Di Bradini Cup 49/U21WC70 Everything Thread

by **Khytonya** » Fri Dec 04, 2020 8:39 pm

Prematch Review: Matchday 2

Cassadaigua. That one word should be a warning sign. Facing them would be a tough challenge ever since they battle hard for a draw against Graintfjall. They're no pushovers when it comes to simple play because of the possession-based, tried-and-tested 4-4-2 formation. Every Cassadagan holds the ball for long until the next one comes at their range. They slowly build up the play before going for an attacking chance. Considering the success based on a few plays in Matchday 1, Khytonya needs to go the distance and break their game plan to make a win.

The defensive section in the midfield part is now replaced with the offensive section. Gilmour is now replaced with Darnell Brathwaite, an attacking midfielder now assigned to provide extra support to Panarin. While Gretzky and Robertson are helpful during offensive plays, Dwyer now has another catalyst one providing a good attacking play, as well as extending a greater option should one of them be marked. Another change is the swapping between Faizal and Gretzky after discovering she played better on the central midfield than wide midfield. Faizal would still contribute to the offense to serve both as Panarin's assistant crosser and Brathwaite's helping hand.

Catch us when the Young Magicians duke out against the Cassadagans as matchday 2 commences. If you want them to win, come to the stands and cheer as loudly as you can. Give them a big support to those hungry for a win! By 'those', we mean Khytonya. See you in the next game!

by **Tikariot** » Fri Dec 04, 2020 10:15 pm

He was nervous as he stood at the sideline waiting for the referee to blow the whistle. The guys had looked ready, they had listened well, but now on the pitch? Whole different story. The first few minutes were the usual slow start to a game of a tournament, nobody wanted to make the first mistake and he calmed down a bit. Then Sukunda recovered the ball in the centre circle and angled a high pass forward, against the running direction of the Krytenian defense. Haparanta realized the plan first and sneaked behind the centre back, taking the ball volley and it went right into the top right corner for a beautiful goal! McCann and the rest of the team jumped up, high fiving. What a great start to the game! But still 84 minutes to go, no need to get overconfident.

"OK, guys, focus, just keep doing what you're doing." He had to admit, he was quite impressed, because they did continue to play focused. "Hamish! HAMISH! Move back! Veikko has the near post!" Fernandez with the corner to the short post, Haparanta tries to head the ball, but doesn't hit it right, falls to Stainthorpe at the far post and it's in! "YESSS!!!! AWESOME!" He was even more impressed now, because not only did they score again, but they actually listened and it worked! Some of his friends had told him that all he could do would fail when accepting this job. Hah, who's laughing now? He waved for Stainthorpe to come over and high five him. "Well done, Hamish, see what happens when you listen?" He laughed and the others joined in. He took a deep breath and thought to himself. 'Sixth minute, twelfth minute, if we continue like that...' He shook his head. That would just ask for trouble to get cocky and expect this to continue.

Over half an hour done and he was sitting down in his seat, feeling a lot more relaxed. His team had taken it down a notch, waiting for the Krytenians to try to make their plays and be on the lookout for the counter attacks, but there was nothing coming! Prediger had not seen a single shot on goal, heck, not even a shot not on goal, he looked at the team sheet that the organizers had given him. Yes, those were Krytenians all right. The whistle of the referee shook him out of his reveries and as he looked up, Sukunda was on the ground, a free kick awarded. The medical team went to tend to the Parakleion midfielder, who was able to continue. The Krytenian goalie positioned his wall and Stainthorpe and Conrad stood ready at the ball. They had studied a few different routines on the training ground, so he was interested to see how they would do it in practice. Short lateral pass surprising the defense, McKinley coming in on full steam and right under the crossbar! Wow! He did not expect this!

He was not sure, if he was more impressed by his team or horrified by the defense of Krytenia, or rather the lack thereof. He picked up the teamsheet again and looked onto the field and was able to confirm here, too, that this was the team that was supposed to be on the pitch. He could not help but shaking his head, three goals in 35 minutes for a team that had never played together like this. He smiled. This could be a good start to the Cup.

The halftime whistle echoed through the stadium and the Tikariotian fans roared with applause. McCann smiled again at the sound, but had to remind himself that it was only halftime and if they could score three times in 45 minutes, so could they. He motioned for Vassilev and Grandelius to stay out and warm up before entering the tunnel into the catacombs. The players were obviously in a good mood and he intended to keep them in it.

"Great first half, I'm really happy you guys stayed focused and didn't just get cocky, that's the last thing we need. Pierre, are you ok? You were limping a bit there?" Sukunda gave him a so-so hand motion and he signaled for the team medic to come over. "How is he doing? Will he be able to continue?" - "It was a knee against knee hit, so it hurt. He seems ok for now, but I saw that you have Kane warming up, probably not a bad idea just in case." McCann nodded, then turned back to his team.

"I know that it felt pretty easy in the first half, I'm not quite sure what's wrong with Krytenia, but they definitely don't feel themselves. I mean, it's fine with me that we scored three times and they didn't even register a single shot, but we still have to be careful. I'm sure that the coach is given them a good tongue lashing right now, so be prepared for them to bring the battle to you and try to fight back. Whatever happens, stay calm and focused and for the love of God don't try to take it easy, that's how you invite trouble, alright?" The players nodded and gave him thumbs up while the medical team tended to a few minor pains. McCann looked at them and barely perceptibly nodded to himself. Yes, this was a good bunch, they could really pull this off.

Only two minutes into the second half Sukunda went for a sprint but after only a few steps grinded to a halt, jumping on one leg, immediately motioning towards the bench that he could not continue. McCann's happiness turned to worry, because he knew only too well how bad knee injuries could turn out. He called Vassilev over right away and gave him the latest on the tactical side, which was pretty much to continue the play as it had gone so far, no reason to reinvent the wheel when things were rolling. As Sukunda was stretchered off, he walked over to the young man for a few words of encouragement before he had to turn his attention back to the game. He hoped that this would not disrupt the flow and start derailing things, but he had faith in the men on the pitch that they knew what to do as they all were first team players in the TPL or at the very least regular subs.

Almost an hour gone and the game definitely had taken a turn for the worse, not that Krytenia was any more of an offensive threat, but the passes that had so easily found their recipients in the first half just were a foot off and it was not a nice game to look at. Some of the neutral fans were starting to whistle in disapproval of the now disjointed game and obviously Krytenia's inability tonight to string any combinations together that would give even a hint of an offensive threat. The fans in black and purple also seemed to sense that they were needed and used a short injury break to initiate the Thunder Clap and he had to admit that it was an impressive sight and sound. He had seen it happen before, but never with him at the sideline and his team in obvious need of some encouragement. He looked back at the pitch, where the game was ready to commence again with a corner for Tikariot. Fernandez was the one to bring it in and he went for a sharp delivery to the near post, Haigh rose up and deflected the ball just enough to fit it between the keeper and the goal post to make it 4-0. McCann felt like a weight lifting, as if some spell had just broken and they were on the way back into the game.

Up by four, time to save some strength. Waltham and Fernandez off, Bassett and Noles on. Bring on some fresh legs in case Krytenia actually remembered how to football. And just two minutes later Noles with a nice run down the right, floating it into the box and Stainthorpe with a great header right between the outstretched arms of the Krytenian goalie! 'This was happening!' McCann thought as the rest of the staff jumped up in celebration, pumping their fists into the air. He just remained seated, a wide smile on his face. And just a minute later Stainthorpe in the box again, laying it back to Bergstrand and what a cracker of a shot, the goalie did get his hand on the ball, but there was no way he could stop it, 6-0! He rubbed his eyes in disbelief at how his team was able to run roughshod over the Krytenian defense, which really were not themselves at all! He was contemplating telling the guys to take it down a notch a bit, but then decided to let the game run its course. Sure, they keep saying not to kick an opponent when they are down, but why tell kids to stop having fun? He couldn't help but laugh out loud.

By then it looked as if Krytenia had completely given up, because to call their challenges lacklustre was a gross understatement. Long ball from Faizullah got to Vassilev, who sent it right on to Stainthorpe. Run to the goal line, then a cut back and Conrad just curved the ball right over the keeper into the net. Yeah, they had fun, they were not thinking about being in the U21 World Cup right now, they were just playing. Kick off and yeah, they did not care anymore, Noles just took the ball off his opponent's foot, lobbed it over the defense and Haparanta just took it volley against the inside of the post and in, 8-0! The Tikariot fans were the only thing you could hear now, the Krytenian fans already were leaving the stadium in droves, even though there were still over 15 minutes to go, this was unprecedented!

McCann was torn a bit. Should he hope for the referee to just have mercy and end the game or for the game to just never end. While he was still pondering about that, he saw Vassilev standing over the ball for maybe the last freekick of the game. It was quite the distance to goal, so the Krytenian goalie only had one player as an alibi wall, clearly not thinking that anybody in their right mind would try to go direct. Well, so is the power of confidence, because Vassilev did exactly that. It was a rocket of a shot, hitting the crossbar with a loud clang, then bouncing back right in front of the feet of Parramore Haigh, who just hammered it in. And then the referee blew the whistle and it was over. 9-0. Nine - nil. While everybody around him was jumping and running and cheering, McCann just stood there as if in a trance, trying to come to terms with what had just happened. As much of a cliche as it is, he actually did pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming. It hurt like heck, but when he looked at the electronic cube above the pitch it really showed the number 9.

He smiled. He was proud. But immediately the pragmatist in him stepped forward and made him think about what to tell the team for their next game against Hispinas. There was absolutely no way that Hispinas would go down like this. He had just received a text that Hispinas drew 1-1 against Pasarga, so that was a completely different beast now. Yeah, he had to find a way to get these guys back down to earth. And who to field for Sukunda. Probably Vassilev. He earned it.

Tikariot 9-0 Krytenia
Tikariot: Prediger - Bergstrand, McKinley 35', Faizullah, Waltham (65' Bassett) - Conrad 73', Sukunda (49' Vassilev), Fernandez 53' (65' Noles) - Haigh 59' 59' 89', Haparanta 6' 74', Stainthorpe 12' 67'.

by **HUElavia** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:10 am

HUElavia Opens the U21 World Cup with Spectacular Draw!

HUElavia 3–3 Kohnhead
(Sol 4', Mantovani 44', Herzig 88' | Santos 24', Bradford 55', Finley 58')

HUElavia began yet another U21 World Cup with another squad, but with a lot of promise for the team. This time around, there was much hope and optimism that the U21 National Football Team could play competently, much like its younger U18 team. This promising team had the perfect opportunity to make it's mark for this edition of the prestigious youth tournament: Playing the Opening Match of the tournament. Their first opponent was Kohnhead, who also had good players to their name and were the defending Bronze Medalists from the 69th Edition of the tournament. Both teams fielded their main XI, and were using their respective Home Uniforms for the match. There was a solid amount of fans of both teams present in the stadium, looking to cheer on their teams. The ball rolled and the match was underway.

The opening goal came in the 3rd minute, when Jiang was on the ball and was looking for an open player. Out on the right wing, the young Sol ran past Warter, which Jiang sent the ball into the box, where Sol jumped over Booth and headed the ball over Chadwick to go into the goal to make it 1-0. The HUElavian crowd erupted and jumped to make the stadium rumble, while Sol was mobbed by his teammates, and chanted Sol's name, who is taking HUElavian football by storm. Kohnhead went on the attack and looked to equalize the match, which would eventually arrive. In the 24th minute, Ofofor sent a long ball to Santos, who chested the ball down and gave a hard knock down to Webo, where HUElavians were expecting a foul to be called, but the play continued, and Santos gave a low shot that sped past a diving Quadros to go into the goal to make it 1-1. While Santos celebrated with his teammates, the HUElavian players were protesting in front of the referee for the goal, but the damage was done. Both teams continued to attack, but no shots were on target, as it was wide shots and deflections being made. Eventually, in the 44th minute, a low pass from Torrisi reached to Mantovani, who ran past Booth, to give a low shot that had Chadwick falling to the floor, as a low curve on the roll went into the goal, making the game 2-1. The crowd celebrated once more as Mantovani celebrated with her teammates. Shortly after, the half ended with the scoreline favoring HUElavia, 2-1.

The second half kicked off and Kohnhead continued to attack, looking to change the scoreline. Eventually, in the 55th minute, a foul by Webo on Santos gave way for a free kick from some distance outside the box. Bradford took up the kick and gave a strong kick over the wall that went past a reaching Quadros to go into the goal making it 2-2. HUElavia was stunned while Bradford was mobbed by her teammates for the spectacular goal. The goal was so shocking, that HUElavia could not respond shortly after, as in the 58th minute, a run by Manter went past Yoshimura, where she sent a low ball in, only for Finley to appear and chip the ball past Quadros into the goal, making it 2-3. Quadros was furious at the defending, while the team was stunned at going down from 2-1 to 2-3. Finley celebrated with his teammates, while the Kohnhead supporters were in joy for taking the lead. Coach Savedra made substitutions for the team and HUElavia kept attacking and attacking, looking to equalize the game. The chance would come very late in the 88th minute, as Huancahuari (in for Mantovani) had the ball and passed it to Yoshimura, who passed it back to Huancahuari, and then gave a long cross to Herzig, who chested the ball and without the ball touching the pitch, she gave a blistering shot with her left foot to curve past a reaching Chadwick as it went into the goal, making it 3-3. The crowd erupted for the superb goal, while Herzig was mobbed for her spectacular goal, all while the crowd chanted her name. The match ended shortly after, 3-3, in a very entertaining and spectacular match to open the 70th edition of the tournament.

HUElavia leads Group A with 1 Point followed by Kohnhead after ending the match in their 3-3 draw, while Chromatika and Sarzonia sit in 3rd and 4th place after their own entertaining 2-2 draw. The next match for Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos will be against Chromatika, where youngster Marin will start in goal, Grünberg in defense, Sim in the midfield and Bao in the attack. The team will use their Home Alternatives for the match. Here's to hoping we actually get a victory in the next match, especially where the attack is as potent as the U18 Team and the Senior National Team.

FORCA HUELAVIA! VAMOS HUELAVIA! GO HUELAVIA!

by **Island of the Lost** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:31 am

BAKER PARK - 1
Shelby Engels (40')

ISLAND OF THE LOST - 2
Marion Li (26', 84')

"We are the Island of the Lost. We are scoundrels. We are liars. We are thieves. We are the scum of the earth. We have been sent here both for our own safety and for the safety of the world outside. This barrier protects the world from us, and us from the world. This is our home. This is where we will stay for the rest of our lives."

When the Island of the Lost first took part in the Under-21 World Cup in Valanora, none of us on the island knew what to expect. This new world in which we had found ourselves was a completely different world from the one that we once knew. The lucky 23 who were selected by the Federation were very much the explorers of our nation, the ones who were sent out with one mission: explore the unknown, and bring back news of what they found of the outside world. These 23 players came back with tales of their exploits, tales so unbelievable that they must have happened, for nobody surely could have come up with these things using just their imagination, even if all 23 of them put their heads together to create a tale to awe the Island for years to come.

I dreamed of someday being able to go to the outside world ever since I heard of what the Pioneers (the nickname that the people of the Lost had given those 23) had seen and experienced in the outside world. I had always wanted to go out on an adventure and make a name for myself as an adventurer. It’s been my dream since I was a kid. And, when the 23 Pioneers returned from Valanora with their incredible tales, I thought that I would soon be able to follow in their footsteps. But one fateful night was about to change all that.

Long story short, I got my girlfriend pregnant. But I didn’t know until I noticed that my girlfriend’s stomach beginning to get bigger. But what really struck me was the fact that she knew, she knew that she was pregnant, and yet she didn’t tell me. My girlfriend told me that she was always planning on telling me; she hadn’t just found the chance or the opening to tell me about it. And she also didn’t want to “burden” me with the child while I was busy chasing my dream of becoming an adventurer. Of course I got angry at her. As the father, it was my right to know about my child. Anger got the better of me and I told my girlfriend that if she didn’t want to tell me about our child then maybe I didn’t want to be the father after all. I also definitely said a lot more things that I would rather not repeat here; the only thing you need to know is that those words ended our relationship right then and there.

For months I tried to forget that I even had a child. Football helped me with that, and when an offer from Cruellaville came around, I jumped at the chance as it meant that I would finally get away from the dreary and boring surroundings of Mont Gaston. Cruellaville were the champions of the Under-21 League of the Lost. It would be foolish to say no to them. But even though I finally managed to get my ticket out of Mont Gaston, there were nights where I felt like trash, like I was not ever going to amount to anything after all. I’m not gonna lie, it really got me down. And I didn’t know why. I was playing for one of the biggest clubs on the Island, and not just for their youth team too; the season after I arrived in Cruellaville I was elevated to the senior team. The League of the Lost was preparing itself for integration into the wider sporting world. I was about to embark on journeys to the outside world to play against the best that it had to offer. I was living my dream. So why did I feel like my whole life was one little thing away from going completely down the drain? Days, weeks, months I spent going around in this kind of fog where physically I was right there with everyone else, but inside my mind I just can’t stop thinking about why I was sad, and why there was nothing at all that I could do about it.

I never thought that it would be a visit from my father that would change things for the better for me. I have to admit that I did not have a very close relationship with my father. Mom never said anything about him while I was growing up, and when he finally came into my life I was 10, and I distinctly remember Mom telling him to never let her see him talking to me or my brother and sister, and for us to remember his face so that we would know to avoid him if he tried to get close to any of us. So that was exactly what my father did; he found ways and opportunities where he would be able to talk to the three of us without our mother knowing. I was the youngest out of us three kids, so Mom doted on me a lot, and that led to me taking her side almost immediately without even taking the time to hear out what my father had to say. Long story short, he was sorry for walking out on us after I was born, and now he was sorry for doing it and he wanted to make things right once again. I am sorry to say that I didn’t believe him back then, and even today I still have some misgivings about him. But on this day, he gave me perhaps the single greatest piece of advice that I had ever heard from him.

“You know what this is, Lou?” he asked me. “This is you thinking about your child. Sure, you said you didn’t want him, or her, but in your heart of hearts you know that that ain’t true. You wanna know how I know this? Because I felt the same thing when I left you and your Moms behind. You was all I could think about after everything else was done and over with. Every night I would lie awake thinking about if you were all right, and if your Moms was taking care of you. You may not be saying it out loud in your mind, but it’s what your heart is saying. Trust me, I know. I can see myself right here right now in you.”

“And what do you think I should do about it?” I asked.

“Do what I did,” my father replied. “Come back to your girl. Apologize to her, on your hands and knees if you have to, but go back to her and say that you still want to be a part of your kid’s life. And even if your girl says no then be there for your kid anyway. Your moms don’t want to see me talking to any of you and yet here we are.”

“But what about me?” I asked my father. “What am I supposed to do with myself? How can I become an adventurer when I have a child to worry about?”

My father looked at me with this strange pensive look, and then he put his arm over my shoulders and said, “Son, a wise man once told me that becoming a parent is the greatest adventure on this world a man could ever embark on. When I was your age I always wondered what he meant by that, but now I’ve realized that it’s because you’re not the only one going on an adventure when you become a parent; you’re taking your kid along with you on the adventure of a lifetime.”

“Yeah, I guess that makes sense,” I nodded.

“Well, you know what to do now, Lou,” my father said. “Go and be a better father to your kid than I ever was to you.”

So I swallowed my pride, and I made my way back to Mont Gaston and my now-former girlfriend’s house and said sorry, and I told her that I actually wanted to become a part of my child’s life. There were of course some things that a simple sorry just couldn’t fix; namely the fact that Lola made it clear that we were never ever getting back together. She was willing to let me be a part of our son’s life, but she had already given her name to him on the birth certificate, and there was no way that she would let me give my name to our son. But at this point, I could hardly care about anything else. I had only just realized that I was now actually a father, and the only thing that now mattered was that I give my son a good life.

After that, I went back to Cruellaville with a renewed vigor, and soon I was notified that I was on the shortlist of players set to make the trip. Eventually I was named on the final 23-man squad to make the journey to Valanora, and I was finally able to see my next great adventure for what it was. I was to defend the Island of the Lost on the football field and help see us through to the final and lifting the Di Bradini Cup. This was my adventure, and I’ll be damned if I’m not going to do everything in my power to succeed in this quest. And, when I made the goal line clearance that eventually led to Marion Li scoring his second goal of the game and secure the victory over Baker Park, I felt that I was one step closer to completing my adventure.

~ Lou Rose

"We are the Island of the Lost. We are sons, we are daughters, we are brothers, we are sisters. We are fathers and we are mothers. We will fight for what we have and for what others have. We are the Lost. We were here before and we will still be here after. We will fight for what is ours because it is our right to fight for it, and we will fight for others because it is their right to be fought for."

by **Graintfjall** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:37 am

Excerpt from Kekulé Meets Jörmungandr: Tour Diaries of the DBC49 Campaign.

Positional Tendencies

Posted on the In Brief section of the GTV website.

Snow Pups debut marked by entertaining draw

degluggastration

Græntfjall – 3 (2)

Ernestisson; Kristersson, Markusson (66’ Eljasson (77’) (90+1’)); Leonhardsdóttir (81’ Hlynursbur ), Kristoffersdóttir (87’), Álvgeirsdóttir, Kjartansson, Hólmarsdóttir (83’), Marvinsson, Grímólfursson (39’); Auðunsdóttir (12’) (58’ Wolfgangsdóttir )

Cassadaigua – 3 (1)

Kerr; Bayne, Kaleta, Holland, Nowicki; Kriedel (60’ Andrews ), Rosenblatt (35’, 79’, 90+1’ pen.), Reynolds, Rice; Stanton (53’ Garrett ), McKinstry (51’ Frontiera (90+5’))

* Similar to a defenstration, except at the bottom instead of landing in a pile of hay, you land in the unforgiving maw of a kraken.

by **Cassadaigua** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 1:00 pm

Steffie Garrett’s Long Road Back Begins,
By Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

Steffie Garrett seemed as though she was going to be the next big thing in Cassadagan soccer. At 15 years of age, she made the roster as a forward in Sporting World Cup 10. That is an achievement, since the majority of players on the team are 17 and 18, and especially when you consider the players up front. You might get a 16-year old in there, like the great Meghan Wolcott was, but to be there at 15, you are doing something right. That competition ended up being a great experience for her, and set her up for a great campaign in Sporting World Cup 11 in Baker Park. Now, she was 17, and going to show the world her amazing talents. Her vision on the field was great, and the timing of her rise to stardom seemed to make her a natural to one day be a Rachel Schanke replacement. You never want to put that kind of pressure on a teenager, but she was a can’t-miss talent.

Sporting World Cup 11, against Tequilo. A brutal and unnecessary tackle from Tequilo’s Jair Iscla from behind saw the back of Steffie’s head smack the playing field. She was down and out, and Tequilo players had the nerve to think that she was faking the injury. Garrett had sustained a concussion, and spent the rest of the tournament in a Baker Park hospital as they were concerned about further injury, beyond the concussion. Members of the team, and the senior team would pay a visit to Garrett in the hospital. The team held out hope that Jair Iscla might pay her a visit too, or that members of Tequilo’s nation team would at least show some support, but they continued to take the disgusting approach of thinking that the whole thing was faked, and if she got really hurt, that she did it to herself. This infuriated members of the Cassadagan team, with senior team defender Lupe Enriquez threatening to do the same to a Tequilo player if she ever had the opportunity to meet them. The teams have not met since, but the desire to get payback for this incident clearly had a much deeper reach then the SWC 11 team during SWC 11. Cassadagans have long memories, and if we ever do see that showdown, don’t be surprised to see some highly aggressive, if not violent, tactics from our side. At no time did the nation of Tequilo apologize, and in fact, they continued to laugh at it.

Steffie Garrett’s family commended the efforts by Baker Park medical staff, and Steffie would eventually head home to Cassadaigua. Even then, she could not get back on the soccer field as the doctors advised her that it would be too dangerous for her to play for a while. She was still growing, not even 18 yet, and to have this kind of head injury in your life could have long lasting effects. If it were to happen again, the outlook could be worse. Teammates continued to keep in contact with her, but now it seemed as though that this player that was projected to be the next Rachel Schanke might not ever play a soccer game after the age of 18.

For six months, Steffie Garrett did not play any soccer and continued to try and recover. Her progress was slow, but it would happen, and eventually the doctor cleared her to play again, but did advise her that it still could be dangerous. It was not an easy decision she said, to come back. “When they are telling you that you could have a long lasting damaging effects from an injury, it is scary. But I, I, you know, still have something to prove. This is the game that I love and I can’t not ever play again. I guess that I might just be stupid right now and come back but I have to do it. I cannot let that scumbag from Tequilo have the last laugh. I saw how they acted when I was in the hospital. That was the biggest motivating factor for me. I do want to play again, and I hope I get a chance to play on the national team one day to have a chance to play against them.”

While Garrett returned to playing the game she loved, it was not an automatic that she was in game shape right away. She was rusty, and when she tried to return to the school team that she was on, that rust showed. There was no one that was better to take her starting job from her on the team, but the dreams of playing for the national team seemed to be slipping away. Now, she was just hoping to be drafted into the Cassadagan Soccer League. At one time, she was going to make millions in the CSL, and now she was just hoping to be picked. Starksville to a shot on her in the second round, surprisingly enough, as they felt that she could rediscover her old form. That vote of confidence was big for her, and eventually you started seeing Steffie show some of her old skill. The biggest problem that Garrett seems to have now is that she is timid to put herself in situations where she may be tackled hard, clean or not, again.

Manager Stephanie Sweeney did not have to name Steffie Garrett to the Di Bradini side. There could have been better options out there, but Sweeney, who also manages the senior team, is hoping that this could be an additional jolt of confidence for Garrett. “Steffie has tremendous ability, but she suffered a terrible setback for her career. I still believe that we can get her back to being a great player that will be able to realize the talent that she possesses. Being a part of a national team, and now getting a chance to play is another big step forward for her.” Sweeney has not named Garrett as the starter, however, with 21-year olds Bayley Stanton and Heather McKinstry getting the nod over her up front, and Jenna Frontiera will be the first substitute at the position, more often than not.

In the 53rd minute, the long road back officially began, as Garrett was substituted into the game for Stanton, prompting the loudest cheer of the day, other than for the goals, from the Cassadagans that made the trip to Turmondale Grounds. Those around them probably wondered why the applause was so loud, but if they were told, perhaps they joined in for a quick moment. It was good to see Steffie out there once again. She didn’t get a storybook goal or anything, and no one knows how this will go, but that was the story of the day, even more than Morgan Rosenblatt’s hat trick. Oh, that was pretty nice too!

by **Chromatika** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 1:56 pm

A late concession on the eighty-ninth minute completed a second-half collapse that saw Chromatika blow a two-goal lead as the Anomalies U-21 team was held to a draw by a pesky Sarzonia squad that would not go away. Benching Glen Baker and having Eleanor Keating come out for Sarzonia at halftime paid dividends for the Junior Stars as Joanie Rhys and Nick Raiden scored to put up the final margin.

Karra Oveni and Charisma Mott scored for the Anomalies, who had a brilliant first half by anyone's standards. Shani Hayashida was wont to criticize the team too much after the second half collapse, saying that "Diego Cristobal made a key change, and it paid off... I have no doubt that they (the Stars) are the biggest competition in this group. With HUElavia and Kohnhead also playing to a tie, we are all tied at one, and the next two games will decide it all."

Cathryn Nio's first start was a mixed one, as she made some strong saves but did concede two goals. The mixed defense of U-18 players and U-21 players did struggle at times, as the Anomalies' bright spots remained the center midfielders of Mare Si and Eli Apt and how they helped set up Charisma Mott and Karra Oveni.

"It's not a cause for concern to tie in the first match," stated Hayashida, "We'll be all right, you'll see."

by **Kohnhead** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 3:36 pm

Kohnhead start off tournament with draw against HUElavia

HUElavia are a team we are starting to play against more and more in the football world with our national team most recently suffereing a heartbreaking loss on penalties to them in the Cup of Harmony round of 32. This match would be equally close as the final score would be 3-3 and we would blow a 3-2 lead in the 88th minute to lose the three points. With four team groups and three matches for each team the stakes for each match could not be higher and the difference between a draw and a win in this one could spell disaster for Kohnhead.

HUElavia would strike first extremely early in the 4th minute with young 17 year old Woo-Jin Sol getting past Wanda Warter and beating Lyla Booth on the header to score extremely early. Shi Jiang would gather the assist and for Kohnhead this was awful, we all know about our slow start to last year's DBC losing the first two before won our next five straight to reach the semifinals. We don't have the luxury of a five match group stage last time and a loss here would put us in an awful position.

Rafa Santos would tie the game up in the 24th minute in controversial fashion as he took out Elizabeth Webo when receiving the ball from Eric Ofofor. The refs would not give a call on the field but the HUElavians protested vigorously, because after Rafa Santos sent a shot right by Augusto Quadros Mende for the goal. At the end of the day football is football and while you'd probably like to see that called it was just a phyiscal play by both players and Santos came out on top.

Perhaps fueled by this perceived injustice HUElavia would retake the lead in the 44th with Arina Maximovna getting past Booth and sending one past Chadwick in goal. This would make it 2-1 with our opponents up as we headed into the dressing room for halftime. The team came out of the dressing room inspired and it showed early on in the second half.

It was Isabelle Bradford with an incredibly taken free kick sending it right over the wall and past the keeper in the 55th from some distance indeed. The goal gave us the necessary momentum to score again just three minutes later with Georgia Manter making the run and sending it to George Finley who finished cleanly. It was a bit surprising to see Finley not make the WC proper squad for the IAC but the U-21 players were excited about having another opportunity to play with him.

Unfortunately we just couldn't finish the game and in the 88th a wonder goal was scored by Ana-Maria Herzig that Chadwick had no chance at. It's a real pity to end such an exciting game on a sour note like that but as long as we play well our next two games we can still advance given Chromatika and Sarzonia drew each other in the other match.

Next up we play the afore mentioned Sarzonia in a match which should be entertaining however one that both sides will know the importance of in a wide open group. Our group is extremely talented and it's highly unfortunate that four talented squads have to drop to two with Chromatika's senior team being ranked at 27th, HUElavia at 29th, Sarzonia at 31st, and us at 66th.

No changes will be made to the starting XI as we take on Sarzonia.

by **Mytanija** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 4:49 pm

Let's take a look at today's Gazeta Mytanija:

SO WHAT HAVE THE LEADERS BEEN SAYING?
MLADEN SAMBUNJAK REPORTS ON WHAT EACH PARTY'S LEADER HAS SAID AS THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN GETS UNDERWAY

by Mladen Sambunjak

In the early knockings of this election campaign we have seen each of the seven political parties which are battling to earn the most seats host huge rallies in several of Mytanija’s great cities. My editor asked me what I wanted to write about after the first few days of the campaign and I thought it would be instructive to analyse what the party leaders have said in the opening days to work out the exact direction each of them are hoping to take their party in terms of policy, but also where they are trying to shift the narrative towards – which policy areas are the party leaders trying to fight this election on. Which policy areas are going to become the key battlegrounds in the first democratic election following the fall of Natella Kalinina?

I hope this will prove to be useful because the significance of the seats which can be won by the proportional representation (PR) part of the vote is something that is going to be difficult to analyse until we know the outcome of the election. However, it is fairly certain (something backed-up by a number of other political correspondents), that the party leaders will have a key role in deciding how that part of the vote goes. They will be the focal point for each of their parties and many Mytanar citizens will form their opinions of each party based on how they perceive their party leader. The election debates later in the campaign could prove decisive and it is only the party leaders that will be involved in them and therefore their influence could be crucial.

Whilst it is true that the constituency seats available will be the bedrock of any party’s results, it is the PR seats which could end up deciding the outcome of the election. Each region has its own – fairly clear – political tendencies and therefore the projections of the constituency vote are believed to be pretty reliable. It’s hard to see the MNK or Spasenje winning too many seats in the region of Thessia, for example. But there could be some people in Esca who may want to vote for their local MNK representative but who see climate change as their main issue and would like to vote for Ekologija with their second vote, the one which goes towards deciding the seats available by PR. Similarly someone in Visoravna may not feel comfortable voting for anything other than a Radnika candidate in their local seat, however they may like what Radovan Stefanovic has been saying about allowing each region to conserve their own culture separate from any joint, overriding ‘Mytanar values’.

How significant the effect of this ends up being is anybody’s guess – indeed the PR results may not be dissimilar to the percentage of seats won – but it’s an interesting storyline to follow, we haven’t decided elections in this manner before after all. It’s something that will make projections easier next time around, once we have more information. For now it’s important to keep an eye on what the party leaders are saying to understand their policy agendas and how the Mytanar people see them. Here’s what they’ve been saying:

SLOBODAN ACIMOVIC (RAD): Radnika began their campaign in Esca, the capital being Slobodan Acimovic’s hometown. Acimovic was keen to get straight onto the front foot, he levelled attacks on all of his rivals before setting out why he believed Radnika are the only party capable of getting Mytanija back into the shape the much revered Premier Pamic had left the country in. He denounced Jedinstvo and Ana Mecava-Catic specifically as ‘the most dangerous form of populists’; claimed that Davor Juric and his liberal centrist party Zajedno Naprijed! stood for nothing in particular; and claimed that Radovan Stefanovic and the MNK wanted to keep Mytanija ‘stuck in the dark ages’. Feisty stuff from a man who is new to politics and seemingly wants to make his mark. He set out how his party would open up the economy to foreign investment and make Mytanija a ‘good country to base your company in’, many commentators believe that much of the Radnika base was unhappy with this language – Acimovic only narrowly beat a more left-wing nominee for the party leadership after all. He also set out a timetable for Mytanija to join the Common Rushmori Community (CRC), an eight year plan (two election cycles) which would culminate with the ratification of the Orean Accords and Mytanar accession to the CRC.

In terms of social policies he promised to be tough on crime with improved access to resources in terms of financial and materiel support for the Policija. Finally he argued that Radnika are the only party that champion Mytanar families and support them with financial support, setting out how his party would introduce tax credits for families with children if they win the election. When asked about plans to legalise gay marriage Acimovic remained lukewarm and this could prove to be a problem area for his party - Radnika simply aren't seen as being a modern party of the left anymore. They may well face opposition on that territory both from the left, with the likes of Jednistvo and Ekologija occupying that space, but also from the liberal centrists Zajedno Naprijed. It could prove a dangerous position for Acimovic and his party.

Acimovic largely stayed out of the debate about what society Mytanija wants to become following the Mytanar Conflict. One of the key issues among young people is reconciliation and moving towards a new, unified state; this contrasts with the beliefs of many older people who want each region to maintain its own distinct cultural identity and do not want to mix with those from other regions, some of whom they still class as ‘the enemy’. Acimovic doesn’t seem to want to get bogged down in what many are calling a potential ‘culture war’, but whether this pays off remains to be seen, so many people see it as an important issue and by staying quiet and not assuming a position Acimovic could be perceived to be weak or sitting on the fence, not willing to display his true beliefs on the matter.

RADOVAN STEFANOVIC (MNK): Radovan Stefanovic is one of the most experienced operators still active in Mytanar politics, most that were involved pre-Kalinina are either retired or have sadly passed away. Stefanovic is still going though and he is immensely popular for never having been tainted by the Kalinina regime despite being on the right of the political spectrum and ostensibly being close to some of her policies, but also because he has an affable nature and degree of charisma that many politicians simply do not have. His party began their campaign in Miago, a city which is notable for being a former Kalinina stronghold, perhaps displaying Stefanovic’s political intelligence as he looks to win over some of her former supporters to his more moderate and democratic way of thinking. The MNK are thought to be the favourites to win the most seats, with many believing they’re helped by being the biggest party on the right of the political spectrum that is only really occupied by themselves and the far-right Spasenje. Only the most ardent Kalinina supporters are expected to vote for Spasenje, with very few wanting to go back to the politics she espoused.

In his opening speech Stefanovic was quick to joke about how Radnika and Slobodan Acimovic were trying to be ‘all things to all people’, claiming his policies represented trying to ‘have his cake and his neighbours too’. This was mainly directed towards Acimovic’s claims that Radnika will oversee the opening up of the economy whilst also supporting various social programmes. Stefanovic argued that only the MNK – claiming they are they are the only ones who openly voice their support for the free market and capitalism – would actually open up the economy in the way which would improve the standard of living across Mytanija. He proposed privatising the Mytanar railway system by selling off Železnice Mytanija’s rolling stock and putting contracts out to tender to private companies to run the railways. He argued that this would improve the rail system, attracting much needed investment to improve the railways and service provision in more rural areas of the country whilst allowing the government to focus resources on other infrastructure projects. He also said his party would conduct a review of the healthcare system to try and make it more efficient were they to form a government.

In terms of the debate over the direction of Mytanar society as a whole he stuck to his pre-campaign promise that his party would ‘uphold the spirit of Mytanar values whilst allowing each region to conserve its cultural heritage’, a line which both he and other high profile MNK candidates have repeated almost ad nauseum through the opening days of the campaign. It remains a clarion call to those who want to keep a degree of separation between each Mytanar region in terms of identity. Stefanovic stayed out of politics during the Kalinina regime and opposed her rule because of her overtly anti-Thessian, anti-Rauchik and anti-Visorav sentiments which were based upon her opposition to the mixing of religions and belief in the supremacy of the Orthodox Church. He doesn’t seem to be openly condemning that with the way he and his party are conducting their campaign and this may backfire if people see it as a political calculation in the pursuit of raw power. One of the key pillars of his party’s policy agenda is the introduction of a points-based immigration system, something which will definitely appeal to the party base but could put off floating voters who see the huge Mytanar diaspora all over the multiverse and wonder why others shouldn’t be able to move here.

DAVOR JURIC (ZN!): Davor Juric and Zajedno Naprijed! are quietly confident about their chances of doing well in this election. They began their campaign in Decraa, a city defined by its two universities and its relatively youthful, trendy and well-to-do population – the sort of place he believes his party can outperform the two old parties (Radnika and the MNK) and pick-up seats. He was quick to emphasise his party’s liberal credentials, setting out his support for gay marriage and transgender rights and he also proposed a plan for the legalisation of so called ‘party drugs’ such as MDMA and ketamine for personal use, something which would be done through government-run repositories to be done safely and also to allow it to be taxed and profited upon. He also argued that there is still work to be done on gender equality and would set-up a commission to investigate what was needed to ensure full parity on that issue. He tried to set out his party’s green credentials by arguing for the closure of all of Mytanija’s deep coal mines over the next eight years, proposing a move towards both renewable energy sources and nuclear power as the main players in the nation’s energy mix. He did not set out any clear target for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions however, something which puts him in the same boat as the main two parties.

ZN! believe they can appeal to those who see Radnika and the MNK are old news and behind the times, with their liberal approach to social issues setting them apart from the two older parties which largely only disagree on economics (although Acimovic’s leadership has seen Radnika move to the centre ground even there). Juric and his party are firmly on the side of capitalism when it comes to opening up the economy to foreign investment, he said his party would cut corporation tax rates in a manner which would potentially even make the MNK blush. He did advocate for the introduction of a higher minimum wage though and said his party would propose an introduction of some form of universal basic income should they get into power, albeit with a long timetable for it to come in. Finally Juric said he would ratify the Orean Accords ‘on the first day’ if he was Premier, believing it to be the best thing Mytanija can do to become more prosperous and he made it a central pillar of his party’s campaign because of this.

RADENKA KOVACEVIC (EKO): The former teacher from Ebor decided that there was no place like home to start her campaign (a theme which Jedinstvo’s Ana Mecava-Catic stuck to as well!) and was greeted with an enormous crowd and raucous reception from her home city. Thousands of young people went to Ekologija’s opening rally there and the effect of the youth vote could well become a huge part of this election. Her main message was naturally about climate change and the need to be ambitious in trying to combat it, but she also made sure that it was understood that this had to be done in a way which protects workers’ rights and that empowers the least well off in society. She also argued that Mytanija has always done better when all its constituent parts have pulled in the same direction and that any government that she and her party played a part in would have to make that message a central part of their agenda. Ekologija support entering the CRC, but only if it supports an ambitious enough common environmental policy.

A line of her speech which received a particularly favourable response was one where she talked glowingly about a fellow party leader – something which you wouldn’t usually expect – as she remarked that she was ‘so pleased’ to see another woman leading a party in Jedinstvo’s Ana Mecava-Catic and that this was a message for ‘little girls all over the country’ that they can get into the highest positions in Mytanar society too. This perhaps was the first sign of a party leader making early movement in trying to find friends in other parties, something which could prove crucial in coalition-building post-election when the dust settles. Ekologija and Jedinstvo will find kindred spirits in one another, the two not differing on very much from the sound of their opening policy announcements.

In terms of those policies Kovacevic set out her party’s ‘new approach’ to combatting climate change, including an attempt to reduce carbon emissions by 70% over the next twelve years. This would be done by a large programme of investment in green energy technology as well as looking to scale-up carbon capture and storage/removal technologies to a viable level for use across Mytanija. This would be accompanied by the closure of deep pits and nuclear power stations and a new national skills retraining scheme which would be designed to get those workers from the coal mines and nuclear power stations working in the production of green energy. She advocated for a universal basic income to see everybody through life and ensure people wouldn’t fall on hard times financially; reforming the Policija to try and end what her party sees as excessive criminalisation; and a large public transport investment programme to eventually replace all personal motor vehicles.

ANA MECAVA-CATIC (JVO): Ana Mecava-Catic began her party’s campaign in her home city of Thessia and similarly to Radenka Kovacevic she was met by a crowd not dissimilar to that which could be seen at a huge concert or a football game. Her party believe that they can gain seats all across the country because of what they see as the complacency of the traditional centre-left party Radnika. Jedinstvo are left-wing and they make no bones about that, with some arguing they are idealists or populists, but Mecava-Catic sounded like a woman who believed she could get things done when she set out her party’s policy agenda in Thessia. A former nurse, she announced her party would invest in the nation’s health service and formally nationalise all healthcare provision and as much of the supply chain as possible to prevent against ‘the opportunism of unscrupulous corporations who try to make quick money out of our people’s poor health’. She knows what it’s like to work in a hospital and many Mytanars empathise with her because of that and those sort of policies poll well too.

She voiced her support for the universal basic income and her comments about climate change and environmental policy wouldn’t have sounded strange coming out of Radenka Kovacevic’s mouth either. Jedinstvo have said they want to invest in large infrastructure projects across Mytanija to ‘bring the country together’ and make sure no part of the country is left behind. Mecava-Catic was positive about this again here arguing that ‘the only way for us to be united is to make sure the standard of living across our country is raised altogether, we need to rise up as one’. Radnika and MNK were quick to attack her on this line, describing it as nakedly populist rhetoric but it doesn’t seem to be putting off too many people at this early stage in the election campaign and it was received very warmly by the crowd at her rally. Her promise to raise taxes on the profits of the most wealthy corporations to reinvest across Mytanar society was similarly well received.

What was perhaps the most radical proposal was also one of the most interesting as she argued that any companies looking to operate in Mytanija would have to allow workers to be represented on their boards. This would affect both domestic companies and foreign ones looking to operate here and her party see it as a way of curbing ‘a race to the bottom in working conditions and wages’. She also voiced her support for gay marriage and trans rights, before setting out her stall very firmly on the purported ‘culture war’ issue of what Mytanija should do with the legacy of the Mytanar Conflict as she voiced support for a formal reconciliation commission to ease the process towards a unified Mytanija saying: ‘the differences between us: Thessian and Zentrian; Rauchik and Nastan; Visorav and Avnali; or Vojovitican and Magev are so small that we forget that we have all been Mytanar for hundreds of years. We cannot allow differences in regional identity or religion obscure that fact and we must work to heal the wounds of the past, right the wrongs and move towards a collective future’. Mecava-Catic and her party maintain a soft Anserisceptic* position with regard to entering the CRC.

ILYA ILICIC (PSD): It’s difficult to see exactly where Ilya Ilicic’s party are going to pick-up seats, with the introduction of the new left-wing party Jedinstvo expected to cut into his party’s already somewhat limited appeal however the PsD are likely to pick-up at least a few seats on the basis of pre-Kalinina performances by far-left parties and the general support for far-left policies among sections of the Mytanar population. His party started their campaign in the Thessian city of Ibon and it is those sort of places where they will hope to win their handful of seats. They could end up with a small bloc which could enter a coalition if they feel able to compromise their own principles for a taste of power, this was something Ilicic ruled out in his opening speech, but it remains to be seen if he would say the same if it comes down to it.

In terms of policies he rather unsurprisingly advocated for the full nationalisation of key industries, including but not limited to energy, transport, healthcare and education. He emphasised the need for workers to control their own futures and called for an end to the profiteering of those who do very little work but become rich by exploiting those who do. It was mostly what you would expect from a staunchly communist party leader. Unsurprisingly he denounced other parties’ plans to join the CRC and claimed that it is ‘nothing more than a vehicle for introducing neoliberal economic policies into Rushmori societies via the back-door’, so I think we know where he stands on that particular matter.

ZORAN MILOSEVIC (SPA):If you think that Zoran Milosevic was making a point by having Spasenje’s opening rally of the ’28 election campaign in Trunca then you’d be right. It is the port city which had two of Kalinina’s flagships – the MOS Slavni and MOS Osa – burning in its harbour for nearly a month following a Euran carpet bombing designed to grind the remnants of the regime into submission. It is a city which could prove to be fruitful for Spasenje with its message of conserving regional culture and identities, stopping foreign immigration into the country and preventing the creep of what it sees as immoral same-sex relationships and transgender rights. It is a surprise that Spasenje were allowed to stand for election at all given that Mytanija is a country recovering from the Kalinina regime which was the pinnacle of the same ideology and it was so openly discriminatory towards some Mytanar citizens (in Thessia, Rauchnya and Visoravna) that it ended up carrying out ethnic cleansing during the Mytanar Conflict, but here we are. Spasenje is the only party not running candidates in all seats – which is perhaps little surprise – not running a single candidate in either Thessia or Rauchnya and only a handful in Visoravna.

Milosevic is smart though and he’s trying to play on the fear of those who benefited the most under Kalinina, which is those who are adherents to the Zentrian Orthodox branch of Christianity or are from Zentria, Magevskaya, Nasto and Avnalia and some parts of Vojovitica. These are people who think they may no longer be in the top position within Mytanar society like they were under Kalinina and Milosevic is clear that he is opposed to any form of united Mytanija ‘which tries to dictate to people that they should allow freely the mixture of regional identities so that our cultures become diluted to the point they are unrecognisable’. His party will have support for this kind of rhetoric in its traditional bases, mostly the small cities throughout Zentria as well as certain working class neighbourhoods of the capital, Miago and Stratenberg. What remains to be seen is how decisive that support is, will it be prevalent enough to make Spasenje a political force? There is doubt regarding that, the feeling is that generally people do not want to go back to the politics of Natella Kalinina and want the ethnic tensions and religious discrimination to be firmly condemned to the past. That won’t stop Milosevic and his party though.

*Anser from the Latin Anseriformes, the word which describes the order of birds which encompasses ducks, geese and swans; ie. the uncommonly confrontational waterfowl which populate large areas of Rushmore; it has fallen into common parlance in Mytanija to describe scepticism towards joining the CRC
___________________________________

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by **Pasarga** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 7:03 pm

The Young Wanderers came into the Di Bradini Cup that they were going to have to work hard if they were going to escape their group, for the draw of the group stage had handed them a particularly challenging group compared to a few others. With Krytenia in the group, that meant that there was two nations of note and history both in the senior national teams as well as the youth ones, with the Young Wanderers handful of titles and Pasarga's reputation the world round for producing good youth players. Tikariot, while not completely new, was still seen as something of a wildcard, even though their senior team had competed in the Copa Rushmori, much the same as Hispinas that the side was going to be taking on first. In a bit of luck, the side had been drawn into a position in the group that would see the team playing all of their matches in the same stadium, which meant that they got to make their camp in one spot and could rest and train between the matches in the group, not having to worry about traveling between the different venues like the rest of their group mates.

Hispinas was a completely unknown entity for the Young Wanderers and they were not entirely sure what to expect from their first matchday foes, aside from the scouting reports saying that they were likely going to be a high pressing attacking team with an unconventional 4-2-4 formation. That sort of formation seemed to be looking to exploit what many thought was the weakest unit of the Wanderers', that of their backline. Indeed as the match began, they pressed hard on the back four of the Wanderers, hassling every touch and trying to force the defenders into an error or a blind lump forward where their own defenders could have a go at the ball. It did not take long for them to make the side produce an error, as in the nineteenth minute Mattías Víglundsson's pass towards Katinka Pálffy was intercepted and sent forward to Mamon. Unleashing a shot before the centerbacks could converge on him, Dalma Kollár managed to get a hand to the ball with their dive but was not strong enough to keep the shot from going in and Hispinas had grabbed an early lead. A lead that was nearly doubled ten minutes later, though this time Dalma was able to cradle the ball to their chest and keep the deficit at just a goal, which it would remain going into the locker rooms at the end of the half.

The side needed a bit of a spark and came out in the second half substituting Magana for Noel Orsós, sacrificing a striker for a destroyer in the middle of the park. It was a move that took a bit of time to work, with Elek Salai now having to solely lead the attack, but at the hour mark, the Wanderers had their first clean look at goal with Salai having broken into the box and putting a shot in. Campoy however was able to dive quickly to their right and push the shot past the post to keep Pasarga off the board, if only for the time being. Six minutes later, Salai was in again, though this time the striker feigned a shot and instead slid the ball across the top of the box where Katinka Pálffy one touched it back to the left and Gillen Madrigal López flew in from off the wing with a diving header that hit the bottom of the crossbar and went downwards into the back of the net. It was a great goal and the change to have more defensive cover had proven to work out as Hispinas continued to find trouble getting past the Pasarga defense. Salai looked like he had won it in the eighty-first minute when he had met with a Gillen cross, but the linesman had flagged the striker for being offside before his shot had gone in. Replays showed that the striker might have been on, but without definitive evidence, the goal was not overturned and the two sides had to split the spoils.

When the side entered the lockeroom, they were entirely shocked to see the scoreline from the other match in the group, as Krytenia had been absolutely put on blast by Tikariot, their fellow Rushmoris having put nine past the Atlantians and yet had not conceded a single goal themselves. It was a frightening scoreline to behold and it made the players wonder what sort of mood the Krytenia team would be in when the two sides squared off in four days time. Unlike Krytenia, the Wanderers were going to have a rest day, with Meriadoc Griffiths allowing the side the next day off to rest their legs while he tried to decide what changes needed to be made for the second game. Krytenia was going to be in a win or go home mindset and that made them dangerous, even if they were going to be quite demoralized after being the victims of such a heavy loss. On the other hand, Griffiths knew that he needed eyes on this Tikariot side and had already talked to assistant Anna Kováts, as she was tasked with going to scout the match between the two Rushmore sides. Due to the draw, the Wanderers could not be eliminated whatever the result, though Giffiths did feel confident his experienced team could handle Krytenia. Tikariot on the other hand was already seen as a wild card before the first matches had been played and now seemed even more so.

by **Valanora** » Sat Dec 05, 2020 7:13 pm

Matchday 2

Group A
Kohnhead 3–6 Sarzonia
HUElavia 0–2 Chromatika

P Group A                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Sarzonia                    2   1  1  0    8   5  +3    4
2 Chromatika                  2   1  1  0    4   2  +2    4
3 HUElavia                    2   0  1  1    3   5  −2    1
4 Kohnhead                    2   0  1  1    6   9  −3    1

Group B
Mapletish 4–0 Starblaydia
Siovanija and Teusland 3–2 Devonta

P Group B                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Mapletish                   2   2  0  0    6   0  +6    6
2 Siovanija and Teusland      2   1  0  1    3   4  −1    3
  Starblaydia                 2   1  0  1    3   4  −1    3
4 Devonta                     2   0  0  2    2   6  −4    0

Group C
Quebec 2–0 TJUN-ia
San Ortelio 4–0 Xanneria

P Group C                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 San Ortelio                 2   2  0  0   10   1  +9    6
2 TJUN-ia                     2   1  0  1    2   2   0    3
3 Quebec                      2   1  0  1    3   6  −3    3
4 Xanneria                    2   0  0  2    0   6  −6    0

Group D
Pasarga 5–0 Krytenia
Hispinas 0–4 Tikariot

P Group D                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Tikariot                    2   2  0  0   13   0 +13    6
2 Pasarga                     2   1  1  0    6   1  +5    4
3 Hispinas                    2   0  1  1    1   5  −4    1
4 Krytenia                    2   0  0  2    0  14 −14    0

Group E
Mytanija 3–0 Valladares
Wapistan 5–3 Transvolcanic

P Group E                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Mytanija                    2   2  0  0    9   2  +7    6
2 Transvolcanic               2   1  0  1    7   8  −1    3
3 Wapistan                    2   1  0  1    7   9  −2    3
4 Valladares                  2   0  0  2    3   7  −4    0

Group F
Northwest Kalactin 3–3 Hebitaka
Saint-Domingues 4–1 Equestria

P Group F                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Hebitaka                    2   1  1  0    7   3  +4    4
2 Northwest Kalactin          2   1  1  0    6   5  +1    4
3 Saint-Domingues             2   1  0  1    6   4  +2    3
4 Equestria                   2   0  0  2    1   8  −7    0

Group G
Cassadaigua 4–4 Khytonya
Graintfjall 2–2 Sylestone

P Group G                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Sylestone                   2   1  1  0    6   5  +1    4
2 Cassadaigua                 2   0  2  0    7   7   0    2
3 Graintfjall                 2   0  2  0    5   5   0    2
4 Khytonya                    2   0  1  1    7   8  −1    1

Group H
Island of the Lost 4–4 Megistos
Baker Park 0–0 Darmen

P Group H                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Island of the Lost          2   1  1  0    6   5  +1    4
2 Megistos                    2   0  2  0    6   6   0    2
3 Darmen                      2   0  2  0    2   2   0    2
4 Baker Park                  2   0  1  1    1   2  −1    1

by **Khytonya** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 12:55 am

Postmatch Review: Matchday 2

*Khytonya 4 <--X--> Cassadaigua 4*

Four-by-Four, Point to Point

Goals. Goals. Loads of goals. There were so many goals in Turmondale Ground that you can technically teach your children basic maths (in this case, four plus four add up to eight), though the first part of our title would give you 16. Which, coincidentally, was the number of total shots both keepers from those two sides had to face. Furthermore, less than three-quarters of those shots come from Cassadaigua while the rest belong to Khytonya. Yet when you look at the match, it's clear who's more productive with those shots. But what were we talking about, football or maths? Let's not bore ourselves with all this school stuff and get straight on the match!

First Half: Just like the last game, star captain Sheryl Robertson brought out an early goal in the 6th minute with an impressive long range effort that left keeper Cynthia Kerr and every defender hopeless. Six minutes later, another midfielder Darnell Brathwaite had a chance to score when the Cassadaigua's back four were left exposed in the middle. Sarah Bayne intercepted the pass and went on to clear the ball forward. Unbeknownst to her, Arianne Panarin was at the place where the interception took place. She reacted to it, stole the ball away and dribbled into the penalty box where she put the ball to cross the goal line.

Main keeper Bentley Hart went on to save as many shots as he could until one of them went past him. Unfortunately, the last bit happened twice; a 34th-minute header goal courtesy of Cassadagan forward Bayley Stanton and another one in the 41st minute, this time from her teammate Heather McKinstry with an assist from captain Morgan Rosenblatt. The only shot further from the half was Panarin's second attempt on bagging another goal, but the linesmen ruled her offside. Half time ended with an equal score of 2-2.

Second Half: It's becoming more clear that both sides want to win; Cassadaigua after a draw against Graintfjall and Khytonya after a loss against Sylestone. Suddenly, harsh tackles started to take place. Some were cleaner than an already washed car, and some felt more like attempted murder than anything. In spite of the dark change of nature, there were far fewer bookings than what the referee had anticipated aside from a yellow card to defender Tyrell Tugnutt when he stepped on a Cassadagan's shins. Sadly, that happened inside the penalty spot, to which McKinstry converted for the penalty spot 13 minutes from the start of second half. In retaliation, Robertson rallied the Young Magicians up the field to grab a revenge goal with a help of her fellow teammate Amber Gretzky. In a space of two minutes, Robertson hastily rebound for goal when Kerr pushed out a shot from Panarin.

Panarin was subbed off to let wonderkid Emmanuel Zigomanis perform his striker duties. She was out of energy when the 80th minute came. Zigomanis made a great first impression by slicing through midfielder Josie Andrews and defender Michelle Russo like hot knife on a butter. Not only that, but in the 86th minute E.Z. rapidly ran up to the field and drill the ball to the bottom left corner. Khytonya was close to a win and they were ready to secure it as long as possible. Tragically, the lead fell to the ground after a bizarre own goal by the aforementioned Tugnutt when he meant to clear it away for a corner. That awful event would left a skid mark on Khytonya's football history, and that certainly didn't impress Maxwell Dwyer either.

What does it mean?

by **TJUN-ia** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 8:09 am

By Peter Davis

After a comfortable, but very entertaining, 2-0 win over Xanneria, PvO's Young Jags travelled to Ianisle to take on The Royal Kingdom of Quebec. Quebec didn't have the best of times in the first matchday, losing 6-1 to an in-form San Ortelio, so no one really knew how good this team was heading into MD2. Many did have hope that we could pick up the win but with the team full of younger players with little to no matchday experience outside of this tournament, no one knew for sure what could happen here at Lathal.

Well, what di happen wasn't the best. The Jags won 2-0 on MD1, so it made sense that they would also lose 2-0 on MD2. Quebec came out with the obvious intent of butting that MD1 drubbing behind them and that is exactly what they did. No matter how hard Philip van Oosterend tried, there was no way these 3 points were going to anyone other than Quebec.

So, in order to play in the knockouts, we must get a result out of San Ortelio - the team that has won their first two games by a combined 10-1 aggregate. You'd think the Jasg could win but consider how good SO have been thus far, this one will be very interesting indeed. GO JAGS!

SCHEDULE (Group C)
MD1: vs Xannaria @Tiradir, Gladerial (31,000) W 2-0 (2nd)
MD2: vs The Royal Kingdom of Quebec @Lathal, Ianisle (29,000) L 0-2 (2nd)
MD3: vs San Ortelio @Tiradir, Gladerial (31,000)

by **Mapletish** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 8:46 am

Part 1|Part 2| Part 3| Part 4| Part 5| Part 6| Part 7| Part 8| Part 9| Part 10

The Forgotten War

Rubbles

Rarely do I take complete breaks from my position or my work space. One day I came down from the roof to take a break and headed out into the backyard of the apartment block with another SOF sniper. I pulled open the bipod of my sniper rifle and set it down. I held onto my coffee mug tightly as I savoured the smell and taste of a freshly brewed coffee. Coffee is a morale keeper if you ask me. Chemically, it perks you up and keep you awake at crucial situations, mixed with the adrenaline you get, it is a double boost. Another benefit is the soothing effect of coffee when you smell it being brewed and the warmth it provides. As wrong as it sounds, coffee is both an agitator and soother. Why a soother drink though? The more times you feel relaxed after a sip of coffee as a break from the conflict zone, you associate the soothing effect to your stimulus which is the coffee thus creating a "learnt" association. My unlikely theory perhaps.

As much as I have hoped for it to be a soothing break, it turned out that at that moment, there was an explosion that happened right across us, maybe ten metres away. I ducked, then turned and saw the cement block wall crumbling. At that moment, the cracks formed on the walls and the rubbles settled, out turned two Revolutionists and assault rifles slung over their shoulders. They looked stunned as much as we were, they too looked to be taking a break just like us when a stray rocket hit the wall or maybe some IED went off. It felt like a duel between us - whoever got the pistol to the quickest has the rights to live.

My buddy and I grabbed our guns first and started shooting. I was very sure I got to them and we indeed hit them. But, they didn't drop. They turned their backs and ran through the building where had been then cut out into the street. As soon as they cleared the building, the troops doing their security rounds on the road shot them and finally brought them down, by putting a few more shots in their centre. This was not an isolated encounter though. Another experience was with a direct RPG hit on the building that I was working from. It was another heaty afternoon when I'd set up back from a window on the top floor. While, satisfied with my set up, I sipped another mug of coffee. The Maplish troops on the ground had started to take fire on the street in front of our building. I put my mug down and got into my position.

Covering their tracks, I took down the targets one by one. The Revolutionists noticed that they were taking fire and they headed towards my direction and begin spraying their rounds towards my area. Fortunately, they weren't too accurate, as they usually are. Then at that moment when I let my guard down, the RPG hit. The side of the house collapsed, and the wall took the brunt of the explosion, which was both good and bad. The wall saved me from being blasted, but the explosion took down the wall with it and it crashed onto my legs, slamming my knees into the concrete and temporarily pinning me there. Deep in the rubble, I reached out for my mug of coffee which was still clean from all the dirt that settled around the area. I took a sip in the most uncomfortable of positions. That coffee acted as a neat distractor from all the chaos beside me.

It hurted badly. I kicked some of the rubble off and aimed at the Revolutionists and firing them down. “Everybody okay?” yelled one of the other boys I was with.

“I’m good, I’m good,” I yelled back. But my legs were screaming the opposite. The Revolutionists pulled back, then things got intense again. That was the way it would go—a blank, followed by an intense exchange, then another lull. When the firefight finally stopped, I got up and climbed out of the room. One of the boys pointed at my legs. “You’re limping,” he said. I took my sip of coffee calmly, still annoyed at the fact that I haven't completed my cup of coffee. "Wall came down on me, boy", I replied. He glanced upward and spotted the hole in the house where the wall had been. No one probably realized that I was in the room where the RPG had hit.

I limped for a while after that. A long while—I eventually had to have surgery on both knees, though I kept putting it off for a couple of years. I didn’t go to a doctor. You go to a doctor and you get pulled out. I knew I could get by.

Fire

You cannot be afraid to take your shot. When you see someone with an IED or a rifle maneuvering toward your men, you have clear reason to fire. The ROEs were clear and specific, and in most cases the danger was obvious, you had to take the shot. But there were times, when it wasn't exactly clear. There were times when a person was almost surely to be the Revolutionists, probably was doing bad, but there was still some doubt because of the circumstances or the surroundings that he was in, that made all these uncertain. It could be that the Revolutionists were not in the area of our troops' operations or in our advanced line of movement. A lot of times a guy seemed to be acting macho for friends, completely unaware that I was watching him, or that there were Maplish troops nearby.

Those shots that I didn’t take, neither are such shots justified at that very moment. You couldn’t—you had to worry about your own ass. Make an unjustified shot and you could be charged with murder. He could be doing something evil from another day but today he was chilling with his other friends down that very same street that I was watching, but here he's not doing anything that warrants such a shot. Taking his life away wasn't justified here. The paperwork that goes into every shot and every kill is documented. That was accountability and transparency. There must be evidence and a witness to do that. I would admit, these thoughts certainly came from emotions coming in over to cloud my professional judgement, but I wouldn't shoot.

Justification and warrant to shoot was made as simply as possible, the exact moment that the enemy is doing something bad, it was the warrant to shoot. So long as it endangers the life of our personnel and our property or our personal safety. The first two warrants were directly related to my work. It wasn't the notion of "I thought he could have" or "He would have done this if not for this." but "because he was doing this." That was the clear warrant that warrant the shot. Even with that, there were plenty of targets.

An example unfolded. A water tower stood out amongst the few blocks of low lying houses. Pat the tower, a soldier decided to climb up and retrieved the Somalian flag flying from the grid work. As he climbed, one of the Revolutionists who had lain low during the earlier attack began firing on him. Within seconds, he was shot up and trapped. We backtracked over, moving along the streets and across the rooftops until we found the men shooting at him. When we had the area cleared, we sent up one of our guys to retrieve the flag. After
we got it down, we sent it to the soldier in the hospital.

Another story unfolded with another guy. He and I were on the street, laid barren and opened to attack from all fronts, it was expected that we were to take contact with the Revolutionists. It was a perfect top down advantage from the Revolutionists with us on the ground. We ducked into a shallow setback in the wall next to the street, waiting for the hail of bullets to die down. “We’ll work our way back,” I told Guy.

“You go first. I’ll cover you.”

“Good.”

I leaned out, waiting for the fire to go over me while taking the chance to take cover fire for Guy, forcing the Revolutionists back. I waited for a few seconds, giving Guy time to get into position he could cover me for me to start running. When I thought enough time had passed, I jumped out and started running. Bullets began flying all around, but none from Guy. They were all coming from the Revolutionists, who were trying to write their names on my back with rounds. I threw myself against the wall and to let some of the heat tide over. Sliding next to the gate, I was confused: where was Guy?

I thought probably he could be down the street or nearby, waiting under cover for me so we could leapfrog back. But he was nowhere to be seen. Had I passed him on the street? Nope, he was nowhere to be seen. I was trapped with Revolutionists all round and without my mysteriously disappearing friend. What a moment. I would have been a target board though if not for the timed radio call for backup. The Army went in hard with their Hummers and with their firepower, overwhelmed the Revolutionists and eventually suppressed and turned the tides around. I took the chance to get out.

By then I had figured what had happened to my poor bottoms. That guy had left me out in the fire and escaped by himself. I could have wrestled and ground and pound him but if not for the officer, he would have lost his life there and then. Guy's cowardice had not gone unnoticed and he was separated from me soon after. Command had known that I will kill him and he might probably not come back from his deployment alive and had made the correction before it happened. It was a wise thing to do nonetheless.

The Guy's adventure was just a little snippet of drama. A little after that episode, I cam down from my position on one of the roofs when I heard a ton of rounds go off nearby. I ran outside but could not see the firefight. Then I heard a radio call that there were men down. A fellow I'll call Bald and i ran up the block until we came across a group of soldiers who had retreated after taking fire about a block away. They told us that a group of Revolutionists had pinned down some other soldiers not too far away, and we decided we would try and help them.

We attempted to help and tried to get angle from a nearby house, but it wasn't tall enough to get a view. Bald and I moved closer, trying another house. Here we found four soldiers on the roof, two of whom had been wounded. We got them out and made sure they were safe. Down on the street, we got better directions from the two soldiers who hadn't been shot, on where exactly was the enemy. We started our journey to gather the general direction of the enemy. Moving through the alley and onto the main street, we were met with an explosion. A Revolutionist had seen us coming and tossed a grenade towards us.

Bald was a medic, that was a blessing. Having pulled the injured soldiers out, Bald was focused on working on him. Meanwhile, I took the rest of the soldiers and continued down the road in the direction of the Revolutions' stronghold. We found a second group of soldiers huddled at a corner nearby, pinned down by fire from the Revolutionist's stronghold. They'd set out to try and rescue the first group of four soldiers only to have stalled and pinned down by the Revolutionists. We had to have a plan to take them down for our safety at least. The brief was simple, split up into groups, and rush the street while the others laid the covering fire. The trapped soldiers were about fifty metres away. about one full block away.

“It doesn’t matter if you can see them or not,” I told them.

“We’re all just gonna shoot.”

The intense rally rush was started with a bang as we got up to rush the street as earlier planned. A Revolutionist jumped out into the centre of the road and began spraying the road, in an attempt to slow our advance. Returning fire as best as we could, we moved through shoot and cover, shoot and cover. Everybody checked themselves for holes, no one was shot.

More soldiers joined us in this shoot and cover firefight and covering fire suppression against the Revolutionists. "All right, we are going to do this one more time. Not one perso n can stop us."

Jumping out from cover, I tried again. firing my weapon as I ran, the Revolutionists' machine gunner in the centre of the road had been hit and killed by our earlier rush, but it was a stronghold nonetheless, the Revolutionists were packed further down the street.

I had taken the chance to do our first movement and as I ducked into cover, I realised none of the soldiers had followed. The Revolutionists were blasting my cover having seen me ducking into it earlier. I tuck my rifle under my arm and fired back as I emerged from the cover and took aim. It was a near death experience. The twenty round mag seemed small in this scenario. I blew through my mag and reloaded while jamming the fire to keep the Revolutionists at bay, for at least I hope. Continuing the fire movement, I safely huddled near a wall not far from the stronghold. It turned out there were 4 soldiers stacked against each other.

"I will cover you all, move!" I shouted.

I jumped up and laid down fire as they ran. The final soldier tapped me on the shoulder as he passed, signalling that he was the last man. Ready to follow, I checked my flank and glanced to the right. Ready to take the turn to retreat with the soldiers, out of the corner of my eye, a body wax proning and leopard crawling on the ground. Crawling slowly, I saw that he had been shot on both of his legs and I was determined to get him out. I ran over to him, slapped a new mag and grabbed the back of his body armour and pulled him with me as I retreated.

Damn Revolutionists, so many grenades to spare, one of them landed in our direction as we retreated. The grenade exploded somewhere nearby. Pieces of wall caught on my side, from my shoulders to my knee. But by luck, I wasn't affected much, I could still walk.

We made it back safely, together with all of the soldiers. Neither of us got hit again on our retreat. I never found out wh othat wounded guy was, and have never had a chance to trace him down. The soldiers were grateful, and it was everyone's efforts to have finished the retreat safely and successfully.

by **Khytonya** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 8:49 am

Prematch Review: Matchday 3

Graintfjall was now fresh from a draw against the team's previous opponent Sylestone. Now the real test comes in. It's not a joke. It's about to get real in the next match. For now, this nation and Cassadaigua always draw (so far. Perhaps this time it might be much different after the matchday. Key information is Graintfjall's decision to employ an extraordinary game plan. For starters, the majority of players are central midfielders filling the role of every position with only just three players that are not in a traditional midfield area. This was because Graintfjallers emphasised an 'all-rounder' based skillset rather than a 'specialist' based skillset. All of the focus is on how fit the players are to start on the field. Then they have two, unbelievably mental formations; the 'Football Ouboros' game plan whereby any midfielder coming out of his position to move the ball forward would have the others to fill the empty spot and the ancient-sounding name 'Ozymandias' where every single player is literally a midfielder once three other non-midfielders are subbed off. Some formations, at the most, limit the number of midfielders to five. Graintfjall's wackiest tactic takes not one cake, but the whole bakery company.

A few changes are made by Dwyer. An obvious one being the two center backs. Priscilla Kwong and Tyrell Tugnutt are now taking a backseat as new fresh recruits take in the role. Jean Marson and Roy Pulford are pushed into the starting XI where both would hopefully contribute to repair any of the defense problems. It really helps that both are childhood friends since the start of their football career so the communication problem might be fixed...for now. Another noticeable difference is the midfield section. Due to Graintfjall's strange game plan, all five midfielders will act as a curtain against the opponents. Quinn Elliot replaces Dean Schriner as he is pushed from his usual central midfield position to the wide area. Also, Gilmour is back in the game but now as an extra player in the starting midfield department. This means he still, while technically resuming the role as a defensive midfielder, Gilmour needs to join an offensive attack should Dwyer and his teammates require him to do so. Again, there are no players who are of jack-of-all-trades type of athletes (save for Panarin and Zigomanis) so until the Young Magicians found the ultimate all-rounder, get use to Gilmour's attempts at playing up the field.

In the next article, we're going to discuss the outcome that would give Khytonya the best chance at qualifying for the knockout round. Hold your hearts and grab your nearest pen and paper because things are about to get statistical (not serious). Check back for the new article tomorrow.

by **Saint-Domingues** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 11:52 am

Saint-Domingue 4–1 Equestria: Hopes of progression kept alive by eliminating hapless Equestria
HT 1-0
Saint-Domingue kept their Di Bradini Cup hopes alive by battering Equestria 4-1 in a game which dealt their opponents a crushing early elimination.

Gaëtan Souchon made two changes to that which was beaten by Northwest Kalactin, with Silvain Gide taking the place of Quentin Berger at right-back and Stanley Ngoy coming in for Boubacar Kujabi in midfield. Gide slotted in well as part of the defensive unit, keeping winger [REDACTED] under wraps and almost scoring himself after ten minutes when racing forwards.

Nico Pozo's aerial challenge knocked the ball down to Ngoy, but the follow-up was saved excellently by [REDACTED]. Unfortunately, a fine double save was not enough to handle the threat, and the loose ball bounced out to Roberto Caceres who did not make a mistake from the third attempt, burying emphatically.

With both teams aware that in all likelihood a defeat today would eliminate their side, Saint-Domingue took great confidence from their breakthrough, confidently knocking the ball around in the centre of the field and maintaining possession for long spells against a beleaguered opponent. One moment drew a great smattering of applause from the crowd as Marc-Antoine Cisse pulled off won the ball, pulled off a skilful turn to evade his marker and then quickly send the ball down the right for a lightning transition which led to a Cheikh Dieng shot being cleared off the line.

The second-half was played out in similar fashion to the first, as the Little Avengers bossed the pitch and hogged the ball, working hard to craft their opportunities. Caceres' corner was headed back across goal by Pozo and Alfredo Camejo swept the ball home from close-range, and already at two goals to the good the result felt secured. Saint-Domingue flourished creatively, particularly the midfield three, and Ngoy rewarded his manager's faith by firing in from distance.

A consolation was found for Equestria thanks to the efforts of [REDACTED] who poked in from a cross. It was their first goal of the campaign, though it did not ultimately bring any points. Napoléon Berlioz made sure of the victory after Pozo cleverly played the ball into his feet, and he rounded the goalkeeper to cap the game off nicely.

It was a miserable night for Equestria, who despite getting their first goal of the tournament are yet to take home a point and are therefore one of two teams eliminated after two games played (the other being Krytenia in Group D). For Saint-Domingue the team can have renewed hope. The defeat to Northwest Kalactin was a major setback and they needed to win in order to have a realistic chance of progression, and they did. They have given themselves a chance of making it through the group stage on the upcoming final day clash against Hebitaka.

Considering that Northwest Kalactin's final group opponent is Equestria, judging off of the team's two prior performances then it seems that victory is practically assured for the Kalactanians, which would guarantee them a place in the second round. Meanwhile the situation is delicately poised for Hebitaka and Saint-Domingue. The former has the advantage, knowing that a draw would assure them of qualifying (though not 1st place), whilst only extraordinary circumstances would mean Saint-Domingue can make it through with a point. Realistically they need to go for victory. What is clear for each of Group F's remaining three teams is this: win and they will qualify.

Path to the round of sixteen
If Saint-Domingue loses - then they will be eliminated from the tournament and finish 3rd,or 4th if Equestria defeat Hebitaka and there is more than a nine goal swing.
If Saint-Domingue draws - then Saint-Domingue cannot finish above Hebitaka (4 points to Saint-Domingue's 3). Saint-Domingue would need Northwest Kalactin to lose to Equestria by any margin in order to finish 2nd.
If Saint-Domingue wins - then Saint-Domingue will progress to the 2nd round and finish above Hebitaka. If both Hebitaka and Northwest Kalactin lose, then Saint-Domingue will win the group and 2nd place will be decided by goal difference. If Northwest Kalactin draws, then they will finish 2nd behind Saint-Domingue. If Northwest Kalactin wins, then they will top the group.
Lineups:
Tomes
Gide
Soyer
Kolley <- Giordano 67'
Camejo
Ngoy
Cisse
Caceres <- Cadet 90+2'
Dieng <- Reyes 67'
Pozo
Berlioz

Saint-Domingue: Caceres (12), Soyer (53), Ngoy (65), Berlioz (87)
Equestria: REDACTED (78)
Venue: Miner's Haven, Goldsan

by **Sylestone** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 8:40 pm

Sylestone's second game in the 49th Di Bradini Cup was drawn 2-2 against a powerful and oddly-formed Græntfjall side. The game was back and forth, with the Young Chickens originally confused by the Snow Pups' tactics of using 7 midfielders and just the lone forward. But they got used to it and kept the Græntfjall side at bay to a 2-2 draw. The result has kept Sylestone in first, with Cassadaigua and Khytonya playing out a thrilling 4-4 draw. This means that all the Young Chickens' need is a draw against Cassadaigua to progress to the round of 16. But they are Cassadaigua, so who knows?
The Sylestonean defence was completely out of their game at the beginning, shocked by the Græntfjall tactics. Damasekara realised these too late as Valtter Marvinsson shot past him in the 13th minute and scored past a hapless Charlie Barrett. Before that moment, Græntfjal had already had a penalty kick, three chances at goal and a corner. The ball had made it past the other halfway line once. Pretty obvious who was winning. But it wasn't for long.
It wasn't long before Gilchrist found a way through the heavily-defended midfield. His stamina and ball skills helped the 18-year-old enormously as he broke past the lines and shot the ball into the goal. 1-1 was the score, with 41 minutes down, and the game was back in the balance. Gilchrist's reaction was mainly one of relief, but he knew just how important that goal was.
Sylestone continued to push on the offensive, but they failed to convert any more as half-time approached. The 2-7-1 had been successfully broken, but the challenges were going to get harder than ever. Little did they know.

After a strong pep talk at half-time, the Young Chickens walked out onto the field feeling confident in their chances of a win. They didn't realise, however, the new formation. It was only a couple of minutes later that they realised that every single Græntfjaller was running up and down the field like a cheetah. Every single player was playing as a midfielder. Yes, that's right. Eleven. Fucking. Midfielders.
The Young Chickens were completely shocked. The shock was so high that Jayden Clarke realised too late that Marvinsson had once again scraped past him in the left-back position in the 53rd minute. So Græntfjall were once again in the lead by a solitary goal and on top.
Once again, though, Sylestone fought back. They began to tire the Græntfjallers out as their attacks became less penetrable and their defence wqas gradually weakening. But with only ten minutes remaining, they were still the favourites as a couple of the midfielders dropped back to play more defensive. But it was in vain. Rose Fleetwood, continuing her stunning form, curled a shot in the 84th minute into the top right-hand corner. The shot basically summed up the Young Chickens' inability to give up and drew the game.

Cassadaigua is next, and a draw is all we need. Can the Young Chickens' avoid a loss and progress? Catch us here tomorrow to find out!

SYLESTONE - 2
Gilchrist 41'
Fleetwood 84'

GRAINTFJALL- 2
Marvinsson 13', 53'

by **Khytonya** » Sun Dec 06, 2020 9:47 pm

The Final Matchday: Winning Really Matters

If Khytonya wants to head to the knockout stages, they must win against Graintfjall AND turn the goal difference into a positive number. We've done our short homework based on the possible scenarios and now we've got finally figure it out. All that Khytonya needs to do is to score as many goals as possible and they should be safe. Remember that this is the final match in the group stage. Any slip-ups could be fatal. Let's observe the group positions here. For further context and comparison, here is the position right now:

P Group G                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Sylestone                   2   1  1  0    6   5  +1    4
2 Cassadaigua                 2   0  2  0    7   7   0    2
3 Graintfjall                 2   0  2  0    5   5   0    2
4 Khytonya                    2   0  1  1    7   8  −1    1

As you can see, Khytonya are in dead last. Had it not been a defeat in the first game, the outcome would be much easier to imagine. But this is reality and under no circumstances should they lose badly. And if you're asking, no we're not traumatised by the defeat in the AOCAF. This is a serious matter that shouldn't be taken as a joke. We understand that Khytonya are just dipping their toes into the world of sports but no one should accept any losses because the future knows no loser in this world. Here, they need to win. It just depends on what outcome would be if we look at the other match between Sylestone and Cassadaigua.

Khytonya wins against Graintfjall. Sylestone win against Cassadaigua.

P Group G                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Sylestone                   2   2  1  0    7   5  +2    7
2 Khytonya                    2   1  1  1    8   7  +1    4
3 Cassadaigua                 2   0  2  1    7   8  -1    2
4 Graintfjall                 2   0  2  1    5   6  -1    2

Scenario 1 is your best bet. If Khytonya wins, they have the best chance of qualifying in the Round of 16. Remember Sylestone? Now is your best chance to support them because winning against Cassadaigua would be a great bonus to further increase their likelihood.

Khytonya wins against Graintfjall. Sylestone and Cassadaigua draw.

P Group G                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Sylestone                   2   1  2  0    7   6  +1    5
2 Khytonya                    2   1  1  1    8   8   0    4
3 Cassadaigua                 2   0  3  0    8   8   0    3
4 Graintfjall                 2   0  2  1    5   6  -1    2

Scenario 2, while risky, is the same as the first one. This time, Sylestone and Cassadaigua take home with a draw, yet the outcome is the same. Three points to the Young Magicians and they'll go through.

Khytonya wins against Graintfjall. Cassadaigua win against Sylestone

P Group G                   Pld   W  D  L   GF  GA  GD  Pts 
1 Cassadaigua                 2   1  2  0    8   7  +1    5
3 Khytonya                    2   1  1  1    8   8   0    4
2 Sylestone                   2   1  1  1    6   6   0    4
4 Graintfjall                 2   0  2  1    5   6  -1    2

Scenario 3 is where things get uncertain. One with mystery and thrills to come. A Cassadagan win means they're placed on the top with Sylestone equalling Khytonya in terms of goal difference, which means now luck is really needed on their side. If fate likes Khytonya, yes they can qualify. If not, then it's awkwardly despair that feels more like a tiny scandal waiting to happen. Heaven knows if a qualification is available.

A draw and a loss mean that the Young Magicians are packing home. It's simple as that. We don't leave the whole post on a sour note. It's possible for them to win against Graintfjall if they worked hard for the win. As a bonus, Sylestone is the key to a Khytonian comeback as Scenario 1 shows. Keep on believing and keep on supporting because this game will be a grand decider. See you there.

World Cup 81/82/83/84

U21's need 'massive turnabout': Sullivan
by Oliver Stanley
The Post Chief Soccer Correspondent

After two matches that have been hard fought but produced a single goal and a single point, the Under 21 National Team are staring at the possibility of elimination in the group stage of the DiBradini Cup for the third time in the last four trips to Valanora.

Manager Liam Sullivan has not been critical of the effort of his squad, but has recognized the two opponents faced--Island of the Lost & Darmen--have matched the intensity, as well as having added incentive to bring their best performance against the team in black.
"Even though these players weren't responsible, now that we've captured a major title, Baker Park is going to be a big opponent for other nations, whether they have a history or are just looking to make a name for themselves. This last match will be no different."

The BP side will face the Megistos U21's in the third Group H match at Duran Palace in Valaneri, needing a victory to have any chance at making it through to the last 16; the previously mentioned opponents will square off in the other final day contest at Aranfield Bridge, where Island of the Lost will need only a point clinch the top spot in the table as they currently the only side of the four who have won a match.

"We're going to have to have a bit of luck on our side if we don't want to pack up and go home after tomorrow. We're not quite being ruthless enough in the final third, and that's going to have change if we want to get past Megistos."

Sullivan also put forward a congratulatory message from himself and several members of the squad.
"I'm sure many of you...well our domestic press and probably some others as well, will recall back to the SWC 11 in the Commonwealth and the story of Steffi Garrett of Cassadaigua, who suffered a catastrophic injury on a tackle during a match. The guys and gals who were on the 18's then, some of whom reached out to Steffi while she was laid in up in the hospital in Oceana for a couple of months, wanted to pass along good thoughts to her, as she's been able to make it back to be on the Dagans roster for this tourney. We all hope we'll get to see her on the pitch in the pink shirt against us in the future."

Sullivan was asked by a Vanorian reporter if he had a different perspective of the country from the time of his first visit, and today.
"My own personal view of Valanora hasn't changed at all over time--beautiful country, the inhabitants are fantastic...they have always treated us with the greatest warmth & friendship, not just here in Sharala, but everywhere we've visited. I don't speak officially for the FAC, but we of course have so much respect for the VFA, for the club here (AS Sharala) who have always treated us like family, always considered our U21 squads an extension of the club itself, to the point that they are honorary members of the FAC. There is a reason why this is a popular destination for tourists from Baker Park, and I think it partly comes from our experiences here at the (DBC)."

lineup vs Megistos:
Rossi; Jones, Jorgensson, Walker; Shanahan, Wiley (C), Vetter, Park; Taylor; Pham, Moorman

by **Graintfjall** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 4:35 am

Excerpt from Kekulé Meets Jörmungandr: Tour Diaries of the DBC49 Campaign.

Heat Maps: Match 2 v Sylestone

KG announces new youth development pathway investment agreement

Knattspyrnusamband Græntfjalls has unveiled a new, long term youth development plan, funded through a sponsorship deal with mining conglomerate Multinesian Extractive Holdings that will run through to the World Cup 88 cycle. The arrangement will include shirt sponsorship for the Snow Pups and Junior Snow Wolves Under-21 and -18 sides in exchange for development of twin purpose-built training facilities in the Græntfjaller Alps and at National High Performance Center in Græntfjaller Multinesia alongside a program for coach and scout training.

Youth development in football has historically been uneven in Græntfjall, which lacks a dedicated youth league or traditions of school or university sports. Young players are generally scouted and trained by individual clubs, but limited playing opportunities have led to increasing numbers choosing to chance their arms (or legs, rather) overseas; around half of the current Di Bradini Cup are currently registered with foreign clubs. “A dedicated national programme will better enable us to plan long term investment and direct critical skill pathways,” said MEH Director of Outreach Sævin Friðriksson. “And maybe find some players who can do something other than try to head the ball in at corners.”

The semi-invitational nature of the U-21 and U-18 World Cups means it is impossible to guarantee future Græntfjaller involvement in them, but the hope with the investment deal is clearly to provide a pathway towards such participation. To that end, the dual training facilities aim to improve the fitness and match-readiness of young players unused to playing in hot and humid conditions. Previous full NT sides have struggled in such weather, but showed renewed preparedness during the recent Eagle’s Cup tournament thanks to preparation at the NHPSC in Multinesia. “Many young footballers grow up playing exclusively in Græntfjall, and aren’t ready to play in conditions not requiring three layers of thermal underwear,” explained Steinaux captain Petter Erlingsson. “It’d be great experience to have our younger players training up to get match-fit in those conditions so that they’re ready to take their skills overseas when needed.”

A different ‘pathway’ to youth development is meanwhile underway in Valanora, where GPL talent scouts have been seen at several Di Bradini Cup games, with an eye on potential talents. “The GPL can’t offer the high transfer fees or prestigious legacy of other leagues,” says football journalist Olle Tobiasson. “But young players can get a chance at regular playing time and prominent roles, such as Tao [Beiliang] and [Nathaniel] Auvergne at Korsbach and Hofvinger. Elsewhere they might be relegated to youth squads or loaned out to lower division sides. So while not the most lucrative destination, Græntfjall will be hoping to attract some young talents in the future.”

Græntfjall – 2 (1)

Ernestisson; Kristersson (45’ Leonhardsdóttir ), Markusson (26’) (45’ Adamsson ); Kristoffersdóttir (89’), Rögnvaldursson, Álvgeirsdóttir, Kjartansson (90+1’), Hólmarsdóttir, Marvinsson (13’, 53’), Grímólfursson; Auðunsdóttir (45’ Hlynursbur )

Sylestone – 2 (1)

Barrett; Clarke, Pearson, Damasekara, Stevenson (58’ Finnigan ); Lawson, Miller (45’ Love (81’)), Stanton (36’); Fleetwood (22’) (84’), Keyes (78’ Macintosh ), Gilchrist (41’)

Also in the paper:

NEWS: Austmannsson unveils new cabinet, prominent roles for Liberal-Conservative dealmakers
BUSINESS: Drilling equipment manufacturer Hartway upgraded to BUY recommendation after oil reserves found in endangered dolphin sanctuary
POLITICS: Michaelsdóttir survives vote of confidence at party AGM despite disappointing election returns
SCIENCE: Space junk on the agenda after satellite loses communications link
SPORT: National Biathlon Cup competitors vie for final Olympic places

by **San Ortelio** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 5:51 am

When Lorenzo insisted it was a good idea, I should have known something was fishy. But by then, it was too late to steer away from the unclear, but impending danger. And to think that all started with a stupid nutmeg.

Or to be more precise, the initiator would have been the San Ortelio Confederatione Calcio Extra-Regionale, the domestic FA and their characteristic frugality. As they were rather sure that this extravaganza [their words, not mine] would only last for three games, they had considered a squad of eighteen players as sufficiently bloated. Whilst that did shave off some twenty percent on the overheads, it had as an annoying side-effect that we had to play our training games in an awkward nine against nine: hardly representative of the tactical specifications of the actual game.

Add to that the enthusiasm after the glorious opener against Quebec. Whilst everyone knew in the back of their minds that the red card had turned the tables, it was the exciting result on the scoreboard that changed everything. Had the initial training sessions been hesitant, now everyone decided to put their best foot forward. Being a squad member of a successful team was nice, but being a starting member could even be better, right? And weren’t their international scouts spotted in the stands?

These two elements intertwined on a silly morning and put the fuse in a powder keg of which we did not know the existence.

With the second fixture against Xanneria looming on the horizon, the gaffer had chosen for a light menu with some tactical and technical exercises. As such, there was still plenty left in the tank for the finishing game, a straightforward match. To keep everyone on their toes, but also to ensure balanced confrontations, Siboni switched around the teams every once and a while. And we, we were hungry for every ball, to win each duel. If it ensued into a five-nil drubbing in little over fifteen minutes, you could be assured that it did its bit on the atmosphere. For the first time, me and Galli had linked up properly whilst Pier Luigi Vitali, as sole striker of the opposition, had not touched the leather. This much to the frustration of Moreschini, who both doesn’t like being on the losing side and is not used to it.

He’s a special guy, Lorenzo Moreschini. Whilst many of us are still trying to pave the road towards the first team, he’s an undisputed starter for Catrallo Calcio – by all accounts the top dog of the domestic ladder. Coming into our group, he took up a role as a natural leader and whilst no one knew when the captains ribbon had been distributed, it came across as evident that it would be around his arm. Lorenzo took pride in that honor, maybe even a bit too much. Often, he would pace up the rhythm on a running exercise or make comments during tactical moments. One time, he even stopped dinner because he wanted to discuss whether the dessert was nutritious enough. I still consider it a sad night, as no one had chocolate mousse to finish off their meal in the end.

So it was perfectly on brand to come down on Vitali and in all fairness, Pier Luigi had been invisible throughout. He always had the posture of a bird that fell out of the nest too soon and visibly lacking someone to pair up with in front, it seemed as if on top of that some bully had clipped his wings. But whilst some claim revenge is a dish best served cold, Vitali proved that it had its charm when lukewarm as well.

With some guys switching jerseys, the second half kicked off. We were on the same side now and upon the first occasion, Vitali dropped back for possession so clearly, I could not but pass it to him. With that unreadable expression of his on his face, he loitered towards the left wing, searching out Moreschini. The next five seconds were mayhem: a clean nutmeg, a frustrated Lorenzo lashing out with his right foot, Pier Luigi narrowly escaping it before dribbling his opponent [in hindsight, you probably can debate who was his greatest adversary in that situation, but that as an aside] once more. As it goes with youngsters, there was laughter, some high fives and the game even got stopped for a second to praise the dribbler and heckle the receiving end.

Lorenzo was fuming.

And as such, the silent covenant made with the coach broke down. He had shared us some info on Vitali and… ehm… His situation, giving us our instructions on how to handle it. But that stupid, slightly petty nutmeg opened up the floodgates. In the showers afterwards, Moreschini tipped over the open shampoo bottle from Pier Luigi. I was not really surprised that Galli immediately chimed in, kicking it to the other end of the stalls amidst some clucking laughter.

But I didn’t react.

It haunted me all night, the next morning and even during the Xanneria game. For the casual outsider, there was nothing to worry about for the Young Swordfishes. The game flowed so perfectly for us that it nearly followed the coaches notes. Xanneria, under pressure after their opening defeat, played a highly aggressive and attacking brand of football which left them vulnerable in the back. It must be said that Walter, the silent stronghold of our team, had his work with a Brodridge header and a Bryse screamer, but once we got in front, the game got easier. They took risks and gave me sufficient space to add two more to my goal tally whilst Sgarbi had opened up the account of the evening. We played with the confidence of a winner, with the defensive line holding back the desperate attempts from the collegiate All-Stars to avoid an early departure. And Pier Luigi did his thing. His direct opponent, a Clyde Pierce, must have had a nightmare.

With ten minutes left and the victory in the bag, Vitali dribbled him once more and visibly fed up with his antics, Pierce brought out the cleaver and down the striker – just inside the box. Ahead of the game, the manager had given me the rights to the penalty. With my goalscoring numbers running up, I might make a case for the Golden Boot and Siboni identified any silverware to bring home as an opportunity. In a split second, it came to me.

Why not show Pier Luigi my support like this? I might not be the one to speak up across a whole dressing room, especially against some of the ring leaders, but this proverbial shoulder pat could turn things around. As the referee handed me the ball, I quickly walked over to Vitali and offered it him.

“Here, Pier Luigi, you deserve a goal. Go get him!”
“I… I rather not, Denis.”

I assumed it was just modesty, maybe even some fear for Siboni who might not understand my reasons, but I insisted.

“You got the penalty, you can take it.”
“Yeah, com’on, kick it,” Lorenzo added in, grabbing the ball and pushing it in his hands.

If that didn’t have me worried enough, the squealed ‘please’ from Vitali and the harsh, ‘what are you, a crybaby? Kick it, I say’ from Lorenzo ensured my stomach to get twisted. But it was too late.

There are various brands of missed penalties. There’s the rocket, when the taker chose power over proficiency. That’s far more painful than the save, where the goalie opted for the right side and happened to get his glove on it, but slightly better than the botched trickshot – a Panenka gone wrong or a clever push to the corner foreseen. If you really messed up, you could even end up in the subcategory of that one, the youtube solicitation, a corner in that universe held for those who tried to do something strange with their run-up.

But to my personal belief, there is still a worse category. The caught one.

Pier Luigi Vitali hit it poorly, just a bit off center and as Evan Hall was lying there, holding the ball like a fresh-born baby, even he was surprised. Goalies are trained to deflect penalties, not to grab hold of them.

My eyes crossed, first with the smug smile from Moreschini and quickly after with the tormented ones from Pier Luigi. The latter only for a tenth of a second, before he looked back to the ground. I felt like an utter wanker and it did not get better after the game.

“Haha, Pumpy, how did you knew that Vitali never scores a penalty? That’s like a club secret cause they want to drive up his price but he is always a deer in headlights when that happens. Cracking prank, Pumpy, and that for the whole world,” Moreschini grinned.

Only a while after, the irony of the fact that that happened after a Xanneria game struck me, but I had never felt so marooned in a dressing room. Yet, I could probably only fathom a percent of how that feeling pressed down Pier Luigi.

by **Sarzonia** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 7:28 am

It didn't matter who Sarzonian Under 21 national team manager Diego Cristobal started in goal against Kohnhead.

It almost didn't matter who played at all. The Junior Stars and The Moderately Sized Brains got into an offensive slugfest and Sarzonia came away the winner to the tune of a 6-3 victory that elevated Sarzonia to first place in Group A by virtue of either total goals scored (Sarzonia's eight goals lead the group) or goal differential at plus-three. They are level with Chromatika, whom the Junior Stars played to a 2-2 draw on the first matchday.

Glen Baker was back on the pitch after his ignominious benching during Matchday 1. He wasn't exactly stellar within the woodwork, but then again, no defensive player on the pitch was. The Junior Stars had a 5-1 lead at the half and two quick goals by Kohnhead only gave the Moderately Sized Brains the illusory feel of being back in the match before substitute forward Nick Raiden slammed that door shut once and for all with his 78th minute tally.

As Cristobal took stock of where his team was, he could easily point to an offence that has averaged four goals per match and completely slaughtered opposing defences in the last three halves of offensive football. He could point to a shaky defence that he was sure to be confronted with by Incorporated Football Federation chairman Zack Wilson once he put away his footballing cleats in favour of board room wingtips. Zack Wilson was busy at the moment preparing for a championship final of his own, as the Sarzonian over 35 national team was preparing to face Kriegiersien in the finals of the World Cup of Masters.

Small favours Cristobal thought as he saw that Sarzonia had just hung four goals on Rangers FC in their semifinal of that tournament. The Senior Stars won the inaugural title, destroying Kriegiersien by that same scoreline even though they were the higher-seeded team. Now, they were facing each other, again with Kriegiersien as the higher seed, but again in the confines of Dave Wilson Stadium in Woodstock, which would soon add the second WCoM final to its finally growing list of important matches it was hosting. The stadium was home to the third place playoff of World Cup 57, after which Sarzonia entered its latest extended period of isolation. Recently, it hosted a semifinal in AOCAF LXII. And now it was adding its second WCoM final.

Cristobal said he expected his team to tighten up defensively in the event the Junior Stars beat or draw HUElavia to advance to the knockout rounds, adding that most teams did so in the knockout rounds.

"There's no room for error once you qualify for a knockout round match. You can survive a poor group stage match for the most part, but if you don't play to your best form in the knockout rounds, you're going home."

by **Hispinas** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 9:38 am

Royal Hispinas Football Federation (FRHF) Headquarters
Mandrid, Hispinas

In the boardroom of the Royal Hispinas Football Federation (FRHF), various board members of the federation as well as different representatives of Provincial football associations, discussed about the inception of Hispinas' first fully professional sports league. Football tournaments were self-organized by various associations prior to the formation of the FRHF two years ago. With the federation scouring for talents for their national teams, it was in their pipeline on how to establish the football competitions. They also learned about the international competitions in the multiverse that most nations participate in, such as IFCF, and the Rushmori Copa de Campeones (CdC) competition.

The doors to the boardroom opened when their last expected guest appeared. "Hola."

"Oh, the reverent himself, Iago Escobar. How's your trip to Valanora?" Manolito Padron, head of the sporting committee commissioned by the King Marco Juan XXII himself, warmly greeted the journeyman who returned from Valanora where the Under-21 team is competing.

"I could say the weather there is well, but performance of the team, no." Iago expressed his frustration on the team's shellacking at the hands of Tikariot, which derailed their quest of making the round of 16. "I have arrived for more pressing matters, si?"

"Yes, it is to establish the La Liga Hispina, the first professional league here in the country." Reyna Palencia, president of the FRHF, interjected. "Have your precious seat beside mine, hijo."

"If it isn't the pretty one, hija?" Iago kissed the cheek of the president as he made his way to his seat. "Now then, what are the plans we have now?"

"Sir Iago, currently the football competitions are being done by groups, and the provincial FAs have sent delegations for their yearly competitions. There are some football clubs founded over the past five years, actually three of them, one from Cebuenas, one from the capital Mandrid, and another from Vallez..." One of the board members was interrupted by a representative from the Basko de Gama FA (BGFE) before she can finish her statement.

"It's Haranurdina. The Atletikoa Haranurdina would like to represent Hispinas in the IFCF competitions, if you may. We have a policy of fielding only players from Haranurdina, and the with the current rules of the inter-provincial championship, we should be good to be sent for international competitions." Unai Goldaracena (Luiaondo), representative of the BGFE in the meeting, who happens to be a board member of the said club as well.

"Well Mr. Goldaracena, you have a point. After all, IFCF allows only football clubs and not delegations of provincial associations. But see, only three do have a club license registered in the FRHF, and one of them is your club. But Royal Mandrid and FC Cebuenas would have something to say about it? The problem right now is that we need to have the professional league going, and with the setup we have right now, it would not be possible at the moment to organize one and send representatives to international club competitions." Iago made a rebuttal to stress the fact that they need more time for a completely professional league.

"What if we hold a short tournament to determine the first Hispinian representatives to the international competition? Have two groups of six, with the three clubs and nine provincial delegations, then if the winner of the competition is one of the three clubs then they can represent Hispinas in the Champions' League, and if the two other clubs make it in the semifinals then they will enter the Challengers' Cup. Of course the champions will also enter the Rushmori CdC if it is one of the three clubs."

"Sounds like a plan... but Iago, do you want to relax the rules for the championship in which a team can field players out of their hometowns??"

"Let's keep it strict for now. They can sign players once the the league is set. Provincial representatives, you should start preparing to find clubs to represent your provinces. Once we get at least five or seven more clubs, we will kickstart the league for next season. For now, we will be grouping the 12 teams per geographical location, meaning that this will be the groupings we will have - Group A will have delegations from the three Basko provinces, Castillo de Mandrid, Magdalena, and Mesetasur. The other ones will be delegates from Calanorte, Transnistria, San Felipe, Catarungia, Communitat Azucena, and finally San Guadalupe. Any thoughts or concerns?"

By this time, the representatives from Calanorte asked why their province was in the other group when Magdalena was nearer the east than them.

"Ah, I would anticipate that question from the Calanorte reps, simply, that is because I'd anticipate that Malklan will be the representative city and it is more accessible to the east rather than those in the west."

"Fair point, sir. Thanks!"

By this point, the rules and regulations for this season's Hispinas Inter-Province Championships will serve as a footstep in the road for professionalizing football in Hispinas.

by **Island of the Lost** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 11:23 am

ISLAND OF THE LOST - 4
Claudia O'Brien (6')
Marion Li (27', 49')
Bailey Hamilton (87')

MEGISTOS - 4
RW7 (43')
ST8 (55')
M69 (61')
LW9 (77')

"We are the Island of the Lost. We are scoundrels. We are liars. We are thieves. We are the scum of the earth. We have been sent here both for our own safety and for the safety of the world outside. This barrier protects the world from us, and us from the world. This is our home. This is where we will stay for the rest of our lives."

It’s easy to forget that it’s not only humans who live in the Island of the Lost. There are also goblins, elves, dwarves, trolls, dragons, orcs, and other fantasy creatures who have been living on this island even before the Lost were banished here, but you wouldn’t know that just by looking at us. We goblins are used to being forgotten about. That had just been our lot in life, a sad and unfortunate fact of life. There have been efforts to change this though, one of those being allowing goblins to compete in the same sports and play for the same teams that humans did. There were many goblins who had played football in the League of the Lost, but without a doubt the best one among them, and the one young goblins like me looked up to, was Richard Robson. He could do things with a football everyone else could barely even imagine, and he brought excitement and energy to Ratcliffe Town. He really should have won more championships than the two titles he ended up with before hanging up his boots, but since he was a goblin, many teams were reluctant to sign him even though he was clearly one of the most talented players of his generation, if not the most talented. For all the talk of goblins and humans living together in peace and harmony, the humans weren’t as keen on seeing their stars getting outclassed by a goblin.

Only Port Maleficent had the balls to give Richard Robson a fighting chance of winning the League of the Lost, and even when he finally lifted the trophy with the Magic, both he and the team were still faced with much criticism. This criticism got very heated whenever Robson got himself sent off because of other teams kicking him around and generally getting him riled up, a tactic that sadly worked to their advantage more times than not. Nevertheless, Richard Robson remains one of the most influential goblins on the Island because of his efforts in breaking down the barriers between goblins and humans and because both races looked up to him as one of the best footballers the Island had managed to produce. But everyone admits that there is still a very long way to go before goblinkind and humanity can truly coexist without any hatred and prejudice.

And where I did I come into all this? Simple: the first time the Island of the Lost took part in a sporting competition in this new world we now found ourselves, the Football Federation of the Lost had selected only humans for the team that would go to Valanora. Three years later and the Football Federation of the Lost either remembered or were told that they were supposed to be playing their part in promoting the inclusion of goblinkind and our fellows into Lost society, and it was for that reason that I had been selected to become the first goblin to represent the Island of the Lost in our second outing in the Under-21 World Cup. Of course I was honored to have been chosen; who wouldn’t? I was going to be the first goblin to wear the amber and black uniform that had now become associated with the Island of the Lost itself, and because of that I was about to become the face of goblinkind in a sport that the humans followed religiously.

But there were those who saw my inclusion into my team in a different light. My goblin friends, the ones who weren’t that into football and were more busy raising awareness for goblin rights and goblin lives, warned me that I was being set up to fail with the national team. The Football Federation actually didn’t want to put a goblin or any other fantasy race in the team going to Valanora; they only added me to the 23-man roster to make the point that a goblin couldn’t possibly give the Island of the Lost a good name. Goblins weren’t known to be particularly violent, but Richard Robson’s less than stellar disciplinary record (often brought about by other teams successfully getting a rise out of him) definitely served to add hotheadedness to the public’s perception of a football-playing goblin. My friends were telling me that the Football Federation hoped; no, wanted me to follow in Robson’s footsteps in terms of being quick to lash out so that they would have a reason not to name any more goblins to future national teams.

If it was any other goblin player then the entire concept of the federation setting them up to fail might have been considered laughable by some. But if it was true, then they couldn’t have possibly picked a better player to set up. I hate to admit it, but it’s gotta be done. I’m a hothead too. I see red almost all the time. I know I’ve got to control myself and stop lashing out because it’s only going to give the doubters and the haters fuel to keep goblinkind down, but sometimes I really just can’t help myself.

So far though, I hadn’t had to watch out for players or teams trying to wind me up. The players taking part in the Under-21 World Cup appeared to be professionals, meaning they played the game the way it was meant to be played, and didn’t see the need to do anything else. None of them appeared to mind that I was a goblin, and they treated me just like I was another player. Which was all right by me, but I could definitely imagine some angry humans back home who couldn’t believe that the other nations’ players were not following their plan of making the goblin look bad.

And with the score at 4-3 and only a few minutes remaining to play, I was to be given the chance to absolutely flip the script and turn myself into a hero of the Lost. The team had been firing off shot after shot at the Megistian goalkeeper, but the goalkeeper remained firm and unbreachable, at least as unbreachable as someone who had conceded three goals already in the game could be. Ralph Hancock, the substitute on for Marion Li, lined up yet another crack at goal, but it was a simple parry for G13. Or at least it appeared to be a simple parry, but something must have gone wrong, because instead of G13’s parry resulting in an equally simple clearance from the Megistos defender, the ball somehow managed to find its way to my feet. G13 was down on the ground, still trying to get back up to prepare for the next attempt on their goal. I knew what I needed to do. I struck the ball as hard as I could, and then I watched as the ball spun in the air, seemingly heading straight into the stands, and then it turned right and slipped into the back of the net just underneath the bar. G13’s attempted reach was futile in the end. The point that we got from the draw with Megistos would turn out to be enough to put the Island of the Lost in first place in Group H, giving us a good chance to advance to the next round with a win against Darmen.

Try keeping goblins out of the national team now!

~ Bailey Hamilton

"We are the Island of the Lost. We are sons, we are daughters, we are brothers, we are sisters. We are fathers and we are mothers. We will fight for what we have and for what others have. We are the Lost. We were here before and we will still be here after. We will fight for what is ours because it is our right to fight for it, and we will fight for others because it is their right to be fought for."

by **Mytanija** » Mon Dec 07, 2020 3:09 pm

STEVAN UGALJAK’S SCOUTING REPORT: DAMIEN GANNOT

by Stevan Ugaljak

My weekly column today focuses on the 19 year old Atletik Thessia and Mytanar under-21 attacker Damien Gannot after his two excellent performances in the Di Bradini Cup group stage. The youngster has been tipped to follow in the footsteps of his father – the Atletik and Sicoutimont legend Alex Gannot – for a long time, but his five goals in the opening two games of this tournament mean that his undoubted potential may be realised sooner rather than later. It also explains why the FSM have been so keen to get Gannot into the Mytanar national team set-up, lest he declare for Sicoutimont and end up representing his father’s homeland instead. For what it is worth I have been told that Damien has always been pretty certain about wanting to represent Mytanija should he get the opportunity and with performances like these there’s no reason to believe he won’t pull on the famous hooped shirt for the senior national team eventually.

..........Damien Gannot wears the number 18 shirt for Atletik Thessia
..........D. Gannot vs. Wapistan: 2 goals in 19+3’
..........D. Gannot vs. Valladares: 3 goals in 90+2’

As a former scout for several Top League clubs there was always little things we would look for, besides wanting to see evidence of technical and physical capabilities. This would often entail watching players when they are out of possession and monitoring their actions. I would look at their movement to see if they were trying to find space and to what degree they were checking the space around them. Top players are constantly looking around, trying to see where their opponents are in relation to them and this allows them to compute the optimal place to receive the ball much quicker than other players. This allows them more time when it does finally reach them, the very best players will still be checking around them even when the ball is on the way to their feet – they’re confident enough in their ability to know they can control it when it reaches them and they will be looking to find the next pass, or to see which way they need to dribble to evade an opponent.

Damien Gannot is excellent at this, his reading of the game is very strong for such a young player and he is constantly aware of the space around him when he’s on the pitch. It probably helps that he has had Jasno Odonelec to learn from for the past couple of seasons at Atletik because Jasno is another who is really good at this (and the addition of Jezdimir Ocokoljic will only further improve his off-the-ball movement too, Jezdimir is possibly the best Mytanar player with regard to finding space and what a player for Damien to learn from).

The other great thing about Gannot is that he’s another one of these hybrid forwards that Mytanar academies have been producing a glut of in recent years, somewhere between an old fashioned number ten and a number nine. Many are as comfortable playing in an attacking midfield role as they are being a lone striker and this means that they tend to boast better feet and are more comfortable in those tight spaces than a traditional striker, but are much better at finishing than your standard number ten. Gannot seems to be one of the better examples of this type of player coming off the production line (Jezdimir Ocokoljic being the outstanding example but there’s also Dejan Zgela doing well at CDSA). It’s an invaluable tool to have for managers, with the added versatility meaning you can often cover two positions in one and it will hopefully give Gannot every chance of breaking into what is now an absolutely stacked Atletik team at some point in the – hopefully none too distant – future.

In the first game of the tournament – against Wapistan – Gannot entered the fray with Mytanija 4-1 up and generally cruising in a game which was a little bit of a mismatch in truth. Gannot came on for Lazar Prinelec, another fine prospect in his own right, in one of the two forward positions in the 4-3-1-2 formation that Adem Fejzic is using as his team’s base formation in this tournament. The introduction of Gannot proved to be a bit of a masterstroke as his cameo led to an excellent brace in 22 minutes of play, allowing Mytanija to stretch the lead to 6-1 before Wapistan got a late consolation after the Mytanar defence fell asleep a little in injury time.

Gannot’s movement caused the Wapistan defence all sorts of issues, their tired legs unable to track him and his desire to find space resulting in two well taken goals. For his first he received the ball from the right-back Zvonko Nestorovski in the inside-right channel and having already made all the necessary observations knew he had time to turn and run at the Wapistan defenders. This caused panic as they backed off and he played a quick ball inside to Maks Shishkin who played a lovely wall-pass back through to Gannot who had continued his run and the Atletik forward delicately chipped the ball over the oncoming goalkeeper. It was a fine finish and his second was similarly well taken. This time he gambled on the ball arriving to him – an intangible instinct good strikers seem to have – as Patrik Odonelec brought the ball forward down the left. At first he ran towards the near post, giving the Wapistan defence the impression he’d look to meet a cross there, but then he checked his run and headed towards the space left at the back post. Patrik Odonelec’s floated cross evaded the melee of Wapistan defenders at the near post and there was Gannot to volley home with ease.

For the second group game against fellow Rushmori nation Valladares Adem Fejzic decided to start Gannot alongside Lazar Prinelec, the formation was the 4-3-1-2 when out of possession but Gannot had been instructed to drop deep whenever the Hoops had the ball (something which would be evident from a touch map; we’re working on a deal with a Græntfjaller firm to include that type of statistical analysis in future reports – ed.). This was designed to try and move the Valladar defence around, their team were set out in a 4-3-1-2 of their own and this meant that the formations were more or less man-for-man in terms of their positioning. Fejzic wanted to try and draw the Valladar defenders out of position to create space, particularly in the centre of the pitch both in front of and behind the Valladar defensive line. Gannot was crucial in carrying out these tactical instructions and plundered three goals as a result.

Fejzic’s team played very high up the field and this penned Valladares deep within their own half, their three central midfielders operating just in front of the four-man defensive line at times. Mytanija’s own central midfield trio were tasked with picking passes towards Shishkin and Gannot who were operating between these two Valladar lines, with Lazar Prinelec running in behind into the space vacated by a central defender following Gannot’s clever movement. It must be said that both Mytanar full-backs, Patrik Odonelec and Zvonko Nestorovski, were excellent too as they constantly provided the width in the formation – stretching the play across the width of the pitch in the same way Gannot and Prinelec’s opposing movements were stretching it the length of the field.

It is telling that two of Gannot’s goals came from Prinelec assists, the Olympic Thessia forward’s movement into space usually being accompanied by the other centre-back – ie. the one which hadn’t decided to follow Gannot – leaving a big space in the centre of the Valladar goal as there was no one there to cover. Gannot’s first came from exactly this as he dropped into the space between the Valladar midfield and defence, closely followed by Danny Barrichelli. He received the ball with his back to goal from Mersudin Smajic before flicking it inside to Shishkin who hit a first time pass for Prinelec to run onto. Prinelec had run to the right of the Valladar goal, followed by their captain Mauricio Arboleda and he took one touch before hitting a deft back-heel into the centre of the Valladar penalty area which Gannot ran onto and smashed first time beyond Marlon Chacón.

Gannot’s second was a diving header from Patrik Odonelec’s fizzed cross, a goal made by two Atletik Thessia players who will surely combine in the same manner many times in the future. It displayed bravery on Gannot’s part and again that desire to gamble, it was a fine goal. His third was similar to the first as he and Shishkin could be found between the lines once again, causing issues for William Alonso as he had two players to deal with. This time the Valladar defenders didn’t try to follow, but when Shishkin received the ball in space and Alonso moved to close him down this gave Gannot a lot of space around 20 metres out and Shishkin rolled the ball for him to curl one into the net and complete his hat-trick. Once again the movement caused issues, creating overloads and indecision among the Valladar players.

In short, Gannot’s big plus points are his movement and his excellent – highly instinctive – finishing ability. He creates space for himself with his awareness and he has a knack for clinical shooting which is likely inherited or perhaps learnt from his father. It is likely that he will be the Adem Fejzic’s preferred partner for Lazar Prinelec up front for the remainder of the DBC such is Gannot’s form. He also works well with the unselfish Prinelec because the Olympic forward is happy to do much of the donkey work in running ahead of Gannot, exploiting space in behind which is left when defenders try to follow Gannot’s movement. Gannot is not as strong as Mijat Simic in the defensive side of the game, his ability to know when to press needs development and that does put the onus more on Prinelec in that side of the game. It could leave Gannot out of the team against stronger opponents, but Fejzic showed huge trust in him against a strong Valladar team and his scoring ability perhaps outweighed the need for any defensive contributions from him.

He is a player I’m expecting big things from in the coming years and we may well see him as a like-for-like replacement for Jezdimir Ocokoljic in the senior national team in the future. Those are big shoes to fill but it is the nearest comparison for Gannot, many academies are trying to produce more players like Ocokoljic and Atletik do seem to have one on their hands here – albeit perhaps aided by Damien playing very much in the mould of his father. The issue for Damien Gannot with his club side could well be the fact that he has three fantastic players ahead of him in the pecking order at the moment. If he were to drop back into an attacking midfield role he’d be directly competing with Jasno Odonelec – a player who has become a guaranteed starter with the national team as long as he’s fit. Ahead of Odonelec Atletik can boast Zlatan Andrijasevic (16 goals in 30 games last term); and new signing from Crvena Zvezda Jezdimir Ocokoljic (23 goals in 30 games last term; 35 goals in 65 games for the Mytanar national team) in the two forward positions.

Damien’s clearly getting to the stage where he needs regular playing time in order to fulfil his undeniable potential – his performances in the DBC so far point to a fantastic young player who could blossom into a bona fide key contributor for the senior national team. He may not find the playing time he needs at Atletik, although he has been coming on off the bench for the last couple of seasons and it is difficult to see why this won’t continue over the next couple of years. He loves the club – after all his father is revered as a god by their supporters and he was brought up in that environment – so it may well be hard to make a decision to leave what he’s used to and either go out on loan or permanently move somewhere else in pursuit of increased game time, but it could well end up being a necessary move for the good of his career.

Naturally Atletik will want to keep him and if they end up selling any of Ocokoljic, Odonelec or Andrijasevic – it is expected there could be foreign suitors for all three once again in the future – then Gannot is a ready-made replacement. Given the ecosystem Mytanar football operates in, being a relatively small fish in a much bigger ocean, there is a need to produce talented players and move them on at some point so that these football clubs can thrive financially and support the other arms of the wider sports clubs they operate under (Atletik compete in all of Mytanija’s big five professional sports: football, volleyball, basketball, handball and ice hockey). We don’t live in a world where Atletik are one of the top attractions in international club football nowadays and the Top League doesn’t have four spots for the IFCF Champions’ Cup anymore, so it really is a case of ensuring the financial health of the club first and foremost by producing fine young talent, selling them and securing that future. Gannot could well be the next off the production line should any of those big names move on and the hope for both Gannot and Mytanija is that he gets rotated in and out of a good Atletik team so that he gets used to playing alongside better players (rather than going out to a struggling team on loan), getting the playing time he needs to reach the top level. Atletik are chasing titles though and they need to balance this with the production line approach, but on the basis of Gannot’s performances here at the DBC who would question that he couldn’t perform for Atletik and help them win trophies? I hope Atletik see the player they have on their hands and that he goes on to have a good career with the club he loves – as well as with the Mytanar national team of course.

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