World Cup 87 - RP Thread

by **Audioslavia** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 7:37 am

Click the image for the full-sized version

To find how many times you've played against each of your World Cup 87 rivals, follow the line from your nation on the left.
On the far right you'll see your most-played nation and your record against them.
If you've played the same number of games against a few sides, the one shown will be the one furthest up the list.
The teams are in order. What kind of order? All will be explained soon.
The chart only takes into account games played in the World Cup Qualifiers, World Cup Finals and a few 'official' friendlies played from around 2007 to 2012, back when we did that as a thing.
Teams who have never played any of the other teams in World Cup 87 have been removed

Jeremy Jaffacake stood back and observed the wall of his office. There was a knock on the door.
"Come in"
"Hey Jeremy I wait what is this" said Rubio, stopping at the door.
"It's a wallchart"
"Another wallchart?"
"What can I say, I hate eggshell"
"And windows, apparently. Jeremy do you need a poster to take up the *entire* wall?"
"You're right" said Jeremy. "I should put it in a frame. Then it's not a poster. It's art"
"Posters can be art. Also a frame would... that size, it'd be extortionate. I'm not sure it could support its own weight, let alone relying on the wall to support it"
"Not with that attitude" said Jeremy.
"You're only doing this because Audioslavia aren't doing very well"
"We're second!" said Jeremy, turning.
"You almost lost to Huayramarca"
"They're good!" said Jeremy. "Also we're just getting started. A 5-1-1 record isn't to be sneezed at"
"Anyway. We've got a shipment of ink for you. You.. really need to upgrade that dotmatrix printer"
"I like the whirring clickitty-clack"
"And.. the fact that it takes seven hours to do around a tenth of a poster like this? You know there are companies that.."
"Did they bring the fourteen gallons of black ink?"
"...you know you're going to bankrupt yourself"
"I'll bankrupt your face"
"That doesn't even make sense"

by **Juvencus** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 7:54 am

GLI ATTACCANTI RETURNING TO AN UNCONVINCING WINSTREAK

Juvencus 1-0 Qasden

Gli attaccanti on an unconvincing winstreak which sees them at the middle of the pack

After a series of disappointing performances to the likes of Sannyamathland, in a shock home defeat as well as a respectable away draw against Turori, gli attaccanti has recently found its footing following 2 straight 1-0 victories against Freeport and Qasden. The offensive play of the team is still not up to par to its name and it may as well be looked at as outdated, or maybe figured out by most other sides, yet again, 6 points in the bag is the type of rejuvenation the team needed and that is exactly what it got.

What really struck la squadra this time around is how a very highly ranked side, such as Qasden would play so defensively against a side it can probably outplay in this current period. However the Juven team entered the team much more warmed up than its opponents and the unexpected, yet full support of the 40,336 fans in the Vinceti Catedral seemed to uplift the squad, as they immediately starting utilising the Pomenienze in full effect. A very high presss, it pushed the Calicos to be far back, into their own side and despite their higher possession, a whopping 70% during the first half, they just could not seem to be able to attack. The Gli attaccanti took advantadge of that, with a smart Santini cross into Silvestri's head being saved by Rigby. Soon after, yet another Santini effort found Etxeberria this time, with his shot hitting the crossbar. As the half progressed, so did the gli attaccanti engine the people are so accustomed to start to work, with a barrage of opportunities, a long distance rocket from Martell, Silvestri's curvy shot and a miraculous effort by man of the match Santini all either saved or gone wide. This would bear fruit however, as Santini would attempt to cross the ball into the box again with Exteberria catching the volley once more, sending it to the top left side of the net, making the stadium ablaze from all the fire and the celebrations. As such, gli attaccanti was winning by the end of the first half with the scoreline of 1-0.

Surprisingly enough, knowing the offensive capabilities of the gli attaccanti have been quite limited recently, De Casio has tried setting up a new defensive strategy ever since the Freeport game which slowly masses the team bulk on the backline, so any attacks from opposing sides bear no fruit. It relies on the central defensive midfielders to play a more defensive role and rely more on short passes to the side midfielders should an attack commence, however possessive playing is more likely to be played in order to frustrate opposition. As such, the 2nd half was much slower, the Pomenenienze's more possession-based approach was used. However the Qads had their first major opportunity of the game in the 51st minute following a swift De La Fontaine cross finding Bone's head, with it being saved by super reliable lately Bulgari. The gli attaccanti managed a couple chances of its own, firstly with a Chimo Quaranta through-ball finding Silvestri and the latter shooting the ball right at the goalkeeper's hands and the last, by just subbed in Castelli, with an incredible solo effort going through a couple of defenders, yet his chip didn't manage to find net, instead ending just wide. The scoreline remained the same in the end of the game, however with yet another 3 points in the bag, this new more defensive and effective reality is what we might have to get used to.

Next up are the games against rivals Mercedini and one of many pleasant surprises of this group, Gouvanarch, in which the gli attaccanti will be getting with their heads and hopes up. 6 points are always the target for the gli attaccanti and the players will not hesitate to grab them.

by **Krytenia** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 8:25 am

Scattered In Four Directions
By Rami Niblick in Virginia City, Southwest Eastnorth

AN administrative cock-up may have done its level best to upset the apple cart for the Dragons, but the national team proved they would not be fazed quite so easily. Despite a match taking place in a surreal atmosphere in Virginia City, Krytenia mercilessly put their opponents to the sword as they set about putting their qualifying campaign back on track.

The game was set to take place at the Directional Resources Stadium in the city; when Krytenia arrived in SWEN, however, the delegation was informed that the ground had been double-booked, and the game itself would be placed at the painfully-named Amazingly Low Rate Loans Multi-Purpose Stadium. Despite the name, the stadium is basically a baseball diamond, with a single corner stand behind home plate. If nothing else, this is further proof that baseball is the inferior "hit the ball with a wooden bat" sport. The layout of the stands mattered little, anyway, as the SWENFA hadn't tranferred tickets from the original venue. The KFA will, no doubt, be billing their counterparts for the refunds issued to around 4,000 travelling Krytenian fans for their tickets and travel. It also effectively meant the game was held behind closed doors.

Once things got underway, though, it was clear that the less than ideal build-up hadn't adversely affected the Krytenians in any way whatsoever. Indeed, SWEN's style of play was something that the Dragons knew full well how to deal with, being a cheap knock-off version of Jeremy Jaffacake-Phillips' own philosophy. The problem for the home side is that SWEN don't have the personnel that Krytenia or Half Six Furball can call on. Paul Davis instead made a tactical change to the starting line-up, electing to play with three at the back - Ross Okano joining the usual suspects - with Rodolfo Marquez and Marcus Bellamy as wingbacks. Cormac O'Neill was joined in the centre by Stuart Kuipers and Ben Foyle, with Neil Smith dropping behind Alun Belmwr and Curtis Sunday as a false nine. SWEN's midfield was swamped early and often, as Krytenia dominated play from the off. Indeed, it took less that three minutes for the Dragons to take the lead, Kuipers cutting inside Iva Johncock before laying the ball into the path of Belmwr, who duly obliged with a low shot that goalkeeper Miles Mikohoffer couldn't get a hand on to. It was a move that was to set the tone for the remainder of the game.

Southwest Eastnorth's first half primarily consisted of chasing shadows and watching the ball pinging between players in light blue jerseys, as Krytenia kept the pressure well and truly on their opponents. Damien Carpenter could have brought a book onto the pitch with him given what little he had to do, whilst Okano, Green, and Sinton could keep a high line at the back mainly because all of the SWEN players were pegged inside their own half. Unsurprisingly, that early goal wasn't the end of the home side's troubles. O'Neill and Kuipers seemed to be in hog heaven, creating chances left and right. Smith, meanwhile, enjoyed using his deft footwork to bewilder the SWEN defenders, and was rewarded with a fine individual effort that saw him jink past three yellow shirts before beating Mikohoffer all ends up to double the Dragons' lead. Curtis Sunday would also chip in, flicking a close-range volley in from Bellamy's fizzing cross, and when Belmwr picked up his second from the spot after a Gerrard Klattenberg handball on forty minutes, the match was effectively over as a contest.

Being up four-nil at half time does carry certain advantages. The freedom to take off your most prolific striker, for instance, is one of them. Alex Parsons started the second half in place of Belmwr, as the Dragons carried on where they left off. The pacy striker immediately caused headaches for the opposition defenders, and deserved his goal, beating Klattenberg for pace to latch onto a Kuipers pass before slotting the ball past the goalkeeper. This precipitated Davis to make a further change, removing Smith and bringing Darren Harrison on as Krytenia looked to conserve energy for future efforts. With Krytenia now on a more defensive footing, the tempo of the game altered noticeably, allowing SWEN a bit of breathing room and opening up the game somewhat. Van Austin finally got his side's first shot on target on sixty-two minutes - though his shot was harmlessly hit straight at Carpenter - but the home side grew in confidence and were worth a goal, which they duly got when a deep cross from Ryan Bourne was met well by Chris Houton, rising above Green to nod the ball past the Krytenian keeper to at least give Southwest Eastnorth a consolation.

Krytenia didn't take too kindly to being denied a clean sheet, however, and six minutes from time Parsons and Kuipers, both angling for a more regular place in a sky blue shirt, connected nicely with a slick one-two that opened up the opportunity for the Sandwell midfielder to crash the ball home, becoming the first Rangers man to score for his country in the process. It was a fitting reward for a tireless display from Kuipers, who was named man of the match for his effort. Austin grabbed a second for SWEN in stoppage time, but by then the Dragons were mentally on the plane, so it's perhaps hardly a surprise.

Krytenia's second win in a row sees them stay fifth in the table, but with momentum going into their game against Poafmersia in Avidia. Three points there, and the Dragons' chances of making it to Taeshan and Ethane would be a great deal more realistic. Onward!

SOUTHWEST EASTNORTH - 2
Houton 73
Austin 90+2

KRYTENIA - 6
Belmwr 3, 40 (pen)
Smith 19
Sunday 27
Parsons 49
Kuipers 84

by **Tumbra** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:25 am

Westmond District Court
3 January 2021

Surprisingly enough for a case of this level of complexity, the opening date of the trial had been set for 3 January, giving both sides merely a few days to gather witnesses and corroborate evidence. The entire country, was, however, was awaiting with bated breath a protracted trial, given the strength of both the prosecution and the defense. Many commentators, who had somehow become legal experts overnight, told the country that the longer the trial went on, the stronger the defense's case would become. Some doubted this, but there were a lot of factors pointing his way - the charge for possessing a dangerous weapon he would most likely be convicted for, given that he was caught in flagrante delicto, but that was at most a three year jail sentence - if he could avoid being convicted of kidnapping and murder, which the prosecution was attempting to levy alongside the dangerous weapon charges, he would be free in just two if he exhibited good behaviour. Katz's skills as a defence lawyer would probably see Locke through the trial, and secure a much less serious charge than otherwise he would be slammed with had he gone with a public defender or otherwise.

Then the opening day of the trial began, and yet another side of Jacob Locke emerged. Whether this was an act or whether he finally revealed his true self to the Tumbran eye, nobody knew. Throughout the first day he seemed intent on focusing the entirety of the court's eyes on him, regardless of whether they were already on it. He repeatedly interrupted Brown's opening statement by speaking loudly, guffawing, rolling his eyes, turning his chair to the viewing gallery and dismissing Brown by putting his legs up and falling asleep and generally being a nuisance. All of this behaviour earned him various reprimands from Justice Clarence Doyle, who seemed generally exasperated with Locke's behaviour during the first session, and threatened to hold him in contempt.

This threw Brown off balance. By the time he finished his opening statements, of which he was certain that nobody really listened to, the swagger he had pre-trial had evaporated. The moment he sat down, he took a handkerchief and applied it liberally to his brow, his expression notably downcast. People paid attention to it - he would later describe it as sweat from the harsh television cameras spread around the court, broadcasting the live feed across local television, and one or two cable networks - but not as much as they did Locke. And Brown would be right on nobody listening to him. Locke had the court twirled around his little finger, and he knew it. Every silly expression he made, every statement, every gesture, invited the eyes of the crowd and the flashes of the cameras onto him. Even when dressed in a checkered brown coat and a simple black shirt, forgoing the tie, Locke managed to pull the attention of the whole court onto him.

But what was more shocking was what happened during Katz's opening statement. People expecting him to mellow out and let the lawyer he engaged to defend him speak on his behalf were rudely proved wrong, as halfway through the speech Locke began clapping loudly, and being just as disruptive as he was to Brown's statement. Katz was less perturbed by his own client's behaviour, but when he sat down he looked thoroughly defeated.

After the day's hearings had concluded, the press virtually ignored Brown and Katz when they attempted to speak to the press, with the overwhelming majority crowding around Locke, trying to get a word out of him. Locke flashed his smile, then began speaking almost incomprehensibly, in a stream-of-consciousness style (at least it seemed as much to the outside observer) about how he was innocent and that he would prove it in court. Katz regained control of the airwaves after Locke was lead away and attempted to calm the storm, but by then the media had gotten their soundbites and really couldn't give half a damn about what either lawyer had to say. Locke was winning this trial, but whether he'd actually win the case, nobody knew.

by **TJUN-ia** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:37 am

By Peter Davis

After picking up the win in Central Shaneville but nothing from hosting Cassadaigua, a statement no one is surprised about in the slightest, David Seems and his Jaguars found themselves 4 points off the pace of their last opponents and 3 points back to the Busoga Islands, who beat them on opening day. Some people may think that there is no coming back from this deficit but these games were used as a way of countering that argument, of saying the TJUN-ia isn't out of the running just yet and may even be a definite contender.

First up was a to Highland Road in Hadford Hill as the Jags took on a Flavovespia who was struggling for form as a Pot 2 side. Nothing has gone well for this team as of late but in a competition like the World Cup, every game counts. The hosts were a nightmare to break down for most of this game, with Alan Young's side seeing most of the ball but not being as successful in terms of chances being put past Harold Gylfisson. The 2nd half was like that as well, but TJUN-ia would use their wisely and in the 64th, substitute Prince Carter found the back of the next for the only goal of this game. We left Hadford Hill with an important 3 points and 3rd in the standings after Havynwilde's to Muralos 5-4.

Speaking of Muralos, they were up next as Tiankong hosted its first game of the competition. With the 9-goal thriller they had against Havynwilde firmly in the minds of many TJUN-ians, no one was going to take this team lightly and that certainly helped us today. It was another 9 goal thriller. It kicked off with Vladimir Podolov scoring 2 goals in the space of the opening 10 mintues but both Rui and Adamo Brava would tie this game up just before the break. The 2nd half would be just as chaotic for a while as both Kepo Ulawaya and Vilhelmo Lumin scored twice before this game was ultimately decided in the 86th by none other than substitute Preston Chapman. It was a chaotic mess of a football game but in the end, TJUN-ia prevailed and now it was 2nd after Busoga's 1-1 draw with Flavovespia.

While Eura now hold the main UWC belt, TJUN-ia continues to rise and now finds itself 2 points behind Cassie and 1 point above everyone else in the battle for Top 2. The final 2 games before the break will be crucial for all - we travel to Havynwilde first, then host 3rd placed Acronius in Szensky. GO JAGS!

SCHEDULE (Group 3) - lines indicate when next edition of Boot It! will be released
MD1: vs Busoga Islands (79) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City L 1-3 (T-9th)
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MD2: @Hispinas (315) W 5-1 (7th)
MD3: vs Nacaltora (UR) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky W 4-0 (4th)
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MD4: @Central Shaneville (UR) - Red Bull Arena, Shaneville City W 3-1 (3rd)
MD5: vs Cassadaigua (4) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City L 0-2 (4th)
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MD6: @Flavovespia (41) - Highland Road, Hadford Hill W 1-0 (3rd)
MD7: vs Muralos (259) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong W 5-4 (2nd)
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MD8: @Havynwilde (126) - Uvenstadion Superparc, Iyes
MD9: vs Acronius (100) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky
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MD10: @Busoga Islands (79) - The Dukuma Oval, Dukuma, North Island
MD11: vs Hispinas (315) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong
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MD12: @Nacaltora (UR)
MD13: vs Central Shaneville (UR) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong
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MD14: @Cassadaigua (4) - Dagan Airways Stadium, Concord Heights
MD15: vs Flavovespia (41) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky
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MD16: @Muralos (259) - Komcatt Arena, Urbego (?)
MD17: vs Havynwilde (126) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City
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MD18: @Acronius (100) - Atlas Arena, Defense

by **Banija** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:40 am

Who is Adama Sowe? The WCC Vice President who is preparing for "the ultimate promotion"

World Cup Committee Vice President visiting the WCC Headquarters in Canterlot, Equestria

BUSUKUMA, NATIONAL CAPITOL REGION- The Royal Banijan Soccer Association has held a press conference, announcing Adama Sowe, the WCC Vice President and former RBSA Chairman, as their candidate for the WCC Presidency. The nomination process to become WCC President is not as complicated as one would think. WCC members nominate nations that will be able to nominate candidates. Any nation with two or more nominations earns the right to put a candidate on the ballot. The nations that have earned the right for the upcoming Presidential elections, which will take place at the same time as Cup of Harmony voting are Drawkland, Equestrian States, Vilita, Banija, and Mriin. The winner becomes President, the second-choice candidate becomes Vice President.

Princess Candace of Equestria, of course, has served as the President for the last 5 cycles, and is the odds-on betting favorite to win re-election as the President. The names of the candidates from Drawkland, Vilita, and Mriin have not yet been named. But who is Adama Sowe? His second time running for the WCC Presidency. His career arc is an interesting one to follow- and a man who has been so important to the administration of the game at the international level, and the renaissance of the game at the national level, attempting to achieve the top job in the sport.

Early Life and Playing Career

Adama Sowe was born in Herzegovina City, Moravica, to Regina Sowe, who was an electrical engineer for the Regional Transit Corporation, and to 2nd Lt. George Sowe, who was a career officer in the Navy. Adama Sowe initially had dreams of joining the Banijan Royal Navy, like his old man. But he was a talented high school soccer player. The central midfielder was extremely pacy, and although he was rather skinny for his age, Sowe was good enough to get a scholarship to attend the University of Loyola-Istria.

He was always driven by the hometown school, Northern Moravica University, never offering him a scholarship because he was "too skinny." He played for two years at Loyola-Istria, leading them to the national championship game twice, although they lost both times- once to Northern Moravica, aka the enemy, and the other to the University of Hangaza. Adama Sowe played so long ago, it was not only the pre S-FPL days- it was the pre-BSL days, the pre WC73 days(Banija's first cycle). So he played at Herzegovina City in the state leagues, and played there until he was 33 years of age, when an ACL tear forced him to retire.

Sports Administration & Business Career

Since his retirement, he has had a successful career. He went back to Loyola-Istria to finish his degree, graduating with a bachelor's of science in Sports Administration from Banija's largest University. He immediately began to work as the Athletic Department at the school, starting to work in academic compliance and, over the course of 10 years, slowly working his way up. He declined an offer to be an assistant coach for the school's men's team- he preferred administration and never once trying management.

After a decade, he eventually worked his way up to being the Associate Athletic Director. He wanted a try at the Athletic Director role, and so he left the school for Moravica A&M University, where he stayed for five years. After five years there, he was hired as the Executive Director of the Moravica High School Athletic Association(MHSAA), a role that he held for 5 years as well. After that, he decided to stay involved in youth sports, as he was hired as the Athletic Director for the biggest school in the capitol, Kizza I College. After just a year there, however, he was hired as the Chief Operating Officer for the Banijan Collegiate Sports Group(BCSG), the governing body for college athletics in Banija(aka the Banijan NCAA). He held that role for half a decade as well.

Above 60 years old, many thought that this tireless man would be close to retirement. But he'd say no to that. This was right when, after World Cup 77 Qualifying, the Royal Banijan Soccer Association(RBSA) hit dire straits. The finances were a mess, a scandal had rocked the organization, and even player salaries were going unpaid. The RBSA had to enter bankruptcy procedures. The RBSA's credit rating was decimated, and their debts were monumental.

Nobody wanted to run to be the Executive Chairman of the RBSA. But Adama Sowe did. He said that the country "deserved a better governing body" and that it would be his mission to raise Banija's stature in this sport. After shepherding the RBSA through bankruptcy procedures, he was able to instill enough confidence in the organization to go out and hire a foreign coach, Randolf Cherry(who is now the Co-Commissioner of the S-FPL). He hired Marcus Waters, out of Equestria, as the assistant manager. Of course, we all know what happened on the pitch afterwards. 79 Qualifying was a good step forward. We starting World Cup 80 Qualifying disastrously, fired Cherry, Marcus Waters came on as interim manager, led us to Qualification, and the rest was history.

Adama Sowe turned the RBSA around so fast. Negotiating great TV contracts for the national team, plus surprise qualification for World Cup 80, allowed the RBSA to pay off their debts early and exit out of Administration. Then, being able to co-host World Cup 81 was a hugely profitable endeavor- and in just three cycles, the RBSA established itself as one of the best run football associations in the multiverse. He was, of course, the co-Chairman for the World Cup 81 Host Committee. He was able to use this to establish a name for himself in these circles. His named is revered because of this turnaround in Banijan sporting administrative circles.

He actually launched a run for the Presidency of the World Cup Committee before, but came in second place to the incumbent, Princess Candace. This put Adama Sowe in his current position as Vice President of the World Cup Committee. With that, he resigned his role in the RBSA. Still. When the IFCF was founded, the RBSA was a founding member, and he was part of the IFCF Executive Council- the only ever Banijan member of the Executive Council. He eventually retired from that role as well. He was also a Special Advisor to the Istria Host Committee.

In terms of other business endeavors, he's been active in this sport. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Regional Transit Corporation, Banija's biggest multinational corporation. He is the owner for Gold Coast City FC in Northwest Kalactin, one of that country's premier football clubs. He is currently bidding to buy Wahrsager Der Berg, a club in Zeta Reka and Hugeltaldom. He's a suit who finds himself everywhere in this sport.

He's an accomplished man. He's an ambitious man. And for the second time, he'll try for the ultimate prize in front of the World Cup Committee- to become the first Banijan to be President of that organization.

by **Waisnor** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:44 am

What did go wrong?

Honestly, I don't even want to talk about 0-6 loss to Maccian. I will confine myself to the fact that the fans left in an incredibly bad mood after such a devastating defeat.

The fans came to the next match without much hope, even for one point, the Holy Empire took 3rd place in the group. However, they hoped that Waisnor would at least be able to compete with his opponents, and judging by the game, the minimum program was completed.
And even the goal was scored by Waisnor first - on 12th minute Vitaly Butin was able to beautifully circle the defenders and shoot straight into the lower right corner of the goal, opening the score.
Further Waisnor went on the defensive, trying to keep a convenient score for themselves by hook or by crook, however, the skill of the opponents made itself felt - at the 25th minute Juan Tzimices (actually, everybody is this team is Juan Tzimices) earned a penalty for his team after Waisnorian defender Alexey Tiunov violated the rules on him. Juan easily hit the goal and equalized the score.
Waisnorian team really wanted to get back for the missed goal, and Tiunov was urgently replaced. At the 36th minute Waisnorian team regained one goal advantage - Prokhor Golovnov, as befits a man with that name, he scored with a header after a successful flank, after which the score became 2-1.
The first half ended with Waisnor being the leaders in this match, but is the second time Holy Empire was able to quickly take the initiative into their own hands and soon the score was equalized again - at the 67th minute another Juan Tzimices fired a strong shot from outside the penalty area and the ball hit the goal like a bullet.
After that Waisnor seemingly went into an even more dull defense in order to pick up at least 1 point, but the Holy Empire had clearly other plans for the results of this match - t the 80th minute yet another Juan Tzimices thanks to going one-on-one with the goalkeeper, he made the score 3-2, and in the 87th minute he scored a double, securing victory for the Holy Empire.

Team for a matches with Yerapia and Megistos
Dmitry Samoilov
Pavel Burtsov
Konstantin Nikrevich
Alexey Bastanov
Arseny Bratkov
Timur Skvortsov
Svyatoslav Piatigorets
Arthur Shuteyko
Prokhor Golovnov
Vitaly Butin
Alexey Bolotov

by **Saint-Domingues** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 1:46 pm

Savojarna 1-0 Saint-Domingue: Home side triumph in top of the table clash
HT 1-0
Savojarna took a big step towards topping Group 5 and qualifying for the World Cup as they beat Saint-Domingue to race into a 4-point lead at the summit of the group, assisted by Zwangzug dropping points at home to Abanhfleft.

It was the familiar 3-5-2 formation that lined up for this game for Saint-Domingue, at least on paper. Though Alfredo Cotilla returned from suspension to start in place of Corentin Sauvage, there was also tactical changes to make this a more different team that played against Zwangzug. Emilio Campos and Mathieu Ahearn played in much deeper, withdrawn roles either side, spending much of the game slotting in alongside the back three to make it primarily a back five. It was very defensive tactics by Canisbro, who perhaps fancied holding Savojarna to the draw rather than try and riskily plunder an unlikely away victory over the side ranked 34th in the world.

This was not the same free-flowing, uninhibited team that played against Zwangzug despite the similar personnel. Saint-Domingue played in a much more conservative, restricted fashion. Midfielders kept rigidly to their positions, as both they and forwards were denied passing options with the wing-backs stayed back deep rather than be runners to overload the backline. The primary battle was between each team's pair of defensive midfielders, as Carlos Sanabria and Tanguy Lacourse went toe-to-toe with the Savojar duo of Otso Ilkkanen and Victoria Maersk in a war for midfield superiority. There were plenty of tackles flying about in the middle of the pitch and a number of tense moments. Savojarna may claim victory as their DMs were ultimately successful in shielding the backline and procuring the clean sheet, though Saint-Domingue arguably had the last laugh as captain Maersk earned herself a red card late in the day for tripping Sanabria.

Lacourse shot wide from distance and Julien Babesco headed very tamely at Iiro Pakanen from a corner kick as the Avengers shut up shop for the opening forty-five. At the other end Jules Binet had to make a series of authoritative claims from dangerous crosses on either side by Mikhail Jashkin and Krister Voynov, in addition to pushing one effort by the isolated striker Simon Jacobsen around the post.

Savojarna took the lead with one of the half's few genuine chances, as one of their crosses finally paid off. Voynov's centre cannoned off of Ahearn and Jashkin reacted quickest to prod the loose ball into the back of the net. It came right at the end of the first-half and would have undoubtedly made Mikaela Rangren's half-time team-talk much easier.

Despite falling behind Saint-Domingue continued in their ways for the following twenty-five minutes, looking to keep the game tight and focused on snuffling out any Savojar chances. It was only with twenty minutes to go that the handbrake was released, as a double substitution accompanied a switch to a more attacking 3-4-3 and an abandonment of the double pivot. The introduction of Josep Carpeña and Diego Palacio helped inject some attacking impetus into the Dominguan game. The attacking midfielder forced Pakanen into a diving save from the edge of the area, and almost teed up Babesco for the equaliser. Palacio lashed wide and Jean-Pierre Jeune lashed into the side netting, but Saint-Domingue were unable to force themselves level and win the point.

Saint-Domingue head coach Camilo Canisbro: "There is not going to be an upset every game. And for the same reason, we were never going to line up in exactly the same way trying to get the same result, that wasn't going to happen. Today I wanted to make things tight, try and frustrate Savojarna for long periods and hopefully work ourselves into a few chances to nick a goal. They have a lot of attacking talent, and that can be tough. I thought we defended ably and did great to restrict their chances. On another day I think we score one of those opportunities created and get a result. It's a tough result to take but this was a challenging game. We'll look to make things right in our next home game."
Lineups:
Binet
Cotilla
Boleyn
Cojuangco <- Delannoy 90'
Ahearn
Campos
Sanabria
Lacourse <- Carpeña 69'
Keller <- Palacio 69'
Babesco
Jeune

Savojarna: Jashkin (45+1') Red Card: Maersk (89')
Saint-Domingue: N/A
Venue: Nationalstadion Carl Gustaf Bjurman, Sjoedrhavn

Saint-Domingue 3-4 Netop: Dreadful first-half as Avengers fall to home defeat
HT 0-4
Saint-Domingue faltered in the race for the World Cup in a loss to Netop, having suffered from an awful performance in the opening forty-five minutes which left them looking at a 4-0 deficit at half-time. Despite finding three second-half goals to put them in the hunt for a point, The Friends held off a thrilling comeback to come away from Saint Dominic's Park with all three points.

Despite the loss in Savojarna, Saint-Domingue were still able to hold onto 2nd place. The Avengers maintained a two point lead over the chasing pack of Zwangzug, Ancherion, and opponents Netop. This game thus offered the perfect opportunity for Saint-Domingue to push ahead with a bid for the play-offs, for if they beat Netop they would be able to amass a five point lead over one of their challengers. And for Netop, it was a great chance to leap ahead of Saint-Domingue and blow the playoff race wide open.

Netop looked far more up for achieving their goals in this game, and found an early opener as Teddy Riggs fired a low, right-footed shot into the bottom corner. He followed that up with a second goal five minutes later, powering home from a through ball by Savannah Park to leave the fans in Saint Dominic's Park stunned into silence. Max Holder made it 3-0 when he cut inside from the left flank and lashed a shot past Jules Binet, before turning creator when his inswinging corner was headed in by defender Marcus Hussel.

It was a horrendous performance by Saint-Domingue in the first-half, as Netop tore through their defence time and time again, and have to be very grateful to Binet for managing to keep the score down. The goalkeeper made a great save to deny Lyla Wormald when through on goal, touched a shot by Park onto the post and made a formidable full-body stop to deny Zoe Kinney from all of three yards out after the defence blundered when clearing the ball. Head coach Camilo Canisbro was incensed by the lacklustre performance and mifielder Maxence Vignon had the indignity of being substituted after just thirty minutes.

Riggs almost found his hat-trick after half-time but this time his powerful shot was held by Binet, before Saint-Domingue began to play their way back into the game. A clever free-kick routine put Pozo into space down the wing, whose looped cross to the edge of the area was smacked into the bottom corner courtesy of Josep Carpeña, who hit the ball very cleanly. Alfredo Cotilla headed in at the back post from Carpeña's corner shortly after as the pressure began to ramp up. Diego Palacio put the Dominguans within one goal of the draw, but it was ultimately not to be. The fightback was too little, too late.

Saint-Domingue head coach Camilo Canisbro: "It's never nice to get substituted in the first-half. It feels like I have singled Max Vignon out, which is unfair as there were plenty of truly awful performances today. Max wasn't the worst player on the pitch, but I needed to make a change. The midfield completely failed in their job of protecting the defence, maintaining the ball, supporting our strikers - everything. I had to make a change. There were some strong words exchanged at half-time because the passive performance left me feeling very let down. Everyone knew we had to do better. Those three goals have restored a bit of pride, but for me it doesn't erase how bad we were to start. We can't play like that again, or we are going to fail to get another point from here on out. Credit to the lads for trying to wrest control of the game back because it requires a good mentality to do that a four nil down, but I never want to see it again. We're conceding too many preventable goals right now, we need to go back to basics and focus on our strengths. We have two very tough games up next, and if we don't improve fast we could be looking at batterings."
Lineups:
Binet
Cotilla
Boleyn
Cojuangco
Pareja
Campos
Sanabria <- Palacio 55'
Carpeña
Vignon <- Keller 30'
Babesco
Pozo <- Gimenez 78'

Saint-Domingue: Carpeña (53'), Cotilla (62'), Palacio (80')
Netop: Riggs, (7', 12'), Holder (28'), Hussel (43')
Venue: Saint Dominic's Park

by **Transvolcanic** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 2:45 pm

El Vaquero
Fútbol Internacional
“The Transvolcanic Federation finally wins against newcomer Lorrana”

After 4 horrible matchdays for the Transvolcanic Federation, Teófilo Koralski decided to resign, and Sergio Bautista came to become a hero, he finally found the path of winning on his first match at the national team, winning 2-3 in Lorrana against an opponent which has had also negative results and is understandable for being a newcomer to a world cup qualifiers:

In the lineups:
Lorrana: 4-1-2-1-2
GK 13 Pe’sa Miak
LB 3 Irti Ramük
CB 14 Andeani Cara'a
CB 5 Olisati
RB 6 Maor Po'qi
DM 4 Em'du Em'kava
LM 8 Vess Vador (Merzi Sazio 70’)
RM 15 Azi Baddim
AM 10 Kiyon
LF 9 Berd Ravilu
RF 11 Sidar va Daledi

Transvolcanic Federation: 4-3-2-1
GK #25 Romero Díaz
LB #8 Bartolo Medina (Josua Navarra 64’)
CB #5 Ferdinand Faibermann
CB #17 Juud Weigners
RB #4 Wellington Delaliya
CM #17 Phil Van de Nainssen (Xavier Corral 55’)
CM #14 Ruben Casquillo
CM #11 Ángel Carreras
COM #19 Rei-Thon Marcusen
COM #7 Ignacy Volodov
CF #10 Keinri Öctagôn

Sergio Bautista has got far with Club Arsénico in TransLiga A (Note: yes TransLiga A is being simmed but lack of time = not able to post it yet) and even finished leaders in the last season, however he couldn’t win the league but still is a great feat for a club that has no money and is considered “small”, he got far with a 4-3-2-1 tactics, and why not? He decided to adapt the team to these new tactics, which will be a bit more difficult as most matches were always played with a 3-4-3 or in some special cases, a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2
By the other side, Lorrana played almost with the entire team, but in the pre-match exercises their goalkeeper suffered a small injury that however isn’t serious, it is an injury on the shoulder only that seems it won’t last for more than 3 days

The first goal came at the minute 31’, a corner taken by Kiyon in which after a bounce, Olisati used this to their favour and scored the 1-0

The second one came at the minute 41, first a dangerous action comitted by Ramük to Öctagôn, VAR decided to check the foul, and it later was defined as a penalty and yellow card, Öctagôn scored it to convert the 1-1

Then at the minute 56’ just after entering for Van de Nainssen, Corral, after a nice dribble to 2 defenders, got into the kitchen and scored a 1-2 goal

Then we have to get into the minute 73’, there Marcusen runs and thanks to his speed, he could open at the left side and make an assist to Ignacy Volodov, who with a volley shot, converted the 1-3

Finally at the minute 90+1’ a goal to make a closer match was made by Ravilu, who shot very good against Romero Díaz, who wasn’t prepared to stop the shot, 2-3

As the match has finished, Sergio Bautista attended the post match press conference:
Person #1: “Hello I am Stanislav Dimitrov, I would like to ask about Transvolcanic’s first win in the World Cup Qualifiers... what do you think about this crucial win?”
Bautista: “We needed that, my players are tired mentally, I can’t have players in a very bad state, they no longer had the intentions to win, what we need to rise up them morally is winning matches, it will be hard in these conditions, but I don’t think it is impossible, with some luck we will be able to win our next matches”
Person #2: “We finally saw a good offensive but today you conceded two goals, is that a problematic?”
Bautista: “It is, but we need to rise up, I know that before I got here, the team passed harsh moments, I am here to make my home rise from those harsh moments, I see that we haven’t done good defensively, I am worried, but we’ll get along with it soon”
Person #3: “Congrats for your win, the next match is against Yue Zhou, a very good team that could put you in some problems, but you think you will be able to win at Volkansfort next week?”
Bautista: “We can dream and achieve it, or I can say that dreams are non-valuable things, I say that it is difficult but we can try, we could demonstrate us against a good opponent like Yue Zhou, we may be able to win, or lose, but as of now we have to work harder, thinking in the future isn’t correct if you are in the present”

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Matchday 6 even soon!

by **Ko-oren** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 4:55 pm

Group 15                                Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Ko-oren                                7    6   1   0    17    2  +15    19

*Ode to Joy starts playing in the background, at the moment just before the choir belts out 'Freude, schöner Götterfunken'*

Sorted by Fantasy Points
	
Rank Nation     KPB   FP
T1   Trolleborg 21.48 23
T1   Brenecia   35.26 23
T1   Valanora   43.40 23
T1   Ko-oren    29.91 23

* '... Tochter aus Elysium' *

OVERALL TABLE

Rank Nation     Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1    Banija     7   7 0 0 23 7  16 21
2    Trolleborg 7   7 0 0 26 11 15 21
3    Valanora   7   7 0 0 24 10 14 21
4    Brenecia   7   6 1 0 17 2  15 19
4    Ko-oren    7   6 1 0 17 2  15 19

* 'Wir betreten feuertru-' *

*record scratch*

*freeze frame*

"Yup, that's me. You're probably wondering how I got into this situation…"

Ranks of nations we've played:
68 - 361 - UR - 97 - 336 - 118 - 186

Ranks of nations we've yet to play:
42 - 45

Coming up are second placed Quebec (6-1-0) and third placed the Sarian (4-2-1). It's almost like we played all the easy opponents and even dropped points versus the highest ranked one among them - because that's exactly what happened. The Dragonflies, as good as the stats make them seem, have yet to prove exactly how good they are now. Following some selection problems, a poor AOCAF and an acceptable World Cup, the burden of proof lies entirely with Juliasterinthen's XI. All players have scored easy passes for now, but it's a little like they only took practise tests so far. The proper exams are coming up at the end of the term, and preparation pays off.

At seventeen goals scored, the striker duo of Vaugrenard and Erisia has gotten enough practise. Vaugrenard's cunning and experience, with Erisia's energy, should net us a few against the Grim Reapers and the Saari. Meanwhile, with just two allowed, Theshendan was spared and the various configurations involving Munarring, Breukelaar, Pott, Gicquel, and Aiamara as well as half a dozen others has been excellent. Doubts about the defence remain, between Pott's limited experience at 30 years old, Breukelaar's questionable disciplinary record, and the fact that any starter of the last decade (Lampshire, Benjamin, Mizuno, Van Schelven) has not played a single minute in the campaign so far.

We had expected Sylestone to be a major obstacle - they were - but still gave way fairly easily between Erisia's sprint contest for an easy shot (1-0) and Vaugrenard's undisputable PK, with Sylestone's single goal and Moore's first and only goal so far (coming on for Ensaunden at the half). That (with the other victories) put us in first place so far.

While both games are instrumental for the group win, one game stands out. The northwestern Atlantian Oceanian derby. The defence from Ko-oren versus the striking force from Quebec. This is one game for the ages, as every matchup between the two is. We know how the Ko-orenites will play: there's rarely any variance in style as long as (almost) nobody can get the better of us. The Quebecois, reportedly, are switching up some details to better match their Greenblue rivals. All eyes will be on Kang for the game as the pivot. He'll be turning the ball over from defence to attack, in charge of setting up attacks, spreading the ball around to whoever can do some damage. That also means that Kang will be pressured all day by the Ko-orenite central midfielder: either Janoreirinthen (if he's the CM) or maybe Wickham if Juliasterinthen decides to play a 'dedicated' DM. It's vital that Kang is stopped in his tracks, as Quebec has a trio of lethal forwards. Mancosu is a dangerous winger, Huitema-Omeasoo can match any of our defenders in a sprint for the ball, and SY Kim is a pure striker that can score from any angle. The varied skillset has helped the team score 15 goals so far - nothing to be ashamed about. Another position of note is the leftback: should the Grim Reapers think that they can use the LB to put pressure on our defence, they'll field Hanson-Conavacio. If not, and they rather keep a clean sheet instead of going for a shootout, we'll see Borges Jr.

Meanwhile, the Ko-orenite gameplan is easy: keep the clean sheet, maybe score a goal or not, keep Quebec at bay in second place, and survive the Sarian. Seeing as Erisia and Vaugrenard are on form: it might be a good idea to retain possession a bit more than usual (also to keep Quebec from attacking) and feed the forwards. Depending on our stance, we might just see a shootout after all...

by **Cassadaigua** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 6:42 pm

I’ll be Staying Put,
By Rachel Schanke, Forward

World Cup 87 qualifying is underway, and one thing that this period can often do is put players under the spotlight of other national sides. Not for qualifying purposes, but for club team purposes, as there are so many outstanding professional leagues in the world, and most of them have leagues that play in what is known as the UICA. You probably know what that is already, even though in Cassadaigua, we are not a part of it. If you don’t know, it is the club championships, in other words, and the tournaments between the best club sides in the world are always exciting. I watch some of the games when I have the opportunity, because I’m a geek like that, but really, those games are fun and intense. That intensity is not something that I have personally felt, but I have heard the stories of it from both Lupe Enriquez and Meghan Wolcott, who play or have played in Banija. Don’t forget that Hannah Ranucci, also played in Ceni for a little while, so she too was a part of those competitions. Hannah did not have an extended career there, though, and did not play for the caliber of team that Meghan Wolcott does, or what Morgan Rosenblatt will be. When I hear those stories, I think to myself how much I would like to experience it myself. However, there is one big problem with that: I would have to leave Cassadaigua.

I have no intentions to leave Cassadaigua. My agent, Tessa Ellis, has already put out a statement on my behalf that I would not be accepting any international offers, to save them the trouble of getting a rejection. Sure, I would love to play in the UICA, but I am thoroughly happy playing with Concord Heights United. I love the city, my teammates, the coaches, and everything that one could possibly experience while playing for just an amazing organization. I am obviously compensated well, more than I could have ever dreamt of, and the endorsements simply add to that. I love the culture here. My grandmother was a legend here, not only for the World Cup achievements, and winning the two titles, but in what she also accomplished here with Concord Heights United. She played her entire club career here, not all of it with United, as similar to me, we started with a smaller side within the Cassadagan Soccer Association.

Now, why can’t the CSA join the UICA? As a player, I have not heard any reason for why the league does not other than to say that they have a system that works right now. It does work, but can it work better? See, now here’s where I can be in a no-win situation, personally. If I say the league should join the UICA, the people who think that we should not are going to be upset. If I say that we should not, then people are going to say that I am afraid of international competition at the club level. I did hear what came out of Brattleboro FC, our biggest rivals at United within the CSA, and the arguments that they make for it. They say that our period of isolation needs to end from the UICA, and you know, I am going to speak my mind here. You might like what I have to say, or you might not, but I do think that it is time for the CSA to go international, and to become a part of that UICA system. Can you imagine what sports would be like if we never joined any of these international teams? What if Courtney Ferguson was never a pioneer to get us into the Baptism of Fire many decades ago? What if we never joined the World Baseball Classic or World Bowl? Yeah, it could still work, and we would still have successful leagues at home, but we would not be fulfilling our potential. We would end that period of isolationism, and in the end, it proved to be successful. Right now, with our nation being a known commodity in sports, we are seeing some of the greats of our soccer team get the chance to play overseas. Why not take them on? Some people that I have talked to have suggested that scheduling is a big reason why the CSA is really reluctant to go international. Well, we can work around that.

Are they afraid of failure? Well, yes, it would be a monumental undertaking, and maybe the results would not go our way too quickly. But that can be improved over time, much like everything improves over time in international sports. The quality of play in the CSA would improve if we could enjoy watching players from all around the world take part, and I would love the challenge to go up against them. It is time for us to go international in this competition.

Thanks for reading, and thank you for your continued support!

by **Geektopia** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 6:53 pm

The ‘Watching Soccer and Things of that Manner’ News Show | Legend: --- Poafmerito, --- Trollburinho

--- » Hello again, Kwandoites, and for the first time, hello non-native viewers. This is Discussion 115 of our written show, as numerous and inescapable of a stat as the amount of World Cup qualification matches we’ve played to get this point. We’ve come and gone from cycles where Russ de Andes held up the team, the GFA renovated a new stadium, and had a little rivalry with Savojarna for the time being, capping off everything significant. I think we still do actually.

--- » The two things I’m going to bring up now though, may change the history of our federation. One being, the spread and endemic-like rise in relevancy of the condition that is called “Derbyshire neck” or “Goiter” at Isleshore, which as well as affecting the horrific convenience of it being one out of only two football stadiums in the country being there, on a much grander scale we’ll have to look at what the state of the country will be like afterwards.

--- » This is a sports show though, so we’re leaving the latter to our more well-rounded news anchors. One last thing though, this piece of advice contains the word “last” as well, the last thing to do as a citizen would be to make a political statement out of this. I know a lot of friends related to people in my social circle who are blaming this on the free will that our government gives to the citizens.

--- » So which thing would be more important to keep, you say? Isleshore Stadium, which is right on one of the most Goiter-infected cities in the country, the same city that somehow made Goiter airborne and seaborne infectious, and is being evacuated? In preference to the ‘Ding? One of the most reliable, steel-backed coaches who is climbing Geektopia up the rank ladder?

--- » Well, what’s happening with Dingledine that is so hard for us to believe right now comes through a series of leaked letters from the GFA for the argument of using too many substitutions, as well as some counterargumentative ones from Dingledine that say it isn’t a coincidence that Geektopia has had the best qualifying start in their history with these 5-sub adjustments, so here they are for you now.

Code: Select all: January 22, 6300 Dingledine Vice President, Geektopian Football Association 529 Cmuoti Rd. Homewood, GEE, 85897 Dear Dingledine, I’m writing to you because I want to know why your touchline celebrations are so unwarranted as well as the reason for your overuse of the substitution action. For instance, five players were swapped out in one qualification game, our rulebook says that’s too much, but we’ve been letting you off about it for many weeks during this competition because one time, when my business friend Craig looked at the highlights between Geektopia and Fluvannia, he told me that near the end of the video, you were holding your head in your hands as if to acknowledge the weight of what you’ve been doing and how this hurts our reputation as an association. I thought you had ditched that method entirely, but looking back at our success, you have still kept doing it. Since the Fluvannia match, you’ve done this five more times. I know we haven’t sent you a statement, but this felt like a direct violation. Looking to the future, there will be consequences for this type of behavior. You are on a type of parole where we will watch everything you do as a manager effective immediately. If you use more than three substitutes tomorrow the association will compile a fine of 70,000 bitcoins every game in which you’ve violated our policies, that will pile up to 420,000 bitcoins as of Matchday Six. I don’t know how much but you have right now, but I do know how much I pay you.

Code: Select all: Dear Vice President, I am doing fine in both of those compartments, friend. You and your goons at the GFA are willing to fine me because you have no taste. Regarding the touch line celebrations, pumping your fist around a little bit isn’t conflagration, and I think you realized that after your first paragraph, where you than dropped the subject entirely and didn’t mention it throughout your letter. Also, your rule book is shit and should be adjusted to get used to the times. My five substitute adjustments are giving more players breaks and big chances, when I was complained about for not doing it enough in the 86th World Cup qualifying! Oh yeah, you want to know why I was holding my head in my hands? We drew against a team that wasn’t doing enough like we used to in the last cycle, before the last cycle, and even before that. This five sub is working wonders, the players needed time to adjust with that change and that involves realizing that they’re not always going to play the full ninety minutes, chief. Me doing this five times isn’t a violation. Statistically, we’ve had the best five match start ever, and the funny thing is, you used “looking back at our success” as a transition, and still criticized my work. Regarding that last paragraph, it is true that you don’t know how much I have and vice versa, and that’s a good thing because in working at multiple jobs before you lot signed me I’ve accumulated cash flow that hasn’t deteriorated up until now and even still, it would t take much of a hit with a fine of 420,000 bits. You guys are fucking soft, this isn’t going to make a dent in our reputation. What, you just want me to play tame with a maximum of three subs per game, in an effort to increase trade gain with these nations and look “stable”? The institution needs a complete overhaul like the team has gone through, because this is a backwards mentality. Don’t threaten to do anything to me again, the whole country’s going to be taking shots at this administration with #COMPLETEOVERHAUL and y’all won’t have a chance to recover professionally unless that option does get taken for consideration. Another letter, and it’s being pissed on and sent into the furnace. Get well mentally before we talk again, Dingledine

--- » So, in review of those letters, it’s a pretty crushing thing to say from Dingledine, who looks like he doesn’t care about getting fined. One message being sent at a coordinated, professional level, and the other response sounding like a rambling drunken Scotsman in a boiler room being told to do work. I don’t even think the gaffer made a decent point in his reply, if the letter had any purpose at all. It’s clear he’s being backed up against the wall and he doesn’t like the feeling, but this is the professional grit of international management. I think he’ll pay the tax and probably make more more money doing what he’s doing.

--- » And for our last segment, Trollburinho’s going to take you to Geektopian Person of the Week, as well as Cat of the Week.

--- » Here we have Francis, who is the first person in our recorded history of the country to have been accidentally shot out of an escape pod on a ship right next to a black hole. He was believed to have gotten as close to the event horizon as possible from the momentum of the ejection, so scientists assume he’s pretty much in another universe. Hasn’t been seen since 2608, or three thousand six hundred ninety two years. Get well soon, buddy. Another tidbit, Federation of Space Exploration Geektopia (FSEG) has never wandered as close to a black hole as they did in in the year 2608 since.

--- » Look at that little mongrel! The mail note attached told us to mention that she likes to take baths and doesn’t like to be picked up. Huh. A cat that likes to take baths, you should euthanize the thing, I think. It’s not a good-natured cat.

Tioguldos 2-5 Geektopia <> N/A @ The N/A, Tioguldos
Goals: 14’ N/A (assisted by N/A), 16’ N/A (Own Goal) assisted by #33 Pitter), 41’ #18 Germain Sophie (assisted by #30 Ponti), 48’ #8 Matkowski (solo effort, assisted by nobody), 54’ #37 Foletta (assisted by #10 Nankervis), 61’ #6 Germaine Sophie (assisted by #20 Rinnert), 85’ N/A (assisted by N/A)

Substitutions: 46’ | #8 Matkowski in for replacement of #4 Livengood, 59’ | #27 Swenty in for replacement of #10 Nankervis, 64’ | #14 Sdao in for replacement of #23 Rebimbas

Player's Marks:
LERTORA: 7.0
RINNERT: 7.5
GERMAIN SOPHIE: 8.0
PITTER: 7.5
PONTI: 7.5
GERMAINE SOPHIE: 8.0
FOLETTA: 8.0
SHAMMAMI: 7.0
LIVENGOOD: 7.0 ⬇️
NANKERVIS: 7.5 ⬇️
REBIMBAS: 7.0 ⬇️
—————————————————
MATKOWSKI: 8.0 ⬆️
SDAO: 7.0 ⬆️
SWENTY: 7.0 ⬆️

Geektopia 4-2 Murphtannia <> 56,634 @ Isleshore Stadium, Isleshore, Geektopia
Goals: 30’ Alex Saunders (assisted by N/A), 32’ #37 Foletta (assisted by #19 Thorud), 35’ #37 Foletta (assisted by #18 Germain Sophie), 60’ George Murphy (assisted by Alex Saunders), 65’ #27 Swenty (assisted by #19 Thorud), 70’ #27 Swenty (assisted by #6 Germaine Sophie)

Substitutions: 34’ | #27 Swenty in for #14 Sdao, 59’ | #9 Shammami in for replacement of #37 Foletta, 73’ | #29 Diminno in for replacement of #7 Abdill, 82’ | #13 Julio in for replacement of #30 Ponti, 82’ | #4 Livengood in for replacement of #8 Matkowski

Player’s Marks:
LERTORA: 7.0
THORUD: 8.0
GERMAIN SOPHIE: 7.5
PITTER: 7.0
GERMAINE SOPHIE: 7.5
NANKERVIS: 7.0
SDAO: 7.0 ⬇️
ABDILL: 7.0 ⬇️
FOLETTA: 9.0 ⬇️
PONTI: 7.0 ⬇️
MATKOWSKI: 7.0 ⬇️
—————————————————
LIVENGOOD: 7.0 ⬆️
JULIO: 7.0 ⬆️
DIMINNO: 7.0 ⬆️
SHAMMAMI: 7.0 ⬆️
SWENTY: 9.0 ⬆️

by **Jeruselem** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 7:22 pm

Princess Katherine (naked) for Naked News Jeruselem at the studio!

Hello everyone, this is Princess Katherine for Naked News Jeruselem discussing the qualification of the World Cup 87.
As usual, we're having our dramas, pretty normal.
Match day 6 and 7 were ones we'd prefer to forget really.

Jeruselem were at home on match day 6 and hosted rivals Saltstead.
Saltstead won 2-0 exposing the defensive weaknesses in the team which were always there.
Definitely not one of our better games, probably one of our worst given we didn't even score a single goal either.
This was one game we really should have won and one which we really couldn't afford to lose either given Saltstead is one team who could challenge the top teams.
We were far from our capabilities on the day, maybe the team wasn't coping with the pressure knowing our position was far from secure.

Match day 6 had produced some other interesting results
Oberour Ar Moro lost to visitors Banija who won 3-1 to extend their winning streak to 6.
Thibaea at home crashed to another loss, this time it was Vangaziland winning 4-2 as the visitors. Thibaea falling off the pace suddenly.
New Lusitania and the Algarves brushed off visitors Melbergia 2-0 to continue their winning run.
Stevidia finally got points with a 3-0 win over the hapless The Belacian States.

Talking points of match day 6 was Jeruselem and Thibaea losing.
New Lusitania and Banija showing their ascendency too.

Match day 7, and Jeruselem had a tricky away game in Vangaziland.
We managed a 3-3 draw with the home team, mirroring the last away game which was also 3-3 draw against Melbergia.
I know conceding 3 goals isn't really a good result but we are still one of better scoring teams in the group.
It's just our defensive efforts is one point of contention.
Should have been a win but a positive sign with respect to our ability to score.
All we have to do is keep a few goals out.

Match day 7 had the top teams playing each other
The Belacian States lost again at home, this time to Oberour Ar Moro 1-0.
Melbergia got a bit of a shock when visiting Stevidia beat them 3-0, Stevidia were 2nd last.
High flying Saltstead after being Jeruselem, faced off with visitors New Lusitania and the Algarves. They went down 1-0 to the superior visiting team. Suits us.
Banija hosted Thibaea who had lost two in row, and Banija won 5-3 to make it 7 wins from 7.
We were kind of glad Banija and New Lusitania and the Algarves did win their games.

Yeah, 1 point from 2 games. Given we're approaching half-way the team are struggling to keep up with trend setters.
But we're still in the mix, and its not impossible to improve our position from here.

The group 13 table ... isn't great reading for us but it's not total disaster either.
Banija head the table with 21 points, no losses and no points dropped. A healthy +16 goal difference too.
New Lusitania and the Algarves on a winning run of 6 games on 18 points and the second best goal difference of +8.

Then there's a traffic jam with Saltstead 3rd and Thibaea 4th.
Both have a 4-0-3 record, note NO DRAWS with these guys. Both on 12 points, but very different teams in reality.
These teams lost on match day 7, lucky for us.

Jeruselem back down to 5th on 11 points with 3 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses.
Those two draws were costly I believe, they were winnable games.

Oberour Ar Moro in 6th on 10 points, they still pose a threat.
Vangaziland are 7th on 8 points, that's only 3 points less than us.
Stevidia have moved to 8th on 6 points.
Melbergia are now 9th on 4 points and The Belacian States still have no points.

So you have clear top 2, three teams fighting for 3rd and some teams just under them who could take advantage of any stumbles.
Thibaea have won 4 then lost 3.
Banija and New Lusitania and the Algarves are on a long winning streak.

Two more games, and yes ... against Banija and Thibaea.
These teams came out winning at the start, one seems invincible and other suddenly vulnerable.
These are really must win, we can't give cheap points to these rivals.

So how are doing? We could be doing a lot better, for sure.
We're doing enough to be competitive but not a direct threat.
That's not really good enough, but it could be worse.
Hey we're doing better than last cup anyway.

People have commented that Akai is a bit weird, even by our standards.
Yes, she's a bit of troll but then people still watch her probably because she's a troll.
And people love to watch her cooking ... if you call it cooking.
More food poisoning for entertainment.

Anyway, that's all from me. Akai would say, FAQ you ...

by **Hapilopper** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 8:43 pm

Capital Stadium, Hapilopper City
Match 6 of World Cup 87 Qualifiers: Hapilopper v. Norish Jeia Repa
Capital Stadium in Hapilopper City was traditionally one of the loudest venues in international football. Now, sure, most nations worth their salt will claim their nation has the loudest stadium, the most rabid fans, the best supporter’s section, you get the idea. But on this occasion, Nathan Ellis, suspended for three games for his cheap shot on Alexis Fotellis, had joined the Traveling Thrashers for this occasion. Sitting in the second row of Capital Stadium, Ellis, wearing his national team jersey, was easily spotted by everyone. And he was embraced by everyone.

WE GOT ELLIS! *clap clap clap/clap/clap*
WE GOT ELLIS! *clap clap clap/clap/clap*

It was just one of the many things the supporter’s section did in Capital Stadium on this evening. With the Haps enjoying some very good form lately, the stadium was jam-packed with 66,000 screaming fans to watch the Haps take on the team from Norish Jeia Repa, a team that Hapilopper knew very little about, aside from the fact the team had yet to take a victory in this qualifying effort. The Haps had high hopes for a big victory in this match, and any idea of dropping any points to this squad would be, simply put, a massive failure.

In the first half, the poor Norish Jeia Repan goalkeeper was situated right in front of the rowdy Traveling Thrashers, all of whom were bound and determined to screw with the guy’s head. Part of it was the horns and drums playing Team Hapilopper’s unofficial theme song. Another part of it was a rather rude chant directed at the unknown, nameless keeper in the 5th minute, a traditional chant usually shouted at the opposing team goalkeeper at that point.

YOU CAN’T SAVE SHIT! *clap clap clap/clap/clap*
YOU CAN’T SAVE SHIT! *clap clap clap/clap/clap*

With Nate suspended, the Haps chose to start Billy Hutson, a similarly physical player from the United Hampton Cities squad. Hutson had already made a name for himself for some rather nasty play – such as suplexing a West Hampton Sports Club striker a few weeks into the season. There had been some questions as to whether or not Billy was ready for the national team, but he had come under the tutelage of Ellis, who wanted a teammate that was just as vicious as he was. With Billy, Nate had that viciousness.

And that viciousness came out in the 19th minute, when Billy went after a Norish midfielder and slammed him to the hard artificial turf at Capital Stadium, the Hapiloppians went into hysterics. Nate, standing in his second row seat, laughed heartily as the large screen near the top of the stadium showed the poor Norish midfielder get picked up and slammed to the hard carpet. Everyone around him was laughing hysterically as well as the screens showed slow-motion replays of the rough hit.

Billy, perhaps not realizing who was in the second row, jogged over to the Traveling Thrashers and stretched his arms out to acknowledge their presence. The group cheered wildly and started chanting another vulgar chant.

HUTSON’S GONNA FUCK YOU UP!
HUTSON’S GONNA FUCK YOU UP!

But the Norish Jeia Repa team wasn’t laughing. The midfielder was noticeably limping off the pitch, and the team’s head coach was furious at both the cheap shot and at the showboating from the young Hapiloppian defender. Some of the players shouted some obscenities at the brash young Hapiloppian midfielder, who responded by shouting a few obscenities back, but even more so by reminding them of their place in the group.

“YOU’RE LAST PLACE!” Billy shouted. “If you were someone like Vdara or Baker Park, I’d listen. But who the fuck are you?!”

Harsh words, to be sure, but it was a reminder that Billy Hutson – and the rest of Team Hapilopper – was unrepentant for their attitude. They were here to raise some hell and kick some ass and they didn’t care who they stepped on to get the job done. It was a good attitude to have as they tried to return to form, the kind of form they had when they were starting out.

But that form had to have come with some goals. And Ernie Stevenson was more than happy to deliver. In the 28th minute, Beautiful Bobby got the ball from a Norish midfielder and started sending it up the pitch, towards the rowdy Traveling Thrashers. Seeing a handful of Norish defenders waiting for him, he sent it to Ernie, who wormed his way past any defenders. He kicked the ball as hard as he could and sent it past the Norish goalkeeper and into the back of the net.

The fans in Capital Stadium were delirious with joy and Ernie responded by rushing towards the stands. He lept into the waiting arms of several of the crazies at Capital Stadium, who hugged him and slapped his back about as heartily as possible. It was the start of a new tradition for Hapiloppian goal scorers – the “Stevenson Leap”¹, as it became known, became a fixture of goal scoring celebrations for Team Hapilopper moving forward.

Ernie looked back, seeing the sea of people embracing him, and to his surprise, spotted Nate Ellis, beer in hand, slapping his back. When he jumped off the ledge to get back to the pitch, he pointed right to his teammate and gestured that goal was for him.

“NEXT ONE’S FOR YOU TOO, ELLIS!” Ernie shouted.

That goal came exactly one minute later as play resumed. Claire Randall moved her way past Norish defenders, and sent the ball back to Ernie. Responding to the pass, Ernie bicycle-kicked the ball towards goal and didn’t entirely see what happened as he landed face-first on the artificial turf. The wild cheering from the 66,000 plus on hand told him what happened.

Kind of.

The ball was shot with such force that it took the Norish keeper off guard. The ball didn’t go past him – it went through him. More specifically, the ball hit the keeper right in the face, knocked him to the turf, and the ball kept going into the back of the net. When Ernie got up, he saw he had accidentally KO’d the keeper and rushed over to make sure he was OK, before making his way back to the rowdy Traveling Thrashers to perform another “Stevenson Leap.”

As he sat on the ledge of the stadium, the fans grabbing a hold of him, he looked up to see the replay on the video board near the top of Capital Stadium to see the shot hit the poor keeper right between the eyes, sending him double-over-backwards to the turf. The fans at Capital Stadium, watching the replay, responded with an audible groan, similar to the way they would if they had watched a power punch from a heavyweight boxer make contact with his opponent’s face. The replay, and the ensuing reaction, sent Ernie into hysterics. Nate, standing next to Ernie, looked at his teammate and asked if the face shot was meant for him.

“Sure, why not?” Ernie struggled to say, howling with laughter.

And unfortunately, it was that hysterics that probably kept him from scoring more on the Norish team. The Haps wound up winning 2-1, but the headlines from the match wasn’t the Stevenson Leap nor was it Ernie’s two goals or Billy Hutson’s cheap shot on the Norish midfielder. It was that poor Norish goalkeeper taking the ball to the face and flipping backwards towards the turf inside the net.

“That’s GOTTA HURT!” one obnoxious sports commentator exclaimed upon reviewing the footage. “I think we’ve found our new ‘Agony of Defeat’ video!”²

OOC NOTES:
1 - Think of the Lambeau Leap, the traditional celebration of the Green Bay Packers.
2 - People of a certain age will recall ABC's Wide World of Sports and the ski jumper getting wrecked in the intro of the show every single week. That accident represented the "Agony of Defeat" every week.

by **Busoga Islands** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 8:44 pm

The Busoga Chronicle
The Islands #1 News Source!

Well earned point in Concord Heights leaves the Islanders feeling good about their chances

Busoga Islanders celebrate equalizer in front of their visiting supporters against Cassadaigua in their World Cup 87 Qualifier

CONCORD HEIGHTS, CASSADAIGUA- The Islamic Republic had a tough matchup against Cassadaigua. The Fillies, of course, are the dictionary definition of excellent- two-time world champions, #4 in the KPB rankings, and one of a few favorites to not only qualify with ease, but to win the entire World Cup itself. We, on the other hand, are simply trying to climb up the rankings, and if things fall in the right direction, do our best to work towards World Cup Qualification.

Some groups are tighter than others. Group 13, for example- Banija and New Lusitania seem to be running away with the group, with 6 points separating 2nd place New Lusitania from a heap of teams in third place, and an unblemished Banijan team three points ahead of them. Group 15, the Independent Athletes of Quebec and Ko-oren both have 19 points, joint tied for first place and 5 points beyond whoever is in third place. Then, we look at our jumbo of a group. We entered this pair of Matchdays a point behind Cassadaigua, sitting with 12 points, in second place. And after this pair of matchdays, there is one point separating 4th and 2nd.

This will be a tight race all the way to the end. And that is the background for the Cassadaigua. Cassadaigua entering the match, wanting to do what they can to pull away from the rest of the group, and let us fight for second place. And then, the Busoga Islands, our own national team, trying to get what would be a stunning point against Cassadaigua. This point would be an extremely valuable one- it'd basically be an extra point in the table, as Cassadaigua is that good of a national team, that surely they'll be taking maximum points among Busoga's other competitors for second place.

Of course, it is still too early to take a serious look at the table- teams may appear to start separating themselves, but we're still at the point where a good pair of Matchdays means that your national team is right back in the hunt. Stephanie Sweeney, in front of her home fans, would line up this squad to try and be in a position to take the game to the Busoga Islanders. Dagan Airways Stadium is an intimidating environment- over 80,000 fans, dressed in pink, it is one of the most unique environments in the wide world of World Cup Qualifying. But although they dominated the early proceedings, it would be us who would score first.

We sure looked as if we would bend first. Mustafa Taal was forced into making repeated saves, and it sure looked as if the opposition would score. But a crucial error by the hosts saw the Islanders blitz down the field in an almost perfect counter-attack. This starting lineup was fresh, as Donnell has rotated the starting lineup for Matchdays 4 & 5. A bad pass by Morgan Rosenblatt found Jay Khano, and it immediately turned into counter-attack mode for the Islander. He passed the ball to Cicek Aga, who would play a perfect long ball to Upanshu Paramartha, who was sprinting down the right sideline like he was 10 years younger. He launched a perfect ground cross to Birla. She received the ball, and pass it over once more, to the captain, Kamu Jacobs. He slammed the ball home hard with his left foot first time, as the crowd grew silent as the Islanders celebrated their stunning lead on their first shot of the game.

Cassadaigua would come back down the field, however. They were dominating the game for a reason. A team with this much talent- you can't allow them to simply get opportunities in your final third. Only a few minutes after the Islanders had taken the lead, they would concede an equalizer to the hosts, as familiar face Meghan Walcott broke through the defense and struck home in the 27th minute. It was 1-1, and Mustafa Taal had to make a few more important saves. The two teams would go into the half level at 1 goal a piece, but Cassadaigua was feeling confident- most people felt as if they'd break down the door of the Islander defense again.

Full credit to the Busoga Islands for how long they held out in the second half. Well timed deflections by defenders, quality saves by Mustafa Taal, and most importantly, he ensured that there would be no rebound that would fly out of his hands. But in the 72nd minute, the hosts were finally able to take their first lead of the night. The captain, Rachel Schanke, would score the second goal. It was a great give and go- Jinja City striker Madison McClain releasing a perfect give & go through ball to Rachel Schanke, who was in on goal. With composure and confidence, with Hassan Thiaw draped on her back and Mustafa Taal quickly closing down the angle, the captain showed her skill by chipping the ball over Taal's head into the back of the net. It was a degree of very high difficulty- truly a beautiful goal.

Bethany Donnell chose to be aggressive here, and pursue the point. Yengi Uzer came onto the pitch to play right wing, while Servet Ornet came onto the pitch to play in the central striker position. Fresh energy up top. A key thing- Busoga Islander teams have actually fared quite well in the past against top seeds, although it is usually by going up early and holding on for dear life late. Is this team built to chase a point like this? Not really, but yet this is the position we found ourselves in. And we were able to put Stephanie Sweeney's side on their back heels.

In the 1st minute of stoppage time(out of 4 given), we were given a great opportunity via a corner kick. Everybody was up- even the goalkeeper. A high risk manuever, considering conceding on the counter could hurt the goal differential. "I'm not worried about the table in the first half of Qualifying." Bethany Donnell told reporters, when asked about the moment. "I'm all about getting the points you can now, and then we'll worry about where we are on the table when we get towards the business end of World Cup Qualifying." And her risk paid off. Kamu Jacobs delivered a beautiful cross, Gassama's man marker slipped as Gassama jumped, giving him a free kick. The Workers Union left back did not miss, as he headed home powerfully into the back of the net.

The Islanders celebrated the goal, with the away visiting fans thrilled at the prospect of a point against Cassadaigua. A few minutes later, the final whistle blew, and the point was earned. 2-2 on the day. Did Cassadaigua deserve three points? Probably. But who cares? A point earned is a point earned, and we find ourselves right in the thick of things. We came back home after this one and drew 1-1 with Flavovespia, so this leaves with an interesting pair of games before the Mid-Qualifying break. Matchday 8, we'll pay a visit to 259th ranked Muralos, who are 3-4 and in 7th place. We're slight favorites to earn three points, but anything can happen in a road World Cup Qualifier. Then, of course, we have Havynwilde at home on Matchday 9, for a match that frankly is a tossup- could seriously go either way. We'll want a lot of points, and we'll see where we stand at the halfway point when it arrives.

by **Chromatika** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:01 pm

Matchay 6: Chromatika 3-0 ZSeparatists @ Z'ai'ai Field, Z'ai'ai, Mountain District
CMT: Hauser '18, Gainsbourg '41, Andisori, K. '77; ZSP: None.
Starting XI: Descombes; Watt - Odling - Ingram - Nocturne; Kelly (C) - Kim, M.S. - Reynolds; Hauser; Gainsbourg - Toussaint.
Substitutes: Croix-Pierre -> Reynolds ('52), Andisori, K. -> Toussaint ('71), Rowles -> Nocturne ('77)
Matchday 7: Freechi 2-3 Chromatika
FRE: Franzson '22, Achebe '80; CMT: Reynolds '50, Kelly '76, Hauser '80
Starting XI: Descombes; Watt - Odling - Ingram - Nocturne; Kelly (C) - Kim, M.S. - Reynolds; Hauser; Gainsbourg - Toussaint.
Substitutes: Ken -> Odling ('62), Larriet-Cortes -> Kim, M.S. ('70), Fillar, B. -> Hauser ('81)

When Haley Hauser had declared her intent to leave Chromatik, the press had had a field day.

Why did you not go abroad from the CCFA? Asked some. Well, that would be because she wanted to actually experience the Red League, play with the likes of Caszely, Kogler, and Mekeus, and then see what to do next.

Why not stay in the Red League? Well, that would be because the AOCAF had gone far better than she'd hoped for, and the CCF had absolutely taken a notice of her. With the likes of Mi-Jung Kim and Mimi Kuzami still behind Hermaeus Mora, she needed to make a move fast to get abroad. If she could make a living playing for the Anomalies, she absolutely would.

But... What about the team? Jannick Kontiola had met with her and wished her the best of luck, understanding her position. She'd dotted her i's and crossed her t's. It was her choice.

When Haley Hauser was signed by Falourr - her choice, again, over Nepharan side Vermillion Rage - people couldn't believe it. Some said it was because Silian Parker was head of Falourr. Others said that Falourr was reaching.

Then...

At Mavinet. Forty-first minute.
Vs. Arklanda. Eightieth minute.
Vs. ZSeparatists. Eighteenth minute.
At Freechi. Ninth minute.

Four games, four goals. The first to tie a game against the third seed, the second to wrap up a three-goal victory, the third to set the tone, the fourth to wrap up a two-goal comeback. Making her one of the most valuable members through those four games.

After that, the pundits left her alone.

There will always be naysayers and doubters. However, her decisions will be hers, and nobody will say otherwise.

World Cup 87 Qualifiers, Part 5: The Skilled

Ever since the first democratic election of Chromatika, The Enlightened had been on a journey of their own. They'd let go of their connection with each other at a grand level, instead limiting themselves to localized connections as needed. It had been difficult for a few, as individualism was strange, and some people dealt with it better than others. There had been issues, but...

As The Hope read her email - she indulged herself the connection to Chromatika once a week - a chill ran down her spine.

The Light? She'd not heard of an Enlightened by that name. But she wasn't the best at knowing members of The Enlightened. Her friend The Skilled would, though.

She held up a hand and picked up a device that served as their communicators.

"Skilled? Hope here. We need to talk. Do you know of someone called The Light?"

The Skilled, on the other hand, was busy reading one of the ancient scrolls of The Enlightened. It turned out to be that before The Three took power, the collectivistic hivemind was not a part of their history at all.

So much has been lost, he thought.

Then, his phone rang, and he heard the question. A chill ran down his spine.

"The Light? Why, yes, I have. He used to be one of my confidents in my past life... He's been living a different life as of late after the change. Why do you ask?"

"Keira Andisori asked. Apparently, a Chromatik human is missing, and it is rumored that she was in contact with The Light," answered The Hope.

"Ah... May I ask you for a favor, my friend?" The Skilled's voice fell a few octaves.

"Yes?" The Hope answered.

"Let me look into this, and get it taken care of. I'll let you know when it's done," his voice was a even, but dangerous.

The Hope signed audibly, but, after a beat, replied:

"You have 24 hours, our time. After that... I can't promise anything. For you, or for them."

After that, The Hope hung up.

The Skilled stood up and started to get dressed. He had a flight to take.

Chromatik Team for WC Qualifying - Matchday 8 vs. Smosh Games @ Z'ai'ai Field, Z'ai'ai, Mountain District and Matchday 9 @ Logano Fraza
Projected Starting XI: Alexander; Watt - Baugh - Ingram - Rowles; Humphreys - Larriet-Cortes - Croix-Pierre (C); Fillar, B.; Non - Thibodeaux.
Reserves: Fillar, J.; Chapman, Will, Odling, Austic; Victoriane, Zuniga, Kuznetsov; Kim, M.J., Andisori, K., Andisori, B., Vidal.

by **Sylestone** » Mon Jan 18, 2021 9:50 pm

Matchday Six
BLOUMAN EMPIRE - Another game, another loss for the Sylestoneans. They now have three in a row and the Sentients' form is dropping drastically. This time it was 2-1 away from home in the Blouman Empire and despite the opposition being ranked above them, the loss was still disappointing. It means that to keep their hopes alive, Sylestone will have to win all three of their next three games to stay in the hunt. Whether they can? Doubtful.
Sylestone kicked off, but Bloumany immediately took it off them and, with a series of perfect passes, began moving towards the Brick Wall in goals. Midfielder John Miller had the ball when he weaved past the Bar Stool before shooting at goal. It was a good shot, but it simply didn't curve enough as it missed the goals by about a foot.
Bloumany had another chance from a corner in the 9th minute, but amongst all the chaos as the Empire's players desperately tried to kick the ball into the net, the Dishwasher was fouled and Sylestone were awarded a free-kick.
Despite this, the Sentients remained on the back foot as Bloumany continued to attempt to press home their advantage, not letting Sylestone have a single shot at goal. The Mixer and Tumble Dryer began getting frustrated at their sides' defenders, who were just unable to stop the Blouman forwards from honing in on the goals.
But they managed to keep them out. At least, until the 31st minute, when Paul Credab crossed a ball in from the left-wing to Luke Cousins in the box. Cousins shot at the Brick Wall, who shot it back at him. It rebounded from the striker's head, and yes, you guessed it. Into the bottom corner of the goal. After such good play by the Bloumans, only pure luck could put them in the lead. Typical gods.
At least the Mixer and Tumble Dryer were happy. They got to touch the ball for the first time since they kicked off. And here they were, kicking off again. This time they got luckier and kept the majority of the possession before half-time although they were unable to score.
Soon after half time, the Mixer suffered a bit of an injury and the AC Vent came on to replace him. Although accidental, the swap worked. The Sylestonean defenders began playing the ball around between them before the Sofa shot it up to the Tumble Dryer, who flicked it on to the AC Vent, who shot for goal. It hit the bottom of the crossbar and dribbled into the back of the net. Sylestone had equalised in the 57th minute and they had fought their way back into the game.
But the lead only lasted five minutes as Bloumany's forward Luke Cousins was given a direct free kick from ten metres outside of the penalty area. He shot it, and with a beautiful curving ball, helped it into the back of the net, past the Brick Wall. Bloumany were 2-1 up and back on top.
The Sylestone forward line continued to press but just couldn't make a breakthrough. Their only real opportunity came in the 81st minute, but even still, it was only a quarter-chance if you're being nice. So the game ended, with Sylestone still in arrears by 1 goal. They were now in real strife with a record of 2-1-3, but still in with a chance. A small one.

BLOUMAN EMPIRE
Cousins 31', 62'

SYLESTONE - 1
AC Vent 57'

Matchday Seven
AVONDALE, SYLESTONE - Finally. Just when it seemed that the Sentients had forgotten to win, they won. Not convincingly, but they still got the result. Thank fucking god. Oops, forgot I wasn't allowed to fucking swear! Oh well, on we go. Today we were playing the Ponyville Separatists of Twicetagrian Canterlot Territories, but most people just call them PSTCT because they can't be ~~fucked~~, sorry, bothered to write their full name. I guess we'll just have to go along with it.
The Mixer, recovering successfully from his injury, immediately showed the ponies of PSTCT why Sylestone is so mighty. He weaved between their "defenders" and had a straightforward shot at goal. Typically, he scored. He never misses, does he?
The early goal forced PSTCT to regroup, but once again they were too focussed on scoring on their own. When Sylestone were awarded a corner kick, only one opposition player coming to defend, the others not bothered to. So typically, when the Fridge kicked it to the Bar Stool, he shot it past their temporary goalkeeper and into the goal. The crowd cheered, for their side had scored twice within the first five minutes.
But PSTCT wasn't done yet. They actually decided to play tactically, for the first time ever. And it worked.
In the 33rd minute, after carefully passing the ball around near the halfway mark, Sluttershy booted the ball from forty metres out at the goal. Somehow, it was on target and a very surprised Brick Wall nearly let it in. It rebounded and went to Rarihoe, who also shot. This time, the Brick Wall wasn't so lucky. He misjudged the trajectory of the ball and instead of going onto the Dishwasher like was planned, it hit the edge and bounced into the goal, pulling PSTCT back a goal.
PSTCT equalised nine minutes later when Sluttershy converted a cross in from Skye High, bringing the score to 2-2 on the verge of half-time. We were all set for a thrilling game.
Straight after half-time, Sylestone had an opportunity to take the lead, but the Fridge misdirected his kick, which went a couple of feet over the top of the goal. But he didn't despair for long, as ten minutes later, an almost identical situation occurred. Except in this parallel universe, the goal actually went in and Sylestone took the lead.
They managed to keep it, too. It might have been by the skin of their teeth as PSTCT fought to equalise, but the Sentients' defence held firm. When the referee blew the whistle, every Sylestonean watching the game breathed a sigh of relief. Their side had won. They might still only be in sixth, but they were four points clear of Crystalline Caverns in seventh and with two more possible wins to come.

SYLESTONE- 3
Mixer 1'
Bar Stool 5'
Fridge 62'

PSTCT - 2
Rarihoe 33'
Sluttershy 42'

by **Acastanha** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 12:15 am

An Achievement Indeed

This edition is the first attempt of Acastanha in international stage. Starting by entering 74th Baptism of Fire and then 87th World Cup. They clumsily entering Baptism of Fire without any set of goal. Unfortunately, the finished second to last in their respected group with only 1 win against Magnecia and Galmencia who finished last. Then they enter World Cup. Drawn into Group 14, as newcomer they are not having any goals.

"It is our first edition in World Cup. Even though we have much experience at regional level but World Cup is in another level. A good group run will be a great accomplishment for us," says Jorge Garbano, Acastanha manager.

Their first match was a disaster. Entertain Astograth at Estádio Nacional de Arra, the team was crushed by 0-2. Their second match was also ended in a heavy 2-5 lost against Mriin. Their first point came from their third match against Fjorsz which they entertain at Estádio Estadual de Pálidas. A 1-1 draw give them one point although they were still at the bottom of the group. They continued their losing habit after being defeated by Squornshelous by 1-3 in their fourth match. And a 2-2 draw against The H Corporation in their fifth match makes them up one place in the group table. They made another draw against Rangers FC in their sixth match. In 7th match at their home ground, Acastanha make their history after defeated United Australasian Commonwealth with a narrow 1 goal to achieve their first win and first 3 points. The result catapult their position into 7th place with 6 points. A result which makes the fans goes crazy.

Aside from World Cup story, Acastanhada football fans are also overjoyed by the news that they got from IFCF competition. In that world clubs competition, 1 Acastanhada club is successfully entered Group Stage in their first submission into the competition. It is Sporting Arrachai who made such a history. As the winner of Liga Acastanhada de Campeonato, Sporting Arrachai is entered as Acastanhada IFCF Champion's League entry. They made a good start by crushing Heldingen 1919 from Recuecn with aggregate goals of 4-1. In the second preliminary round, they were met Baker Park's club, Lierfield FC and successfully defeated them with 3-1 aggregate. Continued their success, Sporting Arrachai luckily advance from third preliminary round after having a larger away goals from Poafmersian, Dalaris City. But they have to defeat by Ko-oren club, Schemerdrecht SVV in play off round which makes them being transfer to Challenger's Cup event. The transfer make them automatically enter in Group Stage of Challenger's Cup. In the Group Stage, Sporting Arrachai is drawn into Group J together with North Hall (Brenecia), Sporting Esper (Zwangzung) and Gladerial United (Valanora).

On the other hand, another Acastanha club might made another history. Samaul FC., the winner of Segunda Liga are successfully advance into play of round of IFCF Liga B Champions Trophy. They are defeating FKP Ottowić County from Zeta Reka & Hügeltaldom with 3-1 aggregate. In play off round, they will meet North Chamberley from Sylestone. All of these achievement have increase the popularity of football in Acastanha as one of the most popular sports in the country.

by **Electrum** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 1:20 am

The Turnip: An Investigation Into World Cup 85
by Sweet-T, citizen journalist

Over the past few days, months, years, æons, The Turnip has repeatedly raised concerns about Farfadillis hosting World Cup 85. How could a country so devoid of anything be asked to host such a prestigious tournament? Who allowed Farfadillis to join the pantheon of nations in the Executive World Cup Committee, a club of highly elite nations who have had the exclusive privilege of hosting a World Cup, boasting such prominent names like the Free Republics and Electrum?

This is a story of corruption of the highest order, and The Turnip will get to the bottom of it in just one article. That's right, we respect you so much that we're not going to drag out an investigation over two, possibly three articles. We would never do such a thing, and certainly not under chief-editor-in-chief Billiam Maskey's watch as well.

Why Farfadillis was unsuitable as a host for World Cup 85
The country as a whole doesn't even make much sense, they have a barely functioning quasi-government, the Farfadillians call themselves "Outlandish" in their nation's title, and their players names are so unreadable that they have pronunciation guides which are just as unreadable. The Farves' current roster says we should be pronouncing the player Ígnîgo Çí Xôrí's name as /ˈignjăgo t͡si ʃoăˈɾi/ but come on, unless you're a massive nerd, you're going to have no idea what that long s sounds like (apparently it is an integal, whatever that means) or why the 'a' has to act all fancy by balancing a bowl on its head. We are not nerds, we are cool people, we don't have the time to waste learning how to read a language that lets us pronounce how to read other languages, and we sure as hell don't care about using the correct demonyms. And, this is not even mentioning the fact that when they bid for the World Cup, and during much of the World Cup tournament, the Farfadillis flag was just a plain black flag - what a huge red flag to anyone who bothered to pay attention.

And besides, how can a football federation get more of its shit together compared to the national Farvish government? The Farfs must realise that their national football federation must have pulled a lot of strings (read: bribes) to get everything working, despite the lack of a government. And bribery is a huge no-no, just like drugs, sex and alcohol, don't do them kids.

Why the World Cup Committee voted for Farfadillis

In so many words, corruption. What else can explain it? It's unfathomable that there could be any other explanation for it. And it wasn't helped by the fact that Mriin was their bidding partner -- it was just an added bonus that there was a half probability that they would be playing for Mriin. After all, everyone would want the opportunity to play in one of the most perfect nations across the multiverse, even if it meant a half chance of playing on what is literally hell on earth. Ah, just thinking about Mriin makes me relax so much.

And of those that did vote for the bid, they had the added side benefit of receiving benefits from Farfadillis, much like how ordering fish and chips at the local chippery gives you the side benefit of you catching up on last week's headlines because the fish and chips are wrapped inside last week's newspaper. The bribery was self evident all throughout the World Cup -- how else could you explain Electrum's failure to qualify into the World Cup proper? Or that the Free Republics won the World Cup? Or the fact that they inexplicably called the traditional "Round of 16" the "Eighthfinals"? So many questionable decisions, all of which can be explained by the Farfians meddling in their World Cup. They bribed the referees against the Electrumite team and for the Republicans. They had a poor grasp of English. It is all Farfadillis. For the record, Mriin should not be blamed for any of this, we love you Mriin so very much.

Conclusion

The World Cup Committee must reform its processes. It is clear that voting will no longer give the best hosts. The World Cup Committee should just blindfold bidding representatives to see who can best pin the tail on the donkey, or who can make the most elegant football dives. And, it should immediately remove the Farfa Dills from the Executive World Cup Committee. Only then will the universe's balance will be restored.

For the record, we did contact the Farce to write this article. All we were met with was name-calling (them calling us the "Turdip") and confusion (the FFFF person we spoke to said that "[our interview with them] has been confusing").

Have you ever heard any other whispers of corruption or conspiracy surrounding the World Cup? If so, please send us a private telegram with more information.

by **Blouman Empire** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 3:12 am

THE EMPIRE TIMES

Two Goals Enough To Secure A Win

The Bouman Empire saw their third win of the qualifiers as a Luke Cousins free kick held off a stubborn Sylestone. Cousins – his second goal of the game- curled the ball into the top cop corner into the bottom corner to punish Dish Washer’s clip on Paul Credab and hand the Eagles a much needed win for their campaign.

AC Vent’s powerful shot coming off the crossbar had deservedly drawn Sylestone level, cancelling out Cousins’ first-half header for the hosts. But the free kick given to Cousins was enough to secure the win and keep within touch of the group leaders. The visiting side was perhaps unfortunate not to have left Bloumany with at least a point from a thoroughly entertaining game but they also needed several fine saves from Brick Wall to keep them in it. After Cousins' free kick put the Eagles back in front, Wall superbly tipped a stinging 25-yarder from Credab on to the crossbar as well as denying Cousin his hattrick. Wall’s counterpart Henry Polinoir was just as busy, with a late save from Mixer's long-range strike preserving the points.

Parry's side displayed their ability to grind out points in the past and have also shown a willingness to go toe-to-toe with teams who are happy to open up the game and, while this was not quite the shootout of the 5-2 win over Simulland, it was just as easy on the eye. A number of fluid first-half moves produced chances before John Miller’s opening shot as the F saw a curler fall inches short of the goal, while Ryan Hunter and Ty Freltron were narrowly off target with similar efforts. Cousins found himself in space to have an attempt in goal from Paul Credab’s shot, with Wall managing to save it, however, the rebound off the keeper went straight to Cousin’s head who was able to header it into the goal. While Washer was unfortunate to be penalised for what might have been an accidental clip on Credab, there was enough contact for the penalty to be given and Cousins continued his excellent record from the spot.

The Eagles were 8 points behind 1st place before the match and still are, however, the win does push them up one place and gives the team more confidence after their two earlier losses. While Sylestone were ultimately outgunned by their hosts, their brave display was further evidence of the progress the side have made on the international stage. They held their own in the first half, causing The Eagles a number of problems down the flanks, with playmaker Stove prompting and probing to show why the Parry had named him as one player to shut out in a pre-match press conference. But they were even more impressive in the early stages of the second period, particular after Vent was substituted on. A quick pass from Sofa to Dryer with a fancy flick onto Vent allowed Vent to bury the equaliser. The free kick awarded to the Eagles came very much in the ascendancy of Stylestone and the goal seemed to take the wind out of the sail managing only one more -which was close- in the second half.

The Eagles will next play North Alezia as they continue to fight to remain within striking distance of the group leaders.

THE EMPIRE TIMES

Dominant Performance Brings Home Three Points

The Eagles moved within six points of the 1st place in their World Cup qualifying group in with a comfortable win over a disappointing North Alezia side. The home side, who were well below par particularly in the first half are now 9th in the group having lost 6 of the seven games and only sit above bottom spot courtesy of having conceded less goals.

Luke Cousins opened the scoring for the vistiors with a low drive into the bottom right corner. While North Alezia rallied and levelled via their strikers superb volley into the same corner, The Eagles quickly wrestled back control of the game. Cousins purposeful run down the right gave Ty Frelton a tap-in. Cousins added his second - and Bloumany’s third - from a penalty after the North Alezia’s keeper fouled Ryan Hunter after miscontrolling a backpass.

It was a difficult evening for North Alezia, the pace and power of Cousins and Hunter caused them problems throughout and two early misjudgements by the North Alezia keeper seemed to spark a nervousness in front of him. He ought to have been punished after allowing Hunter to charge down an attempted clearance in the opening minutes and was also lucky to escape without conceding moments later - charging out of his area and watching as Hunter skipped clear of him. A misplaced pass out of defence put further pressure on the home side, who were grateful to see Paul Credab skew wide from a good position just before the break. There were moments of promise for North Alezia in attack. A whizzing drive forced a fine save from Henry Polinoir, who also did well to tip a header from a marvelous cross to safety. While North Alezia played with considerably more intensity in the second half and scored a superb goal, their confidence appeared to vanish when Frelton re-established the Eagle’s lead. The home keeper’s final error just compounded a dreadful night and their pointless start.

The Eagles had so far won 3 of the 6 matches apart from a 20-minute spell after the break there was enough in what was an otherwise commanding performance to impress team manager Lewis Parry. Cousins has now scored in every appearance he has made so far in this campaign and is arguably the team’s most valuable player for Parry. John Miller scheming was a feature of the game as well, with the midfielder making more passes than any other Blouman player and driving his side forward at every opportunity.

Thanks to Quebec dropping points with a draw to Legalese the Eagles are now only 6 points behind first place Ko-oren. The team will be looking to continue to claw back the deficit as they host Legalese. While Legalese may be behind the Eagles they are also the only team to have not lost to Quebec and will no doubt be looking to continue their strong performance and shut out Cousins from scoring when the two sides meet.

by **Frestovenia** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 3:59 am

Frestovenia 1 - 2 Wreckeria
@Asvard Stadium, Asvard

Goals: Gajetser 13' Justice 57' Tindall 75'
Cards: X Palrikken 30' X Murphy 72' X Brewster 90+7'

The national team of Wreckeria was the sixth opponent of Frestovenia in the qualifiers for the 87th World Cup. The match started with controlled play and passing by Wreckeria. They took full control in the first minutes of this clash and the statistics didn't lie. 72 percent Wreckeria against 28 for Frestovenia. In the 13th minute, Frestovenia surprisingly took the lead with a goal by forward Tonas Gajetser. He received a brilliant pass and sent a long-range shot past the helpless goalkeeper. What a stunning goal there by the Frestovenians! 1-0 in favor of the home side. The score on the scoreboard remained the same at half time. In the 57th minute, Wreckeria came alongside the Frestovenians and scored the equalizer. Midfielder Sig Justice scored the goal as he slams it into the back of the net. Not much is happening, untill the 75th minute. Claude Tindall makes it 2-1 for the team from Wreckeria. He fired his shot from close range into the goal. With only 15 minutes left on the board, Frestovenia had to face its fourth defeat. Over and out here in Asvard.

Darmen 2 - 0 Frestovenia
@Warren Park, Chuckio

Goals: Tobias 16' Tremblay 52'
Cards: X Berdere 4' X Tobias 75' X Norvatse 82'

After a disappointing 1-2 loss against Wreckeria, it was time to play against the team of Darmen. In the early stages of this match, it was the team of Frestovenia that came close to open the score. Olaf Artvikker had a goal ruled out for offside. A little later it was Darmen to find the net first. Avidan Tobias made the goal, his close-range header flies past the keeper into the left side of the Frestovenian goal. Darmen 1-0 up! At the end of the first half, Darmen had two more chances to double their lead. One shot went towards the left side of the goal, but Ormut the goalkeeper of Frestovenia was ready and made an amazing save, a couple of minutes later he was good for another brilliant save. In the second half the team of Darmen did it and doubled their lead. Tremblay scored the goal for the men in green. His shot went into the top right corner. 2-0 for the team playing at home ground. Somewhere in the final minutes of this match, Frestovenia came very close to come one goal back. Rot Norvatse unleashed a powerful shot from the edge of the penalty area of Darmen. The goalkeeper did well to stop it going into the bottom left corner. And that everything for today. No more action on the field as the referee blows his whistle for the final time. Frestovenia lost another match and returns back home with null points. Instead, Darmen did a great jop and sees themselves in third place in this group, just behind Kelssek and the unbeaten team of Valanora.

Tomorrow Frestovenia will play two qualifying matches against Jabal Akhdar and Valanora. That first one will be a true thriller. A big chance for Frestovenia to collect more points. Jabal Akhdar is in 7th position just above Frestovenia with 7 points, which's only one point more than Frestovenia has. Looking at the standings we see that Valanora the opponent of tomorrow is in the lead with maximum points 21 out of 7 matches, followed by Kelssek (18 points) and Darmen (15 points). Wreckeria and Squidroidia are still competing in this group with respectively 13 and 12 points. So far Barunia disappoints having 9 points out of 7 matches. Frestovenia now in 8th position and the Tornado Queendom and Icecliff completes group 11. With Icecliff still on zero points. So that's everything for today.

X Frestovenia 2 - 0 Tornado Queendom
X Frestovenia 8 - 2 Icecliff
X Barunia 6 - 3 Frestovenia
X Frestovenia 1 - 2 Kelssek
X Squidroidia 3 - 1 Frestovenia
X Frestovenia 1 - 2 Wreckeria
X Darmen 2 - 0 Frestovenia
X Frestovenia v Jabal Akhdar
X Valanora v Frestovenia
X Tornado Queendom v Frestovenia
X Icecliff v Frestovenia
X Frestovenia v Barunia
X Kelssek v Frestovenia
X Frestovenia v Squidroidia
X Wreckeria v Frestovenia
X Frestovenia v Darmen
X Jabal Akhdar v Frestovenia
X Frestovenia v Valanora
Upcoming matches

Frestovenia v Jabal Akhdar
@Asvard Stadium, Asvard

Valanora v Frestovenia
@Hatire Memorial, Capri

by **Sharktail** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 4:22 am

SHARKTAIL POST EP 42
TO THE TOP?

What an enjoyable moment for Sharktail NT as the continue their good performance, record 4 streak win after defeating Koniglich Wasserstein and Hafamarimet. A moment to be remembered by all fan of Sharktail. It still unclear how long will it last, let just enjoy it for the moment.

Starting from matchday 4 until 7, Sharktail only allowed 1 goal and scoring 10 goal. In just short time, this team totally changed and well played both in defence and attacking. The one that have been focused ofcourse David. 4 game, 3 CS with only one goal allowed, what a splendid performance. Call up to national team as backup, now he will remain as main goalkeeper. There are no reason for Sahami to pull him out from main line up. It may be still early, but Zeehad may have to accept, he now will only keep the number 1 jersey but he not the number 1 anymore. David step up his game. As far as he in national team, he always being a number two. Even when he being good when he okay, he never have chance to get the number 1. He is outshine by younger player, even by youngster. But now, he show who he really is. It like he said to manager and other player 'Dont Judge the book by it's cover'. Against Netop and Ancherion, his credibility and skill will be observe. Both team are not an easy opponet. If Sharktail play well, they will cry, but if we underestimate them, we may be the one who cry in the end.

This week, the most outstanding player can be given to Shahrul. The 2 goals scored against Hafarimet were amazing. Being the third choice striker, he can indeed be expected. Gaby and Virman, both 31 years old, are only 3 years apart, but if these two legends announce their retirement two or three years from now, a senior striker is still needed to guide Sharktail young striker. Shahrul can be one of the best mentors and idols for them.

Now, Sharktail NT social media site no longer has critical comments, and is now only filled with comments of enthusiasm and praise. Sahami can breathe a little relief. He is now less stressed. If early on, the pressure he faced from every angle, from the players, from the referees, from the media and especially from the supporters. He admits, the chaos and chaos at the time almost prompted him to resign, but he was happy not to do so. He thanked a handful of patient and sincere fans for their support and encouragement. The focus now is for the next match, can Sharktail stay in momentum? Close to the second half of the qualifiers, Zwangzug, Savajorna and Saint Domingue, these three teams are waiting for the Sharktail again. No revenge or anything, as the result was obtained due to Sharktail's own weakness. Only this time, Sharktail hopes they look better and better.

Line Up vs Netop
David • Harold • Yusri • Harizul
Haizul • Chandra • Azaim • Nik Akif • Amirin
Gaby (c) • Shahrul

Line Up vs Ancherion
David • Harold • Yusri • Harizul
Haizul • Chandra • Azaim • Nik Akif • Balang
Gaby (c) • Virman

by **Garifunya** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 6:24 am

Competing protests lead to standoff as tension rises nationwide

Maryssa Hassink, De Frederykvil Dagblad

In the wake of the re-formation of the Jandaams police force and the deadly attack on the Frederykvil Latino housing complex in recent weeks, tensions across the country have been rising. The latest manifestation of that came yesterday in the capital, when rival protests clashed across police lines. In response, the mayor of Frederykvil, Lahari Hansen, has issued a 7 p.m. curfew for all residents except law enforcement and essential workers. Armed police officers are deployed at checkpoints throughout the city, including advance units of the Jandaams, whose presence had been specifically requested by Frederykvil police chief Charles Klinkhammer.

Tensions began when a racially-mixed gang of young men attacked a primarily Latino housing complex in east Frederykvil, killing Miguel Morillo, Gustavo Vargas, and Abel Figueroa, as well as injuring others. The attackers shouted anti-immigrant slurs and attacked without warning. In the wake of the attack, President Immanuel Prins called for the re-formation of the Jandaams police force in order to curb the spread of violence. This itself provoked a backlash, as critics hearkened back to the Gillaat era, when the Jandaams were used as a force to squash dissent and corruption ran rampant. Prominent among those critics was the founder of the National Party and De Konigrijk newspaper, Arjan Staal, who had vociferously opposed Gillaat and Prins for many of their policies, different though they might be.

Yesterday, Staal, supporters of his National Party, and individuals opposed to the return of the Jandaams, in all totaling several thousand people, marched from the outskirts of southeast Frederykvil to the city centre. Many members of the demonstration carried signs and shouted slogans in support of Staal or of gun rights, opposed to the Jandaams and to Prins, but others' purpose appeared to be to promote anti-immigrant sentiment, Garifunyan nationalism, or racial separatism. The crowd was mixed, but probably two-thirds white, and with few Latino faces as a part of it. Their route took them directly through several majority-Latino neighborhoods, where some shut themselves inside their homes or businesses, while others jeered.

At the same time, a "Solidarity March", officially remembering the three victims of violence and demonstrating solidarity with the Latino community, took place, marching almost parallel to the Staal-led demonstration, also from the east side of Frederykvil. This crowd was almost evenly racially mixed between white, black, and Latino, but it was not homogeneous in its opinions. While some carried signs that said or chanted aloud, "Say their names", and others had positive messages welcoming immigrants or the Latino community, others were public in their support for the Jandaams, or promoted left-of-centre causes such as wage increases, jobs programs, or the redistribution of land. Along their route, some cheered, while others looked on in apparent amusement.

In the city centre, both groups met. With armed officers of both the Frederykvil police force and the Jandaams between them, the two sides shouted slogans and generally tried to drown out the others. Songs, slogans, and drumbeats filled the air. Soon, along the very edge of the two protests, where police presence was weaker, stones began to fly and fistfights broke out. Though the two sides were soon separated, injuries were reported on both sides. At that point, police officers cancelled the planned speech by Staal and leaders of the Solidarity March, and told everyone to disperse. Although most began to leave, others booed and jeered, and soon, stones were flying again. Officers fired tear gas and pushed back protesters. It was not readily apparent which side initiated the violence, but police chief Klinkhammer said that "isolated individuals or agitators on both sides" had been arrested, and firearms had been confiscated from some in the Staal march.

The event left the capital under curfew, with armed officers on the streets. Staal railed against the cancellation of his speech and the use of force by the police, saying, "Leftist protesters goaded the police into using force indiscriminately, and of course we know that the Jandaams don't need an excuse to crack heads. This is just the first manifestation of a broader crackdown on free speech and civil rights; if you want to stand up for your own country and you hate tyranny, you'll be silenced."

President Prins issued a statement calling for unity: "The right to public protest is a precious one and ought to be protected. But violence is not acceptable in a democratic society. We reject all forms of divisiveness and hatred that would tear us apart. Whatever race we may be, we are all Garifunyans. My government will arrest and prosecute the individuals responsible for the Frederykvil attacks and hold the [i]Jandaams[/i responsible should they overstep their bounds."

The capital is on edge, as is the nation. One can only hope that the attackers are soon brought to justice and our better angels prevail.

by **Trolleborg** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 6:28 am

Greetings, compatriots! It’s TTV with actual news about our national team. Our lads recently won another two games, and one of them with a record-breaking score. 6:1 against Megistos is a biggest victory in WCQ and on parity with the biggest victory ever – by some bizarre turn of circumstances, in the first ever match of Trolleborg team at the BoF against Casta Marina.

MEGISTOS – TROLLEBORG 1:6

Trolleborg national team put in the field hit squad of players in this game, taken things very seriously. It was clearly understandable move, because Holy Empire is now in full throttle and on the way to the top, so every point counts.

World football is unpredictable, but still few expected the fight to end with such a score. The first 25 minutes on the field was an equal struggle, both teams had opportunities to score, but then the hosts had a period of total failure.

On the 27th minute, a group of our players with a well-coordinated maneuver diverted the attention of the defenders, followed by a pass over their heads and the oncoming Gulbranden made a shot from several meters straight into the corner

Almost immediately, Troll somehow squeezed between the two defenders, rushed to the goal at full speed, leaving them far behind, made a good pass to the center, and there Kerr, in his signature style, beat his guardian and sent the ball into the net

Before the defenders of Megistos had time to really find out whom to blame and decide how to build the game now, the score became 0:3 - to the left of the goal Finnsnes fought for the ball, won it back, made a pass into the penalty area and the Levenrkands who run into the box, made shot as needed.

It was interesting how the hosts would behave after the break. Apparently, the shock from three such blows in a row never passed. The expected offensive of Megistos turned out to be not too dangerous - they beat on goal, but not too accurately, combinations were carried out, but without result, crossings were made, but without a target.

And closer to the middle of the second half, our lads turned the speed on again and the gap began to grow rapidly

Troll started it, suddenly made very treacherous shot at goal from afar

Then he once again showed his ability to deliver shots that are difficult for goalkeepers, after one such goalkeeper of the hosts did not hold the ball and Skaloed, who was nearby, increased the score.

Finally, towards the end, the substitute Zhita run away from the defenders and accurately shot past the goalkeeper

Megistos managed to score a goal nevertheless, taking advantage of some misunderstanding between our defenders and the goalkeeper, our defender tried to stop the ball at the net, but did it behind the goal line

TROLLEBORG – RED KELP 4:3

After such a victory, the fans, of course, expected something like Megistos game in a duel with the much less experienced Red Kelp team, but this time our lads was not so formidable, the five players who came out from the first minutes we are used to seeing only as subs, and this affected the game of the defenders in the most negative way.

However, at first it seemed that everything would be exactly as expected. Already in the 3rd minute, Finnsnes took possession of the ball near the penalty area and produce a real masterpiece - without even raising his head, he sent the ball with one touch exactly at the spot where Kerr came running a second later, and the latter make a header flawlessly

And another 10 minutes after Kolding's dash, a pass to the center followed on the left flank, and again the same Kerr shot as expected from him.

and then Du Riis joined the attack, took the defender with him and made an accurate pass to the center, where Pathmoor shot accurately and strongly

Red Kelp, in fact, did not sit out in defense and their players showed that they can do a lot of things in world football – at last make a curved shots, managing the ball in the fight against experienced opponents and make it first to rebound

The teams left for the break when the score was 3:1
In the second half, our coach also changing the team, including replacing our super striker, and gave the opportunity to all the players who were listed in the squad in this campaign a decent amount of playing time.

In the middle of the second half, Zhita made a great long pass to the center of the penalty area, and Skaloed showed that we have at least one more forward in the national team who knows how to shoot on goal with one touch while on the move

Red Kelp players, nevertheless, being three goals down twenty minutes before the end of the game, did not lay down their arms and in the final pulled our fans nerves, scoring two goals thanks to free kick and penalty, but nevertheless the match ended with the victory of our team.

The next game day completes the first round of the qualifying tournament and we all, of course, hope for the best, although anything can happen in world football

by **Mapletish** » Tue Jan 19, 2021 6:39 am

The Sour Kind
"I only know one thing, that is I know nothing"

Commentaries| Timothy Jozua

Heart to Heart Talk with Raphael Singer

"Hello everyone, this is Timothy and once again welcome to another series of The Sour Kind. In today's podcast, we are running through the list to speak with Raphael Singer, the current defender of the Mapletish national team. The team is playing in the World Cup 87 Qualifying. Our special guest today is currently also a player with Balmope Betis, one of the Primero Liga's teams. Singer is an interesting character, not only is he an athlete, he is also a guitarist and singer. I never knew the Maplish team to be filled with literal talents, talents outside of football that is. Without further ado, lets welcome Singer."

"Yes this is Singer."

"So Singer, do you like to HTHT?"

"Oh hi Timothy, I personally don't like to HTHT. I feel that sometimes it gets a little bit heavy and these are things that I am sometimes not very comfortable in handling. Especially the more heavily involved emotional stuff."

"Well that is for other people isn't it? But today we are doing it for you. Your life."

"Oh well, then I guess we can go ahead?"

"Right, before we begin, pick your beverage. Before this, we had Job Bobbie, your captain and he picked coffee. A good old long black and he talked about his love for coffee and how it represented his life. So if you haven't already done so, you can pick it up from our previous HTHT with Job Bobbie."

"Alight, I am neither coffee nor tea so I will pick water."

"Fair choice. So our producer today has some questions for you today. So the first question today for you is, having been in the Balmope Betis youth team setup and also training with the national team. Has your experience in these areas helped you in your artsy side?"

"I learnt that I wasted my life away training for something. Actually I was kidding. I learnt a lot from all of these. I think life as an athlete was very different from being just another ordinary student in school. You know you wake up 5am, train three hours in the morning, go to class, train again then continue to train in the evening."

"Oh you are talking about life as a student-athlete right? Not the military."

"Yes. Of course. Pretty comparable if you ask me. At that time, Betis have a full time school for their young footballers. So you have got all of the education needs and training needs all in one. And because you are training literally everyday for a few hours each, at least six, you are clocking in your ten thousand hours, without a doubt. And you do it just for that one competition, that one season. Take maximal prep time and performing just for that 90 minutes on the pitch and then refresh go back to training for another match and you repeat it for the season. Can you imagine how much work that is. It is not comparable at all, to maybe, being a singer. A social media personality? Doing minimal prep work, putting covers online, vlogging, talking shit and posting them online? I guess this dichotomy to me is huge. Huge gap. From here, I learnt that preparation work is highly important. Your prep, prep and prep. Sticking to a schedule is also very important."

"So you are saying that preparation has helped you with your life, with your career and especially now that you are balancing between being an athlete and an artiste. How is the transition like?"

"I guess there is not much of a transition. Just a different way of living your life. You practise your sport, you practise your instrument, it is similar. One is more physically imposing, the other a little more of a mental exercise."

"So since there is not much of a transition, then what are the difficulties then?"

"I think inherently in a team sport comes the idea of team dynamics. Managing team dynamics, that is rather tough. There are people with different personalities and yet it is difficult to capture the intricacies of it all. That makes working in teams difficult. Everyone with their different agendas. Wouldn't it be easier if we have a grasp of everyone and their personality profiles, what they are thinking and we adjust based on that?"

"Maybe, that might help but aren't we al doing it? Code-switching depending on who we are talking to?"

"Yes, but that is still based on how we perceive the person? It is not as objective. Unless we have an objective metre that shows us exactly, what that person is feeling or thinking."

"I guess that is what makes life as it is. The fact that we live different lives instead of being so similar to each other, makes life a tad more interesting and dynamic. It keeps us on our seats and is one of the many joys in life."

"From another point of view, it also shows the perils of life. The different lives we lived shows the different qualities in living that are presented to us. Such that some of our fellow human beings are living in conditions that are not even considered humane to live in while the rest of us bask in the glimmer of sufficiency and are on an endless pursuit for more. Where is the end then? Are we then living satisfactorily or are we just existing?"

"Of course, there is no end to that but if it is the pursuit for more that creates a sense of happiness and it is as appropriate of a goal for someone as with someone else who is just satisfied with living satisfactorily."

'That very sense of happiness, the happiness of having pursue and achieve that one step only yearns for more. Since we are never really quite satisfied."

"Then there is the notion to live satisfactorily, or to live within your means."

"Well I guess we have routed it back to the notion of having to live satisfactorily after all. Now lets move on to life within an all male background in the club youth setup of Betis.

"Well, I struggled with self-esteem issues when I was younger. Being told that you are not good enough continuously during the formative years isn't the best advise that one should be given. But that thoroughly affected my self concept. I was wondering whether I was good enough, and that worry engulfed whatever I have had about myself, that turned into some bigger, something that consumed me, something that I couldn't control. From then on, the route to coping with such thoughts began. Setting actionable goals for myself and looking back at how far I have come, really helped boost my confidence. Sometimes, I journal my thoughts down, other times I let the emotions come to me, I learnt to not control my emotions. Emotions aren't wrong, I shall feel the emotions now and then deal with the consequences later. That was how I went through it."

"And with that, we shall take a camera break. "

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World Cup 87 - RP Thread

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