World Cup 77 - Roleplay Thread

by **HUElavia** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 3:13 pm

Estadio Romario Faria in Sao Franco was the opening venue of HUElavia in their latest campaign for the World Cup Qualifiers, where HUElavia started off with a bang. The HUElavians started off their campaign with a commanding 3-0 win against Lymantatia.

The first goal came in the 7th Minute, with rising superstar Cristiano Figo scoring with his left foot, after getting a pass from Dani Sanches. Alvaro Morientes had a one-on-one chance against the Lymantatian Goalkeeper but placed it over the net in the 26th Minute. Right before Halftime, Andres Navas kicked a swift curve towards the box in a corner, with the ball being met by Raul Sanchez's head and back into the net it went. 2-0.

The 2nd Half was calm, with HUElavia dominating the match with shots left and right. The Net would once again meet another goal with Cristiano Figo scoring a fantastic Free-Kick with his left foot from 30 Meters out in the 77th minute. Lymantatia had three chances but it wasn't enough as HUElavia started the group with a big win and with the Group Lead.

Raul Sanchez talked to the press, mentioning this in the press conference: "We had a very dominating game, and we were surprised that Lymantatia did not give much of a fight in the game. Either way, it was a rival that was weaker than us, and we proved that we are out there to win and to get points in these qualifiers. HUElavia has come a long way from our early tries to Qualify, and we want to be the dark horse of the group. We want to pull a shocker, and I think this may be the team that can do it."

Cristiano Figo in his 7th ever match was surprised to get his first two international goals in his first ever World Cup Qualifiers match and that was the subject of his interview: "It's so unreal to have a great game like I did today. I just went out there looking for the goal and I just went for it. Of course, it would not have been possible if it weren't for the team chemistry and for the confidence we have. We have 17 more games to go, and we look to fight to the very end to pull off an upset and finally give HUElavians the World Cup Appearance they desire."

HUElavia's next match is set to be at The Serbian Empire, while their next Home Match is on Matchday 3, which will be played at Estadio Claudio Mergen in HUEsilia.

Result from Matchday 1:
HUElavia 3-0 Lymantatia
(Cristiano Figo 7' 77', Raul Sanchez 43')
Posession: 68%-32%
Fouls: 8-22
Yellow Cards: 2-4
Red Cards: 0-0

Results from Group 1:
Lanzo 0-2 Krytenia
The Serbian Empire 1-0 EEC
Taeshan 1-3 Red Blackiland
Coldfield 1-2 Chromatika

Group 1 Standings:
1st. HUElavia (3 Pts, 3 GF, 0 GA, +3 GD)
2nd. Red Blackiland (3 Pts, 3 GF, 1 GA, +2 GD)
3rd. Krytenia (3 Pts, 2 GF, 0 GA, +2 GD)
4th. Chromatika (3 Pts, 2 GF, 1 GA, +1 GD)
5th. The Serbian Empire (3 Pts, 1 GF, 0 GA, +1 GD)
6th. Coldfield (0 Pts, 1 GF, 2 GA, -1 GD)
7th. EEC (0 Pts, 0 GF, 1 GA, -1 GD)
8th. Taeshan (0 Pts, 1 GF, 3 GA, -2 GD)
9th. Lanzo (0 Pts, 0 GF, 2 GA, -2 GD)
10th. Lymantatia (0 Pts, 0 GF, 3 GA, -3 GD)

by **Tobiasia** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 4:14 pm

TOBIASIA 1-2 ANGLATIA
An expected loss

Goals: 1 - 2
Possession: 42% - 58%
Shots on target: 6 - 13

Anglatia XI
GK - Blaze Chrzanowska
LB - Leonne Warner
LCB - Hector Grier
RCB - Lukas Aukland
RB - Joao Francis Inciarte
LIB - Darren Harbin
CM - Andros Diasakos
CM - Marco Saint Paul
LW - Zahara Santana (Goal '25)
RW - Allie Vacek (Goal '62)
CF - Nessa Chryst

TOBIASIA XI
GK-Percy Matthews
LCB-Abraham Peters
RCB-Paul Goldsmith
DM-Arthur Slim
LM-Harry Lithgow
RM-Alexander West
SW-Frank Woods
CM-Flint Eastgate
ST-Fraser Philips
LW-Lee Ryans
RW-Matthew Card (Goal 78')

The Tigers today opened their World Cup 77 campaign with an expected loss to 44th ranked Anglatia. However there was an exceptional goal from up and coming striker Matthew Card.

The ball was played up to the Anglatian defense by Goldsmith, where it was dribbled into the box by West. West took a shot which came off Anglatian goalkeepers leg, the ball landing far out of the box. But then Card seized the opportunity and struck, shooting from outside the box into the top left corner.

However it was not enough, as key strikers Zahara Santana and Allie Vacek of Anglatia both scored. However, there was much to be said of Percy Matthews the Tobiasian goalkeeper, who saved a number of stunning shots.

Manager Liz Sheffield said "the team have been training well over the last few months and this positive result against a higher ranked team will really get our campaign going. Well we could have got a draw but that was unlikely so im very happy with how the team are going. We are hoping for a good result tomorrow against Eastfield Lodge".

by **Garifunya** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 4:37 pm

House of Freeholders, Frederykvil, Garifunya

"The Speaker recognizes the member from Bright Future."

Hanneke Hulter, member of the House of Freeholders and the left-wing Bright Future party, rose to speak. "Fellow members, I rise today to speak in support of the bill that my colleague from the Communist Party introduced. This is a bill to legalize and regulate abortion throughout the land, and it will bring order to the unregulated mess we have now. There is currently no law regulating abortion, which means that women can be denied this right and be forced to seek an abortion using unsafe practices. Abortion should be legal and it should be safe. This ensures that families can plan to have children when it is best for them and that the procedure poses no danger to the life and health of our citizens. Under the Gillaat regime, many women could not safely obtain an abortion and had to resort to home remedies, quack doctors, or abortions under unsafe conditions, thus leading to higher mortality rates. We need to protect our citizens and empower every woman to have control over her own body. Women were severely mistreated under the Gillaat regime, and while I applaud the efforts we have made to rectify that, women need control of the reproductive process in order to be truly equal and free. There is also a bill to require comprehensive sex education in our schools and another to give all citizens better access to contraceptives of all stripes. These three bills together will create a system that allows families to better plan when to have children so that they can support them and ensures that young people are properly educated on safe sex. These three bills will greatly improve the standard of living of all citizens and I urge all of my colleagues to support it. Thank you."

After she took her seat, the Speaker recognized one of the members of the National Party, a multiracial, anti-communist, socially conservative nationalist party. Gertjan Horsting rose to give his rebuttal. "What my colleague proposes is nothing less than sanctioning the murder of infants. Unborn children have an unquestionable right to life, and that must be protected. I stand here today to advocate for those who have no voice and would be taken advantage of by left-wing opportunists seeking to normalize unsafe behavior. Sex has consequences; we all know that. I'm not opposed to preventative contraception, but if you don't use it, then you need to accept the consequences of your actions. We all have obligations to each other; if we didn't fulfill those obligations, then we wouldn't be a strong society. A mother's obligation to her child is to take care of that child, born or unborn. Allowing abortion breaks down those obligations and weakens our society. Similarly, fathers have obligations to take care of their children and the mother of their children. This is why I urge all members to support legislation I introduced that not only forbids the inhumane practice of abortion, but requires fathers of children to care for them and the mother as well. We all must uphold our obligations to each other or the bonds that strengthen our society will be irrevocably broken and our new republic will crumble!"

His forceful denunciation caused loud cheering from some members of the chamber, and loud booing from others. Soon, the chamber devolved into a shouting contest, with the Speaker futilely trying to restore order. This had been going on for three days now and didn't look like it was stopping soon.

by **Bonesea** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 4:55 pm

by **Kalumba** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 5:17 pm

The Herald
Sport Today

Kalumba Off To Winning Start
Report by Bruce Mtwetwe

The qualification campaign for World cup 77 is underway and has started with a win for the Kalumban national team, as they defeated group minnows Verceoloa by four goals to two at Kahali National Stadium in fromt of a sell out crowd. In spite of threats from the Bechuane Army of People's Liberation to attack the event Kalumban Security Forces proved they are winning the war and there was not even the need for a military presence within the ground to ensure player and spectator safety.

This is truly a proud day for our nation and must be especially encouraging to the team as they are for once able to play in front of capacity crowds and live a relatively normal life without soldiers surrounding them at every turn. It must also be pleasant for our visiting teams and their supporters to be able to experience the delights that Kahali has to offer them, and for this to just be another away day not a trip into a dystopian nightmare. Long may this continue and hopefully the encouraging performances will be repeated time and again.

In what was another solid performance under Terrance Ottborne the national team provided a much needed tonic to disillusioned fans after a disappointing showing in the Independents Cup and in the last Cup of Harmony, this was almost a throwback to the side which won the Baptism of Fire and Ollie Roberts is still showing he can produce the magic from his glory years.

A first hat trick at home for the midfielder inside the first half finished this game and only two late goals took the shine off of the performance. However goalkeeper Ulusu Mtanda will perhaps not be too upset about missing out on a clean sheet as he became the first Kalumba goalkeeper to score an international goal. Verceoloa were unlucky to concede such a freak goal early in the second half when Mtanda's kick caught the wind and sailed into the net, but couldn't complain about the result.

With tougher matches to come this morale boosting victory will hopefully see a strong campaign from The Kudus and make us proud to wave the green and blue again.

by **Gregoryisgodistan** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 5:27 pm

#AlternativeFacts About World Cup Nations - Part 5
by Journalist M38SFSBBSDB

Howdy, folks, it's time for the final #AlternativeFacts article, where we discuss Alternative Facts about teams in World Cup Qualifying Groups 13-15. And remember, these aren't falsehoods, they're Alternative Facts.

The national pastry of Kinzenland is the kinzentart. It is exactly like a linzer tart, only with apricot jam instead of raspberry. Plagiarism is also legal in Kinzeland, and completely ethical by their corrupted morals, so it's no surprise that they plagiarized the linzer tart. However, their President's wife most certainly did not plagiarize their previous President's wife in her speech at the nominating convention.

Abristan is a very large Arby's Restaurant, located right next door to the very large Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant that is The Sword Bloke.

Kalumba was named after the catch phrase of a popular TV character in their country, who would constantly say "Aye Kalumba! Some idiot has eaten my shorts!"

Starblaydia is located deep in outer space, on the fourth planet orbiting a star called Blaydia. So they are aliens. And they can't breathe on Earth without apparati and it takes them 300 years to get here for each match, but because of relativity it seems like two minutes.

Huri de Wintre was founded by a man named Huri. Huri was nicknamed Huri de Wintre because he was born in the winter. His brother is named Huri de Octubre, because he was born in September. Apparently that makes sense in that country.

The national drink of Verceoloa is the Verceola Cola. It is basically a citrusy seltzer with flavors lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, apple, pineapple, as well as a hint of a fruit whose name is forbidden in Gregoryisgodistan, but I'll say it anyway - strawberry. And you can't execute me for that because its illegality is an Alternative Fact! Ha Ha!

In Schottia, four out of every five people will eventually be shot. Three out of every five people will die in that shooting. The fifth will be stabbed. It is a very violent country.

The Sarian has been called the Asshole Capital of the World. Everyone in The Sarian is an asshole. The law requires them to be assholes to everybody or the other assholes will execute them lynch mob style. So if you go to The Sarian, prepare to be insulted, lied about, and quite possibly beaten to death. That's just how they roll.

Ceni's national dish is called ceni-ceni, pronounced "Chenny-Chenny", rhyming with "Jenny-Jenny". That is also how you pronounce the name of the country, which was named after the dish. Ceni-ceni consists of a severed pig's head, hollowed out and stuffed with a mixture of mayonnaise, cashew butter, goat's blood, and cream of wheat. It is considered a delicacy there for some inexplicable reason.

Nuevo Caracas is a flaming firey blaze filled with sapient fire. They will set fire to the soccer field every time they play. We hope they will do their job in The Sarian, because everyone there are assholes, and in Ceni, because they are on our Enemy List. Maybe they will do it in Schottia as well to avoid getting shot.

Eshan was founded by a dyslexic named Shane who named the country after himself.

Nordernious Is four thousand miles south of Sudernius. But their name literally means "North Erniuous" anyway. And then Sudernius is "South Ernius" and Ernius is apparently the same place as Ernious. But it makes sense to them, so roll with it, OK?

Revolutionary Nordskania's people overthrew the King of Nordskania in 1839. They then had a revolution and killed everyone in the entire line to the throne, so now they were all dead and it was a democracy.

Ayverickian City is actually a country where every city is called Ayverickian City. So it is very confusing and GPS navigation systems tend to get confused and take you on a wild goose chase to the opposite side of the country when you just want to go to the supermarket to buy a loaf of bread.

Mangetsujima is inhabited by sapient magnets. They repel their enemies and attract their friends. There are also Pokemon who escaped from the Sunrise Islands, specifically Magnetron.

Hazard Nation is the most dangerous nation in the Multiverse, even more dangerous than Schottia. The entire nation is simultaneously a pit of molten lava, an atmosphere devoid of oxygen, a toxic waste dump, a 5,000 foot cliff, a sharp, hazardous rocks, a deadly herd of wild beasts, and peanuts, but the last one only applies to people who are allergic to peanuts.

Abanhfleft was the site of the infamous Rolling Green Massacre, where radical Islamic terrorists savagely murdered 300 people and laid them on the green. Haven't heard of it? That's because the media doesn't want you to know about it, because they're FAKE NEWS!!!!!

Six million people attended the recent inauguration of the President of Acronius. Images which show that exactly three people attended the Inaugiration - the President, his mail order bride wife, and his mother, are also FAKE NEWS!!!!!!

The Republic of Kaboomlandia is the same as Kaboomlandia. Didn't we already do them? Sapient nuclear bombs or something? Next!

Necrophilia is not only legal, but mandatory, in Nephara. The people there are called Nephromancers, a portmanteau of necromancer and Nephara.

Hernton's national dish is called the Hern of Plenty. It consists of a very large pie with every fruit native to Hernton, approximately 45 of them, mixed together. The Herns of Plenty routinely exceed 20 feet in diameter, and homes generally have a specially installed oven just to make Herns of Plenty.

The average person in Abaja is three feet nine inches tall, the shortest in the Multiverse. That's how they got their name.

Anthor is home to sapient dinosaurs who time-traveled from ancient times to modern times. They can talk and everything, and they eat people. Make sure to keep them out of your country.

Freyhill is a very large hill named after Paco Frey, the founder of the nation. But the nation is just the hill, so while it's a large hill, it's a very small country. They have the annual cheese rolling contest, where people roll the length of the country to chase after cheese. It attracts participants from all across the Multiverse.

The Holy Empire is located in a parallel universe where everything is made of Swiss cheese. They are actually called The Holey Empire, but they have placed a curse upon humans with their magic so that nobody can spell it correctly. But I have just broken your curse. Mwahahahahahaha! Take that, cheese things! You lost! Get over it! Anyone who says otherwise is FAKE NEWS!!!!!

Kosovakia's national dish is called the vakya. It consists of yak meat deep fried in whale blubber, then coated with a super secret sauce, whose composition is a national secret. However, thanks to leaked documents, we now know that this secret sauce is seal diarrhea harvested from baby seals.

Frenline Delpha is inhabited by sapient anacondas. They have no feet, so I don't know how they play soccer. But they have no hands either, so at least they can't commit a handball. Sometimes they will eat the soccer ball whole, because they are anacondas and anacondas eat things.

Natanians and Nosts is actually three countries joined together. One is called Natanians, one is called and, and one is called Nosts. Why anyone would name their country "and" is beyond confusing.

Yttribia was named just to be difficult to pronounce. Is it Whytribia? Yattribia? Uhtriba? Yamtrivia? Who the hell knows?

Contrary to popular belief, Unified Sunrise Islands is inhabited by sapient Pokemon who catch and collect non-sapient humans, not the other way around. Don't you remember the sapient Squirtles, Pikachus, etc. from earlier in this series? They are all from the Unified Sunrise Islands, except the ones who escaped in protest of the human-catching policy. Their leader is a Squirtle named Squirty Baby, who is just so adorable and if he weren't sapient, I would make him my pet!

Well, that's all the Alternative Facts, all 150 of them. I hope you enjoyed them, and remember, these are all completely true. Anyone who says otherwise is FAKE NEWS!!!! And I will ruin their career if they say that!!!!

by **Natanians and Nosts** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 6:51 pm

"Accents of Natanians and Nosts,part one:General Nost.
The General Nost accent is a rather unnatural accent,since it's almost a blend of the Nost accents to be used by media when it is not specified from where the character is from,but implying that it speaks English and is a Nost;although some speakers of Southern N-City that have rural Nost ancestors have been reported to speak in such a way.It's marked characteristics are the different variations of the palm vowel(e.g.:father,calm,moustache)[most speakers don't use a single variation],the distinctive -er sound of Eastern and Southern Nost speakers /eʁ/,and the phenomenon known as Nost fronting giving the /eu/ sound in words like goat.
General Nost does not have idiomatic expression,and realy heavily on stereotyped slang.And like most of our accents,words like cool and fool have two syllabi /u.o/.Some anti-prejudice activists have complained against it's usage for over thirty years,but nothing has been done.
Vowels:/æ/(as in cat),/a/(as in dance),/i/(as in kit),/ɛ/(as in dress),/ɑ/(as in stop),/u:/(as in who),/u/(as in foot),/ã/(as in up),/ɒ/(as in cough), /ã/(as in fur),/ie,i:/(as in see),/ei/(as in face),/ɔ,au,ɔu,ɔʊ/(as in palm),/ɔ:/(as in thought),/eu/(as in goat),/ɛa/(as in night),/ui,ɔi/(as in choice), /au/(as in mouth),/i:/(as in serious),/ɛɹ/(as in there),/a:ɹ/(as in start),/ɔ:ɹ/(as in North),/ɔ:ɹ/(as in hoarse),/ɔɐɹ/(as in poor),/i/(as in happy),/eʁ/(as in water), /ə,ä/(as in colour),/u.o/(as in pool)."

-And this was the first episode about our accents.Informative.
-And now.At the first WC77 Qualifier game,Natanians and Nosts draw against Hernton.Now some commentaries by Ion Márcus Martinescu
"The game was not very exciting,as both teams aparently blocked each other's strategies at the midfield.Who scored first was Hernton,with a beautiful goal by one of their strikers,since we didn't have a list of their players' names,we don't know who they are.When we came back our team was trying again to reach the opponent's goal,but their deffence was as powerful as ours.We had good opportunities at the 30th and 40th minutes,but the draw goal came only at the 42nd minute,when Laço Tralto recovered the ball from a corner,crossed to Rato Ret who managed to run and pass to Mihail Heitor Fostar who suffered a foul from 28m,and Austin Mihai Munteănu converted over the barrier."
-And now we are live with Gheorghe Márcus Álvares.Gheorghe good night,which was the team's reaction with this draw?
-Ah...Good nite Mihaela,good nite Ion.Well,the players were very upset,specially for suffering a goal.They considered the result very unpleasing and the players apologised in their social networks,even with general approval by both the spectators and the coach.
-Gheorghe,what's the team planning for the next match?
-Well,Ion they're training and want to score more while putting emphasis on the deffence.There have been rumours about Marcos Tarquínio Ivanov starting the next game.Also,I am here with Ion Mihai Torje.
-Mr. Ion what are your thought about our game?
-Ah,Gheorghe I think we played fairly well,but the players got disappointed.I think that they do not understand that we're coming back from a period of absence from international football.Not to count we are in a hard group with the current world champions and other traditional countries.
-Mr. Ion,what are you planning for the next match?
-Ah,Ion Carolus,it is some kind of...secret and we have to train harder if want to evolve.All I can say is that,as asked by the players,we will train more the deffence,but,as I know the supporters like it,I will try to give a "futebol-arte" touch.
-Mr. Ion,one last question before we leave,do we still have chance?
-Ah,Gheorghe that's a hard one,the competition barely started and we at least did not lose our first game,but even without palying the first game I know we won't qualify to this World Cup,but maybe the next one.Let's be a little optimistic and a little realistic!
-Good bye Mr. Ion!
-Good bye Gheorghe.Ion.Mihaela.
-And this was Ion Mihai Torje.
-Gheorghe,which do you think would be the next game result?
-I don't know,Mihaela.Maybe one-one or nil-nil.These would also be great results,bu'of course a win would be better!
-Good bye Gheorghe.
-Good bye Ion and Mihaela.
-After the commercial break,controversial bill to be discussed in Parliament.

by **Whovian Tardisia** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 6:54 pm

Off to the Races, With a Lame Horse

Whovian Tardisia’s first match of the cycle has been a loss. The Whovian team was defeated by Garifunya one point to zero today, to the disappointment of some fans. In the years since the last cup, however, the populous of the nation have cleaned up their act, as not a single violent incident in relation to this has resulted. The match was a well-made one, with both teams struggling at each other’s defences. Garifunya’s Florentijn Takman managed to slip past the Whovian defence, however, scoring the only goal of the match. The Thefton team representing the nation this cycle, though slightly saddened by their loss, were still very excited for the Cup, with midfielder Hanne Hawk commenting: “It’s very cool, getting out here and seeing it all. People are so different! I’ve never had the chance to leave the country before, and I’m already having a fantastic time.” This Cup’s Whovian team remains hopeful overall that they may actually qualify this time around. We at the Post wish them luck, and encourage you to continue following their progress by picking up the Post again tomorrow!

Article provided by the Arcadia Post.

by **Witty Penguins** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 7:15 pm

Proud sponsor of the Penguinish football team
#GoPenguins

FOOTBALL: Witty Penguins handed crushing defeat in opening match

8 February 2017

WC77 QUALIFIERS - GROUP 2, MATCHDAY 1
St. Leahs Ground, Bonesea

BSE 5 - 2 WPG

08' Ortiz
11' Wickett
19' Fort
33' Artemovich
48' Ortiz
49' Wickett
74' Cottle

SPITTALSEA, BONESEA - Those who were optimistic for a good opening match for Witty Penguins in the 77th World Cup would've had their hopes shattered into pieces. Very minuscle pieces. The Penguinish team were handed their worst-ever defeat in history at St. Leah's Ground yesterday, in what some fans described as a "shameful" 5-2 loss against Bonesea.

The odds were never in Witty Penguins favour - Bonesea are ranked 22 in the world, while Witty Penguins haven't made the KPB rankings for some time now. Despite this, the Penguinish side had made a very promising start in yesterday's match. It was Bonesea who drew first blood 8 minutes in, with Ortiz seemingly making it past the defence with relative ease. Wickett would then push Bonesea to a 2-nil lead just 3 minutes later, sending the ball into the goal at such speed that Oliver Johnson would've needed a miracle to be able to save it. While the home crowd were clearly pleased at the quick advances, it wouldn't last for long. With Bonesea conceding a corner at the 19th minute, Amanda Swiss made good use of the goal opportunity as she made a cross to Pierre Fort, who managed to break away from the defenders, heading the ball into the bottom right corner. Peter Artemovich kicked off his debut international match with the Penguin's second goal of the match, equalizing the score for the remainder of the first half.

However, things for the Penguins started to go downhill in the second half, with the team struggling to make use of what little possession they had. Meanwhile, Bonesea dominated the pitch and used it to their advantage. If the Penguins were devastated to concede a 3rd goal in the 48th minute, they would've been even more heartbroken when Bonesea followed it up with another goal just a minute later. Cottle would hammer the final nail into their graves in the 74th minute, with a 5th goal for Bonesea. After the game, Penguinish fans took to social media to express their disappointment.

It wasn't the start coach Kelvin Wood hoped for to start his career with the team. "We definitely had hoped to do better than we did, but hopefully it makes the players more determined next time around," he said at today's press conference. Indeed, he will be hoping, because if their performance doesn't improve in the coming matches, his job may potentially be on the line after the qualifiers.

The team's next match is at home, where they will be playing against Whovian Tardisia at PIC Stadium in Macquire. The match kicks off at 6pm (UCST), and will be aired live on TV1 and BillSports.

by **Taeshan** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 7:29 pm

Let's just say the new campaign didn't get off to the greatest of starts for the Purple Knights of Taeshan. facing off against a higher ranked side, and the closest squad in theoretical strength to themselves was perhaps not the greatest opening game of the qualifiers for Taeshan. Usually you like to get a win or two at the beginning of the campaign before you face off against the best and brightest your group has to offer. The Purple Knights weren't faced with the top side of the group, but they were up against the wall in their first match of the 18 during qualifiers.

It is however usually good to start the campaign at home and in front of a crowd of adoring fans in a packed Atlantea Coliseum it is often hard for the Knights to not be ready for the season. With all of the players starting previously having done so nerves seem to usually not be a factor in big games, but the Purple Knights have over 2 decades of failures to account for and they continue to not be standing up to the tests presented to them. Although packed as in the previous 300 plus played in the Knights top used home stadium as has been the case recently many of the jeers were aimed at the Knights own players as much as at the visitors from Red Blackiland.

Wearing their home Purple jerseys as the Knights seemingly do in 75 percent of their matches the players came out to a rambunctious cheer throughout the stadium and as the fans sang the anthem international football once again returned to islands. With the opening kick of the game the party began and everyone waited with bated breath to see if the Purple Knights were ready yet for the task ahead of them. Could they compete in a packed group for a top 2 spot, or would they once again either underachieve or as was recently the case, just not be good enough.

It didn't take long for the fans to realize that this team continued to not be what is needed in the sport to succeed. Errant passes from the defense to the midfield disrupted the first few attacks of the game and before the half hour mark the team found themselves down 1-0. It was almost a miracle that the lead hadn't expanded for the visitors by the halfway point. The crowd let out a joyous yell at the halftime whistle as it meant they didn't have to watch the destruction of their favorite team for at least a 15 minute period of time.

But then as quickly as the half came it was gone and the Purple Knights returned to the field looking as fallible as ever. The fans continued to lift what little of their own spirits that remained after decades of being churned into rubble by the terrible performances of the recent campaigns. The biggest change at half was the replacement of Miles Snavely for Alexander Kaiba and a switch to a one striker attack. This was alarming to say the least as Snavely has of recent scored basically all of the Knights goals, and if he couldn't score that meant the Knights were doomed. And even worse if he was injured that surely meant the end of the Knights hopes of qualifying for the world cup.

And as quickly as the Knights hopes had been dashed in the first half, they were thunderously dashed two times more before the hour mark. The visitors found the net twice more before Lysander Ying Uing brought in some defensive help in Torsten Abigail for Anton Vader. He would later go as far as to bring in Ford Cancun for Everett Eskandarian, attempting to employ 5 in the back, and four of them basically center backs, to stop hemorrhaging goals. Eventually the Knights defense held solid and near the end of the game one final counter attack was able to earn a free kick for Enrique Fuegahita. The young Taeshani stepped up and provided the only good moment of the day with a beautiful free kick goal that brought the crowd to life. If only for the waning seconds of the game, and sent them home only mostly annoyed with their team.

by **Drawkland** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:16 pm

PRE-WORLD CUP 77 QUALIFIERS
Written By: Walker Sun and Ellen Bolabore

GROUP DRAW
GROUP 2:
Quakmybush (72)
Barunia (16)
Willinois (264)
Garifunya (62)
Whovian Tardisia (231)
Drawkland (156)
Jeruselem (39)
Darmen (134)
Witty Penguins (UR)
Bonesea (22)

KICK CORPS FIXTURES:
Willinois vs Drawkland @ Willinois
Drawkland vs Garifunya @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Whovian Tardisia vs Drawkland @ Whovian Tardisia
Witty Penguins vs Drawkland @ PIC Stadium, Macquire City
Drawkland vs Jeruselem @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Darmen vs Drawkland @ Wolves Park, Liverpool
Drawkland vs Bonesea @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Quakmybush vs Drawkland @ Quakmybush
Drawkland vs Barunia @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Drawkland vs Willinois @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Garifunya vs Drawkland @ Staad Fyet nan Garifunya, Frederykvil
Drawkland vs Whovian Tardisia @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Drawkland vs Witty Penguins @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Jeruselem vs Drawkland @ The Strip
Drawkland vs Darmen @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Bonesea vs Drawkland @ St. Leah's Ground, Spittalsea
Drawkland vs Quakmybush @ Drawk City Stadium, Drawk City
Barunia vs Drawkland @ Barunia

With Drawkland's one and only¹ Baptism of Fire in the books, Kick Corps 64 has merely become the Kick Corps. Now we really have a national team to rally behind and cheer on. World Cup 77's qualifying stage is looming, and to get ready for the challenge, the Corps played 4 matches, one against an opponent from 4 of the major² regions. Juvencus from Sonnel, Qasden from Atlantian Oceania, Isles of Avon from Rushmore, and Nephara from Esportiva, in that order. It was a mixed bag of results, a total of 1-2-1 added to the total Corps record, so we can't really complain about it in any sense. Anyway, we'll give you some info about what happened in each match before talking a little bit about the upcoming qualifier process (which you can get a sneak peak by looking to your right).

vs JUVENCUS
Our younger brethren from across the Catrun Channel on Sonnel were of course the first we would play on our mini-tour. We invited them over to Corps Central Pitch for a fun match, and the atmosphere in the stadium was laid-back³ and lighthearted. Juvencus brought in their squad from the Baptism of Fire and so did we. The match ended up in a draw, 1 goal apiece, and that was honestly the desired result from this truly friendly matchup.

Anyway, the match started with Drawkland getting the ball, which was a good way to start off for us. The match was actually quite slow, there wasn't a whole lot of action and it was apparent that both teams were just saving their energy for later. The first real action of the match came in the 17th minute when Katie Madison finally broke the silence and made a shot on the Juven goal, coming up way short and easily being blocked. Juvencus got the ball back for the first real time, and made a couple shots before the ball came back into Drawkian hands. The Corps puttered along with it, but made a rather quick strike downfield, eventually Corrie Archer making a shot which was saved by Juven Keeper Naldo Zappa. Zappa then tossed the ball quickly in to Valerio Scarpa, and the Juven team went into a sudden spur of motion which woke up the crowd. They drove quickly downfield ahead of the slightly lagging Corps. They made a shot right on target ... unfortunately for them at least, enough for Jessie Peterson to make the stop. The Kick Corps, obviously re-energized from the sorta-sluggish performance before that moment, decided to have a breakneck strike of their own, passing quickly down the field before organizing a short cross pass attack around the box. Eventually it was Ellzidan who broke out of coverage and spanked the ball straight past Zappa and into the goal for the Corps to take a 1-0 lead in the 29th minute. Not only did this give the Corps the lead, but it also was Ellzidan's 8th goal for the Kick Corps, which tied her with Katie Madison. The duo had been fighting back and forth since the middle of the Baptism of Fire to score more goals, in a sort of race to get 10 goals, and so this one was significant.

The Corps seemed to be content with their one goal lead, and sat on it for the rest of the half with no huge threat to it besides a trio of stray off-target Juven shots. Juvencus got the ball going into the half and therefore began a careful attack on the Drawkian side of the field. The drive seemed to stretch quite long, but around the hour mark the Corps got the ball back off of a header interception by Sarah Arrowsword amidst a corner kick by Juvencus, and they switched the momentum downfield. They couldn't get anything together, as the placid atmosphere continued, and eventually a lazy shot from Madison fell into the hands of Zappa, and Juvencus got possession back. They reflected the non-exhaustive feel of the game in their own drive, methodically passing and actually attempting to get completed passes to each other.⁴ Eventually, it was Cesare Ajello who made it around Seon-Yann Slater⁵ and went in to score past Peterson. The crowd went up in excitement, at least, the Juven side of it. The score was now at a mellow 1-1, which was really good for both teams.

Juvencus clearly cared more about getting the win afterwards, but as they became more aggressive their passing predictably broke down, which led to the Corps holding more possession time and draining the game before the Squadra could mount an effective attack. The match ended with as it was in minute 74', and that was 1-1. It was a favorable result for both sides, neither of which really wanted to come away with a loss, especially due to how friendly the teams were.

Pre WC77 Friendly, Corps Central Pitch, Drawkland	Score	Goals	Cards
DRAWKLAND	1	29' Ellzidan
JUVENCUS	1	74' Ajello

vs QASDEN
The Kick Corps traveled to Atlantian Oceania for the first time in its history, not for a tournament, but for a friendly.⁶ The young and promising nation of Qasden, a mere 77⁷ in the KPB rankings, invited the Corps to participate in the QPQF tour, and they took the chance, trying to get one from each major sporting region under their belts. This one ended eerily similar to the one a little bit prior versus Juvencus: an easy-going 1-1 draw. The Qad people, a really chipper and positive bunch, were very welcoming to the more raucous Drawkian fans, and for that we appreciate them.

The match started again with the Corps taking the ball to start off. They staged a relatively hard and excitable attack in the beginning, a shot from Ellzidan in the 4th minute starting the true scoring attempts, but Macron Abbott remained true. The Corps tried again 13th minute, at least that was a decent try by Madison, but it fell short and the Blue-Reds took a fast break down the field. Peterson was ready and blocked the shot as it came in from Onyx Foster, and the Corps got the ball right back. They didn't fool around this time though, and a crossing pass from Slater to Talla to Crawford, and then right into the feet of Archer, who brought the ball past some defenders, passed around the forward line, before getting it back in her feet and scoring. The 18th minute yielded a score of 0-1, Corps.

The Vans took the ball then and began a decent counterattack of their own, placing the ball well to each other and leaving the midfield guessing⁸ before going deep into Drawkian territory. At one point the defenders suddenly receded, attempting to catch Icarus Darsten offsides. The ploy failed, and Darsten had a clean and clear shot at the goal. Peterson was justly prepared for it though, and made the block. The ball was high and Peterson leaped in the air to counter it, but the spin on it caused to arc far over the goal. Corner kick for the Qads. Darsten decided to take the corner kick and launched it up and out. Foster was there, prepared for it, and knocked the ball in off a header. The score was tied and the Qads in attendance obviously got quite excited. After all, it was 1-1 in the 40th minute. What else was to come?

Nothing really. The rest of the game seemed to quickly slide by for both sides, and it ended in a quiet draw. Not a disappointment by any means for the Drawkians who rather expected an upset due to the much higher ranked side they were playing. The 1-1 scoreline was a bit odd considering the recent 1-1 scoreline against Juvencus, but nobody really noticed or cared.

Pre WC77 Friendly, Merellin Park, Qasden	Score	Goals	Cards
QASDEN	1	40' Darsten
DRAWKLAND	1	18' Foster

vs ISLES OF AVON
The Isles of Avon, being a small, irrelevant island chain whose only claim to fame is a #47 rank in the UICA⁹ and a shared league with the much more illustrious Ceni. It's also served as a jumping point for beginning Drawkian journeywomen, especially Jackie Crawford, who starting this cycle will be playing with the Matthew Mets of the Unified Sunrise Islands,¹⁰ which is madly impressive. Props to her, but more props to Avon for allowing her to flaunt her skills in better light.

Anyhow, when it comes to actual domestic playing talent, Avon is actually not that impressive. Their team reminds us a lot of Drawkland's Global Cup of Soccer: small, not used to each other yet, and with literally no backups, substitutes, or reserves. We honestly expected this to be a blowout, especially since a lot of the Drawkian starting line knew the opposing players well from league play and therefore had a semi-advantage. You may say that the advantage goes both ways, but Drawkland >. The match was set to be in the Field of Gold, home of Avon's best side, the Golden Eagles. Following unprecedented success in the Champion's/Globe Cup, the Golden Eagles decided they needed to build a new stadium to fit their needs. As a sort of last send-off, the Avonian National Team used it to host Drawkland. After that, the Field of Gold will be stripped of Golden Eagles trim and used as a stadium for local Gold University play. Aurean Stadium is the moniker that will be given to the new stadium. Fun info, right?

The tiny stadium was packed to its 11,450 capacity, mainly Drawkians and the chill Avonian crowd out to see the match. It started with a Drawkian possession, unsurprisingly, and the Kick Corps had some fun messing around in the Avonian side of the field but a masterful save by Tristan Cliffson gave the ball back to the Avonians. The Eagles took the ball downfield led mainly by Harrison di Angelis, but it was Nik Norwood who broke open the scoreline in the 14th minute, swerving around Seon-Yann Slater to slide a flat angle shot in past Peterson to make the score 1-0. It initially looked like Avon was going to show their World Cup experience and control the match well, but this wasn't the case. 5 minutes later Katie Madison managed to slide into the box, literally, counter-tackling Jake Elway and then hopping back on her feet to knock the ball into the net to equalize the score. Action stabilized after that, as Avon was content with keeping the ball somewhat placid in the mid-center of the field, but after a half-hearted shot on goal by Louis Abbascia, Peterson absolutely annihilated the ball, sending it over 50 yards on the pitch into the waiting feet of Jackie Crawford. Crawford went in for a fast break, but di Angelis was right on her, stride for stride, so she knew a shot would end up being futile. Instead, she spun-juked and then passed the ball behind her, where Ellzidan was trailing. The Elf easily snagged the ball between her legs and then swept wide for a clear shot, sending it through the air and past the arms of Cliffson. Just as it had seemed Madison was in the lead in the Race to 10 Goals, Ellzidan immediately caught up, the duo tied for 9 apiece for the Kick Corps.

Neither of them would score against Avon for the rest of the match, however. That honor belonged to Cam Cross, who scored a brace in the second half, coming in the 54th and 77th minute, the former coming almost immediately after play from a 51' Victor Hawking Avonian goal resumed. Cross was recently promoted to Starter Status¹¹ after the Baptism of Fire concluded, and she really proved her worth over these friendlies, maximizing opportunities and really helping with scoring.

The match ended with a 2-4 scoreline which felt kind of bad, going into Avon as their final stadium sendoff and lowkey annihilating them but it's alright. Sources indicate that 17% of funding for Aurean Stadium came from Drawkian investors and some such so we don't really see why they should complain.

Pre WC77 Friendly, Field of Gold, Isles of Avon	Score	Goals	Cards
ISLES OF AVON	2	18' Norwood, 51' Hawking
DRAWKLAND	4	23' Madison, 36' Ellzidan, 54' Cross, 77' Cross

vs NEPHARA
Nobody in Drawkland was laughing when the 2-4 scoreline was reversed and Drawkland at the butt of it. This happened when DISC¹² thought it would be a great, a fantastic idea, a genius one to take on the #6 ranked nation in the world. Nephara.¹³ It makes a lot of sense on paper. Similar playing styles, ideologies, referees, the Nepharim are pretty cool people and all, all things considered.¹⁴ Anyway, we treated the Cormorants to some world class Drawkian hospitality, and then played them in Corps Central Pitch. Was it a mistake? I dunno. The 140k-ish Drawkians who bought tickets to the match probably thought so.

The Kick Corps was pretty aware what they were into, so they made sure to take chances early and get points on the board before getting 1-7'd or something, so it was Cross in the 4th minute who got free of coverage and managed to juke out Dieter Konoval and Gideon Fletcher to score very early. Even with a 1-0 scoreline though, the Nepharim ceased to give a damn and Vedran Terashaj led a charge on the Drawkian goal and pulled a fast one on Peterson to even the score 1-1. Now, the match stagnated from there, both teams taking breathers of possessions and keeping action at a low for over 20 minutes, until Dragan Stavanger really almost on accident scored a shot which would've gone out if not for a beautiful finish which slipped just under Peterson's feet. The Corps was kept out of the box by the staunch Cormoaoomroaomrrant defense for the rest of the half.

At the half, Nephara used all 3 of their subs to change some players, which inspired Michael Starre¹⁵ when he saw it and traded out Jessie Peterson for Savannah Everett to give the other goalkeeper a chance to have some whipping at the post known as the Nepharim forward line. A 1-2 scoreline was depressing yet expected, and when Stavanger came back with an actual effort, Everett cracked underneath the pressure and couldn't really handle the huge shot he delivered across the goal. 1-3 in the 64th minute and the match was just starting to look out of reach. Luckily, in the next possession, Ellzidan finally snapped the cold streak and scored, not only the 2-3 goal, but her 10th for the Kick Corps, outshining Madison in that respect. Unfortunately, Madison wouldn't get to answer. The Nepharim backs really got a hang on the Drawkian strikers and kept them from getting any real opportunity, it was quite obvious that the only reason Ellizdan scored was from her massive experience and odd playing style which stumped them long enough for a hole to open. A little bit later, as the match began to truly wind down, Andrea Bereveskos found an open opportunity and closed the game for real. The 2-4 scoreline would remain for the next 10 minutes of the match, and despite the Corps keeping a tight hold on the possession, scoring 1 goal was too much to handle, much less 2, and that's how the game was retired.

Pre WC77 Friendly, Corps Central Pitch, Drawkland	Score	Goals	Cards
DRAWKLAND	2	4' Cross, 70' Ellzidan
NEPHARA	4	7' Tarashaj 30' Stavanger, 64' Stavanger, 83' Bereveskos

WORLD CUP PREVIEW
Honestly, a 1-2-1¹⁶ record in a Pre-Qualifying Friendly campaign isn't that bad. That's what a Gridiron coach would call staying on schedule. However, the World Cup is much more a monumental task at hand. How will the Corps fare? As a Pot 7¹⁷ nation, our chances of Qualification are pretty much out of reach but we think a Cup of Harmony berth isn't too much to ask for. Optimistic guesses have Drawkland fluking into the second-place spot and qualifying, while the most conservative guesses have them finishing where we numerically belong, in 7th.

What about the teams? We play a home and away match against each. What do we think?
Quakmybush is an oldie goldie that's past their prime. We honestly think we can manage to beat them at our house, and probably at theirs if things go well.
Barunia is the Pot 1 nation of our Group but honestly we think they're the weakest of the Pot 1 bunch. A win is too much to ask for wethinks but draws home and away seem likely if we're lucky.
Willinois participated in our Baptism of Fire and did horribly. We'll likely crush them home and away, without a doubt.
Garifunya is a bit of a wild card. They show promise but don't have a terribly impressive rank to back it up. Draw or even a win away and a definite draw or better at home.
Whovian Tardisia is a less prominent nation who we already outrank after only the Baptism of Fire. Expect wins on both ends.
Jeruselem is another old but good team, and we'll probably have a hard time with them. Don't expect terribly good results against them but hey, anything can happen in Qualifiers.
Darmen only slightly outranks us but still looks like a team to have an even matchup with. Draws home and away? Perhaps. It could go either way on either field.
Witty Penguins used to participate a few cycles ago and only returned this cycle. They don't look too hot but they may prove a challenge. Who can tell?
Bonesea? We have to play Bonesea? Goddammit.

Our realistic guess is to finish 5th in the Group and obtaining a Cup of Harmony invite in the process. Maybe 4th, maybe 6th, but that's our realistic and optimistic prediction. And you know how good we are at those.

But it's all up to the team now. We can only hope they'll make us proud. On Corps!

by **95X** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:19 pm

A Flight on Air95

Air95 has a monopoly on air travel in and out of 95X. As the airline built and own the two international airports in the country and handles air traffic control, the only other aircraft allowed are privately-owned by the rich. Potential competitors have surfaced, only for their upper management and investors to suddenly disappear, never to be heard from nor seen again. As such, Air95 is a virtual given for most people trying to get in or out of the country.

Sporting a 95X NT shirt, Ryan saved his money and waited for his flight to Pacific City at Portlandistan International Airport. Born in 95X and moved to Portlandistan when he was too young to remember, Ryan dreamed of watching the 95X National Team in person and now in his late twenties he could fulfill that wish. Any amount of time and trouble was worth it, he was texting his friends and family in the waiting area near the gate.

"Attention Air95 Ticketholders!" blared over the loudspeaker, "Air95 Flight 667 Nonstop to Pacific City will begin boarding process at gate D5."

Ryan collected his things and reported to the gate, where he was surprised to see other passengers assembled and sat down in front of a large TV.

"Before we board you," a flight attendant says, "this is our courtesy demonstration about optional features you may wish to purchase."

Another flight attendant pushes a button and various images and videos appear on the TV.

"Your ticket price includes a standing harness and assigned standing box. For your convenience you are allowed to purchase an upgrade to a seat, Portandistani regulations require we include a seatbelt and emergency flotation device at no additional charge. We know that you have carry-ons, and at Air95 you are charged per unit, including but not limited to your carry-on bag, personal productivity devices, personal entertainment devices, your wallet, keys, and any additional layers of clothing you're wearing. If you have many carry-ons you may wish to purchase optional space in the overhead compartment. In flight, snacks, water, and access to the toilet are available at prices posted in the cabin, your charge card will be billed in 95X Transfers. If you need or wish to make preflight purchases, please line up at the counter."

Ryan is charged extra for his carry-on bag, phone, wallet, and wearing the 95X NT shirt over a regular shirt.

"Too bad that isn't a Xi Foureleven shirt," the male Air95 employee who processed the payments sneers to Ryan. "She looked amazing!"

"Yeah, well she's just another retired player now," Ryan rebuts.

As Ryan boards the plane, he realizes just what a 'standing harness' is: he'd have to stand the entire flight! He somehow makes it several hours standing in the same position without spending extra on the toilet, and lands at 95X International Airport outside of Pacific City without incident.

Ryan is greeted by another long line.

95X 4, Fluvique 3
95X
Goals - Lewis :17; Yorkton :26, :59, :71
Yellow cards - Hunt :19, Seventyfifth :66

Fluvique
Auze :9, :48; Gonza :20
Substitutions - Varelovsky for Castanginnet :29, De Campo for De la Mesea :59,
Yellow cards - Castanginnet :28, De la Mesea :59

In a high-scoring, physical game, The White Foxes discovered they cannot defend against a four-legged attacking midfielder whose lower frame is built like a table.

Fluvique set the tone in their own stadium, scoring in single-digit minutes on Escarrà's pass to Nick Auze. Larry Lewis would equalize the score minutes later on a throw-in goal. The Fluviquean crowd jeered as they thought Lewis was offside however the referees didn't agree. Sam Gonza put the home team ahead in short order at the other end, after mild-mannered Erik Hunt was yellow carded for rough play against the opponent.

It was Alyssa Yorkton who kept 95X in contention. With said four legs, a stout build, and a center of gravity firmly within her body, she remained upright as opponents ran into her, and two defenders were carded trying to keep her at bay. They'd be subbed in their ineptitude.

Yorkton pulled a hat trick with the go-ahead goal for 95X late in the game, and the numbered nation from Atlantian Oceania opened World Cup Qualifying with an upset away from home.

by **Qasden** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:21 pm

Qasden
Athletic News

Qads feel déjà vu in clash against Gumusservi

It has been months since the last time the Vans battled Gumusservi in the 63rd Baptism of Fire. All those weeks ago, the Qads wittled down their group against Dabblslyvokia and Nouvel Acadie, giving the first Gumusservi meeting in Redinxson new meaning. A win would seal the deal on a first place finish for the BRs, despite having not played Dp Country yet. The gummies scored first, but was soon countered with a trio of goals coming from Chariot Hero, Icarus Darsten, and Ryan Xandreas. With their historical takedown of the multicolored nation, Qasden, along with Nouvel Acadie, advanced to the knockouts in Red Blackiland. Nouvel was defeated almost immediately to Ouadai in the R16, while the Vans surpassed AOCAF giants 95X, now-superstars Veldgouwen, and eventually wound up getting clipped by the eventual champions, Gadirya, in the semis.

Now, the two teams re-meet to show each other their improvements over the timeline. Coach Merritt, like most rational Qailpyme fans, decided it'd be specatacular to win the starter again.

"The kickoff in Gumusservi is both interesting and strange. The oldest still-standing nation in the Qad WCC books, we've given them much credit for their potential shown back in Rotschwarzland (Red Blackiland). We can't let the reunion get inside our heads as much though. A rematch is simply just another game as usual, and we will fight them as hard as if we were already facing USI or somebody in the finals. We've beaten them before, we've beaten New Gazi in the 76 opener, we can take down Gumusservi again, with more flare this time.".

The game commenced with the Qads possessing the ball first. After minutes and minutes of struggling to push forward, the gummies broke through our vanguard and seized the opportunity to strike. They nearly bursted through our defenses, if it weren't for Ixton Blight to save the day. 7 minutes later, the gumballs locked Qasden in a similar state, only now that Blight wasn't able to clear the ball so easily. The forwards passed it back and forth between each other, over and over until one of them decided to take the shot. Abbott allowed it to ricochet off his arm, only to see striker, Miguel Castro, charging after the deflection with destined intent. The Brickwall couldn't let this one pass, but it didn't matter. His arms were already past the line when the save was made. 24 minutes in, a 0-1 deficited start for the Vans.

5 minutes later, Jerry Bostun strooed through the Gumesservian rooks and made the big equalizer attempt. He accidentally nipped the ball, allowing the keeper to pick it up with ease. 30 minutes in now, and still the Qads look worrisome. 6 minutes before the half was to be called, Onyx Foster delivered a clean and crucial pass to Bostun for shot number 2. This time, it was a crossbar deflection that sent the ball flying back the other way. Before the gummies could reach it, Chariot Hero appears from the DM and sends it home for the equalizer, 5 yards shy of the box. Halftime was soon called, and the game was stranded at a suspenseful 1-1 situation.

With each team their fair share of mini fans and water on the rocks, the second half begun in favor of the 'Servis. The adversary showed no signs of fear, yet no signs of confidence, as they scattered across the playing field. Another crossbar was made before the ball was sent back into the possession of Captain Icarus Darsten. #10 dragged the ball across the foreign territory and aligned a beautiful pass to Foster for the tiebreaker. Fortunately unfortunate, a defender headed the ball away from Onyx, but was soon surprised to see the ball being bicycled back into the net. When they turned around, all they could see was a Darsten dazed from the shot. 2-1, 30 minutes to go.

As time went on, the teams' clashings became more and more intense. At one point, the ref had to card Chariot after shoving a Gumusservian to the ground while trying to acquire the ball. Due to Hero's incident, Miguel Castro was given a penalty kick, which he took seriously and successfully. 2-2, another draw outcome it appears. 77. 78. 79. The time strolled on through the game as if it were a race. 80, 81, 82, the Qads only had 8 minutes to retaliate. 83. 84. 85. 86 minutes in, Xandreas comes in with the leftie and sends it past the goalie. 3-2, the clock ticked away and gave the Qads a victory to remember.

Many Qad fans rejoiced at the site of Ryan's game-winner, while home-team rooters booed off the night's champions. Coach Merritt, like the rest of the QAFA NT, felt the game seemed oddly a lot like the previous.

"I swear this game gave me deja vu. Hero, Darsten, and Xandreas all scored in the exact same order and half of the BoF match. Kinda funny, I must say. Despite this, I believe today's result was positive, yet defense will be needing to step a couple notches up. I can't risk another game with this close of a result and end up being a defeat.".

The win gave the Qads the desirable pride of the first 3 points in their qualifier campaign. Up next for the Vans, Nume. While a new team to the field that completely bombed BoF 64, the shockers took a surprising news spike after a cunning 1-0 victory over full-on newbies, Faustii. Both teams, in some way, remain undefeated. But on MD2, only 1 will survive in the country of Nume.

Can Qasden keep up their strengths against Nume? Will the "shockers" shock the Vans like they did with Faustii? Only one pigeon will fly, so stay tuned, stay updated, and stay alert for our Matchday 2 report of the WC77 qualifiers, coming next from the country of Nume!

by **Chromatika** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:31 pm

Lineup against Coldfield: Ria; Ilya-Sorendai-Colbert-Damjana (Ellen '54); Lucas (Liam '80)-Etienne; Rien-Sybill-Antonio (Dragana '60); Andísorí

First game as a Top 10 nation, first game after being declared heroes of the nation. First real game under Silian Parker. Nerves, nerves, nerves everywhere. Coldfield, an unproven opponent, a new opponent. Nameless faces, unreported. Knowledge that everyone would be watching. That it'd be Krytenia and Red Blackiland looking to see if they stumbled.

Things came in glimpses for Jazmin Dragana. Even her thoughts came in incomplete blips. It was something that nobody else understood. Each thought could have absolutely nothing from the last, or absolutely everything. Life had been that way for such a long time, it was all she could remember.

Every goal she scored was a testament to that. If there was one word that described Jazmin, it was unpredictable. Unrestrained. Ridiculous.

But oh so good.

As usual, she started the game on the bench. As usual, because honestly, she wasn't quite at the level of Kéìrâ or Gabriella. Honestly, she could make a case against Trenn, but she hated going against her teammates. Honestly, she liked her role of a late game substitute, alongside Ki, chatting on the bench about the best tactics of how to get involved. She missed that when she played on Bishop. Sure, starting a game was fun. Sure, being the star of the game was also fun. But there was something special about coming off the bench and being exactly what your team needed to get that win.

Another such opportunity came. Surprisingly, Mia Ria had started in goal for the Chromatiks, with the rivalry of Nikolai vs. Jilian being saved for matches against the second to fifth seeds. Mia was going to get a ton of playing time. She'd made a youngster mistake - gotten faked out rather cleanly - getting the team into a hole. Not that they were stymied, of course. Not this team. Andísorí equalized before the half, and by the fifty-fifth, Coldfield was gassed. They'd played a marvelous game from their standpoint, but it was time to put the nail in the coffin.

If there was one thing impressing from Silian Parker it was his philosophy: Never over-commit. Always keep a level head. He was even more cerebral than Lisa was, and chose to direct passion in calculated paths.

Sure enough, sixtieth. Jazmin was put in.

Wind blows from left. Player in front. Shake left. Get ball to Trenn. Ball taken away. Pursue. Chase down defender. Keeper too close up front. Take ball. Juke. Pivot. Shoot.

Win.

Lineup against Lymantatia: Full Regular Starting XI.

Disclaimer: I am writing this with Northern Sunrise Islands's blessing. All credits of the PokéCards and whatnot go to him.

Chrom, the one who had been a s/he and possessed, now living with Sunrise and Qasden, (to Kitsunia's annoyance) was at a local park well into the night, training with his Pokémon. Why so late? Because a lot of his Poké preferred the dark. Try having Chandelure, Banette, Duskull, Sneasel, Murkrow, and Yamask as your six Pokémon. The darkness was their domain, and all Chrom needed was the distant glow of a street lamp.

Chrom's Banette was not happy. Back when he was all torn up inside, back when he was unstable, Banette had loved it. Chrom himself had hated the world for making him the way he was back then. As a Pokémon of hatred, Banette had thrived on that hatred, on that innate darkness.

Now that he had been cleansed, now that he was sane again, something deep inside Chrom had changed. And that change had been felt by his Pokémon. The clearing of his brain had helped him become smarter about his play, and using that he had been successful in challenging the best of the best, losing to Sunrise himself in the Semifinals and then to San José Guayabal on a last-gasp five-on-five. But now, with Sunrise teaching him how to use your heart and unpredictability in Pokémon matches, Chrom found himself trying to connect with his Pokémon on a deeper level.

Duskull and Murkrow had come around first. Murkrow didn't care as long as Chrom gave him stuff that was shiny to keep from time to time. This particular Murkrow liked to dawdle around, waddling, looking like a fool but being rather smart in battle. Using night shade and wing attack in quick succession was something that Chrom had been working with him for a while, and he was really getting it. At the moment, Murkrow was completely absorbed in a gold coin Chrom had given him.

Duskull? She had actually chased Chrom around as a kid, until eventually she decided to choose him as her master. Really. When Chrom had finally confronted it with his Chandelure - then a Litwick - it'd chosen to not fight. Chrom wondered what she had seen in him, but she'd followed him around since, through thick and thin.

Sneasel didn't really care as long as he got to fight. Although Chrom had changed, as long as he participated in battles and gave a reason to have to sharpen his claws, all was well with him. Why be needlessly vicious when you got to test yourself against the best of the best?

Chrom's Yamask was a weird one - preferring to make the opponent flee instead of fighting really. With disable, haze, ominous wind... No wonder. But when push came to shove, she didn't really like getting her hands dirty. After Chrom's change, Yamask had seemed a little bit confused about Chrom's mood, but she had followed his commands. He was slowly convincing her that it was fine to do actual harm in a Pokémon battle.

Chandelure and Chrom had been through everything together. Noticeably, Chandellure's ghostly lights were a bit more bright since Chrom had come around. They were joined at the hip, he was Chrom's eternal friend. And he owed Chandelure so much.

Which left... Banette.

"Come on, Banette! Stop picking on Yamask! It's not her fault! It's mine! We can't be just cruel and mean anymore!" he yelled, trying to pull Banette off of Yamask, whom he had been sitting on.

Banette tilted his head to one side, looking intently at Chrom. The question in the gesture was obvious. Why have you changed?

"I know! But things have changed! I can't be like that anymore, not since they fixed me! Now, I want to... I want to learn how to battle better, I want to be a better person, and I want to... I want to make Sunrise proud of helping me! I want Qasden to not be scared of me, I want Kitsunia to accept me, I want to be around with friends!" Chrom implored.

Banette stomped his foot onto the ground and turned away from Chrom.

"It's so weird, I know! How do you think I feel? I just... Feel like we could do this the right way, you know, as equals? As partners? Instead of me just giving you orders? Can you give it a try, at least?" Chrom approached Banette and laid a hand on his shoulder.

Banette turned slowly, saw the tear in Chrom's eye.

And started petting him on the shoulder.

"Banette," it said. If this is what you truly want. If you're trying to be someone new truly, I guess I can try, too.

Chrom reached out and hugged him. Momentarily, they were surrounded by the other five, Chendelure careful to not burn anyone.

"All right, let's go out there and show that Ghost and Dark Pokémon don't necessarily have to be evil or creepy!" Chrom said after a minute or two.

A cacophony of reply from his Pokémon let him know that they were with him in this new beginning as a real Pokémon trainer.

by **Farfadillis** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:34 pm

The Kamikaze

A site dedicated to Farf football

National Team Section

5 Reasons Why We'll Win the World Cup and Another 5 Why We Won't Qualify
submitted just now

Over the last few years, Farfadillis has become a constant presence in the World Cup knock-out stage. We have been in it for seven editions in a row now. However, even if our consistency has certainly helped us in that regard, we have perhaps been a little too consistent - we haven't reached the semifinals yet. That is why, today, instead of talking about the match which we lost (deservedly so) at home to a country I didn't know existed, I'll talk about the reasons that make me think we'll break the monotony this cycle, one way or the other. Odd numbers are reasons why we won't qualify. Even numbers are reasons why we'll go all the way.

Without further ado:

#1: We have had better wingers for the last ten or so World Cups

I don't want to diss Tôr or Meier, but it's true. Where we were once feared by all teams, we are now quite weak, I believe. Tôr has had a very good international career, but age has taken a toll on him. Meier, meanwhile, is great and all, but she's no Fôx or Kâí. She's shown an extremely unstable temperament. I am not trying to say that we have bad wingers or anything, but other teams won't be planning meticulously how to stop our wingers, like I imagine they did back when they were Kâí and Fôx, or younger Tôr and Fôx.

#2: We have never had better wingbacks

On the flipside, Röènôùjýâ and Maes are both comparable to Alaminos in quality. Back in the day, we thought Alaminos was a one-off as far as defender quality was concerned. In a certain sense, he was; what distinguished him was his defensive capability, and these two don't really match him in that. However, they're quality offensively, and make our offense even deadlier. They're also very consistent, which always comes in handy. Except yesterday against fucking Azrea.

#3: The country is at peace

I know, sounds weird, but the whole Ruland situation seemed to bring out the best out of some players. Elexhé pretty much got a goal per game at one point, and Fôrté was simply unplayable in a couple of games. The enmity between the two seemed to spur them on to perform beyond their boundaries. This was not what we saw against Azrea, just a couple of days after the ceasefire agreement. So, here's to more infant mortality, since it seems to power our football machine.

#4: Metz has improved astronomically

Let's be honest: none of us expected Calogero to be the best god damn player of the Cosumarite league last season. He's reached new heights. He really reminds me of Erfaon Lisdiren nowadays. Back in the day, we reached two quarterfinals with a worse team thanks to some key performances from the guy. Perhaps now that we have a better team and an equivalent we can go further?

#5: Discipline is going to be an issue

As I said, Meier is extremely temperamental. Siorrha'Asione has become notorious in Nephara for averaging one scandal per goal while being a prolific striker. Wínrôuge gets really riled up when he gets fouled too much, and he also gets really riled up over things Rulandese. Jevdjevic-Hadsic occasionally makes extremely dangerous challenges in the most stupid of situations. And the others are no saints either. Expect a dismissal or two or three or four or probably more throughout the campaign.

#6: Many of our players seem to be hitting their primes

Wínrôuge, Monrazón, Maes, Jevdjevic-Hadsic, Çíânflöné and Meier all seem to be playing better than ever. Wínrôuge's just completely incontrollable on his day, Monrazón's solid as a rock, Maes has reached a level nobody could've imagined some years ago, Jevdjevic-Hadsic's become a fantastic playmaker, Çíânflöné has become deadly up front and Meier's now among the best players of the Nepharim league. Only the first two can reach the level of the likes of Dandalleion, Kâí, Fôx, Terán and Mêndêlöíndçêl, but having so many players in their primes means this cycle could be the perfect time for our perfect storm.

#7: As far as actual talent goes, we haven't been this bad in a while

It's a sad truth. Despite similarities, Jevdjevic-Hadsic is not Terán, Siorrha'Asione is not Dandalleion, Tôr is not Kâí, Meier is not Fôx, Maes is not Alaminos and Söh is not Bârr. Only Söh, I believe, has a chance or reaching the level of his predecessor, and he's a long way off that at his age. So we're not quite at our best, though we do have arguably our best player ever at the moment in the form of Fôrté Wínrôuge. We could also have our best goalkeeper ever in our hands. Still, this batch of Farf players hasn't quite been the same as the previous one.

#8: Most of our players have plenty of international experience of the highest level

This has been true for a few cycles now, but it could still give us an important edge. Some of these guys have played over twenty World Cup proper games. While we actually aren't as experienced as last cycle, with Söh, Siorrha'Asione and Meier ostensibly becoming starters, we're still an experienced bunch. Kinda wish we weren't experienced at not reaching semifinals, though.

#9: Rumour has it Tíbürçìó's developing dementia

While many would argue he was born with it, the rumours still can't be good news. Maybe benching Nofzaleiné's a sign of it? At any rate, do not expect the FFFF to sack him even if he does develop dementia. It would be a lot of fun if this gave us an edge, though. I mean, I can't really see how it would, but what if it did?

#10: It's about damn time

We've reached the quarterfinals five times. The round of sixteen, ten times. The World Cup proper, twelve times. We haven't ever reached the semifinals. I say it's about damn time. Monte Carlo fallacy and all, but c'mon it's gotta be our year. Obviously, applying the Monte Carlo fallacy, we could also fail to qualify after eight consecutive World Cup appearances.

So, in short. Will we fail to qualify? Will we win the World Cup? Will we go out in the early knock-out stages? Who knows, all I wanna say is it's better if we don't look at yesterday's result when answering.

by **Jeruselem** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:50 pm

Princess Elsa and Chloe Dallas in Barunia ...

Chloe: This is Chloe Dallas for Naked News Jeruselem. We're in Barunia for our first qualifying game in the World Cup 77. It's match day 1, and well it's started. I'm with Princess Elsa, a member of the team. And she is related.
Elsa: Good morning Jeruselem
Chloe: It's actually night there
Elsa: Never mind
Chloe: We're in qualifying Group 2. Along with Bonesea, Witty Penguins, Quakmybush, Darmen, Barunia, Willinois, Drawkland, Garifunya, Whovian Tardisia and ourselves of course
Elsa: Gee we got a group with lots of long names!

Chloe: Let's review the group 2 results before talking about today. Witty Penguins visited Bonesea and got crushed 5-2.
Elsa: Kinda expected that
Chloe: Quakmybush hosted Darmen, and got 1-1 draw
Elsa: Good result for the quak team. Darmen are ones to watch here
Chloe: Willinois hosted Drawkland, but got beated 4-0 by the visitors.
Elsa: Have no idea about that lot really

Chloe: Garifunya beat Whovian Tardisia 1-0, yeah
Elsa: Them timelords need to get their act together
Chloe: Now, Barunia vs the Princesses. We're played them before
Elsa: Yes, I can't tell you when though. We have faced them but might have a long time ago
Chloe: Well, we did beat local team 2-1.
Elsa: Yes, we won't be pointless in the group. I felt we didn't play up to our real potential

Chloe: Some huge changes in the team from last cup.
Elsa: A lot of new faces in the team. We've been working to form a new team dynamic
Chloe: But still, we have lots of work to do.
Elsa: Err, yes. You don't just get it right first game.
Chloe: You're back after a holiday and straight into the cup
Elsa: You know, you need a holiday after having a baby.

Chloe: So you're not totally match fit
Elsa: I do feel a bit unfit but it's not because I'm not fit
Chloe: What about the others/
Elsa: They are fine, they've been training hard. Well that's what they tell me
Chloe: What's the story behind not appointing a new coach, something happened?
Elsa: Oh that, well ... that was a messy thing

Chloe: Can you elabourate?
Elsa: The guy who we chose turns out be a great football coach had a coloured past
Chloe: But your past isn't exactly snow white
Elsa: In this case, he had been interfering with children at the club at the time
Chloe: Oh, like a pedo?
Elsa: Yes, I'm not going mention his name. We didn't want him to be coaching our team

Chloe: So why didn't you pick another guy
Elsa: It was too late to change by then, they were committed to something else
Chloe: So Mum was out of retirement?
Elsa: She didn't mind, Dad is very annoying
Chloe: I know
Elsa: You don't have live with him

Chloe: Home game next, very exciting
Elsa: Yes, the kids love home games. Well mine do
Chloe: It's like day out for them I guess
Elsa: It's family time, get the kids outdoors to watch some football
Chloe: Speaking of family, your brother Ellis.
Elsa: Oh yes him

Chloe: Not the team?
Elsa: We would be if he didn't break a leg last month
Chloe: Ouch, how did manage that
Elsa: Don't ask me, he's an idiot like his Dad sometimes
Chloe: Oh well
Elsa: He's probably get a red card the first game he plays

Group 2
Bonesea 5–2 Witty Penguins
Quakmybush 1–1 Darmen
Barunia 1–2 Jeruselem
Willinois 0–4 Drawkland
Garifunya 1–0 Whovian Tardisia

by **Damukuni** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 8:52 pm

DSN
The Damukuni Sports Network
Match Report

New Gazi take down Football Legends in Qualifying home opener

(20)     0 - 1     (85)
'     NONE         A. Player (53')

New Gazi?
Really?
We are 20th in the world. This should never happen to us. Well, statistically, anyway. I mean, Raiden Tatsuyumi has one of the better FLCS records for saves by a single goalkeeper in only 3 seasons, all in the first division. Our defensive line could use some work, though.
This was freakish, though. Getting stunned in the home qualifying opener at University of Damushuto stadium, in front of 47,000 fans and a record television audience? I certainly hope the next game yields better; it'll be an away game, but the value might be worth more for our national team...

by **Nephara** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 9:02 pm

Estrella Hawke's heart was racing.

That had been a trend of her life, lately. Her heart was racing when she was nominated as Young Player AND regular Player of the Year in Schottia (though she ultimately didn't win either), it was racing when she returned from loan and Amethyst Fegelein explained that she was in her first team plans next season as Claudia Cautcher aimed to go abroad, it was racing when she got her callup to the national team callup for the first qualifiers, and it was racing when she was temporarily handed the number 17. She was replacing Scaffi!

Not only was she replacing Scaffi, but she was starting against the Republic of Kaboomlandia. Her heart was racing when the teamsheet had come up. She was starting alongside Cautcher up front, and there were competitive debuts for Bereveskos and that spiky girl Leona Rafford. Her heart was racing when Raquel Naeher took off her shirt in the dressing room and damn that girl had more curves than professional footballers were probably meant to have.
"Alright, lads, go out there and do the job you know you can do."
And so out onto the pitch. A smaller match, a smaller venue. The Republic of Kaboomlandia were 152nd in the world, seventh seeds in the group. So the NFA had thrown a bone to poor, isolated Coret in the northeast, a manageable distance from Crisisbless but not a pleasant one, playing to a crowd of close to the 30,000 capacity. It was a nice stadium. Tightly-packed, full of atmosphere. A nice, recent stadium, too. It had the traditional glass-and-metal feel of modern Nepharim architecture to it.

The match was a straightforward one. Even Nephara's second string had a decisive technical edge, and made use of it.
They just needed one goal, to settle the fans down. And they were getting a little restless, half an hour in... just a little.
Rafford ran down on the overlap, picked up the ball from Bereveskos and dashed down the right flank. Alberts, 33, left out to dry. The Cormorants had had their joy down the flanks, primarily, but it was a matter of punching through a determined back three...
... Rafford shaped for a cutback, and the centre-halves jerked forward in response. And then she just crossed it instead. Powerfully, to the near-post.
Estrella Hawke's heart was racing.
A second before she hurled herself forward and flicked it into the net.

It was a routine 2-0 in the end. Good performances all around. Beers all around in the dressing room.
Rafford slipped over next to Hawke in the corner of the room. Nudged against her shoulder. She was a slip of a thing, really. Almost scrawny, definitely wiry.
"Nice header," she said, curling up nearby.
"Yeah, uh, thanks. I mean, I owed it all to the assist, right?"
"Yeah, yeah, you're too modest for a striker. Hey, after drinks, you want to head back to Crisisbless? I'll show you how a real party goes."
And Estrella Hawke's heart started racing all over again.

by **Flardania** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 9:08 pm

Seong Mi-Soo
TBA|Dainer

The stadium in Dainer was electric and filled with excitement although not from the source you would expect. The home fans were stunned silent while the visiting Kitsune fans who were also stunned earlier, were now chanting and singing. The Kitsunes came out swinging in their first match of qualification. A dominant showing in the shape of a 5-0 rout. Mi-Soo, however, was calm as if it were merely a one-point match. Finally, after injury time, the final whistle blew and Seong made her way to opposition manager and shook their hand before walking into the tunnel. She was happy but so what. Sure she could celebrate today but what if that was the last game the won for the entire qualifiers? These were the thoughts that haunted her. She was going to leave the celebration to her players while she would focus.....but first.....the press.

"Seong-san today your team won overwhelmingly against a respectable squad. What are your thoughts on the Win? " A reporter asked.

"Well, a win is a win whether it's by 1 or 1000. Many things can be a factor from one team running on all cylinders to the another team having a train wreck. Sure if we end up in a tie-breaker situation a big win would come back to help us but just by doing our job and getting wins should be enough."

"Seong-san what does the team need to do in its next match?" A different reporter asked.

"Well that's an easy one, win. We need to take every game seriously. That's what discipline is all about and as I mentioned on media day so long as we have discipline and consistency, this team as the ability to not only qualify but make a push for a round of 16 spot." Seeing as the was a lack of questions about preparations against Dainer or coaching decisions due to their large win, Mi-Soo felt she had given the press enough. "Leave some time for the players" she thought.

Mi-Soo then bowed and walked out the room. They started things off with a win, now they just needed to carry momentum.

by **Mriin** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 9:11 pm

"Alright," sighed Solara, approaching the ball resting at midfield, "aggressive play, that's what Don wants." She looked to Malia over her right shoulder, who nodded back. "We can do that."

Don watched the teams take their places and couldn't help a broad smile, which did not go unnoticed Gerard. "What's that, gaffa? What's got you so smiley?"

"Solara has that strut she does when she's about to go off. I've seen her dumpster the Alchemists' backline enough to recognize it. The fact that we've got that from the word go, after winning the flip so we start with the ball? These weeaboos won't know what hit them."

"...wee-uh-what?"

"It's a local term; roughly translates to 'hooligan', if I remember correctly."

Solara was bouncing over the ball, keeping light on her hooves, and was off the instant the whistle blew--bursting into the Thomiyanist half while booting the ball straight backwards, where Malia was there to collect it and bring it up in her wake. Aldo and Joren seemed stunned along with the Thomiyanist defenders, but came to quickly and pressed forward along the wings.

The defenders were slow to react, and many of them peeled off--entirely too many--to cover Aldo and Joren. Only the Minase twins stood between Solara and the goal, while Megurine desperately backpedaled to keep Malia's view of Solara obstructed. But just when Minase got properly in front of Malia, she immediately turned and tapped the ball back to Janna, who had run through the unopposed midfield without a care, dribbling directly past the tied-up Megurine and forcing one of the Minase twins to come out and intercept her--to which Janna responded by belting the ball across the field to Solara, who'd managed to make it to the left corner of the box with the other twin hot on her hooves. Solara didn't even bother to corral the pass; she just bumped it to redirect it, while Nakamura in goal laid full-out in attempt to reach it.

And reach it, he did--not even by a particular stretch. The ball made solid contact with his palm just to the right of the bar, sending it flying just outside the goal towards the crowd, who went wild as they realized the home team was safe for the moment.

"Fuck." Solara slowed to a trot and crossed her arms behind her head, closing her eyes and turning away from the goal.

Joren's hand on her shoulder a moment later opened her eyes. "Don't worry, Sol, that was just a great save. You spooked 'em, just like the plan, and we still have a corner to take."

Solara uncrossed her arms, rubbing a horn as she tried to steady her heart. "Yeah, I know. Just didn't expect to get this wound up so quickly."

"I'd be concerned if you weren't nervous right now," he chuckled. "Just keep your horns in the game, and we'll do fine." And with that, he went off to set up for the corner.

He took careful note of the players splayed in front of him: Janna was standing just to the side of him, should he want to tap it in. Aldo was off at the other end of the box, if he really wanted to lob it in there, behind pretty much everyone else. Mari had snuck her way in a close spot that didn't have the best shot, but they'd very quickly have ball control in the center of the field which could develop in many ways. And of course, Solara was standing just past the near post, in the center of a throng of Thomiyanist defenders. She easily had half a head on the tallest of them, and the difference was start with them clustered around her like that.

He took one last note of the wind, and launched the ball at a direct 45* out of the corner, rising. Mari took a step forward, thinking it was coming right at her for a chest bump, but then noticed it began to curve sharply, and broke back towards the wing, pulling another defender away with her.

The ball arced in towards the goal, Nakamura tensing in goal, worried that something strange would happen, like it suddenly dropping and bouncing past the other defenders; but it just kept sailing in, directly at the cluster of players by the post.

One of the twins--Etsuo--rose to try and bash it back out, but it sailed clean over their head. Directly into Solara's horns.

Nakamura dove to the post, preparing to smother the spiked header into the corner of the goal--and gulped when no ball came.

Solara made contact with the ball with her left horn, which slid it into the right, briefly resting between them--and with a turn of her head and a flick of her neck, slung it to the right past Nakamura's feet.

by **The Royal Kingdom of Quebec** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 10:02 pm

Will you help me with the bake sale? We have baked goods!

Matchday Two Cutoff

by **Northern Sunrise Islands** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 10:10 pm

Kirisaki was a rather hungry girl.
"Uh..."
Sunrise and Kitsunia stared in somewhat of a shock as Kirisaki ate through the plate as if she didn't have had any food for days.
"Kirisaki, the food won't run away from your plate."
"T-t-this is just... too good!"
"Daddy is a fantastic cook, after all!"
"And since Kitsunia doesn't know how to cook..."
Kitsunia made an angry face, crossing her arms.
"Shut it, weirdo."
"Well, it's just honesty."
"Well! I want more!"
She showed the empty plate to Sunrise.
"Heh. Fair enough."
He took her plate, laughing a bit.
"So, miss Kitsunia..."
"...Yeah?"
"We wanted to know what you're planning to do now."
"I... I don't really know... I can't return to the Shining Moon now."
"What stops you?"
"...It's a pigsty."
"But you said you were the finest one of their numbers!"
"We're not really many people and... well, the economic crisis hurt us a bit. I'm the sole one pushing the idea that we should attack the Arceusian Sun but... that's no longer a thing."
"You could stay here with us!"
"...I could use the Pokémon training partner."
"I can train with you."
"I'd rather not. You creep me out."
"I can assure you I got a lot better after the whole possession situation."
"...So, Kirisaki. I say you should stay with us. Sleep in Chrom's bed."
"B-but I just got out of that make-shift room-"
"A host with so much status as Miss Kirisaki here, the finest warrior of the Order of the Shining Moon here clearly deserves a proper bed."
"A-and custardy brother would never let me sleep on the little room, right?"
"It's custody."
"And what did I say?"
"Custardy."
"And what is it?"
"Custody."
"And what did I say?"
"Custardy."
"And what is it?"
"Custody."
"Enough!"
Sunrise returned, placing the plate in front of Kirisaki, smiling as he sat down back on his chair.
"Honey, Kirisaki wants to stay with us."
"W-w-well... You did end my reason to live!"
"I'm fine with it. Feel free to stay here."
"...You're not very opposed, eh?"
"O-o-of course, I'm an important guest."
"I think I'll never be truly able to show that the Arceusian Sun has ended unless I did give their rivals a fitting proof, so feel free."
"...But what about me?"
"I have an idea."

Qasden was very well fit on her little bed, dressed on a rather cutesy set of cat-based pajamas.
On the other hand, however, she stared at the bigger bed.
"Hey, watch your elbow!"
"S-s-shut up! And give me back my mattress, it's freezing here!"
"You're too spacey!"
"I-I'm not! I'm very thin!"
"I don't even know why I have to share my bed with some brute like yourself... I'm an intellectual of the finest level."
"Yet you couldn't even hold a sword right! You're weak!"
"I'm not!"
"You are! Your little sister hit me harder!"
Qasden rolled her eyes, sighing.
"OW!"
"That was a special sort of kick, invented in 18- OW!"
"Shut up, nerd!"
"I'm not a nerd!"
"You clearly are... Talking about facts and facts and more facts, why don't you just live life?"
"I... I... I live life! I do!"
"Then why do I feel like you spend all your time reading books? Oh, I know! Because of that pile of freaking books on that table!"
"Wait! Hold on!"
"What?"
"Rich of you giving me slander for doing that! You're the one that had decided to chase Sunrise out from the world of the living!"
"...I don't do that a lot."
"Hah! You totally do just that!"
"I-I don't! I go to parties, shop in shopping malls..."
"Yet you showed up on a train we so happened to be on. You're totally a stalker!"
"W-w-who do you take me for? Hakifao's friend?"
"...How do you know Hakifao?"
"A-ah... Er... U-um..."
"Ha! Stalker!"
"I'm not! She's just my informant!"
The two could hear a cry.

Chrom turned on the lights, looking at little Qasden, crying on her bed, hugging a Delcatty plushy.
"M-m-meanie lady a-a-and Custardy brother w-w-will not stop talking... I-i-i want to sleep!"
Kirisaki sighed, getting up from bed and sitting by the side of the crying girl.
"S-sorry, Qasden. I'm not very used to this."
"It's my fault too, I should've tried to act my age."
She brushed off some of the tears, staring at the two.
"Tell you what. Why don't we play a game?"
"...A game?"
"Sunrise and Kitsunia always play on that SnoGa Avalanche of theirs."
"Yup! Games based on real life like Denver Payne Snowboarding and Crimson LaRusso's Motorcross!"
"And originals like the unexpected adventures of Thun the Fox 4 and Sly Vixxen 3 - The Grandest Theft."
Kirisaki looked at Qasden, confused.
"Shouldn't you be crying?"
Qasden quickly went back to crying, to which Chrom held a hand over her mouth so as to not wake Sunrise and Kitsunia.
"SnoGa merchandising calms her down a bit."
"...Odd kid."
"She is my custody sister."
"So you admit you're odd."
Chrom crossed his arms. Qasden smiled, giving him a hug.
"Are we playing games, Custardy brother?"
"Custody."
"And yes, we will! There's only one tiny little problem."
The two already used to the Avalanche game console looked at each other, confused.
"I... don't know how to play."
Qasden fell backwards to her bed, Chrom simply face-palmed.

Kitsunia left her room, covered on a blanket, walking for a glass of water.
As she passed by the main room, she noticed three people had fallen asleep with her video-game console turned on.
She took a better look at it, finding Chrom fast asleep, snoring to one side, Kirisaki with her eyes closed and her head almost pushing her down the couch, yet she managed to stay diagonally perfect across the sofa. Qasden remained asleep, hugging her favorite plushy, on top of the two.
Sunrise walked to the scene as well, confused.
"Huh."
"Kind of cute, eh?"
"True."
"Let's turn the game off and let them sleep."

Proper Label Guide of PokéCard Nations.

by **Mattijana** » Wed Feb 08, 2017 12:49 am

Mattijana Held By Kaisaru In World Cup Opener
Kaisaru 1-1 Mattijana

Mattijana's Football Team was left frustrated in their first World Cup qualifier as debutants Kaisaru snatched a last minute draw in their first ever International match.

A long period of chance creation, but accompanied by poor finishing, was the major characteristic-and worry, for Matej Ljubanik's side, before Marko Hojbjerg blasted in a free kick from 25 yards out to open the scoring. But a late Kaisaru equaliser made for a less happy mood amongst the away camp, albeit a delirious one amongst the home fans, who despite first-match optimism, were not expecting a result against the world's 98th ranked side.

An entirely defensive start by the home side unsettled the visitors at first, but as the first half progressed, they managed to pick holes in the most inexperienced line-up in group 6. Andreas Weiss wriggled into a good position before forcing a good save from the home keeper, before Hojbjerg fired a shot against the base of the post from the edge of the box.

The biggest miss of the match came in the 35th minute however, as a fine run by Sofiane Bisrali resulted in a pull-back to Mathilde Lekarisa, who somehow turned the ball over the bar from 8 yard out.

The awful miss was characteristic of a first-half performance that had everything apart from the final finish for the visitors, with Kaisaru certainly the happier of the two sides with the half time score 0-0.

The second-half began in similar fashion, with Mattijana laying siege on the opposition penalty area, but once again unable to find a way through. Sophia Velezia's cross was nodded over by Andreas Weiss before Lekarisa forced a fine low stop out of the Kaisaru goalkeeper with a dipping shot from 15 yards out. Yet it took until the 69th minute to finally find something of value.

A mazy run be Sofiane Bisrali was ended by a scything challenge on the edge of the box in a good central position, around 25 yards out. Marko Hojbjerg went for power from the resulting free-kick, skimming a shot over the wall and into the top corner, leaving the goalkeeper rooted to the spot.

Things seemed to be on the up for the visitors, and Ljubanik sent on Jessika Struna and Daniella Alaba in place of Velezia and Lekarisa. The substitutions had a somewhat good effect, with Struna curling a shot wide, before setting up Weiss, whose header was deflected just wide of the right hand post.

There was still to be a twist in the tail of the match however, as a flowing counter-attacking move from Kaisaru, the first real threat of the match from the hosts, caused some confusion in a visibly rusty Mattijanan back line. The initial cross was half-cleared by Crajasovic, but the rebound was smashed back at goal, deflecting off the hip of Dominik Illisevic and leaving Matej Handanovic desperately clutching at the ball as it spun away into the bottom corner.

With just a few minutes to re-take the lead, Mattijana threw everything at the inexperienced back-line, but were ultimately unable to do so, as some spirited home defending meant that Alaba was unable to get a shot away cleanly, before another effort from Hojbjerg clipped the top of the bar and went behind. The full-time whistle was not far behind.

Matej Ljubanik after the match:

"For sure it is 2 points dropped from our point of view. We had almost 20 shots, they had maybe 3 in the whole match, but we only scored one goal each. It was not clinical enough from our point of view, but this is football and we will work on it before the next match against Brenecia"

"Do you think you will have to revise your ambitions as a result of this performance?"

"I don't think so. We showed good structure on the ball today, we were just not good enough in front of goal. There is still a lot of football to be played and if we can get a result against Brenecia, then that will hopefully balance things out for us. There's still a lot of football to be played."

by **Red Blackiland** » Wed Feb 08, 2017 2:53 am

Red Blackiland Sports and Off-topic Chronicles

Kidnapping from the phone

RB fans supporting the national team against Coldfield

Author : Mathias Gërdorffen

- Hello, it's Pretzell? I want to talk to Pretzell.
- It's him, you can talk.
"Do you love your daughter?"
"I do not have a daughter."
"But do you love your daughter?"
"I told you I have no daughter."
- Oh no? But, well, do you love your wife?
"Of course, I've been married to her for 20 years.
"And you have no daughter?"
- Neither son. And? After all, what do you want?
- It's about your wife ...
"What about my wife?"
"Do you love your wife?"
"You already asked me that.
- We 're with your wife.
- We who?
"Ah, that I can not speak.
"Then I'll have to hang up." I do not know who you are or what you want.
- It's about your wife ...
"But what about my wife?"
"We're with her, and if you love her ..."
"What the hell kind of story is that I love my wife?"
"No, see, if you love her ... It's just that we're with her ..."
- And? She can stay with anyone she wants. You are my wife, but I care little who your friends are.
"But we're not her friends."
"And I do not care who your enemies are."
"We're with your wife, and if you love her and want her back, you'll have to pay us ten thousand dollars."
"Paying to have my wife back?" But what is this?
"You do not understand?" We kidnap your wife and if you want to have her back, you'll have to pay ...
- Ten thousand dollars? Is my wife worth ten thousand dollars? I'm not even worth it.
"Well, it could be less. Eight thousand.
"Not five, not a thousand." What do I want to pay for my wife for? I pay her every day. Who works here? It's her? No sir, it's me. She only knows how to spend.
"But if you love your wife, you'll have to pay."
"You respect my wife." I'll not pay for this. Do you think she's a prostitute?
"No, I did not say that. Only we want ten, no, five thousand dollars to release his wife, otherwise ...
- What? To drop As? Is she trapped? Have you done any? Steal, kill? Crashed the car? She was drunk?
- No, no ... We kidnapped her ...
"And she did nothing?" Are you still? How was that? I want to talk to her now to resolve this issue. Pass the phone to her.
- But that's not how it works. I can not let you talk to her. But she is OK.
"Of course you're fine." She does not work, she spends my money, she keeps gossiping with her friends, she does not clean the house, she cooks with a bad will that hurts and you want her to be sick? That she was tired? Of course not. This is fat, sloppy.
"Then if you want her to come back, you'll have to pay five grand-"
- Again? How will I have to pay to have my wife? This is absurd! Not a dime, nothing.
"But if you do not pay, we'll have to disappear."
"As if that were easy ... You say that because you do not know my wife. Do not you think I've wanted to disappear with her a thousand times already? And you know what I got? You know? She does not leave my foot anymore, she only lives to fill me, do it, do it, do not eat it, do not drink it ... Hell.
"And how are we going to sort it out?"
"It's settled for me." If you disappear with her, it will be great for me to be free of her and not to spend anything else.
"But we're going to be at a loss."
- And what have I been doing for 20 years? Does not that count?
"But it's not right, that's not how it works." You have to pay.
"I do not pay, and besides I'll tell her what she spent this month with my credit card for you." What is your address, please?
- My dear ... Are you crazy?
"It's been a long time since I've been married to this woman, anyone's going crazy." The address, the identification documents, please that I no longer want to waste my time.
"I will not give you an address or anything." Do not you know that this business of passing numbers over the telephone to strangers is dangerous, that it's full of crook and crook around?
"If so, then I'll have to hang up."
- Okay, see you later.
- Take care. And tell my wife to come home soon.
- Leave it to me. It will be a pleasure. A good day to you.
"And you, too."
End of call.

Red Blackiland 0-0 Colfield

Red Blackiland in their dominance, Coldfield's well-trained team, after a 3-1 win over Taeshan away from home, the team sought to pack in the competition before the decisive game against Chromatika. In this first round, nobody converted the odds and the zero persisted until the end.
The beginning of the match had a lot of fight for every inch of grass, providing a duel of great intensity, stolen ball and speed. The owner attempted initial pressure before ten minutes but could not finish with danger. Taking it easy, Red Blackiland was advancing slowly and had everything to score. Beckenstander received a nice pass from Carmona and knocked over the goalkeeper Green. Then it was Felipe Schwartz who tried. The Craque deflected from head and saw new defense of the keeper of Coldfield, who still held dangerous finish of Defour.
Despite being able to take control over the rival, the first time came to an end without the goal of the home owners. Already, after the interval, more spaces appeared for the two teams to play. First, Vestergaard completed cross and sent it to the side of the goal. Then, Shacker finalized strong over the rival arch.
Stanton's, Workman's and Harris' innings in Coldfield, as well as Eberhard in Red Blackiland's team, gave a lot of speed to the final third of the game. In a counterattack pulled by the young talent, Schwartz had everything to score, but sent to the side of the goal. Cautious, Everett Matthews shrunk his team that withstood the pressure and held the tie.
The teams now turn to the two decisions in the wake of the qualifiers. Red Blackiland's team faces a theoretical direct showdown against Chromatika away from home. Meanwhile, Colfield faces the EEC team in their domains.

The Justified Means - Storyline and Guide

The Justified Means - Be a little warrior fighting against a titan!

Mission 1 - Arriving in Dakersh

Federico Dallavera, the protagonist, has just arrived in Dakersh, in search of Manuel Sanchéz, his friend and mentor, who is believed to have gone rogue. Federico also learns a few minor details about the nation and it's president: Emir Taamir al-Mahdi. Moments after arrival, the helicopter starts getting shot at by the Dak anti-aircraft weapons by Dakersh Military.
An agent gets shot inside the gun in the helicopter,and falls out of it, scattering personal digital assistant units all around the Abdul Fattaah el-Muhammad Military Headquarters. He also still has the pragonist's personal digital assistant.

Inside the helicopter

You have to then, leave the helicopter and jump out of it, grab the PDA from the dead gunner when reaches surface. You do not have access to the parachute at the moment. Just keep on falling and keep changing directions towards the shot agent. Once you get close to him, a cut-scene starts in which Federico takes his personal digital assistant from the agent's dead body. After this, Manuela Petarardo (a old female friend of Federico in work) will tell you to land at a marked spot. From this moment you'll have the access to the parachute. Approaching the landing spot triggers the next cut-scene appears. Federico's parachute is on fire, so he detaches himself from it and lands outside the Abdul Fattaah el-Muhammad Military Headquarters. Then, Manuela will then guide you through the rest of the mission.
When you land, Manuela will tell you to enter the military base. At this moment, the grappling hook gets unlocked for use. So, use that in your way into the base. There will be a guard on the edge of a building in front of you. Manuela will tell you to use your hook to pull him down. The first personal digital assistant data will be beyond that building.
Once the first intel card is retrieved, the guards are alerted and you'll have to kill the first few of them with the new and improved grappling hook. There are two guards shooting at you from another building edge. Pull them with your grappling hook to make them fall off the building, or pull the explosives at the top of that building to kill them. You can only use either of these two methods, because Federico is still unarmed at this initial stage of game.
Manuela tells Federico to obtain a gun. Use the hook to make your way to the dead soldiers and/or to a nearest weapons box and obtain a pistol as well as other weapon collectables. The next soldiers will be approach from in front of you. Don't forget to collect their ammunition once they're dead. Then proceed up the ramp. There will be 4-5 more soldiers to kill. Use boxes as cover during the shooting. Here you'll find the first first aid equipment to restore health if you need.
On your way forward, there will be a few more guards up to you in the left. You can use the aerial tramway to get to the next part of the base, but it's also possible just using the parachute. The second data card is on top of a building here. Once the second card is retrieved, an DM-12, a attack helicopter will show up and you have to use the conveniently close-by anti-aircraft cannon to shoot it down. While here, feel free to shoot at any other destructible objects. Blowing up parts of the enemy base will earn you respect points.

Destroying rival helicopter at the base

Once the chopper is down, there's again more soldiers to kill. Manuela will then tell you that a guard has taken the third data card and is trying to make a run for it. Get to the guard at a remote part of the base. The best way to get there is by the aerial tramway, but if that takes too long, you can also use a combination of the hook and parachute. If you slipped, it's still possible to approach by foot and use the grappling hook to climb up. Once you arrive at this part of the base, there will be a weapon box on the helicopter landing pad containing a SMG weapon.
Once you've killed everybody here and taken the card, Manuela will show up in the big helicopter and tell you to use the hook into it. She will fly you to the next part of the base, to get the next card. While flying, Manuela will tell you to shoot at the guards on the building to your left. One of them has a RPG. After killing everyone, get down from the helicopter and collect the fourth data card. Be careful as there will be two soldiers shooting at you with .40 miniguns.
Once retrieving the final card, a cut-scene starts where two SAMs rise up. Manuela tells you that she's unable to extract you until the SAMs are destroyed. Leaving the courtyard area where the SAMs are located will make the mission stuck, so if you want to go back and blow up any destructible objects that you may have missed, you can still do that at this point. It's also possible to return to this base after the mission, so it's fine anyway.
The courtyard area where the SAMs are located will have many soldiers, so it may be a good idea to take one of the miniguns with you. The minigun can blow up the SAMs, but there's also a box of huge explosives behind SAMs. It's also possible to destroy them with grenades, but you should be careful with aiming, because the grenades will only be able to destroy them if they explode as close to the SAMs as possible. After destroying the SAMs systems, Manuela tells you to hold on until she arrives. This means that you should not leave the courtyard area. The Dakersh Military will try to reconquer this part of the base. If you have a minigun, can use it to destroy the military vehicles, the jeeps and the DC-20, which is a heavy armoured personal carrier easier and faster. Get behind the SAM platforms if you need to take cover, but do not use the hook anywhere. If you go too far, Manuela will never come get you. There will not be any warning. The mission will just become stuck.
If everything goes well, Manuela will approach you after the shootout and you'll have to use the hook to the helicopter to escape. This triggers the final cut-scene. Federico gets into the helicopter and asks Manuela what to do next to find Manuel Sanchéz. She explains that there's only one person on this island who can tell where Manuel could be and he is Luiz Soon-Mi (an agent with Quebecois heritage), which is considered the last contact of KGB Albos in Dakersh. After this, she tells you to stay relax. From here you'll be taken automatically to Luiz house. This brings you directly to the starting point of the next mission, don't try avoiding it.

by **Schottia** » Wed Feb 08, 2017 3:37 am

The Art of Sneaking

Part three.

The first pint in a long time

'...and he looks like a right prick too.'

Gary smiled, enjoying having his opinions on his teammates affirmed, as he and the man sat in The Fiddlers' Bar. The rest of the players had offered that they join them, but Gary had declined. Part of the refusal was genuine, as he literally had nothing to say to any of them - but it was also partly down to him wanting to keep the man to himself. Gary was selfish by nature, and that included friendships. Now that he had finally met someone who actually understood him, there was no chance he was going to share that. The Fiddlers Bar's most redeeming feature was the fact that it was the closest to Schottia's Handon training ground. However it was comfortable enough, and other than the odd drunken local chancing his luck, the players could more or less guarantee they would be left alone.

'He is, he totally is.' Gary agreed, before taking a long swig of his pint, the first one he had had in ages. 'Killanen; you'd think he was the only player in this team, they way he carries on.' The drink was already going to his head after such a long period of abstention. They had opted for a thick, almost chocolaty stout on the man's recommendation, after Gary's classic indecision had caused a flap at the bar. It was definitely strong, five percent at least, as he could taste the alcohol, which almost numbed the back of his mouth.

The man laughed through his nostrils before lifting his own glass. 'Here's to being back.'

'Cheers, indeed.'

The trip hadn't been anywhere near as bad as Gary had feared, largely because he had managed to convince the man to accompany him. It turned out they were kindred spirits, the two of them. Gary had almost forgotten what it felt like to make a friend; a new friend. Whether it was staying up late discussing the pros and cons of various pieces of medieval weaponry, or just chatting about their upbringings while collecting firewood, it turned out that the two of them had much in common. This was another reason Gary was reluctant to introduce the man to his teammates. He'd been tarred with weird brush enough already, and he was worried they might get the wrong end of the stick when it came to their close friendship.

The man seemed smarter in this urban setting, yet, dressed now in dark trousers and a bottle green jacket, his attire didn't seem to quite fit with the rest of him. His little bit of hair around the back and sides was neatly combed - not that it made much difference - and his same gaunt jaw protruded either side of his pint glass as he supped.

The rest of the team - well of those who had opted to go out - were sat at two tables at the opposite side of the bar. Some of them cast curious looks, mostly at Gary, no doubt wondering whom or what they could be toasting. They were probably surprised to see him with a friend, with someone as worldly and wizened as the man. Jealousy was a terrible sin, but Gary found himself enjoying being able to soak up theirs.

'So whey's the lassie that was giving ye all the grief?' The man asked, the shoulders of his jacket rising as he turned to look over at the other players.

'Hah!' Gary rolled his eyes. 'Which one are you talking about? I think pretty much every one of them is out to get me.' The man had a good memory, in the two months that they had been companions Gary had already noted it several times. Gary only needed to tell him something once and he would remember it. He also picked a lot of detail from conversations, he was good at reading between the lines.

'The one that forced herself on ye.' The man turned back to him, taking another drink from his pint, but maintaining eye contact.

'Och,' Gary turned away, unable to meet his stair. 'That was as much my fault as it was hers. Honestly, I didn't exactly behave honourably. I should've spoken up, before costing a young woman her job.' This wasn't a lie, he did feel guilty about the way he had handled the Claire Hanson situation. However, there was no way either of them would ever apologize.

'It no the way I mind you telling the story. She was the one that was in the position of care!' The man focused his eyes a little, perhaps he felt Gary was backtracking or not telling him the whole truth. 'Have ye never considered pressing charges?' Gary remembered when he had told him the story now. It had been back in the hut, one evening not long after the man had moved in, and Gary had been at his wit's end about the national team call-up. He had probably over reacted, trying to impress upon his new houseguest exactly why he couldn't go back. Maybe he had exaggerated, maybe he had been too honest, but either way he had opened a can of worms and he was struggling to get the lid back on.

'Look, I was upset.' Gary placed his hands on the table, either side of his glass. 'That goes for at the time, and in the hut the other night. Seriously, man, take everything I say with a pinch of salt, alright.' Gary shook his head and looked away. In the mirror that ran around the bar, he could see one or two of his teammates staring at him; he lowered his voice before delivering the next bit. 'I'm putting all that shite behind me, that was the point in moving to the hut, to get away from all this.'

After their meeting in the birch wood that time, Gary had invited the man back to the hut for some soup, it felt like a bold move for him, but he had been in desperate need of company. It was so rare in life that you met someone you could talk to like that, and the more they chatted, the more he felt the man understood him. Sometimes he'd gone too far though, clearly, and he had divulged too much. He was afraid of not getting his own side of the story across, and he suspected that Claire had given her own watered down version of events to her husband. Well, she wasn't going to tell him the whole truth - that would be madness. The best-case scenario would have been her telling him nothing at all.

'Okay,' the man lowered his head in surrender. 'I'll leave it for now, I dinna want you getting upset. But you know I can't let you off the hook, ye're going to need to confront this.'

'Yeahyeahyeah.' Gary waved a hand at him to stop. He was suddenly conscious that they would be overheard, and the man was quickly changing from asset, to liability. 'She's not even here, she'll be with the rest of the coaches. So just knock it off.'

'Right, boss.' The man drew a pretend zipper across his lips, before breaking into a smile. 'I'll keep my mouth shut.' He glanced once more at the other players, who looked like they were considering ordering food. 'How did you play today anyway? Training I mean?'

"Shite“

The man predicted his response, answering in unison with Gary. The footballer laughed loudly, and picked up his glass. His outburst drew glances from a few of his teammates, but he didn't mind, he was glad they thought he was enjoying himself. 'I'm nothing if I'm not predictable, huh?' Gary filled his cheeks with more beer than he was comfortable with, realising that he needed to keep up with his companion. 'I sometimes...' he hesitated, 'I sometimes think that it would be better to just play so badly that I get dropped altogether. Just be done with it, y'know? But somehow I just can't bring myself to...' He watched while the man nodded, his narrow lips pursed tight together. 'I've always been worried that if I don't maintain a basic standard of football at Chatswood, then I'd be loaned out, and I might not have any control over it. And that was when I had far less to lose. Now, I have the valley, and my hut; I've no idea what would happen to my status if I found myself out of work, Its not like I have an Esportivan passport.'

'It's no easy.' The man was now down to the dregs of his pint, and Gary was forced to catch up. 'You're resourceful though, you'll find something.'

'Well I'm not sure.' Gary was trying to speak through the burps of beer-gas leaving his stomach; he patted his chest hard. 'Relegation makes things tricky, I'm totally at the mercy of the club, I don't think anyone is safe right now.' He watched while the man reached over the table, and briefly squeezed his arm in support. 'I mean, you're good at working things out, what would you do in this situation?'

The man shook his head, blowing across the table. 'Offer to take a wage drop?' He suggested with a shrug of the shoulders. 'Maybe try to convince them that ye're committed to getting them back up, but then again I'm no intimately familiar with the financial ins and oots of the club.'

'Me neither.'

'I don't reckon ye've done much up until now to demonstrate ye're commitment.' The man half stood up, patting his pockets in search of his wallet, but Gary quickly waved him back down.

'I'll get the drinks, mate.' He toiled with the last third of his own pint. 'But you're right, I've never done anything for that club, and they spent a fucking fortune on me.' Gary shook his head and gritted his teeth. The embarrassment, when he thought of his old price tag, was like burning metal against his bare flesh. 'Anyway, same again?' He pointed at the empty glass, waiting for the man to nod his thanks.

He pushed his stool back under the table and moved swiftly towards the bar. However, he hadn't gotten far before he felt a hand on the back of his arm. The man must have been on his way out for a smoke.

'Gary..?' but much to his surprise it was Molly and Anna, both of whom looked concerned. God, was it that bad that they needed to confront him in a pair? 'Before you open you're mouth, Chloe didn't put us up to this.' Anna Kurovski said in her usual goofy manner '...in actual fact, she eh, tried to stop us.'

Gary felt cornered and he didn't like it. Did they not know by-law 57.2, article 3, of the social handbook: Never corner a socially awkward person.

'Why don't you come over and join us?' Molly Killanen added, looking genuinely concerned. The way she stuffed her hands into her pockets told Gary that she was also nervous about speaking to him. 'You don't need to sit by yourself.'

It wasn't particularly about avoiding them (well maybe it was a bit), but he and the man were enjoying a conversation. He needed to get some things off his chest, and crazy as it sounded, he appreciated the non-footballer's perspective. What did Anna know about under performing, what did she know about ridicule. Molly had just got a big move within Cosumar, they didn't know what he was going through. They would answer him in sound bites, and in clichés. What Gary needed was someone who could give it to him straight, and that was the man. It was The Man. Who was the man? He was!

'Look I'm in the middle of a private conversation.' Gary replied a little more sharply than he intended, and the girls shifted uncomfortably at this. 'Sorry, I genuinely don't mean to appear rude, but I'm just trying to enjoy a drink before I head back to Nephara. I'll gladly catch up with everyone at some point, but at the moment I really need to talk something through.'

'That's what I was saying.' Anna pouted; she was struggling for the right words 'You don't have to do this alone. Whatever you're... you know... going through...'

'We're your teammates Gary.' Molly interjected, smiling warmly. 'Everyone here cares about you deeply, even if you think we don't show it. Even my caveman of a big brother.' she tried to offer a smile '

Fucksake, why did Molly have to be so fucking attractive? It made Gary despise himself for thinking about sex at a time like this. She was just trying to help him, even if her help was unasked for. This was why he needed to live in the valley, this was why he needed the newcomers to leave. He looked back to the table, where the man was shaking his head slowly, observing the situation.

'Again, thank you both for the invite, but I have company, and I really don't know how well we all would mix.' He ignored their puzzled expressions, as they followed his stare to where the man was sitting. 'This gentleman, whom I'm sitting with, is a dear friend, and we are just trying to catch up. Now if you'll please?' He manoeuvred his way past them with a polite dip of the head, and made his way to the bar. 'Enjoy the rest of your evening.'

This was snobbery of the highest degree. Just because the man didn't look the part. Just because he was older. Working class. What was it with football in Schottia? It was as if it had been gentrified. Guys like Molly, Anna, and Stephen Paul. Christ, Višnja Brankovič, a fucking law student. It was more like being in a university seminar than a training room sometimes. Ha! But who was he to criticise them? The man would have pulled him up on that in a second. "Is that no' the pot callin the kettle?" He could hear the man's voice in his head, clear as a bell.

What was Gary? A new age hippy, living in a shed in Laith, pretending to himself that he was better then everyone else?

He looked over his shoulder from the bar at the now empty table; the man had probably gone outside for a smoke. Gary sighed; he knew he was going to have a lot to say about this incident when he got back to the table. Besides, the rate he was throwing the drink back, he had a feeling the evening wasn't going to end well.

World Cup 77 - Roleplay Thread

The HUElavian road to World Cup 77

WC77Q-MD1 Inside Boldsport

ARWP Roleplay WC77Q - 2

Pre-World Cup 77 Qualifiers

95X WCQ 77 MD 1 RP

Who is online