World Cup 73 - RPing Thread

by **Gim** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 5:48 pm

WATV - Monday ~ Sunday 8:30-9:00

Host: Jo Jin Ri

Camera is at an aerial view of the studio with Anchorwoman Jo Jin Ri in the center of the studio.

"Hello. I'm Jo Jin Ri of WATV 8 Sports News. Tonight was a thriller, as the Gimian players faced a tight game against the group leader, Yttribia. Yttribia has recently been considered an elite team, after defeating the No.1 ranked Pasarga. However, the Gimians certainly were not intimidated, as they had a draw against them. This was a battle of absolute offense versus absolute defense. Here's how it went."

Camera is showing the Gimian players shaking hands with the Yttribian players.

"Gimian players shake hands with Yttribian players, letting them know the match between them is meant to be friendly, not hostile."

Camera is showing the Gimian players being attacked in their zone by Yttribian players.

"3rd minute. Yttribian forward O'Doyle finds an opening in the left of the penalty zone, so he gently kicks the ball towards the midfielder Gregor Brandons at the center of the zone. Brandons takes the ball and shoots, but Kim Dong Jin blocks the shot, thus thwarting a high-quality scoring opportunity."

Camera is showing the Gimian players being attacked in their zone by Yttribian players.

"9th minute. Yttribia creates another scoring chance, this time attacking from the right. Yttribian forward Ghyslain Woolf passes to the center of the Gimian penalty zone and this time to midfielder Pepe Killian. Killian tries to deke past Kim Dong Jin and shoot, but Kim takes the ball away from him. Gimian defense is effectively countering the Yttribian offense."

Camera is showing the Gimian players being attacked in their zone by Yttribian players.

"35th minute. Yttribia has had nine scoring chances on Gim, and the Gimian defense has been successful at foiling their offensive strategy. Yttribia, this time, attacks from the left. Dionysus Túrvërrõ, a Yttribian midfielder, tries to penetrate the GImian defense from the left but fails. He makes a nifty pass to Roger Abbing and he crosses the ball. Bólivar O'Doyle heads the ball into the net, and Gimian goalkeeper Lim Dong Yeop makes a spectacular stop! Oh my! That is larceny! Ghyslain Woolf tries to put the rebound in net and the shot is blocked by Gimian defenseman Son Kyu Jin! Ball gets back to another Yttribian forward, Gregor Brandons, and he shoots, but the shot is blocked by Gimian midfielder, Yang Joon! Sean Mondragón takes a shot from outside the penalty zone and the ball is high. Four quality scoring chances for Yttribia and the Gimian defense successfully blocks them all!"

Camera is showing the Gimian players being attacked in their zone by Yttribian players.

"52nd minute. Yttribia has a total of nineteen scoring opportunities, and they have either been blocked by Gimian defensemen or blocked by the goalkeeper. Another shot from just outside the Gimian penalty zone near the center is blocked by Kim Dong Jin."

Camera turns over to Yttribian forward, Bólivar O'Doyle, expressing frustration by stomping his right foot on the ground.

"Frustrating moment for Yttribia. I can bet they have never anticipated Gimian defense to be this fortified. Bólivar O'Doyle, hitting the face of Gimian defenseman, Jeon Geon Tae, with his shoulder, shouts derogatory words at the defenseman. Referee blows the whistle and issues a yellow card! O'Doyle, however, continues to argue out of frustration. Gimian players, even those on the bench, all crowd around the referee, while all Yttribian players did the same. No fighting occurred between the two. O'Doyle, however, continues to unleash his temper towards the referee, and is eventually issued a red card!"

Camera is showing the Gimian players being attacked in their zone by Yttribian players.

"89th minute. However, Gimian players facing their 31st scoring opportunity for Yttribia. Roger Abbing crosses from the left of the penalty zone to Ghyslain Woolf who heads the ball into the goal. Gimian goalkeeper, Lim Dong Yeop, seems to have blocked it. Unfortunately, goal-line technology rules the header as a goal, since the ball barely passed the goal line. Immense upset for the Gimians, but successfully thwarting 30 of 31 scoring opportunities is definitely an accomplishment, considering the fact they are facing a 25th-ranked team, compared to their 191th rank. Yttribia 1 - Gim 0."

by **Ceni** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 6:19 pm

ICly some time after the conclusion of my debate RP, which I may or may not conclude in the future.

Allan Debord Drops out of Presidential Race

With the demise of the Free Republics' Holy Party-led government, the Christian State terrorist group, and the Church of Saintland's outreach efforts in general, Allan Debord of the Alliance for Cenian Future has officially submitted papers to the Cenian Electoral Commission withdrawing his candidacy for the Presidency. Political analysts, however, agree that the withdrawal will have little proximate impact on the race but the ripples will impact other parties still in the running.

Allan Debord, a previous rabble-rouser among the fringe conservatives of Ceni, was always known for his zany political views - at one point declaring his political views to be that of anarchy and total government monopoly on the economy - pretty much two views the exact opposite of each other. He had entered previous political elections before as the candidate of one of the fringe parties that merged to form the Alliance for Cenian Future, but never drew a real following or any real following or attention outside of his small clique. However, after the founding of the Alliance for Cenian Future, a political party that merged the political views of a number of far-right political groups - among them, a Corvidae spinoff party, a far-right populist anti-immigration party, and the Party of Freedom and Happiness, a Church of Saintland-backed political party. Under that group's banner, Debord found more support than he ever had found for his political goals, and the rich coffers supported by the Church of Saintland helped to expand the party's reach and spread its message.

However, that funding recently dried up as the Church of Saintland - long famous, and infamous, for its proselytization of other nations' people, decided to end its support for the party after a chain of events led to its downfall. After a Gregoryisgodistani nuclear bombing of the state of Hicaña, a coalition led by Saintland, the Free Republics, Super-Llamaland, Hodori, and numerous other nations declared war on Gregoryisgodistan for the bombing. While Gregoryisgodistan was ultimately defeated, the war had lasting effects on the Free Republics, whose state Nejax was attacked by the Gregoryisgodistanis. This led to the downfall of the Reino Kulseth-led Holy Party, which had been propping up the regime of Saintland's King Andreas. In turn, Andreas's government was overthrown by an Euran invasion, who were determined to stop anarchy and possible war in its tracks before it spread any further into Rushmore. Therefore, with the decline of the two major parties propping up the Church of Saintland out of the picture, it was no longer able to send funds to the Alliance of Cenian Future - which, without a large donor base, was reliant upon those funds. With that declining donor base, the Alliance of Cenian Future was unable to continue its campaign, and thus dropped out of the race.

"We are quite disappointed that our sources of funding were not enough to sustain us for the duration of the campaign," Alliance of Cenian Future spokesperson Merco Fertag lamented in a statement. "We always knew from the start we had the capability to win this election and bring the people of Ceni back to the light, but unfortunately, circumstances beyond our control have caused these funds for us to dry up. Please to not take this as a testament to the failure of our campaign - in fact, our sponsors have explicitly said that our campaign is not the issue. Our campaign was the best run during this election, and again, I am confident that we could have won this election. I am confident in saying that it was possible to lead the Cenian people away from sin and into the light. Now I know that, unfortunately, they will fall further into the darkness."

Spokeswoman Jen Saouad of the Cenian Social Liberal Party did not miss the Alliance of Cenian Future. "Their divisive policies would have, if they were elected, turned our country on its head and repudiated everything that we stand for, everything that we value. So our party welcomes the departure of this party as proof that their values do not resonate with the Cenian people whatsoever." The Democratic Socialist Party said in a statement, unattributed, that it "mourns the opportunity to debate and discuss [its] values and prove to the electorate why they are better for the nation than those of the ACF." The Green Party did not return LTA Matrix's requests for comment; the Cenian Conservative Union said it "welcomed diversity in Cenian politics and [is] sad to see another party espousing conservative principles leave the race, leaving less choices for voters who wish to see change in Ceni's government."

It is unclear whether Alliance of Cenian Future supporters will support the Conservative Union or just stay home from the election. LTA Matrix's political analyst, Aran Barlov, believes that the ACF's departure will decrease a voter turnout, if only a little. "The ACF would have encouraged some people to go to the polls, if to vote for the ACF or to vote against the ACF as anathema to the values of Ceni as a whole. However, the number of supporters of the ACF means that the actual reduced turnout will likely be quite insubstantial and hardly have an impact on the race as a whole." Barlov could imagine ACF supporters changing their support to the Conservative Union, but because Ceni has a range voting system, the effects of parties dropping out is not always all that substantial because the range voting system allows voters to give good ratings to more than one candidate, not just their favorite.

Analyst Gil Korova of the Cenian Public Radio indicated that the proximate effects for supporters of the ACF would end up being limited. "On the face of it, the Alliance of Cenian Future, contrary to its manifold and multiple claims, never had a chance to win this election. While it might have picked up a couple of Senate or Council seats, it would not have been able to win the presidency. There was no chance of it whatsoever." However, the effects on other parties was a little bit more hard to discern. "The Alliance of Cenian Future probably did have an effect on other parties in this campaign, beyond its own impact or influence on the election by itself," Korova conceded. "For the conservatives, the withdrawal probably poses the most problems: to the electorate in a lot of the country, the ACF made the Conservative Union look a little less conservative or extreme. Now the liberals will be able to target the conservatives more effectively as being the most extremely right of the parties competing."

Among the liberal parties, the effect was harder to discern. "It's iffy to say what effect this will have on the liberal parties," Korova noted. "That's where the competition is. The race is still likely a dead heat in those areas, though, whether the ACF is in the election or not." Polls support Korova's claim - Obiid Valtan of the Cenian Social Liberal Party and Masnol Binnill of the Democratic Socialist Party are neck and neck in the polls, with Sevisa Aralen of the Greens not far behind due to her great debate performance. "This will definitely be a close election. However, I don't think the ACF ever had any effect on the race between the liberal parties, and I don't think it will be missed."

by **Farfadillis** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 8:10 pm

Watching the replay of Risko's winner against Crystal Empire for the tenth time made it get kind of boring. It had been an impressive goal, of course, but you start to grow tired of it when it's literally the only thing on TV. Yes, he had dribbled three and placed it far from the goalkeeper's reach, something I'd have struggled to do in my prime, but enough was enough. Once again, the team had played pretty badly. It felt unreal looking at how comfortably we were topping the group, to be honest. Yes, the Crystal Empire was breathing down our necks, but even while in-form they'd failed to beat one of the worst versions of our team. Super-Llamaland looked far more threatening, but we were ahead of them with a game in hand. Had we not tied against the Llamas after holding a two-goal lead, we would have had all wins. If I had to describe that with one word, it would be definitely not be 'deserved'.

Seriously, the only reason we were doing so well was our tremendously lucky draw. An out of form Super-Llamaland followed by a bunch of absolute nobodies... who still gave us a run for our money. Sad showing from the reigning Atlantian Oceanian champions. As a player, I had never managed to understand the mind of the fans. How could they be so viciously negative? How could they complain when we were winning? Why did they scrutinize us so much? Now that I felt an even more ardent desire to strangle Alex than usual, I finally understood that watching us play is fucking frustrating. If Delafuente had misplaced one more pass in the match against Crystal Empire, Pekarik might've made me unretire. As one of his ex-teammates, I knew how much of a hard worker Matías was. But right now he could seriously fuck off. 'Make way for the new blood, Fôrté's ten times better.' was all I thought. Pekarik ended up replacing the Faroleran with the Rulandese in the last ten minutes. Surprise, surprise. We scored the late winner. Ok, ok, it had absolutely nothing to do with Fôrté and it was pretty much one hundred and one percent Kâí's merit, but still. If the kid's taking his chances, I don't see what's wrong about giving him the nod. Alex had been ok, but Matías was definitely not playing up to our standard.

Buuuut not everything was absolutely terrible. It might sound unbelievable, but for one our defense was looking relatively solid, which I found extremely funny since it happened right after Pekarik decided to do away with his non-Farf football knowledge and go full gung-ho. Turns out our defenders can really perform with a sky-high-line. Mata had been doing well both on the defense and the offense. Bârr was a fucking monster. Röènôùjýâ was showing a lot of promise, even if he evidently wasn't a bastion of experience, tactical awareness, or anything remotely resembling clean tackling. I know, doesn't sound ideal for a defender, but trust me on this one, that's not part of the traditional Farf skillset for defenders anyway.

Another thing. Fucking José Torino Fuego. He's very good at heading and he's very quick off the mark and whatnot, but he'd have better luck burying his grandma than burying a chance. His finishing's been off lately. Like aiming-for-the-apple-hitting-the-testicles off. Ugh. Risko was beginning to look more and more like Friekder. I remember the 66-69 World Cup qualifiers. Friekder carried us so hard it wasn't even funny. Risko was pretty old now, but he was carrying us just like him back in the day. And, what's most mind-blowing, out of position. He's not a striker, but I was beginning to think he should've been played there his entire career.

But then I realized what was hurting the team so much. Even though Risko was winning points by himself, not having Friekder around must've been a huge blow. He was a consummate professional, and a legend inside and even outside the country. And, most importantly, an experienced man. Everyone in that team was experienced, but having someone like Friekder just made the team better, even if he was watching from the sidelines.

And then it hit me! Maybe they weren't playing at their best because they were sad about me. Which would make sense. I doubt they felt very good about a fellow footballer getting shot and being left paralytic (or not; hopefully not). I got along with all of them, even if Dandalleion was my only true friend there. But, still, maybe I was at fault.

Or maybe it was Pekarik's fault! Yes, you can always blame the manager. That's something I've learned by watching us play comfortably from my hospital bed on TV. Wrong substitution, not attacking enough, Delafuente misplacing a pass, Fuego missing a sitter, the referee being shot by a crazy Farf fan. All of the liability could somehow be redirected towards the Polarian. Though, to be fair, I had been one of the Peka-skeptic in the dressing room back when I could actually move. It was funny how Risko was outdoing himself so much when he had been, by far, one of the most anti-Pekarik players of the team. What had saved the Valhallan so much had been Yurpá and Friekder's backing of him. With those two backing you, you have very much all of the others backing you, save for the more talented ones like Risko, Mâás and Alex, as well as the more revolutionary ones like Cleto and Rôhj. I shudder to think of how we would have performed without those two backing Steffan since the beginning. Dressing room thrown into disarray? Doesn't sound like it would translate to a fluid offensive display on the pitch...

Ugh, rediscovering football was turning out to be quite the experience. I started to envy the Farf women: sure, they have to give birth and they bleed once a month, which is totally not cool, but at least they don't care about football. That just about makes up for it. Most of them can walk, too.

by **Nephara** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 8:23 pm

"... Anyway. When we're back at training, we fix this. Right?"
A few murmurs of approval, but the side was shattered. They'd chased a 1-0 lead for most of the game in front of their own fans. Riether nodded, and they filtered away.
She waited one second, two, three, four, five, and then punched a wall with every inch of force available to her wiry frame.
"Easy, Tess," said Portia Thrift calmly.
"Easy? Easy! How the fuck can I be easy after that, Portia? Huh? Beaten at home? Were you watching that match, Portia? Were you watching the same match I fucking was, Portia, 'cause I'm not happy with it, I am not fucking happy and I am not gonna-"
"Tess."
Riether punched the locker again. "Not!" Another punch. "Gonna!" Punch. "Take!" Punch. "This-"
A powerful hand clamped itself around her wrist. "No," said Thrift quietly.
Riether struggled in vain. "Let me go, damn it."
"Not until you calm down."
"Well that's not going to happen with you grabbing my fucking hand, is it?"
Thrift let her go, but stared at Riether. "You're, like, forty, for fuck's sake."
The manager shook some life back into her wrist. "Right. Sorry. Just, you know, I... we lost. We fucking lost."
"Used to lose all the time. It's one loss, Tess. Nova Anglicana are ahead of us by one point. We win all our other games - like we've done the past four years - and it's not an issue. Right?"
Riether muttered something under her breath.
"Right?"
"We shouldn't've fucking lost."
"Yeah, well, we did. They were better than us, on our own patch-"
"That doesn't just fucking happen!"
"Well, it did," Thrift said with a steadily evaporating calm. "Now relax. You're a clever woman, one of the best tacticians in world football, and punching a locker isn't. Fucking. Helping. Okay? We're gonna work our way through this."
They both fell silent.
At last, Riether nodded, turned and left the room. The former goalkeeper sighed and leaned back on one of the walls. Christ... did she have to be a therapist as well as a coach?

It was 1am in Sabrefell, and the atmosphere was solemn in Sabrefell's affluent northeast districts. Riether sat at the bar of a nightclub, relying on an unremarkable face and a change of clothing to keep out of trouble.
"It's just bullshit," she confided in the bartender for the seventh time that night. "It's all bullshit. Like, what's the point of winning when- when it's all about avoiding the risk of losing?"
The bartender nodded sympathetically. Riether had tipped generously.
"I mean, I mean... Sheila, right?" Her name wasn't Sheila. "It's all about, about... the high of victory isn't, it's just, it's you avoid... I wasn't always like this. I used to lose a lot. A lot a lot. But then I started winning, and winning always felt so good, and you stop learning what it's like to lose- or learning, or knowing what it's... you stop knowing how to shrug off a loss, you know? And winning doesn't even... it's just... winning doesn't even feel good anymore. 'S just the status quo. And you gotta keep it going. No matter what."
The bartender nodded again. Clearly this was a weak analogy to a drug addiction. "That's how they get you. When the pain starts to outweigh the pleasure."
"Yeah!"
A slim ginger woman walked in, and tapped Riether on the shoulder.
"Huh? Wh... wh's goin' on..."
"Tess, it's time to go."
Riether snorted. "'S not time yet. Still another... another..." She checked her watch. "Like, half-hour 'til closing time."
"That isn't actually true," said the bartender politely.
"'S fine. I'll drive."
Franziska Rensenbrink breathed deeply. "No. I'll drive."
"Fine! Drive me to... the next thing." Riether stood theatrically, almost immediately falling into Rensenbrink's arms. "Fuck."
"Mm-hmm."
"Think I did... too much of the drink... the drunk..."
"Yeah. Come on now. Walk with me."
As the national team's whip gently guided her manager to the door, the bartender called out to them. "Hey, ginger. I think your mate, um, she seemed really... like, I think she might need help, yeah?"
Rensenbrink turned back. "You don't know who this is, right?"
"Wouldn't know her from Eve."
"Thank fuck. Well, if you find out?"
"Yeah?"
"Tell anyone about tonight and I will destroy you."
The bartender blinked, slowly. "Okay. No fear there, love."
She watched them trudge out of the bar together, sighed, and went back to washing the glasses. What was with people these days?

by **Flardania** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 8:59 pm

マッチデー七ポッドキャスト！
The current affairs of Kirishinan Football
Français|日本語|한국어|English
Tetsuya & Manabu Show | Kirishinan Broadcasting Corporation

Broadcast in French

TH: "Welcome to the Tetsuya and Manabu radio show, I'm Hamasaki Tetsuya"

MY: "And I am Yonamine Manabu and at this point in the World Cup things are looking decent so far.

TH: "Yes the Kitsunes are coming off of a much expected loss to the defending champions in Pasarga but fans are still excited."

MY: "Really!? Why is that?"

TH: "Well you see we lost to the defending champions by only one goal. It kind of shows how much we have progressed since Hikaru Kyosuke took command of the team.

MY: "Patience once again proves to be a valuable asset for anyone to have. Our next opponent is Watford. Any thoughts?

TH: "It's tough to say as not much is known about there current roster. They are ranked 59th so it's not a much win matchup but it is a winnable matchup.

MY: After the break we will discuss the influx of players from the Federative District so stay tuned.

Last.fm · by **Cosumar** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 9:05 pm

Halfway There: Recapping Cosumar's WC73 Qualifying To Date

Despite a brutal 6-2 flaying from San Jose Guayabal in the final dress rehearsal before group play, Cosumarite fans seemed to retain an assured, confident air heading into World Cup 73 Qualifying. It would take a lot more than a bad friendly result to shake their faith in Gethin Ramsey after the Nepharim manager delivered them a Cup of Harmony trophy.

If he could produce that kind of magic in his first tournament in charge, who knows where he could lead Cosumar in the actual World Cup?

There have been ten consecutive World Cups without Cosumar in the group stage. Cosumarites no longer feverishly anticipate qualifying with each new cycle. They just want to see the team perform to the best of its capability - something that most certainly did not happen in the historically bad World Cup 72 qualifiers.

"Group 20 will be tough. Valanora, Taeshan, The Fallenmark Islands, us ... only one or two of these great sides will be happy at the end," said Arik Pongaard, President of the Vanquisher Army Supporters Group before Matchday 1. "We do not claim to know this will be the year we qualify and break the curse. But what we do know is that with the hands of Gethin Ramsey guiding them, this team will be given a better opportunity to do so than any in recent memory. We are confident. Not desperately optimistic as in World Cups past, but calmly confident. Now we wait and see."

Fast forward two months. The time for waiting and seeing has passed. Cosumar have faced off against every team in the group are now enjoying their brief mid-qualifying break. If you've been living under a rock for the past couple months, or have simply been absorbed in your own busy world, you might be wondering how the first half has gone. Well, as the Pot 2 nation in the group, we are unsurprisingly in second. Undefeated Valanora has seemingly already won the group, and Cosumar are narrowly ahead of The Fallenmark Islands and Taeshan in the slugfest for that next spot.

But how did we get there? Which players have performed well and which haven't? What are the major storylines? If these are your questions, this first-half review is for you.

The Team

Despite some high-profile names like Sur Arora, Paaron Petrov and Pablo Corderro retiring from international duty in the last year, Cosumar remains a very experienced team. With an average age of 28.5 in the starting eleven, detractors have even listed lack of youth as one of glaring weaknesses of Gethin Ramsey's first-choice group. Mauricio Sigler, 24, is the only starter on the younger side of his 20s. Aside from a couple changes in the back line, this is the same First XI that won the Cup of Harmony. Go continuity.

If you cast your eyes to the bench, however, there is also a core of younger new players Gethin Ramsey has strategically included in the squad to soak up this experience like a sponge. Peter Svensson, Tiffany Elam and Kit Kvanderwyk have all made the jump to the 24-man senior squad after helping Cosumar win the Di Bradini U21 Cup last year. With an average age of 25.2, the thirteen players on the bench are significantly younger and represent enticing super-sub prospects late in matches with their energy. Tevin Lilley, Kvanderwyk and Aziz Senturk. have been particularly useful in that role already.

Of course, the main man and captain is Anders Engström. This World Cup aligns with the apex of the Crisisbless playmaker's career. The window for him to lead Cosumar to glory will start shrinking little by little after this one. He's done well in the first half, and is finally starting to get some of the recognition he deserves outside of Cosumar. A prominent San Lleran publication named Engström one of the 32 best players in the world earlier this week.

MD1: Finding Their Feet
Cosumar 2 - 0 Hodife
61' - Öhman
82' - Newman

The screams of FireRiver Arena in Ramusok were surely an intimidating start to Qualifying for an inexperienced Hodife side in just their second World Cup. The team representing the small French-speaking nation looked a bit shell-shocked to be playing in front of 100,000. But they survived a tumultuous opening ten minutes and found their compact defensive shape, making things difficult for Cosumar in the first half.

For their part, the Dragons weren't unaffected by the supercharged atmosphere either. Eager to please the boisterous crowd and kickstart their young Qualifying campaign, Cosumar launched onslaught after onslaught at the Hodife goal, but were never quite on the same page. As the crowd quieted down, Hodife's confidence increased. They could not hope to compete with Cosumar's quality on the ball, but they defended valiantly all the way to the break, visibly thrilled to have not given up a goal yet.

Flashbacks of the eight draws to low-ranked nations in World Cup 72 were surely sprouting in the back of every Cosumarite's mind, but Gethin Ramsey rallied his side with a rousing dressing room speech and they looked much more in-sync and legitimately dangerous in the second half. Ole Öhman finally blew the roof off the place fifteen minutes after the restart. His determined solo run into the box concluded with a pinpoint finish across the face of goal to the far post from seven yards out after stumbling past a pair of cement-footed defenders.

The first goal of a World Cup cycle is always a special one - Ole certainly deserved the thousands-strong chants of his name for the next several minutes. From that moment on, the Cosumarites finally looked once again like the team that went on that magical Cup of Harmony run. Mauricio Sigler's skipping cross from the left wing found Ace Newman at the far post for a tap-in twenty minutes later to guarantee the full three points. Hodife was only able to produce one shot on goal all match - easily tipped over the bar by Winterfyll.

MD2: The Hype Is Real
The Fallenmark Islands 0 - 3 Cosumar
54' - Na'Noni
55' - Öhman
89' - Lilley

2-0 against Hodife was a slightly underwhelming result for a team with such lofty aspirations. Many were apprehensive heading into this fixture, considering it the first real test of the Qualifying campaign. The Fallenmarks, while not on the same level as their more famous Valhallan neighbors, were billed as dark horses to steal the group with Alexsandr van Sorensen guiding a hardworking squad with ample Polarian Divisjon One experience.

This was the benchmark. And Cosumar passed with flying colors. People were going to massively overreact no matter the result, but this resounding 3-0 win launched Cosumarite media into a whirlwind of premature speculation about just how far this team could go.

Another uninspiring first half was quickly forgotten as Cosumar's individual quality outshined the Herons' at Folkstadion in the second half. Dependable box-to-box midfielder Vareza Na'Noni was familiar with many of the Fallenmark players from his four-year spell at Red Star Severny, and used his knowledge to serve up one of the best performances of his eight-year Cosumar career.

The versatile Vloo opened the scoring in the 54th minute with a simply remarkable goal, powerfully hitting Sheldon Serra's back-pass over Karl Pfennig first-time and into the top corner from over 30 yards out. You couldn't have drawn the bending trajectory any better on paper. Na'Noni also added an assist to his line, sliding the ball over to Tevin Lilley on a 4-on-3 break just before stoppage time. The striker, on for Engström just a few minutes earlier, didn't let him down and chipped over former Cassandra City teammate Klaus Minkowski's sliding tackle.

The infamous Fallenmark Blue Unit groaned and lifted their arms helplessly in exasperation, accepting the 3-0 defeat. Oh, and the goal in the middle wasn't bad either. Jacob Pandan recovered the ball outside the Cosumarite box and launched a torpedo of a long ball all the way downfield to Andy Engström on the left flank, who controlled it beautifully and held it up for support to get forward. He then played Maynard Gorham on the overlap and the fullback's hopeful ball into the box was deflected by defender Willem Moss and ended up at the feet of Öhman. The ever-opportunistic midfielder curled it inside the post first-time for his second goal of the young campaign. But just as impressive as the three great goals was the superb defending. Kekkonen, Just and Beyer are a dangerous trio up top but never looked like much trouble for the Cosumarite defenders.

The signature win so far for Gethin Ramsey in this Cycle.

MD3: Soaring, Flying
Cosumar 5 - 2 Wazekia
3' - Newman
12'
31' - Sigler
54' - Engström
75' - Worsaw
83' - Öhman
90'

Surging with confidence following a big win against a big opponent, Cosumar pummeled the Wazekian debutants to pick up their third win in three games. After they finished last in their Baptism of Fire group earlier this year, no one saw the small South Pacifican nation making much noise here. But they did manage to score two goals against us (the first of the campaign) at Leviathan Arena thanks to a penalty and an easy finish following a horrific clearance by Gorham.

Fortunately, Dragons were really breathing fire in the attack on this night. Buoyed by the rowdy (even more than usual since it was the first match of the campaign in Kaldukosic) Leviathan Arena crowd, they scored five and it could've easily been more. The Wazekians had no chance of keeping up. It was a master-class in team play, five different players scoring and five different players registering assists for Cosumar.

The Vanquishers were back. But while vanquishing small teams is a feat that should never again be taken for granted after WC72, what remained to be seen was if this "Vanquisher" mentality would hold up against even competition.

MD4: Taking Care of Business
Alpha Gamma Kappa 0 - 2 Cosumar
38' - Lucassen
87' - Senturk

The Dragons looked a little sluggish in this one after a long midweek flight to The Pacific. The Alpheans provided a surprisingly stiff test at a sold-out New Athens Stadium, but in the end the unranked debutants just didn't have the technical skill or expertise in the final third needed to dispatch the Cosumarites. Their strong performance here wasn't a fluke, however, as Ernest Rouse's AKG squad also fought Valanora hard in their earlier meeting.

Darwyn Lucassen, fresh off a good season with Century Mertagne, was the man of the match in this one. He took some flak for being a non-factor in the first three matches, but was gifted a goal late in the first half of this one, picking off Abel Welde's weak back-pass, rounding the keeper and slotting home. Seeing the ball hit the back of the net flipped a switch for the midfield string-puller and he was anything but invisible in the second half, making several great visionary passes.

One of them was to Aziz Senturk, likewise riding the momentum of a nice season at Maximum Rovers, who came on in the 79th minute for his first international cap. Senturk made it truly a night to remember by scoring a decisive late goal off Lucassen's cheeky scooped pass over the Alphean back line. The pass was spot-on, hitting Senturk in the chest as his angled run carried him towards six-yard box. Senturk controlled it perfectly off his chest, allowing him to avoid to the on-rushing keeper and lash the ball out of the air and into goal in one deft motion.

4 matches, 4 wins. A promising start, but nothing you wouldn't expect from a Top 40 nation. Anything but four wins from this set would've been cause for concern. Of course, the World Cup organizers saved the best two teams in Group 20 for last for Cosumar. Beating The Fallenmark Islands and a bunch of cupcakes is all well and good, but to qualify you eventually have to defeat some other World Cup-caliber teams...

MD6: Ice Cold Elves
Cosumar 2 - 3 Valanora
9' - Celetholtinu
14' - Pandan
65' - Fresco
77' - Worsaw
87' - va Drake

Gethin Ramsey and the Dragons had a chance to make a MAJOR statement in this clash of 4-0-0 group leaders.

The entire footballing world immediately plugged 11th-ranked Valanora as automatic winners ever since groups were drawn, and Cosumar has historically not had much success against their Atlantian neighbors. I'm sure most of you remember the last time Valanora was in our qualification group in World Cup 55...that 9-0 defeat is still our largest ever. So a win or even a draw over the visiting elves here would plant our flag in the proverbial soil of Group 20 and herald the end of our Qualifying futility.

We put on a good show for the Leviathan Arena crowd, equalizing twice, but it was not to be. A third Vanorian goal sunk the Dragons late. 3-2 is a respectable scoreline, but it's still zero points. And let's not kid ourselves - this game was not as evenly-matched as the score insinuates. Vanauraiiel Nardironel's team was obviously superior in just about every way possible.

Valanora controlled possession, dictated style of play, were infinitely more dangerous in the attack, and were obviously superior in terms of both technical skill and team synergy. The "Vanquishers" were out of their depth and had to resort to half-hearted counterattacks and set-pieces as their lifelines. Cosumar's "experienced" line-up, even Captain Andy, just looked old and toothless.

Our first goal was a free header for Jacob Pandan (his first international goal) off a Lucassen free kick, but we never looked truly threatening in the run of play until Ramsey's subbed in some younger HarlighetLigan players late. 22-year-old Cassandra City winger Kit Kvanderwyk and 25-year-old Eastweald striker Belarmin Worsaw had some enticing chemistry upon entering the game together for Öhman and Newman.

Less than five minutes after taking the pitch, the two linked up for an equalizing goal. Kvanderwyk played the through ball, and Worsaw latched on and slid it between the legs of Aediron Galadirdren at the near post. Simple as pie. Where was that all match long?

Unfortunately it was too-little-too-late, as Espy va Drake blasted a world-class volley low past Jakk Winterfyll from 15 yards out in the closing minutes to silence Leviathan Arena. Deservedly so. Cosumar managed just four shots on-target in 93 minutes, Valanora registered 14 with 65% of possession.

Disappointing. Nevertheless, we still had reason to be satisfied being 5 and 7 points clear of The Fallenmark Islands and struggling Taeshan...

MD7: Wiggin Outduels Ramsey
Taeshan 1 - 0 Cosumar
90+1' - Black

...Until we lost to Taeshan on the final Matchday of the first leg and The Fallenmark Islands also won. A qualifying campaign that started so brilliantly for us took a sudden nose dive. Right when it seemed like we might be able to lock up a Top 2 finish early, we had to go and make things harder for ourselves.

Not that losing 1-0 to Taeshan is a disgrace in any way. A look at the Purple Knights right now is a like a look in the mirror for Cosumar. Both sides are enjoying something of a resurgence and cultural transformation under the helm of celebrated new managers. Gethin Ramsey, of course, for Cosumar and Ender Wiggin for Taeshan. Both coaches began their tenures with unexpected victories in major tournaments. Cosumar are the defending Cup of Harmony champions, while Taeshan stunned the world in the Copa Rushmori earlier this year. Not a loss to be particularly flummoxed over. Even though it was a heartbreaker, we're not the first team to be unable to unlock to stringent Taeshani defense on first try.

It was a gorgeous but chilly, starry night in Atlantea, with purple-clad fans filling the stadium in legions under the bright lights for the one of the marquee matches of both teams' qualifying campaigns.

For Cosumarites, it was two familiar Taeshani faces that haunted our dreams later that night. The first was Peter Wiggin. The captain of HarlighetLigan titan OAS Royal FC here in Cosumar (though still listed as playing in Taeshan on the presumably outdated official roster), Wiggin can punish you in front of goal. Wiggin was a terror for Taeshan in the Copa Rushmori and was again here tonight. Quality chances were hard to come by in this steely, defensive affair, but Wiggin had three of Taeshan's best chances of regular time - all three unlucky to be rejected by the posts. Then when he finally buried one past Winterfyll into the back of the net in the 78th minute, a late (but correct) offside flag cut his rambunctious celebration short.

Ironically, it was the other HarlighetLigan player on Taeshan's roster who finished the job: center back Orion Black. The strong defender is as consistent as they come and has been a key part of Eastweald's success in the Cosumarite league over the past couple seasons. But even die-hard Eastweald supporters were forced to curse his name on this night. Black is the last person you would expect to score a stoppage time winner, but he was in the right spot at the right time to tap home the rebound after Jakk Winterfyll saved Maxwell McMichael's glancing header off a corner but was unable to secure it.

After 91 minutes of spirited defending to preserve the nil-nil deadlock and some near-misses of our own, the Cosumarite spirit was broken. A couple minutes later, the Purple Knights celebrated with their roaring crowd as several blue uniforms lie prostrate on the grass.

Beat up on the small teams but choke against quality competition. Such is the Cosumar way. Get ready for a tense second leg.

Thank you for reading The Cosumarite Courier's exclusive World Cup 73 Coverage. Follow us on Twitter @TheCourier or subscribe to our website (TheCourier.cos) to receive daily updates and analysis of Cosumar's progress in the tournament.

Leela Jones
Staff Writer

Cosumar's World Cup 73 Journey
Pre-Qual Friendly: Cosumar 1-1 Super-Llamaland (@ Orangi Stadium, Crawford, Cosumar)
Pre-Qual Friendly: San Jose Guayabal 6-2 Cosumar (@ Lulai WC Stadium, Lulai, SJG)
Matchday 1: Cosumar 2-0 Hodife
Matchday 2: The Fallenmark Islands 0-3 Cosumar
Matchday 3: Cosumar 5-2 Wazekia
Matchday 4: Alpha Gamma Kappa 0-2 Cosumar
Matchday 5: Bye
Matchday 6: Cosumar 2-3 Valanora
Matchday 7: Taeshan 1-0 Cosumar
Mid-Qual Friendly: Cosumar vs. New North Aqmuland (@ The Xanadu Dome, Pelethas, Cosumar)
Mid-Qual Friendly: The Royal Kingdom of Quebec vs. Cosumar (@ CSKA Stadium, Quebec City, Quebec)
Matchday 8: Hodife vs. Cosumar
Matchday 9: Cosumar vs. The Fallenmark Islands (@ Leviathan Arena, Kaldukosic, Cosumar)
Matchday 10: Wazekia vs. Cosumar
Matchday 11: Cosumar vs. Alpha Kappa Gamma (@ Leviathan Arena, Kaldukosic, Cosumar)
Matchday 12: Bye
Matchday 13: Valanora vs. Cosumar (@ Hatire Memorial, Island of Capri, Valanora)
Matchday 14: Cosumar vs. Taeshan ( @ Leviathan Arena, Kaldukosic, Cosumar)
Blue: Draw
Green: Victory
Red: Defeat
Home team listed first

Cosumar Goal-Scorers Tally (14 GF)
Ole Öhman (3)
Ace Newman (2)
Belarmin Worsaw (2)
Vareza Na'Noni (1)
Tevin Lilley (1)
Anders Engström (1)
Mauricio Sigler (1)
Darwyn Lucassen (1)
Aziz Senturk (1)
Jacob Pandan (1)

Cosumar Assists Tally
Sheldon Serra (2)
Anders Engström (2)
Darwyn Lucassen (2)
Mauricio Sigler (1)
Maynard Gorham (1)
Vareza Na'Noni (1)
Ace Newman (1)
Kyron Everdale (1)
Kit Kvanderwyk (1)

Substitute Appearances
Tevin Lilley (4)
Belarmin Worsaw (3)
Kit Kvanderwyk (3)
Tiffany Elam (2)
Olaf Womack (1)
Kyron Everdale (1)
Aziz Senturk (1)
Senter Senterekoesima (1)
Tomasso Tenebrosa (1)
Arndu Farsgaard (1)

by **Brenecia** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 9:23 pm

THE ROZELLE OBSERVER
Paterson The Hero As Patriots Consolidate Position At Summit
by Karena Fife
STARBLAYDIA J Makuszewski; K Rodriguez, F Al-Hashem, J Cayden, E Ortiz (G Flynn 70'); V Nieminen, M Lopez, O Silva, A Mattarino; J Copeland (L Machado 57'), C Catanneo
BRENECIA G Urquhart; S Given, O Faulkner, B Duguid (A Scrivener 63'), J Collingwood; D Kilbane, L Paterson, C Purrington; I Cullen (R Bowditch 87'), S Maddon (U Rankin 74'), N Thatcher
Goal: Thatcher 62'

In a third straight 1-0 win, Brenecia beat a diminished Starblaydia side chiefly drawn from the LigAnaia 2, none of the starters coming from a top-tier side. And yet, they threatened several times to score in front of a partisan home crowd. Brenecia's heroes tonight were not a front three that continue to misfire, nor a quiet Catherine Purrington, but a rock-solid defence anchored by the indomitable young midfielder Lilith Paterson. In the end, it fell to Naphtali Thatcher - who plays for Starblaydi club Iskara Daii - to seal an ugly but effective victory for the Patriots.

Starblaydia started very much the superior side, and probably should have gone ahead within two minutes. Duguid, always happy to play out from the back, passed directly at Vecchio striker Jason Copeland... who promptly launched it a foot high and wide, unmarked. It was veteran winger Vaino Nieminen, Starblaydia's best player on the night, who then gave Copeland an even better chance to open the scoring, but Duguid redeemed himself by smashing through Copeland to send the ball clear. Once Brenecia had their defensive jitters under control, they got comfortably onto the front foot. Maddon should have scored in the 25th minute, and only an excellent save from Makuszewski denied Cullen soon afterwards, but on the whole everyone was relieved when the referee ended a dull first half.

It was, in all truth, a dull second half, too. Starblaydia clearly wanted to play through the middle, but Lopez and Silva were denied at every turn by Lilith Paterson. The 23-year old Nepharim with a tenuous grandparental link to her new country has had her doubters, but it is undeniable that she has added a perfect layer to a weak-looking midfield. 4-3-3 is what Brenecians are trained to fit into, but the lack of an adequate defensive midfielder (with all due respect to Lilith Fife, she is not of international quality - Catheline Gryphon, though she comes highly rated, is a couple of years away from breaking through) has hamstrung that. Kilbane and Blackslate are clean box-to-box players but neither is a holding player at heart, Purrington prefers to play deeper to make better use of her abnormal passing range and pretty much all of our wingers would rather play further upfield. Paterson, quite outside of being a very good player, has been the enabler for a frankly needed shift.

Somewhat predictably, it was when Paterson annihilated Silva that the counterattack started that won Brenecia the game. Starblaydia had pretty much universally rushed forward. Kilbane took possession and slipped it to Purrington, whose one contribution over the ninety minutes was a beautiful forward pass that cut Ortiz out of the game and exposed him worse than any libelous tabloid could. Cullen, with all the time and space in the world, whipped the ball across the face of goal. Thatcher, waiting on the far post, headed it past a scrambling Makuszewski.

Starblaydia, inevitably, found back and in turn left themselves exposed on the counter. But neither side's final ball was there, and Anaximander Scrivener (a pure stopper thrown on almost immediately after the goal for the more cerebral Duguid) was rock-solid. Rankin should have sealed the deal with her first touch after coming on, but despite being the hero so often for Brenecia in the past, when played through on Makuszewski she fluffed her lines and horribly skewed the ball away from goal to perhaps show she isn't quite ready for the big time yet. Still, Brenecia held on and ultimately deserved their win - Urquhart, while occasionally tested, was more than equal to the occasional pop from outside the box.

It wasn't a beautiful win, and Brenecia have, broadly, not been winning beautifully. But it's hard to argue with the statistics. Danielle Granger was fired after a year with eight wins, six draws and seven defeats. Sasha Bale's record, to date, is eleven wins and two draws - one of the draws leading to a win on penalties. And, of course, the regional championship. The Patriots are top of the group having won all of their games - with, strangely, no draws yet. Starblaydia and Ko-oren are three behind, the latter also having played one more game. The return fixtures against Starblaydia and Ko-oren will both take place in Kingsgarden. The Patriots go from strength to strength, and surely, by now, the World Cup is calling.

We're back in business.

by **Stvoto Latoli** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 9:28 pm

Groups 1-10 Matchday 7 Cutoff

Who Will Be The One?

SCORES

by **San Llera** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 10:02 pm

The Player Bracket

Welcome back to the player bracket! Today is the Sweet 16, with the following match ups:

And, without further ado, the match ups:

- Pasarga (1) vs (16) Kirisaki -

Players: CM Csaszar Mor (Pasarga) vs CAM Mikoto Tsuchimikado (Kirisaki)
Analysis: Mor and Tsuchimikado play very similar roles for their team, maybe Tsuchimikado begin a but more relied upon given Pasarga's incredible depth. But Mor has a very slight edge in talent, and it's hard to argue against the best player on Pasarga.
Winner: Mor wins.

- Eura (2) vs (15) Yttribia -

Players: CAM Craig Sinclair (Eura) vs CDM Dionysis Turverro (Yttribia)
Analysis: I must give credit to Turverro, who engineers Yttribia's offense while keeping their defense in place. But unfortunately he just doesn't do it at the same level that Sinclair does, even if his game is a bit more two-dimensional.
Winner: Sinclair is the winner.

- Nephara (3) vs (14) Barunia -

Players: CM Elaine Ashdown (Nephara) vs DEF Felix Benitez (Barunia)
Analysis: Felix Benitez can be described as a bully. Not as a person, but certainly a bully on the pitch. He tosses around little attackers like rag dolls. But not Elaine Ashdown. Ashdown has too much capability to dribble, pass, or shoot around his power for me to not select her.
Winner: I will select Ashdown.

- The Holy Empire (4) vs (13) San Jose Guayabal -

Players: MID Michael Monomacho (The Holy Empire) vs ST Rodolfo Zelaya (San Jose Guayabal)
Analysis: Both these players are very athletic, albeit in different ways. Monomacho is powerful and strong, while Zelaya has lightning speed. So this one comes down to technique, and Zelaya has an uncanny ability to make danger out of nothing that Michael Monomacho does not possess.
Winner: Zelaya is the Elite Eight's fourth entrant.

- Osarius (5) vs (21) Gregoryisgodistan -

Players: GK Efrain Suarez (Osarius) vs CB Enemy Crusher Fatty Footy (Gregoryisgodistan)
Analysis: Enemy Crusher Fatty Footy is very good at injuring stars such as Efrain Suarez but he isn't too efficient. His ability to crush people may be hampered by the time he spends sent off and/or suspended. Suarez, meanwhile, delivers a world class performance day in, day out.
Winner: The W goes to Suarez.

- Krytenia (27) vs (11) Valladares -

Players: ST Valrauncion (Krytenia) vs ST Pedrinho (Valladares)
Analysis: I'm not sure what it is, but elves have, and always will, rule the sporting multiverse. Maybe it's their ability to train for hundreds of years before gracing the pitch, maybe it's something else, but they have always just been superior to humans. And in this case, a star elf striker is better than a star human striker.
Winner: Valrauncion is the star elf striker in question.

- Associated Godlands (58) vs (23) Brenecia -

Players: CAM The Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Associated Godlands) vs CB Orson Faulkner (Brenecia)
Analysis: Orson Faulkner is as good of a center-half as you can find, and he has righteously earned his place here in the final sixteen. But he just doesn't have what the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has. Teams don't have plans to put every person marking Orson Falukner.
Winner: And that's what sets apart the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

- Valanora (8) vs (9) Farfadillis -

Players: Laborious Hawk (Valanora) vs ST Risko Kai (Farfadillis)
Analysis: Risko Kai is a lethal forward, fantastic to have on your team and awful to be playing against. I won't take that away from him. He is one of the 10 best players in the world, certainly.
Winner: But he's not Laborious Hawk.

That's a wrap. Stay tuned for the Elite Eight. Until then, good bye!

by **Dreamplanet** » Wed Oct 21, 2015 11:53 pm

Dreamplanet 2-3 Garifunya

A good chance

"Alright lads, that was better, but still we need a win soon." Said a happy João Pedro.
"In terms of how many goals we concede, today was a drop, i saved alot!" Said a delighted João Pedro.
"But we couldn't quite win it... We scored in the 14th minute by a Aaron Hungar header, then we were 2-0 up at the 45 minutes due to a own goal by Falana... We really thought we could win this." Said Luis Silva.

"But then at the 2nd half it all went wrong... I remember that there was a brawl between Jorge Cardozo and some-one in their team... And then, ref says penalty..." Said Filipe Vaz, trying to think where he went wrong. "I did the Spaghetti legs, and still went the right way but i couldn't catch it, it was too powerful."

"Yep..." Said João Pedro. "We're on a good vibe, so we could do some damage against Kernasquillec if we're good enough, Filipe Vaz, well done."
"I wouldn't say good job." said a disappointed Filipe Vaz, "After they had a free kick, and i thought "I've got this!" And clearly i didn't, because i went the wrong way and when i found out where it was going... It was too late, then 2-2."

"I think parking the bus was a bad decision, we could've scored more if we didn't park the bus." Said Jorge Cardozo.

"You know, 90 minutes was up and we were all settling for a draw. A draw against Garifunya would be nice... But we lost instead, i am pretty sure it was a offside, but no one called it... I question the referee..." Said Filipe Vaz.

"Yep, they then took the lead with 1 minute to go... We couldn't do anything." Said Aaron Hungar.

"Oh well, enjoy your rest, and let's try to have a win against Kernasquillec and Britonisea."

"Wait... Britonisea?" questioned Jorge Cardozo "Do you think something will go wrong?"

"No. Why would anything go wrong?" Awnsered João Pedro.

by **Freedom Utopia 100** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 1:16 am

The International - Freedom Utopia 100 - Sports

4-2 TO SCOTOPPIAN ISLES,5-0 TO STAR UNITED STATES,COMMENTATORS TRY TO UNRAVEL THE INSTABILITY.

By Simon

Hello readers,and I'm too surprised when Freedom Utopia 100 won and lost by 4-2 and 5-0.Why this team is so unstable in competition? I'll give 3 reasons.

1.Just because they are in the First World Cup.

Freedom Utopia 100 have first joined the World Cup and the Baptism of Fire, and they have little to no experiences in international competition to handle big wins or losses.

2.The opponent is so powerful.

Freedom Utopia 100 is the second-lowest in the group, making nearly every play of Freedom Utopia 100 resulted in a loss.The only win that Freedom Utopia 100 gathered is 4-2 to Scotoppian Isles.

3.Their morale is low and their attack/defenses are not good.

Freedom Utopia 100 have lost in every round of the match except the one to Scotoppian Isles,making it's morale low.Also,the attack/defense value of the team is 1.0,making it doesn't know when to attack or defend.

by **Jeruselem** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 2:36 am

This is Princess Laura for Naked News Jeruselem! We're back home at Dazza Dallas Stadium where visitors Associated Godlands came to take us on. You may have noticed I wasn't playing today. Doctor's orders after I got concussed during the last qualification game. Anyway I'm much better but they wanted to be safe. I sure wanted to play out there today.

Anyway, Associated Godlands beat us 4-3. Unfortunately we had a few health issues this week. Apart from me, two regulars caught some unpleasant flu thing from the trip in the Sword bloke and we had to shuffle the team. I guess this unsettled our team for today and we didn't defend as well as we should but we did score goals to keep us in the game. It's not good losing two games in a row at the end of the first half but we're not expected to qualify so we've done OK I guess.

It does mean we drop to 5th in the table little separates 1st and 5th. The last two are the same teams. San Jose Guayabal, group leader had the bye and well stayed top. The Sword Bloke played the luckless Aeqamustopia, and won 1-0. They move to 2nd on the table. Gregoryisgodistan beat Natanians and Nosts 1-0 and moved up the table. Group 16, all teams won by 1 goals. What's the go there?

I'll be fine by next game. I had a bad headache for a while. I just got my balance back but I wasn't ready for football. Being a bit wobbly is no fun.

7 games over, 7 to go. 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. We could have done better but we're still capable being in top 2 of the group but it's big congested in there. We started well but lost our way with 1 draw and two late losses. Mind you, narrow losses so our goal diffence didn't take a battering like sometimes happens.

San Jose Guayabal leads the group but only by three points over us. So the top 15 are separated by one win. They have 4 wins and a draw, and that loss against us. The Sword Bloke has four wins and lost two. Associated Godlands lead early but are 3rd with three wins, two draws and one loss. Gregoryisgodistan are 4th with the same as Godlands but a lesser goal difference. We have the equal best goal diffence of +5 same as the the leader.

Natanians and Nosts 6th with one win and Aeqamustopia last with no points. Aeqamustopia have scored 2 goals in 6 games ... that kinda sucks really.

Top teams are Eura in group 14, Turori in 19, Valanora in 20 - they have maximum points! I don't have any idea about Groups 1 to 10, haven't seen latest results from those. Worst team in groups 11 to 20 is Saaksvala, no points and conceding 16 goals.

Some news, Major Trooble has been taken hospital. He was the coach of Jeru FC, before it stopped playing World Cup games. We here know his daughter Fifi, and she's taken the day off. That's why I'm here and not her. Can't believe it, he was a healthy guy too. Hopefully he can recover fully.

OOC
Jeruselem 3–4 Associated Godlands
Aeqamustopia 0–1 The Sword Bloke
Natanians and Nosts 0–1 Gregoryisgodistan
San Jose Guayabal bye

by **Associated Godlands** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 8:09 am

GodHatesYou.God
The official blog of Shirley Phelps-Roper

Ah, isn't it great when one of God's genius plans just materializes in front of you, and you can marvel at its beauty? That was Matchday 7. God has decided that he will wait no longer to judge Jeruselem, and the first signs of their apocalypse have appeared. The plague has hit Jeruselem's national team. They don't have much time left in this multiverse.

And, we beat them! That's right, Associated Godlands finally got another win, beating Jeruselem 4-3 on the road. The Lord and Savior Jesus Christ delivered another fantastic performance, scoring four goals and throwing in an assist as well. He was lethal on the ball, and single-handedly got us the win. It makes sense why he's been named by some heathen foreigners to be one of the best players in the world. I'm sure they'll soon name him the best. Even heathens recognize his otherworldly talent.

So it appears that the time has come for Jeruselem. God has judged them. Interesting to kill them first compared to some other teams, but He knows plenty we don't. And, Lord Almighty Gregory, if you are reading this, know that you will be judged soon enough. It will come when you least expect it, when your luck is at its peak, when you feel more like a God then ever. But then, God will show you what a real God can do. Which is send an entire nation to Hell, among other things.

And I feel I haven't mentioned The Sword Bloke often enough. They aren't quite al large and powerful as Gregoryisgodistan, but Shop Owner is just as bad as Lord Almighty Gregory. The Sword Bloke will be judged soon enough, and they too will be wiped off the face of the multiverse.

There it is. The truth. Listen to it, change your ways, and you might be redeemed by God just in time. Or don't, I don't really care. Shirley Phelps-Roper out.

by **Szavoda** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 8:45 am

that RP might make this RP make more sense

Bastion Airport, Eura

"You know I'm not comfortable with this."
"It'll be fine. I've done this a million times, with characters far less reputable than you."
"I'm glad you think I'm reputable."

Dazdan shuffled nervously in the queue, one of the seemingly endless queues which were the life-blood of the behemoth that was Bastion Airport. It was early on a Wednesday, several hours before the commencement of the derby grudge-match between Szavoda and Eura at the Bastion Arena. Previously, as they had agreed when Szavoda had first drawn Eura back in World Cup 71, Moli agreed not to attend the one game which Szavoda played in Eura for a number of reasons which didn't quite make sense to Dazdan, but he agreed and had understood.

He'd been quite looking forward to one game by himself, where he wouldn't have the intimidating Moli with him at all times, although as a Szavda in Eura, it was nice having someone around who you were fairly sure had killed someone. But instead, after the match, he'd been rudely interrupted by a red-headed journalist, who barged into his hotel room late at night and had said nothing until Dazdan realised that it was, in fact, Moli.

Or to be more precise, it was technically Avalon du Preez, Moli's Darmeni alter-ego, which she only used for 'business and travel', but also for being in Eura, as she preferred to not be a Szavda in Eura.

So today, in a queue at Bastion Airport, instead of the tall, glamorous blonde figure of Moli, stood the somewhat shorter, paler, red-headed Avalon, clutching a Darmeni passport. Dazdan, now significantly taller than her, looked down on Avalon and once again marvelled at the cosmetic transformation - it really was unnoticeable, even if you knew it was Moli. She'd clearly had experience in making herself look different. The queue moved forward slowly, Dazdan couldn't tell if this was the queue for immigration, passport control, or whatever, but it crawled wherever it was going.

Having come off a strong, if defensively poor, performance against Norrehavn, the team had trained a few days under the watchful eye of the team's new Euran coach Louis Watson and Nepharan Tristan Kuyter, no need now for the amateur likes of Dazdan. So he had taken Moli skiing, or more accurately, Moli took Dazdan, as she paid for everything. Only recently had the infrastructure for skiing been set up in Southern Szavoda, and according to Moli it was miles off what it was like in Eura, but it was good fun nonetheless. The next fixture was the big one, against Eura in Eura, and Dazdan had made plans to go by himself, right up until he was leaving his apartment in Vfana, when Avalon had caught him in the stairwell, complete with suitcase. At first he had protested vehemently - Moli told him of the time when she got arrested for assault in Eura, but she then countered that Avalon never had, and refused to let Dazdan go without her, and she'd agreed that should they get arrested, she'd give Dazdan D200,000 - a childish offer, but she wrote the cheque out there and then and gave it to him.

They'd boarded the flight easily enough, Avalon skipping through passport control without as much as a second glance at her presumably fake credentials. In fact, it was Dazdan who had been receiving more hassle than Avalon. She chatted away happily in Euran to anyone who engaged her, clearly confident in her disguise. The short flight - just over an hour - was uneventful too, but it was getting through the Euran end which concerned Dazdan.

The queue eventually reached its conclusion, with a stern-faced customs official behind a desk. He indicated for Avalon to come to forward to the desk, and she obliged. She was barely questioned, her passport was scanned and somehow passed inspection and she was through within a matter of seconds. It perplexed Dazdan no end, and to compound it, he spent an awkward couple of minutes explaining what he was doing - although when he mentioned that he was travelling with Avalon, things seemed to travel a lot smoother. Eventually Dazdan got through himself.

"So, how does someone go about getting a new identity like that?" He asked as they walked towards the exit.
"I know a guy."
"He must be bloody good."
"He's the bloody best."

As they'd only packed hand-luggage, there was no need to wait further, so they headed straight for the exit. The main exit for Bastion airport is on a raised level, affording astounding views across the sprawling mega-city that was the Euran capital.

Dazdan blinked in the morning sunshine, whilst Avalon lit up a cigarette. She spoke as she exhaled.

"Welcome to my World, Daz."

by **Estelar** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 9:23 am

Lack of wins frustrate fans, but high scoring last matches earn positive reactions: "More goals look good on our résumé", says Vesta
news brought to you by the Daily Predictor, in association with Astrology Today/Past/Forever

Horoscope of the day - Scorpio: "Time to recover your soul, to get away from insane dependencies. Stay away from people who make you feel down, try to surround yourself with things that inspire you. You're right at the end of a solar cycle ending important questions in your life. Tomorrow the Sun will be in your sign, and soon you'll see new things. Focus your attentions to self-knowledge, so you can love yourself even more."

Comment of the Scorpio player - Éris Dezon: "That was quite a cute horoscope... but one important in a moment like this one, since I am close to finish my astral hell period... and soon the Sun will be right in my sign. Better things may come... my birthday, for example, is coming soon, and I'll have a huge party to commemorate, and why not better results in these World Cup qualifiers? These last weeks have been pretty difficult, like it is expected every year during this time. This bad phase isn't over yet, but what the horoscope says to me is that I have to be confident for the things that are laying ahead and stay optimist and with optmist people as well, to not let anyone take away my hopes. Very inspiring, doesn't you think? That's one of the reason why I love the planets and the stars! The team is not performing well, but even with only three points so far we remain confident, that is good. I usually get angry in situations like these, so when the horoscope says to stay away from dependencies, I bet it is talking about my anger and sometimes my arrogant attitudes... I'm not good at this, but I'll try to be more of a team players... it sure is about this, really doubt the horoscope is talking about drugs, for example."

The first half of the World Cup qualifiers has finished. And the Estelarians, although the poorest ranked team in the world, can't be too much satisfied with the position of the team. Alright, the Stargazers aren't in the last place, but have failed to win a single match, drawing three times and losing the other three matches. Even though one of the results was a much commendable draw against Bears Armed, with a goal on the last minute, the fans on the streets of Observatório and other cities of Estelar seem frustrated. One of them, a woman walking on the park and looking at the stars, who even got scared when we suddenly appeared from behind the bushes to interview her, commented: "We were expecting to have good chances of winning against Googolsia and Estenia. Estenia was a really exciting match, five goals for each side, but to miss the three points once again is just sad." An astrologer who was giving predictions and interpretations close to an office building also accepted to comment, after we paid her to have some predictions involving our newspaper and the personal lives of the reporter and camerawoman: "Yes, I can say that these were not good times for the Stargazers... but the planets move, and this movement changes everything, and it sure can shake the team and make things change for the next half of the qualifiers because world changes and world is movement and life is movement and of course football is movement as well since there is a ball moving the entire match." Other women drinking in a nearby bar preferred to not comment, claiming that they only like brandy, not football.

Indeed Estelar failed to win, but at least we can think of something positive that happened in these last matches, something that can show us that the clouds may be finally leaving and the moon and the stars can finally appear on the sky... after losing two matches by the minimal result, 1x0, Estelar returned to score goals, and many of them. Of course, some fans will try to see this on the bad side, claiming that the defensive sector of the Stargazers was doing a good job and suddenly went downhill, and that by securing more clean sheets Estelar could have had better results against Estenia and even Bears Armed. But let's not think about this. The universe operates with harmony, and the athmosphere we create for ourselves has an impact on the things that happen on the future. Therefore, by keeping an optimistic viewpoint, we give more energy and may influence the next games in a positive way! The point that we want to show is that, at the last three matches that Estelar has played, the team scored 10 goals. Yes, ten goals! More than three goals per match, a terrific stat. We have already told you about the goals scored in the game against Bears Armed, but now we need to talk about the matches against Polar Islandstates and Estenia. In the first match, things looked difficult from the start, since the opponents were the leaders of the group and also the top ranked squad, one of the best teams in the entire multiverse. Estelar fought hard, but never managed to challenge the opponents, always being behind on the scoreline. Vesta managed to score a goal still in the first half, after an excellent move by Beatrix, but at that time the team was already losing 2x0. The second goal came close to the end of the game, in a bizarre move in which the goal kick taken by Dani went to Nicole at the attack already inside the area, who unmarked scored the goal and even looked surprising during the commemoration.

The match against Estenia was a very different one, in which the Estelarians had real chances of finally getting a win. Vesta did her best match during the qualifiers, scoring twice, with Imogene scoring with a perfect free kick and Chrissie Hacker taking advantage of the focus of the opponent's marking strategy on Vesta and Imogene to invade the area without opposition to score. Reviewing this good performance of the attackers during these last games, the only negative point that we can comment about is the bad form of Augusta Dreher, usually a very stable player and well organized, but who hasn't scored a single goal, and is being constantly substituted by Jupiter. Some fans are already asking for Amber to be the starter, or maybe even Shane changing the formation of the team to one with two striker, and we believe that Jupiter may test some changes for the next match against Googolsia, since it is one in which Estelar has the most chances of winning. But, even with the lack of victories, the goals scored have excited some of the team members. As Vesta, for example, who commented: "I am a striker, so it is always good to score goals and more goals, so at least no one will put the blame on me for the bad results of the team. And, after all, with these goals I also improve my record at the National Team and my career in general, so it is very good for my résumé!" Goalkeeper Dani Abate, who is the most popular member of the squad, echoed these comments: "I made two assists! Just imagine that, I am a goalkeeper, and I am not even the free kick taker like I am at Gemini Rising! So of course I have some amazing stories to talk in a bar table or during a party... well, I mean, stories to tell my children... if I have some one day, I guess."

CURRENT STATS FOR ESTELAR IN THE WC QUALIFIERS:

Goals:

Vesta Robles		4 goals
Beatrix July		3 goals
Imogene Gallacher	3 goals
Nicole Luna		1 goal
Chrissie Hacker		1 goal

Assists:

Imogene Gallacher	3 assists
Beatrix July		2 assists
Dani Abate		2 assists
Vesta Robles		1 assist
Amber Gondelle		1 assist
Gia Cruzeiro		1 assist
Augusta Dreher		1 assist
Éris Dezon		1 assist

THE DANI GUIDES FOR ESTELAR - PART 4 - UNIVERSITIES

With the first half of the qualifiers ended, I have a bit more time to keep writing about the top five things of Estelar in several areas. Drinks, parties and television are already covered, but there are so many other things to talk about! I'll change to focus to something that tourists probably won't be interested at, but that may be useful for other people, especially people who are looking to travel abroad to study. Estelar has a top quality education system, especially universities, and most of them are free... so let's check some of them:

1- Observatório's Observatory: one of the places with the most redundant name in the entire Estelar - although redundant names in the country are pretty common, such as Pisciana Fishes or Gemini Twin Towers, some which have two names in different languages which say the same thing or even the last example which seems just silly. Well, name aside this is the most important research group of the entire country, and one of the most specialized in the multiverse in its area: the research of stars, planets, other astral bodies, the universe Estelar is at in general and even the research of other universes thanks to very advanced equipments given by other universes' bodies. Therefore, the observatory only has courses on astronomy, philosophy of the universes, astrology, physics, maths, origin and destination of everything and more than everything and other stuff related to the researches. Nowadays the Observatory is attempting to check the size of the multiverse and if it is infinite or not or multiverse is actually just a smaller fraction than something that could combine several multiverses in something that we do not have the name of... interesting, isn't it? Almost makes me want to give up on existing.

2- Praia Astral Institute of Arts: ah, Praia Astral is a lovely city, one which is recently growing thanks to tourism. It is pretty close to the capital Observatório, south of it, but with a much better seaside, popular and clean beaches with warm water... a paradise for people who like beaches. The main university of the city is one specialized in arts, but arts in general, practically even kind of art and performance you can imagine. There are courses on theatre, cinema, creative writing, painting, sculpture, all kinds of visual arts and performance arts, street performances, questions about the existence, courses for djs, dancing... well, you name it and you'll probably find it. And also the parties that happen at Praia Astral are huge and crazy. I am always going there in order to have fun all night... just imagine a party in which performances are happening every minute!

3- Dunas College of the Occult: occult studies are very popular in Estelar. It is true that astrology is the most popular practice of the occult in the country, and all cities, buildings, newspapers and everything else are filled with people talking about astrology or reading and making predictions, but Estelar doesn't forget the other ways of discovering yourself and the paths of the world today and for the future. North of the country, close to the dune desert, there is the city of Dunas, considered to have the best sky for stargazing at the entire country. Thanks to this, classes involving astrology are really top quality ones, and you can also have courses on tarot, numerology, runes... not many people practice these ones, and nowadays many people are considering them good professions for the future, since they are paying well and with a lot of demand.

4- Mandala Entertainment University: the name can be misleading. This is not a college with courses involving television, cinema, tourism or how to produce events. They tried to have a more refined name for something that should be named the "Party University". There is one course which is the main one of this University located at Observatório, while the others aren't considered of having the same quality: the bartending course. Want to be a Bachelor at Bartending? So the Mandala is the place for you, where you'll learn everything about the most popular and obscure drinks of the multiverse, how to serve them with style and how to invent your own drinks. You can make a really good career from that. Apart from the bartending activity, there are also some courses on bar management, party producing and even some courses for djs, but for these ones I'd prefer the Praia Astral Institute.

5- Pluto University of Tourism and City Planning: tourism is the main commercial activity of Estelar, as the nation has well preserved forests and beaches, and many people flock to the country every year. Therefore, a college for tourism is essential, and one is located at the city of Selva Primordial, at the heart of the biggest forest of the small country. Although tourism is the main focus of the university, it became a top one for political studies as well, since promoting tourism in the country is directly related to the acts and practices of the politicians of the countries and the city planners. The City Planning course is a recent one, but one quickly growing, and may soon educate specialists in helping to promote the life quality of cities all around the worlds.

by **Fluvique** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 9:29 am

Fluvique still breathes: key victory against Chiata at South Lane

Suffered and fought triumph of Fluvique, by 1-0, at South Lane stadium over Chiata in a match whose level was low and marked the return of Lucas Topolsky and Paul Di Angello, completing the fantastic four in attack and they received the unanimous and touching support of 80.000 fans.

The players entrance to the pitch was the first outgoing note of an afternoon in which Fluvique achieved a vital result for be detached from the last positions of the standings. It was not a lucid production of the white foxes, whose greatest merit was the fierceness with which they faced the game and how they took advantage of one of the few opportunities that they had and the effort to keep the zero in the own net.

In the other hand, Chiata, was far of justify his position at third place in the qualifiers. They do not found offensive formulas to put Fluvique on danger and only the class of Douglas Prince kept them in game until the end of it. The first half lacked of deep game, but in the first 25 minutes Chiata was better in the midfield.

With a good work of both Jesse Carroll and Brian Stewart, The Chiata Suns sought with insistence over the left side, where Jean Davis was, but all what they tried died when it reached the area. Fluvique tried to be clean with the ball, touching and passing with class, but when they tried to be aggressive, the ball was lost by the innacucracions of Mhago and Topolsky.

In the last moment of the first half the Cook team took the iniciative, and had his first clear chance at 36´, when Di Angello shot outside the area, deflected by Mack Truex. Three minutes later Chiata had his only goal opportunity, when Chuck Hopper delivered a center, header by Jean Davis, but the ball went wide of the goal.

In his best time Fluvique reached the opening goal. At 42´ minutes, with a corner kick by Mhago (from left) went to the first post right to Adam Wilde, who foretaste Anna Eastep, and his header went over the right post, far away of Mack Truex. Chiata looked to be unfocused in the second half and Fluvique had three opportunities to boost the score, all of them saved by the good goalkeeper of Chiata. Later Chiata started to keep the ball, but not used it on attack, while Fluvique lacked of accuracy to capitalize the counterattacks

The first goal attempt with clear danger to Andy Paribas was at 71´ minutes, with a pirouette of Marlyn Mozrek over the crossbar. The three attempts for the visitors came from free kicks of Jesse Carroll very well executed. At 75´, with a shot of Douglas Prince, deflected by Andy Paribas and at 38´, with a header of John Martinez, unmarked, who went wide the right post.

Sam Gonza went out at 89´, in middle of cheers. He was the most sharp man in attack and had a great chance at 62´, but the ball was very over the crossbar. Anyway, it was the perfect matchday. That which needed Fluvique to start to recover.

Fluvique 1
1: Andy Paribas
3: Gabriel Varelovsky

15: Mark Augsburg
2: Rodrigo De La Mesea

17: Frederik Dengels

(51´)Jake Bass
8: Lucas Topolsky
5: Henry Mhago
7: Paul Di Angello
10: Sam Gonza (C)

(89´) Ricky Bertens
20: FEDE
9: Adam Wilde

(78´) Bernard Pullian

Chiata 0

GK: Mack Truex
LB: Chuck Hopper
CB: John Martinez

(67´) Marlyn Mozrek
CB: Anna Eastep

(79´) Kara Nelson
CB: Catherine Carry

RB: David Webb
LM: Felix Saunders
CM: Jesse Carroll
RM: Brian Stewart

(49´)Roy Fields
ST: Douglas Prince
ST: Jean Davis

Venue: South Lane Stadium (80.000 spectators)
Man of the Match: Lucas Topolsky
Goal: Adam Wilde (42´)

by **Kandorith** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 10:23 am

Solid Kandorith, Wins Away

Stvoto Latoli 0–2 Kandorith

  Group 13                                  Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Kandorith                               6    5   1   0    11    3   +8    16
2 Boring Paradise                         6    4   1   1    15    7   +8    13
3 Equestrian States                       6    4   1   1    14    6   +8    13
4 Augusticinia                            6    2   1   3     8    6   +2     7
5 Stvoto Latoli                           6    2   1   3     3    4   −1     7
6 Copper Cuprum                           6    1   1   4     7   16   −9     4
7 Saaksvala                               6    0   0   6     3   19  −16     0

When the fans thought it could not get more unbelievable, Kandorith fetches yet another away game win. With Kandorith now standing at zero losses, the new Huangzhou team is the most solid qualifying Kandorese team in the history of the nation. Kandorith is looking at a group win if they keep up the current streak, and looking at the team, The Red Dragons are far from done with their streak.

As Kandorith is still trying to qualify, backroom talks are already ongoing for an honorary title on Huangzhou's name and the entire Kandorese national squad. The talks have been confirmed by the press secretary of the Imperial House and will be released on a later point during the qualification campaign. In simple words, if Kandorith manages to qualify directly, there will be an honorary title in it for them. But if Kandorith manages to win the group, Huangzhou will be knighted as by tradition of the Kandorese government, under Imperial laws. Making Huangzhou a member of the Order of The Lotus. Before him only one other football coach has ever been knighted by the Imperial House, which was Xíanjí Hatema; who was the first coach to bring Kandorith trough the qualifiers. For the Kandorese team the qualification process is looking a fly by, as the team is making up for their next matches. The home fans are sure of it, Kandorith will qualify.

by **Armeia** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 11:10 am

STRIKERLESS: A BLOG FOR ARMEIAN FOOTBALL
TEMPERS FLARE IN ROAD LOSS

The traveling Armeian fans were outraged after a missed handball call led to the game winner for Osarius

Recap by Ezra Blaha
This is a game that Armeian fans, or fans from around the multiverse, really, won't be forgetting anytime soon. The lines expected Armeia to take a bad loss to the sixth ranked team, but that was far from the case. Draga Schraeder was drafted into the team to replace Katarina Dana Bonner, who had to leave the squad for personal reasons, which rumors chalk up to depression and a failed suicide attempt earlier in the month. Bonner reportedly is going into rehab, meaning the first player out of the selected group was brought in to replace her, and that player was center fielder Draga Schraeder. She made quite a difference after starting over Edi Dragic, not just with her goals, but with her passing and her ability to pull the defense out of position and alter the formation that Osarius was playing.

At first we thought they were going to run away with the game, as Osarius controlled the ball for the first two minutes before breaking through with a through ball over the top to Wesley Kane, who put one past Isa Tangemen in the third minute. They added to their lead in the seventh minute, taking advantage of an Armeian back line that wasn't settled into the match yet, Marco Puntoriero winning the ball on a defensive mistake by Bojan Fertig, and finishing in the right corner.

Armeia's defense grew better as the match continued, but it was obvious at first that Osarius was the better team, it seemed as if they were taking possession at will, and they put a lot of pressure on Isa Tangemen, who made five saves in the first half. Tangemen turned one shot against the crossbar to deny Marco Puntoriero a second goal, but then conceded on the rebound shot to Wesley Kane, just as half one ended with Osarius up 3-0. The 10,000 traveling Armeian ultras made their dissatisfaction heard during halftime, however they unveiled a banner that was smuggled in before the game that read "WIN OR LOSE, WHERE YOU GO WE FOLLOW!", written in Swedish. They would be repaid for that loyalty in the second half.

Whatever Conor Svedsson told his team at halftime, it worked well as Draga Schraeder scored in the 46th minute, dancing through two defenders and putting the shot in from close range after receiving a long ball from Alakare Abbey. Armeia switched to a more counter attacking style, making more direct passes instead of their usual quick passing tiki taka style, and Osarius didn't adjust enough, allowing Armeia to control the flow of play in the second half.

Milan Toure passed to Tilo Abramsson after an Osarius corner kick, and Abramsson was able to get a two on two breakaway chance, and he passed to Schraeder, who outran the defense and went around the keeper to score from close range for a second time in minute 60. Armeia had Osarius on the ropes, and they knew it. They just needed one knockout punch to tie the match, which came in the 74th minute in the form of a Draga Schraeder header on an Armeian corner kick from Boom Redman.

But only six minutes later, controversy would strike, and cause the events that happened after the match. Osarius gained a free kick outside the box, and quickly took it, sending it to Marco Puntoriero, who knocked it into goal. However his header was off target, and the ball was knocked in by his arm. Isa Tangemen, the back line, and most of the Armeian midfielders immediately crowded the referee, protesting that the goal wasn't ruled a handball. This exchange led to Isa Tangemen being given a yellow for dissent, but she gained a second yellow and was sent off when she made a double V sign in the direction of Osarian crowd, which was cheering the referee's call.

Augustus Lenz came on for Draga Schraeder with Armeia's last sub, and somehow the Super Dragons were able to hold on during the last ten minutes a man down. Trouble broke out again in the first minute of stoppage time, with Armeian fans throwing flares, scarves, jerseys, bottles, and other items onto the pitch, and the match had to be called two minutes early because of a riot beginning in the stands. As the fans left the stadium, there were clashes with Osarian fans, and some reports estimate that between twenty nine and sixty two Osarian fans were injured by Armeian hooligan firm J-Sector.

Afterwards, the Armeian players either had apathetic reactions or they voiced their discontent. "I could say what I think about the referee, but it would probably only get me suspended," said Draga Schraeder, in an interview with Sporternav. "We played a better game... We should have won."

Isa Tangemen had a more cynical take. "It's how the game works, I guess. These guys have to get through for the interests of TV money, and they'll preferably win the group... They couldn't beat us so the refs had to give them some help. It sucks for the plucky underdogs of the world, but unless football stops making so much TV money, stuff like this will happen."

Sources from inside the Armeian federation say that no action will be taken against Tangemen for her obscene gesture towards the Osarians. Manager Conor Svedsson has denied issuing a statement on the referee call.

by **Britonisea** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 11:30 am

Disgusting

Act Three; Scene One

Cheesy, well known, News theme starts to play as the reporter sits on the chair and table provided in the middle of the stage. With a big smile, the reporter comes on stage and puts his feet up on the table. The reporter, though over confident, hides his/hers face behind the papers.

REPORTER: Similar to the events that you have witnessed in other countries, it seems like the 73rd World Cup is a safe haven for riots. How can football cause riots? I thought football was supposed to unite people. Well, actually, football is the opposite and it causes major divide in society. However,this is in the reason why there was a riot in Eaux. In Eaux, people are rioting because the city's main stadium "Winter Stadium" was supposed to host matches instead of the Olympic Stadium and the National Stadium. Though in a sudden change of processing, the other stadiums were awarded the chance of hosting something on the big stage. This made the locals angry and therefore causing them to riot. So far, there has been no causalities however there has been multiple arrests. The riot was also caused because of the abysmal results of the Kernansquillec match in Kernansquillec City and against Barunia in The National Stadium in Sports City, Britonisea.

Sebastian then comes on stage cr and sits on the floor of the stage. He looks really disappointed and really sad. His body gestures are unsure though as he wants to keep his so-called masculinity but wants to break down in tears. Discreetly, Timothy comes on the stage rb and notices Sebastian though does nothing. He stands there as Sebastian begins to speak.

Sebastian: What do you mean? *Looks at the audience and smiles* Timothy, oh Timothy, what do you mean? Don't I give you freedom? Why doesn't Timothy think I do? The match was awesome today; but I didn't spend it with my best friend. That was bad of me. I spent time with him on the bus home. He sat at the back of the bus. I don't understand what I have to do to please him. Doesn't he like football?

Timothy gasped and ran off the stage, Sebastian notices.

Sebastian: Timothy? TIMOTHY!

Timothy runs in front of the stage, and breaks the fourth wall by going in to the audience. Sebastian follows. Timothy then takes a right turn back towards the stage and enters the same place he was before. Sebastian doesn't notice and doesn't follow straight behind. Song "#3 Sunlight on Olympus Mount"

Timothy: (Sings)
STAND STILL.
DON'T BREATHE.
DON'T LET THEM NOTICE ME.
DON'T SHAKE,
NOR MOVE.
YOU NEED'NT MOVE!
NO WALK.
SLOWLY.
UP TO THE MOUNTAIN.
FOLLOW. YOUR SOUL. GO WITH THE RHYTHM AND FLOW.
Timothy & Reporter: (Sings)
SUNLIGHT ON OLYMPUS MOUNT
LOOK DOWN, SEE THE PEOPLE PASSING BY. YOU'RE IN THE SKY.
NO FEAR, OF YOU. NO FEAR OF BEING STUCK IN THIS TOWN.
I'M ON A HIGHER GROUND. I AM.
Reporter: (Sings)
YOUR FRIEND SEBAS,
CARES 'BOUT YOU, DON'T LET YOUR DIFFERENCE DISGUISE YOU.
I KNOW. YOU'RE HURT.YOUR LIFE WILL BE BACK SOON.
Timothy: (Sings)
I CAN'T. HE DOESN'T THINK OF ME AS A FRIEND.
WE USED TO LOOK ON OLYMPUS MOUNT, TOGETHER.
LOOK AT THE FOOTBALL ARENA SHINE SO BRIGHT.
PEOPLE CHEERING, OH SUCH DELIGHT.
He's gone. He's changed. I don't know what to do. It's different, something new. I'll have to move on now.

Reporter: Now, I am not a love expert-
Timothy: Love expert? Pfft, I am not in lo-
Reporter: Listen kid. Be happy for Sebastian. You may not be the so-called Football Kid but make sure Sebastian is one. Make him follow his dre-
Timothy: I am not in the way of stopping that, Reporter. Look, I think you betta go.
Reporter: *Sighs and nods* I'll go, alright. But remember, you travel to Doportedas tomorrow for the preparation of the Dreamplanet match.
Timothy: *Turns to the audience* Hey thanks. Wait. How do you know I had to go to Doportedas tomorrow?

During Timothy's talk, the reporter slips out.

Timothy: Reporter? Reporter!! *Looks around* Reporter? Damn it, where are you.

Brothers, Joseph and Lachlan arrives on stage from any angle and they look at Timothy perplexed.

Lachlan: Timothy?
Timothy: *Turns around in fear* Oh, it's only you.
Joseph: It's only us. What's the matter? You seem...
Lachlan: Strange.
Joseph: Sadistic.
Lachlan: Crazy
Joseph: Weird.
Timothy: *Shouts* Enough! I am just looking through World Cup videos here. Urgh, World Cup 45, 61, 67, 70, 72? WCU21? Di Brad-something. I am not too sure.
Joseph: I thought you were a football kid? *Laughs*]
Timothy: *Angry* Seriously?

Sebastian comes running in.

Sebastian: Urgh, Timothy?
Timothy: What?
Joseph: Ooh tension.
Timothy: What?
Sebastian: *Kneels down* I heard RealSquad got beaten by Britonisea 5-2.
Timothy: *Roles eyes and changes mood, though says the following sarcastically* Oh, that is so amazing of them. Congrats.
Lachlan: Sorry boss. I think I am going to go now.
Timothy: Bye then.
Joseph: I think I am going to stay, see you Lachlan.
Lachlan: Bye.

Lachlan exits cr while Sebastian, Timothy and Joseph sits on the same chairs that were present in the first scene, an almost recreation of it. They turned the television on.

Timothy: What's with the new television?
Joseph: Looks nice.
Sebastian: You know, I bought a new one. I saw that the other one was broken.
Timothy: *Smiles a bit but holds it in* That's nice.
Sebastian: *Turning on the television* Football great!
Timothy: *Sarcastically* Great.
Joseph: I don't like football.
Sebastian: Really. *Stares at Timothy*
Timothy: What?
Sebastian: No, I am saying, like. Joseph doesn't like football. Do you like football?
Timothy: Woooh, go Gregoryisgodistan!
Sebastian: *Chuckles* Let's watch it then.

Exeunt

by **Gregoryisgodistan** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 3:17 pm

From the Desk of Lord Almighty Gregory

To: Jeruselemite Soccer Federation

Dear Pretty Pretty Naked Naked Princesses of Jeruselem,

I am writing to inform you of a response to your desire to compete naked in the World Cup Qualifier to be held in our country shortly. As you should know by now, public nudity is a capital crime in Gregoryisgodistan, and we will execute your players, fans, and anyone else who is naked in public. However, minor violations may merely lead to heavy fine and deportation, plus lifetime ban from the country. Either way, your players, coaches, and fans will not be allowed to compete nude in our country and will be stopped before they get to the stadium, and dealt with harshly. Therefore, I would urge the Jeruselemites in attendance to wear clothes, and that includes something covering the top half, whether they are men or women. We do not tolerate nudity or shirtless stupidity in this country, even from a nation of Pretty Pretty Naked Naked Princesses. Unless you want to face death, fine, and/or deportation, I suggest you show up for the World Cup Qualifier wearing clothes.

We cannot consider ourselves liable if law enforcement deals with you harshly, as they simply do not care if you are Pretty Pretty Naked Naked Princesses. You're still naked, and that's still not OK. Do not do it if you want to live, because you will not. And you will also be forced to forfeit the Qualifier due to your untimely demise/deportation. Is it really worth dying and missing out on the World Cup just to be naked in a qualifier? I think not. And our execution is particularly painful - slow slicing, then beheading while still alive. But first we put clothes on you. Ugly clothes, since those are the only ones we have to put on those convicted of public nudity before their execution. So don't make us execute you, fine you, or deport you. You must respect our rules while in Gregoryisgodistan, for I am the Lord Your God. Even if you do not worship me, you must obey our laws, for they are the Laws of the Lord. And those who disobey them will die by the sword, Pretty Pretty Naked Naked Princess or not.

If you do not have uniforms and need them, one of our sporting goods stores will be happy to provide them to you free of charge. However, we cannot guarantee they will be attractive. In fact, they will probably send you the last batch that had a printing error due to the clerk keying in the wrong color code. The tops are puke colored with numbers the color of poop, and the shorts are a lovely lime green. They look hideous. But they can be your uniforms for free if you don't have any, because nobody in their right mind would buy them. So we'll give them to you since we have nothing better to do with them. But of course, you can bring your own uniforms that aren't hideous colors. But you do have to wear clothes. Otherwise, you will not be allowed to enter, compete, or live. Don't say you weren't warned, because you have been. Now wear clothes when you're here or incur the wrath of the Lord.

Sincerely,

Lord Almighty Gregory, God of the Multiverse

by **Chromatika** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 4:52 pm

Maman, Why Do We Suck?

The question, such a simple one, burned in the back of Franscesca Cortes's mind. Being the first manager ever of the National Football Team of Chromatika had had its perks; history would forever remember her name. However, being manager also brought scrutiny, criticism, and doubt, even from such an unlikely source - her very own daughter, Serena.

"Maman, why do we suck? I thought you were good at this, Maman. You're near the bottom of the table, with only one goal? I thought after taking Myana to the Championship, we'd be able to do well, Maman. Why do we only have one goal?" Perhaps it was the curiosity of a ten-year old, but the words cut to the very core of Franscesca. On online forums throughout the country, the same questions were being asked. Many were questioning her decision to run such a defensive formation of 5-3-2 in international play. The idea was that Chromatika lacked the forwards to score many goals, and instead would have to lean on an suffocating defense every time the opposition got to the final third. Quren and Antonio gave it their all every game, but even they understood that the Chromatiks just lacked the playmaking ability. Perhaps she could change to more of a 4-4-2, but with such stalwarts like Ilya, Aart, and Raoul, and with Thorben in goal, she believed that she was doing the best she could.

They were just being a little too slow in pushing the ball back up the field when it came to counterattacks. Kelly, Hellion, and Lucas really tried, but they didn't have as much practice pushing the ball against such competition that the world offered. Indeed, it was actually that Chromatika just needed more exposure, more trial, more error. Yes, they were 1-6. Yes, they had only scored one goal in the first half of qualifying, and against such an opposition like Kjarmark, the only team worse than they.

However, giants weren't born that way; they grew. A marathon was not finished without taking the beginning steps. It was her belief that Chromatika would blossom, given enough time; the public didn't know that they were witnessing the start of something, and not the prime, and that was why it seemed so rough.

So no, little Serena. No, we did not suck. Yes, we are being beat, yes, we are losing quite a bit, but no, we do not suck. This is just growing pains, like how you fall down when you took your first steps, like how you wrecked the first bike I bought you. There is a huge difference, little one. Give us a few more years, give us more time to grow our players - and you don't know what we may become. Look at the caterpillar, how gross it seems, how slimy it is. But it eats, it grows, and afterwards, it undergoes a metamorphosis to become a gorgeous butterfly - something that you would have never guessed. Just like you, Serena, will grow to be a strong young woman, I believe that we, the Anomalies, will grow to be a world power.

And that belief is enough to keep me going. That belief has power.

Belief.

by **Zenic** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 5:21 pm

"Can I just say this, Luke: Well done. What an absolute display throughout the first half of qualifying."

"Thank you Emperor, it means a lot to me that the team's hard work is being noticed," replied Luke Killian as he took a stroll with the Emperor of Zenic himself, Professor Herman Delano Proctor. They walked through Arnfelde Garden, the private garden of the Emperor's Estate. It was the day before the national team went to Kirisaki to face their national team to start off the second half of qualifying. The squad was going to leave later on in the night and the Emperor wanted a few words with the new manager before they left.

"Indeed. Wish it were that easy for me," Proctor joked. The situation in Zenic had improved since he took rule of the Empire. He had implemented a better curriculum in the law enforcement academies, which led to better trained officers who worked more efficiently. He added funding to the technology industries, leading to improved energy sources like nuclear power plants and wind turbine farms which were much needed upgrades from coal and hydro-electric plants. He even gave more power to the people, letting them elect their own governors, mayors and other local officials compared to when they were all elected by the Emperor themselves. He even managed to extend the borders of the Empire, pushing the western borders of the Gentas and Proctor regions all the way to the border with New Ponyville. And yet there was still a sizable contention of citizens who were displeased.

It wasn't too long after his 4th year in charge that Hans Zimmel III had recommended that the Empire establish national squads in several sports. He fought for his cause, explaining that as long as the citizens didn't have anything to distract themselves from the issues of the Empire, even for only a limited amount of time, then the citizens would find any and every single tiny problem to complain about. Zimmel added a story he had heard from his grandfather. Hans Zimmel the first, about how a dictator in the foreign land that the Zimmel family originated from, had been brought down for much that exact reason, despite the fact that he was quite a benevolent leader. Proctor weighed his options for 7 months before establishing the ZFAF, an improved domestic system and the national squad. The results were instant: sometime after the BoF 55 victory, annual polls done by largest newspapers showed the highest approval rating for Proctor ever and the highest for an Emperor in 27 years. Then, with the surprise revelation that Zenicians were incredibly talented in ice hockey, sports continued to help hold the approval ratings around the highest ever mark for Proctor.

Now, despite constantly referring to sports as "a distraction", he didn't hate sports: in fact, he was quite a fanatic of FC Virtus himself and he was slowly learning the sports of hockey. But when you're the permanent ruler of a great nation, you tend to have little time to relax as one moment, you're helping author a new law and the next, you have to travel to a foreign land to establish political and economical relationships. Sports provided Proctor with several rare moments where he could simply lean back into his chair, kick up his feet and watch something that would distract him, and the rest of the Empire, from the troubles of life itself. "Umm, Emperor? Is everything all right?"

The Emperor looked over at his guest before quickly scanning his surroundings. They had managed to walk the entirety of Arnfelde Garden while he was deep in thought. "Apologies, Luke. I have a decent amount of....issues that are on my mind. I've actually been zoning off like this very frequent in the last couple of weeks," Proctor replied. "Oh, don't worry about it, Emperor. Trust me, I've been dealing with the same situation myself." This peaked the Emperor's interest. "Truly now? What seems to be bothering you?"

Luke sighed before replying. "The team had an amazing first half of qualifying: quite literally, the best we've ever had. But Margaret can be a fickle mistress and this second half could be the worst we've ever had if she wanted it to," Killian explained. "I've found that at times I've been zoning out while thinking of strategies and training exercises to get the team prepared for each game that sometimes I start at 8:00 and don't snap out until it's around 14:00. The stress is just so different when you're managing a team than simply playing on it. At times, even when you are completely prepared for anything, you still come out with a disappointing results and it's your fault, despite the fact that the loss could be from something unavoidable."

Proctor nodded his head. "I am well aware of that feeling, Luke. It's a feeling that I've been dealing with since I became Emperor but do not fear: it is a feeling that will come and go. Take solace in that simple fact and enjoy life when that feeling has left you temporarily." Killian smiled, joyed that even the Emperor would struggle with such things and the Emperor has much more reason to feel as such. "Thank you for your kind words, Emperor. Before you said that, I was planning on sacrificing some rubber chickens to pray for continued good results." The Emperor gave Killian a bewildered look and Killian noticed. "It's a sports joke, Emperor," Killian said, comforting the Emperor before a thought ran across his mind. "Hey Emperor, before I leave: what exactly did you want to say to me before the squad and I left for Kirisaki?"

"Honestly, I just wanted to say," Proctor said, pausing briefly, "Thank you."

by **Vers-Gelderland** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 5:27 pm

Interview with David Ross

1. Why did you decide to become the Manager for the New Gelderland national team?
"I wanted to have the chance to work with the best and brightest of the younger Gelderlish football players of our day and age. I know that I was one of the better football players in New Gelderland in the past, but I know our league wasn't nearly half way as developed as it now, I know our players now are fifty percent better. We've had a lot of improvement in our players, and as I said, I wanted to have a chance to work with those people and see what they had to bring to the table. Of course I wanted to also bring my ideas and perspectives on football to this newer generation of footballers as well. And, of course, being manager is a really prestigious position in this country where football is the most popular sport far and wide. Football is my passion, I want to continue to live my passion, and I also want to make possible the passion of our fans as well, and I also want to make the passion of our younger players and athletes who want to make their mark on the world stage. Of course I want to make my mark on the world stage and on my country as well. So I'd give it a variety of reasons why I wanted to become the manager, and so I was so excited when the Gelderlish Football Federation accepted my application and resume. And I've enjoyed working with these players so far.

2. What's the best part of managing the national team?
"For me, the best part is working with a lot of these promising players. It's a moment of pride to see how well these guys and girls have been doing on the football pitch, to see how much progress they've made, both socially as friends and as teammates on the pitch. It's also great to get to know these players as people rather just than players on the football field, it's really great to get to know the personalities of each and every one of the people on my team here. We have a lot of fun together as a team, and I'm glad that I'm able to be a part of their good experiences and the camaraderie that has developed between the different members of the team. Of course, that great moment of pride and ecstasy when our team wins, like when we won the Baptism of Fire, I think that's a great motivator for me to continue my managing career with the New Gelderlish national team. The Baptism for Fire, for us, was a very happy moment, we were very excited to hoist the trophy together as a team. So in summary, the best part of managing the national team is those times when we get together because we're excited and we have a good time. It's very gratifying."

3. What's the worst part of managing the national team?
"Of course the worst part for me is losing. Like I said in my response to the last question, it was very exciting to me to see our team win. It was very exciting to everyone to see our team win, but it's very deflating to see our team lose. It's very deflating to see all the hard work that we put into training and practice go down the drain, so to speak, because we can't pull ourselves together or we make a simple mistake or the other team is just too good for us. It makes us question, why are we even playing football anymore? It makes us question, why should we even bother? Associated with that are the pep talks. I know that our team has hope and that I have hope and that we need to bring out the hope within us, it's very deflating to me to stand up in front of the team every single match and say, 'We can do this, team,' and to me, it seems like those efforts to cheer everyone up and pull that hope out of the abyss are sometimes in vain. We all get disappointed sometimes, I admit, and it's very hard to get that disappointment out of our systems. But I know that we need to stop thinking about yesterday and start thinking about tomorrow. But sometimes it's hard to do that in the midst of all our losses and such, so that's a negative aspect to this job, I admit."

4. What have your emotions been regarding the first half of qualifying?
"I've had a lot of up and down emotions through this first part of qualifying, I know that our team has definitely been going through a roller coaster of emotions as well. We cannot seem to beat Witty Penguins and I know that our team is dreading the encounter with them at home tomorrow to kick off the second half of qualifying, we're really hoping that we can finally pull out the win against our rivals, it seems strange to call them that now but we will have faced them three times after tomorrow. I know we'll need some good luck in that match, luck we haven't seemed to have in the past few days... Yet I know that we will have some good luck in the future, in the next couple of matches. So at some points I've been quite frustrated, especially a lot of nil-all draws, where I've felt that we could have won a match. But when we finally won against Cuboneland, I was very excited and happy for our team, so I knew that it is possible to live our dreams of qualifying. Perhaps it won't happen this cycle, but maybe next cycle, if we get some good luck and some good results."

5. What do you want to do with New Gelderland in the second part of qualifying?
"There's several matches that I'm aiming at for us to do well, that I know we have a good chance of winning going in. First is the home game against Maklohi Vai, which will be on Matchday 11. Our team performed pretty well in our away game against them the last time they came around, however it was very disappointing to see that we couldn't convert on any of our chances to score against them. So I hope that the home environment will work wonders for our game against Maklohi Vai there. I also hope that our home atmosphere will work well in the game against United States of Devonta, I'd really be itching to end their run of qualifying form right now. It seems like they're getting through on luck (and their garish match reports certainly don't help! Oh, my eyes!) and I'd definitely be in favor of New Gelderland handing their a**es to them at home. I have some hope that New Gelderland will be able to get through. I don't know how much hope we have against Saintland or Abanhfleft, but the best thing to do with them is to wait and see and not let them score any goals on us. A one-all draw with them would be fine with me. So in short, I definitely have some hope for New Gelderland in the coming part of qualifying."

6. What hope do you have for New Gelderland to qualify?
I always have hope for our national team. I always have hope that New Gelderland will climb up those mountains that we've always dreamed of climbing, and I know that we will ascend. I do admit that sometimes it gets harder and harder to dream and to hope, and sometimes we don't want to wake up in the morning because we don't want to be done dreaming. I'm not done dreaming, though, even though I wake up every morning. I'm still not done dreaming, and I know that New Gelderland will qualify someday in the future. Louis Rhodes and a lot of the team are still very promising, and they have at least three more World Cup cycles to go before they'll retire... We have some good academy players and good youth sides as well, I know that they'll inject some good play into New Gelderland's team as well in addition to what we already have. I think they key to qualifying is to keep reminding ourselves that it is possible to qualify and to keep our hope alive, no matter what trials or tribulations we go through as a team. We'll go through them together, and we'll succeed."

by **Northern Sunrise Islands** » Thu Oct 22, 2015 8:02 pm

WORLD CUP 73
Zackalantis walks out: Sunrisians get symbolical one-nil win
No match was actually played at the Seacoast Park this night. Turns out the team from the United Kingdom of Zackalantis didn't even make the trip. After thirty minutes of waiting, instead of a postponed game, the Sunrisians were awarded a 1-0 win by the officials. And that's it. Next matchday, the Sunrisians host a game against Omerica at the InComm Arena.

SPECIAL FEATURE
Tough Game (to watch): Friendly - Ébesteira Dóllar 7-6 Qarapiquiba
After three games inside the Sunrise, it's time this reporter travels to out of the country... A trip to Dainer. Now, this is like being meters from your own neighbourhood. I mean, the Unified Sunrise Islands are mostly at Futurnia for crying out loud. So yeah, the magic land of dragons with tales about hearts and drawings hiding behind shrubbery, while officially the first time this section of DE PLACA leaves its' home, is literally just outside of the nation's backyard.

Anyway, this was, also, an invite made by the owner of Ébesteira Dóllar, household name-ish rapper Inspectah C. You know, that gentleman that always dresses fancy while singing tracks such as "Money", "Gold and Cash", "All about the money" and "Theory about the Relativity of Money". A while ago, his "posse" got word that we'd be covering lower league talent with the simple purpose of making some jokes but still promote them around. So Rich, his "homeboy", contacted us and boom, here we are.

Now, the idea behind these two sides are easy. Ébesteira is the traditional team that a rich figure decided to start for its' own satisfaction. Only difference being that this figure in particular is clearly more worried about how many suits he can buy instead of how many players. Their rivals this afternoon are Qarapiquiba, a team that also fits a particular archetype of lower league football: that one team from a small town that, while far from being anything to talk about, is legitimately the only thing they have. The game itself wasn't much to talk about, though. Inspectah C can't goalkeep for shit, same for the goalie of the other side. That being said, I did enjoy the invite. Thanks. And here for more hanging' at the hood... or whatever the hell that guy said.

works? · by **Abanhfleft** » Fri Oct 23, 2015 12:29 am

The Saga of All-Inclusive Haranguer F.C., Part Seven

"Samantha Leroux?" Janine Fuller repeated. "Your name sounds familiar. Should it?"

"I'm not really sure, to be honest," Leroux replied. "I played for the Armeian national team once or twice just a few months ago. I know Abanhfleft has been looking at a lot of Armeian players ever since the Sporting World Cup and your clubs signed Isa and Svenja."

Janine had no idea whom Leroux was taking about, but she did know who Leroux was now, after some Google-sleuthing she had done while still talking to Leroux. According to the sources she found on the Net, Leroux had once been a highly touted youth prospect in the Armeian leagues before a series of concussions (thankfully not consecutive, or so it would seem) made her lose her spot in her old team and dropping down to something called "street football." It was apparently what Armeian football players did during the offseason. In all honesty, Janine didn't like the concept of the street league. It left players susceptible to injuries that they could easily have avoided if they weren't playing during the offseason. But different countries, different cultures, she told herself.

"It says here that you were a youth prospect that has that something special," she said.

"Yes, it's true," Leroux replied. "Or rather, it was true. I took some knocks to my head, and now I'm playing street football because there's no teams in the country that want to sign me."

"I have to say that that's get unlucky of you," Janine admitted. "However, if you don't mind me asking, how did you get your head knocked around a lot?"

"To be honest, I don't really know or remember. They all happened so quick. But they're all behind me now, Ms. Fuller. I've heard that your club is looking for players to help take you to your Premier League. I think I can help your team with that."

Janine now thought long and hard about the decision that she was about to make. According to her player profile in one of the sites regularly used by scouts and managers to check up on players during the transfer windows, Leroux had made the transition from striker to central attacking midfielder during the times that she had been out injured through concussions. But for many of the games that Janine could quickly scan on the Web Leroux was playing as more of a false nine, which was a position of which All-Inclusive had a noticeable lack. Leroux would definitely slot in nicely in such a position for the team.

However, Haranguer was also preparing to bring in Rory Edwards from Riuwiee United on loan. Edwards had a pretty much similar playstyle to Leroux, with the added benefit that he had been playing such a role and position for the Fleftic under-21 team. To be honest, Janine preferred Rory to Samantha, but she wasn't about to deny a player that could prove to be a capable backup.

"I have to be honest with you, Ms. Leroux," she finally said. "We have a player that already plays the same role I am sure you are going to bring to our side. And, given your injury history, signing you would be a risk for us. I can offer you a squad rotation role, maybe even sporadic appearances in the first team, but that's all I can reasonably guarantee you."

"I don't mind being a sub," Leroux said. "I just want the opportunity to play club football again."

"Okay, if that's the case, then how quickly can you get down here to Haranguer?"

And that was why, on the day just before the start of the season, All-Inclusive Haranguer called on yet another press conference to announce the signing of yet another player, Armeia's Samantha Leroux. With only hours to go to the first game of the new season, some of the Haranguer fans began questioning the logic of bringing in a new player with the first game of the season just around the corner, but there were whispers among the fan community that Leroux herself had asked for the move to Haranguer, and who was the club to refuse her? So, after more than a month of negotiations, this was where Haranguer stood with its new players.

The first match of the season was against Tefel, a club that has had Premier League experience in the past, managing to stay in the top flight for five years before finally dropping to Unang Liga three years ago. Luckily for Haranguer it was a home game, so their new signing wouldn't have to go too far for her first game for the club. Tefel were almost like Haranguer in a way, always promotion contenders before fading in the final stretch or the final playoff game. And while it was still too early in the new season to say definitive things, this game between the two clubs could set the tone of the coming season.

CRESCENT NEWS NETWORK
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ABANHFLEFT • PRIDNESTROVIA • OONTAZ DERT LI NG • COPPER CUPRUM • TRENDSTART • FHULGHAMOUS PENINSULA

WORLD CUP 73 QUALIFIERS: ABANHFLEFT VS MAKLOHI VAI
By Malik Qazizadah

Abanhfleft's Alan Turpentine runs past a Maklohi Vai defender. The national team turned in an assured performance in front of a packed crowd in Releinthi's Monsanto Stadium to record their largest margin of victory in the current qualifying series. (Courtesy of Crescent News Network Sports Channel/Andros Tasasa)

RELEINTHI, ABANHFLEFT - The Abanhfleft men's national football team turned in a magnificently composed performance today, scoring three goals on their way to a complete rout of Maklohi Vai at home.

Jefferson Samonte opened the scoring near the half-hour mark, streaking down the right wing before turning into the penalty box and slamming the ball over the head of the keeper.

Maklohi Vai's defensive tactics held off more Fleftic challenges until after the break, when Gustavo Potter streaked past a defender to head the ball home, with the keeper barely making an effort to catch the goalbound ball.

Alan Turpentine completed the victory with a goal from 26 yards out with seconds to go in second-half stoppage time.

Maklohi Vai's chances were few and far between, with their naturally defensive formation working against them as they went down two goals in the majority of the second half, although they came close with a 30-yard free kick from Tumo Makanopalani, which was awarded when Turpentine brought down Klaus Lomupakani-Wagner.

Lomupakani-Wagner himself had a chance to pull one back for Maklohi Vai only for his shot to bounce off the back of Luke Edwards and straight into Maksim Varamoninov's hands.

Abanhfleft manager Kasper Molak: Team did good for first half of qualifiers

Abanhfleft manager Kasper Molak: "The team did good in this game, and they've done well for the first half of qualifying.

"We showed great character and intensity to rebound from the defeat against Devonta. We showed what we can do when we're properly motivated.

"You don't expect fullbacks like Jeff Samonte to score goals, and especially a goal like that first goal for the game. It just shows that he's still got the fire of passion in his belly, and I'm sure it's going to help us out in the long run.

"Six more games to go, I'm looking forward to all of them. I'm sure the team can do even better than we're doing right now."

At the end of the first half of the World Cup qualifiers, Abanhfleft sit steady in third place, below the United States of Devonta by just one point. Meanwhile, Saintland are comfortable at the top of Group 18 with 16 points.

        ABANHFLEFT 3 - 0 MAKLOHI VAI
     SAMONTE (28')
      POTTER (49')
TURPENTINE (90+3')

MAKLOHI VAI
GK: 01 Makai
RB: 03 Kalopani █ (Koratulopanai - 69')
RCB: 02 Muruloparakoi
CB: 05 Ropakakanai (Kawai - 53')
LCB: 04 Worunapalakani
LB: 08 Kumakapani
RM: 09 Palarutani
CM: 18 Lomupakani-Wagner (Romokanapai - 71')
LM: 16 Wotulanai
RS: 07 Makanopalani
LS: 06 Segundo

ABANHFLEFT
GK: 01 Varamoninov
RB: 05 Amoroso (Cervantes - 79')
RCB: 04 L. Edwards
LCB: 03 Mikkelsen
LB: 02 Samonte
RM: 08 Turpentine
CM: 19 Zolnerov
LM: 06 Musa
CAM: 20 R. Edwards
RS: 11 Kelvin (Diggs - 70')
LS: 10 Potter
MATCH STATISTICS
Possession
Abanhfleft: 53%
Maklohi Vai: 47%
Shots
Abanhfleft: 15 (6 on target)
Maklohi Vai: 6 (3 on target)
Corners
Abanhfleft: 10
Maklohi Vai: 3
Fouls
Abanhfleft: 7
Maklohi Vai: 4

World Cup 73 - RPing Thread

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