NationStates

CUP OF HARMONY 74
Hinodejin qualify to the Round of 16, next opponent: The Macabees
EASTHOLD, MRIIN - As expected of the highest ranked team in the tournament (at a healthy 25th), the Poltergeists of the Hinodejin Empire found themselves finishing on top of their Group at the Cup of Harmony, having just beaten Velestria by a respectable three-to-one win while Zwangzug found themselves losing yet still making the knockout stage as well thanks to the aforementioned Hinodejin win. Despite being one of the favourites to win this edition of the Cup of Harmony, the Hinodejin have been extremely cautious towards their chances, believing that over-confidence could cost them the title, just like it did to their possible qualification to the World Cup, gone away on the wind where fate preferred that the Hinodejin were bumped out of the tournament over the likes of Turori and 95X.

So far, the main scorer of the team has been Cherry Whitecastle, the Satyr that currently plays for, funnily enough, Cosumarite side Samaj FC. Normally an offensive midfielder, Brenecian manager Eleanor Lindgard chose to play Cherry as a left-winger, a workaround for her playing style that has surprisingly paid off. Whitecastle has been very much vocal about her improvement in the national team side of her career, singing praises to pretty much everyone, ranging from her teammates to the new boss, to the fans from Mriin (whom she has called kindred spirits of joy) to even the opponents for "allowing her to be this important to her people". Despite this, the team prefers to keep their head on the game instead of pondering on the possibility of winning another piece of silverware, a new one to the Empire in either its' Islander or Hinodejin form. The next opponent of the Poltergeists happen to be the Macabees, a team that, despite having a slight gap on the international rankings, has certainly have a bigger dose of relevance to the history of the game than the Hinodejin so far. The game promises to be an interesting effort, one that will be broadcasted by the Hinodejin Sports Network in a couple of hours.

The F*** Starblaydia Derby
By Rami Niblick in Crawford, Cosumar

BELIEF can be a powerful thing. Looking as good as out following their draw with Mytanija, the Dragons finally decided to play to their full potential with a thumping victory over Sajnur. With Tinhampton delivering a rare masterclass of attacking play, Krytenia find themselves into the knockouts - and as we know, at this point, all bets are off.

Their opponents are an interesting bunch. Filindostan have been a recent developer in the football universe, and came agonisingly close to upsetting the apple cart good and proper in the World Cup LXXXII qualifiers. Sadly, though, Starblaydia just had more legs in the final furlong, and thus here we both are.

Both sides, then, have something in common; a reason to hate the Men In Mauve. True, it's for wildly different reasons, with Filindostan upset at having been denied a spot in the big game and ourselves just hating them on general principle, but at least we have something to share with each other.

Sadly, though, only one side can advance. Krytenia are coming into form at just the right time - hopefully - whilst Filindostan will be wanting to make sure they don't suffer a second heartbreak at the hands of a Northern Calanian team. It all adds up to a tasty encounter, with the added carrot of a place in the Cup of Harmony quarter-finals up for grabs. Onward!

OOC: Alberich Beisner is based on/inspired by Keith "Big Nasty" Kunzig, a superfan of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Superfan Spotlight!
Our final Grand Prize winner is Alberich "Big Ugly" Beisner from Brantisvogan. A CPA specializing in tax preparation by day, for over 20 years Beisner has had a larger than life alter-ego as "Big Ugly," probably the most recognizable fan of Brantisvogan FC.

Ask people around Brantisvogan about Big Ugly and people's faces light up in recognition. Everyone, it seems has an anecdote about him, whether a chance meeting on the way to a match, or a handshake at some promotional event. None of them, however, realized that the man interviewing them was Big Ugly himself, out of costume. For every BFC match, Beisner dons an elaborate black, red, and white outfit, complete with horned helmet and detailed face paint, transforming into the larger than life character so many other fans know and love. "It started as kind of a dare I guess," he explained. "I had plans to take my brother and a few friends to a match for my birthday, and we were thinking of how to make the day as memorable as possible. Someone had the idea of going to a party supply store for outrageous costumes. I happened to walk past the display of face paint and just had this 'aha' moment." Beisner admits that his face painting skills back then weren't as polished as they are today, but the reactions of other fans to his group's look inspired him. "As we arrive, everyone we talk past says something, everyone wants to high five us. It was really getting people fired up. I felt like I became someone else for a while, and I could do anything. Right then, I decided I was going to keep doing this." As for his stage name, that came some time later. "It was a match against Ark U I think, where some opposition fan shouted that I looked like a 'big ugly flamingo.' I was rocking this bright red feather boa that day, I dunno, maybe flamingos are red in Arkintoofle. Anyway, the flamingo part didn't really have a ring to it, so my brother just shortened it to Big Ugly, and it stuck."

After assuming the "Big Ugly" moniker, Beisner began to accumulate a bit of an entourage. "Well, after I was Big Ugly it didn't take long for my brother Simic to become Little Ugly, and pretty soon the whole group of us were just the Uglies." Beisner's group began to attract attention for their facepaint, raucous chants, and increasingly intricate costumes. It didn't take long for the club itself to take notice, making Big Ugly and his crew official fan ambassadors. "People really seem to identify with us, and its given us opportunities to do so much good in the city." In addition to promotional appearances for BFC, Beisner is active in the club's community outreach programs. He visits local schools as a motivational speaker, and is the namesake of BFC's anti-drug outreach program, "Drugs are Ugly." "We try to teach kids that you don't need to be turning to drug abuse to have a good time. I think I'm a perfect example of that, I'm having a blast just going out and being myself."

Beisner, as Grand Prize winner, was treated to the final group stage match against Ko-oren, a showdown that would decided the group winner (the rest of the Uglies, alas, had to pay their own way). The match featured a superb display of attacking prowess by Jzvanic. The forward was seemingly everywhere for the Black-and-Reds, scoring one goal and creating another for Ruoho, and the Dragonflies struggled to contain him all match. In the end, it wasn't quite enough though, as a late equalizer from the head of Tsuchida spoiled the evening for the upset-minded Confederates. The result was enough, however, to see the Black-and-Reds through in first place in the group. Though the sides were even on seven points and a +2 goal differential, the Black-and-Reds too the tiebreaker by virtue of having scored one more goal than the Dragonflies these three matches. The result is that instead of facing Savojarna in the second round, we are drawn against a more familiar face: New Lusitania and the Algarves. Confederate fans will recall that these two teams meet twice in friendlies to prepare for World Cup 82 qualifying, and that the Black-and-Reds were victorious in both matches, outscoring their opponents 3-0 in total. It should be a very close and entertaining match, as the teams are not separated by much at all in class. While we can perhaps be said to be on marginally better form, having won our group, that edge is likely cancelled out by a determination to avoid losing a third straight match to us on the part of the Lusitanians.

STL|Serviços de Transmissão Lusitana
Sport | Football|
Cup of Harmony 74

Double Bill

JUMPING INTO THE KNOCKOUTS
New Lusitania 5 -1 L.O.M. , Farris Crowley Memorial World Cup Stadium, Ramusok, Cosumar (Att. 95 772)

A game between two befriended nations was the state of affairs making the way whoever qualified a bit bittersweet. Patríce made his third appearance with Guerreiros, Carriça and Cancela in defence. Nevais joins Fernando in the centre of the park as Mário and Gama play on the flanks. Veiga, Jota and Silveira are the three upfront in this match, as the Maximusians played the usual suspects. The game started with an attack for the "away" side as Colter missed it by a few inches, a demonstration of the danger the lower ranked side would poise. The Selecção would however be the one opening the tabs, as Veiga crossed it in, with Silveira heading into the net. The game would be affected at halftime by the second goal, which was a penalty awarded by the referee after a mistimed tackle by Barkas on Jota. Fernando was the one up for it today, he set it down and put it straight down the middle in his cool, calm fashion as Vanderbilt went to the left. Halftime and the Selecção led comfortably, although the Maximusian side were creating a front against them in the last moments of the first period.
In the start of the second forty five, they started stronger, probably from whatever the manager told them. Fulham hit the bar at one stage.
Against the run of play, New Lusitania were awarded a corner. Mário crossing it from the left, Jota tries to shoot but it hits the post!, going back to Mário, who runs into the box with the ball and finds a pass in Silveira, the target man puts the ball well low and into the net. That would make it 3-0.
The opposition didn't give up and Luke Brookshire was the one to get them their sole goal in the match in the top right corner. Patríce looked disappointed when his clean sheet disappeared despite his good game.
Later on, Fernando would pass the ball into the feet of Daniel Jota, who passed it back. The Sporting CL midfielder, seeing an opportunity, made a through ball back to the forward who put the ball away - it was now 4-1. At the very end, there was time for one more - Silveira recieved a ball from the same assistant, volleying it in and subsequently celebrating a hat-trick and their passage to the knockouts. When the whistle blew for full time, the team went to the stands to celebrate with the travelling Lusitanians, but also congratulated the Maximusians on their Qualifying run in person, despite its end in that moment. FULL TIME: 5-1


Around the Grounds
At the same times, the other groups would conclude and the sixteen remainders became known.
In Group E, Balqia drew with Abahnfleft 3 all, but it didn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things with the Fleftians taking the group win.
In Group A, the Savojar's remained top of the group despite their loss to Taeshan (1-0), after Lisander drew with Brusseldorf one all, besides the fact that the lusophones had a negative goal difference. They progress only on Goals Scored.
In Group B, Kita Hinode beat Velestria 3-1 taking the group win, as Zwangzug were taken by surprise by Siovanija and Teusland (1-0). In Group C, The Maccabees confirmed their favouritism to qualify over Eraman after they beat Polkopia, who failed to score a point in the competition by a margin of 4-1. Flindonistan took all available points after beating Eraman 1-3. Also in Mriin, the Kick Corps of Drawkland also won the nine points after their win against Xanneria (4-2). Whilst four goals was enough for them to win, it wasn't for Kandorith which despite all their efforts fell to the M.N.M. , 4-6.
Over in Cosumar, Tinhampton were the only other team to get three wins, in Group F, as they cruised past Mytanija 5-1. Krytenia's win against Sajnur by 3-0 meant there was a necessity of a tie breaker between them and the Mytanijan, in which the former qualified on Goal Difference.
Group G saw the S.R.S. take the group on Goals Scored after their two all draw with the other qualified nation, Ko-Oren. Oberour Ar Moro beat Alleursia by 4-3, a close call that gave them their only three points.
In Group H, Saltstead beat the Sherpa Empire 3-0 effectively winning the group as Omerica confidently beat the Busoga Islands 1-3, also progressing in the tournament.


What Happens Next
The Round of Sixteen of this Cup of Harmony has an unusual format as the best paired team plays the worst team, in a seeding format similar to the playoffs in the British Isles. Drawkland were seed number One with Lisander being the side which shall play against them. Despite the youthful side of the lusophone side, the Kick Corps' experience can give them the upper hand, which aided them on their group phase. The Savojar's get Ko-oren, therefore being the most level of the games. In Vidial, Saltstead play the Main Nation Ministry as the Iron Alley is home to the tie between Abahnfleft and Omerica meaning both will have to travel from Cosumar. Abahnfleft are the better side but the Omericans have shown great promise in the last cycle and a half.
Second seeded Tinhampton remains in Cosumar, playing Zwangzug. Whilst one side has shown great power, the other seems to be a work that has gradually gotten better, meaning there's no telling how good they are exactly. In Crawford, Filindostan play fourteenth seeded Krytenia in what should be a progression for the former. Kita-Hinode play the Maccabees, in what is a highly anticipated match.
New Lusitania, the second best unseeded team, got the S.R.S., in match to be played at the Alesund Stadium in Samotath. The S.R.S. has played twice, both times losses. The Selecção hasn't scored against them yet, conceding thrice against them. Victor Santa Cruz comments that this is "only more motivation in what is already a well levelled high stakes match". Although New Lusitania has been better in the attacking point of view, the S.R.S. has been a stronghold with only two goals conceded, with those being in their last group game. It's anyone's game and should New Lusitania progress, it'll be their best performance in the competition yet.


THE HUB
GOALS: Silveira (4), Fernando (2), Gama (1), Veiga (1), Jota (1).
ASSISTS: Fernando (3) Veiga (2), Mário (1).

LATEST STATS
World Cup 82 Quals
Top Goalscorers: Silveira (9)
Assists: Fernando (8)
Cup of Harmony 73
Top Goalscorer: Silveira (2)
Assists: Fernando (3)
IDU Championships
Top Goalscorer: Gama (2)
Assists: Fernando (2)
IA6
Top Goalscorer: Silveira (4)
Assists: Fernando

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PROGRAMMING
Drawkland Vs. Lisander, STL 4 - 20h
Savojarna Vs Ko-oren, STL Sport 1 - 17h

Filindostan Vs Krytenia, STL Sport 2 - 20h
Kita-Hinode Vs. The Maccabees, STL Sport 2 - 17h
+++++++++++
Saltstead Vs. Main Nation Ministry, STL Sport 1 - Tmrw, 17h
Abahnfleft Vs Omerica - STL 4, Tmrw 20h

Tinhampton Vs. Zwangzug, STL Sport 1, Tmrw 20h
S.R.S. Vs New Lusitania - STL 1, Tmrw 17h
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Matchday: Internationals
coverage of the best
STL1 22:00 GMT
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World Cup 82, The IA Championships 6
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MMXIX

The Red Wagon: The Entitled Pig

For the suburbs, it wasn't normal for them to be the site of a memetic biohazard. However, thanks to Josh Etten's shenanigans, he now has his own cult that worships him and do his every bidding. Josh didn't even ask the simple magic word of please to get his followers to do his tasks. No matter how he treats them like trash, they still were stepford smilers towards him. Whenever the soldiers would kill one of Josh's followers, another would literally materialize out of thin air, where the corpse would proceed to vanish into ash. Inside Don's house, his followers have converted the living room into a makeshift throne room, where a portrait almost painted in blood was hanging above a couch, which served as the king's chair.

"Fetch me a glass of liquor! And make sure it's iced!" Josh demanded to a follower, as he was playing around with his almanac, writing in all sorts of stuff for his followers to do. "Let's see.. What should I do now?" He flipped open an empty page and wondered how far he can go. "How about I have that bitch's wagon? If there tons of stuff in there, I can do whatever I want with it." Josh thought, as he started to write the command down on the almanac.

Meanwhile.. The Leader was examining Josh's lair from a drone camera, where the girl with the red wagon saw the current footage. "He's absolutely has gone mad with power for someone who was a greedy brat for power in the first place." the girl remarked to the Leader. "If he is planning on writing down that he wants to be me, then I have you cut off his magic, so I can send in my own firing squad." The Leader said.
"He most likely will. But I made sure it doesn't happen."
"What's the plan? Can I kill him now?"
"Well, you see.." the girl immediately stopped, because her wagon started to act up as it shook. "Hang on." the girl leaned towards the bag, where the bag seemed to be talking directly to her, despite the lack of speech being heard. "Josh wants my bag.." the girl said, trying to hide an angered look. The Leader took a look at the bag on the wagon and took some steps to examine it closer.

"Don't."
"Why not?"
"It needs me. If it doesn't recognize me, then it will devour you whole. You probably thought that paint on the wagon was red paint."
"Ahh. So it's a sentient creature."
"Pretty much."

That was when the Leader gotten himself an idea. "You know what I'm thinking?" the Leader said, where the girl with the red wagon appeared to have the same idea. "I don't have telepathy, but I know exactly what you're planning."
"Come. Let's fulfill Josh's wish, then." The Leader said, as both him and the girl headed towards Josh's lair.

As of exactly 1am (Tinhampton time) on the 11th of April 2019, I would like to bring to international attention the immediate resignation of Rachel Coltfield as Manager of the Tinhamptonian National Team. Her rationale given for this departure was:
This came in the wake of losing by a single goal (from Marlon Sayle-Bren) to Zwangzug in the recent Cup of Harmony round of 16 match. With the possible exception of Chris Richard's fourteen mates, Assistant Manager Ian Jones, and perhaps Rachel herself, we are all saddened to see Mrs Coltfield depart. It is believed that - after my calculations - Tinhampton will have 18.05 KPB points when the WCC Rankings are next calculated, which is likely to keep us within the upper-middle echelons of global football.

As a result of this latest announcement, applications for the next Manager of the Tinhamptonian National Team are now open. We are open to international expertise as well as to what little domestic prowess we have, although we must remind any prospective applicants of our two key expectations for next cycle: to keep the Miners' traditional reputation as a more defensively-oriented team, and to finally drag Tinhampton kicking and screaming into the World Cup. Any interested parties should send a curriculum vitae, with appropriate details included, to this address on or before the 18th of April 2019. The identity of the new manager will be revealed on the 22nd of April 2019.

Evolution is visible. Although it seems slow, it is constant.

Due to some mistakes we made, we were out of the qualifiers of WC81.

But we have shaken the dust off our frustrations and returned, stronger than ever, to WC82. And the result was seen where it matters. Inside the field. Again, it was close, very close. That result in Indusse was very unfair, we were superior throughout the 90 minutes, and their goal was a lucky move. But, of course, we can not be discouraged for something too small. It happens because of football. This magnificent sport is full of surprises, happiness and pain in every game... We lost the qualifiers, but this is a minor detail.

As the football proverb would say, "The only ball lost is the one no one fight for." And the National keeps fighting for all of them, without rest. Let's keep dreaming, surely we can make it in the next time!

Keep following us. In the rest of Cup of Harmony. In the upcoming friendlies against New Lusitania and Dritten Asopie. And then, on and on. Because you, the fans, are our biggest strength.

Thanks for everything.

The Lisanderian Football Federation

.

Dragonflies move to final eight

The Cup of Harmony is down to its last eight contestants. While it's no secret that we'd rather be in the World Cup, winning the Round of 16 is something we really only can do in the CoHnsolation Cup. Savojarna have made it very difficult, and the Dragonflies not only needed extra time, but even penalties to fight off the opponents. So far, this World Cup qualification cycle and Cup of Harmony show that Ko-oren can have attack or defence, but never both. Either we shut out the opponent and then forget to score, or we score a few but then so do the other team. The tournament in Mriin and Cosumar started off with a few signature 1-0 victories, but then we ran into a 2-2. The 0-0 in the Round of 16 would have been on the scoreboard until the 90th, 120th, or even 360th minute if a match were to last that long - but penalties made a sudden end to that thought experiment.

When actually given chances, the Dragonflies can score: five out of five, and Theshendan kept out a Savojarna PK for the 5-4 win. Tsuchida was left on the field all 120 minutes and made no mistake. Vallotton came on towards the end of the game, played 33 minutes and then scored his penalty kick as well. Playing a 5-3-2, that means we ran out of strikers to burden - and midfielders and defenders will have to step up. Longchambon was first, oozing confidence as he has for the last few months. Reizo Yokota was dying to take the fourth, but Odell took his place - that's the fourth. Reizo tried stepping up once again, but now was talked out of it by Dalton. If there is anyone out there who has the coolness to pull this off, it's probably the not-very-talkative rightback for the Dragonflies. He does let his play speak for him, though, scoring the fifth penalty to send Ko-oren to the quarters.

In Mriin, Drawkland now awaits. The other quarterfinal that's anywhere nearby, is Saltstead versus Omerica. Looking over to Cosumar, the four teams left over there are Zwangzug, facing New Lusitania, and Krytenia, playing Kita-Hinode.

In Drawkland, we have got a very formidable opponent: they are the first seed, winning all three group games and scoring 14 goals (!!) in that span. Surely they didn't expect to run into the top ranked team of the tournament - but I doubt we need more on how stupid a tiebreaker like 'goals scored' is. Overall, it was a bad round for the top seeds. Out of eight group winners, only Drawkland, Saltstead, and Kita-Hinode are through. The runners up have fared much better, with Ko-oren, New Lusitania, Omerica, Krytenia and Zwangzug still remaining.

In terms of KPB rank, Ko-oren and Kita-Hinode are the teams to beat. Both top-30 teams had hoped to be in the World Cup, but here they are, stuck on different sides of the bracket. That's not to say they are locks for the final, as there are a number of top-40 sides still in (Drawkland, Saltstead) that are at least as good as the other two teams. Saltstead made the quarterfinal without conceding any goal at all, for instance. Drawkland have the highest goal production of all remaining teams. Seeing Zwangzug or Krytenia go much further is a stretch, but they have nothing to lose and I'm happy that our upset-senstive Ko-orenite team isn't up against them.

"Hello! I'm Emmylou Brighton, this is Jaina McHammel, and we're here with the World Cup broadcast!"

"No we're not, Emmylou, this is the Cup of Harmony broadcast. Big difference."

"Is it really? I mean, they just standardized their knockout formats to be more similar--"

"Tinhampton are the defending champions of this tournament, in both senses, and they'll be strong at the back."

"Let's see if Zwangzug can hang with them..."

"...When they're not playing football, Jamie Valley is on welfare, but Chris Richard is seeking employment. What justifies the distinction, do you think?"

"Well, maybe Richard has more savings stored up from his past work, while Valley needs government assistance?"

"Hmm, could be."

"I'm more curious about their 'virtual ages' myself. Is this an effect of time dilation? Different norms in the Equestrian States?"

"I think a lot of things are different in the Equestrian States. Nice tackle by al-Khazr, and Kukiseso will fall back..."

"...the winner of this match set to face either New Lusitania or the Squornshelan Remnant States in the quarterfinal. The Black-and-Reds another defensive team in this bracket! Could be nailbiters."

"Not if you've already clipped your nails and picked at them to nothingness."

"Sounds a bit unpleasant, Jaina, but each to their own. Lovely pass from Twoni, finds Sayle-Bren, he's past Salt--yes! Marlon Sayle-Bren makes it 1-0 to Zwangzug, and a bit of separation between these two! But no room to let up..."

"...Zwangzug probably the lowest-ranked team remaining in the competition, but will bring good momentum into their quarterfinal."

"What do you mean, 'probably'?"

"Uh well I was looking at some unofficial copies of the ranks, then I looked at some older ones, then I decided it would be better just to announce it and not leave empty airspace."

"You're very considerate that way. We'll be looking forward to explore Cape Discovery Lighthouse in Azuris, while Zwangzug take on New Lusitania in Estadio MasseMord."

"Is that like Spanish or something for mass death? Seems a bit dark."

"I think it's the name of a video game company who sponsored it, but let's not go on about that because it'll get the pundits at the Regency all mad."

Delicious And Filin
By Rami Niblick in Crawford, Cosumar

IF there was any doubt as to whether Alex Sampson would be offered the Krytenian manager's job permanently after the Cup of Harmony, this result must surely have laid them to rest. A controlled and effortless performance against a talented Filindostan team saw the Dragons cruise into the quarter-finals with plenty to spare in the tank.

Krytenia dominated the game from the beginning, with Roberto Juliano once again proving how much more valuable he is to the team than Valrauncion was with a midfield masterclass. The men in sky blue and white had the lion's share of possession in the first half, and it was only the stout defensive line of their opponents, led by Dina Satyawan in what could well have been her last game for the Red Garuda, that prevented the deadlock from being breached. Cahya Kartawijaya, too, was in imperious form, pulling a smart double save from first Joshua Coquelin's strike, then Selly Kennedy's opportunistic rebound.

The Dragons kept banging on the door, though, and eventually cracked the Filindostan defence from a corner. Matthew Gray was the one to chalk up the goal, rising highest to head home from six yards out. A rare chance for the former Baptism of Fire champions came just before half time, with Damaris Cambo whipping in a dangerous cross, but Marish Santa Lucia couldn't quite keep the header on target.

The second half was more of the same, with Filindostan unable to kickstart the attacking style that had given the likes of Starblaydia so many headaches in qualifying. Without the oxygen of possession, the team in red were impotent against their opponents, and when Kennedy latched onto a through ball and fired home, the jig was up. Krytenia slowed the pace, directing the tempo of the game as they had throughout, and celebrated at the final whistle as a campaign that had threatened to go down in flames is astonishingly now just three games from glory.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves, though. Next up for the Dragons are the pre-tournament favourites, Kita-Hinode. A team mildly surprised to be slumming it in this tournament, they'll be looking for redemption against a side many regard as the most prestigious scalp. With Sampson's men playing with confidence and belief not seen since the glory days of World Cup LXXII, though, this could be an absolute slobberknocker. Onward!

KRYTENIA - 2
Gray 40
Kennedy 73

FILINDOSTAN - 0
no scorers

Han Ji-Hun was furious, bursting through the door with the anger capable of feeding an entire star of energy generated by his rage. He was furious with the manager, one Eleanor Lingard, the Brenecian that had been at the helm of the Empire's national team since the start of the qualifiers, had decided not to play him against the Macabees. How could she even consider doing that to the star of the Honeyame Anitas, one of the surprise teams of the Empire, the powerhouse from Mido-Hinode, not to mention his status as last season's greatest keeper in the Hinodejin league?

Meanwhile, Eleanor was serene, her thoughts were pretty specific. She wanted to test the waters of Cyborg technology as a means of improving the Hinodejin team, figuring that the game against the Macabees would be a worthy example for the future. Iona Mizukara was a pretty good goalkeeper as a pure teenager, although the level she played wasn't exactly that competitive; but she really picked up once she was granted her robotic implants. The girl had been on a car accident that had smashed her entire left arm and destroyed half of her eyesight thanks to a shard of a broken window reaching deep into her left eye, having been rushed to emergency out of fear over how deep that could've reached. She had faced death and won, but now was half machine.

Iona's dark hair with red tips covered the robotic implant she had between her ear and her eye, a metallic pad with wiring inside that connected to a fake eye adorned with a red iris. She finished cleaning her robotic arm as well, laying the rag down before clicking on a button that formed skin-like protection to the metallic bits, a proper arm. She had only recently gotten the news, if she was nervous, you couldn't really tell. The test turned out to end up in her favour, however, as the cybernetic wonder was able to keep a clean sheet, pushing the team forward to the next round thanks to a goal by the feet of Iori Saitou. The emotionless passion of Iona Mizukara was now another on its' way to become another constant to the Poltergeists, together with the quality of Iori Saitou, he who was able to play with the greats at Nepharim football; the heart of Cherry Whitecastle, the maniacal mindset of Mimi Akazukin, the rude demeanor of Juri Kisame, the lack of respect that Kamalani Kanani would always display and the sincere innocence that Raiden Kojima had whenever someone complained about his high vibration sword.

For now, the Hinodejin had to face the Krytenian threat on their way for the Cup of Harmony's final. Time to see if this was the time for a new breed or if the Krytenians were indeed the blue swinging... uh... you know what.

Litudinem International Airport Business and Conference Center, Litudinem, Libertas Omnium Maximus

Vincent Alfonsi was not much of a spokesman. In fact, he really despised the spotlight. With that said, he was about to have to make a not so fun press release. Worst of all, it would be live! On top of his general dislike of 10,000 people viewing him from the comfort of their sofas, he had to be the bearer of bad news; The road had ended after months of hard work. This was the end of the line for his team. This was game-over for him. This was likely his final public appearance as 2018-19 tournament season head coach for the Libertas Omnium Maximus National Team. With great apprehension, he stood and addressed the 30 some odd cameras and 100-plus journalists.

New Lusitania managed to beat us. It wasn't a pretty game to begin with. We knew that going in. We knew one of us would have to go home.

The deed has been done and it is with the heaviest heart that I accept and acknowledge the conclusion of a great tournament season. We played our hardest. The boys played their hardest, that is. We had a great Baptism of Fire, a fine-but-not-perfect World Cup qualifiers, and now a fulfilling end at the Cup of Harmony.

We may have lost to a close ally. We may have lost to a friend. Then again, we played our hardest and I am certain that they did the same. We lost to a worthy adversary and as the sayings goes, "When you play your hardest and still loose, you haven't really lost."

It has been a fantastic season and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Go Libertas Omnium Maximus. Soar like an Eagle to new heights! May the game of football live on forever! Vale omne, quod fuerit ride feram!

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Cup of Harmony 74

Double Bill

NEW LUSITANIA STILL IN... JUST ABOUT.
S.R.S. 0-0 New Lusitania (2-4 pens). , Alesund Stadium, Samoutath, Perougan Fief, Cosumar(Att. 57 946)

New Lusitania were through and now faced the S.R.S., a nation who'd be a tough nut to crack. No changes for the Selecção, as the match went underway in Samoutath. The ninety minutes were mainly spent in midfield although there were a few good chances by both sides that were more threatening. In the case of the Lusitanian side, a shot by Nevais that hit the bar, and a great save by the goalkeeper responding to a shot by Gama. Overall there was no clear team dominating making the result seemingly fair. In Extra Time, the Selecção seemed to push harder, bringing in an extra midfielder (Azinheira) in the space of Nevais, with the sub hitting the woodwork. It was well fought, but Penalties loomed over the game and into them we would go. The S.R.S. as the technical home side would go first. Ajao, easily put it in the right hand side of the net, with the fans cheering him on. New Lusitania would match this as Jota would be the first one to go. He took his time and then put the ball sailing past the goalkeeper. In the goalkeeper's defence, he did guess which way it would be going and almost laid a hand to it as the roar of the nation's fans was heard. Next up, Demko Jzvanic. He placed it on the spot and went back, and with a run-up he hit the bar. Should it of landed a few inches lower, it would've been unstoppable, though this time the only noise was the audible shaking of the goal from the sheer power of the shot. This gave "Os Navegadores" a unique chance. Veiga came up for the Lusitanian side. He, of course, wouldn't let them down as usual, despite his inexperience internationally. New Lusitania had the advantage. The S.R.S. back again as the captain, Arlo Damot stepped up, having no room for failure. The Traal Athletic midfielder showing the rest how it's done pacing himself and putting it straight done the middle. The third penalty for New Lusitania was to be taken by the main forward, Silveira. No problem for him as he put it in the top right corner, it would be complicated to stretch there but Krieven almost did it.
The S.R.S. returned, with the pressure of having to score to stay in it. Vladcik coming up to take it... and he hit the post! Francisco Gama would be the man of the hour as he put it low into the bottom left corner and ran as he was the man of the hour! They were through and they were in to the Quarter Finals. FULL TIME: 0-0 (0-0 AET) (4-5 PENS)


Around the Grounds
In Mriin's Haven, Drawkland pulled through against Lisander (2-1) as they seem like contenders to the trophy more each day that passes, as meanwhile Ko-oren struggled with the Savojars as it too went to Penalties where the former came out victorious by 4-5 in Easthold. Meanwhile, Saltstead passed the Main Nation Ministry more easily, beating them 2-0 and now playing Omerica, who beat Abahnfleft 2-3 at the Iron Alley.
Over in Cosumar, Filindostan were beaten by Krytenia 0-2 in Crawford with the winner playing Kita-Hinode, who beat the Maccabees 1-0.
New Lusitania will now face Zwangzug who beat Tinhampton at the Crowley Memorial.
Over at the Main Stage - the World Cup - we've had some thrilling affairs. In Raynor City, Cassadaigua beat Audioslavia on penalties 2-4 after a thrilling 4 all match. Turori also qualified on Penalties against Pasarga, in Kareen 4-2 after a 1-1 result. Farfadilis are through after edging Qusmo, also on Penalties 4-3 after the same result. Starblaydia however managed to go on ninety minutes just fine, beating Sargossa by a single goal. Cosumar is through after beating Baker Park on Penalties too (3-4) after a 1-1 draw as the Holy Empire beat the Equestrians 1-2 in Barbury. South Covello and Vilita originally finished 1-1 but after a further half hour each had scored another goal. On Penalties, Vilita book their continuation in the competition 2-4. Finally, hosts Apox beat Qasden 0-1 in Dwile.



THE HUB
GOALS: Silveira (4), Fernando (2), Gama (1), Veiga (1), Jota (1).
ASSISTS: Fernando (3) Veiga (2), Mário (1).

LATEST STATS
World Cup 82 Quals
Top Goalscorers: Silveira (9)
Assists: Fernando (8)
Cup of Harmony 73
Top Goalscorer: Silveira (2)
Assists: Fernando (3)
IDU Championships
Top Goalscorer: Gama (2)
Assists: Fernando (2)
IA6
Top Goalscorer: Silveira (4)
Assists: Fernando

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MMXIX

             vs             

So, what team in this semifinal is described in this segment?

The default -team- strategy can be summed up in one phrase: “the best offence is a good defence”. The -animal nickname- play a highly opportunistic attack, lying in wait for an opportunity rather than charging head-on. Possession is mostly confined to the midfield, keeping the ball comfortably away from -goalkeeper-’s goal and close enough to -team-'s -striker- for him to attack when necessary. -team- prefer to play a passing game in possession, while attempting to pry the ball away from the opposition when not, either by intercepting a pass or tackling players. The -animal nickname- will attempt to frustrate and infuriate the opposition through tactics

We don't know either.

Note for the intern: put Spiderman pointing at Spiderman here, or Pam Beesly saying 'it's the same picture' or one of the other memes the children like. We gotta get clicks somehow. Don't appear too desperate. But be desperate.

             vs             

This group rematch is played in Cosumar and honestly, we don't know which of these we'd rather face in the last game. Be it final or third place playoff, both Zwangzug and Kita-Hinode are an amazing dessert to an already amazing tournament. Like we can't tell the first semifinal teams apart by playing style, we can't tell these two teams here apart from their jerseys.

---

Ko-oren's last knockout win in the first 90 minutes? You're going to like this. It was Cup of Harmony 65. Since then, the Dragonflies have played one World Cup Ro16, and five CoH knockout games - each of which ended in draws at best after 90 minutes. Or 120, for that matter.

Also, while you're here, check out this video of Greenblue knockout goals at the tournament so far, right here:

Zwangzug won against not-so-old Lusitania. A blast from Kostya Hart-Farm's right foot was all it took for our squad to clinch a spot in this Cup of Harmony's last four, facing Group B's champion again.

"What a showing!" or a variation on this, said Subroto Parida, throwing up in a trash can. "I thought Shobhana [Birla] was good at cutting off shots, and Martin [Scallop]'s tackling was amazing. Now I'm going to shoot triptans into my skin, catch you around."

"So, you probably shouldn't print this, but I thought our stadium sponsor was cool," said right-back McGowan. "I was playing through a lot of my backlog from this company on our flight out. It's no SCQ, obviously, but what is?"

"I'm proud of our guys but this is just a start," said Zwangzug's captain. "This match, and a follow-up, await win or loss. Or draw. Which is only a draw in KPB digits if it would go to a shootout, which is dumb." This woman would go on to rant about how common ways to sort victory don't aid our capital's club much.

"Lusitania had a strong attack," said coach Makvala. "Particularly Francisco Gama's high-accuracy passing. Fair play to this squad. But now to turn our focus to north ghosts."

As of publication, still nobody knows if it's risky to look at our opposition's GK kits or what.

CUP OF HARMONY 74
Lingard's Poltergeists dominate Krytenia, 3-0
CRAWFORD, COSUMAR - The Hinodejin Empire is on its' way to the Semis after demolishing the Krytenians by three to zero at the Orangi Stadium. Iona Mizukara was the best player of the game, keeping a clean sheet with some near impossible saves, certainly a result of her cyborg inner workings at full effect, something that cybernetic implant companies are certain to be flaunting in the foreseeable future. Still, you got to give credit to Iori Saitou's regista role in the field, orchestrating a no less impressive hat trick by Cherry Whitecastle. The Hinodejin are very hopeful following the result, the belief that they finally found their way back up on a professional manager, instead of relying on their Empress.

The team's overall mood has increased in the past couple of days, the dream that this might be the time they actually win the Cup of Harmony is still that, a dream, but the players have been fairly adamant about their chances. "It's up in the air, I guess," said Iori Saitou to the press after the game, "I mean, we did control our opponent today. Zwangzug's a good team as well, but they're not us." Cherry Whitecastle did mention their opponents, but that was after a lot of showering of praises towards everyone in her usual good mood. Mimi Akazukin had more... colourful words, however, to the tune of "we'll rip them apart like a lone rabbit hopping in the middle of the deadliest woods in the world".

The Hinodejin now prepare to face off Zwangzug, a very notable side from the region of Forest with some similarities to the Hinodejin Empire, namely in that they too are a national team that is a returning force, having been a feature from the days between the World Cup's thirty-third edition to the World Cup's forty-second edition, where they reached the final. They did, however, win the Cup of Harmony once, a title that eludes the Hinodejin Empire. The expected line-up of the Empire, according to their manager, features the following: Mizukara; Sogeshita, de Charlot, Kojima, Akazukin; Kisame, Kanani, Metharom; Kunorikato, Saitou and Whitecastle.