5th Rugby Sevens World Cup - EVERYTHING THREAD

[TJUN-ia]

KARL MARX UNIVERSITY, Hamilton, Barunia
Match 1: Kandonica vs TJUN-ia (10:28:00 AM Local Time)

TJUN-ia's attempt to kick off its Rugby history will start today as the 5th Rugby Sevens World Cup gets underway in Hamilton, Barunia today. Over the next 3 days, 30 teams will duel it out for the chance to call themselves champions of the Sevens game. Karl Marx University will host the Jaguars group games, with knockouts at the significantly larger Sanford Stadium

Our first ever rugby game in history was a tight affair. Kandonica were good opposition, but the Jaguars kept up the pace. Whenever they scored 7, we would...until we didn't.

We scored a try, via Suke Hoshinawa, but our best kicker Derek van Oosteren missed the kick. With 2-minutes to go, we led 26-14. But Kandonica scored 2 lated on to win the game. We showed promise early on, but one mistake cursed us.

Next up: Lisander at 12:40. Oh god....

SCHEDULE

All games to be played at Karl Marx University.

FRIDAY
M1: Kandonica vs TJUN-ia (10:28:00 AM Local Time) L 26-28 (4th)
M2: TJUN-ia vs Lisander (12:40:00 PM Local Time)
M3: Savojana vs TJUN-ia (3:58:00 PM Local Time)
M4: BYE

SATURDAY
M5: TJUN-ia vs Geektopia (10:50:00 AM Local Time)
M6: TJUN-ia vs Kandonica (12:40:00 PM Local Time)
M7: Lisander vs TJUN-ia (3:36:00 PM Local Time)
M8: TJUN-ia vs Savojana (6:10:00 PM Local Time)

SUNDAY
M9: BYE
M10: Geektopia vs TJUN-ia (12:18:00 PM Local Time)

[Mkabia]

"They didn't even give me the match ball," Valens complained as they entered the small, yet tidy dressing room of the KMU Stadium. It had been a minor disappointment at the moment of the draw that they would play all their games in the smaller one of the two stadiums. Yet its location in the city center of Hamilton had given it already a bit of a vibe and a decent crowd had shown up for what was, after all, a confrontation between two unknowns on an early Friday morning.

"Three tries, match winner and nothing! What kind of referee is that..."

Stephane Moussa had foreseen this danger but was slightly miffed at the fact that it already played up after their first game. Valens Sissako was one of the best players in the country and possessed the speed of a sprinter combined with the handling of a natural. But apart from a great rugby player, he was also a frankly annoying human being. In all honesty, he wouldn't have considered taking him on the trip if the tournament had been longer than three days but in that short time span, Stephane had aspired that his skill would outbalance his attitude. And besides, the youngster he had taken along as back-up still looked pale from the flight, so Valens would have to do.

What's most annoying of all was that he made a bit of a point. Natanians and Nosts made the opening score in the first few seconds of the game and as the responsible for this squad, Stephane feared for a thrashing for a few seconds. Quickly afterwards, they could uncover the Achilles' heel of the opposition, giving Sissako a field day. With the zero striked off the board, some would say that the Leopards could relax a little - after all, this would no longer be a complete fiasco. However, a different sentiment had gotten into Stephane. They would not be the laughing stock but maybe they could even be more than a novelty.

To avoid that the others got miffed about Valens tooting his own horn, he quickly grabbed their attention. With a snappy slap against the blackboard, he caught all their attention.

"See this article?" he asked.
"Well... It's quite tiny on your phone," veteran Djigui Kouma replied calmly, "so... Not really."

There was a bit of muffled chuckling, but Stephane didn't mind - after all, this was a bit of a holiday.

"An article from Dave Carrey - the voice of the people from Elejamie, the leading journalist in international rugby!"

Stephane had no clue who the guy was, but that didn't matter for his purpose.

"I'm gonna cite him here - 'E seems to be a group of death for anyone not named Neu Engollon (who'll easily top it) or Mkabla (who'll easily flop)'. Let me repeat that, 'who'll easily flop'..."

The guys seemed to pick up where he was going to and started to boo and bounce on the walls. This might be a holiday, but no reason to take the tournament as a day off.

"Let's show'm," Kaboré shouted and all agreed, "so, gaffer, who's up next?"
"Neu Engollon."

The boisterous atmosphere immediately lost a bit of its spirit. One had to live under a rock to not notice the respect with which each participant treated the Goats. They were a powerhouse, if not in result, then in impact.

"They lost their opening game," Stephane tried to bend their thoughts, "they'll be doubting. They will have to win - or it will come down on them. So they'll risks... And that's where my plan comes in."

[Free Republics]

The Republicans caught Neu Engollon by surprise out of the gate. Ronnie Moore, a former gridiron football quarterback, would throw a gridiron-style pass just slightly backward from one side of the field to the other, finding fly half Takiko Kishimoto. Kishimoto had caught the opposition off-guard by seemingly running away from the play. Now, she had an open field ahead of her and would score and convert the first Republican try of the match.

Having tricked the Goats once, the Republicans could now create space on the field by sending players away from the play and expecting defenders to follow. The threat of Moore's long passes allowed them to effectively turn the match into a 6-on-6 or even a 5-on-5 when the Republicans possessed the ball. This paved the way for the second Republican try as Joseph Long was tackled just shy of the line. Ronnie Moore would get to the ball in the ruck and toss it to Yuzu Aoyama who would score a second try for the underdogs. Aoyama also converted her try.

Meanwhile, on defense, the Republicans proved to be a really difficult unit. While it is normal in rugby for teams to value field position more than possession, Malia Tokuta's side turned that completely on its head by repeatedly carrying the ball back across the field following Neu Engollon punts. At one point, the Republicans had a throw in and Moore decided to throw it clear across the field to Tove Johansson. Johansson would be well past the opposing 22 meter line before she was tackled and several Republican players were right behind her to retain possession of the ball. Keisuke Okuno would end up carrying the ball most of the way toward the try line before tossing it backward to Johansson who would score the 3rd Republican try. She would, however, fail to convert. This left the Republicans up 19-0 before a stunned crowd at Karl Marx University.

As the end of the first half approached, Neu Engollon went on their best run of the match so far culminating in a try by Felix Marten. Marten would convert his try and the score would be 19-7 at the half. The second half would begin with neither team able to maintain possession of the ball inside the opposing 22 meter line but eventually Andino Paticci would intercept up one of Moore's long passes from one end of the field to the other and take it in for a try. Then he would inexplicably miss what should have been an easy conversion. The Goats now looked like they might pull off a comeback.

Instead, the Republicans quickly went back on the offensive and put the match away with substitute Blanchefle Vachon scoring the clinching try shortly after coming into the match for Tomohisa Ootake. She would convert it to make the final score 26 to 12. With the match now over, they had a couple hours to rest before playing a Bolgano team that had yet to play in this tournament. Over those 2 hours, news of the upset hit the Republican sports press. Yukiko Kawamura handled a call from Freedom Sports on behalf of Malia Tokuta and quickly agreed to let Freedom Sports simulcast the livestream of the next match on their popular recap show Sports Today as a goodwill gesture that would, hopefully, lead to a television contract for the National Rugby Organization...

[Natanians and Nosts]

Coach: Mihai Gabriel da Silva
Psychologist: João Victor Fostar
Physical preparator: Públio Márcus Probo

#Name-Age-Position
3Ion Victor César-28-fullback
5Cáius Cláudius Numídio-26-centre
8Ion Carolus Mihailescu-24-flyhalf
7Lucas Lúcius North-27-scrumhalf
10Gabriel Mihai Ognek-23-hooker
9Logan Márcus Hûs-25-left prop
11Kaeso Nínnio dos Santos-20-right prop

Capitain's name is in blue

Bench:

#-Name-age-position
4-Bruno Iohannis da Silva-31-fullback/centre
13-João Rog dos Santos-21-centre
20-Astrogildo Hermenegildo Mačekvić-22-flyhalf/scrumhalf
21-Willelm Uêin Rúca-24-Hooker
23-Guillaume Numa Bijelo-27-prop/hooker

Should my opponent RPs first, he/she may do the following:
Choose my scorers: No
godmod scoring events: Yes
RP injuries to my players: No
godmod injuries to my players: No
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes(only one per match)
godmod other events: No

[Vdara]

Having forgotten to submit a roster with player names, fans of Elejamie and Vdara were confused as to who was playing for the Vdaran Sevens. But hey, the roster finally came through, so here we go!

Vdaran National Rugby Sevens Squad

Starting Lineup
Backs
9 - Adrianos Stamatotis (aged 18) - Scrum Half
15 - Panos Priscoulis (C) (aged 22) - Full Back
11 - Nik Vasililis - (aged 17) Left Wing
14 - Valentinos Pateroglou (aged 21)- Right Wing
————————————————————————————————————————
Forwards
1 - Valentinos Demetriopoulos (aged 18) - Left Prop
3 - Thalis Pateroulis (aged 22) - Right Prop
2 - Gianni Strakakis (aged 19) - Hooker
————————————————————————————————————————
Substitutes
Backs
22 - Theofilos Makriadis (aged 16) - Scrum Half
23 - Minas Boosalatos (aged 18) - Full Back
24 - Sergios Apostologlou (aged 19)- Left Wing
————————————————————————————————————————
Forwards
25 - Mihalis Constantinakis (aged 17) - Left Prop
26 - Alexis Mastrotzis (aged 20) - Hooker

My only request for permissions is that you only give out one red card per game.

A team littered with young talent destined to make it to the regular Vdaran National team, the National Sevens squad is not a side to mess with. No players in the squad are over the age of 22 and all of them have a thirst for victory, having never played in a tournament before. Now, let’s talk about the most recent result, which came against Elejamie.

Match Summary
Elejamie 24 - 14 Vdara
The Blue Blackbirds put up a strong fight against Elejamie, but were broken down harshly by a well-built side that managed to defeat them by 10 points.
Vdara’s 2 trys and conversions both came from Valentinos Demetriopoulos, the young left prop who seemed especially in his zone today. Speaking after the game, Demetriopoulos said that he was proud of his performance overall, but said that if the rest of the team had played like him, they could’ve easily disposed of Elejamie. However, the other 6 starting members disagreed. Mike Decker and Diego Molina rounded the Vdaran back line easily, getting 3 trys and 3 conversions between themselves, with Gary Toda scoring a penalty which added 3 points to their already good 21 point total, bringing their score to 24.

[Neu Engollon]

Outside the Presidential Palace
Lakiska, South Island
Busoga Islands

They had been there for days, rotating teams in rented cars, ‘borrowed’ vans and, roaming on foot in various disguises. They used burner phones that had been bought in several local shops across the City. They texted each other in code when absolutely necessary, but otherwise, the burners were kept in reserve.

Most of their communication was in person as that was the most secure. They had practiced the upcoming operation many times on a mock up building back in their home country. Break-ins were not their typical operation, but it hadn’t been that dramatic a deviation from their normal skill sets.

They were all very rugged, muscular men. Some on the smaller, more wiry side, while others were of a larger frame, but all of them looked the part of very determined professional operators. Most were white, but a handful were of indeterminate racial background, with browner skin. All were very quiet in public, but for minimal communication with a few words in English here and there.

Their leader was of average height, with scraggly brown curly hair and a noticeable scar on his chin. Like most of his crew, he wore dark clothes - a pullover hoodie covered by a grey working man’s jacket, black jeans, and black tactical boots that stopped just above the ankle. He was very aware that a lot rode on the next few minutes, but he had the confidence of a King. He sat in the passenger seat of a dark SUV, with Marcus, his right hand man, in the driver’s seat.

Their vehicle was a few blocks away from the Presidential Palace, close enough that they could observe through a telephoto lens, but far enough away to avoid the plain clothes patrols that approached vehicles that were stopped for too long outside the Palace gates. At this hour of the night, that was even more likely.

The leader looked down at his watch.
“Prepa funcza?”

“Ya. Otteni prep-wer.”

“Do it.” He spoke into his burner.

A van went up to the West Gate. The driver and passenger showed their credentials, showing that they were there from the Jaleed Preservation Company, the only authorized company to care for the artifacts in the Palace, including several personal treasures of Ayatollah Busoga himself. However, the most important item that resided in the Palace was the original copy of the Treaty of Busukuma Bay, the document that had sealed the Busoga Islands’ independence from Banjia. The twin to it could be found in the former parent country, archived in not such a treasured spot, considering the massive defeat it represented for Banija.

The van was waved into the inner westside courtyard and the workers brought their gear in to a side door to get to work. They set about cleaning various areas, but they certainly didn’t have the skills of the regular crews. The guards didn’t notice, as they were much more interested in tuning into their phones and television sets where they could find them. Lakiska SC was playing Dukuma SC. It was one of the most touted matches of the year for Busogan soccer, and for the capital city and its biggest rival. Also, it was sucking almost all the attention that should have been on the security of that wing of the Palace to screens, but not CCTV monitors.

While they might have spent time trying to convince the Palace staff they were carefully cleaning and checking on the preservation of the Treaty document and it’s casing, they realized they needn’t have bothered with so little attention. It didn’t matter what the cameras recorded because they would be long gone by the time anyone reviewed the footage. The crime was not intended to be kept secret.

They released the anchors that held the casing to its mount, setting off all sorts of security alarms in the central security control room. One guard did wander from the West desk to make sure, even though it was expected that the preservation crew would be working on the document. Hence why whole teams weren’t being scrambled to the West wing.

One of the crew in grey overalls waved back at the guard as he was halfway.
Later, when the guard reviewed back on the night’s events, he would realize what an odd Alpen, very non-Busogan accent the man had.
“Ya! Routine! It’s routine. No issues, just testing tha casing and tha securing anchors, ya.”

The guard nodded, and waved down the hall to his compatriot at the desk, as he began to circle back.
“You can tell them to turn off the alarm. All good.”

They almost had it made, right up until they were within a few meters of the large west wing doors of the Palace, four of them carrying the solid casing that held the Treaty. That is when the guards could no longer be fooled as to what was happening. They ran down the hall drawing their pistols and unslinging SMGs.

It was too late and the rear guard of the intruders were ready. They unleashed on the guards with assault rifles, the rounds echoing as the fusilade drowned out any other kind of noise or communication attempted. The guards dove to the ground, crawling for the nearest cover as they were assaulted by the cacophony of firepower they were totally unprepared for. Hot spent shells ricocheted everywhere, ejected from the ports of the ARs to spang off walls, pedestals and door frames.

Meanwhile, the crew had loaded the Treaty case into one of the vans and secured it into a larger armored case. Those on the outside were faced with a barrage of fire from the rooftops and the main entrance, along with the above stories, as the guards responded from everywhere.

The covering fire was enough for the fake preservation crew to quickly reverse walk to the doors, taking turns reloading magazines as they continued to unload on the positions of the guards. In two minutes, they were all out the door and climbing into the vans as rounds danced all around them.

Miraculously, with the amount of led in the air, no one was hit as the vans sped towards the gates, ramming them open to head out into the night.

They raced away from the docks, where a cordon would be waiting for them at the main harbor of the capital. Instead, the vans made their way up the coast, towards a hidden cove. At one point, two patrol cars began to chase them, but they flung spur strips out onto the road, as well as a motley assortment of boulders that would hinder the pursuing vehicles. Soon, they saw the police vehicles spinning out in the distance of their rearview mirrors. They didn’t leave the roadside, only stopped. That was good.

They made it to the cove, apparently used on some frequent occasion by smugglers.
There, boats with ready pilots waited. The dark clad men moved themselves, their gear, and the case containing the document. Again, they were ready for pursuit, which this time, never came. The boats sped to a larger yacht that was capable of withstanding the strong currents of the Busogan channel islands. They unloaded carefully onto that larger vessel, transferring all that was important or incriminating.

They headed to their final destination, Kamisil Island. They didn’t take a direct route, but still made it in good time on the yacht which had amped up motors well beyond its normal market model retailing.

Finally, they made it, welcomed by their comrades who helped them unload. The yacht sailed back out immediately, as it would be a complete give away to have it docked on the island. There was a chance that satellites might register it there, but the chances that anyone cared to have satellite coverage over the Busoga Islands was slim to none.

When the minutes passed and no helicopters were overhead or boats surrounded the island, they were sure that they had gotten away with their caper. Beers were pulled out of coolers. Those coolers were stocked with ice that came from ice makers that were run off generators on the island. The generators were some of the more advanced of their line, able to put out much more power than many comparable machines.
While some men stayed on guard spread out throughout the island, those that had pulled off the night’s operation secured their prize in one of the old Coast Guard buildings on the island.

The beer bottles were popped open with several openers and some subdued congratulatory backslapping followed. The bottles' labels clearly read 'Burgunden Breueries'. The men who clinked them in celebration originated from the same nation as the imported beers, (although it was actually highly likely that this particular batch was actually produced at a contracted brewery much closer to the Busoga Islands, considering the global reach of Terembev's premier brand and brewery: Burgunden Breus). Few would have guessed, out of all the speculated perpetrators of the Palace raid, that these men were members of Alpha Company of the elite 324th SAO (Special Amphibious Operations) Battalion of the Neu Engollon Defense Navy. Famously known by their informal moniker, ‘The Black Frogs’.

For this mission, they had taken on the moniker of the ‘Black Claw’, a minor Banijan ethnic terrorist group in the Busoga Islands. They were OPFOR for Operation Roo Race, the first annual joint military operation between the Busogan military and Neu Engollian Defense Forces.

The hundreds of rounds expended by the Black Frogs’ AR’s at the Palace in Lakiska had been blanks, as investigators would learn the next day. While the guards pistol and SMG rounds were absolutely 100% real. Some of the guards' rounds had actually hit the plates and kevlar of the Black Frogs, but none had luckily penetrated to flesh, organs and bone.

The Palace guards had not been informed of the mock operation, for fear it might ruin the realism of the operation, despite the risk to the Neu Engollian raiders. However, the federal and local SWAT teams had been informed by the Busogan military and would not have responded, had there even been time to call them.

It was that amount of dedication that they had to their craft, that they would face the most amount of risk in order for the operation to be as true and realistic as possible, for all those involved. Auditors would later question the decision to not inform the Palace Guard, and keep them in the loop with those included in the exercise, but the fact that no one became a fatality that night softened that line of questioning.

Truly, the biggest concern for the Busoga Islander government, post-operation, about that night was the amount of damage done to the west end of the Palace by their own guard force firing off a massive amount of rounds that embedded into the aged wooden frames and panelling of that end of the Palace, cracking and damaging several of those panels and destroying some of the irreplaceable artwork. After the close of the exercise, the Neu Engollian government paid in full for the restoration of the Palace in Lakiska due to the damage from the security guards rounds.

In the meantime, a quintet of other Neu Engollian personnel had been flown and dropped off on Kamasil via helicopter from the nearing NEDN fleet. The personnel were deemed non-essential on the vessels they had been pulled from in the fleet. For purpose of the exercise, they represented Neu Engollian citizens that were kidnapped from the Busogan capital, giving justification for Neu Engollian involvement. However, they hadn’t been kidnapped with the same realism as the Busogan document artifact because of the difficulty to implant Neu Engollian subjects into the local population, then have the Black Frogs try to abduct them all without disrupting and injuring Busogan citizens. So they were landed with that assumption in mind.

Black Frogs who weren’t on the operation in Lakiska were there to take custody of the ‘hostages’ and secure them within the old Coast Guard facilities on Kamisil, not far from the lighthouse which was also heavily in use as a lookout OP and CP for the Company of Black Frogs, or rather Black Claw, their name for this exercise.

[RP'd with permissions and assistance from Busoga Islands]

[Barunia]

Day 2 Cut-Off!

Group A
Norway-Karelia 7–33 Ebrilond
Abanhfleft 28–14 Barunia

  Group A                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kelssek                     1    1   0   0    36    0     3
2 Abanhfleft                  1    1   0   0    28   14     3
3 Barunia                     2    1   0   1    49   35     3
4 Ebrilond                    2    1   0   1    33   43     3
5 Norway-Karelia              2    0   0   2    14   68     0

Group B
Terre Septentrionale 14–26 Northwest Kalactin
HUElavia 26–10 Hutanjia

  Group B                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Northwest Kalactin          2    2   0   0    57   21     6
2 HUElavia                    1    1   0   0    26   10     3
3 Hutanjia                    2    1   0   1    57   31     3
4 Terre Septentrionale        2    0   0   2    19   73     0
5 Puroresu Asteroid           1    0   0   1     7   31     0

Group C
Vdara 32–10 Holy Rhinish Islands
Alice Bay 19–21 Elejamie

  Group C                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Elejamie                    2    2   0   0    45   33     6
2 Vdara                       2    1   0   1    46   34     3
3 Kriegiersien                1    1   0   0    27    7     3
4 Alice Bay                   1    0   0   1    19   21     0
5 Holy Rhinish Islands        2    0   0   2    17   59     0

Group D
United States of Devonta 14–38 Darmen
Apox 14–26 Busoga Islands

  Group D                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Darmen                      2    2   0   0    72   14     6
2 United States of Devonta    2    1   0   1    49   52     3
3 Busoga Islands              2    1   0   1    40   49     3
4 Apox                        1    0   0   1    14   26     0
5 Trolleborg                  1    0   0   1     0   34     0

Group E
Neu Engollon 26–10 Mkabia
Bolgano 22–12 Free Republics

  Group E                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Bolgano                     1    1   0   0    22   12     3
2 Free Republics              2    1   0   1    38   36     3
3 Neu Engollon                2    1   0   1    40   36     3
4 Mkabia                      2    1   0   1    34   38     3
5 Natanians and Nosts         1    0   0   1    12   24     0

Group F
TJUN-ia 12–22 Lisander
Geektopia 12–29 Kandonica

  Group F                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kandonica                   2    2   0   0    57   38     6
2 Lisander                    2    1   1   0    39   29     4
3 Savojarna                   1    0   1   0    17   17     1
4 TJUN-ia                     2    0   0   2    38   50     0
5 Geektopia                   1    0   0   1    12   29     0

[Barunia]

Barunian Rugby Sevens Team

Nickname: The Seven Waves, or just the Waves (The National Rugby Team is also known as the Waves.)

The Barunian Rugby Association has decided to do things a bit differently. With the rights to host the tournament secured, the Association has opted to field a team of the up and coming faces. Unlike the full game, Rugby Sevens is not exempt from the gender equality law often called Chenoweth's Law, which requires even professional leagues to be open to both men and women. While Rugby Union is exempt, due to its highy physical nature and requirements of mass and strength that would place female athletes at a disadvantage, Sevens is considered to offer a more even contest. Thus the national team will contain women from the Barunian Womens Rugby Union, as well as men from the men's league.

The entire squad is all aged under 24, with youth and the generation of tomorrow the focus for Barunian Rugby. The Association wants to promote this team as the world beaters of the future, to assure the fans that the world cup win was not a one-off, and that Barunia has a long, rich future in this sport. Doing it front of a home crowd is the perfect opportunity.

#  Name                  Sex   Position    Team
1  Lydia Martin           F    Prop        Western Storm
2  Carl Rowe              M    Hooker      Newland Power
3  Jackson Somes          M    Prop        South Havenia Bucks
4  Molly Williams         F    Scrum Half  Porthaven Lionesses   Captain
5  Anna Fishbone          F    Fly-Half    South Havenia Force   Vice-Captain
6  Emmanuel Ngobe         M    Centre      Porthaven Lions
7  Terri Hunter           F    Fullback    Porthaven Lionesses

-Reserves-
8  Norman Farrell         M    Prop        South Havenia Bucks
9  William Thomas         M    Hooker      Newland Power
10 Sarah Thorpe           F    Prop        Marion Valkyries
11 Brodie Earl            M    Scrum Half  Western Storm
12 Haileigh McDonald      F    Fly-Half    South Havenia Force
13 Craig Smith            M    Centre      Western Storm
14 Jack Martinez-Young    M    Fullback    Porthaven Lions

Home: Blue, red, and white
Away: Red and white


Choose my scorers: Y
Choose scoring events: Y
Godmod scoring events: N
Injure my players: N
Godmod injuries: N
Hand out warnings: Y
Hand out exclusions: Y

[TJUN-ia]

Match 2: TJUN-ia vs Lisander (12:40:00 PM Local Time)

Lisander are considered a powerhouse in rugby period, not just sevens. So much so the LRU are represented by their U-18s, because they are so good.

That showed in match 2. Sure we scored points, but the "Junior Irises A" were just the better team. 22-12 the final score.

Our final game of the day is at 15:58 against Savojana. Let's see if we can end the day on a high....



SCHEDULE

All games to be played at Karl Marx University.

FRIDAY
M1: Kandonica vs TJUN-ia (10:28:00 AM Local Time) L 26-28 (4th)
M2: TJUN-ia vs Lisander (12:40:00 PM Local Time) L 12-22 (4th)
M3: Savojana vs TJUN-ia (3:58:00 PM Local Time)
M4: BYE

SATURDAY
M5: TJUN-ia vs Geektopia (10:50:00 AM Local Time)
M6: TJUN-ia vs Kandonica (12:40:00 PM Local Time)
M7: Lisander vs TJUN-ia (3:36:00 PM Local Time)
M8: TJUN-ia vs Savojana (6:10:00 PM Local Time)

SUNDAY
M9: BYE
M10: Geektopia vs TJUN-ia (12:18:00 PM Local Time)

[Northwest Kalactin]

Terre Septentrionale 14–26 Northwest Kalactin
Another win for the Kalactanian rugby sevens team as they take the lead in their group as they start out 2-0. The 2 teams they played have been the 2 weakest teams as their next game will be their first real test against HUElavia. The Kalactanians had a good game as prop Paul Price came of the bench to score an overall of 10 points after Todd Bell got a sore thumb from a scrum he was involved in. Northwest Kalactin and HUElavia already look like the 2 strongest teams in the group as HUElavia handed the number 3 team in the world, Hutanjia their first loss of the tournament in a 26-10 game.

Scoring Events
Nick Long- Try and Conversion 7-0
Dustin Donnelly- Try and Conversion 7-7
Wayne Seabrook- Try and Conversion 14-7
Paul Price- Try and Conversion 14-14
Paul Price- Drop Kick 17-14
Shawn Butler- Penalty 20-14
Shawn Butler- Drop Kick 23-14
Johnny Ramsey- Drop Kick 26-14

Other Groups
Group A
Abanhfleft 28-14 Barunia
The Hosts get taken down by a powerful abanhfleft team.

Group C
Elejamie 21-19 Alice Bay
Elejamie barely escapes with a win over Alice Bay.

Group D
Apox 14-26 Busoga Islands
The Busoga Islands upset Apox.

[Bolgano]

Bolgano 22-12 Free Republics
Triumph in the debut of ¨Celestes¨

Barunia
It was very good news for Bolgano, surprise for many, Bolgano managed to defeat Free Republics 22-12 in Group E after resting just in the first group game, the team took advantage of those free hours to train where it went very well , Bolgano who recently came to play the AVBF 5 in Neu Engollon and reached the semifinals in the Bowl showed us that they are not a weak team in the discipline, Free Republics was a team with great strength and great difficulty in defeating them, but in 14 minutes of seven everything can happen, Joseph Long was the player who opened the scoring for a very well practiced Trie, playing in the defensive zone and taking advantage of spaces little by little where although very close to the Ingoal line, there was a tackle by Carl Peters who managed to do humanly possible to avoid the Trie, sadly Long achieved his goal and placed the score 5-0 in the first minute of play, the Conversion was done by Takiko Kishimoto, 7-0, one Trie later from the same Kishimo He managed to get 12-0 but with a failed conversion, on the other hand before the end of the first part, the return of Franco Lombardi to the Trie, many still remember him in the AVBF, despite his injury in 2 days and with that disadvantage I manage to play and score a trie in that historical semifinal against Hutanija, remembering that the latter is a top team, we were very surprised that they were in the fight for the Bowl, Lombardi returned and scored a deserved Trie now against Free Republics and made the conversion and finish the first half with a score of 12-7

The classic talk they always have at half time, what to improve, what to change or what to eliminate, or think because they only made a change compared to their tournament, that's how they thought about letting Daniel Kitper, a young rugby league player who He plays for Severak, he was used as a replacement for a player who decided not to play this Wolrd Cup, this is how Kitper came without experience in Sevens, although if he had a small moment 5 years ago representing Severak, Kitper had the obligation to replace Hollman (He had a blow and due to his physical and importance in the team he will be replaced) Just starting the second half, Bolgano had a great opportunity to make Trie, but at the moment of the scoring pass it was seen that he went forward,The opportunity was clearly canceled, although not in 20 seconds with the Free Republics hard ball, an interception by Kitper, a pass for Daniel Holbart and he returned it with a kick, Kitper managed to score the second Trie and put the match in a draw 12 -12, the same achievement made the conversion and left things 14-12, although there was nothing else in James Tinow's head to play defense, there were 5 minutes left on the clock that should be used to score again, That was part of Martin Lombart who entered for Daniel Holbart, Martin had a great individual move and outwitting the defense, the trie was very important since it left them with the opportunity to win, but they failed the conversion leaving this 19-12, Free Republics can tie the game scoring a trie with conversion, that never happened, James Tinow followed with the defensive idea with a counterattack, so to find the score, a scrum in the middle of the field in favor of Bolgano, and a Kitper run to write down though Ronnie Moore stopped him with a high tackle, there was a Penalty where they decided to kick the three suits instead of looking for a new Trie, Daniel Kitper managed to score and beat the Free Republics in the final 22-12 and surprisingly lead the group with just one game played, although everyone has 3 points less Natanians and Nots who lost his game and rest this turn, Bolgano will have a short lunch break before training for his next game on Day 1 of competition in Barunia, Go Bolgano Go.

[Neu Engollon]

Marshal Jacques Fernand, Minister of Defense, Commander in Chief of the NEDF; Federal Council of the Confederacy Member

Marshal Fernand has held his post for almost two decades now, and has served under 6 Federal Council Presidents with impressive results. He has led the NEDF into the 21st century with a firm mind that the Confederacy needs to defended, not only against old and new nationstate enemies, but anonymous threats, terrorists, and climate change.

Admiral Walter Ziehausen, Commander of the NEDN; NEDF Joint Chiefs Committee

Ziehausen has been in the top naval position for over a decade. He has led over a navy that helped to destroy the 2nd YSR Fleet and enforce the Qasifyan blockade has been lauded in many circles for technological adaptation. The modernized Neu Engollian navy and Ziehausen are often terms found in the same sentence.

Rear Admiral Jean Sal Upenz, Operation Roo Race TFCO, NEDN; NEDS Wilhelm Tell CO (Sovereign Class Carrier)

Upenz was part of the Coalition fleet, which included Gaul, Roman and several other allied Teremaran naval vessels, in its destruction of the YSRN 2nd fleet during the Northern Tavlyrian War. Despite Neu Engollon being traditionally neutral in the region, the Neu Engollon Defense Navy had trained extensively for such potential operations and were ready when President Alainsburg sent them off to war.

Upenz was promoted from Captain to Rear Admiral soon after the end of hostilities. Upenz grew up in the smaller burg of Ludenthal, where the closest he came to maritime activity was fishing in the nearby rivers. However, attending the University of Liguria at Panoli and joining the crew team there on a whim turned his attitude towards life on the sea all around. Upenz rose quickly in the ranks, starting as a radioman and reaching his first commission, ensign, by the age of 21.

While this is common enough in some navies, it's quite rare in the small Neu Engollon Defense Navy, where promotion to the few existing higher ranks is slowed to a crawl and the fiercely neutral nation hadn't seen major conflict, up until the recent Glisandian and Qasifyan peacekeeping operations, since 1921.

The command style of Upenz can best be described as intuitive and relaxed. He calls the flagship carrier Wilhelm Tell home during operations at sea, but is content to let the proper commander, Captain Fastino, run day to day operations of the vessel, the pride of the NEDN.

Captain Ozrik Fastino, NEDS Wilhelm Tell CO (Sovereign Class Carrier)

Fastino hails from a long line of fishing folk from the San Remo - Panoli area. Having grown up around the coast and boats, he was a natural fit to command the premier vessel of the Confederacy's navy.

Fastino's last command was the NEDS Ludenthal, a modern frigate, where he first cut his teeth in battle and came to the notice of NEDN command in Panoli.
The Captain has a deep olive skin tone, thick salt and pepper hair just this side of regulations, and is rather shorter than average in stature, but claims a tall amount of respect from the crew.

As with many of the current top ranks who replaced the outgoing wave of CO retirees, Fastino was battle tested during the height of the Northern Tavlyrian War, specifically the action off Bjelnorg.

On his small amount of off time, Fastino tries to keep a rugby club together with at least two squads that can scrimmage on a specially cleared away patch of deck. He was a star player for the Naval Academy team and were he to have not gone on with his military career, he probably would've had his pick of clubs in the Alpen Valley Rugby Union, the top professional union in the Confederacy and one of the top in the Multiverse. Last rotation out, they had to quit half way through as the last of their balls went overboard and Upenz wouldn't give permission for a recovery operation.

Captain Henrietta Schnabel, NEDS Giacomo Buccatero CO (Phalanx Class Cruiser)

Schnabel loved to sail as a young teen on the lakes surrounding Lucerne. She knew from early on that she wanted to translate that somehow into a career. After finishing her seventh year of school, she dropped out and headed south to the coast to join a fishing crew off Nice. Due to her somewhat beefy, muscular size, she was able to pass herself off as male to the captain and crew, without even much subterfuge.

In many ways, Neu Engollon has remained a bit of a male-centric society, if not fully misogynistic at times. These beliefs are fading with successive generations, but it's taken pioneers like Schnabel to enact changes.

Upon being of age, she signed up for the Navy, but was still having trouble getting a hands on job within the service. There have been rumors of her exploits to get the attention of the higher ranks and earn a commission, but none that can be substantiated or repeated here. Despite the best efforts of superiors to keep her out of combat, she found herself in the thick of it as a young ensign. She helped crew a 20 mm gun to fend off Qasifyan suicidal explosive packed speed boats that were attacking their peacekeeping task force. For her successful efforts she was awarded the Gold Anchor, the highest naval award, as well as the Wilhelm Tell Patriot award.

She is the first female officer to captain a cruiser in the navy of the Confederacy, and she is well respected by her crew because of that and more.

Captain Charles Lafitte, NEDS Aargau CO (Tiger Class Frigate)

Charles Lafitte lost his wife and both children in a tragic auto accident over a year ago, It is clear to most of his crew and fellow officers that he is not quite done grieving, but he seems to keep it together most of the time.

Upenz is aware of the situation and checks in on Lafitte as often as he can, both with visits to the Aargau when possible, and with radio and satellite phone checks. The task force leader is confident that the Captain is still of sound mind to command and isn't ready to replace him.
Still some of his staff are wary, but not wary enough to second guess his decisions. He has found comfort in RA Upenz as both a professional mentor and emotionally as a patriarchal figure.

Captain Julian Meinfeldt, NEDS Burgunden CO (Falchion Class Corvette)

Captain Meinfeldt is a tall, lanky, pale and, at times very awkward, man.
He is a very able naval officer, as by the book standards go. Unfortunately, he is not all that well beloved by his crew due to his standoffish, introverted mannerisms and lack of social norms. His lack of compassion towards the crew when it comes to any infractions is what has really earned him ill will. The rumor in the fleet is that there are some autistic issues that contribute to these behaviors.

Meinfeldt has still earned several commendations from NEDN Command and on paper is an exemplary officer. What counts is what Naval HQ believes, not the popular vote of one’s subordinates, no matter how fair or unfair that sounds.

Captain Michel Fiore, NEDS Grenchen CO (Katar Class LCS)

A perfect textbook example of a model Neu Engollian naval officer, Fiore has done his time as a Panoli HQ staffer, as well as serving duty on several different vessels in the fleets. When finally offered his own ship he was glad to take it, as would any Neu Engollian naval officer, because they don't usually get another shot.

In his off time, Fiore is an avid practitioner of Tai Chi and meditation, giving classes to a growing number of the crew. Grenchen crew with anger issues and behavior infractions are assigned mandatory Tai Chi classes with the 'Skip', but the bulk of his attendees are voluntary.

Commander Augustino Girardeaux, NEDS Imperia, SSN; CO (Legacy Class Strike Submarine)

A newer boat captain, ‘Gus’ Girardeaux has been a submariner all his military career from his earliest days as a Petty Officer. He was brought into the navy as an NCO due to credit from his college and previous civilian careers, but as likable as he is, no one has ever held it against him that he never started as a basic seaman.

He had heard through the grapevine that connects the NEDF to their private military cousins in the USG Security Corporation that the Hutanjian Navy was sorely in need of trained officers to replace those lost during their war and they were offering a hefty sum to foreign military officers, especially those with sub experience such as himself. He was ready to leave the NEDN at the end of a term of service and contact the Hutanjians when he was told by Panoli naval HQ that he was up for his own captaincy. He chose to re-up and became skipper of the Imperia.

Despite earning less than he would have in Hutanjia, he is happy with his choice to remain in the Defense Forces of the Confederacy and not be so far from family and friends, even though submariner life means long isolated deployments away.

Captain Annika Kustic, NEDS Torino CO (Gracchus Class ELINT/Research Vessel)

Following in the footsteps of her mentor, 'Henri' Schnabel, Kustic, and several female military officers like her, have benefited from the path that Schnabel trailblazed. She grew up in the Northwestern stretches of the Confederacy, not far from Konstanz, the city with the largest population of the sizable Slavic minority in Neu Engollon.

Being the captain of an ELINT vessel comes with extra training, as while it can act within a fleet or task force, enhancing their communications, electronic warfare, cyber reconnaissance and defense capabilities, the ship must also be able to act on its own, away from support, and so must its skipper. Thankfully, the Torino will be operating wholly within the protection of the Roo Race Task Force on this exercise and related operations.

Kustic doesn't need to have the full detailed knowledge of the electronics on board, that falls within Grescher's purview. She does however need to know how best to operate closest to target shores or opposing vessels in order to maximize their reach.

Commander Maximilian Grescher, Cyber security/ELINT CO, NEDS Torino (Gracchus Class ELINT/Research Vessel)

Grescher is in command of the ELINT/cyber force crew on board the Torino that not only includes naval, but also Militia and Air Force personnel, as well as NESA (Neu Engollon Security Agency) officers. While Kustic and her crew take orders from Rear Admiral Upenz and ultimately Naval HQ in Panoli, Grescher and his cyber crew collecting information report directly to 'The Haven', the cyber defense center in Western central Neu Engollon that is also manned by rotating shifts of a mix of military and civilian intelligence officers. They coordinate through secret satellite networks.
As a courtesy, they do provide regular intelligence reports and briefings to Upenz and the captains of the task force and any additional information requested.

For this voyage, the cyber defense team has been secretly tasked with collecting information via the multiple spectra on the nations that they will be passing along the way, as well as monitoring New Hayesalian and Allanean communications and cyber operations. They are more than capable of shutting down communications, computer controlled weapons and targeting systems, and enemy cyber ability that any rogue pirate group is likely to possess, but utilizing their capabilities would not only be overkill on an OPFOR band of pirates, it would tip their hand as to the true capabilities of the Neu Engollian cyber forces to all foreign observers known and otherwise.

Captain Theodor Carzetti, NEMS Alassio CO (Sejanus Class Container Ship)

A very capable, if financially minded, crew leader is to be found in Carzetti. He looks after his sailors and makes sure they get a fair cut of what's coming to them. While they would likely miss out on a couple hauls of premium cargo while out on this exercise, the Captain has assured the Alassio crew this will be a worthwhile, educational venture. That and the Ministry of Defence is compensating them well enough for their services.

Carzetti is well aware of the reputation of Weissler throughout the merchant fleet and is wary of what the other merchant skipper might do, but not enough to make a stink about it with the military authorities.

Captain Rolf Weissler, NEMS Geneva CO (Sejanus Class Container Ship)

The weakest link in the group, Weissler has had numerous citations leveled against him through both companies he has worked for and the Merchant Marine authority, mostly for excessive drinking while on duty. He is on probation now and one more screw up will cost him his captaincy and license to operate in any capacity on a Neu Engollian flagged vessel.

The screening process failed in this case when it came to assigning the best personnel, civilian and military, to the exercise.

Lt. Commander Reinhardt 'Rhino' Giavimo, 199th Naval Support Squadron, NEDN, CAG

Giavimo is used to working closely with carrier skippers, and even more particularly familiar with Fastino, as they were both in the thick of it fighting the YSR's navy, albeit from different ships at the time. Both were part of the brief NEDF victory tour of the Confederacy at the conclusion of the Northern Tavlyrian War just weeks after the Coalition's battering of the YSR brought them to the armistice table.

As CAG, Giavimo is not afraid to be assertive when establishing patrols and integral to planning how his squadron can best aid in operations at different stages of exercises or readiness patrols. As leader of Egret Flight, the NEF-33C Warriors, he runs a tight striking unit that can hit their targets and hold off enemy fighters equally. He trusts his Lieutenants to keep up with the pilots in their flights, and in turn, report back to him any personal issues that might interfere with operations. Being the air cover for an entire task force is weighty and each pilot is continually made aware that their actions can make or break operations.

Flight Lieutenant Oswald 'Ghoul' Pagliaro, 199th Naval Support Squadron, NEDN, DCAG

The Deputy CAG of the 199th and leader of Heron Flight, the NEF-30TBh-4 Shrikes. He once served as ‘Rhino’s wingman and the two are very close. They make a great team when it comes to the air group aboard the Tell.

Major Fritz Rampazano, 1st Assault Group, NEDMC, 1st Fleet/Tell TF CO

The Neu Engollian Marines are a well trained force in the way that most Marines the world over are. During the early days of the Neu Engollian Navy, when the Confederacy had just taken control of the coastal cantons, it was the Marines who were on the front lines on the Madurin sea, fighting off pirates and Gaul and Roman raiders determined to take back their lost territory.

Because of the service's early experience with piracy, it would be assumed that they would be the natural anti-piracy force, but during modern times, with the now relative tranquility of the seas and the rise of the other elite specialized units, the Marines have taken a backseat and their most common duty is fleet security. Such is the case for this exercise.

Lt. Commander François Offut, A Co./324th SAO Battalion, NEDN, CO

The Black Frogs, officially the 324th Special Amphibious Operations Battalion, have been in existence as a unit for 44 years. They took over the tasks that in the past belonged to specifically trained Marine diver commandos, whose units have since been disbanded or absorbed into the 324th, causing a wee bit of friction between the two services. While they attend many of the same training schools as their Militia counterparts in the DGC and land Spec Ops, the Black Frogs fall fully under Naval command.

Offut has served as a Lt. Commander for about a year, with a stint as a Lieutenant in the year previous to that. He served during Qasifyan peacekeeping operations as a Chief Petty Officer, where his team worked as covert port security in Marveille and performed some small coastal raids and reconnaissance along the rest of the war torn nation's coast. He and his team earned several commendations on some hairy missions in which they stepped up in aiding their Gaul, Roman, and other Madurinite allies.

Offut will be the commander of the OPFOR. The Black Frogs will play the part of a terroristic force that has taken Neu Engollian hostages and captured the original artifact Treaty of Busukuma Bay from the Busogan Palace. They have retreated to and taken over the small, uninhabited Busogan island of Kamisil to use as an operational center.

While it has happened in the past, an oppositional training matchup between the Black Frogs and the DGC is quite rare. Both are looking for bragging rights for the most bad ass special operations unit in the Neu Engollian military. Both have scores to settle.

Lt. Col. Giacomo Sampere, 1st Bn./3rd DGC Regiment, NEDM, CO

The Diplomatic Guard Corps is the most elite specialized unit in the Neu Engollian Defense Militia, and arguably all of the Defense Forces. The most grueling process in the NEDF is DGC selection. Even members of the elite Special Operations Battalions and Alpen Regiments that go through DGC training have been known to flush out of the selection process.
Posted to Embassies and Consulates throughout the world, the NEDM-DGC acts as security for personnel from Neu Engollon's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, foreign dignitaries and diplomats within the Confederacy, as well as protecting overseas trade delegations and other Confederacy interests. In another capacity, they are called up when Neu Engollian property or interests and citizens are threatened or taken hostage overseas. They will work with local governments and forces to bring the best outcome to secure those citizens and/or property. While traditionally most units of the NEDF haven't seen action in decades to even centuries, the DGC is regularly called on to defend and rescue citizens and property of the Confederacy all over the world.

On occasion, they are also called upon during times of war to work with the other elite units of the NEDM, as well as spearheading their own missions. While not often called upon for anti-piracy operations, it does fall within the parameters of rescuing Neu Engollian citizens and property in peril. While they have extensive counterterrorism training, their anti-piracy regimen is admittedly rather weak in comparison to other maritime nations' programs. Hence this platoon has been tasked to this exercise to get a fuller training. Later, post-mission, they will be given the expanded mission of being anti-piracy training cadre for other DGC platoons and companies.

Lt. Col. Sampere entered the Militia soon after graduating secondary school. He received all the requisite training and experience to get to the rank of Captain in the 38th Alpen Regiment. His first action was during one of the Austrak border incursions.

For a brief period, he separated from Militia service. It was just long enough for him to fulfill one contract with the PMC, the Uli Schwyz Galien Regiments or USGSC, in Hutanjia during their cataclysmic war. Afterwards, Sampere re-applied and was accepted back into the NEDF. It’s a common unofficial practice between the USG Security Corporation and the NEDF that soldiers are accepted into the PMC’s ranks and just as readily accepted back into the ranks of the Confederacy’s armed forces with the valuable combat experience gained through the PMC.

With his extensive experience, he easily made DGC selection. He has had quite the history since then, serving in hot spots all over the world where Neu Engollian diplomats, citizens and organizations find themselves at risk.

The men and women in his battalion have had similar life experience and are all very capable. As per DGC doctrine, all are able to operate in small teams and take individual initiative if necessary. They have multiple skills and the ability to be dropped into any situation and seize control.

Captain Hubert Nazere, Liaison from the Navie des Gaules, Observer aboard the NEDS Wilhelm Tell

Terre des Gaules is as close as one nation can get, diplomatically and politically, to being a fast ally of the traditionally staunchly neutral Confederacy. Once a former enemy that occupied Neu Engollon under the reign of Emperor Ney over 200 years ago, Gaul has made incredible strides in repairing relations and forming that tight bond that both practical nations see as essential to both regional security and their mutual survival. Upon the strong convincing of the Gauls in the name of national security, the Neu Engollians contributed to the Northern Tavlyrian War coalition and the
Qasifyan Peacekeeping Operation. Their forces were very entwined during the campaigns.

Currently, Gaul is trying to convince Neu Engollon to become a more active participant in the Teremaran Security Organization, instead of the passive observer status they currently hold. Nazere is also tasked by his superiors to try to encourage that sentiment among the Neu Engollian naval officers.

Nazere is the commander of the BNRG (Bâtiment Naval de la République Gaule) Locoteur, a missile frigate in the Gaul navy, but has left the boat in the extremely capable hands of his XO while it is in drydock for maintenance.

Commander Bertolimo Andasconi, Liaison from the Roman Free States Navy, Observer aboard the NEDS Wilhelm Tell

Along with the Gauls, the Romans are also close allies with the Neu Engollians, and have also fought alongside them during the recent peacekeeping operations in the region. They also have a similar historic relationship to the Gaul-Engollian one, as the early northern Roman city states teamed up with Austrakian baronies to oppress early Neu Engollon.

They were also very willing to ally with the Gauls in subjugating Neu Engollon in the early 19th century, which ultimately ended badly for both Madurin neighbors when the Alliance liberated the Confederacy, which in turn forced Gaul and the Romans to give up territory to the Confederacy in repatriation. This former Roman territory became the new cantons of Liguria and Piemonte.

These days the nations of Madurin, except for maybe Austrakia and San Rosito, enjoy much friendlier relations all around. What was once the Western Madurin Treaty Alliance has now become the Teremaran Security Organization in order to include many more nations of the region of Teremara. Andasconi and Nazere are eager to learn as much from this exercise as the NEDN officers, and hope to utilize their reports to translate into better future coordinated operations with the Confederacy's navy and concepts to use for their own nations' anti-piracy/terrorist tactics.

[Savojarna]

SavojarSports.sj - inside reports from all Savojarna
Savojarna prepare for Day One after Niskanen

The long-lasting captain of Savojar rugby, fly-half Kristjan Niskanen of the successful Sumanen Pohjoiseen team, terminated his career after Savojarna's third showing in the Rugby Union World Cup. The RSWC is going to show how well the team holds up without their face, as a rejuvenation campaign is beginning slowly. Other than that, rugby has a long history and tradition in the country, but comparatively few follower because of its lack of professionalism, localised popularity and lack on international success compared to other smaller sports like handball, where the Savojars are a dominating force internationally. Nevertheless, the World Cup often draws some attention from the generally sports-crazy population of this country. Four years ago in Ko-oren, they suffered from a slight lack of confidence that led to the Savojars missing out after a painful 9-18 loss against Juvencus. Together with the scheduled loss against Abanhfleft, that was only enough for the third place in the group, but Savojarna managed to stay among the world's fifteen best teams, hence they still kept their position in the second pot. With the draw having been relatively friendly to the Northlights, they are looking forward to allowing Kris Niskanen a final appearance in a knockout match.

Rugby in Savojarna

Savojarna's rugby culture is relatively young, even though similar games have been played in the nation since the middle ages. Mediaeval football games were very popular in Savojarna and looked probably more like today's rugby, often ending in a vicious brawl. In fact, it was so bad that the authorities had executed a total of 9 men in 1241 for playing a football match carrying swords, which apparently did not remain unused. In later times, Savojar warriors enjoyed a game that is seen by Savojars as the direct predecessor to rugby, and was often also played with blunt weapons as it was seen as a preparation for battle. Many of the traditions from this game carried over to rugby. One of the most notable ones is that instead of singing national anthems or similar songs, historically both teams would pray and occasionally offer goods to their respective favoured Gods in what modern viewers would probably compare to something between a fan chant and a war cry. Nowadays this is largely ignored in international games as the SRFB considers the ceremony a bit outdated, however before Savojar league games the tradition is still alive. If the opposing team has a pre-match ceremony, Savojar national teams will often answer with a divine calling themselves; and Savojar fans often perform the ceremony in the stands while the teams line up.

Nowadays, Savojars have widely accepted the rules of international rugby, although in 2011 a referee was noted for having sent off a player in a lower-tier match in Northern Sumanen for violating Rugby Savojarna's ban on tourney swords. Rugby is primarily popular in Sumanen and in the North of Vestrholm, with Finns playing an important role in the national team. Russica has traditionally no connection to the mediaeval prae-rugby culture of Savojarna, and long rejected the sport as a sport of the Savojar conquerors. However, after the Revolution they increasingly accepted the sport and built up their own teams, but have relatively few top players or teams. The Savojar league is an amateur league, with the teams representing the old Savojar provinces. Fourteen teams contest the championship, with the three sides Sumanen Pohjoiseen, Keski-Sumanen and Sumanen Etelä (North, Central and Southern Sumanen respectively) traditionally being among the strongest. Other notable teams are Thorslän, Jarnslän and Norderholmen, with the strongest Russian team usually being Jaromirskaja. The Savojar league only very limitedly allows intra-league transfers, which has been considered to harm development by some.

Playstyle and team features

STYLE: -1.5

What has remained from Savojarna's martial traditions is a strong emphasis on physicality and power. Savojar teams are notable for being full of tall guys - a general trend in the Savojar population - and train their strength a lot, leading to many hard hits. The team has strengths in the standard situations and often seeks the direct way through the middle. This tactic has proven to be able to occasionally wear down stronger teams while it often outright suppresses weaker opposition. In defence, Savojarna close their ranks fast and collapse onto the man on the ball, trying to get people to the ground as fast as possible and prevent a fast passing game, which is their biggest weakness. While most players are not notably explosive, many of them (especially in the back) can develop fearsome speed once they have accelerated.

What is also notable is that Savojars have extreme respect for worthy opponents, and will generally prove a lot of fighting spirit but almost never resort to unfair actions. While some guys on the team do have a bit of a short fuse, this does not manifest in dirty hits or violent action, but in shouting at the opponent or challenging them to a fair fight. Attacking an unsuspecting opponent, or backing down from a confrontation and resuming it in a more advantageous moment, is considered extremely shameful in Savojar culture. Someone who does it against a Savojar can be expected to have to answer to the team, which has a notably strong team spirit.

Team

Savojar Rugby national team				
				
Nr.	Name	Position	Age	Team
1	Ilkko Virtanen   	Loose Prop	30	Keski-Sumanen
2	Johan Liman     	Hooker     	27	Vesterkustslän
3	Mikhail Razov    	Tight Prop	29	Jaromirskaja
4	Juhamatti Otari        	Scrumhalf	28	Keski-Sumanen
5	Ilari Vortas        	Flyhalf      	29	Sumanen Etelä
6	Fridtjof Lindberg	Centre      	28	Thorslän
7	Mika Ranttanen         	Wing             26	Keski-Sumanen

8	Steinar Riis       	Number 8	24	Jarnslän
9	Valeri Kravchuk 	Loose Prop	30	Pawlogradskaja
10	Antti Helamäki  	Hooker     	25	Keski-Sumanen
11	Alexander Newarov	Scrumhalf	32	Andriskaja
12	Kari Setamainen        	Wing         	23	Sumanen Etelä

Coaching
The side is led by coaching duo Sigurdur Olausson (56) and Göran Svensson (51) from the Jarnslän region. The duo met as coaches of Jarnslän for seven years, before they resigned because they said that the Jarnslän team was no longer suitable to their style of rugby. With the Savojar league not allowing the necessary transfers to fix that problem, the two chose to find a new job and did so with Thorslän, where they worked until the RUWC 27. Following the most recent cup, the SRFB decided to full-time employ the national coach, leading to the two resigning as Thorslän coaches. Nominally, Svensson is the head coach, although de facto they work as co-coaches.

Front Row
Traditionally a bastion of Russians, this front row is no exception. Kravchuk and Razov are very strong and notably heavy, with Razov being measured at 183 cm and 136 kg. Johan Liman is a bit less physical than the typical Savojar hooker, but he is widely considered the fastest hooker in the Savojar league and hard to tackle due to his fast turns. Virtanen is a bit more technically adept in open play than Kravchuk, with Rajanov being the stereotypical Russian prop who is primarily strong in a scrum. Helamäki is not as fast as Liman, but considered very strong in the scrum as well, and one of the most accurate passers in Savojarna. Virtanen and Helamäki play very well together due to being clubmates as well as good friends off the pitch.

Half-backs
Scrumhalf Alexander Newarov is perhaps the best passer on the team and used to be one of the relatively few Savojars that had an explosive run, although he has somewhat lost that over time. "Newa" is also a very good communicator and beloved within the side, but will probably have to be replaced quite early due to notorious stamina problems coming from his indulgent lifestyle. Otari, the other scrumhalf, is a better playmaker, but technically somewhat limited and often at danger from physical attacks, as he is less resilient than Newarov. Ilari Vortas has often been considered a lacklustre replacement for Savojar legend Kristjan Niskanen; although his kicking is superb, his leadership has been considered lacking and he is a bit of a meme for mishandling balls in a crucial game, although he usually handles the ball decently. Steinar Riis, a young and fast Nr. 8, is brought on to support especially in defensive or more physical situations, and will often attempt to break through the opposition. He is fast, but not extremely flexible, although his physical and tactical capabilities make him an asset.

Three-quarters
The two centres are two of Savojarna's more notable players. Lindberg is a very clever man who often supports in playmaking and seeks open spaces for his attacks, and he has shown some proficiency with kicking as well, especially with dropkicks. In the Savojar league, he sealed a surprising win over Sumanen Etelä with a dropkick in the final minute, and has since received a reputation as a man for big plays. Mika Ranttanen is a very exciting player who often goes for risky plays and has a lot of speed, although it goes a bit against his strength. In a pinch, he has played on the wing before, and in Sevens he is placed there due to the wings being seen as a traditional weakness of Savojarna. Setamainen has added some much-needed speed into the Rugby Union team, and known for being a very talented Sevens player with strong technical skills.

Kits



Should my opponent RP first, they may do the following:
Godmod scoring events: N
RP injuries to my players: Y
Godmod injuries to my players: N
Sin bin my players: Y
Send my players off: Y (one per game, and preferably TG me first)
Godmod other events: N

[Barunia]

Did we all have a good lunch? Time for Friday's afternoon session to begin.

Cut-Off
(OOC: Slightly late today, I just spent 45 minutes trying to explain to my father what a Graphics Processing Unit is. )

Group A
Ebrilond 12–26 Abanhfleft
Kelssek 48–0 Norway-Karelia

  Group A                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kelssek                     2    2   0   0    84    0     6
2 Abanhfleft                  2    2   0   0    54   26     6
3 Barunia                     2    1   0   1    49   35     3
4 Ebrilond                    3    1   0   2    45   69     3
5 Norway-Karelia              3    0   0   3    14  116     0

Group B
Northwest Kalactin 31–7 HUElavia
Puroresu Asteroid 0–41 Terre Septentrionale

  Group B                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Northwest Kalactin          3    3   0   0    88   28     9
2 HUElavia                    2    1   0   1    33   41     3
3 Hutanjia                    2    1   0   1    57   31     3
4 Terre Septentrionale        3    1   0   2    60   73     3
5 Puroresu Asteroid           2    0   0   2     7   72     0

Group C
Holy Rhinish Islands 7–40 Alice Bay
Kriegiersien 33–14 Vdara

  Group C                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kriegiersien                2    2   0   0    60   21     6
2 Elejamie                    2    2   0   0    45   33     6
3 Vdara                       3    1   0   2    60   67     3
4 Alice Bay                   2    1   0   1    59   28     3
5 Holy Rhinish Islands        3    0   0   3    24   99     0

Group D
Darmen 50–0 Apox
Trolleborg 28–12 United States of Devonta

  Group D                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Darmen                      3    3   0   0   122   14     9
2 Trolleborg                  2    1   0   1    28   46     3
3 United States of Devonta    3    1   0   2    61   80     3
4 Busoga Islands              2    1   0   1    40   49     3
5 Apox                        2    0   0   2    14   76     0

Group E
Mkabia 12–26 Bolgano
Natanians and Nosts 15–33 Neu Engollon

  Group E                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Neu Engollon                3    2   0   1    73   51     6
2 Bolgano                     2    2   0   0    48   24     6
3 Mkabia                      3    1   0   2    46   64     3
4 Free Republics              2    1   0   1    38   36     3
5 Natanians and Nosts         2    0   0   2    27   57     0

Group F
Lisander 33–7 Geektopia
Savojarna 17–21 TJUN-ia

  Group F                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Lisander                    3    2   1   0    72   36     7
2 Kandonica                   2    2   0   0    57   38     6
3 TJUN-ia                     3    1   0   2    59   67     3
4 Savojarna                   2    0   1   1    34   38     1
5 Geektopia                   2    0   0   2    19   62     0

[Northwest Kalactin]

Northwest Kalactin 31–7 HUElavia
The Kalactanian rugby team has not lost yet but with their biggest test coming tomorrow who knows what will happen. The number 3 team in the world hutanjia is looking like a tough test even though they had a bad loss to HUElavia. They are just coming off a bye week and will look to be all refreshed after the HUElavia game. Meanwhile in the kalactanians game yesterday a 31-7 beat down of HUElavia they looked to show signs of greatness in their defense and look to improve. By far the strongest 2 looking teams this World Cup are Darmen and Kelssek. Kelssek has beaten their opponents by an overall score of 84-0 in 2 games and darmen showed everyone what they could do in a 50-0 blowout of Apox last night. Alice Bay meanwhile rebounded from a loss against elejamie to beat the holy rinnish islands 40-7 yesterday. And in our group Terre Sepentriinale beat pusuero asoroid 41-0 last night. The 2 strongest teams in the group look to be us and Hutanjia.

Scoring Events
Ryan Ward- Try no conversion 5-0
Shawn Butler- Try and Conversion 12-0
Todd Bell- Try and Conversion 19-0
Johnny Ramsey- Try 24-0
HUElavia- Try 24-7
Nick Long- Try 31-7

[TJUN-ia]

Match 3: Savojarna vs TJUN-ia (3:58:00 PM Local Time)

The Stars of Savojarna are not unknown to the TJUN-ian sports world. Our football team scored their first away point in an entertaining 3-3 draw in WCQ. The home leg was a tight affair too, 3-2 to the Jaguars in the end. This meeting in the mid-afternoon sun of Hamilton, Barunia was the first ever meeting of the two nations since WCQ and the first ever meeting between the two in rugby football.

The Savojar played well indeed, storming to a 2-try lead by halftime thanks to the efforts of Mikhail Razov and Ilkko Virtanen. All hope looked lost for the Jaguars until Carl Crorker scored early in the 2nd half. The Stars converted a kick to try an enact social distancing, but captain Wyn Gwyneth kept the game close.

In the last minute of the half, Suke Hoshinawa managed to score a last-gasp winner for the Jaguars. 21-17 the final score. TJUN-ia had won a rugby game for the first time.

That concluded our participation of Friday action at Karl Marx University. We'll see you tomorrow, starting with Geektopia at 10:50 AM. GO JAGS!

SCHEDULE

All games to be played at Karl Marx University.

FRIDAY
M1: Kandonica vs TJUN-ia (10:28:00 AM Local Time) L 26-28 (4th)
M2: TJUN-ia vs Lisander (12:40:00 PM Local Time) L 12-22 (4th)
M3: Savojarna vs TJUN-ia (3:58:00 PM Local Time) W 21-17 (3rd)
M4: BYE

SATURDAY
M5: TJUN-ia vs Geektopia (10:50:00 AM Local Time)
M6: TJUN-ia vs Kandonica (12:40:00 PM Local Time)
M7: Lisander vs TJUN-ia (3:36:00 PM Local Time)
M8: TJUN-ia vs Savojarna (6:10:00 PM Local Time)

SUNDAY
M9: BYE
M10: Geektopia vs TJUN-ia (12:18:00 PM Local Time)

[Bolgano]

Mkabia 12-26 Bolgano
Bolgano's Second Victory in the RWC7S5

Barunia
The game between Trolleborg and United States of Devonta has just ended and the Bolgano players were already preparing to go out on the court together with Mkabia who comes from losing 26-10 against Neu Engollon, Bolgano comes from beating Free Republics 22-12 and you see the difference between the 2 teams, one enters the game just winning the first game and leading, Mkabia on the other hand comes from a bitter taste and wants to win and get out of that dark moment, 2 different things are on the court where the best Concentrated wins the match, the initial kick was held by Mkabia where Dennis quickly catches the ball and begins the attack for the ¨Celestes¨ a pass for Lombardi where he begins to run a little later, stops and observes his pass by making a pass for Rodd Holbart and here the good begins, Holbart manages to break the defense between Moussa and Sissako in the field, in that he passes to his brother Daniel Holbart, stops and is tackled by Diakité, the ball is caught by Peters and his run was interesting as always, pass for Hollman and try, a good move especially for Hollman since he converts try after a possible scare of injury but luckily there was nothing serious, the try was low on the sticks where Hollman quickly retrospective and performed the conversion to start a 7-0, the game continued where Mkabia attacked from the sides and less in the center, they had an advantage at the time of Sakho's career where he was tackled and taken off the field by Tonsond, the serve won by Bolgano made a strong counterattack as always despite being a new team in the sport, this was suffered by several teams in the AVBF, said counterattack was managed by Try Lombardi, said counterattack was negative for some Mkabia players, such as Tchagnirou, Diané and Moussa Lombardi managed to leave the game 14-0 before the break.

The second aside started and something strange happened in Bolgano, he made four defensive changes, all except Kitper who was a surprise after his great game against Free Republics, the Holbart brothers and Samuel Tonsond were the only ones to stay on the field, starting now if the second part, Kondo Kaboré managed to make a great important try for Mkabia although they failed the conversion due to the distance, Kouma who entered the second half managed to score the second try that scared Bolgano a bit, it was a great move for an offensive team like Mkabia, the conversion was made and they left us with 2 points of difference, 14-12 was the marker, although Bolgano showed his power again in the Sevens and Illinois managed to score his first Try for Bolgano and with the conversion of Louis Lats they placed 21-12 and more calmly before the remaining 2 minutes, Mkabia had to do 2 Tries to win something that in 2 minutes is very difficult, so it was because Bolgano took the opportunity to make his fourth try of the pair Tido with Illinois doing it again, scoring a great try and conversion, sorry it was a failed conversion, makes the game end 26-12 with a difference of 14 points, each time it is not long before Friday's games and the players rest longer , there are still 6 games to finish where the positions go.

Group E                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Neu Engollon                3    2   0   1    73   51     6
2 Bolgano                     2    2   0   0    48   24     6
3 Mkabia                      3    1   0   2    46   64     3
4 Free Republics              2    1   0   1    38   36     3
5 Natanians and Nosts         2    0   0   2    27   57     0

Bolgano shares the lead with Neu Engollon, but the difference in points means that Neu Engollon is at the moment in first place, the curious thing is that Bolgano is the only team that has not lost in this group, Mkabia and Free Republics continue with 1 point each and Natanians & Nots remains last without winning yet, let's continue supporting Bolgano, GO BOLGANO GO !!!

[Savojarna]

SavojarSports.sj - inside reports from all Savojarna
Savojars lack a little energy on Sevens World Cup

By Kari Soljamäki
The Sevens World Cup, although not exactly geared to the stereotypical skills of Savojar rugby players, always was the traditional focus of Savojar fans, and this year was no expectation. A contingent of around 1’400 Savojar fans have travelled to Barunia, a socialist brother nation that has made Savojars feel right at home by making them play in the Karl Marx University stadium. The team has faced some scepticism following the first international showing without Captain Kris Niskanen, the face of Savojar rugby, who finished his career after the last Rugby Union World Cup, but there had also been vague optimism among the crowd given Savojarna’s history and tradition in the sport.

It seemed like the optimists were correct when the Northlights came out strong against Lisander. Facing one of the traditional heavyweights of international rugby right away was not necessarily a good thing, but then again, Lisander proved to be much more manageable than usual as they sent us a junior selection, which clearly showed in tactical mistakes. Now, this was probably foreseen by Lisander’s coaching staff, but they seemed to not have expected another weak spot of their side, one that they probably deemed less important given the code - the side was quite clearly physically inferior against a nation known for regularly fielding one of the most physically strong, head-against-the-wall teams. Traditionally blessed with strong forwards, Savojarna took control of the game early on and put on a surprisingly tough and slow squad. The side made the surprising decision to not field a designated fly-half, instead bringing on Steinar Riis and Alexander Newarov. Lisander’s youngsters tried to immediately use this, but were shut down hard as the Savojar front row dominated the centre of the field, and Steinar Riis showed his strength.

It took only a few minutes until he could violently break through the middle and keep the ball against an aggressive tackle by Lespins, creating a situation where Savojarna were suddenly breaking through Lisander’s lines. With both Carnot and Fernandes focusing on Riis, there was now suddenly a lot of open space on the left side, and Ranttanen ran exactly into that open space to receive the ball, dodge Roanne’s desperate attack and lay down the first try. Promptly converted by Lindberg, Savojarna took a 7-0 lead early on and saw exactly the early game that they would want to see. But it would be a mistake to underestimate Lisander even when they are playing with young guys, and they managed a try of their own by the hands of Rafael Amandier after a superb movement by Roanne, leaving Savojar prop Ilkko Virtanen in the dust with a swift feint. They could still keep the lead as the Young Irises A (I will keep calling them the Young Irises here though) failed at the conversion. The break would come, but not before another try of Savojarna by the hands of Liman, who had found himself in a relatively lucky position. After Riis had attempted to break through the middle yet again, play turned to a free-for-all in which Lisander were pushed back, and Liman suddenly found the ball in front of him within reach of the try line. His quick reaction got Savojarna a try, but the conversion went wide and it stood at 12-5 at half time.

Attempting to pull away, Savojarna’s Fridtjof Lindberg aimed at a dropkick from running play, and while he had proven to be a skilled master of the play before, he failed this time and turned over the ball for nothing. This was a mistake, as Savojarna were now played dizzy by Lisander’s swift attacks and technical brilliance, and the bill came after ten minutes as Amandier jumped aside in the face of a desperate tackle by Newarov, offloaded to Roanne right as Razov took aim, and then only had to celebrate as Roanne turned past an overly excited Ranttanen, passed back to Daniel Miremont, and could cheer as he went through to score the 10-12. However, it would not remain that close for long as Savojarna now brought on Vortas, who guided the play significantly better than Riis. With the shock effect of the physical play gone, Savojarna needed their best men, and it paid off as Vortas was the man to find a pass to Lindberg, who could then break down the Lisanderian defence to score the next try. However, the centre missed the kick that would have given the Savojars a lead by more than one try, and thus they lost the victory in the last minute or so, as Amandier not only scored his second try, but the following conversion was successful and Lisander equalised.

While a point against Lisander would be reason for joy, the problem was that the game had cost too much energy and the Savojars lost against TJUN-ia in the final moments of the game. Having dominated the game for a while in the first half, the coaching side shifted towards a more defensive stance, letting the Jaguars take the initiative, and they were punished hard for it. Gwyneth had driven TJUN-ia relentlessly, and following a mistake by Kravchuk, he could shorten the lead to 14-17 and keep Savojarna in limbo. It had been a long game, and the Northlights failed to keep up with their opponents in the final minutes of the match when suddenly, TJUN-ia found an opening and Suke Hoshinawa broke through to score. Despite Razov’s best efforts to keep the kick far to the outside, the Jaguars managed to convert yet again and turned the game into a 21-17 victory for the outsiders. This leaves Kandonica, who won their two first games, and old enemies in Geektopia, responsible for the Northlights’ early exit at the RUWC 28, left for the Savojars, before the second leg sees rematches among all teams.

[Neu Engollon]

Kamisil Island
Busoga Islands

Lt. Com. François ‘Frankie’ Offut walked the shoreline, watching as his men and women were just off shore in their light RIB/zodiacs and civilian speeder boats, offloading their payloads into the water where three ‘frogs’ would take hold of them to anchor them to the seabed and arm them. As soon as the boats cleared two, they went into shore to pick up more from a team waiting to reload them. The RIBs could only hold one.

Since the very inception of the unit decades ago, this was literally one of first and primary tasks they were trained to do. Both the installation and removal of sea mines, obstructions, as well as all manner of ship sabotage like planting limpet mines and listening devices on hulls, along with how to remove the oppositions’ similar devices and intercept enemy frogmen.

The large bulky packages were indeed sea mines, but instead of holding their normal amount of explosives that could obliterate a small naval vessel and vaporize dozens of men in a radius, it held a training package. When triggered, blaring sirens would be activated, along with glaring, flashing lights and a digital signal that would register on radars and monitors as a ‘hit’. It might not be lethal to the enemy, but it would certainly be devastating to the opposing forces’ ego.

There were two decent inlets to sew, and another 3 likely landings that could be made, with the rest of the shoreline too rocky for an invading force to attempt. They were on their third out of the five.

Normally, one would not expect a terrorist organization like the Black Claw to be armed with such mines, but the going assumption for this exercise was that the Black Claw, an alleged Banijan-Busoga Islander radical group, was being armed by their sponsoring foster nation, Banija, so they might have all kinds of technology and ordinance not available to your average such terrorist group.

Frankie returned a thumbs up from one of the returning boat crews. Their next steps would be to set up sensors inland of the beaches, foxholes, and outposts. They wouldn’t have time to set up barbed wire or all other manner of obstacles, nor did they even have the materials if they did have the time. The planned defenses would have to do.

It was time to check to see how their ‘prisoners’ were doing. CPO Danny Marcunio had this current operation well in hand. He headed back up the beach and hopped into the old maintenance golf cart they had found in one of the abandoned Coast Guard utility sheds. It too, like the buildings, had been abandoned, in a little disrepair and no longer needed. A little work by one of his mechanically inclined men and a new makeshift battery had made it running probably better than ever.

All over Kamisil, they were scavenging items and buildings like that for use in the upcoming climactic, inevitable rescue raid. It was sure to be every bit of fun as promised.

[Barunia]

Friday's afternoon session is complete. Time to see how you all fared.

Group A
Abanhfleft 19–21 Kelssek
Barunia 36–7 Ebrilond

  Group A                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kelssek                     3    3   0   0   105   19     9
2 Abanhfleft                  3    2   0   1    73   47     6
3 Barunia                     3    2   0   1    85   42     6
4 Ebrilond                    4    1   0   3    52  105     3
5 Norway-Karelia              3    0   0   3    14  116     0

Group B
HUElavia 42–5 Puroresu Asteroid
Hutanjia 26–19 Northwest Kalactin

  Group B                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Northwest Kalactin          4    3   0   1   107   54     9
2 HUElavia                    3    2   0   1    75   46     6
3 Hutanjia                    3    2   0   1    83   50     6
4 Terre Septentrionale        3    1   0   2    60   73     3
5 Puroresu Asteroid           3    0   0   3    12  114     0

Group C
Alice Bay 12–24 Kriegiersien
Elejamie 31–5 Holy Rhinish Islands

  Group C                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Kriegiersien                3    3   0   0    84   33     9
2 Elejamie                    3    3   0   0    76   38     9
3 Alice Bay                   3    1   0   2    71   52     3
4 Vdara                       3    1   0   2    60   67     3
5 Holy Rhinish Islands        4    0   0   4    29  130     0

Group D
Apox 26–14 Trolleborg
Busoga Islands 26–17 Darmen

  Group D                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Darmen                      4    3   0   1   139   40     9
2 Busoga Islands              3    2   0   1    66   66     6
3 Apox                        3    1   0   2    40   90     3
4 Trolleborg                  3    1   0   2    42   72     3
5 United States of Devonta    3    1   0   2    61   80     3

Group E
Bolgano 17–31 Natanians and Nosts
Free Republics 24–12 Mkabia

  Group E                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Bolgano                     3    2   0   1    65   55     6
2 Free Republics              3    2   0   1    62   48     6
3 Neu Engollon                3    2   0   1    73   51     6
4 Mkabia                      4    1   0   3    58   88     3
5 Natanians and Nosts         3    1   0   2    58   74     3

Group F
Geektopia 17–19 Savojarna
Kandonica 12–26 Lisander

  Group F                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Lisander                    4    3   1   0    98   48    10
2 Kandonica                   3    2   0   1    69   64     6
3 Savojarna                   3    1   1   1    53   55     4
4 TJUN-ia                     3    1   0   2    59   67     3
5 Geektopia                   3    0   0   3    36   81     0

[Northwest Kalactin]

Hutanjia 26–19 Northwest Kalactin
The Kalactanian team was not guaranteed a win over Hutanjia coming in to this game. The Hutanjian team is one of the best teams in the world, holding the number 3 ranking in the world. The game did not start well for the Kalactanian team giving up a Try and a Drop Kick that put the Hutanjian team up 10-0. What came next for the Kalactanians was a try and conversion by Prop Shawn Butler. After that, the Kalactanians gave up 13 straight points and by halftime were down 23-7. The Kalactanian team struck back with 2 tries but they missed a conversion on one of the tries, that put the Kalactanian team behind by 4 with 2 minutes left. The Kalactanian team tackled Samson Wakala and got the ball back, they stormed down the field with a minute and a half left and made a poor pass and gave up the ball. The Hutanjian got down the field and made a series of passes to get in a position for a drop kick they kicked the ball through the posts to clinch the game. Hutanjia 26-19 Northwest Kalactin. After the game Nick Long stormed out of the locker room Harry Russell caught up to him.
“Why are you so mad” Said Harry
“We could’ve won if we had just not given up that damn drop kick” Yelled Nick
“Well take is this way we were this close to beating one of the best teams in the world, we have a bye tomorrow so let’s rest up and we can win.”
As both men walked off they were thinking about the game they had just lost, but more importantly the ones ahead of them.

[Barunia]

Saturday morning, are our team's all rested? Time for Day Two's early morning session.

Group A
Kelssek 12–26 Barunia
Norway-Karelia 21–26 Abanhfleft

  Group A                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Abanhfleft                  4    3   0   1    99   68     9
2 Barunia                     4    3   0   1   111   54     9
3 Kelssek                     4    3   0   1   117   45     9
4 Ebrilond                    4    1   0   3    52  105     3
5 Norway-Karelia              4    0   0   4    35  142     0

Group B
Puroresu Asteroid 7–27 Hutanjia
Terre Septentrionale 20–12 HUElavia

  Group B                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Hutanjia                    4    3   0   1   110   57     9
2 Northwest Kalactin          4    3   0   1   107   54     9
3 Terre Septentrionale        4    2   0   2    80   85     6
4 HUElavia                    4    2   0   2    87   66     6
5 Puroresu Asteroid           4    0   0   4    19  141     0

Group C
Kriegiersien 0–34 Elejamie
Vdara 14–24 Alice Bay

  Group C                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Elejamie                    4    4   0   0   110   38    12
2 Kriegiersien                4    3   0   1    84   67     9
3 Alice Bay                   4    2   0   2    95   66     6
4 Vdara                       4    1   0   3    74   91     3
5 Holy Rhinish Islands        4    0   0   4    29  130     0

Group D
Trolleborg 26–12 Busoga Islands
United States of Devonta 19–17 Apox

  Group D                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Darmen                      4    3   0   1   139   40     9
2 Trolleborg                  4    2   0   2    68   84     6
3 United States of Devonta    4    2   0   2    80   97     6
4 Busoga Islands              4    2   0   2    78   92     6
5 Apox                        4    1   0   3    57  109     3

Group E
Natanians and Nosts 17–19 Free Republics
Neu Engollon 17–19 Bolgano

  Group E                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Bolgano                     4    3   0   1    84   72     9
2 Free Republics              4    3   0   1    81   65     9
3 Neu Engollon                4    2   0   2    90   70     6
4 Mkabia                      4    1   0   3    58   88     3
5 Natanians and Nosts         4    1   0   3    75   93     3

Group F
Savojarna 29–5 Kandonica
TJUN-ia 42–14 Geektopia

  Group F                   Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   Pts 
1 Lisander                    4    3   1   0    98   48    10
2 Savojarna                   4    2   1   1    82   60     7
3 Kandonica                   4    2   0   2    74   93     6
4 TJUN-ia                     4    2   0   2   101   81     6
5 Geektopia                   4    0   0   4    50  123     0

[Vdara]

Having been smacked again by yet another team, Vdarans were desperate for a return to good fortune. For the last multiple games, Vdara had been pummelled. Vdara had been drubbed. Vdara had lost, badly. It even got to the point where not even one single fan is praising the Sevens team right now, since their results have been less than good. In fact, Vdara’s results were well worse than “less than good”. They were terrible. Vdara were getting decent point tallies, but they meant nothing when it came to the endgame result. A loss meant another level of embarrassment for the trip home, which was sure to be horrible when the National team arrived back at Chania Airport, just as fast as they’d left. Vdaran fans were passionate, they didn’t like it when their team lost, and some even hated it when their team drew. If Vdara lost yet another game, it would mean being pelted by angry fans as the team walked out of the airport, scared for their lives. The National Sevens squad did not want to be pelted, not this time.

[TJUN-ia]

Match 5: TJUN-ia vs Geektopia (10:50:00 AM Local Time)

Geektopia is another team that TJUN-ia has history with, as they were also in our WC84 Qualifying group. A win and a draw is our record against them, but this wasn't football.

At Karl Marx University on Saturday morning, TJUN-ia played Geektopia and threw them under the bus. Try after try was scored and while they did counter with their own there was no catching the Jaguars once they got going. 42-14, the highest score we had ever achieved so far in our young history. The inexperienced Jags showed the rugby community that they aren't to be underestimated (even though Geektopia has not won a single game thus far).

We may be 4th, but we're still in the hunt. Next up is our second game against Kandonica. GO JAGS!


SCHEDULE

All games to be played at Karl Marx University.

FRIDAY
M1: Kandonica vs TJUN-ia (10:28:00 AM Local Time) L 26-28 (4th)
M2: TJUN-ia vs Lisander (12:40:00 PM Local Time) L 12-22 (4th)
M3: Savojarna vs TJUN-ia (3:58:00 PM Local Time) W 21-17 (3rd)
M4: BYE

SATURDAY
M5: TJUN-ia vs Geektopia (10:50:00 AM Local Time) W 42-14 (4th [H2H vs Kandonica])
M6: TJUN-ia vs Kandonica (12:40:00 PM Local Time)
M7: Lisander vs TJUN-ia (3:36:00 PM Local Time)
M8: TJUN-ia vs Savojarna (6:10:00 PM Local Time)

SUNDAY
M9: BYE
M10: Geektopia vs TJUN-ia (12:18:00 PM Local Time)

[Kelssek]

RUGBY SEVENS
Kelssek impresses at Sevens World Cup
Kelssek go into their final match of the group stage with three wins out of four, putting them in a excellent position to advance to the next round.

The first day of competition saw Kelssek take a 36-0 win against Ebrilond, followed by a 48-0 thumping of Norway-Karelia in the afternoon match. They rounded off the day with a upset 21-19 win against Abanhfleft.

Leslie Hiltsen opened the scoring one minute into the match to put fourth-ranked Abanhfleft on the back foot early. Cole Arbeiter intercepted an errant pass by Rupert Dearth and handed off to Hiltsen, who hit a gap with speed and grounded the ball beneath the sticks. The Fleftics asserted themselves to get the next two tries and seemed to have things well in hand by the interval, with the tide firmly turned.

Missing one of the conversions wouldn't have seemed like much, but Kelssek then scored two tries in four minutes to start the second half and put up a stellar defensive effort to hold on for the win. Marouane Mahout's kick and chase move brought the score to 21-19 but Abanhfleft simply ran out of time.

Kelssek started off the second day of competition with a loss to hosts Barunia, who ran out 26-12 winners in front of the home fans at Samford. This time it was Kelssek who were beaten for pace and intensity as Jackson Somes opened the scoring and Terri Hunter added two more tries to give Barunia a commanding 19-0 lead. Kelssek hit back through Eamon Robervale and Aidan Smither but the hosts never looked in danger and they added another try to make sure.

Speaking before the Barunia match, head coach Seonaidh Sutharlan believed this team can mount a challenge in this tournament. "I gotta give these players lots of credit for how they responded in the Abanfleft match. They really showed a great level of quality and while we've got a tough run ahead, I think we have the toolkit to surprise some people at this competition."