World Cup 84- RP Thread (IC)

by **Flavovespia** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 1:10 pm

Squornshelan Remnant States 0–0 Flavovespia

110 positons separate the 2 sides in the KPB rankings, but Flavovespia stood up against the odds to come away with Squornshelan Remnant States, the Pot 3 side of the group with a point. A good start to the campaign, with a point coming from a match many didn’t see them taking anything from in all probability.

At the Synesoft Arena, Flavovespia lined up in an all yellow kit to begin their tournament, with numbers 1-11 on the field for the side. Alan Holt and David Michael would make their debuts in the first qualifying match from kick off, despite rumours it may be an all-capped side to begin with.

Squornshelan Remnant States went with their 4-3-3 for this match, but with an untested attack of Lyzolda Petrov, Jurzse Bedesnjak and Mareth Erseburg. It was a surprise move by Bethany Donnell, who some believed was using this match as an attempt to experiment, and maybe not put out the strongest or most obvious starting 11.

Squornshelan Remnant States had the early possession in the game, and did look the better side, playing with the advantage of a higher ranking and their home stadium. Nevertheless, for all their possession, getting attacks going through the middle was a struggle. James King and Alan Holt, the latter in his debut, seemed to be doing a solid job in the middle of the park. Up front for the hosts, and it felt like a case of too many cooks in the kitchen.Petrov, Bedesnjak and Erseburg found good spaces at times, but on several occasions seemed to be unable to choose the right pass or shot. David Meehan’s fine form in his return to international football wasn’t helping the hosts either.

As for Flavovespia, they only had 1 shot on target all first half, and that was little more than a scuffed slow ball along the ground by Terence Daley. Zemen Ystrad and Skumantas Nakhutin in the heart of the Squornshelan Remnant States defence had the better of the Flavovespian attackers in the first half, with Coleman and Daley unable to do much down the middle. David Michael still seemed to be getting to speed with international football, given he’d only been playing in the Challenge League (Flavovespia’s second tier) recently, with Janar Delu easily outmatching him. Steven Hall looked impressive, but so was the defence, and it was goalless at half-time.

The second half seemed to be following much of the same pattern for a while. Squornshelan Remnant States had possession and although strong down the wings, their struggles in midfield and lack of teamwork up front seemed to be a big reason for their lack of goals. Cole would switch out David Michael for the more experienced Jonathan Feld, but this seemed to do little to change the attacking fortunes of Flavovespia.

As the game went on, Flavovespia did seem to grow into it. Into the second half their attacks were looking more potent, and there was a feeling if a goal would come, they might be the ones to get it. The defence of Squornshelan Remnant States, composed early on, did see to be rattled, not least when Coleman had a long range shot narrowly go over the bar. More fouls came in, with Coleman and Hall in particular finding themselves knocked about. Zemen Ystrad in particular seemed to be more concerned about stopping attacks than winning the ball. He would eventually be booked for persistent fouling, but many Flavovespians thought he deserved a yellow much earlier, especially for a somewhat cynical shirt pull on Daley.

Terence Daley also saw himself in the wars. In one of the controversial moments of the game, Skumantas Nakhutin caught Daley with a swinging arm. Daley went down with blood coming from his nose. Several Flavovespian players, including captain and vice captain Steven Hall, James King and the substitute Henrik Jensen seemed keen to have words over the incident, and there was some shoving and shirt grabbing as a result. Nevertheless it was all a bit “handbags at dawn”, and nobody saw red, literally or metaphorically. Nakhutin was booked, but many Flavovespians felt it should have been a red. Daley would finish the match, but with a bandaged face and a shirt with a draw on number 9 on the back.

Despite the flashpoints, there were no more dramatic moments, and the game would eventually finish 0-0. A draw away against one of the higher ranked sides in the group, which is something any fan probably would have taken before the game started. Flavovespia weren’t the better team, and realistically struggled to score. Nevertheless they did enough to secure a point, and the team will look to take that confidence going forward.

Next up is Ziwana in Marthorpe for Flavovespia. Ziwana won 2-1 against Mitra and Soma, so will be hopeful to take points from Flavovespia. Nevertheless, Flavovespia do hold the KPB ranking advantage, and with home advantage as well, will hope to put their first win on the board, in what on paper is an easier run of games now for a bit. The big shock in Group 8 was probably Filindostan 2–1 South Covello. Only time will tell how important that upset could be. In an injury update, despite playing to the end, Terence Daley will be ruled out of the next match, leaving Edward Barkes or Marc Sharratt likely to be awarded their first cap.

A History of Football in Flavovespia

Part 1

The FFD will look at the history of professional football in Flavovespia, and the preceding states on the island. For a little over a century now, the professional game has existed in the nation, and there are many key stages in it’s development into the modern form we see now. This retrospective series will look at the timeline of progression, alongside some of the important matches and players of the time.

Prior to the year 89BU, many amateur football clubs did exist, playing football in some form. It would be wrong to pretend that football came from nothing and just suddenly appeared. However in this era, there was little consistency in the rules, aside from 11 players per side kicking a ball into a standard sized goal. Although some modern teams claim to predate the existence of modern football, verifying these claims is a difficult task. Furthermore, it can be a matter of dispute as to how much these teams are truly one continuous entity throughout time, especially in the very early years of football in what is now Flavovespia.

The first professional club to form in the nation was in the capital, simply called Waldster FC. The club officially founded on February 14th, with the aim stated to “provide a professional environment for the best football talent in Waldster, and in the wider community”. The team chose to adopt a kit of yellow tops, black trousers and black socks, colours they still wear to this very day.

Naturally, Waldster needed a professional opponent, and a month later, Hadford Hill FC formed. They chose the cities colours of red for their tops, with white trousers and socks. It would be the 22nd March, 89BU, when for the first ever time, a professional football match would take place in what is now known as Flavovespia. The venue would be Green Hill in Waldster. The stadium itself no longer exists, however the area of the pitch is a protected parkland now, to commemorate the first professional match.

The line up for Waldster was:

William Hanford (GK), John Smales, David Fox, William Harrison, Herbert Harbour, John Slack, Joseph Bussett, Fester Carmichael, Frank Henderson, Robert Lord, Henry Howard

And the line up for Hadford Hill was:

Edmund Roys (GK), William Ellis, Benjamin Strauss, William Routley, Thomas Harris, John Clayton, Charles Smithers, James Gillespie, Richard Kelly, Robert Albright, Edwin Humphries

The match would finish 1-1. It was Fester Carmichael who scored in the 63rd minute for Waldster, with an equaliser by Robert Albright 15 minutes later. The match had a modest attendance of several thousand, standing on grass banks around the pitch. However the attention of the game didn’t go unnoticed, nor did the follow up in Hadford Hill, won 1-0 by the hosts. The genesis of the professional game had begun.

The next few years were a slow development for the professional game. Waldster and Hadford Hill were joined by St Astons City, who officially formed at the beginning of 86BU. That said, there is a discussion on whether or not the “St Astons XI” that played for a few years prior and was made up of a selection of amateur players of the city counts as a separate team or not. A few other regions explored the idea of professional teams, but largely the amateur game was still far more popular, with many thinking the idea of being paid for playing sport was against the spirit. Until 85BU, no official professional competition existed.

by **Alasdair I Frosticus** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 1:37 pm

The Knights of the Oblong Table In....

THE QUEST FOR THE HOLY GRAIL
of World Cup qualification

"Knights of the Oblong Table, I, Sir Barsanuphius the Bold, come to you this day to let you know that we have been charged with a sacred quest!"

"A quest!"

"A quest!"

"A quest!"

"Yes, listen to him who would explain this quest!"

"The Lord Our God!"

"Let us bow down before Him!"

"Actually, I think that's just Juan Tzimisces with some overly dramatic back-lighting"

"So it is...."

"Knights of the Oblong Table, I repeat what your leader Sir Barsanuphius has just told you.... you have been charged..."

"By the Lord our God!"

"No; not quite... by the Basileus of the Holy Empire to seek out the Holy Grail..."

"The Grail!"

"The Grail!"

"I hope it's one of those nice ones; not too flashy, mainly wood with a bit of gold around the rim"

"I've got two at home."

"Holy Grails?"

"Oh yes; very common among the mundies; I've got a Holy Lance or two as well, and a Holy Prepuce..."

"No, brave knights, not the physical Grail used by our Lord and Saviour at the Last Supper, and which Joseph of Arimathea used to catch Christ's blood at the crucifixion, instead rather the Basileus offers you the chance to achieve the Holy Grail of World Cup qualification!"

"Is this one of those abstract concept things?"

"Indeed, wise Sir Joasaph; you shall seek the mystical goal of World Cup qualification, whereby the worthy achieve a Christ-like state of mystical purity."

"Splendid; and how shall we achieve this quest?"

"Ah, Sir Mirax, most noble knight.... By kicking this leather sphere into yonder net, while opposed by 11 mundies who themselves attempt to kick the same leather sphere into yonder other net."

"Is the sphere a symbol?"

"No, you just have to kick it into the net more often than the other team..."

"This sounds awfully like something that, well, peasants would do."

"Quite, not brave knights seeking to achieve a Christ-like state of mystical purity."

"Nonetheless Sir Synetus the Pedantic - and might I add that with an attitude like that you'll be starting on the bench - this is the sacred quest that the Basileus would charge you with. I must ask... do you accept?"

"Will there be adventure?"

"Yes!"

"Heathens to smite?"

"Yes!"

"Damsels in distress?"

"Quite likely!"

"Obscure Christian symbolism?"

"Oh yes!"

"Constitutional peasants?"

"Not sure on that one; can we get back to you?"

"Opportunities to show our bravery in chivalrous battle?"

"Most definitely!"

"Then I, Sir Barsanuphius the Bold, do accept this sacred charge on behalf of the entire Knights of the Oblong Table! When do we begin?"

"Tomorrow; against the Hinodejin Empire; we'll start off by playing our normal 3-5-2 formation, except that...."

<2 hours later>

"So, if I understand correctly, we defeat the scary ghost wielding a naginata, cut off the supplies to the cherries growing in the Court of Satyrs of the White Castle by challenging a cyborg to a duel, which shall then make our victory over this land of poltergeists inevitable - perhaps by a score of three to nil, which has obvious Trinitarian symbolism - bringing us one step closer to the Holy Grail (of World Cup qualification)."

"Well... errr.... what do you think Simeone? Close enough?"

"Close enough, Juan; let's get to it."

by **Mriin** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 2:12 pm

It had taken some time, but Solara had convinced the ref to go with an… alternate, shall we say, means of determining possession. In the end it’s in the same vein as the coin flip, and suitably random--there’s no reason it wasn’t a reasonable variation on the theme. Just a variation most might see as unnecessary. But she thought it would be a good way to welcome the Planers, to make them feel more at home. So she’d had her SO stop by a nerd supply store on the way to the stadium to pick up a D20, one of the nice ones carved from real stone! A beautiful cloudy jade, as it were.

Hope Lamont stood opposite Sol; they had no designated captain, so perhaps they decided on the tiefling as a nod to the home crowd--she was certainly the closest thing any of the satyrs had seen to their own race. A few quick shakes of the fist and she let the die drop onto the little fold-out table the refs had brought out; a skip and a bounce and it settled with the ivory ‘7’ on top. An underwhelming roll, but not necessarily disastrous. Once the ref made it clear he’d read and recorded the roll, Sol snapped up the die and threw it back down with a flourish. It’s a 20.

With an all-too-toothy grin, she said good luck and took to the pitch.

by **Sarzonia** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 3:18 pm

Stadion Krapinska was going to be the scene for arguably the most emotional match in Sarzonian footballing history, at least since the death of the first man to manage a Sarzonian national football team back in World Cup XVII qualifying.

Assistant manager Kevin Wilson remembered the time well. His older brother Brian was on that Stars team back then. His father Dave was the assistant manager suddenly thrust into the spotlight as the national team manager. He saw the effect the death of Bryan Marshall had on his father. The once sometimes overly genial man was suddenly thrust with the responsibilities of guiding a grief-stricken team through the rest of qualifying. He had to become much more serious as the man making the decisions than he ever had to as the man making recommendations.

It took a while before Dave Wilson was something resembling himself. It took a Stars team that finally qualified in its fourth attempt despite knocking on the door multiple times, including leading its qualifying group with two matches remaining as the reigning Baptism of Fire Cup champions and the then-72nd ranked team in the world back when Dave Wilson was the assistant manager. It took the Stars dominating Oaker 4-0 in a then-historic final which saw Brian Wilson become just the second player to notch a hat trick in a World Cup final, and the first to do so for the winning side.

Now, Kevin Wilson was sitting on the sidelines in a role he didn't initially want anything to do with. However, he knew the sense of duty he carried. He knew the responsibility that came with the Wilson bloodlines in Sarzonian football. He knew being on the pitch and watching his grandnephew Clayton Wilson navigate his way through not being in the starting 11 for the first time would be a challenge. His obligation was to carry a sense of tradition, a sense of the old days when the Stars were among footballing royalty.

And yet, he knew his other duty was a far more basic one. It was to serve as emotional support for his new boss, Kevin Connelly. They barely knew each other before this tragedy forced Kevin Wilson onto the team bench as assistant manager, but he knew his indirect role with a bereaved team from the past would serve as backdrop for his role on the present team.

When the Nepharan referee blew her whistle and the opening kickoff happened at Stadion Krapinska, Kevin Wilson could feel the sense of relief that washed over Connelly. Finally, the Stars were going to play a match that counted and the team was going to try to overcome impossible odds and make the trip to either Cassadaigua or Baker Park. The team's impossible journey would begin tonight.

It wouldn't begin with any goals. Neither Terre Septentrionale striker Fryderyka Cwierczakiewiczowa, who had a beautiful free kick opportunity that sailed just over the crossbar in the 33rd minute nor Sarzonia striker Jake Campos, who launched a laser beam of a shot that veteran goalkeeper Zofia Kwietniewska dived and parried out of bounds for a corner kick in the 49th minute, were able to dent the scoreboard.

The result was a goalless draw. Not the victory that would have electrified the Stars supporters still in shock over their team's manager committing suicide, but still a powerful performance that would essentially feel like a victory for the Stars in spite of their being outplayed for the duration of the 90-minute contest.

They'll take it. They don't have a choice, but they were happy to talk about football instead of other matters for once.

by **Taeshan** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 3:42 pm

Post Match Scrums

"Wilhelm, you got the scoring under way with the opener, but the defense gave up a late equalizer. How do you feel about the qualifying opener"?

"Did we win"?

"No."

"Then not great."

What does this result mean."

"It means we went on the road to nowhere, and failed to win. Last campaign we win that game. This campaign are defense is makeshift, old, and our Goalie is literally 16."

"Randall. You looked a bit out of sorts in the back. Care to comment?"

"Let's face it. I'm a 31 year old Defensive Midfielder playing center back. I can only do so much. I respect Miles, and he's giving some of the younger kids a chance, and allowing me to still play, but I was the Captain of a relegated side. I'm not in my top form."

"Are you saying you shouldn't be starting."

"I'm saying I'm not a Center Back."

"Florian your first qualifer in net, and your 5th cap. Not the best result, what do you take from this"?

"I take a lot. I'd never heard of TJUN-ia before. And i'm still in disbelief it exists. But it was a learning process."

"Some will say you're too young to start, let alone your performances for Capetown Crocs and in the Copa Rushmori were not that great. How does this game show your skills differently? A failure to capitalize on a weak road opponent in your first away World Cup qualifier."

"Well obviously it is not great. Playing in TJUN-ia was a complete different story than playing in the Copa Rushmori. Firstly Pasarga is a short trip through Rushmore, and we weren't playing them. This result shows a plucky young side, with little to lose getting a big result against a favorite. We have to eliminate errors, I have to eliminate errors."

"Miles. Your first qualifying game in charge is a 2-2 draw on the road. What do you need to take from this"?

"My side is young. I have some veterans, but I have 5 starters younger than 22. They are playing key positions. This is not the veteran side that qualified for the World Cup. Let's face it, we may not qualify for a second tournament. That may cost me a job. It's not a happy thing to say..."

"Wow...."

"...I'm building this roster. I have some young guys, and some others not quite ready to suit up. It's a process. It may go quicker or slower, but I can only do so much. The quicker they [the fans] learn that...The happier they may be."

by **Tarchusland** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 3:43 pm

Indusse Starting XI

GK 1 STEPHEN LUIZ
DF 24 BIKASH KUMAR
DF 34 MATHEWW JOHN
DF 4 AHMAD ALI K.K.
DF 5 RAJESH KRISHNA
MD 65 KISHAN SINGH MAHAULI
MD 11 AARYAN YADAV
FO 9 AKSHAY RAJPOOT
ST 10 BASKAR KUMAR
ST 7 BECHUN BUTEA
ST 8 DAVID BECKAM

Tarchusland Starting XI

0' FWEEEEET. Indusse kicks off the game!

4' The ball is played down the line by Krishna but Mandane gets there first. Indusse throw in.

5' The ball is thrown to Aaryan Yadav who tries to swing in a cross to the far post. It's headed away by Loco and Tarchusland are on the attack.

6' Enzo takes the ball and passes it to Don. He switches the play and gives a long through ball for Mandane. Mandane has to sprint for it and takes a big touch hoping it goes to Plozo. Doesn't though and Krishna blocks the pass. Tarchusland throw in.

7' The ball is thrown back in but not much is made of it. Score is still 0-0.

9' Romeneyk retrieves the ball and launches it into the box. John clears it but only as far as Plozo who hits in on the volley but keeper Stephen Luiz is able to tip it over the crossbar. Corner for Tarchusland.

10' Wazza Don whips it in and Seeclara gets his head on it. He heads in straight into the keeper's arms and Indusse are on the counter.

'12 Krishna takes the ball at it seems as if he's going at it himself. He's running down the line and cuts it inside for Yadav. He takes it with his left foot and has a low shot at the far post. GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL. AARYAN YADAV SCORES. HE'S BEEN VERY INVOLVED IN THIS GAME SO FAR AND HE IS REWARDED. HE TAKES A TOUCH WITH HIS LEFT FOOT INTO THE BOX AND THE FAR POST SHOT IS JUST PAST CREMINHYA. IT'S 1-0 HERE FOLKS. INDUSSE LEADS!

'13 Tarchusland restarts play here.

'14 Ball is with Enzo he tries to dribble but the ball is taken away by Mahauli.

17' The ball is played to Baskar Kumar near the edge of the box. He has a go at the top right-hand corner but it's saved by the keeper and cleared away for a throw in Indusse's half.

19' Kumar plays the ball to Mahauli who lobs it over for Beckam to get a header in but it's shot over the crossbar. Goal kick for Tarchusland.

20' Romeneyk has the ball in the middle of the field and plays it to Nyman who's running down the line. He gets the ball past Bikash Kumar but not without going down. Referee plays advantage and Kinsha takes control. He cuts inside and does a few tricks. He disguises a pass to Enzo who unleashes a shot but it's just wide of the near post. Ref goes back to book Kumar for that late challenge. The first booking of the night.

23' Around the edge of the 18 Aaryan has the ball. He sees Butea in the box. Butea shoots but it's blocked by Loco and Indusse have their first corner of the night.

24' The corner is passed to Ali who's shot is parried away by Creminhya. Loco blocks a Kumar shot which leads to a goal mouth scramble. Eventually the ball falls to Butea who is found in an offside position. Loco quickly takes the free kick and Tarchusland are on the move.

26' Don takes the ball forward and passes it to Plozo but the goalkeeper dives down and gets the ball first. Tarchusland players are claiming that the winger was tripped but the referee is having none of it. 1-0

29. It's yet another chance for Tarchusland as Mandane has the ball on the wing. He tries to play a one-two with Plozo with near the goal line but Krishna bodies him and the ball runs out of play.

30' Baskar Kumar cuts it back for Mahuali near the edge of the box, Mahauli can't get the cross right and it's too high. Goal kick.

31' Muscling for the goal kick, Erving Romeneyk lands himself in the book for agressive play. Rajpoot takes a quick free kick and Indusse can counter here. Kumar has it on the wing he plays it across to Beckam who has his shot saved.

33' Alabadin goes into the box and has a shot. Ali is in the way and it's out for a corner.

34' Mr. Don plays it short to Kinsha. Kinsha tries to go for a goal-line run and chips it for Reiff to head in. Luiz punches it away though.

37' Nyman has the ball and is playing a bit more centrally. He has a shot at goal and it's saved for a corner.

38' The ball is at the edge of the box where Romeneyk has a shot. It's over the crossbar but a goal is looking likely.

40' Umaya Seeclara plays a deep ball for Mandane to pick up. He wants to play it to Enzo in the box but the ball is cleared. It's Tarchusland's throw in and they can't be that far off from equalizing.

43' Mandane takes the throw and Plozo is on the ball. He sends in a low cross for Reiff but John clears it. It's only as far as Wazza Don and he takes a sneaky little first-time shot going for the bottom right... GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL! IT'S A HISTORIC DAY FOR TARCHUSLAND WHO JUST SCORED THEIR FIRST WORLD CUP GOAL! CAPTAIN WAZZA DON IS SWINGING HIS SHIRT AND CELEBRATING WITH THE FANS. THIS IS UNEXPECTED. IT'S 1-1!

44' Don is booked for his celebration and Indusse kicks the ball off.

45' There will be 2 more minutes of added time.

45+2' HT: 1-1. Oh my what end to end football we are having here. Let's hope for some more of this in the second half.

START OF SECOND HALF

46' Tarchusland kicks things off

48' Plozo takes a shot but it's cleared away

51' Ali is going forward and launches a long ball into the box. It's punched away by Creminhya

53' Beckam goes down on the edge of the box and Indusse have a free kick.

54' The free kick hits Enzo's arm and players are asking for a penalty. Natural position though. Corner for Indusse. What can they do with it?

55' Butea heads the ball to the far post but Byta Loco is there to get it away.

58' Enzo gives a cross field ball to Reiff but he is called offside. 1-1

60' We've hit the hour mark here. 1-1

63' Substitution happening for Tarchusland. Tymyte Enzo is off. Jlomoh Aavack is on.

65' Aavack gets involved in the play for the first time today. He launches a ball in the box for Plozo who flicks it onto Kinsha. Luiz gets there first however.

69' Hekles Mandane can't get his pass and Beckam is on the counter. He's sprinting towards goal. Unleashes a shot. It hits the post! Kumar can't get the rebound on target and it's out for a goal kick. That's a chance he would've wanted back.

70' Nyman has the ball and Mahauli is going after him. He gets the tackle in but not before Nyman can pass elsewhere. Yellow card for Mahuali and Tarchusland have a free kick in their own half.

74' Wazza Don has Plozo on the run. Plozo goes for a shot and but it's saved. Kinsha passes back to Nyman who launches a cross that goes straight into the keeper's arms.

76' Substitution for Tarchusland. Byta Loco off. Deveto Kesz in.

79' Yadav plays a one-two with Mahauli and has a go at goal. It's straight into the keeper's hands though.

82' Kesz tackles Kumar inside the arc and Indusse have a dangerous free kick.

83' Kesz goes into the book for his protests

84' Kumar's free kick goes just wide of the post

86' Yadav beats Aavack to the ball and takes a shot. Seeclara gets in the way.

87' Indusse really want to win this games. Rajpoot has a shot at goal from about 25 yards out and it hits the top of the bar. They are playing more attacking.

90' 4 minutes added on

90+1' Final Substitution for Tarchusland. Sneygra comes on for Don. The captain is given a standing ovation.

90+4' FWEET. FWEET. FWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET. Game over. Tarchusland have managed to hold it for a draw.

FT: Indusse 1-1 Tarchusland

by **Kita-Hinode** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 4:36 pm

This series preview was approved by the Hinode Hōsō Kyōkai as a part of their HHK Originals group of shows to push for international relevance via media.

[A clock alarm starts. A man groans, getting up from bed, turning it off. The camera focuses on the man's face and upper torso, showing that he didn't have a good night.]

"So, I believe you were recommended by the Ministry of Work, Mr. Sil... Sly..."

[The shot moves instead to the very same man, dressed on a proper suit, beard shaved but not really forcing a smile.]

"Nuno Silva. I... didn't fight at the war and the troops sent me to an outpost near the border."

[The other voice is finally identified, an older Hinodejin man, all smiles.]

"Yes, we made sure to check your files before picking it up. I hope you were treated properly at the outpost."

[Nuno nodded, not really showing anything close to a smile but not sounding entirely offended.]

"It was decent, but I'm happy to have the chance of living in a proper Hinodejin city now. My life before wasn't that great, to begin with, so I'm fine if you treat me at least better than how they treated me."

[The old man adjusted his own necktie, letting out a small chuckle.]

"Well, you see... Ahem, we liked your profile but we don't usually train our new employees in the style you got back at your old land. Namely, we'll partner you with one of our most esteemed prospects. Hopefully, you will find this settlement as a better way to get you on the gears of the company."

[Nuno nodded, leaving the room before the older man's voice made him turn around.]

"Oh, and Nuno? His name is Yoshimitsu Terada and welcome to Kojima Accounting."

[Nuno walked down the aisles of the firm's offices. With each cubicle's placement being arranged based on its' respective worker's name, he has an easier time to find Yoshimitsu. As he finds his spot, however, he finds Yoshimitsu reading some sort of manga on his machine.]

"Uh... Yoshimitsu?"

[The Hinodejin doesn't look away from the screen.]

"Yeah, what's up?"

[He sat by his side, clearing his throat.]

"I'm Nuno Silva, I'll be your new-"

"You're the guy who the boss was talking about earlier. Guess the hissing I've been hearing from some of the other coworkers gave you away."

"Yeah, but I was actually hoping to learn about-"

"You're already learning, to be honest."

"Uh... learning what?"

[Yoshi spun on his own chair, smiling.]

"How to have a fun time."

[The feed now shows a myriad of stunts and all sorts of hilarity that apparently comes from Yoshimitsu's shenanigans.]

"And let me tell you, Silva. When we're done with your learning period, you're gonna be a legend."

It all abruptly stops with Nuno looking at Yoshimitsu with a rather disbelieving face.

"I just want a job, mate."

Wonder Colleague Yoshimitsu is one of HHK's Originals, make sure to catch it at your nearest TV channel.

by **Squornshelous** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 5:02 pm

Human Nature, Chapter 3
Chapter 1; Chapter 2

Markkus Holmgren sat at home, watching the postmatch cast. As he'd known, the time had come, quickly when the fact that the team was not going to do much during qualifying could not be hidden. Tens of thousands of people in Vogsphere had been present for the 6-2 thrashing the Red and Black had received at the hands of the Baptism of Fire's third place finishers, Poafmersia. Holmgren was genuinely curious to see how Information Management would react.

"Riots marred the Imperium's return to international football tonight," the anchor stared, unblinking. "Visiting Poafmersian supporters disrupted the match with rampant hooliganism, and spilled out into the neighborhoods surrounding the arena afterward." The visual shifted, showing images of a loose crowd of fans milling about in the streets as black-clad, armored police equipped with riot shields and automatic weapons advanced shoulder to shoulder, launching teargas ahead of them. "A curfew is in effect for all urban districts of Vogsphere until 6am tomorrow. All citizens are directed to return to their homes, all foreign nationals to their place of lodging. Those who must travel to or from work during this time must present employment documents upon request by police."

Holmgren waved a hand dismissively, switching to a sports talk cast, arriving in the middle of an interview with Squornshelan striker, Lyyti Vang.

"-were very intimidated, yes. And I think the referee was too. It's hard to be impartial with that kind of hostility from one end of the stands. I hope the Imperial council take some time to think about whether it's a good idea to have so many foreigners present at our-"

Holmgren waved his hand again, cutting Vang short. Good to see she's already learned to read her lines and go along. She could make team captain if she keeps that up. Homgren snorted. Funny how fast they've all gone from Luddite outcasts to toeing the party line. He had been there, of course. Seen the ignominious defeat, and the exuberant, but generally harmless away fans. He hadn't seen police agents provocateurs infiltrate the ranks of the away supporters after the match, but he didn't need to. By the end of the week, people who had been right next to him would fervently believe that they had seen Poafmersian fans throwing flares and fireworks, heard them chanting threatening slogans. Hell, they could probably even invent a field invasion or two. It was always depressing to admit, but Melkochuk was right. For the moment at least.

- - - - - - Twenty Days Earlier- - - - - -

Holmgren stood at the edge of a broad expanse of tall, brown grass, dotted here and there with twisted trees. Behind him, the Ministry skimmer that had brought him sat, engine humming. A gleaming, sharp edged piece of civilization embedded like a thrown rock in this husk of a suburb. In front of him, the shell-blasted ruin of an apartment block seemed to sag with fatigue, twisted rebar and shards of concrete protruding at odd intervals. He began to pick his way across the field accompanied by two armed guards, Melkochuk had insisted. Mercifully, they had left their body armor behind. Their movements were quick and jerky, birdlike, sensory implants and boosted nervous systems directing their vatgrown muscle tissue almost autonomically. Beneath the grass at their feet, fragments of asphalt testified to the parking lot that had once been here. The war really did a number on this place. The Ministry of Science had estimated that Holmgren and his escort could spend up to six hours here without protective gear, but already his skin was crawling, and he found himself breathing shallowly, as if that could keep out the toxins that permeated this place.

At the open doorway of the apartment building, a weatherbeaten old man sat on a folding lawn chair that looked nearly as old as he was. He took a long drag on the cigarette perched between his fingers, exhaled slowly, then looked up at Holmgren. He turn his head to the side and spat on the ground. One of the escorts took a step forward, but Holmgren put out a hand to stop him. I'm not going to start my recruiting visits by having an old man beaten to a pulp.

"I'm looking for the Vang Family residence."

"Good for you."

"Specifically I'm looking for Lyyti Vang, age 24. She's a con artist and sometime football player."

"Never heard of her."

Homgren sighed, took a few steps closer and squatted down, speaking quietly, "You see those two with me, old man? They're Imperial Police, born and raised. They had little baby jackboots in the nursery. Right now they'd like nothing better than to splatter you all over this wall." The old man stared at him, blankly. "Me, I'm not like them. I don't enjoy hurting people. I enjoy getting shit done. Right now what I need to get done is to find Lyyti Vang, and offer her and her family a lot of money. More money than you've ever seen in your life. I know she lives here, you think I'd be out in this poisoned backwater if I didn't?" Holmgren paused for a breath. He didn't particularly enjoy having to threaten people like this. The stress was getting to him, less than three weeks to go until the match against Poafmersia. "If you know Lyyti, if you care about her at all, you'll bring me to her. Now." Holmgren fished his Ministry credentials out of his coat pocket and tossed them into the old man's lap. "Either you come with me and I'll make her wildest dreams come true, or," Holmgren stood and jerked a thumb over his shoulder, "you can go with them. What's it gonna be?"

by **Zwangzug** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 5:30 pm

Kairothletes: the opening moves

We begin by dealing out the "true timeline," then drawing eight characters from a deck of 14, and finally, our opening hand of five cards. It happens that they consist of three inverters, which will allow us to flip over the linchpins in the timeline, and two patches, which are played to resolve the paradoxes these create.

One of those is a very special "Terminal Patch," for an alternate universe where the momentous World Cup 59 final ended with the microstate of NSWC Signups being destroyed. This, of course, would bring the timeline to a premature end, rendering all future history inaccessible since there never was anywhere to signup for later tournaments. Fortunately, the character who needs that outlandish history to come to pass (Emilia) was not one of the ones we drew, so we can safely discard this card and redraw.

The other patch we started with is WC67' (the primes indicate alternate history), in which the Arlington Collective is arrested for violating copyright law. Do any of our characters need this card? As it happens, Raq does, so we should plan to play it soon.

WC67' hinges on the linchpin WC66. In our timeline, Wight disappeared and censored all contemporary publications, you know, just like a totally normal country would do. Let's play an inverter to change that. Some of the inverters can be applied to any linchpin, but others are limited-use depending on the era or nature of the event. Fortuitously, we have one of those at hand. Resolve the situation peacefully can be applied to WC37E, WC66, or WC77. (The "E" here merely stands for "Early" in the timeline, in cases when two unrelated events occur around the same World Cup cycle and we decided to include both.) We play this card to flip this linchpin, leading to the alternate WC66'; Bonesea emerges as the inheritor of the Wight team and its records.

This ripples down to WC67, which is flipped to create a paradox. In our timeline, the Arlington Collective emerged to (somewhat) public recognition the following cycle, but now it didn't. The early arrival of Bonesea also has ramifications for WC80, so let's examine that card--hmm, the WC80 card also hinges on WC77. So I'll rotate it horizontally to note that it's threatened, but it's still displaying the true timeline.

Now we can play the patch of WC67' over the existing paradox; this completes one of Raq's goals. Each character has two patches, and one ripplepoint from true history, that need to be displaying so that they can return to their home timeline. Raq's true history is WC37L, which of course is still there since we haven't altered anything else. So in some sense we're 2/3 of the way to completing that goal.

We need to be careful, though, because we only get one pass through the deck! If any other character was relying on the true WC67 to be displaying, they would not be able to get to their timeline until Raq was gone, because if we flip WC66 back to true history, the patch will be out of the game for good. Since nobody else needs WC67, we're not in danger yet, but we should be careful especially if WC80 gets flipped.

But for now, we draw back up to five cards and see if any of these are patches we'll need to deploy!

(McCollins 41)

by **Xanneria** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 5:39 pm

Xanneria starts off with victory
By Steve Stevenson

Players discuss "Xannerian Tactics" (Five Cities in Blue)

FIVE CITIES - Xanneria needed to come out swinging in their group as top rated Valanora had a bye and Kelssek and Ethane were tied up with playing each other. A win and 3 points were taken by the Maroons but sloppy play followed them everywhere. The Maroons won 2-1 in a game played in front of a relatively small crowd of 3,250 in Five Cities. Unrest in portions of the Five Cities, has left the area with out a functioning unified government, but despite protests from the Maroons on both Five Cities and Rezneta, both were denied by the World Cup Commitee.

It seemed like the Maroons wanted out of Five Cities ASAP and that may have contributed. Lane Steagall said "The Hotel was the same boring quality of the hotels when I travelled in my youth, not something a team of our caliber should travel to. 3 stars at best" Steagall though had a wonderful game getting a goal and an assist to help defeat the Five Cities squad 2-1. It was steagall who set up the first goal, a kick from the sideline arched beautifully over the head of most the FC players and directly on the head of Mark Hailey who then knocked it in to the goal. Another goal from Steagall saw him break away after a steal of the ball and win the 1 on 1 with the FC Goalie. But thats not to say this game was with out controversy. Three years ago you may remember a bench clearing fight broke out among Apox and Xanneria over tactics inovolving the aggressive style of play Xanneria typically uses. This flared up again as a Five Cities player was handling the ball when both James Fillmore and Nick Borelli surrounded the young Five Cities player. Borelli being behind the player took an inadvertant elbow from th FC player. The FC player then got in a shouting match with both Borelli and Fillmore before getting yellowcarded. In the end no brawl took place but the tensions were high for the rest of the match. In the end the game ended 2-1 with a late goal from Five Cities making it more tense but in reality they lost a game of keep away for the final ten minutes and the Maroons 2-1.

More damning was what was seen in the stands. A fan from Xanneria sitting in a relative isolation was holding a sign. The sign worryingly said "To Hell with Hinode". For those who are not familiar with domestic politics in Xanneria, there's been several vocal citizens who are concerned with the Commandants buddy buddy friendship with the empress of Hinode. All of this stems from the "One Day War" between Hinode and Dreamplanet, a war that some Xannerians felt had no right happening and that others felt the Empress was squashing "free speech", but for the most part politicians in Xanneria have been pro-Hinode or like the Commandant himself extremely neutral (The Commandant has said he was keeping out of that particular affair as it was between Hinode and Dreamplanet). Upon further review it appears that whoever the fan was, purchased blackmarket or second hand tickets as the Five Cities contingent has said that seat was purchased by a native of Five Cities. As for now its a closed case but there will be strict inspections of stadiums in Xanneria to see who these anti-Hinodejin people are.

by **Bliuji** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:01 pm

With the first match day ending in a decisive victory for the Bliujians, the team was unsure about their future performance in the next. Consistency always seems to be an issue for the team; playing good in the first game is and shall always not be a predictor of the presentation in the following meeting. Furthermore Bliuji did seem completely fertile in practice. Now up against VH&C at home their expectations are what is to be considered. This team is ranked significantly higher than the Bliujian's and shows finer skill, especially in their offensive abilities. Midfield however is where Bliuji has and will always shine for matches to come, and as long as everyone stays healthy and can evade injuries things will go smoothly.

Fans on the other hand, have mixed expectations for this game. They do believe that Bliuji is the better team; even though that is not true at this event. Moving in deeper to the over all construct of Bliuji's fan base involves, violent and narcissistic fans who will slander the opposing team on every level you can think of. They've made toxic tweets, beaten up fans and have even gone as far as murdering fans of the opposing team. That is to be expected of this home game just like any other home game played here. Some might say the back story is completly related to the politics of Bliuji; however that is not believed to be the case by many politicians. Although some might argue, the fan base is competently derived from Bliuji's anarcho-capitalist party.

Enough talk about fan expectations this game. Members of the popular Bliujian website holvah.com is expecting a 1-1 draw. Despite the noticeable skill gap and ranking difference, Bliuji will keep it a competitive game. This is all coming from there midfield, star players like Erik Belov and Sviatoslav Vasilieiv will be the difference makers. And Andriy Pyatov should be hard to get shots by as well.

For VH&C though their team still has plenty of skill, but their performance has seen a decline in play. They will have no issues with keeping up with Bliuji. Overall there team is quite good and we don't see why their skill won't keep moving forward.

by **Siovanija and Teusland** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:30 pm

Die Stelburger Zeitung

Sport

Goldhorns Roar to 4-0 Win

Siovanija & Teusland’s national football team opened up their World Cup Qualifying campaign with a 4-0 win over the Euran Oceania Territories at the Nationalstadion.

It was an opportunity for the new tactics prepared for the World Cup Qualifers to be on display for the first time this campaign, and Gavin Hughes’ side certainly came out to play for this one against the Expats. It was the 4th time the Goldhorns and Expats have faced off in recent years, the team from the Territories having taken 2 wins in World Cup 82 Qualifiers before the Goldhorns managed a win in AOCAF 58.

Gavin Hughes’ first squad of the Qualification campaign was mostly the same as normal, with 2 players earning debuts. Ewald Heuser got the start for his first-ever national team cap, the FC Teussen Stelburg goalkeeper, while his teammate Axel Richter got the start at left back. This was also the first time that Thorsten Kramer, Todor Mihailov and Viktor Dimitrov all got the start in the same team. “It’s going to be fun, we all play well together I think and fit each other’s playstyles. We’re looking forward to getting things going here,” commented Kramer. “Almost unbelievable. It’s such an honour, and I hope to make the fans and everybody proud today,” commented Ewald Heuser.

The Goldhorns did look in sync at the start of the match, and enjoyed a great spell of possession early on. A dangerous look early came when Karl-Heinz Jager launched a long ball forward that caught Michael Ribbeck, but Ribbeck was only inches offside and the play was flagged down. Overall, the Kramer-Mihailov-Dimitrov triangle controlled the game well, but needed to inject perhaps a bit more forward intent in their game. As such, the Goldhorns lacked a little urgency early, and had trouble breaking down a tough Expats defence.

The visiting Expats, however, didn’t really have much going for them either. They had a difficult time winning the ball, and when they did, Viktor Dimitrov proved exceptional at winning it back in midfield. The defensive line of Jager-Klopfer looked perfectly in unison, again, and the first test for Ewald Heuser, a free kick from 25 yards, was one he confidently turned over the bar. With a half-time score of 0-0, it was clear each side needed to make adjustments for the second half.

The Goldhorns came out roaring indeed for the second half. Thorsten Kramer had clearly been instructed to get much further forward in attack, playing in a role behind Michael Ribbeck, while Dimitrov remained in the number 10 role with Mihailov sitting a bit deeper in midfield. This gave the Goldhorns much more of an attacking bite, and you could quickly tell that they were the side that was better prepared to take over the match.

The first strike came after Ewald Heuser took a goal kick short to Karl-Heinz Jager. Jager moved the ball a bit forward, seeing Mihailov open in front of him, but instead played forward a long ball that fell perfectly in place for Thorsten Kramer. Kramer then beat his mark before firing a drive into the bottom left corner to put the Goldhorns up 1-0, to the great delight of the Nationalstadion crowd.

The good times would continue rolling for those fans, despite the sun giving way to dark clouds, and, eventually a Stelburg spring downpour. Just 3 minutes after Kramer’s go-ahead goal, a cross whipped in by Ivo Romanov found the head of Michael Ribbeck, who turned it past the keeper for his 50th goal for his country. An ovation ensued for the SW Stahlberg striker, who politely thanked the fans before the game kicked off again.

The Expats weren’t offering much in terms of a fight back, and the game slowed a bit after the two goals for the hosts. Niels Kronthaler was subbed on for his national team debut in place of Raphael Klopfer, joining his club teammate Jager in the backline, while Lukas Tauscher also came in for Ivo Romanov. The introduction of Tauscher would serve as another key moment in the match for the Goldhorns.

The dynamic Teussen winger was brilliant down the right side, and whenever he was on the ball you could tell something dangerous was going to happen. You could hear an audible gasp when he used his skill to blast past the Territories’ left back and burst into the zone, and then almost immediately after the roar of the Nationalstadion crowd when he belted the ball into the top corner. Tauscher’s first international goal, the assist from Mihailov, and the Goldhorns now held a 3-0 lead.

The final Goldhorn change saw Herzegovina City FC skipper Dennis Brotzmann come in for Viktor Dimitrov, shoring things up for the final 20 minutes. For a side that hadn’t kept a clean sheet in 24 games prior to this one, the focus shifted to ensuring Heuser a clean sheet on his debut. Heuser didn’t seem to need much help with that, however, as the only real threat he faced was a brilliant effort by the Expats’ forward that Heuser just got a fingertip to knock wide.

In the dying stages of the match, Mihailov managed to send forward a brilliant through ball that met Michael Ribbeck, who had his back to the goal just outside the box. Ribbeck then layed a pass off for a speeding Tauscher, who beat the defender before rounding the keeper for his second of the evening. 4-0 was the score at the final whistle, and the Goldhorns had given their fans a lot to cheer on the night.

“I thought the second half was, arguably, the best football we’ve played during my time here,” commented Gavin Hughes. “The lads played some great football, and I really liked seeing how our three in the midfield worked so well together. That’s what we’ve been building to, and with players like Todor, Thorsten and Viktor, you know you’re going to get some quality.” On the occasion of his 50th goal, Michael Ribbeck commented “I’m just happy to get the 3 points tonight, honestly. Obviously I’m really happy with the accomplishment, and the lads in the team and the fans in the stands, as well as the manager, deserve a big assist for that, but I’m more focused on our team. We want to go far in this tournament, and this is a great start.”

Lots of individual accomplishments in this one, as Ribbeck bagged his 50th goal, Heuser with a first career clean sheet, Lukas Tauscher with the first 2 goals of his career, and Axel Richter, Heuser and Niels Kronthaler getting their first caps each.

Next up for the Goldhorns is a trip to Anthor. Anthor, ranked 100th in the world, gave The Macabees a tough go in their first match, losing 1-0, and will surely be looking to put up a strong challenge against Siovanija & Teusland at home. Can the Goldhorns keep their great effort in this one going in the 2nd match of World Cup Qualifiers? The Stelburger Zeitung will have complete coverage of the Goldhorns’ campaign. Come on you Goldhorns!

Match Report
Siovanija and Teusland 4-0 Euran Oceania Territories, @ Nationalstadion

Lineup: Heuser; Richter, Klopfer (Kronthaler 65’), Jager, Lotbiniere; Mihailov, Kramer, Dimitrov (Brotzmann 75’); Kogler, Romanov (Tauscher 65’), Ribbeck
Goals: Thorsten Kramer 53’, Michael Ribbeck 56’, Lukas Tauscher 72’, 90+1’
Stelburger Zeitung Man of the Match: Thorsten Kramer

by **Appalachian Nation** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:42 pm

Bears attack Hillbillies 2-1
By Troy Butterson

The CharlieDome was home to the first qualifying matchup

CHARLESTON - Despite a promising BoF campaign, Appalachia's WCQ Start got off rough. Although in our defense, most of the team were large brutish bears, something seen as a bit of a scary item in the mountains. So its no surprise the team played way more timidly than they should have and lost 2-1 to Bears Armed. The proven but unranked Bears Armed team played a much better game, and it was obvious that the Hillbillies had trouble adjusting to playing anthropomorphic bears. In all honesty so did I as a writer. But it was a strong play from midfielder turned forward Harroya o Sarrndale of Bears Armed who stole the show. Moved to forward as a stretegy move from Bears Armed coach Urrsara Northgate, Sarrndal was a force up front and nearly single handidly won the possession game by her self. Forward Bubba said he "had never seen such a giant move so gracefully" and "that you almost got hypnotized by her at points". Similar comments came from William Robert as he stated, the "movement from those large animals was like a ballet where we were all small props". That being said the whole Bears Armed team did a great job at using the usual Coach Conkey strategy against himself. After a 2-0 lead one hour into the game, they played keep away and never lifted up till about 5 minutes left and wouldn't you know it, the Hillbillies scored.

After the game Coach Conkey released the following statement. "We simply though playing indoors we'd have a better advantage with footing than they would, but our plan simply backfired and we got overwhelmed by Bears Armed. We will have an easier time with a fimiliar opponent next week". Conkey is of course referring to Ethane. As of this writing (A Thursday) the Ethane / Kellssek matchup has not taken place but as I am writing this Port Ember did lose 1-0 to Ouna putting them behind the same 8ball as Appalachia.

Appalachian Nation - 1
Cleetus - 85'

Bears Armed - 2
Sarrndal - 23' 58'

by **Chromatika** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:47 pm

MD1: Main Nation Ministry 1-2 Chromatika
Goals: Victoriane '26, Xe '79
Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Ria; An - de Aea - Ibex - Ilya; Montague - Armageddon; Victoriane - Mora - Dragana; Andisori (C).
Substitutes: Will -> Ibex ('51), Gail -> Mora ('74), Xe -> Dragana ('77)
Projected Starting XI vs. Busoga Islands: Williams; Ruth - Will - Anderson - Damjana; Montague (C) - Dias; Victoriane - Mora - Conrad; Sierra.

Football Part 2: MD1 - Away at Main Nation Ministry

Jillian Nier, Football Correspondent

It is hard to begin a new campaign on the road. It is even harder when it's your first match managing the squad, ever. It is even more harder when the away match is against the second seeded team in your group. That is the challenge that Konrad Evans faced as he took this new squad and faced off against Main Nation Ministry. You add the fact that the Chromatik government forbade anyone, and I mean anyone, not even the press, from going to Main Nation Ministry for the match (mostly due to what the Ministry stands for), and it really brings into focus the enormity of what Evans faced.

The Ministry plays an attacking brand of football that uses a sweeper, something the Chromatiks have almost no experience facing at all. That Sweeper - one Domen Remus - proved to be a nuisance in the Chromatiks' side for most of the match, always showing up when he was least expected. The Chromatiks looked flat for the first fifteen minutes, Mia having to stop three attempts, one from Davor off of a beautiful cross from Marco that slipped by an unsuspecting Ibex, the second off of a corner - taken by Benediktas, and the most dangerous being a one-on-one situation on a breakaway by Theophil that Mia had to palm away at the last minute, showing off one of the qualities that make her worthy enough to be a true number one keeper - her composure in the face of pressure.

Then, Alyss started to play a bit further back to help the back four, letting young Enigma play point. The first real chance for the Anomalies (I guess we are using that nickname again now, as a slight against the former government, or something?) came in the twenty-second, Armageddon's first touch leaving Marco in the dust, to be taken by Keira - who is still very sharp in the opening half hour of any match - that was just wide of the mark.

The first goal of the Chromatik campaign came nary four minutes afterward. It is a joy watching Kaytlyn Victoriane return to her natural spot on the right wing. Now, she can play back enough to help Alyss and Enigma when needed, and then push the ball forward with pace at the point of attack. This time, it was she that created the play, using the burst of speed and surprise to get past Singh, neatly slotting the ball to the upper left corner, Era having gone the other way. One-nil to the away team.

That was the only burst of excitement, really, for the rest of the first half. The new central midfield of Montague - Armageddon - Mora showed off their tandem in helping keep the Ministry at bay more than once, and the opponents, to their credit, seemed to use the aforementioned Remus to great effect every time things got dangerous.

Halftime adjustments were made, and the home team came out of the gate with a few set pieces of work that caught the Chromatiks off guard. A facet of Olivia An's game is physicality, and sometimes, you can miss tackles. Davor's advance was challenged by An, who whiffed entirely, leaving the Ministry Centre Forward to face Mia Ria in another one-on-one, one that Mia miscalculated in this instance, tying up the game.

Seeing Yeri Ibex come off as the first use of the Anomalies' substitute was not a surprise. Yeri has been challenged as of late, and Kattie is a premier backup. More surprising was the reach for Miranda "Lightning" Gail for Hermaeus instead of Mimi or Victorina. I've heard from some sources in the Chromatik locker room that the team is still high on Miranda, and perhaps this was Evans' go at showing confidence in the once bright, rising star that has had to recently deal with a rash of injuries. However, the story of the day was the return of Xi Xe to the field.

Two minutes after her return to the pitch, the two recent substitutes combined for a magical moment. Gail simply sped by Eduard Marco and Azel Ulderico, found Xe out of the corner of her eye making her way to the edge of the box, hit the ball with the heel of her left foot, and Xi Xe scored her first goal since World Cup 81, a screamer to the lower left corner.

Game.

A solid feather in the cap for Evans and co. I was definitely impressed. The poise that the Anomalies showed, and the push at the end to try for the three points instead of just being content with one against a higher ranked team on the road, was inspiring.

Next up for the Anomalies will be the home opener. Expect the Captalizt Dome to be roaring in anticipation. Evans and Everdeen have decided to stick to the plan of saving Mia for the "premier" matches only while testing Nova to see if she can handle those nations who are nearest to the Chromatiks who will be trying to knock us off. We have a one-match history against the Busoga Islands - having drawn against them in the last matchday of the Qualifying Playoff Groups, leading to Chromatika being in the World Cup 83 Proper and not the Islands. Busoga will be looking for revenge. Ruth's inclusion instead of An is expected as the two are splitting time, Ibex seems to be removed from the roster after his disappointing showing against the Ministry, and this will be a prime opportunity for Cierra Anderson to strut her stuff. With all the changes, it makes sense to rely on the veteran leadership of Aysu Damjana in the back line. In midfield, Kai Dias makes his first cap of the campaign, in his natural element as Defensive Midfielder. This may actually allow Alyss to the be the one to help the attack as Kai is a true DM. Retta Conrad's first start after her whirlwind Qualifying campaign in World Cup 83 accentuates the front three, with the curious occurrence of Rowena Sierra taking Keira Andisori's place - Andisori reportedly missing the match entirely due to "personal reasons". The fact that Keira would miss a match is odd - but my wishes are with her, regardless of what it is that she is contending with.

You think you faced pressure so far, Konrad Evans and Katherine Everdeen? Let's see how you handle the hopes and dreams of a nation that is holding onto every match, and especially the ones that they can see with their own two eyes, live, eh?

Part 1: The Plan

Part 2: The Journalist

With the debates to commence shortly, it is prudent to get to know those that the Chromatik people will be voting for in the days to come - those that will really shape what Chromatika will become.

The Rainbow Party is being led by Keri Wyse Aart, the wife of Luuk Aart, the retired footballer and Captain whose parentage was one of the greatest drivers to the Rainbow Revolution. Aart was discovered to be a Red whose parents had paid to be disguised at birth to be an Indigo instead. This was a huge scandal that led to Aart being exiled. The team chose to stand by him, and were eventually exiled as well. Wyse, a graduate of Chromatik City College University, stood by him, was rescued by the Revolution from the Chromatik Party, and then reunited with Luuk.

After the revolution, the two were wed. They've been married for about five years now, and though without children - a private matter that gets deflected every time it is brought up - Keri has become more and more ingrained into the Rainbow Party.

First, she started off as a staff journalist for Alina Krasnikova. Then, an assistant. Eventually, she became one of the confidants of the Premier, and now, she will be looking to take up the mantle. Given that real Political Science has only been taught for the last five years, and mostly from foreign professors from Cosumar, Banija, Equestria, Mriin, and the like, it makes sense that the face of the Rainbow Party would be someone who didn't necessary go to college to be a politician. No, Keri represents the everyday Chromatik - one who saw life as it was before the Revolution, saw it fall apart into smithereens during the revolution, and have had to rebuild it piece by piece afterwards, hoping for a brighter future.

Aart and the Rainbow Party are expected to use the following as major speaking points in the election to come:

1. Continued reintegration of previous ROYG (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green) populace into the greater workforce, complete with education, financial assistance, and policies to insure equity.
1b. Continued reintegration of previous BIV (Blue, Indigo, Violet) and Bronze, Silver, Gold populace into the greater workforce, complete with education of what the ROYG did previously
2. Establishment of domestic free trade with limited government oversight (mostly for checks and balances)
3. Establishment of foreign free trade with other nations of Atlantian Oceania than just Cosumar and Audioslavia
3a. Establishment of agreements to allow for direct flights with other nations of Atlantian Oceania
3b. Planning of foreign free trade with nations outside of Atlantian Oceania
4. Establishment of the Chromatik Football Federation as an independent body free from government oversight
5. Continuation of bringing the worst of the previous regime to justice
6. Memorializing those that died during the Rainbow Revolution (with particular emphasis on Franscesca Larriet-Cortez)

It is safe to assume that the Rainbow Party is the favorite among the general populace. However, many established businesses that weren't directly linked to the Chromatik Party could pose a real threat. The status quo has served them for many years, and a lot would change if that would be bucked in the future. The Rainbow Party, born of the Revolution, faces its greatest opportunity and threat yet.

Rainbow League System Preview

1. Alnio

Nickname: Brewers
Fans: Union, Brewers
Location: Alnio, Capital District, Chromatika
Stadium: RCK Field (Cap. 100,400; 32,000 seats)
History:

Manager: Candice Essai, 66
Formation: 4-1-3-2

Background: Located thirty-one miles east of Chromatik City, Alnio is the technological capital of Chromatika, and almost dead center of the Capital District. Home of Black Raven Technologies, Alnio was recently sold by the Alnio Labor Union, one of the biggest Labor Unions in Chromatika, to Lammerton Lager of Schottia, making it the first foreign-owned team in Chromatik history. As Union's fans were an army, almost all of the members of the Labor Union follow Alnio's club, it will be important for the new ownership to retain them. RCK Field is the heart of Alnio, surrounded by shopping malls and a huge food court. RCK Field seats 32,000 comfortably, though it can hold 100,400 in times of emergency. With the influx of new money as part of the ownership, Alnio fans will be looking to make the top six next season, and perhaps contend for an international competition spot.

Preseason Grading - brought to you by ChromatikBet.com
Fanbase: 8.5/10 - Alnio has always had a spirited fanbase, regardless of how the team was doing. If the new ownership can convert them successfully, the Union Army will become a Brewers Army, and they will go on.
Manager: 7/10 - Essai has been around the block a few times, and knows what he is doing. He isn't anything spectacular, but won't detract from the team.
Keepers: N/A - Alnio is in need of a starting keeper.
Defenders: N/A - Alnio is in need of two center backs.
Midfielders: N/A - Alnio is in need of the entire midfield.
Strikers: N/A - Alnio is in need of strikers.
Greatest Need: When the Chromatik League disbanded, all foreign players were let go. Though not a team that was really successful, Alnio also lost a lot of starters. They will need the identity - the midfield and the strikers, and a decent enough keeper in the back.

Next: Anomalies

by **Valanora** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:53 pm

The tension that had been in the camp in the lead up to the kick off at The Hatire Memorial in sunny Capri seemed a distant memory once the ninety minutes had come and went, those worried looks had been replaced by singing and hearty smiles and laughs. While the patrons of the stadium had not expected something terrible, they had not expected the Marauders to put on one of the best displays of the opening qualifying matchday. A three goal victory at home had a certain way of turning worries away, making them be replaced by a small amount of optimism and glee. Such was the fluctuating nature of form and the humanoid experience, the sway of the pendulum that emotions were able to pull across the canvas of the individual, it would be poetic if it were not such a powerful and sometimes overburdening experience.

Hawk wondered how much of his leadership had been the reason for the squad seemingly finding their feet before the match began. The ego of the man had him want to believe that his words of wisdom and calm demeanor had had such a profound effect on the squad around him, but the wiser part of him that had been part of this national team for over a century knew better. If his words were able to do such, then the failures of the last few decades would have never had come to pass and perhaps there would be another star or two on that legendary crest that rested above their hearts. There was no doubt that he had had some measure of effect on the squad, maybe pulling a few of them away from the worrisome thoughts that were going around in their head after that disastrous friendly in Banija, but it had not been the be all end all on what had occurred. No, this squad had managed to do that themselves and the crowd that had come to the stadium got to be witness to this squad pulling together at the early juncture of the Qualifiers rather than having to do so later in the campaign.

It was a very refreshing thing and one that Hawk feeling a bit of hope and a good amount of optimism himself. If the squad had managed to pull together and put together a solid performance like this on the opening matchday and not when they were in the pressure cooker of a qualifying campaign, needing the results to manage to advance forward, then perhaps that pressure cooker situation would not be transpiring this cycle at all. That would be a most glorious thing as it would be a big recall to the days of when the Marauders were among Two Now Stand era of the World Cup, where the legacy of the Marauders was made known the World over. Depending on when one defines that era, the side either won two or three of their titles during that era and had finished in a podium position at every time of asking, a feat that has yet to be replicated to this day. It was truly one of the most spectacular dynasties of the World Cup and getting anywhere near that level of professionalism and success would bring a happy tear to Laborious' eyes.

Yet that optimism had to tempered slightly, it was still only the first matchday of this massive qualification cycle and one that had started at home against an unranked opponent. Yet three points was three points and avoiding an opening day upset was always good, as the likes of Nephara and Pasarga both now have big questions to be asked about them after their dropped points at home in the first time of asking. Momentum was a valuable thing and with it now on the Marauders side, the path ahead could be seen as one of challenge but one that need not cause the great worry that it seemed to be producing among the populace just a week before. The Qualifiers were a mountain to be scaled, with camps made at certain altitudes, but at least the side had put their first steps on the mountain and had began their accent towards what they could only hope would be a Finals appearance and that chance to be the first side to have six stars adorning the national crest, besting the likes of the Starblaydi and those in the cove in the north.

by **Filindostan** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:58 pm

NATIONAL | BUSINESS | PROVINCIAL | INTERNATIONAL | SPORTS | ENTERTAINMENT | SPORTS PORTAL

FOOTBALL: WORLD CUP 84 QUALIFIERS
'Pula Garuda' stun South Covello, wins 2-1

SAN MARCO - Xavier Rinoso, current manager of the Filindostani national football team 'Pula Garuda', feels vindicated after Filindostan had the best possible start of their qualifying campaign for World Cup 84. The Central Esportivan archipelago stunned the multiverse's number three nation, South Covello, in a back and forth match where the two teams exchanged leads like a hot potato. Reports from several tabloids have criticized Rinoso's trip to Cassadaigua for the World Cup qualifying draw, with netizens feeling that he does not take training the national team seriously.

Rinoso fielded a 4-3-3 with Cahya Kartawijaya on goal, with the three-player midfield of King Tisang, Yakob Rivas, and Mordecai Sitindaon pulling the strings, as well as the three headed dragon consisting of Ina Teterissa, Bienvenido Arescopachaga, and Seto Tuhuteru up front. The pressure that the team applied in the first few minutes paid off as the young striker from Perokotyog was able to dazzle around the impenetrable South Covellan defense, and struck the ball with fury inside the box which gave keeper Matthew Tyler no chance. 1-0 to Filindostan after 24 minutes.

The Filindos had a chance to double their lead, but Teterissa hit the crossbar in her shot just outside the box. The defense of their Esportivan counterparts improved drastically and almost every Filindostani shot was taken outside the box for the rest of the match. This had much on the effect on the hosts, as they keep losing the ball before they could able to struck them towards the young Covellan keeper. However, one of those occurrences caused parity to be restored just 13 minutes after they had taken the lead.

Tuhuteru, who scored the first goal, carelessly lost the ball to the young Lonzo Gordon-McHayward-Greensward-Squidward, and the midfielder triggered a counter-attack from the World Cup 81 runners-up. With the Filindos committed on attack during that time, they were not able to provide cover to all the opposing attackers, and the one who Filindostan was not able mark had free time to setup his shot. That, unfortunately, was the deadly striker Coconut Charles, who opened his account for their campaign. First half ended at 1-1.

It was the same story in the second half, with the Baptism of Fire 66 winners keeping the pressure in the Covellan half, with the defense holding up as much as possible. This was the time when Rinoso made tactical changes, dropping the largely ineffective Arespacochaga and Rivas for two wingers - Damaris Cambo on the left, and Shiloh Manurung on the right, to have a 4-4-2 formation. In the 75th minute, Filindostan finally scored again, after Sitindaon's strike few yards from the box and for some reason, the Covellan defenders gave him space to set up his shot. Both teams tried to score another goal for their sides, but it was the #59 team in the multiverse who leave the Gelora Nasional with their heads held up high.

Filindostan face Qasden next at T.V. City, looking to win and stay perfect this campaign. We'll provide you the latest updates from Filindostan's qualifying campaign here at FSNA Berita Filindo.

Written by FSNA Staff.

Schedule - WC84Q
MD01: vs South Covello - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium) - Win, 2-1
MD02: at Qasden - T.V. City (Royal T.V. Stadium)
MD03: BYE
MD04: vs Furby Island - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD05: at Bliuji - venue to be confirmed
MD06: vs Squornshelan Remnant States - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD07: ar Ziwana - undisclosed city (Izula National Stadium)
MD08: vs Mitra and Soma - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD09: at Flavovespia - Marthorpe (City Arena)
MD10: vs Mustardy - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD11: at Vakolicci Haven and Celeria - venue to be confirmed
MD12: at South Covello - Riverview (Revolution Stadium)
MD13: vs Qasden - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD14: BYE
MD15: at Furby Island - venue to be confirmed
MD16: vs Bliuji - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD17: at Squornshelan Remnant States - Lublova (Slavnarzeczpospolitastadion)
MD18: vs Ziwana - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD19: at Mitra and Soma - venue to be confirmed
MD20: vs Flavovespia - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)
MD21: at Mustardy - Héronne (Johan Speck Nationalstadion Héronne / The Speck)
MD22: vs Vakolicci Haven and Celeria - San Marco (Filindostan National Stadium)

by **Drawkland** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 6:59 pm

E L I T E ...

Nicole Warren sat in the terminal, flicking through her phone. She was at the airport in Peeto, Polkopia. She managed to make it out to Drawkland's World Cup 84 Qualifying debut, having a free weekend. Unfortunately Cam Cross wasn't able to make it, but she still had a fun time regardless. There was a Drawkian athlete/celebrity box bought out at Marshupov Arena, so she at least knew some of the people there. The trip was worth it considering Drawkland had won the match and got off to a strong start, but it was by no means a comfortable win.

The Elite Eleven appeared to "struggle" (if you could call it that) for most of the match. Thankfully Jaxon Madison managed to get a shot in on the 58th minute to put the Drawkians up 1-0, and that's how the match shook out. It did confirm Nicole and others' suspicions that the Elite Eleven can't really be considered perfect athletes. Sure they failed to qualify last cycle but most people chalked that up to them never having to play at that level before. The Eleven always said they could master any sport at any level if they'd be given enough time to get their feet wet.

"Sure guys. Get your feet wet by losing to Port Ember in the Round of 16 in the Cup of Harmony. So skilled," Nicole muttered under her breath. She looked up from her phone at the terminal. It wasn't very busy at that point, it was the terminal where most luxury airlines apparently flew out from so it wasn't as densely populated as perhaps the cheaper airline terminals. She checked her watch, realizing she still probably had 30 minutes before her plane was likely to board. She looked up and scanned the area. She was starting to feel a little peckish and figured a snack before getting on the plane wouldn't hurt.

Nicole stood up and strode into the walkway. A cinnamon roll place caught her eye. Or more accurately, the delicious scent wafted past and caught her noise. Her stomach rumbled and she realized she hadn't had a cinnamon roll since the last time she was at her parents' house for the holidays. That was probably over a year ago by her count, so she turned and stepped into the short queue.

By the time the person in front of her began ordering, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She spun around and her eyes nearly popped out of her skull. Standing right there were 4 of the Elite Eleven. In particular, it was Mike Rodney, Richard Hanson, Trevor Garnet, and Craig Bakker. Of all the people she expected to see in the airport at the time, it was certainly not them.

"Hello there stranger!" said Mike, the one who tapped her shoulder. "Do you mind if we buy your love today?"

"Wha- hi..." Nicole said, a bit flustered. "What does that mean?"

"Oh, my bad, that's a phrase we often use with each other. Tongue in cheek. Basically when one of us buys dinner or drinks for everyone we say he's buying our love. Just a little phrase- okay you know what, that's not really important. I just want to know if you'd like us to buy you a cinnamon roll. Or whatever you were gonna get here." The other 3 were snickering among themselves as Mike explained.

"I .... suppose that would be okay," Nicole said after a moment's hesitation. The team was here? And offering to buy her food? What's the deal here???

"Nice! I think you're up to order," Mike said, motioning to the employee at the counter. "She's with us!" he said to the employee, and they nodded in turn.

Nicole turned back around and ordered her food, followed by the 4 dudes. She was still a bit on edge after the shock of seeing them there. Her curiosity got the better of her as they picked up their food and strode back into the waiting area of the terminal.

"So, what brings you to this part of the airport? Thanks for the food, by the way," she added.

"You're welcome," Mike replied, but Richard responded to her actual question.

"The charter airline we commissioned flies out of here, apparently. Still haven't convinced everyone we need to buy our own jet. YET." Richard pointedly looked at Craig at the last word.

"Listen, we've argued about this before! We're not getting a private jet, that'd be such a waste of money. Where would we even put it?" Craig shot back.

"I dunno, maybe the Complex? You think we can't get a private airfield built there?"

"And so we'd have to hire a pilot to come all the way out there every time we want to fly? It's just really big overhead for something when we can charter fly for really cheap."

"Wait, why isn't DISC providing for your transportation?" Nicole asked, confused. She also wanted to nip the argument away before it accelerated.

"Well, when they contacted us for possibly taking over the Kick Corps job, sorry by the way, we said we could provide our own transport. We already did that for ourselves so we figured it wouldn't cut into our budget more than it already does. I think that's one of the reasons they decided to throw us in wholesale to replace the team," Mike explained. "Apparently they were considering all sorts of options. Straight up replacing the team with one of the domestic squads like the Drawk Corps or the Roots. Just using all the domestic players from the All Pro Teams, all kinds of ridiculous stuff. You should be glad they chose us, really."

"Huh, weird." Nicole replied simply. She never realized that DISC was really looking at replacing the original Kick Corps all the way like that from the get-go. "Um, I think I should go soon. My plane's probably about to board any minute."

"Actually ..." Mike said, then paused a second. "You could come on our flight with us. They charged us a big rate because they didn't get groups as small as 11. I don't think they'd mind another passenger. We're gonna be going through Avon anyway, which I bet your flight is too. Plus, we're not gonna have a layover in Avon either."

Nicole was shocked by the offer, and turned it over in her head. On one hand, she still really didn't like the Elite Eleven, and the thought of spending two long flights with them did not sound very appetizing at all. On the other hand, she was supposed to have a 5-hour layover in the New Stratford Airport in Avon, which she was even less excited about. Plus ... she could maybe try asking them about their past. Cam would love to hear about anything she found for sure.

"Well, I don't think that's possible. I have another connecting flight to Kayo after I land in The Bay." That should be enough to convince them otherwise.

"That's actually so convenient!" Mike exclaimed. "We're actually doing a press thing in Kayo like right when we get back. We were already plan to fly there when we got back on a different charter. Only a couple hours of waiting in Iarokannet Bay then we'd be off." The other boys were exchanging glances with tight lipped smiles and raised eyebrows, but didn't say anything. Nicole didn't notice, she was too busy worrying how her excuse was now shot.

"Yeah, what a coincidence!" Nicole laughed, a bit nervously. Suddenly she remembered something Cam had said the week prior about one of the Eleven suggesting they go drinking. Perhaps that's how she could get some information ...

"Actually, will you guys have any booze on the plane?" she asked, innocently.

"Do we ever!" Mike laughed in response. By then, the rest of the Eleven had shown up at the terminal, talking among themselves. When they saw Mike talking to Nicole a bunch of them looked surprised, in disbelief almost.

"Okay ... I think I can go then. You're gonna owe me though, because I don't think they'll let me get a refund this close to my actual flight." Nicole said, pointing at all the assembled guys.

Mike groaned and the rest of them laughed at his expense. "Fine, fine, I'll spot you for that." One of the guys said something about a really expensive cinnamon roll, and Mike jabbed indiscriminately behind him with his elbow, chuckling.

"Sounds good!" Nicole said cheerfully, though inside she was still worried. What had she just signed up for?

by **Ziwana** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 7:03 pm

Ziwana 2-1 Mitra and Soma: Akambuku Edge Past Mitra and Soma

Ziwana Lineup
GK- Kingsley Ithier
RB- Surinder Fernandes
CB- Jonathan Boi
CB- Jean Kaphale
LB- Louis Citorah
DM- Mohammad Jean-Loui
CM- Hashaan Casimir
CM- Mohammed Al-Dossari
LW- Jean Aristide
RW- John Sangala
ST- Nicolas Bayaram

Ziwani players and fans came into this match expecting fireworks against a team it deemed a small fry. To many Ziwani, Mitra and Soma is a power country with its so called cities not even qualifying to be a town in Ziwana. The nation is considered a puppet state of Eraman. Football wise Mitra and Soma do not have a professional football league of its own. In the 3rd Melayu Archipelago Cup, Mitra and Soma were lucky to be drawn in a easier group but when they faced a strong opponent they lost. The Akambuku expected to beat them by a higher margin but they ignored the Mitranese and Somanese spirit, they may lose but they make you work for your win. In their quarter-final lose to Pauh Janggi they scored 2 goals as consolation for the 5 goals that had gone through their net.
Ziwani manager, Harry Ngonamo picked the second 11 for the match and most Ziwani fans agreed that it was neccessary to reserve the first squads energy for stronger opponents besides the Akambuku had the home advantage at Izula National Stadium.

When the match started the Ziwani fans sang mocking songs against their region mate Mitra and Soma but they were soon silenced in the 13th minute when Surinder Fernandes brought down Loto Manaia in the penalty box. Manaia took the penalty and scored to put Mitra and Soma up front. Ziwana tried to score against the Mitranese and Somanese but were unable to break the defence. Ziwani players would quickly pass to each other and get into space but when they tried to shot they would be tackled. One of these tackles by Lanu Ola injured Nicolas Bayaram in the 40th minute and he was substituted for the Ziwani Liga Malikiy golden boat winner Jean-Marc Mourgine. Jean-Marc Mourgine is Jean Wilders strike partner at Sandheights City FC and many Ziwani football fans have been calling for Ngonamo to call him up. With the Jean-Marc Mourgine on the pitch Ziwana got the uphand but had to wait until the 55th minute for a goal. The goal was scored by right back Surinder Fernandes who corrected his earlier mistake. Mourgine had latched on a pass from Hashaan Casimir and was clear to shot but decided to pass it to his team mate Fernandes who quickly blasted it into the right corner of the Mitra and Soma net to equalize. This goal composed the Akambuku and they began to play very good 'umodzi,umodzi' football. The second goal came in the 65th minute from a Mourgine shot from 20 yards out after recieving the ball from a Jean Aristide pass.

After the match Ziwani manager praised the way Mitra and Soma played and apologised for having underestimated them. He also stated that he was going to insure that the Akambuku does not underestimate any opponent in the World Cup qualifiers. We hope so too here at Zcomm Sports and hope you will subscribe to us to see if Harry Ngonamo and the Akambuku don't underestimate their opponents gain.

by **Cassadaigua** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 7:04 pm

The Cursed Cup continues with this cutoff!
Some teams hope to avoid 0-0-2 Nightmares, for sure.

by **Folmara** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 8:56 pm

Folmara 4-4 Mercedini
Arnold ‘7
Folcard ‘58
Feroardus ‘68, ‘84

Chillotov ‘3
Presic ‘37
Dostalok ‘47, ‘85

Tibesso had a slight smile on his face as he flicked on the red light.
“Well ladies and gentleman after a exciting 4-4 draw at home, I think we all have that little spark of hope in out heads that we are finally on the road to not sucking. Alright just to give you an idea as to just how impressive this feat is, Mercedini are 23rd, we are untested, therefore, we didn’t lose against on of the worlds best. Wow, maybe we are on that road huh. Anyway in other news the Deuronian domestic football leagues have started up their 1920 season, with the other 3 continents soon to follow. I’m still wondering why we didn’t get around to making Folmara’s league ready this year instead of saving it for next year, now the World Cup won’t go well because our players are getting half the experience. That’s all for today folks tune in tomorrow for more news, laughs, and opinions society will tell you not to like, I’m Tibesso Liberowyn and you’re listening to FRC113

by **Hapilopper** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 8:57 pm

Brham Stadium, Brham, Darmen
World Cup 84 Qualifier Match 2: Hapilopper v. Darmen
Ernie Stevenson and Thom Perkins, the head coach of the national team, looked at Fernie Fairburn as they rode to the stadium, and gazed some disapproving looks. Fairburn, the lone non-pro on the national team, had partied pretty hard with some of the traveling Hapiloppians the night before at the team hotel, and judging from the fedora and the sunglasses, it was pretty clear he was feeling the effects from the night before, when he enjoyed the company of a number of his classmates at Surrey Perimeter, including more than a few female friends, many of whom had traveled to Darmen for that purpose.

“You know, I’d really like to yell at him,” Thom said to Ernie, “but you got to admit, we’ve all done something like what he did last night.”

“Yeah, he’s a college kid. He’ll grow out of that,” Ernie responded, chuckling. “But holy shit, man. His room is next to mine. I didn’t sleep a bit last night, at least until 4:30 when everything stopped. You know, the music was blasting loud, there was screaming, shit man, I’m curious how that room looks now.”

That room, by the way, was a wreck. There were various articles of clothing lying around everywhere. Two girls were sleeping in Fernie’s bed. Fernie’s roommate, a decidedly-nerdy computer science major, was passed out in the bathtub with another girl, the shower curtain covering both of them. There were beer cans and bottles everywhere. A half-dozen pizza boxes were strewn about in one corner. A handbag was hanging from a coat rack. And, for some reason, an official World Cup 84 ball was lodged in the television of the hotel room, likely an attempt to impress his friends with “the things that Coach Perkins taught us these past few weeks.” The ball was partially scorched, likely from its impact with the television screen.

“You know, I thought I had heard an explosion around 2:30,” Ernie said to Thom with a chuckle. “That’s the closest I came to rushing in there all guns blazing.”

“All guns blazing? What would you have done?” Thom asked, chuckling.

“I don’t know,” Ernie responded.

Fernie wasn’t the only issue. In the days leading up to the match, Thom had a closed-door meeting with Nate Ellis concerning a cheap shot he had pulled on Vdaran striker Alexis Fotellis. Nate delivered a lariat clothesline to Fotellis, then delivered, what looked like the symbol of the horns. Reports from Vdara indicated that Nate’s gesture was thought to be Satanic, and in fact, after the match, Fotellis angrily called Nate “a demon” and called for him to be burned “like the ungodly sinner he is.” In response, a non-small number of Vdarans responded by burning him in effigy.

“You want to explain this?” Thom asked Nate, handing him some of the reports. Thom was trying to hold back laughter at the idea of one of his more controversial players being burned in effigy.

Nate laughed at the reports. “Thom, I promise you whatever I was doing was not related to any satanic imagery at all,” he chuckled. “My favorite pro wrestler growing up used to do that – the lariat and the horn gesture. He wasn’t a Satanist, he was a cowboy.”

As ridiculous as that sounded, Nate was actually telling the truth. Nate, like most Hapiloppians, was not religious, and the idea of heaven and hell didn’t really register that much with him. Hapilopper was not a religious nation. It wasn’t that they were resistant to the idea of religion or spirituality, but rather the fact that most Hapiloppians honestly didn’t care either way. Because of this, Nate thought the idea of him being some kind of Satanic heathen was actually kind of hilarious.

“See, coach, this guy wasn’t a Satanist. He was a cowboy,” Nate explained. “He was this big, bulky 300 pound badass of a man, he’d come out with this big ol’ bullrope, he’d swing it wildly, he’d have this trail of chewing tobacco dripping from his mouth, and he’d kick people’s ass. All I was doing was emulating him.”

“Well, don’t do ANY of that,” Thom said, laughing at Nate’s explanation. “Especially the chewing tobacco bit. If I see you spitting tobacco juice at any of our opponents, we’re going to have a problem.”

Questions over Fernie and Nate raised over everyone’s heads as the Hapiloppians and the Darmeni took the pitch for the second match of the World Cup Qualifiers. The Hapiloppians wanted to continue a stretch of good play dating back to their friendly with the Busoga Islands, while the Darmeni wanted to turn around any bad memories of that match with Equestria a few days previous. One of those two things happened, and unfortunately for our heroes, that stretch of good play came to an end on this evening in Brham Stadium.

Ernie Stevenson was about to score early in the match. He had been fed the ball, and he had a spot that he liked. Unfortunately, he didn’t see Feliciano Espinosa coming from his right, and before he knew it, Espinosa kicked the ball away. Ernie could only look at him in disbelief. It had been a fair and clean move. Those watching around the multiverse could see Ernie mouth the words “man, fuck” before moving on. It was all he could do.

His counterpart on the Darmeni side of things, Craig Blackwood, appeared to have a good run of things, and in the 24th minute, he took advantage of Paul Dibble and Nate Ellis being a little cute with defending. Blackwood could outplay cute, and before Rod Hughes could even react, Craig had fired it into the goal, to give Darmen a 1-0 lead.

Rod could be seen screaming at Paul and Nate after he gave up the goal. Nate wasn’t having it, and he ran over to Rod to explain himself. Pretty soon, a number of players, including Paul, Kendrick Ayers and Colin McLain had to rush over to split the two apart. Those that could read lips could see Rod shouting at Nate “next time, do your fucking job so I don’t get caught like that!”

Rod Hughes was pissed off at giving up the goal, and he had seen that his defensemen had been instrumental in Blackwood getting through. It wasn’t going to get any better, though.

Unfortunately, Ernie Stevenson’s reputation meant that defenders were going to make themselves acquainted with him and fast, and unfortunately, the Haps didn’t have a way to get around this on this evening. He couldn’t pull off his “hop-skip-holy shit” move, because that had been well-scouted. He couldn’t pull off any of his stunts because, well, that was ill-advised. There had been some suggestions that Ernie be pulled in favor of Claire Randall, and maybe that could have gotten the Haps a goal or two, when they really needed one.

In the 83rd minute, any hopes of a Hapiloppian comeback came to an end when Blackwood got the ball at midfield. He turned on the jets and just outran every single Hapiloppian player before firing it into the goal to make it 2-0 in favor of Darmen, which turned out to be the final score.

But it wasn’t the end of the story. Rod Hughes and Nate Ellis were still pissed off at each other, and as the two went to the locker room, Nate turned to Rod and started screaming.

“I don’t want to hear you tell another god damn person to do their job when you gave up two goals, ROD,” Nate barked.

“Well, maybe if you actually took your job seriously, I wouldn’t have had to worry about it, NATE,” Rod fired back, almost mocking Nate’s tone of voice.

Nate didn’t appreciate being talked to like that, and he charged at the goalkeeper. The two engaged in a brief scrap, before being split up by the entire HNFT. It was obvious that tempers were boiling over, and the 2-0 loss didn’t help matters at all. But it wasn’t over. Nate picked up his things, stormed off, opened the door to the locker room, and in sight of all of Hapilopper’s media, shouted back inside at Rod.

“I’m gonna get you,” Nate roared. “I’m gon’ get ya, I SWEAR TO GOD, I’M GON’ GETCHA!”

As Nate roared out of the locker room, Steve Dareman of the Hapilopper Television Network attempted to corner the defenseman for an explanation. Nate, still in a rage, looked at Steve right in the eye and thought about taking a swing at him.

“You got something for me?”

“I want to know what’s going on,” Steve asked.

“Team stuff, that’s what’s going on,” Nate said calmly.

Unfortunately, that “team stuff” made all of Hapilopper's newspapers and news shows the next day, with Hapiloppian reporters tripping over themselves getting the story. It didn't seem like anything was getting better, and the team had to get its rear in gear as they prepared to go up against Bongo Johnson for the next match in a few days time.

by **Bliuji** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 10:45 pm

It is hard to meet the standard set met by yesterday's match, only this game exceeded the expectations in terms of goals. VH&C and Bliuji facing off in a rather offensive grudge match wasn't totally expected of the players. While the footsteps have been loud in goals scored it was also loud with the trash talk; as these teams established "beef" early on.

The teams did not allow awful conditions and toxic opponents to derail their chances, as snow had been the problem. They performed as if they were playing on dry land, dodging the hail and scoring clean goals. And by capturing control in the first half, they guaranteed watery celebrations 2½ hours apart at Domitia Stadium. “It was one of these days. The snow was quite difficult and it made it harder to play. We went far more than out potential, you have to adapt the conditions sometimes. VH&C was not expecting this either and we knew it would be tough. It’s an important result.” It was an uncomfortable win on a strange day to say the least.

There's a certain composure to this Bliuji starting eleven that allows them to stay calm even under immense pressure. This helps gets them out of a lot of risky situations and could be the key to their strategy. When moving upwards, there's a diverse nature to their build-up play that also ensures that VH&C could never really anticipate what was coming next. For VH&C they put on a show one of their craziest defensive presentations of the qualifiers as they displayed Bliuji far too much angles, left gaps open at the back and often had scarce time to get their foot on the ball. They tend to get away with it often but at points they really were living on the edge and could have easily let up multiple goals.

It felt like Andriy Shevchenkos critique was proceeded ever so little when it came to his tactice, but the best thing about the man is that he doesn't second-guess himself. He kept with a formation that works for the team, made the intelligent changes as and when they came, and the fluidity and aggressiveness we typically see from the team was there as usual.

Before the qualifiers began, few would have expected to see Bliuji occupying 2nd place although it is only the second game and not even close to the halfway point, but Andriy was not getting himself carried away.

Events:
Bliuji tore VH&C wide with two great passes from Karp Yuriev and Vitaly Aksakov, who slid the ball down the inside-right channel to put Erik Belov in the open lane. He moved it back carefully to Nikon Kotov, who made a hopeless mess of his first-time shot of the game. It was trending wide of goal when Daniel Lyskov improvised to flick the ball behind his standing leg and into the net. It looked like it was going to be disallowed for offside but that didn't occur.

Bliuji's second goal happened in the 47th minute with a well executed corner kick from Vitaly Aksakov that was then spotted in mid-air by Daniel Lyskov who jumped in the air to head the ball. Only for VH&C's goalkeeper to make a tremendous save and the rebound found itself right in the feet of Erik Belov, and with an open net he finished it bottom right.

The third goal of their debut came from a counter attack. All derived from VH&C's failed free-kick was fielded by Andriy Pyatov and channeled on to Sviatoslav Vasileiv in the midfield. Having so much open space to work with he used that to his advantage to go upwards and evade VH&C's defense men. Eluding a slide tackle he was all alone and blasted it top right corner.

This last goal boiled down to a decisive battle in the midfield. The offensive breakthrough by Bliuji's offense was stopped an immediately taken the other way only to be stunned again by Nikon Kotov, who brought the ball up field. Finding himself on the right side he crossed the ball to Daniel Lyskov for a header to give Bliuji their fourth goal.

Stats
Daniel Lyskov: 2 goals
Sviatoslav Vasiliev: 1 goal
Erik Belov: 1 goal

Subs
Tim Kolesnikov in for Lenoid Ozerov
Kyle Gordon in for Vitaly Aksakov
Erast Bezrukov in for Erik Belov

by **Banija** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 11:06 pm

Setting is Mujaguzo Palace

Kabaka Mwanga was here, preparing for yet another meeting. This time, the meeting would be with the Katikkiro, Kizza Makonoi, and his son, the Isebantu, Mutungi. The Kabaka generally met with the full cabinet about twice a month, so that he could stay appraised on domestic affairs and policy, and so that the cabinet could stay appraised on foreign affairs and policy. But his meetings, directly, with the Katikkiro were fairly rare. And with Isebantu Mutungi here as well. He knew that they were there to discuss the upcoming Chromatika elections, but he was not sure what was going to be discussed, and frankly, why Kizza Makoni was there. Foreign policy was the preogative of the monarch in Banija, was it not?

He had the Brigantii v. Banija World Cup Qualifier on his television, as he prepared for the meeting by reading his brief on Chromatika. Banija had just scored the opening goal, so he wasn't too worried about the Kadongo Kamu An aide then walked up to the Kabaka. "Your Majesty, the Katikkiro is here, with a guest. SHall I send for him?"

"A guest? Who is the guest?" Replied the Kabaka.

"It is Xolile Lubabalo." The aide said. "The former Minister of Justice. She is supposed to be here as more of an expert on the Chromatika elections, and human rights issues in general."

"Alright, send for them both." Said Kabaka Mwanga. The aide left the room, and shortly thereafter, opened the door. Katikkiro Kizza Makoni walked up to the Kabaka, and bowed. Xolile Lubabalo, the former Minister of Justice who lost her seat in the Lukiiko at the last election, walked into the room, and she made sure to bow as well. The three made small talk until the Isebantu came in. The Isebantu shook the hands of both Kizza Makoni and Xolile Lubabalo, and then bowed to his father, the Kabaka.

"Well, let's get started." Said the Kabaka. They all moved to the table, and then sat down. "What is this meeting called about?"

"Your Majesty," The Isebantu started. "Chromatika is going to have their first true democratic elections in a generation, or, to be honest, quite longer than that. We need to talk about the history of Chromatika, however. For a long time, Chromatika lived under a hard dictatorship, in the caste system. They had a ten tier, formal caste system in their society. The castes were as follows- e R<O<Y<G<B<I<V<Bronze<Silver<Gold. Gold, of course, being the dicator. The top three castes, were those in the Rainbow Party, which is the far-right party that ruled at the time. People in the lowest castes were deliberately banned from learning how to read. Those were the politicians- the councilmen, the legislators, etc...

"Chromatika had a successful revolution during World Cup 76 and World Cup 77. The Rainbow Party was overthrown. The caste system has been overthrown. They have been leaning on the same Premier for around the last 5 years. But she wants new elections, true elections, so that they can continue to move in a democratic direction. The people want to speak. And, of course, she understands that since they are a country without a ton of electoral experience, they want election observers, to help run elections. Of course, our own country has plenty of experience in running free and fair elections. Of course, now I'll hand it off to the Katikkiro."

Mwanga raised an eyebrow, but nodded, and turned towards Makoni. This kind of relationship between Katikkiro and the Isebantu was rare- was Mutungi trying to ensure that he had a great relationship with Kizza Makoni? Or was it Makoni who wanted a voice in foreign affairs? Regardless, he listened to what Banija's highest elected official had to say. "Your Majesty, Chromatika has asked fellow nations in Atlantian Oceania to help observe and assist in the running of elections within Chromatika. The main nations that will be involved in this, are this nation, Equestria, and Cosumar. We have always wanted to show ourselves as standing up for democracy, and against fascism. What better place is there to do this than Chromatika, helping ensure that democracy reigns in a place where fascism once ruled in Atlantian Oceania? This is why I believe that we should undertake this, and that we should appoint Xolile Lubabalo in this role." The Kabaka nodded, pondering what they were suggesting. He then turned to Lubabalo, who started to speak.

"Your Majesty," Said Xolile Lubabalo. "I was honored to be approached by the Katikkiro and the Isebantu on this move. I believe that this would be a great thing. As you know, from my background, I believe that I am eminently qualified to do this. As an ally of the Katikkiro, considering the mission, it shows that this has the enthusiastic backing of Banija's elected government. And, of course, I have a background working on human rights issues within the foreign ministry. My father served your grandfather, Mugisha III. And I will look to faithfully serve you, Mwanga. I can be a great representative for Banija in Chromatika, and of course, I can do great work there. Let me fly to Ramusok, let me work with these observers."

The Kabaka looked around, and then nodded. "You're right." He said. "This is a good idea. It will be good for Banija to show that we are capable of being leaders on the world stage. It is good for Banija to ensure that we can help ensure free and fair elections around Atlantian Oceania. And, of course, it shows respect for what we've accomplished here, considering the fact that we were invited."

Setting is the Mujaguzo Palace Press Room

The Kabaka stood alongside the Isebantu, and Xolile Lubabalo. It was considered poor form, politically, for the Kabaka to do a press conference with members of a political party, so he generally avoided it whenever possible. Xolile Lubabalo had resigned her party membership the day prior to this press conference to do this. The press gathered around, waiting for the Kabaka to speak.

"People of Banija." The Kabaka said. "The Kingdom of Banija is a nation that strives to help others, whenever possible. We may not be the world's richest nation. We may not be the world's most powerful nation. But what are we? We are a free nation. We are a democratic nation. And we are a Christian nation. We have good values, and when people ask for our help, our help will be given. I will great straight to the point here. Chromatika, as many of you know, is having elections coming up. They believe that they will be best able to administrate elections if they have help from abroad, and have asked our nation, alongside others, to observe and help administrate this election. This is something that I think is very important. This is something that has agreement from the elected government. And so, after consultations, it is a request that I am glad to oblige on behalf of Banija."

"Xolile Lubabalo, the former Minister of Justice, is going to run the show there. She has, as required by political custom, resigned her political party membership in order to serve in an executive position in the Banijan Foreign Ministry. Ms. Lubabalo is to be appointed as the Royal Representative to the Chromatik Democratic Process. In her title, she will have the full privileges and diplomatic credentials as if she was an Ambassador. She and her delegation will help, in whatever they can. And this is not just about this election. We believe that Chromatika and Banija share values, prioritizing human rights, prioritizing freedom. We are, of course, honored to have been asked, and we will certainly and happily help Chromatika ensure free and fair elections for their people."

by **Gyatso-kai** » Sat Dec 14, 2019 11:17 pm

::: The Stone Tankard Public House, Shunyi District, Republic City, Gyatso-kai :::
0140 hours, Republic Time (UTC+8) 12 December 2019.3

Deep in the heart of the Shunyi District, Republic City's most diverse district and home to a multitude of Elemental expats, there was a street known as Jiugui Street. Lovingly translated as "Alcoholic Street", it was a long road lined with public houses and bars and clubs, all serving various libations from across the Avatarian Republics. Stretching for many miles, Jiugui Street was filled with all sorts of businesses, all lining both sides of the street adorned with flashing lights, loud music, and at some places, rather beautiful men and women all trying to make an honest living by providing company to those who might have had a bit too much to drink and did not wish to return home to a nagging spouse. An overnight hotel, known in Standard as a "Drunk Shack", was often not even a few blocks from any one bar, and with very affordable rates - sometimes as low as 10¥ for the night - they were seen as a far better alternative than attempting to drive oneself home after engaging in the raunchy and rowdy behaviors that often were commonplace at bars and clubs.

Though, different from most of the establishments on Jiugui Street, was one rather unique place. In Mando'a, the name "Choruk Galgai'ka" brought up images of a wild, untamed frontier bar. In fact, the only people who ever came into the Choruk Galgai'ka were either tourists wishing to forge exciting memories, or Mandalorians seeking an escape from the hustle and bustle of the nation's capital. It stood three stories tall, and was a true public house in the sense that you could drink your cares away, and sleep the buzz off in select rooms on the third floor for rates even lower than those at the Drunk Shacks. The alcohol served with the walls of the Choruk Galgai'ka differed from those of their neighbors – the Brass Spindle and the Jade Lantern - in that there were no such things as "cocktails" or glasses. All of the drinks served inside of the Choruk Galgai'ka were served in steel tankards - galgai'ka in Mando'a - and every drink was either straight or water. True to the Mandalorian culture that had existed in Gyatso-kai for generations, most patrons of the Choruk Galgai'ka wore the traditional armor, or the various softer garments worn when armor was not warranted. All those who came in who were Mandalorian would find a traditional beskar'naumiit waiting for them at the door; often found hanging in the entryways of homes, the beskar'naumiit was a large steel bell which, upon entering as a friend, would be punched by the entering party, ringing loudly to announce their arrival. It was consider a serious social faux pas if you entered a Mandalorian home and did not ring the beskar'naumiit, something the regulars at the Choruk Galgai'ka were certain to point out to any tourist who came in.

booonnnggg

The barkeeper - gal'goran - looked up towards the door, to see a single man walking into his establishment. He was holding a tankard, having just picked it off the bar and intending on filling it anew for a patron off to the right. He smiled briefly at the man walking in, whose face he swore he knew, but could not quite place it.

"How can I help you today?" the barkeeper spoke, reaching forward to a tap and beginning to fill the tankard in hand.

"Just looking for someone," the man spoke, leaning onto the bar. "Goes by Si Woo."

The barkeeper put the tap back into the upright position, and set the tankard down for the man at the bar who wore the soft tunic of the Northern Mandalorian Clans - Bes'shuyc, by the look of the sigil - before turning back to the newcomer.

"Si Woo? Yeah, he's at the back tables. He know you're coming?"

"Oh, yes. Never want to surprise someone here," the newcomer joked before reaching into his pocket, only to pull out a 10cm long stretched out hexagon; thin, with a small square carved in the middle. Known as a Kar'ta Beskar, or "Iron Heart", it was the central plate for a traditional set of Mandalorian armor. On the hexagon, one could read the words "Clan Guanyu" and "House Iviin'yc Yustapir". The man placed it on the bar, and the barkeeper leaned forward. He put his hand atop it, and smiled.

"Kih'parjai. Olarom ner vod." The barkeeper pushed the hexagon back towards the newcomer. "Ni juri jaon ne'tra gale iviin'yc"

The newcomer smiled and picked up his Kar'ta Beskar before walking towards the back. In the corner of the bar, on a small elevated stage, was a woman playing the guqin, whose tones echoed rather solemnly through the sparsely populated bar. A Friday night at near two in the morning was not the most busy time for a Mandalorian bar - seeing as how most of the more celebratory patrons had already made their way to one of the twenty rooms on the third floor to retire for the evening - but the musicians often were spending the night as well and would play until they were tired. As the newcomer made his way through the various booths, he could see the ruffed hair of his intended patron.

"Sorry I'm late Si Woo. Couldn't find parking."

"You're lucky I didn't leave," spoke Si Woo, otherwise known as Hisakawa Si Woo, #18 and starting offensive midfielder for the Avatarian National Football Team. "What can I say? I love this place!"

"Yeah," the newcomer said as he sat down across from Hisakawa. "Reminds of the Bral Sho'cye back in Heibai."

"You know Jun," Hisakawa said as he grabbed his tankard and took a drink. "I have not been to Heibai since I was at Keldabe State and even then, I never explored the nightlife."

Jun - the newcomer, whose name was Guanyu Jun, was the alternate offensive midfielder for the National Team.

"Really? Guanyu spoke as he adjusted in his seat. "whenever we travelled, we were able to enjoy a little bit of the local club scene. Especially if our game was over the weekend."

"Not at KSU, vod. Coach Cheng was a real ori'beskaryc, so after every game, we were either back to the hotel or back on the plane."

"Explains a lot," Guanyu laughed as he looked up to see the barkeeper bringing over two new tankards. After he set them down, Guanyu reached for his and placed in on his right side. "Anyway... to the point of us meeting here."

"What?" laughed Hisakawa as he reached for his own. "You didn't just want to drink?"

"Oh yeah... forget our first World Cup together. Let's just get plastered." Guanyu smirked. "We face off against North Eastern Asia in just over 48 hours."

"And you're worried because ol'Tay hasn't announced the starting lines..."

"Of course I am. I only played one game during AOCAF."

"Well, that's because I was healthy. Taytay only runs a 4-4-2 with two off-mids. Yu and I make that pair."

"But I am unsigned."

"What does that have to do with the World Cup?"

Guanyu reached for his tankard, and lifted it up. He gave a quick nod before taking a drink, before placing the tankard back down. "I need to showcase my skills. I didn't get any good offers after graduating."

"None?" Hisakawa was a bit surprised. "Not even any Taap teams?"

"No. I didn't enter the draft because I thought I would get picked up. I didn't exactly have a lackluster season at H-U."

"Aren't you holding out for a good multiverse contract?"

"Well, of course. I want to see what the world has to offer. I don't want to grow up and die in Gyatso-kai."

"Has your agent tried to contact any one?"

Guanyu thought for a second, before taking another sip. "Of course, but I guess we didn't get through the right window to be picked up, so now we're hoping for after the Cup."

"Not a bad plan, but," Hisakawa took a large sip and wiped his lips on his sleeves to grab some bit of foam. "Have you talked to Taytay?"

"Talk to him?"

"Yeah... Explained your situation." Hisakawa drained his first glass, and reached for the new tankard. This drink was much darker than his last, and the aroma of a thick and hearty porter was sure not wasted on him as he took a long first drink. "With how we played in AOCAF, I am sure we might switch up some lines going in. Might play a bit more aggressively and change that 4-4-2 to a nice 4-3-3-1 and bring you up."

"Do you think Tay'haai would do that?" Another drink by Guanyu.

"Oh of course. Who else would get pulled up between me and Yu? Yoshida doesn't exactly chase offense, and Fei'kao needs more work before I would run with him. You're the best candidate if we shift our style, which we will following the first game we get a little sloppy. Not to mention," Hisakawa leaned forward a bit. "I'm not exactly confident in Yu right now..."

"Oh?" Guanyu leaned forward himself, and dropped his voice to a whisper. "What's going on there?"

"Well, you see... He apparently has been having a go with Fong Mai back in Keldabe. Something about how they drafted an Off-mid and he's been a very Con Neut-mid. Despite that game-winner in the Ve'vut, he hasn't scored a goal in eleven games, and only gotten three assists. And of course Fong, head coach and whatnot, is not fond of that... talking about trading him... his mind is wandering elsewhere, if you catch my sails."

Guanyu smiled a bit before leaning back. "So you're saying there's a chance?"

"What I am saying," Hisakawa said before letting out a rather prodigious belch. "Is you need to speak with Taytay and get your name on his mind."

by **The Sherpa Empire** » Sun Dec 15, 2019 12:08 am

The Sherpas' win over Atlantic Republic was reassuring, but everyone knew the toughest games were yet to come.

Thupten Tamang scored the only goal of the game after outrunning an Atlantic defender who was supposed to be blocking him, and getting loose in a stretch of open field. The other Atlantic defenders couldn't get there quickly enough to stop him because Mehta and Rai were in the way. So Thupten went tearing down the side of the field and shot the ball diagonally into the opposite corner of the goal.

Up next was an away game in Terre Septentrionale, but the travel arrangements had gotten a bit confused and the Sports Department was scrambling to sort them out. Earlier in the year, a clerical error had forced the World Cup organizers to redraw the qualification groups, but a Septentrional bureaucrat had got their hands on the wrong list and accidentally sent the wrong stadium information to the Sherpa Sports Department. Everyone had their flight booked and their travel documents ready to enter the country, but they were still working to confirm they had the correct itinerary once they landed.

World Cup 84- RP Thread (IC)

WC84 MD1

Elite, Episode 2

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