World Bowl XXXI Everything Thread

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

Royal Kingdom of Quebec National Collegiate Gridiron Team

Base Formation: Variable (Offense), 4-3 (Defense). Team Quebec is very flexible with strategies and will adjust in offensive and defensive schemes as necessary.
Style Modifier: +5
Colors: Blue, Red and Yellow (look at my flag)
Home Stadium: Stade St. Croix (Capacity: 106,330), Quebec City, Capitale-Nationale
Head Coach: Igor Spardovich, 54
Universities with selections to national team, but unable to enlist them for the national team for WB23:
University of Prince Raoul Islands (1, injuries), University of Ottawa (1, player refused due to academic reasons), Universite de Sept-Iles (1, injuries), Acadia University (1, player refused due to academic reasons)
Universities with players withdrawn their invitation, but still has remaining player or more for the national team: Northwestern University (1, personal reasons), Saguenay State University (1, family reasons), Farrer University (3, many reasons), Universite d'Etoile-Nord (2, injuries), University of Southern Manitoba (1, injuries), Hampden College (2, academic commitment in conflict), Universite St. Croix (1, paternity duty), University of Goose Bay (1, injuries)
Universities without a player in the selection: Membertou University, University of Kingston, Beyreuth University, Iggulden University, University of Halifax, Niagara State University, University of Natasquan

Coaching Staff

Head Coach: Reginald Kim, 59 (Northwestern University)
Offensive Coordinator: Aaron Chang, 50 (Universite du Saguenay)
Defensive Coordinator: Daniel Waterman, 68 (University of Hamilton)
Special Teams Coordinator: , 62 (Abitibi Tech University)
Offensive Line Coach: Lou Dobson, 50 (Carleton University)
Defensive Line Coach: Hyun Hwa Goh, 59 (Universite de Montreal)
Linebacker Coach: Rajiv Muthkuda, 34 (Universite St. Croix)
Defensive Backs Coach: Igor Spardovich, 46 (Queen's University)
Quarterback Coach: Emillio Petrozza, 41 (Gyeongbuk A&M University)

Offensive Starters

QB: #18 Dexter Ahn (Universite du Saguenay- Fr)
RB: #31 Balthasar Rodrigue-Lort (University of Western Ontario- Sr)
WR: #80 Antoine Kim (Universite St. Croix- Jr)
WR: #12 Grayson Hayes (University of Southern Manitoba- So)
WR: #85 Ezekiel Maitman (Universite de Gaspe- Sr)
TE: #87 Vilhelm Palmgren (Northwestern University- Sr)
LT: #79 Remy Gascoigne-Yang (University of Goose Bay- Sr)
LG: #66 Ray Kahbahgehgegoinine (Universite St. Croix- Jr)
C: #65 Angus McSwain (University of Western Ontario- Jr)
RG: #63 Hyung Joong Seo (University of Hamilton- Sr)
RT: #70 Jason-Andre Giguere (Gyeongbuk A&M University- So)

In Offensive Rotation

RB: #28 Ephrahim Meherka (University of Saskatchewan- So)
WR: #11 Ladarius Grant (St. Francis Xavier University- Fr)
WR: #8 Christophe Allard-Shinkaruk (Universite de Montreal- Sr)
FB: #30 Georges-Pierre Park (Mount Ester University- Jr)
3DB: #36 Eloise Martenet (Beyreuth University- Sr)
G: #65 Ézékiel Kweon (Universite du Saguenay- Sr)
T: #74 Gason Chavez-Viau (Universite St. Croix -Fr)
TE: #86 Jean-Philippe Walker (Gyeongbuk A&M University- Jr)

Defensive Starters

DE: #92 Philip Umiaktorviq (University of Iqaluit- Sr)
DT: #98 Yoon Seok Oh (University of Iqaluit- Sr)
DT: #95 Obea Chijindum (Universite de Montreal- Jr)
DE: #93 Kieran Bernstein (University of Hamilton- Sr)
LOLB: #58 Jeremy Chagnon (St. Francis Xavier University- So)
LILB: #59 Thierry Sung-Yi (University of Saskatchewan- Jr)
RILB: #54 Gabriel Gladu-Gauthier (Universite St.Croix- Jr)
ROLB: #94 Emmanuel O'Leary (St. Mary's University- Fr)
CB: #26 Bradley Williams (Abitibi Tech University- Sr)
CB: #25 Diedrich Schutzenheimer (Nunavut State University- Sr)
FS: #49 Tyrone Pamourou (University of Iqaluit- Fr)
SS: #42 Antony Chenevert (Queen's University- Jr)

In Defensive Rotation

DE: #91 Conall Omawnakw (University of Gander- So)
DT: #96 Jean-Clement Jobin (Universite d'Abibiti-
LB: #55 A.J. Henderson (University of Hamilton- Jr)
LB: #90 Eddie Kugliaktuk (Nunavut State University- So)
Nickel: #29 Gordon Jeong (Queen's University- Fr)
Dime: #39 Marion Gong-Seo (Universite St.Croix- Sr)
S: #43 Sundown Atagulkalu (University of Southern Manitoba- So)

Special Teams

K: #4 Frederic Lavertu-Belanger (Abitibi Tech University- Sr)
P: #3 Douglas Jang (St. Francis Xavier University- Jr)
Long Snap: #5 Myles Polan (Universite de Sherbrooke- So)
KR/PR: #1 Yordan Shadanev (Iggulden University- Sr)

Backups

QB: #12 Ladarius Enrique Villacrés (University of Southern Manitoba- Jr)
QB: #2 Bob Horban (Gyeongbuk A&M University- Sr)
RB: #21 Yeong Doo Kweon (Universite St.Croix- Fr)
WR: #88 Ayrton Ferreira (Hampden College- So)
WR: #82 Henrik McClain (Farrer University- Jr)
WR: #20 William Forgues (Universite du Saguenay- Sr)
TE: #81 Sang Joong Yim (University of Manitoba- Sr)
OT: #71 Gabriel Attwater-Bjornsen (Northwestern University- So)
OT: #76 Arian McKinley (Bishop's University- Sr)
OG: #68 Frederic Lin-Paré (University of Hamilton- Sr)
OG: #69 Francois Pyeon-Jourdain (University of Southern Manitoba- Jr)
C: #64 In Ho Rho (Universite du Saguenay- Sr)
DE: #98 Mario Parraguire-Villalobos (Queen's University- Sr)
DE: #91 Guillaume Glaou-Gagnon (Universite de Montreal- Sr)
DT: #90 Donovan Sokokluk (Haida University- Fr)
DT: #96 Soren Asperup (Northwestern University- So)
OLB: #56 Henri-Pierre Boisvert (University of Attawapiskat- Jr)
OLB: #50 Dinesh Chatterjee (Nunavut State University- Sr)
ILB: #52 Mitchell Hong (University of Hamilton- Sr)
ILB: #57 Junior Hughson (Northwestern University- Sr)
S: #38 Brandon McClain (University of New Brunswick- Jr)
S: #46 Abigail Hanrahan (University of Saskatchewan- Sr)
CB: #23 Clark Osborne-Plessius (Abitibi Tech University- So)
CB: #27 Wesley-Mathieu Jo (Labrador State University- Sr)
K: #7 Alex Santos (University of Hamilton- Fr)
P: #6 Doug McClain (Labrador State University- Jr)

RP Permissions

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:

Choose my scorers: Y (TG first)
Choose scoring events: Y (TG first)
RP injuries to my players: Y (TG first)
Godmod scoring events: Y (TG first)
Godmod injuries: Y (TG first)
Godmod other events: No Killing or permanent dismemberment or anything like that. Otherwise, have fun!

[Abanhfleft]

The Pridnestrovian Invasion of Nordskania, Part Four

Aboard the landing ship Oktyabryskaya Nuclear Power Plant No. 6
Somewhere off the coast of Nordskania

Hundreds of yards away from the landing ships containing the 247th Guards Armored Division, the landing ships holding the 50th Motor Rifle Division were churning their way towards the coast of Nordskania where they were supposed to disgorge their load of soldiers, who were going to be the first Pridnestrovian troops to land on Nordskanian shores with the intention of fighting against their own former allies. The 50th Motor Rifle Division, a motorized infantry unit, would be part of the first wave of soldiers landing on Nordskania, fighting off the defenders and securing the landing site for the rest of the invasion force. According to the latest intel, the missile strikes from the Navy and the Air Force should have taken care of most of the enemy force nearest to their invasion beach. The landings were supposed to be a cakewalk.

Aboard the landing ship Oktyabrskaya Nuclear Power Plant No. 6, Captain Lev Vladimirovich Arigov checked the chamber of his AK-103 rifle once again to make sure that there was a round inside. For the first time in five years, he was about to go back into combat once again. He could already feel that strange coppery taste coating the back of his mouth as his body recognized the many signs that he was about to fight once again. The last time that he had tasted this, he had been one of over five hundred Pridnestrovian advisers sent to the Republika Kroatien to help train and assist the rebel troops in their campaign against the Commonwealth of Armeia. It was during that particular assignment that Arigov had finally been promoted from the rank of senior lieutenant to captain, a rank which he had been hoping to attain for quite some time now. It hadn’t been an easy path to promotion, though. Lev could clearly recall at least a dozen times in which he came close to getting killed in the mountains and valleys of the Republika Kroatien.

Lev and the other members of the 50th Motor Rifles who had been deployed to “advise” the Kroats had been pulled out at about the same time that the Fleftic media exposed Pridnestrovia’s covert support of the Kroat rebellion, but that wasn’t because they had been discovered. It was actually so the Army could rotate new and fresh units to advise the Kroats even as the Armeians began surrounding the rebel capital of New Split, and there were Pridnestrovian units which fought to the bitter end alongside their Kroat trainees. Armeia tried to present the evidence of fallen Pridnestrovian soldiers in the ruins of New Split to show to the world the duplicity of the Pridnestrovians, but that particular case didn’t go very far before Armeia went total war and completely isolated themselves from the international community once again.

Now, Lev and the 50th Motor Rifles were up against a new enemy, or rather, new enemies: the Nordskanian People’s Army, Vasily Zharkov’s loyalists, and the various Rose Rebellions which had risen up during so-called Revolutionary Nordskania’s fairytale run to the most recent Baptism of Fire final. Pridnestrovia, like many other sensible nations, did not recognize the anarchist state in the northern part of Nordskania, but they knew that the territory had a vast number of armies and soldiers to call upon to defend it or even strike out against anyone which they perceived as the enemy, which the Pridnestrovians certainly will be when they finally landed on Nordskanian soil.

Every enemy was different, and there were different strategies to beating them. The Nordskanian People’s Army, while led by competent generals in Pavel Andriychuk and Niketas Boyko, was still mostly a conscript-based army, and these conscripts had been getting less and less quality training ever since Pridnestrovia refused to send any more advisers and trainers to assist the NPA. Forces loyal to Vasily Zharkov, while small, would be a much more formidable prospect than the NPA. Pridnestrovia had sources within the country confirming that the Nordskanian secret police and special forces were still very much loyal to Zharkov and would readily assist him in his bid to regain his base of power in Nordskania. The various Rose Rebellions also had varying degrees of military competence, but by far the most dangerous faction was the Blue Roses, led by Zharkov’s daughter Darya and assisted by the criminal syndicates known as the Crows (from the Empire of Anglatia) and the Maslev Cartel (from so-called Revolutionary Nordskania). The Maslevs’ access to captured NPA weapons and materiel from northern Nordskania was what had allowed the Blue Roses to raze Ryakova in the last few weeks in their bid to deny it to the NPA.

And that wasn’t taking into account the very real possibility that once news of Pridnestrovia’s invasion of Nordskania reached the rest of the world, so-called Revolutionary Nordskania would raise its armies and attempt to throw the Pridnestrovians back to the sea. There was no denying that so-called Revolutionary Nordskania had the manpower to go toe-to-toe with the Pridnestrovian Army, and that they would most probably be bolstered by volunteers from Anglatia (whom Pridnestrovia knew was behind the rebellion of so-called Revolutionary Nordskania), but Pridnestrovian planners were confident that the invasion army would have a firm toehold in the territory before the anarchists armies streamed down from the north to fight the Communists.

All that was floating through Lev Arigov’s mind even as the invasion army sailed ever nearer to the beach. But his main focus was on the Blue Roses. The cruise missiles should have softened up their defenses both on the beach and around the Serpukhov-5 Fortress in the Red Strip, where Spetsnaz forces were already working to deny the place to the enemy and establish it as a command-and-control center for the invaders. The Blue Roses were mostly made up of civilians who had taken up arms alongside the real revolutionaries and would not have had that much experience in fighting or even surviving a missile bombardment. The Anglatian and Nordskanian criminals assisting the Blues were little better. They were good for threatening people and killing rival criminals, but for soldiering they weren’t even worth the clothes on their backs and the weapons in their hands. Lev, like the rest of the first wave of invaders, was confident that they would triumph over the enemies arrayed before them right now.

Lev shook his right arm as he felt a familiar tightening feeling in his wrist. That tightness had been there ever since the Great Patriotic War when, back when he was still a conscripted private, Lev Arigov had survived both a suicide charge against a Szavodan machine gun and a ruthless Szavodan officer shooting Arigov in the wrist to confirm that he was dead. Lev didn’t know how he was able to keep himself from crying out when that pistol round went into his wrist, but he did know that he fainted soon after the shooting and that when he woke up, he found himself in a field hospital with a shitload of bandages wrapped around his right wrist. Ever since that day, even though he had regained most of the full use of his right hand and arm, Lev still felt that strange tightening feeling in his wrist every time he was about to go into combat.

Lev was hardly the only person who had been injured before in the line of duty. Lev knew of many friends who had been injured in one way or another during the Great Patriotic War, the war which made soldiers and heroes of Pridnestrovia’s youth. Tanya Kalinina had had her femur smashed when the gunboat she had been serving on had been torpedoed by Szavodan gunboats; there were pins still in her body to keep together the shattered bone, which had never really truly healed up. Gavrina Kumilyova nearly bled to death when she and her squad had been retreating from another Szavodan machine gun and she had also been hit in the leg. Vyacheslav Klimov broke his back and nearly severed his spine when the helicopter carrying him and other Pridnestrovian conscripts had been shot down by Szavodan surface-to-air missiles. Ravil Yanenko had the top of his head shot off by a Szavodan sniper; a large metal plate now served as part of his skull. Yelena Vyzhinsky almost lost a large chunk of her own arm when she had been stabbed by a Szavodan bayonet during a fierce hand-to-hand battle during the final stages of the Great Patriotic War, when the Pridnestrovians had finally pushed the Szavodans back to their capital. In that same campaign, Mstislav Pankavuranov (yes, the same Mstislav Pankavuranov who was the commander of A Troop of the 247th Guards Armored Division and the son of Colonel General Vsevolod Pankavuranov) suffered severe burns all over his body when his tank was taken out by a Szavodan anti-tank team; only his face had escaped the fire when he had been the only one lucky enough to get out of his burning tank, and he was still scarred for life afterwards.

Even Lev’s current second-in-command, Senior Lieutenant Maria Dmitriyevna Atolova, had not survived the Great Patriotic War intact. Although she didn’t look like it, Maria had actually survived a direct shot to her head. It had occurred during an ambush on a Szavodan infantry column, and one of the Szavodans had fired at the roofs where the Pridnestrovians were firing at their enemy. The bullet had struck Maria’s jawbone, shattering it into many pieces and knocking out all but four of the teeth in her lower jaw. The jaw had been surgically repaired, but there was nothing that could be done about her teeth. The pearly whites which she now flashed during the times that she smiled were actually a set of false teeth, or a “dental appliance” as she vainly and defiantly preferred to call it.

At that precise moment, Maria noticed Lev looking at her, and she asked, “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing, really,” Lev replied. “My wrist’s gone stiff once again.”

“So? What’s that got to do with me?”

“I was just thinking about everything we’ve gone through during the Patriotic War,” Lev said. “What we’ve survived during that time. You know what happened to me, and I know what happened to you, and we all know what happened to our friends back then. It’s just amazing to me that we’re all still in the Army, or in the Navy in Tanya’s case, after all we’ve gone through. You would think that one time would be enough for anyone else, but here we are, about to go through the same shit again.”

“Well, didn’t President Stepanenko say it already? ‘Our youth is of a different kind from the youth of other nations’,” Maria said in a good approximation of the Comrade President’s voice. “‘They will gladly walk into the gates of hell and back to serve their nation!’”

Lev laughed heartily. “You know, Maria, if ever the time comes that you’ve had enough of soldiering, you’re going to make a good impersonator of the President.”

“Obviously that means that I’m never going back to Pridnestrovia ever again because I’m going to become a persona non grata,” Maria retorted, at which both she and Lev laughed. It was just a way for them to relieve the tension of their inevitable return to combat.

The two of them suddenly felt a shuddering from deep below their feet. “We’re here,” Lev said, and Maria nodded her head. The shuddering was the Polnocny-class landing ship making contact with the Nordskanian coast, beaching itself in preparation for disgorging its load of Pridnestrovian invaders. The two officers then felt a more immediate vibration on the soles of their boots; the driver of the BTR-80 armored personnel carrier carrying them and ten other soldiers of the 50th Motor Rifles had started the vehicle’s engine and was now revving it in preparation for the quick dash from the ship to the shore.

Lev felt his body smash into that of his neighbor as the BTR accelerated out of the deck of the Polnocny and onto the Nordskanian beach. At that moment, he knew that Pridnestrovia was well and truly committing itself into this adventure. There was no backing out now possible for them. Pridnestrovia had to carry out this invasion to the bitter end and suffer the consequences.

Lev felt more than heard the shuddering of the autocannon turret as it fired on its targets at the other side of the invasion beach. So there were still some Blue Roses trying to defend, Lev thought to himself. The BTR then screeched to a halt, and he knew that it was time for his infantry to take the fight to the Roses. As soon as the BTR’s rear doors swung open, Lev shouted, “Go, go, go!”

The infantry of the 50th Motor Rifle Division streamed out of their carriers and engaged the enemy defense throughout the mile-long strip of beach which the invasion planners had marked on the maps as Red Beach. Soon enough, the name would become literal as the blood of both the attackers and the defenders colored the landscape, but for now, Red Beach was just a code name for the place. “Spread out, find your targets, and don’t waste your ammo!” Lev ordered his troops as they took up defensive positions along a grassy shelf rising up above the gray sand of the invasion beach. Bullets and rounds flew from both the defenders’ and attackers’ positions, and already Lev could see a few casualties from his unit.

The BTR from which Lev, Maria, and their squad had just disembarked turned its autocannon at the rocky outcropping in front of it and opened fire. Soon enough, the outcropping had been reduced to a bunch of pulverized rock and sand over which the BTR could now drive inland. Other BTRs began doing the same, and eventually the Pridnestrovian line was able to advance deeper into the beach. “Follow me!” Arigov shouted as he ran behind the BTR, and the rest of his squad did as they were told.

A sunken machine gun pit opened up on Lev’s squad, taking out a soldier who had been unfortunate enough to be out in the open at just the wrong moment. The BTR’s autocannon quickly turned around and unloaded on the nest. When the cannon was finally done, its barrel was smoking, and three dead Nordskanian defenders lay alongside their shredded machine gun. “Into the pit, comrades!” Lev shouted to the immediate compliance of his troops. “Let the BTRs clear the way!”

As soon as he and his surviving soldiers were in the machine gun pit, Arigov looked back at the beach itself. More BTRs, BMPs, and BRDMs were streaming from the Polnocnys and rolling through the sands towards the interior. As soon as these Polnocnys had finished unloading the 50th Motor Rifles, it was the turn of the Polnocnys carrying the 247th Guards Armored to land their troops on the beach. Lev could see that many soldiers had already fallen on the beaches due to the defenders’ gunfire, but that even more soldiers had survived the journey and were now making their way into the interior under the cover of their APCs.

It was a hollow, almost comical popping noise which made Lev turn his eyes back to the front, and it was also what saved his life and that of his squad. He immediately recognized the noise for what it was: the firing of a grenade launcher. “Get down!” Arigov shouted, and the squad ducked their heads as the grenade flew over their heads and landed just on the other side of the pit, sending up dirt and rock feet into the air. “Roman, find that guy and take him out!” Lev ordered his sniper.

“Yes, Comrade Lieutenant,” Lieutenant Roman Zhemnev, a middle-aged veteran of numerous wars and conflicts, said with a nod, and then he set aside his AK-103 to take the old Mosin-Nagant bolt-action rifle slung on his back. There were many stories and legends surrounding Zhemnev, his rifle, and his accuracy, and while Zhemnev had said nothing to confirm or deny those rumors, he also didn’t do anything to stop the rumors from spreading throughout the Army.

Zhemnev laid the rifle’s butt on his shoulder, adjusted the scope for windage and elevation, and then he searched the horizon for the grenadier. He noticed someone standing up and loading a round into the underbarrel grenade launcher of a Kalashnikov-pattern rifle. Zhemnev centered the crosshairs on the man’s chest, and then he calmed down, let out a short breath, and pulled the trigger. What looked like an obscene flower bloomed to life on the grenadier’s chest before he fell out of sight over the hill.

At the same time, there was an almighty boom as the BTR beside them suddenly went up in a column of flames. Lev looked up and saw, just beyond the hill where Zhemnev had taken out the grenadier, a bunker from which a large gun barrel protruded. The gun looked like it had been taken from a tank, which wasn’t completely out of the question because Pridnestrovia had similar defenses and fortifications along its own borders (guns from decommissioned tanks encased in concrete to make bunkered field guns) and Arigov knew that there was only one way to take such defenses out. “Imemev, Kilyev, up front!” he shouted.

The two soldiers ran up to where Lev, Maria, and Zhemnev had hunkered down. “See that bunker with the gun?” Lev asked the two, pointing up at the hill and the fort. “I want you to shoot your RPGs right for that gap where the gun sticks out. Got that?”

“Is that even possible, Captain?” Imemev asked.

“It’s your job to make it possible, Corporal,” Arigov replied. “Now go take out that bunker before it takes out any more of our vehicles!”

Imemev looked at Kilyev, who shrugged as if to say, “Orders, man” and then they took the RPG launchers on their backs, mounted the tubes on their shoulders, took aim at the gap in the fort, and then pulled the triggers. The two rocket-propelled grenades burst out of the tubes and flew straight and true for the fort, a rare sight because RPGs tended to corkscrew in midair due to all sorts of factors. The grenades impacted the fort with two large explosions, but as the smoke cleared, Lev saw that both had missed. Some concrete had been chipped away, but the gun was still very much in play.

“Again!” he called out, and Imemev and Kilyev loaded another grenade into their respective launchers and made to do it all again. This time, Imemev fired first. His grenade this time suffered a malfunction in its engine and it made a classic corkscrew flight up into the air, leaving behind the white trail of its exhaust as a marker of its passage. Imemev grunted his displeasure at the performance of his grenade even as Kilyev fired his own weapon. His grenade flew straight and narrow once again, and this time he was able to see the rocket fly right into the slit before exploding against something, and judging by the way that the gun barrel had been bent by the explosion, Kilyev could safely say that it was no longer capable of firing anything against the invaders.

“Forward!” Arigov shouted. “Forward!” He thought that he could already see the imposing structure of the Serpukhov-5 Fortress ahead of him. If everything had gone according to plan then the Spetsnaz would have already secured the fortress for the Pridnestrovians. Sure, it was currently occupied by the religionists calling themselves the Kingdom of God, but it was just a matter of relocating those religionists to someplace else and letting an actual army quarter itself in the fortress.

Loud thundering booms behind Lev told him that the tanks of the 247th Guards Armored had finally landed and were now sowing death and destruction on the land. Supported by the 247th’s tanks and the 50th Motor Rifles’ own APCs, the invaders advanced even deeper inland and quickly ate up the distance between the beach and the fortress. And then, as Lev was able to lay his eyes on the concrete wall surrounding the fort, something began to feel wrong about the whole thing. Something’s not right here, he thought to himself. Getting from the beach to Serpukhov-5 shouldn’t be this quick, even with the missiles softening up the defenses. And where the hell were the craters and the fires anyway? Where was the death and devastation wrought by the missiles? Where were the dead Blue Roses, the dead Crows and Maslevs? Where were the Spetsnaz in the fort? This particular fort seemed a little bit too abandoned for something which had been recently re-occupied by people.

And then, as he finally reached the wall, Lev knew that something was really, really wrong. There was no sign of anyone anywhere near or even inside the fortress. The place looked completely abandoned, for plants and weeds were already poking through cracks in the concrete. The place had a dead feel to it.

Maria Atolova and Roman Zhemnev met up with Lev at the fortress wall along with surviving members of their squad. “What’s wrong, Lev?” Atolova asked him.

“Something’s definitely wrong, Maria,” Arigov replied. “I don’t see anyone anywhere near here. No Roses, no religionists, no Spetsnaz, nobody. Roman, give me the map. Maria, give me your GPS.”

Zhemnev reached for his backpack and took out a large map of Nordskania published by the Ministry of Defense for the Armed Forces. As well as the normal cities, towns, roads, and national landmarks, these maps also showed the locations of military bases, installations, and facilities because the maps were meant to serve the army in the event that they had to either invade or assist Nordskania. Arigov laid out the map on the ground, keeping it flat with rocks and his own rifle, and then, using the GPS unit which Atolova had given him, he matched up the coordinates on the GPS with their location on the map, and that was when he realized that everyone had just been part of a very big mistake. “Christ in heaven,” he muttered.

“What is it, Lev?” Atolova asked. “What’s wrong?”

“We’re in the wrong place, comrades,” Lev said. “We landed at the wrong beach. See this fortress?” He pointed at the fort behind them. “That’s the Serpukhov-6 Fortress, not the Serpukhov-5. We landed over a hundred miles away from our supposed landing site.”

“Someone messed up big-time with the Ministry of Defense,” Zhemnev said. “Someone over there must be blind to mistake the number for six for the number five.”

“Well, the good thing is that we managed to secure a foothold in Nordskania,” Arigov said in a joking manner even though humor was the last thing that he wanted to feel right now. The Comrade President will not like this.”

“Forget about the Comrade President, Lev. What about us? We all landed in this place thinking it was the invasion beach, and now you’re telling us that we landed in the wrong place?”

“Pretty much,” Arigov said.

“How about the boys and girls who died in this place? How are we going to tell their families that they died in the wrong place?”

“Let me worry about that.”

Yes, it was true. The Pridnestrovian invasion had indeed landed in the wrong place, but the sacrifice of the young men and women of the Pridnestrovian Army was not to be in vain, for the place where they landed turned out to be not as heavily defended as their intended landing site near the Serpukhov-5 Fortress. And because there was no one occupying the Serpukhov-6 Fortress, it was easy to set up a command-and-control center in that place instead of taking the extra time to kick out the Kingdom of God from the Red Strip.

[Southern Democratic States]

The Bears loses to Main Nation Ministry

Rockingham, Chattahoochee - (NEIP) After beating Somersville and Santaclausisgodistan, the Southern Democratic States lost at home to Main Nation Ministry. Main Nation Ministry were wearing football uniforms which looked like riot police uniforms and the RPD (Rockingham Police Department) filed a complaint to the organizing comittee of the world bowl to ask them to stop allowing teams from impersonating the police because this is a crime in the Southern Democratic States.

The Southerners thought they scored when Demarcus Woods caught Clifford Jenkins' 27 yards pass into the end zone but the Southern Democratic States were penalized for holding, so instead of a touchdown, it was a 1st and 20 at the 37 yards line. Coconut Riddick ran for 12 yards. He ran again for 4 yards. Clifford Jenkins' pass intended to Brian Shaw was incomplete. On a 4th and 4 at the 21st yard line, Crockett Burkhead made a 38 yards field goal and the score was 3-0 SDS. Main Nation Ministry scored two field goals in the 2nd quarter and they were leading 6-3 at the halftime.

Both teams were scoreless in the 3rd quarter and with less than 5 minutes remaining, the Southern Bears made a 52 yards field goal to tie the game at 6-6. On their next drive, Main Nation Ministry had to punt after 3 downs. The Southern Democratic States gets the ball at their own 36 yards line. Coconut Riddick runs for 5 yards. Clifford Jenkins passes to Marquis Hatwood for 21 yards. Clifford Jenkins' pass intended to Coconut Riddick is intercepted by Jasper Trillium and returned for a touchdown. The extra point by Ray Wilkerson is good and Main Nation Ministry won 13-6. The Southerners are now 8th in All-Mart Conference with a 3-4 record. Next week, they will receive Vettrera at Tiger Stadium in Rockingham.

Southern Democratic States     3    0    0    3    -    6
Main Nation Ministry           0    6    0    7    -   13

BOXSCORE
1st quarter
7:28 38 yards field goal by Crockett Burkhead
2nd quarter
12:44 22 yards field goal by Ray Wilkerson
1:14 47 yards field goal by Ray Wilkerson
3rd quarter
no score
4th quarter
4:36 52 yards field goal by Crockett Burkhead
2:38 Touchdown by Jasper Trillium (78 yards interception return)

Statement from the Southern Democratic States National Team

Following the game, the Southerners released this statement:

The Southern Democratic States would like to offer our deepest condolenses to the Main Nation Ministry football team for the loss of their families and friends in a tragic terrorist attack. This kind of barbarous attack has no place in the multiverse and hopefully it won't stay unpunished. The Southern Democratic States football team will hold a minute of silence before our next home game for the victims.

[Free Republics]

This is your Matchday 8 Cutoff brought to you by All-Mart! All-Mart: The Lowest Prices You'll Find Anywhere. We Guarantee it!

---

MD8 Results

All-Mart Conference

RT&T Division
Abaja 34–23 Banija
Christian Isles 7–37 Main Nation Ministry

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Banija                        8    6   2   299  175 +124
2 Abaja                         8    4   4   190  159  +31
3 Main Nation Ministry          8    4   4   131  145  −14
4 Christian Isles               8    2   6    75  235 −160

R&K Bank Division
Cosumar 47–3 The Redvale
Somersville 14–31 Royal Kingdom of Quebec

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Cosumar                       8    7   1   290  103 +187
2 Royal Kingdom of Quebec       8    7   1   242  107 +135
3 The Redvale                   8    4   4   196  185  +11
4 Somersville                   8    0   8    75  282 −207

FreedomCola Division
Southern Democratic States 37–0 Vettrera
Schottia 70–14 Santaclausisgodistan

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Schottia                      8    8   0   321   76 +245
2 Southern Democratic States    8    4   4   114  114    0
3 Santaclausisgodistan          8    2   6    99  216 −117
4 Vettrera                      8    0   8    53  288 −235

All-Mart Conference

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Schottia                      8    8   0   321   76 +245
 2 Cosumar                       8    7   1   290  103 +187
 3 Royal Kingdom of Quebec       8    7   1   242  107 +135
 4 Banija                        8    6   2   299  175 +124
 5 Abaja                         8    4   4   190  159  +31
 6 Main Nation Ministry          8    4   4   131  145  −14
 7 The Redvale                   8    4   4   196  185  +11
 8 Southern Democratic States    8    4   4   114  114    0
 9 Santaclausisgodistan          8    2   6    99  216 −117
10 Christian Isles               8    2   6    75  235 −160
11 Somersville                   8    0   8    75  282 −207
12 Vettrera                      8    0   8    53  288 −235

Sporting World Conference

RepublicSoft Division
Allamunnic States 33–7 West Saintland
De Dreamland 6–10 Qasden

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Allamunnic States              8    6   2   281  132 +149
2 West Saintland                 8    4   4   134  114  +20
3 Qasden                         8    3   5   158  210  −52
4 De Dreamland                   8    1   7    99  246 −147

O'Reilly Organization Division
Cumhact 0–57 Kebec
Gregoryisgodistan 26–14 The United States of Saints

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Gregoryisgodistan              8    7   1   241   43 +198
2 The United States of Saints    8    4   4   102  168  −66
3 Kebec                          8    3   5   168  191  −23
4 Cumhact                        8    1   7    50  285 −235

Olden Division
Newmanistan 58–41 The Fair Republic
Jeckland 10–23 Kaboomlandia

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Kaboomlandia                   8    8   0   330   97 +233
2 The Fair Republic              8    6   2   242  142 +100
3 Newmanistan                    8    5   3   269  217  +52
4 Jeckland                       8    0   8    45  274 −229

Sporting World Conference

                                Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Kaboomlandia                   8    8   0   330   97 +233
 2 Gregoryisgodistan              8    7   1   241   43 +198
 3 Allamunnic States              8    6   2   281  132 +149
 4 The Fair Republic              8    6   2   242  142 +100
 5 Newmanistan                    8    5   3   269  217  +52
 6 West Saintland                 8    4   4   134  114  +20
 7 The United States of Saints    8    4   4   102  168  −66
 8 Kebec                          8    3   5   168  191  −23
 9 Qasden                         8    3   5   158  210  −52
10 De Dreamland                   8    1   7    99  246 −147
11 Cumhact                        8    1   7    50  285 −235
12 Jeckland                       8    0   8    45  274 −229

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

Bank of Acedonia Division
Drawkland 27–6 Oisinistan
Fleuronordicia 13–23 Fujisawan Territories

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Drawkland                         8    8   0   334  112 +222
2 Fujisawan Territories             8    5   3   175  167   +8
3 Fleuronordicia                    8    2   6   114  176  −62
4 Oisinistan                        8    1   7   113  243 −130

Bank of Republica Division
Korizland 10–41 Frenline Delpha
Thereisnogodistan 30–17 Allamunnic Sporting Commission

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Frenline Delpha                   8    8   0   338   99 +239
2 Thereisnogodistan                 8    6   2   300  153 +147
3 Allamunnic Sporting Commission    8    3   5   211  242  −31
4 Korizland                         8    0   8    73  355 −282

Baseton Mutual Division
Selvera 14–30 Republic of Rawn
Ethane 33–0 United States of Devonta

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Ethane                            8    7   1   228   32 +196
2 United States of Devonta          8    4   4   183  167  +16
3 Republic of Rawn                  8    2   6    91  223 −132
4 Selvera                           8    2   6    97  288 −191

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

                                   Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Frenline Delpha                   8    8   0   338   99 +239
 2 Drawkland                         8    8   0   334  112 +222
 3 Ethane                            8    7   1   228   32 +196
 4 Thereisnogodistan                 8    6   2   300  153 +147
 5 Fujisawan Territories             8    5   3   175  167   +8
 6 United States of Devonta          8    4   4   183  167  +16
 7 Allamunnic Sporting Commission    8    3   5   211  242  −31
 8 Republic of Rawn                  8    2   6    91  223 −132
 9 Fleuronordicia                    8    2   6   114  176  −62
10 Selvera                           8    2   6    97  288 −191
11 Oisinistan                        8    1   7   113  243 −130
12 Korizland                         8    0   8    73  355 −282

Dixon Light Conference

New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate Division
Free Republics 21–7 Smertonosnyy
Equatorial Zeldaen 14–41 Nassau-Hessen

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Nassau-Hessen              8    8   0   306   73 +233
2 Free Republics             8    7   1   254   73 +181
3 Equatorial Zeldaen         8    2   6   129  307 −178
4 Smertonosnyy               8    0   8   101  239 −138

National Organization for Men Division
West Angola 13–27 Greater Vakolicci Haven
Chromatika 35–3 Northern Shrekistan

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Chromatika                 8    8   0   310   91 +219
2 Greater Vakolicci Haven    8    6   2   296  155 +141
3 Northern Shrekistan        8    2   6    88  266 −178
4 West Angola                8    1   7    92  219 −127

BearOil Division
Firebolt 31–37 Abanhfleft
Kosovakia 33–22 Cryandolap

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Abanhfleft                 8    7   1   308  100 +208
2 Firebolt                   8    3   5   172  255  −83
3 Cryandolap                 8    2   6   157  301 −144
4 Kosovakia                  8    2   6   136  270 −134

Dixon Light Conference

                            Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Nassau-Hessen              8    8   0   306   73 +233
 2 Chromatika                 8    8   0   310   91 +219
 3 Abanhfleft                 8    7   1   308  100 +208
 4 Free Republics             8    7   1   254   73 +181
 5 Greater Vakolicci Haven    8    6   2   296  155 +141
 6 Firebolt                   8    3   5   172  255  −83
 7 Cryandolap                 8    2   6   157  301 −144
 8 Equatorial Zeldaen         8    2   6   129  307 −178
 9 Kosovakia                  8    2   6   136  270 −134
10 Northern Shrekistan        8    2   6    88  266 −178
11 West Angola                8    1   7    92  219 −127
12 Smertonosnyy               8    0   8   101  239 −138

[De Dreamland]

CHANNEL DDD NEWS: THE SPORTS REPORT

People are calling for blood after yesterday's close match. Blood of referees and WB Officials because the Cappy peasants claim they've been rigging matches. This all came to a head after the match when angry Cappies stormed the field with pitchforks and torches running after referees and officials but they managed to get away thanks to the help of the Royal Waddle Dee Guard. After yesterday's incident the king announced the peasant Cappies had gone too far and all home games for the Blue Monarchs will be held at Royals Stadium in Deville approximately 520 miles away.

[Abanhfleft]

The Pridnestrovian Invasion of Nordskania, Part Five

Serpukhov-5 Fortress
Red Strip, Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic

“Something’s wrong,” Major Mikhail Yevgeniyevich Kutuzov of the Pridnestrovian Spetsnaz said as he looked at the concrete fence surrounding the Red Strip through a pair of binoculars. Despite the missile attack which had decimated the Blue Roses which were besieging the Serpukhov-5 Fortress, there appeared to still be enough revolutionaries to carry out the siege. Also, six hours had already passed since the main invasion was to have landed, and the first Pridnestrovian units should have already been engaging the Blue Roses thirty minutes. Of course, real life didn’t operate on so strict a timetable, but still, the Army should already been on the Roses’ asses by now. Kutuzov turned away from the observation post where he had been watching the Roses and their criminal allies reassembling after the missile strikes and walked towards his deputy, Captain Gavrina Vasilyevna Kumilyova. “Any news or messages from Tiraspol, Gavrina?” he asked.

“There has been a message, Major,” Kumilyova, a raven-haired 28-year-old who was already a veteran of both the Great Patriotic War and Operation KNIFE EDGE (the operation to provide training and assistance to the Republika Kroatien during their rebellion against Armeia), replied slowly and deliberately, choosing her words carefully. “They’ve just heard back from General Pankavuranov a few hours ago. Apparently, the invasion army landed near the Serpukhov-6 facility.”

“Serpukhov-6?” Kutuzov repeated with an incredulous tone. He then let out a derisive snort and shook his salt-and-pepper hair. At 65 years old, he was already supposed to be nowhere near any sort of active combat service, but over four decades of hard work and training have made him a man incredibly fit for his age, and while he wasn’t one who liked the nepotism and cronyism still rampant in the armed forces, he was glad for the friends he had in high places who had made an exception for him with regards to his age and combat service. The Army life was the only life he had ever really known, and he was not yet sure about what he was going to do once it was time for him to retire. But, while he was still capable of fighting for Pridnestrovia, he was going to fight. But the ability of a military planner safe and sound in Tiraspol to mistake one number for another was going to severely affect his own ability to fight the good fight for the Pridnestrovian Republic. “Whoever was responsible for marking out the invasion beaches should have his eyesight checked,” Kutuzov said loudly.

“Yes, Major, that’s what everyone’s been saying for the past few minutes already,” Kumilyova said, walking up beside Kutuzov and looking out at the besieging Blue Roses through the observation slit. “You would think that something like this isn’t going to happen anymore with the technology that we now have, but in the end, it’s still up to the people to give the computers the right information so that the computers could give us the right decisions.”

“Da, Gavrina, you’re right,” Kutuzov muttered as he conceded her point. “Serpukhov-6 might actually be a better place for our armies to set up, actually,” he said. “Sure, it’s been abandoned like Serpukhov-5, but unlike here, where it’s been turned into a village by these Adventists, Serpukhov-6 is empty and just waiting for an army to establish itself in it.”

“So, what are we going to do now, Major?” Kumilyova asked.

“We were dropped in the Red Strip because this Kingdom of God has struck a deal with us and because the Army was supposed to clear out the Blue Roses and their criminal allies with the first wave,” Kutuzov replied, “but obviously, that’s not going to happen now that they’ve gone and landed in the wrong place. The good news is that the Red Strip is just half a day’s march or so from Serpukhov-6, and with the Army already having had enough time to secure that fort and the landing zone, we should be expecting support from them sometime around midnight tonight or so. The only real unknown is the Blue Roses. We don’t know how angry the missile attacks made them, and we’re going to have a very hard time fighting them off if they decide the charge the fortress now or soon. We may be Spetsnaz, Gavrina, but we’re just a handful compared to the hundreds of revolutionaries and criminals just waiting at the gates. These religionists say they’re willing to fight, but there’s only so much that a bunch of civilians with guns can do to hold off the Roses, even if most of them are also civilians with guns as well.”

“Well, then, Major, let us hope that the Army gets here before the Roses get too angry,” Kumilyova said.

“Yes, Captain, let us hope that that happens,” Kutuzov said in agreement. “Come with me, Gavrina. We must tell the rest of the team the good news and the bad.” But just as the two of them stepped out of the observation post and into the fortress itself, they were met by one of the two men which they had met when they had arrived at the fort from the air just a few hours ago, Ivan Toth.

“Spetsnaz, come with me quick,” Toth said. “There is something you must see.” Toth’s urgent tone and body language told Kutuzov that this matter was something serious, and he quickly ran after the Adventist with Kumilyova bringing up the rear. Toth led them right to the top of the fortress, which gave them a good view of the enemy encampment surrounding the Red Strip. There, they watched as the Blue Roses hauled barrels and canisters towards the walls with what little vehicles they still had after the missile attacks and with sheer muscle power. “What’s in those barrels?” Kutuzov asked.

“Napalm,” Toth replied matter-of-factly. “The same stuff they used to torch Ryakova. They got it from the Maslev Cartel, who got it from when the Nordskanian People’s Army retreated from the north and left behind barrels upon barrels of the stuff in their departure for the anarchists to use as they please.”

“Govno,” Kutuzov muttered. “How much napalm do they have?” he asked Toth.

“I do not know. The army left behind tons of the stuff in the north. I don’t know how much the Maslevs took with them for the Blue Roses.”

“How the hell could our missiles miss all that napalm?” Kumilyova asked, even though she and Kutuzov knew that there was only one answer to that question: sheer luck on the Blue Roses’ part. And then she noticed some activity near the gates of the fort, and she called out, “Look over there! I think someone’s trying to speak to us!”

Kutuzov aimed his binoculars at the spot where Kumilyova was pointing. Sure enough, the Roses were setting up some kind of platform on a truck bed. There was a microphone stand in the middle with two speaker towers on the corners of the platform. A woman was holding the microphone in her hand, and Kutuzov recognized her immediately as Roseanne, the leader of the Blue Roses and the woman also known as Darya Zharkov, the daughter of Vasily Zharkov, leader of the Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic.

“Kingdom of God!” Roseanne called out. “You know who I am! You know who we are! You know why we are here! We want this place for ourselves, and we don’t like it that you’re in there and we are here! And we also know that you have a hand in the missiles which rained down upon us last night! You might want us to think that the missiles are the wrath of God, but we know better! We know that the missiles are actually from the Pridnestrovians, who have invaded the sovereign soil of our nation and betrayed the long-standing treaty between these two countries! There is no use denying that you did not play a part in the attack. This is why we are making our move: you Adventist scum have one hour to leave the Red Strip or else we will burn you out with our napalm! You know what we are capable of doing with our napalm; the people of Ryakova will tell you that. Now, if you do not wish to suffer the fate of Ryakova, leave this place or suffer the consequences.”

Kutuzov and Kumilyova looked at each other in disbelief and mute horror. Their window of opportunity had just slammed shut.

“Call your boss!” Kutuzov told Toth. “Tell him to meet us in the throne room as soon as possible! Gavrina, you do the same to the guys.”

“On it,” Gavrina said, immediately rushing off to tell her fellow Spetsnaz troopers of the coming meeting. Kutuzov then turned around and saw Toth rooted to the spot. “What are you waiting for? Get moving!” the major shouted at the Adventist.

“Yes, of course,” Toth said with slightest of bobs of his head, and then he slowly and deliberately walked away from Kutuzov and down the stairwell leading back to the fortress, and Kutuzov followed him down, his head already swimming with plans and contingencies and contingencies for contingencies. There was still a way to turn the situation around, but how were they going to do it?

---

“All right, comrades, as I’m sure you know by now, the Blue Roses have finally made their move,” Mikhail Kutuzov told the ten people gathered inside the old command center of the fortress which had been converted by the Adventists as the throne room of their leader and “Prophet”, Jovan Murko. Nine of the people with Kutuzov in the throne room were the Spetsnaz troopers and GRU agents with which he had jumped out onto the Red Strip just a few hours ago (was it really just a few hours ago? Kutuzov asked himself. It felt like a million years ago already); while the tenth person was Murko himself. Much as Kutuzov would have preferred not to have anyone other than his fellow soldiers and Pridnestrovians around for this particular meeting, Murko and his Adventist religionists deserved to have a spot in this. Their lives were also in the balance for what they were about to do, after all.

“Somehow, our missiles managed to miss every little bit of napalm that these revolutionaries have taken with them from when they torched Ryakova,” Kutuzov continued to describe their current situation. “Some people, like those who are religiously inclined, might call it divine intervention. I call it unlucky. But that’s the card we’ve been dealt with right now, and right now, the Blue Roses are threatening to torch this place as well unless the Kingdom of God scrams and leaves the Red Strip to them.”

“But the Red Strip is indestructible, Comrade Major!” Captain Mstislav Vladimirovich Andropov of the GRU and son of the Pridnestrovian colonel who designed the Red Strip and the Serpukhov-5 Fortress, said in response to Kutuzov’s words. “Only a direct nuclear strike is capable of destroying it! What chance does napalm have on this place?”

“Napalm doesn’t stand a chance of burning down the place, Captain Andropov,” Kutuzov said. “You’re right about that. But it sure as hell will make the lives of the people inside unbearable at the very least, and that’s a criminal understatement of the facts. Yes, I know that we should not give up the Red Strip without a fight, but we’re just ten people against, what, three hundred rebels and criminals? Yes, we may be Spetsnaz, but we are not going to throw away our lives like that. The best that we can do right now is to get the Kingdom of God and the other refugees out of this place before the hour is up. That’s all that the Roses have given us. There’s a mountain pass in the northeastern corner of the compound. It’s easily big enough for everyone in this place to slip through under the Roses’ noses. Gavrina, Arya, Olga, Dmitriya, seeing as you’re our designated marksmen, you’re all going to keep the Roses distracted while we get these religionists out of here.” This earned nods of assent from the women.

“Now, as for you,” Kutuzov said, pointing at Murko, “you’re going to tell your people that we’re evacuating them from this place because the Roses are going to kill them all if they don’t get out of here. Yes, I know that this place is fucking impenetrable, but we have a plan to deny this place to the Blue Roses.”

“I wasn’t going to say that, Pridnestrovian,” Murko said when he felt that he could finally get an opportunity to speak while Kutuzov was catching his breath. “I was just going to ask you: why are you doing this? You are Communist, we are Adventists. You could easily leave us all behind and save your own skins at this moment. Why are you staying behind and helping us escape?”

“Well, Mr. Murko,” Kutuzov replied, “let’s just say that while we Pridnestrovians may be godless heathens in your eyes, we’re not all heartless and inhuman. Now, Grigoriy and Vyacheslav over there will help you and your people arrange the evacuation.” After the two soldiers had led Murko out to deal with the evacuation of the Adventists, Kutuzov turned back to the remaining soldiers and said, “Now how are we going to deny the Red Strip to the Roses?”

“We could always destroy it, Comrade Major,” Andropov said.

“What? I thought you just told me that nothing short of a nuclear weapon is enough to bring this place down,” Kutuzov replied in disbelief.

“Yes, that is true, Comrade Major. The Serpukhov-5 Fortress is indestructible from the outside. But from the inside…” Andropov trailed off, and he got Kutuzov’s full attention.

“Are you telling me that there is a way to bring down this fortress from the inside?” the Spetsnaz major asked the GRU captain.

“Yes, of course. I should know. My father told me all about it. But it’s going to take time, Comrade Major. We will need explosives, lots of explosives. And we will need to place them all in strategic locations, the weak spots, all over the fort.”

“Andropov, do you still remember where those weak spots are?”

“Like the palm of my hand.”

“Right. Get to work on it, then. Ravil will help you out with the explosives. We’re going to send everything we have your way.”

“As you wish, Comrade Major.”

Back on the roof of the fortress, Gavrina Kumilyova and Junior Lieutenant Olga Titovna Grisenko of the GRU were talking about how exactly they were going to keep the Blue Roses at bay while the rest of their squad evacuated the Adventists from the Red Strip. “Remember, these Roses are mostly made up of guys who just wanted to join a revolution,” Kumilyova said to Grisenko. “They’re not going to be totally and completely organized like the targets in the sniper school. Sure, there are some guys with the Roses who may have had some kind of military training, and they’re going to be our priority targets. After all, cut off the head…”

“And the body dies,” Grisenko continued. “Also, we should be on the lookout for snipers of their own. They’ve got allies with the Crows and the Maslevs, after all. Once we start taking them out, they’re going to notice something’s up and then put two and two together, and then they’re going to get their own snipers to try to take us out.”

“You know what to do when that happens, right?” Gavrina stopped in the middle of the roof, and Olga stopped as well. “Okay, how do you want to do this? Where do you want to start?”

“Dima and I will take the southeast corner,” Grisenko replied.

“Okay. That leaves me and Arya with the southwest. Good luck and good hunting.”

“The same to you,” Grisenko said, and then she and her spotter, Senior Lieutenant Dmitriya Sergeyevna Shevtsova of the GRU, went to the place which Grisenko had indicated to Kumilyova. As Shevtsova propped up her AK-103 on the concrete bannister surrounding the roof, she turned around and saw Grisenko taking off her uniform blouse to reveal the black-and-white-striped telnyashka underneath. The telnyashka was a woolen long-sleeved undershirt which was part of the official field uniform of the Pridnestrovian Armed Forces. “What the hell are you doing, Lieutenant?” Shevtsova asked as Grisenko went down on her belly beside her with Dragunov sniper rifle in hand.

“I shoot better wearing only my tel’nik, Comrade Lieutenant,” Grisenko said without missing a beat.

At the other side of the roof, Sergeant Arya Vladimirovna Nukova of the Spetsnaz had laid out Dragunov magazines at intervals across the southwestern sector of the fort roof. She laid down the last magazine a hundred meters away from Kumilyova, who was already lying prone behind the bannister and using it to hold up her own Dragunov. Nukova went down on her knees as she got closer to the captain and then crawled on her belly for the last few yards. Once she was besides Kumilyova, Nukova took her AK and supported it on the bannister as well, looking at the enemy through the red-dot telescopic sight mounted on top of her rifle. One of the only real disadvantages of the Kalashnikov family of rifles was that it was hard to fire one from a prone position because of the rifle’s classic “banana” magazine protruding onto the ground. Either the user had to raise his upper body to compensate for the rise that the mag was giving the rifle, or he could fire it sideways. Nukova didn’t fancy either of those options, so she was glad for the bannister giving the weapon just enough clearance from the ground to give her enough room to fire her AK without the magazine bumping on the ground.

“How many targets out there, Arya?” Kumilyova asked her as soon as she was settled.

Nukova counted the targets that she could see through her own scope. “I’ve got over twenty targets within 300 meters,” she said. She resumed counting and added, “I’ve got at least a dozen targets between 300 and 600 meters, and I see six, no, make that seven, targets between 600 and a thousand meters.”

“That sounds about right,” Kumilyova said. “What are your targets doing, Arya?”

“They’re doing something with those barrels of napalm, Gavrina,” Nukova replied. “They look like they’re attaching hoses to the barrels. I think they’re already preparing to spray the place with napalm.”

“It’s not yet an hour since their message, right?”

“Da.”

“Don’t you think that we should be stopping them from getting themselves ready before the hour is even up?”

“Yes, Comrade Captain.”

“You take care of those guys within 300 meters. I’ll take care of the rest.” As soon as she said that, Kumilyova pulled the trigger on her Dragunov, sending a round straight into the chest of a Blue Rose who was rolling a barrel of napalm towards the wall. At the same time, Nukova fired at a man attaching a long hose to a pair of barrels beside the wall. She had aimed at the man’s center mass, but an unexpected suppressed cough meant that she ended up sending the round into the man’s throat. Over in the southeastern sector, both Grisenko and Shevtsova also hit their targets. The sight of their comrades and fellow revolutionaries being felled by unseen gunmen was beginning to sow panic among the Blue Roses once again, but unlike during the missile strikes when they knew they were powerless, the Roses knew that this time, they could stop snipers, and people immediately began taking pot shots at the fort. It was now only a matter of who got to do what they wanted to do first being the winner of this particular battle.

[Drawkland]

WORLD BOWL XXXI HALFWAY OVER
Written By: Phillip Ward and Ben Lincoln

---

RECENT RESULTS
FROM BANK of ACEDONIA DIVISION:

Oisinistan 10–15 Drawkland
Fujisawan Territories 17–7 Fleuronordicia

---

Oisinistan 33–3 Republic of Rawn
Fujisawan Territories 20–19 United States of Devonta
Frenline Delpha 38–0 Fleuronordicia
Allamunnic Sporting Commission 17–37 Drawkland

---

Drawkland 42–27 Fleuronordicia
Oisinistan 24–29 Fujisawan Territories

---

Fleuronordicia 0–24 Ethane
Drawkland 63–9 Selvera
Thereisnogodistan 47–17 Oisinistan
Korizland 17–50 Fujisawan Territories

---

Republic of Rawn 0–23 Fleuronordicia
United States of Devonta 13–40 Drawkland
Oisinistan 20–43 Frenline Delpha
Fujisawan Territories 6–17 Allamunnic Sporting Commission

---

Fujisawan Territories 17–54 Drawkland
Fleuronordicia 34–3 Oisinistan

---

Ethane 45–0 Oisinistan
Selvera 16–13 Fujisawan Territories
Fleuronordicia 10–29 Thereisnogodistan
Drawkland 56–13 Korizland

---

Drawkland 27–6 Oisinistan
Fleuronordicia 13–23 Fujisawan Territories

Bank of Acedonia Division         Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Drawkland                         8    8   0   334  112 +222
2 Fujisawan Territories             8    5   3   175  167   +8
3 Fleuronordicia                    8    2   6   114  176  −62
4 Oisinistan                        8    1   7   113  243 −130

Nicholls Enterprises Conference    Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD
 1 Frenline Delpha                   8    8   0   338   99 +239
 2 Drawkland                         8    8   0   334  112 +222
 3 Ethane                            8    7   1   228   32 +196
 4 Thereisnogodistan                 8    6   2   300  153 +147
 5 Fujisawan Territories             8    5   3   175  167   +8
 6 United States of Devonta          8    4   4   183  167  +16
 7 Allamunnic Sporting Commission    8    3   5   211  242  −31
 8 Republic of Rawn                  8    2   6    91  223 −132
 9 Fleuronordicia                    8    2   6   114  176  −62
10 Selvera                           8    2   6    97  288 −191
11 Oisinistan                        8    1   7   113  243 −130
12 Korizland                         8    0   8    73  355 −282

World Bowl XXXI Schedule - Grid Corps
Home Team Listed First
1. Oisinistan 10–15 Drawkland
2. Allamunnic Sporting Commission 17–37 Drawkland
3. Drawkland 42–27 Fleuronordicia
4. Drawkland 63–9 Selvera
5. United States of Devonta 13–40 Drawkland
6. Fujisawan Territories 17–54 Drawkland
7. Drawkland 56–13 Korizland
8. Drawkland 27–6 Oisinistan
9. Frenline Delpha - Drawkland
10. Drawkland - Republic of Rawn
11. Fleuronordicia - Drawkland
12. Drawkland - Thereisnogodistan
13. Ethane - Drawkland
14. Drawkland - Fujisawan Territories

Or at least the divisional stage is. The playoffs will potentially be another 4 games if we reach the championship, so mathematically the Bowl isn't halfway over until we please defeat Frenline Delpha in Matchday 9. It's true, the divisional stage is 14 games, which is absolutely mind-boggling for pretty much anybody other than Drawkians. Supposedly most places have only 16-20 games per season if you make it to the championship. I guess that really speaks to the Drawkian physique that is so much tougher than the normal human physique which doesn't have as much stamina or endurance.

For those of you who don't know, the Drawkian Gridiron season is 35 if you're bad and about 43 if you're the best. So it's no wonder that while the other teams are starting to lose steam and slow down and start to fall, the Grid Corps is just getting started. And speaking of great starts, let's review the last 2 games of the first half of the divisional/conference stage of the Bowl.

vs FUJISAWAN TERRITORIES
The game that was so anticipated by gridiron fans everywhere. Two World Bowl champions, one current and one far former, meeting up in the old boy's house for a great game on intense football. And boy was it a packed game. The game was sold out long before gameday, and there were even people attempting to get standing room the day of. Everybody wanted to see the Corps and the Hurricanes duke it out in Crosscom Arena, because it may well be one of the most important games of the entire tournament. Drawkland was on top of the Conference, tied with Frenline Delpha, and Fujisawan Territories were 4 and 1, looking to stay right with the boys on top. On top of that, being groupmates meant that any win was one that would be invaluable for either team in qualifying for the playoffs. One would think this is basically the World Bowl Championship all over again.

The crowd at Crosscom would best be described as fiercely split. One half of the huge stadium was violently purple and orange, while the other half was all-black and waving straight red or Drawkland flags. It was an ingenious idea to split the stadiums' fans on two sides, because there would probably have been ... issues if there were not. It was evening in Fujisawan Territories, the heated tropical night was starting to ebb away as the sun painted beautiful warm colors across the darkening sky.

A duel at dusk, for honor.

The captains of the Drawkian team, Gerald Fairfield, Daniel Madison, and Dak Waterman came up to face the Fujisawans captain for the coin toss. Waterman called heads and it landed heads, the World Bowl logo shining in the stadium lights laying on the ground. The Grid Corps deferred as always and therefore the special teams trotted out to start off the game. Matthew Watts absolutely buried his foot into the opening kick, sending it flying into the right corner. Unfortunately for the Corps, the Hurricanes had tilted to that corner, so Shoyo Oka, the return specialist, took off and managed to batter his way to the 30 yard line to start the opening drive. While usually, the Corps aims to force a fumble or pick a pass during the opening drive to compensate for deferring, the explosive Fujisawan offense would not be having that today. Using very good plays, mixing the running and passing game (but mainly passing), they moved their way up the field. While a few incomplete passes and stopped runs were to be had, it was just too much for the Drawkian team, which was feeling the pressure. Only one (rather lame) sack was had that drive, so many fans were disappointed thinking that the defense line was going to fail the rest of the game and turn it into a hugely offensive bout which would probably come down to a couple point. While that would be exciting, we'd by lying if we said that's what people wanted. Anyway, facing 2nd and Goal on the Drawkian 4 yard line, Hurricane Quarterback Masazumi Kozutsami dodged a heavy blitz by Jordan Tomek, and pitched it across to Wide Receiver Katzumi Kon. Kon was surrounded by David Hallorten and Bernard Violan, but he made the catch in traffic, dodged Violan's tackle and shoved back Hallorten to get the first score of the game. A neat kick by Torazo Yogi made the score 7-0 Hurricanes, and the Drawkians were feeling the burn. Regardless, the fans still got intensely hyped for the resulting kickoff to the Grid Corps to start Drawkland's offensive stand.

The crowd did a wave effect as the flying ball went past them, ending in the end zone where Daniel Madison locked in the ball and began his run. He managed to get to the 24 yard line before being dragged to the ground. The Corps made their way downfield, mainly running the ball, only passing about once per 1st Down. Thus, the yardage was short and well-fought for. There were several 4th Downs, both in short and long yardage, but the Corps managed to convert every time, twice by a lucky breakthrough run, twice by a horizontal pass barely run to the line, once by a long-ish pass, once by Waterman running and sliding past the line, and once even by a fake punt early in the drive, where Long Snapper Eric Sanders snapped the ball aside to Dominic Bishop, who dashed across the line 5 yards to get the first. Eventually the Corps was 2nd and Goal on the 6 yard line, and Bennett Morgan did an outside run to the opposite side the defense was expecting, gliding across the line to get a touchdown. Thanks to Matthew Watts as well, the score was tied at 7-7 in the first. While the drive seemed to tire the offense somewhat, it was worth it, as they'd sucked a whole 8 minutes off the clock.

The ball came back to the Hurricanes and they made good use of it, getting up the field with a series of good passes, but by the time they hit the red zone the Drawkian defense caught on and manhandled the offensive line and Kozutsami with a series of sacks until they were faced with 4th and 22. The Hurricanes were forced to kick the field goal, which Yogi did oblige, bringing the score to 10-7. The first quarter had 23 seconds left by then, so play went into the second quarter after Drawkland's first play, which was an incomplete pass.

Drawkland would take control of the quarter for sure, absolutely choking the life out of the clock and in a way, the Fujisawan defense. Drawkland only scored once in the second quarter, a lucky touchdown pass from the 15 yard line to Toby Miller. However, the Hurricanes didn't score whatsoever during the quarter, getting smashed with two 3-and-Outs and a stifling interception while on the Drawkian 30 yard line. At halftime, the score was 10-14, and suffice to say the crowd was going pretty berserk.

The Grid Corps got the ball after the half, to the excitement of the Drawkian crowd. Very suddenly, Madison took the ball and swept across the field, having fielded the ball a bit past the left hash, he swung off past the right side and gunned down the hashes. Apparently hurricane winds aren't as fast as you might think, because Madison couldn't be caught by any members of the Fujisawan Territories team. Drawkland scores and now it's 10-21, with only about 15 seconds off of the third quarter clock. The Hurricanes got the ball back, and they couldn't get anything much out of it after getting to about the Drawkian 45, so they punted it away. Kenko Kawakami got some good air underneath the ball, and Madison fielded it no problem, however, as he started running, Natsu "Gator" Sakai came in like a bull and busted into Madison, who was hit so hard that the ball sprang from his hands. Kin Otani scooped it up as he was right behind Sakai the whole time. He was only about 10 yards away from the goal, and he ran those 10 yards to score the touchdown for the Hurricanes. The crowd celebrated massively, at least the Fujisawan side did, as the score was then at 17-21. It appeared the Hurricanes still had a fighting chance against the Corps, but the crowd probably wouldn't be cheering as loud if they knew that would be the last time their team would score in the game.

Drawkland took over from there, making a point that the silly mistakes would not be repeated. 2 more touchdowns in the 3rd quarter, one a slant pass to Madison in the red zone, and a handoff to Robert Lim (put in due to not having much game time ever and Bennett Morgan getting a cramped calf a few plays earlier), who busted through the surprised defensive line and sprinted right down the middle for a touchdown. The 3rd quarter ended with the score at 17-35, and it became very clear to the audience who would be winning the game. The Fujisawan team just seemed to continually deflate in the 4th Quarter, which honestly kinda sucks because it wasn't a totally good fight to the end. The Drawkians scored 3 more touchdowns, but Watts missed the last 2 PATs due to a nightly tropical wind which began overtaking the stadium with about 10 minutes left on the clock.

So the first of two titan games between the Hurricanes and Corps was over and in the books with a final score of 17-54, and the tense question of who would lead the Bank of Acedonia Division was pretty clearly answered by Drawkland: "Us."

FUJISAWAN TERRITORIES	10	0	7	0	17
DRAWKLAND	7	7	21	19	54

vs KORIZLAND
The game with Korizland was pretty exciting for the home Drawkian crowd, because the Hydras is a cool mascot and also because the bright magenta-and-black uniforms were cool to look at. Unfortunately, we couldn't find a source on the player's names, and we don't feel like improvising like the Gregoryisgodistani media does, so we'll just summarize this one.

Drawkland scored 2 touchdowns every quarter and dominated the clock. No PATs were missed, as it wasn't windy because the Drawkian national stadium is indoors. Each quarter, one pass was scored by a run in the red zone and a pass from a bit outside the red zone. The bomb squad and the stone walls were out there for the Drawkian offense and defense, and the hapless Korizian (cool demonym) team couldn't really do much to combat it.

As it was, the Hydras only got one touchdown on their own right, a sneaky pass to a receiver way in the open who managed to dive into the end zone to barely eek out 6 points. The PAT there was good. And in the 4th quarter after receiving a punt, poor Roley Hoyt lost couldn't hang onto a pass and the cornerback covering him snagged it out of the air and ran back the 15 yards to get the touchdown for a Pick 6 before anyone could really know what was happening. However, when the offense attempted a 2-point conversion in vain, they were sacked hard, and thus the game ended with that score only 2 and a half minutes later, 56-13 Drawkland.

DRAWKLAND	14	14	14	14	56
KORIZLAND	0	0	7	6	13

vs OISINISTAN
The Drawkian dominance continued, this time against the first repeat opponent/groupmate Oisinistan. This one, despite us actually having names, can also be described in brief. The roaring Drawkian crowd was infectious, but the Corps offense seemed to be tired (which didn't bode well) that game, only scoring 27 points over the course of the match. However, the defense was still clicking and turning all cylinders, holding Oisinistan to only six points and no touchdowns.

Oisinistan only scored twice, a field goal in the 2nd and the 3rd, although having several missed chances due to long yardage that Stan Parkman just couldn't handle. However, the Drawkians scored a touchdown once every quarter, each time on a pass to Tight End Riley Hoyt, surprisingly. Certainly makes up for the Pick 6 that was sorta his fault in the game against Korizland. Normally that wouldn't be an issue, it didn't affect the game at all, but Point Differential is starting to make a difference in these games (purely for bragging rights reasons, it's highly unlikely that playoff qualification for the Grid Corps will end up depending on differential).

The score would've been 28, but instead of bringing out Watts to kick the extra point, the offense stayed on to have a joke play in front of the excited home crowd (the clock had elapsed and it was sure to be the last play of the game) since the score wasn't needed that much. The players lined up, and ended up just throwing laterals to each other, almost all 11 members got a hold on the ball, but in the end an exasperated Liam Colbert from Oisinistan put an end to the fun by tackling Oscar Tatham, who currently had the ball. And thus the game was over. Drawkland remaining undefeated with a rather unimpressive (at this point) 27-6 win.

DRAWKLAND	7	7	7	6	27
OISINISTAN	0	3	3	0	6

STATE OF THE BOWL
The standings are close. After Matchday 8, Frenline Delpha has the most points scored in the entire Bowl, ahead of Drawkland by 4 (338-334). They have a +239 Goal Differential as opposed to the modest Drawkian +222. The only team higher than Frenline would be Schottia with +245. What this means is that the next game, Drawkland at Frenline Delpha, will be an offensive slugfest that will probably be decided on whoever has the better defense on that day. It will be intense game that will surely crown the champion of the Nicholls Enterprises Conference early and also provide another cycle's worth of trash talking. The rivalry game to end all rivalry games, except perhaps Newmanistan vs Allamunnic States, once Newmanistan gets established again. It'll be, as they say, lit.

Across the Bowl, here at the barely-past halfway point, it's starting to become clear who's gonna qualify unless trends change quickly. The All-Mart Conference clearly has Banija and Schottia leading their respective divisions. The R&K Bank Division has a tie between Cosumar and Royal Kingdom of Quebec in wins, which probably means those 4 teams mentioned will make it. At this point it's unlikely for Abaja, the next best team, to qualify, due to the star power either Cosumar or Quebec will have taking 2nd in their group.
Sporting World Conference will send Kaboomlandia, Gregoryisgodistan, and Allamunnic States automatically. Newmanistan has a chance to qualify if perennial mediocre winners The Fair Republic are fallen in these next 6 games.
It looks like Nicholls Enterprises Conference is sending Drawkland, of course, Frenline Delpha, and Ethane (3 nations with close friendly relations) straight from the divisions. Thereisnogodistan is currently in the lead for the Wild Card, but Fujisawan Territories can make it through if they can overcome their current cold streak (3 losses consecutively) and if Thereisnogodistan is convincingly defeated a few times.
Finally, the Dixon Light Conference looks to be sending Nassau-Hessen, Chromatika, and Abanhfleft to the playoffs. Free Republics, the hosts, are expected to pull through the wild card, or top the New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate Division and push Nassau-Hessen into the playoff spot.
So, some new names, some old names, some questionable names. It's certainly going to be an intense matchup for the playoffs.

Be sure to support the Corps in their crusade in Frenlinian territory. They'll certainly need it. On Corps!

[Southern Democratic States]

The Southern Democratic States crushes Vettrera

The Southern Democratic States had no pity for an unranked Vettrera and crushed them 37–0 at Tiger Stadium in Rockingham. The Southerners set the tone with a touchdown on their first drive on a 16 yards pass by Clifford Jenkins to Jarius Floyd. Vettrera had to punt after 3 downs and the Bears ended their 2nd drive with a 25 yards field goal. In the 2nd quarter, Quarterback #1's pass was intercepted by DeShawn Lewis-Harris and returned to the 31 yards line in Vettrera territory. On a 1st and 10, Clifford Jenkins threw a 31 yards pass to Demarcus Woods for a touchdown. The Southerners scored another touchdown before the end of the 2nd quarter when Garrett Van Noy caught Clifford Jenkins's pass for 4 yards. The score was 24-0 at the halftime.

The Southern Bears made two field goals in the 3rd quarter to put the score at 30-0. In the 4th quarter, quarterback #1 is intercepted again. This time by Konrad Juszczyk who returned the ball to Vettrera's 44 yards line. Tyler Kruger is now the Southerner quarterback and he threw an incomplete pass. Barkevious Hawkins runs for 3 yards. Tyler Kruger passes to John McRae for 8 yards. Barkevious Hawkins runs for 4 yards. He runs again for 3 yards. Tyler Kruger passes to Kerwynn Watford for 13 yards. The ball is now at the 13 yards line and it's a 1st and 10. Barkevious Hawkins runs for 2 yards. Tyler Kruger's pass is incomplete. Tyler Kruger passes to Dwayne Boyd for 10 yards. 1st and goal at the 1 yards line. Barkevious Hawkins runs for -2 yards. He runs again for another -2 yards. On a 3rd and goal, Kris Hunter is penalized for false start. On a 3rd and goal at the 10 yards line, Tyler Kruger passes to Brian Shaw for a touchdown. And the final score is 37-0 for the Southern Democratic States.

Coconut Riddick didn't score but he ran 18 times for 127 yards and caugh 2 passes for 13 yards. The Bears are now 8th in All-Mart Conference with a 4-4 record. Next week, the team will travel to Banija and will play at The Stadium of the Restoration, located in Busukuma, which is the Banijan capitol city.

The Southern Democratic States   10   14    6    7   -   37
Vettrera                          0    0    0    0   -    0

BOXSCORE

1st quarter
11:11 Touchdown by Jarius Floyd (16 yards pass from Clifford Jenkins) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good
4:58 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (25 yards)
2nd quarter
10:38 Touchdown by Demarcus Woods (31 yards pass from Clifford Jenkins) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good
5:26 Touchdown by Garrett Van Noy (4 yards pass from Clifford Jenkins) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good
3rd quarter
8:44 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (28 yards)
0:15 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (46 yards)
4th quarter
6:33 Touchdown by Brian Shaw (10 yards pass from Tyler Kruger) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good

[Kaboomlandia]

Phoenix defeat Jeckland 23-10, preparing for biggest game of tournament

Even though they played the backup to the second-stringer in their game against Jeckland, the Kaboomlandia Phoenix gridiron team refused to take a backseat to anyone, defeating Jeckland 23-10 to remain one of six undefeated teams in this World Bowl, alongside Schottia, Frenline Delpha, Drawkland, Chromatika, and Nassau-Hessen. In order to rest breakout star and tournament MVP candidate quarterback Travis Reuben, Kevin Nivek opted to start Russell Jones instead. Despite being the third-stringer on the team before this tournament began, the young quarterback acquitted himself well, completing 24 of 30 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns. "Putting the backup in is always a risky move because it might motivate the other team to go out hard against them, but Russ played really well out there in his first start of the tournament," praised Kevin Nivek after the game. Jones was particularly strong under pressure, being only sacked once on eight trouble situations by recognizing the threat and throwing the ball away. Notably, three of those sack attempts were plays where Jones was able to see the pressure and even get off a completion before the defense got to him.

The next game will be the one that many Kaboomlandians will be eagerly anticipating, as they will be playing Gregoryisgodistan, who are ranked only three spots above the Phoenix at #7 to #10. The Grid Slaves play pure defense, but have managed to compile a 7-1 record through the group stages of the tournament - good for about 9th or 10th overall with their point differential. Meanwhile, the Phoenix, anchored by Travis Reuben, have powered through games with an incredibly skilled mixed bag on offense. In the only encounter between the two teams, Gregoryisgodistan shut out the Tyler Martin-led Phoenix 17-0 on neutral soil during World Bowl 28 - the only playoff miss for the Phoenix in five tries. "The Grid Slaves have a really staunch defense, but we're hopeful that the offense can break through against them. Our team can mix it up whatever way they like and make it hard for teams to get set," mentioned Travis Reuben after the Jeckland game. "We can't be intimidated by their size, either - they may be big, but our receivers are quick enough to get away." This game is expected to decide the eventual winner of the Sporting World conference with the undefeated Phoenix just one game ahead of the Grid Slaves, barring either team being upset later on.

[Main Nation Ministry]

An Unknown Error has Occured

Kevin, some weird glitch happened with one of the email servers. I got a weird email with nothing on it. You need to call the damn IT to get this issue fixed or the Leader is going to flog my ass when he gets back.
- Technician and Email Monitor Adam

The General lies.

What happened to them wasn't a terrorist attack. The General had them all killed. They all buried in a mass grave. He covered it up. He lied to the public. He is being manipulated and he knows it. Yet, it gives him power. That bitch is manipulating him!

This number one fan. We know her real name. Nora Enomoto. She been plotting every since the beginning. She is smarter than she looks. She manages to create serums that not even science would know about. She hates the world and seeks to destroy all human life and watch it suffer. She is hiding as always. We know what she planning next. She plans on striking a war with the nation Banija. We are the only ones who know about her. Including the Leader.

Who are we? You might ask. We aren't from her or from Main Nation Ministry. We exist separately. We cannot destroy Main Nation Ministry. The Leader is too powerful, so we don't make him a target. We don't see ourselves as whistle blowers. We don't see ourselves as terrorists nor vigilantes.

Neither Heroes nor Villains.

We are us. Broken.

We have plans of our own. We will send a message to quarterback Dennis Zervos from Banija. Then when he gets the message, we will ask him to go to us. And we will give him a special flash drive.

What's on it? The truth.

The Leader is unavailable to do anything. The General has managed to cut communications from the Leader. The Leader is unable to return to his own nation, because the General has been managing to prevent him from entering. The General cannot kill the Leader or else Main Nation Ministry would go into chaos that would destroy other nations.

We will always exist.

We used to be normal.

But we are hollow.

Adam, something weird just happened. Someone need using one of the admin servers and appeared to send a single email to Banija? I cannot check the email, but someone added some sort of man-made virus that prevents me from viewing it. It literally blew up my computer! If the General finds out, he kill me!
- Technician and Email Monitor Kevin

[Frenline Delpha]

Frenlinian Factation

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Article A

12/16/16

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Titans Tackle Tournament
-Samantha Cardroy

"It's a tough schedule. But nothing is tougher than that game. It will be the clash of the titans. Week nine, I'm telling you. You just watch week nine. We'll both go in undefeated and we'll crush those stupid band geeks."

President Samuel Snaker's teenage son said this the very statement the day the World Bowl schedule and grouping was released. And his words ring true now that we have run into the situation in which our national football team finds itself in. After steamrolling the first three games and beating region-mate United States of Devonta, the Anacondas are home for what will set the tone of this entire tournament. Not only are both teams leading their respective divisions, they are both undefeated. The Drawk Corps team has alos been dominant in this tournament, no doubt coming off their recent championship last year.

This battle will see two on-fire offenses battle it out for supremacy of the Nicholls Enterprises Conference. The Anaconda come in scoring 42 and a quarter points a game, while Drawkland is scoring 41 and three-quarters points a game. Nothing is stopping these powerhouses from crushing their opponents dreams. The only thing that will stop these two teams is, oddly enough, each other. This contest will depend on who wants this win more. We reached out to key players on the Anacondas about possibly the biggest game of this tournament.

The first person we reached was quarterback Steve Moors, who went 27 for 36, 289 yards and three touchdowns in the Anacondas' most recent game against divisional rivals Korizland. When asked about the game, he said, "We pretty much knew this was inevitable. We were both the best teams in our divisions coming in, and we haven'treally been tested yet. That stadium is going to be electric. I mean, it sold out in, what, two hours. These tickets are hot, and I hope we see a lot of support from the Anaconda nation. It's not a competition we are taking lightly, and we have planned and prepared for this competition well before the game against Korizland ended. We know we have the gumtion to beat the Drawk Corps."

We next reached out to coach Kendrick Dwyer about the training his team has been going through since Korizland ended. "We know Drawkland's tendency to pound that ball on the ground, we've been focusing on the run game defense, which is our biggest weakness. We had some of the best running backs in our league come down and practice with us. We ran every run we've seen Drawkland pull in their games, and we are confident in our ability to shut them down. On offense, we know Drawk likes to shut down offense with early pressure and sacks galore. Yeah, we aren't letting that happen to our quarterback. We put our guys through hell this week, and they came out the other side. With a high pressure defense and a tough roughing offense, we have our work cut out for us. Then again, no one said winning a champonship should be easy."

We also reached out to nose tackle Christopher Fegan about the grueling training they were put thorugh to prepare for this game. "This game will be a spotlight for the offensie and defensive lines. The Drawkland team knows how to wear down teams, so we decided to beat them to the punch. Each day it was miles of running, followed by a hour and a half of intense drills. We threw evrything into practice. We didn't stop. We didn't surrender. We didn't give up. We persevered and conquered. We grew in strength. We are ready for this game. The whole team is. The whole nation is. Nothing can stop an Anacondea on the trial of food, and that's where we are right now."

Analysts believe this game will produce a finalist in this torunament, with two top-tier teams duking it out for undefeated status. The team that wins tonight can ride the momentum all the way into the end of group play and beyond. With both teams facing easy teams the rest of the way through, this will be the game that tests everything about these two teams. Their drive, their compassion, their spirit, their heart. While ths game may not seem like much in terms of play-off qualification, with both teams being on the verge of clinching their respective divisions, this game could be the final earthquake that propels either the Red or Green tsunami onto the beach of champonship football. Fireworks will go off, and champions may be decided with just one game. It's all or nothing tonight, and we want it all. Especially after that blowout last time.

Drawkland comes into this game 4 point favorites with an odds of 1.25:1.

Drawkland @ Frenline Delpha
What: World Bowl Week 9
Where: Astrological Stadium, Bloodbenderopolis, Frenline Delpha
When: 7 PM
What's at stake: A perfect record for the winning side as well as redemption for a crushing defeat last year for Frenline Delpha. Bragging rights in this rivalry, and momentum for the rest of the season.

[Free Republics]

This is your Matchday 9 Cutoff brought to you by Freedom Sports! Freedom Sports: Sports, 24 Hours a day! Now 100% politics free!

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MD9 Cutoff

All-Mart Conference

All-Mart Conference
Banija 44–0 Southern Democratic States
Main Nation Ministry 10–36 Schottia
Royal Kingdom of Quebec 50–13 Christian Isles
The Redvale 17–17 Abaja (23–20 OT)
Vettrera 16–19 Cosumar
Santaclausisgodistan 47–7 Somersville

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Schottia                      9    9   0   357   86 +271
 2 Cosumar                       9    8   1   309  119 +190
 3 Royal Kingdom of Quebec       9    8   1   292  120 +172
 4 Banija                        9    7   2   343  175 +168
 5 The Redvale                   9    5   4   219  205  +14
 6 Abaja                         9    4   5   210  182  +28
 7 Main Nation Ministry          9    4   5   141  181  −40
 8 Southern Democratic States    9    4   5   114  158  −44
 9 Santaclausisgodistan          9    3   6   146  223  −77
10 Christian Isles               9    2   7    88  285 −197
11 Vettrera                      9    0   9    69  307 −238
12 Somersville                   9    0   9    82  329 −247

RT&T Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Banija                        9    7   2   343  175 +168
2 Abaja                         9    4   5   210  182  +28
3 Main Nation Ministry          9    4   5   141  181  −40
4 Christian Isles               9    2   7    88  285 −197

R&K Bank Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Cosumar                       9    8   1   309  119 +190
2 Royal Kingdom of Quebec       9    8   1   292  120 +172
3 The Redvale                   9    5   4   219  205  +14
4 Somersville                   9    0   9    82  329 −247

FreedomCola Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Schottia                      9    9   0   357   86 +271
2 Southern Democratic States    9    4   5   114  158  −44
3 Santaclausisgodistan          9    3   6   146  223  −77
4 Vettrera                      9    0   9    69  307 −238

Sporting World Conference

Sporting World Conference
West Saintland 27–14 Newmanistan
Qasden 40–17 Jeckland
The United States of Saints 56–14 De Dreamland
Kebec 0–60 Allamunnic States
The Fair Republic 40–3 Cumhact
Kaboomlandia 16–7 Gregoryisgodistan

                                Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Kaboomlandia                   9    9   0   346  104 +242
 2 Allamunnic States              9    7   2   341  132 +209
 3 Gregoryisgodistan              9    7   2   248   59 +189
 4 The Fair Republic              9    7   2   282  145 +137
 5 West Saintland                 9    5   4   161  128  +33
 6 Newmanistan                    9    5   4   283  244  +39
 7 The United States of Saints    9    5   4   158  182  −24
 8 Qasden                         9    4   5   198  227  −29
 9 Kebec                          9    3   6   168  251  −83
10 De Dreamland                   9    1   8   113  302 −189
11 Cumhact                        9    1   8    53  325 −272
12 Jeckland                       9    0   9    62  314 −252

RepublicSoft Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Allamunnic States              9    7   2   341  132 +209
2 West Saintland                 9    5   4   161  128  +33
3 Qasden                         9    4   5   198  227  −29
4 De Dreamland                   9    1   8   113  302 −189

O'Reilly Organization Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Gregoryisgodistan              9    7   2   248   59 +189
2 The United States of Saints    9    5   4   158  182  −24
3 Kebec                          9    3   6   168  251  −83
4 Cumhact                        9    1   8    53  325 −272

Olden Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Kaboomlandia                   9    9   0   346  104 +242
2 The Fair Republic              9    7   2   282  145 +137
3 Newmanistan                    9    5   4   283  244  +39
4 Jeckland                       9    0   9    62  314 −252

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

Nicholls Enterprises Conference
Oisinistan 40–0 Selvera
Fujisawan Territories 13–13 Ethane (19–16 OT)
Allamunnic Sporting Commission 44–20 Fleuronordicia
Frenline Delpha 22–26 Drawkland
Republic of Rawn 41–13 Korizland
United States of Devonta 34–23 Thereisnogodistan

                                   Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Drawkland                         9    9   0   360  134 +226
 2 Frenline Delpha                   9    8   1   360  125 +235
 3 Ethane                            9    7   2   244   51 +193
 4 Thereisnogodistan                 9    6   3   323  187 +136
 5 Fujisawan Territories             9    6   3   194  183  +11
 6 United States of Devonta          9    5   4   217  190  +27
 7 Allamunnic Sporting Commission    9    4   5   255  262   −7
 8 Republic of Rawn                  9    3   6   132  236 −104
 9 Fleuronordicia                    9    2   7   134  220  −86
10 Oisinistan                        9    2   7   153  243  −90
11 Selvera                           9    2   7    97  328 −231
12 Korizland                         9    0   9    86  396 −310

Bank of Acedonia Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Drawkland                         9    9   0   360  134 +226
2 Fujisawan Territories             9    6   3   194  183  +11
3 Fleuronordicia                    9    2   7   134  220  −86
4 Oisinistan                        9    2   7   153  243  −90

Bank of Republica Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Frenline Delpha                   9    8   1   360  125 +235
2 Thereisnogodistan                 9    6   3   323  187 +136
3 Allamunnic Sporting Commission    9    4   5   255  262   −7
4 Korizland                         9    0   9    86  396 −310

Baseton Mutual Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Ethane                            9    7   2   244   51 +193
2 United States of Devonta          9    5   4   217  190  +27
3 Republic of Rawn                  9    3   6   132  236 −104
4 Selvera                           9    2   7    97  328 −231

Dixon Light Conference

Dixon Light Conference
Smertonosnyy 24–25 Firebolt
Nassau-Hessen 67–20 Kosovakia
Northern Shrekistan 33–36 Equatorial Zeldaen
Greater Vakolicci Haven 24–14 Free Republics
Abanhfleft 65–3 West Angola
Cryandolap 17–40 Chromatika

                            Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Nassau-Hessen              9    9   0   373   93 +280
 2 Chromatika                 9    9   0   350  108 +242
 3 Abanhfleft                 9    8   1   373  103 +270
 4 Greater Vakolicci Haven    9    7   2   320  169 +151
 5 Free Republics             9    7   2   268   97 +171
 6 Firebolt                   9    4   5   197  279  −82
 7 Equatorial Zeldaen         9    3   6   165  340 −175
 8 Cryandolap                 9    2   7   174  341 −167
 9 Kosovakia                  9    2   7   156  337 −181
10 Northern Shrekistan        9    2   7   121  302 −181
11 West Angola                9    1   8    95  284 −189
12 Smertonosnyy               9    0   9   125  264 −139

New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Nassau-Hessen              9    9   0   373   93 +280
2 Free Republics             9    7   2   268   97 +171
3 Equatorial Zeldaen         9    3   6   165  340 −175
4 Smertonosnyy               9    0   9   125  264 −139

National Organization for Men Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Chromatika                 9    9   0   350  108 +242
2 Greater Vakolicci Haven    9    7   2   320  169 +151
3 Northern Shrekistan        9    2   7   121  302 −181
4 West Angola                9    1   8    95  284 −189

BearOil Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Abanhfleft                 9    8   1   373  103 +270
2 Firebolt                   9    4   5   197  279  −82
3 Cryandolap                 9    2   7   174  341 −167
4 Kosovakia                  9    2   7   156  337 −181

[Main Nation Ministry]

THE TRUTH NEWS

Main Nation Ministry Loses Against Team from First Five

Today, the nation of Schottia has beaten Main Nation Ministry in what was supposed to be a comeback after a series of losses in the World Bowl. The scores were 10-36 with Schottia, still leading the All-Mart Conference. Many sports-related hate crimes are currently on a rise due to a result, with fans who aren't cheering for Main Nation Ministry being violently killed by angry mobs, most of these crimes happen away from Bright City and in the forest sectors. A journalist from The Truth News attempted to interview the nation's football team by force, however is currently missing.

Terrorism in Main Nation Ministry?

Concerns have been raising ever since the November Revival Project as infamous terrorist Jane Doe is still at large. She is at the top of the secret police's most wanted list with a bounty of 1 million chips, which is higher than any bounty placed. All that is known is that she is responsible for terrorism and proves a threat to the nation. The secret police are trying to not link her to a disappearance case that is clearly unsolved. For the safety of the citizens of Main Nation Ministry, Jane Doe is not given a photo to show, as the government believes that the charisma for Jane Doe will only inspire followers. More news will appear later.

She's planning.

[Abanhfleft]

The Pridnestrovian Invasion of Nordskania, Part Six

Serpukhov-5 Fortress
Red Strip, Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic

“Here, Ravil; that’s all of the C4 that we have,” Senior Lieutenant Vyacheslav Ilyich Klimov said as he laid a square parcel of cream-colored substance on top of a stack of similar-looking blocks in front of Junior Lieutenant Ravil Ivanovich Yanenko and Captain Mstislav Vladimirovich Andropov. Andropov looked at the amount of C4 explosives which they had gathered in the last ten minutes from the Pridnestrovian Spetsnaz squad and the Kingdom of God, the Adventists who had occupied the Serpukhov-5 Fortress before the coming of the Pridnestrovian invasion of Nordskania, and said, “That should be more than enough to do the job.”

“Really, Captain?” Yanenko asked with disbelief. “That’s just about five kilos of C4. Is that going to be enough to bring down the whole fort?”

“As long as you place it in strategic weak spots, Comrade Lieutenant, they will be more than enough to bring down the fort,” Andropov replied. “My father designed the fort exactly like this, so that in the unfortunate event that we have to give up this fort, a squad as small as ten soldiers can bring it down with just the grenades between them if necessary. But five kilos of C4 will do the job nicely. Now, Comrade Lieutenant, follow me! Let us bring down this fort and deny it to the bloody revolutionary roses!”

Andropov led Yanenko to a wall of bare concrete and pointed at a spot just above Yanenko’s head. “Place a block of C4 there, Comrade Lieutenant,” he ordered.

“Are you sure about that, Captain?” Yanenko asked in disbelief once again. “That doesn’t look like it’s load-bearing at all.”

“Are you questioning the engineering knowledge and wisdom of my father, Colonel Vladimir Lvovich Andropov?” Andropov asked in reply.

“No, Comrade Captain, of course not,” Yanenko replied as he stood on his tiptoes to attach the C4 to the proper place, even though he still had his doubts about the effectiveness of this plan, but this time, he kept his doubts to himself. Now was not the time to potentially antagonize an officer and a teammate.

---

To Captain Gavrina Vasilyevna Kumilyova, it seemed as if there was no end to the Blue Roses who were trying to set up their napalm hoses at the walls of the Serpukhov-5 Fortress. It was like the battle against the Hydra in classic mythology: as soon as she killed a Rose rebel, another one came to take his or her place in the battle line. And as the sniper battle wore on, the Roses were no longer content with just spraying napalm at the walls from their barrels; they were taking out flamethrowers and deploying them to the frontlines. Kumilyova soon had to prioritize taking out the rebels packing flamethrowers as they posed the most immediate danger to the security of those still inside the fortress. A properly-trained soldier could send a jet of flaming napalm the length of a football pitch and could aim the jet over any obstacles like walls to spray those hiding behind with napalm, and while most of the Roses carrying flamethrowers were most probably not trained up to that standard, Gavrina was not going to take the chance of letting someone from the other side get lucky.

Gavrina let out a short breath and pulled the trigger. A Nordskanian with a flamethrower fell back onto his comrades as the force of the bullet hitting his chest pushed him over the edge of the truck bed which he had been using as a platform. A cry of alarm from her spotter, Sergeant Arya Vladimirovna Nukova, turned Gavrina’s attention to Nukova’s sector, where she saw a bunch of Blue Roses attempting to climb the concrete wall surrounding the fortress. Someone had put a tattered mattress over the glass shards and barbed wire topping the wall, and armed Nordskanians were preparing to climb up the mattress. Gavrina aimed for the lead rebel’s chest and pulled the trigger, but the Nordskanian’s jerky actions climbing up meant that the bullet flew straight for his throat, and as he fell, so did his fellow rebels.

Gavrina then saw that the chamber of her Dragunov rifle had clicked empty. “Let’s go, Arya,” she said, standing up. The two women stood up and proceeded to the next place where Nukova had stashed spare magazines for the Dragunov earlier. Kumilyova took the first of two mags on the spot, loaded it into her rifle, and went down on her belly once again as she resumed firing at the Blue Roses. Meanwhile, over to the southern end of the fort, Junior Lieutenant Olga Titovna Grisenko was engaged in a battle with a particularly tricky enemy sniper. This rifleman had opened up on her and her spotter, Senior Lieutenant Dmitriya Sergeyevna Shevtsova, when they had tried to engage the Blue Roses trying to get half a dozen barrels of napalm closer to the main gates of the fortress, which were made of welded sheet steel and wouldn’t last as long as concrete under a shower of napalm. The enemy sniper, while not as skilled or well-trained as Grisenko was, was still doing enough to keep Grisenko’s head down and let the Blue Roses get on with their work to break down the fortifications. Shevtsova was equally powerless to stop the Roses, although she was able to fire her AK in short bursts from beneath the slim cover of the bannister.

“Come on, you bastard, show yourself,” Grisenko muttered to herself as she searched the field for signs of the Nordskanian sniper. This one was proving particularly tricky with regards to how he was able to keep the Pridnestrovians’ heads down while the rebels got to work with their napalm. Suddenly, a sliver of sunlight peeked out of the thin cloud cover over the Red Strip, and Grisenko spotted the telltale glint of sunlight reflecting off of a telescopic sight, and she shifted her attention to the place where she saw the glint. She saw a much brighter flash of light somewhere the glint, and she shouted, “Down!” just as a bullet smashed into the concrete balustrade behind which she and Shevtsova were hiding.

Grisenko quickly got back onto her rifle and peered through the scope once again. The sunlight had gotten a little weaker, and with it the reflection from the enemy sniper’s scope, but it was still there. Of course, relying on a single reflection of light was not the best way to root out an enemy sniper, but it was all that she had at the moment, and she was going to take it. Grisenko centered her sight on the last place where she was the reflection, and then she pulled the trigger. There was no real way to know whether she had hit the target so she quickly shifted her attention to the Roses massing at the gates of the fortress.

Grisenko saw a Nordskanian with a flamethrower being waved forward by his comrades as they prepared to torch the steel gates of the Red Strip. She fired a snap shot at the rebel, but her hastiness in pulling the trigger meant that the bullet struck the flamethrower tank instead of the man himself. Unlike the movies, which showed flamethrowers exploding whenever they were hit by bullets, this flamethrower only emitted a jet of burning napalm from the place where the bullet had hit the tank. The pressure of the jet forced the guy carrying the flamethrower down on the ground, and a few hapless Blue Roses were unlucky to be in the path of the burning jet and they were soon engulfed in flames. The smell of burning flesh and hair then reached Grisenko’s nostrils, and she fought the urge to retch right then and there.

At that moment, Captain Andropov and Lieutenant Yanenko burst out of the roof access stairwell, surprising the four women on the roof. “Ravil! What the hell are you doing here?” Kumilyova asked.

“Bringing down the fort,” Yanenko replied matter-of-factly.

“Get down! There are snipers out there!” Kumilyova said. This got both Yanenko and Andropov on their knees, and they crawled the rest of the way to the center of the roof.

“Lay the last charge right here, Lieutenant” Andropov said, pointing at the spot where a bunch of lines etched into the concrete met at the very center of the roof. By then, Yanenko had gotten used to placing the C4 charges in the most unexpected of places, and once again he laid the final charge right on top of the spot which Andropov was indicating and set the timer. As soon as he had done that, Yanenko got on the radio to tell their commander, Major Mikhail Yevgeniyevich Kutuzov. “Major, we’re ready to bring the fort down,” he said.

“Good,” Kutuzov said. “Then it’s about time that all of you got back down here. We’re almost done evacuating; we’re going to be on some of the last trucks out to keep away any rebels who might have some ideas.”

“Yes, Comrade Major,” Yanenko said. Then, to the snipers and their spotters, he shouted, “It’s time to go!” Both Kumilyova and Grisenko loosed off parting shots at the Blue Roses before they, Nukova, and Shevtsova stood up and followed Yanenko and Andropov down the roof and then out of the fort. Major Kutuzov was already waiting for them at the back of the last truck in the compound which hadn’t yet been appropriated by the Kingdom of God as a transport. He and the other Spetsnaz helped the remaining troopers and agents up into the truck, which revved up and sped away from the Serpukhov-5 Fortress as soon as Kutuzov tapped on the roof of the cab to tell the driver that they were all onboard. The driver took the truck to a path leading to the northeast sector of the compound, where a tunnel cleverly disguised as a motor pool garage led them through the mountains which formed a natural barrier for the fort and out to a narrow valley where they could barely see the tail end of the Adventist convoy.

“How much longer before the fortress falls?” Andropov asked Yanenko. The junior lieutenant didn’t immediately respond to the captain’s query. Instead, he held up his hand with fingers and thumb outstretched. Yanenko then looked at his watch and brought down a finger with every movement of the second hand. As soon as he folded his last finger, Yanenko looked up the valley, from which they could still see a large part of the fort. An almighty explosion had burst out of the fort at the same time that Yanenko brought down his finger, causing everyone in the convoy to look back at the Red Strip. Large fireballs were erupting from various places in the fortress, and a column of thick black smoke was rising up from the place.

Yet something didn’t seem right, at least to Andropov. “Lieutenant, take a close look at the fort,” he told Yanenko. “Does it look like it’s collapsing or imploding to you?”

Yanenko, as the Spetsnaz team’s demolitions expert, was naturally the one most versed in this subject, and he immediately applied his expert eye on the situation. “No, Comrade Captain, it doesn’t look like it’s imploding or collapsing.”

“And why do you suppose that is?”

“I don’t know, Captain. Maybe we placed the charges in the wrong place.”

“That’s impossible,” Andropov said. “I know this place like the back of my hand. My father designed this place to be brought down by a single squad of soldiers if necessary. It has to be a problem with one of the charges.”

“With all due respect, Comrade Captain, I am a demolitions expert. I know all there is to know about explosives and bringing down buildings and structures. None of the places where you asked me to put the charges are anywhere near the fortress’s weak spots. So, Captain, forgive me for saying this, but I think that you misremembered your father’s legacy. What you have just asked me to do is to give the Blue Roses a fireworks display.”

“And I still believe, Comrade Lieutenant, that at least one of your charges failed to do its job,” Andropov continued. “But it doesn’t matter now. We’ve given away a great big fortress to our enemies without a fight. All I can hope now is that whichever of your charges failed to explode would finally do its job while the Blue Roses are inside the Red Strip so that they will all be crushed inside the place. Where are we headed for anyway?”

“The city of Sopova, Captain,” Major Kutuzov said. “But we’re not going to spend a lot of time there as Murko says that the Blue Roses have already occupied the city while they were besieging the Red Strip. We’re just going to pass by the town and then we’re going to make our way towards our own lines. We’ve played our part in the opening of this campaign. Now it’s up to the Pridnestrovian Republic if we will play another part in the coming days. If we’re lucky, we could get sent to the north to sabotage their war efforts because they will surely try to push us back to the sea now that we’ve invaded the south.” Kutuzov said that last part with irony. There was nothing lucky about getting sent to the anarchist north, the so-called Community of Revolutionary Nordskania, even if they were Spetsnaz.

Back in the Red Strip, as the Blue Roses and their allies from the Crows and the Maslev Cartel surged through the gates and the walls of the fortress, they soon found the place wholly abandoned, and they celebrated their victory by breaking into the fortress, which was still smoking from all the explosives that the Pridnestrovians had set off in their departure. It turned out that Captain Andropov was right and Junior Lieutenant Yanenko was wrong; one of Yanenko’s C4 charges had indeed failed to detonate with the others, meaning that the Serpukhov-5 Fortress was not brought down as Andropov’s father had designed. This particular charge that did not explode was in the old throne room occupied first by Jovan Murko and then the Pridnestrovian Spetsnaz. When the Blue Roses charged into the throne room, they saw the C4 and immediately backed out in fear until they realized that the charge had malfunctioned and that it was safe to go in.

At least, that was what they thought. As soon as one of the Blue Roses came to take the C4 down from the wall, the detonator finally did its job and set off the charge, killing everyone inside the room, which included a lot of Roses, Crows, and Maslevs. Unfortunately for Pridnestrovia, Darya Zharkov, Slobo Vulovic, and Lyo Kotov, the Roses’ big names, were not among those killed in the blast in the throne room; they were in another place altogether during the explosion. And because the charge had been taken away from the wall when it exploded, it did not damage the wall enough to bring it down and with it, the whole fortress. The Red Strip stood, for the time being, and it was about to become the capital of a new fascist state in Nordskania led by the daughter of the old Communist dictator of the country.

[Banija]

The All-Banija Sports Magazine
The only nationwide publication that is all sports, all the time!

After consecutive road losses to #3 Schottia and regional rival Abaja; Banija responds with 44-0 shutout victory at home


Robel Kassa(#15) celebrates after catching a touchdown against the Southern Democratic States

BUSUKUMA- Banija finished the first of two three game road sets 1-2. After a close battle against Schottia, where a last minute touchdown allowed Schottia to claim victory over Banija, they went to visit Abaja, who is quickly becoming a rival team for this Banijan side. On the road, following a loss in a big game, at a regional rival, who is also in the same division. They played a classic thriller in Busukuma in week 1, and this game also figured to be a close one. In a stunner, Abaja pulled off the upset, and with it, made the RT&T Division one that could slowly creep up on people's radar with a stunning upset 34-23 home victory.

That meant, of course, that Banija was losers of not one, but two games in a row. With the team reeling, there was no better time than the present to go home, hash out a few things, and prepare for their next 3 game stretch. They went home and did just that, taking out their frustrations on the Southern Democratic States, as they won 44-0 at the Stadium of the Restoration to improve their record to a solid 7-2, and maintain their 3 game lead atop the RT&T Division. Each division champion, of course, gets an automatic spot in the knockout stages, and we'd all prefer to have that automatic berth.

Banija came roaring straight out of the gate, scoring touchdowns on their first 3 drives, and never looked back from that point forward. Dennis Zervos was on fire, and this defense, after struggling by allowing 30+ points to each of their last two opponents, regained its dominant form by pitching a shutout. Ultimately, Ezekiel Daniachew cannot say anything bad about this game. 9 games into a 14 game group stage, Banija can be pretty confident of its spot in the knockout stages. They are the only team in their division with a winning record, and have a 3 game lead on Main Nation Ministry and Abaja, who are tied for second.

Of course, that means playoff clinching scenarios, of course, are coming up. But first, this means that Banija has 3 straight road games coming up, to finish up this brutal stretch of 6 of 7 being true road games. Banija's next game, of course, is a visit to Cosumar, who is 8-1 and is #2 in the conference. That will be another big game, where Banija will enter as an underdog(+7), but where Banija believes that they can compete and actually pull off the victory. Then, of course, the road gets much easier, as they have visits to the Main Nation Ministry, who is 4-5, and Santaclausisgodistan, who is 3-6. While Abaja shows that anybody can beat anybody on any given day, Banija will be favorites in those two games, and even if they go 2-1 in this stretch, if one of those wins is the Main Nation Ministry, it is not unreasonable to say that Banija should have the division wrapped up at the end of this road trip.

Of course, what matters first is their game against Cosumar. Cosumar is 8-1 and atop their division, and they host Banija in a 5v6 matchup that is sure to excite the neutrals. Banija, after losing to Schottia, wants to win this game to send a message that they are serious about competing for a title. There is a gulf between the top 4(Schottia, Cosumar, Quebec, Banija) and the rest of the All-Mart Conference. While there are no questions who will be the top 4 and who will go to the knockout stages, the question is can any of these teams win a title. Banija is 0-1 against top 4 teams, and they now have their chance at Cosumar.

It's 5v6, and in terms of standings in the All-Mart Conference, it's the 7-2 division leader against the 8-1 division leader. This game matters slightly more for Cosumar, as they are from the toughest division in this conference, with three teams with winning records(two are 8-1, one is 5-4). While Banija can lose this game and still be the overwhelming favorite to win the RT&T Division, a loss here could easily bump Cosumar down to the Wild Card spot. With Banija's recent road struggles, Cosumar has to be the favorite, but a win here can prove to the world that Banija is capable of not only beating down on lesser opponents, but playing and beating the best of the best, which you have to do if you want to win a tournament such as this one.

Ultimately, we'll project a 27-24 victory for Banija. While this is a big game for both sides, the Banijans will be playing with a chip on their shoulder, as many people labeled them pretenders after their road loss to regional rival Abaja. That push will be able to overcome the home crowd, and ultimately, Banija will be able to pull off the upset, and vault themselves back into the discussion of true contenders to come home with a trophy from the Free Republics.

[Southern Democratic States]

OOC: Samantha (Sam) Alexander is a journalist covering football on Bear Sports Network (BSN) and she met our starting running back Coconut Riddick in Gregoryisgodistan during the Baptism of Iron XVII.

Leo Nicholls: Welcome to the halftime report, it's actually 31-0 Banija at halftime and the Southerners are disappointing once again. So,Jim, how do you explain that?

Jim: Well, Banija started off strong and scored touchdowns on their first 3 drives and let's look at their last two games. They lost 33–26 against Schottia and then they lost again, against Abaja. Two losses in a row, so the Southern Bears paid for it. We need to get better next time and have a better game plan. I think Ezekiel Daniachew outcoached Nick Hoffman...

Leo: Yeah I think so. Ok it's time to join Sam and her guest, I think she's interviewing Demarcus Woods.

Sam: Hiii guysssss I'm interviewing my fiancé Coconut. Hiii Cococut!

Coconut: yo whuzzup?

Jim: Hi

Leo: Hola

Sam: It's a disappointing game , so I think we...

(Coconut steals the microphone from her fiancée's hands)

Coconut: very furstrating yo i mean Momir Litvinov was in ma face all de time i coodnt go any wear each time i thawch the ball hes all reddy there reddy 2 tackel me n he made me fumbell da ball in da first qwarter yo i mean dat was relly furstrating so wuts da qweshton lol?

Sam: It wasn't a question. I was saying it's disappointing so, why not talking on tv about our wedding? We agreed on a date and we're getting married right after the World Bowl.

Coconut: yeah dats rite were gettin merried affter de word bowl butt yer shure u wanna talk abawt it on tv yo i mean lets tawk football lol?

Sam: Nah I wanna talk about our wedding. I'm planning every details since you propposed me during a game against San Llera at the World Bowl XXX.

Coconut: wow lol

Sam: Coconut and me are announcing the wedding will be broadcasted live on Bear Sports Network, we're getting married at the presbyterian church in Coconut's hometown. It will take place on the weekend after the final game of the World Bowl.

Coconut: dats rite lol

Sam: And for our honeymoon, we're going to the Western Sunrise Islands, part of the Unified Sunrise Islands!

Coconut: hmm well i fink theyre good at soccer butt id preffer 2 go 2 da island off falatulu ive herd its a nonstop partay there lol

Sam: Island of Falatulu, isn't it part of the Free Republics? And it's too crowded, I'm sorry I don't like that place.

Coconut: ok then u wanna go 2 califernia royall kingdom off qwebec lol?

Sam: No. Western. Sunrise. Island.

Coconut: ok ok am juss kiddin were goin to sunrize island or why not gregoristan lol

Sam: Well it's all the time we have, thank you Coconut.

Coconut: yer wellcome lol

Sam: Back to you Leo and Jim.

Jim: Wow they're getting married on tv, I hope I'm invited!

Leo: Well it wasn't necessary to talk about it during the halftime of a football game. Sometimes I'm questionning the professionalism of Samantha.

Jim: She's ok. And we see Coconut Riddick on tv more often since they're in a relationship. The fans loves it.

Leo: We should talk about football, not about a freaking wedding.

Leo: Well, right after the commercial break it's the kickoff to start the 3rd quarter and the Southerners will receive it. Don't miss it

[Free Republics]

This is your Matchday 10 Cutoff brought to you by Bank of Acedonia! Bank of Acedonia: The Bank That Protects Your Financial Privacy!

---

MD10 Results

All-Mart Conference

All-Mart Conference
Christian Isles 24–14 Santaclausisgodistan
Abaja 57–7 Vettrera
Somersville 10–12 Main Nation Ministry
Cosumar 10–26 Banija
Schottia 36–3 Royal Kingdom of Quebec
Southern Democratic States 29–10 The Redvale

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Schottia                     10   10   0   393   89 +304
 2 Banija                       10    8   2   369  185 +184
 3 Cosumar                      10    8   2   319  145 +174
 4 Royal Kingdom of Quebec      10    8   2   295  156 +139
 5 Abaja                        10    5   5   267  189  +78
 6 Main Nation Ministry         10    5   5   153  191  −38
 7 Southern Democratic States   10    5   5   143  168  −25
 8 The Redvale                  10    5   5   229  234   −5
 9 Christian Isles              10    3   7   112  299 −187
10 Santaclausisgodistan         10    3   7   160  247  −87
11 Somersville                  10    0  10    92  341 −249
12 Vettrera                     10    0  10    76  364 −288

RT&T Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Banija                       10    8   2   369  185 +184
2 Abaja                        10    5   5   267  189  +78
3 Main Nation Ministry         10    5   5   153  191  −38
4 Christian Isles              10    3   7   112  299 −187

R&K Bank Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Cosumar                      10    8   2   319  145 +174
2 Royal Kingdom of Quebec      10    8   2   295  156 +139
3 The Redvale                  10    5   5   229  234   −5
4 Somersville                  10    0  10    92  341 −249

FreedomCola Division

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Schottia                     10   10   0   393   89 +304
2 Southern Democratic States   10    5   5   143  168  −25
3 Santaclausisgodistan         10    3   7   160  247  −87
4 Vettrera                     10    0  10    76  364 −288

Sporting World Conference

Sporting World Conference
De Dreamland 15–37 Kaboomlandia
Allamunnic States 42–10 The Fair Republic
Gregoryisgodistan 17–0 Qasden
Cumhact 9–30 West Saintland
Jeckland 3–24 The United States of Saints
Newmanistan 60–0 Kebec

                                Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Kaboomlandia                  10   10   0   383  119 +264
 2 Allamunnic States             10    8   2   383  142 +241
 3 Gregoryisgodistan             10    8   2   265   59 +206
 4 The Fair Republic             10    7   3   292  187 +105
 5 West Saintland                10    6   4   191  137  +54
 6 Newmanistan                   10    6   4   343  244  +99
 7 The United States of Saints   10    6   4   182  185   −3
 8 Qasden                        10    4   6   198  244  −46
 9 Kebec                         10    3   7   168  311 −143
10 De Dreamland                  10    1   9   128  339 −211
11 Cumhact                       10    1   9    62  355 −293
12 Jeckland                      10    0  10    65  338 −273

RepublicSoft Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Allamunnic States             10    8   2   383  142 +241
2 West Saintland                10    6   4   191  137  +54
3 Qasden                        10    4   6   198  244  −46
4 De Dreamland                  10    1   9   128  339 −211

O'Reilly Organization Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Gregoryisgodistan             10    8   2   265   59 +206
2 The United States of Saints   10    6   4   182  185   −3
3 Kebec                         10    3   7   168  311 −143
4 Cumhact                       10    1   9    62  355 −293

Olden Division

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Kaboomlandia                  10   10   0   383  119 +264
2 The Fair Republic             10    7   3   292  187 +105
3 Newmanistan                   10    6   4   343  244  +99
4 Jeckland                      10    0  10    65  338 −273

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

Nicholls Enterprises Conference
Fleuronordicia 7–18 United States of Devonta
Drawkland 60–9 Republic of Rawn
Thereisnogodistan 23–36 Fujisawan Territories
Korizland 14–20 Oisinistan
Ethane 51–3 Allamunnic Sporting Commission
Selvera 7–17 Frenline Delpha

                                   Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Drawkland                        10   10   0   420  143 +277
 2 Frenline Delpha                  10    9   1   377  132 +245
 3 Ethane                           10    8   2   295   54 +241
 4 Fujisawan Territories            10    7   3   230  206  +24
 5 United States of Devonta         10    6   4   235  197  +38
 6 Thereisnogodistan                10    6   4   346  223 +123
 7 Allamunnic Sporting Commission   10    4   6   258  313  −55
 8 Oisinistan                       10    3   7   173  257  −84
 9 Republic of Rawn                 10    3   7   141  296 −155
10 Fleuronordicia                   10    2   8   141  238  −97
11 Selvera                          10    2   8   104  345 −241
12 Korizland                        10    0  10   100  416 −316

Bank of Acedonia Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Drawkland                        10   10   0   420  143 +277
2 Fujisawan Territories            10    7   3   230  206  +24
3 Oisinistan                       10    3   7   173  257  −84
4 Fleuronordicia                   10    2   8   141  238  −97

Bank of Republica Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Frenline Delpha                  10    9   1   377  132 +245
2 Thereisnogodistan                10    6   4   346  223 +123
3 Allamunnic Sporting Commission   10    4   6   258  313  −55
4 Korizland                        10    0  10   100  416 −316

Baseton Mutual Division

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Ethane                           10    8   2   295   54 +241
2 United States of Devonta         10    6   4   235  197  +38
3 Republic of Rawn                 10    3   7   141  296 −155
4 Selvera                          10    2   8   104  345 −241

Dixon Light Conference

Dixon Light Conference
Equatorial Zeldaen 6–0 Cryandolap
Free Republics 14–37 Abanhfleft
Chromatika 23–10 Nassau-Hessen
West Angola 17–6 Smertonosnyy
Kosovakia 42–52 Northern Shrekistan
Firebolt 3–44 Greater Vakolicci Haven

                            Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Chromatika                10   10   0   373  118 +255
 2 Abanhfleft                10    9   1   410  117 +293
 3 Nassau-Hessen             10    9   1   383  116 +267
 4 Greater Vakolicci Haven   10    8   2   364  172 +192
 5 Free Republics            10    7   3   282  134 +148
 6 Firebolt                  10    4   6   200  323 −123
 7 Equatorial Zeldaen        10    4   6   171  340 −169
 8 Northern Shrekistan       10    3   7   173  344 −171
 9 Cryandolap                10    2   8   174  347 −173
10 West Angola               10    2   8   112  290 −178
11 Kosovakia                 10    2   8   198  389 −191
12 Smertonosnyy              10    0  10   131  281 −150

New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Nassau-Hessen             10    9   1   383  116 +267
2 Free Republics            10    7   3   282  134 +148
3 Equatorial Zeldaen        10    4   6   171  340 −169
4 Smertonosnyy              10    0  10   131  281 −150

National Organization for Men Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Chromatika                10   10   0   373  118 +255
2 Greater Vakolicci Haven   10    8   2   364  172 +192
3 Northern Shrekistan       10    3   7   173  344 −171
4 West Angola               10    2   8   112  290 −178

BearOil Division

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Abanhfleft                10    9   1   410  117 +293
2 Firebolt                  10    4   6   200  323 −123
3 Cryandolap                10    2   8   174  347 −173
4 Kosovakia                 10    2   8   198  389 −191

[Abanhfleft]

The Pridnestrovian Invasion of Nordskania, Part Seven

Stepanenko Propaganda Settlement
Stepanenko Island (Big Island), Denisovskaya Islands
Disputed territory between Pridnestrovia and Szavoda
20 miles off the coast of Pridnestrovia

The Pridnestrovian gunboat making its way from the Coast Guard base just five miles from the border between Pridnestrovia and Szavoda was carrying only a single passenger, but this passenger was easily the highest ranking passenger that the gunboat had ever transported from Pridnestrovia to the Big Island of the Denisovskaya Islands, long disputed territory between the Democratic People’s Republic and Szavoda. This passenger was Colonel General Genrikh Pavlovich Kustodiyev, and while he may not be as powerful as other generals and admirals due to his not being in the Politburo, the colonel general was still not a man to be trifled with in Pridnestrovia. And when the colonel general requested for a private visit to the Stepanenko Settlement on the Big Island (labeled as Stepanenko Island on Pridnestrovian maps for propaganda reasons), there was no reason for anyone to deny him, even though there were already rumors circulating that Kustodiyev’s loyalties were being investigated by the KGB and the GRU.

The Stepanenko Settlement was not actually an inhabited locality; instead it had been established purely for propaganda purposes. Most of the houses in the so-called “Propaganda Settlement” were just sheets of plywood held up by wooden planking and made to look like houses and apartment blocks. There was only one building in the whole place which was built and furbished like an actual house, and that wasn’t in the military’s original plans for the settlement. The mayor’s villa had been refurbished into a structure fit for human habitation on the orders of Colonel General Genrikh Kustodiyev, and that was because he was about to house an old friend in the settlement, away from the prying eyes of the world.

That friend was Vasily Zharkov, the old dictator of the Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic, which had now shattered into various warring factions after the rebellion he instigated through his own daughter, Darya, who was now also known as Roseanne of the Blue Roses. Kustodiyev had quartered Zharkov in the Stepanenko Propaganda Settlement when he had gone in exile with plans of making a grand return on the back of his old allies, the Pridnestrovians, but now that the Pridnestrovians had decided to go to Nordskania and establish their own puppet regime in the country (for what else were they going to be doing in Nordskania if not that?), Zharkov felt betrayed. He had fully expected the Pridnestrovians to support him through the gentle machinations of Kustodiyev even though Kustodiyev was not part of the Pridnestrovian Politburo and was not taken seriously among his peers because he had attained his high position only through marrying President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko’s sister. Now Kustodiyev was on his way to meet with Zharkov to discuss the Pridnestrovian invasion of Nordskania.

The Coast Guard gunboat docked in the only wooden pier leading to the settlement, which appeared dark and deserted because it was. The lights had been turned off to conserve electricity, and the tower of speakers constantly playing patriotic messages for the benefit of the Szavodan soldiers based on the nearby island was silent. The only lights came from the mayor’s villa, and that was where Kustodiyev made his way as he got off the gunboat. “No need to follow me, boys,” he told the boat crew members who were preparing to disembark to escort him. “I’m pretty sure that I’m safe here in our own propaganda settlement.”

“As you wish, Comrade General,” the senior praporshchik (a rank roughly equivalent to sergeant or ensign in the Pridnestrovian armed forces) said, yet he and his crew still watched as Kustodiyev walked towards the door of the mayor’s villa and knocked. To the crew’s surprise, the door opened, and Kustodiyev walked in. The praporshchik looked at his men as if to confirm that they all saw the same thing. Who could possibly be living in the propaganda settlement? However, being as they were all of much lower rank than the colonel general, they didn’t bother looking for answers very much. But the story of the people living in the propaganda settlement would still be passed around the Coast Guard as such stories always do, and it would eventually spread to the other branches of the armed forces and turn into all sorts of tales, from ghost stories to tales of secret military tests. Even in Pridnestrovia, people had their own ideas and fantasies about what their own government was doing.

Inside the villa itself, Kustodiyev walked straight past the men in black uniforms which he didn’t recognize but knew was from the Nordskanian DPR’s special forces. His main objective was in the villa’s expansive dining room, and when he got there, he saw that Vasily Zharkov had two guests with him. “Ah, Genrikh,” Zharkov said lightly. “How kind of you to come with us for this occasion. Have you met my friends?”

“I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure,” Kustodiyev said as he extended his hand, but Zharkov shook his head.

“That wasn’t an invitation to an introduction, Genrikh,” Zharkov said. “My friends were just about to leave as we have already discussed what we needed to discuss between each other. Weren’t you?” The two men nodded their heads and stood up to leave along with the black-uniformed Nordskanian Spetsnaz. “Have a seat, Genrikh,” Zharkov said.

“All right, Vasily, what it is you wished to talk about with me?” Kustodiyev asked with emphasis on the last two words.

“I wanted to ask you about just one thing, Genrikh, just one thing,” Zharkov said. “What was that you said to me when you decided to hide me away in this fucking lonely settlement house in the middle of nowhere? Oh, yes, now I remember it: you were going to do everything in your power to convince the Politburo of your country to come to my support me and my regime when it was time for me to come back to Nordskania and show the people that they need me to survive in this world. Now what’s this I hear that the Pridnestrovians have decided to establish their own puppet regime in my country? What the hell happened to allies, alliances, and getting their support?”

“Look, Vas, I made a mistake, okay?” Kustodiyev said. “I already told you before that nobody in the Politburo or even the Army trusts me more than they should as a staff officer. I only got to colonel general because I married Stepanenko’s sister and he was feeling extraordinarily generous that day. I’d probably only be just a colonel right now if I hadn’t married Maria, but that’s far from my point. My point is that I have overestimated my ability to sway opinion in my own country, let alone my own army. Nobody takes me seriously, and that’s before we even get to you. Using your own daughter to instigate a rebellion in your own country has convinced the Politburo that you’ve gone off your rocker. They don’t think you’re fit to run Nordskania anymore because you got a little bit too clever for yourself. You gave your daughter the motive and the means to gather her own power base, and now she’s gone and done her own thing. Have you heard about what she’s done? She’s only gone and established her own country now, and it’s not even a communist country! She’s gone fascist, Darya has, and it’s all because of you! And because of that, the Politburo no longer trusts you to run Nordskania, which is why they’ve decided to go and establish their own pre-approved regime in your country! And for what? So you could come back to Nordskania on top of a tank and show them that they need you to lead them into the future? It’s too late for that, Vasily. All you can do now is to get back what you still can and die bravely against the Army because they are going to destroy every faction they can. They’ll even go after the fucking north if those anarchists decide to try to kick us out of their homeland. That’s how messed up you’ve left your country, and now it’s a mess that my country has to clean up.”

“No one told your beloved President Field Marshal to go clean up the mess in my country,” Zharkov said as he sipped at some brandy. “That was supposed to be my job, but now your country had to just go America and try your hand at being world police. And are you sure that you want me to fight your own army? Because I don’t know how many of your brave young men and women will sacrifice their lives before I fall. Are you willing to sacrifice many lives just to get some kind of petty revenge on me?”

“Oh, there’s nothing petty about what’s going to happen to Nordskania, Vas, I can assure you of that,” Kustodiyev said as he stood up to leave. “I’m starting to regret ever trying to hide you away here, Vas. The right thing for me to do would be to report your presence to the Politburo and let them parade you around like the Romans did with the barbarian kings they captured, but that’s going to reveal my own involvement with you and your exiles. So now I’m telling you to get the hell out of my country and get back to where you came from and do whatever the hell you want there because I’ve had enough with you and your delusions. I’m out of here.”

“Praporshchik, take me back!” Kustodiyev shouted to the gunboat crew as he got out of the villa and walked back to the dock. The crew immediately noticed his sour mood and set about preparing the boat for departure as soon as he was onboard. Kustodiyev seethed quietly as the gunboat powered its way through the still waters of the bay between the Denisovskaya Islands and the Pridnestrovian coast. Sheltering Vas Zharkov was the biggest mistake he had ever made, he told himself. Even before he had become the dictator of Nordskania, Zharkov had always been a crafty fellow, maybe a bit too crafty for Kustodiyev’s tastes. And now Zharkov’s own craftiness had failed him. Nordskania was now torn apart into various warring factions in the south, from the numerous Rose Rebellions to the Nordskanian People’s Army which had taken advantage of Zharkov’s absence to try to claim power for themselves to those who were still loyal to Zharkov. Even the anarchist north was bound to join in on the action once they learned that the Pridnestrovians had landed in their country.

The coming fighting between the Pridnestrovians and the anarchists would be the most difficult, Kustodiyev was sure. Pridnestrovia had long known that the anarchists were being supported by the Empire of Anglatia because the Nordskanian Communists had supported communist movements in Anglatian territories like Southern Valeria and Patierre, and this was just their measure of taking revenge against Zharkov. And now Pridnestrovia had cast their lot into the fight. This war was going to be very brutal; Kustodiyev just knew it in his bones.

The gunboat docked at the Coast Guard base fifteen minutes after it had left the Denisovskayas. Kustodiyev hopped off the boat, still in a sour mood, and walked straight to his car. Waiting for him was a white-haired colonel wearing wire-rimmed glasses and a brunette major with a severe look on her face which didn’t match her wide brown eyes. Kustodiyev didn’t recognize any of them. “Where’s Colonel Anghelescu, Colonel?” he asked.

“Off sick, Comrade General, don’t you remember?” the colonel replied. “Major Glaser and I are filling in for him for the time being.”

Kustodiyev wasn’t as sure as the colonel, whose nameplate said CHAKULAKOV, about what happened to his aide, Colonel Klaus Anghelescu. Kustodiyev was sure that Anghelescu had been with him when he made this trip to the Coast Guard base. But then Kustodiyev shook his head. Maybe I’m misremembering things, he told himself. The stress of confronting Vas Zharkov was affecting him more than he thought it would.

Before he could have a chance to say anything, though, Major Glaser had already opened the door to his official car, and Kustodiyev got in on pure instinct. He then noted with surprise that both Major Glaser and Colonel Chakulakov did not get in the car with him; instead, they got into the car behind Kustodiyev’s. “All right, Nikita, I’m tired,” he told his driver as he massaged his head. “Take me home.”

When his driver didn’t move, Kustodiyev repeated his command. “Nikita, have you fallen asleep on the job again?” he asked. He reached out and shook his driver’s shoulder. “Nikita, this is serious.” Then Kustodiyev noticed that there was something strange with his own driver. He shook the shoulder again. The driver didn’t move or react to the touch as a normal human would. “Nikita?” Kustodiyev asked, and then he took a closer look at his own driver.

The thing in the driver’s seat of his car wasn’t his regular driver; it was just a dummy dressed to look like Kustodiyev’s driver from the back. Even as Kustodiyev absorbed this discovery, he noticed that the clock display on the car had been replaced by a digital timer which had just ticked down to one. But what did that one mean? Was it a minute or a second? Could Kustodiyev still get out of here?

Colonel General Kustodiyev’s car suddenly went up in a massive column of smoke and flame. The explosion rocked the entirety of the Coast Guard base and made everyone duck for cover wherever they could. It wasn’t until people realized that there were no other explosions did the Coast Guard realize that a colonel general had just been assassinated, and in their own base as well. The base’s local firefighting crews doused the burning car with water and foam, but everyone knew that there was no way for Kustodiyev to have survived the explosion. In the chaos, no one realized that the black car behind Kustodiyev’s car was no longer there.

On a hilltop overlooking the Coast Guard base, a man with orange hair and beard and a tan complexion watched the explosion with a stone face before reaching for his phone and calling a number. Once the person at the other end answered, he said, “It is done.”

“Is it? And General Kustodiyev?”

“He was inside the car when it exploded. Our agents watched the car even after the final explosion. They confirm that Kustodiyev didn’t make it out.”

“Good, good. Now here’s to hoping that his sacrifice won’t be in vain.”

“He did say that he regretted helping out Vasily Zharkov before he walked out of the villa, though.”

“Alas, it is unfortunate that the Comrade General saw the error of his ways just before he was taken away from our midst, but that is the job that we have been given, isn’t it?”

“I serve the Pridnestrovian Republic,” the ginger man said.

“As do we all,” the man at the other end of the call, Major General Boris Faddeyevich Birsakov of the Military Intelligence Directorate replied. “Is the evidence ready, Iosef?”

“Yes, Father,” Major Iosef Borisovich Birsakov said. “Everything will point to the Nordskanian anarchists and their Anglatian masters being the ones responsible for General Kustodiyev’s death.”

“Excellent, Iosef. If it’s war that the northern anarchists and their imperialist puppet masters want, then it’s war they’re going to get. It is such a shame that we had to sacrifice a man as great as Genrikh Kustodiyev to serve our purposes.”

“He has shown that he cannot be trusted while he is alive. Yet he is still useful to us in death. We have given the people a martyr around which they will rally and demand the blood of his killers.”

“That is true, Iosef. Now I must go and tell the Comrade President of this unfortunate development. Report back to Tiraspol with the others as soon as you can. I have a feeling that we will still have need of you and your fellows.”

“Yes, Father. I serve the Pridnestrovian Republic.”

[Banija]

Please refer to my signature(terminology of Banijan Royal Titles) to see the English equivalents of the royal titles.

The All-Banija Sports Magazine
The only nationwide publication that is all sports, all the time!

Massive road victory at Cosumar proves Banija are for real with 26-10 thorough victory over the global #6 team


Defensive players celebrate a pick six by cornerback Dragutin Tomikj(#24) in the 4th quarter to put the game away

COSUMAR- Banija knew that this upcoming game in Cosumar was a big one. It was another matchup against one of the 'big 3' of the All-Mart Conference, and it was a chance for Banija to prove themselves against the best of the best. Of course they had suffered an earlier loss to Abaja, which give them a second loss that does not look too good on their resumes, so they came out tonight with every intention of swinging for the fences and trying to bring it directly to Cosumar. We wrote here, while Banija were deservedly the underdogs, their motivation for this game, considering what it means, would be incredible, and push them over the top.

We were absolutely correct. While the offense did not do much of anything, accounting for four long drives that ended in field goal, the Banijan win today was a complete and total team effort. Banija had 3 of those scoring drives in the first half, and went into halftime leading 9-7. At the opening kickoff of the second half, Lemuel Yafet returned the kick 97 yards for a score to give his team a 16-7 lead. While Cosumar scored a field goal to make it 16-10 on the ensuing drive, that was the end of their scoring. The Banijan defense took over from that point, forcing 2 4th quarter turnovers.

With their contribution from special teams, and another long scoring drive ending in yet another field goal, the score was 19-10 to the visitors with about 6 minutes left in regulation. Cosumar was finally moving the ball, with a 3rd & 7 from their own 48 yard line. They tried to run a curl route to the sticks, but pressure from Momir Litvinov forced an errant throw that was intercepted by Dragutin Tomikj, the #1 shutdown cornerback for this team. He took the ball 60 yards to the house, untouched, and that pick six ended the game. With Banija not scoring a single offensive touchdown, the other units stepped up in this huge road game and put Banija over the top.

Of course, as what can usually happen after a big game, Banija is not guaranteed anything after this. They still need to win out to, at bare minimum, maintain 2nd place in this conference, and no knockout stage spot is clinched without first winning your division. Banija has a 3 game lead with 4 games left, of course, but a Banijan win, coupled with an Abaja loss, wraps up the RT&T Division and puts Banija into the knockout round. Of course, they are going to have to throw out all the stops for burgeoning rivals Main Nation Ministry, as this will surely be the most hostile environment that this team has ever visited.

----------------------------------------------------------
10:00 AM local time, 5 days before Main Nation Ministry Matchup; Royal Palace

Luguba Mateke(Queen Mateke), was the Queen Consort of the Kingdom of Banija. That day, of course, she was taking care to watch her great-grandchild, Omugaba Immaculate. The baby princess, just a couple of months old, was still drinking formula, which made sense of a child her age. Luguba Mateke was thinking to herself how fortunate she was to be a member of the Royal Family. The King of Banija, Mugisha III. was a good and loving husband, and she had birthed the next generation of the Royal Family. How many women could say that?

She was feeding her child formula, when all of a sudden, the baby, who was drinking quietly, dropped the bottle, and started choking. The Queen, while an old woman, let out a high-pitched scream that led the guards to drop everything and come running. She was the Queen, after all, and she was their primary responsibility outside of anybody not directly in the line of succession. After they came running, it was clear what was happening. Phone calls would have to be made. A guard picked her up and sprinted, bounding two steps at a time, to the Royal Family's private doctor.

The Kabaka, as well as the Isebantu, which was the Banijan title for Crown Prince, were both to be called. The Isebantu, of course, did not live at the Monarchial residence, but elsewhere within the city. He was able to get back first, as this was his only granddaughter. And, of course, Omugabe Mwanga, the father of the child, was travelling with his grandfather. The Isebantu got back just as the terrible news broke about the baby child. His only great-granddaughter, and the 3rd in line to the throne, was not only dead, but the victim of a child assassination. A national period of mourning started as the Royal Family started to get back to Busukuma as quickly as possible.

----------------------------------------------------------
11:00 AM local time, 3 days before Main Nation Ministry Matchup; Royal Palace

People in Banija were starting to get angry. Who killed the beautiful Princess? The woman in line to the throne, though she could have been passed by any younger brothers, was still the eldest child and the only great-grandchild of the Kabaka. Of course, there were nasty rumors leaking about, and the Katikkiro had failed to stop some details from getting leaked to the aggressive press. This emergency meeting, called by the Kabaka himself, consisted of only 4 people. The Kabaka, who was the reigining monarch, the Isebantu, who was the Crown Prince, Omugabe Mwanga, who was the baby's father and the 2nd in line to the throne as well as the first born son of the Isebantu, and the Katikkiro, who was the Prime Minister.

"Your Majesty, and your Royal Highnesses, I have some grave news to bear. The intelligence agencies are all pointing towards an assassination from Main Nation Ministry." Began the Katikkiro.

"Wait" Said Omugabe Mwanga. "Isn't this a country that our gridiron team is playing in a couple of days? Who did it?"

"Well, we aren't sure." Admitted the Katikkiro. "We are finding it difficult to establish a motive, but all evidence points towards that country. Main Nation Ministry has a character called 'number one fan'. While we're still trying to find info on this character, it seems as if he has the ability to pull off this kind of trick." The room, after that, slowly descended into chaos. They were debating on whether or not to send Banija to the Main Nation Ministry, whether it would be safe.

After the Kabaka called order, he proposed a solution. "Our team will be allowed to travel for this match. But, a few things must happen. Our special forces must be allowed to provide security for our soldiers, assisted by Main Nation Ministry forces. And, of course, we will recommend to the World Bowl Committee that Main Nation Ministry not be allowed to host anymore home games while we investigate." Everybody agreed with the Kabaka, and the message started to be passed out. Of course, Main Nation Ministry fans would be angry, but they did what they felt they had to do. An assassination of a future King or Queen of Banija would not be forgotten, and would most certainly have to be punished.

----------------------------------------------------------
9:30 PM local time, 2 days before Main Nation Ministry Matchup; Team Hotel

Banija was in an uproar. While the government had not definitely proven, or even outwardly stated that a citizen of Main Nation Ministry assassinated Omugaba Immaculate, the leak had occurred, and all of a sudden, this game's importance heightened even more. Standings, records, rankings were thrown out. Banija wanted to come here and pummel the heck out of this football team.

Of course, being protected by soldiers in a foreign land meant that this was not like any other road game. With the politics surrounding this matchup, this Banijan team would surely be prevented from sleeping the night before. Fans had already gathered in light numbers around the hotel, and they were booed on their way to the practice facility reserved for away teams during this World Bowl, at a local high school. And, of course, the curfews were strict. There was no hitting the town, no talking to locals- nothing. And, for Dennis Zervos, he was not happy about it.

He was known as a party animal in college, but he had a work hard play hard attitude. He partied, but he always came to work. His routine was stable, and he would always go out two nights before the game. That way, he couldn't be hungover on gameday, and being hungover at the final walkthrough wouldn't be nearly as bad. He, though, had to escape the guards. They wouldn't let him leave, and he was not about to be about that life. When people fell asleep, he scaled out 2 stories of window, and went to hit the town.

Zervos went to a club, and partied for about an hour. It was a Thursday night, so at about 11:30, he left the bar and started to walk home. Without any kind of protection, he was able to mask his accent so that people would not understand that he was Banijan. Of course, as he was walking, a car pulled up to the curb right next to him. This happened a lot in cities, so he ignored it. He was an international gridiron football player, he could take on anybody. He kept walking, and then, two people came, grabbed his mouth, and threw him into the car. Zervos wasn't going home for a while....

[Southern Democratic States]

The Southerners beats The Redvale

Rockingham, Chattahoochee - (NEIP) After being crushed by an angry Banijan team, the Bears recieved The Redvale at home. The Southerners won 29-10, thanks to 3 touchdowns, 2 field goals and one safety. The Southern Bears started with the ball first and on the first play of the game, Clifford Jenkins was sacked for a 8 yards loss. Then on a 2nd and 18, Coconut Riddick ran for 15 yards and, on the next play, Clifford Jenkins passed for 6 yards for a first down. A couple of plays later, the Southerners were at the 3 yards line in Revdale territory. On a 1st and goal, Coconut Riddick ran for 2 yards. Then he jumped into the end zone over the linemen for a 1 yard rushing touchdown. 7-0 SDS. On their first drive, The Roughnecks made a field goal and it's 7-3 Southerners. The Southerners' next drive ended with a nice punt by Nick Larsen, the ball went out of bounds at the 2 yards line. On a first and 10, Benji Salvador ran for no gain. On the next play, Andel Ramirez was sacked into the endzone by Nick Knox for a safety. 9-3 SDS. The Bears recieved the safety kick and after a couple of plays, Crockett Burkhead made a 44 yards field goal and the Southerners are leading 12-3. The Bears scored again before the end of the 2nd quarter, on a 33 yards pass by Clifford Jenkins to Marquis Hatwood and it was 19-3 for the Bears at the halftime.

The Redvale started the 3rd quarter with the ball but after 3 plays, they had to punt. On the Southerners' next dive, Clifford Jenkins was intercepted by Carson Miranda who returned the ball at the 38 yards line in Southern territory. Andel Ramirez passed to Dante Birken for 14 yards. Andel Ramirez' pass is incomplete. Andel Ramirez' pass is incomplete. Andel Ramirez passed to Santiago de Rossi for 19 yards. Benji Salvador ran for 3 yards. Benji Salvador ran for no gain. Andel Ramirez passed to Torrence Whitfield for a 2 yards touchdown. 19-10 SDS. The Southerners followed with a field goal on their next drive for a 22-10 lead. In the 4th quarter, The Roughnecks starts with the ball at the 36 yard line in their own territory. Andel Ramirez passes to Santiago de Rossi for 24 yards. Then he threw to Aleix Fuller but was intercepted by Octavius Jones who returned it for a touchdown. It was a 77 yards interception return and the final score is 29-10 Southern Democratic States.

The Southern Bears are 7th in the All Mart conference, but it's a quadruple tie between the 5th and 8th places so anything can still happen. Our next game is at Schottia, more precisely at Gateside Park, Handon. After being crushed by Schottia, we travel to Québec and finish the regular season at home against two unranked teams. At best we could win 3 of them games and lose one (againt Schottia) and we can have a chance to make the playoffs, at worst we win just one and lose 3 and don't make the playoffs.

Southern Democratic States   12    7    3    7   -   29
The Redvale                   3    0    7    0   -   10

BOXSCORE
1st quarter
11:32 Touchdown by Coconut Riddick (1 yard run) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good
8:55 Field Goal by Luis Arana (32 yards)
4:23 Safety (Andel Ramirez sacked into the endzone by Nick Knox)
0:47 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (44 yards)
2nd quarter
6:29 Touchdown by Marquis Hatwood (33 yards pass from Clifford Jenkins) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good
3rd quarter
9:41 Touchdown by Torrence Whitfield (2 yards pass from Andel Ramirez) extra point by Luis Arana good
6:04 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (25 yards)
4th quarter
3:33 Touchdown by Octavius Jones (77 yards interception return) extra point by Crockett Burkhead good

[Main Nation Ministry]

Royal Palace
5 days before Main Nation Ministry Matchday, Banija

The number one fan went into the royal palace quietly. She admitted it was easy, since she didn't need to go into top secret areas and the maid uniform she was using helped her blend in. She checked the map of the palace on her phone, the nursery was on the floor she was on. She opened the door to the nursery and looked around. There were sounds of a baby coming from a crib. She quietly walked over to the crib and saw the Princess, staring at the ceiling. "Shh...It will all be over soon. Your death will be what will join your family to the other side." the fan said as she checked a baby bottle and a vial of baby formula. Before she poisoned the baby formula, the fan picked up a doll from the nursery. The fan opened up an eye drop with the contents released with cyanide. The fan added a drop to the formula, then walked out of the nursery and out of the palace. She took out her maid uniform and put it in a rental car. While she was driving away from the palace to a place to burn the evidence, a police car and an ambulance drove by in a hurry. The plan worked.

The Tower of Years Sculpture, Victory Square, City Sector
3 days before Main Nation Ministry Matchday, Main Nation Ministry

The Tower of Years Sculpture was standing as bright, as anyways. Created by an artist who contributed the piece to the Leader, it became a mini-landmark and used as a tourist spot to simply take pictures. Meanwhile, the fan was using a laptop for another piece of her plan. The laptop was hooked up to a remote controlled car that was to crash near the sculpture. When the fan pressed the Enter key, the car sped from hiding out of an alley, almost hit several bystanders and crashed into the base of the Tower of Years Sculpture. The sculpture didn't fall, as the force of the crash didn't cause it to fall over. Immediately, a patrol unit was on the scene. When they approached the vehicle, a baby was heard from the backseat. One of them checked out the driver's seat to see no one driving it, while the other slowly opened the back door. When he looked inside, the officer saw only a doll that didn't appear to be native to the nation. The doll had a mini screen on the chest of it and had a phone with baby sounds coming from it. "Dan, there only a toy in the backseat." the officer said as he grabbed the doll. Suddenly, the screen had words appeared on it.

"What this? Email? Boom? Oh shit, Dan-"

BOOM!

The car exploded in flames, as the officers were incinerated by the blast. The debris and shrapnel flew in all directions as the bystanders who thought they were safe gets hit. The base of the sculpture is finally destroyed as the sculpture topples over and crushes a grilled snake fish stand.

The Truth News

Attack at Tower of Years Kills 3, Injuries Many

"In an absolutely disgusting attack on one of the nation's mini landmarks, the General is currently outraged along with many and those who were related to the deaths of 3 people. While the death toll is low, the attack is a sign for complete terror against the nation. The only evidence found at the scene is a car that was traced back to a car dealership owner who is currently is being interrogated and a doll head that was traced back to the nation of Banija. During a press conference, Lead Detective Symes says that the doll head could have possibly come from a terrorist from the nation of Banija and not a government approved attack. However, General Winston Harrington denies Symes claims, saying that the Banija did it on purpose and blames them for the Football Team World Bowl massacre that killed the families and friends of the football team."

"Currently, secret police are placing a curfew to limit crime in the city sector. Crime in the city sector is rare, as citizens who lives in the city sector see it as an "utopia". With the Match Day with Banija approaching, many are afraid that many riots related to sports fans will appear."

Somewhere Unknown
2 days before the Matchday with Main Nation Ministry

Dennis Zervos woke up somewhere in a weird room, standing on a chair. It looked like a room that belonged in a slaughterhouse and the tile floor was a bleach white. Dennis couldn't speak as his mouth was covered in duct tape. Footsteps are heard, as a man wearing a fancy suit and a gas mask appears.
"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty."

The gas mask man walked over to Dennis. The gas mask man had long, black hair that almost covered his ears. "You are confused, of course. But we are here to show you the truth. Does the nation Main Nation Ministry sound familiar?" Dennis, of course couldn't speak due to the duct tape. "The motive for this kidnapping isn't because the general had you kidnapped. We are here to show you the truth. You heard about the massacre of the Main Nation Ministry football team families and friends? It was him. The general. Of course, you don't believe us."

"What's about on in here?!"

Another voice spook from a door that appeared out of place. "Get the flash drive on the table. We need to give it to our guest." the gas mask man said to the voice at the door. The door opened and a short teenager appeared, but there was something completely wrong with her. Her clothes are covered with blood, her skin was white as ice with veins that were black. She had teeth that belonged to a shark and the glasses she wore only appeared to cast glare. In her right hand was a chainsaw, bloodstained.

"Is our guest waking up?" the teenager said to the gas mask man. "Give him the flash drive. It contains the information he needs." The teenager walked over to Dennis, who at this point must be completely terrified, as he tries to move his arms and legs, but they are also duct taped to the chair. When the teen was close to Dennis, he can see what was behind the glare. Her eyes appeared bloodshot and was covered in tears that stained her cheeks. She put a black flash drive in his pocket and stroked Dennis face, covering his face with some blood. The gas mask man continued speaking, "In it is the truth. You cannot talk about her. You must keep this information to yourself. If you tell someone immediately, we will make you don't exist in this world. We will send a message to when you shall reveal the truth. We are not terrorists. We don't belong to her. Not the fan. When you look at the images you see on the flash drive, the truth will be known to you and you only. Stand back."

The gas mask man walked up to Dennis and pulled out a spray can that showed a woman getting something out of an oven. The gas mask man sprays Dennis face causing him to go unconsciousness. The last thing Dennis remembers is the smell of cookies.

???

Dennis wakes up again, but this time he laying in a field. He looks around and recognizes it as Banija. He was back in his nation. He saw a city in the distance. When Dennis got up, he got the idea to start running, and so he did.

[Fujisawan Territories]

Hoji Metropolitan Daily Record

Oisinistan-Fujisawan Territories Pre-Game Coverage

Category Five Hurricane Talking Points of the Day

Category One
Beware of ticket scammers for Frenline Delpha game

The Fujisawan Territories-Frenline Delpha game is sold out in advance. Ticket scalpers have taken advantage by offering tickets to the game, some as much as five thousand yent. The problem is, they don't actually have tickets. If you are willing to pay big money for a ticket to the big game on matchday thirteen, make sure you have tickets in hand before you hand over your cold hard cash the Hoji Police Department warns. Never pay before you have received your tickets! Several related arrests have been made. If you really want to see the game, at this point it's best to stay home and watch from the comfort and safety of your own sofa

Category Two
The Offense roars back to life

Absent during the three game losing streak was offensive production. There was plenty of that it display against Thereisnogodistan in the Hurricane's 36-23 win last night. Kozutsami threw for three touchdowns in the air and Oka picked up 117 yards in the ground game. Yogi kicked five field goals, making them all. A plethora of scoring opportunities was the result of discipline, resolve and confidence. Look for this same offense to be firing on all cylinders in front of the hometown crowd in the Global Arena tonight.

Category Three
Love for Newmanistan abundant in the Territories as 'The Kick' tops Territorial box office

The new major Hojiwood motion picture 'The Kick', about the Territories' playoff run during the World Bowl VII season, hit theaters last week to rave reviews from critics. It also left many a Hurricane fan with tears of joy streaming down their face in theaters across the nation. Thirty six minutes of the nearly two and a half hour movie depict the infamous Newmanistan-Fujisawan Territories semifinal that sent the Hurricane to World Bowl VII, including the play that we all call "The Kick." A-list post rock bands China Fire and Screaming Yeti combined to produce a haunting soundtrack for the films highs and lows. And Tekkan Yoshihara playing the role of head coach Rai Lo was breathtaking. This movie is set to smash box office records for a sports movie. In opening day numbers, it has already topped 'Columbian Gold' which is based on the memoirs of Jozenna Nai, the Fujisawan Territories' first overall and gold medal Olympian at the III Summer Olympics in Columbia, UCS. It has also topped 'Hear No Evil', which focuses on the struggles of Sakura Jo, a deaf high school goalkeeper from the Hoji Metropolitan High School for the Deaf, who inspired the nation in the 4th di Bradini Cup, where the Territories lost to Newmanistan in the final. Yet despite the patriotic Territorial sports hero worship rampant throughout the film, there is much respect expressed for the Territories' opponents. Particularly Newmanistan. And there's plenty of love for Newmanistan across the islands. Newmanistan has a reverent base of fans in the Territories who for whatever reason, forsake the Hurricane in favor of the Rockets. Luckily for them, the movie is fair and gives Newmanistan the respect they deserve.

Category Four
Astronomical odds become real possibility

Following monumental wins (the likes of which read like a Hojiwood movie script) against Ethane, 19-16 in overtime, and against Thereisnogodistan, 36-23, the Hurricane look poised to make some noise to end the season. Hurricane front end staff predict a 2-2 finish to end the season with losses to Frenline Delpha and Drawkland, with two winnable games against Oisinistan and Republic of Rawn. That would leave the Hurricane at 9-5 at season's end and in contention for the wildcard spot depending on how things go with other teams. The head to head advantage against Thereisnogodistan and United States of Devonta is integral towards improving the Territories' odds of a playoff run.

Already at this point in the tourney, the team has exceeded the expectations of the coaching and front end staff. It appears that the Hurricane will have a bright future in future editions of the tournament, but as far as the rest of the season is concerned, the competition is fierce at the close of group stage play. The Territories will host Frenline Delpha at Crosscom before heading for the dreaded road game against Drawkland to close out the regular season.

Next on the docket for the Hurricane is Oisinistan in the Global Arena. The Hurricane previously defeated Oisinistan 29-24 on the road in the third match day. A crowd just shy of 100,000 is expected but will produce ample noise to disrupt any potential offenisve rhythm Oisinistan can muster.

Category Five
Coach Urogataya has contract extended

Coach Urogataya got his three year contract extended last night for another four years, through World Bowl XXXVII. This was largely following upset wins over Ethane and Thereisnogodistan. Both games were projected losses by Hurricane front end administrative staff at the beginning of the season. Though Urogataya is no Rai Lo, he is pretty decent in his own right. Perhaps the Hurricane wil reach the playoffs with the wildcard spot. I doubt they'll get far in the playoffs, but they just might get there. If they do, Urogataya played a large part in that. Any lingering doubt that a collegiate head coach cannot transition to coaching international gridiron football has been laid to rest.

[Free Republics]

This is your Matchday 11 Cutoff brought to you by the New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate! The NRWC: Where Men become Superstars and Superstars become Legends!

---

MD11 Results

All-Mart Conference

RT&T Division
Christian Isles 0–48 Abaja
Main Nation Ministry 16–50 Banija

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Banija                       11    9   2   419  201 +218
2 Abaja                        11    6   5   315  189 +126
3 Main Nation Ministry         11    5   6   169  241  −72
4 Christian Isles              11    3   8   112  347 −235

R&K Bank Division
Somersville 17–31 Cosumar
Royal Kingdom of Quebec 45–20 The Redvale

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Cosumar                      11    9   2   350  162 +188
2 Royal Kingdom of Quebec      11    9   2   340  176 +164
3 The Redvale                  11    5   6   249  279  −30
4 Somersville                  11    0  11   109  372 −263

FreedomCola Division
Schottia 35–6 Southern Democratic States
Santaclausisgodistan 32–0 Vettrera

                              Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Schottia                     11   11   0   428   95 +333
2 Southern Democratic States   11    5   6   149  203  −54
3 Santaclausisgodistan         11    4   7   192  247  −55
4 Vettrera                     11    0  11    76  396 −320

All-Mart Conference

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Schottia                     11   11   0   428   95 +333
 2 Banija                       11    9   2   419  201 +218
 3 Cosumar                      11    9   2   350  162 +188
 4 Royal Kingdom of Quebec      11    9   2   340  176 +164
 5 Abaja                        11    6   5   315  189 +126
 6 Main Nation Ministry         11    5   6   169  241  −72
 7 Southern Democratic States   11    5   6   149  203  −54
 8 The Redvale                  11    5   6   249  279  −30
 9 Santaclausisgodistan         11    4   7   192  247  −55
10 Christian Isles              11    3   8   112  347 −235
11 Somersville                  11    0  11   109  372 −263
12 Vettrera                     11    0  11    76  396 −320

Sporting World Conference

RepublicSoft Division
De Dreamland 3–27 Allamunnic States
Qasden 8–33 West Saintland

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Allamunnic States             11    9   2   410  145 +265
2 West Saintland                11    7   4   224  145  +79
3 Qasden                        11    4   7   206  277  −71
4 De Dreamland                  11    1  10   131  366 −235

O'Reilly Organization Division
Gregoryisgodistan 42–10 Cumhact
The United States of Saints 30–0 Kebec

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Gregoryisgodistan             11    9   2   307   69 +238
2 The United States of Saints   11    7   4   212  185  +27
3 Kebec                         11    3   8   168  341 −173
4 Cumhact                       11    1  10    72  397 −325

Olden Division
Jeckland 10–57 Newmanistan
Kaboomlandia 33–12 The Fair Republic

                               Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Kaboomlandia                  11   11   0   416  131 +285
2 The Fair Republic             11    7   4   304  220  +84
3 Newmanistan                   11    7   4   400  254 +146
4 Jeckland                      11    0  11    75  395 −320

Sporting World Conference

                                Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Kaboomlandia                  11   11   0   416  131 +285
 2 Allamunnic States             11    9   2   410  145 +265
 3 Gregoryisgodistan             11    9   2   307   69 +238
 4 The Fair Republic             11    7   4   304  220  +84
 5 West Saintland                11    7   4   224  145  +79
 6 Newmanistan                   11    7   4   400  254 +146
 7 The United States of Saints   11    7   4   212  185  +27
 8 Qasden                        11    4   7   206  277  −71
 9 Kebec                         11    3   8   168  341 −173
10 De Dreamland                  11    1  10   131  366 −235
11 Cumhact                       11    1  10    72  397 −325
12 Jeckland                      11    0  11    75  395 −320

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

Bank of Acedonia Division
Fleuronordicia 0–32 Drawkland
Fujisawan Territories 33–13 Oisinistan

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Drawkland                        11   11   0   452  143 +309
2 Fujisawan Territories            11    8   3   263  219  +44
3 Oisinistan                       11    3   8   186  290 −104
4 Fleuronordicia                   11    2   9   141  270 −129

Bank of Republica Division
Thereisnogodistan 60–0 Korizland
Allamunnic Sporting Commission 19–30 Frenline Delpha

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Frenline Delpha                  11   10   1   407  151 +256
2 Thereisnogodistan                11    7   4   406  223 +183
3 Allamunnic Sporting Commission   11    4   7   277  343  −66
4 Korizland                        11    0  11   100  476 −376

Baseton Mutual Division
Ethane 32–7 Selvera
United States of Devonta 54–10 Republic of Rawn

                                  Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Ethane                           11    9   2   327   61 +266
2 United States of Devonta         11    7   4   289  207  +82
3 Republic of Rawn                 11    3   8   151  350 −199
4 Selvera                          11    2   9   111  377 −266

Nicholls Enterprises Conference

                                   Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Drawkland                        11   11   0   452  143 +309
 2 Frenline Delpha                  11   10   1   407  151 +256
 3 Ethane                           11    9   2   327   61 +266
 4 Fujisawan Territories            11    8   3   263  219  +44
 5 United States of Devonta         11    7   4   289  207  +82
 6 Thereisnogodistan                11    7   4   406  223 +183
 7 Allamunnic Sporting Commission   11    4   7   277  343  −66
 8 Oisinistan                       11    3   8   186  290 −104
 9 Republic of Rawn                 11    3   8   151  350 −199
10 Fleuronordicia                   11    2   9   141  270 −129
11 Selvera                          11    2   9   111  377 −266
12 Korizland                        11    0  11   100  476 −376

Dixon Light Conference

New Republican Wrestling Conglomerate Division
Equatorial Zeldaen 7–27 Free Republics
Nassau-Hessen 73–0 Smertonosnyy

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Nassau-Hessen             11   10   1   456  116 +340
2 Free Republics            11    8   3   309  141 +168
3 Equatorial Zeldaen        11    4   7   178  367 −189
4 Smertonosnyy              11    0  11   131  354 −223

National Organization for Men Division
Chromatika 37–17 West Angola
Northern Shrekistan 20–43 Greater Vakolicci Haven

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Chromatika                11   11   0   410  135 +275
2 Greater Vakolicci Haven   11    9   2   407  192 +215
3 Northern Shrekistan       11    3   8   193  387 −194
4 West Angola               11    2   9   129  327 −198

BearOil Division
Kosovakia 7–66 Firebolt
Cryandolap 7–49 Abanhfleft

                           Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
1 Abanhfleft                11   10   1   459  124 +335
2 Firebolt                  11    5   6   266  330  −64
3 Cryandolap                11    2   9   181  396 −215
4 Kosovakia                 11    2   9   205  455 −250

Dixon Light Conference

                            Pld    W   L    PF   PA   PD 
 1 Chromatika                11   11   0   410  135 +275
 2 Nassau-Hessen             11   10   1   456  116 +340
 3 Abanhfleft                11   10   1   459  124 +335
 4 Greater Vakolicci Haven   11    9   2   407  192 +215
 5 Free Republics            11    8   3   309  141 +168
 6 Firebolt                  11    5   6   266  330  −64
 7 Equatorial Zeldaen        11    4   7   178  367 −189
 8 Northern Shrekistan       11    3   8   193  387 −194
 9 Cryandolap                11    2   9   181  396 −215
10 West Angola               11    2   9   129  327 −198
11 Kosovakia                 11    2   9   205  455 −250
12 Smertonosnyy              11    0  11   131  354 −223

[Abanhfleft]

The Pridnestrovian Invasion of Nordskania, Part Eight

The State Duma
Tiraspol, Transnistrian Socialist State, Pridnestrovia

The Pridnestrovian State Duma was a large and imposing structure on the banks of the Dniester River, which flowed through the entire length of Pridnestrovia and gave it its name. It was right opposite the Tiraspol Kremlin, and both structures had clear views of the other every day of the year. The Duma housed the Congress of People’s Deputies, ostensibly the legislative branch of the Pridnestrovian government, but everyone in the Duma knew that the real power in the country resided in the red-walled fort across the Dniester from them.

The Congress of People’s Deputies, or the Duma as it was also known and called by the Pridnestrovian people, was supposed to vote on matters of national importance such as the passing of bills into laws and voting in agreement or rejection of a war to be waged by Pridnestrovia’s forces. But because all real power resided in the Kremlin with the President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko and his Politburo, the Duma barely even bothered going through the rigmarole of voting on the declaration of war against Nordskania. As legislators and lawmakers, they knew that the term “Nordskania” was broadly encompassing and could mean everything from the various factions scattered throughout the old Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic to the northern anarchists of so-called “Revolutionary Nordskania” to the entire island of Nordskania itself. But the Politburo could hardly care about legalities, and with even the north gearing up its armies to throw back the Pridnestrovian invasion of the south, it looked as if the declaration of war had been intentionally worded that way so that everyone on the island of Nordskania was already an enemy combatant in Pridnestrovian eyes.

The Duma’s meetings were usually canceled in times of war, but today there was a special extraordinary meeting of the Congress of People’s Deputies, and everyone knew that that could only mean one thing: the Comrade President was about to give a speech to the Pridnestrovian people. Stepanenko’s speeches could be expected to be full of bombastic rhetoric praising the Pridnestrovian republic and berating its enemies, which ranged from ideologies to nations to anything which Stepanenko was in the mood to insult. Now that Pridnestrovia was at war and the anarchists from so-called Revolutionary Nordskania had made their own declaration of war against the Pridnestrovian invasion, everyone was expecting a good speech from the Comrade President.

The entire Duma, all one hundred and fourteen of its members, had gathered inside the Hall of People’s Deputies for the special extraordinary meeting. They all had a courtside seat to the Comrade President’s speech, which they liked to watch because Stepanenko would sometimes go off the rails by the emotions which he evoked in himself during his own speeches. Of course, he had a prepared speech waiting for him every time he addressed the people of Pridnestrovia, but Stepanenko liked to add little bits and pieces to his speech which he considered relevant to the topic at hand, and there was no knowing where these bits and pieces were going to take the Comrade President once he got going.

“Order in the Duma,” the Congress’s sergeant-at-arms called out, and the discussions and small talk throughout the Duma came to a halt. “May we now call on the Prime Minister of the Democratic People’s Republic of Pridnestrovia, Durag Kirilovich Nikovgorodiev of the Yatuvilsk Socialist State,” the sergeant-at-arms called out.

Durag Kirilovich Nikovgorodiev, the Prime Minister of Pridnestrovia, looked just like what one would expect the prime minister of a still-very-much-dictatorial country to be. He was a middle-aged, already deep into his sixties, and the only gray hair still on his head clung tenaciously to his temples, unwilling to give up in the fight against baldness. His large paunch and deeply-lined face, which was always ready to greet anyone with a curt nod and a tight smile, gave the appearance of a stern school headmaster, but to those who really knew him, he was a jovial man always ready with a joke or wisecrack about the present situation of the world at large. Right now, his mouth was a tight and grim line as he took the podium in the middle of the hall, a sure sign that he was in pure professional mode.

“Comrades,” Nikovgorodiev said, and he paused as he waited for the feedback to subside before continuing. “Fellow Deputies of the Pridnestrovian people, I am here to announce that we are being graced by the presence of none other than our very own Comrade President, President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko. It is he who has called upon this special extraordinary session of the Congress of People’s Deputies, for he wishes to update you and the Pridnestrovian people on the status of the invasion of our old ally Nordskania. Now, may I call on our very own Comrade President to take the stand?”

President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko was in full military regalia, a sign to the people that they should expect lots of patriotism from him for the coming speech. The seventy-year-old stood up from his place behind the podium and beside the President of the Congress of People’s Deputies and took Nikovgorodiev’s place behind the podium. “Thank you for the spirited introduction, Comrade Prime Minister,” Stepanenko said in a light and joking tone, and then his face gained a hardened expression, and everyone knew that his speech was about to begin.

“Comrades! Citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of the United Socialist States of Pridnestrovia!” Stepanenko called out. “I stand before you to tell you that we are now at war. Yes, I know that we have already declared war on our old fraternal socialist ally Nordskania a few weeks ago, so there is no need for me to remind you of that. I am here to tell you that the invasion of Nordskania by our forces has been a resounding success!” Loud applause greeted Stepanenko’s proclamation of the success of the Pridnestrovian Army in gaining a foothold in Nordskanian territory, but everyone knew that he had barely even started so the applause quickly petered out.

“Comrades, for the last few days our brave sons and daughters have accomplished our aim of restoring order to Nordskania by eliminating these so-called Rose Rebellions which have sprung up throughout the country like weeds, and I am justified in calling these so-called Rose Rebellions weeds because they are weeds, feeding off of the bountiful socialist Nordskanian soil to nourish their own harmful and useless ideologies. As of this moment, our Army has eliminated the threat of the so-called White Roses, the so-called Pink Roses, the so-called Red Roses, the so-called Black Roses, the so-called Orange Roses, the so-called Purple Roses, the so-called Green Roses, the so-called Yellow Roses, the so-called Maroon Roses, the so-called Bronze Roses, and they are close to destroying the threat of the so-called Gold Roses.” More applause from the Duma as Stepanenko listed off the various factions that the Pridnestrovian armed forces had eliminated in Nordskania.

“As things stand, there are now only three enemies standing in the way of our forces finally restoring order to Nordskania,” Stepanenko continued, “and they are the rump government of the Nordskanian Democratic People’s Republic, led by none other than the old dictator of Nordskania, Vasily Zharkov; the so-called Soviet Republic of Nordskania, led by Marshal Pavel Andriychuk of the Nordskanian People’s Army (imagine that, the army coming to claim power in a rapidly collapsing communist state. Where else could such a thing have happened?); and then finally we have the fascist so-called State of Nordskania, led by none other than Vasily Zharkov’s own daughter Darya Zharkov, who has come to call herself Roseanne due to the deadly influence of the fascism that has infected her mind and soul. But, comrades, I have just learned that we now have a new enemy on the horizon, and that is the anarchist so-called Community of Revolutionary Nordskania.” This time, Stepanenko’s words were met with jeers and boos, but that wasn’t because they didn’t like the way his speech was going; instead they were booing so-called Revolutionary Nordskania, which had been a thorn to their old ally Zharkov’s side, a thorn which the Pridnestrovians were now more than happy to deal with.

“As I am sure you know by now, comrades, the people who call themselves the government of so-called Revolutionary Nordskania have voted to raise their armies once again in preparation for kicking us out of their island,” Stepanenko continued, a manic glint beginning to appear in his eye. “Yes, the armies of the northern anarchists were able to defeat the Nordskanian People’s Army before, but need I remind you that the Nordskanian army at the time was made up mostly of conscripts who were thrown into battle with a rifle and the command to fight the enemy any way that they could? The old Nordskanian People’s Army would barely even stand up against a rioting mob of angry CSKA fans!” Stepanenko’s words earned him more applause and some laughter from some of the older members of the Duma, those who had been in this business long enough to know how far they could push the boundaries of what was acceptable during Stepanenko’s speeches.

“I am absolutely confident that our Pridnestrovian Armed Forces are made of much tougher stuff than that, comrades!” Stepanenko said. “And that is why I am confident that our sons and daughters in the armed forces will bowl over the anarchists from the north just as they bowled over the various so-called Rose Rebellions and will bowl over those enemies which still remain. The legacy of the Great Patriotic War still flows in the veins of our valiant fighters, and they will lead us to victory as surely as they led us to victory against Szavoda during the Great Patriotic War!” In reality, the Pridnestrovian-Szavodan War of 2002 to 2008, what the Pridnestrovians called the Great Patriotic War, ended in status quo ante bellum, meaning that everything went back to the way it was before the war. Pridnestrovia gained nothing and Szavoda gained nothing, but both nations lost a lot of lives in the conflict. The war still marked a low point between the two nations even as diplomatic relations had been normalized once again, even though they were strained to the limit.

“But why would the anarchists from the north choose this time to declare war on us instead of the days when we were obviously preparing for some kind of invasion?” Stepanenko asked rhetorically. “Is it because they were not sure if it was their communist brethren to the south which we were going to invade? Or is it because they did not have the support of their puppet masters, the Anglatians, until now? Need I even tell you that the answer is obviously the one which involves our imperialist neighbors? We have long suspected that our dear Comrade Emperor Colden of Anglatia has been covertly supporting the northern anarchists ever since the first signs of rebellion were stirring up in Nordskania, and now we, the Pridnestrovian Republic, have the proof we need to accuse the Anglatians in a court of criminal law!” Of course, this was where the bombastic part of Stepanenko’s speeches went. And even though Pridnestrovia had already confirmed the involvement of Anglatia in the north through its own sources, it was not enough evidence to indict someone in a court of law, so to speak.

“To Emperor Colden, and to the Anglatian Empire, this is what I say: go home!” Stepanenko shouted, and once again he was greeted with massive applause. Once the clapping had subsided, Stepanenko continued, “Anglatia, if you do not wish to listen to reason then I will attempt to appeal to your emotions even though I know it is most probably an exercise in futility. Do not send your sons and daughters to die in such a needless conflict. Let your anarchist puppets in the north and your fascist puppet in the south die for you. Yes, we know that you are providing the so-called State of Nordskania with the latest in Anglatia’s weapons and battle technology. Why fight and die alongside your puppets when you’ve already spent this much of making them fight your own battles for you? Turn your ships and your planes around and spare the lives of your sons and daughters, for this is not your fight. We, the Pridnestrovian people, could have easily made this fight between us and you Anglatians but we did not. This fight is between Pridnestrovia and the Nordskanian rebels. Stay out of it or else!”

“To the so-called Community of Revolutionary Nordskania, to the so-called Northern Syndicate, and to Miss Anya Belashova, this is what I say to your declaration of war against the Pridnestrovian Republic: Ha!” Yet more applause for Stepanenko. “The Pridnestrovian Republic laughs at your declaration of war against us! Raise all your armies if you must, but know that you will only be sending them to the meat grinder against a well-disciplined armed force! This is not the Nordskanian People’s Army, boys and girls. The Pridnestrovian Army does not run from the fight. We will crush all those who oppose us! And as for these aerial defenses of which you are so proud, let us see how long it holds out from a steady rain of missiles and bombs. Then we will know who is more powerful!”

“Finally, to the sons and daughters of Pridnestrovia fighting on the beaches and on the mountains and in the valleys and on the fields of Nordskania, take heart in yourselves!” Stepanenko called out. “You have survived eight years of war against our hated enemies, the Szavodans. What are a bunch of fascists, anarchists, and imperialists to you? You are the spirit and future of the Pridnestrovian Republic, soldiers of the Army, sailors of the Navy, aviators of the Air Force, and men and women of the Strategic Rocket Forces! Surge forth, destroy your enemies, restore order to our old ally, and come back to the Motherland as heroes and heroines of the Republic!” This part of Stepanenko’s speech earned him the longest applause from the Duma. There was nothing like inspiring the youth to give their lives to their country to make old men and women clap like crazy.

“To the people of Pridnestrovia, stay true to the course of our nation!” Stepanenko said to close out his speech. “We are successful and prosperous because we have remained true to world socialism, and nothing will be gained and everything will be lost if we stray from the radiant path! This path has taken us through the restoration of order of our old ally, but what can a man do to a friend in need except help him? We are only doing what is right and just, comrades, and for that we are proud and must be proud! We are Pridnestrovia, and we will emerge victorious over all!” Applause followed Stepanenko all the way from the lectern to his seat beside the President of the Congress of People’s Deputies, who was actually moved to tears by the Comrade President’s speech.

As far as Stepanenko’s speeches went, it was par for the course. It had that mix of patriotism, angry threats against enemies, and appeals to the people to remain strong and firm in the face of world events. It wasn’t Stepanenko’s best speech by far, but right now it was the most memorable. Now it was up to the Pridnestrovian Armed Forces miles and miles away to carry out the will of their Comrade President and their Republic.

[Fujisawan Territories]

Hoji Metropolitan Daily Record

Hurricane gaining strength in home stretch

Though the Hurricane seemed to be losing steam in the mid stretch of the season, losing three games in a row, they have now posted four consecutive wins. The latest was against hapless Oisinistan. They wil next face Republic of Rawn in tonight's game. The game tonight is important in maintaining a one game lead in the race for the wildcard spot. With two projected losses upcoming on the horizon against Frenline Delpha and Drawkland, this game against Republic of Rawn is of great import to the Hurricane, as it is the last real chance for a win before those incredibly tough games to round out the season.

In yesterday's game, the Hurricane didn't finally wake up on offense until the fourth quarter in a game that Oisinistan could have easily won. Though the final score wouldn't necessarily indicate such, Oisinistan was in the game for most of the day. Even after the Hurricane got their first touchdown, Oisinistan was still very much alive. This game provided solid intel for the Frenline Delpha and Drawkland front end staff to review in how best to exploit the Hurricane offense's weaknesses in those upcoming games.

On Oisinistan's first possession, Shane Woods connected with Ian Mountbatten for thirty two yards to open scoring in the game just shy of three minutes in. A 7-0 lead in hand, Oisinistan forced a three and out against the Hurricane offense, who cleary had some rust to shake off. Oisinistan's second possession yielded a field goal and 10-0 lead. Crosccom became quite quiet at that moment. The teams traded punts for the remainder of the first quarter until with :29 on the clock, Torazo Yogi hit his first field goal of the day, a thirty nine yarder.

On the Hurricane's first crack at the ball of the second quarter and trailing 10-3, Oisinistan seemingly extended their lead with a pick six, but it was called back on a penalty. The drive would eventually net another field goal, bringing the score to 10-6 which would ultimately prove to be the halftime score.

At the 8:14 mark in the third, Oisinistan got their second Stan Parkman field goal of the game, good for a 13-6 lead. A twelve play, sixty two yard Hurricane drive stalled at the Oisinistan goal line and Yogi booted kick number three through the uprights to narrow the score to 13-9 with 5:42 remaining in the third. Yogi would add three more points to the scoreboard with his fourth kick of the day as the final seconds of the third quarter ticked off the clock.

The Hurricane entered the fourth quarter trailing 13-12, having never led the entire game to this point. A Natsu "Gator" Sakai interception set up a six play, fourty four yard drive that eneded in a ten yard Katzumi Kon touchdown reception from Masazumi Kozutsami. The hometown crowd chanted "Kon" for a solid minute following the score as the Hurricane took their first lead of the day with 9:08 left in regulation.

Doppo Nitta rumbled into the end zone on a sixty seven yard punt return for a touchdown, breaking an attempted Andrew Kimberly tackle as he crossed the goal line. The score stood at 27-13 with 4:14 on the clock.

When the Hurricane got the ball back for their final possession of the game with 1:47 remaining in the game, Coach Urogataya chose to pull Masazumi Kozutsami and his starting receiving corps. Up by two scores late in the fourth, Coach thought it wise to preserve his starters for the next match day. Reserve quarterback Shiba Momotami led the Hurricane to their final touchdown of the day on a spectacular Ikki Muro one handed catch in the end zone with :22 in the game. Muro was injured on the play. He appeared to have a shoulder injury and the extent of his injury is yet to be determined.This only underscores the intelligence and wisdom of Coach Urogataya in pulling his important starters for the final possession of the game.