World Cup 80 • EqueStar • Roleplay Thread

by **Mriin** » Mon May 28, 2018 10:50 pm

aroundthehorn.mrn

Five-All-Greens
Furious Forwards Flashing Fine Finishing

This is nuts. I went back and did some research over the last five World Cups (discounting qualifiers); admittedly, ten-goal matches aren't quite as rare as you might think. But they still only happen roughly once every other Cup. From the 75th edition up to today, there's been two-hundred and eighty-eight games played in World Cup finals. There have been 6 ten-goal matches--0.21%. We are among rare company to have been a part of something so ludicrous, which at the very least will be a more fun story to take home than the last two Cups provided us. Even more extraordinary, though, was that three of those matches came in 75--all from the same group stage group. Two of those happened at the literal exact same time to decide the fate of who would progress! And even the fate of who would survive. The current Banijan-Equestrian conflict in the midst of a World Cup is not unprecedented, and in a group being torn apart on multiple political fronts frustrations bubbled over into some incredibly aggressive football matches. Let's take a quick look back:

Farfadillis 6–4 Savalen | World Cup 75, Group B, Matchday 1
Savalen at the time appeared to be the team in Group B least embroiled in some conflict, but looking back there may have been some serious domestic issues brewing under the covers. I can't say for sure, but considering their national team just made their reappearance this cycle after missing the previous three? And that their FA apparently weren't even in control of the team until over halfway through qualifying? I'd put some money on nasty shenanigans being at play there. Farfadillis, on the other hand, was witnessing the armed Rulandese conflict start in earnest as these matches were being played, with very public tension between the players who were still marched out onto the pitch to play as a team. The match itself featured Savalen scoring every single goal near the start or the stop of play, possibly taking advantage of the Farves' internal disarray to strike before they got into the swing of things. But into the swing of things they did get, the patented Farf offense tearing the Savalen defense to shreds--and apparently leaving them permanently shredded, as they'd finish their three group stage games at a staggering nineteen allowed.

Valladares 8–2 Savalen | World Cup 75, Group B, Matchday 3
Valladares has an interesting history, one of the most politically active nations you'll find in Rushmori textbooks. From their historical conflicts with our current foes, the Darmenis, that awarded them the vaunted "Westlands" to the jostling over eminence in southeastern spheres of influence with the likes of Eura and Electrum. Their ties into Group B's complicated situation will be explored more in-depth in a moment, but this absolute slaughter of a game capped off an impressive implosion for the Savaleners. When you give up eight goals and that doesn't even double the goals you've allowed in the past two games, something has gone horribly awry. Easily the best Valladar vintage--they'd end up runners-up to the Unified Sunrise Islands--saw three different players register braces, but their survival still depended on the result of the other match.

Associated Godlands 5–5 Farfadillis | World Cup 75, Group B, Matchday 3
Now, I know I've been a bit glib throughout this so far, but I do want to get a bit serious here. I know most Mriinians were first made aware of Farfadillis' existence when we played them in qualifiers of 77, and then again later that cycle when the Rulandese genocide--one of the worst civilian tragedies a NSWC nation has seen since the Mytanar debacle in the 60's--seized the region's attention. But digging through these old articles, I found some absolutely disturbing foreshadowing from a full four years prior, threats from the Farf government about carpet bombing Ruland that no-one apparently thought they'd ever follow through on. Then consider that the team this striken Farf team was facing was literally playing after their nation ceased to exist. The Assosciated Godlands had ended up on the wrong side of a war involving multiple parties, but most prominently former Gregoryisgodistan, who would be given the Godlands' national team as prisoners of war following the draw resulting in their ejection from the tournament. I can't even begin to think what atrocities befell those players above and beyond what the Gregoryisgodistanis would normally commit. And the kicker? It turned out that Valladar agents were the ones orchestrating the arrest.

...fuck, that got dark. I swear that's not where this article was supposed to go, but I can't just well ignore a coincidence like that, right? Half the ten goal matches of the last five cycles all tie into this depressing narrative. I just... alright, let's put this whole episode behind us and move forward. The rest of these should just be "regular" football matches, hopefully.

Valladares 5–5 Vilita (5–5 AET) (3–4 pen.) | World Cup 77, Round of 16
Oh, for fuck's sake--you lot again? It's the battle of the V's here as Valladares rear their heads again, though this is the crux of their decline from 75's high and hosting 76 that would see them losing in this cycle's playoffs. And, of course, this would be the cycle the Jungle Cats would heft the Cup again after nine editions. But, as a refreshing break, it seems this was truly just a wacky game of football--no foul play or unfortunate situations, just two teams sprinting end-to-end and putting balls in nets. What's most remarkable is that, after ninety minutes of bashing into each other full-throttle, not a goal is scored in extra time. If I had to guess either everyone was just completely worn out or they were more worried about blowing the lead with less time to take it back. And so it all came down to penalties, which... well, I'm not looking forward to the first time we have a match decided by them.

San Jose Guayabal 4–6 The Holy Empire | World Cup 79, Group B
Now this is a match y'all should remember, as this was our group last cycle. And... well, I suppose it's technically a return to a strife-filled match, seeing as it was two sides of shambling zombies going at it with undead fervor. It was an impressive comeback effort for the top seeds, one that seemed to convince the wider multiverse that space pirate zombies are, in fact, cool. That was a presumption I always opposed--amalgamating three passe tropes into one doesn't quite titillate my fancy--but it seems I'm in the minority on that matter, so I'll cede that point. The Mriinian NT showed themselves to be a match for the Imperial zombies on the final matchday, but the Guayabalese variety were just too much, handing us a second straight group-stage exist on head-to-head tiebreakers to the second seed.

At least we're immune to that exact scenario playing out again, nor are we in the dire straights so many of the above nations were in when they put up scorelines like this. But in all likelyhood we're still going to need a straight up win against the second seed this time around to progress (a draw would be enough should Darmen force another draw with South Covello, but I'm not holding my breath). Oh, and the second seed happens to be Pasarga, a team we drew with twice last qualifiers. Pasarga were actually eliminated by South Covello last cycle, now that I think about it! This group is full of tie-ins and rematches before even bringing up the fact that Darmen and South Covello have already played twice this cycle. Crazy.

Alright, I'm already well over my quota here and I haven't even said a word about the actual game we just played, so here's a bullet-point recap of how the hell we both managed five goals in ninety minutes. Specifically, five reasons:

Spectacular finishing. Craig Blackwood and Felix Lucanus were a tour de force, refusing to be corralled by a Mriinian defense that had been... mostly okay for much of this cycle. The two of them backed up by
a creative midfield presence, especially Zachariah Butler's efforts, created an embarrassing number of chances that simply overwhelmed poor Zilia between the sticks. On the other end, we had notably less chances, but Solara simply would not be denied. She only managed two attempts on goal plus a penalty, but all three found the back of the net. Aldo was slightly worse off sinking one of three chances, with a header going each high and wide. Finally, Lasser came through as a super-sub once again, finding the equalizer in added time with another monster blast. All the strikers on the pitch were on their A-game, and that naturally leads to a lot of goals.
Highly aggressive play. Both in terms of broad strategy--both teams were clearly on the offense and prowling for goals--but also in how moments played out. A staggering eight yellows were accrued throughout the match, with both teams coughing up a penalty that was converted, and as the game went on defenders--even the substitutes, that seemed to be trying to overcompensate given the direction things were going--were playing a bit safer at the risk of the dreaded second yellow.
A burning desire to prove their place. Darmen have always been a middle-upper side that has rarely had a chance to truly shine outside the Copa Rushmori and a Cup of Harmony championship, and with their sudden unexpected run of form--not unlike the surprise qualification of regional rivals Sargossa in recent memory, who have managed to keep it up--they must want to show that they are for real. Meanwhile, good ol' Don has that wonderful superiority complex that he's always trying to live up to, and breaking the world's top twenty in just four cycles ain't enough. I don't think he'll rest easy until he gets to wait all the way to the end of a draw before hearing Mriin called, and gets the respect that comes with such a position.
It was a beautiful day. Say what you will about grittiness and perseverance and whatnot, those days where it's nice and sunny and warm but not sweltering lead to some exciting football. The porridge was just right, meaning everyone was able to warm up quickly while avoiding heat exhaustion. Five degrees lower or higher and I think this score is impossible because of a slower start (if it's cold) or an anemic end (if it's hot).
The spirit of Manechester City HC permeating the stadium. 1093 Val Kylx Avenue* is no normal address, and the... extravagant personalities the infamous club hosts has given the area an atmosphere unlike any other stadium in the multiverse. You spend too much time there and you can feel... a certain madness coming upon you. It's strange, and hard to describe to someone that's never been there. Hell, maybe I've still got a few screws loose from my visit, which is why I wrote all the bullshit further up. I can't help but feel that environment contributed to this outrageous scoreline, and to our own little piece of history.

Last.fm · by **Cosumar** » Tue May 29, 2018 1:36 am

Sargossa hands Cosumar potentially crippling 3-2 defeat
"It could only be this way": Dragons need Chromatika MD3 result to advance

MANEHATTAN -- In his first penalty kick since returning from injury, Romikk Valgard hit the post late and Cosumar fell 3-2 to 10-man Sargossa on Matchday 2, falling behind still-perfect Chromatika in Group F and casting their streak of seven World Cup knockout rounds into doubt.

As Sargossan State Media reported earlier this week, Cosumar has never defeated the Corsairs in a World Cup in five attempts. The Vanquishers never really looked like they would be doing any vanquishing last night either. The Cosumarite defense seemed to wilt under Sargossa's early intensity (and a high Manehattan sun) - the entire team just off the pace until panic kicked in for the final 15 minutes.

Matías Cáceres scored the biggest two goals of his career and seasoned playmaker Alejandro Vecino had all three assists for the Corsairs. The loss highlights the same questions about Cosumar's defensive efficacy in Alexander Pearce's attacking 4-3-1-2 formation that arose after the 4-3 win over Barunia as well as during the "eventful" Qualifying campaign.

Now, even more pressure will be piled on to this vulnerable Cosumarite side in the final match of Group F as they return to Whitetail to take on Chromatika, a team that claims both the reigning Galactico and Runner-up and has become one of the trendy favorites of the entire tournament. It will all be on the line. The mission? Better Sargossa's result against bottom-feeders Barunia. 3 points might not even be enough.

Amidst all the uncertainty on the table, one thing is certain: Cosumar can't afford to ship three goals again. If they do, for the third consecutive match of World Cup 80, it will probably be their last.

"You can't be giving up six goals in two matches if you want to make it far. In any competition. It's that simple," Pearce said after the game. "It blows my mind that we're actually struggling to maintain intensity for a full 90 in the World Cup. We're constantly putting ourselves behind or allowing teams to come back from behind. Tonight, we were constantly chasing the game and that takes a toll on you."

After Iván Mayoral rifled into the side-netting in the 27th minute and Cáceres beat the offside trap and tapped home in the 43rd, the Cosumarites found themselves down 2-0 at half time. But they got back into the game two minutes after the break when Ragnar Targaryen, despite his lack of height, came flying into the box and remarkably outleapt two defenders to head a corner under the crossbar. The Vanquishers then nearly equalized a minute later when an Isla Sibučić blast from distance clanged agonizingly off the post. But Sargossa restored their two-goal lead another five minutes later when an unmarked Cáceres headed home a high cross from Vecino at the back post.

Cosumar got another injection of life, however, when experienced Corsairs back Andrés Fernández got beat and hauled down Sibučić from behind to get sent off with a second yellow. The man advantage allowed left back Bacary Na'Kale to flip on his attacking switch and repeatedly exploit space on the left flank. He cut the ball back from the endline for substitute attacker Saltorius Splitt to reduce the deficit to 3-2, but Cosumar missed a number of chances to salvage a draw.

Most notably, Romikk Valgard stepped up to take a penalty in the 88th minute but rocketed it off the far post. This one will hurt for Valgard, who'd posted the "final installment" in his well-publicized Recovery Vlog prior to the match, proclaiming himself "finally back to 100%" and "ready to show the world how far he's come" in the last year.

Cosumar striker Valgard collapses after failing to convert a penalty in the that could've earned a point back from Sargossa and made escape from Group F much likelier.

Targaryen was then denied by Sargossa keeper Carlos Ríos from close range and, deep into stoppage time, Torbjörn Jorgensen looped a header from eight yards over the bar.

"Disappointed because of the goals we gave up and even being down we had enough chances to tie the game up," Pearce said. "We've got to defend better - and defending is not just defenders, but the whole team. The back line had their issues, but Stig [Söderquist] was spotty in the middle and Belle [Serafino] got uncharacteristically left in the dust on two of the goals. I don't mean to single guys out, but we're giving up soft goals and we can't be giving up soft goals. Ultimately, it shows I didn't prepare the team well enough."

Well, Pearcey, you've got a couple days to get 'em prepared. Matchday 3 against Chromatika could be the biggest match the team has played since the World Cup 76 Quarterfinals... when our rivalry was born in famously spectacular fashion.

The most recent edition of the Cosumar-Chromatika rivalry saw our northern neighbors smash past us and into the AOCAF LV Final, 5-3 after extra time. To date, the rivalry has seen blows trade alternatively back and forth (we defeated them en route to winning the prior AOCAF), which would bode well for our hopes. It's our turn, right?

Well, maybe not. The Chromatik program has taken yet another step forward in the cycle since we last saw them, whereas Cosumarite progress has stalled somewhat since that AOCAF LIV title. Unlike the evenly-matched slugfests of Cosumar-Chromatika duels past, the men and women in the Dragonshirt are clear underdogs in this one. To avoid an unpleasantly early exit, Pearce's squad will have to be sharper than they've been so far here in Equestrian States... or in this entire World Cup cycle, for that matter.

"As soon as we saw Chromatika in our group, we knew it could only be this way. It was going to come down to this... us against them," Cosumar captain Peter Svensson said after training. "We love it. We share a certain similarity with them as northeastern Atlantians and we even partied together last summer when The Brigadier married one of 'em. But look, we'll never be friends. That familiarity just makes our desire to better them burn even brighter."

Svensson and the back line's desire better burn brighter than the supergiant stars that are Keira Andisori and Kaytlyn Victoriane on the other side. The defense will determine if the Dragons can fly on to their eighth consecutive Round of 16.

James D'lorio
Courier Sports Columnist

...

by **Brenecia** » Tue May 29, 2018 4:07 am

Brenecia 0 - 2 Eura
(4-1-4-1) 1 - Woodgate; 2 - Carrack, 5 - Heneghan, 6 - Szubanski, 3 - Quill; 4 - Gryphon (c); 7 - Crowther, 21 - Case (14 - Drover 79'), 8 - Hartsdown (13 - Wheeler 62'), 11 - Ashbrown (16 - Keohane 79'); 9 - Riordan

Sometimes, Jim Reid knew, you were just second-best on paper. Sometimes you were second-best on the night. And sometimes you were second-best on the scoreline.
Often, one lead to another to the third, and so it was proving today, as Eura's men in red danced their merry way around the Patriots' tight, hard structure.
The issue was the players. Reid had good, solid lads at his disposal, but... that was most of what they were. And sure, Case could harry Armstrong and Talbot, Gryphon had kept Coltrane under control, and twice Woodgate had denied Underwood from inside the box with flying saves that belied his 34 years before rising to his feet, clapping his hands together and shouting to keep tighter.
They'd weathered the storm, for the first half. Reid clapped his lads and lasses on the back, told them to go out there, harder. Scoreless was fine, but, hell, they could win this? Hadn't Szubanski put a free header over the bar ten minutes in from Gryphon's corner? Hadn't Riordan almost been played through one-on-one, were it not for Leach's brilliant covering tackle? Hadn't... hadn't... well, okay, that was about it. Even so! Could've been 2-0!
Wasn't.
It had been a solemn, almost liminal occasion from the start, anyway. The last time Brenecia had played Eura - the only time, in a WCC fixture - had been another World Cup group stage, ten long years ago, back when Sienna Fallon could still be considered an emerging talent. Brenecia won 5-4, but it was a scoreline that would always have an asterisk next to it. At the interval, during which Eura had a comfortable lead, news broke that war had officially begun with Sameba. The lead, and Eura's players, disintegrated for the second half.
The Patriots weren't going to get that 'lucky' twice.

No, this time the second half would reflect the first, in all but one crucial detail that would rear its head later. The Eurans played more or less as they liked, and had a fair shout for a penalty turned away when Townsend turned Quill and ran headlong into Szubanski. Mercifully, the referee waved play-on, and he had gone down fairly easily. It was a scare even so - not a wake-up call, as no waking was needed. The Patriots were sharp, alert, disciplined...
... they just couldn't get the goddamn ball...
But still the breakthrough refused to come. Woodgate denied Coltrane, the post denied the luckless Underwood, and an appalling strike from Robson after slipping clear of Carrack meant he denied himself. A decisive shift was needed, as the red shirts in the crowd were wondering and the blue were hoping if they could keep this up all night and Steve Thompson may or may not have had a rogue Emplor article that accused him of predictability in mind. Robson came off, and the more dynamic Miller replaced him on the left wing, 56 minutes into the game.
Four minutes later, deputy leftback Hall slipped Miller past a stranded Carrack, and from there a neat one-two with Underwood, a sashay past Heneghan and for once, Woodgate couldn't get down fast enough to stop the shot horribly trickling under his arms. 1-0 Eura, at long last, on the hour mark. Szubanski kicked the post in frustration.

Now, they had to respond. Hartsdown was a good player who had made a name for herself in a world-class league, but she hadn't been able to break through. A gamble was needed, and the mercurial Corby Wheeler was thrown on. She would, ultimately, accomplish nothing, save a couple of snapshots high and wide of the goal from outside the box.
But the Patriots were starting to get a foothold back in the game, and their relentless physicality, though starting to pick up cautions, was starting to pick up the ball as well. But the Euran defence was not weak, either. Case seized the ball from Armstrong, rode a challenge from Talbot and slotted a low pass down the middle just too heavy for Riordan, and Griffin seized on it. And got quickly to his feet, hurled the ball down the right for Coles, who slipped it along to Townsend, who hit it long to Underwood, who slipped past Heneghan, stumbled from a blow to the ankle and fell, and Armstrong fired the resulting free kick into the wall. So went the game, but at least the level playing field of anarchy suited the Brenecians. Gryphon's dangerous corner was well claimed by near-namesake Griffin, and then Keohane and Drover were thrown on in a final throw of the dice, eleven minutes from the end, and it very nearly paid off. Drover's slick pass played Keohane into space, and she took one, two, three touches away from Coles before hitting a beautiful cross into the heart of the box, with Griffin Riordan rushing forward, slipping past her mark, and leaping like a spawning salmon...
... time stood still...
... Riordan's head made beautiful, sailing contact with the ball...
... and sent it three metres over the bar.

In the 87th minute, it became all but academic, as Griffiths came off the bench to feed Underwood. Szubanski, exhausted mentally and physically, failed to shut him down and this time the Bastion forward managed to guide his shot into the bottom corner, beyond a sprawling, despairing Woodgate. 2-0? That was about right.
The final whistle didn't take much longer than that, and the sides shook hands. Eura's first ever win over Brenecia, but it had been comfortable at the end of the day. "The better side won," Gryphon admitted post-match. "We didn't stop them playing their game, we paid the price."
And maybe that was frustrating, this idea that Brenecia couldn't just front up and do their own thing like they'd used to. Or, at least, that they wouldn't. Inevitably, supporters of the Southern school of Brenecian football phoned into radio shows or tapped their displeasure below the line, accusing the Patriots of cowardice. Others just worried - was this really the best they could aspire to? They, the eighth-best side in the world?
But grinding and praying and keeping solid had its merits, waiting for the opponent to blink first. Reid was proud of his lads, and told them as much after the final whistle. There'd be another chance next time around. For now, they could leave with their heads held high... and get ready to beat Damukuni next match.

by **Banija** » Tue May 29, 2018 7:19 am

Banija battles back, but falls short against the Jungle Cats as they are eliminated from World Cup 80 with a game remaining

Kiggwe Mavuto(left) consoling a teammate after Banija's gutwrenching 3-2 loss to the three-time World Champions

CANTERLOT, EQUESTRIAN STATES- Certainly, the Banijans just faced an extremely tough, emotional, gutwrenching match against the three-time World Cup champions. The team fought, and fought, attempting to claw back from a two goal halftime deficit, but it simply wasn't enough against Vilita, as Chibuzo Afolayan, in the final moments of the match, with a chance to earn Banija's first ever World Cup points, hit the crossbar deep into stoppage time. The match that the Kadongo Kamu had against Vilita was absolutely thrilling. Plenty of goals between the two sides. A lot of up and down action, and some great finishing. However, the three-time World Champs showed why they have those stars on their jerseys, with some gutsy performances by key players to send the Banijans packing early, with a game remaining in their stay in the Equestrian States.

It was going to be a tough match going into the game, with the Banijans have the opportunity to face the three-time World champions. Marcus Waters spoke to us before about the challenge facing his squad. "This group, as I've always said, would give a unique opportunity to our squad to grow and to continue doing better, improving ourselves and the opportunity to hone our own craft. We're playing the three-time World Cup champs. And, of course, they won the whole thing just a few tournaments ago. All but 3 players on the current squad have World Cup winners medals from World Cup 77, meaning that this team has a uniquely winning pedigree. It will be a daunting challenge, but we will be ready."

And, with that statement the day before the match, of course, the tensions were high. People on both sides were excited. Vilita, attempting to punch another ticket to the knockout stages of the World Cup Finals, and Banija, attempting to earn its first ever points at a World Cup Finals against a sporting superpower. And with the opening tap of the match, it was off. The Banijans had their same starting XI from their loss in the World Cup's opening match to the Equestrian States, with, of course, 7 players playing on yellow cards due to the way they handled Pristina Shine in their opening match.

The match was off. Vilita, knowing that they were the stronger team, especially on paper, began to force the issue early. As a lot of favorites do, they tried to bury the Banijans early, which would naturally test the will of the squad to fight. Delbin Kasekende, however, made a copule of key saves early to keep the match level at 0-0, even as the Vilitans were dominating the possesion and attacking with it. The Banijans had a lone early opportunity in the match however, to take the lead, and they almost took it. A counter-attack forced a corner, and the ball was crossed in towards Wasa Jawo. Jawo rose up above all the heads in the crowded area, and headed a shot towards net. However, Mako Canopii, nicknamed the 'Shutout King' for his heroics in their World Cup 77 championship campaign, made a stunning, diving save where he was able to catch the ball.

After that, it was all Vilita until about the 25th minutes. Playing the 3-4-3 formation to try and impose their will on the Kadongo Kamu , Nii'arala Milaaso was able to get control of the ball, and send in a perfect cross. The 18 year old, playing in his first World Cup, has undoubtedly left an impression and will likely have what will be a quite super career. Berali Tzufarei was in the middle, just a step ahead of Wasa Jawo, and he volleyed the ball home into the back of the net to give the Jungle Cats an early 1-0 lead. The Jungle Cats fans began to celebrate wildly against the Vilitans, while the Banijan half of the stadium looked dejected. The Jungle Cats were leading 1-0, and they would continue to attack. They wanted to bury the Banijans, announce themselves on the world stage as a competitor to add another star to their jersey, to overthrow the current favorites and defending champs Schottia.

The Jungle Cats continued to dominate possesion of the ball, even as the Banijan defense began to improve. They were able to keep the ball further and further away from their own goal, not forcing Kasekende to make all kinds of saves to keep his team in the match. For much of the remainder of the first half, the match was relatively boring, as neither team was able to create serious chances. Simply long distance shots at goal from Jungle Cat players that either Kasekende didn't have much trouble taking care of, or shots that would go either way or over. However, in the first minute of stoppage time, one of these efforts worked. Star midfielder Polaox Torerun was able to chest a ball down and volley it towards the net, from just beyond 25 yards. A perfect placed blast, into the upper right-hand corner, gave the Jungle Cats a 2-0 lead going into hafltime. It was a terrible till to swallow for the Banijans, as World Cup elimination was starting them in the face.

At halftime, Marcus Waters decided to make some changes to his squad. Ensa Camara, who lost his spot after a disastrous first half of the World Cup Qualification campaign, finally earned his way back onto the pitch. Okonkwo Okparro came into the game for Daniel Asres, the second halftime subsitution to add some offensive urgency to the squad. Okparro, of course, will be plying his trade for Makosile United next season, and so got an early introduction to many members of the Vilitan League with his halftime entrance today. In moves that often reek of desperation after being thoroughly dominated for 45 minutes, it was a move he had to make if Banija was to adjust and respond to what they faced for the first 45 minutes.

In the second half, the Banijans came out on the front foot. They looked confident, they looked energetic, and most importantly, they looked more focused. They knew what kind of odds they were facing, but they knew what was at stake. Their spot in the World Cup Finals was on the line, and they had the opportunity to roll over and allow the Jungle Cats to romp, or to stand up and fight against the favorites, to do what was required of them to attempt to keep their spot in the World Cup Finals. They are lower ranked, of course, but this was the opportunity to stand up. And boy, they took it.

In the first minute of the second half, Okonkwo Okparro had forced a sprawling save from the 'Shutout King' himself. It should be said, Banija was extremely unlucky with the quality of goalkeepers that the squad had to face during this appearance at the World Cup Finals. First, playing Gentle Breeze, arguably the very best the multiverse has to offer, and also playing against Mako Canopii, who has a World Cup winners medal for himself. What can you do, however? That moment showed, even if Canopii was able to catch the ensuing corner kick himself, that the Banijans were not simply going to go away quietly.

The Banijans, from that point forward, were attempting to make their own mark on the game themselves. The Banijans were strong, were fast, were quick- but mostly, they were motivated. They were going to take this game to the Jungle Cats, and leave absolutely everything on the field. It was a tall task to get the ball past Canopii, the stud goalkeeper who was doing everything he could to keep a clean sheet in this tournament. However, in the 59th minute, the Banijans finally got onto the board. A set piece for the Banijans after Chibuzo Afolayan was fouled, Kiggwe Mavuto curled what was essentially a perfect ball into the box. Toyuwa Okafor rose up, and headed the ball towards the goal, but hit the post. The rebound bounced to Gitonga Kahara, who blasted the ball into the back of the net to cut the Banijan deficit in half. The Banijan fans started roaring, Kahara picked up the ball and brought it back to the center line, and life was brought back into this match.

The job was not done. However, the Banijan fans were now engaged. On the Banijan side, there was excitement, while the Vilitan fans were nervous. To blow a 2-0 lead to a team that is 49 places below you in the standings? It would be a catastrophe, and their side did not want that. The Banijans, however, were trying to do exactly that, to bring magic to the world's grandest stage. They continued to take the match to their opponents- Mavuto leading the charge, the captain willing his men forward, and the Banijans back to push the envelope. Ensa Camara began to push forward, something not seen by anyone in their last match against the pacy ponies of the Equestrian States.

They had some opportunities to tie the game, some great ones, as they pressed the initiative. Wasa Jawo headed what would have been an equalizer over the crossbar in the 63rd. Gitonga Kahara chipped the goalkeepr in the 67th minute, but a goalline clearance from the two-time World Cup Champion Arocki Tadalek made sure the Jungle Cats were still in charge. And in the 71st minute, a sprawling save from Canopii kept Okafor off of the scoresheet, ensuring the game was still 2-1. At that moment, Marcus Waters made his third and final change, putting Elias Abate into the game for Isaac Georgiadis, firmly commtting to the idea that they must push forward with everything they have for an equalizer.

In the 79th minute, however, things changed drastically for the Banijans. On a corner kick for the Banijans, essentially everyone, besides Atieno and obviously Kasekende, was in the box for the Banijan corner, hoping this would be the moment that they were able to tie the game. With the whistle blown, a corner kick was delivered by Afolayan towards the penatly spot, and quite a number of players converged on the ball. However, Canopii was able to leap the highest, and catch the ball. Instead of laying on it to waste time, however, he saw the advantage that the Jungle Cats had in numbers.

Canopii recognized that the Banijan players were all in the box, and that, if he distributed the ball quickly, they would have a chance to score a backbreaking clincher. With Milaaso streaking up the right side of the pitch, and Torerun streaking up the left, he threw the ball to MIlaaso, who saw himself with a two on one situation, with the only Banijan defender back there being Zinnah Atieno. Milaaso sent a perfect cross to Torerun, who was able to beat Atieno on the dribble. When Kasekende came out to challege him, a simple pass over to Milaaso allowed the youngster to tap the ball into the back of the net to give the Jungle Cats a 3-1 lead.

The game, seemingly, was over. Banija, however, still had a little bit of fight left in them. Kiggwe Mavuto scored on a free kick in the 86th minute, with the captain curling home his 38th career international goal for the Kadongo Kamu, to set up a scramble to the finish. The Banijans, from that point forward, were simply putting everyone, and everything, they had towards scoring that third equalizing goal. They had to- they were facing elimination from the World Cup Finals, and nobody wanted that.

Chibuzo Afolayan had a terrific chance in the game's final moments to equalize. A cross, with all those players in the box, was headed away by Torerun, but right to the feet of Afolayan, who was standing at the edge of the 18. He launched a volley towards the net, one that the 'Shutout King' had no chance to save, but he hit the crossbar, and the Jungle Cats cleared the rebound. After the next cross was caught by Canopii, and he punted it, the final whistle blew. The Banijans had lost, and were eliminated.

Banija, although eliminated, still has one more game at this tournament- a matchup against New Gazi. The two nations share a lot of similarities- two culturally African nations, both black, neither with a lot of money, both nations on the rise, and both punching above their weight by simply being at the tournament. It will be a big game for the Banijans- even with nothing on the line, their first ever win at a World Cup Finals would do wonders for the national team, and allow them to leave this tournament on a high note.

by **Vilita** » Tue May 29, 2018 7:51 am

Vilita survive Banija, will advance to Knockout Rounds

Grand Regal Stadium, Canterlot, Equestrian States :: It was the second consecutive match at the Grand Regal Stadium in Canterlot for the Vilita Jungle Cats as they took on the debutant Atlantian Oceania nation of Banija still looking for their first ever point in the World Cup after losing the tournaments opening match against the hosts Equestrian States.

Banija were not only playing for pride but also competition as they knew it was possible a defeat on the day would eliminate them from the ability to extend their World Cup into the knockout rounds.

While Banija put forth the same exact squad that had started their World Cup opening defeat to the Ponies - perhaps a surprising move with no fewer than 7 players already on a yellow card from their war-inspired battle, the Jungle Cats made some changes to keep things fresh and keep their opponents on their toes.

The Jungle Cats ultimately struck first as Galactico Youth Player of the Season Nii'arala Milaaso put in an inch perfect cross to be finished by Ramsissil's reliable striker Berali Tzufarei giving the Vilita National Team a 1-0 lead. After missing a portion of the Jungle Cats qualifying campaign due to injury, Turoki Tide star midfielder and Galacticos Index rated Poloax Torerun doubled the Vilitan advantage heading into the half with a neat piece of control and finishing.

Banija made some changes at the half including the introduction of Okonkwo Okparro who tested Mako Canopii early. Canopii was strong but was eventually beaten on account of a rebound that blasted off the post from a set piece and straight to the feet of Gitonga Kahara who reduced the deficit.

Mako Canopii proved their worth and why they are considered the top goalkeeper in the Tropics by not only withstanding the intense pressure from the Banijan's but set up the counter-attack for the Jungle Cats who took advantage to extend their lead as Milaaso was sent through by Torerun for the youngsters first ever World Cup Finals goal.

Knowing the scoreline in the other match and seeing their opportunity to advance eroding in front of them, Banija continued to press and Kiggwe Mavuto made the game interesting by converting free kick four minutes from time. It would be the last goal that would get by Canopii on this day, however, as the Jungle Cats would secure three hard-earned points to secure their passage through to the Round of Sixteen and set up a Matchday 3 clash with the hosts to determine top seed in Group E.

Vilita [3] - [2] Banija

:: Vilita Goalscorers ::
:: 25' Berali Tzufarei
:: 40' Poloax Torerun
:: 79' Nii'arala Miilaaso

:: Vilita Statistics ::
:: Possession: 54%
:: Shots on Target: 6
:: Corner Kicks: 9

:: Banija Statistics ::
:: Possession: 46%
:: Shots on Target: 5
:: Corner Kicks: 11

Atlantian Oceania: The Home of Sport for Cycle 80

Tivali Ring Stadium, Alikki-Corra, Vilita :: The sporting world has fully descended on Atlantian Oceania during the 80th World Cup Cycle as six different Atlantian Oceania nations have partnered to win the hosting rights of each major World Cup Comittee sanctioned sporting event during the active World Cup Cycle.

A Recent Map of Atlantian Oceania showing the location of each World Cup event being contested this cycle

The Equestrian States and nearby World Cup nations

Starblaydia and nearby World Cup nations

It all kicked off in Banija and Qasden for the 67th Baptism of Fire Cup. Located entirely on the Atlantian Oceania territory of Azeruia, Atlantian Oceania was well represented in the tournament by upstart nations including the Euran Oceania Territories, the Commonwealth of Baker Park and Siovanija and Teusland.

While the Euran Oceania Territories did not make a huge impact in the tournament, Siovanija and Teusland clashed with the Commonwealth of Baker Park in the Quarter Finals and it was the Commonwealth of Baker Park that came out on top in a 3-1 result. Baker Park would ride the momentum all the way through to the Baptism of Fire Cup Final where they would ultimately be defeated by Beepee, denying Atlantian Oceania a home regional triumph.

It wouldn't be all bad, however, as there would be at least two more opportunities for Atlantian Oceania nations to take advantage of the home-region playing fields to claim a major competition title as the rights to host the World Cup Finals were awarded to Starblaydia and the Equestrian States while the Cup of Harmony tournament hosting rights were awarded to Vilita & Turori.

Like Qasden and Banija, Vilita & Turori are geographically nearby making the travel logistics for teams and fans alike fairly straightforward regardless of which part of the draw their teams were drawn into. For Qasden and Banija, only a small piece of the North Western corner of Geisenfried separates the borders of the two nations while Vilita and Turori are not separated by any land border, just the waters of central Atlantian Oceania in the Vilitan Cove region.

The same can not be said, however, for Starblaydia and the Equestrian States. Starblaydia, located in the heart of Atlantian Oceania's sporting culture on the shores of Lake Bekk on the Calanian Mainland and across the Nemyan Strait to locations such as Farca and Nidola.

The Equestrian States, on the other hand, exist as an Arrosian Extention along the Taaru Sea surrounded by nothing but water, with their nearest neighbors being the Arrosian mainland of Valanora and the Azeruian lands of Demot. Even as the birds might fly, the path from the Equestrian States to Starblaydia might include flying over between 5 and eight other nations from South Western Atlantian Oceania all the way to Lake Bekk.

While fans won't have much issue following their teams as they will be able to camp in one country or the other depending on which half of the draw their team ends up in, there will be at least two teams suffering from a long trip ahead of a potential appearance in the World Cup Final in Starblaydia, a reward for surviving the Equestrian half of the tournament.

Despite the number of Atlantian Oceania nations competing in the World Cup's 80th cycle, very few were able to take advantage of the proximity of either Starblaydia or the Equestrian States to make life easier for themselves or their fans from a logistics point of view.

The nations with the best opportunity for taking advantage would have been 95X, Audioslavia, Chromatika and Valanora. However, 95X and Audioslavia each lost their World Cup Qualifying Playoff and with it the opportunity to contest the World Cup Finals in Neighboring Starblaydia. Valnora did qualify for the World Cup but instead of being drawn to play in neighboring Equestrian States, the Vanorians were shipped off to eternal rivals Starblaydia as they begin their quest to break the long-running tie with Starblaydia for most World Cup Titles in history on purple soil. Like Valanora, Chromatika could have just had a short hop across the water if they were drawn in the other half of the draw but instead of heading to Starblaydia they would be shipped off to the Equestrian States along with another Atlantian Oceania nation, Cosumar, who will be traveling the longest distance among all Atlantian Oceania based nations to arrive at their World Cup Finals destination.

In the end, the only two decently proximal trips are Banija's draw in the Equestrian States and Turori's draw to contest their finals schedule in Starblaydia. However, neither side is likely to be particularly looking forward to that outcome.

In the Equestrian States, Banija finds a foe with which they have recently declared war on. Having to contest the World Cup Finals on their soil may have caused some to question whether they would attend at all. Further escalating the situation, Banija have been drawn into Group E along with the host country the Equestrian States and fireworks are sure to fly all around when those two teams have played. With Valanora and Farfadillis off to Starblaydia, the next closest nation geographically is World Cup 77 Champions Vilita who will have to pass through Nojika and Demot to get to the Equestrian States. Like the hosts and their warring rivals Banija, Vilita have also been drawn into Group E which has proven to be a laser focus of South-Central-Western Atlantian Oceania sporting powers into a battle which only two could possibly survive, or, just one if their geographically abnormal final opponent, New Gazi, could sneak in front of them.

For Turori, they will be sending their National Cocoabo Squad to Starblaydia, a nation which the Cocoabo have yet to visit for sporting purposes and it is not known how well they will adapt to the Eastern side of Lake Bekk. With many having been recently groomed at the Cocoabo Forest bordering Krytenia, however, it is possible that the transition won't take too long for the Cocoabo. Along with the Cocoabo Squad will be Turori's national delectable entity, Cocoa-bo, which reportedly has an agreement to open up pop-up shops with an understanding that all waste produced by the shops is taken back to the Cocoabo Forest before being dumped across its Eastern Border with Krytenia.

by **Chromatika** » Tue May 29, 2018 9:22 am

In Lammerton, she was second fiddle to Glendening and Naeher. On the National Team, Andisori had the top billing, and Antonio before her.

This didn't bother one Kaytlyn Victoriane. No, the Chromatik preferred being in the limelight, assisting when she may, striking true as the opportunity presented itself. As long as the end result was a victory, she didn't care if she was the reason for it all.

However, Barunia was proving a tough nut to crack. Time and time again, Williams was playing the hero. Long range from Sybill, header by Andisori, even free kick from Hellion. This called for a moment of true inspiration.

Eighty-third minute, left post. Dragana shoots, Williams blocks with one hand, directly in front of Victoriane. Short tap-in.

Pandemonium.

For that moment, Victoriane was the star.

by **Darmen** » Tue May 29, 2018 9:37 am

Darmen 0-0 Pasarga
A battle of regional rivals familiar with one another's idiosyncrasies. And it showed. Every attack made by either team was checked by the defense, but only after the attack was made towards the weakest point in each team's respective defense. A total of four shots and nothing to show for it.

Campo - Virgo, Abbey, Porsche - Goldschmidt - Ó Cuilinn, Winton, Butler, Stafford - Lucanus, Blackwood
GOALS: None
Yellow Cards: Ó Cuilinn 71'
Red Cards: None
Substitutions: Maddox for Porsche 67', Mac Pharlain for Ó Cuilinn 73', Freud for Stafford 80'

Darmen 5-5 Mriin
The absolute opposite of the first match. Having never faced each other at senior level before, the All Greens and Mriinians went at each other's throats for the entire ninety minutes, not letting up at all even when sensibility may have called for a slow down in the tempo. Center-back Silver Abbey set the tone at the start of the match with a ferocious tackle of Solara Vol just outside the box, earning a yellow card and the ire of his opponents. Within minutes the Mriinians responded in retaliation, Geraard Tavol pulling Craig Blackwood down to the pitch, Blackwood landing on his head. Many expected the young Darmeni striker to be taken off the pitch, but after taking a moment to compose himself, Blackwood carried on. Three minutes later in the 11th minute, Blackwood scored the opening goal, sending Zilia Hawsorn diving the wrong way before tucking the ball home in the opposite corner.

Solara Vol found herself the victim of a second yellow card offense in the 17th minute, this time incurred by Jean Virgo inside the box. Vol converted the penalty in clinical fashion, giving Hyman Campo no shot at stopping the kick from the mark. Felix Lucanus added a second goal for the All Greens, but was answered back quickly by Aldo Vocani. No matter what the All Greens did, they always seemed to be matched by the Mriinians, and vice versa.

Just before halftime and after earning Darmen's third yellow card, Zachariah Butler hooked Lucanus up with a perfect cross, the 29 year old striker calmly headed the ball past Hawsorn. If the Mriinian goalkeeper hadn't already been frustrated and exasperated, she certainly was now, protesting angrily with the assistant referee to give offside but earning a yellow card for dissent instead.

With the score 3-2 at halftime in Darmen's favor, Godefroy Abascal made risky, but necessary, changes to his back three, taking out both yellow card earners Virgo and Abbey and replacing them with Anastasio Wilkie and Jacob Coghlan.

In the second half both Blackwood and Lucanus scored again, Blackwood from a ricocheting volley in the six yard box that left both teams wondering what exactly had happened, and Lucanus from a penalty in the 78th minute, following a hard Uhlon Loft tackle of Juanito Stafford inside the area. Between the two Darmeni goals, Solara Vol had scored two more of here own, making the scoreline read 5-4 to Darmen leading into the last moments of the match. With time ticking down and the referee about to blow, Mriinian super-sub Lasser Rei crushed the Darmeni hopes of a victory and three points.

Campo - Virgo, Abbey, Porsche - Goldschmidt - Ó Cuilinn, Winton, Butler, Stafford - Lucanus, Blackwood
GOALS: Blackwood 11', Lucanus 21', Lucanus 44', Blackwood 53', Lucanus (pen.) 78'
Yellow Cards: Abbey 4', Virgo 17', Butler 27', Goldschmidt 72'
Red Cards: None
Substitutions: Wilkie for Virgo HT, Coghlan for Abbey HT, Byrnes for Butler 69'

Darmen vs. South Covello
If the two matches in qualifying were anything to go by, then the All Greens had a chance to win and advance to the Round of Sixteen, assuming the Wanderers decided to help their fellow Rushmori comrades and hold the Mriinians at bay. Whatever the result, the All Greens could know that they had done a brilliant job, far exceeding any expectations the DFA and press may have had for them.

by **Equestrian States** » Tue May 29, 2018 10:16 am

Ponies Avenge Cup of Harmony Defeat, Clinch Second Round Berth
by Steve McNotapony

Equestrian States 1-0 New Gazi
at Star Stadium in Canterlot
Attendance: 62,301
Scoring:

Rosewing '36 (Pristina Shine)

CANTERLOT - World Cup co-hosts frequently perform better than expected on home soil, and in their history of hosting the tournament the Ponies have been no exception to that rule, reaching the second round in each Equestrian-hosted World Cup to date. There was some question of if this cycle would bring an end to that streak, but after wins over Banija and New Gazi to kick off their finals campaign, the Ponies have secured a knockout stage berth alongside a Vilitan side that entered the tournament heavily favored to plow through Group E with little difficulty.

The Ponies' path to the second round wasn't expected to be anywhere near as easy. Banija is a regional rival and an up-and-coming hoofball nation with talented players and more than enough reasons to want to upset the Equestrian States on their own turf, while New Gazi brought an end to the Ponies' unexpected Cup of Harmony run last cycle in the quarterfinals, to say nothing of the Vilitans. But despite these challenges, the Equestrians have nonetheless performed excellently in front of their own fans and have been thus rewarded by being one of the first sides to clinch advancement in the tournament.

Last night's match was a must-win for New Gazi after losing their opener to Vilita, and the Ponies fully expected that their opponents would give the match everything that they had and perhaps more. The Cannoneers were on thin ice, however, with the vast majority of their starting eleven sitting one yellow card away from a suspension, leading many to expect them to take a hands-off approach to dealing with star Equestrian striker Pristina Shine unlike the Banijans. But to the surprise of many, New Gazi manager Oliver Hausta declined to play things safe, adopting the same aggressive - but undeniably effective - strategy employed by the Banijans in the Ponies' opener.

Once again, Pristina Shine took an absolute hammering in the first half, being tackled every time she touched the ball and clearly suffering from being in 135 straight minutes of hard physical battles. However, in the 36th minute, Pristina Shine managed to slip a through ball to strike partner Rosewing before being promptly upended by center back Demba Ngum. The Tir Snake Strike forward has been a revelation in the finals, proving that her excellent performances in the last two Terranean League seasons were no fluke, and it showed once again as Rosewing skillfully chipped the ball into the top far corner of the goal to put the Ponies ahead 1-0 heading into halftime.

With Pristina Shine having been targeted now by two straight teams, Ponies manager Pearly White made a risky halftime move, taking off her star striker and redeploying her side in a more defensive 4-2-3-1, trusting that Rosewing would do her duty and carry the Ponies through the final 45 minutes of play. It was a gamble, but one that ultimately paid off for Pearly White, and the Equestrian States survived a rather dull and uninteresting second half to walk out of Star Stadium with all three points. Dull and uninteresting would do, however, and with Vilita's corresponding victory over Banija across town, the Ponies' spot in the knockouts was assured.

  Group E                    Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts        MD2 Results:
1  Vilita                   2   2  0  0    5   3  +2    6   Q     Banija 2–3 Vilita 
2  Equestrian States        2   2  0  0    3   1  +2    6   Q    @ Grand Regal Stadium in Canterlot
3  Banija                   2   0  0  2    3   5  −2    0         Equestrian States 1-0 New Gazi 
4  New Gazi                 2   0  0  2    1   3  −2    0        @ Star Stadium in Canterlot
  Vilita (5) ahead of Equestrian States (3) on goals for
  Banija (3) ahead of New Gazi (1) on goals for

Next up for the Equestrians is their group stage finale with Vilita, a match few are expecting the Ponies to come away with a point from and even fewer are expecting them to win. A win will be necessary, however, if the Ponies want to finish atop their group as any other result would see the Jungle Cats top Group E, either on points or goals for. It remains to be seen if Pearly White will go all-out for a win at Royal Equestria Stadium or play things safe and preserve her side's strength and energy for the Ponies' meeting with whoever comes out of Group F, which is still very much up in the air.

Match Report :: Match Day 2

 EQUESTRIAN STATES 1–0 NEW GAZI 
Star Stadium (cap. 59,250) in Canterlot, Equestrian States

Scoring:
 Rosewing '36 (Pristina Shine)

Starting XI:
GK - Gentle Breeze
CB - Brix Hamilton
CB - Andrea Molovi
CB - Flitter
LM - Krystal
CM - Cloudchaser (C)
CM - Luminesce
RM - Apple Cobbler
AM - Rainbow Blitz
ST - Pristina Shine
ST - Rosewing

Substitutions:
 Krysia Bailey in for Pristina Shine '45
 Aarón Aiza in for Luminesce '74
 Elaine Everdeen in for Rainbow Blitz '83

by **Sargossa** » Tue May 29, 2018 10:44 am

JV: ‘Welcome back to SargoSport 1, your home for live World Cup action. Every Sargossa match will be here, will be live and you don’t have to miss a second. Right now over on SargoSport 2 we’ve got Barunia against Chromatika and on the blue button service there’s your choice of Eura against Brenecia, Pasarga versus South Covello or Darmens’s encounter with Mriin. All of Rushmore's finest in World Cup action can be found right here.

‘But now it’s that time. Live from Derby Field in beautiful Manehattan, it’s Sargossa versus Cosumar, Sargossa looking to bounce back after that defeat to Chromatika, Cosumar hoping to take a huge step towards the knockout stages. Taking you through all the action it’s Matías Montiel and first Carlos Acuña. Good afternoon gentlemen.’

CA: ‘Good afternoon Javi. Good afternoon everybody. Welcome back to Manehattan for this, round two of the World Cup 80 group stage. This city has become the hub for the Sargossan support that have travelled to The Equestrian States. They were in heavy attendance for the game against Chromatika and they will no doubt be making themselves heard again today. The stadium is a sea of blue, with The Azure Dragons also in town. They opened their account with a 1 – 0 victory over Barunia in Whitetail and will be hopeful of another positive result here at the home of another set of Dragons, the Manehattan Dragons. It’s set to be a cracking atmosphere Matías?’

MM: ‘It certainly will be. Any international fixture is special in its own right but a World Cup match is something else entirely. Whole nations grind to a halt when their teams play and you know that tens of millions of neutrals are watching too. It’s a potent mix. Plus every nation here has had to work hard for their place, this is the culmination of a very long campaign.’

CA: ‘Sargossa, as we know, lost out to Chromatika in the first match. Is that something to be concerned about?’

MM: ‘No, not particularly. Chromatika are the strongest team in this group and we pushed them all the way. It was a tight match and there was certainly no shame in that defeat. The beauty of this format is that it’s eminently possible to bounce back from a defeat. But it does put a heavy onus on this fixture.’

CA: ‘Yes, slightly different motivations for the sides today. Sargossa need points to get a foothold in this group while Cosumar need a win to potentially assure themselves of a place in the last sixteen. Although they’d need a Chromatika victory too, for that scenario to come to pass today. Two teams go head to head, three points are at stake and here are the line-ups. First, Cosumar…’

MM: ‘It’s a 4-3-1-2 or possible shades of a Starblaydi 4-4-2 Diamond formation. Alexander Pearce has put together a team that is as skilful as it is hardworking. Cosumar teams of the past put an emphasis on getting the ball out wide but this side is a different beast. They will keep it on the deck and attack through the centre, where Isla Sibučić will look to pull the strings. He can thread a pass through the eye of a needle or just lash a strike in from twenty five yards. He will be key. They’re strong at the back, incisive up front and hold a healthy work ethic. But they also shipped three goals against Barunia so there is a frailty there.’

CA: ‘Talking of which, here’s Sargossa.’

MM: ‘We know how Defederico likes his sides to play, they will be attempting to get the ball forward and put the opposition under pressure from the off. Thirty seven goals in his sixteen games in games has shown that the change to a more offensive style has had an impact. But just four clean sheets in that run also demonstrates a current defensive fragility. They’ve got here by outscoring the opposition, not through a solid backline. This one looks like it should produce some goals.’

CA: ‘Hopefully that hasn’t put the commentators curse on it! Now the teams are out and we are mere moments away from kickoff. But first, it’s time for the national anthems. Starting with the national anthem of Sargossa…’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘It flashes across the face of goal! I’m not sure if that was a cross or an attempted shot from Zevallos but he drilled it into the six yard box and Mayoral couldn’t quite get on the end of it. A decent chance there in what has been a very encouraging start for the Corsairs.’

MM: ‘Rodrigo Defederico has made a tactical tweak that is working well at the moment. It looks like González and Guerrero are going man for man against Targaryen and Valgard, while Zevallos and Valenzuela are dropping deeper, into wingback positions. Which is enabling Fernández to man mark Sibučić. He’s following him around the pitch like a shadow and I don’t think he’s yet touched the ball.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Vecino. Espina. Back to Vecino. Dangerous position here. Vecino, skips passed the challenge, low into the box, and driven in! Iván Mayoral! He struck it so cleanly. It was Vecino’s ball into the box and the big striker struck it first time with just a bit of whip that took it beyond the keeper and saw the ball nestle inside the post. A great start for Sargossa has got even better.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Here’s Vecino, he’s having such a good game. And that’s a wonderful ball, he’s spilt the defence. It’s Cáceres, he’s clear! Just the keeper to beat. And Cáceres! Cool as you like. Lovely finish, right footed, drilled passed Winterfyll. It’s two nil!’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘González now, to Guerrero. He looks to Zevallos on this right-hand side. The cross-field pass finds Marí. Sargossa pinging it about with confidence at the moment.’

MM: ‘They really are. It’s been a really assured performance so far. Cosumar just don’t look like they’re at the races. Halftime can’t come quick enough for them. You can bet Alexander Pearce will have some choice words prepared for his side.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘And the whistle blows, that is halftime and there’s no question as to the happier of the two sides. Sargossa have been fantastic in that first half. While Cosumar have looked a little shellshocked.’

MM: ‘It’s been a really surprising performance from Cosumar, particularly given that they could potentially qualify for the knockout stages with a win today. Fernández has done a terrific job in shackling Sibučić and that has been key in what we’ve seen.’

CA: ‘What do you think Rodrigo Defederico will be saying to his charges at halftime?’

MM: ‘More of the same. After a half like that there’s not a lot else you can say. But he will know full well that Pearce will be tearing strips out of his side in the dressing room next door and that Cosumar will be upping their game in the second half. There will be an inevitable reaction. And Sargossa will have to be ready for it.’

CA: ‘Thank you Matías. After forty-five minutes Sargossa hold a two goal lead over Cosumar, back to you in the studio.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘It’s an early chance for Cosumar to apply some pressure. The corner, to be taken by Isla Sibučić. It’s whipped in. And it’s there! Ragnar Targaryen! He drifted between defenders, it was a beautifully timed run, and the header clipped the underside of the bar as it went in. The recriminations begin in the Sargossan defence. But it’s not going to change the fact that Cosumar are right back in this game, it’s 2 – 1.’

MM: ‘Rodrigo Defederico will be hugely disappointed with that goal. If you like at the individual players Sargossa have a distinct advantage in size over their opponents. Set pieces looked like an area in which we might dominate so to concede from a corner in that manner is very poor. As was the defending. Both González and Guerrero are excellent in the air so for Targaryen, who is significantly shorter than both of them incidentally, to be left unmarked…’

CA: ‘Sibučić! Oh, off the post! I’m sorry Matías, but a chance there for Cosumar. Sargossa gifting them the ball from the restart and Sibučić, from fully thirty yards out, cracking an effort against the post. Fernández gave him an inch and he very nearly took a full mile. Ríos was beaten all ends up but the post stood firm. You said to expect a reaction. I think we’re seeing it now.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Valenzuela now, on the left hand side. He finds Espina. Back to Valenzuela. Down the line, Vecino’s made the run. He plays in the cross. Cáceres, he’s unmarked! It’s three! Matías Cáceres, completely unmarked in the Cosumar box. He met it with his head and steered it back across Winterfyll and into the net. Sargossa, who could so easily have seen their lead evaporate mere moments ago now restore the two goal advantage.’

MM: ‘It was a great finish from Cáceres but where was the marking? We talked about their defensive issues, now we’ve seen them first hand. It’s six goals conceded now in two group games. Problems for Alexander Pearce.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘That’s a late challenge. Fernández clipping the heels of Sibučić as the Cornellians midfielder tried to get away. And a yellow card for the big number twenty six.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘A change being made now by Alexander Pearce. It’s going to be Bryger Tidesson to come off. And it’s Saltorius Splitt who replaces him. He’s a bit of a character by all accounts and one of a shrinking number of players in this squad still based in their homeland.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Sibučić goes down. He’s indicting a shirt pull to the referee and the man in black seems to agree. He’s calling Fernández over. He’s already been booked remember. And it is a second yellow. Followed by the red. Sargossa are down to ten men.’

MM: ‘There can’t really be any complaints. Sibučić was away and Andrés hauled him down. There was only going to be one outcome.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Here comes the Sargossan change. It’s Germán Montero whose coming on to replace Valenzuela. Montero was a regular under Rafael Barrios but lost his place with the change of coach. How do you see them shaping up now Matías?’

MM: ‘It looks like they’re going to a conventional back four. With Montero slotting in at left back. I suspect it will be a 4-3-2, with Marí the one to drop deeper into the midfield.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Cosumar on the charge again, seeking to take full advantage of playing ten men. It’s Bacary Na'Kale, tricking his way beyond Zevallos. To the byeline. He cuts it back! And it’s swept in! It’s the substitute, Splitt. He arrived late in the box and coolly side footed passed Ríos. It’s 3 – 2 and the Azure Dragons smell blood.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘It’s Marí whose coming off. Luís Vazquez coming on. A holding midfielder replaces an attacker. The motivation behind that switch is pretty clear.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘Sibučić driving forward. He’s faced by Vazquez. He clips the ball passed him and, oh, down he goes. Right on the edge of the box. And the referee doesn’t hesitate, he points to the spot. The Sargossan players protest, they’re saying Sibučić was outside the penalty area when the contact was made but the man in the middle is having none of it. It’s going to be Romikk Valgard, the great star of this Cosumar side, to take it. He’s got seven goals in this campaign. And he won’t get a better chance to net an eighth. A hush has fallen over the stadium. It’s Valgard against Ríos. Valgard! He’s hit the post! And it goes wide! The chance has gone. Valgard drops to the turf. His manager has his head in his hands. Sargossa survive.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘The substitutes exchange passes on the edge of the box. Here’s Bale, adding some width. Faced by Montero. Back inside to Royannais. Now Sibučić. He shoots! Deflected! It falls to Targaryen! And he’s denied by Ríos! A lucky break for Cosumar. The deflection took the ball into the path of Ragnar Targaryen but Ríos was so quick off his line and made himself big. And the CA Paulinthal man’s effort thudded into his chest and bounced wide for a corner. Sargossa survive again.’

* * * * * * * * * *

CA: ‘We’ve got about thirty seconds of stoppage time remaining. Surely this is the final roll of the dice. It’s a freekick, wide on the right hand side. Sibučić stands over it. The big men are forward. Sibučić sends it right into the mix. Oh Jorgensen! Torbjörn Jorgensen rose highest. And from eight yards out sent a looping header just over the bar. Ríos was a mere spectator. Surely that’s it. Defederico is screaming at his charges to push out. Ríos, taking his time, he sends the goal kick long. And there’s the whistle! It’s over! Sargossa hang on for a precious three points. What a game Matías.’

MM: ‘Oh it’s great now it’s over! The proverbial game of two halves. Sargossa, excellent in the first half. Cosumar, roaring back in the second. Did they deserve something from this match? Probably. But Sargossa clung on heroically. And this group is suddenly wide open.’

CA: ‘It really is. The final whistle has also gone in Everfree, a single goal was enough for Chromatika to beat Barunia there. They move onto six points. Sargossa join Cosumar on three points. Barunia are yet to register. Which sets up an intriguing final round of matches. Chromatika need a point against Cosumar to advance. While the Azure Dragons need to better Sargossa’s result against Barunia. Barunia too are not yet out of this. A big win over the Corsairs coupled with a Chromatika victory could still see them through. It’s still all to play for in Group F. Back to you in the studio.’

by **Banija** » Tue May 29, 2018 10:50 am

End of a Generation- Number of players face their final chance to wear the jersey in final World Cup match

Captain Kiggwe Mavuto in a World Cup Qualifying match. He is one of a number of players who are retiring from the international scene after World Cup 80

CANTERLOT, EQUESTRIAN STATES- With Banija's rendevous in the World Cup Finals nearly over, it is time to think about the future of this national team. The future is bright- with players like Gitonga Kahara, Chibuzo Afolayan, and Toyuwa Okafor getting valuable playing time with the national team, and all starring in stronger leagues than the BSL abroad. The thing that we are doing right now, however, is focusing on the present- who will be Banija's players carrying on towards the next cycle, the next bout of qualifying, and who, among this squad, will see their last chance to wear a Banija jersey against New Gazi.

Who are those players? Well, the one that we know for sure is Kiggwe Mavuto, the side's skipper. The 34 year old has played in every qualifying campaign since World Cup 74, and hope was placed into him as the future of the national team after they got rid of the entire national team following the national embarrassment of their World Cup 73 Qualification campaign, when losing every single qualifier led to the entire board of the RBSA resigning, their coach, Kabila, so thoroughly disgraced that he has never managed again, and the team vilified.

Kiggwe Mavuto has fit the bill. Has he been an international superstar? I would say not. However, he has done what he was expected to do, which is bring some pride and honor back to the Kadongo Kamu. He has 38 career goals for the national team- far and away the team's all-time leading goalscorer. He was always seen as the team's best player, and largely responded to the heightened expectations. Even after being surpassed by players like Chibuzo Afolayan, his leadership has been crucial in ensuring that the national team will indeed have the opportunity to rise.

He has scored a number of key goals for the Banijans. Of course, he scored the first goal of the thrilling playoff tie, the opener of the 3-0 win in the first leg against Mercedini that vaulted Banija ahead to their first ever appearance in the World Cup Finals. As the captain for this cycle, he led the team, week in and week out. When the squad was struggling to get results, he is the reason the side was able to keep their heads, and reel off the string of results that would allow them to finally qualify for the World Cup Finals.

He will have his number called, and will be proudly celebrated by fans of Banija. Of course, he is the biggest name, but not the only name, who will hang up his national team boots after this match. Who else is there? The two obvious ones are Nega Bazin and Elijah Riga. Both will be 37 years old by the time the next UICA rolls around, and since it's widely known that they will retire before then, we expect that this will be the last day they ever suit up for the national team.

Elias Abate, though 31 years old, is likely seeing his last days on the national team. He used to be a starter, before being supplanted by Sia Fall, and then eventually supplanted by the young, burgeoning superstar, Gitonga Kahara. He is a true professional- not getting angry when he was replaced by Sia Fall after tearing his ACL, and when he returned, being then further supplanted by Gitonga Kahara. Not complaining when, at Herzegovina City, Brian Emerson asked him to move from winger to central midfield, where he would be playing out of his natural position, in a key opportunity to make the World Cup side. Not to mention the lack of goalscoring opportunities. A hard worker who was unlucky at the extent of talent at his natural position, He will deservingly have a sendoff here against New Gazi.

With those four the locks on this squad to retire, who else will see their final day of action? One would expect John Tewedros, as he is the same age as Kiggwe Mavuto, but he didn't even make the final 23- being replaced by the younger Okonkwo Okparro. He has probably seen his last days playing competitively for the Banijan national team. Taking a look at those approaching that age, you'd expect Delbin Kasekende, as a goalkeeper, to return for one last World Cup cycle. Daniel Asres, who has always preached about longevity for his boyhood club, Jinja City FC, you would expect to not return. Alifa Diawara would also be expected to retire.

The one serious question mark of a player currently 30 or over, is Girma Asmelash. He has always been desperate to play for the national team, but has been behind Kiggwe Mavuto, not getting much playing time. However, his time is now arriving- though he will be 35 years old by the next World Cup Qualification campaign, maybe a little bit too old to be an everyday starter in the central midfield, travelling the multiverse for 18 games. But won't he want to see how it is to wear the #10 jersey? Our prediction is that he comes back for the AOCAF, where he & Okparro will be jockeying for the #10 jersey, though by World Cup 81, we expect the job to be firmly in Okparro's grasp.

As for the rest of the squad- most of them would appear to be coming back. Not everyone is a lockdown to be a starter, however. Players like Jalang Ba will be looking to crack the starting lineup, and looking to prove themselves over the course of the domestic season. That said, for those retiring, a standing ovation should be given to all of them. Leading Banija to their first ever World Cup Finals- an accomplishment, a feat, from pot 5, is an accomplishment that they will always be proud of.

The lineup against New Gazi will be interesting- a number of changes both to ensure those playing their last game can do so at the World Cup Finals, yet, of course, getting a glimpse at Banija's young talent. People like Jalang Ba and Jumu Sanneh will get playing time, while some of Banija's stars who are going back to big clubs, like Toyuwa Okafor and Gitonga Kahara, will get a well-deserved rest after a taxing World Cup cycle. And, of course, as we say for the last time in this tournament- Go Banija!

Lineup vs. New Gazi

Starters: 4-2-1-3
Players who are based in a foreign league are bolded.
Players who have their first ever callup in this tournament are italicized.
BSL = Banijan Soccer League, Banija's only national professional soccer league.
GK #35 Jumu Sanneh. Age 22. Plays for the Isipongo Flash in the BSL.
RB #2 Zinnah Atieno. Age 27. Plays for Herzegovina City FC in the BSL.
CB #3 Wasa Jawo. Age 30. Plays for Petroslovakia United in the Petroslovanian Soccer League.
CB #20 Jalang Ba. Age 22. Plays for Umbazi Metropolitan SC in the BSL.
LB #13 Ensa Camara. Age 23. Plays for the Zakhora Aces in the Härlighet Ligan in Cosumar.
RCM #14 Elijah Riga. Age 33. Plays for Dodge City in the Dunnes Football League Championship
LCM #8 Daniel Asres. Age 31. Plays for Jinja City FC in the BSL. First start was Matchday 10.
CAM #10 Kiggwe Mavuto. Age 34. Plays for Armory in the Dunnes Football League Championship.Captain.
RW #7 Chibuzo Afolayan. Age 28. Plays for AFC Corvistone in the Nepharim Premiership.
LW #12 Elias Abate. Age 31. Plays for Herzegovina City FC in the BSL. Starter in World Cup 79 Qualifying at Left Wing.
ST #24 Nega Bazin.. Age 33. Plays for the Chenoworth Rovers in the Nepharim First Division.

Bench:
GK #1 Delbin Kasekende. Age 32. Plays for Herzegovina City FC in the BSL.
GK #13 Assefa Berhane. Age 28. Plays for Umbazi Metropolitan SC in the BSL.
RB #27 Berihu Abeselome. Age 25. Plays for Crystopolis City in the United League.
CB #5 Abate Brehanu. Age 27. Plays for the Busembe Timberwolves in the BSL.
LB #4 Alifa Diawara. Age 30. Plays for Herzegovina City FC in the BSL.
CM #6 Isaac Georgiadis. Age 29. Plays for Riuwee United in the Fleftic Premier League in Abanhfleft,
CM/CAM #15 Okonkwo Okparro. Age 22. Plays for Makosile United in the Vilitan League.
CAM #21 Girma Asmelash. Age 31. Plays for Istria City FC in the BSL.
LW #11 Gitonga Kahara. Age 20. Plays for Polaris in the Terranean Leauge East.
LW/RW #18 Ansu Cisse. Age 28. Plays for Busukuma Athletic Club in the BSL.
ST #17 Assefa Yitebarke. Age 24. Plays for Istria City FC in the BSL.
ST #9 Toyuwa Okafor. Age 29. Plays for Avenida Neal in the Freitball Liga in Farfadillis.

by **Pasarga** » Tue May 29, 2018 11:14 am

Ingþór Auðbjörnsson had had something of a tumultuous year, with his nagging ankle injury and a bit of a drop of form during the World Cup Qualifiers. Not to mention that he had come to blows with the rest of the national team right around the halfway point of the qualifying process, not believing that the team was putting in the sort of effort that would see them qualify. It had grated on him greatly, even if he would later realize that it was not true, that the team as a whole had simply been in a bit of a rut, and had seen him even reject a call up to the national team for two games, of which was given without too much of a media circus about it. For a player who had never really experienced failure in his entire career, this complete lack of success both for the team as a whole and his own scoring prowess was making him flustered and question if he was really up for all of it. However those doubts were erased when he was brought back into the team for that final weekend in the qualifying campaign, coming off the bench to score the goal against Qasden that secured the automatic qualifying berth for the Wanderers.

Thor, as the fans for both Zozi and the national team had decided to call him, knew that the group draw had been far from favorable, with two remarkably well drilled defensive units in their group and a high rising middle tiered squad. If the Wanderers were going to advance out of the group, then he was going to have to stomach any concerns and forge forward even if he was finding it difficult to find the chances himself. Being drawn against South Covello seemed to be the call of a major challenge for Thor in particular, as it had been this very side two years ago that had found a way to shut him down and they then moved forward deep into the knockouts after putting the Wanderers behind them in their very gritty and defensive way, a callback to the days of System Karela of Rejistania if what he had read in the history books to be true. The Wanderers were no Bettia then, nor had they looked to be it in the first half of qualifying, but there had been a bit of a spark of the famous System Takil that those from the south of Atlantian Oceania had used when the two Alexanders were leading the line in Thor's absence, something that both pained the Zozi striker but also made him proud as a Pasargan.

He was flustered and frustrated in the game against Darmen, as those regional rivals used the experience that they had duely acquired in the Copa Rushmori to shut down the Wanderers' attack, throttling the midfield. Even when Kárpáty sunk deeper into the midfield to try and provide an outlet for the pressured midfield, it was not enough to get the Wanderers the clear cut opportunities on net that they needed to break through the Darmen defense. Fortunately for the Wanderers attack, their own backline had stepped up to the task and had stood firm in the face of a handful of Darmen counters and attacks of their own, with Ralf Bader looking particularly impressive in defense, as the young centerback was showing the entire world why a team like DIrectus had plucked him out of the Baskita team for such a hefty fee. The draw however was not a favorable result and Thor dreaded the upcoming match but held a stoic face, even if the demons of two years prior were creeping into the back of his mind, filling him with doubt that he was truly one of the best strikers in the world, if he could not beat the Darmen defense then the could not have a hope in defeating the renowned Rebels defensive unit.

Paired with the young Jager for the match, Thor was able to probe with the South Covello defense with a bit of ease but his opening chance in the ninth minute of the game hit off the post and was eventually cleared. After that, the Rebels seemed to become laser focused after the early warning shot and Thor knew that he had missed out on a wonderful opportunity to relieve the pressure that was building on his shoulders as well as the team. They needed a victory here against the third ranked team in the World to have a real solid chance of advancing out of this group of death after not being able to best their regional rivals, however it was not coming for them. Attack met defense and was best, slick passes that beat most opposition were being cut out by the great play of the opposition fullbacks and centerbacks. Time was ticking away and with ten minutes to go, the game sat level on the nil nil that it had began on, much to chagrin of both set of fans and teams, with South Covello wanting the win as well after they had been surprised by Mriin and held to a draw in their first game.

Jörg Feierabend took a free kick from just inside the halfway mark and sent it down the left hand hand touch line to where Friedmann was making the overlapping run. The defender played a quick one-two with Dominik Krause to get past the onrushing defenders that were looking to bust up the Wanderers' attack once more. Thor pulled himself a few feet back while Jager pressed forward towards the penalty spot when Friedmann lifted in a cross that seemed to float in the air for several seconds. Thor initially thought to attempt an bicycle kick, to do something that would be remembered for years to come with the magnificence that is such an attempt, but he thought better of it with the defenders scrambling to try and head the ball away. The six foot three Zozi striker however rose higher than either of the South Covello players and put in a powerful looping header towards the far post that caught the keeper flat footed. As the ball softly ruffled into the back of the net, Thor could only grin as he thought that the impossible was no more, that if he could break this defense, then the world could be taken, and so that was his goal.

by **Eura** » Tue May 29, 2018 11:59 am

OOC: Continued from here. This is the first part of a longer RP that isn't fully ready yet, but this is a much awaited and decisive shift in the conflict that has engulfed so many of my RPs for a while now. I hope you will enjoy it.

The retreat was no place to hold any kind of impromptu funeral with its sweltering heat and lack of a deserving audience. General and President Emile Gartanzo, the man who had orchestrated Sameba's briefly successful turned nightmare war on Eura and led the country for around a decade, lay dead. His blood had stained the wood panel flooring of the luxurious dining suite. A deep slash and turning stab wound had been enough to kill him. The assassin was Colonel Marco Beran. A close personal friend of Gartanzo, few could have predicted this turn of events, for him to succeed where various plotters both hardliner and moderate, the hated leftists, the Euran's and others had failed. Few except the Eurans who had initiated this chain of events of course. Beran was still alive many hours after the incident and being held in a nearby room under armed guard with a doctor present. Gartanzo had managed to shoot him three times in the struggle that led to the President's murder. Beran was as tough as a mule, as Gartanzo had told him many times, and survived the initial shooting, though the doctor had advised that he would not like through the night, and certainly not if he was subjected to a "firm" interrogation.

Gathered around the dictator's body on a cold room slab were the architects of his doomed war. Marshal Rossi, the head of the Sameban Air Forces, who had opposed the war initially but been allowed to survive by Gartanzo to win over other doubters and alleged "moderate" players in the regime, making use of a canny political operator and critical thinker rather than putting him in the ground unnecessarily. Admiral Gallo, the Chief of the Naval Staff and Rossi's polar opposite - an enthusiastic warmonger whose gluttony and arrogance had served him poorly during the conflict itself despite a few early victories for his branch of the military. General Moretti, the beleaguered head of the Sameban Republican Army who had almost been sacked by Gartanzo for his inability to free the Sameban ground forces from the trap the Euran's had locked them in north of the main cities for several years of slow, mutually dissatisfying attrition. Minister of the Interior Boni, the head of the secret police and intelligence services, a hardliner but a demoralised one. They were joined by a handful of other trusted figures, Gartanzo's private secretary and no-one else. Decisions would have to be made, and quickly. They had already agreed to shelve any plans for a public funeral until it could be held safely for the mourning public. They weren't even sure whether to announce the death at all.

Gallo didn't surprise anyone by running his mouth at the first opportunity. 'Beran, that fucking snake. I always knew he'd break.'
'Give over - you didn't know the man in the slightest' Rossi scoffed, 'and if you did maybe he would have gone for you instead!' The two men had been bickering for the best part of half an hour. Colonel Capon - an Air Forces hardliner who nevertheless was mostly loyal to Rossi - had been the driving force behind the more productive discussion. 'Look, we've all agreed there must be a delay to any announcement, and a Generals Council formed in the meantime. We are all present and accounted for. Let us vote on an Interim Chairman of the Council, with the agreed temporary powers of the scaled down Presidency.' There had been enough political foreplay already; nobody was eager to prolong the scrapping. All present knew where their bread was buttered and who they would have to back making any debate irrelevant. Votes were cast. A show of hands and some awkward glances. Gallo won. Narrowly. With a hardliner taking the temporary mantle, the new Interim Chairman's actions were predictable. 'Boni, dispatch your men to the offices of Colonel Beran in Samebus immediately. We must ensure there is not a wider insurgency at play here, though its reassuring that none of us are involved.'
'How can you know that for sure Admiral?'
'Hah! If any of you were behind a coup attempt you wouldn't dare show up here. I suggest we all return to Samebus and get a formidable nights rest. Act as if everything is normal. Then, tomorrow, we can discuss how to release this information and how to prepare for any potential Euran follow up offensive. Make no mistake, this war does not end here. I promise you all that I shall nobly take up the stead of the great General, and honour his memory with everlasting victory!' Rossi rolled his eyes as subtly as somebody possibly could, but Moretti was fully on board. 'You are right of course, comrade. We must prepare for a new stage of the war. Let's get to it.' Slowly the members of the Generals Council departed. Rossi was the last to leave, and pondered his options as an SAF helicopter whirled him back towards the capital.

----------

In the capital the Minister for Economic Resources Paul Morzo, by all accounts the most powerful civilian in the country, was returning to his office in driving rain. A thunderstorm had descended on the capital rapidly, somewhat foreshadowing the news that he had received only a couple of hours prior. Although Morzo had been briefed on Gartanzo’s fate, he was the only member of the main leadership group who hadn’t been rushed to the hidden presidential residence in the utmost secrecy due to urgent matters concerning a desperate plea for an oil deal with one of Sameba’s few friends in the world. He had cleared this with the others and knew that in reality he was not going to be missed much. Sometimes Morzo couldn’t work out why he hadn’t been purged already. He was immensely powerful yet also hated by the military as the man who held the purse strings as tight as possible. Some actually blamed him for Sameba’s failure to decisively break the Euran behemoth.

Notwithstanding that these accusations were deeply insulting on a professional and personal level it was very unfair to criticse Morzo for the military’s failures. The levels of denial he dealt with on a daily basis were ridiculous. Without his input, the ramshackle Sameban economy would not have been able to grind through years of blockade and isolation. It was beyond his control that the navy’s short termist war strategy had left them with losses too big to be easily replaced. He couldn’t account for the SRA mindlessly allowing Eura to encircle its most experienced and successful army only six months into the conflict. Only the Air Forces and their wily chief, Rossi, commanded any respect from Morzo after what he had been through. Then there was Gartanzo himself, a difficult man at the best of times with increasingly delusional expectations the longer the war went on. Gartanzo was never able to admit it, but he had played his diplomatic cards terribly from the moment the first shot was fired. The reckless targeting of international shipping had aggravated every nation that might have been willing to trade and the entry of Nephara, Brenecia, Olastor and others into different arenas of the conflict had been entirely self-inflicted. There was a time when countries like Sargossa would at least pick up the phone. Now they were too busy playing friendly peacekeepers in South Covello alongside the Euran’s to help the dying Sameban republic.

After drying off his soaked coat, Morzo made his way into the main office and checked his mail. His private secretary, Kaltor, was the only person present. He was tapping out a note of a meeting on worker deployment the day before. There was only a brief glance away from statistics on the amount of programmers needed at the SAF’s remaining long range radar facilities to recognise Morzo’s depressed figure slumping into a comforting chair. He couldn’t really be bothered to read this nonsense tonight – not when the news received was about to change everything. Morzo was about to ask Kaltor to cheer him up with some good news when a single name on one package stood out to him right away. No, not his own name, one just below it. “Col MB. Do not return to sender.” IIt couldn’t be. Then again, who else had sent Morzo correspondence with that initialism before? He opened it, letting the envelope fall to the floor gently. His jaw followed suit.

The note was indeed from Beran and had clearly been sent on a delay to arrive once the treasonous deed was done. It laid out his reasons for doing it and invited “likeminded patriots” to take control of the regime and bring an acceptable conclusion to the war with Eura. In other words, an agreed treaty or ceasefire. Peace! ‘Kaltor, read this. You know Beran’s writing do you not?’
‘Yes sir. By memory.’
‘Good. Is this legitimate?’ Kaltor gave the note a quick read. His eyes widened at the content but his calm demeanour otherwise held firm. ‘This was his writing. I’m sure of it.’
‘And it came to me. He wouldn’t send this to anyone he didn’t trust or thought wouldn’t agree with the agenda laid out, which means…’
‘That he trusts you to deliver what Sameba needs to survive.’
‘…the question is who else he trusts. And who do I trust. I can trust you can’t I Kaltor?’ The private secretary dutifully nodded. ‘Sir I am minded to agree with Beran’s logic as it is, but if I did not, I would still stand by you.’ They shook hands and took to the phones. Morzo knew exactly who to call and what to say to them.

by **Starblaydia** » Tue May 29, 2018 12:00 pm

Groups E-H Matchday 3 Cutoff

Sponsored by THE WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC:

Official Baseball Partner of EqueStar World Cup 80

At the end of the day, it's twenty-two beings kicking a molded high technology plastic ball around a synthetically-enhanced field, with the aim of tidying it up by placing it into a net. We've been quite lucky so far, because several times the ball has gone in the next ten or so times in a match, which is quite interesting. But sometimes it doesn't even manage to make it into the net, and they just kick it randomly at each other, or it keeps hitting them in the head without touching the ground.

Which is weird, right?

How about if there was a game where you get to use your brain and your hands, including your opposable thumbs to get to grips with an actual implement, showing off the fact that your species has developed the ability to use basic tools. Where getting hit by the ball - don't worry, there's still a ball in this one, folks - actually really hurts and the aim is to do as little running as possible, thereby wasting everyone else on the field's time as they just stand there unable to catch the ball when you hit it. It's not like Golf, where the aim of the game is to actually play as little golf as possible, the aim in Baseball is to make your opponent be able to play as little baseball as possible by not-hitting, not-catching and not-running! It's a Rejistanian's dream!

So, when the feast of football turns into a national nightmare of epic proportions and your team stages a fake political boycott of the knockout stages that they didn't qualify for anyway, why not change the channel to the WBC?

Wait...

Do not change the channel. Continue to watch all available EqueStar World Cup 80 programming, just like the World Baseball Classic organisers are doing.

And here are your scores. If you've nothing better to do, why not check out the ongoing WBC 43 thread, and maybe sign up for WBC 44!

by **Valanora** » Tue May 29, 2018 12:18 pm

The Holy Empire, a team quite like no other for a multitude of reasons, that they were part of the Dreamed Realm the most obvious to those outside of the Eternal Empire. However those in the Eternal Empire see The Holy Empire as a foe quite like no other, for it is frosty reality bending folk that are one of the greatest foes that have ever been in the Marauders way, even more so than that of the legendary Starblaydia, where the Marauders were currently playing in the World Cup. Perhaps it was because of the way that reality worked for those within The Holy Empire that made them such grand foes that they were the hardest of challenges to overcome for the Marauders, though that they employed the legendary Starblaydi Simone di Bradini as an immortal member of their staff might also explain some things, as it is the Starblaydi that Valanora has been tied with for decades as the most successful teams in the World Cup. However if Starblaydia and Valanora were The Princes of the World Cup, then The Holy Empire was obviously the Emperor, being one of the most successful and oldest nations to be competing in the tournament.

Faeron Soldarian looked at the notebook that had contained his initial writing of The Fall of the Princes, not knowing how true of a tale that would be coming true, if not for decades after his writing. The Holy Empire had won more titles, Aguazul had took the world by storm before disappearing into the nether of the non-sporting masses, and the Marauders had seen their legend slowly be ebbed away, some of the glamour lost in the passage of time and the way that results seemed to go from favoring the Eternal Empire to being as wild as the winds of a hurricane. It was ironic then that the Marauders were now going to have to face The Holy Empire with needing a victory against their long time foes in order to reach the knockouts once more, after they had been utterly humbled in the opening matchday here in Starblaydia against Ceni, a team of which had seen their fortunes in the footballing world start to rise, but the defeat had stung all the same and put the Marauders in a very precarious position. At least the team had managed to come together to edge out Baker Park, that they had made it into the Finals at all spoke volumes of their potential and they definitely showed it in nearly holding the team till the very end until va Drake scored a beast of a goal to secure the three points.

Faeron wondered if perhaps it would had been better if he and the other remaining elves would have been better off to have heeding the Calling and left this realm and all that they had accomplished behind permanently. Laborious Hawk would have never have left, he knew that much, as Hawk had too much drive for perfection to had decided to rest on his prior accomplishments and thought that it had been enough. Time was Hawk's enemy, not the other players on the field, not the rest of the footballing world, but only time, for Hawk seemed as if he was locked in a singular focus on the drive of perfection. It was not a healthy sort of existence Faeron believed and it was one that likely would be Hawk's greatest strength as well as his greatest weakness, but such was the case of the seldom few who have such a way about them. Faeron though, as well as the rest, they could have looked back on five World Cup titles and records that had been made and held for the longest of time and have been content, if they knew the way that fortunes would come. That was the risk though wasn't it, with great chances of success comes the same chance of failure. A Prince might rise to overthrow an Emperor or an Emperor may mere cast them out.

by **Alasdair I Frosticus** » Tue May 29, 2018 1:51 pm

THE TALE OF TWITCH AND THE MAGICAL MARKETING POINTS

After the wonderful win over Baker Park, the fluffy bunnies were all gathered together in their training ground in Jhanna, happily hippity-hopping across the pitch, and sharing lots of bunny laughs about their ever-so-cute World Cup larks.

"I can't wait to play Ceni!" said Snowball.

"Playing them will be so much fun!" said Wiggles.

"I'm excited too!" said Whiskers.

"That's the spirit!" said Mr Tzimisces, smiling indulgently at the bunny enthusiasm.

Then some men and bunnies in suits walked onto the pitch...

It was the marketing men and marketing bunnies. They were there to share some exciting news with the fluffy bunnies, especially Twitch.

"Hello bunnies!" said the marketing people, with big smiles on their faces "we are here to bring you really good news"

"Ooooooooh, said all of the fluffy bunnies together.

"Following the official announcement that you're the Official Murderous Bunny Merchandise Partner of EqueStar World Cup 80, sales of Fluffy Bunny, Inc. merchandise have gone through the roof!"

"Ooooooooh, said all of the fluffy bunnies together, who weren't quite sure that they followed, but just knew that this had to something super-exciting.

"Especially of Twitch toys!" the marketers added. "Why, we can barely make enough of Twitch toys in the kits of various World Cup nations, what with the amazing demand for anything Twitch-related."

Twitch turned bright red at this, and his nose twitched twitchily.

"And Twitch will get lots and lots of money due to his magic merchandising percentage points!" said the marketers. "It's all part of the plan, which is succeeding brilliantly!" said the marketers.

"What plan is that?" asked Twitch, who was happy to have the opportunity to draw some attention away from himself.

"Well, bunnies... the Dread Lords Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail have worked out that there's more than one form of conquest; and right now they're trying economic imperialism" said the marketers.

"What's ekon.. nomik.. impi whatsit?" asked Prince Fluffles, who was often confused by big words.

"Well, you see..., the Dread Lords think that if they can flood Ordinary Reality with fluffy bunny merchandise - especially Twitch merchandise - soon the economies of World Cup participants will crash because no one will be buying anything other than fluffy bunnies. And when nation upon nation collapses into a grotesque and violent civil war as the result of total economic collapse, they'll have no choice but to beg the Dread Lords to rescue them from their abject misery."

"Gosh", said all the fluffy bunnies at once, for they were all terribly impressed.

"Of course, it'll only work if you bunnies actually win the World Cup..." added the marketing men.

Well, the fluffy bunnies may not have known what economic imperialism was, but they certainly knew what an exciting plan for multiverse domination was when they heard one, and they were all so terribly excited that the played possibly their best match of the tournament so far - including qualifying! - when they beat Ceni 2-0.

Why, but for a couple of lucky goalposts, the bunnies could have won 4-0.

And Twitch, who was ever so excited by his magical marketing share, scored both goals via long-range thunderbolts that Mr Tzimisces in his prime would have been proud of!

And with that, the bunnies were all but into the knockout stages, though they had a tricky final fixture against Valanora to get through if they wanted to be sure.

Hippity-hop, hippity-hop, into the burrow.

THE END

by **South Covello** » Tue May 29, 2018 5:20 pm

John Green's Presidential Address

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I speak to you today with news out of Rushmore, specifically out of Sameba. Sameba is a land that has been ruled by tyrants for generations, much as we were once ruled by tyrants for generations. They have terroized their neighbors for generations, much as we once terrorized our neighbors for generations. In many ways, Sameba represents what we once were - a despotic nation that oppresses its people and the other people of the Multiverse.

"But all that appears to be on its way out. As I said, there is a revolution going on in Sameba, and great progress has been made towards overthrowing that despotic, tyrannical, dictatorial government. Euran and Nepharim troops are assisting the Sameban people in overthrowing that cruel, corrupt, wicked government. And now, we will be joining them.

"I have requested, and the Legislature has approved, the use of military troops to deploy to Sameba to assist the forces there in fighting the Sameban government, with the ultimate goal of installing a free, democratic government in a land that has not known freedom for far too long. I ask anyone who wishes to volunteer to fight for freedom to enlist in the military and prove that a threat to freedom anywhere is a threat to freedom everywhere. And simply put, Sameba is a threat to freedom and we must overthrow that government.

"Let me stress, however, that this is not, I repeat not, a war on the Sameban people. Rather, this is a war for the Sameban people, for they are victims, not perpetrators, of this government's horrific deeds. While we will seek justice for the higherups in the regime, should any survive, we will treat the people as the victims they are. Our goal is to save them, not to destroy them. I have made this very clear to our Euran and Nepharim allies. We must fight for the Sameban people, for their freedom, for their liberty, not against them.

"Some say the Green Doctrine is ineffective, or that these wars are not our problem. To them, I reiterate that a threat to freedom anywhere is a threat to freedom everywhere. Sameba's government has terorized not just its own people, but the Euran people and countless others. They are a threat to all the sapient beings of this entire Multiverse. The government must be overthrown, and we must assist, for it is our duty to repay the debt owed to the Multiverse.

"Thank you, and may freedom ever be thy watchword. Good night."

Legislature Approves Second War This Year, But By Smaller Margin
by Amarillo Sanchez

The conflict in Saintland just ended a few months ago, but South Covello is once again joining a foreign engagement, following the words of the Green Doctrine. This time, enlisted South Covello troops will be deployed to Sameba, to fight for the Sameban people in another conflict that does not involve the South Covellan people in any way. Last time, the margin was 298-1. This time, the margin was smaller, 211-89. But a simple majority is all that's needed, and President Green got what he needed.

Clara Santos cast one of the 89 nay votes on her 90th birthday, making her still the oldest member of the Legislature and the first nonagenerian to serve in it. She was the only member to vote against the war in Saintland, and reiterated her desire for peace in a statement to her constutuents. "President Green has gotten us into yet another pointless war, yet another pointless conflict that will see more troops lose their lives. I never again want to comfort parents who have lost a child, or soldiers who come back home with limbs missing. We must have peace, not eternal war. I said it last time, and I'll say it again - The Green Doctrine is a recipe for eternal war. And as long as it is in effect, eternal war is what we shall have. Last time, I was the only one of my colleagues to vote against war. This time, 88 of them have joined me. Perhaps next time, 150 of them will join me and we can defeat this travesty once and for all. I agree with President Green that we need a free saociety, but war is not the path to freedom, peace is. And I cannot approve of a second pointless war in less than a year."

Senator Campos' seat is one of 100 up for election next year, in the first regular Legislature election after the initial election of all 300. Alread she has one opponent, Blake Jenkins, who fought in the War of Independence and lost his right leg below the knee after Gregist troops threw a bomb at him. Although fully ambulatory thanks to a prosthetic, Jenkins has been unable to serve in the Saintland conflict or this one due to military restrictions. When announcing his candidacy shortly after Ms. Campos' statement, he said "Senator Campos has never served on a battlefield. She has never faced a tyrant in the eye. She does not know what tyrants look like. So who is she to question, or dare speak on behalf of, those who have? I am proud to have fought tyranny. I would do it again if I could. Those tyrants may have taken half my leg, but they didn't take my spirit, or my freedom. If elected, I would continue to push for The Green Doctrine, and assist in fights against tyrants, wherever the may be."

It is the opinion of this journalist that Senator Campos is in the right here. We do not need eternal war. There will always be tyrants. Does this mean we should always be at war? Apparently that is what President Green wants. He's up for reelection in three years, and if he seeks a second term, I hope his opponents will make an issue out of the Green Doctrine. Speaking of elections, I applaud the Legislature for passing the Top 2 Amendment to avoid the vote splitting we saw in a few districts last year. And I applaud the people for approving the First Amendment to the South Covello Constitution in the followup vote last week. For those who have been living under a rock, each election will now be held in two stages. First, on Election Day, all candidates will run on a single unified ballot. If one candidate gets a majority of the vote, they are the winner in that election. If not, the top two candidates will face each other in a runoff four weeks later, on Runoff Day. Hopefully this will also prevent seven candidates who oppose the Green Doctrine from splitting the vote, and President Green emerging victorious with about 20 percent of the vote.

But back on subject, we cannot continue to fight these wars. First it's Saintland, then it's Sameba, who will it be next? Maybe the Free Republics will elect another tyrant and we'll have to stop them. Hey, Quebec gave the Gregists nukes, they must be terrorists too, right? I guess we'll need to stop them. And Saintland's still a theocratic dictatorship, will there be Saintland War Take Two soon? This is getting absurd. We need to put a stop to the Green Doctrine, once and for all. And we need to put a stop to it now.

Earlier today, on the lawn of the Presidential Residence, over 15,000 citizens gathered for peace and to protest the Green Doctrine. Their leader, a 21 year-old recent college graduate named David Hale, led the group of mostly young people in chanting "NO MORE WAR!" Hale and his friends were there to protest the Saintland War too, but started out as a crowd of only 50 or so. As the war continued, and turned against us, it grew to about 3,000. Today, there were more than five times that, and Hale says they're going to be there every day until The Green Doctrine is repealed. And it's the young people who are teaching us all a lesson, people who came of age just as the Gregists were being overthrow, just as the revolution was occuring. And they know that this war on tyrants is a thing that we never want to go through again unless we have to. Mr. Hale, perhaps you should run for Legislature, or even President. We need more young faces like you to fight for peace, not for war.

David Hale majored in political science, and graduated from Capital College just a few short weeks ago. Perhaps a job as a politician is in his near future. Hale is currently a resident and registered voter in the West Northbury District, in a northern suburb of the capital. That seat is currently held by Tyrell Hess, one of the most vocal supporters of the Green Doctrine. However, his seat is not up for election for another five years, based on the class he was drawn into. That's a long time to wait to challenge him. Perhaps he'll just stick to activism for the time being, growing the crowds on the lawn of the Presidential Residence more and more by the day. We'll stay tuned to this developing situation here as it progresses.

by **Ethane** » Tue May 29, 2018 6:24 pm

The ViewFinder

twosides: South Covello Fights Another 'Revolutionary War': Should We Be Wary?

YES

Let me just state, before I begin this, that this is just the viewpoint I, and many others, hold and is not an endorsement of any action, but designed to facilitate a debate as to the geopolitical situation in Esportiva and around the multiverse; one which I think Ethane should debate a lot more and actually consider more than they currently do.

Yes, I do think that Ethane should be wary of South Covellan's entering war again, for the second time this year. There are many questions that should be asked when someone declares war, and I wonder if the South Covellans have bypassed some of them.

The most crucial debate is whether it is the South Covellan's right to interfere in the affairs of other countries? This nation, which I must remind you not long ago was under the grip of an evil tyrant themselves in Lord Gregory, seems to have taken it upon themselves to protect the rest of the world from evil 'tyrants' and 'dictators'. But is it there place to interfere in another country.

They follow the Green Doctrine, which is that a threat to freedom anywhere is a threat to freedom everywhere and that whenever there is a war against tyranny, we must join it. But you must then ask is it alright for a nation to intervene in another nation's conflict? And what interest does South Covello have in intervening in these nations? Surely it is not completely out of a sense of duty. You must then question what the motives are behind these interventions? To increase their global political influence? To show everyone they're a threat? Monetary gain? Economic gain? To create a dependence on South Covello on the newly found nation? To grow a network of allies (or more?) that will then serve the 'mother' nation like sheep, doing everything their master tells them to do?

Why is South Covello hell-bent on involving themselves in almost every war there seems to be? And where are they getting all the money to do so, considering their recent revolutionary war? Is war the answer? Because for South Covello, it seems to be the default.

Then you have to wonder what constitutes a tyrannic leader? What defines a dictator? Who decides whether the leader is enough of a 'dictator' or 'tyrant' for the Green Doctrine to come into effect? Is the South Covellan definition of 'tyrant' and 'dictator' the actual definition, or have they twisted it to mean something else? For all we know, the South Covellans could define a 'tyrant' as 'someone who holds views opposite to our own', or a leader of a nation they don't like?

Let's take a recent example. In the elections, not long after the bloody revolutionary war, the two leaders released a statement suggesting Revan was similar to Lord Gregory, and calling him 'a threat to freedom in his nation of Eshan, and by extension, he is a threat to freedom everywhere in the Multiverse.' That's a dangerous line to take, and one even our President was wary on, preferring to stand behind the Revan who is no dictator nor tyrant.

So there we can see what South Covello classifies as a tyrant. And their definition of tyranny isn't a definition that the rest of the world necessarily holds. So we should be wary because there are 2 wars this year, 20 wars the next, and then they're trying to assert their authority and influence globally. We must stand up against their Green Doctrine, their excuse to get involved in wars in other parts of the multiverse and tell them no more. It's not their place.

NO

We're obviously not a dictatorship, so why should be worried? We've been happy with our non-interventionist position over the past 15 years or so, and we should be re-asserting that, especially after the trouble that was created surrounding the creation of the Echani military base on Ilwes Island. We need to repair our image in the world, and attacking South Covello with words will help with nothing. So we shouldn't worry because it's not a threat to us and if it's not a threat to us than we don't need to have anything to do with it.

And then on to this Green Doctrine. Are there really any problems with it. Unless we get into silly semantic arguments, which people are told to ignore always, then there aren't any problems with it. In fact, it sounds like a very noble doctrine and one which is especially justified considering the background of South Covello.

South Covello was the nation borne out of the ashes of a revolutionary conflict against the evils of the tyrannic Lord Gregory. They came out of submission and oppression. The Green Doctrine is just an assertion of the fact they don't want anyone else to have to go through the struggles they went through in the creation of their nation and will intervene in any revolutionary conflict that presents itself and requires intervention. They're not taking advantage of fragile situations in other countries like many would argue; instead, they are supporting oppressed peoples who are in need of a little help to support their revolutionary ideal against evil.

If we attack South Covello for The Green Doctrine, we are attacking the ideals of freedom around the world and portraying ourselves as supporters of evil. Because if you are not a supporter of the idea behind the Green Doctrine, you might as well be on the side of evil tyrants and dictators. That's not saying that intervening is needed, but if you face off against those who are noble, and intervene in these conflicts, then you should be labelled a supporter of evil. And if Ethane ever takes that route, I will label my own country, sadly, as a supporter of evil. And I will depart for shores which don't condone evil tyrants and dictators.

This twosides debate article is designed to help stimulate a debate around a specific topic. They're only short and relatively simple, for more nuanced debate head to the online forum on our website where there is a specific TWOSIDES section to discuss this debate. If you have any views you want to share on this, either email twosides@viewfinder.co.eth, or Meep us @viewfinder_twosides, or you can just vote in our poll below. Also, if you want to share your viewpoint with your local elected officials, then we wholly encourage that. We want people to engage with politics more, and that is an important way of doing it. For more info on how to do so, just email us on the twosides email account listed above.

POLL

YES: 84%
NO: 11%
DON'T KNOW: 5%
This poll is now closed. Thank you for participating.

by **Turori** » Tue May 29, 2018 6:50 pm

Cocoabo Extinguish the Flame again
Turori defeat Ethane for third time in WC80 Cycle

Hallad City Stadium, Hallad City, Starblaydia :: The Turori National Team continued its dominance over the Flammable Gas of Ethane during the World Cup's 80th cycle with a convincing 3-0 victory that now makes advancement to the knockout stages of EqueStar 80 a very real possibility for the Cocoabo Squad.

After starting the World Cup 80 Group Stage with a potentially disheartening 1-3 defeat to third ranked Farfadillis, It was a win-or-go-home scenario for Turori. Luckily, their opponent, Ethane, was one they were well familiar with having already faced them twice during the Qualification phase of the competition.

In the first meeting between the sides on Matchday 4 of competition, Turori were facing a similarly dire scenario having come fresh off a defeat to Jeruselem and having secured just three points of a possible nine in their first three qualification matches. Having struggled to get off the ground, it seemed as if the match against their highest ranked rivals in Group 10 was coming at the wrong time for Turori and another defeat could send them into a never-ending spiral and out of the World Cup.

While the spiral did come for the Citizen Squad, it was the Cocoabo Squad who were tasked with the job against Ethane, winning the match 2-1 thanks to goals from Cocoabo #61 and Cocoabo #91 and giving the Cocoabo Squad the confidence they needed to carry the Turori National Team on their backs throughout the second half of qualification, including another victory over Ethane - this time by a 3-2 scoreline with goals from Cocoabo #72, Cocoabo #91 and Cocoabo #64. The result helped move Turori back into the top 3 and into the playoff places where they wuold eventually defeat Kalumba 5-2 on aggregate to advance to the World Cup Finals and earn the right to play Ethane yet again.

Following their defeat to Farfadillis to open the group stage of World Cup 80, the Cocoabo Squad needed a boost and a victory over a familiar opponent was the perfect antidote for a nervous start. While both f the Turori v. Ethane matches during World Cup 80 Qualifications wer tight affairs settled by the narrowest of margins, the meeting between the two sides on Matchday two of the World Cup would be a very different experience.

While the players representing the Flammable Gas pressed early and often, the Cocoabo defensive corps failed to concede any quality chances and began to wear down their opponents. By the half-hour mark in the game the momentum had decidedly shifted from the Ethanian sideline to the Turorian side as the Cocoabo began to dominate possession and start generating their own scoring chances.

The breakthrough finally came in the 40th minute when Cocoabo #91 was set through by Cocoabo #71 and converted past Nicholas Reed to put the Turori National Team up 1-0.

Despite having taken the lead, the Turorian coaches decided to make a change at the half to allow them greater midfield dominance, bringing in Cocoabo #46 to replace the playmaker from the first goal, Cocoabo #71.

The move had its desired effect as Turori started off the second half with a large period of possession and pressure, eventually being rewarded in the 67th minute when Cocoabo #46 themselves found the back of the net.

Having doubled their advantage, Turori knew that if they could tighten up the defense and hold on to the scoreline they would be in an ideal scenario at the end of the day. While they needed to attack and create chances, Ethane often found themselves on their heels as Turori looked much more value for the price of admission than they had against Farfadillis.

#Ethane We got your number! 2-1, 3-2, 3-zeee-ero #WC80

The Cocoabo would add one more goal from Cocoabo #64 ten minutes from time to secure a 3-0 victory and entirely erase their Goal Differential deficit suffered in their opening defeat and move back into positive goal differential.

It would also be the third consecutive victory for the Cocoabo Squdad that saw Turori win by three or more goals including the 3-0 Victory for the Citizen Squad over The Liamese Empire at Eel's Park to close out World Cup 80 Qualifying.

Turori [3] - [0] Ethane

:: Turori Goalscorers ::
:: 40' Cocoabo #91
:: 67' Cocoabo #46
:: 80' Cocoabo #64

:: Turori Statistics ::
:: Possession: 59%
:: Shots on Target: 7
:: Corner Kicks: 10

:: Ethane Statistics ::
:: Possession: 41%
:: Shots on Target: 3
:: Corner Kicks: 2

Turori's National Cocoabo Squad Lineup v. Ethane ::
[GK]Cocoabo #85, [D.]Cocoabo #53, [D.]Cocoabo #58, [D.]Cocoabo #59, [D.] Cocoabo #56, [ML] Cocoabo #61, [MC]Cocoabo #64, [MC] Cocoabo #72, [MR] Cocoabo #71, [FC]Cocoabo #99, [FC]Cocoabo #91
BENCH::
[FC]Cocoabo #98, [FC]Cocoabo #94, [M]Cocoabo #46, [M]Cocoabo #65, [U ]Cocoabo #54, [D]Cocoabo #57, [GK]Cocoabo #87

Next up on the docket for the Turori National Team would be Juvencus, a team which is participating in their first World Cup Finals. Juvencus are at the foot of Group B but can still progress to the knockout stage with a victory over Turori combined with an Ethane defeat at the hands of #3 Farfadillis. Of course, by virtue of their victory over Ethane on matchday two, the Turori National Team are in full control of their own destiny and should they avoid defeat against Juvencus, will be able to advance simply by matching the result of Ethane and taking advantage of the head-to-head tie breaking procedure.

by **Ceni** » Tue May 29, 2018 7:42 pm

To Brobdingnag We Go
Chapter Thirteen: Off to the Races: Valsum and Elstrund

Andrew finally prevails on his familial relations to trade the historic yet stodgy Metro District, with its ubiquitous monuments to Iarocav and history museums on seemingly every corner. They will leave the cities' cosmopolitan charm and concomitant squalor behind and exchange it for a Drawkland Andrew has not experienced yet, a Drawkland that will test the limits of his perception and creativity. Now the group will travel to the exotic southeast of the country, taking in the steamy rainforests of Elstrund and the sunny beaches of the Archifel Isles. After much excogitation, however, the group decides to make a stop at the volcano of Valsum first, reasoning that they might as well make a stop at an interesting attraction that happens to be on the way to Elstrund. An added bonus: a museum at the summit depicts the events leading up to the final unification of Drawkland. Sarah will have plenty of opportunities to continue her infatuation with Iarocav at Valsum.

VALSUM
Several miles wide, this volcano defies all earthly attempts to express its grandeur. Words cannot possibly describe its size. As a result, the volcano has always projected an aura of dominance and power. Alternately instilling fear into the locals and potential invaders, Valsum grabbed a prominent place in local lore and kept it. Frequent eruptions during the early days of Drawkian history discouraged exploration, but the mountain has since tamed itself, and Drawkian scientists have assured the general population that it will not erupt in the foreseeable future. In the distant past, the five current Drawkionels held a months-long summit in a magically-created chamber in the center of the volcano. Although the history books say the conference happened on the summit of Valsum, reality and its depiction agree on its content and happenings: after prolonged discussion and negotiation, the country of Drawkland emerged from that meeting, and Iarocav emerged as its leader. In fact, Valsum gave the country its name, Valsumet, for a quarter century until Iarocav changed the country's name to its current form.

Pumice and scoria crunch under Andrew's feet as the Arrowswords steadily march towards the summit of Valsum. A landscape of broken rock, cinder cones with only a hint of vegetation, surrounds them, two Drawkians and a human trudging up a volcanic slope. Panting, Andrew asks the most childish of queries: "Are we there yet?"

Sarah can only shake her head, pointing to a large structure some ways up the slope. "You have eyes. I'm sure they can see that we're NOT THERE YET!" The caldera releases a hiss of smoke, as if to say Sarah is Beelzebub reincarnated and that Andrew should not trust her. But she is right, as usual, and Andrew had asked a stupid question, perhaps only to break the monotony of their trek upward.

They finally get to the top. They had to: were they going to turn around, after all that way? No. Andrew stares down at the caldera, its strangely soothing steam contrasting with the obviously malevolent lava, playing its own devilish games down below, where nobody can reach it. "I'm surprised we're this close to the lava," Andrew says, perhaps naively considering that it would take one several minutes to fall to a scalding death below. "I always imagined this volcano as tempestuous, stormy, unrestrained. In my head, I pictured the three of us in those hulking silver suits I've seen on TV sometimes, our features indistinguishable and concealed beneath layer upon layer of protective clothing. In my head, I couldn't even recognize myself beneath those silver boots and silver mitts and silvery hood, a coppery faceplate obscuring my eyes."

"You thought you would look like one of those classic robot aliens, out of old sci-fi comics," says Sarah. "Are you sure you don't have an abnormal interest in that kind of stuff?"

"Quite sure," Andrew replies, and rolls his eyes, as he's become quite apt to do in the last couple of days. After all, he must deal with his exasperating and tiresome half-sister, constantly making jokes at his expense.

"Valsum hasn't been active for thousands of years," intejects Seth. "Although the volcano does belch out some residual lava from time to time, it's nothing to worry about. Come, Sarah, Andrew. We have yet another museum to visit, I'm sure we're in a hurry to get it on with."

"Iarocav," says Andrew, mockingly, drawing each syllable out.

"An obsession with weird shit," retorts Sarah.

They huff and they puff some more, echoing the volcano, but they do not blow the house down. At least not yet.

ELSTRUND
In the southeast of the country, Elstrund will represent a definite change of scenery for our footballers qua explorers: they'll have to cope with the area's wet heat, although they'll likely enjoy the valley's idyllic beauty. To cut right to the chase, Elstrund itself, a towering tree evoking the Colossus of Rhodes, dominates the scenery, a bowl valley surrounded by crags on all sides. It blows the mind simply imagining its immensity: even though the surrounding forest has trees much taller than the normal human, they look like saplings compared to Elstrund's height. With millions of branches, Elstrund can quite literally reach for the sky - and it sometimes surpasses the clouds themselves. Down below, the roots intertwine to form a stadium, where the local kickerball (as the locals would call soccer or association football) team, the Elstrund Roots, plays. Interestingly enough, the tree is sentient, and can rearrange his branches and other structures at will. Ellzidan, one of the five Drawkionels and one of the most interesting of them, governs her fifth of the country out of Elstrund, and somehow finds the time to play kickerball for the Roots and for Drawkland from time to time. Elstrund also features curiosities such as Madras and ridable dragons, so it will definitely interest our protagonists.

A few hours after Sarah finishes her oohing and aahing of Iarocav's clear tactical and negotiating genius, the familial party reaches Elstrund, where they intend to spend a few days. After finding a room on one of the upper levels of this world tree, sentient and mutable, Andrew cannot experience any sensation except for awe. How Drawkland manages to produce such wonders is beyond him. A basket-elevator arrives at their level, and they ascend the tree to experience a true Elstrund feast.

"Madras!" exclaims Sarah suddenly, pointing. Andrew sees a flash of blue vanishing behind one of the tree's many branches.

"What's a madra?" asks Andrew.

"Some of the native fauna," explains Seth. "Little fluorescent blue creatures about the size of dolls."

"A word to the wise: do NOT, under any circumstances, call them adorable or cute within earshot. They will literally murder you," warns Sarah. "Got it?"

"Geez, that's harsh," says Andrew.

"Got it?" Sarah demands in a harsher tone.

"Yeah, I got it," mumbles Andrew. Suddenly, a madra peeks out of the lush foliage. Radiantly blue, it reminds Andrew of a chubby baby, adorable and all. The whole package. "Awww... it's--"

"Shhhhh!" Sarah holds a finger to her mouth. "Remember what I said?"

The wicker and raffia basket ascends further, out of eyesight and earshot of the madra. With a thud, they reach the top level, with all the trendy restaurants. "After you," says Seth, shooing his children out of the lift and onto the platform. "Verdure," he says, pointing at a restaurant. "I got us a reservation, so we can skip that tremendously long line." He flashes an immensely toothy smile. "Go on! Don't be afraid of vegetables!"

They enter the restaurant without a hitch. Seth's warning before they entered foreshadowed the restaurant's menu: it consists of almost entirely vegetables. All three order salads and booze, even though Andrew knows he must limit himself after the infamous Hangover at Iarocav's. Golden and bubbly, the Elstrund version of Drawkian champagne arrives early, and the three toast. "To family!" proposes Andrew. "Despite our occasional squabbles and quarrels."

The family echoes him. "To family!"

World Cup 81/82/83/84

David Blake: "and we're back here on CBC Soccer Night ahead of the final Group D match aganist Ceni from Corinth, in Starblaydia coming up at the top of the hour. Aiden Donnan, very possibly the last match for the Commonwealth tonight, can you sum up the results from the first two games, positive or negative?"

AD: "Positive by any stretch of the imagination. They probably deserved a point against Valanora and didn't exactly roll over against the Holy Empire either. I think in the end it was the experience level that probably made the difference."

Gary Kostka: "I guess that's a fair way of saying the winning Vanorian goal scorer was 771 years old!"

AD: "well yeah, if you want to get specific about it." (all three men laugh)

DB: "Gary, in both matches, the opponents played a similar formation--three at the back and 5 in midfield. Against the Holy Empire that limited the amount of space on the wings and forced Villareal and Shaw to do a lot of work linking up with the forwards."

GK: " yeah David, I think if Trevor had brought Bozeman on for Coverstone and had him track back a bit, it might have created a bit more of a problem for the Bunnies defense. Bozeman is so good at running 15 or 20 yards with the ball at pace."

AD: "they definitely needed to adjust the personnel rather than the formation, as opposed to the last match where they probably needed to go without the slot forward and have a defensive midfielder between the back line and midfield. I think they could've found more space on the wings if they'd narrowed the midfield and worked more direct and in the center of the pitch."

DB: "This will be another side tonight with a 5 man midfield, although they play deeper?"

AD: "It's like they need to find a middle way between the two styles Gary and I have described."

GK: "I think if Bozeman is in the starting lineup, you'll see them go with the tight midfield and play higher at the back than they did in the first two matches."

DB: "on that note lets go live to Silverlands and Craig Snyder alongside Mark Tolbert, gentlemen."

MT: "good evening David and a note about the conditions, much warmer than the last match here, humidity not a problem but the fitness might come into play."

DB: "Craig the teamsheets are in and what can you tell us?"

CS: "well Gary seems to be a mindreader as Bozeman will be in the starting eleven, Evan Ashton will also get the start alongside Valerie Agahambri. Brianne Whitestone will make her first start on right wing and Nathan Ohler will start in place of Erica Shaw in central midfield. Santos, Villareal, Brown, Herrara and Enzikomibo along with Scott Hartline will all start for the third consecutive match. Looks a bit like a roll of the dice with squad lineup dominated by BoF veterans. Trevor Richmond told us earlier that he thinks BP will need to score at least 4 goals to have a chance to sneak into the second spot. "

DB: "thanks guys, we'll see you in a short while. So, final thoughts?"

AD: "I like this idea, I'm the one who said that Pam Scott was the greatest manager in the world during the BoF and this looks like a lineup she'd send out"

GK: "agreed, it's a long shot, but stranger things have happened. I think Trevor gets his 4 goals, but we fall short."

AD: "I'm leaning in that direction also. But if they get 5, I'll say they advance."

GK: "OK then!"

AD: "fortune favors the bold!"

DB: "thanks guys, and thank all of you for joining us, we'll be here at halftime, for Aiden Donnan and Gary Kostka, I'm David Blake, we'll take you straight to Silverlands in Starblaydia after these messages. This is CBC Soccer Night"

by **Equestrian States** » Tue May 29, 2018 9:03 pm

Groups A-D Matchday 3 Cutoff

Sponsored by the Greater Díenstad Expo:

Official Travel Experience Partner of EqueStar World Cup 80

While the EqueStar World Cup 80 organizing committee isn't quite sure why anyone want to leave Atlantian Oceania, if you do have your heart set on leaving the greatest region to ever exist, might we recommend attending the Greater Díenstad Expo in - erm - Greater Díenstad.

The Greater Díenstad Expo is a cultural fair to the world over to explore Greater Díenstadi peoples, cultures, and governments. All Díenstadi nations are invited to open booths of various sizes which act as exhibitions to showcase what their nations have nations have contributed in specific areas that are defined by the hosts.

Visitors will not only be able to explore the fairgrounds, the Gardens of Jendora, but also the city of Fedala and surrounding sights. Only 15 kilometers south of the Gardens are the ruins of ancient Dyalador, which at its height on the dusk of the 2nd century C.E. ruled much of the continent of Hugen. Today, tourists can see the restored Gates and Walls of Namnaten IV. There are thousands of things to do inside and outside of Fedala, with accessible and affordable transportation to other cities throughout the continental empire.

The Greater Díenstad Expo is offering a number of combined vacation packages for attendees and watchers of the EqueStar World Cup 80. These packages run from Ŗ800 to Ŗ1,000,000, with different combinations of services to satisfied the most varied of appetites. Offers include a minimum of four different service types: international travel, hospitality, food, and internal travel. The most inexpensive option has at least two of four services, with the most expensive option offering the highest standard across all four service areas.

Once you're done flitting about in Greater Díenstad though, the EqueStar World Cup 80 strongly recommends that fans return to Atlantian Oceania before they inevitably go into withdrawal from a lack of sports.

Once again, because I'm not terribly creative, your cutoff tunes lack integration.

by **Eura** » Wed May 30, 2018 5:29 pm

OOC: Part 1 of this RP. This RP is part 2.

On Sameba’s north eastern coast is the department of Bregaland, a heavily populated – like most of Sameba – and notoriously difficult region to rule. The war had been a catalyst for the resurgence of the unrest and regional separatism that had defined Bregaland’s culture decades ago. In the early days of the conflict an anti-Euran, anti-Nationalist communist militia called the Free Sameban Peoples Militia had sprung up and fought a merciless local uprising against both the SRA and the nascent Bregan Revolutionary Front, which was more focused on anti-regime ideology. The FSPM won against the BRF but found itself outgunned by the SRA, going quiet for a year or two. Then the revolutionaries re-emerged, reunited as the Bregan Revolutionary Army and completely dedicated to their anti-regime stance. For the last few years, the BRA had made life hell for the SRA units defending Bregaland, who already had a Euran tactical nuclear attack to dwell on and a potential amphibious invasion on their mind throughout.

Discreetly the Euran government had taken advantage of the situation and funnelled support to the BRA, including the hugely important transfer of tens of thousands of Euran-Electrumite leftists who had volunteered to fight as part of the deal to solve the southern border crisis. Other organisations and countries had offered support too, from the former Mytannion’s more left wing regions to the stridently leftist Savojarna. The compromise was that when the Euran’s called in a favour, they had little choice but to take up the request – a fact that was a top secret among the BRA command who knew that any public knowledge of Euran’s giving orders to them would completely splinter the increasingly and dauntingly large revolutionary army.

The main years of defensive struggle now seemed to be over although Buccho was completely unaware that Emile Gartanzo had been killed in the last few hours. Pierro Buccho (half-ironically named “Comrade in Chief” by his leadership cabal) had been reached out to by his Euran contacts. Their instruction was blunt and to the point. Attack the regional capital Brega now and you will be backed by Euran support within a couple of days once the SRA inevitably counterattacks. Buccho convened the Workers Council, they agreed to participate and the workers army was mobilised. When speaking to his subordinates about where the impetus for an offensive had come from, he had to substantially rewrite the facts to avoid the feared split. His speech to the wider Bregan Revolutionary Committee was emphatically all about the BRA and their role in the coming battle.

Buccho was an excellent orator and went to great lengths to elaborate on how close to victory his growing army was. ‘The Republicans weakness is well documented, well studied. But we can only achieve so much by watching and waiting. Comrades, we must take our opportunity now to rise decisively. First in Bregaland, then across the nation!’ A rousing ovation and roar of comradely spirit seemed to follow every proclamation he made. ‘Sameban Socialism has been dormant according to our doubters. Tomorrow there will be no doubters. I credit our allies and internationalist comrades from around the world, from our Mytanar and Savojar comrades, to the newly radical Euran Social Party who have reined in the terrible aggression of the neoliberal Euran elite bombing our cities!’ The last comment was a bold faced lie of course. The Social Party had become marginalised enough in Bastion and the bombing had actually got more severe in recent months.

Nevertheless Buccho and other BRA leaders held on to the idea that a successful BRA movement would enable that party to take power in Eura from the reputational boost. ‘When revolution comes in Bregaland, it will soon spread to the other remaining Republican cities, and finally Samebus. Then maybe it will move on to Eura too sparing our own workers further onslaught. All of this said comrades, we must not forget; this is a Bregan enterprise first and foremost. It is this region that has been the hotbed of comradeship and revolutionary activity for as long as we can remember. Sameba will thank us for years to come. Onwards, comrades!’ He had ticked all of the boxes and now the BRA’s massing ranks were ready to go. Within a couple of hours their assault on central Brega had commenced.

----------

Marshal Rossi and Minister Morzo shared a moment of silence across the desk in Morzo’s office. A number of their most trusted advisors were assembled outside the room. Their debate on what to do on the leadership question had been brief and decisive. ‘Marshal, there is an underlying question here on what we do once Gallo’s ascension is prevented.’
‘I know. We can’t exactly ask the Euran’s to “time out” and allow us to regroup. War is never fair. The best we can do, I think, is secure the change of hands as quickly as possible, firm up the army’s positions and then open up a channel for negotiations with a clear intention to act in good faith. They have been calling for unconditional surrender for years but surely they will respond to that offer?’
‘No, you’re right. If you’re somehow wrong then none of this matters anyway and there will be a blue and gold flag over these bloodstained buildings within a year or two. If the Republic is to survive it must evolve.’
‘Morzo, you do make me wonder. How long have you been planning for this eventuality?’ Morzo shifted uncomfortably in his seat and avoided Rossi’s gaze.

Their assumed alliance coming to fruition didn’t mean there was no tension or suspicion between the two men. Rossi had always suspected that Morzo was holding back some of Sameba’s economic fuel – a direct undermining of the war effort – while Morzo always suspected Rossi of going behind his back to get his way in factional disputes with the other military branches. For the first time they had no reason to lie to one another anymore. ‘Since that Euran counteroffensive half a year in. Operation “Roundhouse”, they called it? I knew then that there was only a handful of ways this war could end and that at least one of them involved me and you either in chains or on a rope.’
‘The Euran’s don’t use the death penalty, unless you’ve started believing our own propaganda.’
‘Maybe not officially no. It doesn’t matter; assuming that Moretti sides with Gallo and most of the SRA aren’t on our side initially, we can’t do this from Samebus. It’s too dangerous. Part of my get out plan was to fly out my family and a few select colleagues. I think we should carry out a modified version of this plan. Put together a cabinet of likeminded leaders and move them to a safe location outside of the capital, in the western mountains perhaps’. Rossi took a moment to digest the idea and, when done contemplating, nodded in agreement.

Morzo released a hearty breath out of sheer relief that Rossi hadn’t called him an idiot for thinking of the idea. ‘Can it be done? You control all of the airfields of course.’
‘Capon has a few and I can’t rely on him. We’ll need a few companies of good men to protect ourselves and the key individuals. I know a base that will be perfect for this. The commander is a long time Gartanzo sceptic in exile, its deep into the mountains and has excellent communications facilities.’
‘Including linkup to the national emergency broadcast network?’
‘Yes. We could broadcast an announcement about the President. The narrative will…it will need to be well crafted. We might need to dwell on this on the journey and sort out the execution of this manoeuvring first.’ Morzo was less keen on this idea. ‘We need to get our message out there first before Gallo, or before any Euran reaction. My thought was we could say that the President has stepped down due to illness.’
‘Terminal illness.’
‘Yes! A dying wish has emotive value and we’ll need to explain the death eventually anyway. It will appeal to the common man and a woman. We could say that he wanted to heal the country. No, wait. Unify it.’
‘Against common enemies and in pursuit of peace? That would work. It gives us the scope we need to finish off the various insurgencies and reach out to the Euran’s on fair terms. How do we explain Beran?’ Both men fell silent again.

Lingering quietly under the whole narrative was how to explain Beran’s role when it would surely be leaked by someone within the national leadership group the moment any divide emerged. Rossi looked set to make a suggestion but then held back stopping mid-sentence. Morzo came up with the solution. ‘We say he took his own life.’
‘Out of loyalty to the leader, it adds up. Beran can’t contradict us can he? The poor bastard.’
‘What if the note gets out?’
‘It won’t. He knew people better than anyone. Anyone who received it is going to be on our side and if they’re not we’ll know early on, which gives us time to deal with them.’
‘I like it. There’s an added value to this you know, as a motivator. We can simultaneously discredit any claims Gallo tries to make if we get this out first but it will also motivate the people to make one last push against the Euran’s if needed. They will know that it will be worth it if it means an equitable settlement that saves the Republic. They have already sacrificed enough to make it clear that this matters to them.’
‘Which forces Gallo to step aside, and then…’
‘Negotiations and peace. The Euran’s have hesitated over finishing us off for years haven’t they? They’ll take the offer.’ Rossi smiled for the first time in quite some time. A plan had been formulated and there was a sense of optimism in the air for the moment. In the morning they would hatch it.

by **Farfadillis** » Wed May 30, 2018 9:24 pm

Ten years ago

Toiling away at a uranium mine is not what every Rulandese dreams of, but it is what many of them end up doing. The dreams of either becoming a successful footballer or escaping the hellhole usually fizzle out by age twenty as the men settle down for the very modest fee of not starving. In exchange, they mine and mine, and sustain the nation's economy while that very same nation does not sustain them.

Süsaé, Dürs and Rëwë were three Rulandese men that had struck up a pretty close friendship while making Boom!'s CEO rich with their hard work.

"So, Dürs, how's your kid doing? Word's been going around that he's a tad... confrontational." Rëwë began the day's chit-chatting with a pretty run-of-the-mill question.

"Yeah. Íkârs got a big mouth, I've told him a million times that it can get him killed, but he won't listen. I just hope he steers away from bad influences long enough to get a job here. Give him three days here and he'd stop being such an idiot."

"Íkârs' a smart lad, he could do much better than the mining, Dürs." Süsâé interjected.

"What can he do? Deal drugs? Go pickpocketing?"

"He'd be a good pick-pocketer, you know. If he's half as good with his hands as he was with his feet. Shame about the Dí Maozöxê trial going awry, by the way." Rëwë offered a sincere sentiment. "Reckon he could make the cut at some other team?"

Dürs sighed. "Don't think so. He's just not good enough to make it as a footballer. The mine's fine, I guess..."

"Dealing drugs sounds like a better alternative. Worst case scenario, they put a bullet through his head for dealing in the wrong 'hood." Süsâé's no-filter way of speaking sometimes caught his friends off-guard. "Sure beats the mining." He shrugged.

There was an awkward pause.

"But you know, when I said he could do much better, I really did mean it. I think he could make it outside."

Dürs and Rëwë laughed heartily.

"I'm being serious, Dürs. Your kid learned to multiply at, like, four. What use would he be in this hellhole? I'd sooner want to bury his corpse than see him here. Tell you what, he could pick up the language in less than three years. Get a degree in another three and, before you know it, you'll be out of Ruland, too."

Dürs laughed a bit more, before realizing that his friend was serious. Then, he frowned and spoke with a serious tone. "Süs, I appreciate the kind words, but you know how it's outside. Your cousin 'made it', didn't he? He returned within a year. It's just too tough outside."

"My cousin couldn't count to three if his life depended on it. Little Íkârs has a gift most Ferdullaelans would kill to have. He's smarter than all three of us put together. If you ask me, he's not yours." Dürs grabbed Süs by the neck.

"Don't be so uptight. It's just a joke. I really do mean what I said about Íkârs, though. He's smart enough to make it as a Rulandese man outside. The smell of uranium would just rot his brain."

"I'll get him a job by my side and that's that, Süs. Don't push the matter any further."

Süsâé rolled his eyes. "Fine, but he won't do what you tell him anyway. Kid's a rebel. He'd sooner become a revolutionary than work here."

"Enough about Íkârs, Süs. Let's lighten up the mood here. How's little Lâdís doing?" Rëwé was always the one to diffuse arguments when they got heated.

Süs sighed. "Great, as you probably heard. He's no match for kids five years older than him. I'm actually terrified."

The response took both of his friends by surprised. "... terrified?" Dürs finally asked hesitantly.

Süsâé Wìjìnì rubbed his face before answering. "Yes. Absolutely terrified. I think he might just be good enough." He paused for a second to think. "No, scrap that. He's certainly good enough. Much more than that. The scouts have told me that much."

"Then what are you terrified about? I heard both Dí Maozöxê and Mâ Âlâmëómë are keeping tabs on him." Dürs commented with a hint of envy.

"You'd be just as terrified as me if you dared to see it, Dürs." His friend answered solemnly. "How many people do you know that have gotten out? I know three."

"Two." Dürs responded. "I know four." Rëwë interjected.

"Exactly. Barely anyone survives this hellhole. Ruland can kill you in two ways. It can physically kill you, or it can spiritually consume you. Most everyone we know has been killed in one of those two ways. I feel little Lâdís can make it out, and it terrifies me. I don't want to feel hope. It's like feeling alive again, but I know chances are that little part of me that now feels alive will get killed again. Some kid will snap his legs, or maybe he will stop being so good at kicking a goddamn ball."

"But surely having some hope is better than having no hope at all?" Dürs asked, truly interested in his friend's ramblings.

"Then why do you have no hope in your own son? He's got a better chance than Lâdís of making it out there, but you don't want to feel the heartbreak of him becoming just like us, do you? You'd rather he became just another dead man alive. There are three ways of surviving this fucking hellhole." He raised three fingers.

"The first way is to help make it worse. Deal drugs, become a dedicated burglar. Kill your own brothers. You need to have no heart for this, but it can get you a good enough life. Even if it can kill you, it will keep you alive." He looked at Rëwë. "That's why, deep down, I still admire your son, Rëw. He is a lot more alive than any of us." Rëwë's face only showed shame.

"The second is to escape. Make it somewhere else in Farfadillis. Overcome the racism and manage to avoid poverty. Carry the weight of your heritage over your shoulders and make the most of it. Only the smart and charismatic can manage that. Only a select few like Íkârs can hope to make it out there." Dürs did not look him in the eye.

"The third is to play ball, but you know that very well already."

Süs took a deep breath. "As a Rulandese, in order to truly be alive, you have to follow one of three paths, essentially. Show this wretched country that you're exactly what they they are. Or show them you're not. Show them you're valuable despite your condition of being born in the wrong place. Or, finally, entertain them."

He prepared his final remark. "I'm terrified my son might not make it out. But I'm also terrified he might. He would just be an entertainer, after all. It's a good life, but not a valuable one. He'll be just more fuel for this hellfire that consumes us, and worst of all is I'll be happy for it."

Ӿ Ӿ Ӿ Ӿ Ӿ

"Vínseslâdís with the ball. The youngster takes on his marker. He gets past him! Brilliant move! Here comes Wìjìnì. Magic! Another brilliant take-on. That's a backheel! Class from Wìjìnì. Sasca with the through ball! ÊNS GETS TO IT! IT'S A BACKPASS TO WÌJÌNÌ! VÍNSESLÂÂDÍÍÍÍÍS! IT'S A FEINT! HE SHOOTS! GOL! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL! WÌJÌNÌ SCORES THE OPENER! Incredible display of skill from the young man, everyone in the stadium is in awe!"

by **Nephara** » Thu May 31, 2018 2:03 am

Starblaydia 2 - 3 Nephara
(4-2-3-1) 1 - Tsattalios; 2 - Rafford (18 - Brymora 85'), 5 - Konoval, 6 - Bruyne, 3 - Lohengrin; 4 - Rowland (23 - Misidjan 83'), 8 - Klein (15 - Rosenthal 70'); 7 - Szalai, 21 - Gosforth (c), 11 - Strongbow; 9 - Hawke
Goals: Gosforth 31', Hawke 40', Rosenthal 77'

Did it ever get tiring, playing the role of the heartbreaker, the villain, the goon? These were the questions you had to ask yourself, wearing the emerald green shirt. You were not going to be liked, and you couldn't let it matter. The fairytale outcome was always going to end in your defeat.
They were awkwardly placed from a historical perspective, as well. Over thirty years had passed since they joined the WCC, and their inaugural manager had passed away. They weren't some plucky new kid on the block, striving for better, but nor were they true giants with genuine pedigree... such as today's opponents, Starblaydia. Sure, Nephara's crest boasted three stars - one bronze, one silver, one gold - to represent their almost-unique Grand Slam. But Starblaydia's just had five of the gold. What use did they have for any others?
And they were at home. And they'd won their two matches to date, it had to be said, more convincingly than Nephara had. And they were expecting their star forward back... though it was still touch and go on the night itself, and ultimately, the Tele winger Soronume was left on the bench.
"It's a shame he won't be starting," Brandon had told the press. "Not least because, should we win, I don't want people to put an asterisk next to the result. But I'm not going to pull any punches. We're going to go out there and we're going to take the fight to them, without fear, to get the result."

The Starblaydi could, perhaps, be forgiven for resenting their own role in the press. The Nepharim played rough, sure, but they were no shrinking violets. The Nepharim, for their part, always protested against any accusation of outright dirtiness. This would be a match of hard but fair vs. fair but hard, as both Zapotowski and Rowland went in hard in the first five minutes to leave a mark their marks.
But that was soon to be overshadowed with another slow start, though not so much on the weight of play so much as a moment of brilliance. As ever, there was a di Bradini to look for - Marcello - and he went careening past Rowland, over a sliding challenge from Klein and then split the defence. Kabeya and Konoval went shoulder-to-shoulder in the chance for it, but Kabeya was able to hook a leg out and send it past Tsattalios, 1-0 to the hosts within eight minutes. The camera's lingered on Brandon's thousand-yard stare for some time.
But he didn't have to say anything. Already, the positive chat was beginning. The side was not collapsing in on itself - the side was going to come back and win, a reclamation of the old spirit that had seemingly gone missing since World Cup 75.

But the Starblaydi weren't going to go down just because the Cormorants were over some mental issues. They were willing to hold firm, stand their ground, and while they'd push for better they'd take a 1-0 win if they had to. The Cormorants seized the majority of possession, no longer a dirty word in their lexicon, and settled on the ball, passed deftly and quickly trying to probe for a weakness. Hawke drifted back deeper than four other Nepharim players to take the ball from Rafford, then turned in a flash and slammed the ball against the upright. Later, she forced a brilliant, springing save from Jaervinen, and couldn't do anything but put her hands on her hips and laugh - maybe it wouldn't be her day? Gosforth put a heavy hand on her shoulder. The message was clear; keep going, keep striving. The goal will come.
So it did, though ultimately not from Hawke. It started, as so many Nepharim goals did, from a pinpoint cross from Strongbow. The agonisingly efficient Ryku had eaten up the rest, but finally, this one stuck to Hawke, chested down, she drove back towards her own goal and a flat-footed Ortega stumbled after her but she turned and stabbed the ball to Szalai coming back the other way. Esposito came in just a second later but Szalai held him off, stronger than any winger had a right to be, before cutting it back to... empty space? No, to Konrad Gosforth, crashing down into the box and toebashing the ball past a stranded, exposed Jaervinen with such violence that the ball lashed right back out, into his hands, for him to gallop back to the halfway line. The message was clear - no time to celebrate, no time to rest on the laurel, they had to press home their newfound momentum.
So they did, though not before Starblaydia almost sucker-punched them, Caballero with a long pass that Renshaw volleyed low and hard, tipped around the post by Tsattalios to applause from the green bloc behind his net. Di Bradini took the corner but Tsattalios swept it into his chest, looked up, hurled the ball forward to Szalai again, the hero against Abanhfleft in what might well be his last World Cup, and he surged forward, Esposito desperately backpedalling, trying not to leave himself open but with a jink and a jag of the hips he was sent the wrong way and Szalai was inside him, but he'd jockeyed and delayed long enough, at least, for Ryku and Ortega and Zapotowski to run like hell back to cover. But Szalai found the right ball, chipped to Hawke, who again held it up, passed it back to Gosforth who hit it long over the top for the overpowering pace of Strongbow, and the Starblaydi defence raised their hands as one for offside but she was narrowly, narrowly on, cut inside then cut back, outside the box, for Hawke to bullet it low and hard. Jaervinen got fingertips to it. It was not enough. 2-1 to the Cormorants, and despite the best efforts of Kabeya scorching Tsattalios' fingertips with the last effort of the half that was the score going into the break.

The second half started strong for Nephara, too, but the crowd knew there was an ace up their sleeve, and started chanting the name of their hero, the legend, Soronume. Off came the luckless Renshaw, silent all game but for that one volley, and on he came on the hour.
Three minutes later, Starblaydia were level.
It was a simple, elegant diagonal motion across the pitch. Esposito, di Bradini, Caballero, Soronume, who just glided into the path of the forward ball and stroked it into the bottom corner, well beyond Tsattalios, with the ease of a father scoring a backyard goal against his hapless four-year old son.
Sure, some could argue that their goal came against the run of play, but it was immaterial. For one, the Nepharim philosophy was that the scoreline never lied. The 'run of play' was a worthless abstract. For another, they may not have had the run of play before Soronume's arrival, but they sure as hell had it after for at least ten dominant minutes in which every Starblaydi pass seeemed to stick, the focal points of Kabeya and Soronume constantly finding themselves with possession and, just for a second, space. Nephara seemed to play with a back six, at times back eight as the midfield frantically and diligently tracked back, hurling themselves in the way of shots, Konoval in particular taking one in the crotch that elicited groans and winces throughout the world.
Circe Rosenthal wasn't exactly Nephara's ace. Truth be told, she was just a set of fresh legs. Klein was a better player, but was struggling with the defensive workload - Rosenthal was far more of a terrier by nature. She introduced herself to the party with a crushing sliding challenge on Caballero, taking a slice of ball along with it, and probably averted a booking only by hauling the man to his feet and patiently accepting her talking-to from the referee. She won her booking two minutes later, with a far softer clip of Rayyen's heels, but the point was made and her mark was well and truly stamped on the game, and for a while the game fell into a lull, Nephara still collecting itself, Starblaydia trying to get its breath and rhythm back.
This, too, Rosenthal ended.
It was not something elegant, like Soronume's goal. It wasn't some breathtaking exhibit of counterattacking, like Hawke's. Gosforth was pressured by Anderson, the substitute holding midfielder for the aging, tiring Zapotowski, but managed to glance over his shoulder and backheel the ball to Rosenthal, a little too hard to be comfortable, and her first touch was heavy. Her second was deft, narrowly taking it past Anderson, and she looked up, took a third touch into the sudden gap of space, and Ortega stepped forward and Rosenthal...
... well, truth be told, she just smashed the ball as hard as she goddamn could.

Rosenthal was not heartless. She was not a bad person, either on or off the pitch.
But when it came to breaking the bulk of the ninety-six thousand hearts ringing the Jader Barbahlo Stadium?
She didn't even flinch.

Last.fm · by **Cosumar** » Thu May 31, 2018 2:26 am

Targaryen strike, rugged defending earn advancement vs. Chromatika
Barunia upend Sargossa to save Cosumar after nervy 1-1 tie, set up juicy Vilita clash

WHITETAIL -- After a win and a loss, Cosumar closed Group F play with their first draw of World Cup 80.

The feverishly-hyped grudge match against Chromatika was a letdown from an entertainment perspective, with few chances to speak of after a breathless first 20 minutes, but it succeeded in the only manner that the team cared about: bettering the result of advancement rivals Sargossa. We were dead-even behind Chromatika in the table heading into Matchday 3, the odds seemingly with the Corsairs due to their more favorable opponent. Lo and behold, however, Barunia were able to register a surprise win, allowing Cosumar to stand pat on 1-1 with one eye on the scoreline in Everfree for any changes.

Cosumar conceded first again, Kaytlyn Victoriane flying into the box to lift Keira Andisori's free kick past Shjergzh Na'Kefir in just the 7th minute. It wasn't the same type of lethargic Cosumarite start that saw the team's first half against Sargossa widely panned though. The Vanquishers came out the gates with genuine energy. Romikk Valgard had a sweeping finish ruled offside in the fifth minute, and they continued to press forward on the front foot even after unluckily going down 1-0.

Then, in the 19th minute, Ragnar Targaryen put his name on the scoresheet with the vital equalizer!

Like Valgard's disallowed goal, it was set up by a Bryger Tidesson cross. Both of those attacks capitalized on Alexander Pearce’s game plan to attack Chromatika in wide areas and expose their slight weakness at fullback. Jillian Nier produced a spectacular reaction save on Targaryen's initial volley after Tidesson beat Aysu Damjana and lofted the ball in, but Targaryen stuck with it and slid after the rebound to see the ball back across the line.

Subdued, fatigued celebrations between Cosumarite field players and reserves after hearing the final whistle and news of Sargossa's defeat.

After an uneventful rest of the first half, a much-improved improved Cosumarite defense staved off an increasingly persistent Chromatik attack in the second half. Chromatika had stark advantages in shots on goal (9-5) and total shots (22-8), but a majority of them were poor-quality looks from distance and Na'Kefir made eight saves to keep any further damage to a minimum. Once Barunia took the lead over Sargossa in Everfree with 20 minutes left, Pearce really packed it in and instructed his team to make the game as difficult and ugly as possible. Mission accomplished.

Admittedly, it wasn't just great defense. A liberal use of soccer's "dark arts" (resulting in several yellow cards) also played a role. Most controversially, Romikk Valgard only received a yellow instead of a red for making swinging contact to the neck of Lucjusz Stef. Just two minutes earlier, Peter Marshall had cynically pulled Rachel Hellion down from behind by her shoulders with two hands. The match momentarily seemed in danger of boiling out of control, and this uncharacteristic physicality from a Cosumarite side indeed seemed to rattle Silian Parker's crew. They were reduced to hesitant lateral passes and desperate long balls for the final 20 minutes, which Svensson & Jorgensen easily dealt with in the middle.

Chromatika's ruthlessly effective start to World Cup 80 propelled them to a perfect six-point start in Group F and 2-1-0 finish, but we were able to stem their momentum (finishing 1-1-1) and break our own skid of allowing 3+ goals in consecutive matches. As group-winners, Chromatika will play hosts and Group E runners-up Equestrian States in the Round of 16. Cosumar advance as Group F runners-up over Sargossa to take on Group E winners Vilita.

  Group F              Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1  Chromatika           3   2  1  0    4   2  +2    7
2  Cosumar             3   1  1  1    7   7   0    4
3  Barunia             3   1  0  2    5   6  −1    3
4  Sargossa            3   1  0  2    5   6  −1    3

This is the first time Cosumar has played Vilita in a World Cup elimination game, though the three-time champions notably humbled us 2-0 in the Qualification Playoffs of World Cup 60. That defeat snapped a six-cycle qualification streak and heralded the coming decline of Cosumarite soccer throughout the 980s era. Our last meeting with the Jungle Cats came in AOCAF LIII, in which a combined Vilita & Turori side dueled Cosumar to a surprisingly attractive 0-0 draw in the group stage.

After digging through the archives of Cosumar's 60-year history in the international game, we could not - in fact - find any record of the Azure Dragons defeating Vilita. Ever. Turori? Sure. Tropicorp? Sure. But never the preeminent tropical powerhouse themselves. Few, if any, other longtime Atlantian nations can claim to have never been "vanquished" by now.

Just as well. Everybody and their dog knows that the Cosumarite public consciousness yearns for a semifinals berth after four recent quarterfinal exits, so if we're gonna be setting firsts... why not throw in another? Tune your HoloTVs to CSBN tomorrow afternoon for a chance to witness the first piece of what could be a historic run in the World Cup knockout rounds. Even if it's not, it should at least still be a damn good football game.

James D'lorio
Courier Sports Columnist

Editor's Correction: As reported by the Vilita National, Cosumar did in fact beat Vilita 3-2 in the World Cup 59 group stage. The above-reported claim that Cosumar has never defeated Vilita was erroneous. The initial text has been left unaltered for the sake of transparency.

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