Nephara 2 - 1 Graintfjall
(4-4-2) 1 - Mercator; 2 - Stride (18 - Rostock 65'), 5 - Thorn (c), 6 - Brosch, 3 - Muscadin; 13 - Saroszi, 15 - Kastriot, 21 - Moxham (8 - Cromwell 76'), 11 - Deventer (16 - Caracole 76'); 9 - Bastable, 14 - Tzorvas
Goals: Tzorvas 24', Thorn 37'
Extracts from the Book of Thorn.
Played badly.
Won anyway.
It's getting old.
This was different to the others, at least. We started well. Started bright, even. The Snow Wolves hunkered down, physical at the back, disciplined. For twenty minutes, they kept us at bay, but we were in fine form and it was only a matter of time 'til someone did something. The someone was Arista, chesting down a clever little flick from Moxi and smashing into the stanchion, the kind of strike you can only do when you're confident.
2-0 by half-time and we seemed to be cruising. You're welcome, by the way. The only thing novel about the goal was I scored it, and people act like it's impressive, but it's not. It's patronising. I'm a fucking world-class centre-half. I know how to head a cross, not like I lose all sense of my fucking bearings when I'm at the wrong net. So yeah. Came to me, off a deflection I think, seemed to skim off the big number 4's scalp. I adjusted. Easy.
I found out at half-time the Cormorants twii.tur account photoshopped me doing the pogchamp face after the goal. Is anyone really surprised I laid off Antoninsson a little? Let him play through that chick, Aunosdottir? Tidy finish. But that's what I'm blaming.
[Sketched in the margins is an unshaven guy - a stereotypical IT nerd - being beaten with a steel chair by Ivy Herrick.]
That gave 'em confidence. It was kind of against the run of play, but they could've added to it a couple times after. Hesterine earned her corn in goal, though she's mad she hasn't had a clean sheet yet, thinks her stats are suffering for it as if literally anyone gives a shit about clean sheets. Ten, fifteen minutes, maybe, we went without a shot, closed down in midfield and harried around our box.
Couldn't last forever. They tired, Rasmus and Lothaire came on. Mostly Lothaire; his extra muscle helped weigh things our way again. Arista misses an easy chance, sends it straight into Leonardsson's chest, and Bastable had a poor game all 'round. But a win is a win and we're another step closer.
Tell you what, though, we really need to pull our shit together or Pasarga are gonna body us just like the pinks did.