Baptism of Fire 69 - IC Thread

[Ethane]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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Ethani Side

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RP Prompt: ''Every player warms up in some way, mentally and physically. How do your players prepare for a game? Do they have any weird practices or superstitions? (examples can include a lucky sock, a certain action etc)

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Grod Island 2–2 Balqia (2–4 AET) @ St. Maries Stadium

Alluersia 1–3 TigerSharkistan @ King Edward IV Stadium

Bohr 0–0 Uan aa Boa (1–0 AET) @ Newton-Smith Arena, Ethane

Ofasval 0–0 Skarten (0–0 AET) (5–3 pen.) @ Glent Pit, Ethane

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Quarter-Finals

Balqia vs TigerSharkistan @ Glent Pit, Ethane

Bohr vs Ofasval @ King Edward IV Stadium

[Eastfield Lodge]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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Round of 16 scores - Eastfielder Side

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RP Prompt: ''Every player warms up in some way, mentally and physically. How do your players prepare for a game? Do they have any weird practices or superstitions? (examples can include a lucky sock, a certain action etc)

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Bysantia 3–5 Nottinhaps
@ King Iqbal II Stadium, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge

Xanneria 5–3 Baranil
@ Olympic Park, Mount Salt City, Eastfield Lodge

North Quadana 2–3 Libertas Omnium Maximus
@ Norrion Park, Norrion, Eastfield Lodge

Walenstein 1–0 Eraman
@ Vorgan Park, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge

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Quarter-Finals

Nottinhaps vs Xanneria
@ Parliament Stadium, Lodgertia, Eastfield Lodge

Libertas Omnium Maximus vs Walenstein
@ Lodger City Memorial Stadium, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

[excerpt from the Sports: Daily Magazine]
Maximusian National Team has made it into the final 8

After an incredible game played by both the Maximusian National Team (MNT) and North Quadana, "The Wall," once more reigns victorious, securing themselves a spot in the Quarter-Finals, final 8 against Walenstein. "It was a game I will never forget" Caleb Darkas, defender told Sports: Daily. "We played a tough but fantastic fight."

Once again breaking records, the Maximusian viewership of the match exceeded all before it. Nearly a 16th of the nation's citizens watched the match. This was by far the most viewed event in Maximusian history. We can only assume that next match will surpass even this!

The game started off with two frankly brilliant goals. Toda Yutaka scored a point for North Quadana (NQ) in the 16th minute and Brookshire rapidly tied it up in the 27th minute with a fantastic chip shot. As the game progressed, aside from Mueller managing to get carded (yellow) for a botched slide tackle of Murayama Kata, the game went by without score. The First half finished: 1-1.

The second half proved to be far more eventful. It began with a rapid goal, also by Today Yutaka in the 49th minute, and was rapidly marked by a shot on goal by Yin Lan in the 60th minute. Both teams showcased their incredible footwork for the next twenty minutes. Neither team allowing a goal to go in. It wasn't until the final 5 minutes that Walter McIntosh managed to pop a chip shot in, crushing NQ's chances of progression. This was his first ever goal in a finals of any kind.

Soon, the Maximusian Team will be up against what is certain to be their toughest foe yet, Walenstien, infamous in this tournament for their fancy footwork and ruthless, but highly effective tactics. The MNT has come so far now though, let us see if they can't take on this monster of a team and progress into the final 4. If not, I doubt any of the MNT players will have any regrets. They have played a great tournament so far.

[Bohr]

Krone's extra time winner sends Bohr to quarterfinals

It's been a chaotic Baptism of Fire, to say the least. Outside of Finn Williams, almost nobody on the Bohr squad has performed as expected, either underperforming or overperforming. So it would make sense that, in the 110th minute of a Round of 16 slugfest, it would be Ian Krone, the unheralded Girard player, who would score the winning goal and get Bohr to the Round of 8. Despite ending 0-0, the first 90 minutes were exciting to watch, with Noel Drew making a few spectacular saves that proved that he's still got a bit left in the tank. On the other end, Finn Williams had a surprisingly bad game, and was subbed out for Charles Niebur in the 78th minute. It wasn't quite a game you would expect to be 0-0 at 90 minutes, with both teams having good chances, but it did, and so we went into extra time with everything at stake. And it seemed to be more of the same at first in extra time; 15 minutes went by without a shot, both teams being worn out. But Krone found himself in the box, and a Serrins cross looked good, and he made his shot. Bohr will now face Ofasval in the quarter-finals, with a good chance at the semis. They've already gone farther than most of the tournament; now they grapple with possible immortality.

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

Athlete's Village, Eastfield Lodge
10-hours to Quarter Finals

Tom Levi, though the center of an enormous scandal, The "sedate-gate," couldn't have felt any more relaxed as he walked into the Team's private gym. Tom was a very laid back guy to begin with. He wasn't as uptight and professional as Vanderbilt, nor was he authoritative or aggressive by nature, like Brookshire or Mueller. Tom Levi was a very laid back man indeed. It was, perhaps, his greatest strength. He was a brilliant player, not because of his raw talent, of which he did have copious amounts of, but because of his ability to take a huge step back and see the big picture. It gave him the ability to not get to drawn up in the heat of the moment.

He slowly took a seat one of the gym's treadmills, methodically took off his bedroom slippers, and put on his running shoes. No need to go to hard today, he thought to himself, The risk of pulling a muscle outweighs the possibility of a strategic advantage on the pitch. He set his watch for 45 minutes, hoped up onto the treadmill, began to jog lightly, and slowly fell into the methodical rhythm of putting one foot in front of the other. The was no real reason he had to bore himself by thinking of nothing so he let his mind slowly wander.

His first instinct, as he was only hours away from the match of his career, was to take a nice morning stroll down memory lane. He had always been a nostalgic man. It seemed that he was becoming more and more sentimental by the hour. He had even brought his first pair of cleats for good luck. He had dragged them all over the world just for their sentimental value.

Just as simply as it came, his sentimental wonderings vanished and he increased his pace one step. Was I sedated in order to give my opponents an advantage he asked himself. More importantly, by whom?

Levi was a smart man, it hadn't taken him long to figure out that this had to have been an inside job. It couldn't have been a fellow player. He was at bare minimum certain of that. No player, even a reserve, would have had the opportunity to drug the drinks. He also figured out that the person who was behind the event didn't know all too much about the inter-workings of the team since it seems that they only drugged the largest cooler.

There was a team superstition that only Darkas and Levi didn't follow: "Never drink out of the 5 gallon cooler." It was, in Tom's opinion, the stupidest thing he had heard of so he ignored it. He happily filled his bottle up from it every time. If the perpetrator knew the team, he would have known not to drug the % gallon cooler but instead drug the 3 gallon ones. This meant that he could rule out Alfonsi and Berkley, they had been with the team since 2018. They knew all about the superstition.

This actually narrowed the search down to about 10 people. Levi was about to step of the treadmill to explain his findings to Alfonsi when an idea came into his head. Suppose I conduct my own investigation. People will have a far looser tongue with me than with Coach.

In the most elevated state of contentment, Levi let his mind wander onto the game ahead.

[Xanneria]

Death, Taxes, & Xanneria winning!
By Steve Stevenson football.xan

Mount Salt City, East Field Lodge - In a Round of 16 that saw huge upsets and sloppy low scoring games, it was only certain that Xanneria would win. Another 5 goal game left Baranil and their nordic bombers in the dust as it was never in doubt and in fact this game easily should have been a shut out. heck with four goals, Glenn Hailey is looking like a one of the next big things. With the game starting it looked very much like a trouncing was about to take place.The Hailey brothers lead the charge leading a massive win in the war on possesion winning 68% to 32% for Baranil. Despite efforts from the big two of Baranil, Thoraldsson and Loof, the rest of the team looked off. Despite having the personnel to keep up with the Maroons, sloppy play lead to a quick 3-0 lead before half distance. Two goals by Glenn Hailey and Niel Cortland who finally got a goal. And by 65 minutes in it was 5-0. Included in those two additional goals were Pete Saigon who replaced Chuckie Van Horn after a yellow card and Glenn Hailey who got his second hat trick of his international career. By the end of the game when the game was out of hand, suddenly Alton had a change of heart, literally giving the hapless Baranil team 3 goals, with intentionally weaksauce defense. But that wasn't the biggest news of the group, nope, Bysantia, a team that looked invincible went down to Nottinghaps 5-3, meaning our next opponent will not be the Bysantians but a relatively unknown Nottinghaps team lead by Ian King and Andres Copeland. It will be an unusual adventure for the Xannerians as Bysantia was heavy favorites going in and now they are already out.

Xanneria - 5
9' 29' 60' G Hailey
33' Cortland
69' Saigon

Baranil - 3
81' 88' Thoraldsson
86' Hanss

[Eraman]

Introduction | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 |Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 |Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11

CHAPTER 12 - ULTIMATUM AT THE END OF THE ROAD

Everyone in the Eraman camp is in a celebratory mood after the win against Pratapgadh in the Round of 24 except for two people, Putra Daulapura Suara Petara and Tun Sengalang Petara. The two still have an unsettled business. The younger prince was summon to the elder prince hotel room right after the team reach their hotel. And the result of the talk is an ultimatum.

The younger prince was given two choice, either stay with Royal Daulapura or leave the national team. The younger prince is having none of it and determined for a move away from the royal capital city even if it means leaving the national team. The national team deputy captain is sent home prematurely.

This results discontent among the other national team players. The celebratory mood ended just after they receive the news that their deputy captain is going to be sent home. A team that was divided into two groups are now united. The whole team including the coach is not happy with the interference from the president of the Eraman Football Association. After a brief discussion among them, the team agreed to boycott Eraman Football Association and the national team if the president does not retract his decision.

The president in retaliation dismiss the whole squad and brings the whole Royal Daulapura squad to replace the national team. So it will be Walenstein against Royal Daulapura minus their foreign players, Putra Daulapura Suara Petara, Dino Sapar, Biduk Serangga and Awan Heli.

Against a very good Walenstein side, the new Eraman national team is facing an uphill battle. In the end, no Eramanian won. Walenstein defeated the national team by a single goal margin to qualify to the quarter final and send every Eramanian back home. It is the end of the road for Eraman in Eastfield Lodge.

[Walenstein]

Walensteiner Broadcasting Corporation Sport

19:34 February 12th, 2019
By: Emanuel Radnitzer, senior football correspondant

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Severin lifts Walenstein over Eraman 1-0 to secure Quarterfinal position!

#WALvERA

Walenstein‌‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌1 - 0‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌Eraman ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌

‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌O. Severin 45+1' ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌
‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌
‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌

‌‌FT

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VORGAN PARK, EASTFIELD LODGE --

Walensteiner CAM and team captain, Oliver Severin, stole the show in his side's BoF Round of 16 match against Eraman, with his bizarre but amazing strike in stoppage time that drove a stake through Eraman's heart just before half time, in a tightly contested fixture with a steggering amount of bookings.

Right as Walensteiner striker Nikolaus Ludwig opened the match with his kick-off, it was obvious that we'd be in store for an amazing match between two amazing sides. Walenstein somewhat controlled possesion in the first half, ensuring the side made short and safe passes wherever possible to minimize loss of possesion.

The first half was full of action yet goalless until it's dying minutes.

In the 18th minute, however, striker Matthias Merten would get close! Viktor Diethelm plays it out wide to Fred Kaspar, and the left midfielder floats in a teasing ball into the Eraman box that Merten makes contact with, only to have his header fly over Eramanian goalkeeper Dundang Bayan and the bar by a margin of milimeters. Walenstein really should have scored there!

3 minutes later, Walensteiner centre back Peter Georg would get booked with a yellow card by the referee after bringing down Mano Bosa as the Eramanian midfielder embarked on a long run down the right wing. Being 33 yards out, the midfielder decided to attempt a shot on net. Taking the free kick with his right leg, he'd send the strike over the wall but many yards past the net to it's left.

As the 32nd minute approached, Walensteiner left-back Simon Eckhart would be brought down following a rough mis-timed slide tackle by Eramanian midfielder Biduk Serangga. The referee showed no hesitation in bringing the match to a halt, and booked the offender with his yellow card. Eckhart stayed down for a few minutes, as Walensteiner medical staff rush out onto the pitch, but he eventually gets back up, declining any assistance and an offer to be subbed off by manager Amadeus Klausmann.

In the 43rd minute, Merten would miss again! A quick breakaway by the Walensteiner side is led by Oliver Severin, who plays it to Fred Kaspar before the ball is sent out wide to right midfielder Heinrich Helmfried, who would cheekily pass the ball backwards to the waiting Matthias Merten. The striker would unleash a fierce strike that goes just wide to the right of the net.

Despite missing the mark just moments ago, the team would press on. Just as the fourth official would raise his board from the touchline indicating 5 added minutes of stoppage time, mostly due to Eckhart's injury and protestations form both sides about the cards issued, Walenstein appeared to be forming an offensive push of some sort.

Despite regaining possesion, a minute into added time Eramanian centre back Badang Gangsa would carelessly give away the ball in his side's portion of the midfield to Fred Kaspar, who would chip the ball towards Viktor Diethelm. Stalling his push for a few moments to allow his side's attackers to get into position, he'd eventually lob the ball in the air and into the box. Going completely unmarked at the edge of the box, Oliver Severin tracked the ball as it was coming towards him. Turning a full 180 degrees, he'd attempt a bicycle kick, timing it perfectly and unleashing an unexpected shocker of a strike off his left foot! Keeper Dundang Bayan has no time to react as the suprise shot sails right by him into the right corner of his net to open scoring for Walenstein 1-0!

The entire stadium burst with amazement, as did the commentators of both sides, simply flabergasted at what they just saw! Severin just scored a brace using one of the arguably most difficult skill shots in football, a move that is a schoolboy's dream to master! Supporters of Walenstein went into overdrive, singing their songs and cheering well after the restart.

As the referee blew for halftime, Walenstein managed a staggering 7 shots on net, with only Severin's banger beating keeper Dundang Bayan. Eraman managed a respectable 4 shots on the net, but none particularily looked like going in.

With the second half of the match commencing, Eramanian supporters tried to do their bit, egging their side on for an equalizer to keep their team alive in the Baptism of Fire, with their chants easily drowning out those of Walenstein's supporters despite their best efforts.

Shortly after the restart, in the 50th minute, Viktor Diethelm would knock over Eramanian Kilat Saputra in a head-on collision during their scuffle over possesion. Both players would fly in the air for a moment, before hitting the pitch. The referee brings the match to a halt, as both players get up after several agonizing seconds. After a minute consulating VAR, the referee decided the Walensteiner midfielder committed an illegal challenge, and showed him his yellow card.

Several Walensteiner players, including captain Oliver Severin, vehemently disagreed with the decision, and despite the referee's clear orders to disperse, continued their protestations. Eventually, only Severin and Merten persisted, despite their teammates' attempts to seperate them. The referee shows his yellow to both Severin and Merten, making this one event a triple-booking. Begrudgingly, the two players disperse, not wanting to risk another yellow.

A chance would come in the 61st minute for Eraman, with a brilliant through-pass from Rimau Belang to striker Buisan Buayan just yards from the edge of Walenstein's penalty box. The attack would be cut-short by the referee's whistle however, as his assistant referee raised his flag for offside. Video review of the off-side call found Buayan only a couple of steps offside, denying Eraman any chance to capitalize on a decent break-through of Walenstein's defence.

As the 63rd minute rolled around, Walenstein's manager Amadeus Klausmann decided it was time for a tactical substitution. He brought off Severin and replaced him with Ludolf Walther, not wanting to risk a red for Severin after his most recent outburst.

67 minutes in, Ludolf Walther, the Walensteiner sub making his first international debut, would be gently brought down by Cicak Kudung outside the box but within striking distance of Eraman's net. The referee would brandish his yellow card instantly, making this the 6th booking of the match and only the second for Eraman! Many would question the antics of this seemingly trigger-happy referee when it came to bookings.

Taking the free kick from his right foot, Walther decides to try a shot on net. The free kick comes flying in from the right-edge and Helmfried, who's standing at the right end of the wall, latches onto it with a fabulous header. He sends it towards the bottom-right of the net, but the Eramanian keeper would make a fingertip save, blocking Nikolaus Ludwig's follow-up shot aswell.

Walenstein would use it's remaining substitutions all at once in the 72nd minute, by means of a double substitution. Fred Kaspar and Viktor Diethelm are off, replaced by Linus Wendel and Hans Gerhardt respectively.

Finally, a bit of calm in the match would ensue, up until the 88th minute. Eraman's oppurtunity to equalize and force extra time presented itself with a rocket of a strike from Buisan Buayan, beating keeper Manuel Oswald but sailing but a hairlength too high, bouncing off the bar and up into the stands. This appeared to be the end of the match, although Eraman remained on the offensive for quite a bit, managing two more shots, none of which on target.

The last and final event of the match took place in the third minute of stoppage time, with Manuel Oswald suprisingly recieving the 7th and final booking of the match. Taking his time walking to the rear of his net to collect the ball for a goal kick, despite not violating the 6 second rule when he took his kick, the Walensteiner keeper was booked with a yellow card for time wasting. Oswald vented at the referee, although the referee entertained no objection to his decision.

The referee finally blew full time a few moments after, with Walenstein clinching a 1-0 win, and a spot in the quarterfinals. The final tally of bookings stands at 7 yellow cards issued.

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All that matters in these knock-out rounds is winning, and Walenstein has done just that! With other results around the grounds coming in, it has been determined that Walenstein will face a in-form Maximusian side in the quarterfinals across New Lodger City, at the Lodger City Memorial Stadium.

Asked about his team's brilliant performance, Amadeus Klausmann offered these thoughts:

"I was only expecting for us to barely get out of the groups at the start of the competition, if I'm honest. I'm simply amazed at the quality of football played by our lads throughout this competition, and I'm honoured to say I am managing a side that has made it to the quarterfinals of it's first presitigous international event! Well played to Eraman today, their defence was on-point, however we were just more clinical at the end of the day. Another day, this match could have gone in the complete different direction."

He was then asked about the controversy that ensued from the high-amount of bookings issued for seemingly questionable offenses.

"Whilst I respect the word of the match officials, I feel the bookings tonight were very audacious, especially for the Diethelm incident and the absoloutely ridiculous Oswald time-wating incident at the end. Whilst I wont comment further on the matter, I feel tonight's match offical was very, very quick to brandish the card for the most minor of offenses. Five cards on our end is absoloutely mental."

And lastly, about his side's upcoming quarterfinal fixture with Libertas Omnium Maximus.

"The Maximusian side will prove to be an intresting opponent for our lads. The way they defend so quickly and fluidly, and the precision of their strikes amazes me. The lads will have their work in store tomorrow. They managed to crush our former group 9 rivals, Alanikka spectacularily, capitalizing on certain areas that we didn't over the course of our two fixtures versus the side. I can assure you, we have been discussing tactics at training as to how to overcome said shortcomings, and I expect the lads to give it their hardest tomorrow!"

Join us tomorrow for full coverage of the BoF Quarterfinal fixture Libertas Omnium Maximus v. Walenstein!

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19:34 February 12th, 2019
By: Julia Obermann, host of Football Insider

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Football Insider: A look at the pre-game rituals of Walenstein's national team!

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EASTFIELD LODGE --

In this evening's edition of Football Insider, we were given access to the players of the Walensteiner national team to ask them what is their pre-game ritual!

Wonderkid striker Matthias Merten's ritual consists of placing a lucky coin in his right boot, given to him by his ex-footballer father Wolfgang Merten who played in the lower tiers of Walensteiner football. He states that the coin is his key to success, despite it being somewhat uncomfortable to run with.

Keeper Manuel Oswald kisses both of his posts before kick-off, and asks the gods of football to let shots coming his way sail wide. He states that this works, as the one time he neglected to do it, the 2014 Cup of Walenstein semis, his side FC Neufeld was humbled by FC Kreuzstadt 6-0 in his worst ever performance to date.

And, lastly, the talented centre-advanced midfielder Oliver Severin's pre-game ritual consists of tying his left boot's laces before his right, apparently to ensure the accuracy of strikes from his weaker left foot. And, it appears to work, as the CAM scored a number of marvelous and amazing shots, most recently his bicycle kick goal at tonight's match; all with his weaker foot.

Join us tonight at 22:00 on WRF TV Walenstein 1 for tonight's daily football recap, including transfer news, results and match results of the Walensteiner SuperLiga and national team!

[Sajnur]

Player Profile: Andre Naulo

Andre Naulo is the 22 year old striker for the Sajnur national football team. He is widely considered to be the best attacking player in Sajnur, and is the only Sajnuran with a similar level of ability to team captain Jessica Siafik. Predominantly right footed but still devastating with his left, his primary role is to get the ball in the back of the net by any means necessary, using his pace, his positional ability, or simply by lashing it in from wherever, and it's a job he does remarkably well, having scored two goals at the Independents Cup, and scoring six goals in an otherwise disappointing campaign here at the Baptism of Fire.

Andre was born to Laghian parents near the edge of Sajnur, and adopted football at an early age. He was normally your average school student, but had obvious and spectacular talent on the field, and was picked up by the Laghian Sports Academy at the age of 10. He was also one of the fastest runners at school, once clocking a 100m time of 11.70 at his school's athletics carnival. Making his professional debut at just 15, Naulo has played nine seasons in Sajnur's top football league and already scored 205 goals.

Andre is a man with many weapons at his disposal. His blistering pace has left many a defender in his dust, or even on the ground, and offside traps nationwide have been rendered useless. While he has never been a particulary flashy dribbler, with only an occasional deployment of tricks, this has had little effect on his ability, with 40 yard runs being a frequent sight when Andre is on the ball. He is no less effective off the ball, either, capable of drawing defenders away from his teammates to leave them open for critical passes, or simply putting enough distance between himself and his enemies that he can receive passes unmolested. Most critical for a striker, however, is his finishing ability, and oh can he finish. Curling shots, chip shots, or simple power, he can slot them in from right in front, or belt them in from 40 yards. Andre prefers to bring himself closer to the goal, but when the defenders in front of him are really good, or he just can't be bothered, he's not completely opposed to long range efforts. He's not all that bad at passing either, registering 37 assists in his career so far, and he can even bunt the goals in with his head, his 5'7" frame being helped by the same legs that propel him to dizzying speeds also using their power to bounce him high in the air.

Andre's main hobbies are video games and rapping, and he is known to be well connected to the Sajnuran music scene, with famous rapper Yalahel frequently appearing in his social media posts and Andre appearing in his song "Rolling".

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

The Investigator: Part the First
Athlete’s Village, Eastfield Lodge
9 hours until Quarter Finals

Tom stepped from the steaming shower onto the warm tiles of his bathroom in a contemplative state. He wrapped a towel around his waist and walked out into his room. Gingerly, he sat down on his bed and lofted his phone from the night stand. It was a brand new Andromeda 8 made by the tech company his girlfriend worked with. He turned it on and taped his way onto the GroupYou app. It displayed the message he had been hoping for.

Vincent: Y’all Ned not worry yourself with a full blown practice or a scheduled meet up until 5:00 AM. More info to follow.

Tom smiled. He was going to enjoy having the next couple hours to do his investigation. He stood, dressed quickly, pocketed his phone and left his room after snagging a note pad and pen off of the nightstand.

5 minutes later
Tom nearly bumped into his first suspect, Steven Ruggiero. Tom knew that Steve was actually spearheading the official investigation. He could care less. The doctor knew medications and dosages better than anyone else and fidn’t know about the superstition. He was suspect #1, Tom decided.

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

The Investigator: Part the Second
Athlete’s Village, Eastfield Lodge
30 seconds after Part the 1st

“Doc, I have a question for you.” began Levi confidently.

“What can I do for you, Tom?” The doctor replied after moving one step closer to Tom.

“I have a question about Acedemetrexol.”

“That isn’t really how you pronounce it but, none the less, I would be happy to answer your question.”

“Where would one, hypothetically, get their hands on Acedema-Acedemi-the sedative?”

“Good question, Acedematrexol, as you call it is a fairly uncommon sedative and pain killer. It is a narcotic actually. It was originally designed for someone who was in immense pain. In low doses, it is sometimes used as a normal sedative. The type of dose you would have been exposed to, in example, couldn’t have been more than a few mL. Anything more than that and you would have collapsed.”

Tom led Steve from the hallway where they had met to the lounge. Tom took a seat in a comfy, synthetic leather armchair. Steve sat across from him in a similar chair.

“Please continue.” Tom said in a relaxed voice.

“Ok, to directly answer your question, it would be very easy to get Acedematrexol. That is assuming you had some sort of a medical background. It can also be prescribed to you. Mind you, to get this stuff prescribed for you, you essentially need to get run over or stabbed. I wouldn’t ever prescribe it for anything less than a cracked rib cage in you guys. It, in any form, would impede your game play for at least 24 hours. You should be totally fine now.”

“Oh yeah, I feel fine and wasn’t concerned with that. I was just trying to figure out what type of person could get the drugs in the first place.”

Steve plastered a fatherly grin across his face. “We are doing everything in our power to find the culprit. You need not be worried.” At that, Steve stood and walked from the room.

Tom made notes in his note pad discreetly and set out after his next subject.

[Balqia]

Sport Report: Baptism of fire edition

You open a new window in your computer while your boss isn’t looking. You look to your back, after confirming that your boss leaved the room you start to type and enters in the sports channel site. You plug your earphones and clicks in the video “sport report live”, you minimize the window and starts to work again, in a slower pace.
-... and you are watching Sport Report. Today we will be speaking with our contact in Ethane to know more about the last match.
You hear the sound of the transition that always play with the logo.
-Hello Balqia, my name is Markus Petriq, and today we are in a premium cabin of the St. Maries Stadium, as you can see we have a beautiful view from here, we will also show some exclusive images of the interior of the stadium.
You can hear a light music playing, as you are leading your cursor to open the window you see the door of your boss office opening and he comes out to check everybody's work. You go back to work, paying attention in the program.
-That was incredible, I especially loved the photo were the national team posed. But now we will start the interview, today’s guest is… Gregorius S. Matiq, welcome Mr Matiq.
-Hello Markus, hello Balqia. It’s a honor to be here.
-I see your leg is healing.
-Oh yeah, soon I will be able to walk without the crutch.
-Okay, so, how did you feel about the game?
-Oh I was pretty nervous, both teams were incredible, the first half was though, the first goal was made by them, and I could tell you that Vilan was pretty nervous, usually he is very aggressive when it comes to defend the back, in this one he was very reserved, he just tried to delay the enemy team. I noticed that Petre was also very nervous, he almost didn’t attacked and his best move was pass the ball to Rigo so he could made the goal.
-Do you have any critic about the tactic used?
-No, it was very, very good. We could balance the game until the end, you see, in this phase of the championship we can not test riskier tactics, so a more conservative approach was good enough. The offensive strategy was a good move, we made two goals, I mean, the ball barely touched our side of the field.
-What do you think about the next game?
-Well, it will be hard. Tigersharkistan is a pretty good team, I mean, he defeated our greatest rival, Alluersia, so we can see that they know what they are doing. I am confident, unfortunately I will not be playing the next game too, Pard sayid that my leg need to recover, however I will be back to training after tomorrow.
-That was all Gregorius, thanks for participating.
-You are welcome, it’s a honor to be here.
-That’s all folks, see you later.
You imagine that the logo appears in the screen as the reporter stops talking.
-Thanks Markus, and we have a great announcement today. We will be…
You boss taps your shoulder and starts to speak with you about work. You furtively closes the window before he starts to look at your PC.

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

The Investigator: Part the Third
Athlete’s Village, Eastfield Lodge
Lunch time

Tom spotted suspect #2 out of the corner of his eye. Robert Bridgeman. He was one of the team’s assistant coaches. He was Tom’s least favorite and, more importantly, he was a very skittish person by nature. Tom plated his sandwich from the food court and walked towards Bridgeman’s table.

“Do you mind if I join you, Bob?” Tom asked confidently.

“Why not? Please... take a seat. What can I do for you, Tom?” He responded hesitantly.

“Nothing. I was just growing tired of Brookshire showing off.” He chucked at his own lie.

“Ok, well, I am happy to have your company. Last night I thought of a new defensive position for you guys if a striker comes down one of the sides.”

Play the game. Tom thought to himself. For the next 5 minutes, Tom sat through what was actually an extraordinarily well thought out strategy. He quickly moved it to his mental archives.

“How is life for you back in LOM?” Tom ventured.

“Not so good. Obviously, my team Portland FC, is great. The issue is that my wife just got into a car accident. Not good.”

“I am so sorry to hear that! Is she ok?” The wheels in Tom’s head were already turning.

“She is alright, just in pain sometimes. A lot of pain. It is really unfortunate.”

Tom was pretty sure he had peiced things together sufficiently. He concluded his conversation and went to seek out the remaining 8 people on his list. This was more for due diligence than anything though. He was pretty sure he had cracked the case. All he needed was a little more evidence.

[Balqia]

Player Profile


Name: Balto Dianoniq Faj
Age: 30 years old
City of birth: Saimvaros - Balqia

Balto was born in Saimvaros, a city in the countryside of Balqia, his father is Falkus Dianoniq Faj, a carpenter who works as an independent artisan, his mother is Adria D. Faj, she dedicated her life to raise her three sons. During his early years Balto demonstrated talent with physical activities in general, however his main interest was in football and athleticism, during his adolescence his abilities were highlighted during the school olympics. During conscription he was condecorated for excellence in duty, as he showed himself very dedicated to the army and demonstrated mastery in teamwork. However the condition of his family didn’t permitted them to pay a particular university and Balto’s talents did not extended to the academic field. During this time he worked in spouts along Orsaw and used the little money he earned to pay his studies in Physical education, as he dreamed to work in the sports industry.
However his career started to ascend when a coach from the Army saw a game of the University in which he noted Faj’s ability, the coachinvitedBalto for the Army’s team. From there his career skyrocketed, he earned the nickname of “Football Lion”, as people noted his aggressive way of playing and ability to dominate the field. He is considered one of the top players from Balqia and is ranked #1 in popularity index from the country.

[Eastfield Lodge]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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CUTOFF for all teams.

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[Ethane]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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Ethani Side

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RP Prompt: With the Baptism of Fire reaching its final stages, your teams will be looking ahead at the marathon that is World Cup qualifying. Do the players feel prepared? How do the media see your chances? Are you changing anything in the management team ahead of qualifying, or will you be sticking with what you've got? What are the fans hoping for and expecting?

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Balqia 0–0 TigerSharkistan (2–1 AET) @ Glent Pit, Ethane

Bohr 2–1 Ofasval @ King Edward IV Stadium

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Balqia vs Bohr @ King Edward IV Stadium

[Eastfield Lodge]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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Quarter-Final scores - Eastfielder Side

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RP Prompt: With the Baptism of Fire reaching its final stages, your teams will be looking ahead at the marathon that is World Cup qualifying. Do the players feel prepared? How do the media see your chances? Are you changing anything in the management team ahead of qualifying, or will you be sticking with what you've got? What are the fans hoping for and expecting?

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Nottinhaps 1–2 Xanneria
@ Parliament Stadium, Lodgertia, Eastfield Lodge

Libertas Omnium Maximus 4–2 Walenstein
@ Lodger City Memorial Stadium, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge

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Eastfielder Semi-Final

Xanneria vs Libertas Omnium Maximus
@ Lodger City Memorial Stadium, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

[Excerpt from the Litudinem Herald]
Maximusian National Team will go on to the Semi-Finals

Through some miracle of science, philosophy, theology, physiology, and possibly just a lot of luck and great playing, the Maximusian National Team managed to pull off an incredible win against Walenstein, This cements the team in the Semi-Finals.

By the first half, most people could have made a bet that Walenstein was going to win. They had to fantastic goals under their belt. The first, scored in the 20th minute of play, was a beautiful chip shot by Nicholas Ludwig. The second, scored just 10 minutes and 30 seconds later, was done by Walenstein CAM, Oliver Severin. The Maximusian Team thought that their time had come. How wrong they were.

Little did the general public know that LOM's time to loose hadn't come just yet. They were prepped and ready to win! Somehow, they managed to score 3 goals between minute 48 (Luke Brookshire's goal) and minute 70 (Yin Lan). Mueller, the team's rising star, scored the goal in between the two time stamps in the 62nd minute of play. The final goal was scored by Andrew Posvak in the 88th minute of play.

The game was, interestingly, penalty free. "When nerves are high, we tend to see a lot of fouls." said Neil Berkley, a MNT assistant coach. "I am really proud of my boys, and, obviously, Walenstien's, for playing a clean game!"

On top of that, as previously predicted by many of our sources, viewership (at least, on the Maximusian end of things) was at an all time high. It is projected that 1/10 households watched at least some part of the game. It just goes to show how much the Maximusians love football!

Soon, the MNT will go head to head head with Xanneria, the toughest competition to date. They are talented, efficient, and smart. You can expect some fierce playing in the Semi-Finals, that much is certain.

This win puts the Team just one step closer to their ultimate goal, total victory at the finals. Let's see if they can pull it off!

[Balqia]

Sport Report: Baptism of fire edition

You are seated comfortably in your sofa, a bucket of popcorn is in your side and a big cup of juice in the other. You calmly turns on the TV, your favorite Sports program starts.
-Hello Balqia, my name is Leonidas Balkoviq and you are watching Sport Report.
Today he is wearing a black suit and a red tie, he is smiling to the camera and speaks in an excited tone.
-We have great news from the Baptism of fire, our correspondent in Ethane will speak a bit more about the event.
The screen shows the blond reporter, he wears a dark red shirt with a black waistcoat.
-Hello Balqia, my name is Markus Petriq, and today we are in King Edward IV Stadium. Our guest will be Viktor Andrec, the manager of the team. Hello Mr. Andrec.
The camera shows a man in a dark blue suit, he is using a black tie. He is in his sixties, his hairstyle resembles a blond Elvis Presley with blue eyes. His voice is deep.
-Hello Mr Petriq, hello Balqia. It’s a honour to be here and talk by our team.
-So Mr Andrec, could you talk about the game?
-Call me Viktor, please. The game was incredibly harsh. The first two rounds were though. I must admit, I thought that we will lose when one of their players advanced during the last thirty minutes of the game, fortunately Kuld defended and take the ball away. The match concentrated almost entirely in the middlefield, we needed to substitute Egliti and Zvenqik during the game as they were too tired to continue playing and their productivity dropped. During the game we had a average possession of the ball of 42,3% a mediocre performance when compared with our average 57,1%.
“The after time was also very harsh, we suffered a goal in the first five minutes, a certain defeat for us, however Kalta was able to made a goal in the last minute and we made to the second after time. During this one Rigo Janus advanced and made another one, during the rest of the game we focused in defense. We had a decent control of the field and stopped them in the middle.”
-Are you confident in our team?
-Yes, we are in the semi-finals of our first international championship, however this was not thanks to luck as most people say, we trained very hard to be here. If you compare with our team in the begin of the Baptism of Fire, we lost our first game, a shame of course, however we recovered and competed with Flaw to win the second place in our group, and we did it, we entered in the Ro24 and then in the Ro16. We even reached a place where our rival Alluersia did not reached, and they are an incredible team, we never defeated them in field. And now we are in the semi-finals. The ability of our team was proved to our nation and the world.
-What are you expecting for the next games?
-Difficulty, we must give our best to win these last games. Our team is great as I said, however pragmatism is still necessary if we want to win this. Primlid is working at full speed, studying rival tactics, planning moves and even training alongside the team. We are giving our best, and I warn our rivals, we will not take it easy.
-Do you plan to compete in the World Cup?
-Yes, we have entered in it and will compete. Some adjustments will be made in our team. Primlid is doing an excellent job and will stay as head coach in our games, our staff in general is doing an extraordinary job, naturally more people will be employed in the World Cup. I plan to invite more players to the team, Kaesar Putiniq, or “the bull” as he is known is in my list of future players, some other players are in my list but it will remain a secret until the official announcement.
-Thanks for your time Mr… Viktor.
-I need to thank you for the time and interview.
The camera focus on the reporter.
-That’s all for today. See you later.
The channel logo appears in the screen and Balkoviq starts speaking.
-Thanks Markus. Now we will take a look in the gymnastics team of…
Your cellphone starts to ring, it’s an unknown number. When you start speaking the commercials have started and you are getting up to a last minute appointment.

[Xanneria]

Moving on!
Steve Stevenson for football.xan

Eastfield Lodge - The Maroons are coming! the Maroons are coming! Thats what Libertus Omnium Maximus will be saying about our Semi-final match up. A hard fought 2-1 victory over Nottinghaps has sent us into the semi-finals. A match up versus LOM awaits. The game was played in beautiful sunny skies a far cray from the muggy wet games played in monsoon conditions in the likes of Ethane. A dry field meant fireworks, but it wasn't firework between the players and the scoreboard that got noted. In a two one match up that was physical and hard fought, you need heros and the one we needed was Evan Jefferson, despite giving up a goal on a PK early on (Where have we heard this before?) he stop a bunch of shots with fingertips and even toes. A critical stop on the 83rd minutes was Jeffersons shining moment, but after replays seemed to indicate the ball crossed the plain of the goal, it seemed a 2-2 tie and AET was likely. But alas a conference of the referees said no goal and that Jefferson had stopped them, leaving the Maroons with a tight narrow physically hard fought victory over Nottinghaps. Offense was provided by De'Vonelle Laymore scored both goals in the 55th and 70th minutes after team captain Glenn Hailey was substituted after a yellowcard.

Needless to say there were some tense moments after the loss for the beleagured Nottinghaps team. after a congratulatory handshake the manage for Nottinghaps, Theran Alfenso seemed to go off on the ref. several Notting players had to restrain him. Needless this likely due to that contrversial no-goal. Meanwhile lying ahead of the Finals for Xanneria is Libertus Omnium Maximus. A high flying team that once scored a 7-2 playoff win earlier in the tourniment. Lead by controversial striker Luke Brookshire, they too have been steamrolling their way through the tournament, A lot of pundits have been making the joke that this game will end 7-6 and we'll see if thats true this weekend

Xanneria - 2
22' 65' Leymore

Nottinghaps - 1
15' ???

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

The Investigator: Part the Fourth
Athlete' Village, Eastfield Lodge
4 hours after BoF Quarter Final Round.

Most people hadn't thought much of Tom slipping out of the team dinner to run to the nearby rod-and-gun shop. He had always been a fisherman and had told them earlier that he wanted to get a Eastfieldite River Bass lure since he had arrived. What he had actually picked up was a small motion camera (along with that Eastfieldite fishing lure).

One hour and 20 minutes later
Tom Levi had successfully laid a trap. Under the pretext of attempting to determine who was stealing all of the pizza from the Compound Cafe in the night, Tom had managed to convince Luke Brookshire, who's room was both across from Bridgman's and closest to the cafe, to let him hook the camera ha bought up to Luke's room's peephole. He would ideally be able to identify both who was stealing the pizza, and if Bridgman was attempting to dispose of the remainder of the Acedematroxol.

Tom had done the math, he knew that an average prescription bottle had about 30 Acedematrexol capsules, that was about 6x more than enough to kill an elephant. By Tom's math, there was a bottle with at least 22 capsules in one of two places: The trash or the bedroom of Robert Bridgman.

Tom had to suspect that it wasn't the former since all of the trash cans in the Village had been checked immediately after the scandal. Additionally, Bridgman didn't have many opportunities to dispose of it somewhere else. The team was very busy.

No, Tom had decided that the sedatives were still in Bridgman's room, he would be getting desperate, a man couldn't make it too long with that sort of a psychological burden. Tom just had to catch him in the act. That, was the true purpose for his camera.

Pleased with his work, Levi returned to his room and slept soundly.

The Next Morning

The camera had been tripped a grand total of 3 times. The first time was by Tom when he was leaving Luke's room after setting the trap, he had expected it to go off for him. The second and third time was by Andrew Posvak, he tripped it at 3:47 AM when he was leaving his room, and re-tripped it when he returned 5 minutes later, his face had a suspicious amount of spaghetti sauce on it.

Well, Tom thought to himself, at least I know who has been eating my Pizza. At that he turned the camera off, left Luke's room, and went off to train for a tough match. I will catch him eventually, he nearly said aloud as he worked his way towards the gym.

[Bohr]

Player Profile: Ian Krone

Krone has always been a bit of an underdog. His college soccer career was unmemorable, and when the BSC started he was working as a gravedigger in rural South Bohr. But he had soccer experience, and when Girard announced their first open tryouts, Krone was there, and got his way onto Luis Cesare's team. His work ethic and personality made it easy for him to climb the ranks, and he eventually found himself in a key spot on Girard, one of the best teams in Bohr. When the national team selections were announced, Krone's solidness, combined with his connection with national team coach Cesare and the lack of other good RMs, made him the obvious choice. Howeve, nobody expected him to outshine A.J. Mahogany, or even Oscar Jones. He was supposed to be solid.

In his 2 playoff games, the 2 most important games of Bohr's admittedly short international career, Krone has been more than solid. He scored the extra-time winner to take down Uan Aa Boa in the Round of 16, and in the 84th minute, against a scrappy Ofasval team, he doubled up on his heroics, giving Bohr a 2-1 lead that would be the final score and send Bohr to the semifinals. Could this be Krone's path to (delayed) stardom? Can he do it again in the semifinals? Those questions will, hopefully, be answered.

Bohr 2-1 Ofasval
Williams 22' Ahlström 24'
Krone 84'

[Libertas Omnium Maximus]

[uncut transcript from Interview conducted the day of the Semi Finals between Maximusian player Tom Levi and SPORTS: Daily

SPORTS: Daily (SD): Mr. Levi, I know that continually harping on the drugging scandal, the...eh "Sedate Gate" can't be good for morale, so I will keep it to one question. What do you think would posses someone to deliberately mess up someone's game?

Tom Levi (TL): Money. That is my best guess. As had been said, I doubt it was the North Miklikian government because they had basically fallen apart. Plus, no government would want to be associated with that kind of scandal. If a government was behind it, I suspect our plane would have crashed, or our bus would have gone off a bridge. That wasn't the case so I suspect it was an individual. Probably someone attempting to increase their odds of winning money off of bets. The betting odds were really messed up by the fact that there was a government shutdown in North Miklik. People who had, unscrupulously, bet 100,000 dollars on North Miklik needed a way out. Desperate people do desperate things.

SD: Ok, as promised, that is all on that subject. Onto tonight's game, What are you thoughts on Xanneria as a team.

TL: They will be a tough foe. They are using a formation that we don't have too much experience working with, should make for a difficult game strategy wise. As far as players go. Xanneria has some great players. Glen Haley, in example. Leymore is pretty good too. Heck, they are all good! I will have a fun fight if we win or lose!

SD: Not to jinx it but you realize that there is a chance that you could potentially win the whole thing. If the TEAM does win the tournament what is in store for you?

TL: I only think one game at a time. Tonight's game, then the next. So on. So forth.

SD: Fair enough. What is in store for you after the tournament?

TL: The team will go on to the World Cup Qualifiers I suppose. I, however, am done on the international stage for this year. I am going to go back to my LOM team and play through the season.

SD: So, it is tonight's match and one other. Either the Finals or Third Place. What would you say to summarize this tournament so far?

TL: Intriguing. It has been very intriguing. I have learned a lot about human nature. More than I was expecting to. I suspect you will find out soon enough what I am talking about.

SD: Huh. What did you learn about human nature?

TL: Ask me that question after the tourney. I can tell you that I have had the greatest of fun! It really has been a thrilling experience here. I was one of the lucky people who got to see two great nations. Eastfield Lodge and Ethane.

SD: Well have a great game! We look forward. to having you back shortly. Until then...

TL: Indeed, goodnight! Go LOM!

[Eastfield Lodge]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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CUTOFF for all teams.

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[Ethane]

Baptism of Fire 69
Hosted by Ethane & Eastfield Lodge

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Balqia 3–1 Bohr @ King Edward IV Stadium