Campionato Esportiva IX [Everything Thread]

[Noburu Taiyou]

The RWC's event at the Sumo Arena in Tohoko continued, after Mr. Sagese's announcement, with a match for the Tag Team Championship. The defending champions were the Dead Man's Hand. The Dead Man's Hand consisted of 2 bikers who came out to the ring riding their bikes and wearing masks, which they kept on during their matches. The only things known about them were the fact that they were tall, towering in at over 7 feet, muscular and the meanest and nastiest tag team that the RWC had to offer. Since their debut last year, they had remained undefeated as a team. It appeared as if their dominance over the division would be never-ending.

Tonight, their opponents were Joshua Noble and Gianni Genovese, known as the Dream-Weavers. The Dream-Weavers were undersized, but that played to their advantage, as it allowed them to wrestle a reckless style of match. They were famous for taking big risks. Joshua Noble, the "pretty boy" of the team, was especially famous for his ability to take a beating for 20-30 minutes and still hang on long enough to make a tag to his partner. In the FFR, the Dream-Weavers were known for their popularity among the women and children in the audience, but were frequently booed by the guys that made up the RWC's primary audience, despite their hero status in the storylines.

This match was a Flaming Table Elimination match. This meant that the winners would be whichever team managed to put both of their opponents through tables first. But they couldn't just put their opponent through any table. The table had to be set on fire first. Extra referees were positioned around ringside, with fire extinguishers, to put out the fire whenever a wrestler went through the table.

It wasn't even a minute into the match before both members of the Dead Man's Hand lit a table on fire. This was easy, since the gasoline was already pre-poured on the tables. With Noble distracted by the girl who followed the Dead Man's Hand around everywhere they went, they grabbed Genovese and gave him a Final Ride Powerbomb through the table. The nearest official grabbed his fire extinguisher and extinguished the fire.

This created a 2-on-1 situation. The match quickly turned into a brutal beating that seemingly lasted forever, with the Republican soldiers, now drunk, cheering the bikers on with chants of "One More Time" after every move. However, since Noble countered attempt after attempt to put him through the table, the beating just went on and on. Eventually, one of the Dead Man's Hand members went to slam him through the table, but he countered, driving his opponent mask-first through the table. Joshua Noble had intended to put his opponent's upper body, not his mask-covered face, through the table, but the masked biker had been out of position at the time.

This left the match a 1-on-1 affair. The next man to put an opponent through a burning table would win the championships, not only for himself, but also for his fallen partner. The match continued, with both men trying to wear their opponents down even further before trying anything. Finally, Noble knocked his opponent out with a vicious kick to the face and began his plan to win the match. Outside of the ring, he stacked 2 tables on top of one another and, after putting his opponent out with a sleeper hold, rolled him onto the upper table. Once he had finished setting up his opponent, Noble took a match and lit the lower table on fire. Then, he climbed up to the top, to go for a 540 Degree Splash. As Noble spinned around in mid-air, the biker rolled back into the ring. The daredevil went crashing through both tables. The Dead Man's Hand had won a brutal "wrestling match" that had seen 3 of the 4 competitors lit on fire! The Taiyouese were polite enough not to boo them out of the building, but they had been generally uninterested in that match. However, it had been the best received so far among the Republican half of the crowd.

The only match remaining on the card for this show was the main event between the Burger brothers. That will wait until tomorrow.

---

Tohoko Sports

Taiyou 0, NSI 1

The Northern Sunrise Islands defeated Kohara-San's Taiyouese squad today in a match that saw the Taiyouese show plenty of fighting spirit, but a late goal handed NSI a victory. If Taiyou does not defeat Chun-nan in their next match, advancement will be difficult.

[Sangti]

Continuation from this

So why is Kirola well-known in the multiverse?

Maybe because the company set the standard for the kits of the highest quality? No offence to the other manufacturers, but Kirola was the best kit manufacturer any nation would prefer to deal with. Another reason is the success rate of those wearing Kirolas.

Since TRB entered the sporting multiverse, Kirola has been a household name in kit manufacturing. It supplied numerous teams such as Audioslavia, The Inevitable Syndicate, Turori, Apox, The Licentian Isles among others. As far as everyone can remember, when then-Sangti entered the World Cup at the Baptism of Fire 52 tournament, that one was won by Aels, who used a Kirola kit in lifting the trophy in Legalese. But even before World Cup 65, the two previous editions were won by Audioslavia. Then at Pasarga and Saugeais, The Sondry Folk won it, with the Kirola logo printed on their shirts.

In other competitions, Audioslavia has won the AOCAF 38 and 39 using Kirolas, New Sideburn in the sixth (and eighth) Campionato Esportiva, Apox in the fifth Campionato, Saugeais in the sixteenth Copa Rushmori and the 58th Cup of Harmony, The Licentian Isles in the third and the seventh Campionato. Mytannion in the Cup of Harmony 56 and the recently concluded Cup of Harmony 59, Equestrian States in the Di Bradini Cup 27, and... Northern Sunrise Islands in the Di Bradini Cup 29? (OOC: Hope I don't miss anything between WC65 and WC67)

That's a long list of nations that had acheivements while donning the famous "K" logo in their kits. And let's do not forget some all-Kirola finals that transpired in recent history: Ossidiacqua vs Mytannion in CoH 56, Saugeais vs Apox in CoH 58, Saugeais vs Eura in Copa Rushmori XVI, New Sideburn vs Northern Sunrise Islands in Campionato Esportiva VIII, and of course, The Licentian Isles vs Sangti at Campionato Esportiva VII.

Now there's a reason why Kirola is the breakfast of champions.

Now, with the order of the KPMB done, the shirts were presented to the media in Sangti, where John Utanes, Christiann Sanchez and Robin Linsangan modeled the new kits.

The new kits will grace the field in Matchday five (the yellow one) and in Matchday six (the black one). The old home kit has been retired and is now displayed in Museong Pampalakasan near the KPMB headquarters. The old away kit meanwhile will now serve as an alternate should the Agilang Dilaw encounter opposition in yellow/black hoops/stripes/halves etc.

Match report for MD4 on my next RP.

[Old Guard]

Sparks of Revolution - Part Four

Part One
Part Two
Part Three

The Range Rovers drove on and on, through the largely deserted wasteland that was the centre of Old Guard. Eventually they pulled up outside quite a large building situated between two rolling hills. John the True got out and went to open up the house. Charlfont lent round to speak to Reuben.

"Absolutely crackin' 'ouse, m' lod. I 'as stayin' 'ere with ol' Iskander, so I 'as, m' lod." Reuben smiled a tense smile, enjoying Charlfont's accent.

"Thank you Charlfont, I'm glad you think highly of it." With that, he climbed out of the car and headed inside, closely followed by a pair of Old Guard soldiers, who quickly headed up into the built in gun turrets on the second floor. It seemed everywhere he went at the moment had built in gun turrets. He was led into the study by John the True, and told to sit down.

"My Lord, I'm very sorry to say this, but it would appear that we are at war. The people behind that explosion in Oldem have come forward. They are called the Old Guard Liberation Front, and they want to bring back a more dictatorial rule, like that which existed under Lord Askain. They are led by a shadowy figure known only as Skar." There was a stunned silence. Reuben didn't know what to think, this changed everything. Finally,

"So what's happening now?"

"Well, we are hearing reports of mass uprisings across the country, as the OGLF fights the Old Guard. There are apparently pitched battles occurring in Oldem, where reports are coming in that they are operating out of the Office of the King..." he trailed off. This struck a poor tone with King Reuben. He rose to his feet.

"Get me the General of the Old Guard. Today, we go to war."

***

Jacob the Mad was in a warehouse in outer Oldem, on Skar's orders. He was checking up on the master weapons, a cunning back-up devised by Skar, who was determined not to lose this one. If he was going down, then so was everyone else.

Jacob knocked thrice on the door, and when pressed for the codeword, "conquer", was let in. The doorman led him to the centre of the warehouse, where he met with a top scientist, Udar the Cold, who Skar had in effect bribed into joining the team.

"Is it ready?" asked Jacob. Udar nodded, before giving away further information.

"I need two hours notice to prepare it, but yes, I am ready." With that Jacob had all the information he required, and it was back to the Office of the King and Skar as they went about winning this uprising.

[Sangti]

Announcement

Cutoff for all groups in the Campionato Esportiva will be pushed back to 1700H UTC Time. This means that for those who hasn't RPed yet, you still have four hours and a half to RP.

Thank you.

[Sangti]

Brace yourselves, cutoff is coming.

And it came.

[Buyan]

Even for Group 9!

[Sangti]

MATCHDAY 8

Group 1
Tasrailia 2–4 German American States
Nexxus Drako 1–0 Dandillis

  Group 1                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 German American States      5   4  0  1   12   6  +6   12
2 Dandillis                   5   3  0  2    4   4   0    9
3 Tasrailia                   5   1  1  3    6  10  −4    4
4 Nexxus Drako                5   1  1  3    6   8  −2    4

Group 2
Nekoni 0–1 Old Guard
Paradystopia 3–1 Ati Kaluraya

  Group 2                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Paradystopia                5   5  0  0    7   1  +6   15
2 Old Guard                   5   3  1  1    3   1  +2   10
3 Nekoni                      5   1  0  4    2   5  −3    3
4 Ati Kaluraya                5   0  1  4    2   7  −5    1

Group 3
Northern Sunrise Islands 4–3 Earo
Noburu Taiyou 4–0 Chun-nan

  Group 3                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Northern Sunrise Islands    5   4  0  1    9   5  +4   12
2 Earo                        5   3  0  2   14  11  +3    9
3 Noburu Taiyou               5   3  0  2    8   4  +4    9
4 Chun-nan                    5   0  0  5    3  14 −11    0

Group 4
Swyftlandre 1–1 Estope
Nui Hanai 2–4 Chiata

  Group 4                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Swyftlandre                 5   3  2  0   12   5  +7   11
2 Estope                      5   2  3  0    9   6  +3    9
3 Chiata                      5   1  1  3   12  14  −2    4
4 Nui Hanai                   5   0  2  3    5  13  −8    2

Group 5
Uitbregen 1–3 OldsBuickstan and Pontiac
Taijan 5–1 Royal East America

  Group 5                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Uitbregen                   5   3  1  1   20  14  +6   10
2 Taijan                      5   3  1  1   21  12  +9   10
3 Royal East America          5   2  0  3   12  17  −5    6
4 OldsBuickstan and Pontiac   5   1  0  4    9  19 −10    3

Group 6
Eristicea 1–3 Apox
Yttribia 2–3 Boring Paradise

  Group 6                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Apox                        5   5  0  0   11   3  +8   15
2 Boring Paradise             5   2  1  2   10  10   0    7
3 Eristicea                   5   2  0  3   13  13   0    6
4 Yttribia                    5   0  1  4    8  16  −8    1

Group 7
Kazamatsuri 3–5 The Licentian Isles
Buyan 1–0 Brenecia

  Group 7                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 The Licentian Isles         5   4  0  1   11   4  +7   12
2 Buyan                       5   3  0  2    4   3  +1    9
3 Brenecia                    5   2  1  2    2   2   0    7
4 Kazamatsuri                 5   0  1  4    3  11  −8    1

Group 8
Slembanana 1–0 The Sarian
The Glorious Commune 3–3 Sakhovelo

  Group 8                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Slembanana                  5   4  1  0   14   8  +6   13
2 The Glorious Commune        5   2  1  2   11  10  +1    7
3 The Sarian                  5   1  2  2   10  10   0    5
4 Sakhovelo                   5   0  2  3    6  13  −7    2

Group 9 (scorinated by Buyan)
San Jose Guayabal 4–4 Felix
The Royal Barangay 1–0 Blackclyffe

  Group 9                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 The Royal Barangay          5   5  0  0    9   3  +6   15
2 Felix                       5   1  3  1    9  10  −1    6
3 San Jose Guayabal           5   1  1  3   10  12  −2    4
4 Blackclyffe                 5   0  2  3    2   5  −3    2

Group 10
Chrovan 2–2 Albaie
Gloriax 0–2 Texacano

  Group 10                  Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Texacano                    5   4  0  1   13   7  +6   12
2 Albaie                      5   3  1  1   14  10  +4   10
3 Chrovan                     5   2  1  2   12  11  +1    7
4 Gloriax                     5   0  0  5    5  16 −11    0

Notes:

• Nations in bolded green have secured a place in the main tournament.
• Nations in bolded blue have secured at least a playoff place.
• Nations in bolded red are out of contention.
• Clarification: Head to head results = Head to head points, then head to head goal difference only.

[Buyan]

The atmosphere in the bus to the stadium could remind one of a school trip riding towards a war memorial on a rainy day. The cool kids, hanging in the back, could find the guts to crack a few nervous jokes, but knew that it was inappropriate to laugh out loud. If you moved upwards, each row that was seated more near the driver produced a sound that was one pinch lower on the amp and the duo in front sat in complete silent. While in the latter case it would be two teachers who had spilled all their smalltalk during the opening half hour, it now were Frederich Allersham and Sirius Hope. The silence that formed a fog around their heads only got shattered every few minutes by a coughing salvo from the bold assistant coach.

That some press whiz kid had calculated that, unless scoreless Kazamatsuri would manage to shock the football world once more by stealing a few points of The Licentian Isles or Brenecia, the Buyanese national side would need two successive victories to actually participate in their very own Campionato Esportiva. Hope knew that the chances to do so were near zero, located somewhere around the place where his personal barometer was hanging out. The victory against Kazamatsuri, although obtained with pretty positive football, couldn’t exactly lighten the mood.

The suns, both the literal and the proverbial one, hadn’t rose yet when the players were warming up in the Bokstasstadionas. Only a few seats were taken already by some hardcore fans or skinflints who wanted to make the most out of their twelve mint ticket. Concentrated, the guys from the starting line-up were working their way through a routine that looked quite complicated for those who weren’t accustomed to it, but provided both a natural flow and a good variety of passes, running movements and crosses. The Paradystopian manager and his local assistant were ogling the exercise with great interest. After all, they had invented it, or at least, perfected the combination. The last week, they hadn’t had anything that came even close to a conversation. The radio silence wasn’t fuelled by anger or hatred, rather by a mutual acceptance that their previous bond was broken beyond repair. No wonder that the oldest of the duo hesitated a second before responding his colleague, but when he did so, one could track down the vivacity that had characterized his voice in the past.

“I’ve been thinking,” Hope started, “if we make those two triangles a square, you add a pass to it and avoid a dead moment near that cone.”
“You mess it up, as it prepares one for those dead seconds in football. They make the difference between goals and nothing, from time to time. You’ld better shorten the distance there.”
“But with a higher pace on the third and fourth, you prepare them for the intervals.”
“It does limit the chance to recuperate a moderate pass, which would...”

Minutes on end, the authority in the conversation went back and forth. The two didn’t even face each other, they spoke while keeping their gaze at the players in front of them and in a calm yet determined way. Bit by bit, their cheeks went red and the pace of words went up, without losing the dignified tone. Finally, it was Hope who ended the verbal sparring match.

“I think,” he grinned, “we better accept we’ve made it a bit too perfect. No more fun for us left in it, ain’t it?”

Without a sound, the two laughed like only a father and son, or maybe two soulmates are able to.

“Frederich... They’re firing me if we don’t make the Campionato, right?”

Allersham hesitated for a second, before coughing frantically.

“Sorry about that.”
“I presume that’s a yes.”
“Well...”

For the first time, Frederich Allersham glanced to Sirius. He knew it wasn’t fair towards Hope. That man had managed to turn the riffraff in front of them into a victorious side, a squad that had managed to live up to impossible expectations. How many sides with their experience could put a trophy at the entry of their national football stadium?

“I’m afraid, Sirius... They’re also firing you if we do make it.”

Now it was Sirius to give up their stare-battle. Baffled, he had the only response in store people have at those moments.

“What?”
“It’s... I can’t explain but... We’re going down either way.”
“We... Or I?”
“We’re both reaching the exit,” Allersham spoke and he repeated it softly, as if the full extent of the words couldn’t be carried by a single pronunciation.
“Well,” Hope smiled, “we’ll better go out with a bang than.”

Allersham slowly nodded.

“You’ve ever heard of Zona Mista?”

---

Heikki Lavonen voice was jumping from register to register now, as eighty minutes of football hadn’t provided us yet with a victor.

”The Patriots are looking to produce another attack, Althea Chenoweth is in possession, trying to shake off a relentless Quinten Zermin. Her pass finds Miriam Spitfire, the FC Brimstone star who is the most experienced player on the field since Allbeck needed to take a spot on the bench. She’s been receiving quite a lot of space today, but Marco Castell once again chases her down. A crosspass to Kuepper, who wins the duel from Refshauge but it’s Bartkus who picks up the ball for Buyan. Who would’ve thought of this scenario, Bronius Bartkus as a sweeper, has Hope been spying on Yttribia or what?
His pass finds Zemaitis, who tries to fire on his engine one more time, it seems that most of his powers have been thrown out the window already. Moving upfield, Zermin, Zemaitis again who moved past Raynor on the wing, he cuts into the heart of the field and a little hesitation there amongst the Brenecians. No Chenoweth around, Constantine Bowyer who made his unexpected debut this evening steps out but Frederik Wallenberg runs into the available space and produces a great crosspass, yes, it’s Havelund and Mortlock going up, Elmo wins it but nowhere near Connell, the ball falls before the left foot of... Yes! Yes! It happened! It happened! Oh Jon is not going to like this, the Arrogance is not going to like this! Duco Dalmshelf scored, am I dreaming? No I’m not, dear listeners, the Bokstas pinches in my arm and shouts the name of the young attacker as if it were a war cry, Dalmshelf is the king of the night!“

[Brenecia]

"And Brenecia," said commentator Rowan Pendragon pensively, "are feeling the pressure now."
Franca Connell sighed, picked the ball from the net and threw it forward for the kick-off. Sylver tried to drum up some morale, and was largely ignored.
"They look really dejected out there," sighed colour commentator Linda May. "They've been pressing for eighty minutes, only to go a goal down - clinical finishing from Dalmshelf."
"Yeah, a stark contrast from the Patriots - they really should've scored by now, two clear headers from Farrell going straight at the keeper-"
In disgust, Slatesaver switched off the television. The rest of the game had been shit, anyway, not even worth study.
It didn't change anything anyway - they needed to win, and they needed Buyan to fail to beat the Isles.

"Anyone ... actually know anything about these Kamasutra lads?" hazarded Rook Asquith. He was making his first start of the campaign, just one of three changes. Bryson came in for Kuepper and Allbeck returned from her suspension.
"Hazmatsuitry," corrected Augustine from the back of the room.
"Kazamatsuri," said Mark quietly, filing his nails. "One letter removed from 'Wind Festival'. There's probably a history behind that one."
"If it's the history of losing at football away, I'm not concerned," said Tanith firmly.
"Former puppet of Miyuzuki, which I reckon means 'moist snow'..."
The young striker coughed loudly, and continued. "You'd want to watch out at the back, though. Three past the Isles, remember?"
"They'll not get three past us."
"Good, 'cause we won't get five past them. Not like we've been on the attack."
The door opened, and Slatesaver walked in. Twenty minutes before the team would have to walk onto the pitch - this was late for him, but the team was kitted out and ready for action.
"Crowd of sixty-two thousand out there," he growled.
"Decent turnout," murmured Althea.
"Yeah, and expecting a win. You are going to go out there and give 'em one."
"Damn right," came a few dissatisfied mutters. Morale was low and players were frustrated... but it wasn't for a lack of self-belief. The players knew they could do better. That they needed to.
"You boys and girls know what to do out there on the field. Problem is, we've not been doin' it. They're fast and technical and don't got much else. We know how to beat that. At home, we should beat them nine times from ten. But if you don't beat them... it'll mean trouble.
"Defence, mark zones instead of players. They've got better pace and no special players to watch out for. Franca... well, you've been fantastic, there's not much I can say. Sam, Constantine, don't be afraid to get forward and bash 'em into the area. Gary's your target man, there's nobody they have that can match his physicality.
"Althea, Fiona, you can keep the midfield tight. I want play funnelled out to the wings whenever possible. Rook, don't be afraid to shoot from range if you have to. I know you have a goal in you.
"Tanith, Gary, off the shoulder of their centre-backs, ready to break whenever you can. You're both clever and experienced, you'll know how to beat their traps. And for fuck's sake, Gary, if you get a free header blast it into the corner of the net.
"All of you, give it your all, and when there's nothing left to give don't be afraid to ask for a substitute. I'm not going to judge you if you got nothing left to give by the eightieth minute.
"Gather 'round."
They did, huddling in the centre of the dressing room. All eyes were focused on the manager.
"This is a big game. And it's not in our own hands. But we're at home. We can beat anyone at home... take your chances, run up the scores, and hold the line at the back. I know we can do this. So don't let me down. Now... get out there, and let's run 'em ragged."

[Albaie]

The team was back together. He pushed through the door to the pub and surveyed the team. Many were active soldiers and were dressed in uniform while a few wore suits to show they had not joined up and then there was Queb in Advar clothes. Many of the players had drinks in their hands and were telling stories about what had happened since the last World Cup. The soldiers were all in one big group telling tales of their valor and bravery. That group contained mostly Imperial Army soldiers and then Queb who seemed to enjoy poking fun at the players who his people had defeated in battle. Away from that group was the men in suits but that didn't make them cowards. Mark knew one of them had served during the war as a spy and had been instrumental in the Imperial victory at the Battle of Port Talba where he had ridden through the night to bring information to General Paul McLodt. The remainder of that group had seen service during the early days of the war but had since been discharged, left the army or moved into a support role. Their was one man there who hadn't seen any service but instead had worked in the Imperial East Empire Trading Company as a sailor and in that job he had seen his fair few number of fights. One player sat away from the others though. General William Dubrack Dubrackson the Emperor's most trusted friend and his own cousin. He was still a active general and was giving a Brigadier orders for what to do with the army while he was away.

Mark got up onto an empty table and coughed to grab the attention of the room. The players all quickly fell sole including William who waved away the Brigadier.
" Alright now lads it's great to see you all and to see your all safe and well following our last tournament together. " Mark started his speech. " We no longer represent a unified Empire but a fragmented one that no army or man can put back together without great loss of life. All of us have experienced the rations and the blackouts of the early war. Most of us fought in the Great Summer Offensive and most of us slogged our way through the Winter of Hell. All buts few of us have survived the trenches and bombardments of recent months but now we have a chance to end all that. I don't mean with guns and bullets or even sword and axe not even with honeyed words and false promises. But with football. We can use our skill and ability to reunite the fragments of Albaie into a unified empire. With a ball at our feet and a team behind us we can do what not even the Field Marshall's in their far back positions or the Dukes hiding in their estates could ever achieve we can bring the Emperor victory with out even a single loss of life. Now who's with me who's ready to win back the Empire. " Mark gave his passionate speech rising in passion and sound as he went and he was greeted with a great roar of approval and he knew that if any team could do it, it was his team.

[Noburu Taiyou]

It was now time for the Burger brothers to face off in the Republican Wrestling Conglomerate's main event of the evening. This match was now a match to determine the number 1 contender for the World Title, who would face the Grim Reaper. Before the match, both men were interviewed separately in the backstage area, interviews which were broadcast to the fans in the arena.

Ricky Burger was first to be interviewed. Nova Hellstrom was assigned to perform the interview. Nova began the interview by asking some softball questions:

Nova Hellstrom - Ricky, tonight you finally have an opportunity to teach your brother Jason that there is no "I" in team. I learned that when I was playing high school soccer at Petrograd Christian. My coach would never have allowed me to put my own personal ambitions ahead of the team. Ricky, how are you going to teach your brother some respect tonight?

Ricky Burger - Thank you Nova. You're as gracious an interviewer as you are beautiful. I wish you could interview me every night.

Nova was visibly blushing.

Ricky Burger - To answer your question, first I'm going to take my brother down to the mat and then I'm going to put him in the Baseton Crab until he taps!

Nova Hellstrom - Ricky, how good will it feel to get a World Title shot and, in the process, deny your selfish brother another opportunity at the same World Title?

Ricky Burger - That is exactly what he deserves. I don't want to be the World Champion. I want to be one-half of the Tag Team Champions of the World, but I am Ricky Burger, the more fundamentally sound Burger brother and I'm going to teach my little brother that his flashy moves are no match for my technical prowess.

Nova Hellstrom - Ricky, I want to be the first to wish you good luck out there. Teach your brother a lesson, for me, OK?

Ricky Burger - I'll do that, since you asked so nicely.

The video screen cut to the other side of the arena, where Jason Burger was by the entrance ramp, where he was to be interviewed by Lucia.

Lucia - Jason, tonight you finally have a chance to get your hands on your brother Ricky. What do you have to say to Ricky, right now?

Jason Burger - Ricky, you know more than anybody else how important the World Title is to me. Winning the World Title at Wrestlecade was the proudest moment of my career. While the Forsaker may have thrown me off of 3 steel cages stacked on top of one another and into a pickup truck parked at ringside, I was still the World Champion for a short time and I only hope to get back there once again. Ricky, several weeks ago I had the World Title won, but you had to get jealous. You've always had to have attention, Ricky, but tonight I'm going to make you regret your decision to cost me an opportunity at the only true World Championship in this business, the RWC World Title. There is no championship anywhere in the world that can compare to this, not even an Olympic Gold Medal and certainly not the so-called "World Championship" of any other organization.

Lucia - Jason, you have talked in the past about how ours is a selfish society? Do you stand by those statements?

Jason Burger - Those statements apply to Republican society. We Republicans live in a society where everybody puts themselves first, because when everybody puts their self-interest first, society prospers. Ricky, you've always been a Progressive at heart and never has it been more clear than in your accusations that I advanced my career at your expense. That is preposterous. Your career stagnated because you got lazy and decided to ride on my coattails rather than stand on your own 2 feet, like a true Republican. But, let me be clear. I have a great deal of respect for Taiyouese society and I have always had a great deal of respect for the Taiyouese. While the Taiyouese do not share the selfishness of Republicans, even I must admire their extraordinary work ethic. The people of these islands work long, hard hours and that is something that I respect. You don't get ahead in this world without earning it and that is something that Ricky just doesn't understand.

Lucia - I think you're right.

Jason Burger - What I'm sick and tired of, Lucia, is my brother's sense of entitlement. If he's going to be too lazy to put in the long hours studying footage and trying to develop new moves and new techniques, then I'm going to take advantage of that. I'm sure he's probably planning on putting me into the Baseton Crab at the first opportunity, but I'm not going to let him do anything of the sort. I will defeat my brother in the middle of that ring, I will do so in a manner that you do not expect, and I will go on to give the fans in the Northern Sunrise Islands the greatest World Title match that they have ever seen!

Lucia - Jason Burger sure looks determined, going into his critical match with his brother.

Ricky Burger made his entrance first. After entering the ring, he took off his hood to reveal that he had cut his hair, formerly long like his brother's, to a much shorter style, surprising the Republicans in the crowd. Ricky Burger had dramatically altered his appearance. His ring attire was now all-black and he had allowed his hair to return to its natural black. This made him quite the contrast with his brother Jason. Upon entering the ring, Jason Burger had dyed his hair blue on this particular day and came out to the ring wearing his usual ridiculous ring attire, including arm bands that resembled socks. It was quite a tale of contrasts between the 2 brothers. Jason, the high flyer, the risk taker, the daredevil, was attired in a manner that would have looked ridiculous on just about anybody else, while Ricky, the technically sound wrestler, went for a mix between a clean-cut look and a dark look.

The match itself was more Ricky's style of match. It was slow and methodical. The brothers spent the better part of the first 15 minutes mostly in holds of some form or another. The Taiyouese half of the crowd sat patiently, although some drunken Republican servicemen began to chant "boring" at the brothers. Things began to pick up somewhat as the match hit 20 minutes and by the half-hour mark, the drunken Republicans were in the match once again. The Taiyouese were beginning to invest in the match at this point, as the Sumo Arena was filled with chants for Jason Burger. However, after Jason Burger went for a flying dropkick and missed, the tide of the match turned sharply again.

Ricky Burger would spend what seemed like an eternity working on his brother's legs, doing move after move to, the story of the match went, take away his opponent's legs. However, as Ricky went for a "dragon screw," Jason finally countered and kicked at him. While he had prevented the move from being done, he struggled to get to his feet. By this point, both Republican and Taiyouese alike were emotionally invested in the match in the way that fans of this "sport" get emotionally invested in meaningful matches when the performance is of a sufficiently high quality. As the 3 quarters of an hour mark arrived, with no end in sight, the crowd was still into it.

At this point, the brothers began the final portion of the match, which took the usual form of a series of big moves, each resulting in a near-win for whoever hit it. Time after time, both Burger brothers refused to stay down and time after time, Jason refused to give up and was able to find his way to the ropes. Finally, both the English and Taiyouese ring announcers informed the crowd that there was only a minute to go in the match. Both Burger brothers furiously tried to roll up their opponent and steal a victory. Eventually, Jason Burger put his brother Ricky into a Baseton Crab and Ricky began to tap. As he did so, the bell rang, signalling the end of the match. Jason Burger celebrated as he had beaten his brother with his own hold, but the English ring announcer soon informed both of them and the crowd that "The 60 minute time limit has expired. The match is a draw."

With the match a draw, Mr. Sagese came out to the ring to make an announcement.

Mr. Abelino Milanese Sagese - Jason, Ricky, you battled for an hour, putting on a main event that the fans here in Tohoko will never forget. While I would like to see a winner for this match, a time limit is a time limit. Therefore, this match is a draw.

The crowd booed loudly.

Mr. Abelino Milanese Sagese - You may be wondering where that leaves the World Title match in the Northern Sunrise Islands. That match will happen as scheduled, except it will now be a three way match as the Grim Reaper will defend the World Title against both Ricky Burger and Jason Burger. I advise everybody to stay safe and I hope to see all of you in the Tohoko Dome for Wrestlecade in a few months.

The Burger brothers had put on a main event reminiscent of All Taiyou Pro Wrestling and the main event had been a hit with the crowd and with many viewers on the RWC Network. The Tour De Esportiva was only just beginning and it was already being considered a success.

OOC: If I do not advance out of the Group Stage, this RP line will be continued in the U-15 World Cup, where Rule Theriault will likely be personally managing the U-15s.

[German American States]

Der Adlerschaft and the Transfer Window: What does it all mean?

While the States traveled to Tasarilla, defeating the side 4-2 to qualify for the Round of 16, the international domestic transfer window kicked off. The third such UCIA sanctioned event saw 128 transactions made by clubs from Rushmore to Esportiva. This record-breaking transfer window also saw four members of Der Adlerschaft go overseas(and one extra player before the window). With this unprecedented move of players away from the GAFFCL system, we break down each transfer, and what it means for GAFFCL.

Dante Ruiz (RM, GAS) from FK Keltischdorf (GAS) to Pradera FC (VLD) for $4.5 mil

The first move of the transfer window saw a 30-year-old Dante Ruiz head to one of the best footballing nations in the world, Valladares. Ruiz will be playing for Pradera FC, the current champions and best club in the nation. This might be the thing that sends FK Keltischdorf over the edge and into the relegation zone. The team has been floundering in mid-table territory the past few seasons, and desperately needs to get back to the top positions. This move certainly did not help them one bit.

Klaus Wienberger(FB, GAS) from FK Flussorstaft(GAS) to SC Montfort(TLI) for $2.5 mil(4 years)

Klaus Weinberger, one of the unsung heroes of the national team, is headed to another strong footballing nation, The Licentian Isles. Weinberger, known as "Die Anker" for providing one of the only bright spots on the German American defense, will be playing for SC Montfort next season in the newly restructured Licentian league. The recent Licentian revolution has prevented any domestic football in the past year, so Weinberger will likely have a good chance to show what German American football is all about. This move buries FKF even further down in the 2. Liga. All might be lost for Die Waffenkammer.

Friedrich Rommelwald (GK, GAS) from Nordbergen (GAS) on loan(1 year) to Telino (YTT) for $6.5 million

Everyone in German America is scratching their heads at this move. Rommelwald, who lead Nordbergen to two consecutive postseason qualifications and a CoH 3rd place finish, has been sent off to unknown Yttriba for a whopping 6.5 million for a one year loan. ONE YEAR. What was Telino thinking? Undoubtedly, Rommelwald may be one of the best keepers in the nation, but he is not worth 6.5 mil for only one year of play out of him. With the money Nordbergen is getting out of this, they will be able to get much more international talent for Nordbergen and focus on building a GAPL dynasty.

Erik Rogalski (FW, GAS) from SC Gold Loewe (GAS) to Racing Xinghua Baoyam (TRB) for $7m with player exchange.(4 years)

The headliner move. Late in the transfer window, Barangayan champions Racing Xinghua Baoyam signed away Adlerschaft phenom Erik Rogalski with a four-year deal worth 7 million AM, making him the most valuable player in national history. The player born and raised in Milwaukeesburg will be packing his bags for another politically volatile country, with The Royal Barangay going through a political uprising last year. The Barangay is one of the better nations in Esportiva, most known for their runner-up finish in the CE7. Loewe will not even be missing a giant striking talent, getting 23-year-old striking talent Jeremy Ayson from Baoyam. Both teams will benefit greatly from this move.

So, what can we learn?

With more players moving out of the country to play their football, we can see that more nations are taking German American talent seriously. After the CoH finish, more people are taking note of Der Adlerschaft as an international team coming up through the ranks, and the players are much more valuable now. With none of the players going for less than 1 mil. AM, many people are now willing to pay more money for the best of the best in German America.

The downside to this is the possibility of the dilution of the league. Many people argue that German American teams should not take part in international transfers, saying that we should keep our talent at home. However, to balance all of these moves outside of the country, the States are bringing more in. Players from the Northern Sunrise Islands and Audioslavia, among others, are now playing for some of the best clubs in the country.

The question moving forward will be if these moves will ultimately suit the league, or send it down in flames.

[Sangti]

OOC: Just woke up, nor feeling well this night, with sore teeth and all.

Who will qualify to the Main Tournament? Let's find out in this cutoff.

[San Jose Guayabal]

OOC: Lose cut-off for some seconds, sh*t.

EL NACIONAL

Guayabalense players aiming high in the multiverse

Yesterday was a very special day at the Multiverse football, for the Third Ever UICA Transfers deadline where motley movements were seen, whether they be of lower quality leagues prestigious leagues was performed.

With regard to San Jose Guayabal yesterday was a splendid day it begins to observe the talent of our players begins to convince even the most demanding of the best leagues in the world, as yesterday's export players showed that import these, leaving a margin of 5 exports more than imports as only one player was performed, which did Alianza FC when hiring Maati Järvinen, from the IF Oljestaden (Audioslavia) in the amount of $ 26.5 million dollars.

The top winners in terms of exports to best leagues were Sean Fraser, Daniel Côçô and Sebastián Núñez, three of them will play in the Divisjon one of Polar Islandstates which is named as the best league of the Multiverse, Fraser will play in the mid table team FC1. Bjarnarey Flotilla, while the last two will play in the newly promoted Nasjonale Hauker.

The surprise move

Just yesterday it started the event became known one of the most important movements in the history of football Guayabalense because the sprinter forward, Sean "Panther" Fraser was sold to FC1. Bjarnarey Flotilla of Polar Islandstates, in the amount of $ 1m, which stunned all and sundry, including the very Fraser who said "I am admired by this new opportunity in my career, that the party uses to the maximum in order to help the Bjarnarey to achieve higher positions in your league and who knows if international level. "In social media speculated that his fate would Vilita, but after incessant rumor that would go to a high quality team, it was clarified that this team will go to the Divisjon one.

Pantoja starts with a promising future

The player of the U-21, Oscar Pantoja was signed by surprise by the three-time champion of the Liga Federal de Valladares, Nacional, who wishes to rise from the ashes with the help of his young Guayabalense prospect, because after being champion, has fallen quality in a rut that has been struggling to remain in first division, Pantoja external that "I am happy, but if you go to a champion team tradition that is suffering a lot, I would help the team to come out of that bump and reach back to its former glory "

Daniel Côçô, from the 5th division of SJG to the Polarian Divisjon one

Daniel, another interesting prospect for Guayabalense Football has been considered for a large project like Nasjonale Hauker, the team won the second division of PIS which amounted to the Divisjon One, Daniel has taken a big leap in quality, as part from the fifth division of SJG to the best league of the Multiverse, Daniel could not hide his joy, that even caused him tears of joy for his new adventure in Polarian lands, "I never imagined this, I consider myself lucky, because I go to a high level team in the Multiverse, but I'll never forget Sonsonate, as they are my heart. "

Núñez in the same team as Côçô

Considering the fact that Sebastian Nunez and Daniel have known children, as played in the same football academy before they took different paths, it is now their paths back together, they both go to Nasjonale Hauker, unlike Daniel, Núñez played in the first division of SJG, with Alianza FC, ​​Núñez said "Feeling grateful to the leadership of Nasjonale for having taken into account in your plans, and you want the team to fight for the top positions in the league and avoid Relegation. "

Quintanilla goes to The Royal Barangay

Javier Quintanilla also received a call from Balompie Mogya, a team that is fighting relegation in the league in Barangay, Quintanilla has been selected to defend the goal of Mogya to avoid relegation to the second division so Quintanilla says "Try to save the team, but it may be difficult as there are good competition in this league, and hopefully everything goes well".

[Sangti]

MATCHDAY 6

Group 1
German American States 5–3 Nexxus Drako
Dandillis 1–0 Tasrailia

  Group 1                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 German American States      6   5  0  1   17   9  +8   15
2 Dandillis                   6   4  0  2    5   4  +1   12
3 Tasrailia                   6   1  1  4    6  11  −5    4
4 Nexxus Drako                6   1  1  4    9  13  −4    4

Group 2
Old Guard 1–3 Paradystopia
Ati Kaluraya 2–3 Nekoni

  Group 2                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Paradystopia                6   6  0  0   10   2  +8   18
2 Old Guard                   6   3  1  2    4   4   0   10
3 Nekoni                      6   2  0  4    5   7  −2    6
4 Ati Kaluraya                6   0  1  5    4  10  −6    1

Group 3
Earo 0–1 Noburu Taiyou
Chun-nan 1–2 Northern Sunrise Islands

  Group 3                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Northern Sunrise Islands    6   5  0  1   11   6  +5   15
2 Noburu Taiyou               6   4  0  2    9   4  +5   12
3 Earo                        6   3  0  3   14  12  +2    9
4 Chun-nan                    6   0  0  6    4  16 −12    0

Group 4
Estope 4–1 Nui Hanai
Chiata 2–2 Swyftlandre

  Group 4                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Swyftlandre                 6   3  3  0   14   7  +7   12
2 Estope                      6   3  3  0   13   7  +6   12
3 Chiata                      6   1  2  3   14  16  −2    5
4 Nui Hanai                   6   0  2  4    6  17 −11    2
Swyftlandre over Estope by goal difference.

Group 5
OldsBuickstan and Pontiac 1–2 Taijan
Royal East America 1–2 Uitbregen

  Group 5                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Uitbregen                   6   4  1  1   22  15  +7   13
2 Taijan                      6   4  1  1   23  13 +10   13
3 Royal East America          6   2  0  4   13  19  −6    6
4 OldsBuickstan and Pontiac   6   1  0  5   10  21 −11    3
Uitbregen over Taijan by head to head result.

Group 6
Apox 1–0 Yttribia
Boring Paradise 1–2 Eristicea

  Group 6                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Apox                        6   6  0  0   12   3  +9   18
2 Eristicea                   6   3  0  3   15  14  +1    9
3 Boring Paradise             6   2  1  3   11  12  −1    7
4 Yttribia                    6   0  1  5    8  17  −9    1

Group 7
The Licentian Isles 3–0 Buyan
Brenecia 1–0 Kazamatsuri

  Group 7                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 The Licentian Isles         6   5  0  1   14   4 +10   15
2 Brenecia                    6   3  1  2    3   2  +1   10
3 Buyan                       6   3  0  3    4   6  −2    9
4 Kazamatsuri                 6   0  1  5    3  12  −9    1

Group 8
The Sarian 3–3 The Glorious Commune
Sakhovelo 1–2 Slembanana

  Group 8                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Slembanana                  6   5  1  0   16   9  +7   16
2 The Glorious Commune        6   2  2  2   14  13  +1    8
3 The Sarian                  6   1  3  2   13  13   0    6
4 Sakhovelo                   6   0  2  4    7  15  −8    2

Group 9 (scorinated by Buyan)
Felix 2–2 The Royal Barangay
Blackclyffe 2–3 San Jose Guayabal

  Group 9                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 The Royal Barangay          6   5  1  0   11   5  +6   16
2 Felix                       6   1  4  1   11  12  −1    7
3 San Jose Guayabal           6   2  1  3   13  14  −1    7
4 Blackclyffe                 6   0  2  4    4   8  −4    2
Felix over San Jose Guayabal by head to head result.

Group 10
Albaie 4–2 Gloriax
Texacano 2–2 Chrovan

  Group 10                  Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Albaie                      6   4  1  1   18  12  +6   13
2 Texacano                    6   4  1  1   15   9  +6   13
3 Chrovan                     6   2  2  2   14  13  +1    8
4 Gloriax                     6   0  0  6    7  20 −13    0

Playoff matchups
Matches in Buyan
Dandillis vs Texacano at Unter dem Linden, Pallstadt
Noburu Taiyou vs The Glorious Commune at Havssidanstadion, Bengtsmark
Estope vs Brenecia at Novas Pylimasstadionas, Viztourzys

Matches in The Royal Barangay
Old Guard vs Felix at Estadio de los Inversores Chinos, Baoyam
Taijan vs Eristicea at Estadio de Mar Azul, Vanie

Cutoff is at usual 1300H UTC time.

[Old Guard]

Sparks of Revolution - Part Five

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four

In a residential area of Oldem, the Old Guard were reforming and preparing themselves against an armed and organised enemy who was still activating and emerging from their positions around the town. The Old Guard had therefore only been able to hold specific areas, and were in disarray really, with many units cut off from their commanders.

One such unit had recovered a number civilians from a burning school, caused by the random destruction caused by the uprising forces, and also had a high ranking officer, Captain James of Ledley, with them. They were currently holding out against an unspecified number of resistance fighters, in a police station and an accompanying house.

The Captain was aware of the trouble which was befalling them, and needed his unit to link up with another for them to have any chance of holding off against the resistance. He called over to one of the men guarding a ground floor window, and he came running over.

"Private, we need to make contact with another squad and get them over here! We are receiving fire at an unsustainable rate!" The Private nodded before saying,

"There is a radio operator in my squad, if we can get up onto the roof, we might be able to establish a signal."

"Excellent work Private," responded the Captain, "Let's get him, and get ourselves sorted." He hurried off after the private before stopping and turning to the Sergeant in charge of the unit.

"Sergeant, I'm heading up onto the roof two of your men to operate the radio. Set up an all around defense, with your sharpshooter upstairs. I want any hostiles you see pinned down and preferably neutralised. Do you understand me?"

"Crystal clear sir," said the Sergeant, before hurrying off to see that it was done.

***

Skar was in a very different looking Office of the King, this time the giant desk and lone computer was gone. In its place, were a large number of computer screens and small desks, each with an operator sat down, headset on, furiously making notes, and giving all information to his bureaucratic lieutenant, Jeff the Krazed, who shortened this information down for Skar to look at.

He was handed another piece of paper which he hastily read through.

Squads are advancing in Tellabocari
Trolls have completely halted all advances into Hudd.
Bridge blown up in Kettle by the Old Guard, halting our advances.
King Reuben located, he is in Hillside Lodge, rural central county.

He wasn't particularly worried about Hudd, it was pretty worthless to him anyway. It could always be blown up at a later date, it was a backwards civilisation anyway. King Reuben being located, now that was good, he could toy with him somewhat before the end. Looking up he called out to Jeff.

"Let's get a couple of the tanks up to that bridge point in Kettle. Have them blow stuff on the other side up, that'll have them surrender quickly. As for Reuben, someone get me that phone line, I want a little chat."

***

The Captain and the two privates had by now reached the roof of the police station and were huddled up behind one of the outer walls, being stood up was suicide in these conditions. They had managed to get the radio up and running, and were now trying the emergency frequencies.

"This is Captain James of Ledley, with the 25th squad of the Old Guard on a police station on Bachelor Street, requiring urgent assistance, over." This was met with silence as they waited. Ten seconds later, he tried again,

"This is Captain James of Ledley, with the 25th squad of the Old Guard on a police station on Bachelor Street, requiring urgent assistance, over." The radio crackled into life.

"This is Operator Harriet the Possible of the Oldem Base, hearing you, acknowledge you status."

"Well Harriet, we're pinned down at the moment by an unknown number of hostiles out the front, and we've checked, there is no escape route out the back. We currently have 7 civilians in our custody, and we can't be expected to hold out for much longer. Do you have any backup?"

"Affirmative, the 79th squad, under the command of Sergeant Paul of Rudge is only a couple of clicks away from you, I'll direct them to your position. Hold in there for a while, they'll be with shortly." The Captain sighed, and relaxed against the wall. He was brought out of his temporary reverie, by the sound of a small explosion downstairs.

"Shit!" he cursed, before motioning to the other two, "Lets go."

[Apox]

With one of the best defensive records in the tournament, Apox have stormed into the Round of 16, continuing our good record of never going out before the Group Stage. In this Apoxian side we are seeing the correct balance of experience and youthful courage combining excellently, with the team having a perfect 6-0-0 record from the qualifying group stage.

A few of the young players are definitely clicking in with Fjelden's tactics now, and with the enigmatic Tolgus Tregajorran leading from the front, with Tregajorran scoring the winning goal in our last match against Yttribia, who are not a bad side. Tregajorran really is a player in fine form, one of the best talents we've seen emerge from Apox in a long time, better than other very well respected strikers such as Chris Maarsden and Keri Ularu and, dare I say it, on a par with Dravid Scott in terms of goalscoring ability.

Kaj Aurora, the young talent now playing at La Nueva Avenida in Farfadillis, has also looked a lot more settled this tournament, her pace and dynamism really coming into its own on the left wing, with both her and Marcus Redwood running a great deal and having to put in a great deal of work to make sure that Tolgus Tregajorran isn't isolated up front.

In terms of injuries, the squad isn't doing too badly at the moment, with Isner recovering from a toe injury he picked up in the second match, he'll be back in time for the knock-outs, although Athelstan Firth has covered for him very well thus far in the tournament. Many of the newer players have earnt valuable experience as well, especially in the last match, where we were already assured qualification to the next round.

We are yet to know our Round of 16 opponents, as we are currently waiting for the play-offs to finish, but we know that whoever we face, they will be difficult. Sure, Boring Paradise are a tough opponent, but there are tougher ones out there, and after the teams good performance against top ranked Polar Islandstates, now world champions, we will go out into any match not fearing our opponents.

Team Sheet from the Match (scorer in bold)
GK - John Lockwood
RD - Jack Lerryn
CD - Solomon Etezadi
CD - Athelstan Firth
LD - Ben Hatem
RM - Marcus Redwood
CM - Matthias Sindelar (c) sub Katie Womble 62'
CM - Armando Quillisi sub Noel Amundsen 55'
LM - Kaj Aurora
ST - Martin Roskorwell sub Corinna McKenna 70'
ST - Tolgus Tregajorran

[Taijan]

Ibexes Through to Campionato Playoffs, Will Face Eristicea to Advance to Main Tournament
THE ROYAL BARANGAY--With a win over Oldsbuickstan and Pontiac, the Taijani Green Ibexes have secured a placement in the playoff round of the Campionato Esportiva as the second placed team in Group 5. This placement comes as a result of Taijan having lost to Uitbregen in matchday four and tied them in matchday one of the ninth Campionato, tipping the "head-to-head" tiebreaker to Uitbregen's favor despite Taijan having the same record, more goals scored, and fewer goals against.

The game against Oldsbuickstan and Pontiac saw many of the Taijani reserves get their day in the sun since its result would have little bearing on the placement of teams within Group Five. The back four consisted of Mongkut Mendelsson, the lone starter, playing alongside his Green Star teammate Colby Huff as well as newcomers Felipe Frost of Port Royal and Or Sato of Nova Tunis. In the midfield, only captain Liam Renner remained on the field as Howe, Fletcher, and Ho took the field, while the strikers were Casey Laurent of Port Royal and Jackson Lord of St Christopher United, with Lane Kaspirisin replacing Lord at halftime.

In an uncharacteristic move hailed as humility by some and braggadocio by others, striker Paul Yamamoto spoke out on Twitter in praise of the reserves and what he calls the "next generation" of Taijani players "moving up." "Alex, Felipe, Or, Vishnu, you guys are going to be my team in a couple of years, and it's great to see the next generation moving up." Social networking across Taijan was abuzz about the remark, particularly the inclusion of Maroons striker Vishnu Corvallis, a standout on the Taijani team in the thirtieth Di Bradini Cup, and the reference to the hypothetical future team as "his", believed by some to be an indication that he plans to succeed Liam Renner in the captaincy.

Rumors circulated at the beginning of the Campionato that Yamamoto would sit out matches to preserve his mental health, which has been questionable since his postseason diagnosis with bipolar disorder, a condition that he likened to being "a recurring injury that can flair up from time to time and leave you either sidelined or completely useless on the field." Yamamoto's temperament has been a liability for him in years past, and he has been prone to nervous breakdowns on the field, violent displays of temper, and reportedly, occasional catatonia. He recently entered treatment with the team's newly-hired sports psychologist, and has said that his recovery is on track, but that he and his therapist are "monitoring" it, continuing the injury metaphor. Mental disability advocates across Taijan have praised Yamamoto's proactive seeking of treatment and called him a "role model" for those who feel their minds may not be all right, while certain elements, especially among Nova Algiers's ultras, have attacked Yamamoto for what they perceive as laziness and unwillingness to contribute to his team.

[Commune-PDTv2]

"Ok ... so this is ... odd."

"Is this how normal people see the world? It's peaceful ... Yeah, I like it. I should do this more often."

Lucius found himself in a meadow. He wasn't sure where exactly but that didn't matter. The air was still and silent and the lush grass soft beneath his bare feet. Lackadaisically, he surveyed his surroundings. As calming a landscape as it was, something didn't feel altogether ... real.

The rolling fields appeared more as a barren scene. Devoid of any life, or any discernible landmarks for that matter. He tried to piece together his memories. Something about Dzias, the Commune, a bearded man and an older woman attempting to look young. The fragments refused to align themselves into a coherent picture. He yearned for a coffee. His ritual caffeine abuse had evolved and transmuted into a full-blown addiction.

To his left, alone in the never-ending field stood a small hut where before there had been none. Lucius felt himself drawn to the place. A rich aroma of roasting coffee beans enticing him towards it. The fact it had instantaneously popped into existence pushed back to the deeper recesses of his mind.

As he glided ever closer, a figure appeared in the doorway of the ethereal shack. Strong masculine features and a mane of unkempt, light brown hair. His dark green eyes were kind yet also piercing. The gentile and calm look unnervingly delving deep into Lucius' being.

"Lucius. I've been waiting."
"You have? Oh ... but I don't believe we've met before. You are ... ?"
"I have many names. Call me 'Sy'"
"Like Sjmon?"
"Kind of."
"So where are we, Sy?"
"You tell me, Lucius."
"Shit. I'm not having a caffeine-induced religious experience again, am I? I've already sold my soul to the Lord of the Fungus-People and that was a deeply troubling series of events."
"Yes, I saw that."
"You did?!"
"I did."
"So you're like ... God?"
"Do you think I am?"
"To tell you the truth Sy, I'm so damn confused right now that I wouldn't think it odd if you were."
"You don't remember Muskul'Nuul at all. Do you?"

Suddenly, a neuron snapped into action and the entire series of events up until this point flashed through Lucius' thought path.

"... Psi ... "
"Ah, you do remember."
"Psi Sigismund, of the blood of Krenek, the 13th son, the damned brother, the ..."
"You know who I am, the full formal titles are unnecessary."
"What do you want? Why am I here? Where is ..."
"Welcome to your subconscious mind. That is the where. Why? Because you were rendered unconscious by your associate thwarting your clever tactic of postponing this with sleep deprivation. What do I want? Well, this becomes a little trickier. I want many things. To bathe in the blood of my deplorable brethren, to raise the Commune to its rightful place as rulers of Esportiva and to feast upon the flesh of those who oppose me. Yes, Lucius, some may say you made a big mistake in releasing me. To start with though, I want possession of your body so once you wake, I can begin my inevitable rise to power in earnest.

[Albaie]

Thy had done it. Qualification had been achieved. The players were celebrating hard through the streets of Dubrack's Town. The people had come out in force to celebrate the victory in the first stage of the competition. For the whole tournament there had been almost no one at Saint Ruk's stadium but today they had turned up in force a full stadium with the Emperor himself in attendance. Victory or nothing. A win or the team would fade back into obscurity the heroics of the Deberen brothers in bringing it back together forgotten and back to the war they would have gone.

They had gone two down with ten minutes and the game looked set to go against them and a loss loomed heavy in the minds of the Albaie fans. The players had come gloomily into the changing rooms. A heavy heart in each of them. He had them all silent to begin with and he began his speech.

Five hours away Captain Jack Deberen was stuck inside a small house with the 11 members of his patrol. They were pinned down and loosing fast as the enemy swarmed on the town. He expected he was the last remaining officer holding his position due to the heavy radio chatter. He looked round the room at his men who sat with heavy hearts each one thinking of their impending doom. He began to speak and something must have happened the day as his speech was exactly the same as his cousin Mark's even though they were miles apart and bound by only blood.

" Why are we here men. " The two men so far apart in both location and in what they were doing began. " Albaie is why we are here. Not a man in some fancy uniform or with some dainty title but Albaie. " Both men continued Mark shrugging off his jacket an standing infront of them in just a shirt while Jack tore of his rank insignia. " We are all here for Albaie for the realm we love and the people we love. If we lose here today Albaie could falter her defenses could fall and the dream Dubrack started could fall to the ground and everything could be lost due to us. Now men we are going to win for Albaie. Everything we do is for Albaie from now on not a fancy lord but the common people. For Albaie!" Both men finished their speech and Mark led them out on to the pitch while Jack picked up the flag of his company and his rifle.

Jack quickly set to work. His two best shots were waiting at the upstairs window while the other two waited for his order. " Now!" he shouted and the two men upstairs lent into the window and fired into the enemy who were up the road bombarding the two with cannon fire. Jack and his not the best shots pushed through the door chucked down a smoke grenade then formed a firing line across the street while the third and fourth best shot tore across the street into the next house and taking up firing positions and laying down fire on the enemy. As the smoke wore out Jack and his men let out fire tearing into the enemy position until they ha them on the run. Jack snatched up the flag as ran with his men to the enemy position. " Dig in men. " Jack said looking a the other enemy positions down the enemy line before chucking the flag to Sergeant Cooper. " Raise it let the bastards know we are here. " And so a loyalist flag was raised in an rebel position in the middle of a battle.

Jack lay looking up at the stairs. The position was still his but only 3 of his men remained. He was covered in blood not all of it his own. A lot of it was Sergeant Cooper's from when a bayonet had pierced the grizzled old veterans chest and he had gone down begging for his mother an crying while Jack could do nothing but hold him and cry. At the very least their counter attack had inspired a turn around in the battle. But that was no use Cooper was dead as was his best friend Patrick Lutern a Lieutenaunt recently qualified from the academy but that hadn't stopped a big butyl rebel burying a battle axe through his shoulder and Lutern had just said.
" Oh that doesn't look good." Before firing his revolver into the mans head and then brave young Lutern had collapsed dead. Jack couldn't contemplate the slaughter and how they had survived. The enemy had just kept streaming at them but his men's machine guns kept holding them back until they had broken through. 4 men had died then but as Jack and the remaining soldiers made to retreat the enemy turned tail and ran. The General had made one last push and it ha broken the enemy lines with Jack and his men having caused the distraction that allowed victory. He turned in the radio hoping to hear news of other victories during the day but it started with the segment on sports which he thought was odd.

" Today was a valiant day for Albaie sport as a dramatic comeback saw us through in the Campionato Esportiva. " Said the sauce news reported probably snuggled up in Dubrack's Town while he lay in a pit of churned up mud and guts. " The game started badly and we were two nil down at half time. But at half time Mark Deberen rallied the troops and Vincent Deberen The Younger and Elecki Queb grabbed a brace a piece to snatch victory what a glorious victory. And now into the war news where another two Deberens saw a huge victory. " Jack smiled at the mention of his cousins in the football but also that Lutern and Cooper's deaths weren't for nothing but someone had noticed them.

[Noburu Taiyou]

Tohoko Sports

Taiyou advances to Playoff

Kohara-San's Taiyouese football team advanced to the playoffs of the Campionato Esportiva today with a victory against Earo. Kohara-San's team obtained an early goal from Mio Kai and that would be enough to defeat Earo and move out of the group stage of the tournament. Yurimi Takuda made several spectacular saves. She stopped a late shot from Justinas Jakobsen to preserve the Taiyouese lead.

With the group stage over, Kohara-San's team will face the Glorious Commune next. The Commune advanced out of their group at the expense of the Sarian. They have acquired quite the reputation for dirty play. However, they are the next opponent for Taiyou and Kohara-San must figure out a way to beat them and do so without injuring any Taiyouese players.

Republican Wrestling Conglomerate invades Taiyou

The Republican Wrestling Conglomerate's first visit to Tohoko can only be considered a success. The show is said to have been of very high quality, with the main event between Jason Burger and Ricky Burger said to have been one of the best matches this year. After this show, it can no longer be said that Republicans don't have as much fighting spirit as Taiyouese.

While the show did not go unmarred by the kind of showmanship and theatrics that are common in Republican wrestling, such as the Flaming Table Elimination Match, it was still a high quality show that showed that Republican wrestling can be good, especially in front of a crowd that wants to see competition, not theatrics. While the Republican Wrestling Conglomerate's style may not be as good as Zen-Taiyou's style, they did manage to deliver a main event on par with the best Zen-Taiyou main events. Tohoko Sports recommends the upcoming DVD of this event to Taiyouese wrestling fans. The main event alone is worth the price.

[Brenecia]

THE ROZELLE OBSERVER
Immovable Force Prepares For Estope Test
by Derek Mackan

After a perfect start, Brenecia win 1-0 in their three home fixtures, lose 0-1 or draw 0-0 in their away fixtures, and scrape through by a point. Very cagey, and certainly some of our matches were more open than the scores imply. Still, our solidity indicates our worthiness to progress, but there's one enemy in our way.

Estope.

Our Opponents
Estope is fairly obscure, but not to be taken lightly. Three wins and three draws left them second in the group, behind Swyftlandre on a single goal. They scored thirteen, which is pretty good compared to our... three. Not much is known of their players, but age might be an advantage for the Patriots - most are 29 or above, with few in their prime. Alex Stark is one to watch, the 25-year old the crux of most attacks.

Team News
Magda Chartreuse is now fully fit from injury - Bowyer started the last three matches in her place, though Chartreuse could make the bench against Kazamatsuri, and came on for the last 18 minutes. The North Laithland full-back is the most-capped Patriot to have never scored for country, having made her 44th cap in that appearance.
Slatesaver has been cagey about confirming his team, but has told fans 'not to expect surprises'.

History
The two sides have never met.

Prediction
It will be tight, but we can outlast them. 1-1 at the end of the 90 minutes, then a goal in extra-time to put us into the Campionato proper.

http://www.bleakreality.net.bre/estope_will_fuck_our_shit
Estope Will Prove Too Much
by Kurt Callaghan

Look, let's not beat around the bush here. Our great 1-0 win over TLI was marred by comparatively less-great 1-0 wins over Buyan and... the Japanese guys, and we didn't win away. Our home record is amazing. This playoff is not going to be played at home.

QED, right?

We will probably play our strongest XI, give or take a couple rotations depending on Slatesaver's whims, but Kuepper/Farrell is our likeliest strike partnership, and the manager would be a fool not to feature Connell, Chenoweth, Sylver or Allbeck. He's not a fool, so expect those four faces for sure.

Estope's one of those teams that... seems to lack background. I've tried to do research on them, but it's nothing concrete. Their players could be literal amateurs for all we know - what matters is if they can get a result, and these lads clearly can. Will they on Saturday? I'm inclined to think so.

The simple fact of the matter is that we can't hit the back of the net. Estope scored thirteen, five in one match against Chiata - they obviously can. And we're going to get outmatched by a team that obviously gels superbly well, despite individual superiority. They'll put three past us, we'll manage one on the counter, or a penalty or something. Either way, we're up against it, and don't expect a repeat of last year. Even and neutral as always, this is Kurt Callaghan signing off.

[Sangti]

Six teams come into Buyan, with three going home, and three, well could stay there or fly to The Royal Barangay for the main tournament.

This is the playoffs cutoff for those playing in Buyan.

[Sangti]

PLAYOFFS
Buyanese Portion

Dandillis 1–0 Texacano
Noburu Taiyou 3–3 The Glorious Commune (3–3 AET) (4–3 pen.)
Estope 3–2 Brenecia

Congratulations to those who made it to the main tournament. Meanwhile, stay tuned for Buyan's cutoff for The Royal Barangay portion of the playoffs, and the Round of 16 draw thereafter.

[Eristicea]

The Santino Family's representative side had performed above expectation heading into their final game of what was effectively the qualifying stage of the Campionato Esportiva. Having scored thirteen times in their five games, and needing just to beat Boring Paradise in a home tie to earn a playoff berth. It would have been fair to say the family were optimistic of their chances of progression... Don Giorgio felt it best not to leave things up to chance, however.

"So I want you, Noodles, to make sure they understand that they will not be winning this match tomorrow night, capisce?" Don Giorgio gave the order, it was as good as done already.

"Of course Don Giorgio, I'll have a pleasant chat with my friends from Boring Paradise."

"You do that. And be sure to remind them of their options. Let it not be said we made threats. We don't make threats, Noodles." Don Giorgio's voice was soft, barely louder than a whisper. But still terrifying.

"No threats, boss. You got it."

"Marco, Pietro... you oughtta go with Noodles. We don't want him to be alone in these trying times. We're a family, and families stick together, do they not?"

"You got it boss."

"Of course, boss."

The Don wasn't finished. He slowly, methodically, cut the end off a cigar and lit it. "This bring me to my next item of business." He continued, with the cigar still in his mouth. "Signore Salidante, my dear friend. I require your services."

"More cold cuts, Don Giorgio?"

"No." He threw a wad of cash -- universal dollars, oddly enough -- at Salidante. "Place this on Eristicea to win tomorrow night over with Johnny Shortfingers on forty-second. He owes us a favour, so the line will be strong."

"And if he is less than co-operative, Don Giorgio?"

"Make him an offer. The kind he won't want to decline."

"Alright, but Johnny Shortfingers is stubborn, boss."

"That's not encouraging to hear, Ferdinand... If Johnny Shortfingers doesn't want to do business with our family, I'll take those cold cuts. Capisce?"

"You got it, boss."

Don Giorgio stubbed out the cigar and stood. "We all know what we're doing tonight, yes?" He made to exit the room, stopping by the door. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What is it, Grandpop?" Angelo Santino, the team captain, replied this time.

"Those two little prettyboy babbos Boring Paradise have firing for them. I want 'em broken. I want 'em on ice. And I want it to happen during the game. Prepare a gift for the officiating associates if necessary, but make it happen."

"Don't worry, grandpop. They'll be going."

"Make me proud, my son."