Head Coach Allen Budaye, sitting with his assistant coaches in an Abanhfleft film session the day after Banija's 22-4 quarterfinal blowout victory over Kriegiersien
The quarterfinal was probably Banija's best game of the tournament. The team had really been flying high, but the Natanians & Nosts matchup in the Round of 16 had brought this team back down to Earth. Don't get me wrong- a 12-6 victory is a strong, solid victory. Natanians & Nosts never led, and the only time the score was level was when it was 0-0 for the first 3:33 of the match. So, essentially, Banija led the game from beginning to end, never relinquished the lead once we took a grip, and we won the game by a healthy margin without ever really having to get out of second gear.
And yet, in the long, winding chase for our first WLC championship, there were worries. Why couldn't the team truly put distance between themselves and Natanians & Nosts? You'd think blowing out a team like that would be a pre-requisite, rather than never really looking that great getting past them. But Budaye wasn't worried. He thought it was overblown. Once you got to the knockout stages of any tournament, especially a tournament where it's "one and done", Budaye always thought it doesn't really matter how you look, how fancy you make it, or anything. All that matters, is getting a win and surviving until the next day.
The criticisms were not that loud, of course- Banijan lacrosse was going into a WLC knockout stages with as much confidence as we've ever had, considering we finally beat our rival and bogeyman, Abanhfleft, during the group stages. Still- the nerves were there, and the media was always looking to criticize. That's why Allen Budaye was so happy that the match went well in the Quarterfinals. This was a potentially tough quarterfinal matchup against Kriegiersien. They were a side that showed their mental toughness by eliminating the host nation, Sylestone, a round before. Banija were deserved favorites, yes, but nothing was guaranteed.
Banija went into the Kriegiersien match and steamrolled. A 5-0 lead after the first quarter lead turned into a 14-2 lead at halftime, and the route was on against their opponents. The second half was more of the same of the first, with the Banijans really only stepping off the gas pedal in the fourth. The score was 21-4 at the start of the fourth quarter, and then the Banijans really slowed it down, trying to not be accused of running up the score on their opponent. The final score was 22-4, so Banija just scored one goal in the fourth quarter compared to Kriegiersien's none. The criticism from the media, for once, was silent.
But of course, luck would have it that awaiting them in the semifinal would be Abanhfleft. In fairness, there wasn't much difference to facing Abanhfleft or Sarzonia at this point, both big-time rivals in this sport. But Abanhfleft are the champs. We are all that stand between them and the final to give them a chance to get a ring for the other hand. While they lost their final two games of the group stage, they roared in the knockouts, winning 24-6 in a Round of 16 blowout, then in a low-scoring defensive battle against Sarzonia, dropped the other five-time world champions by a score of 4-2.
"Of course we'd have to play them- again." Allen Budaye said. "Not the matchup that I wanted, admittedly. They are a tough team to play against. Try to beat them twice in one tournament? Impossible. And yet, here we are, being asked just that exact question. Can we do that for a place in the Final?"
"Coach, we've got film. We've got film of our last match against Abanhfleft, and we've got film of their game against Sarzonia. Which do you want to watch?" Said an assistant coach.
"Throw on the Fleft v. Sarz game." Budaye responded. "That's one we haven't seen. We can see what sort of adjustments they made after their losses to both us and Mapletish." And the coaching staff, looking to give their players every possible tactical advantage that they possibly could, took furious notes. Notes on the positioning of attackers. Talking about the tendencies of players. Talking about how they'd try to get forward, different ways they'd try to organize their attack. And, of course, looking for different ways to attack the holes on the Abanhfleft. Those holes are small, almost miniscule, and they close quickly- but every defense has holes. Although Abanhfleft fills them faster than anybody else in the sport- it's a big reason why they have five titles. The only way to beat a team like them is to have almost impeccable offensive coordination, to have the speed and precision necessary to break them down and score goals.
After the film session, they complied their notes and got ready to get to the training ground. Once they did, Budaye blew his whistle and gathered his players. "Hey guys." He told his players. "Remember- this team is a great team, this team is a special team. There are only four teams left- and we are one of them. Savor the moment. Enjoy the opportunity, you never know when something like this will come again. Our nation, of all nations, knows how hard it is to get to this moment and succeed here. Remember what we're doing here. You want to seize this moment. You don't want Sylestone to be yet another location in a long list of almosts for the national team. Let's have this country be the place where we reset the standard, where we create a new bar for the heights of Banijan lacrosse."
He looked around, and spoke again. "OK, so we have gone through our film session. And we are going to change things up a little bit against Abanhfleft- we can't simply run the same gameplan against the defending champions twice and expect it to go well. We're changing things up. We're gonna pull out every last stop to win this game- it's a motherfucking semifinal. Leave no stone unturned." And he went over elements of their tactical strategy with them. He was determined. Could Banija pull off the unthinkable, and beat their hated rivals twice in the same tournament to reach the WLC 36 Final?
