Rugby League World Cup XIX - Everything Thread

[TJUN-ia]

After beating Kayangan, TJUN-ia had fallen in love with their Rugby League Jags. Undefeated and certainly unwavering, TJUN-ia's debut in XIIIs couldn't have gone any better thus far. To make absolutely sure that Group C was theirs, they had to take down the 8th seeds for the 2nd time. West Phoenicia needed to win in order to keep their slim chances of winning the group alive and to effectively confirm themselves as 2nd in the group.

The game was tight, as usual, and nothing was left for granted. The Cyclones were looking to make a statement - that their supposed demise was greatly exaggerated - and they certainly tried in this match. Both back lines were hammered with attack after attack, tackle after tackle, and it was like this all game. The only way TJUN-ia won this game was due to their offence - it was good a finding a way past the defence, but it was always tight. That's why there was huge relief for the coaching staff when Shinji Ketsumoga found the try line with a minute to go in the first 40. Captain Jack Henderson converted, 6-0 TJUN-ia at the hooter. The rest of the game was quiet and controlled, but that didn't stop Virat Maharashtra from scoring 4 points. Henderson missed the conversion, but that couldn't sour the mood by the time the hooter came.

TJUN-ia has officially won this group at 5-0, with only 3 other teams at this same point. TJUN-ia is on fire, TJUN-ia Rugby is on fire, and this team looks like it could take on anyone. The final game against The Jovannic may be a friendly in all but name, but in the quest for 6-0 they all count. Can we actually do this? We'll see....GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (GROUP C) - All Games at Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000 Capacity)
MD1: TJUN-ia (UR) vs Kayangan (UR) - W 14-4
MD2: West Phoenicia (8) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 7-3 (1st)
MD3: TJUN-ia (UR) vs The Jovannic (UR) - W 20-3 (1st)
--------------------------OFF DAY--------------------------
MD4: Kayangan (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 8-4 (1st/GROUP WINNERS)
MD5: TJUN-ia (UR) vs West Phoenicia (8) - W 10-0 (1st)
MD6: The Jovannic (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR)

[Ancharmunn]

“KERPLUFING EEJITS, TELL THEM TO BLOODY TACKLE”, Lorenzo O’Sullivan screamed into his walkie-talkie as he watched Elejamie skip past his defence for a third time within ten minutes. Earlier on the Squirrels had been holding Elejamie to 0-0 for the first sixty minutes of their clash, but three tries out wide and a penalty in a ten minute spell had seen Elejamie open up a sizable lead, and with it throw Ancharmunn’s qualification hopes into going down to the last group game. “Vítinho’s bloody killing us” he noted to his assistant, as indeed the Elejamian interchange had made quite a difference since his introduction.

Fixing his gaze across the pitch as Elejamie thankfully missed a third conversion of the night, Lorenzo appeared briefly lost before returning his attention to the match as Liam Brannigan kicked off again. Elejamie were now starting to run riot. Any chance for Ancharmunn would need them to retain possession on the restart, and so Liam Brannigan hoisted his kick-off high, but short. Risky, but it proved worthwhile, as the ball bounced just far enough away from the halfway line to be legal, and Declan Allen was just able to pluck it from the hands of his opposing counterpart. Sensing a chance for his side Lorenzo along with his coaching staff rose to their feet.

“LEG IT, LEG IT, BLOODY LEG IT” they screamed, not that anyone could hear them beyond the glass of their coaches box. Out wide on the left wing, Allen didn’t appear to have much on, with defenders looking to knock him out of touch. Utilising what little space he did have, he dummied a pass to his right, hoping that it would fool his marker into stepping inside and giving him space to pass on the outside. Dummy thrown, and received, Allen found just enough space on the touchline to skip past his man, just twenty metres from goal now, he only had to get there before the onrushing fullback and Ancharmunn would at least have something from the game.

CRUNCH, even on the replays the sound of the corner flag snapping had been caught by the pitch side microphone. “Holy shitballs, has he got it?” Lorenzo asked aloud. Inches, it came down to, probably even less as the video referee looked at the replay over and over to decide whether or not Allen had ground the ball in goal before he’d been tackled into touch. “Look, here it comes, he’s made a decision” Lorenzo said, as finally the video replays stopped and the screen changed to ‘decision pending’ and then…… ‘no try’. Denied, by the smallest of margins with Allen having seemingly been tackled into touch, barely before grounding the ball in goal.

[Ko-oren]

Part I: Selpernim 1, WBC
Part II: Selpernim 2, RLWC
Part III: Selpernim 3, WBC
Part IV: Selpernim 3, RLWC
Part V: Selpernim 4, RLWC
Part VI: Selpernim 5, WCOH
Part VII: Selpernim 6, WCOH
Part VIII: Selpernim 8, RLWC
Part IX: Selpernim 10, AOCAF

A summer of sports with Leligun Thernasthen

Selpernim 10/Sweltersky 10

Straudum
As I'm rolling into Straudum station - the Dragonflies have done it! Over Lovisa, pending the sixth group match. It's not always been a thrill to watch, and I certainly have been drooling over these Lovisa scorelines: 103 points scored, 22 conceded, one of the biggest point differentials in the RLWC so far, second only to Abanhfleft, but still they're not first in the group. No, that's us, on the head-to-head, and that's what the Dragonflies do very well anyway. No need for extra tries. Just finish the game, play a full 80 minutes without cough ups at the end, and this has been such a methodical and thorough team for us: 35 points scored (that's just 7 per match!) and 6 conceded. 4 wins, including the one over the other 4-win team, and a loss. Ko-oren will go to the Round of 16, and this final group game will decide whether that'll be as group winners or as runners-up. Anyhow, it's been a short campaign for New Lunenburg and the Fair Republic, stuck on 1 win. In fact, only a few groups aren't decided yet. In Group C: West Phoenicia or Kayangan? The Jovannic are out on the head to head records versus both of those. In Group F: Hannasea, or Ancharmunn? Hannasea has the head to head, so they should be sure of the knockouts even with a loss, but the organisers haven't marked them as safe - and that's probably because of my maths rather than theirs, I've literally just looked at these tables and assumed something. Don't assume, kids.

Lastly, there's Group H, with Bostopia or Staypuftonia. These teams meet each other, and Staypuftonia need the win by a handful of points to beat out Bostopia's earlier win over them.

I'm relegated to watching a short highlight clip of the Dragonflies' two try win over the Fair Republic to seal a spot in the next round. The Ons Deg Stadium is looking real nice, but I don't have time for the pre-match traditions, I'm almost in...

Well, there it is. No mobile internet territory.

As the kickoff is shown, the video starts buffering.

And now I need something new to do. That video won't buffer for another 10 minutes or so.

Straudum is barely going to be a layover on my trip. I have a train from the same platform about 45 minutes later, which takes me to Dartha. A town that's been in the news for a while as the new Tech Hub of the country, datacentres rising in the cold mountains nearby, and offices, markets, and campuses opening up in the tiny town that has already grown to three times its original size and has become one of the highest-earning municipalities of the nation in the process.

There should be plenty of Yoshimans and Finisterrans there to watch the Lovisa game. From what I've gathered before, it's likely to be a win for us, but they've grown more during this tournament than we have during any tournament before. There'll be pressure on the forwards, where Lovisa will keep the ball, until they finally push it out towards the wingers, hoping to catch us off guard. They're also quite heavy on the offloads and last-ditch attempts, so it'll be very important for our XIII to be aware of that, tackle them by pinning the ball so they can't play it... and obviously wait for them to make mistakes, pick up the ball from a failed offload, and take it in for a try. Don't force it, just be aware, stay concentrated for 80 minutes, that's the Ko-orenite game. If you're playing an opponent that likely cannot match that, that's playing right into our game. Brunet starting over Canlas, Bran starting over Laza, Levasseur starting over Mori, and Gagnon over Gaudin - that's a forward pack like we haven't seen before. Coello starts instead of Agar. The spine is the only unchanged part of the team, and that while there's definitely something to play for. Is this really a match to be resting your starters?

[Logria]

WE'RE BAAAAAAAAACK!

Shout it from the rooftops, tell your friends, and get the beers in. It's official - Logria are on their way to the last sixteen with a game to spare. True, they had to wait for a late drop goal for Copper Cuprum in the group's other game, but the headline still remains that the Swans are ready to reclaim their place among the rugby world's elite.

For Jeckland, this tournament has been a learning experience; what they learned last night was that Logria really don't like giving their opponents chances. The Swans stifled the Jeckland attack all game, frustrating their attempts to break the wall of blue and gold until the game was well and truly beyond them.

Going forward, Logria were methodical rather than ruthless, picking off their chances when presented. Steve Rayner, Mal Thomas, Olly Goddard, and Miles Richards all picked up a try apiece, with all four converted by Jonathan Lomas.

Logria finish their group campaign with a match against Copper Cuprum to decide the group winner. With both sides through, though, there's a chance that it will turn into a training exhibition with tougher tests around the corner.

[Hannasea]

Article posted on the sports section of the SuperBusiness website.

Hamsters Claw Their Way Back (Do Hamsters Have Claws?)

The Hannasean Hamsters moved within sight of surprise qualification in the Rugby League World Cup, but will still need results to go their way as the Ancharmunn Squirrels hold the head-to-head points advantage. The Hamsters performance against Northwest Kalactin was a mixed bag: a thumping 15 – 0 victory, but against opponents who will certainly struggle to give them a helpful win on the final day of group games. The Hamsters play runaway group leaders Elejamie, leaving them uncertain of progression.

On the field, the Hamsters were in fine form, with clever cross-field kicks from Jack Egan making use of a strong prevailing wind, and bulldozing finishing from Callum Somerset and Rhys Howell, who simply powered through weak tackling. Egan’s touch with the boot extended to converting a difficult long field goal, and Luke Gould smashed an audacious drop goal to pad the lead. Northwest Kalactin never threatened the Hamsters’ try line.

Staunch defense couldn’t quite mask a limited offensive set, heavily dependent on Egan’s vision, Gould’s pace, and the strength of the forwards, and they will need more skill to take on the likes of Elejamie. There was improved handling in the back line and fewer errors, with the highlight Somerset’s feint from dummy half as he ran in for his score, but this is not a team of expert ball-handlers, as captain Dale Preston admitted in a wide-ranging interview in which he added that “your mom” was the only expert ball-handler around here. At time of press your mom was not available for comment.

[Elejamie]

A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE ERF

Following months of talks, meeting and other such discussions, stretching all the way back to December of last year, the Elejamian Rugby Federation has officially announced that there will be a second rugby league competition in Elejamie to start play in 2022, consisting of sixteen teams dotted in various parts of the country. However, unlike the Elejamian Rugby Championship in rugby union, they have announced that this new league - to be named to Elejamian Secondary Rugby League - will not have a promotion/relegation structure but will instead be considered its own thing with its own play-off structures and awards. All but two of these teams with the fourteen teams currently playing in the Hinckley Bank Rugby League (which is set to be renamed the Elejamian Elite Rugby League following the end of their sponsorship deal with Hinckley Bank at the conclusion of the 2021 season), which means that coaches can send any players that need development down to help out, whereas the other two teams will remain independent unless a deal is reached with a foreign team.

ERF co-president Brian Blake, who primarily deals with everything league, said "We had been trying to expand league operations for sometime now but consistently hit brick walls due to teams worrying about costs or a lack of interest from potential fans. Coupled with the fact that a country with a world class team only has one professional league competition, we sought to remedy this situation. Furthermore, we wish to not only help develop a new generation of potential superstars but we also wish to take on board anyone who wishes to carry on the sport at a higher level but resides in an area where they lack the ability to do so. The league will not be ready for some time, though there will fortunately be a series of friendly matches to not only help players pass the time but also get fans used to these new teams, but we're hoping that will be enough to pump everyone up for this new and potentially exciting league. We would also like to thank the bigger teams who have given us permission to groundshare, especially those who occupy the bigger stadiums in this new league but most importantly Barr FC, who have been kind enough to let us use their stadium while a new one gets built for the team that'll be located there."

---

MEET THE TEAMS
A short guide, 3-4 sentences long, giving very brief descriptions of each new club.

• Aintry Rugby League Football Club - Or just simply "Aintry" for short, as there are currently no plans to give the team an official nickname. The team's colours will be blue, green, red and white. The team will play at the Aintry News Ground, a 9,000 all-seater stadium located in the heart of the city. They will also be linked to the Edgebaston Chariots, given that they're 30km away and the Chariots have played a few exhibition matches there.
• Autumnia Hoplites - The name was chosen given to the large amount of Greeks in Mainsborough, the tractal capital of Autumnia, where team will play (as evidenced by the Mainsborough Delphi rugby union team and the Mainsborough Spartans basketball team). The team colours will be purple and amber. The Hoplites are set to play at the Cantonia Estates Ground, located just on the outskirts of the city, which can seat 11,500 people. The team will also be linked to the Aldenport Vikings, given as they used to play in the city before moving out in 2005.
• Barr Nuns - A surprising choice of name, if only because of the pun beating out favourites such as the Barr Bolts and the Barr Flames (the name of a former team in the HBRL). They will play at the Youngston Ground, which is also home to Barr FC, and as such will be the biggest stadium in the league with a maximum capacity of 33,500 people, although this will be a temporary measure while a new smaller-capacity stadium will be built specially for the team. The teams' colours will be white, black and white. They will be linked with the Alvis Mechanics.
• Burnett Titans - They took their name from what was going to be the original name for the Murgon Power before they decided to be local to the city. Their team colours will be white, green and red. They will play at the Shifler Stadium in Shifler, a stadium that can fit 5,000 people onto a single stand, though there are plans to construct another stand to fit away fans. They will be linked to the aforementioned Murgon Power.
• Davenport Posse - One of the planned names for a potential Davenport team before they decided to revert back to the old Blades name. Their team colours will be red, white and red. Despite the name, the team will actually play at the 12,000-capacity Whitehaven Stadium in the town of Whitehaven 20km away, though they will be linked to the Davenport Blades, who will play a couple of regular-season games at the stadium to get a fanbase going there.
• Elejamie City Thunder - They took their name from a team that was originally in the city before their relocation. Their team colours will be blue and yellow. They will play at the Mayborough Stadium, which can fit 14,000 people. It will be linked to the Eden Rock Red Vees, who began life here before moving to their new location at the turn of the millennium.
• Fosado XIII Guerreros - The former name of the Avon Warriors, who had left the city in 2017 to move up north, the team will be one of two primarily-Spanish speaking teams in an attempt to appeal to Hispano-Elejamians, a percentage of the population commonly neglected by the rugby league community. They will play at the Guerreros' old stadium, Estadio Campo, a 20,000 seater that also hosts the local soccer team Rojos de Fosado (aka the Fosado Reds). Their team colours will be red, black and white. They will be linked to the Newford Comets.
• Gallos de Valledorado - The other team hoping to appeal to Hispano-Elejamians, los Gallos de Valledorado (aka the Valledorado Roosters) were also designed to hopefully get a rivalry going with the aforementioned Fosado XIII Guerreros. Their team colours will be red, yellow and red. The team will groundshare with CR Valledorado (a Division One union team) at the Estadio Miguel Villenova, a rugby-designed stadium with a seating capacity of 9,500 people on two stands. Not only will they be an independent team but there has been no history of rugby league activity in the city, so the Federation are hoping this gamble will pay off.
• Mittedorf Rumble - Located in Mittedorf City on the other side of the tract of Mittedorf, where the Blue Bolts and Foxes have played a few games in the past in a stadium that has since been demolished. The team's colours will be sky blue, black and white. The team's stadium will be at the NorthWest Electricity Stadium, which can seat 14,000 people. They will be linked with the Berlin Blue Bolts.
• Reefland Eagles - There has been no professional league team in Reefland, though there have been one or two amateur teams along with a couple of union teams. The team's colours will be red and green. They will groundshare with Reefland RFC (a Division One union team) at the University Ground, a 7,500 capacity ground with two stands on each side; a main 6,000-seater stand for home fans with a smaller 1,500-seater stand for away fans. Woodsworth RLC spent a brief period of time here in the mid-2000s while their stadium was undergoing repairs and, as such, the two teams will be linked.
• Rosetta Stallions - After an attempt to put the team in Portham failed three times, the ERF were able to get a league team in the much bigger city of Rosetta, where they are hoping to create another team to appeal towards the Iyilim (native Elejamian) population. The team's colours will be yellow, blue and white. They will play at the Royal Inaetar Ground, a small 10,000 seater stadium across the road from the much bigger Rosate Rubihus (Rosetta Rugby House), home of the Rosetta Sparrows in the ERC. They will be linked with fellow Iyilim-based team Aloc RLT.
• Shiner Rugby League Football Club - Or just "Shiner" for short, though unlike Aintry it was because any potential nickname was rejected. Their colours will be light blue and amber. Though they currently lack a stadium at the minute, there are plans for them to play at the 20,000-seater Shiner Stadium in Shiner Beach, which is currently under construction and is projected to be complete by the end of 2021, though should that fail to materialise they will instead play at the 9,500-seater Cross Plaza Bowl in Cross Plaza. They will be an independent team, though the Berlin Blue Bolts began life here before moving very early on in their history so there has been some presence in the tract.
• Steelwater Sturgeons - The only team that'll be named after a part of a city instead of the city or tract itself. The team's colours will be black and white, though they will play in a white kit with black accents. Located in the nation's capital Coventry, this team is set to play at the Steelwater Pitch, a 7,000-seater ground that's part of the Janusz Chmura Memorial Sporting Complex They will also be linked to the Coventry Saviours, a team who resides in the same city as them, though fortunately both stadia are far away from each other to avoid cutting into each others' fanbases.
• Surter Alpines - The name was originally planned to be for a youth team before plans for a youth league fell through. The team colours will be blue and white. They are located just outside of the tractal capital Iceland albeit still in the city limits, at the John Brunton Training Ground (which also serves as the training ground for the Iceland Panthers in the ERC), and will be linked to the Iceland Foxes.
• Swannings Scholars - The last team to be officially announced, due to talks having to take a temporary suspension due to recent events. The team's colours will be red and white. The team will play at the BigBlock Stadium, located in the heart of the tractal capital L'elefant, which can seat up to 13,500. Despite the massive distance between the two teams' grounds, they are to be linked with the Avon Warriors.
• Warwick Raiders - Originally the name for a second team in the tract of Warwick in an attempt to get a rivalry going before the people buying the franchis ended up pulling out of the deal. The team's colours will be red, white and blue. They are set to play at the Brindley Stadium, an 8,750-seater located in the suburbs of the city of Brindley. They will be linked to the Crown Manor Princes.

[Trolleborg]

Defender Fintan Quinnn felt like in a dream. Sometimes he deeply doubted whether what was happening was really happening, or he was just injured in the very first match, hitting his head on the goal in a desperate attempt to cope with the Darmen forward, and lay in the hospital, dreaming from his bed in the ward about string of victories and impenetrable defense, which Trolleborg rugby team demonstrated in all games. Five games with opponents, two of which are much stronger and more experienced, and four wins in them, with a minimum number of conceded goals. Looked absolutely improbable in the world sports, where the experienced always beat the inexperienced! But no, even pinching yourself did not help to get rid of the obsession, and everything remained as it was: the Trolleborg team gets into the playoffs one round before the finish of the group stage, with a completely non-rugby point difference of 37:6, gaining points twice less than Darmen and Natanians and Hosts, but also conceded 9-10 times less. If this is not a dream, then there must be a witchcraft, exactly, there was no doubts. But already Jesper Stromnes demands attention from the players just returning from the warm-up for a last few words and begins to explain what to pay attention to, judging by what he managed to see at the opponents' pre-match training session, and then the judge calls to go to the field. The huge stadium is already making considerable volume noise, and the green corner, where the fans of Trolleborg have gathered, add not unsignificant contribution with an indescribable roar when they see their favorites. No, if this is a dream, then it is very believable. And now, sleeping, dreaming, lost virtual reality or not, forward on the field, we need to hold out today too!

[Copper Cuprum]

This is your sixth CUTOFF for the 19th Rugby League World Cup.
It may be the last matchday of the group stage but really, the fun is just getting started. Don't stop me now from scorinating this tournament.

---

Group A
Jeckland 1–12 Terre Septentrionale
Copper Cuprum 12–0 Logria

  Group A                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts
1 Copper Cuprum              6   5  0  1   96  37 +59   10   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Logria                     6   4  0  2   96  54 +42    8   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Terre Septentrionale       6   3  0  3   70  81 −11    6
4 Jeckland                   6   0  0  6   21 111 −90    0

Group B
HUElavia 26–1 Quebecois Acadiana
Hutanjia 22–0 Sandwichs

  Group B                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts
1 Hutanjia                   6   6  0  0   99  15 +84   12   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Sandwichs                  6   3  1  2   43  48  −5    7   Qualified for knockout stage
3 HUElavia                   6   2  1  3   57  64  −7    5
4 Quebecois Acadiana         6   0  0  6   19  91 −72    0

Group C
The Jovannic 8–16 TJUN-ia
West Phoenicia 14–8 Kayangan

  Group C                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts
1 TJUN-ia                    6   6  0  0   75  22 +53   12   Qualified for knockout stage
2 West Phoenicia             6   3  0  3   55  63  −8    6   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Kayangan                   6   2  0  4   38  53 −15    4
4 The Jovannic               6   1  0  5   57  87 −30    2

Group D
Placely Placington 24–5 Kingdom of Great Britain
Neu Engollon 19–2 Mathuvan Union

  Group D                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts
1 Neu Engollon               6   5  0  1  105  38 +67   10   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Placely Placington         6   5  0  1  111  54 +57   10   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Kingdom of Great Britain   6   1  1  4   23  89 −66    3
4 Mathuvan Union             6   0  1  5   22  80 −58    1

Neu Engollon ahead of Placely Placington on head-to-head points difference (Neu Engollon +28, Placely Placington +13)

Group E
New Lunenburg 12–2 The Fair Republic
Ko-oren 22–0 Lovisa

  Group E                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts 
1 Ko-oren                    6   5  0  1   57   6 +51   10   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Lovisa                     6   4  0  2  103  44 +59    8   Qualified for knockout stage
3 New Lunenburg              6   2  0  4   20  71 −51    4
4 The Fair Republic          6   1  0  5   16  75 −59    2

Group F
Northwest Kalactin 5–13 Ancharmunn
Elejamie 26–8 Hannasea

  Group F                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts 
1 Elejamie                   6   6  0  0  103  27 +76   12   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Ancharmunn                 6   3  0  3   83  74  +9    6   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Hannasea                   6   3  0  3   72  84 −12    6
4 Northwest Kalactin         6   0  0  6   35 108 −73    0

Ancharmunn ahead of Hannasea on head-to-head points difference (Ancharmunn +16, Hannasea +15)

Group G
Trolleborg 18–1 Natanians and Nosts
Darmen 33–9 Megistos

  Group G                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts
1 Trolleborg                 6   5  0  1   55   7 +48   10   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Natanians and Nosts        6   4  0  2   72  73  −1    8   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Darmen                     6   3  0  3  107  74 +33    6
4 Megistos                   6   0  0  6   23 103 −80    0

Group H
Bostopia 5–9 Staypuftonia
Abanhfleft 16–6 Croblade

  Group H                  Pld   W  D  L   PF  PA  PD  Pts 
1 Abanhfleft                 6   6  0  0  157  63 +94   12   Qualified for knockout stage
2 Bostopia                   6   3  0  3   99  89 +10    6   Qualified for knockout stage
3 Staypuftonia               6   3  0  3   62  83 −21    6
4 Croblade                   6   0  0  6   33 116 −83    0

Bostopia ahead of Staypuftonia on head-to-head points difference (Bostopia +14, Staypuftonia +4)

[Copper Cuprum]

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP XIX
ROUND OF 16 MATCHES

Copper Cuprum vs Sandwichs
@ Princess Hawana Stadium, Bed Deg

Hutanjia vs Logria
@ First Copperite Bank Stadium, Wa Deg

TJUN-ia vs Placely Placington
@ Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg

Neu Engollon vs West Phoenicia
@ Otowo Baduta Park, Eb Deg

Ko-oren vs Ancharmunn
@ Prince Orestes Stadium, Sub Deg

Elejamie vs Lovisa
@ Billingshurst Motors Park, Pad Deg

Trolleborg vs Bostopia
@ Tw@ Stadium, Al Deg

Abanhfleft vs Natanians and Nosts
@ Cluckin' Bell Arena, Vay Deg

[Ancharmunn]

The Maudraiska Mirror

Drop goals see Squirrels into knockout rounds of RLWC

Ancharmunn’s Squirrels found their way into the Rugby League World Cup knockout rounds in the final round of group matches. Sensationally all thirteen points from their 13-5 win over Northwest Kalactin came in the form of Liam Branningan drop goals. Having been called out by his coach, and dropped after electing to take a drop goal in a losing position in an earlier match, his status as hero now makes a sensational turnaround for Liam Brannigan.

In situations where there are such dramatic winners, there unfortunately are also losers, and it was Hannasea who found themselves knocked out by Ancharmunn’s win over Northwest Kalactin. Tied on points after six matches, the difference between Ancharmunn and Hannasea remarkably came down to just a single point, a single drop goal, scored in the two matches between the Squirrels and the Hamsters. That single point of crucial difference? A late Liam Brannigan drop goal in the Ancharmunn’s 22-7 loss to the Hamsters on matchday four.

“Drop goals? Bloody love them!” Squirrels coach Lorenzo O’Sullivan joked in his press conference after seeing off Northwest Kalactin. “Liam does get some stick for being so keen on field goals, and he can sometimes be too conversative, but his game management is superb at times, and today and in the Hannasea match he’s shown that.”

“It wasn’t the prettiest of wins today, but the Northwest Kalactin defence were defending very hard today, so Liam went out and took points where he could. Like I said, it wasn’t pretty, but it got the job done, and put us through.”

The draw for the second round will see Ancharmunn travel to Sub Deg to take on a Ko-oren side ranked third in the world coming into the tournament. That particular match is likely to be a tough one for the Squirrels as former international Samhrán Brugha emphasised on Raidió Teilifís Tearmann.

“First of all credit to Ancharmunn for getting through. It’s an unusual tactic to go for so many drop goals, but it paid off and that drop goal back in the game against Hannasea really has proven to be crucial now.”

“The thing is though, whilst it might have worked here, we have to look to be going for tries if we’re going to progress further in the tournament. Ko-oren are a really good side, and if we play in a conservative style and just go for odd points here and there, that plays into their hands and they’ll be able to control the game and win it. We have to go there, try and get through their defence and really take the game to them. It’ll be a tough game, and Ko-oren are going well, but if the Squirrels play at their best and put Ko-oren under pressure, we can take them.”

Brugha was also keen to praise the role that Hannasea have played in the tournament saying, “It’s a shame that one of Ancharmunn or Hannasea’s had to fall coming into this round. As far as I know it’s their first experience of international rugby league and their players are all amateur, but they’ve put up a real fight and are unlucky to be going home. They’ve been one of the highlights of the tournament for me, and hopefully we’ll see more Battles of the Rodents to come in the future.”

[Ko-oren]

Part I: Selpernim 1, WBC
Part II: Selpernim 2, RLWC
Part III: Selpernim 3, WBC
Part IV: Selpernim 3, RLWC
Part V: Selpernim 4, RLWC
Part VI: Selpernim 5, WCOH
Part VII: Selpernim 6, WCOH
Part VIII: Selpernim 8, RLWC
Part IX: Selpernim 10, AOCAF
Part X: Selpernim 11, RLWC
Part XI: Selpernim 11, WCOH

A summer of sports with Leligun Thernasthen

Selpernim 11/Sweltersky 11

Dartha
What is Sudaefjoll, culturally? It's home to towns as diverse as Laugarnes and Straudum, Dartha and Lysager - which is to say, extremely similar fishing-and-services towns in the northeast, gray clouds year-round but the occasional nice day. And nice days here are incredibly nice. There's a week of rain in spring, after which nature comes to life, and everything is green until the end of October or so, when everything turns orange, red, and brown in about two weeks and then it's back to six months of bare trees.

Is there any influence of other places then? Intermare has had a historical grasp of the region, implementing its language, and it's still easily the closest thing to Sudaefjoll. Noordoren is too small to influence anything, and Aerellen really didn't want anything to do with the mainland for a long time. Yoshima, actually, has a very long history of trading with the area - luxury, tropical things for hides and minerals. A profitable business, when both places were more or less cut off from the Bay trade further west. The strange relationship stayed, with somehow no other influences to and fro.

That is...

Apart from rugby league. Rugby never took off anywhere north of Aminey, but then... apparently it was the one thing that was brought over from the tropical prefecture to the grey lands. There are now... Dartha's Kroon, and for the occasion, I've made my way over to the third division team, who has to visit anywhere from Almina (several kilometres away) to teams from Katashi, Nishinuma, and Vurusen - that's quite the travel bill. Instead, they play several matches in a week and a half, get quite a bit of their away schedule done, then receive a few Yoshiman teams that play Dartha, Almina, and Sterrenwolde in a week. One of the stranger schedules by far.

Arriving at Dartha's Kroon, the club located at the western end of the town, its floodlights easily visible over the sprawling, low-rise housing that makes up the rest of the neighbourhood. All built before the boom, that is. A training is on, with a Yoshiman coach, Yoshiman staff all around, and half the squad appear to be from there as well. Like ice hockey can't make its way out of Aerellen, grassroots rugby league might have clubs everywhere, but its players are still from Yoshima anyway.

We might still be a while away from the first Sudaefjoller debutant for the national team yet.

[Bostopia]

Each bush the Emperor tried was simply much too small. Vertically, horizontally, time and time again he would drop down behind one but realise there was something sticking out, such as his head or an outstretched leg. Even though he was trying his best, it was simply of no use. Realistically, he didn't need to go from bush to bush trying to hide behind or in one of them, as he was in the Holt Forest, which once formed a natural southern defensive barrier around Fort Boston, though over the centuries just became a dense forest, which had no human habitation.

Yew trees shaded the Emperor as he darted around the forest, whilst trying to remember whatever basic survival training he'd had, though the fogginess of his head wasn't helping matters. Though he had watched many, many survival programs on television, even he couldn't see how remembering how to rappel down a waterfall whilst eating a turkey leg would save him.

In Ziphaer, meanwhile, a different conversation was taking place. Members of the medi-vac team who had evacuated the Emperor were still discussing what to do.

'Evacuate - we evacuate' came one suggestion.

'You evacuate?' One of the other crew members replied, turning the first suggestion on its head, clearly exasperated by the poor ideas coming out of their colleague's mouth.

'Unless you have any better ideas, leave it out' Rachel said, trying to calm tensions whilst being nowhere near calm herself.

Scared of their clearly flustered colleague, the room went quickly quiet.

'Clearly we need to send up a search and rescue party for him. OBVIOUSLY HE'S DEAD!' Rachel shouted the last sentence, as if someone had already said 'obviously he's dead' to her, when in actual fact no-one had. 'Even though he's dead' she stated again. 'A mission to retrieve his body so he can be given a proper burial and not eaten by ravenous donkeys and otherwise left for the crows would be the proper thing to do.'

'Donkeys?'

Rachel was aghast. 'OF COURSE DONKEYS. PISSING GREAT BIG ONES.'

'Giant donkeys are the best!' One of the officers (walking past on the tarmac where the plane had taxied to stated - he bore an uncanny resemblance to the last leader of Sorthern Northland.

'A giant donkey is ridiculous. Last sighting of one of those was at least 2,000 years ago and even then that's just a myth. A myth that led to a large number of pubs in south Fort Boston being called the 'Donkey and Bush' if I remember correctly.'

'Serve swill, the lot of them' another voice joined in.

'Whatever they serve, they'll be joined by the 'Dead Emperor's Arms'!'

'Is that the name of the pub itself or are you literally saying that his arms are going to turn up on the bar?'

'No - I mean - yes!' Despaired Rachel. 'One way or another, we need to do something.'

'Now' a senior looking fellow walked up to the group. 'I've had it up to here with the shouting coming from this part of my tarmac. A VIP has gone missing and instead of immediately going back up and searching for him you're having an argument.'

'Normally we would, Sir, but we're waiting for the fuel to go back in and the plane doesn't have the relevant technology either for a missing person's search.

'Have you asked to borrow a helicopter, perhaps?'

'A helicopter, Sir' Rachel began 'isn't really something you can just borrow.'

'Say... who are you anyway?' Asked Captain Storm, eyeing up the man warily.

'Neil Perstravis.'

'Okay - and what do you do around here?'

'Runway.'

'Go on' prompted Captain Storm. 'Any further detail?'

'Simply put, I clean the runway and tarmac.'

'My god' Captain Storm responded. 'A runway cleaner has interrupted our very important discussion as to how to save the Emperor.'

'Now listen here. Dissing me as just a "Runway Cleaner" is highly rude and you should talk to me politer than that. My trade union will hear about this.'

'Your TU couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery' Captain Storm replied harshly.

'For God's sake of course not, that would be the Union of Brewers. Runway and Tarmac Cleaners belong to another union and we wouldn't want to step on their toes.'

'I apologise' Captain Storm said sarcastically, closing his eyes at just the right moment to feel a fist connect with his nose.

Emperor Boston, meanwhile, was slowly making his way through the forest. Now a little closer to Fort Boston than he was before, he still had a long way to go before having any chance of reaching civilisation. Despite his inability to remember anything useful, he had actually managed to start going in the right direction. 'Bloody trees!' Emperor Boston cried, barely avoiding another branch. Not withstanding the fact he was six foot one, jumping in the air every few moments to see if he could see the edge of the wood wasn't helping matters.

'Casually playing 15 men whilst advancing through a League tournament isn't on' said Steve McMahonston, head coach of the Bostopia team, pitchside after their loss to Staypuftonia, which still saw Bostopia through the group stage. 'Rugby League is famously "jeu a treize" and some other side have rolled through to the Round of Sixteen with 15 men on the pitch.'

'Is this something you're happy about, Steve?'

'Exasperated is the word I'd use. Somehow, this lot have played six games so far and seemingly no-one has noticed they've 15 men - win or lose it'll look good for us!'

[TJUN-ia]

After shutting-out the Cyclones of West Phoenicia, our final group stage match was upon us. The Jags had turned up so far in this tournament, going 5-0 and booking their place in the knockouts already. This match against The Jovannic would not impact their group position, but it would definitely impact the TJUN-ian history books if victory was found in Ons Deg. Copper Cuprum might have seen history today.

The game started and many were hoping to see more TJUN-ian success, but The Jovannic was ready to sign off their debut campaign in style. They scored the first try and converted successfully. TJUN-ia responded with 6 points of their own, the try and conversion from captain Jack Henderson himself, so the scores were level at 6-all when half time arrived. After the break, The Jovannic got a penalty and converted for 2 before trying to use their defence to hold the Jags off. But the team had other ideas, with Ji Wo-Man taking the lead himself. Henderson converted, and now it was TJUN-ia trying to hold on to their lead. The game was tight entering the final 5 minutes, but Andre le Grand-Et-Haut put the game to bed with a try. Henderson missed the conversion, but that didn't mean anything once the hooter arrived.

Here are some facts. TJUN-ia won their group on debut. TJUN-ia went undefeated in their group on debut. 6-0 in this group stage is officially the best performance in a group stage since IAC9 when the Jags won 2 of 3 and drew the other. Now they stand with Hutanjia, Elejamie and Abanhfleft in the "12 Point Club" for the 19th RLWC and who thought you'd say that when we first arrived in the Chiefdom.

But now, we enter knockout rugby - a beast that is quite different to one we know. Our opponents will be the peculiar nation of Placely Placington, a puppet of Elejamie more known for song contests than sport. This team has an interesting story: they are a bunch of clones from a nation unfamiliar to any form of rugby, fighting for as much prize money as they can so that their leader can start paying off some debts the nation as incured. These "Test Subject" are quite stupid, as you can see from highlight of their matches so far, but from this stupidity they have done enough to claim 2nd in Group D (just behind New Engollon) and to now be in the path on the Jaguars. It'll be another match in Ons Deg, but one unlike you've ever seen before. Can the Jags avoid becoming brain-dead themselves in order to make the quarterfinals? We shall see but no matter what happens, this tournament will be the best in the young history of TJUN-ia Rugby. GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (GROUP C) - All Games at Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000 Capacity)
MD1: TJUN-ia (UR) vs Kayangan (UR) - W 14-4
MD2: West Phoenicia (8) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 7-3 (1st)
MD3: TJUN-ia (UR) vs The Jovannic (UR) - W 20-3 (1st)
--------------------------OFF DAY--------------------------
MD4: Kayangan (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 8-4 (1st/GROUP WINNERS)
MD5: TJUN-ia (UR) vs West Phoenicia (8) - W 10-0 (1st)
MD6: The Jovannic (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 16-8 (1st/6W-0D-0L/+53PD)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ro16: vs Placely Placington (UR) - Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000)

[Logria]

HUTAN? WE CAN!

Logria may not have had the ideal finish to their pool campaign, but in the end it mattered not one bit. Expectation now rises for the high-flying Swans as we get to the business end of the World Cup; the last sixteen.

It may have been a long time since those glory days in the mud of the backwaters of Virabia; the anticipation, and the nerves, though - they never change. Six wins out of six for their opponents, Group B winners Hutanjia, suggests the Swans are setting themselves up for a fall; try telling that to the squad, however, and they'll dismiss your fears out of hand. All bets are off, after all, once the knockout bracket opens for business.

Cometh the hour, cometh the men. Under coach Anthony Millward, Logria have cut through opponents with a fearlessness and ruthlessness which will serve them well. No matter what the result, you can rest assured that there will be no quarter given or asked when the Swans step onto the pitch in Wa Deg.

Tomorrow, then, is make or break time; heres hoping to our boys in blue and gold surviving to fight another day.

[Trolleborg]

The last match of the group stage did not decide anything for our team: whoever team turned out to be our rival in the playoffs, our rugby players had no advantage over them, and have no any preferences. Many were afraid that the team would relax and then roll downhill, but in reality our guys played as usual at this tournament - competently, selflessly, in cold blood when necessary and with the greatest dedication when needed. And again, it should be noted, we protected ourselves from the opponents' runs, acting, at the same time, moderately tough, but without fouls and rudeness. We missed so few points that at the group stage we were in a row with the teams that are deservedly considered the luminaries of world rugby.

After the last game of the group stage, won with a modest but decent score over our rival friends from Megistos, the players of the Trolleborg national team staged such a celebration as if they had won the entire championship.

Together with them, the whole bunch of fans in the stands and in the city rejoiced, benefiting the local bars with large expenses, the whole country, and it is obvious that rugby quickly broke into the ranks of the most popular sports in Trolleborg.

But there is no time to relax with beer, today is the next match in the tournament, now the cost of a mistake is especially high, one defeat threwing all hopes out into the window. We do not expect miracles from our guys, but we expect them to play as they can – we know right now, that they can. The opponent in the playoffs will be the Bostopia national team, the brave upstarts as we are, first time in the championship, losing only to the leader of their group and one of the favorites of the whole tournament.

[Elejamie]

---

Group F Round-up - Part An
Elan Raetolil (aka RubiFaman) - Pad Deg, Copper Cuprum

A second half that may not have been as exciting and thrilling as the first but it's still had its fair share of fun. That's the second half of our group stage in a nutshell, but it's much more complicated than that. For a start, we had two games where our offence could've done a better job, one because we scored so few points in a match against a team we quite handily beat the first time and the other because we failed to score for an entire hour's worth of gametime. The defence was spot on and we ended up allowing only a single digit amount of points. But other than that, nothing super exciting, so I might as well segue us into our second match against Northwest Kalactin, a team we beat 25-2 in our first match.

The first half was surprisingly defensive. Not only were we spending more time trying to close down their attempts at goal but they were also doing the same with us. Compare it to our opener against them when we were blitzing ahead and grabbed a couple of tries by half-time. Here, we were only able to get a single try, thanks to Jason Saunders grounding the ball on his last tackle amidst a pile of bodies, which meant the TMO had to look at it just to make sure the ball went onto the ground past the line. The only downside was that where he grounded it was too far away from the posts which, when coupled with the blustery conditions, could only mean one thing for Raul de Vargas' goal attempt. Apart from that, the only other highlight was when Northwest Kalactin scored a drop goal with their last tackle exactly 35 minutes into the match. There isn't much else to say about it other than how well-timed it was and how it meant the first half-ended 4-1 to us, but it was still there.

Jason Saunders, the only point-
scorer in what was otherwise a
dull and blustery game against
Northwest Kalactin.

The second half was more of the same. Plenty of defensive moments, plenty of near misses and a couple of failed goal attempts from both sides. One of them was de Vargas trying to convert Saunders' second try but, for the same reason as the first albeit with less wind issues, it ended up missing its target. There was famously an attempt from goal from them but I think their kicker must've skidded or something because the kick not only went wide of the posts but it looked like it would've hit the padding on the side of the posts if it was on target. Other than that, not much else to talk about until there end, where Jason Saunders was nice enough to also get the last set of points for us. Just as soon as he received the ball following a tackle on Felipe Herrera, the hooter went off so he had to make this next play count. Unlikely to score a try given the amount of Kalactanian players coming his way, he instead decided to boot it from 25m out and, luck would have it, it easily sailed through the uprights to make it 9-1 to us. At least we kept our lead at the top of the table.

And then came the rematch againt Ancharmunn. The first time we played them, we came away with a 9-7 victory. Rather infamously, it was because one of their players got sin-binned and, when he came back, he scored a drop and thought he had won it for them only to get a chewing out from a coach and an eventual drop from AEtomir to round the match off. Fortunately, everyone learned from their mistakes and came better prepared. They still had those talents that they showed in their first game where it proved they had what it took to bring a world-class team to their knees

However, the first half was completely pointless. That's not hyperbole, that's not bitterness, it literally was 0-0 for the entire 40 minutes. Goal attempts went wide, try attempts were either intercepted or broken up after the last tackle, attempts to drop failed to hit their target. In fact, at one point, we managed to make them use up all of their tackles but gain only 35m, which was a massive achievement for them from a point of view. The fact that there was still a bit of wind left over from our last match really didn't help matters either. But other than that, there was nothing of note or, at the very least, nothing that can be used to fill up a paragraph of information. So onto the next one!

The second half, however, began as more of the same. They tried to get a goal, it ended up going wide. We tried to shoot for a goal but it ended up bouncing off the posts into touch. Nothing really exciting happened until 58 minutes into the match. There, Brad Clement was taken off and replaced by Vítor da Luz, otherwise known as Vítinho to you, me and everyone else. It might not have seemed like much but it was magically enough to turn the tide in our favour. Especially past the 60th minute when he delivered a bone-judderingly legal tackle on Charmunnry winger Hayden McCormack, which kickstarted a play that resulted in a try from Paul Webber. A few minutes later, Vítinho managed to bag a try himself due to him being the right man in the right place. Not long after that, he helped bodyguard his teammates as he helped Laurence Dunkelman (who had started instead of Pritchard) score the third and final try. Unfortunately, all three conversions would miss their target due to the wind but fortunately de Vargas would finally nail a successful penalty with exactly ten minutes left to bring it to 14-0. Ancharmunn thought they had one and, indeed, the corner flag snapping was a sure sign they had it but, sadly, as the TMO proved, it went just enough into-touch for it not to count. Other than that, we just seemed to mess around for the past ten minutes, making few if any chances to add to our tally. The match would soon be over and the win was enough to qualify us to the next round no matter what happened next, whereas Ancharmunn would hope that wins for both them and Elejamie will send them through.

And, to round things off, we had part two against Hannasea. The first time we played them, we came back from a 9-8 deficit at half-time to win 20-9. On paper that would be a disaster. But considering that they are an all-amateur team with plenty of youth on their side whereas we're a World Cup runner-up with a number of players who'll be retiring, either internationally or in general, then you have to give them a ton of credit. So, naturally, they're hoping that this rematch will be the same as their first game, if not an actual win for them. Were they successful and did they pull off an upset?

Well, no. Sadly for the Hamsters, the only team that was getting upset was them. For a start, the winds died down enough that kicks would no longer wildly go off target. While that was good for Jack Egan, their superstar from round one, it was also good for de Vargas as he was running the risk of getting benched for the Round of 16 game. In fact, for this match, he seemed to go above and beyond, not only scoring the first try 17 minutes in but also getting it right in between the posts, setting himself up for an easy conversion. Luke Gould came dangerously close to scoring a try for his side but, fortunately, we were able to force him to turn over the ball just 15m shy of the line. They had a penalty but sadly Jack Egan was just a bit off centre. And, finally, Paul Webber would score the second try of the match just two minutes before half-time, where he dodged a tackle from Hannasean prop Callum Somerset and grounded it the instant he put his foot over the line. A second easy conversion from de Vargas followed and, by half-time, the score was 12-0 in Elejamie's favour.

Vítor Daniel Magalhães da Luz, aka Vítinho, proved to the
world that he was still able to live up to his O Guarda-
Costas nickname in the match against Ancharmunn.

The second half started off a bit better for Hannasea. For a start due to a series of blunders by Liam Agar and Nico Eberhardt (who was starting instead of usual loose forward Justin Green), Hannasea were able to get a penalty try with Egan not only easily getting the conversion but also getting the two point extra extras to bring his side to a four-point defecit. Next up, Hannasea managed to form a wall of players on their side of the pitch when they managed to make us exhause all six of our tackles just 33m shy of their line, even going as far as making us LOSE metres. And, finally, a potential try from Paete AEtomir was denied by the TMO when Hannasean captain Dale Preston was just able to get the ball into touch. Sadly, all good things can't last forever and, in this case, AEtomir was able to score a successful try with his second attempt just 61 minutes in, with de Vargas extending his side's lead even further. In fact, de Vargas would get a couple more points a couple of minutes later thanks to a penalty after one of their players wasn't in front of the ball after Shane McGinley played it when he got tackled. McGinley would score the fourth and final try with four minutes left in the match, with de Vargas nailing goal five out of five. Final score? Elejamie 26-8 Hannasea. Couple that with the results of the Ancharmunn-NK game and you've got a sad ending to an electrifying team's run.

So, with everything all said, done and played, what were the final results? We had finished group leaders, as expected. Six straight wins, zero draws and zero losses, 103 points for and 27 points against means we've had a decent differential of +76. Not the best differential of defensive record but it's still very good for what it was. In second place, joining us in the next round, is an Ancharmunn team who are hot off the heels of a 13-5 win over Northwest Kalactin, with three wins and three losses meaning they finish off with six points. In third place is Hannasea, who had the same record as the team above them but sadly missed out due to head-to-head points difference (+16 compared to +15). They will be missed and I hope they'll make a return to the competition sometime soon; in fact, I hope their brilliant display will be enough to create some sort of domestic rugby league champions for them even if they choose to remain amateur. And, bringing up the rear, we have Northwest Kalactin, a team that failed to win or draw a single game in this tournament. They finish with zero points, as expected, as well as a point differential of -73. Not the worst last-placer, though, so at least they can feel proud about that.

So how did everyone else do? Hutanjia and Abanhfleft were able to keep their perfect records going, as expected, whereas TJUN-ia were able to keep wowing the crowds as they also won their three remaining games to finish tops of Groups B, H and C respectively. The hosts were fortunate enough to avoid an early exit as home as they finish top of Group A, going through with Logria who they beat 12-0. Neu Engollon may have seen their perfect record snapped in their fourth game but they still go through as group leaders alongside those continuously-dying test subjects from Placely Placington that won that game. Ko-oren, who may have a lacking offence but possess one of the greatest defences known to rugby fans of any code, managed to finish top of their group with 57 points for and 6 points again (all of which came from their sole defeat, a 6-2 loss to the Fair Republic who'd end up finishing last). Other teams to make it through to the elimination stage are Sandwichs, West Phoenicia, Lovisa, Trolleborg, the Natanians and Nosts and Bostopia.

And, finally, there's one last question. Who will be playing who in the knockout round? Hosts and Group A winners Copper Cuprum will play the awkwardly-titled Sandwichs; league legends Hutanjia will face newcomers Logria, it's a battle of the newcomers as TJUN-ia will play Placely Placington; Neu Engollon will play West Phoenicia; Ko-oren will see if their sturdier than titanium defence will be able to shut out Ancharmunn; Elejamie will take on Lovisa; another battle of the newcomers will take place as Trolleborg faces Bostopia; and, finally, Abanhfleft will see if they can carry on their title defence in their match against the Natanians and Nosts. Eight thrilling games but, sadly, there can only be eight winners. May the best teams win.

---

More from RubiFaman:

• Group F Round-up - Part An
• Elan's Guide to the 19th Rugby League World Cup
• Elan's Blog: Copper [Cuprum] Mining
• Elan's Guide to the Shortened 2020 HBRL Season

[Copper Cuprum]

This is your CUTOFF for the Round of 16 of the 19th Rugby League World Cup.
For eight teams, this is not going to be their happy ending.

---

Copper Cuprum 6–11 Sandwichs

Hutanjia 10–1 Logria

TJUN-ia 20–2 Placely Placington

Neu Engollon 14–6 West Phoenicia

Ko-oren 10–12 Ancharmunn

Elejamie 3–1 Lovisa

Trolleborg 6–8 Bostopia

Abanhfleft 8–4 Natanians and Nosts

---

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP XIX
QUARTERFINALS MATCHES

Sandwichs vs. Hutanjia
@ Cluckin' Bell Arena, Vay Deg

TJUN-ia vs. Neu Engollon
@ Tw@ Stadium, Al Deg

Ancharmunn vs. Elejamie
@ Billingshurst Motors Park, Pad Deg

Bostopia vs. Abanhfleft
@ Prince Orestes Stadium, Sub Deg

[TJUN-ia]

TJUN-ia's journey in Copper Cuprum was the most unexpected in the history of our involvement in U3 sports. The Jaguars not only won their group in debut, but they also went undefeated on debut. You can safely say that this performance was the greatest debut campaign in the history of TJUN-ian sports and no matter how far this team will go in this RLWC, they have already given TJUN-ia a future in rugby as a whole. But, while we're here, we might as well try and go as far as we can. Our opponent for what could be our final game in Ons Deg was the Test Subjects of Placely Placington, who entered the tournament with the sole goal of getting as much prize money as physically possible. TJUN-ia group of rugby league experts, along with a great selection of players, were taking on a team lead by Coach Man Blokey Thing Person Man Thing Man (I'm not kidding here) and a team composed of clones who have a limited idea of the laws of this game. It would be an interesting game none the less.

This game would be a nightmare to try and write a review for: TJUN-ia knew what they were doing but the fact our opponents didn't cause a lot of chaos. P.P would try and reach the try line, only for one of the Subjects to kick the ball out of play. It was almost as if that coach had betted a lot of money on the Jaguars winning this game and was trying to ensure that he didn't lose any of it. Captain Jack Henderson, seeing this madness, decided that he would not convert any of his opportunities today - to try and make this game a bit more fun for the viewers at home. And so the ties came. The first 40 saw Mohammad Al-Kafa and Kepo Kalawakawa find the try line and the second saw 2 tries from Andre le Grand-Et-Haut and even reserve player Victor Halton found the try line before the end of the game. Henderson missed all of his conversion on purpose, in order to make the game more competitive than it obviously was. P.P. did score before the end of the game, a penalty converted by #8....somehow.

So after...whatever the hell that was, the Jaguars are 7-0 and in the Quarterfinals...ON DEBUT! We're now off to Al Deg and the Tw@ Stadium (I can hear you laughing from here) to take on a very tough opponent. The New Engollon Goats, 6th in the multiverse and winners of Group C, dispatched our group-mates West Phoenicia 14-6, and look the better of the 2 sides. The Gots are not Placely Placington at all, and we need to use all of our strength to try and take them down. We've beaten the 8th ranked team 2 already, but can we take down the 6th? We'll see. GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (GROUP C) - All Games at Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000 Capacity)
MD1: TJUN-ia (UR) vs Kayangan (UR) - W 14-4
MD2: West Phoenicia (8) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 7-3 (1st)
MD3: TJUN-ia (UR) vs The Jovannic (UR) - W 20-3 (1st)
--------------------------OFF DAY--------------------------
MD4: Kayangan (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 8-4 (1st/GROUP WINNERS)
MD5: TJUN-ia (UR) vs West Phoenicia (8) - W 10-0 (1st)
MD6: The Jovannic (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 16-8 (1st/6W-0D-0L/+53PD)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ro16: vs Placely Placington (UR) - Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000) W 20-2
QF: vs New Engollon (6) - Tw@ Stadium, Al Deg (40,000)

[Bostopia]

So as it happened, it turned out it was actually quite simple to borrow a helicopter, especially thanks to the help of a friendly pilot who had been standing nearby.

The team, short of Captain Storm, who'd been knocked out by the runway cleaner, flew across the land between where the plane had landed at Ziphaer and where Emperor Boston had jumped out.

'Of course he's dead! Karma's finally caught up with him at last!' Everyone had had about enough of hearing Rachel's doom and gloom but she had a solid point. 'How far do you think he'll have gotten? As he was naked but for a parachute and harness, probably not very.' Sighed Rachel, having a conversation with herself.

As the helicopter neared the outskirts of Fort Boston, it distracted the Emperor long enough for him to trip over a tree stump.

Picking himself up and wiping his hands clean, he realised he'd been fortunate enough to fall over near a blackberry bush, so he picked a few of the ripest looking ones off.

In his mouth they went. 'Eurgh! Must remember that not all blackberries are good eating. Indeed, some of the ripest looking fruit, like big juicy plums sometimes taste quite foul.' Now talking to himself as well, he suddenly wondered why he thought of plums.

'I don't recall any plums.' Said the Emperor rather matter of factly.

Thinking ahead for a change, he decided upon a gameplan. Entering the city when it was no doubt very busy searching for his marbles would create an unwelcomed and unwanted distraction. Rather than do that, he decided to take some of the old back routes to the banks of the Ranton River, where he could walk up to Fort Boston Castle Lake, then take some of the old Forest paths toward the Castle itself.

'An amazing victory, Steve.' Neil Morris, Rugby League pitchside reporter began. 'Despite playing against 15 men in whatever rubbish "union" rules are, Bostopia have made the quarter finals - can I have your thoughts on the game?

'No.'

'Okay - any reason for that?'

'To be blunt, I don't want to talk about a farce of a game. Coming out here with 15 men, ignoring the six tackle rule, scoring a drop goal for absolutely no reason whatsoever - crap.'

'Obviously you're upset about the drop goal.'

'Very' Steve began. 'Every time you score a drop goal, a Swindonian has an-'

Now the tele had cut out, the helicopter search could begin again.

'Trees obviously hinder the search' Rachel said, stating the obvious again. 'You turned on the heat seeking camera yet?'

'We turned it on ten minutes ago ma'am, on the fourth time you asked. Even if we do find a human form though, we can't guarantee that it's him or that we'd be able to land nearby.'

A stern look came across Rachel's face.

'Rachel, leave it out' Otto said. Even her own crew had seen enough.

'An argument with the pilot here isn't going to solve anything.'

'Sorry, I'm not actually the pilot.' Explained the man who was very much acting like the Pilot.

'Come on, you're joking ri-' Otto started to ask what was going on but was cut off.

'Only the base binman, me. No-one was about to help yous out so I thought 'Tony, today's the day you do this lot a favour and fly the chopper.'

'Do us a favour?'

'Responsibly.'

'A binman has commandeered a helicopter and thinks that's responsible.'

Tony thought for a moment.

'Exactly, way I see it is that girl loves the Emperor, and while I do an all, it's not as strong as her...'

'Cult-like worship of him?'

'In a phrase, yeah.' Tony said pensively. 'Yous look like you'd wanna help her and by extension him, so Tony to the rescue.'

'A binman named Tony has commandeered a helicopter and is on a rescue mission for the Emperor, please at least tell me you drive the bin lorries?'

'Bleeding hell no, I aint got me HGV license.'

'Obviously.' Rachel said.

Outside the Castle, the Emperor had finally almost made his way back home. Unyielding in his determination, he likened himself to a mighty bear defeating raiders on his camp, like in the days of yore.

'Go Bears, rawr!' He shouted, punching his fist into the air.

A passing car beeped in support at him.

The Emperor gave them the middle finger, then hid behind a bush, realising the car was full of men bigger than him. Being behind the bush gave him a moment to think about his situation.

Every entrance was, of course, garded, except for the fruit garden and one of the abandoned sewers (only he and a few select others knew about)

'Sewer it was', he thought, heading back toward the lake he'd come from and beginning to search for the long forgotten entrance. Thorns and thistles surrounded the patch of land he was in, but wisely using the remains of the parachute as clothing, he began to fight his way in.

[Placely Placington]

It had been an overall interesting tournament for the Placely Placington Placely Placingtonians from Placely Placington. No one had expected them to have done as well as they did. A team full of morons who kept dying constantly? An entire team who didn't know how the entire sport they're playing was played? Surely a candidate for dead last, maybe even minus points due to them being so incompetent the laws of the universe would want to punish them even further. But they were still able to pull off a number of impressive victories. They even somehow managed to beat Neu Engollon of all teams and stop them from getting a perfect record. They ultimately went on to finish second in the group with the same record as the aforementioned Goats (5-0-1) but missed out on the top spot due to head-to-head points difference. They didn't know what it meant but they knew they were there for longer, much to the dismay of everyone else.

The people back at home couldn't believe it either. All 13.8 of them. Granted they had to remind themselves constantly that what was going home was definitely a good thing, as evidenced by them constantly having to search foreign sports blogs and newswires just to realise that yes, the winner is the team with the most points, but it still showed they could excel at a sport they knew absolutely nothing about. No longer will they have to resort to the sole soccer player who plays for both teams in the country, at least if they're able to remember what was going on before they ended up taking themselves out one way or another and thus get replaced by another clone. If they had a shred of competency or self-awareness then they'd probably begrudge the state they're in in both meanings of the word but also they'd feel unstoppable, they'd feel like world champions. "With a run this good, you might as well consider crowning them the champions then and there" would've been their logic. But on the other hand it's Placely Placington. Would you really want to do that?

But seven matches and 239 deaths later, their journey came to a premature end. The reason? A 20-2 defeat to TJUN-ia, a team that were new to the competition but were enjoying a winning streak at the moment. Seven games now on the trot without a single defeat or draw to worry the Jaguars. And, indeed, this seventh game was no exception. Two tries for the Jags in the first half, three in the second. No conversions but that was because the kicker intentionally missed them to make it more even. Meanwhile, whenever one of the Test Subjects got close, they ended up kicking the ball out of play. Sometimes because they dropped it and don't know how to pick it up, sometimes because they forgot which sport they were playing but one or times it was because they wanted to hit someone in the crowd. Of course, it turned out that Coach Man Blokey Thing Person Man Thing Man had betted on the match, something he didn't realise he wasn't supposed to do, but no one bothered to stop him because he was an idiot. The one time that didn't happen, Test Subject #4 had a blade of grass pierce his boot which caused him to deflate like a balloon whose airhole wasn't properly sealed, his body ending up on one spectator's head. Play had to be stopped while they cloned a new one of him before restarting with a scrum because it did technically go into touch. They did get one penalty thanks to a kick from Test Subject #8, which fortunately managed to stand despite his entire leg detaching and also flying in between the posts.

So now it was time to go home. The entire team and their coach bordered the one plane whereas the Clonomat was brought onto another separate plane, simply because of a lack of room and weight issues. Both planes were made of paper, after all, so there was only so much it could hold before the whole thing eventually unfolded. Literally. While the plane with the Clonomat made it back safely, the one with the players and their coach didn't. Sadly, it veered massively off-course and crashed into the ocean. And then the entire ocean itself blew up just to make sure. And everyone cheered.

Plenty of time had passed since then. A new victor had been crowned along with a new runner-up. Chief President Man Dave McDaverson was busy in his own private den doing what he loved to do when he was interrupted by his chief economist. The one who once got so intoxicated he accidentally banned the economy and started this entire mess. "WE HAVE MONEY." He said, his voice in glorious all-caps filling the room as he slammed down the cheque onto Dave's forehead for no apparent reason at all.

Dave pulled the cheque off his forehead and had a look at it. He mulled it over before he looked back at the chief economist. "I think we need to enter another. Maybe we should enter ourself^[sic] three or four times in the same thing so we could get even more money! Money for debt-paying-off-ness!"

"YES SIR GOOD IDEA SIR." The chief economist said before the room was immediately plunged into darkness. It turned out that a Test Subject fell and got mulched again. Third time this week that's happened now. If they had an OSHA or a HSE then they'd probably have some serious words with Dave. The two waited in complete darkness for a couple of minutes before the power went back on. "I'LL FIND A NEW TOURNAMENT FOR US SIR." The chief economist said as he immediately left the room, albeit by tripping over and falling all the way up the stairs, but he still managed to get to where he needed to go alright.

With that out of the way, Dave looked at the cheque again. Not nearly enough to pay off the debt, even if he doesn't decide to embezzle a bit of it to buy some more stuff for his secret stash, and it was clearly obviously not from the NSRB at all. But he'll still take it. Now it's just to find a way to cash it, put it onto the "paid debt" pile and then just wait for something else they can join just to get even more money. The perfect plan. Somehow.

OOC: Once again, I'd like any RP bonus I've gained from this to go towards Elejamie, my main nation.

[Abanhfleft]

DISCLAIMER: Gaelic Gamers is an independent sports blogging website created by four cousins with a common liking and passion for sports of all kinds and is in no way or form affiliated with or organized by any official news organization in the Democratic Republic of Abanhfleft. All statements and opinions posted here are our own and not anyone else's.

---

Gaelic Gamers
Presents...

The Rugby Rundown (Rugby League Edition!)
with Graham O'Doherty

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP XIX: ROUND OF 16
Hello guys, and welcome back to another edition of The Rugby Rundown Rugby League Edition with me, your gay Irishman Graham O'Doherty. Today we're taking a look at the round of 16 of the 19th Rugby League World Cup currently being hosted by our dear chicken-killer friends over in Copper Cuprum. Yes, Abanhfleft are through to the round of 16 after absolutely dominating the group stage. Six straight wins, no draws and no defeats. Which means that we are going to absolutely shit the bed against a team like Natanians and Nosts. Come on now. We've all seen how this story goes. Abanhfleft does well in the group stage, maybe even goes undefeated through it all. Fans' hopes go up because we've finally built up a decent head of steam; maybe this time we'll finally be able to defend a title we've won. Then Natanians and Nosts thumps us well and good and puts all of us Flefts back in our place, reprimanding us for ever having hoped in the first place. That's always been the story of us. Not even going to a friendly place like Copper Cuprum is going to change the ending of that particular story, is it? Well, maybe not. Let's take a look at what happened in Vay Deg.

Rugby League World Cup XIX Round of 16: Abanhfleft vs. Natanians and Nosts

Abanhfleft (8)
Try: Alfaro 57' m
Tan 81' m
Con: Akiyama (0/2)

Natanians and Nosts (4)
Try: Ion Numa North 29' m
Con: João Mihai Ionescu (0/1)

Okay, so maybe not a lot happened here at the Cluckin' Bell Arena. Not a lot of chances for both teams to score, with the defenses mostly being the ones taking the spotlight. It took until almost thirty minutes into the whole game before someone finally scored, and as the script would suggest, it was Natanians and Nosts. Captain Ion Numa North pushed his way through two Fleftic forwards to ground the rock somewhere by the corner to score the first try of the game, but the winds blowing through the stadium prevented the conversion from going in. It was a tight angle to go for anyway, the Natanian kicker must have told himself after.

So far, the script was going well according to the plan of whoever it was that loved seeing us Fleftics miserable. Natanians and Nosts were 4-0 up, and despite having scored the most points in the whole of the group stage, Abanhfleft have not had a single sniff at the in-goal area for the entire first half plus a bit of the second. The Revolutionaries' title defense was about to end in the most anticlimactic way possible. Tis the Fleftic way, after all. Bring on the interchanges. Who knows, maybe they'll be able to do something, maybe win a penalty to put us two points closer at the end of the match?

And then the unthinkable happened. The interchanges, they actually made an impact on the game! Who would've thought? And it had to be Ethan Alfaro of all people. Ethan Alfaro, the overlooked and oft-neglected member of the national rugby league team who got passed over for the starting fullback position by a certain Greg Castro who had one great season in the Copperite Rugby League with the Jes Deg Wingmen and has been struggling to replicate said one great season ever since. Yes, that Ethan Alfaro scored Abanhfleft's first try of the game and basically equalized affairs. We could have taken the lead through a conversion, but the wind was not cooperating with Peter Akiyama either. 4-4 it is then, and with the clock ticking towards 80 minutes, things were now getting more desperate. But strangely enough, nobody conceded a penalty with scoring distance of the uprights, which shows a lot for the discipline of both sides. The siren sounded, and Abanhfleft prepared for a drop kick attempt despite being only within spitting distance of the area with a couple of tackles to go. Othello Shurtliff tried to barge his way through but was cut short, and with this being the last tackle, players were already lining up to give the rock to Akiyama. But Felix Tan thought that there was a better way to get the win: he dummied the pass, and then while the Natanians were busy reacting to the dummy, Tan charged his way through them and grounded the ball.

So Abanhfleft advances to the quarterfinals thanks to an 8-4 victory over Natanians and Nosts. And if you're wondering why the score seems awfully low for a team that's scored the most points in the group stage of this tournament then join the club. But it's not just us though. This whole Round of 16 has been a place of low-scoring affairs. The highest points total in a single game we have here is 22, shared between TJUN-ia vs. Placely Placington and Ko-oren vs. Ancharmunn. The biggest winners are TJUN-ia, who come out 18 points on top of the clones of Placely Placington, which would explain their apparent disregard for the sanctity of human life. If you can just clone one or one thousand people on demand then why even care about them in the first place? As for the biggest losers, it's a bit of a toss-up between Ko-oren and our beloved Copperite hosts. Ancharmunn are a new side, of course, but they've got grit and determination, and that combination was somehow enough to break down the Dragonflies' vaunted defense. As for Copper Cuprum, they're going to be very angry that they weren't able to get further than the round of 16 in a tournament hosted on their home soil. Welcome to the club, Chief Deg. This is what it feels like to be an Abanhfleft fan. A quarterfinal against Bostopia though... This is going to be very tasty. Unless the result is an Abanhfleft loss, in which case I'd rather spit it out and throw it away in the trash where it belongs. XOXO from Graham....

[Ancharmunn]

A third penalty of the night for a Squirrels and a 12-10 scoreline could be opened up. Peering up from the ball, and glancing towards the posts, Liam Brannigan focussed his sights on the goal. Ignoring the sneers and jeers of the Ko-orenite fans behind him, he took a final deep breath. Edging forward a couple of steps a couple of steps and then breaking into full stride, his kick routine was set in stone.

Millions of practise kicks had come down to this. In all his years of playing rugby league though, never had a single kick felt this pressured. Now was the moment it seemed. In pre-game debates, it had been said that Ko-oren would provide a stern test for Ancharmunn, and so it would be. Scores had been locked pretty much evenly throughout the match, neither side ever getting more than two points ahead. Tries, there had been one for each side. Everyone in Prince Orestes Stadium held their breath as Brannigan’s kick took to the air. Rocketing out wide to start with, it may have looked to have been heading wide, but Branningan was a noted proponent of hooked kicking.

Inwards it veered. Surely it would find it’s way between the posts. GOAL! Redemption perhaps for Brannigan? Early on the tournament hadn’t been great for him, injury keeping him out of the first match, and then poor form for a couple of matches. Against Hannasea however he had got that crucial field goal, and from there the tides seemed to have turned for him. Touchies flags raised and the two points confirmed, Ancharmunn now held a two point lead and had just the remaining few minutes to hold onto it for a quarter-final place.

Brannigan was usually quite reserved when his goal kicking was successful, but this time could help but let out a shout of ‘go Squirrels, rawr’, as he ran back past the Ko-orenite fans that had been trying to put him off. Unicycling squirrels set off around the pitch in celebration, Charrmunry fans dressing up as squirrels and riding around on unicycles had been a bizarre, but underreported factor of the Rugby League World Cup.The feel good factor is showed within the Charmunnry camp was evident however.

Not to be distracted by the increasing scenes of revelry coming from the Charmunnry support however, Brannigan and his team-mates still had a job to see out. Off the restart Lachlan Ferguson took the ball and barged his way forward. Tackled after a decent run of twenty metres or so, he would get up, play the ball, and get ready to go again later in the set.

A safe and steady set saw Ancharmunn get to just inside the Ko-oren half. Sighting himself to kick on the final tackle, Brannigan dropped back and sent his kick into the Ko-orenite backfield.

‘Go Squirrels, rawr’ came the chant from the stands as the Squirrels set themselves up to defend against a Ko-oren side desperate to get another score. Offloading desperately the Ko-orenites were taking risks now. Ossian Flannigan sensed an opportunity, reaching out his arm as Hugo Canlas looked to offload before being taken to ground. Despite his best efforts, Flannign could only get his fingertips to the ball. ‘Another six’ the referee called out as Videmune Mori pounced on the loose ball to regain possession for Ko-oren, Flanigan’s knock-on giving them a fresh set to play with. Seeking their way upfield Ko-oren would work the ball wide.

Try now and Ko-oren would surely be taking the win and making their way into the quarter-finals. Hayden McCormack, the young winger surprisingly given a chance in such a big match wasn’t go to waste the opportunity though. Every stride he took closed the gap to the Ko-orentie runner, and forced them further out wide. Using the final bursts of energy McCormack dived into the tackle, and with the momentum was able to bundle his way into touch. Ko-oren’s players almost slumped to the ground in despair, whilst the Ancharmunn players quickly gathered round McCormack to celebrate the tackle and congratulate him. Stopping the clock however was paramount for Ko-oren’s chances, so they quickly found their feet to form a scrum and buy some more time.

‘Let’s go lads, just a couple more minutes’ Brannigan implored his players as he fed the ball into the scrum. Of course in desperation, Ko-oren would try and contest the scrum, but it was no use. Not taking any chances, the Charmunnry pack pushed back and held possession. George Curran picked up the ball from the rear of the scrum and fed it out to Malachy Yowry-Yuna. Every tackle Ancharmunn had they played safe, gripping the ball tightly as they were tackled, and taking their time on the play the balls. Seconds ticked away. Time slipping by for Ko-oren with every single tackle passing.

Concentration for Ancharmunn was now of the highest order. One slip up and everything could be gone. No chances could be taken now. Carefully retain possession, kick on tackle six and have Ko-oren pinned back as far as possible. Receiving the ball around his own twenty metre line, Blai Kaplan looked to make a bursting run forward for Ko-oren. Every Charmunnry forward however seemed to be descending upon him almost immediately. Two men took him down almost straight away. Every Charmunnry to a man roared their approval from the stands as seconds later the hooter went. Victory, with it was confirmed. Into the quarter-finals they won, not a bad result for a team making their returning to international rugby league against the third ranked side in the world. Ancharmunn 12-10 Ko-oren. Drop goals? Unappreciated in Ancharmunn and thankfully not needed here. Champions? Try as the might to downplay the chances, the dream of that surely had to be on for Ancharmunn now.

Re-match? Damn straight that was on. Groupmates earlier on in the tournament, Ancharmunn would now meet Elejamie for a third time, and following two defeats hopefully it’d be third time lucky for the Squirrels.

Brannigan soaked it all in. Every match now could be the last. Saluting the Charmunnry fans in the stands he felt pride in the turnaround he’d had personally in the tournament, and his growing importance to the team. Tossing his jersey to a supporter, he was finally caught for a television interview.

“Totally awesome display by us today” he told Raidió Teilifís Tearmann’s report. “On our day, we’re as good as anyone I think, and we showed that beating Ko-oren here now. We needed really big plums to go out and win that match and we’ve showed we’ve got them. Norking great big huge plums.”

[Copper Cuprum]

This is your CUTOFF for the quarterfinals of the 19th Rugby League World Cup.
Four teams are going to have to drown their sorrows in beer, unfortunately.

---

Sandwichs 14–12 Hutanjia

TJUN-ia 6–6 Neu Engollon (6–10 AET)

Ancharmunn 8–20 Elejamie

Bostopia 14–24 Abanhfleft
(scorinated by Graintfjall)

---

RUGBY LEAGUE WORLD CUP XIX
SEMIFINALS MATCHES

Sandwichs vs. Neu Engollon
@ Otowo Baduta Park, Eb Deg

Elejamie vs. Abanhfleft
@ Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg

[TJUN-ia]

Our debut journey in the RLWC ended in Al Deg today. New Engollon overpowered us to win via golden score. Heartbreaking, but that is how it goes.

But what a journey, 7-1 on debut. It almost seems to goo to be true, yet here we are. Talk about a statement of intent by Rugby TJUN-ia - no messing around here.

We'll see y'all next time with a ranking and a point to prove - that the event in Copper Cuprum were no fluke. GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (GROUP C) - All Games at Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000 Capacity)
MD1: TJUN-ia (UR) vs Kayangan (UR) - W 14-4
MD2: West Phoenicia (8) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 7-3 (1st)
MD3: TJUN-ia (UR) vs The Jovannic (UR) - W 20-3 (1st)
--------------------------OFF DAY--------------------------
MD4: Kayangan (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 8-4 (1st/GROUP WINNERS)
MD5: TJUN-ia (UR) vs West Phoenicia (8) - W 10-0 (1st)
MD6: The Jovannic (UR) vs TJUN-ia (UR) - W 16-8 (1st/6W-0D-0L/+53PD)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ro16: vs Placely Placington (UR) - Ons Deg Stadium, Ons Deg (48,000) W 20-2
QF: vs New Engollon (6) - Tw@ Stadium, Al Deg (40,000) L 6-6 (6-10 AET)

[Neu Engollon]

“Good evening Neu Engollon and to our international viewers. I’m Magda Wertauer, with you here on the Special Rugby League Edition of the Sports 7 Update on NETV. My regular Sports Update co-host, Karl Demais, has his head up his own butt, covering the World Cup of Hockey right now like it’s the only sports event going on in the world.
I can’t wait to see him for our joint Olympics coverage coming up soon so I can slap some sense back into him. We’ll move past that though and let’s get right into some more rugby.

Just a review for those who haven’t been following the whole Cup...
It’s been an interesting and turbulent Cup here in Copper Cuprum, not so much for the Goats, who took one defeat to Placely Placington...heh, that name...But for some others for sure. We saw Ancharmunn, Sandwichs, and West Phoenicia claw their way in past group stage with a balanced score sheet of wins, draws, and losses. We saw the GreenBlues, or is it Dragonflies?... of Ko-oren, a rugby favorite, fall to Ancharmunn in the Round of 16. The host with a surprising loss to Sandwichs during that same round of matches, and Natanians and Nosts, another sometime favorite went down in flames to Abanhfleft, but that might not be so surprising.

Then we went into the quarterfinals...The Spiders of Hutanjia lost by two drop goals to Sandwichs, while Ancharmunn couldn’t keep up the pressure and succumbed to Elejamie’s attack. The real heart stopper was seeing our own Goats barely squeak one out against TJUN-ia, who have really come up in the rugby world. A 6 to 6 draw in full time needed to be decided in order for one squad to advance. That of course, went to the Goats after getting a few over in added Extra Time. A lot of that can be laid on the doorstep of Alfie Goertz and his steady foot. Not that it was a game that relied overly on kicking, as Gabe Serza’s try helped lay the foundation for a comeback from Kiwo Makawiwa’s try and Jacobson’s conversion. But come on, that kick was a tough one…

We’ll see the Goats take on Sandwichs tomorrow on the pitch at Otowo Baduta Park, Eb Deg. We’re going to go on to an early sponsor break then show some highlights from the game when we come back and talk to Head Coach Devlin McHaraigh about their plan moving forward to get to the final. Stay tuned right here to the NETV 7 Special Rugby League edition of the Sports Update…”