Cornellian Cup 2014 (Cornellian Empire only)

[Schottia]

The Host nation:

Schottia is a small mulch-cultural nation of 6.4 million people, with the vast majority of those living in the populated centers of the South Schottia coast and the city of Soesssch.

View of Handon's Harbour Hill Stadium

The country has an excellent transport infrastructure, with fast reliable trains and buses linking all the major towns and cities. Schottia has three international airports, located in Handon, Soessch and Port James; however if traveling long-haul it's far more likely to be arriving in Handon.

Schottia consist of five islands; South Schottia, New Island, and the three North Islands, however all the tournament venues are divided between the North Island and South Schottia. These two islands are interconnected by rail and road through the Dead Straights tunnel, meaning there is no more that a three hour train ride (or five hours by car) between the outermost venues. South Schottia is largely flat agricultural land, with vineyards located along the north and south coast. The North island by contrast is rocky glacial mountain ranges, pine forests and scree-slopes.

All teams on arrival will be allocated sole use of a five star hotel and training facilities near the venue where their first matches will take place. In addition a first class transportation and drivers will be on hand throughout the tournament to convey each team between their hotel and the stadium.

The Conrnellian Cup has been organised and funded in Schottia, by the people of Schottia, and has made no use of advertising or sponsorship for the event. participants are advised that although the matches will be appropriotly policed, they are ultimately responsible for the behavior of their supporters. Excessive misbehavior may result in fans being ejected from the stadium, matches being played behind closed doors, or in extreme cases teams being fined.

The Venues:

Harbour Hill stadium
Club: Handon Uunited
Capacity: 55,000
City: Handon

Dukes Street Stadium
Club: National Rugby Stadium
Capacity: 45,000
City: Handon

Gannon Park
Club: Soessch
Capacity: 38,000
City: Soesch

City of Port James Stadium
Club: Port James
Capacity: 32,000
City: Port James

Dyerton
Club: Port Sebastian
Capacity: 30,000
City: Handon

Allen Dixon Arena
Club: Marionville
Capacity: 25,000
City: Marionville

Lammerton City Ground
Club: Lammerton and Lammerton City
Capacity: 24,500
City: Lammerton

Ashley Road
Club: New Belfast Warriors
Capacity: 22,000
City: New Belfast

The Cities:

Handon
The most international of all Schottia's cities is the capital of Handon. The diverse population of 1.1 million, includes over 200,000 students who attend the the city's four universities. The harbour city is a unique blend of the old and the new, with modern buildings slotted in around ancient architecture. Of all Schottia's towns and cities Handon is by far the most vibrant, with award winning restarants, clubs, and bars; as well as no shortage of excellent hotels and apartments.

Soessch
Soessch is the second city of Schottia and principle town of the North Islands. Like Handon it has top quality facilities and services, however with a population of 600,000, just on a smaller scale. The city sits at the foot of a huge mountain range, and occupies a long narrow stretch of land between the cliffs and the sea. The architecture differs slightly from that of Handon, as the predominately German-speaking population made their mark in the 1700s.

Port James
Perched on a narrow shelf of rock at the most south-westerly point of Schottia, Port James' 230,000 inhabitants are afforded stunning views of the southern oceans. For centuries the city's deep sea port has served as the base of the nations navy. Port James is also located deep in the heart of the wine producing region.

Marionville
One could drive from Handon to Marionville without realising they had made the transition; such is the closes of these cities in style and proximity. Despite this the city has its own distinct community and culture, aswell as a fierce local footballing rivalry.

Lammerton
A small city of 190,000, Lammerton is positioned right in the heart of South Schottia, making it an excellent base for exploring the country. The city is famous for its huge late Cornellian fort, which sits on a rock in the centre of Lammerton. The city has a long tradition of football, its two professional sides, Lammerton and Lammerton City participate in the longest running derby in Schottia.

New Belfast
New Belfast is a former whaling town, and owes much of its prominence to when the trade was one of the nations main industries. This maritime tradition has contributed much to the architecture and traditions of the city, which boasts a population of 240,000.

The Rules:

The format
The format the tournament takes will depend greatly on the final number of participants but will start of with a group round robin and then precede to a knock out phase. The venues will be decided when the fixture list is announced however the final will be played at The Harbour Hill Stadium in Handon.


Scorinating
I will sorinate this tournament with the latest version of xkoranate. Since none of the teams go into the tournament with an existing ranking bonus, these points will be gained during the tournament. These points will be cumulative, awarded after each RP post cut-off, and will be carried with the teams throughout the competition.
The first chance to gain points will be when you post your roster; these will be graded from 0-1, looking at style, clarity and depth of information.


RP Bonus
The cut-offs before matches will be made clearly known in advance, and players will have until that time to post their own take on an RP responses to their previous match. Again these will be grades on, quality, appropriateness, and originality; this time scored either 0.2, 0.4, 0.6. This will be added to the teams' cumulative scores. As always in NS sport it is "quality over quantity" that is the ethos while grading RPs. You may also post more than once per cut off, however in instances where this is the case, I will only score the best one.

As host I will not be rating my own involvement, instead I will give Schottia the middle score each time, this will be representative of the home advantage that all hosts enjoy. However, I will try to post each cut off giving a round up of each days matches, and keep teams abreast of developments.


I am aiming to make the draw on Friday 6th June, with matches starting provisionally Monday 9th.


Rosters
In the meantime, please feel free to work on your team rosters and post them in the thread below. The bare minimum information we are looking for in a roster is:

1. The names and positions of your players: (if anyone is a total stranger to football TG me, I will help).

2. Style mod from -5 to +5 referring to how attacking or defencive your team is.

3. And the information in this box:

Code: Select all

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers:
Godmod scoring events:
Hand out yellow cards to my players:
Hand out red cards to my players:
RP Injuries to my players:
Godmod injuries to my players:
Godmod other events:

When grading rosters, although visual elements are important I will look just as much at the information about players and style of play, which will help others write reports on the matches.

Participants

Republic of Adiron
The Kingdom of Alizeria
Imperium of Arbites Materia
The Empire of Common Territories
Principality of Dassallia
The Allied States of New Edom
The Republic of Gylias
Jedoria
Republic of L’Ossienne
San Lucifero
The Most Serene Republic of Ri'en
Schottia
The Democratic States of Shalum
Grand Duchy of Wielkilas

[Common Territories]

The Mighty Amarok
The Empire of Common Territories

Named after their namesake; The Amarok are named after a native mythological wolf breed that habitats the frozen lands of TECT -- Commoners however have referred to the beast as "Wüten", literally meaning "rage". The two wolves of mythological origins are gigantic wolves who live in winter conditions; their strength, intelligence, and wolf like features made them deadly in winter storms -- or so the myths tells.

This soccer team was named after the mighty wolf because of its first head coach's choice; "A powerful name brings a powerful sense of strength." Soccer is in the top ten in popularity in TECT; it is played but not very often enough to become a major sporting event on the scale of the top three sports: Hockey, American football, and Track & Field. Even so, the Amarok like other soccer teams pride themselves on skill and sportsmanship. This years champions, the Amarok, will represent the Commoner Empire in the Cornellian Cup; even though only three players are native to Franklin Colonial State in Cornellia. The Amarok, like their namesake, are an aggressive offensive team that focuses on a powerful offense to counter any weakness in defense.

The Amarok official colors are gray and white at home gray and black away; for the tournament, they will wear a special made black and white uniform. +4 for offensive power but +1 for defense; focusing on a 2-3-5 formation. Amarok is known for having a powerful offense and an adapting weak defense.

I am totally new to soccer and NS sports but thought I mite as well give it a shot (even though im not a fan of soccer to begin with.). So if I make a mistake here I'd appreciate the help

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes
RP Injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod other events: Yes

• Center Back: Raymond S. Colombo
  - Backups: Hershel L. Wilbert, Calvin B. Goggans
• Center Back: Lester H. Carpenter
  - Backups: Jan Eisenberg, Robert Moench
• Full Back: Gregory M. Brink
  - Backups: David Baer, Niklas Hertzog
• Full Back: Jackie C. Byrd
  - Backups: Florian Gottlieb, Chester J. Guess
• Centre Midfield: Eduardo C. Pritchett
  - Backups: Albert E. Templin, Tyrell J. Via
• Defensive Midfield: Roy V. Martin
  - Backups: Matthew S. Maupin
• Attacking Midfield: Benjamin A. Hester
  - Backups: David C. Gordon, Chuck L. Duncan
• Center Forward: Errol E. Daniels
  - Backups: Ron D. Foster, William L. Anderson, Clarence J. Catalano
• Second Striker: Richard H. Hardesty
  - Backups: Patrick A. Meade, Harvey B. Nash
• Winger: Thomas G. Bakos
  - Backups: Stanley B. Harris, Wm L. Crawford
• Goalkeeper: Jesse D. Novack
  - Backups: Elwood L. Gorman, Rick C. Sanford, James K. Perez

[Schottia]

Schottic Team
Colours: White with green trim.
Away: Green and gold.
Stadium: Harbour Hill, Handon. Capacity 55,000
Manager: Pascal Voitle
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Playing style
Pascal Voitle's Men play in a 4-5-1 formation and operate a mixed passing style. They rely heavily on the pace of attacking midfielders such as Gaston Avelione and Jon Fontan to run at the opposition defence and create space for the onrushing central players to attack the goal. This is reenforced by overlapping wing-backs who look to catch the defenders off guard, getting ahead of the midfielder when possible. Schottia normally set up with two holding, central midfielders who are charged with breaking up the opponent's attacks and controlling the tempo of the match. These players also provide a first line of defence protecting the back four and covering for the wing-backs when they find themselves out of position.

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GK D'Araby, 31
North Islander Lucas D'Araby has 68 Caps for his country. At 190 cm he is an imposing presence in the goalmouth, and is famous for his shot stopping ability. He has been a stalwart for his club, Handon United, keeping the No. 1 shirt for eleven consecutive seasons. With United he has won six league titles and four Schottic Cups.

RB Gordon, 28
The Versitile Defender Jack Gordon has 60 caps and 3 goals for Schottia. He has a talent for getting down the right flank overlapping the midfield. Another Handon United player, his exploits for club and country have drawn plaudits in the international media.

LB O'Brian, 23
Darren O'Brian, despite being preferred in the left of midfield for his club King's Park, has made the left back position his own. His attacking style of play provides a balance to the side and complements that of Gondon's. O'Brian is 23 and has 22 caps. He has played for King's Park all his career making his debut at 16.

CB McCann, 30
John McCann has time after time proven himself to be a stalwart defender. This towering center half is tough tackling, assured in the air, and has a habit of popping up at the right time to head in from set-plays. Vice-captin for Handon United and Schottia, he has 72 caps and 3 goals.

CB Okywä, 27
Chris Okywä has the pace and athleticism to cope with the fastest center forwards. He is well known for his eccentric style of play, that on occasion, can cause problems. That said he is a firm fan's favourite and an important member of the team. The Soessch defender has 48 caps and 1 goal.

CM Donaldson, 32 (c)
Perhaps Handon Utd's best player of all time, Colin Donaldson, despite being 32 has plenty still left in him. The central midfielder can turn defense into attack in the blink of an eye, and has caught the attention of many pundits over the years for his fast feet and accurate passing. Captain for club and country, he has 92 caps and 18 goals.

CM Corsie, 21
Gary Corsie has been one of the main reasons for Port Sebastian's domestic success this season. He is another central midfielder, fast, assured on the ball, and quick to support the attack. A fantastic young talent, he has 14 caps and 2 goal.

AMR Avelione, 28
Only recently returned from a season and a half playing in Thalsyer, the former La Gorla and Wolverines winger is a force to be reckoned with. Looking to get forward where ever possible, Gaston Avelione, can operate on either wing or as a second striker. Recently signed for Handon United in a 7.5 million deal he has 60 caps and 26 goals.

AML Fotan, 22
Jon Fontan, the set piece expert, takes the corners and free-kicks. He is a firm favourate already with New Belfast Warriors and is establishing himself at international level already. Fontan can play wide left or through the middle, just behind the striker. 23 caps 7 goals.

ACM Killanen, 19
Eoin Killanen has burst onto the seen this season, with his exciting style play. The Lammerton woderkid, has already attracted the attention of some of the bigger clubs. He has scored 3 goals and been capped 17 times.

FC Schwartz, 25
Bruno Schwartz is an old fashioned Center forward and target man. He is capable of holding the ball up, and is a good outlet for the other forwards. The captain of Soessch has 38 caps and 9 goals.

Substitutes

GK Gonzaö, 23
The Port Sebastian keeper Chris Gonzaö has found himself forever in the shadows of first choice D'Arby. Despite this he has an excellent record at club level, and his only international cap saw him keep a clean sheet.

DF Daller, 24
David Daller is a versatile center defender capable of filling in at left-back. The Marionville man is good on the ball, and is an assured passer. He has 7 caps for his country.

DF McDonald, 27
Nathan McDonald is relatively new to the international scene, only recently called up to the squad for the Runner Cup. He has impressed this season with his performances for his club Soessch.

MF Ümann, 18
The Soessch youngster burst on to the scene in the recent Runner Cup campaign in Ceni scoring on his debut and making four appearances for his side. Till Ümann is an imaginative central midfielder who is able to put his foot on the ball and pass with composure. Ümann has 6 caps and 1 goal.

MF Baxter, 30
Jack Baxter is a stalwart for club and country, and is always in and about the starting line-up with 29 caps and 3 goals The holding midfielder is captain of the title winning Port Sebastian side.

FC Coine, 25
Paul Coine, despite being the main man for his club Port Sebastian, has never been particularly fancied by National manager Voitle; who normally starts him on the bench. Coine is a quick and dynamic player, lethal in the six yard box. He has 14 caps and 4 goals.

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Schottia Announce Their Official Strips Cornellian Cup 2014

Home



Away



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Style +3

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: yes
Godmod scoring events: yes
Hand out yellow cards to my players: yes
Hand out red cards to my players: no
RP Injuries to my players: yes but I will decide how long they are out.
Godmod injuries to my players: no
Godmod other events: yes

[New Edom]

The New Edomite National Football Team

Nickname: The Griffons

The members are selected from the best players of the League, and is taken very seriously by many citizens as being a symbol of patriotism and the unity of the country. During the Civil Wars there virtually was no League; General Pahath-Moab having revived it was very emotional. Queen Mara was recorded bursting into tears when the League kicked off its first match last year.

While there have been some excellent matches from a New Edomite standpoint, and while strong defense has been the goal in preparation for the upcoming rounds, New Edom hasn’t played on an international level in years. The apparent objective of the Edomite team is to wear out opponents and strike at them hard in the second half. They will be using a 4-3-3 formation.

It is not yet known how the team will be appearing. The colours will be black bottom white top with blue and red divided disc in the middle, symbolizing the unity of the nation and the colours of the national flag. However the New Edomite teams are accustomed to playing only wearing their shoes. Goalkeeper will be wearing green and red colours.

(Strong Defense: +2)
RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: Yes, but I’d like Cleopas to be able to score at least one if my team does score in a game; I’ve picked him in a previous roleplay as a dark horse.
Godmod scoring events: Sure
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes
RP Injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod injuries to my players: Ys
Godmod other events: Yes
(see what a good sport I am?)

*Note: first listed are starting players.

Coach: Solomon Imlah (Solomon Imlah is an ex-army NCO who served in 3 major conflicts before retiring. He was also a coach of the First Army’s Football Team. He has a deep and abiding love of the game. He is known for bringing barracks room language to both the locker room and the field, for tearing a strip off players but defending them against outsiders to the bitter end. Also he is known for military style briefings of his players during pre-game prep)

Goalkeepers:
Reuben Ephrathites (24) (known for rather spectacular long range saves)
Jasper Chilion (23) (shot stopper, but can he keep up his success of the last 5 matches in the League?)
Gabriel Orpah (23)

Forwards
Joseph Mahlon (24) (Striker) (Target man. The biggest toughest player on the team, he seems to have unbelievable stamina and strength. The Padan Powerhouse is the son of a stablehand, and in spite of his height (6,3) and strength he is virtually inarticulate during interviews and meeting of VIPs)
Daniel Cleopas (22) (Striker) (excellent dribbler, but some consider him a prima donna who tries to win games on his own. Will he become isolated through this independence and lose matches for the team? Hopefully Coach Imlah, a tougher coach than he might be used to, will make a strong impression on him.)
Samuel Zuph (22) (Forward) (Another dribbler, emphasizing the New Edomite team’s preference for excellent ball handling.)
Tobias Smith (23) (Forward) (The Sniper; Smith is a clinical finisher, slamming balls into goals even at range when the opportunity exists.)
Jabin Schumacher (22) (Winger) (Also a good dribbler)
Gideon Zeeb (21) (Winger) (target man; he is not obviously tough like Mahlon but is one of those short men who is very feisty and tough and seems to have limitless energy)

Defenders
Defensive Midfielder is the general approach to the Defense. The Defenders are mostly selected from teams with good defense, intended to wear down the opposing team. Pabadakis and Pike are the best in the team at drawing away the opposition defense.

Michael Pabadakis (24) (Centre Back) (Pull right/Pull Left)
Israel Todo (23) (Centre Back)
David Eshtaol (23) (Centre Back)
Zebulon Pike (22) (Full Back) (Pull Right/Pull Left)
Uriel Harvester (22) (Full Back)
Raphael Gabon (22) (Full Back)

Midfielders
Midfield focuses on a lot of stamina, good tackling, passing and defusing attacks.
Josiah Levi (24) (Centre Midfield) (Creative player)
Ezra Philips (24) (Centre Midfield)
Gideon Clemens (23) (Defensive Midfield) (Creative player)
Zacharias Agag (22) (Defensive Midfield)
Mordecai Tuller (22) (Attacking Midfield)
Benjamin Nolan (22) (Attacking Midfield)

[Gylias]

The Gylian national football team is the national football team of the Republic of Gylias. It has had a rather limited international sports presence due to its gender-neutral roster, as the team absolutely insists that it will either be allowed to play as is or it will not participate in an event at all, which has led to it boycotting several international tournaments. Its experience consists of friendly matches.

Gylians are known for culturally regarding sport as an opportunity for enjoyment above all else, and refusing to acknowledge the competitive aspects. The national football team is no different, as its players are drawn from local football teams which never play in tournaments, but instead only play friendly matches, completely ignoring winning, losing and even scores in order to focus on having fun. Gylian players are known for a near-perfect record of good sportsmanship, having only rarely received yellow cards due to accidents, and for frequently interacting and engaging in friendly conversation with their teammates and the other team's players on the pitch while playing.

The standard Gylian playing style is mainly inspired by the total football practiced by the Dutch national team in the 1970s and the tactical innovations of the Hungarian national football team in the 1950s. As such, the Gylian national football team has no fixed formation, and instead uses a fluid lineup whereby every player on the field except for the goalkeeper freely switches between multiple roles and positions, emphasising flexibility and cooperation over specialisation.

The team's shirts are white with a golden line running through the middle, regardless of whether they are the home or away team. If it would be necessary, they request that the Gylian national anthem not be played before a match in order to avoid depressing the audience.

Style: 0 (balanced)

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
Hand out yellow cards to my players: No
Hand out red cards to my players: No
RP Injuries to my players: Yes, reasonably
Godmod injuries to my players: No
Godmod other events: No

Starting players
1. Bhaksa Terneshyk (goalkeeper)
2. Kalse Ramned
3. Hurik Davidyan
4. Navan Dzíorny
5. Adna Acsir
6. Panagiotakis Xanthopoulos
7. Hana Matsuri
8. Dietmar Enns
9. Mared Terneshyk
10. Xadje Korxal
11. Naomi Mizushima

Backups
1. Nar Enylesh
2. Tzane Leuthej
3. Nels Langenberg
4. Zardáy Thashnæn
5. Arda Shanrek
6. Arevik Moushian
7. Rubinho Rodrigues

Manager: Amrana Eytak
Coach: Sarna Dyrvedz

[L Ossienne]

Later.

[Wielkilas]

Bye bye.

[Schottia]

The Official Draw For The Cornellian Cup 2014, Handon, Schottia

The old town hall in Handon was packed to the rafters as Greg Dann walked up to the podium to a loud round of applause. Looking down at the dignitaries sat at the tables below, it felt more like a film or music awards show, judging by the bottles of wine sitting open on the round tables. Looking around at the delegates, members of national footbaling bodies, the rich and famous; he was ashamed to admit he knew who few of them were. However one thing he knew for sure was that, had his name not just been announced, none of them would have known who he was either. Dann was a man of a somewhat nervous disposition. He was in his late forties, tall and lean, with a bald head. He wore a crisp grey suit and glasses.

He waited for the emotive, upbeat music to finish, and the mood lighting to change back, while preparing to give his opening speech.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, colleagues, dignitaries, heads of state, fans of international football. As SFA President and acting President of UCFA, it is my pleasure to welcome you all to these games. Schottia is proud to open its gates to so many talented sports men and women, and so many fans, who's presence here has an enriching affect on all our lives.

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'Who the hell is that?' Asked Jan Connell, Schottic High Council Leader, in his usual booming tone. He was sat next to Sports and Culture Secretary Jon Reeding at the Schottia table, and was already itching to leave. Connell was a burly, broad shouldered man in his mid-fifties, with combed back salt and pepper hair.

'That is the president of the SFA, Greg Dann.' Reeding answered.

'Well he sounds like a blundering idiot. He's like watching James Cockburn on tranquilisers.' Connell added, covering his mouth with his hand so as not to be lip-read if the camera was on him.

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'It has been a personal challenge, one which I have found both arduous and rewarding bringing these games to this country. Of course it is something that I could not have done without the help of a great many individuals, and I find it appropriate now to take time to mention them. Giving them, what I believe is only due credit for their sterling endeavour behind the scenes. It is all too easy to overlook the more tedious and less glamorous parts of the job, but let me tell you now that the games would not be here day: none of you would be sitting here in fact, without these people...'

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Connell was now completely tuned out as he poured himself another glass of red wine, tutting loudly as a few drops landed on the white table cover.

'Jesus! Is this what we are serving these people?' He said turning the bottle over in his hand. 'Reeding, this is got to be 50 squid a bottle.'

'I know Sir, but it is the opening of the Cornellian Cup,' Answered Reeding. I think there would be more than a few eyebrows raised if we served some cheep perry.'

'Let them raise whatever they want, I'm not pandering to Lords and Ladys.' Connell replied, the vein on the side of his head swelling with anger. 'If it bothers you so much, save these labels, you can stick them on some five pound a shot Malbec next time. And what is this boy on about now! He is going to have the audience drunk out of boredom.'

'Mr Connell, there are certain people who have given up a lot of time to put this tournament together, it's only fair.' Said Sheila Munro, his PA sitting to his other side, as she placed a calming hand on his forearm.

'Aye, a lot of time they were paid good money for it as well,' he replied removing the afore mentioned hand. 'You don't take ten minutes to thank the man that sells you a pair of shoes.' The truth was Connell was like a fish out of water here. Not because international figures were here, he was used to that. He was out of place because it was a party, he would have far rather been sitting in his local pub with a pint of lager. Connell contemplated going outside for a cigarette, he looked over his shoulder both ways, but it was no good, it would cause way to much commotion getting up. Instead he sat back in his chair and fixed Munro with a sarcastic smile, as it was obvious to her what he had been considering.

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'So now, with no further ado, let me please introduce Alan Stephens, who will be making the draw for us today.'

There was another round of applause as footballing legend Alan Stephens, now an elderly man walked out onto the stage. Propped up with a walking stick, he took up position next to a large glass bowl containing several green balls.

'In a few moments Alan will kindly draw the teams which, will be sorted into two groups. At this point I need to point out that as per their requests it has been deemed that the Imperium of Arbites Materia and Republic of Adiron will be kept apart in the group draw.

Group A:
Team 1. Republic of Adiron,
Team 2. Republic of L’Ossienne,
Team 3. The Republic of Gylias,
Team 4. The Empire of Common Territories,
Team 5. The Most Serene Republic of Ri'en,
Team 6. The Democratic States of Shalum,
Team 7. Jedoria

Group B:
Team 1. Imperium of Arbites Materia,
Team 2. Principality of Dassallia,
Team 3. The Allied States of New Edom,
Team 4. San Lucifero,
Team 5. Schottia,
Team 6. Grand Duchy of Wielkilas,
Team 7. The Kingdom of Alizeria


Fixtures:

(Both groups will play matches simultaneously i.e. team 5 v team 1 refers to the corresponding teams in group A and B.)

Monday 9th
Team 5 v Team 1
Team 6 v Team 7
Team 2 v Team 3

Wednesday 11th
Team 4 v Team 6
Team 3 v Team 5
Team 7 v Team 2

Friday 13th
Team 1 v Team 3
Team 2 v Team 4
Team 5 v Team 7

Sunday 15th

Team 2 v Team 6
Team 1 v Team 7
Team 5 v Team 4

Tuesday 17th

Team 7 v Team 3
Team 6 v Team 5
Team 4 v Team 1

Thursday 19th

Team 5 v Team 2
Team 3 v Team 4
Team 1 v Team 6

Saturday 21st

Team 4 v Team 7
Team 2 v Team 1
Team 6 v Team 3

Monday 23rd

Semi-finals

Wednesday 25th

Final


OOC TOURNAMENT INFORMATION: I will generate and post the results at as close as possible to 16:00 GMT each match day. That will incidentally be the RP cut-off. The tournament will run for slightly longer that the planned two weeks, because of the format I have had to adopt with 14 teams.

[Hittanryan]

The Adiran National Football Team

As one of the most popular international sports, football found its way into Adiron almost immediately after the country's founding. It was a simple but elegant game which could be played almost anywhere, even areas still in need of reconstruction. Foreign football coverage inspired kids who had fresh memories of war and privation, and helped ease the transition to normalcy with the formation of the first Adiran football clubs. The therapeutic effect football had in recovering from the horrors of the Ceti Civil War is responsible for the sport's early surge in popularity, and has been adopted as a national pasttime.

However, with western Ceti still ravaged from the Civil War, the fledgling Adiran economy still weak, and little experience in professional sports, more pressing issues took priority over sports. Adiron spent the entire 1980s almost without a single win in the international sphere, with its single victory during the Cornellian Cup in 1989 being hailed as something between a miracle and dumb luck. Nevertheless, in the 80s Adiran talent was able to find its way onto foreign teams (which contributed to the losing streak), where they learned the tricks and trades of the old professionals.

This first generation of Adiran players was just returning to Ceti when the economy began to take off. With prosperity came sponsors for football clubs and academies, and with experience came proper organization and strategy. Adiron properly entered the arena when it advanced to the semi-finals of the 1998 Cornellian Cup following two years of steady victories. Overall Adiron is neither a laughingstock nor a superstar in the football world, but between its large talent pool and resources the Adiran Football Association has staked out a claim as a contender in the international realm. On the field, Adiran players can be fiercely competitive, but never beyond the bounds of good sportsmanship or professionalism. It is just a game, after all.

Roster (4-3-3):

Coach: Scott Lei's style is best described as opportunistic and calculating: training his team to exploit any opening the opposing team gives them. The fluidity of the formation he's preferred most of the season reflects this. Described as a "schoolteacher from hell," among Lei's strengths is the ability to quickly (and often bluntly) size up the talent available to him and adjust accordingly. His flying full-backs are selected in part due to their endurance, enabling them to consistently roam forward, support the center, and even connect with the wingers while still being able to scramble back when need be. Depending on the progress of the game and the nature of the opposing offense, the goalkeeper may mark specific players for the center backs. Midfielders tend to work defensively, throwing attacks into chaos.

GK: Kurt Townsend
A solid shot-stopper, only a hair shorter than the center forward at 198 cm, Townsend tends to play mind games during penalties. Extremely perceptive, Townsend has a keen sense of the field at all times. Sometimes the Adiran goalkeeper selects men to be marked when one particular player is judged to be a significant threat, but otherwise allows the rest of the defense to maintain their more flexible type of zonal defense.

RFB: Santiago Lowe
Assigned in part due to his impressive stamina and ball control, Lowe's main asset is his intelligence. His instincts tend to be dead on, allowing him to not only anticipate the flow of play towards his end of the field but perceiving opportunities to connect passes to midfield or all the way forward.

LFB: Cory Rodriguez
A tall, fast player, Rodriguez has a habit of marking dangerous strikers in conjunction with the center-backs. Getting tackled by Rodriguez has been likened to being hamstrung, and the full-back's ball control skills are top-notch.

CB: Ed Chin
Complementing Brooks' and Rodriguez's "stone walls," Chin is typically the first to descend on anybody who breaches the defensive line, especially strikers. Sometimes described as hotheaded, Chin tends to do a lot of tackling, intercepting, and passing to midfield or the fullbacks.

CB: Rob Brooks
Brooks' strength, speed, and dexterity seemed to be a reasonable counter to the typical center-forward. A much more traditional center-back, Brooks is a defender who keeps a very close read on the rest of the game.

CM: Ken Nguyen
A versatile up-and-comer, Nguyen tends to focus on disrupting attacks and getting the ball to the target man, though he has scored several goals this season.

CM: Harold Davis
Fast and not too particular whether he's tackling or shooting, Davis has the speed and stamina to support attacks one second and double-back to shore up the defense the next. Somewhat maligned as a jack-of-all-trades, Davis nevertheless pulls his weight across the entire field.

CM: Art Sung
Often more of a defensive midfielder, Sung typically hangs back, watches for or creates opportunities, and keeps a level head.

LW: Ryan Jiang
Striker. Working in tandem with the center forward and midfield, Jiang has a marked tendency to run circles around defenders and is typically the one to find the "chink in the armor." His main strengths are speed, dribbling, shooting power, and accuracy, having scored a disproportionate number of the team's long-range goals from either foot.

RW: Ralph Green
Of the forwards, Green is the most specialized towards penetrating opposing defenses through excellent ball control and positioning. Once in possession, his combination of speed, dexterity, and strength helps ensure it gets to the center forward or striker.

CF: Tom Hall
Target man. Despite Hall's reputation as some kind of force of nature, Coach Lei knows he's not quite as good as his fans think he is, and doesn't rely on him to carry a 4-5-1. Nevertheless, as a center forward, Hall's ball control, dribbling, passing, and shooting accuracy are all solid. Hall appears to be made entirely out of wiry, sinewy muscle, and is the tallest player on the team at just under 2 meters.

Style: +1 Mild Defensive

Manager: Sam Drescher

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: Yes, though a little bit in Hall or Jiang's favor wouldn't be amiss
Godmod scoring events: Yes
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes
RP Injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod injuries to my players: Yes, within reason
Godmod other events: Yes

[Arbites]

Arbiter National Soccer

In spite of its seeming obsession with backbreaking labor and Magi scripture, the Imperium does recognize the value sport can play. As far as entertainment is concerned, sport is generally considered wholesome, healthy, and is all but expected from boys as a "normal" recreational activity. On the international level, competition fosters a sense of national pride, useful political capital in the Imperium. Sports in the Imperium are very much male-dominated; gender-integrated teams are still something only hinted at derogatorily in bars during a disappointing match or whispered out of earshot.

Association football, however, is only the third most popular sport in the Imperium. Baseball and gridiron football are more popular and receive more in sponsorship money. The largest football stadium in the Imperium is actually a multipurpose facility which doubles as a gridiron stadium (and is not one of the largest gridiron stadiums, either). A number of other larger fields are constructed out of temporary materials for expedience and cost. In spite of this, football, as is baseball, is still popular with children for its simplicity.

Imperial football clubs are often dependent on wealthy donors and private sponsors, and membership is frequently limited by funding. Many newer members need to keep their day jobs to support themselves, transitioning to professional athletes once they've established themselves as solid players. Although relatively well-off families can afford to send prospective players to the Imperium's sole football academy, a combination of poverty, industrial accidents, health problems, and war injuries manages to limit the Imperial team's roster to those who seem naturally predisposed to football or had enough money to train properly.

Roster (4-5-1):

Coach: Steve Alexander tends to favor a more defensive style. Part of his team's training regimen involves building stamina, allowing them to grind opposing teams down by attrition. Without fail, he begins every game with prayers to the Emperor administered by Father Ross, even in secular nations or nations which profess to despise the Imperium. Alexander is young and a former player himself, and would likely still be playing if not for injuries sustained in the Second Burnt Hills War.

GK Joe Powell
Aside from his uncanny reflexes, Powell has a tendency to make free and penalty kicks hell for the opposing team. He attempts to study forwards before a given match to figure out their styles, displays an ability to read most kickers, and, when he thinks the refs will let him get away with it, will attempt to stall and build up pressure on the kicker by asking to clean his boots, demanding to know if the ball is positioned correctly, etc.

RB Ralph Wright
Off the Ball is Wright's game, working to establish passing options, connecting passes with midfield, pinning wingers, and herding opposing players towards the chaos of midfield.

LB Tim Griffin
Griffin tends to flank anything that breaches the defensive line, keeping his keen eyes on the progress of the game.

CB Sean "The Wall" Hall
With a tendency to mark players and stick to them like glue, this imposing giant works by overpowering anyone in possession as soon as they take the ball.

CB Larry Baker
Another man marking center back, Baker's height gives him an edge in interceptions, and his excellent ball control makes it frustratingly difficult to retake possession once he has wrested it from a forward.

CM Will Evans
Defensive midfield. Imperial center-mids focus on zonal defense, although Evans' strength and speed make him a spoiler for many would-be strikers and allow him to support the center forward.

CM Gerald Cooper
Defensive midfield. Cooper concentrates on zonal defense mainly through speed, interceptions, and tackles. Generally his role is to disrupt attacks by center forwards, though he has the stamina to run up and support the center forward if need be.

AMR Roy Collins
Passing and shooting accuracy are Collins' games, focusing on through shots to the center forward and seizing opportunities to exploit unprepared goalkeepers.

AML Ken Reed
Though also focusing on through shots, Reed has excellent ball control, stamina, and dribbling skills, enabling him to drive past opposing defense when need be.

AMC Tom Swain
Striker. Fast, nimble, accurate, and possessed of considerable stamina, in between through shots Swain occasionally weaves his way forward to supplement the center forward and take shots of opportunity. He is not, however, built to overpower opposing center-backs and often must work in tandem with either the center-forward or other attacking midfield.

CF Ernest Carter
Target Man. A lynchpin of the Imperial team's strategy, Carter is described as the complete package. Tall, fast, strong, accurate, and able to dribble with the best of them, Carter's purpose in his role as center-forward is to provide the otherwise defensive team its steady stream of 1-0 victories.

Style: +3 (Defensive)

Manager: Father Ross

RP Permissions
Choose my goalscorers: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes
RP Injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod injuries to my players: Yes
Godmod other events: Yes

[Gylias]

New Belfast, Schottia

It was an early afternoon, about the time where people might retire after savouring a good lunch to have a relaxing nap, which certainly would have helped explain why the previously bustling hotel had suddenly become more pleasantly silent and low-key. It was the hotel where the Gylian team was staying - they were rather uncomfortable with being allocated such luxurious accommodation and would have much preferred a more understated lodging, like a motel. But there hadn't been enough time to try and make the alternate arrangements, so they settled for merely arriving in New Belfast and then sharing as many rooms as possible to reduce the costs of their stay, and insisting that they clean up their own rooms instead of the hotel's staff in order to save time.

The place was in fact sufficiently quiet that the bored receptionist at the front desk did not pay much mind to a person wearing only a short-sleeved T-shirt two sizes too large, who happened to be sneaking around very visibly and blatantly. This was the Gylian football player Kalse Ramned, who had seemingly derived knowledge of what "stealth" is from cherished hazy memories of nights staying up late and drunk mocking terrible B-movies with dear friends, and vaguely remembered attempts to play Metal Gear Solid and Deus Ex. Kalse's head peeked from behind a wall in a way that drew attention to xyr attempts to stay unnoticed, and xe then tip-toed with wide steps and hands outstretched, eyes constantly darting around in a way that resembled a terrible extraterrestrial parody of acting casual. Xe had made it as far as the reception so far, after having previously crawled along the floor through an empty corridor as if somebody had forgotten to take their hand off the "Ctrl" key while playing.

(And they were playing the special fish-flopping-on-the-ground-dying-of-asphyxiation simulation level.)

Glancing upwards from under her eyebrows, and witnessing Kalse attempting to "hide" behind a plant's vase in a way that made it look like xe had trouble processing the concept that people could see xem from the side, the receptionist rolled her eyes and sighed, as if to say, "Oh, brother...", and then returned to her infinitely more interesting work.

Kalse eventually made it behind a support pillar, close to the entrance of the hotel. Xe peeked out and looked around with apprehension at first, but xyr face brightened into a triumphant grin as xe concluded that xe had not been seen, not noticing that xe had actually been seen by a rather particular pair of eyes. Kalse then emerged out from behind the pillar and triumphantly strode with head held high for the last couple of metres before the entrance, that separated xem from the outside of the hotel. Xe was too giddy to notice anything else, not even the subtle footsteps that moved and stopped behind xem.

With exquisite timing, a throat-clearing "A-hem" could be heard from behind them, coming from a very distinctive voice. Kalse froze for a second, xyr previous smile drained into a look of frustration at having been found out so close to the goal, and panic at having been found out so close to the goal by the person in question.

Kalse turned around slowly, with the look of a deer in headlights though a very subtle hint of the edges of xyr mouth curving upwards into a bit of a smile, and confirmed more or less what xe already knew: in front of xem was the team's coach, Sarna Dyrvedz. A young former student who had ended up in football by happenstance rather than design, Sarna had charmed her way into the position thanks to her sweet and caring personality, having developed a close, doting relationship with her teammates. She had a protective habit of using her charisma and mildly showboating whenever necessary in order to focus most of the attention outside of Gylias on her, so that her players would not have to deal with the competitive pressure that seemed to accompany sports in other countries and be able to have the most fun playing, without intrusive media coverage or anything similar spoiling the experience. The team itself operated as a democracy where everybody had a say in its running and its functioning was mainly based on cooperation and convincing, and Sarna was very good at convincing the players that she was the best person for the position of coach, and the best qualified to mediate and reach consensuses acceptable to all. The players would often joke, not inaccurately, that Sarna was a great class representative who had somehow managed to wind up looking after a football team instead of a class of students.

Sarna was currently looking at Kalse, her hands crossed in front of her and her body in a relaxed posture. She smiled kindly, albeit her eyes were somewhat narrowed and her eyebrows subtly facing downwards, lending a not unwelcome note of impishness, a certain slyness, to her overall appearance.

"Oh, h-hi Sarna!", Kalse could only stammer, trying to reciprocate the friendly smile but slightly overdoing it in a way that betrayed xyr nervousness. "It's lovely to see you, as always!... Er..." Xe stretched out a hand behind xem to point towards the entrance. "Um, lovely day we're having, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is a lovely day indeed.", Sarna replied warmly, giving Kalse a hug. "How are you doing, Kalse?"

"I'm doing great!", Kalse said. Xe worried that it sounded a bit strident, and relaxed. "It's such a great day today, we had so much fun in the room earlier, haha... and you, Sarna?"

Sarna chuckled. "Oh, you know me, everything's going well, can't complain. I'm just checking to make sure my friends are doing well today."

Kalse scratched the back of xyr head, mildly chuckling as well, and said, "Ah, yeah, you're the best coach ever, class rep." Xe then put xyr arms around Sarna as well, softly rubbing her back.

The two laughed, and eventually Sarna let go and returned to her normal standing position. A silence then took over the conversation as Kalse mentally flailed for what to say next, Sarna's demeanour remaining unflappably calm and friendly. It was eventually broken by Sarna's question, "By the way, how's your training going, Kalse?"

"Er, oh! Um, the training... yes... it's going well!", Kalse sputtered rather quickly. Xe pointed towards the entrance again. "I just finished my pool training, and was heading off to do ocean swimming!"

Another silence ensued, as Sarna did not change her affable expression apart from mildly allowing one of her eyebrows to creep upward in surprise. Eventually, she covered her mouth with one hand and giggled. "Oh, my. Poor Kalse, you really should've gone easier on the alcohol last night.", she said playfully, patting Kalse's head. "I'm talking about your football training, not your swimming, silly."

"Well, uh, I was playing water football!"

Sarna moved her hand onto Kalse's shoulder and crouched slightly to look directly at Kalse, in a way that gave her a vague resemblance to a mother amused by her child's determined, strained attempts to explain how what she saw was not what it looked like. "Are you sure you weren't playing water volleyball?"

"No, no, it was, it was... a heavy ball! Yeah, a heavy ball. Sank directly underwater. We, uhm, we had to kick it sideways to not hurt ourselves! Pana broke one of their toes trying to kick it normally!"

Sarna closed her eyes and giggled, but said nothing. She then took her hand off Kalse's shoulder and returned to her normal posture. Increasingly visibly chastened, Kalse looked away for a few moments, before ultimately sinking xyr head and mumbling, "... it's, it's not working, is it."

"Nope!", she replied in a gently innocent tone, smiling with her eyes closed. "You know you have to do your training first, so you can then do all the fun things you like!"

Kalse grinned, and slightly bent forwards, holding xyr arms together with intertwined fingers in front of xyr face. "Ah, come on, Sarna, please? Pretty please?", they said, in increasingly high-pitched tones. "Please, just this once?"

Sarna giggled. "Hehe, I'm afraid you're not worming your way out of this that easily, Kalse dear." She reached out with one hand and pinched Kalse's cheek. "No matter how amusingly cute your attempts are."

"Really? Thanks, Sarna!", Kalse responded cheerfully.

Sarna placed her hand on Kalse's shoulder again, gently pulling xem closer, and looked into xyr eyes, grinning. "I promise you that if you finish your training quickly, we'll go hang around the city together."

"Whoa, for real?!", Kalse said, shocked. After taking a second to process the sentence, xe then enthusiastically leaped onto Sarna, hugging her tightly, and kissing her. "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! You're the best coach ever, Sarna!", xe squeed rapidly.

Kalse then came down and withdrew from the hug, happily adding as an afterthought "Well, I knew that wouldn't work anyway!", and then gave Sarna a peck on the cheek before skipping off happily to practice.

"Wait... Kalse, pause and rewind for a bit.", Sarna said, mildly confused.

"Mm?", Kalse mumbled as xe stopped and turned around.

"You knew from the start that was not going to work... Why'd you still do it?"

Kalse gave Sarna a very goofy grin and held up two thumbs up in her direction. "Because it cheered you up and we both had a good laugh about it, didn't we? Worth it!" Xe then turned around and dashed off for training, leaving Sarna initially a bit dumbfounded, before gradually her face brightened into a smile and she laughed upon realising what Kalse meant.

Whenever they recounted the story afterwards, both Kalse and Sarna added the detail that in the long silence that had preceded Kalse's stammered attempts to quickly come up with an explanation, Sarna had been nonchalantly filing her nails and smiling innocently while waiting for a response. It was Kalse who first suggested the detail while talking with Sarna later, Sarna responding with a laugh and a "Why didn't I think of that?" accompanied by jokingly pretending to slap herself, and the both of them agreed that from now on all their retellings would include that detail. It hadn't actually happened, but it made for a better story, and didn't humans already selectively edit their memories afterwards? Sarna also enjoyed the way the small addition helped lend her the aura of the kind of fearless, unyielding and determined hotshot character that she was familiar with and enjoyed from anime.

[Arbites]

Lammerton, Schottia

It was the third floor up, 4:00 PM on the tail end of a very long flight, and the team was setting down their bags. Coach Alexander hadn't slept in two days. He didn't sleep on planes. His eyes closed, his mind was a blank, but the noise, the motions, never let him drift off. Although he didn't presume to rank his own physical fitness alongside those of professional athletes, if the team was anywhere near as exhausted as he was, they would need drills. They would need to get moving again and soon. Of course, the room was very nice, and the bed certainly looked comfortable. Just five minutes, five minutes of real sleep...

Father Ross was coming back from the field, having just wrangled a bit of practice time for tomorrow. At this point the team was supposed to be at a different field playing a bounce game. Judging by the relative quiet on their block of rooms, the Magi priest was preparing to retreat to his room for a bit of reading and a few phone calls. That is, until he heard a deep rumbling sound coming from one of the rooms with the door left open.

Steve was out cold. Ross didn't even make an effort to conceal the sound of his entry or dropping his bags on the floor. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was 7:30 PM. 'By the Emperor,' he thought, 'I am managing a group of six foot, 165 pound children.'

The nearest bar, pub, or any other form of watering hole was now home to the Arbiter National Soccer Team. An unexpected outcome of the Imperium's harsh public drinking laws was the widespread tolerance for alcohol. One had to be able to hold one's liquor enough to at least appear sober in public. Otherwise, you'd be doing time. They always got you. Generally, you either didn't drink at all for fear of imprisonment, or you could drink a lot. The football team, naturally, was comprised of the latter.

In this venue, they were enjoying the much wider variety and quantity of hard liquor available. The Curia, naturally, sought to discourage drinking not only by handing out disproportionate punishments for intoxication, but also by limiting the imports available. Liquor was perceived as somehow worse; at typical market value it was more economical for your average Imperial citizen to get drunk off a shot or three. Therefore, customs put whopping tariffs on spirits which tried to rectify the economics. Hard liquor was the purview of the rich and very special occasions.

Now, however, the Arbiter football team was doing shots like it was all new to them once more. They even had more than two kinds of each liquor here! What a wonderful place Schottia was shaping up to be...

[Schottia]

Results

Match Day One, Harbour Hill Stadium

Connell knew there was a lot riding on him. His party had invested a lot in the up and coming election campaign, with a new image, new policies and a big advertising push. Slogans like "Think you know Jan? Think again." and "New tricks" adorned billboard the length of the country, and featured heavily in TV advertising. There had been huge amounts of work done on his image, his new young PA had been charged with stopping him smoking in public, and keeping him out his local pub. There were now plenty of images of him wearing a shirt without a tie, trying to appeal to the younger voter.

As they climbed the steps to the executive box at Harbour Hill Stadium, his assistant Shela Munro, did a quick roll-call:

'Nicotine patch?'

'Check.'

Tie removed?'

'Check.'

'Smart-casual jacket.'

'Check.'

'Smiling warmly.'

'Check check, bloody check.' Connell finally snapped. 'Jesus, can you no give me a chance? How has the fact that I enjoy the occasional fag, got anything to do with my ability to run a bloody country?'

'Councilor; Jan.' Munro paused, looking at him. 'You know how much of politics is about image these days. Socialism is changing, and we need to be at the forefront of it. We don't have coal mines, off-shore oil platforms, we don't have the same heavy industry anymore, younger voters never grew up with that.'

Finally they made it up the steps into the directors box, the glass walls offering commanding views of the stadium. Behind them there was a banquet laid out, with drinks, teas, coffees, and contemporary takes on traditional football cuisine. Connell took his seat, a black leather chair to the front of the room. It was 22 degrees outside, but the air-conditioning in the room made it distinctly cool. A young bartender excused himself and placed a beer down in front of the council leader, informing him where he could get more if he would like.

Connell sat back and took three or four sips of his drink. Today wasn't all bad, at least he had a good view of the game. He rolled his shoulders feeling himself relax a little; his job did have some perks.

---

Results:

Group A

Ri'en 0 - 1 Adiron
Gannon Park, Soessch

Jedoria  2 - 3 Shalum
City of Port James Stadium, Port James

L’Ossienne 0 - 4 Gylias
Ashley Road, New Belfast

Group B

Schottia 0 - 1 Arbites
Harbour Hill Stadium, Handon

Wielkilas 0 - 0 Alizeria
Dryerton, Handon

Dassallia 0 - 3 New Edom
Dukes Street Stadium, Handon

Group A

Name       P  W  D  L  F  A  P
Gylias     1  1  0  0  4  0  3
Shalum     1  1  0  0  3  2  3
Adiron     1  1  0  0  1  0  3
TECT       0  0  0  0  0  0  0
Jedoria    1  0  0  1  2  3  0
Ri'en      1  0  0  1  0  1  0
L’Ossienne 1  0  0  1  0  4  0

Group B

Name         P  W  D  L  F  A  P
New Edom     1  1  0  0  3  0  3
Arbites      1  1  0  0  1  0  3
Alizeria     1  0  1  0  0  0  1
Wielkilas    1  0  1  0  0  0  1
San Lucifero 0  0  0  0  0  0  0
Schottia     1  0  0  1  0  1  0
Dassallia    1  0  0  1  0  3  0

---

'Well that was a complete waste of bloody time that!' Connell grumbled descending the stairs. 'I honestly would have rather spent and hour and a half in the dentist's chair than sitting through that. And what in gods name was he thinking, taking off Corsie? Anyone could see he was the only player who looked like putting two passes together.' Connell and his party made their way out into the main exit area of the stadium and were aloud to leave through the side door so as to miss the worst of the crowds.

'Come on Shela, lets get into the car before we have to talk to any Arbiter delegates. That would just about finish a perfect day of nicely.' He said crossing the car-park with Munro and Reeding. He opened the back door to the government car, allowing the others in before entering himself and slamming the door hard behind them.

[New Edom]

THE FINEBERG TIMES

---

Sports Report: New Edom takes Dassalia 3-0 at Cup Start

by Tim Stanton
DUKE STREET STADIUM, Handon, Schottia— Joseph Mahlon scored the first two goals of his international career before the goalkeeper was forced to leave the match with an apparent neck injury at Duke Street Stadium.
Mahlon may have earned himself some playing time at the Cornellian Cup.

In the New Edomite national team's first match in Schottia the powerful striker scored the first two international goals of his career to lead the Griffons nto a 3-0 victory over Dassalia at Duke Street Stadium in Handon, Schottia.

Coach Imlah named his starting lineup on Monday, surprisingly leaving dribbling prodigy striker Daniel Cleopas out. . Instead, Joseph Mahlon and Tobias Smith started up, with Smith substituted for Samuel Zuph in the second half. Imlah’s tactics were proven right as Josiah Levi created a great opportunity for Zuph to score the final goal in the second half.

In the 43rd minute, Levi cut inside from well outside the box, passing to Mahlon who fired home a long-range bullet past the surprised goalkeeper, who should have been able to make the save but played the wobbly ball very poorly.

Goal-scoring machine Zuph came on at halftime and the second half started much like the first, with New Edom controlling the match.

But once again, it was up to Levi to provide the offense for th Padan Powerhouse as he scored on another shot from distance. It appeared the Dassalian goalkeeper had made a diving save but the ball took a bounce over the goal line, with Zuph right there in case it didn't cross the line.

While fans were still celebrating the two-goal lead, New Edom was given quite a scare when Michael Pabadakis, the always reliable Centre Back, went down with an apparent neck injury caused by his own teammate. The keeper collided with Ezra Philips and he was stabilized and stretchered off, causing a stoppage in play for five minutes.

Samuel Zuph closed a strong performance by the home team after putting a deflected cross from Josiah Levi to score the goal from the edge of the box in the 85th minute.

The Griffons, as the National New Edomite Football Team is nicknamed, will be up against Schottia on Wednesday, getting a challenge that some question their readiness for.

Dr. Josiah Alexander was jubilant. The National Director of Sports and Youth, who was officially representing the country’s Ministry of Culture, raised his hands and gave thanks to almighty God that the team had performed so well. He had officially raised a concern that the team should be able to play in only their footgear, knee pads and body paint for future matches, but other than that he was very happy with the venue. He went down to the lockers and congratulated the coach, Imlah, the Captain and Vice-Captain and had champagne with him.

“I am concerned that you didn’t put Cleopas in the startup though, are you using him in the next match?” asked Alexander of Imlah when they had a private moment.

“To be honest, I didn’t want him on the team at all. You and the Minister and some of the other backers all insisted so he’s there, but I don’t know how good of a team player he is. The Flockers’ coach was always complaining that he didn’t pass enough. Prima donna. I have my eye on him. He could lose us a match up against players far more experienced. The strategy is wear them out and seize control of the ball. I don’t know if he can get that into his thick head,” replied Imlah.

“But that dribbling is fantastic, those moves, that dexterity—a lot of fans will be disappointed,” warned Alexander.

“What do they want, to win or to see fancy footwork?”

Cleopas didn’t seem like a poor sport; he was as friendly as a retriever, going from player to player with grinning arm clasps and shoulder pounding, seeming more wistful than envious. In person he was a shaggy haired oddly attractive oafish young man who spoke English with a heavy Etrurian accent and smiled goofily at the camera. Imlah found this sly, but he couldn’t tell if the boy was an idiot or a prima donna. By contrast he knew he could count on Pabadakis, Mahlon, Levi, Smith, Zuph.

Imlah tightened his jaw, watching. Pabadkis by contrast was pepping the team up like a good NCO. Good job boys. Just a warmup for Schottia. These are some of the best players in Cornellia. D’Araby won’t give anything away for free. Gordon, O’Brian, Donaldson, Corsie…they will give us a run for the money. Let’s be at our best, keep an eye on them, don’t let up on them.

“A few more VIPs will be down in a moment,” said Dr. Alexander. He had actually come to make sure that the team were prepared for that—he couldn’t forget the one time that a VIP had come down to a Flocker match aftermath to find some of the team members literally having a pissing contest. Fortunately it was Queen Mara and Prince Enoch Tubal-Cain, who had found it amusing, and not the Prophet or Archbishop.

“Alright you maggots, listen up!” roared Imlah. “You played a good match today. Some quality are coming down to say hello, so act your best, don’t jack off in front of them!” he smiled grimly as they laughed. “Let’s see you looking like the National Team!”

“GRIFFONS!” several of them shouted. It was infectious, and that was what greeted the VIPs from the Ministry of Culture, NENN news and the League officials as they came down to congratulate them.

[Hittanryan]

New Laconia Times

Sports

Cornellian Cup: Adiron Edges Out Ri'en 1-0

Soessch, Schottia- Day one of the Cornellian Cup is officially over, with one win under Adiron's belt. The Orcas managed a 1-0 win against the Ri'en team in a tense match. Strong showings by New Edom, Gylias, Shalum, and Jedoria have some worried.

The first half was largely controlled by Adiron. The game's lone goal was scored when RFB Lowe surged forward and connected a pass to Right Winger Green. Outmaneuvering the full back, Green passed to center forward Tom Hall who slammed a shot into the net after wrong-footing the Ri'en goalkeeper.

Ryan Jiang was off his game, however, missing two goal opportunities in the first half. Commentators have speculated that the striker may still be nursing an ankle injury from two weeks ago, which would throw off his normally ambidextrous play style and accuracy.

In the second half, the Ri'en defense tightened up and marked both Jiang and Hall, frustrating efforts by midfield. In the middle of the second half, Nguyen incurred an offside offense, the resulting free kick costing Adiron possession for several minutes of the second half. During this span, goalkeeper Townsend expertly deflected a close shot from the Ri'en center forward in the 68th minute.

Although in the 82nd minute Chin intercepted a pass and possession shifted back to Adiron, the forwards were frustrated by an all-or-nothing last ditch defense by Ri'en. Time ran out in the middle of an Adiran counterattack.

Team manager Sam Drescher was pleased with the win but apparently not with the Orcas' overall performance. "A win's a win, sure, but once that first goal came, I don't know, maybe we got cocky? We got sloppy. We know what mistakes we made, so we'll just have to make sure they don't happen again."

With teams like Gylias, Shalum, and New Edom dominating in goals, Drescher can only hope.

After the match, the Adiran team didn't make too big a show of their win. It wasn't that they felt their opponents should have been easier; Ri'en fought hard this game. It was more that they felt they as a team just hadn't been at their best. If they hadn't made mistakes, if they had all been just a bit sharper, they could have overcome anything Ri'en threw at them. Today, they didn't. Was it the pressure?

Coach Lei wasn't quite as nuanced. "What the hell was all that about? You get one goal and say 'good enough'? And you--" he said, pointing a bony finger at Nguyen, "--you forget what "offsides" means? Or did you think we should just give them the ball for ten minutes to be sporting?"

"That call was bullshit and you know it, Coach," the young center-field replied, trying to absolve himself of responsibility.

Lei walked a few inches from the man and chided "Oh it was bullshit, huh? If it was bullshit, how did it happen, hmm?"

"You really think that ref has eyes in the back of his head? He was on the other side of the field and wasn't even looking," Nguyen complained.

"Yes, very good, and I suppose you think people don't always say that when a ref makes a call they don't like? Come on, let's hold it together, it's the Cornellian Cup! You see some of these scores? Gylias went four-zero...against L'Ossienne. Whaddaya think they'll do to us on Friday if you don't shape up?"

"Townsend!" he addressed the goalkeep, "If you're not on the field I want you watching videos of these last games. Last I heard it's all about total football down there. Figure out what each player is capable of."

With an approving nod from Townsend, Lei continued. "Jiang, figure out if your ankle is healed or not. If it isn't, fix it instead of running on it."

"It's fine," the striker said dismissively.

"Oh, so you don't have an excuse for missing two easy shots?"

Jiang sneered at that. "Defense," Lei continued, "we need to see some more passing upfield. Look at what Lowe pulled off."

With a series of nods, Lei moved towards the door before turning around and addressing the team once again. "Oh yeah, and damn good work today," he said with a smile. "Even though we fucked up, we still just won our first match in the Cup. Imagine what we'll do when we're at our best. Sam says it's happy hour...on him." The team seemed to relax a bit, smiles crept across their faces, and everything was all right again.

[Gylias]

Arxas, Gylias

"I'm home!", said Petra Lundgren as she closed the door behind her.

From the kitchen on the right, her sister Malin came running excitedly, exclaiming "Eeeeeee!", and happily embraced Petra. "Welcome back, Petra!", she said, before fondly tightening her embrace and rubbing her head against Petra's chest, making a comfortable "mmmm..." sound. She then pulled her head back and looked up at her sister, saying, "Always great to have you back! How was your day?"

Petra was pleasantly taken aback by Malin's enthusiasm, and she replied by smiling and affectionately patting her head, warmly remembering how nothing, not even the process of growing up, could dent the power of how much Malin adored and looked up to her older sister. It was good to have Malin and such loving, good parents as a constant pillar of support in her life, to say the least. "It was nice and calm as usual, hehe.", she said, before lowering her head slightly to kiss Malin's forehead and then putting her arm on Malin's back and pulling her closer. "But it's always great to be back home."

Malin closed her eyes and smiled, holding closely onto Petra's body. The sisters stood silently for a while, before Petra eventually looked at Malin again and said slyly, "How's your day been, Malin? Burned anything in the kitchen?"

Malin, realising that Petra had noticed she was wearing an apron and cooking noises could be heard from the kitchen, laughed and replied, "Only my share of the lunch! I saved the good one for you!" She lifted one of her arms behind her and pointed towards the kitchen. "I was just making my share again right now!"

Petra silently giggled and tousled Malin's hair, to which Malin laughed with one eye closed and light-heartedly protested, "Aw, stop, sis, you're ruining my haiiiiiiiir~".

"Only so that I can put it back much better than before.", Petra joked reassuringly.

With a quiet nod, Malin then let go of her sister, having concluded to her satisfaction that she was here with her, and then went into the kitchen again. Petra walked ahead into the main room of their small but cozy apartment, wishing to kick back and relax after a day on the job. Especially since it was an enjoyable day - she could hear the sounds of birdsong and the ocean waves gently splashing against the shore in the distance, and feel nice breezes coming in through their open window. Having already removed her shoes at the entrance, she carefully unbuttoned her shirt and loosened her blue tie, pausing for a second to wipe her forehead before taking off her uniform and placing it fussily in her closet. (A career like hers above all taught her that some important things had to be handled with the utmost of care, after all.) She then sank into the small couch in the room, putting her feet up on the table in front of it, and fidgeted a bit until she found exactly the right position, which she marked by exhaling a satisfied "Ahhhhh..."

Petra then reached for the remote and turned on the TV, channel surfing for a bit. She could have simply looked up what was scheduled for today online from Malin's computer, since that was already on... but one look in that direction made her smirk slyly and say, "Naah~". She rubbed her belly comfortably, and resolved that right now her main priority was to pamper herself and luxuriate in laziness.

One of the "coming up next" announcements made her perk up with attention, and she called out while sprawled on the couch, "Malin? Can you please tell me how much more cooking you have to do?"

"I'm almost done, actually, why?", Malin yelled from the kitchen.

"Cornellian Cup broadcast about to start in a bit, it'd be great if we can synchronise with that, no?", Petra added with a laugh.

"Haha, you think that wasn't the plan all along?"

Petra stretched her arms above her and said to herself in a sing-song voice, "Great minds think alike~".

Some minutes later, Petra quickly threw and spread a tablecloth over the table as Malin arrived from the kitchen carrying plates of food and two forks and knives. The two sisters sat close to each other on the couch, linking arms, and began happily eating their lunch slowly, savouring it while watching coverage of the Cornellian Cup on GTV.

Even the sports coverage of Gylias reflected the way its sporting culture differed from that of other nations. Gylians found the overly loud, far too melodramatic style of other nations' sports announcers to be ridiculous, and irritating in its tendency to be too excitable, scream too much about goals and whatnot, and generally hog attention arrogantly. Gylian sports tended to instead be broadcast simply and with a minimum of frills, so that nothing distracted from the sport in question. (After all, that is what it was about: sports. Not failed actors shoving their lack of knowledge of subtlety or what constitutes charming banter into the audience's faces.) Many sports were broadcast either completely as-is, with only some unobtrusive text in the lower half of the screen providing clarification but otherwise letting them stand on their own merits, or when commentary was available it was designed to be pleasant and straightforward. (Somewhat like ambient music, actually: rewarding to pay attention to, but also working fine in the background.)

And it just so happened that one of the most popular sports commentators in Gylias, Céleste Bonheur, encapsulated those qualities rather well. A generous, unassuming and somewhat shy 25-year old who otherwise worked in her family's flower shop in Orsaén, Céleste had landed into her second career more or less by accident, mainly due to other people's tendency to love her voice and encourage her to use that particular talent. She had a gentle, soothing and mellifluous voice, all honey-coated with no rough edges, and a manner of speaking that reflected her quiet but sunny personality. It was a well-trod but fond cliché that Cécile could read anything, even the telephone directory, and make it sound like a tender lullaby.

---

Highlights of Céleste Bonheur's commentary from the Gylias-L'Ossienne match

Warm-up
Good morning, my friends. We're here today at Ashley Road stadium in New Belfast, Schottia, for the friendly between the Gylian and Ossiennais teams, and you can tell by how enthusiastic the crowd is, and what wonderful weather we're having, that it's going to be a great game...

6:09
...and Hana is going ahead but it seems Sebastian Vartan and Jaques Brurant are closing in on their position. Hana passes the ball to Navan, and Navan kicks it forward, and Hana takes it again after sprinting ahead, and they shoots, and it's a goal. Still, that was a wonderful defense back there, a minute ago when Jérôme Renoir pried the ball loose from Dietmar and it looked like the Ossiennais were consolidating their possession...

27:36
...an expert overhead pass we've seen now, from Georges Darmon to Serik Bloch, and Serik Bloch is sprinting ahead with Xadje closely behind them. Xadje seems to be catching up and preparing to make an attempt for the ball. Serik Bloch shoots... and Bhaksa saves. They kicks a long pass back to the centre, and Erasyl Lavanchy headers it before it can reach Panagiotakis...

39:21
...Navan has the ball, but Pierre Labrouste is ready to take control. Navan turns around and runs back for a second to gain space, and passes to Kalse. Jaques Brurant goes for a slide tackle, but misses. Kalse quickly flicks on to Mared before that, Antoine Ardant dives after the ball, but Mared shoots first, and scores...

45:00
...the referee blows their whistle to mark half-time. That was a rather interesting first half, and we can only hope that the second half will be just as enjoyable to watch. Apparently, there will be a substitution... yes, Sarna is taking Xadje off the field for rest. They are being replaced by Arevik...

62:13
...Fabian Villlarreall continues to move towards the Gylian goal, with Adna trailing them and Arevik coming up from ahead. They makes a long pass, to Georges Darmon... but the ball bounces off Georges Darmon's foot and off the field. There will be a small delay before the throw-in, as Sarna is substituting Nels for Navan...

67:55
...Amue-Iowal Fethuel has taken control of the ball after a short scrimmage in the penalty area, and shoots... but hits the outside of the net. Shame, it was a beautiful shot otherwise. Bhaksa makes a long pass for the centre...

71:49
...Naomi is taking a high shot now, but it bounces off the crossbar, and back towards they, so they headers it again while Antoine Ardant is on the ground, and it goes in properly this time, haha. That ball's rather picky about how it lands in the goal, if you ask me...

80:17
...the Ossiennais players have run ahead, so Georges Darmon tries to pass to Lucien Killy. Panagiotakis places themself in between and slides, they manages to kick the ball off its trajectory. It gets picked up by Kalse...

88:59
...Fabian Villarreall takes a shot, and it goes past Bhaksa's dive, but it hits the goalpost and bounces off instead. Nels catches the ball instead, and they makes a long pass... a very long pass indeed. Hurik seems to be really pushing themself, sprinting on the other side of the field, but they catches up to the ball's trajectory. Hurik leaps, and takes a header... directly into the Ossiennais goal. Huh. Well, that was unexpected... And it seems that was all we had time for, because the referee signals full time right after the play restarts. That was a beautiful match, and I can only hope those watching at home have enjoyed it as much as we have over here. Brilliant playing from the Ossiennais, absolutely brilliant. My friends, I look forward to the next matches being just as fun as this one...

---

Match statistics

Goals scored
Hana Matsuri (6:09)
Mared Terneshyk (39:21)
Naomi Mizushima (71:49)
Hurik Davidyan (90:00)

Starting lineup
Bhaksa Terneshyk (goalkeeper)
Kalse Ramned
Hurik Davidyan
Navan Dzíorny
Adna Acsir
Panagiotakis Xanthopoulos
Hana Matsuri
Dietmar Enns
Mared Terneshyk
Xadje Korxal
Naomi Mizushima

Substitutions
Xadje Korhal > Arevik Moushian (45:00)
Navan Dzíorny > Nels Langenberg (62:13)

---

New Belfast, Schottia

In their quarters right after the match, Sarna Dyrvedz and the team's players were sharing a group hug, having unconsciously improvised some inventive standing arrangements in order to do so.

"I was happy to see you all had so much fun", Sarna said warmly. "I'm very proud of you all, and I'm honoured that you trust me with the responsibility of being your coach."

"We're proud of you too, coach!", Bhaksa Terneshyk replied.

"Yeah, we're honoured you trust us so much as well, Sarna. We're not gonna let you down!", Hurik Davidyan stated.

The players then spontaneously took hold of Sarna and raised her above their heads, pretending that she was crowd surfing for a second. Sarna appreciated the gesture as a delightful surprise.

Once she was back on the ground, she raised her hand to point towards the door, and then placed her hands on her hips, shifting into the "plucky, tenacious team leader" tone of voice she had practiced so well. "Now then, everybody, we have to go invite the Ossiennais to chill out with us!", she said.

Having received a general cacophony of cheering in response, she led the way out the door, strutting purposefully and jauntily towards the L'Ossienne team's quarters, with the team's players closely behind her. On the way, Hana Matsuri leaned in closely, covering her mouth with her hand, and whispered into Sarna's ear, "Coach, your class rep is showing."

Sarna responded with a bright smile and a small giggle, and Hana reciprocated happily. They then continued on their way, and spent the rest of the evening hanging out and having fun with the Ossiennais team.

---

(OOC: Well, this took way longer to finish than I thought it would. Thanks to Hostillia and Nalaya for beta-reading and encouraging comments, and Schottia for the BBC sport link and additional football glossary help. I used Fraps and 2002 FIFA World Cup to simulate a match as a basis for the post, but mine was more boring, haha. [It ended 1-0 for me, with one of the AI players yellow-carded, and one of my players sent off for slide-tackling an AI player from behind in the penalty area. I also fucked up another tackle and gave one of the AI players a knee injury, but somehow the referee missed that.] Didn't elaborate too much on the L'Ossienne side of the match because I didn't want to be a wanky godmodder.)

[Wielkilas]

Bye bye.

[L Ossienne]

Later.

[Arbites]

Harbour Hill Stadium
Handon, Schottia

The Arbiter team was gathered around Father Ross in a circle, who was just finishing. "...and thus do we give thanks to the Immortal Emperor."

"Blessed be his name."

There was a customary few moments of silence until Alexander spoke up. "Excellent work all around, just like we planned. Defense, keep doing what you're doing and we'll be on our way to the Finals. All those big names didn't count for anything today, not even Fotan, Killanen, or Avelione. Mark 'em and swarm 'em. Don't give an inch. If we can shut them out, we only need one goal to win."

Ross perceived that the team was more relaxed, more flexible than they had been. To the priest, it seemed that the Emperor was guiding them. More likely, however, was that being out from under the Imperium's stifling surveillance and social controls was allowing them to act a bit more human.

"We play the Edomites next. Emperor willing, they will put some clothes on," Alexander commented, eliciting a few chuckles.

"The Edomites have seen past the heretics' lies and treat with us accordingly, Coach. Try to keep the slurs to a minimum," Father Ross warned.

"Of course, Father, all in good spirit, one ally to the other."

[Schottia]

Results

Gary Corsie shook his head in disbelief as he read his number on the fourth officials display board. 'Seriously, me!' He exclaimed as he jogged slowly over to the touchline. The game had been a bit of a slog, neither side managing to get the upper hand for much of the match until Arbites had hit them with a real sickener of a goal.

Corsie made it to the touchline, the crowd were still booing the manager’s decision but they couldn't do anything to change it. His team mate Till Ümann was jumping on the spot, ready to go, hand held out for a high five. Corsie still had his head bowed in anger, but turned to give thank the fans before leaving the pitch.

'Garry, come and sit there.' said Aaron Phon, one of the first team coaches, pointing to one of the empty seats in the technical area. 'Gary!' Corsie just ignored him and walked up the tunnel, aiming a kick at a water bottle for good measure. Why had he been taken off? He could see the managers thought process, he had wanted to go more attacking. But attacking threat was not the problem, it was keeping the ball in the middle of the park that was the problem. How could he see it and the manager couldn't?

Corsie sat thinking. The manager must surely be under pressure now. Being the home side a lot will be expected of them; and after failing to qualify in their last international tournament, the same result here would probably be the end for Pascal Voitle. He knew Voitle was not without his critics. He was a former captain of Handon United, the city rivals of Corsie's side Port Sebastian. Corsie had always suspected a slight bias towards United players in the selection policy, which was strange as Port Sebastian were the reigning champions.

Corsie sat the rest of the game alone in the dressing room. Whatever was happening out there he doubted it would be enough to see Schottia get back into the match.

Daily Worker Sport

With the first round of fixture played out, reporter Barry Hogarth takes a look at some of the results. Who stared on opening night, and who failed to live up to the hype.

Schottia's role as hosts got off to losing start with a altogether poor performance against Arbites, which will leave the manager under pressure. The result was largely attributed to early nerves from the home team who will have to improve dramatically if they are to take anything from their next match with New Edom today. Elsewhere in group B the Edomites were in cruse control as the defeated Dassalia 3 - 0 at Dukes Street. Joseph Mahlon marking his introduction to the international scene with a convincing double. Wielkilas struggled surprisingly with the little fancied Alizeria and were unable to make the breakthrough, the game finishing 0-0.

In Group A we were treated to more goal, as one of the tournaments unknown packages Gylias, impressively knocked L’Ossienne for four. Group A also saw the highest scoring first round fixture with Shalum and Jedoria playing out a pulsating fixture in Port James; the game ending 3 - 2 to Shalum. Adiron also looked solid enough against Ri'en, Tom Hall first half strike enough to earn them a 1 - 0 victory.
...

Group A

Shalum 1 - 0 TECT
Lammerton City Ground, Lammerton

Gylias  3 - 2 Ri'en
City of Port James Stadium, Port James

L’Ossienne 4 - 0 Jedoria
Allen Dixon Arena, Marionville

Group B

San Lucifero 3 - 4 Wielkilas
Gannon Park, Soessch

New Edom 0 - 1 Schottia
Harbour Hill Stadium, Handon

Alizeria 0 - 1 Dassallia
Dukes Street Stadium, Handon

Group A

Name       P  W  D  L  F  A  GD  P
Gylias     2  2  0  0  7  2  +5  6
Shalum     2  2  0  0  4  2  +2  6
----------------------------------
Adiron     1  1  0  0  1  0  +1  3
L’Ossienne 2  1  0  1  4  4  0   3
Ri'en      2  0  0  2  2  4  -2  0
TECT       1  0  0  1  0  1  -1  0
Jedoria    2  0  0  2  2  7  -5  0

Group B

Name            P  W  D  L  F  A  GD  P
Wielkilas       2  1  1  0  4  3  +1  4
New Edom        2  1  0  1  3  1  +2  3
---------------------------------------
Arbites         1  1  0  0  1  0  +1  3
Schottia        2  1  0  1  1  1  0   3
Dassallia       2  1  0  1  1  3  -2  3
Alizeria        2  0  1  1  0  1  -1  1
San Lucifero    1  0  0  1  3  4  -1  0

**An extra note I forgot to mention regarding what would happen if teams finish on equal points, when we decide which two teams from each group go through to the semi finals. In result of a tie on points the teams progressing will be decided by goal difference, then goals scored, then head to head record. If they still remain tied after that they will play a rematch.

[Rinen]

---

The State of Ri'en
Official Roster for Cornellian Cup 2014

---

Style Modifier - -4
Formation - 4-4-1-1

The State of Ri'en - Starting XI

---

---

Squad

---

All statistics are accurate as of Cornellian Cup 2014
Note - Family names/surnames listed first, given names listed last

Number	Playing Pos.	Squad Pos.	Name	Age	Gender	Height (cm)	Weight (kg)	Preferred Foot
1	GK	Starting XI	Kawano Seiji	19	Male	191	84.65	Left
14	LB	Starting XI	Maruyama Takeyuki	24	Male	176	57.98	Left
2	LCB	Starting XI	Miyahara Jun	30	Male	185	81.02	Right
4	RCB	Starting XI	Yoshinaga Misako	22	Female	174	52.26	Right
21	RB	Starting XI	Kanegami Shigeaki	27	Male	170	61.45	Left
5	LDM	Starting XI	Sonoda Michiru (C)	28	Female	164	52.54	Right
18	RDM	Starting XI	Iwasaki Ringo	26	Female	163	47.98	Left
30	LW	Starting XI	Nakamoto Shin'ichi	23	Male	175	57.56	Right
10	RW	Starting XI	Toramon Yuka	18	Female	156	42.53	Right
7	CAM	Starting XI	Amano Orin	23	Female	154	46.52	Right
9	FW	Starting XI	Uehara Akio	27	Male	178	63.54	Right
45	GK	Substitute	Kawahara Yoshikazu	24	Male	193	89.41	Right
12	LB	Substitute	Shirai Mihoko	22	Female	154	42.11	Left
26	RB	Substitute	Minamoto Eriko	27	Female	166	51.65	Right
23	CDM	Substitute	Noda Aiko	23	Female	166	48.52	Left
25	CDM	Substitute	Umemoto Akihiro	21	Male	177	46.58	Right
19	CAM	Substitute	Koiwai Kana	24	Female	159	45.52	Left
38	FW	Substitute	Katayama Himeko	23	Female	168	59.35	Right
33	GK	Reserve	Nishimoto Hitomi	18	Female	171	51.35	Right
36	LB	Reserve	Nagamine Fumihiro	17	Male	163	49.98	Right
40	CM	Reserve	Morino Kazutoshi	28	Male	175	62.36	Right
46	CB	Reserve	Toyota Wakana	18	Female	164	57.23	Right
52	CM	Reserve	Ishibashi Rui	19	Female	149	41.17	Left
55	LW	Reserve	Morita Kiyomasu	25	Male	139	38.22	Right
70	RW	Reserve	Okayuki Ako	27	Female	164	57.52	Right
72	LW	Reserve	Yamazaki Sadao	23	Male	172	57.12	Right
96	FW	Reserve	Miyashita Yasuhiro	27	Male	181	76.23	Right
78	CB	Reserve	Miyashita Yoshiro	21	Male	168	56.82	Right
80	FW	Reserve	Murakami Sakurako	19	Female	168	47.32	Right
88	LW	Reserve	Kojima Haruhiko	28	Male	173	61.29	Right

---

Staff

---

Position	Name	Age	Gender
Manager	Nagai Anzai	57	Male
Assistant Manager	Koyanagi Toshiyuki	39	Male
1st Team Coach	Kawamura Shizuku	27	Female
1st Team Coach	Nishida Airi	34	Female
1st Team Coach	Ishida Yukio	31	Male
Goalkeeping Coach	Kinoshita Kojiro	29	Male
Tactical Coach	Yoshihara Minoru	44	Male
Fitness Coach	Yoshimura Chinatsu	36	Female
Head Physio	Fujimoto Minako	36	Female
Physio	Ishii Ririko	22	Female
Physio	Haramura Mitsuki	23	Female

---

Roleplay Info

---

	Player
Left Corner Taker	Amano Orin
Right Corner Taker	Amano Orin
Penalty Taker	Toramon Yuka
Direct FK Taker	Uehara Akio
Indirect FK Taker	Sonoda Michiru
Most likely to foul/be booked	Yoshinaga Misako
Most likely to shoot	Toramon Yuka
Most likely to score from close range	Toramon Yuka
Most likely to score from long range	Iwasaki Ringo
Most likely to be fouled	Amano Orin
Most likely to attempt the spectacular	Nakamoto Shin'ichi

---

Roleplay Permissions

---

I give my opponents permission to do absolutely anything, with the exception of the infliction of career-ending injury/death on my players.

[Hittanryan]

Hotel Room
Soessch, Schottia

Goalkeeper Townsend and Team Manager Drescher were watching a replay of the Gylian victory over L'Ossienne. The Gylians practiced Total Football; every player, if need be, could perform at least competently in nearly any position. Even if they incurred a red card, playing a man down wouldn't necessarily create a gaping hole to exploit as with other teams. It was working to devastating effect so far, and the Orcas played them next.

For Townsend, it also meant it wasn't enough to keep an eye on the strikers alone; if they got a free kick or worse, they could pick just about anybody to surprise him. It meant he had to study the individual team members, which is what he was doing now. Luckily they got a day off, which meant a day off the field and extra time to prepare.

The replay came to an end, which also contained footage of the other matches. One of the clips was of Lei yelling at the Adiran team in their last match against Ri'en.

"Would you remind Scott he shouldn't be roid raging if he's got no reason to take anabolic steroids?" Townsend commented with a smirk.

"That's just his way. I think he was raised like that," Drescher said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but we won," Townsend pointed out, sipping a glass of water.

"It's the Cup, more at stake. Trying to get a bit more out of everyone," Drescher said as he went to change the clip. He then added thoughtfully "Of course, that's not always right, look at the Gylians. Something to be said for not letting the pressure get to you."

"So hold on, do they even have formations?"

"Don't think so. They always seem to play like this. If you're not ready for it, it can get ugly. Four-zero ugly. It can take you by surprise. Imagine if you tried to mark a player who started the game forward. He might be playing as a defensive midfield the next thing you know, and then while the full backs are watching him, someone else comes in outta nowhere to score."

"Don't mark players, then," Townsend replied.

"No, but not everyone on their team is a striker, not everybody is a center back. Catch them at the right time, maybe when they're exchanging positions, we might have some opportunities."

"I'm thinking something else...look at when they scored here," Townsend said, pausing the video at one of the goals against L'Ossienne. "Look how many they sent forward. If we can connect a few long passes forward while they're mostly on our end of the field, we might, might, catch them with their pants down."

"That assumes they let you," Drescher replied serenely.

"Way I see it, if defending against them is a problem like it was for L'Ossienne and Ri'en, then we'd better be able to keep up with their scoring," Townsend offered. "If a shot could come from anyone at any time...it'll be a problem no matter what. If they've got almost their whole team on our half of the field though, and we can get the ball in Jiang's hands with no defense on their end of things...well, what do you think?"

Drescher thought for a moment. "Good in theory, but we'll need to pull it off. Well, I suppose that gives us our drill schedule, doesn't it?"

[Gylias]

City of Port James Stadium, Port James, Schottia

Sarna had just finished giving a speech to the team, concluding with a perky yet gutsy rejoinder, "Remember why you're all here!"

"TO HAVE FUN!", came the massed reply and raised fists from the players.

"Haha, that's right!", Sarna replied enthusiastically and proudly, pointing with her index finger and gesturing for extra punctuation. She closed one of her eyes, smiled and placed one of her fingers against her cheek. "I'll join you in a game of our own after all this is done~", she said playfully, elongating the last word for effect.

It worked like a charm, at least judging by the cheers in reply.

Sarna then happily assumed her standard "headstrong team coach" stance. Placing one hand on her hip, she swept her other hand back towards the door, and urged, "Now, you go out there and enjoy yourselves like you always do!"

"HOORAY!", the players yelled as they began to make a queue for the door.

Looking nonchalantly at her fingernails, Sarna added, "Oh, and one last thing...". After allowing for a suitable dramatic pause where the players eagerly awaited the last thing in question, she gave them a good-natured smile, and said, "... play sweetly."

Hana Matsuri, who had so far been sitting on the floor and not gotten up yet, giggled and quickly moved herself into a lotus position, stretching out her hands, and making her thumbs touch the index and middle fingers on her palms. "You needn't worry about anything, Sarna.", she said serenely. "We'll be nothing less than your little bodhisattvas on the field~"

Sarna grinned, and showed Hana both her thumbs up. "That's the spirit, Hana!" She then faced the rest of her players and added, "There's a lot of fun waiting for you out there darlings, would you want to keep it waiting?"

The Gylian players and their coach shared a good laugh as the players left the stadium room and filed out towards the field to make their entrance. On the way out, Sarna pulled gently on the sleeve of Hana's T-shirt, holding her back for a moment while everybody else went ahead. She chuckled very softly to herself as she smiled warmly at Hana, and then gave her a peck on the cheek. Hana reciprocated her smile and gave Sarna a short embrace before she also left for the stadium, allowing her hand to slowly linger and brush against Sarna's before she let go.

"If you ever do reach enlightenment, stick around and give us a beginner's course, Hana...", Sarna whispered happily to herself.

---

Highlights of Céleste Bonheur's commentary from the Gylias-Ri'en match

Warm-up
Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends. <soft giggle> Well, it never ends if you're watching it on an infinite loop, so it's technically true!... from a certain point of view. Thank you for joining us again on this lovely day at the Port James Stadium, where we're no doubt about to see some very impressive football...

8:40
...and it's been a pretty solid control of the ball on the Ri'en side for about four minutes now. Orin Amano is in the penalty area, but Nels, Tzane and Zardáy are closing in on they, so they passes up and back, to Yuka Toramon. Yuka Toramon sprints, dribbles the ball past Zardáy, shoots and scores. They shot with their left leg, so the ball rolled into the goal while Bhaksa leaped expecting a high shot, you can't deny that was a clever move...

13:02
...Arda is closing in on the Ri'en goal but Michiru Sonoda is catching up from behind and Misako Yoshinaga is closing in ahead. Tzane has sprinted into position, so Arda tries to pass, but the ball instead hits Shigeaki Kanegami. A scrimmage ensues for the ball...

Shigeaki Kanegami had his back turned at the moment Arda's pass went awry, so the ball happened to hit him in the arse.

Slightly embarrassed, Arda ran over to Shigeaki, yelling "Oh, fuck, I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there!" Upon reaching him, she paused for a second, holding onto one of his hands. "Are you alright?"

Upon receiving the confirmation, Arda sighed with relief and said, "I'm glad..."

After a short pause, the two players then both lost their composure and shared a good laugh about the absurdity of it.

Smiling, Shigeaki pointed towards Arda and joked, "You know you owe me a massage for that?" He rubbed his posterior with comical exaggeration, whimpering, "I don't know if I'll be able to sit down again..."

Giggling, Arda winked, looking at him flirtatiously. "You miiiiiight have yourself a deal there, my friend~", she teased. She then affectionately closed her left eye and stuck her tongue out, laughing and waving as she ran towards the other side of the field.

16:31
...Nar is running up to the goal from the lower part of the field, and getting ready to shoot. Misako Yoshinaga closes in from a straight line, and slides in front right as Nar shoots. The ball rolls off the field, so there will be a corner kick...

20:51
...Rubinho takes the corner kick, passes to Nels, who is flanked on both sides by Misako Yoshinaga and Jun Miyahara, with Seiji Kawano close by to their right. Nels headers... but the ball bounces off the goalpost and off the field. Both teams are taking position as Seiji Kawano prepares to kick off play again...

24:54
...Seiji Kawano makes a long pass towards Michiru Sonoda, but Hana comes in from behind and attempts to header. Both of them miss, and the ball bounces on the ground instead. It's picked up by Shin'ichi Nakamoto...

Michiru Sonoda and Hana Matsuri both froze in disbelief for a moment, doing a double take on what just happened.

"Did... did a ball just get the better of us?", Hana asked, dumbfounded.

Michiru nodded.

Hana's facial expression shifted into a sly, knowing smirk, as she made her right hand into a fist and placed it in her left palm. "Challenge accepted... ball.", she said with mock determination.

Michiru covered her mouth and chuckled. Hana then smiled cheerfully at Michiru before they both returned to chasing the ball.

29:17
...Zardáy shoots, but Misako Yoshinaga places themself in the way and deflects the shot. Seiji Kawano dives onto the ball and saves. They kicks a long pass towards the centre field...

36:22
...Dietmar is running towards the centre, having dribbled past Orin Amano. Michiru Sonoda goes for a slide tackle, Dietmar jumps over easily but they kicks the ball loose. Ringo Iwasaki and Arevik dash off for the stray ball, and Arevik takes it. Guess Ringo Iwasaki could have used a little more help from their friends there, hehe. Arevik tries to make a short overhead pass, but Yuka Toramon intercepts the ball instead...

45:00
...and we're going into stoppage time right now, Mared has just dribbled past Jun Miyahara and is closing in on the Ri'en penalty area. Misako Yoshinaga comes in from above and tries to tackle, but they both lose control of the ball and it rolls on the ground for a moment. Zardáy takes the ball, but their path is blocked by Shigeaki Kanegami; they passes to Rubinho instead, who shoots towards the left side of the goal. Seiji Kawano dives and hits it with their right hand, but the ball is still bouncing, slowly, slowly, and it crosses the goal line before Seiji Kawano has the chance to get up and save properly. What an unfortunate mistake... I know how competitive other nations' teams can be, so I really hope that Seiji Kawano's teammates won't start yelling at them after the match for that. And the game restarts, with Michiru Sonoda passing to Ringo Iwasaki in the centre, who then passes to Takeyuki Maruyama... and that's all we have time for because the stoppage time is up. No question about it dear friends, this has been a fun, lovely match so far, and I look forward to finding out what's in store for us in the second half... <giggle> Two substitutions, for starters: Sarna is replacing Nels and Hana with Kalse and Xadje, so that they can rest...

48:58
...Akio Uehara takes a shot, but the ball flies over the goal entirely. Bhaksa is getting ready to restart the game. They makes a long pass, seems to be aiming for Kalse, but it misses the mark and lands next to Michiru Sonoda instead...

58:39
...Xadje has barely made it into the penalty area with Jun Miyahara edging ahead in sprint. Xadje quickly shoots towards towards the right side of the goal, but Seiji Kawano dives and punches it away. The ball rolls out of the penalty area, with Shigeaki Kanegami and Arda dashing after it. Arda makes it first, makes a circle run around Shigeaki Kanegami, and closes in on the goal. Seiji Kawano moves ahead to intercept... but Arda shoots at the last minute towards the left and scores...

"Oh, hey!", Arda exclaimed cheerfully as she found herself running side-by-side with Shigeaki again for the ball. "How you doin'?"

Arda nodded after hearing his reply, and said, "Mm-hmm, that's good."

As she took over the ball, she smiled mischievously and teased, "By the way, how's that horrible injury of yours? Still doomed to standing up for the rest of your life?"

"Haha, at least you'll become a better football player!"

The two laughed and exchanged more light-hearted flirting as Arda ran towards the goal and scored, and then as they both headed out into the field to wait for the game to restart.

61:25-67:38
...Mared has received that long pass from Xadje and is moving ahead, with Yuka Toramon close behind. Yuka Toramon catches up and takes the ball, then turns around and makes a long pass to the other side of the field. It seems to be meant for Orin Amano, but it falls slightly short, so before Orin Amano can catch up to the ball, Dietmar catches the pass first, and headers it upwards slightly. Dietmar jumps slightly and kicks another long pass before the ball touches the ground. Nar is leaning back slightly and holding a leg up, preparing to receive the pass, but Yuka Toramon runs ahead of they and headers it. Another long pass, aiming for Orin Amano again, but this time successful. Orin Amano dribbles and gains a short advantage in sprinting, but it seems Akio Uehara has fallen behind and Arda is coming up from the front to intercept. Orin Amano looks towards their left and kicks another long pass, which lands for Shin'ichi Nakamoto. Shin'ichi Nakamoto takes the ball, runs ahead some more and then takes a pass towards the penalty area, with Orin Amano and Akio Uehara converging into position. Orin Amano and Bhaksa jump at the same time after the ball, but Orin Amano successfully headers and scores...

Nar Enylesh took a moment to gather xyr breath after the ball left the centre field. Scratching the back of xyr head, xe laughed and high-fived Yuka Toramon, who was also pausing for a moment's rest near him.

"Haha, that was really cool! I never expected we'd suddenly break into a round of volleyball during a football game!", Nar said, laughing, and then moved closer and placed xyr hands around Yuka's shoulders. "Thank you for the pleasant surprise! Say, how about we play a game of ping-pong after all this is done? Wicked ping-pong table back at the hotel, and good air-conditioning too!" Xe laughed, and added, "At least it'll be on a smaller scale then!"

Receiving a positive response, Nar happily moved closer and fondly rubbed xyr cheek against Yuka's.

79:36
...Shin'ichi Nakamoto passes to Akio Uehara... and the referee blows their whistle. It seems that Akio Uehara has committed an offside offence, so Bhaksa will restart the game with a kick-off...

90:00
...the timer's reached 90 minutes but extra stoppage time will be given. The ball is still with Rubinho after that mazy run from earlier, but Takeyuki Maruyama and Jun Miyahara are converging on their position. Rubinho makes a one-two pass with Kalse, avoiding the Ri'en defense, but they are too close to the end of the field in the penalty area, so they pass upwards to Arevik. Misako Yoshinaga takes the ball off Arevik with a slide, but Zardáy intercepts it only centimetres away, and shoots... and scores. Surprising last minute comeback there, I thought the game would end in a draw, honestly...

---

Match statistics

Goals scored
Gylias
Rubinho Rodrigues (45:00)
Arda Shanrek (58:39)
Zardáy Thashnæn (90:00)

Ri'en
Yuka Toramon (8:40)
Orin Amano (67:38)

Starting lineup
Bhaksa Terneshyk (goalkeeper)
Nels Langenberg
Arevik Moushian
Zardáy Thashnæn
Arda Shanrek
Tzane Leuthej
Hana Matsuri
Dietmar Enns
Mared Terneshyk
Rubinho Rodrigues
Nar Enylesh

Substitutions
Nels Langenberg > Kalse Ramned (45:00)
Hana Matsuri > Xadje Korxal (45:00)

Possession
Gylias 49%
Ri'en 51%

---

The Gylian and Ri'en teams spent the rest of the evening after the match having fun together.

Some of them hung out and drank at the hotel bar.

Others went for a relaxing swim, also taking the opportunity to play water volleyball.

Sarna joined some of her players in a light-hearted scoreless match with Shizuku Kawamura, Airi Nishida and some of the Ri'en reserves on the Ri'en training field, which went at a slower pace so that the players could have pleasant conversations with each other while it was going on.

Michiru and Hana spent the night in Michiru's room drinking and watching anime on Michiru's laptop.

Shigeaki and Arda slept together.

Bhaksa and Mared Terneshyk visited Port James with Seiji Kawano, Misako Yoshinaga and Orin Amano, returning to the hotel at night.

Nar Enylesh fulfilled xyr promise and played ping-pong with Yuka Toramon long into the night. (Gylians preferred calling it "ping-pong"; it sounded way more fun than "table tennis".) They used the Gylian rules of ping-pong. No points are scored, for anything. The ball must be kept bouncing at all times. If the ball stops bouncing, it must be returned to bouncing post-haste. The table can become optional, as the game takes place wherever the two players are. Tables, floors, tables, walls - it makes no difference what's in the surrounding area as long as the ball remains bouncing and in motion. The players have to keep passing the balls back and forth amongst themselves - hitting the table is optional. Players cannot hog the ball because seriously, this is a sport for more than one player, except if they're paddling the ball up and down while moving into position because that shit looks wicked cool. The only measure of success in a game is how much the players are laughing and having fun and enjoying themselves, how enthusiastically they dive or race after stray balls, how endearing their silly banter is and how thoroughly exhausted they are in the end.

By all accounts, it was a successful game. Nar and Yuka succeeded in not being ejected from the hotel by the staff, provided passers-by and staff members with plenty of bemusement at the sight of two people racing after the ball and playing something that, occasionally, vaguely resembled ping-pong whenever they were somewhere in the vicinity of the table, but other times seemed more like badminton or tennis (or football, when Nar once headered the ball back towards Yuka, to her approvingly hearty laughter), with infectiously gleeful, childlike enthusiasm.

Many friendly chats were had, pleasantries exchanged, and friendships bloomed.

Heading to her room late at night, Sarna paused in the open doorway of Arda's room, smiling at the sight of her cuddled in bed with Shigeaki, sound asleep. Continuing on, her happiness increased as she saw the exhausted Nar and Yuka slowly shambling towards their room, Yuka holding on to Nar in a sweet embrace, and overheard Michiru and Hana's intoxicated laughter and slurred but enthusiastic riffing. As she crashed into her bed after a long day and waited to fall asleep, she exhaled happily and grinned her broadest as she closed her eyes. It warmed her heart to see and know that her friends never forgot why they were here.

Tomorrow was going to be brilliant. After all, by the time it arrived it would become today, and everybody knows today is always the most enjoyable day.

[New Edom]

“…we got routed,” said Coach Imlah grimly. “That’s the long and the short of it, we got routed. We just couldn’t keep it past their midfield without them snatching the ball back. But any BEEP is going to be BEEPing awake now to the BEEP we have to put up with out there This is the first out of nation cup we’ve competed in in over six years, the first BEEPing cup, and so did we expect a cakewalk? No. Schottia has one of the best national teams out there. We got our BEEP handed to us, but I think we can BEPing live with it. When I was serving against the Anarchists, let me tell you…”

“Coach, are you going to put Cleopas in the next match?” asked an earnest young woman wearing a tank top and wrap around skirt that looked like she’d just hastily put them on.

“We’ll review the vids of the match and then I’ll decide,” Imlah replied, his jaw setting.

“A lot of fans have been writing to the network saying that they’d love to see a match with Mahlon, Pabadakis, and Cleopas leading the charge—and the team sponsors talked so enthusiastically about him…’ the young woman said.

“Listen,” Imlah sai, jabbing a blunt finger at her “There’s the right way, the wrong way, the Army way, and Imlah’s way, got it? I’ll put Cleopas in when I’m BEEPing well BEEPing ready to put him in the BEEPing match, got it?”

“Got it…and we’ve been talking to Coach Imlah post game, we’re just going to go back to the studio now for the facetime interview with leading striker Joseph Mahlon….”

A raven haired woman with olive skin, dark brown eyes with a rosebud mouth, a slim nose and a statuesque figure apparently wearing only a delicate gold cross sat behind a news desk with the New Edomite flag imposed over a silhouette map of the Allied States of New Edom behind her. On a screen was a powerfully built young man with shaggy dark hair, bold eyebrows blinking at the camera.

Lavinia Tuller: Hello Joseph Mahlon, welcome to New Edomite News Network! How are you?

Joseph Mahlon: I’m fine, Miss Tuller, it’s nice to talk to you again.

Lavinia Tuller: Yes, we last talked when the Flockers won the the Football cup, and you were very excited about it. Are you disappointed in tonight’s loss?

Joseph Mahlon: Yes, but I was also happy about the other match’s win…we’re in the cup, that’s what counts.

Laviina Tuller: What do you think your chances are?

Joseph Mahlon: I believe we have a good chance still. The last match was a loss, but I don’t think people are accepting that we also held them off for most of the match. This is one of the strongest teams in its creative playing style. Some people expected they’d score three goals against us, they only got one.

Lavinai Tuller: What do you—as in the Griffons—need to do to be serious contenders for the cup?

Joseph Mahlon: We need to continue to play the way we are capable of playing. We have the talent and the right chemistry. It's just about going out on the field and doing it each and every match. We also need to get healthy because we are pretty banged up right now

Lavinia Tuller: Joseph, you’re an important role model for kids at home, and you’ve gone on record stating that kids recovering from the civil war and the insurgency, especially child soldiers, need to put their energies into sports rather than into gang life and militia involvement What advice would you give to young players?

Joseph Mahlon: Never stop believing in your dreams and give 100% in every match and practice you have. You never know what can happen or what coach may see you that can help you get to the next level. With that being said, I would also tell them to make sure they stay in school and get an education because nobody can ever take that away from you.

Lavinia Tuller: Do you have any pre-game rituals or anything specific you do to prep for a game?

Joseph Mahlon: Devotions and prayers. I try to keep it real.

Lavinia Tuller: Joseph, to you and all the team, good luck and God bless, we’re all rooting for you men here at home.

[Schottia]

The Daily Worker Sports

Today, with the tournament really hotting-up, the fixture lists have thrown up a couple a classic encounters in both groups. In group A, which has so far looked to be the stronger of the two sections, the free scoring Gylias team will face a tough test against the up until now solid Adiron team, refreshed after their day off. Up until now Gylias have posted some impressive results, notably the 4-0 trashing L’Ossienne, but will face a different proposition today. Hana Matsuri and co. will however be looking to notch up yet another win, knowing three points could all but see them through.

In Group B, my pick of the day is New Edom's game against Arbites. The result of this game will probably go a long way to deciding who wins this group in my opinion and both teams will believe they should be able to do enough to qualify. The body paint adorned Griffons, lost narrowly to hosts Schottia in the last game, in a match they would have been bitterly disappointed to come away with nothing from. Arbites, like their Cetian neighbours in group A come into the game suitably rested after sitting out the last round of fixtures. They will take confidence however, from the way they managed to snuff out Avelione and Fotan in their first match on Monday. The same players how caused New Edom problems on Wednesday, as Fotan's goal was enough to decide the result.

Elsewhere in group B, Schottia take on Alizeria, in a game they will feel they must win comfortably. Also San Lucifero will look to get their first points on the board against a Dassallia team fresh from their 1-0 win over Alizeria on Wednesday.

The other matches in Group A will see L'Ossienne, now recovered from their disappointment against Gylias, take on TECT, who would have been surprised to lose 0-1 to Shalum in their last game. Two of the more attacking teams, this promises to have a few goals at least, and if L'Ossienne's other matches are anything to go by we won't be left wanting. The other match sees two of the more unknown packages Jedoria and Ri'en take each other on, both sides looking to get their first win.

After the first two rounds the bookies have revised their odds for the tournament. They now have Gylias at 11/4 favourites, after two wins out of two.

Results posted soon....