OOC: Continued from here.Exiles, Part Seven
National Football Training Grounds
Tiraspol, Transnistrian Socialist State, PridnestroviaThe man got into the training grounds through the sheer force of his personality and star power despite not being a registered player of any of the Pridnestrovian clubs which were using the National Football Training Grounds as just that, their grounds for their training sessions as they prepared for the start of the new football season. The man was none other than Rory Edwards, and today he was in Tiraspol for a very special person in his heart.
"Well, as I live and breathe! Rory Edwards is in Tiraspol!" Branislav Fyodorovich Vinogradovsky, the new manager of Exiles Football Club, said as Edwards walked up to him. "What brings you to our beautiful country and city, Mr. Edwards?" Vinogradovsky asked in almost impeccable English.
"Oh, I'm just here to visit one of your new players, Mr. Vinogradovsky," Rory replied. "She promised me that she would set aside some time for the two of us to talk about our relationship."
"She?" Vinogradovsky repeated. "I think I know exactly who you're talking about. Just wait over on the bleachers over there and I'll get her for you."
"Thank you, Mr. Vinogradovsky," Rory said, following the Pridnestrovian's advice and walking along to a set of metal bleachers painted white erected over to the side of the training pitches. As a Fleftic, Rory Edwards knew little of what was going on inside Pridnestrovia right now despite the new relationship between the two countries. He did, however, know that Exiles Football Club was working very hard to recruit as many football-playing natives of Pridnestrovia's old ally into their ranks as they could so that they could once again promote the plight of the people to the Pridnestrovian people in the form of a football team. Rory had even heard rumors that Exiles had signed at least one player who was uninterested in playing for the club and another player who had not even played a single minute of professional football in his life. In that regard, Rory Edwards thought that Exiles had messed up big time, but as for the other players currently on their roster, Rory believed that the club had made some good moves and investments.
"Over there, Sohaila," Branislav Vinogradovsky said to the only female training in the pitch assigned to Exiles, and the girl looked up from the ball towards the bleachers and at Rory. She waved a hand at him and Rory waved back, and Vinogradovsky and the girl talked a little more before the girl left behind the ball and began to walk towards the bleachers and Rory, leaving Vinogradovsky no choice but to attempt to dribble the ball himself. He was stil able to do some keepie-uppies despite not having played professionally for more than a decade but holding a clipboard in his hand meant that Branislav couldn't keep dribbling the ball for long before he inevitably missed a kick.
Meanwhile, Sohaila Sultanovna Magomedova was now practically running towards the bleachers to meet Rory Edwards, who had stood up from his spot in the bleachers and had gone down to the pitch to meet Sohaila as well. Sohaila practically ran into Rory's arms and soon they were locked in a tight embrace. Rory then looked at Sohaila's face and reached down to kiss her, but Sohaila turned her face away. "Not here, Rory," she said shyly but coyly as well. "People are staring."
This earned her a laugh from Rory that was more like a snort of air through his nostrils. "So what if people can see?" he asked her back. "I don't mind telling people that we're now in a relationship."
"Oh, why do the Edwards boys always have to love girls much younger than they are?" Sohaila asked rhetorically. She was of course referring to the relationship between Rory's older brother Luke Edwards, who was 35, and Karen Villegas, who was 28. Yes, it wasn't as big of a gap despite the reactions of some people but nevertheless, the fact remained that the people of Abanhfleft still see Luke Edwards as the long-time servant of club and country and Karen Villegas as an up-and-coming talent from the under-21 level despite being already a proven top-tier striker for Rosenpfelblatz City Ladies.
"Why don't we sit down, Sohaila," Rory offered. "We both look stupid just standing around like this."
"Oh, all right, if you insist," Sohaila said, tucking her hair behind her ears before sitting down on the bleachers beside Rory.
"So, have you thought about that thing I asked you about?" Rory asked.
"I have, actually," Sohaila said softly. "And it wasn't an easy decision, mind you, but I think it's the right choice for me to make."
"So, what is it?"
"I'm going to represent Abanhfleft internationally."
At first glance, one would think that Sohaila's decision to represent Abanhfleft in international football was a strange decision indeed. Sohaila Magomedova had a Pridnestrovian father and a mother from Pridnestrovia's old ally. In any other world then Sohaila was eligible to represent only either Pridnestrovia or her mother's country. But this was a world in which Sohaila's father, Sultan Magomedov, had fled Pridnestrovia for Abanhfleft in the first few years of the presidency of President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko, when the old soldier had used the tactics of the old Pridnestrovian communist regime to crack down on potential political opponents and consolidate his grip on the Pridnestrovian presidency in the wake of the sudden death of Galdar Rodionovich Umayev, the first democratically elected president of Pridnestrovia. Sohaila's mother had been pregnant with her when she and her husband fled Pridnestrovia for Abanhfleft and so Sohaila Sultanovna Magomedova was born in Abanhfleft And due to an old Fleftic law which was still in effect even today, any person who was born on Fleftic soil, whether their parents were Fleftic citizens or not, immediately qualified for Fleftic citizenship.
But that wasn't the only reason why Sohaila had decided to suit up for Abanhfleft in international competitions. Sohaila's more immediate reason for deciding to represent Abanhfleft was because Abanhfleft was the country which had taught her how to play and appreciate football. Her footballing heroes growing up were people like Finlay Jameson, Ruud Akinfenyor, Matthew Cave, and in more recent years, Chelsea Stuart and Alexandra Rousseau and the like. Sohaila had even been invited to the football academy of Riuwiee United, one of the most prestigious clubs in Fleftic football, and that was how she had come to meet and know Rory Edwards.
"So you're choosing Abanhfleft," Rory said, and Sohaila nodded her head. "Well, all I can say is that you have a tough slog ahead of you. We've got a good of good girl players coming up through the ranks, especially in the midfield positions. We all know how good Lea Choi is right now, and your batch-mates like Cecily Segovia and Trinidad Kleist are sure to make an impact in the senior team very, very soon once we finally know who's coming in to manage the women's team sometime soon. So, does this mean that I'll be seeing you in Riuwiee sometime soon again?"
"Don't push it, Rory," Sohaila said. "As you can tell, I haven't received an official call-up yet, and I just transferred here from United. It's not like I can just up and tear up my contract here after I just signed for these guys."
"Why did you accept the transfer offer in the first place?" Rory asked. "I thought you didn't feel any particular connection to your mother's homeland."
"In all honesty, I don't," Sohaila admitted. "But these guys, the Exiles, they're offering me a chance to become a starter, probably even a star with them. I know that you're scouting me for the SFA, and I also know that Pridnestrovia is interested in having me represent them due to my dad so I feel like first team football is going to be very important for me in the near future. And I like the setup that they have going here. Exiles are trying to pull a Haranguer in the Super League; why else do you think did they sign me and Dipasupil's twins?"
"Um, because they were from your mother's homeland?"
"Oh, stop teasing me, Rory," Sohaila said coyly. Then in a more serious tone, she said, "If I really wanted to do good by my mother's country then I would play for that blasted Federation national team instead of Abanhfleft."
"Hey, what's this I hear about the blasted Federation national team?" A tall figure wearing the red training kit of Exiles walked up to Rory and Sohaila with his hands on his hips. There were lines on his face which to Rory appeared to have been carved out by the man being in a perpetual state of frowning. If he was asked to give an estimate of the man's age, he would say around thirty-plus.
"And who might you be?" Rory asked more than a little belligerently.
"I might be Stanislav Natashevich Vinogradovsky, assistant manager of Exiles FC," the man replied. "And who might you be?"
"I'm Rory Edwards, and I'm Sohaila's boyfriend," Rory replied.
"What do you want, Stanislav?" Sohaila asked in an exasperated tone.
"I heard you and your
boyfriend talking about what you call the 'blasted' Federation national team, Magomedova," Stanislav Vinogradovsky replied. "What's the matter, Sohaila? You think you're too good for a small team like the Federation?"
"No, it's not that, Stanislav," Sohaila replied a little forcefully. "I just don't want to represent a country to which I don't feel any strong connection."
"A country to which you don't feel a strong connection?" Stanislav repeated. "Do I need to remind you that your mother came from the country which more than half your fellow teammates are now going to represent once the paperwork is finally cleared up and the Federation can finally play in international competitions?"
"You know what, Stanislav? I'm sick and tired of everyone in this club trying to remind me that my mother is from your country!" Sohaila suddenly shouted as she stood up to stare Stanislav in the eye. "Yes, that may be true, but the fact remains that I was born in Abanhfleft and I grew up in Abanhfleft and I came to love football in Abanhfleft because football in Abanhfleft is just on another level and of a higher quality than anyplace else at the time. Will I get a chance to play for Abanhfleft on a senior level anytime soon? I don't know, but I'm willing to take the risk. And what do you care about my mother anyway, Stanislav? Is it because of your daddy issues?"
"Don't you dare talk to me about my mother that way, Magomedova," Stanislav hissed.
"Oh, I will dare talk to you in any way that I choose, Stanislav," Sohaila said back, staring Stanislav in the eye. "Yes, I heard the way you introduced yourself to Rory. Stanislav
Natashevich Vinogradovsky. So now you're using a matronymic just to deny the fact that you finally know who your father is. You'd rather live the lie of not acknowledging your father even though you and I and everyone else in this club know better."
"I will not be spoken to like that!" Stanislav shouted.
"What are you going to do about it, Branislavich?" Sohaila dared. "Are you going to ask your father to cut me from the team because I dissed you?"
Stanislav Vinogradovsky looked like he was about to explode; his face was so vividly red in his anger. "I'll get back at you for this, Magomedova," he threatened as he began to walk away. "Soon you'll wish that you had chosen to represent the Federation instead!"
"Who the heck is that guy?" Rory asked Sohaila once Stanislav was out of earshot. "He looks like he has it in for you, though."
"Oh, don't mind him," Sohaila waved off. "He's Coach Branislav's son, the son that Coach never knew he had until now."
"Wait, were you serious with that?" Rory asked in surprise. "I thought you were just kidding around with that one."
"No, Rory, this one is completely and absolutely serious," Sohaila told him. "And I think he hates me because I'm doing it for Abanhfleft and not his precious Federation. In fact, I think that the guy thinks that he could singlehandedly save his country from all the chaos and anarchy going on in it right now."
"But he can't do anything to you, can he?" Rory asked. "Can he?"
"Let's see him try," Sohaila spoke with confidence. "Oh, Rory, I would really love to see him try."
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CUP OF HARMONY 70: ABANHFLEFT VS SAVOJARNABy Malik QazizadahAbanhfleft women's national team celebrate their triumph over Savojarna in Drawkland as the Lady Revolutionaries advanced to the quarterfinals of the 70th Cup of Harmony. (Courtesy of Crescent News Network Sports Channel/Andros Tasasa)
DRAWKLAND - Two late goals from defenders Tonya Heaton and Miriam Hannibal rescued Abanhfleft's Cup of Harmony hopes as the Lady Revolutionaries came from behind to advance to the quarterfinals of the competition for the first time in the country's history.
Chelsea Stuart had given Abanhfleft an early lead when she applied with her head the finishing touch to Bella Maynard's free kick, earned by the Lady Revolutionaries after a harsh tackle on Regina Mesbros by Savojar captain Kristina Midström.
Alexandra Rousseau then doubled Abanhfleft's advantage when her speculative effort from outside the box actually managed to find the target and go into goal but Savojarna's Freya Sigurdsdottir halved her side's deficit after she headed in the cross from Irina Jarkasjärvi, and then Jarkasjärvi herself then scored Savojarna's equalizer with two minutes left from the half-time break.
Abanhfleft then struggled to replicate their earlier form against their opponents in the start of the second half and the Lady Revolutionaries eventually paid for their slow start when Sigurdsdottir doubled her tally after she tapped in the ball from Anna Reskilainen's pass into the box.
The stage looked set for a potential classic upset by Savojarna on Abanhfleft as the Lady Revolutionaries continued to struggle for goals, but it appeared as if not even the introduction of Allison Torres and Zsofia Dolan as substitutes would help the Fleftics' cause to progress further in the Cup of Harmony, but as it happened, it would turn out that the two players would actually be indirectly responsible for what was to come for Abanhfleft.
Dolan's rasping attempt from just inside the box had to be parried away for a corner kick by Viktorija Petrova, and it was from that corner kick that Tonya Heaton would end up scoring Abanhfleft's vital equalizer against the Savojars. Three minutes later, Torres forced another corner out of Savojarna, and while Torres' headed attempt struck the post that time, the inevitable scramble somehow ended with Miriam Hannibal scooping the ball away from everyone else and over the goal line, resulting in loud groans from the Savojar faithful and loud and enthusiastic cheers from the Fleftic fans.
Savojar substitute Kaisa Hytamäki attempted to force extra time for her side in the dying minutes of the match but despite a flurry of shots from the opposition, Abanhfleft stood firm and eventually managed to progress to the quarterfinals of the Cup of Harmony for the first time in the team's history.
Abanhfleft women's team manager Holly Jonasson: "It was a very intense game, very intense. It was very much end to end as well. Every time someone fired a shot at the goal you kept thinking that 'that's it, that's a goal.' This is a match for the ages. People will still be telling stories about this game a hundred years later. People will talk about where they were when Abanhfleft advanced to the quarterfinals of the Cup of Harmony. Now of course the aim is to win in the quarterfinal but Soltsteed is a formidable team. We cannot take anything for granted for the quarterfinals. We must not let this golden opportunity slip from our fingers."
Abanhfleft will face Soltsteed for their quarterfinals match in the 70th Cup of Harmony.
ABANHFLEFT 4 - 3 SAVOJARNA
STUART (5') SIGURDSDOTTIR (35', 56')
ROUSSEAU (16') JARKASJÄRVI (43')
HEATON (78')
HANNIBAL (81')
YESOPALITHA
GK: 1 Petrova
RB: 3 Reskilainen
RCB: 4 Kjaer
LCB: 2 Ernberg
LB: 5 Midström █ (Hytamäki - 71')
RM: 15 Vailova
CM: 6 Raukanen (Namenkova █ - 82')
LM: 8 Johansson
RS: 10 Jarkasjärvi
ST: 11 Sigurdsdottir
LW: 7 Haakonson (Mahlström - 68')
ABANHFLEFTGK: 1 Carter
█RB: 14 Warren
CB: 15 Hannibal
LB: 16 Heaton
█RM: 5 Maynard
LM: 6 Choi
RW: 7 Prescott
CAM: 12 Mesbros (Torres - 69')
LW: 8 Singh (Johnson - 80')
RS: 9 Stuart
█LS: 11 Rousseau (Dolan - 73')
STATISTICS
PossessionAbanhfleft: 52%
Savojarna: 48%
ShotsAbanhfleft: 13 (7 on target)
Savojarna: 10 (5 on target)
CornersAbanhfleft: 4
Savojarna: 4
FoulsAbanhfleft: 21
Savojarna: 15