Posted: Thu Nov 18, 2021 5:28 amKatie Sampson looked up at the scoreboard clock anxiously. Her team needed a goal. The Sarzonian national Aussie Rules Football team were trailing by two points with eight seconds remaining.
A behind would do Sarzonia no good. They needed a six-pointer. Sampson had sent in all four of her interchangers and one of them, full forward Wilma Maastricht, was lining up the kick from 46 yards away. She fired, and it seemed everyone on the Sarzonia sideline was in suspended animation tensely watching the team's hopes riding on one kick.
The Maastricht kick carried with it Sarzonia's hopes and dreams of making history. Would the Stars become the first-ever three-time World Cup champions? Would they become the first team to win consecutive finals, succeeding where Sylestone, the only other champions the sport knew, had failed last time out against the Stars?
Or would Maastricht's kick sail harmlessly into the night sky, giving a tough TJUN-ia side their first world championship in any sport? Would the Jaguars gain a measure of revenge for THAT game in the Cup of Harmony?
All of that was on the minds of everyone on the sideline as Sampson sunk to her knees too nervous to watch. The kick sailed into the night, at first looking like it would end up as a behind, but it was hooking. The ball hooked just enough go through the goalposts. As a goal. Maastricht had struck goal. She struck gold. Sarzonia supporters erupted in cheers as the final blasts of the referee's whistle signaled that the match was over. Sarzonia prevailed 110-106. The players who had been anxiously watching from the sideline bolted out to join those on the pitch in piling on each other in jubilation. In catharsis.
Meanwhile, Sampson was in tears, crushed under the full weight of emotions from a dramatic moment that would live for all time. Her team had not faced even the slightest bit of adversity in this fourth edition, winning every match in dominant fashion. Now, they faced an opponent that was able to score on the stingy Sarzonia defence in quantities unprecedented in this edition.
Her team got punched in the mouth for the first time all tournament. She was pleased to see her charges answer the bell. The Stars rose to the occasion and won a place in history. Three time world champions. Back to back winners. An unquestionable No. 1 rank in the code. And now, owners of history. She would walk out of the pitch with a 26-3 record as manager, as a three-time champion, as someone who would soon stake her claim on an exalted place in Sarzonian sporting history.
This wasn't just a title in Aussie Rules Football. This was one for the ages. This was one championship that Sarzonia would remember forever.
A behind would do Sarzonia no good. They needed a six-pointer. Sampson had sent in all four of her interchangers and one of them, full forward Wilma Maastricht, was lining up the kick from 46 yards away. She fired, and it seemed everyone on the Sarzonia sideline was in suspended animation tensely watching the team's hopes riding on one kick.
The Maastricht kick carried with it Sarzonia's hopes and dreams of making history. Would the Stars become the first-ever three-time World Cup champions? Would they become the first team to win consecutive finals, succeeding where Sylestone, the only other champions the sport knew, had failed last time out against the Stars?
Or would Maastricht's kick sail harmlessly into the night sky, giving a tough TJUN-ia side their first world championship in any sport? Would the Jaguars gain a measure of revenge for THAT game in the Cup of Harmony?
All of that was on the minds of everyone on the sideline as Sampson sunk to her knees too nervous to watch. The kick sailed into the night, at first looking like it would end up as a behind, but it was hooking. The ball hooked just enough go through the goalposts. As a goal. Maastricht had struck goal. She struck gold. Sarzonia supporters erupted in cheers as the final blasts of the referee's whistle signaled that the match was over. Sarzonia prevailed 110-106. The players who had been anxiously watching from the sideline bolted out to join those on the pitch in piling on each other in jubilation. In catharsis.
Meanwhile, Sampson was in tears, crushed under the full weight of emotions from a dramatic moment that would live for all time. Her team had not faced even the slightest bit of adversity in this fourth edition, winning every match in dominant fashion. Now, they faced an opponent that was able to score on the stingy Sarzonia defence in quantities unprecedented in this edition.
Her team got punched in the mouth for the first time all tournament. She was pleased to see her charges answer the bell. The Stars rose to the occasion and won a place in history. Three time world champions. Back to back winners. An unquestionable No. 1 rank in the code. And now, owners of history. She would walk out of the pitch with a 26-3 record as manager, as a three-time champion, as someone who would soon stake her claim on an exalted place in Sarzonian sporting history.
This wasn't just a title in Aussie Rules Football. This was one for the ages. This was one championship that Sarzonia would remember forever.