He broke up play expertly and made some nice passes forward too. Going to be a big player for Mytanija in years to come.

Gavrilovic – 7. He looked a bit nervous at times in what was only his second appearance with the national side, but he showed great awareness to play the ball back for Fejzuli prior to Mytanija’s second and was comfortable in the crucial wing-role in the 4-6-0.

Ocokoljic – 9. A great brace of goals and a solid all-around performance from the Newrook City forward. Ocokoljic is fast becoming a real top player, his all-round game has improved as he’s matured and he now shows he fully understands the tactical side of the game as well as being a huge talent in terms of natural ability.

Odonelec – 9. Man of the Match. He got a goal after a fantastic team move but Odonelec set the tone for the rest of the team by carrying out Repin’s tactical instructions perfectly. He never stopped moving, dragging Avery out of position and causing her no end of problems and Odonelec demonstrated why he’s described as Mytanija’s most intelligent player, he knew exactly what was wanted from him and executed it.

Kalinic – 8. Two assists may make the mark look a bit harsh, but he missed a great chance and we marked him down for that. Other than that he was a thorn in the side of the Velestrian defence all game and demonstrated why Directus rate him so highly and why so many have been calling for his inclusion in Mytanar squads for years!

SUBSTITUTES
Zgela – 6. Didn’t look to sure of himself in his first competitive start for the national side, but did contribute to the Mytanar third with his movement. Will only improve as he gets more minutes.

Kupresak – 7. Was brought on for Hrdaljko and replaced his double-pivot role with – what must have been for the away side – an intensely frustrating range of passing, Kupresak sprayed the ball left and right, short and long and only contributed to the depletion of the Velestrian stamina reserves. Showed an hitherto unseen degree of maturity in doing this, as he has often been labelled solely an attacking central midfielder, but played this role responsibly.

Nikic – 5. Only on for 25 minutes, but didn’t do too much and there was a noticeable drop-off in production down the right once Kalinic had gone off. Repin will hope that Nikic can improve.

UP NEXT - MATTIJANA (59): A familiar opponent for Mytanija, who met Mattijana in WC81 qualifying. Away from home the Hoops fell to a 2-1 defeat, but they did managed a highly creditable 1-0 victory at home. The likes of Lekarisa and Struna will be familiar to many in this Mytanar squad, but some of the Mytanar names may not be familiar to Mattijana. It will be interesting to see exactly which approach that Repin decides to employ in this fixture with Mattijana’s 4-4-1-1 providing an interesting tactical challenge. Repin has employed the 4-4-1-1 himself during Mytanija’s pre-qualifying friendlies and it will be interesting to see if he decides to match them man-for-man. A 4-2-3-1 could also be a good formation to use, allowing defensive protection away from home and the possibility of man-marking one of Mattijana’s key creative talents, Mattias Hoffman.

MFO Sport suggested that Mattijana’s qualifying group is a reasonably kind one – something that runs contrary to even your most simplistic numerical analysis of each qualifying group: Group 11 actually possesses the highest average rank of all the WC82 qualifying groups! So whilst the group perhaps lacks a couple of the biggest names, the group as a whole should be a little more difficult than the others. That doesn’t even begin to look at the history of some of the teams in the group, or the talent of some of the newcomers either. MFO Sport perhaps underestimate the depth Group 11 has and you can be sure Repin will be using the Mattijanan media’s assessment to fire up the Mytanar players in his pre-match team talk, whether they will prove that assessment wrong remains to be seen.

One thing can be said for certain about the encounter at Stadijo Dinamov in Petrovijanka, it will be a fiery one: the two sides weren’t afraid of clattering each other at times during their games in WC81 qualifying and you can be sure any bad blood generated then will only serve to heat this game to boiling point. A large travelling contingent is expected from Mytanija and the Mattijanan authorities are preparing for that with particular care, as reported by MFO Sport. It should be an interesting fixture to say the least!

[Free Republics]

Assembly Chamber, New Legislative Building, Republica

Speaker Abelino Greece was in disbelief as the Assembly debated the Defense of Marriage Amendment, a proposed Constitutional amendment that would define marriage as a union of "two or more persons who have reached the age of majority as defined by their Republic", thus legalizing same-sex marriage and plural marriage throughout the Free Republics. In the Speaker's opinion and the opinions of almost every politician in the Liberty Party and the Radical Alliance, this proposal was long overdue. While the Constitutional amendment could not take effect unless it was ratified by either three quarters of the Republic legislatures or a nationwide referendum to be held concurrently with the next Consul election (if not already ratified by the Republic legislatures then a 2/3rds vote of a referendum ratifies an amendment), it was expected to pass overwhelmingly and easily become part of Republican constitutional law.

It was extremely rare for a significant number of members of the public to show up to the New Legislature Building to watch legislative business. Yet, on this day, the Assembly's spectator section was over capacity with thousands admitted to a special standing room only section. Noticeably, there were a number of women wearing head coverings and a large number of men who were wearing suits, an uncommon sight in the Assembly where most members traditionally dressed casually due to the Chamber's status as the people's Chamber. From the start, the crowd was extremely loud, taking any and every opportunity to jeer at any Assembly member who spoke in favor of the proposed amendment and to loudly cheer speeches in opposition.

In the crowd, Scarlett Nicholls sat in stunned disbelief. She had, by some accident, ended up seated next to some nun who spoke with a strong Sanctii accent. This had not been what she had expected to experience when she decided to attend to witness a historic moment when one of her top legislative priorities would be passed. As the debate carried on, she ended up in a conversation with the nun.

Nun - So, what denomination are you part of?

Scarlett Nicholls - I've never been particularly religious.

Nun - That's rather unfortunate. Its always sad to come across somebody whose soul is headed to Infernus but if you're here today, it must be because God has called you here!

Scarlett Nicholls - I dunno about that.

Nun - Well, God so loved mankind that He sent his only Son, Iesus Christus, to die for our sins.

Scarlett Nicholls - I see. I had a daughter out of wedlock a few years ago and sometimes I wish I'd gotten married to the father of my child. He was probably the best man I've ever been with.

Nun - Sex outside of marriage is a sin but at least you didn't compound your sin by committing abortion on top of the premarital sex! God will forgive you, if you only accept Iesus Christus as your Lord and Savior!

Scarlett Nicholls - Well, that's not the only bad thing I've done. I've also had sex with other women before!

Nun - That's really bad but God will also forgive you for that and any good Church can help you get rid of your homosexual urges.

Scarlett Nicholls - That's cool but what if I told you that I've taken God's name in vain many times?

Nun - That's forgivable too, if you stop doing that.

Scarlett Nicholls - I also stole my brother's cPod when I was a teenager.

Nun - Also forgivable though I imagine you could have been saved alot of trouble if your parents had enrolled you in a good Christian school.

Scarlett Nicholls - I was never the kind of girl who could make it in a Christian school. As a teenager, I used to change my hair color every week and wear the sexiest stuff I could find to school.

Nun - That's exactly why a Christian school would have done you a world of good. Wouldn't life have turned out better for you if you'd learned how to be a good girl?

Scarlett Nicholls - I'm not too sure about that, actually. I think I'd say I've been pretty successful being a bad girl who was Born to Fry. Afterall, all of the sins I committed didn't Kill Me or anything!

Nun - But surely you'd be happier if you were a good Christian housewife with a loyal husband who protected and provided for you and your children, right?

Scarlett Nicholls - Well, I wouldn't exactly say that. Sure, it'd be nice to have a husband and it'd be great if I didn't have to care about my professional life but I landed my dream job last year.

Nun - Good for you, I guess.

Scarlett Nicholls - I don't believe we've introduced ourselves. May I ask your name?

Nun - I'm Sister Maria Polus. I teach at Barjavel Academy.

Scarlett Nicholls - Thank you for your concern for my soul, Sister Polus, but I'm Consul Scarlett Nicholls.

Sister Polus thought the woman sitting next to her had to be pulling some kind of a joke.

Sister Polus - There's no way you could be her. Afterall, you seem to be a genuinely decent person, albeit one who is a bit misguided.

Scarlett wanted to slap Sister Polus but held herself back because she didn't want to commit an impeachable offense even if the Assembly would never actually impeach her for it.

Scarlett Nicholls - Yeah, I'm joking. I'm Corette Tetrault and I work for News Magazine.

Sister Polus - You work for News Magazine? Would you do me a favor and make sure our protest today actually gets covered? I've noticed that the press won't cover any of our protests no matter how much support we muster. Its almost as if the press is deliberately refusing to cover Christian activists.

Scarlett Nicholls - I promise that I will do everything in my power to ensure you are covered fairly.

Sister Polus - Thank you. You're welcome to stop by the local True Church Cathedral if you're ever so inclined. Here's the Cathedral's business card.

Sister Polus passed the card to "Miss Tetrault". As that happened, the Speaker called for a vote. Half an hour later, voting closed and the proposed amendment passed with 72% of the vote in the Assembly. Later that day, it was ratified by the Senate as part of a lightning session and Scarlett would approve the Amendment the following day. Now, it was up to the Republics or the voters to finish the job...

[The Sherpa Empire]

‭Danu stepped out of the portal and looked around. The monastery looked different, more run-down. It was still recognizably the same place, but the paint was a different color and it was peeling in different places. The courtyard was not quite as neatly kept, and the roof of a shrine was sagging a little. There was a monk standing at the side of the courtyard, but it wasn't the same monk that Danu had talked to in his own world. This monk was taller and younger. He looked surprised by the sudden appearance of the portal. He also very looked familiar, but Danu couldn't quite think where he had seen the man before. "Who are you?" the monk asked.

‭Danu introduced himself and explained how he had grown tired of the liberalization of the Sherpa Empire -- the tolerance of Islam and Hinduism, the rise of feminist lobby groups, the growing number of Chinese, Afghans, Dalits, and women that ran for elected offices, the increasing levels of sexuality and homoeroticism that were being tolerated in the media. So he had sought out this monastery, where it was said that men could travel between worlds, and he had asked the monks to send him to a world that the liberals had not ruined.

‭The monk shook his head sadly. "You are an idiot," he said. "The fascists have ruined this world far worse than the Chinese or the Dalits ever could."

‭"You didn't see my world," said Danu. "We had the Taliban kidnapping people all over the Empire because our government didn't have the balls to... Oh, Holy Mother!" He had just realized why the monk looked familiar. "You're Jigme Sherpa!"

‭The monk was startled. "You know me?"

‭Danu covered his mouth and just stood there speechless for a moment. It was him! "What are you doing here?"

‭"I live here," said Jigme. "When I was a young man, I joined the Special Staff, and I was so proud of myself. I thought I was going to be a big man, maybe run my own Concentration Camp someday. But then I got out in the field..." He shook his head again. "They had me hunting Dalits in Uttar Pradesh, but I didn't have the stomach for it. I had nightmares. I couldn't sleep. I started drinking to keep my sanity, but then I got in trouble for being drunk. Eventually, I had to leave. I couldn't live out there." He gestured toward the outer gate of the monastery. "I gave it all up and came here to try to redeem myself. Where do you know me from?"

‭"You were a football player," said Danu. "You were incredible, one of the best of all time, but then you got kidnapped by the Taliban and they killed you."

‭"I wish I could have been a football player," Jigme said wistfully.

‭Yanla 1063:

‭Sherpa and Chinese tanks rolled through the streets of Beijing. Throngs of people followed them cheering and waving flags. The last Japanese troops scrambled to get out of the city before anyone caught them and handed them over to the Chinese. Sherpa and Chinese flags were raised side by side over all the government buildings in Tiananmen Square, but in practice, the North was in shambles and all of China would be under Sherpa rule for the next few years.

‭The tide of the war was turning in Europe too. The Soviets were winning.

‭September 1943:

‭A red flag with a swastika flew over the Kremlin and victorious Aryan soldiers paraded through the streets of Moscow, but it was not the way Hitler had imagined. The soldiers were actual Aryans from the South of the Sherpa Empire, not the mythical "master race" that Himmler liked to ramble about. The flag was a riot of color that offended Hitler's sensibilities with its cluttered design, even before he considered the political implications of the Sherpas reaching Moscow before he did. The marching band was banging out an exotic beat that made Hitler feel like his ears were being assaulted when he watched the newsreel.

‭The Russians were horrified and humiliated, regardless.

‭When the news came that the Soviet Union would be partitioned between Germany and Sherpaland, thousands of Russian Jews fled east, onto the Sherpa side of the border. Hitler was annoyed that Emperor Mingma let them in and made no move to kill or contain them. He thought of double-crossing the Sherpas, as he had double-crossed so many other allies over the years, so that he could go in and kill the Jews himself. But he still had the western front to worry about, and he knew the Reich would need some time to recuperate and rebuild after they finished off the western Allies.

‭In those days, the Sherpa Empire was not genocidal, only expansionist. The genocides would come later, in the 1960s, when the people that had grown up with the Nazis as allies were old enough to enter the political stage.

[Zwangzug]

Zwangzug's e-Lipogram
Shutout to start campaign

Many nations will sign up for a World Cup qualifying run, and, for youthful squads, possibly a Baptism of burning plasma. But among all such lands, I am particularly fond of Antahbrantahstan, a univocalic country which omits i, o, and u! (Plus that taboo symbol I ought not talk about.)

If you know a lot about football history, you might think that this is a Rushmori country, adjoining an aquatic mass known as Branta. But this actually isn't so; it's found in a gargantuan Pacific hub. As for its football XI, that group was in Pallocci Pagoda Park, losing two-nil to Zwangzug. Marlon, a man sporting a solitary digit on his back this run, got to chip in a long goal from a Lucas assist. And sub Kostya Hart-Farm (a forward for Alaisti and popular among our staff, obviously), would supply a bonus goal following this match's hour mark. Zwangzug will not go far for its following match, although that is not at this stadium.

"This was cool!" said fullback Allison, who got an initial callup for this match. (As usual, this is not an outright quotation.) "I didn't know if such an opportunity would occur for our cohort, with football as busy as it is. But I'm glad our country is providing us a way to play abroad and show off our skills."

"I thought it was a good showing," said coach Makvala. "Particularly from our back half. It's not important if a match is against a bunch of minnows, you can't afford to play sloppily, and I thought [Martin] Scallop and [Shobhana] Birla did a good job to not slack off and play hard for all of an hour and a half. Plus bonus fractions of an hour, obviously."

Main Nation Ministry and Nova Anglicana also won by two goals. As Goals For is of high import in sorting squads, this pair now tops group four. All of this round brought about a win or a loss for Zwangzug's upcoming oppositions; no draws.

[New and Improved Peru]

Xanneria was having a spate of soggy weather, and the gray clouds seemed to match the plain colors and simple styles that the locals wore. Since llamas have no good way to carry an umbrella, the New and Improved national football team's pack llamas were equipped with force-fields that floated over them like bubbles of iridescent light. The Xannerians stared at them like they'd never seen a force-field before. Or maybe they just didn't understand why anybody was using pack llamas instead of cars.

The game itself was wild and muddy, but Fernandez and Santiago cared more about scoring than they did about keeping their jerseys clean. They went slipping and slopping in the mud several times, but not without giving the ball a good kick before they lost their footing and went flying. The Peruvians had red and white jerseys, but some of them got so covered with mud that it was hard to tell by the end of the game. Even the ones that didn't go sliding in the mud themselves still got soggy and dirty from the team's hugging and slapping each other on the back to congratulate each other. The Xannerians were slipping and sliding too, but they didn't seem to laugh it off quite as easily when they fell in the mud and looked stupid.

The excitement of a high-scoring game and a lot of wild messy plays got everyone fired up, and there were a couple of yellow cards on both sides when players got a little overzealous and too aggressive with their tackling.

In the stands, Xannerian fans shouted their displeasure at their home team giving up 4 goals in the first half, visiting Peruvians cheered enthusiastically, and the handful of cybernetic alpacas that had made the trip from Peru bounced with excitement. Some people seemed confused about why there were alpacas in the audience with them.

In the second half, the field was starting to dry out a little, and the Xannerians seemed determined not to let the game become any more of a blowout than it already was. Each team scored once in the second half, for a final score of 5-1. When it was over, the Peruvians went out for a night on the town to celebrate.

The next day, the Xannerians were blaming their loss on a "hangover." When they came to Peru, someone would have to introduce them to New and Improved anise liqueur, the miraculous booze that you could drink as much as you wanted without ever getting a hangover.

[Barunia]

Note: This RP will take place in two parts. Part 1 will cover a time period around the previous World Cup. It also follows on from our RP from WC80.

Starlight, Star Bright
Part 1 Chapter 1

Blackrock stadium was alive. 60,000 people, a capacity crowd, filled the building with noise. The giant roof was closed tonight, and it reflected the sound back down, where it danced and played with the incoming chants until there was nothing but an indecipherable wall of noise. The air throbbed with sound.

Down on the pitch, the players could hardly hear each other. It didn’t matter which side had the ball, the noise was constant. This was a derby match after all, and the crowd was evenly split between fans of Newland FC and the Port Newland Destroyers. Newland as normal had come out hard, launching attack after attack on Port’s goal until one finally slipped through. The clock was ticking down, but Port weren’t done yet. They had the crowd support, they were confident, and they had their ace on the field. That ace was Hannah Miller. In three weeks’ time she was set to lead Barunia in the qualifying rounds of World Cup 81, but right now she was leading the Destroyers’ attack. Weaving her way through midfield, a quick one-two pass with Tyler on the wing, and she had a clear path through to goal.

Hannah sensed a sudden rush of movement to her right, and then the world upended itself as the turf rushed up to meet her, slamming into her like a freight train. She felt pain run through her body, and then her right knee exploded in an agony she never knew existed. The noise in the stadium changed, becoming a single cry of shock and outrage as Hannah’s feet were swept out from under her. It became even angrier as the Newland defender was shown a yellow card for the dirty tackle. Then almost instantly, an eerie silence descended upon Blackrock. The crowd, almost as one, had realised that Hannah was not getting up. There was complete quiet as the medical team ran on to the field.

A week earlier
The camp was a collection of wooden huts surrounding a main hall. Grassy fields surrounded the area, the abruptly ran into the deep forests of the West Barunian hinterland. It was here that the Barunian football team were spending four days together, as a team–bonding exercise. Today was the first day, and they’d spent the day meeting each other, doing bonding exercises, and of course, kicking a football around.

It wasn’t until the late afternoon that the team bosses gave the players any free time. As soon as she had a moment, Hannah decided to go for a walk. As she walked past one of the buildings, a hand suddenly grabbed her and pulled her around the corner. Before she could say anything, soft lips were pressed against hers in a romantic kiss.
“Sarah!” gasped Hannah, when the kiss was broken. “What are you doing?”
Sarah Brown giggled in reply. “Kissing my girlfriend,” she answered.
Hannah looked around nervously. “What if someone see us?”
Sarah replied, “I’ve been wanting to do this all day. I’ve missed you.”
“Aww I’ve missed you too,” said Hannah, pulling Sarah into a hug and nuzzling her neck.
“Come on,” said Sarah, taking her girlfriend by the hand and leading her into the woods.

The couple spent a few hours enjoying each other’s company, not heeding the time. Eventually Hannah looked at her watch.
“We should probably head back, before they send a search party out for us.”
Sarah sighed and wrapped her arms tighter around Hannah. “I wish we didn’t live in different states. I want to hold you forever.”
Hannah kissed the top of her head. “I know. It is what it is.”
Both fell silent for a little while, each lost in their own thoughts. Then Hannah spoke.
“You’re not playing this weekend, are you?”
“No, we play Monday. Why?”
“Why not come home with me? The Newland derby’s on Friday, but then that gives us the whole weekend together.”
Sarah smiled up at Hannah. “That sounds perfect.”
Hannah looked at her watch again. “We’d really better go. I’ll go first, you’d better stay behind for a while so they don’t see us go in together.”
So saying, she stood up, and giving Sarah one last kiss, disappeared back towards the campsite.

Sarah watched her until she was out of sight. She sighed and looked up into the sky. It was just going dark, and she noticed a single star beginning to make itself visible in the gathering dusk. It reminded her of an old poem she used to recite as a child.

"Starlight, star bright,
First star I see tonight,
Wish I may,
Wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.”

Looking up at that singular, solitary point of light, Sarah silently made her wish.

[Krytenia]

Indy .500
By Rami Niblick in Bromham

WELL, it's that time again. The analysts have crunched their numbers, the pundits have made their predictions, and lesser journalists have made their case for why this Krytenian side will either crush all before them or fall flat on their faces (delete according to taste). The real fans, though, know all that means precisely squat, and they turned up in their droves to the Cygnus Stadium to watch the Dragons get their World Cup LXXXII qualifying campaign underway against group fourth seeds Indusse.

Despite the controversy over Krytenia's new kits, and the threat of boycotts from some of the nation's more opinionated fans, tickets sold as quickly as ever. The home side, whose star has fallen slightly in recent years, hoped to repay that faith, and Valrauncion's charges started the game at a breathless pace. Josh Coquelin mad an early point of pulling the strings in the middle of the park, looking for incisive balls to the Hansen twins, the gaffer, and Chris Naismith; credit to the Indusse defence, though, as the likes of Mathew John and Ahmad Ali held firm to deny the forward line the chance to create real opportunities. The first half took on a pretty regular rhythm; ball to Valrauncion or Naismith, quick defending from player in orange jersey, quick break easily snuffed out by Gareth Brannan or Matthew Gray. A half-chance from Naismith, which drew a good flying save from Stephen Luiz on the half-hour, was the Dragons' best chance; at the other end, meanwhile, Marcus Washington wasn't overly tested, and the two sides went into the break goalless.

The second half, however, was a different story. With the Krytenian defence hardly taxed in the opening forty-five, Valrauncion decided to be bold and ring the changes. Brannan came off and was replaced by Callum Quiroga, as the home team switched to a swashbuckling 3-3-1-3 formation. John and Ali found themselves under increased pressure in the middle of the park, and Valrauncion almost opened the scoring within two minutes of the restart, finding space from a Coquelin through ball only to thump his shot against the outside of the near post and out of play. The goal was coming though, and it was no surprise when the Dragons put the ball in the net in the fifty-seventh minute. Jake Hansen was provider, cutting inside before knocking the ball back for Quiroga. The Avidia United man made no mistake, giving Luiz no chance with a beautifully weighted shot.

Somehow, despite dominating possession, Krytenia cound not add to their lead. Coquelin saw a long-range howitzer fly inches over the crossbar, Valrauncion was unlucky to hit the post a second time with a curling effort that left Luiz flapping at air, and even Gray nearly got on the scoresheet as his header from a corner was cleared off the line by Bikash Kumar. This profligacy would come back to haunt the Dragons. Against the run of play, Bechun Butea finally found some space away from Gray, and finished clinically, sliding the ball under an onrushing Washington for the equaliser. There was enough time for some late drama, as Gray and his perm did put the ball in the net in stoppage time; it didn't count, however, as the Sargossan referee (correctly, sadly) chalked it off due to Naismith backing into the keeper.

One point and one point only then, for all that effort from the Dragons. Next up is a trip to the unknown, as Krytenia travel to débutants Zeniyadh. Three points are a must here if there's to be any hope of Krytenia making it into the last thirty-two. Onward!

KRYTENIA - 1
Quiroga 57

INDUSSE - 1
Butea 84

[Nephara]

Astoria 0 - 3 Nephara
(4-4-2 / 4-1-4-1) 12 - Mercator; 18 - Kielseng, 5 - Konoval, 22 - Thorn, 19 - Vicelich; 13 - Saroszi, 23 - Shone, 21 - Moxham (15 - Rosenthal 61'), 16 - Staunton; 21 - Bastable, 10 - Metzger (4 - Rowland 83')
Goals: Metzger 13', Staunton 47', Vicelich 54'

Florian Pritchard raised an arch eyebrow. It was a quirk all the media had seized on - no fucking political cartoon was complete without it. The eyebrow, the cap he'd briefly worn backward to express solidarity with some random orphans, the ice hockey jersey... Pritchard had found
Nevertheless, the eyebrow came up, as he leaned towards his aide. "Why are you showing me this?"
Rachael smiled nervously. "Well, sir, it's... a popular meme."
"A meme."
"Yes. A popular one. Expresses what people are thinking about, reflects their concerns-"
"Hrm. You know, I always thought it was two syllables..."
Rachael tried desperately not to roll her eyes. "No, sir. One syllable. Meeem. It-"
"Yes, I get it, Rachael. Thank you."
"Right, sir."
Pritchard stared at the ghastly Vine compilation, entitled 'Just Corvistone Things'.
"Mate, it gets to me, you start to think maybe you fell asleep and woke up in the wrong countr-" An amateurish camera panned away from a butch-looking Nepharim and towards a sign reading 'New Oakstone'. "OH GOD IT'S SPREADING-"
"People are really concerned about this?" he murmured.
"Well, not so much concerned as aware, but-"
Pritchard looked across, severely. "Times change. I'd like to think my people aren't so xenophobic."
Rachael sighed; and, yes, that was another of Pritchard's more iconic traits, a certain high-handedness, a tendency to speak about high ideals, leaving he grubbier stuff to his deputy, Garnett. At least it was sincere... "Of course not, sir."
And speaking of Garnett, the door opened now - a shortish, husky woman with a sheaf of papers tucked under her arm, briskly making her entrance with a small entourage headlined by the austere Ursula Bradford, Secretary for Education. A bristling mass of black suits and yellow ties; Pritchard's jacket, by contrast, was hung up on the back of his chair. Rachael could only reflect that this looked like a gangland takeover more than a coalition meeting.
"Ahh. Sherry, do take a seat." Pritchard gestured vaguely, with eyes flicking between Garnett's posse and his computer screen.
"- bro, you can't even get a fuckin' currywurst in this joint-"
"Uh," said Garnett, cleverly.
Pritchard paused the video and snapped shut the laptop. "Just finding out how my people feel, Sherry. It's nothing to worry about."

The informal meeting clacked on for some time, the unlikely coalition still getting to grips with one another, the rumoured war criminal and Margrave's bodyguard Camilla Rinehart looming from the corner, and Rachael dutifully clacked through her minutes as she day-dreamed. She managed to sneak in a glance at the Cormorants' result, when Bradford made an off-hand reference to a game being on - and, happily, the Cormorants had won comfortably.
The clipped tones started to relax, after a time, as the conversation switched to a more casual discussion of current issues, ensuring the two parties were more or less on the same page. With the media so eager to highlight their differences, it was a quiet relief to all to affirm mutual support for a measured, controlled de-escalation in Sameba, a tax break for the middle-class, increased investment in the IT industry. Nothing new or ground-breaking was said, but even high-powered politicians need to break the ice sometimes.
And that worked out nicely, right up until another aide burst in. Rinehart twitched, in a way that suggests the aide was nearly a dead man. "Boss. Boss!"
Pritchard looked up, sharply - there was that eyebrow, again. "Yes?"
"Channel 17, boss! You gotta turn it on-"
The phone beeped. Garnett gave Pritchard a Look, and the Margrave sighed, and picked up the phone.
On the other end was a calm, professional voice, one clearly keeping a tight lid on a lot of shit. "Sir, we have a growing situation..."

[Brenecia]

Alenburg 1 - 2 Brenecia
(4-1-4-1) 12 - Drummond; 18 - Weaver, 5 - Horgan, 22 - Varney, 19 - Prentice; 4 - Staunton; 15 - Cheney, 14 - Considine, 13 - Wheeler (8 - Locke 65'), 16 - Corvey (11 - Keynes 76'); 10 - Ciogach
Goals: Ciogach 26' 41'

The world would soon know the name of Clarisse Ward. Maybe a year ago, she was a fringe figure in her own country.
Her rise followed a familiar pattern in Brenecian politics. Prime Minister Merric Laidlaw was widely disliked, lacking the strength of will to steer a coherent Conservative platform as the economy floundered and failed the working man. People wanted someone they'd respect. People might not have liked someone like Ward, at the time not even on the cabinet, but, by God, they respected her. When she managed to turn the ear of a few senior party figures, they in turn convinced enough of their peers to declare a spill.
The floor dropped under Laidlaw two and a half months before the election. The Conservatives rebounded in the polls, and ultimately managed a convincing victory.
Ward knew her enemies, without and within. Decades past, she'd fought in the war against the Corvidae as a mercenary, alongside the recently-modernised Nepharim military. It had given her a great hatred of extremism, and a contempt for Nepharim hypocrisy. Swaggering peacocks who claimed they just wanted to keep themselves to themselves, yet they forced their way into a fight that had little to do with them, not to simply force down the rebellion but to force their own hard-left ideals on the aftermath. Claimed to stand for equality after they'd maintained four colonies for decades, and maintained a military presence in Brenecia even today. Ostensibly, the reasons were strategic. They were permitted by the Treaty of Westpike that had arranged the Nepharim withdrawal. But even so, they were to Ward an insult to Brenecian sovereignty.
She intended to do something about them. It had had to wait. Her first months in the job were spent being, in her words, 'tough on crime' and 'tough on extremism', notching up several political victories, ratcheting up investment in the police and setting about modernising a military that had not been tested since independence. She wanted to make sure nobody took Brenecian weakness for granted, wanted to project strength and stability, in contrast to the openly-challenged Laidlaw.
When the cogs were in place, she strode towards Fort Sutton, entourage in tow, and walked into the international papers.

"They look on edge," Ward observed.
"'Course they do, ma'am," replied her Secretary for Defence, Justin Paterson, with no small degree of satisfaction. Paterson was a hardline hawk who'd barely tolerated Laidlaw, and had been central in displacing him. "They know they're going out of a job."
That got a twitch out of the sturdy lieutenant by the door. But just a twitch.
Ward pointed her way. "See that one? Typical Nepharim military. Visible neck tatts, a fuckin' undercut, gold chains... probably scraped out of some Sabrefell ghetto. They let that thug shit fly, God knows why."
The lieutenant ground her teeth, but remained silent as the entourage rumbled with chuckling at her expense.
"That gun?" Ward went on. "Shit, there's a reason we buy our arms Euran these days. Thing's a fucking brick to carry, and the firing rate... you might as well throw the damn bullets yourselves."
"Good for them they can lean on their Euran mates to bail 'em out, hey?" said an aide, someone who never quite knew when to let the joke go. At that, the lieutenant chose that particular moment to 'check over' her rifle.. Ward's hefty bodyguards bristled.
At which point the door next to the lieutenant opened, and a weary-looking commander stepped through, inclining his head stiffly towards the Prime Minister. "Ma'am. You wanted to speak?"
Ward smiled. "I did. I have demands to make of the Nepharim government and its illegitimate presence on these shores, and you, my friend, are going to be my mouthpiece."
Time stood still. The lieutenant watched them, warily. The bodyguards looked back, shifted in place. The commander looked across Ward, her retinue, and her own lieutenant... and sighed.
"Ulmer?"
"Sir."
"Tell Raleigh to get on the line to Corvistone and report the situation. As for you, ma'am, I think you'd best follow me to my office... alone."
The bodyguards bristled with rancour, but Ward smiled, and waved them off. "I'll humour that much. Don't break anything while I'm gone, boys... this may take some time."

[Dreamplanet]

HUMILIATION

Robostania surprises Dreamplanet to a 3-0 smacking.

Dreamplanet, hopeful but not ready. There are no ways to explain how badly our national team got beaten by a team ranked 332nd in the world. The manager was irate as they were the favourites coming into the match, then again when you look at a nation ranked 92nd in the world and was in the fight for a World Cup play-off spot for the longest time possible and you pit it against the 332nd ranked nation in the world, how on Earth did Dreamplanet lose? The manager was not present for the press conference, reportedly berating his players for 7 minutes after the match.

Sue opened the scoring in the 7th minute as the Dreamplanet defence fell asleep, the squad later put up more of a fight but just couldn't find the equaliser, ROBOSTANIA held Dreamplanet back and their squad of nobodies was gonna make Dreamplanet hurt more with their second goal, against the run of play Aldrin scored from a corner, heading it in past Filipe Vaz. Aldrin made it three with a longshot that cemented Dreamplanet's embarrassment.

Dreamplanet as a nation has taken a beating it may never recover from, it is in a difficult group but everyone was hoping for a great performance but now the people are cynical and jaded again. We've got 17 matches still to go, make it count.

ROBOSTANIA 3 - 0 Dreamplanet
(Sue 7', Aldrin 53', 81' - None)
Innisfree, ROBOSTANIA

March 10th - MD1: ROBOSTANIA 3-0 Dreamplanet
March 11th - MD2: Dreamplanet vs Astoria
March 12th - MD3: Nephara vs Dreamplanet
March 13th - MD4: Commonwealth of Baker Park vs Dreamplanet
March 14th - MD5: Dreamplanet vs Pridnestrovia
March 15th - MD6: Blaneu vs Dreamplanet
March 16th - MD7: Dreamplanet vs Natanians and Nosts
March 17th - MD8: Tinhampton vs Dreamplanet
March 18th - MD9: Dreamplanet vs Walenstein 
March 20th - MD10: Dreamplanet vs ROBOSTANIA
March 21st - MD11: Astoria vs Dreamplanet
March 22nd - MD12: Dreamplanet vs Nephara
March 23rd - MD13: Dreamplanet vs Commonwealth of Baker Park
March 24th - MD14: Pridnestrovia vs Dreamplanet
March 25th - MD15: Dreamplanet vs Blaneu
March 26th - MD16: Natanians and Nosts vs Dreamplanet
March 27th - MD17: Dreamplanet vs Tinhampton
March 28th - MD18: Walenstein vs Dreamplanet

Group 9                        Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Nephara                          1    1   0   0     3    0   +3     3
   ROBOSTANIA                       1    1   0   0     3    0   +3     3
 3 Tinhampton                       1    1   0   0     3    2   +1     3
 4 Commonwealth of Baker Park       1    0   1   0     0    0    0     1
   Natanians and Nosts              1    0   1   0     0    0    0     1
   Pridnestrovia                    1    0   1   0     0    0    0     1
   Walenstein                       1    0   1   0     0    0    0     1
 8 Blaneu                           1    0   0   1     2    3   −1     0
 9 Astoria                          1    0   0   1     0    3   −3     0
   Dreamplanet                      1    0   0   1     0    3   −3     0

Qualified for World Cup
Qualified for Playoffs
Eliminated

[Audioslavia]

The Meme Team
Lidgley pilloried for ‘Rs Hole’ comment

It started as a silly meme on twii.tur, and now the manager of the Audioslavia national football team has gotten in on the action in cringeworthy fashion.

Soon after the draw for World Cup 82’s qualifying tournament had been concluded, one twii.tur user, going by the alias @jvkaake, remarked that all of the teams in Group 2 had an ‘r’ in their name except for Audioslavia. Even by twiitur’s standards it was an inanely unimaginative observation to make, and yet the Audioslavian section of the twiitursphere decided to run with it. Within a day, the ‘all teams have an ‘r’ except Audioslavia’ comment had attained a hundred thousand likes and retwiits and had been reported on by the online sections of the Northern Messenger and El Correo before the Cathair Herald gave the story two columns on the back page on a presumably deathly quiet news week. The Herald had also posted a deleted comment by Audioslavian Prime Minister Guillhermo Boreni who stated that it didn’t even make sense because Drawkland doesn’t have an R, it has a W. The post was deleted very quickly, presumably after someone had informed the PM that the word ‘Drawkland’ has both a W and an R, but not before the screenshot had been taken.

Before long, people were referring to Group 2 as the R’s Hole.

”We’re gonna escape the #rshole” - @boobflapper35
“Eura not gonna pull us into the R’s Hole #rshole #wc82” - @cuttlefishboxingfan
”C’mon Audioslavia, put these [redacted] to the sword. I don’t want to spend the year watching the team skirt the rim of the R’s Hole. - @godlovesatomato
”Anyone who mentions the #Rshole is full of shit….. ….is full of shit - @iwearhats2220

After three days, everyone in the entire world silently agreed that the irreverent joke had reached the end of its life and that they should send its corpse to the mainstream media for the butchery process. The corpse of the meme was flogged by a variety of talk show hosts that weekend, buried by weekday morning television the following week and accidentally dug up and shaken around a little by a mid-ranking politician wearing a baseball cap at an inner city high school the following month. By the time Audioslavia actually lined up for their first qualifying game of WC82, nobody with a pulse even remembered the #rshole meme despite the fact that Audioslavia’s first opponents, Rakivland, had a name that started with an R.

After soundly defeating Rakivland, Audioslavia manager Wilf Lidgley was interviewed by C1. While answering the interviewer’s first question, So, Wilf, a job well done? Lidgley made the horrifying decision to desecrate the meme’s skeleton live on TV.

”Absolutely. It was a relief to get two goals so early in the first half. I felt we let our feet off the gas a little, and maybe we were fortunate to come away with the clean sheet, but all in all its a job well done, yes, and we avoid the R’s Hole for another week”

The interviewer, flabbergasted, asked Lidgley what he meant by avoid the arsehole. Lidgley clarified.

“No no, not the arsehole, the R’s Hole!. It’s like, all the teams in our group have an ‘R’ in their name, so its quite a funny joke on the internet to say that you don’t want us to fall into the R’s Hole. Its a joke I saw in a picture attached to a Word document that my friend emailed to me. I thought it was pretty funny.”

The news that Lidgley receives memes in the same way that your grandma receives memes came as a shock to many, who had praised the young Apoxian for his man-management skills with regards to getting the squad to gel together despite their club rivalries. It remains to be seen how the national team’s players will cope with the fact that their manager thinks memes are funny even three months after even a twice-divorced auntie on facebook has gotten bored of them. Their may be trust issues ahead.

IBJJ,G’NB

[Jeruselem]

Somewhere in Gor Kebab, where Jeruselem took on the local team on match day 1 for qualification. Prince Hamish and his aunt Princess Cassandra after the Princesses won 1-0.

Hamish: Well, this is exciting. All this travel, I guess you're used to this
Cassie: Yes, it's nothing exciting to me but I've been to Gor Kebab before so sometimes you learn something new.
Hamish: Was a bit close today, we almost lost really.
Cassie: That's because you kept on wasting shots ya derp
Hamish: Gor Kebab did make it hard for me
Cassie: This lot are nothing compared to what we have face next, we should have won with a few extra goals

Hamish: Hey we won!
Cassie: Barely
Hamish: I assume Mum and Dad were watching my first game
Cassie: I don't think Mum would have been impressed, she expects a lot more.
Hamish: Probably a good thing she's not here
Cassie: I'm her eyes and ears when she's not around

Hamish: I'm an adult, I don't need a babysitter.
Cassie: Yeah, you don't have driver's license because you lost it last week.
Hamish: Oh that, oops.
Cassie: See what I mean
Hamish: I guess I do stupid things a lot
Cassie: Well, you haven't killed yourself yet

Hamish: I should stick to the football overseas, don't want to get into legal trouble
Cassie: Yes, lawyers can be expensive overseas.
Hamish: But we got monies
Cassie: We don't want trouble, just keep out of trouble.
Hamish: We got time?
Cassie: Not really, we're going home pretty soon.

Hamish: So we fly and fly out when the game is over
Cassie: Pretty much, not much time for tourism. Let alone partying, or picking up girls.
Hamish: This place doesn't seem that exciting
Cassie: Any place is pretty boring compared to Jeruselem, this place is just different. Depends on what you're after.
Hamish: I guess I have get used all this moving around
Cassie: Don't worry, you'll get used to it.

Hamish: No wonder you don't see much of everyone when they are on tour
Cassie: Yeah, so busy just moving around. No time to rest at home, so much to do.
Hamish: I guess won't have much of a social life
Cassie: We have the mid-game break but it's pretty short.
Hamish: I guess if we manage to qualify, we get busier.
Cassie: That hasn't happened for a while, we keep trying.

[Kita-Hinode]

WORLD CUP 82 QUALIFIERS
Poltergeists squeeze win to start Lingard's run at Hinodejin helm
THE EMPIRE'S CELESTIAL CAPITAL, TENTAI CITY - The Hinodejin Empire found themselves on top after the first of eighteen matches on their road to World Cup qualification. Drawn as Group 10's second seed, the Poltergeists made some waves on the news after Eleanor Lingard chose not to call up Sang Kyung-Ja, who recently retired from association football as a whole (albeit not as a result of not being called up) and, up to that point, had been determined as the nation's best footballer. Players like Kamalani Kanani and Juri Kisame had been very vocal on how disappointed they were with the Hinodejin people over their lack of trust in this new squad, pointing to the game against fourth seed Cosneolta, the qualifiers' opener as an opportunity to prove everyone wrong.

Suffice to say, the Hinodejin did win but they did not control the game as much as the players expected, finding a side that was resolute in doing their best to pull an upset at the National Stadium. The two goals scored by Cosneolta were mostly on the Empire's goalie, Han Ji-Hun, who simply didn't have it in him to block those two almost lone shots by the opposition. Lingard did signal that she's planning on playing Iona Mizukara from now on, citing that "(Han Ji-Hun)'s performance was simply not good enough, good thing the rest of the team was able to pick it up." The Empire's first goal was actually the first goal of the match when Arichi Kunorikato was taken down near the box, leaving Iori Saitou with the ball while advantage was called by the referee. Iori lost a final marker before kicking the ball with some effect to overtake the Cosneoltan keeper.

Kamalani Kanani tied up the game after the opponent scored twice in a very individual effort, not a massive shock from the former Hokuto Senateurs' player, used to carrying a team on her legs. She dazzled throughout the defence before blasting a power shot at the top right angle, guaranteeing the team at least one point. The Hinodejin, however, left the National Stadium with a win after a perfect free kick shot by Mimi Akazukin, finding a curve that imitated a mathematical parabola, causing their goalie to miss the ball as it went in. The thirty remaining minutes were mostly a defensive affair, as Raiden Kojima and Etishi Karu kept their stand, guaranteeing the win and the three points. Albeit not as dominating as hoped, the Hinodejin continue their run against lower ranked side Flaw.

THE NEW CLUB OF MISEI CITY
Miyamoto, Misei Football Head: "It'll help our football"
MISEI CITY - The growing communities at the province of Misei were slightly shocked by the news that they'd be hosting a professional football team that would literally start at the top of the pyramid. The still unnamed Misei City-based team is taking over for the former team Shaolin Saitama, whom recently disbanded over a bit of a financial burden and the interest of helping nearby side Reaper Kamandu in their quest for success. Even while such a move has been treated with respect, for it was the wish of the monks of Saitama that Misei City was granted the honour of having a KiHi-LEAGUE team, a myriad of questions have arrived due to this team's nature. Questions ranging from minor details, like what mascot the team will employ, to actually important questions such as the team's roster, for the team, at least at this moment, lacks any contracted player.

As this is written, Misei City, the soon-to-be host city of the new team, is home to a vibrant football culture, featuring a local amateur league while a semi-pro State League has been running for the past three years out of Misei City, thanks to the city's ten semi-pro sides, all owners of some fantastic looking venues. We've talked with Misei Airlines League's current president, Daisuke Miyamoto, who also plays for arguably one of the league's best sides, Misei City Yorozuya.

The Sunrise Club: Daisuke Miyamoto, thanks for sparing some time with us from the Sunrise Club, we imagine it's hard to juggle your careers and still have time to talk with the media.
Daisuke Miyamoto: Honestly, I couldn't be happier for the opportunity! Misei's sports scene is improving every year with every new family that moves in and, not only as the president of our league but also as a regular player, I'm overjoyed that I can sit down with you, kind sir, to talk about Misei, football and Misei football.
TSC: Glad to see you're enthusiastic then. So, what brought you to Misei?
DM: Academic reasons. I moved here to attend the University of Misei and then sort of stuck around once I got a job working at the nearby Movie Studio. Love the city, the province and the realm, so I guess I'll stay here for the rest of my life!
TSC: When did you start to play football at Misei?
DM: At the first week after I moved in. The University of Misei doesn't play at the Hinodejin Intercollegiate level, but I did play at Misei City's Amateur League, the big league of the province back then.
TSC: And the Amateur League still exists?
DM: Well, yeah, but the focus this day is the Semi-Pro League that I happen to preside over. Been there since the start as well.
TSC: So, the Semi-Pro League, or as it's known for sponsorship reasons, the Misei Airlines' League. What's the story there?
DM: It's the evolution of our amateur leagues, ran in a way that could allow us to travel throughout the province to play other teams, something that we honestly couldn't do without any money coming from the province. With this current system, local businesses support the teams but we also have governmental aid to assist in the expansion of the sport throughout Misei.
TSC: Isn't it a bad thing that the government is spending money towards a considerably frivolous institution such as a football league?
DM: The aid isn't financial, in actuality. The government lowers the fare for our train trips to reach our rivals with the caveat that 10% of our seats are available for public school students free of charge. It does break even, in all fairness, but we now have an easier time travelling, since ticket sales were never really what kept our teams running.
TSC: Is attendance that poor?
DM: It's not really big. The abundance of semi-pro teams per locations that do not have massive population means that the fanbase isn't sizeable enough. Even for our small venues, it's still hard to keep fans coming every week, especially when you consider that our level of football is just slightly better than the amateur leagues. Compare this to the Widnescom Arena and their basketball team, the sole one in the entire city? Basketball unifies our city, football sort of divides it when people care.
TSC: So by that, one must imagine the league isn't doing well and the presence of a football club playing at the nation's top tier would bring chaos to your league, correct?
DM: Not really, although I do think we'll struggle a bit in the early years. Most of the league's teams are supported by small businesses, police departments, fire brigades, schools... The major zaibatsus have never turned an eye to us and would probably remain not caring, yet we've survived. I expect the new team to become a major feature but they will not really hurt us.
TSC: I see. The new club has garnered some attention empire-wide, yet they still lack any major infrastructure besides a shining new stadium at the eastern portion of Misei City. How exactly, if not negatively, do you think the new team will affect the region as a whole?
DM: It'll help our football, certainly. Our teams have been contacting the new team's owners about possibly bringing some of our boys in to play for their team, them loaning players to us as soon as the team grows up, our league's final being played at their stadium... But overall, a professional team in this town should help it in terms of exposure, which Misei desperately needs.
TSC: Any final thoughts?
DM: It's a promising look for Misei football. I hope to Arceus it pays up.

[Sajnur]

World Cup Qualifying: Sajnur 0 - 1 Qusmo

1-0. Not a score one would normally expect from a team as flamboyant as Sajnur, but Qusmo's defence meant Sajnur will still be looking for their first qualifying goal when they travel to Saltstead for their first away match. Of course, Sajnur weren't bereft of chances, but many of those chances were blocked by the touring defence or saved by Xynat-Evela Cuf. Speaking of defence, Sajnur's back four was surprisingly effective at keeping Qusmo out, although this was at the cost of many fouls, resulting in yellow cards for all four of Sajnur's backline (Tomasi Vuierev, Taulant Haji, Alan Gharici, and David Kiral) and defensive midfielder Zain Hasan. It was veteran Gharici's yellow card, however, which led to Xilit-Zaxac Yol scoring from the spot in the 57th minute. Indeed, Hasan's yellow was also in the penalty box for a bad tackle on Prant-Pertz Gor, but Xilit-Zaxac's second penalty attempt was saved by Piotr Laghiev. While both teams had a similar number of chances at goal, Qusmo was able to deal with the Sajnuran threat without resorting to nearly as many risky tackles, and this eventually proved to be the difference.

Jessica Siafik had another excellent day as usual, her passes homing on their targets as if they were heat seeking missiles, but the following attempts at goal just couldn't find the back of the net. Andre Naulo will be very disappointed to not be on the scoresheet, and such a feeling will be one he is not used to. The main surprise, of course, will be the competent showing of Gharici and co. Several wonderful tackles were completed, and in the 88th minute Haji pulled off an intercept from Kynda-Sevet Pec's feet to start a bombastic run for goal, to the delight of nearly 100,000 Sajnuran fans and the chagrin of the few thousand Qusmi'y who showed up. However, Xynat-Evela pulled of a wonderful save to thwart the equaliser, and with Sajnur unable to break through, Qusmo emerged victorious, if only just.

Editor's note on "Sajnur to play Qusmo on matchday One"

On our article previewing Sajnur's opening fixture against Qusmo, our publication referred to the international governing body of association football as the "NationStates Football Organisation". However, we have been informed by a Qusmi publication that the governing body's name is actually the World Cup Committee. The Sajnur football association did receive its match schedule from the World Cup Committee. Any speculation that Sajnur was instead notified by a rival bootleg organisation is false.

Friendly: Devonta 4 - 1 Sajnur

Sajnur travelled to the Anderson Stadium to play against the 49th ranked United States of Devonta in a warm up frindly prior to the start of World Cup qualifying, and promply lost 4-1 to the hosts. Andre Naulo scored the lone goal for Sajnur in the 53rd minute, thanks to a through pass delivered by Kaori Hajat from deep, Naulo then scampering into the penalty box and rounding Bradley Cooper on his way to the goal line. Gerald Johansen and Lamar Adams, however, scored two goals each in a convincing display by the Devontans, dismantling the Sajnuran defence and forcing nine saves rom Alek Khadur, who stood in for Piotr Laghiev in this match.

The two Devontan strikers scored one goal each in the first half. Johansen scored in the 15th minute by shooting from close range after a series of passes which threaded their way into the six yard box for a tap in, and Adams sent the ball into the far corner in the 38th minute after dribbling past three defenders to give Devonta a 2-0 half time lead. Naulo's goal pegged it back to 2-1, but chances dried up for Sajnur after Jessica Siafik was subbed off in the 60th minute, and Adams scored his second in the 71st with a shot from the edge of the penalty box. Naulo was subbed off in the 75th minute, and Johansen headed a cross from Tyrell Owens Jr in the 85th minute to seal victory for the hosts.

Samuel Durghi and Alizer made their debuts in this match, with Durghi starting at left back and Alizer coming on for Siafik. Durghi proved to be a servicable defender, but did not prove himself to be a superior option to David Kiral, and Adams breezed past him for the game's second goal. Alizer had an uninteresting match. His passing was accurate but lacked the instinct to unlock the Devontan defence and he was found wanting in the defensive department.

Overall, such a result is not surprising given the difference in calibre between the two teams, but a 4-1 loss is still a sore thing to endure.

Preview: Saltstead v Sajnur

Sajnur's naitonal team has landed in Ashwell, Saltstead for their first away match of World Cup Qualifying at the King William VII National Park. Contrary to the name, the stadium is not known to be in an actual national park, and thus animals are not expected to be a common sight for travelling Sajnuran fans when entering the stadium.

Saltstead's team has a strongly defensive philosophy, as suggested by their 5-4-1 formation, relies on counter attacks when starved of possession, and circulates the ball in the midfield in times of plenty. They are known to be an aggressive team, and when necessary are willing to be outright dirty. Sajnur is not entirely shy of such tactics, given that five defensive players received yellow cards against Qusmo, but the Sajnurans will need to be alert against Saltstead, even if only to avoid having their shins removed. The Stallions, in fact, pride themselves on their bus parking skill, and the Sajnurans may need to stick some nails in their tyres or some blunts in their exhausts to keep the parking space empty for Sajnuran vehicles to score. The Stallions also pride themselves on time wasting, but Sajnur will be well versed in this pastime too, given that the country's most successful sporting endeavour to date has been Test cricket, and also given that Sajnur probably grows most of Saltstead's marijuana. Getting through Saltstead's defence will likely be a quagmire, both from their philosophy and from the vast ranking disparity between the two teams, and captain Jessica Siafik will likely have a hard time finding her attacking force.

In terms of offense, Saltstead's main threat will likely be Michael d'Angel, given that he is their only starting striker, and it will be the responsibility of Vuierev and co to make sure he does not get the ball. Martin Wissen will also be a big threat to the goal, and he is known to be Saltstead's most flamboyant player, although whether that means anything in such a team as Saltstead remains to be seen. Kahala Murje is set to receive her first start, replacing David Kiral at left back, but the rest of the defence is to remain as it was in Javoser against Qusmo.

This matchup should prove to be an interesting matchup for a patient viewer, and patience will be required of the Sajnurans to keep pace with Saltstead, and given the circumstances, a loss for Sajnur is to be expected, however Saltstead's relative lack of goal scoring prowess could allow Sajnur to secure a draw. A win, though, will likely require a massive blunder from the Stallions combined with a perfect performance from Sajnur. Also of interest could be the number of injuries and cards, and the fanbase of Rivers FC have indicated that the amount of flares they will bring to the return fixture at Queen Haqla Stadium will directly correlate to how dirty Saltstead are.

Starting XI

[Grod Island]

The Grodian Express Grod Island lose First Match

Grod Island have lost their first match narrowly to Porabasta 3-2 yesterday. There were many unhappy faces as Nick Lang's brace failed to win Grod Island the match.

"We are very upset about the match. We thought we would win, but we became careless at the end" said Nick Lang who scored both the goals for Grod Island.

"Let us hope this is the first and last defeat in the tournament. We have managed to be at the 6th position on the table which is much better than the last. We will work harder next time" said a very optimistic Edward Rose.

Grod Island who are ranked 235 in the world are all set to win their next game. Famous personalities from around island have announced their support to the team. Let's hope they find some success in the next match.

[Turori]

Cocoa-bo contemplating next "Better with Cocoa-bo" Campaign

Mliona, Turori :: With the recent announcement by Queen Cassie II that Athletic Arena throughout the Matriarchy of Cassadaigua would be investigating the possibility of bringing in Corporate Sponsors and other assorted arrangements, the marketing department at Cocoa-bo saw a perfect opportunity for an expansion opportunity into Rushmore by asking the Dagan's the question if everything's Better with Cocoa-bo?

Cocoa-bo's Cassadaigua's better with Cocoa-bo! marketing concept

The unforgettable marketing campaign begun by what was then just a small independent eatery in Mliona, Turori has grown Cocoa-bo into a Regional brand across Atlantian Oceania and, through the help of the CoCoCo company, Cocoa-bo has even begun to grow outside of Atlantian Oceania and into select pockets of the rest of the multiverse. After CoCoCo set up shop on a little Island off the coast of South Covello, dominating an economically starved market and taken huge portions of market share to build capital and prepare for new growth, Cocoa-bo is looking towards their next steps beyond just pop up shops in places like Cosumar and the Equestrian States but as a permanent fixture not just as Turori's famous delectables, but as the Multiverse's favorite delectable and sociable eatery. Cocoa-bo really broke onto the world stage during World Cup 81 becoming the Official Global Delectable Partner for World Cup 81 in the Free Republics and Banija. Cocoa-bo was present at all major World Cup 81 as well as opening pop-up shops in World Cup host cities - some of which have remained in place and become popular with the locals. It was a double-boost for Cocoabo however when Cocoa-bo's two biggest markets, Turori and South Covello, both advanced to the World Cup Semi-Final. While neither would ultimately lift the World Cup Trophy - that honor went to Cocoa-bo's fourth largest market; the Tropics of Vilita, the tournament was still a success and re-affirmed the value of sporting sponsorships and partnerships to the Cocoa-bo Marketing team.

Now, Cocoa-bo officials were looking to engage with Queen Cassie II and her Cassadaiguan sporting and corporate representatives to determine whether Cassadaigua would, in fact, be better with Cocoa-bo. Cocoa-bo officials will look for a meeting with the Cassdaigans to understand if the partnership would make sense, and if so, which Dagan city would be an ideal focus area to begin opening Cocoa-bo shops. Cocoa-bo officials were most familiar with Concord Heights due to their presence as an associate partner of Vilita and Turori Motorsports on the NSSCRA circuit where the Concord Heights Motor Speedway was one of the series longest running events.

:: Cocoa-Bo Eatery

Cocoa-bo, an establishment taking its name directly from the beloved national animal of Turori, started as a small dessert shop in Kionao. However, it was only after they added chocolate topped drinks to their menu that their popularity started to soar. As more and more patrons scooped up their chocolate flavored pick-me-ups, demand for the Cocoa-bo product skyrocketed and soon new franchised locations were popping up all throughout Turori. Shifting to more of a social 'hang-out' then just a casual place to drop in, get a dessert, and leave, the new locations started adding small foods such as Bagels for the morning, Soups and Sandwiches for Lunch or Dinner and Salads for the entire day.

Cocoa-bo has expanded outside of Vilita & Turori. Their first regional location was opened in Andossa Se Mitrin Vega and Cocoa-bo has opened temporary locations during major internationstatal events such as the World Cup Finals with past locations appearing in Drawkland and Cosumar. Cocoa-bo has a permanent presence in South Covello and is also continuing to grow its presence in Starblaydia, the Equestrian States and the Free Republics. The company continues to further increase its image by partnering with Motorsport teams and expanding the company footprint across Atlantian Oceania and beyond. Cocoa-bo are also the kit sponsor for Mliona-Lpaka AFC in the Vilitan League.

Cocoa-bo's largest current markets are, in order, Turori; South Covello, the Equestrian States, Vilita and the Free Republics

[Mercedini]

82nd World Cup Qualification MD1
Mercedini vs. Lisander
@ Zoloroni Sports City Stadium - Zoloroni, Mercedini

Good evening, it's that time again! We're back in the Zoloroni Sports City Stadium for another World Cup Qualification campaign in Mercedini, where the Golden eagles will attempt to make it to two World Cups on the trot, as they kick off their schedule with a home match against a potential dark-horse in Lisander. Tens of thousands of fans have flocked to the nation's capital to witness the first match or eighteen which Mercedini will play over the next three to four weeks of frantic footballing action. All the big names have been called up to the national side, with Cenian gaffer Elidyr Lyndainium also incorporating youth into the side following the Young Eaglets finishing in a solid second position in the Equestrian States at the most recent Under-18 World Cup. The Golden Eagles go into a strong Group 15 as second seeds, with Equestrian States as the top seed with Indusse, Krytenia and Garifunya also in the mix, hoping to challenge for a top two spot to further their chances for a World Cup title. Anyway, let's see whether the national team could give the fans a taste of what to come as they play Lisander in the opening game of World Cup Qualification.

World Cup Qualification: Fine Start To Qualification

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FINAL SCORE

WCQ | MD1

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MERCEDINI 5
Presic 19', Kraljic 22'
Dostalok 40', 69', Aznelik 82'
LISANDER 1
Camden 42'

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Zoloroni, Mercedini
Attendance - 73,981

The Golden Eagles kick off their qualification campaign with a bang as their overcome a patchy Lisander side by five goals to one in front of a near-capacity crowd in Zoloroni. Lyndainium picked his first choice side for the opening match to ensure the blue and blacks got an early three points on the board to start their campaign as they mean to go on. All of the main players were on form for the home side with the midfielders especially on form, netting the first two goals of the game before new Starling striker Daniel Dostalok fired home to put the Golden Eagles three clear before the break. It leaves Mercedini top of the group on goal difference following the opening match, with top seed Equestrian States right there with them after the ponies won 3-0 at home against Zeniyadh to put them second in the group. Garifunya claimed a comprehensive win themselves to put them in third, while the other big story of the opening matchday was that Krytenia, on their return to World Cup action, could only earn a point at home as they were held to a one-all draw against Indusse to leave them safely in mid-table.

Back to Zoloroni, and it was a match that the fans had come to expect when the home side was facing teams from lower down the World Cup Qualification, something that was evident in the last campaign when Mercedini put themselves on the map with a 7-1 thrashing of Tobiasia, who was in Pot 3 at the time. This time, the margin was smaller, but no less impressive from the Golden Eagles as they imposed their dominance on Lisander, who would only sit back and absorb the chances that the Mercedinians were carving out for themselves. A brief moment of brilliance from Lisander star Camden gave his team a look into the game with a low driven shot which beat the low dive of Hosset to his right to make the score 3-1 before the end of half-time. Form then on, Lisander had all the momentum and faceted another chance which was blazed over the bar from close range. The clock ran out on the fightback as the referee blew his whistle for the end of the half. Positives from both sides but it was Mercedini who held the trump card in the match, leading 3-1 at the break following a very entertaining first 45 minutes.

The teams came back out for the second half with Lyndainium talking to Nymark, the chosen captain for the game who was guiding his players reasonably well during the first half, conversing with his manager on any tactical changes to see out the game with as little risk as possible. All Mercedini had to do was not concede two goals and they were off the mark from the get-go.

The action returned to the Sports City Stadium with Lisander kicking off, their players knowing they had it all to do to come away from Mercedini with a hard-earned point from their opening match. Camden nearly got another goal back for the visitors less than five minutes into the second half with a curled shot which beat the dive of Hosset but not the Mercedinian goalpost, as the ball scraped narrowly wide off the post and safely out for a goal kick for the hosts. Any Lisander fightback looked to have been quashed when Dostalok added a second for his team's fourth of the game. A scything diagonal ball from Garzallo was met by Chillotov who used his pace to beat the offside trap and race free towards the ball. The Lajuno striker took a touch to control the ball, which allowed his marker to catch up to him. Now under pressure, Chillotov squared the ball towards an oncoming Dostalok who controlled the ball as he entered the box before firing high into the top corner with an emphatic finish to a clinical Mercedinian move. Dostalok celebrated in front of the Mercedinian crowd with Chillotov joining him in the corner, it was a sweet moment for both players after spending considerable time away from their home to play in Nephara and Eura respectively.

Mercedini were cruising to their first victory of the campaign at this point, with the clock ticking down on the match as Mercedini held firm to waste time and run upfield once they got possession back. Garzallo and Presic on the Mercedinian wings were working hard to link the defence and the attackers without going through the centre, which was heavily populated with Mercedinian and Lisandan (?) players as a tactical decision from both sides. A solid save from Michaelichen in the Lisander goalmouth forced a corner for the home side which only provided momentary rest bite for the visitors. An in swinging corner from Presic was flicked on at the near post by Aznelik, which rolled into the net after the man on the post got a strong leg to the header, but could only take most of the venom out of the shot and not the direction of the ball. The net didn't ripple, the ball was cleared almost immediately after it crossed the line, but subsequent checks from the referee's goal-line technology and the Video Assistant Referee confirmed the goal to put a fifth on the board in the dying embers of the game.

The game was won but Lisander, to their credit, kept fighting to put another goal on the board to please their fans and increase their goal difference to ensure they weren't bottom of the table after the first game of the campaign. Hosset's clean sheet had already gone from this game following that first half goal from Camden, but a solid second half performance meant no further goals was scored in the second half to leave the score at 5-1, which was the final score when the referee blew his whistle for the end of the game after four minutes of added time.

Mercedini's handsome goal haul mean they go into their second game top of the table, going neck and neck with the Equestrian States for as long as they can to try and secure that automatic qualification spot in the 15th and final group. Of the two occasions that Mercedini have qualified for the World Cup Finals, they have finished second both times (funnily enough, both to Vilita as well), so the team are craving to top the group to they can finally state that they can hang with the best of them and sit as the top table of footballing nations. Next, Mercedini head on the road for the first time, and hope to come back to the Sports City Stadium with all three points with momentum ahead of their blockbuster match against the Equestrian States. For now, it's a fine start for the Golden Eagles, winning with a score line of Mercedini 5, Lisander 1.

[Abanhfleft]

The Premier League was back. Yes, football was back (at least the kind of football that actually involved feet and not the hands, like that other code of football did). It began, as always, at the de facto national stadium of Abanhfleft, the May 26 Revolution Memorial Stadium in the capital city Riuwiee with the 2025 SFA Community Shield. The SFA Community Shield was a one-off match between the champions of the top division of Fleftic football (currently the Fleftic Premier League) and the winners of the SFA Cup (the oldest football knockout competition in the APOC Coalition). For the 2025 edition, the teams squaring off would be the 2024-25 Premier League champions Arsenal de Releinthi (from, obviously, the city of Releinthi, just a short ferry ride away from Riuwiee) and the winners of the 2024-25 SFA Cup Bananas FC (from the city of Suwkpel in Berkner Bay Province, famous for the extensive banana plantations that had given the club its name). And, as nobody had expected, Bananas played Arsenal out of the park and lifted the Community Shield for the first time in the new millennium thanks to a goal from Lemuel Fuller and a brace from Patrick Culimbat.

But for all of the excitement and chaos that the Community Shield had generated, it was now time to get back to the reality that is the Fleftic Premier League. All that the vast majority of the multiverse ever saw of the Premier League was the glitz and glamour, the big clubs like Riuwiee United and Arsenal de Releinthi and Sporting Ceneisis, the clubs who qualified for the Champions' Cup and the Globe Cup. But they barely if ever got a glimpse of the true inner workings of the FPL, never saw the cutthroat nature of the league in which every team other than the Big Six were always fighting for survival in the midtable and constantly avoiding relegation for as long as possible. That was where Locomotive Imgortur found itself right now. In layman's terms, they were too bad to fight for the title, but they were also too good to get dragged into the relegation dogfight season after season. It hadn't always been that way, of course. Yes, Locomotive Imgortur was one of the founding members of the FPL but they had performed poorly in the first five seasons of the new top league in Abanhfleft eventually getting relegated to the division now called Unang Liga at the end of the 1999-2000 season, where they stayed for the next ten years. At the end of the 2009-10 season they were promoted back to the Premier League but immediately relegated back in the season after. Another promotion in 2014 had seen Locomotive become the stable midtable club that it was now today.

Two Premier League matches had already been played by the time that Locomotive Imgortur stepped out of the tunnel and onto the pitch of their new stadium alongside the eleven players representing Athletic Dorfdifving Football Club, Locomotive's first opponents in the new Premier League season. The first Premier League match of the 2025-26 season was between newly promoted Eielo Sunlight and Premier League stalwarts Xemlice Rovers, played on a Friday night and broadcast on television for all of Abanhfleft to witness. An own goal from Corey Wheeler would turn out to be enough to separate the sides and shock everyone with the result that a newly promoted team could actually go toe to toe with the team who were the first ever champions of the Premier League, but it wouldn't prepare the fans for the spectacle that was to come to them in the Saturday noon kickoff between Thereisnogodistan, another promoted side, and Wanda Island Wanderers, another Prem mainstay. After the dust had cleared in that game, Wanda Island had emerged 4-0 winners courtesy of two braces (a brace of braces, if you will) each from Arthur MacAlistair and Dane Lansforde of Nephara. Four goals in one game? How can the rest of the Premier League's games this matchweek compare?

One thing was for sure though, at least for one Klearchos Kazantzakis, taking charge of his first ever Fleftic Premier League match. He was not going to rely on scoring a glut of goals to ensure picking up points in this league, not when these were the players that he had available to him. No, he was going to rely on good old-fashioned defense to be the best offense for him. Like had been explained earlier, it would be enough to keep Locomotive in the Premier League, but not really that good to take them up to the Globe Cup places. At least Kazantzakis hoped that it would be enough to ensure their survival.

The New Locomotive Arena had finally been opened, after numerous delays, to much pomp and ceremony, three years after it was supposed to. Demolishing of the old Locomotive Stadium had commenced at the end of the 2014-15 season, and the Engineers had played their matches at the city's baseball stadium, the Stadion de December 27, while their new stadium was being built. But a combination of factors such as lack of supplies, construction delays, Congressional corruption investigations, and the occasional rebel mortar attack had served to push back the end date of the construction of the new stadium before the stars finally aligned and enabled construction to continue unabated until it was finally finished with time to spare before the beginning of the 2025-26 season. There had even been a little ribbon-cutting ceremony to "officially" open the New Locomotive Arena for business, although the fans were more interested in actually getting to their seats and watching the game.

"I sure hope you know what you're doing, Kleos," Antonis Harisis said as he sat down at the head of the substitutes' bench and watched Kazantzakis take his seat just beside Harisis's.

"You know, Anton, I'm kind of hoping the same thing," Kazantzakis admitted as the referee blew his whistle to start the game.

For the first 75 minutes of the game, the plan went just as Kazantzakis had wanted it to go. Perhaps he would have wanted at least a goal from Locomotive, but the important thing for him was that they hadn't conceded. Yet. Sure, there were some close calls, like when Jude Riggs had almost scored from a free kick early on in the game that even Kazantzakis had to accept was a hell of a shot and a hell of a goal had it gone in. But Artemios Zigdis was more than up to the task, vindicating Kazantzakis's choice to make Zigdis his starting goalkeeper.

And despite Kazantzakis's clear focus on an airtight defense, Locomotive were also getting a few decent chances in front of goal as well. Coke Handu headed just wide from Quique Borja Morales's corner kick, and Paul Robert Gonzalez had his own shot saved by the Dorfdifving keeper. But aside from those chances, it was really more on Dorfdifving trying to score and Locomotive trying not to concede. It was not the kind of game that would convert an ordinary person into watching a football game. The team talk at half time from Kazantzakis had had almost the exact same message as before: "Good job not letting these guys score. Now if we can keep doing that while at the same time score a goal of our own then that's job well done. Come on, boys. Let's get out there and get those three points."

But here, as the clock marked the 76th minute of play, the plan began to fall apart. And just before for one split second, Motewa Rabatsy had failed to pay attention to his man and Charlie King dropped a shoulder and ran past Rabatsy, leaving the Copperite defender in the dust. King then took one more step to put the ball to his favored right foot before pickling off a shot that, for all intents and purposes, was far out of the reach of Artemios Zigdis.

Local news articles about the match would focus on and use as the front page picture of their sports section the grimacing face of Klearchos Kazantzakis as he watched his grand plan of "defend, defend, defend" fall into pieces right in front of him.

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CRESCENT NEWS NETWORK
SPORTS CHANNEL - OFFICIAL WEBSITE
ABANHFLEFT • PRIDNESTROVIA • OONTAZ DERT LI NG • COPPER CUPRUM • TRENDSTART • FHULGHAMOUS PENINSULA

WORLD CUP 82 QUALIFIERS: SAVOJARNA VS ABANHFLEFT
By Malik Qazizadah


Miranda Sullins of Abanhfleft and Malin Haakonson of Savojarna fight to get the ball during the World Cup 82 qualifying match between Savojarna and Abanhfleft. (Courtesy of Crescent News Network Sports Channel/Andros Tasasa)

SJOEDRHAVN, SAVOJARNA - It's sadness in Sjoedrhavn for the Abanhfleft women's national football team as they started off their qualifying campaign for the 82nd World Cup with a 4-3 loss against Savojarna, their own women's national football team claiming all three points at the death courtesy of their captain Kristina Midström.

Savojarna were undeniably in control for the vast majority of the first half and they took an early lead through Irina Jarkasjärvi's free kick, awarded after Erin Jensdottir-Jennings had made an uncharacteristically hard tackle on Freya Sigurdsdottir, and Jarkasjärvi would double her country's lead two minutes past the half-hour mark after smashing home the rebound from Sigurdsdottir's header, a chance which had begun with Jarkasjärvi's own cross. The lead would then grow to three five minutes from the half when Sigurdsdottir broke away on the counter and chipped the ball over the rushing Stephanie Bryan.

But Abanhfleft improved markedly in the second half and begun chipping away at the home side's lead, first with Britt Hanokssen-Hanks's long-range shot bouncing into the back of the net off the underside of the crossbar and then six minutes later a more conventional goal from Kelly McGinnis, before Elene Liner thought that she had pulled a point from the fire after a goal-mouth scramble saw her toe-poke the ball past the arms of Viktorija Petrova. The Savojar goalkeeper protested for offside against Liner despite the match officials already indicating that the goal was going to stand, and her continued remonstrations saw Petrova seeing yellow.

But it was the Savojars who would have the last laugh as yet another free kick in the end of added time allowed the home side an opening, and they took full advantage as Savojar captain Kristina Midström nodded in the ball from Irina Jarkasjärvi's free kick to score the winning goal of the game.

Abanhfleft women's national team manager Ginny Katesmar: "I mean, of course it's disappointing that we've lost our very first game of the qualifiers. Who wants to lose, right? But despite the loss, I saw a lot of positives in this team. They're hungry; they want to prove themselves. And we're also getting opportunities to score and get goals. And we take them. But our defense, now that is something that we are going to work on. And we've got to work on that very quickly because we've got Vilita up next."

Abanhfleft are still on the road as they face defending World Cup champions Vilita for their next qualifying match.

             SAVOJARNA 4 - 3 ABANHFLEFT
JARKASJÄRVI (14', 32')       BRITT (54')
   SIGURDSDOTTIR (40')       McGINNIS (60')
       MIDSTRÖM (90+5)       LINER (83')

ABANHFLEFT
GK: 1 Bryan
RB: 2 Baum
RCB: 4 Soler
LCB: 5 Sullins (Walrath - 85')
LB: 3 Roos █
RM: 6 Winter-Slaughter
LM: 8 Erin █ (Segovia - 64')
RW: 7 Liner
CAM: 10 Britt █ (Woodward - 72')
LW: 11 Rusev

SAVOJARNA
GK: 1 Petrova █
RB: 3 Reskilainen (Martinova - 78')
RCB: 4 Kjaer
LCB: 2 Ernberg
LB: 5 Midström
DM: 6 Raukanen
CM: 8 Maersk
AM: 14 Otalainen (Vilén █ - 59')
RW: 10 Jarkasjärvi
ST: 11 Sigurdsdottir
LW: 7 Haakonson (Sorendal - 80')

MATCH STATISTICS
Possession
Savojarna: 51%
Abanhfleft: 49%
Shots
Savojarna: 23 (10 on target)
Abanhfleft: 20 (8 on target)
Corners
Savojarna: 10
Abanhfleft: 5
Fouls
Savojarna: 11
Abanhfleft: 18

[Brusseldorf]

Online Article, 11.03.19, 9:38pm

Brusseldorfennin will be waking up this morning disappointed, perhaps, but not surprised. The first game of the group stage kicked off last night, against cup giants The Holy Empire. In a humiliating 5-0 loss at home, Brusseldorf's naïveties heading into the Cup seem to have been smashed. The Locale had an exclusive interview with long-time fan Mario Sanchez, who was at the match "Look what dey dit to my team! I don't carrre dat dey worrrlt numberrr 12. worrrlt numberrr bullssit. Biba Los Alrrrededorrres! Ant you know, I jhearrr de otherrr teams talking ssit about my babies, I say come fight me. I playet football forrr 50 yearrrs of my life, beforrre de Nazis, dey kneecap me in '97. But you know I keep playing frrrom de sideline, ant I tell you, I see de perrrson who say bat dings about my team, I see jhim at a match, I tell you de police will be peeling me off jhim. Ant I tell you, mi esposa y mi niñas woult do de same."

Brusseldorf went down 5-0 at the new Fennec Stadia

On a more positive note, tensions regarding the disappearance of the former First Lady seem to have subsided with the commencement of the World Cup. One Casablanca citizen had this to say: "Look, I'm still worried about her, you know. I think we all are. What with her husband knocking off a few weeks back, and now she's gone too, I just hope she's okay. But yeah, the World Cup is helping to take our collective minds off that, that national tragedy I guess. I mean we got flogged 6-0 or something like that but my mate reckoned that the team we were versing are really good like, so I guess that's not too bad, you know, cause I remember playing football in primary school and we just had a lot of fun. Yeah, I did watch the highlights, I mean there weren't any goals from us like I said but the football I did see from us was just fantastic. Yeah our backline is a bit weak but I think we knew that already, and Craig admitted that we'd be looking to attack more than defend. But yeah, when we got the ball it was just glorious, glorious football and it's a wonder we didn't come away with at least one goal in the net. And my, I know we lost but Teddy Wolfenden.. just wow. I mean, he couldn't compete with Holy Empire's midfield but his awareness has improved since I've last seen him play. Yeah. Did you see that backheel he did to Hernández! Cor, I mean nothing came of it but that kind of skill is very promising to see. So yeah, I'm still optimistic."

Things weren't looking so up for Brusseldorfen goalkeeper Antony Providence, who has allegedly paid for damages he caused to changing room. Whilst Providence was not available for comment, goalkeeping coach Lev Yashin had this to say: "He [Providence} vas frrrustrrrated vith last night's perrrforrrmance. Myself and squad, ve say he being too harrrd on himself but you know how he is and you know how goalkeeperrrs arrre, zey pile zat on zemselves like zey have vorrrld on zeirrr shoulderrrs. I zink he chipped some of ze tiles in changing rrrooms, accidentally orrr deliberrrately I don't know. It happens. All zat matterrrs is zat he's paid forrr rrrepairrrs and all is forrrgiven. Anyvay, on game frrront ve just have to keep ourrr heads high. Anthony vill be okay, I have faith in him to make good few saves against next team Libertas. Maybe even clean sheet. He deserrrves it."

Regarding the opposition, the Eastern Orthodox monks stationed outside the Fennec Stadia have begun preparing for the imminent departure of The Holy Empire team and their support group.

The Match Schedule is as follows:

March 10th: Brusseldorf 0-5 The Holy Empire
March 11th: Libertas Omnium Maximus vs Brusseldorf
March 12th: Brusseldorf vs Dritten Asopie
March 13th: Eastfield Lodge vs Brusseldorf
March 14th: Brusseldorf vs Sulsuland
March 15th: Brusseldorf vs Acapais
March 16th: Santa Regada vs Brusseldorf
March 17th: Brusseldorf vs Quakmybush
March 18th: Qasden vs Brusseldorf
March 19th: Mid-qualifying Break
March 20th: The Holy Empire vs Brusseldorf
March 21st: Brusseldorf vs Libertas Omnium Maximus
March 22nd: Dritten Asopie vs Brusseldorf
March 23rd: Brusseldorf vs Eastfield Lodge
March 24th: Sulsuland vs Brusseldorf
March 25th: Acapais vs Brusseldorf
March 26th: Brusseldorf vs Santa Regada
March 27th: Quakmybush vs Brusseldorf
March 28th: Brusseldorf vs Qasden

[Santa Regada]

Riots in the capital: Nation struggles to deal with aftermath of bitter Matchday 1 defeat

For many Regadans the qualifying campaign is already over

“Why is it only embarrassment and defeat that the national team can bring us?!” shouted an angry man no older than 22 as he stood on top of a beaten up car that had been looted by angry rioters. He took off his football jersey and began tearing at it before picking up a Regadan flag. “Why is it that when representing the nation, they do not uphold the legacy and pride of the homeland of the great Liberators?! Why do they only bring shame to our flag?! We have had enough!!” The sizeable crowd that had gathered to listen to the mans angry tirade cheered in unison, reflective of the general mood of the citizenry all across the entire nation.

Yesterday the nation struggled to deal with the bitter aftermath of Matchday 1 as the Super Eagles were defeated in a match that they were supposed to win, casting a serious shadow over the rest of their qualifying campaign. Anger over yet another immense disappointment quickly boiled over onto the streets of the capital after the full time whistle was blown, with riots geipping the capital and bringing it to a standstill. Scores of heavily armed troops from the Regadan National Guard - backed up by armoured vehicles and helicopters - had to be deployed to restore law and order in Calablanca as the capitals police force was overwhelmed with reports of arsons, thefts, assaults, robberies, and gunfights. Many have regarded the kneejerk, hysterical reaction as an event that was a long time coming; two successive qualifying campaign failures and now Santa Regada was already en route for a third. It is hard for the people to have hope in a national team that cannot even win a match they are supposed to. Regadans are fierce patriots and this type of systemstic upset has annoyed people to the point of no return. Several petitions have been started online demanding that senior leaders within the national team and Minsitry of Sport resign immediately and that the active squad is changed immediately. Others seek to skip the next World Cup, and some even demand that the national team is killed if they fail to qualify.

“What is the point of having hope in a team that constantly fails the nation?” says one teary-eyed woman as she is consoled by other upset supporters. “We don’t have hope in them anymore. They are useless. They put this country’s name to shame. All they do is lose lose lose, even the games they are expected to win. It’s bullshit. The people have had enough. Something needs to change right now.”

The match itself did not get off to a terrible start, rather the opposite; a long pass from Óscar Martínez completely bypassed most of Quakmybush’s defence and found Marvin Bejarano, who was then able to feed it through to Franco Hernández. It took a matter of seconds for the counterattack to be converted by Hernández who slammed the ball into the top left corner, giving the hosts the lead after just 17 minutes. However just 12 minutes later Quakmybush managed to equalise, followed by another goal on the cusp of half time to leave the Eagles trailing by a goal. For the next 15 minutes after play resumed the game was deadlocked before only got worse for the Regadans in the second half as Quakmybush scored in the 60th minute. An 84th minute header by Gerard Monreal temporarily lifted the spirits of the hosts but it was too late for a comeback and the final whistle left the nation to come to terms with the 3-2 defeat. Several Regadan players collapsed to the floor in tears, aware of the immense pressure on them from the people and government to perform and the entire team was boo’ed as they came off the pitch.

With a severe headache ahead of them as the Super Eagles now face a team ranked 24th in the world, it is likely that the atmosphere at home will only continue to get depressing as the nations citizens continue to lose faith in the national team once more.

Regadan qualifying campaign, WC 82:

9 Mar: Santa Regada 2-3 Quakmybush
Today: Qasden vs Santa Regada
Tomorrow: Santa Regada vs The Holy Empire
13 Mar: Libertas Omnium Maximus vs Santa Regada
14 Mar: Santa Regada vs Dritten Asopie
15 Mar: Eastfield Lodge vs Sanda Regada
16 Mar: Santa Regada vs Brusseldorf
17 Mar: Acapais vs Santa Regada
18 Mar: Santa Regada vs Sulsuland
19 Mar: No matches (mid-qualifying break)
20 Mar: Quakmybush vs Santa Regada
21 Mar: Santa Regada vs Qasden
22 Mar: The Holy Empire vs Santa Regada
23 Mar: Santa Regada vs Libertas Omnium Maximus
24 Mar: Dritten Asopie vs Santa Regada
25 Mar: Santa Regada vs Eastfield Lodge
26 Mar: Brusseldorf vs Santa Regada
27 Mar: Santa Regada vs Acapais
28 Mar: Sulsuland vs Santa Regada

[The Macabees]

Morning of the Games, Metzha Pilán; ca. 67 B.C.



I

Huitzitl still hadn't come to greet him and bid him good fortune in the games, instead preferring to remain conversing and laughing with Etzli's opponents. Periodically, the prince would look in his direction, but it was clear that he was still acidic about the emperor's decision to give Etzli the honor of helping him lead the closing ceremony in case of victory today. This was an honor usually reserved for the sons of royalty, not for hostages.

Etzli remained focused on what mattered: the games.

His team was grouped around him. The hundred of them occupied their small section of the gargantuan Square of the Dead, standing almost at the feet of the Great Temple of Cuelipochaloc. High above, at the peak of the temple's pyramid base, stood the colonnaded palace to Cuelipochaloc, parts of it constructed from marble slabs — like the iron of his spear, this was a material that Pilanecs had seldom seen before and a testament to the great wealth that the Pilanec empire had amassed under the rule of Cenquetzal and his father, Cozamacoztli. The Great Temple was, by far, the most monumental of buildings surrounding the square, but it was not the only one.

The double-stepped Great Temple was flanked by two smaller pyramids of similar look and design. On the left was the Temple of Miacacapan, goddess of fertility and life. On the right stood the Temple of Tlatatl, god of the forge. A single, broad staircase led to the top of both, where each had a stone house of intricate design sitting upon them. Carved friezes decorated the top of the walls, with faux columns chiseled into the rock. Banners were draped from the edge and multi-colored flags wavered in the wind. In Mahican culture, Miacacapan was the faithful wife of Cuelipochaloc, God of Fire, and Tlatatl his servant.

In front of the Great Temple, and on the other side of the Square of the Dead, stood the College of Priests. The two-story building rose at points higher than this thanks to towers with conical roofs and it extended from the Temple of Miacacapan all the way to the outer edge of the Temple of Tlatatl. There, all the city priests lived, except for the head priest, who was Emperor Cenquetzal himself. On the right and the left stood monuments, all ordered and raised under the rule of the current emperor, who valued this sort of extravagance more than his father. They were cast of bronze, a metal that to date had been used to make small figurines and other ceremonial tools. To display his grand wealth, Cenquetzal had sent envoys to faraway kingdoms to procure the artists needed to forge the tall statues which immortalized the imperial family. On the left stood six of Cenquetzal's mythical ancestors and on the right the five most recent emperors, with a statue of Cenquetzal standing last. Their bodies were muscular and idealized, their faces young, and they all wore the garb of warriors. But their weapons and armor were of a style never beforehand seen in Mahica, a foreign style.

Behind the College of Priests, there were dozens of other temples and monumental buildings, all built under the reign of the current emperor. Whereas Cozamacoztli had conquered, Cenquetzal built and celebrated. Most of the empire's riches had gone into stone, marble, and statues. For all his talk of supplying his armies with the best weapons, only the jagurat warriors received bronze-tipped spears and one could see with his own eyes that most of the acquired booty had been spent on lavishing the public with a city that could proudly represent the greatest empire in Plánol history, the Pilanec Empire.

Standing over the square and behind the Great Temple of Cuelipochaloc was the city citadel, on which was the elaborate and extensive emperor's palace. Also newly built by Cenquetzal, it was equally as endowed as the rest of the city's public property. A tall, stone wall surrounded the rocky outcropping, with towers topped by fires which burned day and night. The center of the palace was dominated by a great dome and the entire structure was brightly colored, with statues of the gods decorated the rooftops. It looked over the rest of the city like a guardian and protector or, depending on who you asked, like a tyrant.

It was in the Square of the Dead, surrounded by the glamor of Metzha Pilán, that the sixteen teams prepared themselves for their first match.

The sky was colored the orange-red of the early morning, and the moon had still not descended below the horizon in its totality. The games would begin soon and now all the men in each team had left to do was wait for their big moment. To think that half of them would either die or lose by the end of the first match. Those who did not die would be disgraced and sacrificed.

Etzli looked at the Great Temple for a moment and gave a silent prayer. He would not allow himself to die or lose today.

When he turned back, he saw someone he did not expect to be there, his mother.

Chantico stood at the edge of the square, by the platform of one of the bronze statues. She was smiling at him. How long had it been since he last saw her? Years, it must have been. At first, although she had always come rarely, his mother had come to see him several times each year. Now, he was fortunate enough if she came once every several years. But now she had come for the most momentous day in his life. He smiled back.

She approached him slowly. When she reached him, she said, "Hello, son."

"Hello, mother," he responded. "It is a great honor for you to be here today."

She nodded. "Today, you will become a man, like your father did so many years ago."

"I am doing it for him," he said.

She smiled again. For a moment, she remained silent, then, "I first met your father on this day, fifteen years ago. He stood so tall, so proud, after his victory in the games. I thought there was no more powerful man than him, not even the emperor. You look so much like him."

"Hopefully, I play like him, as well," he responded.

"I'm sure you will," she said. "I'm sure you will. For his memory."

A girl shouted then, "Eztli! Eztli!" It was Xiomara.

Her bright green eyes stood out against the blackness of her long, curling hair. Her bones were long and thin, proper of a high born lady, and her smile could make armies go to war. She was a beautiful girl and she too would become a woman today. Xiomara ran up to them.

"Who is this?" asked his mother, lovingly.

The girl smiled at Chantico. "Xiomara, daughter of Tenoch. You must be Eztli's mother! He's told me so much about you."

"He has, has he?" replied Chantico, skeptically. "You will have to tell me what he says about me. Come, let us leave him to his men. Let us go to the stands, you and I have a lot to talk about."

The two woman left chattering between themselves, as women do. Eztli hadn't said a word the whole time. If his thoughts weren't already on the games, he would have been driven mad thinking of what Xiomara and his mother could possibly be speaking about...undoubtedly him, but about what? As it was, he pushed those distractions away and turned back to the men in his team, who were making last minute adjustments to their cloth armor and their obsidian-tipped spears. Eztli grabbed his made of iron and joined them.

[Oberour Ar Moro]

⁂

From: Brianne Talbourdet
Sent: January 31, 1762 at 9:44 PM
To: Guillemecte de Cante-Pre
Subject: Sieg d'Ableges fact-check

I started work on the fact-check. It looks like this could take some time. I put the parts of the article in boxes.

The crowd had been shouting for some time before the men of the Oberour Ar Moro and Eura national football teams walked onto the pitch at the Parade Grounds.

The Euran National Team actually had a woman on their roster. Moira Woakes was on the bench for Eura in this game.

The gates had opened at 5:30 PM and every seat were filled long before kick-off.

The stadium did start admitting ticketholders at this time.

And then as the men of Oberour Ar Moro and Eura walked onto the field, the volume rose higher.

Again, the Eurans had a woman on their roster.

It only dimmed to a dull roar for the Oberour national anthem, rose to drown out the announcement of the Eura side, and only decreased again to join Loys de Bese-Vile, the announcer for the Parade Grounds, in announcing the starting line-up in his call-and-response style:

Loys de Bese-Vile was actually not announcing at this game. His wife was giving birth to their third child that night. The announcer for the Eura match was Sanson Pithou, who worked at KYZ Radio, and has served as a substitute announcer at the Parade Grounds.

"In goal, Laurens..."

"DESAINCTVICTORI", the crowd finished in unison.

"At left-back, Gwion..."

"DU BOURC-LA-REYNE."

"At right back, Lunen..."

"MARGAS."

And on he continued, through Pellier, Ricouart, Gaspard, Pique-Pain, l'Ermite, Odierne, Petit, until finally "and Sweeper, and Captain, Josselyn..."

"PESSIERRRE!!!" The crowd roar just continued and grew and grew while the Oberours lined up.

This was the correct starting eleven for this match. The call-and-response is typical at Oberour home matches.

The Oberours in red lined up on the pitch, stretching and pacing, staring out across the field to their Euran opponents in blue, while 49,670 Oberours bellowed and waved red and gold flags and banged drums and lit pyrotechnics.

The match was an announced sell-out, though there was an allotment of Eura tickets sold. Oberour Ar Moro was wearing their red kits, and Eura was in their blue kits. In the broadcast of the game, you can hear screaming and drumming. The waving of flags is common at Oberour matches, though there isn't any documentation from this game to say there was and d'Ableges' notes don't mention it. Pyrotechnics have always been banned in Oberour stadiums, and there is no record of any arrests related to it, and again there's nothing in d'Ableges' contemporaneous notes.

And not a single member of the Eura squad was intimidated at all.

Did d'Ableges interview any Eurans? He can't know that for a fact. I couldn't find any Oberour press reports that indicated that one way or the other.

This makes sense. The Parade Grounds may have been loud, but Eura plays their home games at the 110,000 seat Bastion Arena. Not a single member of the Euran starting eleven even played domestic football in a stadium smaller than the Parade Grounds.

The Bastion Arena in Bastion, Eura, was that large. However, Eura Center Midfielder Liam Armstrong started in the Oberour Ar Moro game and he played domestically for Starling in Nephara. Starling played in a 24,000 seat home stadium.

Eura's poise never wavered throughout the match. Oscar Coltrane's composure remained the same from his first goal through open play in the 19th minute, to his tricky, game-tying goal off a set-piece in the 84th minute, all the way through his tackle in the 91st minute, taking the ball from Drev Brébeuf and snuffing out the last frantic Oberour Ar Moro attack.

Coltrane did score two goals and made the tackle.

While Oberour Ar Moro manager Kadvael Heault exulted taking a point from the fourth-ranked team in the world, crediting Oberour fans and the atmosphere of the Parade Grounds, above him crews set out to begin cleaning detritus from the stands. The press packed their bags and left, crowds walked down Rue Artisan looking for a place to have a drink, players left by bus and car. And slowly but surely, the lights on the Parade Grounds dimmed, gloom settled in, shadows became heavier, until the Parade Grounds vanished into nothingness.

Eura was the fourth-ranked team in the pre-WC82 KPB Rankings. Kadvael Heault did thank the fans, though he did not mention the Parade Grounds by name or the atmosphere of the park. I called and spoke with a member of the groundskeeping staff of the Parade Grounds, and he verified that is a common sequence of events, post-match. Rue Artisan does have a number of bars and restaurants that get business after Obeorur matches.

I've got some messages I'm waiting on responses to. ll update you with the next amount of fact-checking.

Yours Truly,

Brianne Talbourdet
Intern at Intitre Magazine
8 Rue de Immarcescible, Suite 702, Regium 773007
Office Number: 43 28 97 246, ext. 7187
E-mail: btalbourdet@intitremagazine.oam

⁂

---

Oberour Ar Moro 2-2 Eura
@ Parade Grounds, Regium

Goals:
19': Oscar Coltrane
35': Eneour Pique-Pain
40': Kerrian Odierne
84': Oscar Coltrane

Oberour Starting XI:
Laurens Desainctvictori, Gwion du Bourc-la-Reyne, Lunen Margas, Josselyn Pessiere, Marzhin Petit, Roparzh Ricouart, Brevalan Gaspard, Jerian Pellier, Eneour Pique-Pain, Ruran l'Ermite, Kerrian Odierne

Oberour Susbstitues:
68' Out: Brevalan Gaspard; In: Ruran l’Ermite
72' Out: Gwion du Bourc-la-Reyne; In: Gilduin Sireu
78' Out: Marzhin Petit; In: Drev Brébeuf

Eighty-Second World Cup Qualification Schedule
WIN DRAW LOSS

MD1: Overour Ar Moro 2-2 Eura
MD2: Drawkland (0-1-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD3: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Lochario (1-0-0)
MD4: Rakivland (0-0-1) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD5: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. TigerSharkistan (1-0-0)
MD6: Audioslavia (1-0-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD7: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. San Rocca (0-0-1)
MD8: Darkmania (0-1-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD9: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Kevagaria (0-0-1)
MD10: Eura (0-1-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD11: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Drawkland (0-1-0)
MD12: Lochario (1-0-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD13: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Rakivland (0-0-1)
MD14: TigerSharkistan (1-0-0) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD15: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Audioslavia (1-0-0)
MD16: San Rocca (0-0-1) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)
MD17: Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0) v. Darkmania (0-1-0)
MD18: Kevagaria (0-0-1) v. Oberour Ar Moro (0-1-0)

[Banija]

Part I

Kabaka - King
Luguba - Queen Consort
Sarauniya - Queen Mother
Isebantu - Crown Prince
Omugabe/Omugaba - Prince/Princess
Omulangira/Kyabazinga - Duke/Duchess
Kagere/Kiweewa - Lord/Lady
Katikkiro - Prime Minister
Waziri - Foreign Minister
Lukiiko- Parliament
Kiongozi- Leader of the Opposition

Setting at Mujaguzo Palace, the primary residence of Kabaka Albert III

Kabaka Albert III was sitting in his office. It had been quite a hectic few days. Ever since Andrew Mavuto had, at his press conference, announced the discovery of oil deposits in the Northeast, everything seemed to be moving at quite a fast pace. All kinds of people were talking about different ways to deal with it, and who, exactly, should control those oil deposits. The Hangaza Regional Government was staking a claim- a ridiculous one, in his own mind, but he surely wouldn’t say that and dwelve into what was a political minefield in that way. The Lukiiko, of course, was fiercely debating the discovery, and opinions ranged everywhere from private capitalization, to nationalization, to not even drilling there at all- the favored option of the Katikkiro, most unfortunately. That, of course, would complicate things. But the Kabaka didn’t particularly care for the Katikkiro, and he could likely maneuver the Guardian Council to block any outright ban on oil production.

He was here today to meet with the man of the hour- Andrew Mavuto. He knew Mavuto’s story quite well. The former big shot CEO, into the former big shot former Ambassador, and then, becoming an Executive Vice President at the Regional Transit Corporation. He had worked with him on multiple occasions, though he had only met him personally twice, besides the moments when he had briefly met with him to present him with his diplomatic credentials when he left for his Ambassadorships. He had just finished watching the game on television- that, of course, being Banija’s opening World Cup Qualifier. He hadn’t really been paying attention, but after looking at the screen, he was happy with the result. The Banijans had exposed Eshan in the first half, opening up a 3-0 lead at halftime. The Echanis had come roaring back, of course, scoring in the 58th and 72nd minutes to make it 3-2, and almost escaped with a point, with one of their strikers hitting an incredible effort from a volley, but hitting the crossbar in the 89th minute. With that 2nd half performance, it could be said the Kadongo Kamu escaped, but regardless, 3 points was 3 points. A win he was happy with.

But now, of course, back to the important business at hand. Doing some last minute prep for the meeting with Mavuto. When had he met Mavuto? He had a personal meeting with him once, on a past visit to Eshan when he was serving as the Ambassador there, and he had met with him one other time, almost pre-empting the eventual Mutebi crisis, when the RTC had a vested interest into not opening a bridge between the North and South Busoga Islands. He shuddered, thinking about that. What might have been, right? Regardless, he put the whole Islander debacle behind him. They would do their own thing, and Banija was doing theirs. Regardless, it had been a number of years since he had met Mavuto personally- certainly the better part of a decade. And now, he was going to meet, to talk about, if handled right, what would surely be a groundbreaking moment for the country.

One of his senior aides walked into the room, interrupting the old man’s thoughts. “Your Majesty,” He said, going into a deep bow. “Mr. Mavuto is at the door, ready to see you.” And His Majesty, the Kabaka, motioned for the Chief of Staff to allowed Mavuto into the room. The Kabaka got ready- this was a one on one meeting, with an incredible economic opportunity for the country. He absolutely, 100%, had to get this meeting right. The potential for him, for his own legacy, for his own country, if he did this right, could certainly be on the line. Would he be known as the King who found the way for Banija to finally enjoy the first-world economic status of their neighbors?

“Your Majesty,” Andrew Mavuto said, as he walked in and went into quite a deep bow. “Thank you for receiving me today.”

“No, my friend- thank you for coming.” The Kabaka replied. “It is good to meet with you once again. It’s certainly been the better part of a decade since I last saw you, hasn’t it?”

“Absolutely, my King.” Replied Mavuto. “The years have treated me well- I have been fortunate to achieved much in my career- though of course, as we both know, the biggest things are to come.”

“Yes, absolutely, of course.” Replied the Kabaka. “But as you know, I am a busy man, and I’m certainly not getting any younger- and by the looks of it, neither are you. I see the gray hairs on your head, just as you see the lack of hair on mine.” The Kabaka smiles and chuckles at this moment. “But regardless of that fact, let’s get down to business.”

The Kabaka took a breath, and then he started speaking. “So, this oil discovery. I want to know the details, and I want to know the ins and outs. When did you discover the oil? Was it right before you went public, or have you known for a time? And, of course, how big is this deposit? And lastly, is this deposit wholly in Banija- does it cross the Geisenfred border? You know how well the Lukiiko gets along with the Geisenfred government…” the Kabaka trailed off. He looked at Andrew Mavuto, intently.

The corporate mogul rose, and started to speak. “Your Majesty, we are being faced with challenges on multiple fronts. But, let me tell you what I know. These oil deposits are very large. We don’t have an exact count, and I don’t really have a reasonable estimate, but I am told that this deposit could stretch a North-South distance that is almost a third of our Eastern national border. Only a sliver, a very small sliver, stretches into traditional Mukegara territory- so that part of the deposit, as we all expect, will be largely ignored, due to them exercising their rights not to be contacted. That part in Mukegara territory is less than, according to my engineers, one tenth of 1 percent. A small portion indeed, so their own constitutional rights will be protected. But the rest of it, the 99.9% of it that we can drill, Your Majesty…. This has the potential to make us rich- not only me, of course, but as a country.”

“Please, elaborate.” The Kabaka said.

Mavuto continued speaking once again. “Well, of course, you have seen those countries that are major oil producers, correct? Oil is the source of power in the multiverse- without oil, the modern way of life in so many countries would simply just die. Oil does everything from making our cars run, to ensuring that the lights turn on, and everything else. It is a precious commodity- that is why many people proceed to call the product black gold. It can transform this country. Oil revenues from this country can completely transform how we operate. They can turbocharge our own development into true, first world status- the economic status enjoyed by almost all of our neighbors in our region. We aren’t going to be the region’s sick child- we must strive to be strong, economically. And from a strong economy, all other strength flows. We have fantastic diplomats, we are well liked in a number of quarters, but what does that mean if we’re relying on foreign aid all the time?”

The Kabaka nodded as Mavuto continued to speak.

“This is, something that would be a great investment opportunity. But of course, the costs of drilling, especially when you are just starting out, are almost astronomical. And you know the state of the public treasury better than I do- the funds simply are not there, on our own, to drill, even if this will pay off many fold in the medium to long-term as we begin to set up the refineries and what not. But we must capitalize. There are many stakeholders here, and if we do this right, we can do something that will enrich everybody. Now, I am going to give you a business proposal, and ask that you, at the very least, consider it. This is something that will, in my opinion, please all relevant stakeholders, and ensure that we can have a good business proposal. As you remember, I have very many connections in Eshan, and they would certainly be our best partner in this project, to ensure that we can drill for this oil, and that we can do this correctly.”

Andrew Mavuto paused, and then, once again, continued speaking. “We need to be able to create a corporation, one that is going to be responsible for this. Now, of course, this is the wealth of the people of Banija, and naturally, this is something that the people of Banija should share in. Here is the plan. We should create a public corporation, a Corporation of the Crown- this way, it is not subject to taxes. But hey- it’s not done!” As Mavuto had said this, the Kabaka had looked ready to object profusely to that proposal. “This corporation would have 30% of its shares owned by myself, 30% of its shares owned by the Banijan Crown, and 30% of its shares owned by Echani investors- aka, a combination of private Echani investors and the Echani Government. 1% of the corporation would be owned by the Hangaza Regional Government, and the remaining 9% shall be held by the general public- aka, public traded shares on the Rosaria Stock Exchange. We can absolutely make this happen- I know a number of wealthy, capable investors. This way, if we can value this early and get people to buy in, we’ll be able to raise the funds to set up refineries, buy equipment, and within likely two years, we can start selling oil.”

Andrew Mavuto paused, looking for a reaction from the Kabaka- there was none, at least, no discernable reaction. He kept going. “I understand, I get a big cut myself- but of course, you can agree that is fair, since I have spent millions of NSDs in the last two years speculating on this land. 30% of this hugely profitable corporation, will be owned by the Banijan State. The country, its citizens, its national coffers, will be able to profit directly- which is much better than a direct tax. Who knows how many billions of NSDs that will be able to be split? This money can be used in all sorts of ways, ways that the Lukiiko can deliver. And lastly, this deepens our economic ties with one of our most important allies- Eshan. Continuing to deepen those ties ensures that they have a vested interest, and therefore, will always be able to help if anything goes wrong. And think of the benefits- your legacy is already strong. Bringing Banija to a place of prominence in the Commonwealth, bringing the World Cup to this country’s shores, but this- this, would be an all-time moment for your legacy. It could never be questioned in history if all goes well. What are your thoughts, Your Majesty?”

The Kabaka sat there, deep in thought. He actually liked the plan, though he could see a number of issues. After a long pause, he started speaking. “This sounds… Like a decent plan. You have certainly thought this one out. I like the idea of multilateral investment, I like the idea of this being a Crown Corporation. But there is one thought that I have, one problem- the Katikkiro has come out against drilling here at all. How do we deal with that? Permits to drill will come from the Government, and I cannot dismiss the Government- the Katikkiro certainly still maintains the confidence of the Lukiiko, with the institution’s first ever single party majority. And, of course, you know a Crown Corporation can only be established through an Act of the Lukiiko, and you know the math – I doubt there would be the votes to create a Crown Corporation to do this. How do we deal with that?”

“Your Majesty, I ask that you let me worry about the Lukiiko.” Andrew Mavuto replied. “I believe that we will be able to find the votes, once they understand the benefits. I can mount that PR campaign. All I suggest you do, is keep in contact with Eshan.” He finished. After a little more details, Mavuto bowed, and left the room, with a large grin on his face.

The Kabaka sat there, wondering what Mavuto was cooking up. He was sure that this was a quality proposition- the ability to drill would be huge. And then, he got ready to sent that message to Eshan…

To: Antonio DiMartini, Foreign Minister of Eshan

Hello, Mr. DiMartini. This letter is not going to be long, as we are both very busy men. I would like to, personally, invite you on a visit to the Kingdom of Banija. We want to discuss some further investment opportunities in Banija for the Echani Path to Prosperity, and some other ones- a major opportunity that could be to the benefit of both of our countries.

From,

His Majesty, Kabaka Albert III, of Banija