Sporting World Cup 9 (U18WC) Everything Thread

[Siovanija and Teusland]

Semifinals

Siovanija & Teusland 3-3 Hapilopper (3-4 AET) (Scorinated by Baker Park)
Free Republics 1–1 Baker Park (1–1 AET) (2–4 pen.)

Third Place Playoff

Siovanija & Teusland vs Free Republics, at Olimpski-Stadion, Borograd

Final

Hapilopper vs Baker Park, at Nationalstadion, Stelburg

[Hapilopper]

Nationalstadion, Stelburg, Teusland
Leading up to the Grand Final of the 9th Sporting World Cup: Hapilopper v. Baker Park
Dominic Probst and Thom Perkins, watching from a box seat in an empty Nationalstadion, took in the Little Haps participating in their final training session before the Grand Final. It had been a rewarding past seven days since the Under-18 HNFT knocked off the hosts, Siovanija and Teusland on the strength of a 113th minute goal from Shelley Linwood, a late-match substitution, to bring the Little Haps to the finals. It had been a tough match, with the Haps and the Goldhorns seemingly level for the entire match. Anything the Goldhorns did, the Little Haps had an answer for. When Shelley fired one into the back of the net in the 113th, the Hapiloppians were in sheer ecstasy, while the Goldhorns realized pretty quickly they would be competing for the third place prize.

Dom and Thom liked what they were seeing. The Little Haps had gelled as a team and had grown rather closely as they fought for victory. The kids looked like they were very clearly enjoying themselves and they looked like they were ready to play for keeps against Baker Park that evening.

Head Coach Garnett Sydney, meanwhile, was trying to get the Little Haps to stop doing something they had seen on TV. The kids had seen their hero, Ernie Stevenson, pull off one of the most incredible goals they had ever seen in a Leichhardt match against Belgrave in the Nepharim First Division. Ernie was rushing for goal in the 23rd, and just before Belgrave’s goalkeeper could stop the offensive effort, Ernie picked up the ball with both feet, “kangaroo-hopped” over the goalkeeper and plunked it into the empty net with his heels.

“Guys, you’re not seriously going to do this tonight, are you?” Garnett asked incredulously. “You’re not Ernie Stevenson! Do your own thing!”

“Yeah, but that was the coolest thing we’ve ever seen!” shouted Toby Bryson, one of the Little Haps’ forwards. “I mean, you’ve got to admit, that was badass.”

“Yeah, it was, but that’s his move,” Garnett responded. “Outdo him and do YOUR own move.”

Dom and Thom watched with a smile as they saw the kids try to emulate their hero with that flashy goal.

“He never did that in Hapilopper City, did he?” Dom asked Thom.

“Not that I remember.”

“Well, he’s certainly got the kids excited. I wonder what sort of lunacy they’ll try tonight.”

“I don’t know, but I hope they realize what the stakes are.”

And these were the stakes: The match that night, on paper, was for the Sporting World Cup trophy, but beyond that, it was so much more than that. If Hapilopper won, it was a sign that the Dominion would truly be the team to beat in the future. It meant that the kids that had taken up football as their new sport were for real. And it meant that, as the first generation of the post-BoF Hapiloppians that had taken up football, the next ones would be even better, which would probably mean trouble for the rest of the multiverse.

But they had a very tough adversary standing in their way. The Commonwealth of Baker Park had burst on the scene several years before, coming very close to victory in the 67th Baptism of Fire, and had qualified for every single World Cup. They had won the 5th Sporting World Cup. In this edition of the SWC, Baker Park had gone undefeated, scoring 18 goals while allowing just six goals in the three group stage matches and three knockout matches. Four of those goals came from Silver Beach in that epic 5-4 match. Obviously they knew what they were doing, and if Hapilopper had any hope in hell of beating the team from the Commonwealth.

As match time drew near, Dom and Thom were speaking to Garnett Sydney in his locker room office.

“Think we can do it?” Dom asked Garnett.

“I don’t know, to be honest,” Garnett replied nervously. “I mean, it’s nothing against us, but, man. We gonna have to be on it if we’re going to have a chance. I mean, those guys are good. That whole nation’s good. They know what they’re doing out there. I mean… we’re good and shit, but man, we’re going to have to be at the absolute top of our game if we’re going to beat those guys.”

“You know something? We’re good too,” Thom replied. “Yeah, we’ll have to be at the top of our game, but shit… that’s what we’re good at, being at the top of our game. Those kids have come together, and they’ve come through when we needed them. They know when to be on it, and now’s the time to be on it.”
Garnett smiled. To him, that was a vote of confidence from the head coach of the senior team, arguably the number two man in the HFA.

“And, um, by the way, they’re going to be fired up when they see who I had brought in for this occasion,” Thom said, with a smile. “I’m going to have him fire this team up for the match.”

He tapped on his phone a few times, texting a friend.

“Come on in. Nobody knows you’re here,” Thom texted.

“What are you doing?” Garnett asked.

“Texting a friend.”

The identity of that friend came known pretty soon after, as the Little Haps went into an unmitigated frenzy. There was screaming and cheering. When Thom opened the office door, Garnett’s eyes went wide to see Ernie Stevenson – yeah, THAT Ernie Stevenson, in among his players. Stevenson, wearing a navy and yellow warmup jacket of the Leichhardt team he now played for, was here to see his fellow Hapiloppians go for glory.

“Kids, this is your moment, but it is far from your only moment,” Ernie said with an intense look on his face. “You’ve got the greatest country in all the multiverse cheering you on. Hapilopper. What a beautiful place. You are Hapilopper, and you can’t get any better than that. This is what you’ve worked for. Play your game and win it for everyone back home. Tonight, you – all of you – Toby, Morris, Shelley, Dean, Kerry, Herb, George, Kenny, Dickman, Ashley, Fabian, Quintin, and all the rest of you. You are Hapilopper, and you will be champions.”

Thom smiled. It looked like he wanted to cry. Ernie’s speech resembled Thom’s speech just before the 70th Baptism of Fire, that tournament now etched in the memories of Hapiloppians everywhere, the tournament when the Dominion truly arrived on the international stage. It was because of that tournament that these kids took up this beautiful game. The kids realized the significance of what Ernie was telling them. They realized why Ernie was choosing the words he was choosing, and it more than fired up the players of the Under-18 Hapilopper National Football Team.

Above the locker room, the kids could hear the drums from the Traveling Thrashers, beating to the tune of that late-70s funk hit that had become the de facto theme of Hapiloppian international football. The room went silent as the kids, coaches and Ernie let the drum beat speak for itself.

“That’s for you,” Ernie said calmly. “Nobody can beat you when you’ve got that in your corner. Tonight, play the greatest game of your life and you will be champions.”

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

"Good evening, welcome to CBC 2 for the coverage of the Final of the Sporting World Cup Under 18 World Championships from here in Stelburg, Teusland. I'm David Blake, and with me is Aiden Donnan as we come to you from the Nationalstadion ahead of Baker Park versus Hapilopper. Mark Tolbert & Craig Snyder will be on the call, and they'll join us shortly. Aidy, a BP team finally made it through on the right end of a penalty shootout and now sit 90 minutes or so from becoming only the second nation to win this tournament twice. Do you think the impact of the moment will catch up to the players?"

AD: "For a lot of squad, this is now a bit of regular business for them, with so many returnees from the last tourney. I never played in U17's but I did get a couple of caps in 21's, and we never played in front of big crowds like these players do. So I'd probably be out of my wits, but I don't think this team will let nerves get to them."
DB: "The Commonwealth got back on track defensively after giving up 4 goals to Silver Beach, holding the Free Republics to only a single score in the semi final, and they will get back co-captain Jon Schulman at right back after his suspension for the red card he picked up. The typical squad rotation seems to have worked out for the best once again."

AD: "Yeah, Dean Slater stepped into that spot and performed exceptionally. I think Zoe made a bit of a tweak to the tactics as well, as it seemed that the central midfielders didn't push as high up defensively when the ball was in the Republics half, probably to give a bit more cover to the backs."

DB: "Let's bring in Mark & Craig from the commentary box. Guys, let's talk a bit about the opponents, Hapilopper. As a nation, they seem to be on a similar trajectory to the one Baker Park took in their introduction to multiverse soccer."

Mark Tolbert: "Yes David, they stormed onto the scene winning the last BOF, and here they are in the SWC looking for a trophy on their first time out. They have had to build up a grass roots systems to bring players along, which we had already when we started out. So it will be a test to see if they are on a solid path of youth development."
Craig Snyder: "I expect that this will be the most physical side BP have lined up against here. I'd be interested to see how Zoe makes out the lineup."

AD: "I wanted to mention that Craig. The style of play will be an interesting contrast here, as Hapilopper will want to disrupt the passing game and counter the pace of Baker Park with a lot over challenges in the middle third, I suspect."

DB: "When we come back, we'll talk a bit more about the matchups and get ready for the pre-match festivities. Stay tuned."

Lineup for the Final: Callaway; McFarlaine, Nelson, Schulman; Wiley, Taylor, Boyle, Altman; Diaz; Price, Bouchard

[Siovanija and Teusland]

Third Place Playoff

Siovanija & Teusland 0–1 Free Republics (Scored by Banija)

Grand Final

Hapilopper 1–1 Baker Park (1–2 AET)

Thank you to all 32 participating countries, and congratulations to our very deserving finalists and champion! Thank you for visiting Siovanija & Teusland, we hope to see you again!

[Hapilopper]

Nationalstadion, Stelburg, Teusland
The Grand Final of the 9th Sporting World Cup: Hapilopper v. Baker Park
It was over. The Little Haps had come so close. So agonizingly close. The hearts of Hapiloppians were ripped out in extra time in yet another close match. Sooner or later, though, the Haps were going to end on the wrong side of one of those close matches. It figured, of course, that it would come in the final of the Sporting World Cup, and against the best under-18 team in all the land, Baker Park in extra time.

As the team from Baker Park celebrated their well-deserved victory, the Haps applauded them. Emotionally, it was hard as hell for them to do. They wanted to be up there hoisting the Sporting World Cup trophy so badly. They had worked so hard for it. They had fought so hard for it, and lord knows they had played their absolute best on this night in Stelburg. But Baker Park was just that much better on this evening.

Some players had tears in their eyes. So did Head Coach Garnett Sydney. He had seen a team fight as hard as they possibly could. He had seen the Little Haps fight for their lives, but they had been beaten out by a team that, on this evening, was just a little better. He looked over to Toby Bryson, tears streaming down his face, embracing Jerold Dickman, who too could barely hold it in too. These were kids that, before this tournament, hated each other’s guts. They had come together and were sharing the bitter disappointment of the defeat.

Garnett walked over to the kids and gave them some food for thought.

“Kids, this won’t be your last time,” he said to the players. “You guys are great football players and you will be representing Hapilopper in many tournaments in the future. Don’t let this get you down. Instead, take this as a motivator. Bulletin board material. You see, I see this, I see those kids from Baker Park hoisting the trophy and god damn it, it MAKES ME WANT IT MORE. We’ve come so close, we can do it. You can too.”

He was right. The players had been marked by the Hapilopper Football Association as a group of players to watch. Dominic Probst, the head of the Hapilopper Football Association and Thom Perkins, head coach of the senior team, had been moved by the Under-18 team and wanted to see more of them. These kids, the first generation of players who had taken up the sport in the post-Baptism of Fire era, had proven they were good at this beautiful game, and they would be remembered for the international teams in the years to come. They were also being looked at by domestic clubs, especially with current Hapiloppian domestic players being picked up by international club teams.

The next afternoon, the Little Haps flew back to Hapilopper, where they were greeted warmly by many of their fellow countrymen. They had seen that they had played as hard as they could, and had fought like hell for the Sporting World Cup, but they had just simply been bested by Baker Park. They knew, however, that next year and beyond, Hapilopper would continue to become more of a force in international football. While they had not won, their performance was enough to prove to the rest of the multiverse that the future looked very bright for Hapiloppian football.

In a few years time, these kids would be representing Hapilopper in the top rung of international football. Their skills would be refined, their personalities matured. But for now, it was time to go back home and go back to school. After all, it was a school night, and the first day of the coming semester was starting the next day. There, the Little Haps, back at their schools, would tell their friends and classmates about the tale of how a bunch of kids passed their auditions and came so close, so damned agonizingly close, to hoisting that trophy.

They may not have won, but damn they had fun in the process.

Hapilopper will be back.

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

Mark Tolbert: "The ball is into touch about 30 yards from the Hapilopper goal, but Wiley is in no hurry to take the throw. There are only 3 other BP players in that half of the field anyway. We are moving into the 120th minute, and there is going to be one added minute. To our left, the fans in black & gold are singing. Boyle wins the header in midfield. He has to be the player of this match, don't you think Craig?"

Craig Snyder: "Without a doubt. He's gone 120 minutes in two straight matches and still is fighting for every ball."

MT: "Now Taylor holds the ball at the corner flag while Dickman tries to muscle him off. And it goes out for a throw in."

CS: "It has been an excellent match all around, hard tackling and physical, but it didn't descend into a free for all."

MT: "The referee from Cosumar, Ms Kilgera takes a glance at her watch. And there is whistle!! After 30 minutes of extra time, the Commonwealth of Baker Park capture the Under 18 World Championship for the second time in 5 years!"

(scenes of players celebrating, crowd reactions)

MT: "Craig, we are rarely ever disappointed covering the youngsters in this tournament."
CS: "Absolutely correct Mark. It's really the first time most of them--and this about all the players from all the nations that were here--have really had a chance to represent their country on a big stage. Aidy mentioned during the pre-game, as 16, 17 & 18 year olds, rightfully you should be completely scared to death about playing in front of crowds and audiences of this size."

MT: "There is Isabelle Wiley, who got the chance to wear the armband for the second straight match, showing her respect to opposing players, and several others making their way over to commiserate with the runners-up. Who have acquitted themselves here wonderfully."

CS: "I expect if we see them down the road in tournaments like this, they will show the same intensity and spirit."

MT: "Ahead of the presentation of the awards, we'll wrap up here. It was Hapilopper 1, Baker Park 2 after extra time, goals by Freddie Altman, which should probably wrap up the Golden Boot for him, in the 50th, George Hale replied on 61 minutes for the Little Haps, and Alonzo Boyle with a spectacular free kick from 26 yards in the 102nd minute was the clincher. David Blake, Aidy Donnan, just another routine historic night for the Commonwealth."

DB: "Mark, Craig, as always a superb job. And yes, it was a match worthy of history, Aidy?"
AD: "Zoe Montgomery, Darren Kirby, the coaches, the other staff. An epic job of guiding these 23 players through a month here in Siovanija & Teusland. Glad we got a chance to see up close in person, David.

DB: "we'll come back with the trophy ceremony after these messages."

Tremendous job by the hosts for putting a smooth, well run event. Commiserations to Hapilopper, you'll add to your trophy haul soon. Thanks!