Di Bradini Cup 32/U21WC53 RP/Roster/Scores Thread

[The Oaklands]

Giles Richard was having troubles with his sleep. He couldn't control it. The sheer monotony of some aspects of his life caused him to drop off to sleep, which was starting to become a real problem as this could be at rather important moments, such as in a conference. But he wasn't going to drop off tonight. He couldn't. He musn't! He had made a promise to himself when he became the first president of the USOFF (United States of The Oaklands Football Federation) that he would watch all international games that The Oaklands played, and tonight was a big game. The U21 team had their first group stage game against Nephara, who he knew would be tough opponents.

Twenty minutes before the start of the match, Giles bounded into the living room and switched on the TV. He sat in front of it like a small child, never taking his eyes off the screen. The sight of this 53 year old man was so comical that Julia, his wife couldn't stay in the same room without staying serious. He wouldn't look at her anyway.

When the match started, there was no cry of "Come on, the mighty Barkers", or "go on Fredericks" from Giles. He just sat, still as a scarecrow, the only thing moving being his eyes. However, after fifteen minutes, the doorbell rang. Giles didn't move at first, but when his wife called through to him saying it was his deputy at the insurance company, he felt he had better speak to him. Simon wasn't there for long, but it was long enough for Giles to miss the first goal, scored by Owen Gower. When he turned the TV back on, he was immediately filled with two emotions: elation and disappointment. He had never been the lucky person in life. He was forced to sit and watch Nephara dominate the rest of the first half, his face drooping further both times the opposition scored. Julia, when she came in to bring him his medicine, was quite alarmed at his facial expression.

When the half time whistle blew, he stormed straight upstairs and spent the next ten minutes on the toilet. Just when Julia was about to go and see what the matter was, he quietly patterned downstairs. Thankfully, he had calmed down. However, after fifteen minutes, he was back upstairs, this time in the attic, with a shard of glass in his finger and a broken TV screen in the living room. The look on his face had been so fiery that Julia dared not go and reason with him. An ambulance might be better.

...

Giles woke up in hospital, the events of the previous evening a blur. He remembered the surprise of feeling no pain, a complete rage and a rather large needle. He realised that he really needed to sort his life out.

[Ko-oren]

Schedule and Previews

Ko-oren easily overpowered Yttribia in the Di Bradini Cup, and now the team is going for a happy bye day. The atmosphere in the Greenblue hotel is great after the 3-0 victory, and the coach is already looking at the problems that might surface against Darmen, Wolfbenz and Furellum, respectively. Darmen because we just cannot let them win against us, Wolfbenz because they were the best runner up from the first round (that was only necessary for a few teams during this huge DBC), and Furellum because we might need some emergency points at the end of the group stage.

Darmen is one of the more balanced teams in the group, playing a 4-4-2 with a defensive midfielder (4-1-3-2). The entire squad is 21 years old, so they might have one of the most mature teams of all. Andrew Tome is one player to look at: he is the captain, but he is also responsible for the corners. We have some players that can defend against crosses, but if they have someone good in charge of them, there is not much we can do, especially if the Darmeni have been practicing. Most of their talent is on midfield anyway: Glover is one other impressive player. Now it's also interesting to see that there are clubs who specialise in one type of player: Scott City Beat has the defenders and defensive mids, Chippewa Falls Strykers have the midfielders and Tim City Cyber Rays have all the strikers. And then Johnho FC has the goalkeepers... except for the starting goalkeeper.

Wolfbenz is next, and they have a very young team. It is almost like they did not get the memo that everything aged 21 or under is good, but Wolfbenz is even taking a 15-year-old to the Equestrian States. Now the team will rely on their defence a bit, and that is usually a bad idea with a group of young inexperienced players. During the first group stage they were ok, but what happens when they are up against a group of arguably more mature players? Not to mention the players from Ko-orenite youth academies, who know what defending can be. Wolfbenz plays a 4-5-1, so this will be one boring match.

Furellum is up last, and apparently the officials saved the best for last: they are the reigning champions. A number of players is still on the squad after last Di Bradini Cup. Like Darmen, they play 4-1-3-2, and like us, they will park the bus, and like Wolfbenz, they have some very very young players. Furellum has a 16-year-old starter, and just one 21-year-old in the starting XI.

After an initial 3-0 win... let's see if we can keep the winning streak going for a while. 1-0 victories, obviously.

OOC: Forgot to say that my style mod should have been -5

[Semarland]

Semarland looked to continue their unbeaten qualifying run into the group stage, where they first faced Patistan in a rather tricky group. Semarland kicked off, with Marc Strand and Diego Snow providing chances for Maaksemstad and Mikkelsen up front, but the Patistani defence and goalkeeper were just too good for the Semars. Semarland did score, but it was called offside by the linesman. Diego Snow chipped it into the area, finding Mikkelsen who turned and volleyed - but the Patistan defence expertly played him offside.

Patistan had a lot of chances too. Gunner Brickwalk did a solid job protecting the back line, but Patistan eventually got the better of him thanks to a clever manoeuvre from the Patistani midfielder, who played it to their striker who slammed it past Marco Valbuena. They had quite a few more chances in the second half. Needless to say, Brickwalk did a fantastic job in the second half protecting a rather lacklustre back line. In the 57th minute, Strand, Snow and Pedersen were all brought off - and Jacob Mtiliga, Pascal Adebayo and Jakob Poulsen were all brought on.

Patistan managed to hold out until the end, fending off all of Semarland's efforts until the final whistle. It was a good performance from both sides, and let's hope that Semarland will play better in their next fixture against the Holy Republican Empire on Matchday 3 - as the Semars will have a bye on Matchday Two, giving them time to prepare a little extra and hopefully improve on their performance.

SEMARLAND: Marco Valbuena; Kristo Aalmkjaer, Niko Schone, Lasse Jakobsen, Reto Janssen; Gunner Brickwalk; Lasse Pedersen (J. Mtiliga 57), Marc Strand (Adebayo 57), Diego Snow (Poulsen 57); Soren Maaksemstad, Marko Mikkelsen

Player ratings:
Marco VALBUENA - 8 - When he was troubled, he was excellent. Could not do anything about the Patistani goal, however.
Kristo AALMKJAER - 7 - Played great in the first half, looked average in the second.
Niko SCHONE - 7 - Was decent enough, and was handed the captain's armband in the 57th minute when Pedersen was substituted.
Lasse JAKOBSEN - 6 - Wasn't as good as his partner, Schone.
Reto JANSSEN - 8 - Probably his best performance so far, attacked well and defended well from Patistan's left-sided attack.
Gunner BRICKWALK - 9 - Was brilliant throughout the game, protecting the back line very well.
Lasse PEDERSEN - 6 - Was moderately okay, quite a disappointing performance from a player of his standard.
Marc STRAND - 8 - Looked fancy in the first half, but was substituted early in the second.
Diego SNOW - 8 - Created many chances in the first, but like Strand was subbed off early on in the second half.
Soren MAAKSEMSTAD - 7 - Looked promising up front.
Marko MIKKELSEN - 6 - Looked decent but missed a few good chances.
SUBS:
Jacob MTILIGA - 8 - Looked much much better than Lasse Pedersen in midfield today.
Pascal ADEBAYO - 8 - Performed well, then dropped back into a defensive midfield role alongside Brickwalk in the later stages, and did well.
Jakob POULSEN - 7 - Was quite good in the last 33 minutes, creating good chances for Maaksemstad and Mikkelsen.

[Tumbra]

The game had finished 1-0 to the opposition, but winning the game was not on Robin Stoff's mind as he took the team talk, mentioning that the shots were all not very good.
"Why didn't you play Peter then? He's our talisman!" shouted Henry Butler.
"Henry, haven't you read the news? Peter's transfer rumors were the very reason why I didn't play him! He could have done worse than Wayne out there on the pitch today!"
The rest of the team promptly kept quiet.
"Peter, come here."
Peter Jones walked over silently.
"Do the rest of you wish to be interviewed by the press?"
They shook their heads, with the exception of Ed Whittaker.
"I want to go in with my team-mate."
"Very well then. I'll call Chrissie to come over from the press room and bring you boys to the bus."
On his walkie-talkie, he muttered into it until Joanne Chris, the PA lady came over to take the other players to the bus.
"Now, the two of you, follow me. Don't be afraid to speak your minds when they ask you the questions. If you don't wish to answer, tell me and I will tell them to stop asking."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They walked into the room, which in contrast to the last game, was full of reporters, interviewers and cameramen. Sitting down, Robin held up his hands to indicate them to keep silent and to stop taking photos.
"Now, the first question."
"Hello, my question is for Peter Jones. It has been rumoured that your club will not allow you to go to the Ahbanfletian club unless they pay the club 60 million pounds. Are these rumours true?"
"Yes."
"This is true, so, hmmm...are you going to negotiate with your club to potentially lower the transfer fee?"
"Perhaps I could ask them to lower it to around 30 to 50 million, but I don't really think they will listen unless I threaten to cancel my contract."
"Will you do it?"
"I have no intentions currently to do so. All decisions will be made after the last group stage match."
"Would you consider going on a loan?"
"Perhaps, if my club allows. But for now, I am still a member of the Karanooga Jet-Setters, not of Arsenal de Relenthi or any other Ahbanfleftian Premier Division club."
"My question is for Coach Robin Stoff."
"Please, do go ahead." Stoff said.
"Have you said anything to Peter regarding the transfer, to go or not to go?"
Peter looked at Stoff anxiously.
"No, I have not. However, these rumours are not foreign to me, as I do know how to use the Internet, and I believe that the final decision is for him to make. If, at the end, he does wish to go, I will wholeheartedly support him and try my best to get him to go to Arsenal de Relenthi. Are there any further questions?"
"Will Peter Jones play in the next match?"
"I prefer to keep my tactics to myself before the match, thank you. I have time for one last question."
"Will Peter Jones' international career be affected in any way?"
"No, I do not think so. With the Baptism of Fire and World Cup 70 coming up in a few months time, I doubt it. Alright, I think I have to call an end to the press conference."
They walked silently out of the room.

[Zenic]

“Holy hell, how did it happen FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR?!?!”

Assendorp was in complete disbelief as he walked down the tunnel after the game and usual postgame interviews and such. He was accompanied by Cremona but not Oceanus as the latter was attending to Gene Herrema, their starting centerback. A possible lasting injury to his starting centerback added onto the aggravation of a repeat performance.

The game started off fast as Suguira lobbed the ball up into the box for Gardot, who proceeded to control it and pass it to Othniel-L’ubomir for the first goal of the game in the 7th minute. The rest of the first half was slow as Jani managed to calm down everyone and control the ball for the rest of the half. Assendorp was riled up and commanded his players to focus in order to make better passes and get some type of offense going. He made it clear that he did not want to get a loss so early in the tournament.

From the whistle at the start of the second half, it took Zenic a minute and a half to tie the game up with a header goal by Van der Vennen off a Breyer corner kick. After that, the game got a bit chippy. Tyson Nilo received a yellow card after sliding into Herrema, trying to win the ball and keep USI on the attack. Assendorp had to bring in the inexperienced Cefin Mikha in Herrema’s place starting from the 64th minute. After that, Chris Aalto was tripped up by Dondoca just outside of the box, setting up a Mihail Quick free kick and a yellow for Dondoca. He hit it low into the box where it was cleared low and out by USI captain, Davi. Unfortunate for USI, the ball went to Beyer by midfield and passed it to Zabala who turned, took his time and launched a firecracker of a shot that just beat Canjica to the upper left corner.

The moment the teams reset for kickoff after Zenic went up 2-1, Assendorp yelled to his team to try and keep possession for as long as possible until the end of the game. The only thing to note from the 70th minute until the 88th minute was that Zabala received a yellow card for time wasting but Assendorp had been fine with it as time winded down…..until the penalty. Ratamary, who had come on for Nilo in the 78th minute as a precaution to prevent a second yellow, made wonderful through pass to Gardot into the box in the first minute of a three minute stoppage time. Mikha managed to recover from his mistake and knocked the ball away from Gardot and straight to Felipe Hogan. Right back Aust slid in to try and take it away but caught one of Hogan’s feet and USI was awarded a penalty. It was an easy goal for Gardot who finally got on the scorer’s list before the game ended in the 4th minute of stoppage time.

Now, he had: a tie instead of a win, a questionable starter and a match against Jeckland coming up at the Sky-High Coliseum in Cloudsdale. He would have to get the team ready to play without Herrema just in case……..”Wait a second.” Cremona had been a silent companion until he was startled by this random exclamation. “What am I waiting for?” Assendorp looked like he had just discovered the meaning of life, remembering the news report he had watched in the lobby of the hotel the team had arrive at. “Jeckland didn’t sent an actual team this year; they sent just a bunch of horses instead. As long as we don’t startle them, who knows how many goals we can score. “

Assendorp and Cremona looked at each other in shock, realizing the possibility of their following game.

[United States of Devonta]

Devontan Di Bradini Storm!
The road to the Di Bradini Cup 32 has just begun for the young inexperienced Devontan U-21 national team, The team surprising critics by taking Group 1 in the pre-qualifiers by storm with a series of three well played close matches against the Group 1 nations, Daritii, Western Borderlands, and Cosumar. First beating Western Borderlands 2-1 surprising some critics and then taking down the more experienced team from Cosumar in a close 2-1 victory topping the team that most critics put on the top of the list for Group 1. In there last match of the pre-qualifiers the Devontans beat the struggling U-21 national team from Daritii 2-0 ending up the surprising #1 team in Group 1, With a total of nine points with the next team at six.

Even after much hard work the young Devontans had a hard played October 1st friendly against Estenia that resulted in a 5-5 draw, Both teams playing well but making mistakes. The next day the Devontans received there first break in a long time, Although the next day the team practiced in preparation for there next matches in Group F against the teams of Kiryu-shi, Nassau Hessen, Polar Islandstates, and Lymantatia. Polar Islandstates by many has been chosen as the top pick for Group F but the young Devontans believe they can pull it off and beat Polar Islandstates and the other favorite Kiryu-shi.

[Schottia]

Local Brewery

Part Three

North Coast Radio was a small and somewhat low-key operation. The station was the place of work to five employees, three DJs and two technicians, who somehow managed to keep transition going between 7 am and 8 pm seven days a week. This was no easy task and more than once it had meant sixteen hour sifts or technicians filling in awkwardly behind the mic.

The station mostly covered local news from the Belker region, in particular villages such as Gullane, Rosyth, Frenton and Hoy. As well as this it did its best to play a wide range of music, if not particularly current, and sporting events of local interest. This week had been no different with DJ Paul Lee doing his best to comment on local boy Craig O'Maramy's matches in the Di Bradini Cup. Obviously there was no way that the small station could afford to send Lee out to the Equestrian States, so the 36-year-old would turn the sound down on the small 12" tv and offer his own alternative commentary. All of this was not to say that Lee's show was unpopular, far from it, and most of the villagers in north Belker would turn down the sound on their own sets and tune into the Paul Lee show.

One of his best nights for ratings ever would turn out to be Schottia's match against the Blouman Empire. There was no way Lee could have predicted the score nor the manner of the victory, but that mattered little as the region were left celebrating late into the night.

The match started positively with O'Maramy making one of his trademark runs down the left, cutting in and sliding his shot just wide of the far post. Five minutes later the Blouman keeper didn't get of so lightly as Chris Dickson this time left the defenders stranded as he got to the by-line cutting back for Till Ümann. The Soessch attacker needed no second invitation to drive the ball home past the helpless goalie.

After Schottia's second goal Lee nearly lost his voice as home-grown starlet O'Maramy rocketed a eighteen yard half-volley into the roof of the net. Then Lee was nearly left having palpitations when the right winger doubled his tally after a surging run into the box, sliding the ball under the keeper.

"There wont be quiet pub in all of Belker tonight." Said Lee as the half time whistle blew with Schottia already three goals up. However there was more to come. On 70 minutes Scott Burton got on the end of an Eoin Killanen corner to nod home from the six yard line. The big defender was left virtually unmarked and was able to pick his spot, to send his side coasting to three points.

The final, icing on the cake, came when Burton turned provider. His long punt up the park bounce back off of a Blouman defender, who's attempted clearance landed straight at the feet of Glen Stephens. The Handon United striker was left with only the keeper to beat, and duly converted to leave the final score Blouman Empire 0-5 Schottia

[Felix]

Santa Maria, Felix

It was a crisp autumn day in Santa Maria, fall was just beginning as leaves began to turn into a redish-orange and people began to wear jackets for the much cooler temperatures. As the day went on people began to gather in front of the damaged Presidential Palace in the heart of the capitol of Felix. Apparently Tamara Van Der Ven, which has been away from Felix for two years, finally arrived back to Felix and was going to deliver a speech in the balcony where countless Presidents and one certain Generalissimo delivered their speeches to the public. After a lot of waiting from the crowd's part Tamara finally appeared and a loud roar filled the area as the crowd began to loudly clap and cheer for the appearance of the multiversally famous President. Tamara with her daughter Alexandra smiled and waved at the crowd. In the other hand, Tamara had her speech and she was going to read it to the crowd when the cheers stopped. It did and she smiled, she then cleared her throat to begin her speech.

"Greetings my people. As you know, a few months ago Felix's first and most destructive war has ended with freedom being reestablished in this great country. The Felixian Civil War has taught everyone here in Felix and myself many lessons that we should take account so this should never happen again..." And with that she began what was probably one of the best speeches pulled off in Tamara's life as a public speaker. Her speech was televised all over Felix and the multiverse. When she was done a loud, enthusiastic applause followed and continued for a while. It seems like Tamara not only secured her place as a candidate for next presidential election but engraved herself as one of the most famous Felixians the multiverse has ever seen. But unknown to her, plans to remake the Fascist dictatorship were brewing and where waiting for the legislature elections to enact their plans.

Somewhere in Santa Maria, Felix

"I spit at her!" cried a disgruntled former Felixian Army soldier after the televised speech was over. A bunch of other soldiers grunted and/or nodded in agreement. "She is going to ruin the country with her stupid plans. Next thing you know the Free Republics is going to walk right over us!" the soldiers agreed and applauded when suddenly the front door opened surprising many of the men in the room. It was man they didn't know. One of the burly, bigger men, got up and grabbed a pipe ready to confront, when the man at the door spoke out loud, "Hello my associates." the men were confused, why the did the man in the door sound so familiar? And why would he say associates? The man walked it and when the light revealed his face everyone realized who he was, the famous Edward Sullivan, a once successful FIA agent that successfully (at least for now) avoided capture from allied/new government authorities.

Edward smiled, "So I am well known, huh?" the former Felixian Army soldiers nodded and Edward took a seat on a chair, "Good. Well I couldn't help but overhear your discontent with Tamara and how she is poised to take over the government when the elections roll by. I have an idea to put this disgusting democracy to rest before it grows stronger. Would you guys join me?" The men were a bit confused still, were they being spied on by Ed the whole time? Nonetheless they gathered around Edward waiting for him to continue and Edward did, "You know the elections for legislature are in three months?" the men nodded, "Well a month or two after those elections, Tamara, who is temporary President of Felix, will meet the new congress. We can stage a coup with armed force. There we can get my military contacts to mobilize the military." One of the men raised their hands, "But isn't the Free Felixian Army the official army of Felix?"

"For the most part, but if we can convince them that Tamara would be a terrible option maybe we can sway them into fighting for us. Look, the economy is struggling, civil and political rights aren't being passed quick enough. We can look like we care for that stuff and eventually convince them that Tamara must go. Heck, we might convince the Chief of Military if we are lucky. Remember he is staunch supporter of civil rights. When we nab him we'll eventually kill him after this thing is over." The men nodded and what seemed to be the leader of the group smiled and said, "I think we all are looking forward to working with you Mr. Sullivan." Ed shook the man's hand and replied, "I can say the same about your group of fellas."

To be continued...

---

Felix 2-0 Kernansquillec

* Nicolas Costa (29th)
* León Félix (64th)

Lineup Against Audioslavia

GK: Bernat Picasso
DEF: Kreszenz Vann, Alejo Hernandez, Ulrika Kistner
MID: León Félix, Valériane Babineaux, Ana Baptista, Rudolf Venetianer
FWD: Nicolas Costa, Gösta Ahlberg

[Free Republics]

News Magazine

Consul Kulseth Announces new Foreign Aid Program
by: Alexander Ehrlichmann

Consul Reino Kulseth announced a new initiative today, intended to promote freedom and virtue around the multiverse. The Consul has decided, for the first time in the history of our great nation, to launch a foreign aid program. An informal News Magazine poll of the Assembly and Senate indicates that this program is likely to pass both chambers by overwhelming margins, indicating that the Holy Republican Empire will soon be in the business of distributing foreign aid.

According to Consul Kulseth, the aid will go to foreign governments and non-governmental organizations that advocate and campaign for ordered liberty, of the sort that we Republicans are accustomed to, in their respective nations. These resources will include all kinds of foreign aid, including both civilian and military assistance designed to promote the cause of freedom throughout the multiverse.

The Foreign Aid Authorization Act, jointly introduced by Senator Izmailov and Senator-Emeritus Vasin on behalf of the Consul, states that distribution of foreign aid will be at the sole discretion of the legitimate Consuls of the Holy Republican Empire. The law further specifies that the Consuls may request that the media refrain from reporting on any foreign aid deals, if there is a reasonable expectation that reporting on the deal will prove counterproductive for the cause of freedom. The bill is expected to become law within 24 hours and the first foreign aid should be distributed within hours after Consul Kulseth attaches his signature to the bill. However, we may not know about the bill's success stories until freedom has been introduced to or expanded within those nations.

Alexander Ehrlichmann is a political campaign correspondent for News Magazine. As long as he can remember, Alexander has been fascinated by the news. As a boy, he insisted that his parents subscribe to News Magazine because he wanted to know what was happening in the world. In high school, Alexander started his own school newspaper, independent of his high school, which reported on serious issues that the school's approved newspaper would not touch. Attending the University of Amoltopia, Baseton campus, Alexander majored in journalism and graduated at the top of his class. He was hired by News Magazine straight out of college a few years ago to report on the news in his home Republic of Amolotopia. After impressing the editor, he was assigned to cover the most recent Consul election campaign. Now, he is News Magazine's lead correspondent in Republica, when there is no election campaign to cover.

[Super-Llamaland]

Super-Llamaland 2 - 1 Cosumar

Royals Formation (4-1-4-1): Reginald Apostaza; Adrian Carmichael, KJ Uecker, Andrew Venafro, Michael Herleksson; Michael Cartwright; Wictor Rasmussen, Noah Friederich, Jesper Bogusevic, Sebastian Inriquéz; Kristopher Nilssen

Possession: 53%, 47%

Cautioned: Venafro (52'), Serra (61')
Ejected: None
Shots on Goal: 9 (SLL), 7 (COS)

SUBSTITUTIONS:
Svensson for Tenebrosa (45'), Perkins for Mason (64'), Aguero for Archambault (71')
Sarlaniç for Bogusevic (55'), Uecker for Venafro (61'), Cartwright for Uecker (81')

GOALS:
Va'Goshal (67')
DeLorme (15'), Rasmussen (58')

---

the switch, pt. 1 - a bathroom encounter

They had only played one game in Equestrian States, and Michael Cartwright was bored out of his mind. He'd explored every last limit of the hotel (when asked how by a bewildered Andrew Venafro, he replied curtly: "efficiently") and Adam Castronova ran a tight ship, only allowing them to go outside with permission under threat of banishment. Gordon Mikayel, fresh out of retirement as a player, had been far more relaxed, only benching you if you showed up high on something, but Castronova didn't want his players getting any of the Equestrian nightlife.

It had been a decent game, the win against Cosumar. Josh DeLorme had scored early into the match, Wictor Rasmussen beat two defenders to put the Royals up two-nil, and Va'Goshal's volleyed strike wasn't enough to make up a two-goal deficit. Cartwright had gotten a few minutes on the back line and hadn't played too well.

Michael sighed and walked to the bathrom. It was no use thinking about it. Dinner was in five minutes and he had to wash up or Castronova would be on him and Ryan Carmichael would be playing the next four games from whistle to whistle.

He hadn't used the bathroom yet, but noticed the two light switches. One was cheap aluminium, no doubt a replacement the other gleamed a brassy gold. He tried his luck with the silvery one and found it opened all of the lights. Wondering what the other switch actually did, he quickly washed up.

The curiosity stayed with him throughout dinner, a short-lived affair that short-circuited, fizzled, and died somewhere before seven. As soon as he got home, he walked up to his room, opened the door to the bathroom, and flipped both switches at once.

Immediately his head began to pound and his hand buzzed. The room swirled before him, folds of the pale walls spinning about. Shocked, Michael turned to make for the switch, instincts kicking in, arms stretched to undo whatever horrifying process he had encountered. Somehow he had tripped the room's metamorphosis. With two steps he made it to the switch and made to grasp it, but then a rush of vertigo to the head, and he was on the ground.

And then he was in the orb.

[Northern Sunrise Islands]

The Sunrisians were obviously eager for a win against Zenic, but another chapter of the classic Youth-level derby between Zenic and Sunrise Islands ended up on a tie and, for once, it was more of a case in which the opponent just had a better match.

"We lack chemistry." said Silva Freire. "So that's why we're going to practice our chemistry." The coach then unveiled a big box filled of chemistry apparel. Needless to say, the team had more than just confusion. "Look, sir." said Dondoca, scrubbing her long, red hair. "We screwed up, sorry. It's our first game as an actual Union, but..." C. P. Money raised his hand and flat out said. "It's a bunch of horseshit." Almost the entire team ended up laughing from it, bar a very upset June Gardot. "Can you not be such a jerk?" asked the North Edenian. "Can you be less of a kiss-ass?" said the striker, departing the pitch.

The group stood silent, before the coach sighed and put everything back at its' place. "I was just kidding. Go play some football." said the coach as he departed.

C. P. Money was a weird player. Almost a school dropout, somehow Raven University offered a way for him out. Obviously, that had its' advantages as the kid was already an upcoming surprise on the Southern Sunrise University scenery. Sadly, it seemed like the Di Bradini Cup was not the place for that football to be shown.

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

OOC: This is a telephone conversation between Mr. Murad Hamadi, the Coconustani ambassador to St.Petrus, and Omari I, the President-King of Coconutstan.

Ring, Ring! Ring, Ring!

"Hello?"

"Good evening, Mr.Hamadi."

"Good evening, your imperial majesty!"

"How have you been today?"

"...Excellent. Excellent, your majesty, your President the Omar I, of the Islamic Republic of Coconutstan. What has brought thee into phonecall at this late of an hour?"

"Well, It looks like we'll have to team up with bunch of Theriaults and religious fanatics, Mr.Hamad."

"Your majesty, what do you mean?"

"Coconutstan, from this point, shall ally with Free Republics and Saintland. While it's extremely undesirable to with any of those two, it is the only option we have right now to counter Gregoryisgodistan."

"What about taking this matter to Quebecois Commonwealth at the conference this September? I am sure that as commonwealth we can deal this matter with those threats."

"We have no choice but to do this I am afraid, Mr. Hamad. Gregoryisgodistan, at any point, will invade us and something has to be done to counter their threats. The Commonwealth will not do that good of a job, since Quebec's the one who's using their ties with the heathen state to battle us."

"Oh dear, oh dear. What would our overlords(OOC: Coconustan is a protectorate of EQS) in Equestrian States think of this, sir? What would they think of such an abominable act?"

"Equestrian States will turn against us, and perhaps have us suffer through sanctions, but that's what we have to risk. Risk for saving our nation, Mr.Hamad. We have no choice left."

"What about our people then? I'm sure none of them would buy such an option to ally with those who put their crux on every part of their body!"

"Just do it. Send the telegram to Petrus XX and Consul Kulseth within next 24 hours, of Coconutstan asking Saintland and Free Republics to perhaps aid them in indirect ways that do not require those heathen soldiers in our land."

"Alright, sir."

"Good. Have a good evening."

[Equestrian States]

Di Bradini Cup 27 Champions: Where are they now?
by Steve McNotapony

CANTERLOT - Five years ago, the Equestrian States national under-21 hoofball team lifted the Di Bradini Cup in Montbenoit, Saugeais under the lights at Stade Amaechi Olsen following a thrilling 1-0 victory over then-newcomers Free Republics that capped an almost flawless tournament run in which the Little Ponies only dropped points in a first match day draw with Sangti. Naturally, for many of the players on that team, the Equestrians' first (and to-date, only) Di Bradini Cup title served as a springboard for their careers. Many of the team's stars landed lucrative contracts with foreign clubs and much was expected of this "golden generation". But now, five years later, how are the former world champions of youth hoofball faring? Let's take a look at a few of that team's standout players and a few names that might even ring a bell with foreign fans who generally don't follow Equestrian hoofball.

Rainbow Blitz, Starting Midfielder
Without a doubt, Rainbow Blitz was the star of the Little Ponies at the 27th Di Bradini Cup, playing a role in many of the Equestrians' goals and captaining the team to glory. After winning the title, many Equestrian pundits - myself included - hailed him as one of the multiverse's very best young players who would surely lead to the national team to glory in the future. Well, we were certainly right that Rainbow Blitz had a future as a key player on the Ponies' senior team, where he's been a lock as the starting attacking midfielder ever since that fateful day in Saugeais. Unfortunately, success has been rare for the Equestrian States over the past two years, as the Ponies have twice fallen heartbreakingly short of the finals after reaching the second round at World Cup 67. Still, Rainbow Blitz may not have lived up to his full potential, but he is undoubtedly one of the best Equestrian hoofballers of all-time and is quickly becoming a legend at Makosile United where's he's loyally remained for most of his professional career.

Troy Luck, Reserve Midfielder
Poor Troy Luck, he's never had much of what his last name implies. One of three 21 year-olds selected for the Little Ponies' squad that year, Troy was the only one to not receive a starting job, and instead spent much of the tournament sitting on the bench. However, his bench-warming abilities must have impressed a few people because he shortly thereafter landed a transfer to a then little-known club in the equally little-known nation of Felix: Sporting Volker. Though Sporting Volker has since emerged as the top club in an ascendent league, Troy Luck was once again relegated to being a reservist, and has since left the club for greener pastures lower down the table in Felix.

Nightflame, Reserve Goalkeeper
Of all the players on the Little Ponies team that year, Nightflame was probably the last player most would have expected to be a mainstay on the senior team to this day. Nightflame didn't play a single minute at the 27th Di Bradini Cup and has remained the goalkeeper of the Canterlot Stars ever since, but has impressed in doing so and is now the second-choice keeper on the senior team behind another player whose name you probably already know who will be featured later on this list.

Brix Hamilton, Starting Defender
Few would have picked Brix Hamilton as one of the few Equestrians to win a Champions' Cup winner's medal at the time she claimed her gold at the Di Bradini Cup, but given her meteoric ascent to become one of the multiverse's best defenders, that's somewhat understandable. Nobody could have foreseen the powerhouse club that Nithgard GU would become, as at the time they were just a mid-table club in a mid-range league. Not anymore. Today, Brix Hamilton is a first-choice defender for the Equestrian States national team and regularly is hailed as one of Nithgard's finest players.

Pristina Shine, Starting Forward
Only in the last few years have international hoofball fans started to pay attention to the young unicorn who made a considerable impression on the Di Bradini Cup but didn't receive much praise for her performances. Scoring three goals as an 18 year-old fresh out of the Canterlot Royals' academy in the tournament, Pristina Shine didn't grab many headlines, but certainly drew attention to herself and was snapped up without hesitation by the legendary Iturributa United. Since then, Pristina Shine has developed into an emerging world-class striker who scores goals at a mind-boggling pace at the international and club level. Today, Pristina Shine is almost unanimously considered the Equestrian States' top striker and recently helped lead Red Star Severny to an improbable Champions' Cup berth out of the prestigious Polarian Divisjon One.

Apple Cobbler, Reserve Midfielder
Does this name ring a bell? Look at the Little Ponies roster for this Di Bradini Cup, and you might realize why. Yes, Apple Cobbler, the current star of the Equestrian States U-21s was on that title-winning squad as a 15 year-old reservist. While Apple Cobbler might still have a ways to go before she fulfills her true potential as an international star, the earth pony midfielder has routinely featured for the national team in recent years and is expected to be a regular starter at the next World Cup campaign. As for where she is right now? I'd imagine she's in the Star Stadium locker room preparing for her upcoming match against Nephara.

Gentle Breeze, Starting Goalkeeper
Of all the young Equestrian players to show glimmers of future world-class talent, Gentle Breeze has perhaps shone the most out of all of them, even more so than Rainbow Blitz and Pristina Shine. Posting five clean sheets in seven matches - including four in the knockout rounds - Gentle Breeze easily won the golden glove award at the 27th Di Bradini Cup and was snatched from the Ponyville Galaxy's hooves by Sunrisian giants Mardi Lopunnies. However, it wasn't until she was brought to Astograth University by legendary Equestrian manager Moon Dust that she'd really emerge as a world-class goalkeeper. In three seasons in the Astrograthian First Division, the young goalkeeper won three golden gloves and what is considered by many to be the "most improbable Astrograthian league-cup doubles in history". Since then, Gentle Breeze has solidified her place as one of the best - if not the best - goalkeepers in the multiverse by dominating the Polarian league much as she did the Astrograthian one with her new club, Northbrook Diamonds FK.

[Equestrian States]

DI BRADINI CUP 32
MATCH DAY 2 RESULTS

Group A

The Oaklands 2–2 Taeshan
at Royal Equestria Stadium in Canterlot

Equestrian States 0–0 Nephara
at Star Stadium in Canterlot

  Group A                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Taeshan                      2   1  1  0    6   4  +2    4
2 Nephara                      2   1  1  0    3   1  +2    4
3 Equestrian States            1   0  1  0    0   0   0    1
4 The Oaklands                 2   0  1  1    3   5  −2    1
5 Chiata                       1   0  0  1    2   4  −2    0

Group B

Darvale 1–0 Blouman Empire
at Derby Field in Manehattan

San José Guayabal 3–0 95X
at Manehattan Industrial Park in Manehattan

  Group B                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Darvale                      2   2  0  0    5   0  +5    6
2 Schottia                     1   1  0  0    5   0  +5    3
3 San José Guayabal            1   1  0  0    3   0  +3    3
4 Blouman Empire               2   0  0  2    0   6  −6    0
5 95X                          2   0  0  2    0   7  −7    0

Group C

Unified Sunrise Islands 5–4 Super-Llamaland
at Elements Stadium in Ponyville

Jeckland 0–1 Zenic
at Sky-High Coliseum in Cloudsdale

  Group C                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Unified Sunrise Islands      2   1  1  0    7   6  +1    4
2 Zenic                        2   1  1  0    3   2  +1    4
3 Super-Llamaland              2   1  0  1    6   6   0    3
4 Cosumar                      1   0  0  1    1   2  −1    0
5 Jeckland                     1   0  0  1    0   1  −1    0

Group D

Kernansquillec 1–0 Tumbra
at Diamond Park in Stalliongrad

Audioslavia 0–3 Felix
at the Maple Bowl in Trottawa

  Group D                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Felix                        2   2  0  0    5   0  +5    6
2 Quebec                       1   1  0  0    1   0  +1    3
3 Kernansquillec               2   1  0  1    1   2  −1    3
4 Tumbra                       2   0  0  2    0   2  −2    0
5 Audioslavia                  1   0  0  1    0   3  −3    0

Group E

Holy Republican Empire 4–2 Patistan
at Wild Grounds in Everfree

Mizuyuki 3–2 Filopines
at Shady Grove in Whitetail

  Group E                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Mizuyuki                     1   1  0  0    3   2  +1    3
2 Filopines                    2   1  0  1    4   4   0    3
3 Holy Republican Empire       2   1  0  1    5   4  +1    3
4 Patistan                     2   1  0  1    3   4  −1    3
5 Semarland                    1   0  0  1    0   1  −1    0

Group F

Lymantatia 0–2 Nassau Hessen
at HarmonyLink Field in Seaddle

United States of Devonta 3–3 Kiryu-shi
at Pony Lands Park in Manechester

  Group F                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Nassau Hessen                2   2  0  0    6   1  +5    6
2 Kiryu-shi                    2   0  2  0    6   6   0    2
3 Devonta                      1   0  1  0    3   3   0    1
4 Lymantatia                   2   0  1  1    3   5  −2    1
5 Polar Islandstates           1   0  0  1    1   4  −3    0

Group G

Darmen 1–1 Yttribia
at Apple Orchard Park in Appleoosa

Wolfbenz 1–1 Furellum
at Salt Lick Stadium in Salt Lick City

  Group G                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 Furellum                     2   1  1  0    2   1  +1    4
2 Ko-oren                      1   1  0  0    3   0  +3    3
3 Darmen                       2   0  1  1    1   2  −1    1
4 Yttribia                     2   0  1  1    1   4  −3    1
5 Wolfbenz                     1   0  1  0    1   1   0    1

Group H

The Calanian Union 2–1 Abanhfleft
at Thunder Palace in Oatlahoma City

Farfadillis 0–0 Estenia
at Point Stadium in Hoofston

  Group H                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts
1 The Calanian Union           2   2  0  0    3   1  +2    6
2 Abanhfleft                   2   1  0  1    8   4  +4    3
3 Farfadillis                  1   0  1  0    0   0   0    1
4 Estenia                      2   0  1  1    0   1  −1    1
5 The Sarian                   1   0  0  1    2   7  −5    0

[Nassau-Hessen]

Hessen Start Off On A Great Note
Roper, and Surprise Stars Burrows & Hamwell Lift the Eagles Over The Islandstates
Nassau 4–1 Polar Islandstates

The Junior Eagles have been anticipating moments such as these annually. It is a ferocious positive feedback loop that many of the young players on the roster live for. The Nassauites headed to their first game located at Pony Lands Park in Manechester prior to the Hessian Football Cycle debut. Their first opponent would be one of immense difficulty to overcome, as they were one of the top nations in the multiverse of football, namely the Polar Islandstates. Some afficionados of the Hessen were apprehensive of the scheduled match, feeling certain that the Eagles were doomed, while others looked forward to the game as if it was a holiday.

Sandy Roper was rather ecstatic to return to international competition between the pipes, ready to give his all for one last year with the junior team he grew up with. Some players sought to make a name for themselves whilst others sought to simply play for their love of the game. The Islandstates match would without a doubt leave a tone for the rest of the tournament.

The match commenced with the possession belonging to the Polars. They made their way down the field with a somewhat relaxed, but deliberate pace. The Islandstates ended up with a couple decent shots on goal during the time of that possession, but it was not enough to get past #90, 'The Great Barrier.' The Eagles, once they achieved sufficient control of the ball, reversed the attack. The attack appeared feeble at first, but as time went on without a break for the Islandstates, exhaustion set in. A mediocre shot from rookie Marmadas Gamwich was able to create a rebound which midfielder Olo Burrows slammed home to clench the lead.

As soon as play resumed following the goal, the Hessen were immediately back at it. This time the blue and gold came up empty-handed despite a well executed drive. Before one knew it, it was the thirty fifth minute came and went as the Islandstates were at it again as they attempted to pound in a goal. Using the counterattack method Nassau is famous for, the Eagles striking line wound up giving Stanell Hamwell a chance to shoot, he did not disappoint. Stanell excellently planted the ball just inside the top-right corner of the net with a spinning shot, giving Nassau some distance from the Polar Islandstates going into halftime.

The Hessen initiated the second half with a dominant besiege of the net. It took much patience and perseverance over the eleven minutes that were spent mainly besieging, but eventually a confused Islandstate defense annotated the goal that the Hessen were looking for, hence making the score quite favorable to the Eagles. The main objective of Nassau changed into stalling enough time in order to avoid any comebacks and consequently claim victory. The diverse defensive line impressively held the Polar Islandstate desperate attempts to get back in the game for over twenty minutes. Eventually, the Polars managed to find an odd man opportunity that would turn into a score on Roper by the 81st minute, but it was far too late. Nassau left the Polar Islandstates football team with an even later goal scored by Burrows that bounced off the right post in added time, totaling the score to four to one. Nassau will hope to continue to rise in the Group F table, as they will soon take on Lymantatia in Seaddle.

October 4: Day 1 - v. Polar Islandstates W 4-1
October 5: Day 2 - @ Lymantatia
October 6: Day 3 - v. Devonta
October 7: Day 4 - @ Kiryu-Shi
October 8: Day 5 - BYE

[Mizuyuki]

It was ten minutes before the kickoff. The first match of the DBC for us; and I was standing in the tunnel, nervously pacing its length as I stole occasional glances at the digital clock mounted just over the entrance.

Despite my bravado - no doubt brought about by a temporary bout of sleepiness - yesterday night, I was in fact having butterflies in my stomach. True, Filopines weren't even remotely near being an elite team; true, we stood a good chance of winning the fixture outright; and yet, for some reason, I could not dispel the primeval emotions of fear and nervousness that threatened to overflow within me. The roiling, bubbling froth of emotions was such in its intensity that I had to actively suppress an urge to choke, to throw up, as was the case whenever I was under immense pressure and stress.

Part of the reason for that was the inherent unpredictability of a football match. As the Mizuyukian saying goes - 'the ball is round'; you could not take a result for granted in any sport, especially football. If football were as predictable as I had made it out to be, I wouldn't need to be out here racking my brains over tactical formations and impact substitutions in order to earn my keep; I would be sitting pretty at home counting my millions in winnings from the football pools.

Ah, to hell with it. I've prepared the players for this big day to the best of my ability. The rest's up to them.

Hands firmly stuffed in the pockets of my blazer, I strode out of my technical area and surveyed the field of play. The pitch looked pristine - I had to give the Equestrian groundsponies credit for their outstanding work. From my vantage point I could see no conspicuous bumps or mud on the vividly green turf, which was always a good thing for us, given the emphasis that we traditionally placed on passing.

Doesn't look like it's going to rain, too. Looks set to be a good outing for us; in terms of expressing our style of play, at the very least.

---

Precisely ten minutes later, the whistle was sounded. Having won the coin toss, Filopines elected to make us switch sides, essentially ensuring that we would have the sun in our eyes for the entirety of the first half. I gave a phlegmatic shrug. The decision made perfect sense; I would have done the same had I been in the Filopinian captain's shoes. At least the Filopinians would be subjected to the same blinding rays of afternoon sunshine in the second half.

We started off on the front foot, with the pressing high up the pitch exemplary. As per my instructions, we pushed up, harassing the opposition with crude, off-the-ball challenges. A ploy designed to provoke the Filopinians and disrupt their flow, I was delighted to see our tactics have an effect when Radnik Culpe fell under a heavy, scything challenge from the wraith-like Sakuranami and proceeded to confront her. I was less amused, however, when I saw the referee brandishing the yellow card at the two of them; Culpe for his reaction to the provocation, Sakuranami for the foul.

The early contretemps served to highlight the fractious nature of the contest. Despite the general Mizuyukian desire for attacking, free-flowing football, I was more of a pragmatist; I didn't shy away from employing alternative strategies whenever the circumstances necessitated it. And this was just such a set of circumstances; against a kamikaze attacking team, I had deliberately set up to provoke, frustrate and suffocate; all while providing a credible threat on the counter.

My tactical set up bore fruit in the most spectacular way possible only minutes after Sakuranami's cynical foul. The Filopinian midfielder Martens, allowed little time on the ball by our consistent pressing, played an absolute howler of a pass; Ryūsaki was in the right place at the right time to intercept, after which she quickly recycled possession. In a matter of seconds, we had four on the break against three Filopinian defenders while the rest of the Filopinians were stranded high up the pitch. Surging up the pitch, Steiner played a scintillating, defence-splitting pass that all but removed the defenders from the equation, and Samukawa duly applied the finish with her customary aplomb, finishing past Moleyne into the bottom right corner.

After the restart, play became more scrappy as we reined in our attacking; preferring to sit back and invite Filopines onto us. I had personally drilled the players during training yesterday; they were more than aware of what was required of them. Up against a potent strikeforce, they needed to defend deeply, compactly, and they needed to do a job as a cohesive unit.

But I suppose I was expecting too much of a group of enthusiastic teenagers. That's all they were, really; and it shouldn't have come as a surprise when the scoring of the first goal was reenacted - only this time we were on the wrong end of the stick. Barreling down the pitch at speed, Crogien robbed a dawdling Kihara and began to sprint headlong for the other end. Caught by surprise, the defence didn't react nearly as well as a top pro team would have; in her hurry to track back and cover the space behind her full back, Uryū inadvertently played Dupont onside while the rest of the defence were about ten yards ahead. Crogien played the obvious raking ball across, and Dupont placed his shot low into the net as Kashiwagi failed to react in time.

The game, now poised on a knife edge at 1-1, rapidly descended into a mire of mindless possession football. Once either team secured a grasp on possession, they tended to play it safe without any inclination to force the issue and ask questions of the opposition defence; perhaps the most salient example that illustrated this pointless style of football was a moment bordering on the ludicrous in the thirty-fourth minute. Having intercepted an awry Sakuranami pass in midfield, Morsett looked to play the safe square pass to a teammate, but was abruptly dispossessed by a strong Uryū. Uryū's triumph was short-lived, however, as the ball once again switched feet in a matter of seconds as her attempted back pass was cut out by Culpe.

I don't know how I managed to sit through those fifteen minutes of mind-numbing football. Try as I might, I could not seem to get the players to push up and seize the game by the scruff of its neck. It was at times like these that I needed Miyashiro to do her job as captain, but the defensive midfielder seemed oddly subdued, herself, and looked only marginally less lackadaisical than the rest of her teammates. I ended up hauling Miyashiro to the sidelines when Samukawa, felled by an absolute humdinger of a challenge, required medical attention - but my exhortations were to no avail as the team continued to play as if shackled by their collective fear of snatching defeat from the jaws of ... a fucking draw.

The long awaited breakthrough did come, though, after those fifteen minutes of the most painful football I have ever had the misfortune to sit through. By the time the fourth official raised his board to indicate three minutes of stoppage time, I had already decided that drastic changes would need to be made at half time; harsh words were to be had to spur the players from their inaction. A comatose patient would have shown more initiative than that lot had done for the past fifteen minutes.

However, one individual in particular had different ideas. Perhaps she detected the ominous mood in the technical area and decided that she did not desire to be on the receiving end of a merciless tongue-lashing by her fiery manager. Perhaps she was finally able to spot a chink in the opposition's thus far solid armour; a chink which she could ruthlessly exploit with the skillset she had at her disposal. Perhaps she was simply tired of watching the laborious football being played in and around the middle of the park.

Whatever the case was, her intervention was decisive as well as timely.

Picking up the ball in midfield after a sustained spell of Filopinian possession, Miyashiro, as was her wont, played the safe pass. With the instep, she caressed the ball into Sakuranami's path. The diminutive playmaker immediately set about putting her mark on proceedings; notable for not being notable at all in the forty five minutes that had already elapsed, Sakuranami decided that the time was right to spare her team the blushes. Running at pace down the left flank, she shooed Uryū out of her way, shouting at her teammate to move into a central position. When faced with the twin totems of Smith and Ellboh, who had been solid enough throughout the match, Sakuranami simply swivelled her hips and blew past them, evading Smith with a cute dip of the shoulder while giving Ellboh the slip with a perfectly executed stepover.

By the time she reached the Filopinian area, she had two players in the middle waiting for the cross, and Ellboh rushing back to rectify his mistake. The obvious choice was to roll the ball across the area to Samukawa, despite the awkward shot angle that the pass would present to the striker. I began to worry, then, that Sakuranami was going to blow our best chance of the entire match by attempting the spectacular; we had seen her try her fancy moves plenty of times before in training, but the more complicated moves only came off about half of the time. There was no one in the pocket of space that could pick up the ball for us if she lost it.

Slowing down, Sakuranami shaped up to deliver the cross as Ellboh dove, with boot outstretched, to deflect the ball away from the danger zone; but the little girl had other ideas. She dummied the shot and ghosted past Ellboh with a slick movement as though he was nothing more than fresh air, leaving him sprawling on the pitch, a remarkable look of bemusement on his face as though he couldn't believe a fourteen year old girl had just gotten the better of him. Now bearing down on goal with Tunney rushing in to close her down, Sakuranami fiddled with the ball and pulled off a cute flick, drawing the ball into the air above Tunney's block tackle.

The ball evaded the Filopinian defender, but Sakuranami herself crumpled under the bruising challenge. It would have been a penalty but for Samukawa, who again demonstrated her knack to be in the right place at the right time as she swept the ball high into the net; to be fair, it was the kind of gilt-edged chance any self-respecting football player would have buried with her eyes closed.

Watching from the sidelines, I had to struggle to suppress a wry grin as Sakuranami dusted herself off and high-fived Samukawa while the ref pulled out a yellow card for Tunney, before blowing the whistle for half time.

Perhaps this was going to be our day, after all.

[Abanhfleft]

CRESCENT NEWS NETWORK
SPORTS CHANNEL - OFFICIAL WEBSITE

THE CALANIAN UNION VS. ABANHFLEFT: AS IT HAPPENED
By Luke Edwards

OATLAHOMA CITY, EQUESTRIAN STATES - Another nice and warm day here in the Equestrian States. Sadly, Noburo Paulsky has had to be flown back to the Democratic Republic because his illness has been going on for so long now, so I'm most probably the only official sportscaster for Abanhfleft here in-country now. Well, my situation's still the same. I'm still sitting beside Martin Tyler, who's now joined by the great footballer Alan Smith in official English commentary.

Both teams are coming into this match fresh from victory. The Calanians won against Estenia 1-0 right here in Oatlahoma City, and we came away with the victory against The Sarian in Hoofston, with a result that nobody expected, not even the usually-unexpected Spanish Inquisition. The Democratic Republic won against The Sarian 7-2, a madhouse result that saw our boys and girls run roughshod over the opposition like what Germany did to Brazil during that ill-fated semifinal of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. This gives us three points and an insane goal differential of five. Five! Well, here's to hoping that we can do the same to the Calanians, but they're a balanced team that's only slightly more attacking than defensive, while we're a much more attacking team compared to them. That could leave vulnerable gaps that these patients footballers could try to exploit. Meanwhile, what we could try to exploit is the wide gaps on their wings, which resulted from their 4-4-2 Diamond, or 4-1-2-1-2, and we could definitely use some of our pacy lads and lasses to break them down on those wings.

The two teams are now stepping on to the pitch. The Calanians are wearing their dark green and light green stripey kit, and therefore Abanhfleft will be wearing their red-and-yellow kit. Here are the starting lineups.

THE CALANIAN UNION - STARTING LINEUP
GK: Johannes Medici
RB: Gus Merrv
RCB: Anton Viponde
LCB: Mann Milburn
LB: Kaden Osbourne
CDM: Jann Firoensi
RM: Raymond Smitt
LM: Bic Morandi
CAM: Louis Crespo
RS: Miles Rinaldi
LS: Antony Sixton (captain)
Formation: 4-4-2 Diamond or 4-1-2-1-2

ABANHFLEFT - STARTING LINEUP
GK: Stephanie Bryan
RB: Florence Patterson
RCB: Kristin Pittmann
LCB: Connie Anderson
LB: Shelly Murray
RDM: Cedric Pearson
CDM: Lea Choi
LDM: Tomas Walters
CAM: Rory Edwards (captain)
RS: Yoshinobu Mori
LS: Karen Villegas
Formation: 4-3-1-2

Here's the coin toss. The Calanians have won the toss. They want the goal nearest to their supporters. I would probably, too, if I was him.

00:00 - And the game has begun! Calanian Union with first possession, and already they're probing our defenses. Three girls and one boy will meet them on the gap between the midfield and the goal.

5 minutes: Free kick to the Calanians. It's in a dangerous spot; just 29 yards from goal. Crespo, Sixton, and Rinaldi will make the kick. Louis Crespo... is a fake. Antony Sixton... makes the kick! Luckily, he put too much power behind his shot, and it's over and out of the goal. Lucky break for Stephanie Bryan there.

7 minutes: Now it's Abanhfleft's turn to take a free kick. It's also at a troubling 30 yards, right in front of goal. Edwards, Mori, and Walters--strange choice for Radoslaw--will take the kick. Rory Edwards... kicks! But Johannes Medici gets his hands on it, and it's an easy save.

10 minutes: Oh, no, Calanian's broken through! Lovely bit of skill from Bic Morandi though, who bamboozled Cedric Pearson with a cheeky fake pass before running off with the ball. Louis Crespo's making a run for it. Morandi passes... the linesman raises his flag. Offside. Beautiful offside trap from Kristin and Connie.

13 minutes: And once again, the Calanians are on the attack. Bic Morandi on the run. Antony Sixton's in the box. He's not falling for that offside trap now. Morandi will make the cross. He finds Sixton's waiting head. Stephanie Bryan's hands barely clip the ball... GOAL!!! THE CALANIAN UNION 1-0 ABANHFLEFT Oh, deary me, that's not a good start for our boys and girls.

14 minutes: Abanhfleft will restart play.

18 minutes: Abanhfleft on the counterattack! Lea Choi with the ball. Pass to Rory Edwards. Too many green shirts; he'll have to pass it back out. He finds Tomas Walters outside the box. Tomas will take the shot! Oh! Off the crossbar and into the audience. Too much power behind that shot. But it's a good thing, because our boys and girls are still on the attack. They're not yet giving up hope of winning this game.

23 minutes: Corner kick for the Calanians. Firoensi will make the kick. Into the box. The ball finds Stephanie Bryan's fist, and it's at Cedric Pearson's feet. He will kick it as far away from his half as possible.

30 minutes: The game is settling down into a shifting tempo of sorts. Both teams are making attacks, but no one's converting any more shots after that goal from Antony Sixton. Also, we've had more possession than the Calanians this first half. How are we losing?

36 minutes: Hang on, here's another attack from our boys and girls. Karen Villegas has the ball. She's being led into the sides of the box. No choice but to cross it. Karen's not known for her crossing, so this is gonna be a fifty-fifty affair. She will kick... A wild Rory Edwards appeared! But he's got too much inertia from all that running, and the ball jets over the crossbar, not even bothering Johannes Medici. I'm certain words and thoughts that are NSFW are running through his mind right now.

40 minutes: Bad news. Crespo, that absolute beast with the ball, is priming up for a run. Luckily Florence Patterson stops him in his tracks. Now he's looking for a green shirt to pass the ball on. He finds Firoensi way beyond where his position on paper says he should be. Firoensi will take a shot! Oh, Connie Anderson's messed up his shot. It's a pearoller of a shot, and an easy save for Stephanie Bryan in the lower left corner.

45 minutes: The referee will give us two minutes of added time.

45 minutes + 2: And that's the first half into the history books. The Calanian Union leads Abanhfleft 1-0, thanks to an honestly nice header from Antony Sixton. The two teams will take a break now, and both will seek to make some adjustments coming into this second half.

Looks like Radoslaw Montwill's decided that it's time for a 4-3-3 for Abanhfleft. But as far as substitutions go, no one's been swapped for anyone else.

45:01 - The second half has officially started, and Abanhfleft will begin by kicking off.

50 minutes: Calanian Union already on the attack again. Firoensi with the ball. To Morandi. To Crespo. To Rinaldi. Miles Rinaldi with the shot! Got to be! Stephanie Bryan just nudges the ball right into the corner of the crossbar and the post. It bounces back into the foot of a Calanian player! Sixton goes for his second goal! And once again, Stephanie Bryan is there to keep the Democratic Republic within arm's reach of victory!

55 minutes: Now it's Abanhfleft's turn to go on the offensive. Tomas Walters with the ball. He finds Yoshinobu Mori in open space. Across goal! Too wide. The ball will roll beyond the left post.

59 minutes: Radoslaw Montwill has decided that it is time for more attacking options. Valery Zolnerov will now come in for Tomas Walters. SUBSTITUTION (ABANHFLEFT): TOMAS WALTERS OUT, VALERY ZOLNEROV IN

60 minutes: Counterattack by Calanian Union. Raymond Smitt with the ball. He finds Louis Crespo. Crespo goes for goal, but the ball hits Kristin Pittmann. Corner kick. Bic Morandi will take the corner. He smashes it into the box. Raymond Smitt jumps the highest! Steph Bryan is powerless to stop the flight of the ball into the back of the net! GOAL!!! THE CALANIAN UNION 2-0 ABANHFLEFT The hole we needed to dig ourselves out of just suddenly became a bit bigger.

61 minutes: Abanhfleft will kick off once again.

68 minutes: Vandero Seltzassi's opting for defense now, as Firoensi will make way for another defender. SUBSTITUTION (THE CALANIAN UNION): JANN FIROENSI OUT, PACAL DURANTE IN

71 minutes: Sloppy shot from Karen Villegas. It's easily saved by the Calanian keeper. Radoslaw Montwill notices his main striker slowing down, so he'll be looking to rest her now. SUBSTITUTION (ABANHFLEFT): KAREN VILLEGAS OUT, MARGUERITE CHAMBERS IN

77 minutes: I've honestly never seen Radoslaw Montwill make so many substitutions in so few minutes. But the pressure of scoring and equalizing is probably weighing down on our players' shoulders, so their mental stamina's being used up along with their physical stamina. Rory Edwards will be sitting down now, but not before he passes on his captain's armband to Yoshinobu Mori. SUBSTITUTION (ABANHFLEFT): RORY EDWARDS OUT, SARITA CAIRO IN

80 minutes: Vandero Seltzassi's going to rest his captain now. Antony Sixton will pass on his armband to the vice-captain. SUBSTITUTION (THE CALANIAN UNION): ANTONY SIXTON OUT, BEN LINTONE IN

83 minutes: All this new blood's brought some life back into this game. Valery Zolnerov is on a roll after dispossessing Bic Morandi. Marguerite Chambers is ahead of him. Valery will pass. Marguerite's got only the keeper between her and the goal. She shoots! It rockets past Medici's outstretched palm! GOAL!!! Abanhfleft is one step closer to getting back into this game... Hang on, though. The linesman's raised his flag. Offside. What. Are you serious? Marge was not offside! All right, here comes the slow-mo. Dammit. Linesman was right. Marge Chambers was offside. NO GOAL

89 minutes: It's the dying minutes of this game now, and Abanhfleft is still scoreless. One more attack in regular time, and who knows how much the referee will add. Lea Choi with the ball. The box is full of green shirts. Options, options, where are they? Yoshi Mori's got some space! Medici deflects it! Right to Marguerite Chambers! She takes the shot! Blocked by the keeper once again! Bloody hell, that ball's really bouncing around in that penalty box! And now the ball is right in front of Val Zolnerov! No second-guessing from this half-Russkie, he kicks immediately! Medici's too short to get to the ball! GOAL!!! THE CALANIAN UNION 2-1 ABANHFLEFT And we are finally back on the scoreboard! Finally!

90 minutes: The Calanian Union will restart play, just as the ref announces that four minutes will be added onto this second and final half. That's four minutes for Abanhfleft to equalize and save some face.

90 minutes + 4: And four minutes was not enough for Abanhfleft to equalize. The Calanians will get the win and the three points. But, looking at the stats, we've actually had more shots, and more shots on target. Also, possession's still in our favor. How the hell did we lose this game? Boy, Johannes Medici's at the form of his life. Some Premier League clubs with porous defenses may want to snap him up before anyone else does.

Anyway, our next game will be against Farfardillis. They haven't released a roster yet, and we have no idea of their formation of their playing style, but it seems that we thrive on the unknown. I predict an easy win against Farfardillis tomorrow. No guarantees, though, as always.

(Author's note: Apparently, our opponent's name is actually Farfadillas. I apologize for all citizens of that nation who saw my misspelling of their name and were offended.)

 THE CALANIAN UNION 2 - 1 ABANHFLEFT
ANTONY SIXTON (13')       VALERY ZOLNEROV (89')
RAYMOND SMITT (60')

SUBSTITUTIONS
THE CALANIAN UNION
Jann Firoensi ↓, Pacal Durante ↑ (68')
Antony Sixton ↓, Ben Lintone ↑ (80')
ABANHFLEFT
Tomas Walters ↓, Valery Zolnerov ↑ (59')
Karen Villegas ↓, Marguerite Chambers ↑ (71')
Rory Edwards ↓, Sarita Cairo ↑ (77')

MORE NEWS: ABANHFLEFT NATIONAL TEAM'S CELEBRATION VIDEO GOES VIRAL • MONTWILL: WE MUST KEEP OUR HEADS ON THE GROUND EVEN AFTER WIN AGAINST THE SARIAN • NOBURO PAULSKY TO RETURN HOME DUE TO LONG-TERM ILLNESS

[The Inevitable Syndicate]

Oh, you wanted more? I figured you were bored after you didn’t react to the first story. Of course I have more to tell you, did you not read the news over the past six months? Or were you just partying every night? Like the guys from my second memory?

The days passed by with a blur - after every job, I’d return home, crash on a bed until the morning, take my pills, and sit doing nothing until the next call came through. This was, in case you didn’t know, how I received the jobs. They would give me an address, I would pick up some related equipment from said address, and from there I would carry out what I needed to do. Each time was a little different. Different person, different persons, odd building layouts, and once… Once I had my wires crossed with another member of my organization…

A nightclub. Typical place for the bastards to hang out in the evenings. This a a Friday, so it was packed with people dancing their problems away. Especially thanks to that new invention the Sunrisians bought us after the war - I think they called it ‘freedom’? They also called it ‘drugs’, but I won’t go into that. That’s for another department to solve, right?

Anyway, a nightclub. I wasn’t dressed too smartly, as I was told not to bring my best. I walk on up to the outside of the joint and scout out the place for a possible entrance for my things. Frosted Glass Window on the first floor? Ringo bingo. I threw the case up to it, and luckily I managed to get it perched onto a windowsill. That still remains the best shot of my career, and believe me - I’ve made many, many shots in my career.

So I walk in, scanning the dancefloor for the guy. He’s not there at all. I go to the bar, order some terrible drink that I didn’t end up drinking. He’s not there. Pawning the drink off onto a nearby table, I slink to the bathrooms, hoping that my target would be jacked up on something in a cubicle, and I could make this quick. I’d get more sleep then, and the bright lights of the club were starting to make my head spin a little bit.

I don’t find the guy in the toilets, and I also don’t find my briefcase on the windowsill. Looking out of this dingy window onto the street below, I look to my left and feel as if I want to smack my face with my hand. The case is on the other windowsill. In the other bathroom.

I’ve infiltrated many places during my time, as I’m sure you’ll find out shortly, but infiltrating the women’s bathroom at a club? Well, have you ever done that? No, and if you were in there, nobody would bat an eyelid. They’d think you have a reason to be there. Me, I had no reason, apart from “I have to pick up a briefcase with some questionable content in, in order to do my job”. This shit obviously wasn’t going to fly, so I had to think of some other excuse to get myself in there.

What I did, surprisingly, worked. I burst in, looked panicked, and frantically looked around the room. I asked the birds in the bathroom if they’d seen a ring, as my fiancee had lost hers and was too mortified to come and check. They seemed to buy it, and told me they’d seen nothing. I apologised for bursting in, and went into the cubicle with the briefcase outside, making some thoughtful noises as I opened the window and pulled the case up. By the time I’d finished, the original two had left, and I sheepishly walked out, goods in hand.

I did a quick sweep of the decaying club, even stopping to look out to the balcony for the bloke - he simply wasn’t here. I was upstairs when I heard the first gunshots, and I dashed down to the dancefloor, confused as to why someone was firing a gun when I hadn’t even assembled mine.

I probably should have assembled mine, as when I got down there, I saw a guy in an eagle mask laying bullet after bullet into a now red suited corpse. I squinted into the distance, and noticed the dead man looked familiar. He was my target. Swearing under my breath, I dipped behind the bar in the hysteria and opened the door to a back room behind it. I wondered what I was doing here, if Eagleface had finished the job for me. Maybe we’d both picked up an identical case? Maybe… he’d opened mine?

I clicked the locks on the case, it swung open in a flash. All was there. My gun, my mask, other questionables that I won’t mention to you… This only confused me further, but I didn’t have time to remain this way for very long, as I was spotted by a member of staff. Slamming the case shut, I looked him dead in the eyes. I told him we had to call the police, as a guy hasd just been killed, but he looked to frightened to say anything, and just beckoned me further into the staff area. I waved my hands to say no, and opened the door to the bar ajar so I could see what was going on. Birdychops had left, so I tentatively stepped out to survey the damage. Dead man, cleared dancefloor, broken record, bright lights, sirens….

Sirens. That was my cue to leave. And boy, did I run right out that open fire exit and over a fence to my car, quicker than you could say “Drop the bass”.

And I lived to fight another day.

[Furellum]

Chapter 1:The Arrival
Chapter 2: War Plans

Into War

Dobroslav Anghelescu marched in the middle of the army, leading out his regiment as they headed north up the Upton River. It was hard to believe that only a few months ago he'd been a carpenter, working quietly in his shop. Now he was a commander in the Corvidae Army, hunting down the rebellious Cardinals and their supporters. Like most of the men beside him, Loncar had felt forced to act by the chaotic state of affairs caused by the Cardinals in their ill-fated attempt to gain even more power. Dobroslav had been alongside Yuri Kedzierski during the attack on the Plotzo Arcana, and had stood in the empty council room as Yuri laid the foundations of the Corvidae State. For his part in the events of that night, Dobroslav had been made a colonel in the army.

At first he'd thought it wouldn't be so bad; after all, like any carpenter he was quite strong, and could swing a hammer. But instead he'd been issued with a rifle. Dobroslav hated it. With a hammer or sword you knew what you were doing; you hit the right spot on the enemy's body and they dropped. With the rifle he pointed it at the enemy, pulled a small part on it, and the weapon tried to leap out of his hand, accompanied by a lot of noise. It was hideous. What kind of weapon did this? even mage's staffs stayed still when they were used, but Dobroslav had been told there was no magic involved in the rifle. Perhaps it was some sort of living thing, some strange beast from another world. He'd heard of a metallic object, a cooking utensil from memory, that had played in a regional football tournament recently, so perhaps there were places where such things were possible. It would explain why he had to keep feeding the beast metal cylinders. Maybe it ate the powder inside them?

Dobroslav was so lost in his thought that he tripped, and almost fell. Regaining his composure, he returned his mind to the job at hand. The army was moving up the Rode river, heading towards the city of Rodenia. In front were the enforcers, the biggest and baddest of the Corvidae forces. Only the large species - bears, rhinos, hippos, bulls and the like - could be enforcers. They carried massive swords, axes, hammers and polearms, and wore heavy platemail armour. Dobroslav wished he was wearing armour. Having been issued with a rifle, the army then decided he wouldn't need any protection other than a light steel cap. Although he knew that his weapon could potentially kill anyone with a sword before they got to him, a small voice kept asking, "and what about archers or mages?"

The first shot fired by a mage in the battle of Rodenia came from the Corvidae side. As the army approached the city's suburbs, the alarm had gone up. Already, most of the people were safe inside the city walls, and the gates were barred. It was clear that Rodenia would not welcome the army like Upton had.
The first mage fired a ball of green light up towards the wall. As it reached the wood and stone parapet, the light vanished. A shout went up from the army. A magical ward was in place around the city, and the battlemages would be useless until they could disable it. As they began to prepare the dispel enchantment, General Kovac gave his orders. In response, Dobroslav hurried forward with his men, and crouched in serried ranks before the gate. Raising the hideous monster of the rifle to his shoulder, he aimed it at the defenders on the wall and pulled the trigger. The beast screamed, spitting fire as it tried to wrench itself out of his paws. Around him, the screams of other monsters filled the air. Then two of the humans, the ones that had backed the Corvidae state, ran forward carrying a large round cylinder. Another metal monster, thought Dobroslav, as he watched one of the men feed it a smaller, tapered cylinder with odd fins sticking out of one end. Then the other pointed it at the gate, and moved his finger in the spot that would upset the monster. Dobroslav saw the finned cylinder come flying out of the monsters mouth in a cloud of smoke, trailing fire as it screamed through the air. It hit the gates, there was a sound like a thunderclap, a lot of smoke, and when he looked again, the gates were gone.

Dobroslav was so shocked, he stopped firing for a moment. Then the General was screaming at him and the others to keep up the attack, as the enforcers formed a wedge and charged towards the gate. A shocked and stunned force of defenders met them, but without their walls they were helpless before the sheer power and weight of the enforcers. There were some brave men among them, and a few enforcers died, but many more defenders were cut down. The survivors broke and ran as Kovac ordered the rest of his troops forward. Dobroslav charged with the rest, through the charred remains of the gate and over the dead bodies in the hearth. Charging through into a city filled with shouting and chaos, into a city fighting back. Into war.

[Free Republics]

Consul Kulseth's Office, Republica, Holy Republican Empire

Consul Kulseth was just putting pen to paper on the new foreign aid bill when he saw the request from the Coconutstani government. When the Consul saw that, he was startled because he had never heard of Coconutstan before. However, just from their nation name, he had an idea of why they wanted aid. Everybody in the multiverse knew that the one word that the so-called "Lord Gregory" hated more than any other was the word co-co-nut. Immediately, Consul Kulseth was inclined to send a contingent of troops there, to protect the nation and, possibly, promote the spread of the True Faith in the nation.

Upon further research, however, Consul Kulseth discovered that Coconutstan were followers of the most wicked Mohammedan heresy. In addition, they were already a protectorate of the Equestrian States and, seemingly, had close ties to the Quebecois, who were funneling nuclear weapons to Gregoryisgodistan. Kulseth soon realized that more direct measures were out, in this case. There was absolutely no chance that Republican troops could be stationed there and a nation of heretics were certainly not deserving of humanitarian aid.

Nonetheless, Consul Kulseth still intended to send aid. As Consul of the Holy Republican Empire, Kulseth was privy to knowledge regarding the Republican possession of certain weapons, knowledge that remained a closely guarded state secret. Many of these weapons were of the nuclear variety and some of them were, now obsolete, but still entirely functional nukes. If the nation of Coconutstan were to get their hands on nuclear weapons, maybe they'd end up in a nuclear war with Gregoryisgodistan and maybe both the heretics and the infidels would annihilate one another, along with half of Esportiva. If so, that would serve the Will of God.

Then again, Consul Kulseth had his doubts. Church teaching did say that such weapons were malum in se. Still, this was a teaching that was, likely, only invented because Saintland lacks nuclear weapons or the capacity to develop such weapons. One of the most important teachings of St. Paulus was that the wages of sin are death. If the sinful nations of Coconutstan and Gregoryisgodistan were to end up nuking one another straight into the fiery depths of Infernus, the Consul reasoned, well they were only getting what they had coming to them. What they had coming to them, of course, was an eternity spent rotting in Infernus.

The more Consul Kulseth thought about it, the more he felt that Gregoryisgodistan, more than any other nation, deserved to be annihilated. Still, there was no way that the Holy Republican Empire could carry out the deed. Any nation that launches a nuclear first strike will become a pariah nation and that was not something that Consul Kulseth wanted, especially as he was trying to use the full force of Republican power to spread the Faith. Any direct link to a governments affiliated with the group of nations unofficially known as Holy Powers would prove counterproductive for the cause of God.

Consul Kulseth reasoned that the Will of God must be carried out via indirect means. While he dreamed of, one day, bringing about a multiverse where all would obey, without question, the Will of God, Reino recognized that the first step toward this goal was to use some pawns toward these ends, who would be his instrument which passed judgment upon Gregoryisgodistan. He decided that he would, in fact, send some old nuclear weapons that were still functional, but no longer wanted by the Republican military, to Coconutstan. Coconutstan would be allowed to use them for their own defense and, should it be God's Will, use them to carry out God's Judgment against the most wicked land of Gregoryisgodistan. The Consul composed his response:

To: Omari I, President-King of Coconutstan
From: Reino Kulseth, Consul of the Holy Republican Empire
Subject: Your Request
Encrpytion: Highest

Your Majesty,

I am writing in response to the recent request for foreign aid from your ambassador to St. Petrus. I wish to begin by thanking you for retaining your nation name of Coconutstan, even in the face of threat after threat from a certain rogue state. I share your concern for the safety of your nation. To that end, I have elected to deliver a foreign aid package to your nation, consisting of several extremely powerful weapons which our own military no longer requires. I want to reassure you that these weapons are still in working condition and should strengthen your military preparedness against any external threats to your national security that might emerge in the future.

I hope that your new weapons will be of use to yours...

Reino Kulseth, Consul of the Holy Republican Empire

[Super-Llamaland]

UNIFIED SUNRISE ISLANDS 5 - 4 SUPER-LLAMALAND

Unified Sunrise Islands (4-4-2 diamond): Canjica; Dondoca, Daví, Paulo Sousa, Cleo Duran-Lens; Leona Bonecrusher, Felipe Hogan, Akaho Sugiura, Tyson Nilo; June Gardot, Remus Othniel-L'ubomir

Super-Llamaland (4-1-4-1): Reginald Apostaza; Andrew Venafro, Sebastian Myers, Kyle Neillson, Michale Herleksson; Ryan Carmichael; Wictor Rasmussen, Noah Friederich, Joshua DeLorme, Sebastian Inriquéz; Kristopher Nilssen

QUICK STATS

53% possession, 16 shots, 9 shots on goal
47% possession, 15 shots, 9 shots on goal

CAUTIONED: Sousa (45+1'), Venafro (72')
EJECTED: --NONE--

SUNRISIAN GOALS: Gardot (18'), Nilo (25', 88'), Othniel-L'ubomir (62', 77')
LLAMANEAN GOALS: Friederich (35'), Nilssen (64', 73'), Inriquéz (83')

SUNRISIAN SUBSTITUTIONS: Costa for Gardot (56'), Banner for Duran-Lens (70'), Buturovic for Bonecrusher (76')
LLAMANEAN SUBSTITUTIONS: Sarlanic for DeLorme (51'), Bogusevic for Friederich (66'), Uecker for Neillson (71')

---

The sirens, as usual, inevitably went off. Only the time of day - that day, it was quarter to five - and the siren itself.

Alex closed his book and grabbed an older, worn one from the shelf. OFFICIAL GUIDE TO ALARM NOISES, it read in gold gilt on black leather. Not real gold, of course - the City had plenty enough of that, but it didn't come cheaply - but simply manufactured dye, staining the supple cover with its opaque shine.

The guide interrogated him. Were the alarms chirps, tolls, or sirens? How loud were they, what was their "vibrance", and so on and so forth. If you were correct in your intuition, it would inform you what had happened and what was to be done about it.

Alex perused, received an answer, and gawked. #1510 INTRUDER IN DOME, the text read. He flipped the book shut and sprinted out of his room.

Outside, he encountered a regular stampede. Swept into it, he quickly ran to the hallway's front, managing to evade the Navarra-like hordes behind him. Another hallway presented the same challenge, and as he trotted to the front of the line he wondered who exactly had gotten into the dome.

The glass dome that housed the Second Switch was in the center of the City. As thousands of stamping feet raced towards the middle, the corridors became more and more congested. By the time Alex had made it to the Staircase, the rapid wave of stampeding feet had dried into a syrupy flow. Slowly they ascended up the staircase, and as they turned the corner they realized that there was somebody inside the dome.

Jaws dropped, faces slackened, conversations stopped in midair. The City was under attack from the First Switch.

---

thirty-eight years prior


A slice and a cut, and the job was done; the Republic itself was slain. Emperor Adrian carried the rebel leader's head and cast it into the fire. The island of Eyvillamanea was united once more.

There was one more matter, though. The last magical stronghold in the Greater Geographical Llamanean Union was about to use its dying sparks. Five years prior, the last of the Hicañans who practiced it had died out. Eyvillamanea was all alone.

Adrian closed his eyes and slowly came to an epiphany. He returned to the bloody corpse and stripped it. With sword and bare hands he searched far and wide, and from the necklace around the leader's neck he dug out a switch. A strap concealed in his belt revealed another. They shined a dull, brassy gold, and he realized it then. They were the two mythical switches. When one was flicked, a variety of physical effects, teleportation to the other switch being the most noticeable, took place.

He turned and called to his men. He heard their horse's trot in the back ground and looked back at the switches. They confirmed his rule. He was now emperor of the entire island.

He called again, called across the land to the final sparks of magic concealed in the dust. They began to move, swathing back and forth. The Empire, on the western half of the island, was crisscrossed in an intricate spiderweb; nature's chessboard collapsed into a glowing field to the west of the River. The east, the devastated Republic, remained. It would become known as "Evil Llamas".

[Nephara]

Jess Mortlock wasn't sure what to think of her new Under-21 manager.
Riether wasn't her choice. It was one she'd greenlit, without ever meeting her personally - it made sense to pick someone with experience, after all. And Riether had the right sort of mentality, in Mortlock's view. Firm and fair, tactician more than motivator... rather like Mortlock herself.
They even looked vaguely similar. Both were blonde, both in their 40s, and both around 5'7". Mortlock was the more imposing, however - her stance open, her build like a retired heavyweight boxer, and her penchant for well-tailored blue suits. Riether was skinnier, had worse posture, and looked like she slept about five hours a night, shivering in her tatty blue-grey coat. She'd been a good right-back in the pre-UICA days, moving up with her local club Chatswood before being snapped up by the Moths. But she still had a lot of that northwestern flavour. She had a reputation as what the locals called a hound - a sly old dog who'd do anything to get a leg up on her opponents. The bags under her eyes and vaguely windswept appearance hid a keen intelligence and an observant nature.
"Decent result out there," said Mortlock mildly. "Matching the horses on home turf?"
"They're technically ponies, guv."
"... Same thing."
"Diff'rent species, guv. Ponies are smaller."
Mortlock waved a hand irritably. "Whatever."
"And I think we could've won it. Great save from Peterson to deny Kellard... they'll be teammates within a couple months if the newspapers are right." Riether sipped at her coffee, glancing aside to the tables around her. "... Ach, I asked for black, damn it. Blacker than ash! Then again, you'd trust equines to be devils for sugar..."
Mortlock cleared her throat meaningfully. "Right, but. It's looking like a good group of players. I mean we both know the likes of Corren, Kellard, Kruse and that lot are going to be capped someday, but... is there anyone else who you think could make the step up?"
"Hard to say," said Riether mildly.
There was a pause. Riether sipped quietly at her coffee.
"Hard to say."
"Yeah."
"It's... this is your job, Tess."
"My job's getting the best I can out of them. We came here to win, and we're doing that alright so far. And I'd like to think I chose people with potential. But some people peak early. Some peak late. Some are crocked. Remember how Brady Monroe had a career once?"
"Alright, I get it, you don't like to speculate," grumbled Mortlock. "So you'd like to win, eh?"
Riether stared at Mortlock like she was stupid. "... Yes?"
"It's just that I've heard differing approaches. Some think it's more about developing them for the future..."
"If they win, that means they're better. They're playing the same style of football as the national team, and most clubs. Besides, the deeper we go into the tournament the more matches they'll have together." Riether rubbed at her eyes a little. "At the end of the day, it's all about winning."
"Right, but... this level demands more than results. How are they handling training?"
"I'm not paid to win training sessions."
"How do you even-"
"Look, Mor- ... sir. With respect, I have this under control. I don't know what my predecessor was like-"
"An integral part of integration into the senior team," said Mortlock quietly.
"Sure, all that shit, but no trophies. My thinking's straightforward. We win here?" She drained her cup, and grimaced. "... Still far too much fucking sugar. Christ. What was I on about?"
"If we win here..."
"Right. I get that if you give a team a win, they'll just ... keep on losing. Me? I plan on teaching them to win."
"That's the worst adapted metaphor I've ever heard. ... But I take your point. I'll be in touch."
They shook hands - and parted, their lines drawn in the sand.

[Chiata]

Chiata Thunderstorm

At long last, the CFA has released the under-21 team information...

Stadium: Ice Pitch, Nor' Del (30,000)
Coach: George Bradshaw
Style: -4
Formation: 4-3-3

Roster:
(position: name - age)
Left Forward: Charles Talley - 20
Center Forward(C): John Meeks - 20
Right Forward: Robert Well - 19
Forward: Steven Gross - 19
Forward: Timothy Cook - 18
Forward: Donald Compton - 19
Left Midfielder: Lewis Riddle - 20
Center Midfielder: Willie Maynard - 20
Right Midfielder: Javier Taylor - 19
Midfielder: Joyce Severino - 19
Midfielder: Paul Dileo - 20
Midfielder: Dennis Mobely
Left Defender: Flossie Burg - 18
Left Center Defender: Michael Lane - 20
Right Center Defender: Curtis Smith - 20
Right Defender: Erica West - 20
Defender: Theodora Hall - 20
Defender: Landon Cunningham - 19
Defender: Humberto Caudill
Defender: Chriss Cameron - 20
Goal Keeper: Daniel Spooner - 20
Goal Keeper: Lawrence Douglas - 20
Goal Keeper: Nancy Taylor - 20

Bold denotes starter

RP Permissions:
Choose my goalscorers: Yes
Godmod scoring events: Yes
RP injuries to my players: Yes (no deaths)
Godmod injuries to my players: No
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes (max 3)
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes (max 1)
Godmod other events: Yes

[Blouman Empire]

THE EMPIRE TIMES

Cuycla Sees Red As Eaglets Lose

The Blouman Eaglets continued their disappointing run into the Di-Bradini Cup with a 1-0 loss against Darvale last night as their hopes of progressing past the group stage dwindled. The only goal of the game was conceded by the Bloumans from a penalty in the 88th minute given away by George Cuycla and was deftly taken by Jermaine Wallcroft. Despite the loss, Blouman Manager Vincent Munt was upbeat highlighting the strong improvement since the team’s devastating 5-0 loss against Schottia.

The Blouman Eaglets had control for most of the game, however, they were unable to get a goal past the on form Darvale keeper James Cullen who managed to save a total of 12 shots. The poor accuracy from Blouman striker Henry Trustat was also a sour point including his miss from 4 yards out just before half time. At the other end of the field the Blouman defence showed what they were capable of as they denied and frustrated the Darvale forwards from putting any real threat on goal and forcing the Darvale forwards to shoot from distance. As the minutes ticked down and the game looked certain to end in a goalless draw the game changed. David Rowe managed to slip past Cuycla with some fancy footwork, Cuycla in a moment of rage lashed out at Rowe studding him in the back of the leg bringing the winger down. For his efforts he was shown a red and allowed Wallcroft to slot one in the bottom left corner with his penalty kick. While the Eaglets tried in the remaining time to get one back the game ended with Darvale the eventual winners.

Munt was full of confidence after the match “It goes to show that we are ready for this tournament, the players played well and we created plenty of chances. We can go into our next two games with the confidence that we can do well”, he refused to dwell on the penalty simply saying “We had plenty of chances to win the game, the penalty didn’t lose it for us”. Blouman Captain Warwick Evoy was less enthusiastic “It’s a game we should’ve won, it’s going to make the next two games tougher for us”. The eaglets still sit on zero points and will be needing to beat San Jose Guayabal in their next match leading into their final group stage match.

[United States of Devonta]

Disappointment and Success On The Field
^{Offense shines while struggling defense tries not to fail}

United States of Devonta 3-3 Kiryu-shi

United States of Devonta (4-4-2 Diamond): Vanburen, Styles, Benton, Rice, Martin, Hernandez, Crox, Edwards, Tallahassee, Adams, Madrid

Quick Stats:
52% Possessions, 14 Shots, 8 on goal
48% Possession, 19 Shots, 10 on goal.

CAUTIONED: Crox (45+3'), Madrid (69')
EJECTED: --NONE--

Schedule:
MD1: Bye
MD2: United States of Devonta 3-3 Kiryu-shi
MD3: United States of Devonta Vs. Nassau Hessen
MD4: United States of Devonta Vs. Polar Islandstates
MD5: United States of Devonta Vs. Lymantatia

---

A young, odd ball, energized Devontan U-21 team fought to a disappointing 3-3 draw with Kiryu-shi on Sunday in their first game since the hard fought friendly with Estenia on October 1st, Followed by practice and rest. And a quit bye day for the young Devontans on Saturday.

With head coach Vince McMahon stating before the game that the aim for the team was to reach the semi-finals, The Devontans with Adams fast passed tempo controlled most of the game but there was signs of struggle in the defense in the second half. The Kiryushians pressed in the second half and created a number of chances to equalize which they capitalized on, but where not able to leave with a victory. Both teams by critics where guessed likely to pass in there groups making it a much see match.

Two penalties where called on Devontan players Crox (45+3') and Madrid (69'). Adams scored and amazing goal in the first two minutes shocking the crowd, Although the fast Kiryushians scored 15 minutes in embarrassing Devontan defense. The Devontans then scored another goal, A longshot shot by midfielder Kyle Tallahassee in the 38th minute. The Kiryushians managed to get a goal in on a penalty kick during the 69th minute due to Madrid's yellow card violation, Tieing the game 2-2 but Adams again scored at the 89th minute.

The Devontans thought they had it till one slight mistake ultimately decided the game to be a draw. In the 93+4' minute, Substitute Coby Rice mishandled goalkeeper Vanburen's throw, and a Kiryushians midfielders impressive throughout pounced on the loose ball before the Devontans could react making it a 3-3 game in the last 30 seconds.