World Cup 84- RP Thread (IC)

by **Hampton Island** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 1:05 pm

Setting: Stafford City Stadium Offices

Assistant: Campaign is coming to an end. It has been fun, and maybe successful too.

CEO: Very successful. The money we made on this would never have been made otherwise. Who cares about their record, though I must say, it’s better then I thought.

Assistant: Not a great record, but we have been influential. Just ask Mattijana.

CEO: Poor Mattijana. Their whole qualifying effort could go up in smoke thanks to us. It is fun looking at the standings in that way. I hold nothing against Mattijana, but still funny.

Assistant: I am sure fans and players from Zwangzug are grateful for us.

CEO: Hopefully they do not need to be reminded of why they need to be grateful to us, but they will not show their appreciation unless they actually qualify for the World Cup. If they do, then they can shower us with gifts for beating Mattijana twice during qualifying.

Assistant: Mattijana only has five losses. Two to us. Playing the spoiler is fun, but to have potentially been such a major spoiler towards one nation, that the best.

CEO: Didn’t they once criticize the tactics used by Hannah Sanders?

Assistant: I think so, but they were very effective against Mattijana. I do hope Zwangzug gets that spot, or else we just become an afterthought instead of the reason why one team advanced and the other one didn’t.

CEO: That game is tonight, obviously much more important then our game. Maybe we can have a viewing party at the stadium. Charge people a $2 donation to get in.

Assistant: Do you think they care that much about it?

CEO: I wouldn’t expect a sellout, but there will be some that care. We’ll add one of our classic raffles, this will be giving away eight free tickets to the championship game of the World Cup.

Assistant: Sounds great. Of course, one of our Classic raffles, which mean a family member of a stadium employee is announced as a winner to satisfy people, but we don’t actually award the prize.

CEO: $7 additional for a raffle ticket, $14 for two, $28 for 4. $60 for 8.

Assistant: And the math impaired will by the package of eight like they always do.

CEO: Of course!

by **Ko-oren** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 1:56 pm

A reminder: IFCF

International club football is (almost) back! Under a new name, IFCF, we will see our proudest clubs take on the much larger and smaller teams from other nations. No doubt will our teams have a hard time getting to the Champions' Cup (or rather, the Champions' League, from now on) but we should see some decent action and maybe even a knockout appearance in the Globe Cup (the Challengers Cup). For fans of the lower levels, there is the Series' B Champions' Cup (the Liga B Champions Trophy). What's more, the unofficial official Cygnus Cup is now part of the IFCF, as the Cup Winners Cup. The Youth League is the Rising Stars Cup now. Plenty of new names to get used to, but on the whole they make sense: if it says 'Champions', it features champions. Liga B makes sense. Cup Winners is literally what it says on the tin. And yet, it'll be hard to use the new jargon starting day one.

Just a small reminder: the clubs that will appear in the first IFCF editions:

Miradela GD as consecutive champions, Miradela will have the honour of getting some points for the Dragonfly Archipelago.
Tanques AOÉ, Advance Alara, Branvón CD are going to the Challengers Cup, and for two of these that comes at a surprise. Advance Alara are a tactical black sheep in the Ko-orenite league and nobody gave them a chance, tactically or given the players on the team, but they still made it. Branvón are the smaller brother to Miradela on all accounts (but don't say that to their face), and are a few years ahead on their ascent by qualifying for an international tournament this early. Tanques are right on track, but they would have rather challenged Miradela for the title a little longer. Tanques have by far the most individual talent on their team, but in the end, they didn't have the best team over the seasoned veterans of Miradela.

Castelo e Calvente CS, Laringen AFC, Echizen are going to Liga B. CeC and Laringen will also appear in the upcoming shiny new Second Division, making its debut next season, while Echizen... will not. As one of the best semi-professional teams of Ko-oren, they still lost to Teragaseki when it comes to appearing on this level. Echizen will, hold on, go to the fourth level despite going to Liga B. We expect them to rise through the ranks and get to the third or second level - and hopefully the Liga B matches will encourage their current and prospective players to give this club a chance.

Miradela GD will also go to the Cup Winners Cup. It's been a while since a club that's not Miradela has won a trophy.

The Ko-orenite league has seen a huge exodus, carrying the league's financial opportunities to the 26th spot on the Fekadu Financial Power Index. That's quite a bit higher than our UICA (no, IFCF) ranking implies, and it shows that our national league is seen as a little better than it is, but also that we might be due a few better performances in the international tournaments. Our ranking depends on the exodus though, because we earned far more than we spent. A lot of teams that are above us on the Index, have sold far fewer players for a much, much lower total cost. A grand total of 115 million NSD have left the country, almost twice as much as any other nation outside of the top 20. Our total spending, coming down to 22 million NSD, is lowest among nations ranked 20-30.

The Index is not the be-all-and-end-all, with Starblaydia in 31st, we'll concede as much.

by **Alasdair I Frosticus** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 2:12 pm

The Knights of the Oblong Table In....

THE QUEST FOR THE HOLY GRAIL
of World Cup qualification

"Lord Tzimisces, if I could take a moment of your time...."

"Of course, Sir Barsanuphius - what's on your mind?"

"Well, it's just that last night you gave us a most rousing speech before the match, challenging us to go forth in victory on the Theophany."

"I'm glad you thought it was effective."

"It's just that.... well.... some of the lads thought it was a rousing speech for the final matchday."

"Whatever gave them that idea?"

"The inscription along the top of the written transcription saying it was your speech before the final qualification match day."

"Surely some misunderstanding?"

"No.... it says right here: 'The Final WC 84 Qualification Matchday Speech of Juan Tzimisces'"

"Well, it was a rousing speech, suitable for a final matchday, no?"

"Indeed, Lord Tzimisces; except that the lads are surprised to find out that we still have two matchdays left to play; including a crucial six-pointer at home to Juvencus in our next match."

"But it was appropriate for a final matchday..."

"Indeed; except that it wasn't for a final matchday; it's basic arithmatic - there are 11 teams in each group, not 10"

"But were you inspired?"

"No doubt"

"Did it help fire up the lads before the win over Pauh Janggi?!

"Of this I am certain"

"And did not Juvencus's win over Kita-Hinode not mix things up a bit, bringing us ever-closer to the Holy Grail of World Cup qualification?"

"Most assuredly"

"Are we not in the driving seat to achieve our mystical quest?"

"Naturally"

"So what's the problem?"

"Well, my lord, it's just that some of the lads thing you, well.... lied."

"Lied?"

"Yes, by presenting last night's match as our final matchday, you misrepresented the nature of the match; Sir Joasaph thinks this is tantamount to lying. We certainly played better, but the lads aren't sure the ends justify the means. Our Grail quest is supposed to involve paladins of Our Lord who are pure of heart, not a bunch of knights who were motivated by the lies of our coach."

"I see the problem."

"You do?"

"Yes; Sir Joasaph is quite mistaken."

"He is?"

"I didn't lie; I allowed you to draw a false inference."

"I don't quite follow, my lord..."

"Well, read the speech again; nowhere do I say that it's the final match day. I said that our destiny is in our hands, that if we win the Grail is ours - an exaggeration, but one warranted, I think, by results - and that if we draw or lose our path is more laboured. I didn't say 'win this, our final match, and we're in'"

"But the title...."

"I'm hardly responsible for what some minor lackey who can't count to 11 might choose to title my speeches with. If it's the title you're worried about, we can flog a few serfs in HEFA's PR wing and move on."

"But...."

"Look, if you all chose to believe it was the final matchday, that's not really my problem. Look at the team media guide:

Twenty matchdays shall each team play, no more, no less. Twenty shall be the number thou shalt play, and the number of the matches shall be twenty. Twenty-one shalt thou not play, neither shalt thou play nineteen, excepting that thou then proceed to playing twenty. Twenty-two is right out. Once the number twenty, being the twentieth match, be reached, qualification shall be complete

So it's all there in black and white"

"Well, my lord, that puts my heart at rest, I must say. Let us proceed to the next match!"

"Yes; lets"

"Which is the final match, being the nineteenth match!"

"Well, if that's what you want to believe......"

by **Port Ember** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 2:50 pm

Port Ember Times
Arts & Culture Journal

Author Timmothy Haulee has recently released his first Social Sciences book, title "Culture and Heritage of the Port Ember Nation". Here follows a few extracts from his new book - available at all major book stores:

For the interest of taking a latger overview of the Port Emberian people, I have researched and categorised them into specific stereotypes - which is not true to each individual offcourse, yet gives us a broad look at the majority.

Racial Stereotypes

Race:

The stereotypical Port Emberian native is caucasian. They have descended from european pioneers, mostly British, Irish, French, Gerrman, Spanish, Portugese, Dutch and Japanese. The continious breeding between these races is what eventually formed the new native Port Emberian race.

Typical Names:

Any generic British, Irish, French, Gerrman, Spanish, Portugese, Dutch and to a lesser degree - Japanese name is common names. The most common however is english and irish names.

Physical Appearance:

Physical Build:

The stereotypical Port Emberian man is rather large sturdy of build. They average at 1.8 meters in length and 100kg in weight. Normally they are quite muscular, due to strong genes in their forefathers.

The females, ironically is much smaller. They average at 1.5 meters in length and 50kg in weight. They are normally slim and perky. Port Emberian women is well known for their beauty.

Port Emberians commonly have eye colour ranging from brown and green - and most commonly blue.

Port Emberians have commonly brown, blonde, red and black hair, with no dominant colour.

Port Emberian men enjoys sporting impressive yet neat full beards. Moustaches only is rare. The females generally dispises all body hair and is always clean shaven from beneath the eyebrows.

Clothing:

The men generally wear quite informal wear - Neat shorts or long jeans, with loose fitting tropical themed shirts (think Hawai dress). The businessmen enjoys sporting tailored suits.

The females enjoys wearing informal yet sensual clothing, including floral dresses and skirts with loose fitting tops.

There is no specific traditional dress or style, so each individual is free to dress however they wish.

Craziest of all - Port Ember has no public decency laws, therefore its common for Port Emberians to walk in public nude! This does not cause the normal chaos it normally would.

Important of note is that a Port Emberian's clothes normally reflects cool summer wear due to Port Ember being a tropical island - always hot and humid with no winters.

Ancestory

Port Emberiams comes from a very long line of pirates. The islands were a pirate kingdom for many years. Therefore the average Port Emberian is very stuborn and ill tempered.

Cultural Stereotypes

Typical social class

Although a massive nation as Port Ember encompasses a large variety of class cultures, the following is the most prominent:

Docks Class

This social class is found mostly in the Waterstad Borough of Port Ember Megalopolis, living near the gigantic port. They are generally blue collar workers or sailors, known for their hard working ethics. They can be seen as a bit wild - they work hard and play even harder. Known for continious drinking, crazy tavern dancing, bar fights etc. A very passionate folk. (Think down the lines of first generation irish when they arrived in New York.)

Sailor Class

This class is almost exactly the same as the docks folk, just a bit wilder! These folks makes their entire living on the ocean,and is obsessed with it. They can even be heard speaking old pirate slang during normal conversation at times!

Country Class

This folk consists mostly of the citizens of south island, who lives and works on farms. They are attuned to nature and the wild, and are known to be more spiritual than the rest of the nation. They are also very serious about maintaining strong family ties.

Trader Class

This class is found all over the islands, and is generally the middle class, white collar or small business owners of the islands. These folks is still passionate and wild, yet not as much as the docks folk. They are generally very successfull with suburban homes and small families. Most are specialised in their respective work fields. They are also frequent world travelers generally.

Purple Bloods

This class consists mainly out of the academics/scientists of the islands. They are extremely smart and very driven to master their respective fields. They are very different from other Port Emberians, as they are very quite and calm generally.

Blue Bloods

This class is seen as the royalty of the islands (not true nobles though, as no such thing exists in PE!). They are the extremely wealthy persons, and probaly moguls in their fields. They enjoy rock star celebrity fame from the local media amd populace.

Intelligence:

The average Port Emberian is smart (according to NS Stats, PE is in the Top 4% of smartest citizens). This is due to an excellent education system. Even the "less than smart" Port Emberians has a functioning knowledge of how the world works in theory.

Technology:

The average Port Emberian is extremely Technologicaly aware (according to NS Stats, PE is in the Top 2% of most technologicaly advanced citizens). This is due to an excellent education system. Even the "less than smart" and old Port Emberians has a functioning knowledge of technology, programming etc.

Cultured:

Port Ember is an extremely wealthy nation, with even its poor citizens living easily and more comfortable than most other nation's middle class. This has lead the popuace to be culturally aware, and "strive for the nicer things in life" (thats also an cultural qoute). Thus the average Port Emberian is known to collect various art pieces.

Wealth...is GOOD!!

For the average Port Emberian, making tons of money is the most important thing in life. Therefore very rich business people are revered in Port Ember as if they were rock stars for other nations.

Trade and more trade!

The average Port Emberian sees the basic trade of goods as the reason for life, and thus has immense respect for any businessman/women.

Alcohol

The averge Port Emberian enjoys alcohol frequently. The most popular drinks is beer and rum. Port Ember as a nation is famous for their quality brewed beer and rum.

Drugs

Port Ember has zero anti drug laws, so the average Port Emberian uses a variety of hard drugs frequently. Society does not frown upon drug use. Also cigarettes are common, yet cigars is the favourite for smokers.

Music

Port Emberians loves music immensely, especially the local flavoured Folk Rock music.

Food

Port Emberians are known for their love of sea food and meat. They also have a large love for fresh tropical fruit.

Social Values Stereotypes

Family is blood

Port Emberians in general takes family ties very seriously. They generally have small families and a small circle of close friends. Those friends are also seen as kin.

Mistrusting of strangers

The average Port Emberian is quite rude to strangers. They have an inherint distrust in people whom they don't know - and are not afraid to display their feelings.

Outspoken and confrontational

The average Port Emberian lacks a thought filter. They say what they think, without considering people's feelings. They are not afraid to defend what they believe in, whatever it might be.

Forms of address

The following forms of address is common in Port Ember:

- Mister / Mrs. Standard title for citizens of all ages above 18.

- Sir / Mam. Title for rich/important citizens.

- Lad / Lass. Variant standard address form for any person above age 30.

- Laddie / Lassie. Variant standard address form for any person below age 30.

Not Shy to bare it all

The average Port Emberian is not shy to be seen in the nude, and does not overreact when seeing people in the nude.

Guns for all

As Port Ember allows all citizens to own any imaginable weapon (even including tanks!), (except WMD's offcourse), the average citizen owns a firearm or two and holds this right dear.

What crime?

Port Ember is a nation with almost no restrictive laws, and a easy nation to live in (more jobs than people, good salaries, cheap cost of living, abundance of food and housing, good and cheap healthcare), the average Port Emberian feels no need to turn to crime of any sort.

Smuggling is awesome

Ironically, smuggling is not seen as crime. As Port Ember has no inport/export laws, any type of goods may be inported/exported from the nation. However, selling goods to a nation where its illigal - is seen as a win for the free market and Port Emberian brilliance.

Patriotic

The average Port Emberian loves his nation. This is not forced upon the citizens, but stems from the good living conditions of the islands.

World Traveler

The average Port Emberian enjoys traveling to other nations for holiday and business.

Immigrants

The average Port Emberian has no problem with foreigners moving to their nation.

Religion

Majority of Port Emberians is atheist. Those who are religious, is followers of Waukeen. The average Port Emberian is very tolerant to different races.

Homosexuality

The average Port Emberian has no problem with gay marriage. In fact, it was never a problem since the birth of the nation.

Political Values Stereotypes

Freeeeedooom!!!

Personal/political/relegious/general freedom is held sacred by the average Port Emberian. Anything less than total freedom is a problem- and they are not afraid to tell the world that they have a problem..

Capitalism

The average Port Emberiam is a stuanch supporter of free market democracy.

Damm Commies!

The average Port Emberian sees communism/socialism as pure evil and despises the system with their entire being.

Typical Profession Stereotypes

With a massive and self sustaining nation as Port Ember, obviously all imaginable types of jobs are available in Port Ember. However the most famous ones include (in no order):

- Sailor

- Fisherman

- Boat Builder

- Engineer (all types)

- Trader

- Factory Worker

As a foreigner Stereotypes

As a foreigner, Port Emberians generally struggle to adapt in their new homes, mainly due to:

- Weather. A Port Emberian struggles to adapt to extreme draught and cold.

- Laws. Basically any restrictive law pisses them off.

by **Mattijana** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 3:42 pm

Ministry of Sport, Petrovijanka

Director of football Polona Struna sat at the opposite end of a long conference table to her head of development Max Kamnik. It was testament to the inner workings of the ministry of sport, in particular the department of football, that it took 5 metres of solid oak to keep the two at a safe distance from one another. It said even more that the reason all that hardwood was needed wasn't because of the fallout of some internal crisis, but because something good had happened and both of them thought they deserved the glory.

This elusive good thing was that the number of people in Mattijana playing football had gone from rock bottom to a pretty healthy number in the space of a solitary world cup qualifying cycle. The issue with this was that it coincided not only with the Kicking Marmots having a promising and possibly even successful World Cup cycle, but also the biggest grassroots promo initiative in Mattijanan history.

"To be honest, if we'd let the squad get on with training rather than pissing about at these taster days, we'd probably have qualified by now and the success of that would do wonders for the game. Don't get me wrong, they've boosted our numbers in certain areas, but success does that and not as temporarily either."

"I'd say the opposite. Form is temporary, class is permanent. If we build the love of the game and the facilities to go with it, that's surely better than one good qualifying cycle, however good it actually is."

Fortunately Julian Petrov, the Mattijanan minister for sport, was there to put a stop to the petty argument before it stopped being petty.

"Look. Whatever actually caused it, the fact is that we've got more people playing football than ever before and we now need to keep them. That means both of you need to take responsibility for your parts of that rather than bickering about who did what."

It was hard to argue with that, and even if you wanted to, it wasn't a good idea. Petrov continued.

"I don't want to know about what you've done. I knew that already. What are you going to do next?"

Petrov gestured for Polona Struna to continue.

"Qualification is our immediate goal, but regardless of that, I want to work with MFO to secure coverage of the World Cup Finals, making it freely accessible to everyone who wants to watch it. We'd also want to set up special fan areas for the duration of the tournament for people back here to get together and watch the games."

Petrov nodded. Now it was Kamnik's turn.

"We would want to integrate another series of taster days around the world cup to make use of the rise in coverage the sport would get. We're in contact with some PrvaLiga teams to hopefully gain use of their training venues. We're also planning on meeting with a number of lower-league teams to assess their needs and to help them get more people on their books."

"Thank you. I think it goes without saying that we are a much more useful team when we focus on what we can do going forward rather than trying to find things we have differences on." Petrov was rarely annoyed, but this was about as close as he got.

Still, the plan to save Mattijanan football seemed to be going according to plan.

by **Chromatika** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 5:52 pm

MD 20: Petrovsky 2-4 Chromatika
Goals: Vidal '2, Kelly '15, Xe '38, Non '88
Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Tioux; Xiao - Ken - Baugh - Nocturne; Ingalls - Kim, M.S.; Kelly - Kim, M.J. - Xe (C); Vidal.
Substitutes: McBee -> Xiao ('62), Reynolds - Xe ('73), Non -> Vidal ('84)
Projected Lineup vs. Bloing: Ria; Ruth - de Aea - Will - Ilya; Montague - Armageddon; Victoriane - Mora - Dragana; Andisori, K. (C).

Jillian Nier, Football Correspondent

Besides the two mistakes made by Ferret Tioux in the second half, this game was really over in the first fifteen minutes, Olimpia Vidal and Whitney Kelly getting through the defense of Petrovsky with ease and allowing them to cruise to the finish.

All Chromatika needs is a point now to be out of reach of Main Nation Ministry. That's why it's rumored that Evans and Everdeen will put out the best eleven against Bloing in their home finale in the Capitalizt Dome. Is it smart? Probably not, given that it's pretty much over. But the fans will love it, the team will carry the emotion across, and they can just put things away with a victory in front of a raucous crowd at home.

It is not hard to see that the team has really bought into the partnership between Evans and Everdeen. Evans is the Manager, but Everdeen is speaking more to the media and supposedly more to the players as well. They've combined to do more than was expected - Chromatika is about to qualify as a third seeded team in their group, after all.

My hope is that they'll finish strong, and not get anyone else hurt in the process.

A late-in-qualifying injury is probably the worst thing ever for now.

Part 19: The Discovery
Part 20: The Excerpt

A journal entry from the private logs of Kerri Wyse Aart

...Mikhail continues to tick Parsons off every chance he can get, although at times it's not possible to tell if Parsons wants to be ticked off or not. I keep hearing things from Keira and Alina that the investigation on the attack on the Banijan delegate will conclude soon. I'm not being privy into too much of it, but I think that that will be big.

The preliminary polls indicate that we're going to win this election big, but I'm wary of Mikhail. He's too clever, the Checkers Party is too clever, for this to be all that is.

I think we'll be fine...

Rainbow League System Preview
20. Pria

Nickname: Pride
Fans: Prians, Pride
Location: Pria, Coastal District, Chromatika
Stadium: The Pack (67,290; 25,000 Seats)
History:

Manager: June Michaelangelo, 51
Formation: (4-3-2-1)

Background: Pria is at the northeastern coast of Chromatika, and is where the ferry to the Island of Dorri is located. Dorri is a wildlife preserve that doesn't have any cities, just an observatory for scientists. Besides being a research town, Pria also does some fishing and watersports. It is the surfing capital of Chromatika, as waves can get pretty high with a favorable wind, leading to ideal surfing conditions. The home venue for the Pria Pride, The Pack is one of the oldest stadiums in Chromatika. Its architecture has a nostalgic feel of a bygone age. There have been numerous attempts for Prians to open a new stadium, but the fans have shot it down time and time again, claiming that their stadium does just fine. It is rather distinct from the rest, a glimpse into Chromatika's past.

Preseason Grading: brought to you by ChromatikBet.com

Fanbase: 4/10: Pria is a small-town team. If they've sold half their tickets, that is a good day.
Manager: 6/10: June Michaelangelo always provides decent enough results for the amount of money that is being spent by this squad, but lacks the expertise to lead them further, so it seems.
Keepers: 4/10: Dunning's career has left a lot to be desired.
Defenders: 6/10: Viviennne Hamaker is a stud. Will she remain on this roster? Probably not. Nobody tackles like her.
Midfielders: N/A: Pria is without starting midfielders, and Andersen is getting old.
Strikers: N/A: Pria is missing strikers.
Greatest Need: When the Chromatik League disbanded, all foreign players were let go. For the Pride to make it to the Red League, they'll need to retool their striking core and the defensive staff.
Next: Pùr

by **Audioslavia** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 6:09 pm

Original Script

6.1 Now

This is the Scorigami chart as of World Cup 83. No numbers, just the teams who’ve put their names up in lights.

There are four distinct regions.

On the left, the early adopters. These records were broken within the first nine tournaments. There are scorelines you see every week. On the very far left, we’re not even sure whether these were the first such results or not, due to most of the games going unrecorded.

In the middle, in blue, the Scorigamis that were forced on a smaller team by a larger one. Forced Scorigami. Future 5-time-champs Vilita putting nine past Maldunia. Valanora thrashing Keyne Island, Delaclava in their pomp running roughshod over Mossulia. The team on the bottom is one you’ve never heard of. On top, a household name.

In light blue is what I like to call Collaborative Scorigami. Two teams who are not only evenly matched, but having the sort of day where neither cares about defence. The Holy Empire and Bettia are here with their 7-5 barnstormer between two multiple-time World Champions, but so too are the largely forgotten duo of Andrewboy and Tretskivucia, as well as Bear Islands and Kagdazka, two brief puppets nations of more famous masters.

On the right, in green, the games with more than twelve goals. The rarest occurance. These green islands cut adrift in white water. The only region where its possible to even get a Scorigami these days.

We’ve been close, in recent years to adding to the chart.
[Kalumba 10-3 Schottia from World Cup 69, The Holy Empire 12-0 The Nordic Lands of Skyrim]
An extra goal for Schottia against Kalumba would have seen the future-champions secure a Scorigami - apt compensation for conceding ten goals. In World Cup 61, four-time winners and two-time Scorigamiers The Holy Empire, too, were a goal away from cementing themselves as the greatest ever Scorigami team, but couldn’t get the job done against the Nordic Lands of Skyrim.

Jeru FC went close twice in cycle 58. Their 11-0 win over Albertasby wasn’t a Scorigami. Neither was their 11-0 win over Eura a few matchdays later. That’s right. Eura lost 11-0 to Jeru FC. Remind a Euran of that next time you see one.

We know we need more than twelve goals in a game to get into Scorigami territory these days. It’s our rotten luck that this has happened twice over the last four tournaments, but both times the results matched ones we’d previously gotten.

[Schottia 12-2 Lynchberg in World Cup 80]
Eleven cycles on from their close call against Kalumba, Schottia were a goal away from Scorigami Immortality in World Cup 80, failing to notch the extra goal at home to Lynchberg.

[WC81 Polkopia 11-3 Axuva]
A cycle later, Polkopia and Axuva were close. One more goal for either side and they’d both have put themselves in the record books. You feel for Axuva. Conceding eleven goals is terrible, but to be so close to a Scorigami and miss out must have been a bitter pill to swallow.

It’s natural that we’ve seen fewer Scorigamis in recent years. Putting this series together, I’d assumed that changes to the way the game is played in the modern day - how the game is Scorinated if you will - had lead international football down a more conservative path, but I’m not sure the stats back up that assertion.
Although since World Cup 70, there have been only two occasions in which a match has produced more than twelve goals, every one of the last thirteen World Cups has produced at least one game where eleven or more goals were scored. There’ve been 41 in total since World Cup 70, at an average of a little under three per cycle. There don’t seem to be any special circumstances wherein high-scoring games are found, The two cycles where we got fourteen goal games were both scorinated with different scorinators. Looking at the stats, it appears we’ve just been… unlucky.

We’re due. I can feel it. A Scorigami is on the way.

If it happens in World Cup 84, or at any time in the future, we’ll be back with another chapter. Until then, that’s it for Episode One of The Idiot Project.

Close Calls: One or two goals either way and the following would have been Scorigamis.
WC83
Abanhfleft 4-7 Starblaydia
Nephara 9-3 Ethane
Amurbia 3-8 The Macabees
Joshenia 5-6 Spensar

82
Xanneria 6-5 Grod Island
Kandorith 6-5 Ancherion
Qasden 7-4 Dritten Asopie
Free Republics 7-4 Geektopia

WC81
Eshan 9-2 Ancharmunn
Polkopia 11-3 Axuva

WC80
Valladares 6-6 Barunia
Scottia 12-2 Lynchberg
West Angola 3-8 Vilita

Unrecorded Content

Chapter 6.2 - About The Idiot Project.

The Idiot Project is a project by an idiot. It started as a database and became a YouTube series. Of course.

Putting the database together was done over a few evenings in March and then a few more in September. Doing the later World Cups wasn’t particularly labour intensive once I’d got to grips with the program that does find and replace based on a formula, but the earlier ones were occasionally tricky.
While I was taking the results from an early World Cup, one where the hosts were choosing a new method of arranging the scores every matchday, which was making things very labour-intensive for me, I asked myself, ‘what am I doing this *for*’. Then I watched a Jon Bois video and had an idea that I could not get out of my head.

Each episode takes a week or so to make. An evening or two is spent writing and researching, taking screenshots all the while. After the second draft of the script I’m ready to get all the pictures I think I’ll need. It takes a few hours to set them all up in Google Earth and then a few more hours, probably on a different night, to use Google Earth Studios to film them. Google Earth Studios is powerful, but rendering the videos is slow, often doesn’t include the overlays I’ve set up, and converts everything to thousands of individual jpegs rather than an actual video, so I use a screen recorder and record the preview. The picture quality is fit for purpose, but animation is jerky, so I make the video four times longer and slower than it needs to be and speed up the footage in post-processing. It doesn’t work all the time, as you may have seen with Chapter 3. Recording the vocals is tricky with only a built-in laptop microphone, as I have to get close to the mic to speak, I owe a great deal to Mriin for helping out. Mriin was the only person who knew about The Idiot Project while it was being made. His feedback and general moral support was invaluable.

Thanks also to Polar Islandstates for his episode, and to Maklohi Vai, who has by the far the best vocal performance in the series.

"Episode one is donezo McDonezo" said Jeremy, flopping down onto the sofa. Phone in one hand, pressed against his left ear, unopened can of beer in the other hand. Whoever it was on the phone said something that he didn't like.
"Are we hell" said Jeremy. "You're lying. I'm gonna turn this TV on and I'll see that you're lying immediately."
Jeremy turned on the TV and waited for it to warm up, for it was a CRT TV, because this is Jeremy Jaffacake.
"I tell you, Audioslavia have about as much chance of losing at home to Islas Aaland as this can of beer has of exploding violently onto my shirt" Jeremy continued.
The TV screen showed a group of angry men in claret and green chasing forlornly after a ball that their opponents wouldn't give them. Jeremy opened his beer, swore once, jumped to his feet and patted his shirt down.

Bonus Content
The Idiot Project: Soundtrack Playlist to Episode 1

by **Valanora** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 6:59 pm

The news was heavy but it was not unexpected, another one of the elves who still played for the national team had decided that they would be calling it quits, at least for the time being. It was Ilglerdiriel Lithvathar, the pacy and energetic winger from Raynor City United that had decided that their time both in the national team and with her club was coming to an end. Unlike Fresco who had not spoken about the possibility of returning, she was leaving the door open to return in time, however like a lot of the other elves, had been talking about the desire for something else with their life. It was the sort inevitable news that Laborious was expecting at the end of the marathon of qualifying and with the squad having had some rocky progression in the second half. She had seen enough of the week in and week out struggle and toll that the footballing life had on one and now wanted to explore what else there was to the world. She was elven she had the time to do so and come back if she so desired, but it meant that the squad would be weakened once she had hung up her boots.

There had been a lot of reflection from both he and the squad as a whole, nay the managerial and the fans of the squad had all had to reflect greatly in the time leading up to the last international fortnight. The Marauders had been so indomitable in the first half of qualifying, before their trip to Ethane and a side who had been riding high on their own laurels for most of the first half as well. What should have been an excusable loss of points had turned the qualification on its head and though the squad still stood in a good place heading into that last fortnight, it was not as comfortable as it should have. Not for a squad that had not been taking any prisoners in their first ten matches, that had stormed ahead as if they were charging down success with reckless abandon, not when the desire was there to add another star across their crest and be the first to have a six star adorned crest. Their rivals were chasing down that bit of history as well, with the bit in their teeth and doing so in far more comfortable and convincing fashions than the Marauders had done so in the last eight matches.

The only true time that the squad had looked like their first half form was when they had taken on Kelssek, a match which should have been of the most difficult given Kelssek's squad strength and a mini revival that their squad had had in order to get back into the qualification race. Instead the Marauders finally looked like a top ten squad once more and seemed to douse out the fire of their qualification campaign, yet following it with an unexaplainable draw with Xanneria had been a further frustration that had no rhyme or reason. The players had the skill and drive to perform greater than the results that were being put forth on the field, the managers had been preparing them carefully and doing their best to keep the side focused on each match rather than trying to look ahead. Every time that they or Hawk had thought they had figured out what was ailing the squad and had found a way to rectify the situation, something new sprung forth to add further bafflement to even to those with the most football acumen as to what was transpiring on the field and in the training pitch.

Slumps like this were quite distressing and had a way of taking deep root if they were not able to be stomped out, like a fire that grew from the smallest of flames. While the squad only needed a single point from the last two matches to qualify, a feat that Hawk absolutely had no doubt that they would be able to achieve, he worried about the form and mindset of the squad heading into the Finals. If this slump was not put to be between then and now, there would be no title challenge to try and beat Starblaydia and company to the sixth star, they would not even make it out of the group stage if they continued to play as they had done. There had to be something that he or the managers were missing, a piece of the puzzle that if they could only identify it, would be able to diagnose the problems with the squad and make the correct machinations to fix it. Perhaps it was all beyond him now and he to needed to rest from the weariness of the game, of having done this for centuries and not found the peace of perfection that had been his goal...

by **Pasarga** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 7:19 pm

The climb had been started, the climb to that peak that seemed beyond their grasp and yet they had to endure the toughening of the climb in order to reach that peak. That peak being the qualification for Cassagaigua-Baker Park and the climb being needed to win three straight games against the three best teams besides themselves in the group, starting at home against fourth seed Polkopia. It was the weakest of the three games that was left on the schedule and the first step on the devastating gauntlet that had been set up because of their failings throughout the rest of the campaign, not being able take all six points from teams like Fujai, Timuria, Libonesia. These were not teams with a history of being better than what their rank would indicate and yet the Wanderers had resorted back to their pre WC70s behavior and not finding ways to win the games that they were supposed to. Drawing with Libonesia was exactly the reason that they were now in a win or be eliminated scenario against the two toughest teams in the group.

That was what was the most distressing part of the situation, even if they went into Drawkland in the evening and found a way to defeat them there, they still had to travel back to Torgos and find a way to replicate the miracle that they had pulled off in Farfadillis and beat the top seed once more. The Farves had been nearly perfect in all their other matches of the campaign, with only the two losses and a draw against a record of fifteen wins. The Wanderers had been one of those two times that the Farves attack had been unable to break down their opposition and put their competitors to the sword, it had been a marvelous and miraclous feat, and now they needing to do it once more. It seemed a bit cruel and a very tall ask to go into a locker room and tell the squad that despite all of the amazing things they had done in Atlantian Ocenia six months before, it was all for nothing unless they were able to do it again against the Farves in the dual islands. And yet, that was exactly going to have to the be the case if they managed to get to that situation in the first place, they would be asked to be the only side to take six points off of one of the best teams in the entire world.

Traveling to Drawkland though, it was the second step and the most immediate, one that was going to demand as much if not more than their tie against the Farves in Rushmore, traveling to Sonnel was never an easy ask. Drawkland like the Farves have been almost unshakable and unwavering in this campaign, having draw twice and lost twice while winning fourteen matches, and again it was the Wanderers who had been one of the few sides that managed to take points off the Drawkland team when they traveled to the capital on the penultimate matchday of the first half of qualifying. In the Stade de Torgos, the two sides played out to a score draw where the Wanderers strong attack had been able to break down what had been an incredibly stringent defensive back line from Drawkland. However in committing their midfield to support the strike force more, it had opened up their own defensive unit that Drawkland had managed to break down and take a point away from the dual islands. A point and result that could be seen as the reason, among many, as to why they were in the prime position to take the second qualifying spot from the combative group twelve.

That is the tale of the tape and the difference between the Wanderers and Drawkland, the Wanderers with a more prolific and dedicated attack that can on its day break down even the most hard to break down defensive units, but a defense that bends but does not break. With a pair of strikers like Jager and Müller leading the line and good options off the bench, it comes as no huge surprise that the squad has been good going forward. Drawkland has been more tempered in its attack but less likely to concede those goals that have turned wins into draws or draws into losses, unlike the defensive unit of the Wanderers. Still it is all there to play for and the squad has endured its share of suffering and will have hopefully emerged the stronger for it, to have the belief that they are capable of the task ahead of them. Christian Berg and Ralf Bader both claim to be elite level defenders and the heart of the Wanderers squad, they can prove that by leading the side into Drawkland and pitching a clean sheet while the talented midfield and attack of the side finds its way once more through the barriers put in its way and be allowed to dream a dream of success for at least one more matchday.

by **Euran Oceania Territories** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 8:40 pm

It was not the best time for Jacob Hayden to be warming up to come on as a substitute. The Expats were 4-1 down against Squornshelous following a riotous 2-0 defeat at home to Nephara a few days earlier. Following that disappointment, Oslograd had opted to rotate the side to bring in fresh legs and give fringe players a chance. Everything had gone to pot from there. Willem Ajax had scored a nice goal but otherwise it was little more than a procession for an energised Squornshelous side, who tore the exhausted Expats to pieces. Lyyti Vang had a hattrick, and Havard Popov's fourth simply crushed any hopes of a comeback. Danny Lawrence, Jack Ream, Mark Little, Charlie Ross, Paul Hooper - they'd all had nightmarish games and done their international careers some serious damage, though it wasn't really Ross' fault that the defence were awful. For once Oslograd was pretty quiet by the sideline, perhaps reflecting on where things had gone wrong for his side and how the peak of their initial promising generation appeared to have passed. That's when he turned to young Jacob, a 19 year old left back at Fligsive FC who had been sat on the bench all game and for most of qualifying.

Hayden's debut had been unimpressive along with all his appearances since but at least he was still in contention. He was one of the new group of players to come through the domestic EOT League, as opposed to the literal "Expats" who had dominated the team for years, almost all of whom played in Eura or another top league. A few of them weren't even Euran's originally. He would only have nine minutes in this game to make an impact. Oslograd didn't say much. 'Watch the channels, try and get forward but don't get carried away.'
'Ok boss. You sure you don't want me to push forward more, get us a goal back? Balloon spirit and all that?'
'Just put in a shift, alright?' Not only was Oslograd unusually quiet, the endless references to his Skorjiball philosophy seemed to have gone out of the window as well. Off trudged Jesus Moreno, the Sunrisian born Expat veteran who had made great effort to return to the international fold after a period out of favour, only to become a marginal player at best. In the last eighty minutes or so he hadn't come close to reversing that state of affairs, not one bit. On went Jacob Hayden, skipping into play with a spring in his step. What did he have to lose?

The Expats had conceded a free kick close to their box, and the captain Ajax had brought everyone back to defend it. Natalia Berglund smashed it into the wall and the ball rolled away to one of her teammates on their left, but they screwed up the next touch and gifted the Expats a throw in. Hayden drifted out to the left and impatiently looked around him, noticing how dejected his teammates looked. The team's morale had sunk through the floor in recent matchdays, only briefly going up before the Nephara game. This result wouldn't help. Marvin Walsh returned the ball into play with a lazy throw in, which Berglund intercepted and turned into an attack immediately. She whipped the ball in to the box where substitute Tove Anker was lined up perfectly to head home, only for Ross to earn some face saving brownie points with Oslograd by heroically clutching the ball out of mid air. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and came to a halt as they waited for Ross to lump it forward to no-one in particular, as usual. Maybe it was because there was nothing to be lost in taking risks, or because he was relatively new and had a fresh perspective; either way, Hayden felt he had to do something here. He flagged his availability to Ross and advanced toward the halfway line, almost level with Ed Pollard on the left wing. Ross hurled the ball forward with a swing of his right boot. The ball caught the wind and fell perfectly for Pollard to flick it on with his head.

The veteran midfielder looked annoyed with himself momentarily, probably thinking Hayden wouldn't run for it and that he should have held it up himself instead. Hayden was going to surprise him. He drove into the space opening up behind Ralf Tjaeder and chested the ball down and forward, setting off on a run about 45 yards from goal. The youngster kept going, and going, and going...until he found himself at the edge of the box in a trance like state, having maneuvered past Alla Kirylenko and Dorthe Storvoll like they didn't exist. Hayden realised Ulysses Zimmer was screaming at him to pass from just to the right, while Garret Ramsey did his usual confused running about to the left. Two defenders remained in front of him. Despite being slightly off balance and all the prevailing logic suggesting he should pass to one of the strikers, Hayden felt so confident that he went for goal himself. He had to dig it out, but the shot was good, and punched the net just below the crossbar near the top left corner. It all happened so quickly that Hege Vogdahl didn't even move. Hayden didn't know how to react - he sprinted past Ramsey, yelled jubilantly, and tried to do some kind of cartwheel and instead landed flat on his face. Just as he got up and found himself mobbed by teammates, Hayden felt the full force of Oslograd barrelling into him in celebration having illegally sprinted onto the pitch. This overconfident teenager at left back had just reminded him of why he enjoyed managing this team so much.

by **Qasden** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 9:51 pm

It's Over: Deal With It

By Ross Terminal

Hope. It's something that people like to think exists, like magic or a trustworthy government. It's a core factor in the multiverse we believe in today, and a factor in something that we took for granted.

When my co-worker wrote of the perils ahead for Mr. Bjarnasson and Ms. Zimari, he sought the ideological road well beaten: an undeniable sleuth of dismay and preemptive defeat to the newcomers for the second time in the association's lackluster history. For Qads, the idea of a path where the road chugs along safely, or without immediate downfall anyways, was laughable. 13 matches in, 23 points earned, yet the Vans were chained to a meaningless bronze position, 2 wins shy of the silver light up the lane. Their future was due to be paved in the form of matches against the Squornshelan Remnant States and Ziwana, teams that were as desperate to solidify confident ranks as Qasden.

Somehow, this is where the little creature of hope began to fester. Against the former, the Vans would win 3-2; and against the latter, victory was taken, 1-0. The shock hit the nation, HARD. Within a flash, Qasden went from best of the subpar to contesting a qualification spot with a game in hand. Ziwana's international acclaim was to be spoiled, like the finest of chocolates as they bathe in the heat of the mighty Calanian desert. The passion of the Qads resurfaced. Was this hope credible? Like, the hope we had during the stunning campaigns of WC82 and 83?

--The Current Standings--

The dice were rolled, and they kept rolling until the fell off the table.

0-1, a defeat that ached through a million hearts at once, then a million more as the time was called. Hope was slain, and Mitra and Soma were the slayers, directly in front of hope's victims within Hotchskarth Cabin in Destiny. Ziwana would draw Filindostan, and make out with the powerful advantage of a single point. Like a person moving the tv remote just out of reach, the thunder of sorrow rolled through the nation once more. And just as the man was 3 matches prior, Bjarnasson's head rested anxiously on the chopping block.

2 games passed, 12 points were earned: 6 for Qasden, 6 for Ziwana. The Akambuku have a game against the Remnant States that beckons their full attention to stay atop the threshold for the proper. For the Vans, 2 iffy games remain: an away versus Vaklocci Haven and Celeria, and a show at the Royal against the titans: South Covello. 4 points. It's all we need to go ahead. 4 points we may never obtain, knowing our luck with teams both good and bad. 4 points out of reach, like the one ledge that could save David from the fates of Cralt-Nirlo and Merritt.

Can Qasden complete another tour of decent mediocrity? Or will hope be contained by the Ziwani superstars? Stay tuned, stay updated, and stay alert on our unclear future.

by **Ziwana** » Sun Jan 05, 2020 9:53 pm

V-Squad Vanquished By The Akambuku

By Chosadziwa Botolo

ZCOMM Sport in Bliuji

Coming into the game against Bliuji Harry Ngonamo and his Ziwana side knew that the game was a must win to keep their World Cup qualification dreams alive. Qasden had a game in hand and a lose or a draw against Bliuji was going to put the Akambuku in a tough position. However many Ziwani fans were confident that they were going to win against Bliuji having defeated them 2-1 in the first qualifying half and also the fact that whilst Ziwana were coming from smashing Furby Islands 3-0, Bliuji were coming from a loss against Squornshelan Remnant States. Even with this advantage the match against Bliuji was going to played away for Ziwana at the 100,000 capacity, Memorialʹnyy stadium. With only 3500 travelling fans for Ziwana it was going to be difficult for the team as Bliuji would be playing at home with a twelfth man in the fans. It was going to indeed be a intimidating atmosphere especially for such a young squad as Ziwana. In a pre-game interview Harry Ngonamo said that the players were prepared for an intimidating atmosphere and that they would focus only on the goal of winning the game to increase Ziwana's chances of qualifying for the World Cup.

The Ziwana national team arrived in Bliuji 3 days before the match to avoid travel fatigue when they played against the Vsquad. The Vsquad is a name that refers to the Bliuji team as the players have surnames all ending in the letter V. The nickname was made by Ziwani football fans on Howler.

The atmosphere at the Memorialʹnyy stadium was indeed intimidated, the stands were ablaze with flares as the Bliuji fans sang in a disjointed out of tune manner in support for their team. The faces of the Ziwani players indicated nervousness but once the game started the Akambuku played with the same confidence and beautiful flow as they had shown in the previous match against Furby Islands. Ziwana were really determined to win the match as they bombarded the Bliuji goal. However, Andriy Pyatov was ever present for the Vsquad saving 7 shots in the first half including 2 penalties from Jean-Marc Mourgine after he got tripped in the box in the 24th minute by Karp Yuriev and in the 36th minute by Lenoid Ozerov. Andriy Pyatov plays for Lake Wood FC and has been excellent for both his club and country gaining an 83% saving percentage. His brilliance greatly frustrated the Ziwani players but manager Harry Ngonamo's touchline shout were their to keep the boys focused and composed.

Harry Ngonamo's shouts kept the boys in line

The match ended nil nil at half time. Pyatov continued his brilliant performance saving shots from Haqawi, Payen, Graham and Jean Wilder. However, Pyatov was no much for Haqawi who scored in the 71st minute by tapping in the ball from a strategic Richard Chirwa low cross to put Ziwana one up. Bliuji did not just watch on the whole match but had 3 shots on goal which were all saved by Ziwani keeper Jean Kane.

After the match ended Ziwani manager Harry Ngonamo thanked the travelling fans saying that the Akambuku's brilliant performance was all down to Magaletta first, the fans second and hard work third and all these had to be present in their next match for the team to win. At this point Ziwana lays at position 2 whilst Qasden lays in position 3 with a match in hand. There is only a 1 point difference between the two sides and a win in the next match is a must. To watch the next match visit the ZCOMM website and launch Zplayer.

World Cup 81/82/83/84

Matchday 21 has arrived. 16 spots left, 31 teams still with a dream.
will you still be in the running when it's over?

cutoff

by **Port Ember** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:59 am

Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

Nine In a Row For Our Dragons!

Port Ember 3 - 0 Razneta

By Erica Davies - Port Ember Times Sports Section

The Port Emberian Dragons pulled off yet another consecutive victory in the second half of the World Cup 84 Qualification Season, when they defeated the Razneta National Team in an home match this past Match Day 20.

The second half of the qualifier season sees Port Ember facing off against all the teams they have allready faced in the first half, allowing the oppertunity to exact revenge on lost matches - or reprove themselves. This second match against Razneta was a chance for our young team to exact a manner of revenge against their oppenents, as they defeated our national team in their previous encounter away, with a 2 - 0 final score.

This win has resulted in allowing Port Ember to settle into the second spot on the table. This result has turned the once unrealistic and distant dream of qualification to the World Cup proper into a true reachable goal - for if our national team beats Lisander in their next and last match - qualification will be achieved.

This win now sets our national team on an impressive nine game winstreak.

This home match was played at a sold out Waterstad International Stadium, - the traditional home of the Port Emberian Dragons, located in the Waterstad Borough of the capital city of Port Ember Megalopolis; Republic of Port Ember.

The Game - Summary

This match marked the nineth match of the second half of the qualifier season for our national team, and was a truly entertaining match as both sides gave it their all on the pitch.

From the moment the opening whistle blew, it was clear that our national team was prepared for this match and held a specifically tailored plan to defeat their opponents, playing quite differently from their traditional methods. The Port Emberians immediately set off to dominate and lock down the midfield, doing the utmost best to maintain posession there and force their opponents to try and push against their unmoveable wall, without ever truly pushing for an attack - baiting their opponents to rush and overextend. This clearly frustrated the offensive and counter attacking mimded Raznetians as they failed to make any meaningfull change to the match - our national team maintaining 92% posession in the first half!

In minute 37 the frustrated Razneta team overextended and attempted a desperate attempt to regain posession and launch an attack, which left large gaping holes in their midfield line, allowing captain Ray Reddington to burst through the gaps and linked up with a hungry looking Leon Moult, scoring ao hard into the bottom left corner that the net seemed to almost want to snap!

The very same midfield lockdown strategy continued through the second half, still with our national team dominatimg every aspect of the game, shutting their opponents down. In minute 80 the exhuastion and frustration of the Razneta team was visible on each of their faces, appearing as if their spirits were finally broken. The Dragons sensed this and immediately changed pace, suddenly launching a plethora of high octane attacks upon the shocked opposition, leading to two marvelous goals - once in minute 83 from star striker Danny Nicovic, and lastly from midfield winger Eric Tosaír of the Tribe of Waterford as he burst through deep down the flanks in minute 88.

Overall this match displayed a new side to the young team, demonstrating excellent technical skills and master class strategy.

The Fans

The 100 000 Port Emberian fans in attendance were back to their standard noisy and passionate antics, cheering and energising their young team.

Port Emberian Player Scores

Goalkeeper (GK)(#1): Peter Smith - 7/10. The 'Rock' had a quite day between the sticks as the midfield and defence held firm. Allowed not one goal past him.

Center Back (CB)(#2): Josh Richards - 7/10. Josh was a solid defender, executing brilliant tackles when required for the full 90 minutes. Although not the most technical player, his physical strength and fitness got the job done in a manner which could inspire many future footballers.

Center Back (CB)(#3): Jason Lee. 8/10. 'The Backline Prince' did what he does best for the full 90 minutes - organise and rally the backline. Surely responsible for assisting his side in picking up a clean sheet.

Full Back (LB)(#4): Alex Kuhn - 6/10. The opposition mostly avoided the left backline for most of the match, giving Alex a peacefull match, which was not his mistake. When shots were taken into his reach, Alex managed to hold up his own.

Full Back (RB)(#5): Russel Pierce - 7/10. Was a solid defender, executing brilliant tackles when required for the full 90 minutes. Although not the most technical player, his physical strength and fitness got the job done in a manner which could inspire many future footballers.

Attacking Midfield (AM)(#10): Ray Reddington - 10/10. Brilliant day for the Captain on the field. Never failed to exploit potentiol gaps during offences and managed to create gaps when there was none. Assisted an excellent goal due to good midfield-striker chenistry. This was a true 'midfielder's game' and can be credited for this victory.

Defensive Midfield (DM)(#6): Steven Packard - 8/10. Great day for Steven as he worked hard, and managed to link up well with Reddington to create counter attack oppertunities. This was a true 'midfielder's game' and can be credited for this victory.

Wide Midfield (LM)(#8): Jason Chamberlain - 7/10. This was a true 'midfielder's game' and can be credited for this victory.

Wide Midfield (RM)(#11): Eric Tosaír of the Tribe of Waterford - 7/10. Had a excellent field day and proved his worth as the newcomer to the team. Picked up an excellent goal due to good midfield-striker chenistry.

Central Forward (CF)(#7): Leon Moult - 8/10. Seemed to be back to his normal and brilliant form as he posed constant threats to the opposition defence. Scored an excellent goal.

Central Forward (CF)(#9): Danny Nicovic 8/10. Proved to the world that he is deserving of his Star Status, picking up a excellent goal.

Match Stats

Match: Port Ember Vs Razneta

Location: Republic of Port Ember

Result: 3 - 0 Win for Port Ember

Goals - Port Ember: Danny Nicovic; Leon Moult; Eric Tosaír

Goals - Razneta: None.

Man of the Match - Port Ember: Ray Reddington

Aftermatch word from the Coach

"I am very proud of how our lads played today, handling themselves and the game in the manner of true future champions. What makes me the proudest is the fact that I can physically see our team improving with each match that we play, achieving my goal of picking up international experience for our young team." Coach Baxter

Article by Erica Davies
Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

The Port Emberian Dragons prepares to face off against Lisander as part of the World Cup 84 Qualifier Season!

Pre Match Analysis & Interview

By Erica Davies - Port Ember Times Sports Journal

The road to World Cup 84 Qualifiers is in full swing as Match Day 22 is upon the Port Emberian side.

Port Ember's national team will square off against Lisander in their twentieth - and last - match of the World Cup 84 Qualification Season, to be played at the Lisander International Stadium, - the traditional home of the Lisander National Team, located in the capital city of Lisander.

This match marks the second time that these two teams will meet on the football field, Port Ember having drawn their first encounter earlier this season with a 1 - 1 score.

Team Stats Analysis

Lisander:

This team is currently ranked as the 125th best team in the world on the international ranking system, and posesses a decent footballing history and a strong and developed football culture and infrastructure.

This team is currently placed in position 7 of 11 on the qualifier table - with 21 points ammassed so far, with 6 wins, 3 draws and 10 losses, scoring a total of 31 goals while allowing 46 goals to be scored against them.

Port Ember:

This team is ranked as the 86th best team in the world currently and has proven to be a formiddable and adaptable new team on the international field prior to the start of this season.

This is only the second international season in which Port Ember is partaking, and they have managed to jump to their current ranking in only that short period. The international sports media have regularly called this team the 'Dark Horse' of the group due to them making a name for themselves so quickly.

Even though the team has struggled to find their rhythm in the first half of the qualifier season, it appears that a new and dangerous form had appeared after the Holiday Break, as they now are on a 9 game winning streak.

This team is currently placed in position 2 of 11 on the qualifier table - with 40 points ammassed so far, scoring a total of 46 goals while allowing 30 goals to be scored against them.

Team Analysis - Port Ember

Offense:

This team is known for their highly aggressive offences and legendary counter attacks, with world class strikers. The striker duo also seems on excellent form lately.

Midfield:

Traditionally the strongest component of this team, under command of the amazing Reddington. The midfield is a dangerous element to its oponents, acting as an attacking defence and sets up the front line well with attacking oppertunities.

Defence:

The backline is displaying a better form than normal, yet is still not its strongest compoment, focussing more on fluid attacks and counter attacks.

Goalkeeping:

Analysts have nothing but praise for Peter Smith the starting goalie. The young man is a legend in the making.

Substitutes:

The team has a impressive line-up of substitutes, whom have received field time recently, adding possible depth to the team when needed. The extra attention they have received from the assistant coach is sure to play a important role as well.

Team Morale & Cohesion:

This team seems to have regained their composure and morale, standing united against any opposition. Their previous nine wins in a row, four of those against much stronger opononents, have boosted morale immensely.

Current Form:

L-L-L-W-W-W-W-L-L-D-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W

This team is on a current 9 game winning streak, and has the looks of a champion team at the moment.

Typical Gameplan: Their typical system of tiring out and frustrating their opponents in an attempt to pull their 'Bait Ambush' is a risky play which can easily go wrong and concede a goal. However when it works, it is highly effective.

Team Analysis - Lisander

Offense:

This team employes a very offensive playstyle and attempts to overwhelm their opponents by applying constant pressure and focussing on counter attacks.

Midfield:

This team has a offensive minded midfield, specialising in setting up and launching counter attacks and liking up with their frontline.

Defence:

This team lacks a solid backline or defensive strategies due to their offensive minded play.

Goalkeeping:

Analysts have nothing but praise for the starting goalie, and have proven to be a goalkeeping machine between the sticks.

Substitutes:

The team has a impressive line-up of substitutes, whom have received field time recently, adding possible depth to the team when needed.

Team Morale & Cohesion:

This team has caused a number of brilliant upsets in the past, yet have started to show some cracks within the squad due to their struggling season.

Current Form:

W-L-L-W-W-L-L-L-L-D-W-D-L-W-D-L-W-L-L

This team has had a struggling season, although they have mamaged to perform miracalious upsets every now and then.

Typical Gameplan:

High paced offensive play and counter attacks.

Starting Line-Ups

Port Ember

Goalkeeper (GK)(#1): Peter Smith.

Center Back (CB)(#2): Josh Richards.

Center Back (CB)(#3): Jason Lee.

Full Back (LB)(#4): Alex Kuhn.

Full Back (RB)(#5): Russel Pierce.

Attacking Midfield (AM)(#10): Ray Reddington.

Defensive Midfield (DM)(#6): Steven Packard.

Wide Midfield (LM)(#8): Jason Chamberlain.

Wide Midfield (RM)(#11): Eric Tosaír of the Tribe of Waterford

Central Forward (CF)(#7): Leon Moult.

Central Forward (CF)(#9): Danny Nicovic.

Lisander

1|GK| Anders Michaelichen (Captain)

2|RB| Bruno Lasses

3|DF| Louis Varden

4|DF| Luís Rosell

5|MF| Luís Ávila

6|LB| Milen Kaplanoski

7|FW| Milo Somerville

8|MF| Afonso Heretier

9|FW| Cyril Amati

10|MF| Tássio Camden

11|FW| Victor Potenza

Team Kit

Port Ember have announced that they will play with their primary kit in their upcoming match.

Pre Match Interview with Coach Stuart Baxter:

Erica Davies: Coach, first off, congratulations are in order - the hard fought for victory over Razneta is the talk of the entire nation!

Coach Baxter: Thank you Erica! It was a good match, as was our last encounter. That team truly always brings forth a big and hard fight, and our young team is forced to be at their best in order to bring back the rum! Its always an honor to play such a talented team.

Erica Davies: Thanks for that Coach! So you are about to face the team whom you have drawn against in your first encounter. Feeling any pressure?

Coach Baxter: Offcourse I am feeling the pressure Erica. We are at the point where we MUST win our last match if we wish to qualify. This is literally a 'all or nothing', so that all weighs up.

Erica Davies: So coach, Lisander is next. How are you feeling?

Coach Baxter: Well like I said, its a must win match for us, so the pressure is steeping in. But - we are no longer the same team whom they faced last time - we are on our greatest form ever, and we are crazily motivated due to possibly being able to qualify.

Erica Davies: Well said coach! Well thats all for today - and we as a nation hope you all the luck and fortune for tomorow!

Article by Erica Davies
Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

The World Cup 84 Qualification Season

A Closer Look at Group 9 Results

By Gerhard Black - Port Ember Times Sports Journal

This article aims to take a closer look into the broader events and results relating to our opposition whom also forms part of Group 9 of the World Cup 84 Qualification Season.

Match Day 21 Results & Analytical Opinion

Razneta 2–0 Lisander

A surprising result for Razneta to bounce back so hard after their smashing they received from our national team in the previous match day. Since Lisander is our next and final opponent - and considering the fact that it is a 'Must Win' match, we can only hope they maintain their poor form.

Ethane 1–0 Ouna

Everyone expected Ethane to dominate their weaker opponent, but they only managed a narrow win. Hats off for a valiant effort from Ouna.

Bears Armed 0–1 Valanora

Another narrow victory for Valanora, against a very talented Bear squad. This victory clinched the top spot victory for the group giants.

Xanneria 3–3 Kelssek

Most exciting match of the Match Day for Group 9 - very hard fought by both teams. This result threw a massive spanner into the dreams of Kelssek's qualification goals.

Five Cities 0–1 Appalachian Nation

A hard fought match with the Hillbillies grabbing a hard fought for win.

(Nations listed first was the host of the specific match)

An Analysts opinions on Each Team After Match Day 21

Valanora

The 5 time world champs clinched their victory of the group qualifiers, exactly as expected, even though they have seriously slown down on their brilliant performance. They will need to quickly find out what is their cause of decline before the World Cup proper. However they still are a bloody good team with a real ahot at gold this year.

Port Ember

The team no one expected to realistically stand a chance at qualifying for the cup - yet here they are so close! Majority of the world's pundits predicted them to finish the group in 5th place, but they shook the world with pire passion, determination and hard work. If they win their next match against Lisander they grab the last remaining qualification spot.

Ethane

In order to qualify, they need Port Ember to lose against Lisander, AND defeat the group winners Valanora. Seems impossible now.

Kelssek

They had a massive comeback in the second half of the season after a slow start, and seemed determined to qualify for the Cup. Now however after a few serious setbacks, this seems impossible now. While its still mathematically possible to qualify - it depends on two teams losing their next match and then depending on tie breaker stats. Qualification, in reality is no longer feasable.

Bears Armed

Although they have been eliminated from qualification, they have had a strong running season and have performed better than which was expected. A strong and talented team with potential for greatness in the near future.

Xanneria

This is truly a strong team and have managed to showcase the true extent of their talent, skill and experience - but overall lacked consistency. They need to do some serious introspection to discover the roots of their problems in order to be able to perform in theanner we all know they can.

Lisander

Yet another team which we all know is a strong and talented team, yet whom have failed to perform at their best consistently.

Razneta

Eliminated from qualification. This team have at times shown great skill and class, but lacks the required consistency for international play. They need to go back to basics and rebuild of they wish to achieve better results on the international stage.

Ouna

A underdog team which have managed to cause a few upsets this season, yet again lacks consistency. A period of introspection and back to basics can get them far in the future.

Appalachian Nation

A underdog team which have managed to cause a few upsets this season, yet again lacks consistency. A period of introspection and back to basics can get them far in the future.

Five Cities

A underdog team which have managed to cause a few upsets this season, yet again lacks consistency. A period of introspection and back to basics can get them far in the future.

Current Group Standings

Group 9                         Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Valanora                         19   14   3   2    62   22  +40    45
 2 Port Ember                       19   13   1   5    46   30  +16    40
 3 Ethane                           19   12   3   4    46   29  +17    39
 4 Kelssek                          19   12   1   6    52   37  +15    37
 5 Bears Armed                      19    9   2   8    36   34   +2    29
 6 Xanneria                         19    8   3   8    43   47   −4    27
 7 Lisander                         19    6   3  10    31   46  −15    21
 8 Razneta                          19    6   2  11    21   34  −13    20
 9 Ouna                             19    4   5  10    25   43  −18    17
10 Appalachian Nation               19    3   4  12    34   52  −18    13
11 Five Cities                      20    3   3  14    32   54  −22    12

Article by Gerhard Black
Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

Port Ember Times
Sports Journal

World Cup Fever hits Port Ember!

By Gerraldine Smith - Port Ember Times Sports Journal

As the final match day of the World Cup Qualification Season draws near, the entire nation seems to be hit with the World Cup fever, with the excitement being visible on the faces of everyday Port Emberians. This is all due to one important fact - if Port Ember's national team wins their last match against Lisander, they qualify and will partcipate in the World Cup proper.

Travel Agents have reported that more than 30 000 commerical airplane tickets have been sold travelling to the nation of Lisander in a sign of the immense support our young team can expect on this big day. Furthmore pubs & bars from all accross our tropical nation had reported that large groups of fans have allready booked tables in their establishments in order to view the match there.

The greatest surprise relating to this 'Fever' is the fact that even our government is on board, with President Edward Flint declaring the day after the match as a public holiday!

"We are very proud of our young football team, as they have put in the work and have made the entire nation stand united in their name because of it. I am declaring the day after Match Day 22 a public holiday, due to the massive interest our populace have shown in watching the game, and the obvious after-parties which will follow as a result. On behalf of the government and our entire nation, I wish the team the best of luck in the match ahead!" - President of the Republic of Port Ember, Edward Flint.

Even the normally press-shy President of the Port Ember Football Association (PEFA) recently had a TV interview with the Port Ember Broadcasting Commission (PEBC). Here follows a few qoutes from that interview which we find of interest:

"Hell yeah we are proud of our lads. Lets be realistic here, our team does not hold the most talented or most experienced players. We got where we are because of the hard work they have put in, day after day, month after month."

"What do I have to say regarding the fact that the pundits believed we will finish only in the 5th position? Well all I have to say is that its a great feeling to prove them wrong!"

"Aye, I have heard that the national team of Valanora and their media was quite angry at us. It was something about we overcelebrating and the media using their denononym wrong. All I can say to this is that we meant no disrespect with us overcelebrating. The fact is that we are a very young team and this is only our second international season ever, so being able to play against and then defeat a team whom is absolute living legends - is a true feat for them. Add the fact that our team is comprised of kids of 20/21 years of age to that scenario, and you will get some overexpressive behaviour. So truly I applogise if they took offense. As for our media - I have no control over what theu write and if they dont do their work relating to research on how to properly address a citizenry."

I will admit that I was quite surprised at the comments of Dominic Probst of Hapilopper. There is no need to insult the Cup of Harmony, as its a honourable and renowned tournament. Our team competed within it during the last cycle, and it was a brilliant learning curve, which truly helped our team to build ourselves to where we are today. I will be honest - although we have never played against the great team of Hapilopper, both our team and our fans as a whole holds a lot of respect for the team. They entered the international scene during the same time as ourselves, when they won the Baptism of Fire tournament. (We fell out in the Quarterfinals). But our fans loves them, because they - like us - do not have the same talent or experience when compared to other footballing giants, but keep shocking the world, all due to hard work and passion. Also both our fanbases are equally crazy and passionate. So I truly hope they can sort out their squabbles, as I do not want them to squander their good reputation."

Peter White - President of the PEFA

Article by Gerraldine Smith
Port Ember Times

by **Jeruselem** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 4:31 am

Princess Katherine Annabelle Dallas and Crown Princess Hamish after 1-0 win in Nahkistan.

Kate: Hey perv
Hamish: How did Taeshan do?
Kate: Oh them, they won 1-0
Hamish: Oh, so we're eliminated
Kate: Yeah, but good news as we're 3rd regardless of what happens next game
Hamish: Oh, so I don't have to do play

Kate: I suspect the coach will play the reserve team because well it doesn't matter what happens
Hamish: That's fine by me
Kate: Any excuse not to work
Hamish: Well, we can't qualify anyway from here
Kate: There's the possibility of the Cup of Harmony you slacker
Hamish: I forgot about that

Kate: We never seen to win that anyway
Hamish: True
Kate: I hear you're going appear on that Mann Network show
Hamish: Oh that, yeah. Got no idea what that's about
Kate: You do realise all the hosts on that network are male
Hamish: Oh that, yeah. I didn't watch that crap.

Kate: Why is that
Hamish: No pretty girls
Kate: They do have female staff ... cleaners
Hamish: I think some them are actually closet homos
Kate: Some of them are OK but some are outright creepy weirdos
Hamish: Especially the older guys ...

Kate: For some reason, some of those idiots think I'm your wife. I'm your bloody cousin.
Hamish: You could pinch my job too
Kate: That's right
Hamish: I guess I'd better be careful what I say on that show
Kate: They'll be asking some really awkward questions too
Hamish: Don't worry, I guess I have to watch my words

Kate: They want to push your mum to abdicate
Hamish: I'm in no hurry ...
Kate: Too much responsibility?
Hamish: I'm not ready.
Kate: Well it's good thing we didn't give the throne to a child then
Hamish: That's just too much. Kids should be kids.

by **Sarzonia** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 4:41 am

The tendency to "believe the press clippings" when things are going well can trip up many a team who have just won a massive upset. It's all too easy to lose focus, especially when the next opponent isn't as strong or doesn't have the same pedigree as your previous foe.

That didn't prove to be a problem for this Sarzonian national football team. They played a workmanlike match against The Sherpa Empire, winning 2-0 in the final event to be played at Hendrix Stadium in Woodstock.

Clayton Wilson and Brady Reynolds scored the two goals for the Stars, Ernie Mabree assisted on both tallies, and Mateo Sandoval kept a clean sheet with five saves.

The Stars improved to 8-6-5, good enough for fourth place in Group 2. Their 30-point total won't be enough to send them to Cassadaigua or Baker Park, so the best the Stars can hope for is a possible appearance in the Cup of Harmony. And to be the away team in the upcoming post-qualifying friendly against Bears Armed. The team with the higher point total will be the away team in that match.

As for the other two unranked sides the Stars are competing with for an unofficial best unranked side crown, Bears Armed lost their penultimate qualifying match at home to world No. 8 and five-time world champions Valanora 1-0, dropping to 9-2-8 in Group 9. Former world champions Squornshelous defeated Anthor 6-3, matching Sarzonia in won-draw-loss record. Squornshelous have scored 48 goals and conceded 44, while Bears Armed have notched 36 goals and coughed up 34. Sarzonia have scored 32 goals whilst allowing 26, giving the Stars the best goal differential among the three teams.

The Stars might want to try to add convincing manager Kevin Connelly to change his mind about retirement to their goals as they look to decide their future. Connelly may be known purely for the way the team has responded in the last 11 matches since Matchday 9, when the team was at its 1-3-4 nadir. They've won seven, drawn three and lost only to world No. 5 Banija 2-0 at Dave Wilson Stadium. The team's current run of five consecutive victories and a six-match unbeaten streak is renewing excitement for football in Sarzonia despite the absence from the proper.

However, talking about results alone would completely miss the point. Regardless of whether you look at the entire qualifying campaign or simply the second half, the results alone only tell a fraction of the story. Connelly had some missteps, starting with his decision to bench defender Charlie King against Brenecia due to his comments about Squornshelous.

"I regret that," he said when asked in the press conference after Sarzonia's final home match of qualifying. "I should have simply reminded him to keep his focus on football and to at least consider being more careful about commenting on areas outside his expertise."

His main regret, though, was his handling of Sandoval's red card, and he said after the match against The Sherpa Empire that he should have waited to discuss Sandoval's behaviour with his starting goalkeeper until cooler heads prevailed.

However, Connelly showed an ability to own up to mistakes, and more importantly, he was an emotional rock for a team that still grieves for manager Bryan Ostrom after his suicide before qualifying began. He admitted that he would need some time after his intended retirement to fully process his own emotions about the loss of his former boss and his suddenly being thrust into the role as manager.

Connelly said he was still firm about his decision to step down after a possible Cup of Harmony appearance.

"I need to be able to heal myself, get myself a mental break after everything that's happened," he said. "I can't really do that if I stay on as manager."

The Incorporated Football Federation sent a press release indicating that they were willing to allow Connelly to take a leave of absence after the Cup of Harmony and allow Kevin Wilson to serve as interim manager until Connelly was ready to return. They added that no foreign candidates have yet emerged for the job.

As for the final match, an away fixture against Atlantic Republic, Connelly announced that third choice goalkeeper Carlton Sandt would start the match.

"We want to give our depth players more playing time in a match since we're not playing for the World Cup proper," he said.

They weren't playing for the proper, but they were playing for pride. And the way the team responded to adversity has given them much to be proud of.

"I mean, you name it: Grief from losing a manager and friend; anger over everything from first half of qualifying results to our own mistakes to facing strong teams with something to play for and overcoming the odds. This team has been a special one, even if it won't have the results that we'd like to have to show for it," Connelly said.

by **Bears Armed** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 11:11 am

Bears Armed vs. Valanora
Venue: Wimbley Stadium.
Score: 0-1.

Goals
Bears Armed (0): (none)
Valanora (1): Nygård (#9) @ 73’ (assist: va Drake [#21]).

Red Cards
(none)

Substitutions due to Injury
Bears Armed (0): (none)
Valanora (1): Smørdal [#1] (right hand injured [at least one finger broken, further damage to be assessed] saving a goal shot), replaced by Eide [#13].

Bear-Belles
Starters
(#1) Karramarrsar Ulgha (GK)
(#2) Urrsa Irrumerrhabarra (LB)
(#3) Urrth’hrra Mead (RB)
(#4) Errinth’hrra Russett (Lyn.) [Captain]
(#5) Harroya o Sarrndale (ML)
(#6) Steffannee Bruin (MR)
(#7) Nerretta Barris (LF)
(#23) Marra o Redbank (CF)
(#11) Karra Brent (RF)
(#13) Sarranna White (RW)
(#17) Nennu Rangh’harr [Ha.] (LW)

Subs.
(#14) Serranna Orchards (GK)
(#31) Marra Oldcastle (B or M [either])
(#34) Emerladina Sunbird category (M or W [pref. L])
(#21) Mirra Thunderbolt (M or F [pref. R])
(#24) Beorranna Norr-Vurra (F)
(#26) Hannorra Scarlett [VV.] (‘utility’; usu. F or W)
(#36) Karrh’hreena o Goodsword (‘utility’ [prob. not ‘Lyn’ or F)

(reporter’s notes…
Belles fielding much closer to line-up, now that players have had enough time to recover from Port Ember’s topical heat
Stadium full; sizeable contingent of visiting fans fills seats at ‘Dawn’ end, Bears fill rest of space. Both sets of fans are singing & chanting to encourage their teams, Bears are drumming as well.
Knowing how hard to beat Vanorian ‘Marauders’ are, Urrsarra and Karra’harrna have opted to start with more defensive tactics than normal for the Belles… apparently hopng that Marauders will slip up and offer a good opening for counter-attack, instead of relying on the usual “press forwards” that can sometimes leave urrs vulnerable to counter-attacks from fast-moving teams like that instead… ‘Marauders’ maybeso a bit more cautious than against some other teams, despite the fact that their many successes so far have included a 5-1 win over urrs in first half of qualifiers. Progress into Cup itself for them not yet guaranteed, loss here could potentially see them end up equal or even below both Ethane and Port Ember on points… Port Ember has already won both of its games against them, so would go ahead on HTH, while Ethane (2nd seed) is the opponent for their remaining match and won the first leg; …
Valanora wins toss, Møller [#11] takes kick-off & passes back to Laborios Hawk [#11]. Probing attacks and counterattacks by both sides follow, neither side pressing hard enough to leave itself “too open” at back; first half of game sees Valanora get two shots on target (Møller [#11] @ 18’; va Drake [# 21] @ 44’, both with assists from Hatsune [#6] but both saved skilfully — with the second trickier than the first — by K. Ulgha [#1].
Second half, O Redbank [#23] kicks-off to Barris [#7] (after feint towards Brent [#11]) and Belles break “established” pattern by charge straight up pitch; Marauders rally quickly, but dazzling series of passes Barris -> O Sarrndale -> Brent -> O Redbank still gives Belles their first shot on target (by O Redbank) in 47nd minute… shot towards inside roof of net, but Marauders’ keeper Smørdal [#1] gets just enough of his right hand to this to tip the ball over the crossbar instead. Force of that shot breaks Smørdal’s fore finger, possibly other damage inside hand: he is taken off, replaced by Eide [#13].
Back to similar probe/counter-probe pattern of play as in first half, Bears maybeso now hoping ot outlast Marauders and push game from 0-0 into extra time where Ursine stamina might give urrs advantage… but then our RB Mead [#3] sticks her head up to deflect as high pass by Laborios Hawk and it goes out of play over the goal-line. Va Drake takes the corner shot [left corner), and lofts it into the crowded box where Nygård just manages to slip it “home” into bottom right corner of the net.
Belles don’t give up, but can’t quite manage any more shots on target themselves – closest they come, in 86th minute of normal time, sees Brent move too quickly and be caught narrowly offside when she receives long pass from O Sarrndale.
So, another loss for the Belles, although they show that despite having already lost their chance to qualify they’re still giving the contest their all; another victory for Valanora, who show again the quality that’s brought them this far. Both sides retain their pre-game places in the group’s table, at #1 (and now guaranteed a place in the World Cup) and #5 respectively. And, even giving the Marauders a clean sheet this time, this was clearly a better result by-and-for the Belles than the 5-to-1 defeat that they suffered away to the Marauders, at Capri, a year ago.

Next
The Belles’ final “qualifying match will be away to Kelssek. I gather that the Belles’ line-up for that final game will be the same as it was for this match.
These opponents managed to win their first meeting with our girls in this contest (this time last year, at Wimbley) by one goal to nil. They are ranked at FiveEights-and-seven’th in the worlds, and were the group’s second seed: Although some slightly poorer performances than were originally forecast saw them slip slightly, so that they are now in fourth place rather than third and this is only one place above the “high-flying” Bear-Belles and they have an insurmountable eight-point lead over urrs so that a win or draw for the Belles would actually smell the current positions of these two teams remain unchanged. A win for Kelssek could potentially move them back up to third place, but even this depends on Ethane losing their closing-matchday game against Valanora, which is likely but not a “One-EightSquared in the Yonk” sure bet.
If the Belles lose to Kelssek and Xanneria win their final game, which is against Appalachian Nation and again is probable but not certain, then that team overtakes the Belles and pushes urrs down into the sixth-place slot that it currently holds instead. Even that ending in this group of eleven wouldn’t be too bad, I suppose, bearing in mind the team’s actual ‘rankings’ at the start, being as it’s the mid-point… but, beating Kelssek, to end in fifth and with a positive goal-difference is obviously a better result for which to hope.
(Belles draw with Kelssek, and Xanneria beats A.N.? Equal on points, but Belles did the double over X. so stay on top of them for those HTH results…)

And what then, for the Belles? Hopefully an invitation to, and good performance in the forthcoming ‘Cup of Harmony’… And, before that, ‘friendly games against three other teams that have also not quite qualified for this cycle’s World Cup: Sarzonia, against whom earlier Bearish line-ups have played a few times, who also returned to international competition for these qualifiers after a break that has left them as an ‘Unranked’ team; old friends Jeruselem, with whom the Belles have a more extensive history; and a first meeting on the pitch with fellow IDU members New Lusitania, who entered international competition only during the Belles’ absence from it…

by **HUElavia** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 12:55 pm

HUELAVIA ARE WORLD CUP BOUND!

After many years of qualification attempts, many years of slowly building the national football team, generations of players going in and out of the team, HUElavia has achieved one of their goals: Qualify to a World Cup.

The first scenario that clinched Los Amarillos ticket to World Cup 84 was their final home match in Estadio Porto (60,000) in Portimao, hosting Magnaterrica. HUElavia fielded their B-Team, which saw Navarro and Hamada scoring the opening goals within the first 10 minutes. The first was a blast from long distance by Navarro that left the goalkeeper frozen as it went in during the 4th minute. In the 10th minute, a Yamato Connection was made, as Suzuki passed to Hamada, where she blasted the shot past two defenders and the goalie to make it 2-0 with ease. The game stayed like that, with Magnaterrica getting a lone goal in the final seconds, in what was "garbage time," seeing HUElavia with a foot into Baker Park and Cassadaigua.

The second scenario that clinched HUElavia's ticket was the match between The Ross Isles and visiting Mercedini. HUElavia needed Mercedini to simply not win the match and at points it looked as if Mercedini was going to win but a late goal by The Ross Isles upset the number two seeded Mercedini, sealing their fate as they were eliminated from the World Cup Qualifiers, and HUElavia, who was a fair long shot towards qualifying into the tournament, earned their spot into the tournament.

Headed into Matchday 22, HUElavia will visit to already eliminated Eastfield Lodge, as they look to continue putting points and try to finish the 2nd half of the qualifiers with an undefeated record. The best XI players will be fielded, as they hope to finish the qualifiers with 45 points, and an impressive away record of 9-1-0 (currently 8-1-0), which local media has nicknamed HUElavia "The Road Warriors." Fans will be purchasing their tickets to the matches, as well as transportation and hotel reservations as Los Amarillos will have a chance to make the entire nation proud in their inaugural performance at the NS World Cup. The entire nation is proud of this team, and they only way to go at this point is up.

FORCA HUELAVIA! VAMOS HUELAVIA! GO HUELAVIA!

by **Flavovespia** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:19 pm

Flavovespia 2–2 Furby Island

The disappointing home form of Flavovespia continued, as they failed to beat Furby Island, statistically the weakest team of all the qualifiers. Some are critical of the rotated squad chosen, others say the players weren’t just at the races, but there is a sense of frustration from the fans that, at home and against statistically weaker opposition, more needs to be done.

Flavovespia made several changes to the line up from the previous matches for this encounter in Hadford Hill. The 4 Hadford Hill FC players themselves were in the lineup, but many of the bench players were included, and goalkeeper Robert Jones got his first international cap. The full starting line up, an unusual 3-5-2 was:

Barkes-Coleman
Feld--------Humphries------------Hall
Holt-King
Pitchford-Wright-May
Jones

Flavovespia started the brighter of the two sides, playing with confidence against opponents who were struggling in many games in the group. Early shots by Barkes and Coleman were palmed away by their goalkeeper, but they were under substantial pressure from the off. The fans in Hadford Hill were hopeful for plenty of goals.

The 19th minute saw Edward Barkes score in his club stadium. Some good passing saw Coleman deliver a killer through ball, that saw Barkes take it at speed, knock the ball beyond the reach of the keeper, and shoot cleanly into the empty net. 1-0, and it was hard to say Flavovespia didn’t deserve the lead on their early display.

5 minutes later, and they got a second goal. The defence of Furby Island gave Steven Hall too much space down the right flank. He cut into the box, and his shot wasn’t one of his finest. However the Furby Island goalkeeper didn’t do enough to stop it, and it rolled into the net, to give Flavovespia a 2-0 lead. The hosts were showing the difference in rank at this stage of the game, and were hopeful for a comfortable win.

Furby Island weren’t going to give up though, and managed to score 8 minutes before half-time. From a corner, their #4 got a head to the ball, and sent their header down into the ground. A tough bounce for goalkeeper Robert Jones, who couldn’t keep the ball from crossing the line. 2-1 now, and the visitors finished off the half with confidence, and the belief they could get more goals.

Flavovespia had been shaken by the goal they conceded, and struggled to get back into the game. Crawford sought to change this, and went back to a 4-2-2-2, with Humphries moving to left midfield, and Feld replaced for Ian Johnson. That seemed to shore up the defence a bit, however Flavovespia seemed to lack the cutting edge now.

The 67th minute saw the equaliser come for Furby Island. A quick pass from midfield saw their #9 get between Wright and May. The Furby Island striker then hit a decent shot, that beat Jones and went into the net. 2-2 now, and Flavovespia had lost the lead that they seemed so confident with earlier in the game, and the home fans were hugely disappointed.

A change at the back saw Gardner on for May, and Sharratt replaced Coleman, in a bit of a surprise move. However, neither of them provided any major moments of magic, although Sharratt had a few shots on target for Flavovespia and nearly played Steven Hall in for a one vs one.

As the minutes ticked on, the belief grew and grew for Furby Island that they’d avoid defeat. With more and more bodies thrown behind the ball, Flavovespia were increasingly unable to create any sort of scoring opportunity. The game would finish off a frustrating affair for Flavovespia, as they barely tested the keeper in the final minutes.

That result confirms that Flavovespia will finish 9th in the group, far off the expected 7th from their seeding, and the hopes for a Top 6 finish. At the top of the group, Qasden 3-6 away win over Vakolicci Haven and Celeria, combined with a 0-0 draw for Ziwana vs Squornshelan Remnant States confirms that Qasden joins South Covello in the World Cup in Cassadaigua and Baker Park. For Ziwana, and potentially others in Group 8 and beyond, now comes that wait to see if a Cup of Harmony invite will come.

Post Match Interviews

Richard Crawford on squad selection “It didn’t work out, but before the game I felt it was the right choice. I got players out there in their home stadium, and rotated the squad. You have 20 something players, sometimes the time is right to use them all”

Richard Crawford on the final match “Saying we have nothing to play for sounds harsh. We always want to win, and we’ll go to Bliuji to win. It’s about having a winning mentality, and that is something I hope to see.”

Steven Hall on the result “Always disappointing for the lads to not win a game like this. We probably underestimated them, and couldn’t get back going after conceding. It’s a shame as well for me I couldn’t win here in Hadford, I’ll have to make it up sometime. Good to score in 2 games in a row though”

Edward Barkes on scoring at Highland Road “I’ve got goals for Hadford Hill here, and now it’s very nice to do it for Flavovespia. I’ve had a decent first time in the national team I feel, and I’ve scored in Hadford Hill, which is always a nice feeling”

Robert Jones on his debut “It’s not easy stepping up to international level. I hope for a clean sheet every game, but I couldn’t quite do it. No matter what stats say, Furby Island were good on the pitch. Hopefully I can get more caps soon”

A History of Football in Flavovespia

Part 19

20BU to 17BU saw a period where Hadford Hill won 4 consecutive titles, very much one of those periods of dominance by one side in the nation, and one where they had the bragging rights. In that 4 year period only once would a non Big 3 side not finish in the top 3, when Waldster were 4th to Vale in 17BU.

Although the dominance of the Big 3 irritated plenty, especially some of the older but stronger clubs like Carston Green, Abbots Lunsel and Kings Lunsel, there were exciting battles towards the bottom. Vale were relegated in 20BU, but bounced back straight away. However promoted sides were not immediately relegated, and the GWNFA Super League would see some new names like Butterfield Rovers and Johns Park.

18BU saw the Western Association cut to 12 teams, and increase minimum requirements on finances to try and remain competitive, but the next year, they agreed a deal to merge with the United and Eastern Alliance. The deal saw the Top 6 and Top 4 of the United and Eastern Alliance and the Western Association respective guaranteed a spot in their highest division. The next 4 teams from each league would play a repechage to determine the other 6 teams in the top division. The 2 losers, the remaining 10 sides, and 4 promoted sides would make up the second division of the merged league.

The merged league retained the name “United and Eastern Alliance”, but separated divisions by the name “Division 1” and “Division 2”. The decision was also taken to expand promotion and relegation to 3-up and 3-down between the two divisions. Furthermore, links to the smaller regional leagues were maintained, so theoretically there was a pathway for even the smallest sides to reach the United and Eastern Alliance Division 1.

The split didn’t just manifest itself in the structure of the two different systems. The GWNFA system still maintained a fair amount of top down control, especially over the teams. Although this largely kept the league stable, there was always criticism that it was sometimes too stagnant, and that teams didn’t have as much freedom as they’d like. Although the GWNFA Super League was still dominant on terrestrial TV, the stadium and viewing experience was somewhat restricted by the control of the league. The effects of last decade’s chaotic scenes in some games were still being felt.

The United and Eastern League however, took a radically different approach. The league had many more games on offer, and despite it’s lesser stature, negotiated a better deal for TV rights than the GWNFA Challenge League sides had. The more relegation spots also made bottom of the table clashes more exciting to watch, and for the smaller but ambitious sides, there was a pathway upwards.

By the year 16BU, the visual image of kits began to change. Keen to tap into the replica kit market, and with developments in shirt printing technology, designs became to become much more complex. Additionally, the GWNFA had finally relented and given full design freedom to kit suppliers and teams a few years ago. Generally kits of the GWNFA teams were somewhat more reserved, especially as they lacked shirt sponsors, and obeyed the 1-25 number system. The United and Eastern Alliance didn’t have these rules, and the later years of the United and Eastern Alliance saw some very colourful and original designs, for better or for worse.

by **Timuria** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 1:35 pm

New Look Super League With New Rules

by Ruya Tamga

The TimLig has undergone a reorganisation as it enters its fourth season, as well as rule changes as it relates to the ownership, financing and foreign player limits for teams in the Super League.

Firstly, there will now be 18 teams in each division with the following six teams joining the Super League:

Tutunspor
Bakir FK
Caykur Denizspor
Altinmaden Isciler
Tunahanspor
Demir Buyukkentspor

As well as 18 new teams joining the TimLig starting at the renamed "Bronze League" which will now relegate two teams to North and South regional divisions and promote three teams to the Worker's League who will promote three and relegate three as the Super League will now relegate three teams. This means that there will now be a full pro/rel pyramid system throughout Timuria with the intention being that gradually, as professionalisation takes hold the quality will increase further down the pyramid as time goes on.

Teams in the Worker's League and below will still not be allowed to hold foreign players on their roster, but players who meet the requirement for citizenship, even if they don't formally take citizenship will now no longer count towards a foreign player limit, meaning star players such as Eichi Fujiwara, Susanne Mpenza and Marian Ironisde will now no longer occupy one of the four foreign player slots on their team's rosters. That will afford Super League teams a lot more flexibility in their pursuits of the best talent.

The ownership model has now decisively changed as well, no longer are clubs arms length state owned enterprises, but instead fully fan owned associations. This means that the funding for clubs will now be much more asymmetrical, with each team's fanbase now providing a significant amount of the clubs financial clout alongside a new "transfer dividend" that means the government will match every transfer made abroad by providing the equivalent money divided to each club meaning the success of Timurian clubs to sell players abroad will become the success of every team. The wage structure has also been totally relaxed for foreign players while Timurian players will be entitled to a maximum wage of 175% of the median income.

These changes will likely mean that the Super League becomes a more competitive division top to bottom, with the new teams benefiting from the new HRT broadcast rights and the ability to draw upon the support of their fanbases as their ownership with elections to pick their chairmen and their boards including players.

-----------

Red Wolves Earn Routine Win

Timuria 1–0 North Eastern Asia
Ertan Renda (56)

by Tufan Nursultan

The Red Wolves earned a late stage win as they seek to earn as many points as possible and leave open the prospect of a fourth place finish in the group simply needing a win to earn that spot.

In the early stages of the match the visitors managed to create two significant chances, the fifth minute chance being parried by Murat with the second in the 25th minute required an acrobatic and astounding save from him. As the first half began to enter its final stages Tekin Yavuz had a great chance, but scuffed his effort wide, while the visitors would get a penalty that was sent into the stands.

The second half started with the visitors hitting the post from an attack starting from the kickoff, this however, would not be a definitive moment of the match as Ertan Renda would score with a furious effort that left the visitor's goalkeeper flatfooted, while they fared better against a Caner Turan free kick. The end of the match would be marked by two howlers from Vatan Ercetin who failed to turn in two routine efforts he would usually bury.

What They Said After The Match:

Bekir Altingunes: "There are no easy matches at this level so winning at all is a good thing, they gave us a tough match and a lot to think about."

Player Ratings:

Murat Yigithan 7/10

Ozbek Sarikaya 6/10

Eyup Mustafa 6/10

Metin Boz 6/10

Gokdeniz Dag 6/10

Atilla Acar 6/10

Yusuf Ihsanoglu 6/10

Tekin Yavuz 6/10

Caner Turan 6/10

Ertan Renda 7/10

Vatan Ercetin 6/10

Substitutes:

Altan Seyfi - 6/10

Oztekin Timur - 6/10

Man of the Match: Ertan Renda - Got the decisive goal and managed to put in the best performance in a tough slog of a match.

Schedule and Results:
MD1: @ Pasarga W 2-0
MD2: vs Yttribia D 1-1, Halkın Güneş Çiftliği Stadium
MD3: @ Polkopia L 1-0
MD4 vs Drawkland L 3-0, Genel Sendika Stadium
MD5: @ Farfallidis L 7-0
MD6: Bye
MD7: vs Fujai, Madenci Stadium D 2-2
MD8: @ Gyatso-Kai D 1-1
MD9: vs Libonesia, Dev Halk Stadium W 5-3
MD 10: @ North East Asia W 3-1
MD11: vs Melbergia, Halkın Güneş Çiftliği W 4-3
MD12: vs Pasarga, Dev Halk Stadium W 3-2
MD13: @ Yttribia D 1-1
MD14: vs Polkopia, Genel Sendika Stadium L 1-0
MD15: @Drawkland L 1-0
MD16: vs Farfaillidis, Dev Halk Stadium L 3-2
MD17: Bye
MD18: @ Fujai W 6-2
MD19: vs Gyatso-Kai, Madenci Stadium L 3-1
MD20: @ Libonesia W 4-0
MD21: vs North East Asia, Madenci Stadium W 1-0
MD22: @ Melbergia

by **Taeshan** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 3:14 pm

"You've qualified for the World Cup with your 1-0 win against Geektopia. What's next"?

"Well we travel to Galar."

"Do you plan on giving the starters a rest"?

"What would you call the game in Schottia? At best that was a rest. At worst it was a point proven that the whole team is touchable when it comes to starts. Earned not given."

"Well yes. But do you plan on giving any starts to the backup crew"?

"I'm still trying to earn as many points as possible. Even if it is just Galar I'm trying to get a win. We've lost a lot of unnecessary points in the second half. I want to end on a strong note."

"Seems likely you end up in Pot 3 for the World Cup. Does this put you in a good position in the finals"?

"It puts us in a better position than the last World Cup certainly."

"Now that you have qualified what can you expect in the World Cup"?

"I expect the form we saw in the first half of qualifiers not the second. The fans deserve something. After a slightly better than expected showing last World Cup, I don't want a disappointing run out here."

"So do you think you advance"?

"I mean until I manage to develop foresight and see what group we get, it is hard to tell."

"But do you think you are good enough to advance if the Group is right"?

"Anybody could be good enough to advance in the right position. We just have to make the situation right for ourselves."

"So you definitely won't resign since you qualified"?

"No comment."

by **Banija** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 3:50 pm

RBSA Officials off the field extremely busy as the curtain is set to close on World Cup Qualifying

New World Cup Committee Vice President Adama Sowe entering WCC headquarters on the day of voting

BUSUKUMA, NATIONAL CAPITOL REGION- In recent days, on the field, the results have been steady coming for the Banijans. After 19 games, the Kadongo Kamu have earned 50 points- of course, far and away a Banijan record in Qualifying, among many set during Banija's best ever Qualifying campaign. Of course, this being our first time Pot 1, and well into Pot 1 that is, it is not much of a surprise that this is Banija's strongest ever Qualification campaign, even though we were handed a tough group. The team kept going out there, and the vast majority of the time, they'd leave with three points. After 19 games, they left 16 of those with the full three points, as well as draws away to both Brenecia and the Sherpa Empire. They also have 1 loss, away to Trolleborg, a loss that they will try and avenge. The team has been rather fun to watch, although the strength of their consistency will see them put in a position where, for the first time, there will be serious pressure and expectations on this squad.

It is a campaign to remember. 50 points, of course, is far and away a Banijan World Cup Qualifying record, as well as this being the first time they've averaged over 2 points per match. They've averaged over 3 goals per game during this campaign, the first time they've done that. They've gone undefeated in Banija. If they can beat Trolleborg at home on the final matchday of the Qualifying campaign, then it will be the first ever campaign where the Banijans had a perfect home record. We are 9-0-0 on our home field so far in this campaign, and the team certainly wants to win one last one in front of the fans, before preparations for the Finals begin. That brings us to another fun fact- the last time lost at home in a competitive match was the World Cup 83 semifinal, against Starblaydia, although we did drop points at home against Tropicorp in AOCAF LIX, just two games before falling in Chromatika to Ko-oren in the Round of 16 of that tournament. A win against Trolleborg would ensure that this is the first qualification campaign where they've beaten each of their group play opponents at least once. And, most importantly, it would be the first time that the Banijans have won their World Cup Qualification group. It is the third consecutive qualification for the Kadongo Kamu, and the fifth consecutive appearance overall in the Finals.

Most fans, of course, are wondering how these Finals will go. The Banijans have only dropped points in 3 games- considering the strength of our Qualifying campaign, it is likely(though certainly not guaranteed) that we will be capable of maintaining a spot in the Top 7, and therefore, guaranteeing a place in Pot 1 for the World Cup Finals alongside Baker Park, Cassadaigua, and the rest of the Top 7. That was one of the goals of the campaign, and Marcus Waters said that it is important they get there. "Maintaining a high rank and getting into Pot 1 will greatly strengthen our chances of getting through the group stages." He told us this in his post-match press conference after their slim 1-0 victory in Abanhfleft. "There is no such thing as an easy group at the World Cup Finals- but don't make things harder than they need to be. For a while, we were content to simply make the World Cup. But progress is most plain when your raise the bar for your definition of success. We are no longer content just to be here- we want to make an impact, and a deep run. Guaranteeing that we avoid teams like Vilita and Equestria, as well as both co-hosts, in group play, will help us do that."

And he is correct. The Banijans won't have the home field advantage they had in the last World Cup, so those matchup advantages will be even more important. And that's what has been driving the Banijans throughout these qualifiers, even as you take your foot off the gas just a little bit as they have already clinched their spot in the Finals. Do what you can to put yourself in the best position to win in the Finals. There's not really much difference, functionally, where you are within the Top 7 once you get to the World Cup- but as long as you are in Pot 1, you can give yourself a relatively clear path to at least the Round of 16. But while fans have been focusing on what's happening on the field, and gearing up for the Finals, preparing to buy tickets to Baker Park or Cassadaigua, officials in Busukuma have largely been consumed by events happening off the field in recent times. What has been happening?

Well, two main things. First, of course, was the WCC Presidential election. Adama Sowe, who is was the previous Chairman of the RBSA, the World Cup 81 Host Committee Co-Chairman, and is the RBSA's representative in both the World Cup Committee and Executive World Cup Committee, received two nominations for President at the World Cup Committee. Of course, it is the most prestigious position in football- running the WCC. There were rumors that he would go to the IFCF and help serve on the Council for the UICA successor organization, of which the RBSA is a founding member of, but he, of course, declined to do so. He, of course, in addition to being a Permanent Representative to the EWCC, he also serves on the Board of Directors of the Regional Transit Corporation. RBSA officials, being surprised at his nomination, nevertheless worked tirelessly to try and get him elected. Of course, a WCC Presidential election is shrouded probably in more secrecy than a Roman Papal election- nobody knows who nominated Adama Sowe, and members generally do not reveal who they voted for.

To continue the Roman comparison, when the white smoke came out, it turned out that Princess Candace of Equestria was re-elected handily as President. Adama Sowe finished second in voting, and was elected as Vice President for the next three cycles. IN his acceptance speech, he thanked WCC delegates for trusting in him, and of course, he congratulated Princess Candace of Equestria. This makes him the second Banijan to hold the Vice Presidency of a major international sporting body, as a Banijan currently holds the position of Vice President of the World Baseball Council. But of course, that was not the only vote to occur at WCC headquarters over the weekend. The Cup of Harmony votes were selected. Of course, the Banija/Xanneria bid being the only bid, it was expected to win easily, and it did, getting 9 of 12 votes. But bid officials were hoping to get a higher percentage of votes considering the lack of opposition.

RBSA Chairman and CoH 76 Host Co-Chairman Robel Ezera told reporters that he was happy with the result. "We were looking to come here for a strong mandate to co-host the Cup of Harmony with Xanneria, and that is exactly what occured. 9 votes to host is a strong mandate, and I am happy with the way that this turned out. Bringing a fifth major tournament to Banija in the last 5 cycles shows that this is a country that loves the game, loves the sport, and is a premier place to host tournaments. Bringing WCC competition to Xanneria for the first-time is a strong endorsement of their abilities to host a tournament. They hosted their half of Campianato Esportiva XXV nearly flawlessly, and we are of the belief that this could help bring long-term football links between our nations. The eyes of the world will be on Xanneria, and their nation will certainly shine in the spotlight." Robel Ezera also confirmed rumors that the Stadium of the Restoration will indeed host the 76th Cup of Harmony Final.

Of course, as the Host Committee Co-Chairman, Ezera told reporters that there was plenty of work to do. "We will have to work hard on invites. Of course, we are already preparing, but as Qualifying is not over yet, we obviously cannot talk details." Banijan Host Committee members said that a final number of invited nations could not be determined at the moment. And, of course, the Banijan stadia that would be used have not yet been determined. But with the Cup of Harmony coming into town, and that Presidential election, RBSA officials have been plenty busy, mostly behind the scenes as the focus of most of the fans and media has been on World Cup Qualifying. Of course, these men will go from behind the scenes to front and center pretty fast, as fans from different nations will enter Banija for the 2nd oldest WCC competition.

So we're all clear, any IC views expressed above do not represent any of my OOC views.

by **Terre Septentrionale** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 4:14 pm

Mazovia wins le Tournoi des Patriotes

El Perro, Township of Texas - Simultaneously with the World Cup 84, there's a domestic tournament in Terre Septentrionale called Tournoi des Patriotes. 16 townships competes together to win the tournament and players who are currently at the World Cup are excluded from it. Mazovia won group C, they beat Montérégie-Jacques-Cartier 2-0 in the quarter finals and Dalmatia 2-1 in the semi final. Texas finished 2nd in group C, the same group as Mazovia. They beat Shelburne 3-0 in quarterfinals and Charlevoix-Nitassinan 3-1 in the semi final. Mazovia and Texas was facing each other in the final, which was played at Multiversal Hotel Stadium in El Perro, Texas. Starting goalkeepers were Bartlomiej Kasprzak for Mazovia and Catherine MacClintock, only 20 years old, for Texas. Bartlomiej Kasprzak is arguably one of the best goalkeeper in Terre Septentrionale and some people raised their eyebrows when Georges-Kévin vainqueur was selected on the national team instead of Kasprzak. Mazovia controlled the ball 53% of the time and shot 16 times with 10 of them on target. Texas shot 9 times with 6 of them on target.

Mazovia attacked at the 22nd minute when Przemyslaw Suszczewicz passed to Zdislaw Piotrowski who dribbled with the ball and made a header pass to Przemyslaw Szpakowski who heads the ball right into the net. Mazovia attacked again at the 30th minute when Klaudia Krzysztalowicz made a cross to Przemyslaw Szpakowski who shoots but the ball is deflected by Texas goalkeeper Catherine MacClintock and goes all over the net. It's a corner kick! Sebastian Wieczerzak takes the corner kick, he kicks the ball in the penalty area, his brother Slawomir Wieczerzak jumps higher than anyone and heads the ball past MacClintock and it's another goal for Mazovia. Mazovia leads 2-0 and this is the score at the halftime.

No one scored in the 2nd half and the highlight of the half would be when Taylor Zemanski dribbled with the ball and she passed to Ethan Schoenfeld who kicks the ball but Bartlomiej Kasprzak makes a terrific save and the score is still 2-0. This is the final score, Mazovia wins 2-0. This is Mazovia's 2nd Tournoi des Patriotes win, as they also won the 1st edition. Przemyslaw Szpakowski, who scored 6 goals in the tournament, was named the player of the tournament.

BOXSCORE
22nd minute: Przemyslaw Szpakowski assisted by Zdislaw Piotrowski
30th minute: Slawomir Wieczerzak (unassisted)

YELLOW CARDS
13th minute: Nick Van de Casteele
38th minute: Przemyslaw Suszczewicz
55th minute: Walker Texeira
59th minute: Franciszek Olejniczak
59th minute: A.J. Woszczynski
77th minute: Ryder Koniarczyk

RED CARDS
None

Nationalism in Texas

With the tournament partly being held in the Township of Texas, we witnessed the rise of Texan nationalism. Separatism in Texas is at it's highest peak in surveys since the referendum on independence in 1992, which the "yes" lost by 1%. Additionally, the Team Texas Foundation, which advocates for a Texan national team in every sports was pretty much visible during the tournament with pro Team Texas banners shown at the stadium in El Perro and San Pedro. They're pushing hard for Texas participating at the upcoming World Bowl, but Terre Septentrionale's government has no intent to allow Texas to participate in the upcoming World Bowl.

Katarzyna Krzykowska,
La tribune Septentrionale

Terre Septentrionale keeps losing

Crystalline Caverns - It's Terre Septentrionale's 2nd loss in a row and 3rd loss in the latest four games. The Nordiques has been pretty much disappointing lately and let's just skip yesterday's game highlight because it's just boring. Terre Septentrionale lost 2-0. Worse, Élisabeth Normandin recieved a red card at the 33rd minute for punching a Crystalline Caverns' player in the face after he scored. She recieves an automatic one game ban on matchday 22 against Brigantii and she will be suspended for two additional games, probably at the Cup of Harmony if the Reprezentacja Nordycki is invited, because of the severity of her action.

Wlodzimierz Pietruszewski,
Senior writer, La tribune Septentrionale

by **Zwangzug** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 4:56 pm

It had been a hard-fought game: Forbridge was unseasonably warm for whatever time of year it was, and everyone was quickly working up a sweat. Marlon scored the first goal, rounding an unlucky Kevin Krychowiak to receive Satenik's pass. Katarina Jakupovic's passes, however, were well-struck, and eventually one of them found the feet of Sophia Velezia who was just onsides in time to slam the equalizer.

In the second half, Chevanthi stepped up to take a free kick. Despite the gap she left in the defense, a crowd formed near the Mattijana goal, and an unsteady Katija Burnisevič was unable to block Jonah. He got his head to it, it curled in, and Zwangzug parked the metaphorical train. (Forbridge and the football association had some complicated history, so everyone was happy that the train was only metaphorical.)

"Enitan," asked an unwitting journalist, "other than your own appointment of course, what factors do you think have made this group play out the way it did?"

"Well," said the interim, "twenty-two matchdays is a long time, anything can happen, but I don't think we've seen anything too out of the ordinary. It's important not to get complacent, but that said, these players are capable of very strong performances."

"What do you think about Hampton Island defeating Mattijana?"

"That happened, yes? I can't quite recall which matchdays, sorry, but--"

"I mean, shouldn't you be thanking them in the event Zwangzug do qualify?"

"Come again?"

"If Zwangzug get a result against Gopnikea tomorrow, or in the event Tamgu crush Mattijana, you never know, then you'll qualify--"

"Now I think it's hasty to jump to conclusions, we've already seen that any side in this tournament can be a threat, so let's not take anything for granted--"

"But if they do. Shouldn't you be thanking Hampton Island that Mattijana failed to collect an additional six points?"

"Remind me, Ms. ..."

"Horner?"

"Ms. Horner. I seem to recall that Zwangzug were defeated by Ancherion. Both before and after I joined, is that correct?"

"Well, yes, of course."

"And were we not also shut out by Tamgu?"

"Indeed."

"Did this very side also lose to third-seeded Krytenia? And fail to win their first game against Castanya?"

"Of course they did, I wrote some nice articles about the game, you might have read them."

"Are you also going to be appearing at the Mattijanan press conference to ask them about their hypothetical gratitude to those sides, in the event Zwangzug fail to qualify?"

"Well, uh, I wasn't planning on it..."

"Then why are you asking me these questions?"

"Well, uh, the Golden Bears, they ought to go down in history too..."

"Every team deserves to go down in history, Ms. Horner, every one! Or are you not familiar with the ideals of the Collective?"

"Yes but--"

"How could such cinematic auteurs as Jeremy Jaffacake create their art without devoted archivists preserving every game they can?"

"I'm not sure that's the word I would use..."

"Now if you want a historical example of how teams can be remembered for influencing others, I would say think back to World Cup 42, when Zwangzug struggled to adjust to the 1-4-4-2 and were beaten by the microstate of An Blascaod Mor--uh, sorry, I'm probably mangling the pronunciation--" It was when he tripped up over his Gaelic that his northeastern accent became strongest, the dropped R's standing out in conversation when most listeners just took them for granted. "--and the Cafundelense-influenced state, I don't believe Estresse Intenso proper still existed, but--"

"Look, never mind."

"--putting their qualification in doubt until near the end of the campaign, when this same Krytenia, who had so recently regained their independence--"

"That's not what I meant."

"--abruptly withdrew, thus securing the best third-place team's advancement as well--"

"No one cares."

"--so that a Bettian side somewhat past their peak and a Candelariasian side still approaching theirs would join Zwangzug in the proper, regardless of their final position. Zwangzug met the Big Blues again, of course, and beat them decisively in the quarterfinal." Maclaurin blinked, taking in a suddenly-much-emptier room. "Any further questions?"

by **Recuecn** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 5:56 pm

The bus rolled quietly down the streets of Norfolk Pinewoods, Beepee, nearing the stadium. Bill LaVoyard, on his way to the stadium himself, recognized it by the recently added decals--the bus the Reçuecian National Team had rented here in Beepee. It looked like any other long-distance coach, blending in just fine with the traffic around it, everyone peacefully on their way home from work. But on the inside, it was roaring mayhem.

[OOC: listen to your favorite work-out tune while reading the rest of this.]

Grégoire Leclair was DJing and the bus was pumping with pre-match hype-up beats. Jannick Bechtholdt was his hype man, and they had both entire defensive lines singing along at the top of their lungs and dancing as much as it is possible to dance in a bus. Emanuele Cutrona kept getting out of his seat and sort of thrusting about in the aisle to the beat of the music as well as he could, giving the swaying of the bus, and each time everyone yelled at him to sit down which he would do for about thirty seconds until he was back with another move. Somehow this part of the game was as much fun as the music and dancing.

Ly Nasser was filming the whole scene--probably streaming it to somewhere, actually, and grinning ear to ear at the ridiculousness of it. He was trying to film with his front-facing camera, which mean there was no way anybody watching the video could actually see half of what was going on, and with the music they probably couldn't hear anything either. Ly kept zooming in on closeups of people's faces, which he somehow thought was the epitome of humor, but then being unable to actually hold the camera steady the shot always wound up shakily showing the back of a bus seat somewhere.

Bonheur Relié and Jacques Tremblay were seated next to each other and having an energetic conversation over a chart of a soccer field with positions marked on it--some last minute tactical thoughts ahead of the last qualifying game. The row behind, Per Tegeler and Paulin Bourguignon were leaning forward, looking over the seats to see what was happening in the conversation, and in hushed tones so the coaches wouldn't hear, absolutely taking the piss out of the proposed gameplan with their own exaggerated version that alternately mocked the Unicorns' own abilities and gleefully mocked their opponents.

A couple rows back, Gerauld Firaut, Klaus Klemm, and Luc Pélissier were somehow debating politics, which was only working because Gerauld and Leo had pretty much the same ideas, and couldn't tell through Klaus's broken French that he entirely disagreed with what they were saying. The more fiercely he protested, the more excited they thought he was about what they were saying.

In the very back of the bus, Franky had somehow smuggled in all the foods that the trainers had told them they couldn't eat before the game, apparently unable to wait just a few more hours for the last game of qualifying to be over. Raoul Lavigne was there with him and a few others, gulping down junk food and trying to quietly open bottles of soda while furtively glancing toward the front of the bus to make sure the coaches didn't notice.

All in all, judging by the atmosphere, you would think that this was the party bus for a team that had just clinched its qualification to the World Cup, not a group of stressed-out, tired professionals who'd been working night and day towards this moment but were now perched on the rim of success, teetering over failure. Were they confident? Sure. They were already planning ahead to the party tonight if they won. But they were also very aware of the amount of pressure hanging over them and what could happen if they failed to take home all three points. And yet they couldn't dwell on that fact--it would only throw them off their game.

And so the Unicorns came to the end of the road, do or die, the moment of truth... singing and partying in the bus and trying to pretend it was just another game.

World Cup 84- RP Thread (IC)

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