Merano Regency
Two cycles ago, Zwangzug were eliminated from the Cup of Harmony by Cassadaigua on a penalty shootout in the round of 16, which is a "draw" according to some pundits.
The team that competed from World Cups 64-69 participated in three CoHs, going out in the group stage on each occasion.
And the original national team played in just one Cup of Harmony, the twenty-fifth edition, which they won.
So Iori Saitou's goal in minute 61 was, in a very technical and pedantic sense, the first time Zwangzug had been defeated in the harmonious bracket. True, no one cares, yet the glory of fun statistical streaks is just as meaningful a point to play for as nebulous national pride.
Of course, Zwangzug aren't out of the tournament; a playoff follows against the Ko-oren Dragonflies, who will be hoping their mascot is fortuitous in the "Here be Dragons" series of competitions. Ko-oren are known for their extremely defensive approach, as well as their linguistic diversity; they lost their semifinal to Saltstead by a similar scoreline.
The original WC33/CoH 25 team is a distant memory to some archivists, ancient history in some countries, a fun video game sidequest in others, a source of pride and embarrassment, a symbol of how far we and the game have come. Is it too much to say that the best way to honor them might just be to talk about them as any old team? Not symbols or legends or shadows, but players, who wore kits and scored goals and achieved some small amount of success, like Kita-Hinode or Saltstead will go on to do in a couple of days' time.
Well, and maybe we could let players pick their own uniform numbers like they did, to honor old heroes or just express themselves. But that's a debate for another time.
