Tumbran Domestic Football Newswire

by **Tumbra** » Mon Jan 25, 2021 8:49 am

Please do not post in this thread unless you are a mod or authorised to do so by Tumbra.

TUMBRAN DOMESTIC FOOTBALL NEWSWIRE
Run by the Tumbran Broadcasting Corporation, in association with the Couno Herald and others

The following thread serves as a compendium for all of football-related Tumbran news. For motorsports-related news, click on this linkto be brought to the Tumbran Motorsports Newswire. For all non sports-related news, click on this link to be brought to the Tumbran International Newswire.

Welcome to the Tumbran Domestic Football Newswire, the one-stop shop for all the latest news regarding Tumbran domestic football.
Links:
Association Football

[*]Season count begins from the first season in which teams were submitted to the IFCF.

S      Premier Division Winner   Republic Cup Winner        Golden Boot                      Player of the Year
1      Lakewood City             Serrapince FC              Daniel Galbraith (STR) - 26      Robin Vaughn (LCI)
2      Lakewood City (2)         FC Inter Nantwich          Vázsony Sallay (STR) - 36        Vázsony Sallay (STR)
3      Serrapince FC             Clyde Park                 Robin Vaughn (LCI) - 28          Hermaeus Mora (SFC)
4      Lakewood City (3)         FC Inter Nantwich (2)      Robin Vaughn (LCI) - 29          Robin Vaughn (LCI)
5      Serrapince FC (2)         Lakewood United            Nick Riordan (SFC) - 22          Hermaeus Mora (SFC)
6      FC Inter Nantwich         FC Inter Nantwich (3)      Bruce Nolan (COU) - 22           Aventurine Kolar (FIN)
7      Couno Rangers             Couno Rangers              Vázsony Sallay (SFC) - 25        Bruce Nolan (COU)
8      Serrapince FC (3)         Lakewood United (2)        Vasya Reisinger (WCU) - 25       Vasya Reisinger (WCU)
9      Lakewood City (4)         Lakewood United (3)        Bruce Nolan (COU) - 24           Robin Vaughn (LCI)
10     Lakewood United           Colbrook City              Charlotte Henshaw (LCI) - 25     Charlotte Henshaw (LCI)
11     West Couno United         Couno Rangers (2)          3 players - 17                   Vasya Reisinger (WCU)
12     Lakewood United (2)       Couno Rangers (3)          Jôs Sürréo (LUN) - 21            Jôs Sürréo (LUN)
13     Lakewood United (3)       Newark Argyle              Jôs Sürréo (LUN) - 20            Jôs Sürréo (LUN)
14     Lakewood City (5)         Lakewood City              Charlotte Henshaw (LCI) - 16     Charlotte Henshaw (LCI)

Cricket (Twenty20)

[*]Season count begins from the first season in which teams were submitted to the CLT20.

S       Grand Finals Champion   League Season Winner
1       Hesham                  Kingsbury
2       Hesham	                Hesham
3       Kingsbury               Kingsbury

Cricket (List A)

[*]Season count begins from the first season in which teams were submitted to the CLT20. As no teams were submitted to the LASL in Season 1, 
there is no List A Season 1; the numbering starts from 2 to synchronise with T20 cricket.

S       Grand Finals Champion   League Season Winner
2       Georgia                 Thornton
3       Georgia                 Lormark

Ice Hockey

[*]Season count begins from the first season in which teams were submitted to the HCL.

S       Stanhope Trophy Champion   Regular Season Winner
1       Teignford Thistles         Franport Blizzards
2       Ridgewell Bears            Ridgewell Eagles
3       Millsburgh Mercenaries     Franport Blizzards

by **Tumbra** » Mon Jan 25, 2021 9:16 am

reserved

by **Tumbra** » Mon Jan 25, 2021 11:05 am

THE TUMBRAN NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM
The Black Eagles

The Tumbran National Football Team is Tumbra's main representative in all association football competitions for national associations. Making its debut at the 87th World Cup Qualifiers, the team currently ranks 30th in the world. The team is controlled by the Tumbran Football Federation, which is also the governing body of football in Tumbra. Also known as the Black Eagles, or affectionately the Eagles, the team competes in the World Cup and its related competitions.

Fans name: The Black Army

The Kits, of Kirola of Audioslavia

TEAM RECORDS
OVERALL RECORD: 154-56-56 (266 competitive matches played)
FIRST MATCH: Tumbra 2-3 Pasarga (World Cup 87 Qualifying)
FIRST WIN: Tumbra 3-0 Regmotto (World Cup 87 Qualifying)
BIGGEST WIN: Quakmybush 0-6 Tumbra (World Cup 90 Qualifying)
BIGGEST LOSS: Valladares 4-0 Tumbra (World Cup 87 Qualifying), South Newlandia 4-0 Tumbra (World Cup 87 Qualifying)

Number of Players to have earned at least 1 Cap: 168
Most Caps: Vincent Hicks (211)
Most Goals: Nick Riordan (82)

A SHORT LIST OF MATCHES OF GREAT IMPORTANCE TO THE AVERAGE BLACK EAGLES FAN

SENIOR TEAM

5. Tumbra 1-0 Hampton Island, World Cup 87 qualifying, Matchday 5
So renowned for the fact that Tumbra, then-unranked and some three hundred ranks below their opponents, managed to hold on and secure a first famous victory for Tumbra's fledgling national team. Also renowned for the only time Tumbra have played five defenders in a national team game, so far.

10. Pasarga 0-0 Tumbra, World Cup 87 qualifying, Matchday 10
It wasn't a victory, but this match proved that Tumbra could hold its own against some of the biggest nations in world football. Also widely regarded as Louis Addison's best performance in the green goalkeeper's jersey.

35. Tumbra 3-2 Kelssek, World Cup 88 qualifying, Matchday 2
A lot of these matches will be giant-killing ones, and for good reason. Kelssek were top seeds; Tumbra were unfancied sixth seeds. In the end, set amongst the backdrop of protestors campaigning for gender equality in the TFF, this victory would see Tumbra clamber their way to the top of their heavily contested qualifying group.

51. Gyatso-kai 1-3 Tumbra, World Cup 88 qualifying, Matchday 18
Tumbra required a win to overtake a Drawkland side that had been weakened severely over the past few cycles; and duly delivered. Yet the Black Army's hearts were collectively broken when Drawkland got the required score against Kandorith to go on and qualify for the playoffs. Yet the Black Eagles, for the first time, were in the chase for qualification till the final day for the very first time; and they wouldn't forget this experience when they returned next cycle.

75. Tumbra 2-0 Squornshelan Remnant States, World Cup 89 qualifying, Matchday 13
Less on here for a commemoration for the actual match itself than a representation of the blistering form the team went through en route to finishing second in their qualification group, Yuan Zilai's defense-oriented, cautious counterattacking approach was on full display here en route to yet another giant-killing game in the toughest qualification group that cycle.

82. Quebec & Shingoryeo 1-2 Tumbra, World Cup 89 playoffs
The second leg was remembered more for Quebec's manager George Wangolo being fired halfway through the match, and the fan riots afterwards; but for travelling supporters of the Tumbran NT and for all those watching at home, this match was remembered more for securing Tumbra's first ever World Cup appearance.

87. Tumbra 2-0 Omerica, World Cup 89 finals
Unfancied and the second lowest team to attend the competition, not many were expecting much from the fourth seeds; but a resounding, dominant victory from Tumbra in their first ever World Cup game would prove to be the first step in escaping a group containing the hosts Tikariot, the one-time IAC champions Omerica and the one-time World Cup champions Pasarga.

114. Quakmybush 0-6 Tumbra, World Cup 90 qualifying
In the group widely considered to be the toughest in the entire World Cup 90 cycle — containing storied teams like five-time world champions Starblaydia, Independent Associations Championship winner and budding rival Adab, and the ever-unlucky but always-scary Flavovespia, the 6-0 win away from home would cap a seven-game winning streak to begin the 90th World Cup qualifiers, and stand as the only team to have won seven from seven up to that point.

149. Tumbra 3-2 Baker Park, Eagles' Cup 13
The Eagles' Club is one of the sporting world's most exclusive clubs; to gain membership, nations must go through a brutal gauntlet of teams to stake their place in the Club. Yet, Tumbra managed to do it, on the second time of asking; giving them the right to build a stadium of the same name. That stadium would later be revealed to be the new, modern home of the Tumbran National Team squad, giving the aging old National Stadium a much-needed makeover.

181. The Holy Empire 1-1 Tumbra (1-1 AET; Tumbra wins 4-2 on penalties), World Cup 91
Writeup to come soon

JUNIOR TEAMS

Tequilo 2-3 Tumbra (aet), U18 World Cup 13 Quarter Final
A wholly average run to the quarterfinals saw Tumbra matched up against rising stars Tequilo, but a combination of mettle and guile from Tumbra's first ever mixed-sex squad, along with a burgeoning partnership from defender Stephen Kerr and midfielder Trudy Harrison, would see Tumbra advance in extra time.

Oberour ar Moro 2-3 Tumbra, U18 World Cup 13 Final
It wouldn't be a senior title that would be the first ever to occupy a place in Tumbra's trophy cabinet; but rather the U18WC trophy, which landed on Tumbra's side following a nervy performance which saw a last-minute goal seal the title for the team. It was a game that would jumpstart the careers of the entire squad; but particularly Trudy Harrison's and the rest of the female players who made the long trip to Zeta Reka, and was a direct catalyst for gender equality in the league.

Adab 0-0 Tumbra (0-0 aet, 4-5 pens), Di Bradini Cup 51 Final
One year on from their triumph in Zeta Reka, the core of the squad that went there and won the U18WC would journey to Starblaydia and Valanora in an expanded DBC; a nervy path to the finals was set amidst the backdrop of a transfer saga with Stephen Kerr at its heart; but all that was resolved, and Tumbra picked up the Di Bradini Cup at the second time of asking.

The complete list of competitions attended by the Black Eagles are below.

by **Tumbra** » Wed Jan 27, 2021 9:13 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
PREVIEW, PART ONE - THE BIG SIX

Key: GK - Goalkeeper, DF - Defender, MF - Midfielder, WG - Winger, ST - Striker

Lakewood United
Previous Season: 1st
Manager: John Riedweld
Squad:
GK - Louis Addison (29)
DF - Johnny Brown (32) (c), Nigel Harris (24), John Byrne (27), Charles Allams (26), Neil Crozier (18)
MF - Adam Herlinger (30), Sean Cushing (27), Nicky Atkinson (21), Adrian Hewitt (19), George Litchman (34)
WG - Todd Symes (31), Alex Kristensen (23), Shoaib Saeed (27)
ST - Philip Cohen (25), Barry Allen (26)

For those looking for success, Lakewood United is the team to support. Winner of the largest number of league titles and Republic Cups in history, Lakewood United boast the strongest team in the league, though recent mishaps with money have led to the quality of their squad declining a bit. Still far and away the biggest team in Tumbra, the team contests the Lakewood Derby with neighbours Lakewood City, and is one of two parties in the Tumbran Classic, along with noted rivals Couno Rangers.

Lakewood United is renowned for their attacking style, which suits them as necessary. They aren't immune, however, to sitting back and counter attacking if the need rises. Club captain and legend Johnny Brown is key to their efforts at the back, along with Tumbran N.1 Louis Addison, while creative presence and pure n.10 Adam Herlinger looks set to renew his partnership with mercurial goalscorer Philip Cohen which saw them win the title last season.

Lakewood City
Previous Season: 2nd
Manager: Mark van der Brumen
Squad:
GK - John Lennon (30)
DF - Ian Ashburn (21), Ryan Hughes (26), Louis Paterson (24) (c), Chris Carter (21), Tom Lawrence (20)
MF - Robert Powell (31), Theodore Houghton (33), Phil Cole (21), Patrick Butler (28)
WG - Robin Vaughn (26), Mike Coonan (23), Jack Reed (19)
ST - James Anderson (26), Jake Torrance (30)

Lakewood City have been one of the success stories of the 2010s, with former player Mark van der Brumen taking charge of the club immediately after his retirement in 2009. The former midfielder is renowned now for his positional play, heavy emphasis on passing and fludity, though the team now is going through a bit of a transition following the departure of key defenders two seasons prior. The resulting defensive leaky-ness resulted in the club losing the title to local rivals Lakewood United, but the team looks set to challenge for yet another title.

The team has a fierce local rivalry with Lakewood United, being the other half of the Lakewood Derby. Due to their success only coming recently they have been slated by the other teams in the Big Six as not having as much history, but as any City fan will tumble over themselves to tell you - they've won the League before 2009, four times to boot. This mindset has also led to some form of rivalry with the other Big Six clubs.

Couno Rangers
Previous Season: 3rd
Manager: vacant
Squad:
GK - Andrew Taylor (23)
DF - Drew Quinn (30) (c), Joel Tyler (23), Tom Wilson (25), Kenneth Dowd (31), Welar-Ovolk Gep (QUS, 17)
MF - Alan Curran (27), Nicholas Fischer (30) (c), Bill Bowen (23) Brian Anderson (25), Pertz-Evela Vet (QUS, 17)
WG - Francis Evers (23), Alexander Anderson (24), Simon Cole (23)
ST - Marcus Sheldon (29), Bruce Nolan (19)

The team that won the first ever Football League, Couno Rangers, are back at it again. Currently on a twenty-year league drought, supporters of this team have been used to saying "Next year's our year" when they inevitably mess up and finish second or third after a bad run of form in February. With the retirement of old manager Jon Curran, the team is also manager-less going into the new season, the only Big Six team to do so.

The squad, however, despite being one of the deepest (and having signed two Qusmans over the summer as development prospects), also has not many players of note. The only player to be called up for the World Cup 87 qualifiers cycle, Bruce Nolan, was only called up because starting striker Marcus Sheldon was injured. Sheldon, their talismanic striker, is returning from a bad knee injury, and at the age of 29, is looking to re-start his firing streak.

The Rangers (or the Rams, as their logo has one) have one of the deepest histories in Tumbran football, and their storied past, including 18 League titles, is truly one to behold. Their fans, who are one of the most passionate fanbases in Tumbran football - perhaps only rivalled by the Millsburgh teams - pack the stadium to full capacity, match after match, singing praises of their team, whether good or bad. They form the other half of the Tumbran Classic, and contest the Couno Derby with city rivals West Couno United, but in practice the Rams win every time.

Serrapince FC
Previous season: 7th
Manager: Colin Blakeley
Squad:
GK - David Gough (34) (c)
DF - Mike Parker (31), Keith Giblin (27), Gary Lewis (24), David Walliams (27), Bob Trimble (20)
MF - Craig McGrath (24), Frank Thornton (30), Oliver Proctor (26), John Cameron (27)
WG - George Hilton (22), Ally McColl (28), Robert Goldstein (26)
ST - Tom O'Driscoll (28), Nick Riordan (18)

The Black and Gold (or, as they prefer, the Bees) of Serrapince FC continue to prove a formidable threat to the top three sides of the Premier Division. The only club from Serrapince - as a result of major predatory tactics in the 1960s that saw it outmuscle every other club - the team has an extremely strong emphasis on youth development. The only problem is that a majority of the first team squad are in their prime or nearly past it, and the newest crop of youth recruits have not been the strongest, with many having gone down the divisions to seek their fortunes elsewhere. The club, never really used to operating on the same budget as the two Lakewood clubs and the Couno Rangers, now seems like it's on the brink of dropping out of the Big Six - and it did last season, when Fraser Valley stole 6th from them on the last matchday of the season.

Colin Blakeley, the experienced manager of the team, has since declared that this will be his last season with the team. With Serrapince FC on the verge of a generational change, will they be able to hold it together for the season?

FC Inter Nantwich
Previous season: 4th
Manager: Steve Krajewski
Squad:
GK - Nick Barker (23)
DF - Tony Baldwin (24), Douglas Moore (24), John Bryant (30), Philip Gonzales (21), Donald Blather (19)
MF - Andrew Fisher (21), John Bush (25), Tom Stansfield (26), Peter Gaffney (30)
WG - Gordon Jennings (25), Kai Sinclair (30) (c), Richard Baker (19)
ST - Jonathan Ford (30), Toby Sinclair (29)

FC Inter Nantwich are on the opposite path of Serrapince - back on the up and up...if you believe their manager. Krajewski, first appointed in 2016 after a stint at the national team, has been the point of complete trust from the club's rich owners...but five years have passed and the team have a solitary Republic Cup to show for it. Multiple signings have been flops, and the Deepblues are beginning to lose faith in this nefarious project word that Krajewski keeps throwing around. Will Krajewski survive the season playing his version of football?

On the sporting front, Andrew Fisher is one of the top young talents in Tumbra, and Philip Gonzales is renowned for his crosses, with a rumour of a callup coming soon. Richard Baker on the left wing is explosive and fluid, and this team are seemingly what Serrapince want to be, but can't achieve.

The team partakes in one of the fiercest rivalries - the Finnley Derby - against Clark City, the other top division team in Finnley.

Straton FC
Previous season: 5th
Manager: Ted Bayh
Squad:
GK - Graham Dodds (26)
DF - Jim Buchanan (27), Wayne Forrest (23), Michael Campbell (26), Mike Sheppard (23), Barry Hamilton (17)
MF - Leo Hooper (24), Michael Aitken (29), Ryan Morgan (23), Jon French (32)
WG - Jon Eagleton (24), Sam Watson (30), Paul Collins (23)
ST - Daniel Galbraith (34) (c), Ralf Vanstenkeeste (29)

The Capital's Representatives are an experienced squad looking to rebuild after their owner suddenly pulled back all funding in 2015, leading to the club becoming completely fan-owned in 2017 - a first for a Big Six football club. While talismanic striker Daniel Galbraith - six-time winner of the Best Player in Tumbra awardm and seemeingly the only player who kept bringing them into the top six every year - stayed for the reconstruction process, he's getting older and he knows it. Already expressing a desire to leave at the end of the season, manager Ted Bayh's job is to ensure a worthy successor for him. Pacy winger Paul Collins is a potential replacement, but he prefers to play on the wing, and Collins' temperament might lead to dressing room bust-ups.

The Senators (as they're so called) contest the Capital City Derby against the Straton Lions...but the Straton Lions are stuck in the third tier. Apart from that, and every other Big Six team, they have no renowned local rivalries.

Fraser Valley FC
Previous Season: 6th
Manager: Vulav-Wanar Tia (QUS)
Squad:
GK: Stuart Langford (29), Azeld-Kresp Tia (QUS, 18)
DF: Neal Diamond (26), Joe Cooper (31), Carlos Wolfe (25), Mark Ryton (24), Nexev-Kresp Val (QUS, 18),
MF: David Gunter (27), Nicholas Kinsella (24), Lucas Courtney (25), Jake Wilson (24), Pilta-Blonz Yol (QUS, 18)
WG: John Mann (23), Daniel Newman (26), Graham Cooper (23)
ST: James Herbert (28), Xilix Oxolt-Mal (QUS, 17)

Last season's surprise package Fraser Valley embark on a whole new course after losing their manager to the Tumbran NT, with the club inviting Qusmo manager Vulav-Wanar Tia to take over. An unknown quality, they are certainly one of the new forces to be dealt with, particularly after importing some youth Qusmo talent into the setup, with Xilix Oxolt-Mal set to take a starting role at the tender age of 17.

Only time will tell whether this bold new strategy will work out for the Denizens, with their owners floating a potential (and controversial) move into Serrapince that would see the team completely rebranded as the Serrapince Tigers. Opposition to this move has been gathering strength, while supporters of the move claim it will help the the Denizens increase their revenue and continue their project of aiming to break into the top 6.

Carter United
Previous Season: 8th
Manager: Steve Nicholls
Squad:
GK: Jason Law (33)
DF: Darren Webb (23), Ernest Sanders (30), Alex Hudson (32), David Murphy (26), Albert Legget (19)
MF: Jesse Jones (26), William Murray (28), Jack Oliver (24), Blake Oates (33)
WG: Chris Garcia (20), Thomas Munro (30), Carl Garner (27)
ST: John Bridges (32), Jaime Pugh (23)

One of the more recent Premiership entrants, Carter United were a second-tier side as recently as 2015, who then got promoted, finished 7th in their debut season, and have stayed at that level since. Perhaps central to this is the late bloomer of John Bridges, who played for fourth division minnows Cortlandt United as little as ten years ago.

Having gone through several managers, Steve Nicholls has finally brought some sense of stability to the team, and are looking to kick on from their 8th placed finish last term.

Hesham FC
Previous Season: 9th
Manager: William McKenzie
Squad:
GK: Dean Rowden (29)
DF: Michael Brewster (31), Roger Baker (24), Will Collins (28), Vic Nelson (24), Carl Norton (18)
MF: Vincent Hicks (21), Tony Leonard (28), Richard Driver (21), Mal Grace (27)
WG: Neville Mariott (23), Joe Bonner (20), Roy King (31)
ST: Martin Ramsay (31), Harry Frist (23)

The Green-Whites are one of the few teams in the division that play with three at the back, with Marriott and Bonner, both youth team graduates, playing in the wingback spots as converted wingers. Their unorthodox formation makes them kinda difficult to play against, though their strikers are not exactly the most clinical.

Despite this, the one-time league champions have solidified themselves as an upper-midtable side, and look to press on.

Columbia City
Previous Season: 10th
Manager: David Griffiths
Squad:
GK: Gerald Scicluna (36)
DF: William Herron (26), Raymond Perry (23), Harrison Lee (29), Peter Brown (32) (c), Michael Harman (20)
MF: Keenan Pollard (31), Drew Morton (26), Max Cohen (33), Mickey Lynch (21)
WG: Sean Delap (24), Lewis Pearce (31), Geoffrey Meecham (27)
ST: Frank Wilson (20), Tim Rowland (26)

A team recently on the brink of relegation, new manager David Griffiths has manage to stabilise the shaky side, allowing the Whites, led by new boy and local hero Frank Wilson up top to become a midfield team. Griffiths plays with a midfield diamond, leaving little to no wide midfield coverage, but Delap, Pearce and Meecham do come on occasionally when the team has obstacles in the middle.

by **Tumbra** » Thu Jan 28, 2021 1:43 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
PREVIEW, PART TWO - THE MIDFIELD TEAMS

Key: GK - Goalkeeper, DF - Defender, MF - Midfielder, WG - Winger, ST - Striker

Kingsbury United
Previous Season: 11th
Manager: Mark Pryor
Squad:
GK: Tom Sterling (27)
DF: Simon Hart (31), Harry Henderson (25), Thomas Krabb (20), Tristan Hale (30), Nathan Quinn (19)
MF: George Kramer (27), Matthew Noble (23), James Hunter (23), Mehki Overton (26)
WG: Dylan van Heirolf (21), Martin Gallagher (29), Max Mycroft (19)
ST: Gareth Roberts (23), Jim Hunter (29)

Kingsbury haven't had the best of years. Nine-time champions of Tumbra, after their last title in the 1991/1992 season financial mismanagement led to a relegation in 1997, and they stayed in the second tier until they returned to the top tier in 2012. Since then, they've struggled, more often than not finishing midfield, but there is hope that the defensive line of Simon Hart and Harry Henderson will provide some much-needed stability, while Dylan van Heirolf will provide the chops up front, with his unique style of play on the wing. Involving the concept of exploring space, United hope to re-enter the fray up top and retake glory that has so often eluded them for so long.

Ridgewell Rovers
Previous season: 12th
Manager: Desmond Clarke
Squad:
GK: Nigel Philipps (27)
DF: Sean McDonald (24),Frank Carter (26), Henry Butler (26), Dennis Paterson (31), John Rouse (18)
MF: Ian McConnell (26), Nic Roper (32), Javier Abad (30), Peter Johnson (30)
WG: Richard Allen (26), Scott Mason (27), David Weir (26)
ST: Geoff Smith (27), Gianluca Cardini (22)

The Boys from Ridgwell are well known for surviving relegation scraps by the skin of their teeth, but that reputation has somewhat dissipated as Des Clarke, since becoming manager in 2014, has brought some defensive nous to the team. Gianluca Cardini stands out as a versatile player who prefers playing off the striker, but can also slot in behind Geoff Smith, making the team a force to be reckoned with and capable of delivering shocks. The cold temperatures of their home state helps too, with Rovers the team taking the biggest number of points off the Big Six last season.

Readale Wanderers
Previous Season: 13th
Manager: Peter Harris
Squad:
GK: Alan Ward (30)
DF: Norm Watson (34), Craig Parker (22), Max Scott (25), Lyle Terry (26), Eric Snyder (20)
MF: Alan Morgan (23), Ben Williams (30), Martin Murphy (26), Chris Tipple (19)
WG: Matthew Anthony (32), Danny Sanders (25), John Triffin (28)
ST: Josh Cowan (31), Bob Deakin (27)

Readale find themselves in the unenviable situation of having to play John Triffin up top, due to both Josh Cowan and Bob Deakin having injuries that should see them out until Matchday 16 or sooner. Readale play in Gamaliel, and their name of the Wanderers fits, given that their state is also one of the least densely populated. For youth prospects, Chris Tipple should be able to break into the squad this season, but the extent of his impact is unknown.

West Couno United
Previous Season: 14th
Manager: Martin Costello
Squad:
GK: Mike Hancy (23)
DF: Dan Coats (32), Ben Morgan (22), Almar Hussein (20), Terrence Gardiner (31), George Steel (18)
MF: Bill Allison (22), Jon Holness (24), Bobby Boyle (27), Charlie Kennedy (30)
WG: Joe Anderson (25), James Forrest (30)
ST: Mike Vanderwelt (31), Dominic Clyne (23)

Couno's equivalent of the noisy neighbours, West Couno are home to the older football ground, the original Couno squad, and so on. So what happened? Couno Rangers split from West Couno United in 1906 over a dispute over their home ground. While the Rangers moved into what has become the Couno Port Stadium, West Couno stayed at Turner Park, and have...stagnated ever since. They have never been relegated, mind, and they have won three championships, but their overreliance on Jordan Hugill, who retired in 2016, as manager has left a team bereft of creativity. Twelve years of playing defensive football will do that to any team, but recent managerial upheaval does nobody any good either.

The team has no glaring weaknesses, with the possible exception of Mike Hancy. Once seen as a promising keeper, he now struggles with confidence issues and is often found lacking at the back. Up front, too, Mike Vanderwelt is often seen punting the ball into Row Z instead of finishing.

Clark City
Previous Season: 15th
Manager: Paul Hammond
Squad:
GK: James Clinton (22)
DF: Marcus Bradley (21), Patrick Sanders (25) , Daniel Grant (24), Bill Nelson (31), Charles Walsh (17)
MF: Oliver Gibbs (23), Chris Clark (28), Patrick Williams (29), Asa Anderson (19)
WG: Harry Hoskins (26), William Wight (36), David Clarkson (23)
ST: Jordan Johnson (28), Mohamed Ellis (29)

Finnley's second club - or so the derogatory nickname conferred upon them by Nantwich goes - are a club in transition. Most of the overpaid deadweight that got them into the top six a couple of times in the late 2000s and early 2010s, then kicked up a fuss when sold and demanded exorbitant clauses which caused the club to change ownership twice are gone, and Paul Hammond has re-established the club as a steady, if un-exciting side. Focusing now on youth development, Hammond has aggressively pushed young, exciting footballers into the team, guided by the legendary William Wight, a one-club man now nearing the end of his career.

Clark wish to kick on sooner rather than later, however, and this season looks like a genuine opportunity to do so...or it could all end in failure.

Ridgewell United
Previous Season: 17th
Manager: Joe Gorman
Squad:
GK: Jim Goodman (27)
DF: Josh Hindley (22), Jeremy Turner (28), Martin Boyd (24), Lee Higgs (30), Farley McShane (31)
MF: Roy Bremner (21), Nigel Charlton (34), Josh Evans (20), Michael Lidington (24)
WG: Lewis Sneddon (30), Tim Page (30), Michael Hammond (25)
ST: Andrew Dunne (25), Roderick Hutchinson (26)

Poor Ridgewell. Home to the least popular owner in the league, their previous manager was of some renown, who then resigned when said owner refused to give him more funds to sign more players to not have to engage the Ridgewell supporters in needless heart attacks near the end of every season. The team can still remember when they were challenging for titles near the turn of the century, but 10 years later and they were finishing 18th on goal difference. They bounced back up the next season, but have never been the same since. Joe Gorman is largely seen as a has-been who will be a yes-man to the owner, and his style of play doesn't even include the team's best player, Lewis Sneddon. Will Gorman be able to keep the squad together and run a tight ship, or will his team crack apart and subject the once-proud Ridgewellians to another season in the Second Division?

Clyde Park
Previous Season: 16th
Manager: Brian Devzies
Squad:
GK: Michael Laine (31)
DF: Russell White (27), Matthew Lambert (29) (c), Michael McShane (30), Jacob Keene (22), Stuart Murdoch (20)
MF: Neil Robinson (27), Chris Dodd (32), Martin Humphreys (21), Sam Cooper (27)
WG: Neil Fraser (22), Dean Cresswood (27), Brendan May (18)
ST: Nigel Erskine (24), Dave Mason (26)

Promoted the season before, Clyde Park are no stranger to the Premier Division, but were relegated in 2016. Now back in the Premier Division, their first season back saw them play exciting football but were equally leaky at the back...leading to them finishing in 16th. Manager Brian Devzies has managed to blend together old and young for what looks like the perfect mix of players, but will the team play as well as expected, or will it fall to second season syndrome?

Sturrey Athletic
Previous season: 1st, Second Division
Manager: Tom Watson
Squad:
GK: Dan Crosby (33)
DF: Marcus Ganley (19), Pat Philips (24), Ian Coleman (21), Adam Piosek (30), John Turnbull (18)
MF: Oliver Johnson (32), David Burnet (21), Adam Miles (27), Mark Clarke (31)
WG: Marc Evans-Jones (21), Tom Maguire (26), Adam Langley (24)
ST: Wayne Long (30), Joe Mercer (21)

Sturrey were promoted after winning the Second Division by 3 points. Under the stead of Tom Watson, promotion specialist, he looks set to employ the 4-4-1-1 formation that has seen so much success in the Second Divison that sees teams play deep, but will it work again in the Premiership, especially when the team hasn't made many reinforcements?

Port Marray FC
Previous season: 2nd, Second Division
Manager: Gary Holmes
Squad:
GK: Seb Covington (24)
DF: Graham Lloyd (29), Frankie Valentino (21), Michael Gore (23), Jim Browne (32), Guy Williamson (19)
MF: Alan Wyatt (31), John Keating (28), Brian Gildea (30), Ben McAmee (24)
WG: Rodney Steele (32), Dave Yannick (20), Russell Philips (28)
ST: Thomas Nicholls (31), Eliot Swan (19)

Newton Wanderers AFC
Previous season: 3rd, Second Division
Manager: Brian Adkins
Squad:
GK: Will Chapman (29)
DF: Ben Davidson (36), Mike Jones (28), Yu Dawei (27), Charlie Matthews (20), Hugh Miller (19)
MF: Richard Hall (32), Dean Shepard (31) (c), Dan Jackson (24), Louis Donaldson (25)
WG: Daryl Golding (28), Sebastian McGriffin (30), Louis Newton (24)
ST: Bernard Brown (23), Brian Watkins (23)

The last two teams were promoted after a tight title race in the Second Division, and will both look to struggle to stay up. Will their defensive tactics be able to anchor them to the Premier Division, or will they sink to the bottom?

by **Tumbra** » Sat Jan 30, 2021 11:21 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

THE SEVENTY-FIRST EDITION OF THE TUMBRAN SUPER CUP

The Tumbran Super Cup, first contested in 1950, is the traditional season-opener for the Tumbran domestic football season. The champions of the League duke it out with the champions of the Republic Cup for the status of the real champion of Tumbra. Should, however, the winners of the League also take home the Cup, the League representatives thus become the runners-up. The game is played in the Straton National Stadium (cap: 100,000), and the winner takes home bragging rights and a shiny trophy, presented by one of Tumbran football's heroes. This year's presenter is Colin Kohl, former centre midfielder for Lakewood City and Ridgewell Rovers.

This year's trophy was contested by Lakewood United (as the winners of the 2019/2020 Premier Division) and Lakewood City (as the winners of the 2019/2020 Republic Cup. Both teams started near full-strength XIs, as local pride was at stake as well.

Lakewood United Starting Lineup (4-4-2): Frank Johnson; Nigel Harris, Johnny Brown (c), John Byrne, Charles Allams; Todd Symes, Sean Cushing, Nicky Atkinson, Alex Kristensen; Philip Cohen, Barry Allen

No real surprises here, but the omission of Adam Herlinger from the starting lineup as the advanced 8 was puzzling. It was later revealed after the game that he had suffered a slight injury from an international match, and would be out for the first couple of games. More puzzling was Tumbra n.1 Louis Addison on the bench, being deputised by Frank Johnson; evidently Lakewood United manager Riedweld thought that the defence would be good enough to hold off the City attack.

Lakewood City Starting Lineup (4-3-3): John Lennon; Ryan Hughes, Louis Paterson, Ian Ashburn, Chris Carter; Robert Powell (c), Phil Cole, Patrick Butler; Robin Vaughn, Jake Torrance, James Anderson

City also went with a rather unorthodox lineup despite starting with their established 4-3-3 formation, with wunderkind Cole starting in the deep 8 spot and Butler advancing slightly higher; but the real surprise here was Torrance starting on the right instead of the established choice of Mike Coonan.

The match started relatively uneventfully, but United's defence was looking painfully slow, with Brown looking visibly tired after the World Cup qualifiers. A mistake from Byrne allowed Torrance to advance early in the match into a dangerous position, but playing out of position, he scuffed the chance wide in the sixteenth minute. A free kick from Torrance soon after put City ahead, however, as it was clear that the United defence had no idea how to deal with a striker-turned-right-winger who was also playing off a slightly deeper Anderson.

The rest of the half went by rather uneventfully, as did the start of the second half. Torrance scored a second time on the hour mark, with a superb finish showing his rapid adaptation to his new inside forward role, placing his shot beyond the fingertips of the outstretched hands of Johnson. Defensive mid Robert Powell put a third past Johnson to the dismay of Addison on the bench, when Johnson dived the wrong way then attempted to save with his feet, missing the ball again by inches.

Herlinger, who had been subbed on soon after the second Torrance goal despite his injury, worked his creativity from the middle of the park, latching onto a ball passed by Cohen to slam one back for United, but the momentum generated proved to be too little, too late as Vaughn used his typical pace on the left flank, cut inward, and put the fourth past a dejected United side for the last goal of the game. Herlinger's lingering injury also prevented him from being more involved, and near the end was limping around the field, clearly in pain.

Whether this result reflected the dynamics of the new season or a one-off from a questionable managerial choice to put United's second choice goalkeeper in goal - one with just twenty senior appearances across the past four years - for a cup final, nobody knew. There was a certain musing that Addison would have been able to save the second and third goal, and with his distribution abilities, perhaps started a few counter attacks using the ball-playing skills of wingbacks Harris and Allams.

But that was just conjecture, and as City took the trophy for the customary lap of honour around the pitch, nothing else truly mattered. The season was underway.

Lakewood United 1-4 Lakewood City

Scorers: Herlinger 69'Scorers: Torrance 24', 59'; Powell 66', Vaughn 84'

by **Tumbra** » Sat Jan 30, 2021 11:41 pm

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 1-5

MATCHDAY 1

Couno Rangers 2-1 Newton Warriors AFC
Fraser Valley FC 4-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Serrapince FC 1-0 Ridgewell United
Carter United 0-2 Sturrey Athletic
Straton FC 3-0 Port Marray FC
Hesham FC 1-0 Clyde Park
Lakewood City 2-1 Clark City
Columbia City 1-0 West Couno United
Lakewood United 2-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Readale Wanderers 0-0 Kingsbury United

The big news prior to this matchday was the hiring of Banijan manager Kiggwe Siakam by Couno Rangers, in a bid to break their twenty-year drought from the league title. His major tweak to the Couno Rangers formation was from the 4-3-3 employed by Curran to a more offensive 4-2-1-3, in line with his personal footballing philosophy. While playing relegation candidates Newton Warriors AFC, The Rams handily beat Newton Warriors by one goal, coming off young star Bruce Nolan.

Hesham FC beat Clyde Park in the opening-day Clearmont Derby, though it was closer than both sides would've liked to admit. Clark City also gave Lakewood City a run for its money, holding the home side to a draw for a majority of the match before Jake Torrance pulled off a spectacular goal in injury time to give City the three points.

Elsewhere, Fraser Valley, under the tutelage of new Qusmo manager Vulav-Wanar Tia, pulled off a 4-1 win against Inter Nantwich at home, with while Sturrey Athletic was the only club to pull out an away win, winning away at Carter United. Galbraith pulled out two goals and an assist for Straton FC to give them an opening win over Port Marray,
Apart from that, most teams that were expected to win, did, with a staggering advantage for the home team.

MATCHDAY 2
FC Inter Nantwich 3-3 Couno Rangers
Ridgewell United 0-2 Newton Warriors AFC
Sturrey Athletic 1-0 Fraser Valley FC
Port Marray FC 1-1 Serrapince FC
Clyde Park 0-5 Carter United
Clark City 1-0 Straton FC
West Couno United 1-1 Hesham FC
Ridgewell Rovers 1-2 Lakewood City
Kingsbury United 0-2 Columbia City
Readale Wanderers 0-1 Lakewood United

The first Big Six match took place in Finnley on this matchday, with the Rams going up against Inter Nantwich. In a thrilling six-goal affair where neither team focused particularly much on defence, the game ended 3-3, and was seen as a classic example of Tumbran footballine excellence. Sturrey continued their surprise away win with a win against Fraser Valley, but were later accused by Fraser player James Herbert of "having sat back and kicked the shit out of any attacking player who came close by."

The Bechor Derby finished all square, but Carter United pulled off an away win at Clyde Park, banishing the memories of the previous week's surprise loss against Sturrey. Both Lakewood City and Lakewood United picked up wins from their matches, but the surprise was Columbia finishing the match-day on top of the table, albeit by goal difference after holding Kingsbury off.

MATCHDAY 3
Couno Rangers 0-1 Ridgewell United
FC Inter Nantwich 5-0 Sturrey Athletic
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Port Marray FC
Fraser Valley FC 1-2 Clyde Park
Serrapince FC 3-0 Clark City
Carter United 1-1 West Couno United
Straton FC 4-2 Ridgewell Rovers
Hesham FC 3-1 Kingsbury United
Lakewood City 2-2 Readale Wanderers
Columbia City 1-1 Lakewood United

Couno travelled home for the third matchday and were met by a resurgent Ridgewell United, and the 60,000 strong home crowd were silenced when Andrew Dunne won a controversial penalty, slammed it home, then promptly sat back and defended for the rest of the match. Couno Port Stadium is typically regarded as a fortress of home support, with the structure of the stadium lending itself to a more threatening experience for the visiting team - perhaps a big reason why the TFF chose to host games there instead at the National Stadium.

Nantwich continued their free-scoring form and stopped Sturrey in its tracks by firing five past, while Clyde Park continued Fraser Valley's misery by hitting two early goals. Both Lakewood City and United were held to draws by Readale and Columbia, leaving Serrapince on top of the table after three matchdays. Hesham, however, were not far off, while Ridgewell were the only team to have not scored any points.

MATCHDAY 4
Sturrey Athletic 0-3 Couno Rangers
Port Marray FC 1-0 Ridgewell United
Clyde Park 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Clark City 0-0 Newton Warriors AFC
West Couno United 2-0 Fraser Valley FC
Ridgewell Rovers 2-0 Serrapince FC
Kingsbury United 1-1 Carter United
Readale Wanderers 2-1 Straton FC
Lakewood United 4-0 Hesham FC
Columbia City 3-1 Lakewood City

A matchday of surprises followed, with Nantwich losing 2-1 to Clyde Park away, Serrapince falling 2-0 to Ridgwell Rovers, Straton losing 2-1 to Readale and Lakewood City losing 3-1 to Columbia City. Sturrey's sudden stutter was extended, with Couno Rangers scoring three at their home ground, thanks to a Marcus Sheldon header.

Adam Herlinger returned for United after his injury in the Super Cup, and his creativity helped the Lakewood United side, easily dispatching Hesham at home. News of their neighbour's loss at Columbia also helped moods, with one side of the city greatly happier than the other the next morning.

The matches saw Lakewood United go into first with ten points, while Columbia followed up their impressive run. In third was Couno, while Inter Nantwich found themselves in fifteenth, in one of the worst starts to the season so far for the aging squad.

MATCHDAY 5
Couno Rangers 0-2 Port Marray FC
Sturrey Athletic 0-4 Clyde Park
Ridgewell United 4-1 Clark City
FC Inter Nantwich 5-0 West Couno United
Newton Warriors AFC 1-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Fraser Valley FC 5-2 Kingsbury United
Serrapince FC 2-0 Readale Wanderers
Carter United 1-0 Lakewood United
Straton FC 3-0 Columbia City
Hesham FC 1-1 Lakewood City

Away wins proved few and far away for teams in the Premiership, with seven home wins this round of games. One of the teams to not pick up a home win were the Couno Rangers, who again lost at home. Siakam's baptism of fire was proving to be harder than it thought, with him needing to get to grips with the league extremely quickly. Young Qusmo player Xilix Oxolt-Mal's debut for Fraser proved to be fortituous, as he scored a goal in Fraser's 5-2 demolition of Kingsbury.

Lakewood United finally lost a game, meaning that just after 5 matchdays there would be no invicibles this season. Lakewood City were held to a draw by Hesham, while Nantwich scored yet another five goals against a hapless West Couno United. The table after five matchdays thus looked like this:

Team                         P  W  D  L For  Ag +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood United          5  3  1  1   8   2  +6 10
  2 Serrapince FC            5  3  1  1   7   3  +4 10
  3 Columbia City            5  3  1  1   7   5  +2 10
  4 Straton FC               5  3  0  2  11   5  +6  9
  5 Clyde Park               5  3  0  2   8   8  +0  9
  6 Carter United            5  2  2  1   8   4  +4  8
  7 Newton Warriors AFC      5  2  2  1   5   3  +2  8
  8 Lakewood City            5  2  2  1   8   8  +0  8
  9 Port Marray FC           5  2  2  1   5   5  +0  8
 10 Hesham FC                5  2  2  1   6   7  -1  8
 11 FC Inter Nantwich        5  2  1  2  15   9  +6  7
 12 Couno Rangers            5  2  1  2   8   7  +1  7
 13 Fraser Valley FC         5  2  0  3  10   8  +2  6
 14 Ridgewell United         5  2  0  3   5   5  +0  6
 15 Sturrey Athletic         5  2  0  3   3  12  -9  6
 16 Readale Wanderers        5  1  2  2   4   6  -2  5
 17 West Couno United        5  1  2  2   4   8  -4  5
 18 Clark City               5  1  1  3   3   9  -6  4
 19 Ridgewell Rovers         5  1  0  4   5   9  -4  3
 20 Kingsbury United         5  0  2  3   4  11  -7  2

by **Tumbra** » Mon Feb 01, 2021 11:55 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

The 119^th RUNNING OF THE REPUBLIC CUP - THE FIRST ROUND

The Republic Cup, first contested in 1903, is Tumbra's longest running domestic competition and is open to all professional teams in Tumbra. Non-professional teams may compete in the TFF Vase instead, though that will not be covered here. It is a single-elimination knockout tournament, with the final played in the Tumbran National Stadium. Matches occur every five matchdays, with the exception of the Final, which is held after the final matchday of the league cycle.

The competition is renowned for its brutality - all 128 teams, regardless of whether they are in the Premier Division or the Fourth Division, are unseeded and all have an equal chance to meet each other. The team drawn first is always put at home, leading to a true test of footballing equality. This year, the Cup will again be contested by every single team in the league structure, with the defending champions being Lakewood City.

The First Round scores, as to avoid clogging up the Newswire, are presented below.

Wilmington Town 4-0 Taranga FC
Collett Park United 2-4 FC Montrose
Moresby United 1-4 Couno Rangers
Millsburgh United 3-3 Lakewood City (3-4 AET)
Mackay United 0-0 Hesham FC (0-0 AET, 1-3 PKs)
Heath Bay Mariners 2-1 Sherwood Town FC
Havelock United 1-1 Richmond Town (2-2 AET, 2-4 PKs)
Harren City FC 2-0 Carrington Town
Port Marray FC 2-0 Harper United
Thomson FC 2-2 Teignford FC (3-2 AET)
North Thornton United 1-1 Shepperton Ravens (1-1 AET, 4-3 PKs)
Dover Athletic 3-0 Langley Guardians
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Algoma Wanderers (1-1 AET, 1-4 PKs)
Brades United FC 3-2 Harchester United
Nottingham City 3-0 Hindhede FC
Delano Wanderers 2-0 Melwood Rangers
Falmouth AFC 0-2 Ashton Rovers
Brensey Town 0-2 Chester FC
Macarthur City 3-0 Farleigh United
Ilstead Wanderers 1-1 Orpington FC (2-1 AET)
Mayfield United 1-2 Kelder FC
Millsburgh Steelers 2-0 Maxwell FC
Cobham United 1-0 Heffron City FC
AFC Gillman 1-0 Killiney FC
Pomeroy Mountaineers 2-0 Knapford City FC
Columbia City 2-1 Clifton Town
Franport City 1-2 Colney United
Caldwell City 0-1 Oakton Town
Prinsip Street 1-1 Lambeth Town (1-1 AET, 2-4 PKs)
Denhelm City 1-3 Washington City FC
Serrapince FC 6-0 Rookworth United
Glenmont AFC 0-3 Ridgewell Rovers
Colbrook City 1-0 Denhelm United
Tavistock Park FC 0-1 Coburg FC
Sturrey Athletic 2-2 Delphi Lions (5-2 AET)
Kingsbury United 1-2 FC Inter Nantwich
Hesham Wanderers FC 2-1 Arlington Athletic
Fontwell Rovers 0-0 Windsor FC (0-1 AET)
Straton Lions 2-1 Wabash United FC
Cortlandt United 0-1 Tavistock Athletic
Dorival FC 0-0 Clyde Park (0-1 AET)
Caldecott FC 3-1 Heatherton United
Bencoolen City FC 1-0 Fraser Valley FC
Kirkby Town 0-4 Clark City
Othaven United 1-0 Kellsthorpe Town
Ricci Ironworkers 2-1 Burlington FC
Staplewood FC 0-7 Carter United
AFC Cayalon 1-1 Wolskel FC (3-2 AET)
Grange United FC 1-1 Hoxford United (1-1 AET, 2-0 PKs)
Lakewood United 0-1 Pinhal Athletic
Newark United 4-4 Blenheim FC (4-6 AET)
New Timbourne Knights 2-0 Cheltenham FC)
Rosenberg City 2-0 Guillemard Town
Readale Wanderers 1-0 Knapford United
Enfield Celtic 1-0 Ruislip and Ipswich FC
Gelder City 1-2 Straton FC
Hendon FC 1-1 Dunman FC (3-2 AET)
Rosyth Warriors 0-0 Ridgewell United (1-1 AET, 1-2 PKs)
Haversham City 2-1 Gisbourne Town
Dunsford United 2-1 Tevandale AFC
Eisenhower City 1-1 Monroe Rovers (1-1 AET, 2-3 PKs)
Readale City 2-0 West Couno United
Southport AFC 1-1 Dieren City FC (1-1 AET, 3-2 PKs)
Trelmont Rangers 1-0 Johnstone Athletic

The biggest shock this round was Lakewood United's elimination at the hands of Pinhal Athletic, a club from the Third Division East, with a solitary goal by Joe Parnell proving to make the difference at the LakewoodArena. Granted, United were not playing anywhere close to their strongest lineup, but Riedweld was the butt of many an internet joke after the loss. Elsewhere, Fraser Valley's rocky start to the season continued, as they were knocked out at the hands of Bencoolen City,
a second-tier club.

Lakewood City required extra time to make it past a spirited Millsburgh United side, while normal service was in store for the other big clubs, with Serrapince winning their tie 6-0 thanks to a George Hilton masterclass that saw him provide two goals and two assists. His partner on the opposite wing, Ally McColl, provided the same haul. Kingsbury United found themselves unlucky enough to be drawn against Inter Nantwich, who saw their cup run cut off early.

The biggest score of the round, however, goes to Carter United, who turned up at Staplewood and beat the home team 7-0, with right back Darren Webb running the show, finding his target with 76% of his crosses.

The remaining 64 teams will proceed to the Second Round, to be conducted after Matchday 10.

by **Tumbra** » Wed Feb 03, 2021 10:09 pm

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 6-10

MATCHDAY 6
Clyde Park 1-7 Couno Rangers
Clark City 1-1 Port Marray FC
West Couno United 0-2 Sturrey Athletic
Ridgewell Rovers 0-0 Ridgewell United
Kingsbury United 1-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Readale Wanderers 0-1 Newton Warriors AFC
Lakewood United 8-1 Fraser Valley FC
Columbia City 0-2 Serrapince FC
Lakewood City 0-2 Carter United
Hesham FC 2-3 Straton FC

Goals galore turned up during this matchday, with Couno Rangers giving an empathetic 7-1 away win at Clyde Park to the absolute delight of the away supporters. Marcus Sheldon was particularly prolific in this game, putting three away past a profligate Clyde Park side that looked lethargic. How Brian Devzies would get the team back up and going after this was a particular talking point, but it would be soon dwarfed by...

...the seven-goal winning margin that Lakewood United beat Fraser Valley by in the match later that day. Originally billed as a close encounter, Lakewood United's sheer quality managed to overcome Fraser's supposed defensive stability. Also prevalent at the match, however, outside of football, were the presence of Fryq Qusmo banners in the stadium. Displayed by supporters of both teams (including the normally apolitical Lakewood United), the Qusmo players gathered together after the match and bowed in thanks of the support Tumbrans had for the Free Qusmo movement. Fraser Valley manager Vulav Wanar-Tia later said in an interview that "it didn't matter what the result was today, because there are so many more things more important than football and freeing our homeland is one of those things...it brings joy to my heart."

Elsewhere Lakewood City drew a blank at home to Carter United, while the Ridgewell Derby ended in a draw, with lots of criticism leveled at the dour style of play employed by both teams. Both managers blamed each other for sitting too far deep and not letting the game enter a natural rhythmn, but it was clear that nobody really wanted to attack that game.

MATCHDAY 7
Couno Rangers 2-1 Clark City
Clyde Park 2-1 West Couno United
Port Marray FC 2-1 Ridgewell Rovers
Sturrey Athletic 0-2 Kingsbury United
Ridgewell United 0-1 Readale Wanderers
FC Inter Nantwich 2-2 Lakewood United
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Columbia City
Fraser Valley FC 0-1 Lakewood City
Serrapince FC 1-1 Hesham FC
Carter United 0-2 Straton FC

Couno Rangers' good form continued, as they hosted Clark City and held the visitors off for a narrow 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Bowen and Evers, while Clyde Park struck back immediately by dispatching the other Couno team 2-1 at home. Port Marray continued their run of good form by beating Ridgewell Rovers thanks to a 35th minute free kick by wonderkid Eliot Swan, while Kingsbury United finally got their stuttering season off with a win at Sturrey.

Elsewhere, the keenly-hyped Inter Nantwich-Lakewood United match ended up with both sides taking a point apiece. Both sides had the right to feel aggrieved by this turn of events, as Inter had a goal ruled out for offside and Lakewood had a penalty call denied. Both sides ended the match with ten men, with Cohen going off injured in the last few minutes of the game for Lakewood and Douglas Moore for Inter being sent off...for injuring Cohen.

Lakewood City picked up another valuable three points away at Fraser Valley, which saw all three of the Qusmoans on the pitch at the same time, for the first time this season. Daniel Galbraith once again rescued Straton from a loss via a goal and an assist, amidst continued rumours he wanted to leave before the end of the season. Some commentators turned on Galbraith, questioning his worth to a Straton FC side that was so obviously struggling to expand because a lot of their bloated wage budget was being spent on him - and he wasn't even being called up for the Tumbran NT.

MATCHDAY 8
West Couno United 1-1 Couno Rangers
Ridgewell Rovers 3-0 Clark City
Kingsbury United 2-0 Clyde Park
Readale Wanderers 1-0 Port Marray FC
Lakewood United 2-2 Sturrey Athletic
Columbia City 1-1 Ridgewell United
Lakewood City 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Hesham FC 1-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Straton FC 0-2 Fraser Valley FC
Carter United 0-4 Serrapince FC

The Couno Derby ended up, surprisingly, in a draw. This was largely due to an injury-time header by substitute striker Dominic Clyne, whose run towards the corner flag resembled more a condor taking flight than a footballer. Kingsbury United managed to keep their recovery going, beating Clyde Park 2-0 at home, while Clark City fell into the relegation zone after losing 0-3 away at Ridgewell.

Lakewood United were held to a 2-2 draw at Sturrey, but there was a common consensus after the game that Sturrey should have taken all three points at the UnitedArena. A late penalty call for United after Nicky Atkinson was tripped in the box resulted in a penalty that Alex Kristensen put away handily, but the circumstances of the call were controversial. Some commentators later said that they would not have given the penalty had they been the referee, and that his refusal to use VAR for what was so obviously an edge case was suspicious.

Elsewhere, Lakewood City beat a resurgent Inter Nantwich at home, in a nail-biting final fifteen minutes that saw the normally leaky LCFC defence try to sit back and defend. Elsewhere, Straton lost 0-2 to Fraser Valley and Serrapince beat Carter 4-0 on the road, with a hat-trick by George Hilton securing the win late on.

MATCHDAY 9
Couno Rangers 1-1 Ridgewell Rovers
West Couno United 1-0 Kingsbury United
Clark City 1-1 Readale Wanderers
Clyde Park 1-1 Lakewood United
Port Marray FC 1-0 Columbia City
Sturrey Athletic 0-1 Lakewood City
Ridgewell United 1-1 Hesham FC
FC Inter Nantwich 0-1 Straton FC
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Carter United
Fraser Valley FC 2-1 Serrapince FC

This matchday stood in almost complete contrast to Matchday 6, with the highest number of goals being scored in a match being...three. Fraser Valley's victory over Serrapince was largely due to the efforts of one Nicholas Kinsella, who covered nearly 15km of distance and was responsible almost entirely for Fraser's second goal. Elsewhere, Couno were held to another 1-1 draw by Ridgewell, thanks to an early Geoff Smith goal, while Lakewood United fell off the top of the table with their away draw at Clyde Park.

At this point in time, much attention was being drawn to Port Marray FC's slow but steady rise up the table, with their latest 1-0 win against Columbia seeing them in 6th in the table. All three of the promoted teams had been doing decently in the first nine matchdays, with the teams being 6th (Marray), 7th (Newton) and 12th (Sturrey) respectively, far better than many had predicted them to do at the start of the season.

Lakewood City rose to 3rd in the table thanks to a win at Sturrey, while Nantwich saw their start of the season fall to a small struggle, with the team now in 15th place.

MATCHDAY 10
Kingsbury United 2-1 Couno Rangers
Readale Wanderers 0-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Lakewood United 1-2 West Couno United
Columbia City 3-0 Clark City
Lakewood City 5-1 Clyde Park
Hesham FC 0-1 Port Marray FC
Straton FC 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
Carter United 2-1 Ridgewell United
Serrapince FC 3-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Fraser Valley FC 1-0 Newton Warriors AFC

Couno Rangers fans could be forgiven for thinking that the 7-1 demolition of Clyde Park, which took place barely a month ago, was but a figment of their imagination. This followed the 2-1 defeat for Couno which saw them winless in three games, while their noisy neighbours managed to take three points off Lakewood United, who were suddenly struggling without the presence of their star striker. Clark City remained rooted to the bottom of the table and were early candidates for relegation following a 3-0 defeat by Columbia, who climbed to 7th in the table after their win.

Lakewood City ended the tenth matchday with an empathic 5-1 win against Clyde Park, meaning that in just five matchdays Clyde Park had shipped sixteen goals, a defensive display that was unforgivable by many standards. Despite this, however, they were still 13th in the table.

More impressive than a 5-1 drubbing was Marray's continued rise to 4th, after beating Hesham 1-0. On the flip side, FC Inter Nantwich were in a full-blown crisis following their loss to Serrapince, with the team having less than a point per game. Muted whispers of Krajewski being out of a job before long were beginning to make the rounds at the Nantwich Central Stadium, and the usually unflappable Krajewski later showing visible signs of nervousness, as he recognised that his job was under threat.

Straton's 2-0 win against Sturrey meant that they, somehow, were top of the table after Matchday 10.

Division One Standings

    Team                     P  W  D  L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Straton FC              10  7  0  3  19   9  +10  21
  2 Serrapince FC           10  6  2  2  18   7  +11  20
  3 Lakewood City           10  6  2  2  17  12   +5  20
  4 Port Marray FC          10  5  3  2  10   8   +2  18
  5 Lakewood United         10  4  4  2  22  10  +12  16
  6 Couno Rangers           10  4  3  3  20  13   +7  15
  7 Columbia City           10  4  3  3  12  10   +2  15
  8 Carter United           10  4  3  3  13  12   +1  15
  9 Fraser Valley FC        10  5  0  5  16  18   -2  15
 10 Newton Warriors AFC     10  3  4  3   8   7   +1  13
 11 Readale Wanderers       10  3  4  3   7   8   -1  13
 12 Hesham FC               10  3  4  3  11  13   -2  13
 13 Clyde Park              10  4  1  5  13  24  -11  13
 14 Kingsbury United        10  3  3  4  11  14   -3  12
 15 West Couno United       10  3  3  4   9  14   -5  12
 16 Sturrey Athletic        10  3  1  6   7  19  -12  10
 17 FC Inter Nantwich       10  2  3  5  20  18   +2   9
 18 Ridgewell Rovers        10  2  3  5  10  12   -2   9
 19 Ridgewell United        10  2  3  5   8  10   -2   9
 20 Clark City              10  1  3  6   6  19  -13   6

by **Tumbra** » Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:08 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

The 119^th RUNNING OF THE REPUBLIC CUP - THE SECOND ROUND

The Republic Cup, first contested in 1903, is Tumbra's longest running domestic competition and is open to all professional teams in Tumbra. Non-professional teams may compete in the TFF Vase instead, though that will not be covered here. It is a single-elimination knockout tournament, with the final played in the Tumbran National Stadium. Matches occur every five matchdays, with the exception of the Final, which is held after the final matchday of the league cycle.

The previous round saw giants Lakewood United get knocked out, and several other Premiership Clubs surviving by the skin of their teeth. The second round presents yet another opportunity for more giant-killings, as the remaining 64 teams go head to head to determine the next 32 clubs that will proceed on to the Third Round.

The Second Round scores, as to avoid clogging up the Newswire, are presented below.

Big Six clubs that failed to maintain their status in the Republic Cup included Straton FC, who were booted out cruelly on penalties in what was either a magnificent show of goalkeeping or a torrid show of finishing, depending on the person asked. The 0-1 penalty score was, however, fair, and brought an end to Straton's rather dry Republic Cup run. What it also meant was another chance for Dan Galbraith to pick up a title gone.

Couno Rangers were knocked out 0-3 by fellow Premiership side Hesham FC; it seemed as if drawing a fellow Prem team was a death knell for Republic Cup hopes, particularly as the Big Six typically fielded weaker teams in cup games. The other Hesham club, however, were not able to repeat their rivals' success; a 5-0 drubbing by Serrapince put paid to any hope of them advancing further.

Other surprising matchups were Windsor FC dumping out Clark City in a high-scoring game; Straton Lions' comfortable win against Kelder was a wonderful display of attacking football all around, and First Round heroes Pinhal Athletic progressing into the Third Round, keeping a clean sheet against Washington City.

by **Tumbra** » Tue Feb 09, 2021 11:50 pm

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 11-15

MATCHDAY 11
Couno Rangers 1-0 Readale Wanderers
Kingsbury United 0-1 Lakewood United
Ridgewell Rovers 1-0 Columbia City
West Couno United 0-1 Lakewood City
Clark City 1-2 Hesham FC
Clyde Park 1-1 Straton FC
Port Marray FC 0-2 Carter United
Sturrey Athletic 0-1 Serrapince FC
Ridgewell United 2-1 Fraser Valley FC
FC Inter Nantwich 6-3 Newton Warriors AFC

Normal service seemingly resumed after the first ten bizzare matchdays, with only Straton failing to take the win away at Clyde Park. Couno Rangers snagged a narrow win at home thanks to an Anderson free kick, moving them up to fifth in the table. Elsewhere, other 1-0 wins were on the cards for both Lakewood teams and Ridgewell Rovers, while Clark City's season of misery continued with a 2-1 loss to Hesham FC. FC Inter Nantwich managed to score six against an equally offensively competent Newton Warriors team.

Port Marray's surprise loss to Carter United saw them fall slightly down to 7th, with John Bridges and Tom Munro hitting one on the break each. Marray's surprise loss could be attributed to the tiredness of their players; several of their key linchpins, including Wyatt, Gildea and Gore in defense were looking noticeably tired midway through the match.

Serrapince were now level with Lakewood City on 23 points; though, with only 5 points separating the top seven, the big surprise so far was the Big Six not pulling away from the rest of the pack. Indeed, Nantwich were still figuring about in fourteenth, with their defensive issues nullifying whatever big scores they'd racked up against other teams.

MATCHDAY 12
Lakewood United 3-1 Couno Rangers
Columbia City 2-0 Readale Wanderers
Lakewood City 6-1 Kingsbury United
Hesham FC 0-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Straton FC 1-0 West Couno United
Carter United 2-0 Clark City
Serrapince FC 2-4 Clyde Park
Fraser Valley FC 1-1 Port Marray FC
Newton Warriors AFC 0-1 Sturrey Athletic
FC Inter Nantwich 1-0 Ridgewell United

The Classic was the only match on everyone's lips this season. Both teams, who were not in their usual position out front, looked fighting fit and ready to go at the start of what would prove to be a match of drama and fireworks. And it did end that way - Lakewood United took a wholly controversial 3-1 win, with two penalty calls by Couno Rangers denied by the ref. Siakam would later go on record as publicly criticising the referee, but the TFF took no action against his statements. Were Couno Rangers right to feel aggrieved? Perhaps. Brown and Harris certainly did themselves no favours with their style of play this match, bringing down Alex Anderson several times during the course of the match.

Elsewhere, Lakewood hit an impressive six against Kingsbury, with a stunner by Coonan in the 74th minute from what was basically the touch-line proving an early contender for Goal of the Season. Clyde Park beat Serrapince FC in the intimidating Serrapince Park Arena, with two goals from national team starter Neil Fraser proving too much for the Black-and-yellows. Already there were rumours that Fraser was in line for a massive transfer, either overseas or to one of the Big Six.

FC Inter Nantwich hit some defensive stability, finally, as they beat Ridgewell United 1-0 at home, while Newton Warriors once again stumbled to fall to 14th after a loss to Sturrey. Sturrey, who were 19th after the previous round of matches, managed to lift themselves off into 16th, though they were still wary of the drop zone.

Clark City bade farewell to Paul Hammond after a 2-0 loss at Carter; their troubles this season were surmised by William Wight's physicality levels dropping like a rock. He was replaced on an interim basis by his assistant, Colin Barrendale; with rumours that the appointment might be made permanent. Clark remain rooted to the bottom of the table, with six points and one win out of eleven.

MATCHDAY 13
Couno Rangers 1-2 Columbia City
Lakewood United 1-2 Lakewood City
Readale Wanderers 0-0 Hesham FC
Kingsbury United 0-1 Straton FC
Ridgewell Rovers 0-0 Carter United
West Couno United 2-2 Serrapince FC
Clark City 3-1 Fraser Valley FC
Clyde Park 1-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Port Marray FC 0-3 FC Inter Nantwich
Sturrey Athletic 1-0 Ridgewell United

Just one week after The Classic, Tumbran football fans were treated to yet another spectacle of football, with the Lakewood Derby occurring again at the LakewoodArena. This time, however, it was the visitors who took the win thanks two early Robin Vaughn goals, followed up by an Allen strike. The remaining hour of football, though threatening enough to be exciting and produced multiple end-to-end moments, did not produce any goals, leaving City top of the table by one point.

Elsewhere, Clark picked up their second win after Barrendale's taking over; immediately dropping club legend William Wight, they managed to hit three past a Fraser Valley team that seemed in freefall. The result, while seeing them still at the bottom of the table, saw them now four points from safety. Columbia, meanwhile, saw a quiet rise up the table, with a 2-0 win away at Couno seeing them in sixth.

Carter's draw at Ridgewell saw them remain in fifth, while Clyde Park's beating of Newton saw them remain a surprising 7th in the table.

MATCHDAY 14
Lakewood City 2-1 Couno Rangers
Hesham FC 0-1 Columbia City
Straton FC 0-3 Lakewood United
Carter United 2-1 Readale Wanderers
Serrapince FC 2-2 Kingsbury United
Fraser Valley FC 1-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Newton Warriors AFC 0-2 West Couno United
FC Inter Nantwich 5-4 Clark City
Ridgewell United 0-1 Clyde Park
Sturrey Athletic 0-0 Port Marray FC

The big matches kept coming, as Lakewood City squared off against Couno Rangers. City took all three points at home, continuing their impressive run of form and stretching their lead up front to four points, as their city neighbours travelled to Straton and took all three points from a hapless team. Particularly impressive was Johnny Brown's neutering of Dan Galbraith, who was rendered nearly invisible for the entire game, while the old Cohen-Herlinger partnership ran riot over the field.

Elsewhere, Inter Nantwich were involved in yet another high-scoring game against bottom of the table (and state rivals) Clark, with Clark at one point 3-0 ahead and threatening to make it 4. The Finnley Derby, always an entertaining match, saw high drama after Andrew Fisher dribbled past three Clark defenders to tap one in, and Jon Ford whacked two past Clark. The match looked set for a draw near the end until Tom Stansfield scored a late goal from a corner kick.

Sturrey saw their rise back up the table, going to 13th after a goal-less draw with Marray, who had since been pegged back into 9th.

MATCHDAY 15
Couno Rangers 0-1 Hesham FC
Lakewood City 8-1 Straton FC
Columbia City 1-1 Carter United
Lakewood United 4-2 Serrapince FC
Readale Wanderers 1-1 Fraser Valley FC
Kingsbury United 2-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Ridgewell Rovers 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich
West Couno United 2-0 Ridgewell United
Clark City 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
Clyde Park 1-0 Port Marray FC

If there was ever any doubt over Lakewood City's return to form, they managed to excise those doubts with an emphatic 8-1 win over Straton, a result which saw the dismissal of Ted Bayh. Galbraith looked absolutely tired and angry at his team after the game, and rumours abounded that he wished to leave the club at the halfway mark of the season, instead of at the end like he previously wished to.

Elsewhere, Couno's floundering season continued, losing 1-0 at home to a rejuvenated Hesham FC, while the Columbia-Carter six pointer ended all square. Lakewood United beat Serrapince FC 4-2 at home thanks to goals from Herlinger, Cohen and (suspriringly) Brown, while Clark continued their rejuventation by winning against Sturrey Athletic.

After matchday 15, Newton, Ridgewell United and Clark City found themselves in the danger zone, while Couno Rangers, stuck in 13th, were the most underachieving side.

Team                          P   W  D  L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            15  11  2  2  36  16  +20  35
  2 Lakewood United          15   8  4  3  34  15  +19  28
  3 Straton FC               15   9  1  5  23  21   +2  28
  4 Carter United            15   7  5  3  20  14   +6  26
  5 Clyde Park               15   8  2  5  21  27   -6  26
  6 Serrapince FC            15   7  4  4  27  19   +8  25
  7 Columbia City            15   7  4  4  18  13   +5  25
  8 FC Inter Nantwich        15   6  3  6  36  27   +9  21
  9 Hesham FC                15   5  6  4  14  15   -1  21
 10 Fraser Valley FC         15   6  2  7  21  25   -4  20
 11 Port Marray FC           15   5  5  5  11  15   -4  20
 12 West Couno United        15   5  4  6  15  18   -3  19
 13 Couno Rangers            15   5  3  7  24  21   +3  18
 14 Ridgewell Rovers         15   4  5  6  13  14   -1  17
 15 Sturrey Athletic         15   5  2  8   9  22  -13  17
 16 Kingsbury United         15   4  4  7  16  24   -8  16
 17 Readale Wanderers        15   3  6  6   9  14   -5  15
 18 Newton Warriors AFC      15   3  4  8  11  19   -8  13
 19 Ridgewell United         15   3  3  9  10  16   -6  12
 20 Clark City               15   3  3  9  16  29  -13  12

by **Tumbra** » Sat Feb 13, 2021 2:28 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

The 119^th RUNNING OF THE REPUBLIC CUP - THE THIRD ROUND

The Republic Cup, first contested in 1903, is Tumbra's longest running domestic competition and is open to all professional teams in Tumbra. Non-professional teams may compete in the TFF Vase instead, though that will not be covered here. It is a single-elimination knockout tournament, with the final played in the Tumbran National Stadium. Matches occur every five matchdays, with the exception of the Final, which is held after the final matchday of the league cycle.

This round sees the 32 remaining clubs go head-to-head, just before the midway point of the season, to determine the last 16 clubs in the Round of 16.

Just two of the Big Six remained in the Republic Cup after the fourth round, after defending champions Lakewood City were dumped out after several red cards in extra time, giving minnows Caldecott the opportunity to score three on the bounce in the last fifteen minutes. The meltdown was described as nothing short of phenomenal, with LCFC manager Mark van der Brumen visibly angry after the match at how his team folded.

Elsewhere, Serrapince scraped through after a 4-3 win against Heath Bay Mariners, and Inter Nantwich won at home against Straton Lions, coming back from a two-goal deficit going into the second half. Port Marray FC continued their impressive cup run.

The next round of matches - the Round of 16 - will take place after Matchday 23 of the Premier Division.

by **Tumbra** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 4:02 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 16-19

MATCHDAY 16
Straton FC 5-1 Couno Rangers
Carter United 1-3 Hesham FC
Serrapince FC 1-4 Lakewood City
Fraser Valley FC 1-0 Columbia City
Newton Warriors AFC 1-2 Lakewood United
FC Inter Nantwich 2-1 Readale Wanderers
Ridgewell United 1-2 Kingsbury United
Sturrey Athletic 1-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Port Marray FC 1-0 West Couno United
Clyde Park 1-1 Clark City

Couno's inconsistency continued as they continued to lose - 5-1 to Straton at home this time, with Galbraith producing an absolute masterclass in attack. Playing in the free role he held so dearly, roaming across the front three, he managed to hit Couno for four goals on the bounce, leading to him being the happiest he looked all season. Other big matches included Lakewood City's 4-1 demolition of Serrapince, meaning that City had lost just two matches all season, while Lakewood United kept up the pressure on City by winning away at Newton.

Fraser Valley rose to tenth in the league with a solid, if unimpressive win over high-flyers Columbia City, while Ridgewell United fell to the bottom of the table after a late defeat to Kingsbury.

MATCHDAY 17
Couno Rangers 2-0 Carter United
Straton FC 1-0 Serrapince FC
Hesham FC 1-0 Fraser Valley FC
Lakewood City 3-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Columbia City 0-4 FC Inter Nantwich
Lakewood United 1-0 Ridgewell United
Readale Wanderers 0-1 Sturrey Athletic
Kingsbury United 1-0 Port Marray FC
Ridgewell Rovers 0-0 Clyde Park
West Couno United 3-1 Clark City

Couno bounced back with a 2-0 win at home to Carter the following round, while Serrapince continued their streak of losing to Big Six teams by going 1-0 down early at Straton thanks to another Galbraith goal, then being unable to make it past the Straton defences for the next seventy-five minutes. The result saw Straton go joint second with Lakewood United (who claimed another scalp - this time of bottom-of-the-table Ridgewell, even if it did take Philip Cohen 86 minutes to break the deadlock) on 34 points. Yet, the team to catch would still be Lakewood City, who comprehensively beat Newton Warriors to go 3-0 ahead and ensure they would end Matchday 19 ahead of the chasing pack, with the team now 7 points ahead with just 2 games remaining.

Inter Nantwich continued their steady rise back up the table with a win at Columbia, meaning they were now fifth in the table. Sturrey Athletic continued their surprising run towards midtable stability, while Port Marray, who were riding high at one point, continued to slip up - but they were still the highest placed of the three promoted teams. Despite this, however, the most underperforming team at this stage was still Couno Rangers, who were fifteenth in the table and had all but given up on glory this season. West Couno United's 3-1 victory over Clark City also meant that they would go ahead of the Rams for the first time in a long while, with the Westerners in 13th.

MATCHDAY 18
Serrapince FC 6-0 Couno Rangers
Fraser Valley FC 0-1 Carter United
Newton Warriors AFC 1-2 Straton FC
FC Inter Nantwich 2-0 Hesham FC
Ridgewell United 1-2 Lakewood City
Sturrey Athletic 2-0 Columbia City
Port Marray FC 1-2 Lakewood United
Clyde Park 1-0 Readale Wanderers
Clark City 0-0 Kingsbury United
West Couno United 1-1 Ridgewell Rovers

Despite yet another loss, Couno Rangers released a statement stating that their boss was safe in their job for the time being, and that he had the full backing of the board. The statement rang out ironically, given that the team had suffered yet another shellacking, this time at the hands of Serrapince. McGrath and Thornton ran riot over the Rams, who looked tired, disorganised and chaotic all game, allowing Hilton to run riot, scoring two over the hapless Rangers.

Carter United managed to eke out a 1-0 victory over Fraser, while Straton FC managed to win 2-1 over Newton Warriors - notably without Galbraith, as he had suffered a minor wrist injury in training and was unable to play. Elsewhere, Nantwich's resurgence continued, with a 4-0 win over Columbia thanks largely to a Jon Ford brace leading to Krajewski smiling and celebrating with his team for the first time in a long, long time.

Lakewood City held their seven point lead at the top, beating Ridgewell United to continue their stay at the bottom of the tabloe. Meanwhile, Marray fell to 13th after a disappointing loss to Lakewood United, in which they were in the game for most of the match, but a late linkup by the famous Herlinger-Cohen partnership proved too good for the Marray defences, and they fell 2-1.

Elsewhere, Clyde Park proved another surprising one of the bunch as they beat Readale to confirm at least 30 points, meaning that they would end the first half in an excellent position.

MATCHDAY 19
Couno Rangers 1-0 Fraser Valley FC
Serrapince FC 4-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Carter United 3-0 FC Inter Nantwich
Straton FC 0-2 Ridgewell United
Hesham FC 0-0 Sturrey Athletic
Lakewood City 5-0 Port Marray FC
Columbia City 1-2 Clyde Park
Lakewood United 8-0 Clark City
Readale Wanderers 0-1 West Couno United
Kingsbury United 1-0 Ridgewell Rovers

There really only were two scores that most people wanted to look at this weekend. Be that as it may, however, Lakewood United's 8-0 demolition of Clark meant that for the umpteenth time this season, eight goals had been scored against someone. Despite this, however, the seven point gap remained, with Lakewood City also demolishing Marray 5-0 to get 47 points from 19 matches, securing the status of First Half Champions, and putting them in pole position for the second half of the season.

Straton, despite falling to Ridgewell, remained third in the table, while Clyde Park secured their miraculous fourth place in the table with a win over Columbia City. Elsewhere, West Couno managed to secure tenth in the table, while Couno Rangers climbed to thirteenth, yet still remaining the most underperforming side in the table so far.

Newton Warriors fell to bottom of the table following their loss to Serrapince, which also saw the odds on them being relegated rise almost immediately. Would they be able to pull themselves back up of the deep, and follow in the example of Sturrey, who somehow found themselves in 9th place?

Team                          P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            19  15  2   2  50  18  +32  47
  2 Lakewood United          19  12  4   3  47  17  +30  40
  3 Straton FC               19  12  1   6  31  25   +6  37
  4 Clyde Park               19  10  4   5  25  29   -4  34
  5 Carter United            19   9  5   5  25  19   +6  32
  6 Serrapince FC            19   9  4   6  38  24  +14  31
  7 FC Inter Nantwich        19   9  3   7  44  31  +13  30
  8 Hesham FC                19   7  7   5  18  18   +0  28
  9 Sturrey Athletic         19   8  3   8  13  22   -9  27
 10 West Couno United        19   7  5   7  20  21   -1  26
 11 Kingsbury United         19   7  5   7  20  25   -5  26
 12 Columbia City            19   7  4   8  19  22   -3  25
 13 Couno Rangers            19   7  3   9  28  32   -4  24
 14 Fraser Valley FC         19   7  2  10  22  28   -6  23
 15 Port Marray FC           19   6  5   8  13  23  -10  23
 16 Ridgewell Rovers         19   4  7   8  14  17   -3  19
 17 Ridgewell United         19   4  3  12  14  21   -7  15
 18 Readale Wanderers        19   3  6  10  10  19   -9  15
 19 Clark City               19   3  5  11  18  41  -23  14
 20 Newton Warriors AFC      19   3  4  12  13  30  -17  13

by **Tumbra** » Tue Feb 16, 2021 4:13 am

SECOND DIVISION
MIDSEASON REVIEW

Table after 23 matchdays

Team                            P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Macarthur City             23  15   3   5  42  23  +19  48
  2 Glenmont AFC               23  13   7   3  34  17  +17  46
  3 AFC Cayalon                23  11   6   6  35  26   +9  39
  4 AFC Gillman                23  11   4   8  48  43   +5  37
  5 Guillemard Town            23  11   4   8  41  38   +3  37
  6 Dorival FC                 23  10   6   7  26  17   +9  36
  7 Ashton Rovers              23   9   9   5  20  13   +7  36
  8 Ricci Ironworkers          23   9   6   8  35  32   +3  33
  9 Falmount AFC               23  10   2  11  25  27   -2  32
 10 New Timbourne Knights      23   9   4  10  25  17   +8  31
 11 Fontwell Rovers            23   8   7   8  31  34   -3  31
 12 Killiney FC                23   8   7   8  36  41   -5  31
 13 Millsburgh Steelers        23   8   6   9  16  17   -1  30
 14 Kirkby Town                23   8   6   9  32  39   -7  30
 15 Enfield Celtic             23   7   8   8  20  23   -3  29
 16 Carrington Town            23   8   5  10  31  42  -11  29
 17 Delphi Lions               23   8   4  11  33  31   +2  28
 18 Kelder FC                  23   7   7   9  25  27   -2  28
 19 Bencoolen City FC          23   7   6  10  34  35   -1  27
 20 Washington City FC         23   7   6  10  36  43   -7  27
 21 Cobham United              23   5  10   8  24  30   -6  25
 22 Mackay United              23   7   4  12  23  39  -16  25
 23 Hesham Wanderers FC        23   4  11   8  21  25   -4  23
 24 Dieren City FC             23   3   8  12  13  27  -14  17

Pundits and supporters often say that the Second Division is the most unpredictable league this side of Esportiva, and this season certainly has not let up on that factor. Recently relegated Dorival FC are in sixth, while the unfancied Macarthur City is perched on top, but only by two points. AFC Cayalon are also another unexpected team to be up here, while Delphi Lions - who had hoped to make a promotion push this season - find themselves in seventeenth spot.

THIRD DIVISION EAST
MIDSEASON REVIEW

Team                          P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Tavistock Athletic       23  14  4   5  32  14  +18  46
  2 Grange United FC         23  13  6   4  35  19  +16  45
  3 Staplewood FC            23  12  5   6  38  29   +9  41
  4 Rosenberg City           23  12  3   8  40  37   +3  39
  5 Pinhal Athletic          23  11  6   6  35  36   -1  39
  6 Readale City             23  10  8   5  19  12   +7  38
  7 Nottingham City          23  10  7   6  44  31  +13  37
  8 Windsor FC               23  11  4   8  30  29   +1  37
  9 Collett Park United      23   9  9   5  38  32   +6  36
 10 Straton Lions            23  10  6   7  30  24   +6  36
 11 Tavistock Park FC        23   9  7   7  38  24  +14  34
 12 Caldecott FC             23   9  7   7  31  20  +11  34
 13 Wilmington Town          23   7  9   7  36  34   +2  30
 14 Windsor FC               23   7  9   7  34  34   +0  30
 15 Harren City FC           23   8  4  11  22  20   +2  28
 16 Rookworth United         23   7  7   9  19  20   -1  28
 17 Wabash United FC         23   8  2  13  17  25   -8  26
 18 Lambeth Town             23   5 10   8  26  35   -9  25
 19 Heath Bay Mariners       23   5 10   8  21  34  -13  25
 20 Algoma Wanderers         23   7  4  12  22  37  -15  25
 21 Melwood Rangers          23   5  7  11  20  24   -4  22
 22 Knapford United FC       23   4  9  10  13  21   -8  21
 23 Hindhede FC              23   5  3  15  26  52  -26  18
 24 Chester FC               23   1  8  14  10  33  -23  11

THIRD DIVISION WEST
MIDSEASON REVIEW

Team                            P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Trelmont Rangers           23  15  5   3  33  16  +17  50
  2 Teignford FC               23  13  3   7  38  26  +12  42
  3 Colbrook City              23  11  7   5  26  15  +11  40
  4 Caldwell City              23  12  4   7  31  23   +8  40
  5 Gelder City                23  13  1   9  25  28   -3  40
  6 Harchester United          23  11  5   7  26  28   -2  38
  7 Heatherton United          23  11  4   8  26  22   +4  37
  8 Hoxford United             23  10  6   7  32  33   -1  36
  9 Delano Wanderers           23   9  8   6  20  16   +4  35
 10 Shepperton Ravens          23   9  6   8  14  14   +0  33
 11 Dunsford United            23   9  6   8  24  27   -3  33
 12 Harper United              23   9  4  10  28  32   -4  31
 13 Pomeroy Mountaineers       23   8  5  10  20  18   +2  29
 14 North Thornton United      23   7  8   8  29  27   +2  29
 15 Colney United              23   8  4  11  34  35   -1  28
 16 Tevandale AFC              23   7  6  10  18  18   +0  27
 17 Denhelm United             23   8  3  12  19  26   -7  27
 18 Prinsip Street             23   6  8   9  25  27   -2  26
 19 Millsburgh United          23   6  8   9  22  26   -4  26
 20 Oakton Town                23   6  8   9  17  23   -6  26
 21 Johnstone Athletic         23   6  6  11  24  25   -1  24
 22 Orpington FC               23   6  6  11  30  35   -5  24
 23 Haversham City             23   6  3  14  33  43  -10  21
 24 Southport AFC              23   5  6  12  26  37  -11  21

FOURTH DIVISION EAST
MIDSEASON REVIEW

Team                         P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Gisbourne Town          17  14  1   2  28   7  +21  43
  2 Hendon FC               17  11  3   3  34  18  +16  36
  3 Burlington FC           17  10  3   4  34  14  +20  33
  4 Richmond Town           17   9  4   4  33  29   +4  31
  5 Rosyth Warriors         17   8  6   3  35  22  +13  30
  6 Knapford City FC        17   8  5   4  36  20  +16  29
  7 Mayfield United         17   8  3   6  27  27   +0  27
  8 Farleigh United         17   7  4   6  17  18   -1  25
  9 Coburg FC               17   7  4   6  25  29   -4  25
 10 Newark United           17   6  5   6  31  23   +8  23
 11 Thomson FC              17   6  3   8  17  20   -3  21
 12 Havelock United         17   4  7   6  15  21   -6  19
 13 Taranga FC              17   5  3   9  19  25   -6  18
 14 Maxwell FC              17   3  8   6  15  21   -6  17
 15 Arlington Athletic      17   4  2  11  21  33  -12  14
 16 Wolskel FC              17   4  2  11  14  28  -14  14
 17 Sherwood Town FC        17   1  7   9  16  31  -15  10
 18 Cortlandt United        17   3  0  14  12  43  -31   9

FOURTH DIVISION WEST
MIDSEASON REVIEW

Team                             P  W  D  L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Franport City               17 10  6  1  22   9  +13  36
  2 Heffron City FC             17  9  5  3  25  13  +12  32
  3 Ruislip and Ipswich FC      17  8  4  5  23  18   +5  28
  4 Denhelm City                17  8  3  6  20  14   +6  27
  5 FC Montrose                 17  7  5  5  12   9   +3  26
  6 Dover Athletic              17  7  4  6  21  15   +6  25
  7 Kellsthorpe Town            17  6  7  4  16  15   +1  25
  8 Moresby United              17  6  6  5  16  15   +1  24
  9 Langley Guardians           17  7  3  7  23  25   -2  24
 10 Brensley Town               17  5  7  5  17  13   +4  22
 11 Ilstead Wanderers           17  6  4  7  11  12   -1  22
 12 Monroe Rovers               17  5  6  6  10  13   -3  21
 13 Othaven United              17  6  3  8  13  17   -4  21
 14 Blenheim FC                 17  5  4  8  18  24   -6  19
 15 Cheltenham FC               17  5  3  9  29  36   -7  18
 16 Clifton Town                17  3  8  6   9  17   -8  17
 17 Eisenhower City             17  2  7  8   9  17   -8  13
 18 Dunman FC                   17  1  9  7  15  27  -12  12

by **Tumbra** » Mon Feb 22, 2021 1:54 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 20-23

MATCHDAY 20
Newton Warriors AFC 2-1 Couno Rangers
FC Inter Nantwich 1-2 Fraser Valley FC
Ridgewell United 1-0 Serrapince FC
Sturrey Athletic 3-0 Carter United
Port Marray FC 0-1 Straton FC
Clyde Park 0-0 Hesham FC
Clark City 2-4 Lakewood City
West Couno United 0-0 Columbia City
Ridgewell Rovers 1-2 Lakewood United
Kingsbury United 0-1 Readale Wanderers

If Couno Rangers fans thought that they would get some reprieve and perhaps get back on track after their frankly disastrous first half showing, they were wrong as their second half of the season push began with a 2-1 loss at Newton. The team looked directionless, rudderless and otherwise generally didn't really have a clue what to do, and their manager looked frustrated at the amount of chances both Sheldon and Nolan failed to put away.

In Nantwich, Fraser recorded a famous away win to lift them to twelfth, after a penalty in the dying moments of the game was saved by Fraser goalkeeper Stuart Langford. Special mention must be given to Xilix Oxolt-Mal, who ran away with the player of the match award afterwards - he completed 6 dribbles and drew 6 fouls against him over the course of the match - simply unplayable at the best of times.

Ridgewell United somehow won over Serrapince to lift themselves out of the relegation zone and into 17th, while Sturrey continued their impressive run of form, beating fifth-placed Carter United, pulling themselves up to eighth in the table. Elsewhere, a Galbraith goal separated Straton from regional rivals Marray, and Clyde Park drew a point from Hesham, who really looked the worse team all afternoon.

Lakewood City kept the gap up top steady from their neighbours, as they won away at Clark, while the Reds tried to keep up with a 2-1 win away at Ridgewell Rovers.

MATCHDAY 21
Couno Rangers 1-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Ridgewell United
Fraser Valley FC 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
Serrapince FC 1-0 Port Marray FC
Carter United 1-1 Clyde Park
Straton FC 6-1 Clark City
Hesham FC 0-2 West Couno United
Lakewood City 3-1 Ridgewell Rovers
Columbia City 3-2 Kingsbury United
Lakewood United 3-3 Readale Wanderers

A rather low scoring Friday began with Couno drawing 1-1 with Nantwich, continuing their winless streak and dropping them to just six points above the relegation zone. Not that anyone really thought they would be relegated, mind. The Couno attack was rather more fruitful this match, but their defensive woes continued and the result was a late through ball from Nantwich midfielder Tom Stansfield finding inside forward Gordon Jennings, which he finished with ease.

Fraser Valley kept up their return to form by beating the hottest team in Tumbra - Sturrey United - 1-0, a result that earned the ire of many a fantasy football fan who had put Sturrey players in their fifteen-man lineups. Elsewhere, Serrapince returned to form and put Marray in a small crisis when they beat them 1-0, meaning Marray were now in fifteenth with a tough run of games to go.

Saturday, however, saw the highest scoring match of the two matchdays so far as Straton beat Clark senseless, 6-1, with club captain William Wight looking increasingly past it, despite trying his hardest to help the team. After the match Wight was seen in an impassioned discussion with his manager, which resulted in him just walking away from his manager, evidently angered, into the dressing room.

On Sunday, West Couno United put two past Hesham to rise up to eighth, while Lakewood City increased the gap to eight points up top by beating the other Ridgewell
team 3-1. Meanwhile, Lakewood United were pegged back by a resurgent Readale Wanderers team, who in a six-goal thriller made the Reds drop a further two points.

MATCHDAY 22
Ridgewell United 0-1 Couno Rangers
Sturrey Athletic 0-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Port Marray FC 0-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Clyde Park 1-2 Fraser Valley FC
Clark City 3-1 Serrapince FC
West Couno United 0-0 Carter United
Ridgewell Rovers 2-2 Straton FC
Kingsbury United 1-2 Hesham FC
Readale Wanderers 0-2 Lakewood City
Lakewood United 1-2 Columbia City

ALL OVER BAR THE SHOUTING, remarked most newspapers after Matchday 22 as the gap at the top increased to twelve points following Lakewood United's late collapse to Columbia City and an imperious Lakewood City winning over Readale. Two goals in injury time gave Columbia a push into the top ten, while West Couno fell out due to their goal-less draw at home. Elsewhere, Couno finally managed to scry a win away at Ridgewell United, while Nantwich beat Sturrey away to get to within a point of safety.

Clyde Park continued losing, this time to Fraser, meaning while they were still fourth in the league, many were now looking apprehensively at their run of upcoming fixtures before long. Clark pulled off a rare win, catching Serrapince in a moment of bad form.

But all eyes were on the Sunday matches, where Readale fell easily to another Lakewood City masterclass. And then, of course, Lakewood United stumbled to give a twelve point lead to City.

MATCHDAY 23
Couno Rangers 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
Ridgewell United 1-1 Port Marray FC
FC Inter Nantwich 0-1 Clyde Park
Newton Warriors AFC 0-3 Clark City
Fraser Valley FC 1-3 West Couno United
Serrapince FC 0-1 Ridgewell Rovers
Carter United 2-1 Kingsbury United
Straton FC 1-0 Readale Wanderers
Hesham FC 1-0 Lakewood United
Lakewood City 0-2 Columbia City

Columbia's done it again. A twelve point gap after matchday 22 was sliced back down to 9 after they beat Lakewood City, away no less, thanks to the heroics of defenders Peter Brown and Harrison Lee, and the goalkeeping antics of veteran goalkeeper Gerald Scicluna. LCFC manager Mark van der Brumen looked visibly angry as attack after attack was fended off by the duo, and defender Ian Ashburn looked aghast at the amount of mistakes his defensive partner Chris Carter was making.

That wasn't to say Lakewood United was able to capitalise, however. A late own goal by John Byrne - entirely unlucky - meant that they lost their second place status to...Straton FC, who took second after a 1-0 win at Readale.

Elsewhere, Couno managed to string two wins together with a win at home against Sturrey, dropping them down to thirteenth while the Rams rose to twelfth. Serrapince's bad run of form continued with a loss to Ridgewell, which now meant that manager Colin Blakeley's job was under threat. Fraser's charge was stopped by West Couno, who were turning this run of form into a genuine top half challenge.

Division One Standings

    Team                      P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            23  18  2   3  59  23  +36  56
  2 Straton FC               23  15  2   6  41  28  +13  47
  3 Lakewood United          23  13  5   5  53  24  +29  44
  4 Clyde Park               23  11  6   6  28  32   -4  39
  5 Carter United            23  10  7   6  28  24   +4  37
  6 Columbia City            23  10  5   8  26  25   +1  35
  7 Hesham FC                23   9  8   6  21  21   +0  35
  8 FC Inter Nantwich        23  10  4   9  47  35  +12  34
  9 Serrapince FC            23  10  4   9  40  29  +11  34
 10 West Couno United        23   9  7   7  25  22   +3  34
 11 Fraser Valley FC         23  10  2  11  28  33   -5  32
 12 Couno Rangers            23   9  4  10  33  35   -2  31
 13 Sturrey Athletic         23   9  3  11  16  26  -10  30
 14 Kingsbury United         23   7  5  11  24  33   -9  26
 15 Port Marray FC           23   6  7  10  14  26  -12  25
 16 Ridgewell Rovers         23   5  8  10  19  24   -5  23
 17 Ridgewell United         23   5  5  13  17  24   -7  20
 18 Clark City               23   5  5  13  27  52  -25  20
 19 Readale Wanderers        23   4  7  12  14  25  -11  19
 20 Newton Warriors AFC      23   4  6  13  16  35  -19  18

by **Tumbra** » Mon Mar 01, 2021 1:01 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 24-27

MATCHDAY 24
Port Marray FC 2-1 Couno Rangers
Clyde Park 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
Clark City 1-1 Ridgewell United
West Couno United 1-3 FC Inter Nantwich
Ridgewell Rovers 0-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Kingsbury United 3-1 Fraser Valley FC
Readale Wanderers 1-3 Serrapince FC
Lakewood United 2-0 Carter United
Columbia City 0-0 Straton FC
Lakewood City 3-0 Hesham FC

Lakewood City got over their temporary blip in form, with a return to winning ways in Lakewood, hitting three against Hesham. The gap between second and third was reduced to one point after Columbia produced yet another good result against a Big Six team, drawing two points from Straton while Lakewood defeated Carter United 2-0. Elsewhere, Clyde Park continued their solid rise and essentially confirmed their fourth-placed position for the time being, beating a resurgent Sturrey 2-0.

Clark managed to lift themselves off the bottom of the table in a relegation six-pointer against Ridgewell, with each team taking a point. The other Ridgewell outfit's draw against Newton - another relegation six pointer - saw Newton fall to the bottom of the table, with Readale, who were quietly undergoing a crisis in form, level on points with them after a 1-3 loss to Serrapince.

The woeful, if inconsistent form of Couno continued, with Couno Rangers falling 2-1 to Port Marray to leave the team in twelfth - one place behind Fraser Valley, who had somehow lost 3-1 to Kingsbury.

MATCHDAY 25
Couno Rangers 3-0 Clyde Park
Port Marray FC 0-2 Clark City
Sturrey Athletic 0-0 West Couno United
Ridgewell United 0-2 Ridgewell Rovers
FC Inter Nantwich 1-1 Kingsbury United
Newton Warriors AFC 1-0 Readale Wanderers
Fraser Valley FC 1-3 Lakewood United
Serrapince FC 5-0 Columbia City
Carter United 0-3 Lakewood City
Straton FC 4-3 Hesham FC

Inexplicably, Couno somehow ran out 3-0 winners against Clyde Park, with Marcus Sheldon scoring a hat-trick to see off Neil Fraser and his gang of heady upstarts. The result, however, only saw them rise up to tenth. Indeed, last week's winner Port Marray only went ahead and lost to early relegation favourites Clark City, who, with this result, lifted themselves out of the relegation zone into seventeenth. Newton, with another six-pointer against Readale, went eighteenth with a solitary goal separating the two, while Ridgewell United fell to nineteenth after another ill-tempered Ridgewell Derby.

Elsewhere, Serrapince's 5-0 win against Columbia - thus ending their giant-killing streak in dramatic fashion - moved them to within two points of Clyde Park, while Lakewood United's desperation to chase Straton grew with a 1-3 win against Fraser, but Straton kept their one-point hold on second in a barnburner against Hesham, with Galbraith scoring a hat-trick to guarantee Straton the win over Hesham.

MATCHDAY 26
Clark City 5-1 Couno Rangers
West Couno United 1-1 Clyde Park
Ridgewell Rovers 1-0 Port Marray FC
Kingsbury United 0-1 Sturrey Athletic
Readale Wanderers 1-0 Ridgewell United
Lakewood United 4-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Columbia City 3-1 Newton Warriors AFC
Lakewood City 1-1 Fraser Valley FC
Hesham FC 1-4 Serrapince FC
Straton FC 0-1 Carter United

Clark's resurgence continued somehow with a - seemingly unthinkable - 5-1 win against Couno, one which attracted even more criticism of manager Siakam and made calls for his removal ever louder. William Wight looked back to his old self, scoring two and adding an assist to give an unplayable Clark the win. They still remained eighteenth, though a result like this would go a long way to helping one of the most storied clubs in Tumbra survive.

Elsewhere, the 3-0 beating they received the previous week seemed to abruptly stop Clyde in its tracks, with them dropping another two points, this time to West Couno. The result saw them surrender fourth place to Serrapince, who vaulted into that position with a 1-4 win against Hesham FC. Despite that, they were still in the hunt for an IFCF spot, which was not out of reach yet.

Lakewood United beat Nantwich 4-1 to go back into second place, yet that second place was still ten points behind their neighbours in blue, who actually dropped two points by drawing against Fraser. Ten points with twelve matches to go, while not insurmountable, was perhaps a bit difficult to make up.

MATCHDAY 27
Couno Rangers 2-0 West Couno United
Clark City 0-2 Ridgewell Rovers
Clyde Park 1-2 Kingsbury United
Port Marray FC 1-0 Readale Wanderers
Sturrey Athletic 2-2 Lakewood United
Ridgewell United 2-0 Columbia City
FC Inter Nantwich 0-4 Lakewood City
Newton Warriors AFC 0-0 Hesham FC
Fraser Valley FC 3-1 Straton FC
Serrapince FC 2-1 Carter United

...and that gap extended to twelve points with eleven matches remaining, with Lakewood United managing to draw with Sturrey while Lakewood City comprehensively beat Nantwich 4-0 thanks to goals from James Anderson and Robin Vaughn, putting Anderson in contention for the starting striker spot at the Campionato Esportiva which would happen at the conclusion of this season.

Elsewhere, Couno Rangers' inconsistent form continued with a 2-0 win in the Couno Derby, while Marray beat Readale 1-0 to send Readale to the bottom of the table. It was this result that saw manager Peter Harris bid farewell to his job as the club saw fit to find someone else to come in and do a Great Escape for their side. Five points from safety, their survival hung in the balance.

Elsewhere, Straton's gap to Lakewood United rose to three points after a loss at Fraser Valley, which saw Dan Galbraith limp off injured in the 70th minute. Fears that it was a long-term injury were allayed, however, after it was revealed that he would only be out for the next two matchdays.

Team                          P   W  D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            27  21  3   3  70  24  +46  66
  2 Lakewood United          27  16  6   5  64  28  +36  54
  3 Straton FC               27  16  3   8  46  35  +11  51
  4 Serrapince FC            27  14  4   9  54  32  +22  46
  5 Clyde Park               27  12  7   8  32  38   -6  43
  6 Carter United            27  11  7   9  30  31   -1  40
  7 Columbia City            27  11  6  10  29  33   -4  39
  8 FC Inter Nantwich        27  11  5  11  52  45   +7  38
  9 Couno Rangers            27  11  4  12  40  42   -2  37
 10 West Couno United        27   9  9   9  27  28   -1  36
 11 Hesham FC                27   9  9   9  25  32   -7  36
 12 Fraser Valley FC         27  11  3  13  34  41   -7  36
 13 Sturrey Athletic         27  10  5  12  19  30  -11  35
 14 Ridgewell Rovers         27   8  9  10  24  24   +0  33
 15 Kingsbury United         27   9  6  12  30  37   -7  33
 16 Port Marray FC           27   8  7  12  17  30  -13  31
 17 Clark City               27   7  6  14  35  56  -21  27
 18 Ridgewell United         27   6  6  15  20  28   -8  24
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      27   5  8  14  18  38  -20  23
 20 Readale Wanderers        27   5  7  15  16  30  -14  22

While the title race seemed a foregone conclusion, the fight for the remaining IFCF spots still remained in the balance, and it remained to be seen if Nantwich, Couno Rangers and Fraser Valley could fight their way into the top five. Ridgewell Rovers' recent run of form had seen them do well to effectively remove themselves from the conversation about relegation, but their neighbours were still stuck in the scrappy fight to avoid the drop. Meanwhile, Sturrey did well to get as many points as they did, with them being within touching distance of the 40 point safety net, though many were already thinking they were safe. Columbia, in seventh, were up there amongst the quiet success stories of the season, as their giant-slaying run of recent times would show.

This round of matches would be followed by another set of Cup matches, a welcome respite for many teams who had already been knocked out of the competition.

by **Tumbra** » Thu Mar 04, 2021 1:13 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

The 119^th RUNNING OF THE REPUBLIC CUP - THE FOURTH ROUND AND THE QUARTER FINAL

The Republic Cup, first contested in 1903, is Tumbra's longest running domestic competition and is open to all professional teams in Tumbra. Non-professional teams may compete in the TFF Vase instead, though that will not be covered here. It is a single-elimination knockout tournament, with the final played in the Tumbran National Stadium. Matches occur every five matchdays, with the exception of the Final, which is held after the final matchday of the league cycle.

This round sees the last 16 clubs go up against each other in the Round of 16, to determine the last 8 clubs.

Fourth Round
Caldecott FC 0-2 Clyde Park
Serrapince FC 4-1 Columbia City
Hesham FC 0-1 Enfield Celtic
Readale Wanderers 1-0 FC Inter Nantwich
Readale City 0-1 Millsburgh Steelers
Ashton Rovers 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
Windsor FC 1-0 Monroe Rovers
Port Marray FC 0-0 Ridgewell Rovers (0-0 AET, 3-1 PKs)

The Fourth Round saw plenty of clean sheets being kept, with some surprises in Premier Division side Hesham FC being dumped out of the competition by Enfield Celtic, while Inter Nantwich's inconsistent form continued with relegation favourites Readale Wanderers pulling out a win from nowhere to let the Wanderers progress at the expense of the Big Six clubs.

Their lower division neighbour, Readale City, weren't so lucky, however, and crashed out to the Steelers at home, on the receiving end of a 0-1 result. Ashton Rovers continued their miracle run, beating yet another Premier Division side in the form of recently promoted Sturrey Athletic.

Elsewhere, Ridgewell Rovers lost on penalties to Port Marray FC.

Quarter Final
Port Marray FC 1-1 Windsor FC (1-1 AET, 4-2 PKs)
Serrapince FC 2-0 Readale Wanderers
Enfield Celtic 1-0 Millsburgh Steelers
Clyde Park 0-1 Ashton Rovers

Another win on penalties saw Port Marray through to the Semi Finals, where the draw placed them with fellow Premier Division side Serrapince, thus turning their run into something of a more difficult situation. Serrapince easily dispatched Readale 2-0, while Clyde Park's cup run drew to a close as Ashton Rovers claimed yet another scalp in the form of Clyde Park, winning away from home. A Josh Mandel goal from Ashton put them ahead in the fifth minute before they sat back and defended for the next eighty-five. A dreary brand of football, as some called it, but effective nonetheless and they would proceed to the semi-final against fellow lower division side Enfield Celtic.

The unique problem of having an unseeded tournament as chaotic as the Republic Cup led to calls for the tournament to be seeded, but the TFF rebuffed all calls and said that it would be contrary to the spirit of the competition, as well as denying clubs from lower divisions the magic of a deep cup run, as Ashton Rovers had done this season.

The semi-finals will be played before Matchday 35, and the Final will be played after Matchday 38.

by **Tumbra** » Thu Mar 04, 2021 11:05 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 28-31

MATCHDAY 28
Ridgewell Rovers 2-2 Couno Rangers
Kingsbury United 1-0 West Couno United
Readale Wanderers 3-3 Clark City
Lakewood United 3-1 Clyde Park
Columbia City 1-0 Port Marray FC
Lakewood City 4-1 Sturrey Athletic
Hesham FC 0-0 Ridgewell United
Straton FC 1-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Carter United 1-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Serrapince FC 2-1 Fraser Valley FC

Another matchday of excitement followed, as Ridgewell Rovers managed to hold Couno Rangers to a draw to claw their way up to fifteenth. Rangers' draw probably meant that they were on the cusp of finishing in the top ten, though they were still hot on the tails of Columbia, Clyde Park and Carter United. Speaking of those three, Columbia beat Marray to remain in seventh, while Carter won against Newton to send them to the bottom of the table and catapult themselves into fifth, amazingly with just thirty-one goals throughout the season.

Clyde Park slipped further to sixth, being on the receiving end of a loss at Lakewood United, while their neighbours Lakewood City continued winning, with an emphatic win at home against Sturrey proving their depth, with several regular starters taking a break to recouperate. Accordingly, City were not at their best, but still managed to pull out their win.

Straton drew with Nantwich to give United a five-point lead in second, while Nantwich remained rooted to eighth. Soon after the match, manager Steve Krajewski announced he would not be renewing his contract with the team, and leaving the club, to hopefully pursue other opportunities abroad. In another crucial match for survival, meanwhile, Clark drew with Readale, meaning Clark were hovering three points above the relegation zone with ten matches to go.

MATCHDAY 29
Couno Rangers 6-4 Kingsbury United
Ridgewell Rovers 2-0 Readale Wanderers
West Couno United 1-1 Lakewood United
Clark City 1-1 Columbia City
Clyde Park 2-1 Lakewood City
Port Marray FC 0-1 Hesham FC
Sturrey Athletic 1-0 Straton FC
Ridgewell United 1-1 Carter United
FC Inter Nantwich 3-2 Serrapince FC
Newton Warriors AFC 1-3 Fraser Valley FC

The gap up top fell to nine points after Lakewood City's surprising loss to Clyde Park, but then again, Clyde was perhaps rejuvenated and angered after their loss against Lakewood United and comprehensively outplayed the league leaders to run out 2-1 winners, with a late goal by national team winger Neil Fraser once again drumming up attention in his performances. Rumours of a move abroad abounded after footage of the last goal - a magnificent solo performance in which he dribbled past three players before hitting a placed shot from outside the box - but the winger remained coy on his future. His contract, after all, would run out after the next season.

Lakewood United, however, were unable to capitalise, drawing 1-1 with West Couno to ensure that they would not break the 60 point mark, at least not yet. Manager Riedweld was furious with backup striker Allen's inability to hit a shot on target, making his future at the club in doubt. In total, he'd hit just one goal from his twelve appearances in the league, and there were rumours his time was up. An academy graduate, and he'd been good in flashes, but the lack of consistency Allen was showing now proved to hurt their chances in the league, again and again.

The two Big Six clubs in the chasing pack, Couno Rangers and Inter Nantwich, tried to catch up - and both did win their respective matches, Couno in a record 6-4 win against Kingsbury, Nantwich 3-2 against fellow Big Six club Serrapince, who were having a mediocre season at best by their standards - but they remained in eighth and ninth. The difference between seventh and eighth, however, was down to just one point, after Columbia drew with Clark City.

Clark's one point ensured they would remain outside the relegation zone for now, with Ridgewell United drawing with Carter and Readale losing to Ridgewell Rovers, but the thought was still on their mind. Marray's 0-1 loss to Hesham in the Clearmont Derby also meant that they would enter the relegation race, with just nine matches to go.

MATCHDAY 30
Readale Wanderers 0-3 Couno Rangers
Lakewood United 0-1 Kingsbury United
Columbia City 2-3 Ridgewell Rovers
Lakewood City 1-0 West Couno United
Hesham FC 5-1 Clark City
Straton FC 4-0 Clyde Park
Carter United 2-0 Port Marray FC
Serrapince FC 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
Fraser Valley FC 1-2 Ridgewell United
Newton Warriors AFC 1-3 FC Inter Nantwich

The gap was now fourteen points with eight matches left as Lakewood United fell to a resurgent Kingsbury United side to further dent their hopes of winning the title. Riedweld refused to give a press conference and stormed out after a reporter questioned the futility of continuing the title charge after Lakewood City's result - a scrappy 1-0 win against West Couno - came in just a few minutes after the United match had ended.

Elsewhere, Straton's win against Clyde Park meant that the gap between second and third was reduced to three points, while Clyde now fell to sixth. The Chasing Pack - Nantwich and Couno - continued their run of form, with Nantwich winning 1-3 away at Newton, allaying any fears of a typical Nantwich result that had plagued the team so during the early part of the season (losing away). Couno meanwhile kept a clean sheet away from home to run out 0-3 winners against Readale, meaning the gap between nineteenth and eighteenth was now six points, effectively meaning there was one relegation spot left to fight for. Newton and Readale hadn't been relegated yet, but to make up a gap of six points in eight matches as a team in bad form was pretty difficult to do. Of the three top-half interlopers, Columbia fell to tenth in dramatic fashion to basically end any hope of them getting a Globe Cup spot, with a narrow 2-3 loss to Ridgewell really doing them in at that point.

Who occupied the last relegation spot then? It was Clark, as Hesham turned on the style against them to run out 5-1 winners in a match that saw club legend William Wight stretchered off late into the game, leaving the team rudderless as they sought to fight back. At this point, the relegation candidates had really been narrowed down to five -

- Marray, whose promising start had given away to a late run of bad form
- Ridgewell United, who were just mediocre in every sense of the word
- Clark, whose early season terrible form had somewhat recovered, but were facing a spell without their captain and leader Wight
- Readale, who were looking more and more likely to go down, and
- Newton, who had shown some flashes of promise, but in the end were the most likely to go down.

MATCHDAY 31
Couno Rangers 7-3 Lakewood United
Readale Wanderers 0-3 Columbia City
Kingsbury United 0-1 Lakewood City
Ridgewell Rovers 1-1 Hesham FC
West Couno United 1-1 Straton FC
Clark City 2-2 Carter United
Clyde Park 0-3 Serrapince FC
Port Marray FC 0-1 Fraser Valley FC
Sturrey Athletic 0-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Ridgewell United 1-3 FC Inter Nantwich

Seventeen points. Lakewood City were just one win away from confirming their status as the 2020/21 Premier Division champions, if they could win their next match. This came after Lakewood City eked out another 1-0 win, this time away at Kingsbury thanks to an Ashburn header, but what was more surprising was how Lakewood United still hadn't gotten to sixty points yet, considering they'd scored three goals in the Tumbran Classic at Couno.

They'd scored three goals all right, but Couno, who were on some late season charge, hit seven past a hapless Lakewood United team who'd somehow forgotten how to defend that night. To be fair, their captain and defensive stalwart Johnny Brown was out - and he had been out for a while with an ankle problem, but would be fit for the upcoming Campionato Esportiva - which he was now focused on, as a means of getting at least some kind of international glory before age caught up to him. Marcus Sheldon and Bruce Nolan hit three each, while Francis Evers delivered the seventh for Couno, as Siakam's brand of football had somehow managed to work itself out. Pity it took this late into the season, but it definitely set something up for the next one and beyond.

Elsewhere, Nantwich won against Ridgewell to finally reach the top six again, finishing the matchday in fifth. With Lakewood United still on fifty-eight points, and Nantwich on forty-five, the club still wanted to harbour Globe Cup ambitions, but that would probably have to wait for next season, with a new manager and a new project.

Clyde Park were the second club to dramatically fall out of the top six, losing 0-3 to Serrapince, who were now fourth with fifty-five points, and looking to possibly usurp Lakewood United's hold on second, which had grown increasingly tenuous of late. Also in the hunt to finish second was Straton, who were two points behind Lakewood United, but results like a 1-1 draw against West Couno certainly did not help their cause.

In the relegation battle, Readale lost 0-3 against Columbia to sink to 20th, seven points from safety. Newton redeemed themselves somewhat by drawing against Sturrey 1-1 to go nineteenth, but there was a certain sense of resignation around the two clubs that they would be going down. Six points from safety, Newton at least could aim to go right back up at the first opportunity.

Clark took another draw to go back up to seventeenth, on thirty points, because as mentioned above Ridgewell United had lost 1-3 to Nantwich earlier. Marray, the so-called safest of the five relegation candidates, still lost to Fraser Valley, who were trying to make up as much space as possible in the last seven matches to try and at least secure a top-half finish.

With the leaders just one win away from securing the title, the title race was all but forgotten by most, and the media were more interested now in who would finish second and who would be relegated.

Division One Standings

    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            31  24   3   4  77  27  +50  75
  2 Lakewood United          31  17   7   7  71  38  +33  58
  3 Straton FC               31  17   5   9  52  38  +14  56
  4 Serrapince FC            31  17   4  10  62  36  +26  55
  5 FC Inter Nantwich        31  14   6  11  62  50  +12  48
  6 Carter United            31  13   9   9  36  34   +2  48
  7 Couno Rangers            31  14   5  12  58  51   +7  47
  8 Columbia City            31  13   7  11  36  37   -1  46
  9 Clyde Park               31  13   7  11  35  49  -14  46
 10 Hesham FC                31  11  11   9  32  34   -2  44
 11 Fraser Valley FC         31  13   3  15  40  46   -6  42
 12 Ridgewell Rovers         31  10  11  10  32  29   +3  41
 13 Kingsbury United         31  11   6  14  36  44   -8  39
 14 Sturrey Athletic         31  11   6  14  21  35  -14  39
 15 West Couno United        31   9  11  11  29  32   -3  38
 16 Port Marray FC           31   8   7  16  17  35  -18  31
 17 Clark City               31   7   9  15  42  67  -25  30
 18 Ridgewell United         31   7   8  16  24  33   -9  29
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      31   5   9  17  20  45  -25  24
 20 Readale Wanderers        31   5   8  18  19  41  -22  23

by **Tumbra** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 12:30 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 32-34

MATCHDAY 32
Columbia City 3-5 Couno Rangers
Lakewood City 5-0 Lakewood United
Hesham FC 1-1 Readale Wanderers
Straton FC 1-2 Kingsbury United
Carter United 1-2 Ridgewell Rovers
Serrapince FC 0-0 West Couno United
Fraser Valley FC 0-1 Clark City
Newton Warriors AFC 3-0 Clyde Park
FC Inter Nantwich 1-0 Port Marray FC
Ridgewell United 2-0 Sturrey Athletic

Lakewood City entered this matchday needing a win in the Lakewood Derby to end the title race, at home, in front of their closest rivals.

Lakewood City would score three goals in the first half, and two more in the second, to round out a miserable couple of weeks for Lakewood United.

Lakewood City would win the title after going twenty points clear with six matches to go, meaning that they would return to the top of the table after just one season of finishing in second.

Elsewhere, the race for second continued to tighten as Lakewood United's massive loss meant that they were still stuck on 58 points. Serrapince and Straton, the chasing two, however, managed to both scuff the best chance they had of making up the gap to the runners-up, with Serrapince involved in a goalless draw with West Couno and Straton managing to lose at home to Kingsbury, who were in thirteenth. Even further down the table, the so-called natural order was restored, with Couno Rangers beating Columbia 3-5 away, in another classic display of Siakamball, to end the match-day on sixth. Carter United, for all their recent form, went down 1-2 to Ridgewell Rovers, who had firmly put their early season relegation worries away and would end the season safe from relegation, having hit the magical 40 point barrier a week ago.

In the race to not get relegated, Marray suffered a major knock as they fell into the relegation zone for the first time this season after losing by a solitary goal to Inter Nantwich, while Newton won 3-0 against Clyde Park in their last ditch attempt to claw their way back up to safety. Clyde would remain in ninth, but Hesham's draw with Readale meant that the gap between the two would go down to just one point with six matches remaining.

Race for Second
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  2 Lakewood United          32  17   7   8  71  43  +28  58
  3 Serrapince FC            32  17   5  10  62  36  +26  56
  4 Straton FC               32  17   5  10  53  40  +13  56
  5 FC Inter Nantwich        32  15   6  11  63  50  +13  51
  6 Couno Rangers            32  15   5  12  63  54   +9  50

Relegation Battle
Team                          P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 16 Clark City               32   8   9  15  43  67  -24  33
 17 Ridgewell United         32   8   8  16  26  33   -7  32
 18 Port Marray FC           32   8   7  17  17  36  -19  31
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      32   6   9  17  23  45  -22  27
 20 Readale Wanderers        32   5   9  18  20  42  -22  24

MATCHDAY 33
Couno Rangers 2-0 Lakewood City
Columbia City 0-1 Hesham FC
Lakewood United 3-4 Straton FC
Readale Wanderers 1-0 Carter United
Kingsbury United 1-0 Serrapince FC
Ridgewell Rovers 2-1 Fraser Valley FC
West Couno United 0-1 Newton Warriors AFC
Clark City 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich
Clyde Park 0-2 Ridgewell United
Port Marray FC 1-0 Sturrey Athletic

It was evident that at least some LCFC players had gone for a bit too much drink following their title success, because they showed up at Couno Rangers - another top-six side, with a few players that clearly were not up to the usual ferocity and imperiousness that LCFC approached their typical match. In ninety minutes they were run over, outplayed and outfoxed by the Rams, not to mention losing courtesy of a Sheldon brace (who was on track to win the Golden Boot despite his team's troubles near the start of the season).

Hesham FC won against Columbia to go eighth, while Columbia by this time slipped into tenth. Less happy with their performance, however, was Clyde Park, whose 0-2 loss to Ridgewell saw them slip into eleventh, a far cry from their fourth-place exploits earlier in the season. Carter would also lose, somehow, to Readale Wanderers, meaning that all three of the Interlopers - as the media had called them, since they were interloping in the top six - would lose their matches this matchday.

Race For Second
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  2 Straton FC               33  18   5  10  57  43  +14  59    Lakewood United 3-4 Straton FC
  3 Lakewood United          33  17   7   9  74  47  +27  58    Lakewood United 3-4 Straton FC
  4 Serrapince FC            33  17   5  11  62  37  +25  56    Kingsbury United 1-0 Serrapince FC
  5 Couno Rangers            33  16   5  12  65  54  +11  53    Couno Rangers 2-0 Lakewood City
  6 FC Inter Nantwich        33  15   6  12  64  52  +12  51    Clark City 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich

In the Race For Second, Straton somehow came out in second after winning their match - against Lakewood United, no less, for yet another humiliating defeat that saw them just remain on 58 points, while Straton leapfrogged them to go top courtesy of a late Galbraith goal (who else could it be?). Serrapince lost to Kingsbury, meaning the gap between fourth and fifth would go down to just three points, while a frankly embarrassing loss to Clark meant that Nantwich would sink to sixth in the league.

Relegation Battle
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 16 Clark City               33   9   9  15  45  68  -23  36   Clark City 2-1 FC Inter Nantwich
 17 Ridgewell United         33   9   8  16  28  33   -5  35   Clyde Park 0-2 Ridgewell United
 18 Port Marray FC           33   9   7  17  18  36  -18  34   Port Marray FC 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      33   7   9  17  24  45  -21  30   West Couno United 0-1 Newton Warriors AFC
 20 Readale Wanderers        33   6   9  18  21  42  -21  27   Readale Wanderers 1-0 Carter United

The opposite had somehow managed to occur at the bottom of the table, with all five sides in the relegation battle (though Clark nearly reached the 40 point mark, Marray were still on 34). Clark managed to win the Finnley Derby 2-1, in a huge boon to their chances of staying up, and there were rumours of a contract extension for their beleaugered manager Paul Hammond, who visibly looked thinner and stressed with the relegation battle going on.

Elsewhere, although Marray won against Sturrey to bring them to within one point of safety, they were still stuck in the relegation zone. There was a general sense, however, that this relegation fight would go down to the wire, and that Ridgewell would be the ones coming out on top.

Readale clawed three points back from nowhere as they beat Carter, but seven points from safety with five matches to go, most were already preparing for life in the Second Division.

MATCHDAY 34
Hesham FC 2-0 Couno Rangers
Straton FC 3-5 Lakewood City
Carter United 1-3 Columbia City
Serrapince FC 0-1 Lakewood United
Fraser Valley FC 2-0 Readale Wanderers
Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Kingsbury United
FC Inter Nantwich 2-0 Ridgewell Rovers
Ridgewell United 1-0 West Couno United
Sturrey Athletic 2-2 Clark City
Port Marray FC 0-1 Clyde Park

Race For Second
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  2 Lakewood United          34  18   7   9  75  47  +28  61    Serrapince FC 0-1 Lakewood United
  3 Straton FC               34  18   5  11  60  48  +12  59    Straton FC 3-5 Lakewood City
  4 Serrapince FC            34  17   5  12  62  38  +24  56    Serrapince FC 0-1 Lakewood United
  5 FC Inter Nantwich        34  16   6  12  66  52  +14  54    FC Inter Nantwich 2-0 Ridgewell Rovers
  6 Couno Rangers            34  16   5  13  65  56   +9  53    Hesham FC 2-0 Couno Rangers

Lakewood United, somewhat belatedly to most observers, extremely belatedly to most fans, finally crossed the sixty-point mark with a 0-1 away win at Serrapince, which saw Serrapince fall three points behind Straton, in third. Hesham's win against Couno saw them rise to seventh position, a late run of form that saw Couno drop down to sixth again. Meanwhile, Nantwich won against Ridgewell Rovers to go back to fifth.

Straton would lose 3-5 to Lakewood City, meaning the gap between second and third would be two points.

Relegation Battle
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 16 Ridgewell United         34  10   8  16  29  33   -4  38    Clyde Park 0-2 Ridgewell United
 17 Clark City               34   9  10  15  47  70  -23  37    Sturrey Athletic 2-2 Clark City
 18 Port Marray FC           34   9   7  18  18  37  -19  34    Port Marray FC 0-1 Clyde Park
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      34   7  10  17  25  46  -21  31    Newton Warriors AFC 1-1 Kingsbury United
 20 Readale Wanderers        34   6   9  19  21  44  -23  27    Fraser Valley FC 2-0 Readale Wanderers

Ten points from safety with just four matches left, Readale effectively conceded the race to remain in the league after losing 2-0 to Fraser Valley. Newton would draw with Kingsbury, but remain six points from safety, while Marray's loss to Clyde Park saw them remain in eighteenth, now three points from safety. Immediately after these three matches, the odds were cut on the three teams being relegated. All eyes were now on these two fights, as the season began to wind down.

Premier Division Standings

    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            34  26   3   5  87  32  +55  81      Champions
  2 Lakewood United          34  18   7   9  75  47  +28  61
  3 Straton FC               34  18   5  11  60  48  +12  59
  4 Serrapince FC            34  17   5  12  62  38  +24  56
  5 FC Inter Nantwich        34  16   6  12  66  52  +14  54
  6 Couno Rangers            34  16   5  13  65  56   +9  53
  7 Hesham FC                34  13  12   9  36  35   +1  51
  8 Columbia City            34  14   7  13  42  44   -2  49
  9 Clyde Park               34  14   7  13  36  54  -18  49
 10 Carter United            34  13   9  12  38  40   -2  48
 11 Ridgewell Rovers         34  12  11  11  36  33   +3  47
 12 Kingsbury United         34  13   7  14  40  46   -6  46
 13 Fraser Valley FC         34  14   3  17  43  49   -6  45
 14 Sturrey Athletic         34  11   7  16  23  40  -17  40
 15 West Couno United        34   9  12  13  29  34   -5  39
 16 Ridgewell United         34  10   8  16  29  33   -4  38
 17 Clark City               34   9  10  15  47  70  -23  37
 18 Port Marray FC           34   9   7  18  18  37  -19  34
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      34   7  10  17  25  46  -21  31
 20 Readale Wanderers        34   6   9  19  21  44  -23  27

by **Tumbra** » Sat Mar 06, 2021 12:45 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAYS 35-37

MATCHDAY 35
Couno Rangers 3-1 Straton FC
Hesham FC 0-1 Carter United
Lakewood City 3-0 Serrapince FC
Columbia City 0-1 Fraser Valley FC
Lakewood United 4-0 Newton Warriors AFC
Readale Wanderers 2-0 FC Inter Nantwich
Kingsbury United 2-0 Ridgewell United
Ridgewell Rovers 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
West Couno United 1-0 Port Marray FC
Clark City 3-0 Clyde Park

Lakewood City's went to eighty-four points with three matches left, but the Champions' victory tour was the last thing on many peoples' minds right now, with all the attention being focused on the fight for second and the relegation fight. For clubs in neither fight though, it was a forgettable week for Columbia City, who lost to Fraser Valley. Still thirteenth, however, Fraser's main target of hitting 50 points of this season still remained out of reach, even this late into the season.

Clyde Park slipped into twelfth following a 3-0 loss to Clark which gave them the three points needed to reach 40, though it still was no guarantee that they'd stay up. Carter beat Hesham 0-1 to go eighth, and be within one goal of taking seventh off them, with the fight for that position somehow becoming exciting as well in lieu of the absolute cakewalk Lakewood City had after their early season struggles.

Fight For Second
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  2 Lakewood United          35  19   7   9  79  47  +32  64    Lakewood United 4-0 Newton Warriors AFC
  3 Straton FC               35  18   5  12  61  51  +10  59    Couno Rangers 3-1 Straton FC
  4 Serrapince FC            35  17   5  13  62  41  +21  56    Lakewood City 3-0 Serrapince FC
  5 Couno Rangers            35  17   5  13  68  57  +11  56    Couno Rangers 3-1 Straton FC
  6 FC Inter Nantwich        35  16   6  13  66  54  +12  54    Readale Wanderers 2-0 FC Inter Nantwich

Nantwich were now out of contention for second, though they could still finish in a Globe Cup spot if the last three matches went their way. Not like their form gave much hope to their supporters, somehow - against Readale, which they were expected to comfortably come out as winners...they lost, giving Readale a week's stay of execution. Lakewood City beat Serrapince three to zero to peg them back against Couno Rangers, who were now level on points with them thanks to a win against Straton. That result also saw Lakewood United go five points clear of third, after they beat Newton comprehensively - 4-0.

Relegation Battle
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 15 Sturrey Athletic         35  11   7  17  23  41  -18  40    Ridgewell Rovers 1-0 Sturrey Athletic
 16 Clark City               35  10  10  15  50  70  -20  40    Clark City 3-0 Clyde Park
 17 Ridgewell United         35  10   8  17  29  35   -6  38    Kingsbury United 2-0 Ridgewell United
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 18 Port Marray FC           35   9   7  19  18  38  -20  34    West Couno United 1-0 Port Marray FC
 19 Newton Warriors AFC      35   7  10  18  25  50  -25  31    Lakewood United 4-0 Newton Warriors AFC
 20 Readale Wanderers        35   7   9  19  23  44  -21  30    Readale Wanderers 2-0 FC Inter Nantwich

The three relegation spots were practically confirmed at this point, with Readale dropping any more points seeing them becoming the first team to be relegated. This was supposed to be the week they went down, yet, plucky as they were, somehow managed to eke out a 2-0 win against Nantwich, granting them, as mentioned above, what effectively was a stay of execution. Five of the six teams - six, because Sturrey had entered the conversation despite being six points from the relegation zone, because Clark were level with them - in the bid to avoid relegation lost their matches, meaning that apart from Clark moving into sixteenth and securing a vital lifeline, meant that nothing much changed.

MATCHDAY 36
Carter United 0-2 Couno Rangers
Serrapince FC 2-0 Straton FC
Fraser Valley FC 2-0 Hesham FC
Newton Warriors AFC 2-4 Lakewood City
FC Inter Nantwich 0-4 Columbia City
Ridgewell United 0-2 Lakewood United
Sturrey Athletic 0-2 Readale Wanderers
Port Marray FC 1-0 Kingsbury United
Clyde Park 2-1 Ridgewell Rovers
Clark City 2-3 West Couno United

Lakewood City reached 87 and were on course for an excellent 93 point season if things continued to go their way. Facing relegation favourites Newton, Mike Coonan and James Anderson teamed up to hit them for four, while a less than stellar performance at the back resulted them shipping two. A win was still a win, however, though there were some that criticised the lack of intensity in their performances. Elsewhere, Clyde Park returned to eighth following a win against Ridgewell Rovers, while Columbia's 4-0 win against Nantwich moved them to within two points of the Black-and-Blues, with all to play for in the last two matches of the season. Hesham dropped to ninth, while Carter United's loss against Couno meant that they would remain in tenth for the time being.

Fight For Second
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  2 Lakewood United          36  20   7   9  81  47  +34  67    Ridgewell United 0-2 Lakewood United
  3 Serrapince FC            36  18   5  13  64  41  +23  59
  4 Couno Rangers            36  18   5  13  70  57  +13  59
  5 Straton FC               36  18   5  13  61  53   +8  59

Lakewood United managed to secure second with their win against Ridgewell United, putting an end to that conversation.

Fight For Third and Fourth
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  3 Serrapince FC            36  18   5  13  64  41  +23  59    Serrapince FC 2-0 Straton FC
  4 Couno Rangers            36  18   5  13  70  57  +13  59    Carter United 0-2 Couno Rangers
  5 Straton FC               36  18   5  13  61  53   +8  59    Serrapince FC 2-0 Straton FC
  6 FC Inter Nantwich        36  16   6  14  66  58   +8  54    FC Inter Nantwich 0-4 Columbia City

Five points behind with two matches to go, Inter really were included here as a form of courtesy, because everyone was looking, really, at the impossibly tight margins between Serrapince, Couno and Straton. Straton were fifth by virtue of them having the worst goal difference amongst the three, and their loss to Serrapince didn't help things when they needed every point they could get. Carter's loss to Couno propelled them into fourth, with the team finally looking good at the end of this season.

Relegation Battle
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 15 Sturrey Athletic         36  11   7  18  23  43  -20  40    Sturrey Athletic 0-2 Readale Wanderers
 16 Clark City               36  10  10  16  52  73  -21  40    Clark City 2-3 West Couno United
 17 Ridgewell United         36  10   8  18  29  37   -8  38    Ridgewell United 0-2 Lakewood United
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 18 Port Marray FC           36  10   7  19  19  38  -19  37    Port Marray FC 1-0 Kingsbury United
 19 Readale Wanderers        36   8   9  19  25  44  -19  33    Sturrey Athletic 0-2 Readale Wanderers
 20 Newton Warriors AFC      36   7  10  19  27  54  -27  31    Newton Warriors AFC 2-4 Lakewood City

Newton Warriors' loss to Lakewood meant that they, and not Readale, would be the first team to be relegated from the Premier Division. Seven points from safety but with two matches remaining, nobody could blame Newton - surviving the first season is always the hardest task to do in a league as strong as this. Readale had pulled another win out of nowhere, beating fellow relegation candidates Sturrey 2-0 away, while Marray won against Kingsbury to haul themselves up to within a point of Ridgewell, meaning the last two matches would be extremely important for the four teams fighting to not finish eighteenth and suffer the ignominy of being relegated.

MATCHDAY 37
Couno Rangers 3-1 Serrapince FC
Carter United 0-3 Fraser Valley FC
Straton FC 1-1 Newton Warriors AFC
Hesham FC 1-0 FC Inter Nantwich
Lakewood City 2-0 Ridgewell United
Columbia City 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
Lakewood United 2-1 Port Marray FC
Readale Wanderers 0-1 Clyde Park
Kingsbury United 1-1 Clark City
Ridgewell Rovers 1-0 West Couno United

City reached 90 with a win over Ridgewell United, while Columbia fought their way up to eighth with a win against Sturrey. Carter lost against Fraser Valley, a result that saw them fall to twelfth as Fraser Valley entered the top ten for what seemed like the first time all season, and Clyde Park beat Readale 1-0 to confirm a top-half finish, a great achievement for a side that finished seventeenth the previous one.

Fight For Third and Fourth
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  3 Couno Rangers            37  19   5  13  73  58  +15  62    Couno Rangers 3-1 Serrapince FC
  4 Straton FC               37  18   6  13  62  54   +8  60    Straton FC 1-1 Newton Warriors AFC
  5 Serrapince FC            37  18   5  14  65  44  +21  59    Couno Rangers 3-1 Serrapince FC

Couno's hot run of form had nearly guaranteed them a Globe Cup spot, but if Serrapince won their final game and Couno lost then Serrapince would take third. All that would be moot, however, if Straton won their game as well, because then Straton would finish third. The ball was in Couno's court, however, and the stands at Couno Port Stadium, where some of the more vocal fans were calling for Siakam's head earlier in the season when they were thirteenth, were now singing his praises as he ran out 3-1 winners against Serrapince. Their title drought would continue, and they would finish below hated rivals Lakewood United, but there was always next season.

Meanwhile, Straton somehow managed to draw against Newton.

Relegation Battle
    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
 15 Clark City               37  10  11  16  53  74  -21  41    Kingsbury United 1-1 Clark City
 16 Sturrey Athletic         37  11   7  19  23  45  -22  40    Columbia City 2-0 Sturrey Athletic
 17 Ridgewell United         37  10   8  19  29  39  -10  38    Lakewood City 2-0 Ridgewell United
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 18 Port Marray FC           37  10   7  20  20  40  -20  37    Lakewood United 2-1 Port Marray FC
 19 Readale Wanderers        37   8   9  20  25  45  -20  33    Readale Wanderers 0-1 Clyde Park
 20 Newton Warriors AFC      37   7  11  19  28  55  -27  32    Straton FC 1-1 Newton Warriors AFC

Readale joined Newton as the second club to be relegated, though to the surprise of some it'd taken them longer than they thought. Their streak of luck ran out with a 0-1 loss against Clyde Park, and now the great reckoning would begin as they sought to rebuild in the Second Division and bounce back up immediately. Nobody really knew what'd gone wrong, though Alan Morgan was already tipped for a move to a big six club, while Norm Watson looked set to cut his time with the team short and move overseas for the last few years of his career. Perhaps not playing with a proper striker for about half the season contributed to this, but starting striker Josh Cowan returning really made not much of a difference once he was fully fit again.

Clark managed to secure their survival, though they knew that they would have lots to do before long. Sturrey were on the cusp of remaining safe, though nobody really knew what would happen on the last Matchday. Sturrey would play Hesham, while Ridgewell would play Straton. Marray, meanwhile, were given the unfancied match up of Lakewood City.

Premier Division Standings
   Team                    P    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Lakewood City          37   29   3   5    96   34  +62    90    Champions, Champions' League, CEdC
 2 Lakewood United        37   21   7   9    83   48  +35    70    Challengers' Cup
 3 Couno Rangers          37   19   5  13    73   58  +15    62
 4 Straton FC             37   18   6  13    62   54   +8    60
 5 Serrapince FC          37   18   5  14    65   44  +21    59
 6 Columbia City          37   16   7  14    48   45   +3    55
 7 Clyde Park             37   16   7  14    39   58  −19    55
 8 FC Inter Nantwich      37   16   6  15    66   59   +7    54
 9 Fraser Valley FC       37   17   3  17    49   49    0    54
10 Hesham FC              37   14  12  11    37   38   −1    54
11 Ridgewell Rovers       37   14  11  12    39   35   +4    53
12 Carter United          37   14   9  14    39   45   −6    51
13 Kingsbury United       37   14   8  15    43   48   −5    50
14 West Couno United      37   11  12  14    33   37   −4    45
15 Clark City             37   10  11  16    53   74  −21    41
16 Sturrey Athletic       37   11   7  19    23   45  −22    40
17 Ridgewell United       37   10   8  19    29   39  −10    38
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 Port Marray FC         37   10   7  20    20   40  −20    37
19 Readale Wanderers      37    8   9  20    25   45  −20    33    Relegated
20 Newton Warriors AFC    37    7  11  19    28   55  −27    32    Relegated

by **Tumbra** » Sat Mar 06, 2021 8:48 am

The Tumbran Football Federation Presents

The 119^th RUNNING OF THE REPUBLIC CUP - THE SEMI FINAL

The Republic Cup, first contested in 1903, is Tumbra's longest running domestic competition and is open to all professional teams in Tumbra. Non-professional teams may compete in the TFF Vase instead, though that will not be covered here. It is a single-elimination knockout tournament, with the final played in the Tumbran National Stadium. Matches occur every five matchdays, with the exception of the Final, which is held after the final matchday of the league cycle.

This round sees the last 4 clubs go up against each other, to determine the 2 clubs in the final.

Semi Final
Enfield Celtic 1-1 Ashton Rovers (1-1 AET, 3-5 PKs)
Port Marray FC 1-2 Serrapince FC

Port Marrray were denied entry into their first ever Final by Serrapince, whose quality overwhelmed them. One match away from being relegated, too, the bad news just kept piling on for the poor Mariners.

In the other match, Ashton Rovers beat Enfield Celtic 5-3 on penalties, a nervy affair for both teams involved. Enfield would look back on this outing to the Semi Finals with much pride, while Ashton would enter their very first Republic Cup final, in a historic event for the team.

The final would be held at the National Stadium in Tumbra after the last Matchday of the Premier Division season.

by **Tumbra** » Sat Mar 06, 2021 9:03 am

SECOND DIVISION
END OF SEASON REVIEW

Division Two Standings

    Team                        P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Macarthur City             46  23  10  13  66  48  +18  79 Champions, Promoted
  2 Glenmont AFC               46  21  15  10  58  37  +21  78 Promoted
  3 Ricci Ironworkers          46  21  12  13  80  60  +20  75 Promoted
  4 Ashton Rovers              46  19  17  10  38  26  +12  74
  5 Delphi Lions               46  21  10  15  79  54  +25  73
  6 Dorival FC                 46  21   9  16  55  37  +18  72
  7 AFC Cayalon                46  19  14  13  63  55   +8  71
  8 New Timbourne Knights      46  20   9  17  48  33  +15  69
  9 Kirkby Town                46  19  11  16  70  71   -1  68
 10 Guillemard Town            46  19   8  19  71  76   -5  65
 11 Falmount AFC               46  18   9  19  52  53   -1  63
 12 Fontwell Rovers            46  15  17  14  59  60   -1  62
 13 Killiney FC                46  15  16  15  63  69   -6  61
 14 Washington City FC         46  17  10  19  74  87  -13  61
 15 Enfield Celtic             46  15  15  16  38  42   -4  60
 16 AFC Gillman                46  17   9  20  81  86   -5  60
 17 Carrington Town            46  17   8  21  60  81  -21  59
 18 Bencoolen City FC          46  15  13  18  66  66   +0  58
 19 Kelder FC                  46  15  13  18  45  53   -8  58
 20 Cobham United              46  13  18  15  48  55   -7  57
 21 Millsburgh Steelers        46  14  12  20  38  43   -5  54 Relegated (D3W)
 22 Hesham Wanderers FC        46  12  15  19  44  53   -9  51 Relegated (D3E)
 23 Mackay United              46  12  10  24  53  76  -23  46 Relegated (D3W)
 24 Dieren City FC             46   7  14  25  32  60  -28  35 Relegated (D3E)

Despite having their home ground in the state of Gamaliel, which participates in the Third Division East, Mackay United were relegated to the Third Division West to maintain a parity in the number of teams per league.

Macarthur City, Glenmont AFC and Ricci Ironworkers are promoted to the Premier Division.

THIRD DIVISION EAST
END OF SEASON REVIEW

Division Three East Standings

    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Tavistock Athletic       46  24  10  12  58  34  +24  82 Champions, Promoted
  2 Nottingham City          46  23  12  11  96  58  +38  81 Promoted
  3 Grange United FC         46  22  14  10  64  42  +22  80
  4 Tavistock Park FC        46  22  13  11  78  45  +33  79
  5 Staplewood FC            46  24   7  15  80  64  +16  79
  6 Rosenberg City           46  22  10  14  70  59  +11  76
  7 Caldecott FC             46  20  12  14  66  44  +22  72
  8 Windsor FC               46  18  15  13  67  55  +12  69
  9 Readale City             46  19  12  15  39  35   +4  69
 10 Windsor FC               46  19  11  16  63  61   +2  68
 11 Pinhal Athletic          46  20   7  19  77  83   -6  67
 12 Rookworth United         46  18  12  16  46  45   +1  66
 13 Straton Lions            46  17  14  15  61  57   +4  65
 14 Collett Park United      46  16  15  15  73  77   -4  63
 15 Harren City FC           46  17   8  21  50  50   +0  59
 16 Lambeth Town             46  14  17  15  49  62  -13  59
 17 Algoma Wanderers         46  16   6  24  52  79  -27  54
 18 Melwood Rangers          46  12  17  17  38  45   -7  53
 19 Wilmington Town          46  12  17  17  65  76  -11  53
 20 Heath Bay Mariners       46  12  17  17  52  65  -13  53
 21 Knapford United FC       46  10  16  20  29  43  -14  46
 22 Wabash United FC         46  13   7  26  41  61  -20  46 Relegated (D4E)
 23 Hindhede FC              46  11   9  26  57  92  -35  42 Relegated (D4E)
 24 Chester FC               46   6  12  28  26  65  -39  30 Relegated (D4E)

THIRD DIVISION WEST
END OF SEASON REVIEW

Division Three West Standings

    Team                        P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Trelmont Rangers           46  26  10  10  58  35  +23  88 Champions, Promoted
  2 Colbrook City              46  22  15   9  51  29  +22  81 Champions
  3 Teignford FC               46  24   8  14  78  51  +27  80
  4 Gelder City                46  22   9  15  55  50   +5  75
  5 Caldwell City              46  19  15  12  51  38  +13  72
  6 Harchester United          46  20  10  16  60  62   -2  70
  7 Delano Wanderers           46  18  15  13  39  30   +9  69
  8 Shepperton Ravens          46  18  14  14  32  27   +5  68
  9 Colney United              46  19  10  17  75  60  +15  67
 10 North Thornton United      46  18  13  15  63  52  +11  67
 11 Heatherton United          46  19  10  17  45  49   -4  67
 12 Harper United              46  18  12  16  53  52   +1  66
 13 Pomeroy Mountaineers       46  17  10  19  39  36   +3  61
 14 Millsburgh United          46  14  19  13  50  50   +0  61
 15 Hoxford United             46  15  15  16  58  64   -6  60
 16 Dunsford United            46  16  12  18  46  60  -14  60
 17 Prinsip Street             46  13  19  14  42  47   -5  58
 18 Denhelm United             46  15   7  24  39  57  -18  52
 19 Tevandale AFC              46  13  11  22  38  43   -5  50
 20 Orpington FC               46  13  11  22  55  64   -9  50
 21 Oakton Town                46  12  14  20  38  49  -11  50
 22 Southport AFC              46  11  16  19  45  62  -17  49 Relegated (D4W)
 23 Haversham City             46  14   7  25  67  88  -21  49 Relegated (D4W)
 24 Johnstone Athletic         46   9  12  25  45  67  -22  39 Relegated (D4W)

FOURTH DIVISION EAST
END OF SEASON REVIEW

Fourth Division East Standings

    Team                     P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Gisbourne Town          34  22   7   5  54  29  +25  73 Champions, Promoted
  2 Rosyth Warriors         34  16  12   6  82  46  +36  60 Promoted
  3 Hendon FC               34  18   6  10  57  42  +15  60 Promoted
  4 Knapford City FC        34  16   9   9  63  46  +17  57
  5 Havelock United         34  14  13   7  37  28   +9  55
  6 Burlington FC           34  14  11   9  60  37  +23  53
  7 Farleigh United         34  15   8  11  50  46   +4  53
  8 Mayfield United         34  16   5  13  53  51   +2  53
  9 Coburg FC               34  15   6  13  52  52   +0  51
 10 Thomson FC              34  13   8  13  39  38   +1  47
 11 Newark United           34  11  13  10  56  48   +8  46
 12 Richmond Town           34  12  10  12  50  53   -3  46
 13 Arlington Athletic      34  12   5  17  47  54   -7  41
 14 Taranga FC              34  11   5  18  44  61  -17  38
 15 Wolskel FC              34   7  10  17  30  47  -17  31
 16 Maxwell FC              34   5  14  15  29  44  -15  29
 17 Cortlandt United        34   8   3  23  35  80  -45  27
 18 Sherwood Town FC        34   3  11  20  27  63  -36  20

FOURTH DIVISION WEST
END OF SEASON REVIEW

Fourth Division West Standings

    Team                         P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Franport City               34  18  10   6  36  19  +17  64 Champions, Promoted
  2 Heffron City FC             34  17  11   6  49  23  +26  62 Promoted
  3 Langley Guardians           34  16   8  10  55  41  +14  56 Promoted
  4 Blenheim FC                 34  16   6  12  52  44   +8  54
  5 Brensley Town               34  13  11  10  39  29  +10  50
  6 Ruislip and Ipswich FC      34  14   8  12  41  38   +3  50
  7 FC Montrose                 34  12  12  10  32  28   +4  48
  8 Denhelm City                34  13   9  12  38  36   +2  48
  9 Dover Athletic              34  13   9  12  35  33   +2  48
 10 Cheltenham FC               34  14   5  15  51  52   -1  47
 11 Clifton Town                34   9  14  11  29  28   +1  41
 12 Ilstead Wanderers           34  10  10  14  19  26   -7  40
 13 Othaven United              34  10   9  15  36  48  -12  39
 14 Kellsthorpe Town            34   8  14  12  25  37  -12  38
 15 Dunman FC                   34   8  13  13  32  52  -20  37
 16 Monroe Rovers               34   7  15  12  22  28   -6  36
 17 Moresby United              34   9   9  16  31  47  -16  36
 18 Eisenhower City             34   5  15  14  18  31  -13  30

by **Tumbra** » Sun Mar 07, 2021 9:36 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAY 38 - PART I

Table pre-matchday

Premier Division Standings
   Team                    P    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Lakewood City          37   29   3   5    96   34  +62    90    Champions, Champions' League, CEdC
 2 Lakewood United        37   21   7   9    83   48  +35    70    Challengers' Cup
 3 Couno Rangers          37   19   5  13    73   58  +15    62
 4 Straton FC             37   18   6  13    62   54   +8    60
 5 Serrapince FC          37   18   5  14    65   44  +21    59
 6 Columbia City          37   16   7  14    48   45   +3    55
 7 Clyde Park             37   16   7  14    39   58  −19    55
 8 FC Inter Nantwich      37   16   6  15    66   59   +7    54
 9 Fraser Valley FC       37   17   3  17    49   49    0    54
10 Hesham FC              37   14  12  11    37   38   −1    54
11 Ridgewell Rovers       37   14  11  12    39   35   +4    53
12 Carter United          37   14   9  14    39   45   −6    51
13 Kingsbury United       37   14   8  15    43   48   −5    50
14 West Couno United      37   11  12  14    33   37   −4    45
15 Clark City             37   10  11  16    53   74  −21    41
16 Sturrey Athletic       37   11   7  19    23   45  −22    40
17 Ridgewell United       37   10   8  19    29   39  −10    38
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 Port Marray FC         37   10   7  20    20   40  −20    37
19 Readale Wanderers      37    8   9  20    25   45  −20    33    Relegated
20 Newton Warriors AFC    37    7  11  19    28   55  −27    32    Relegated

So there it was. Not much left to play for - two Challenger's Cup spots and one relegation spot in terms of actual physical achievements, but there were always bragging rights to play for. There was the fight for the Challengers' Cup spots amongst Couno, Straton and Serrapince - Couno having done brilliantly throughout the last bit of the season to come back from where they were at the end of the opening half; Straton, perhaps lackluster as usual but still brilliantly carried by Galbraith until the last part of the season; and Serrapince, who'd perhaps been underwhelming throughout the season and were still doing well to be in contention for a place in the Challengers' Cup.

Of course, every one of the top six teams whose names were not 'Lakewood City Football Club' could've said to be underperforming. Lakewood United being stuck on 58 points from Matchday 29 till Matchday 33, which was met with mostly mirth on twii.tur, mostly anger from LUFC supporters, exasperation from Riedweld as he tried to discover what the fuck his team was doing (certainly not playing football, that he was certain). The spotty form from every one of the clubs from second to fifth. But still, they'd managed to haul themselves back up to where they belonged (or where they thought they'd belonged), with the exception of Inter Nantwich, who were...in eighth.

Columbia City and Clyde Park were looking to deny Inter Nantwich a return to the top six, and to determine the top of the three clubs that had entered the top six on occasion throughout the season. Nantwich were looking to salvage their pride, bruised by a series of late defeats in the league, and already there were rumours of a major squad overhaul under the next manager, whomever it was. But they, sitting not-so-prettily on 54 points, could still fall as far as twelfth. Whether that was a testament to how absolutely inconsistently shite the team had been (for a team of their standard) or how close the league had been this season (well, minus the title race, anyways), nobody really knew. A massive achievement for both of them, especially Clyde, who'd finished 17th last season. They would, of course, be playing each other in the last match of the season.

Below Nantwich, Fraser Valley were trying to make up as much ground as possible. The first season of the Qusmi Experiment had gone decent, even if they did have a big chance of finishing outside the top half of the table. The club were known to be patient, however, an enduring characteristic of clubs that weren't in the top six, and Vulav-Wanar Tia had done respectably for their first season outside their country. The young Xilix Oxolt-Mal, thrown into the deep end as one of the strikers in the team, had adapted wonderfully as well, and had brought home eight goals, playing off James Herbert. A magnificent start for what looked like it could be a storied career in the TPL.

Hesham, Ridgewell Rovers and Carter United were up next in the table, all of whom had semi-decent seasons - Carter in particular going up to the top six sometime earlier in the season - but had been brought down to Earth by the Big Six and their own form. Rovers, who'd been a short relegation scrap this season, had recovered enough to finish in the upper mid-table.

Kingsbury and West Couno...what to say about them? They'd been utterly forgettable this season. West Couno couldn't even make up or fall any positions in this final matchday. They effectively were playing for a laugh. Kingsbury would have to deal with their own neighbours coming back up next season, Macarthur, who were looking in imperious form despite having been relegated the season prior to this.

Below them, Clark, having pulled off the Great Escape of the season. William Wight had announced his retirement, meaning they'd have a big task ahead of them beyond the final matchday. They'd done magnificently to get this far, and would set their sights on rebuilding to hopefully not land themselves in the same situation as they'd done next season. Sturrey'd impressed - although they were still able to get relegated, they were feeling fairly good about the whole Premiership adventure, and it really started now. The hard work did, at least.

Ridgewell United were forced to deal with the prospect of being relegated again. Time after time, they'd told their owner to buy some fucking players, sign a manager who could actually manage and not just say yes to everything the owner wanted. Time after time it'd fallen on deaf ears, and now they were looking at a possible relegation. Marray were playing the Champions, however, so they weren't as scared as relegation as a few seasons prior. The road back would be long, and hard, but they'd need massive changes to not...suffer from a relegation heart attack every season.

Marray, though promising, found themselves in the unenviable position of having to play the champions of the league. They'd started off the season off strong, but just couldn't string their wins together, and now found themselves here. Playing Lakewood City. To try and stay up. The Mariners had tried, they'd sure as hell tried, but they were in the position of having to admit that their best efforts just weren't enough.

Next, Readale. Their heroics near the end of the season were admirable, but they'd sunk into the relegation zone midway through the season and couldn't muster up the same run of form Clark could to escape it. They'd go down, of course, but several of their assets - in particular Alan Morgan, who simply couldn't replicate the impressive form he'd shown during qualifying for the World Cup - were already being looked upon like a carcass by some vultures.

Bringing up the rear was Newton, the little heroes who'd given up so much yet gotten so little for it in response. In the cruel world of football, they'd played out of their skin most of the time, but like Marray, it simply wasn't enough.

Fixtures

[9] Fraser Valley FC vs Couno Rangers [3]

[20] Newton Warriors AFC vs Serrapince FC [5]

[8] FC Inter Nantwich vs Carter United [12]

[17] Ridgewell United vs Straton FC [4]

[16] Sturrey Athletic vs Hesham FC [11]

[18] Port Marray FC vs Lakewood City [1]

[7] Clyde Park vs Columbia City [6]

[15] Clark City vs Lakewood United [2]

[14] West Couno United vs Readale Wanderers [19]

[11] Ridgewell Rovers vs Kingsbury United [13]

by **Tumbra** » Sun Mar 07, 2021 11:07 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
MATCHDAY 38 - PART II

All the matches, as was tradition, started at the same time on the final day.

Fraser Valley FC 2-1 Couno Rangers

Somehow Couno Rangers had chosen to become inconsistent again at the very worst time. Teenage sensation Xilix Oxolt-Mal hit Couno for their first goal early on, and James Herbert added another near the start of the second half to put the Valley two-nil up. Marcus Sheldon scored his twenty-fourth of the season to peg them back, but in the end they couldn't do enough to beat Fraser. The Valley would end on 57 points; Couno on 62.

Newton Warriors AFC 0-0 Serrapince FC

It was up to Serrapince, then, to try and get into the top three...and they massively, royally, screwed it up. Against twentieth-placed Newton, they...they drew a blank. More credit must be given to Newton's defence than Serrapince's attack, however, as defenders Mike Jones and Yu Dawei stepped up to the plate massively, and managed to keep Serrapince's attack silent for the whole ninety minutes of the match. They still needed to wait for Straton's result to see if they'd gotten IFCF football, since they ended the season on 60 points but with a better goal difference than Straton. This result also meant that Couno Rangers would qualify for the Challengers' Cup. Newton would end on 33 points; Serrapince on 60.

FC Inter Nantwich 3-0 Carter United

Nantwich at least managed to salvage a little bit of pride against Carter, knocking three past them in an apt send-off to Steve Krajewski, who looked visibly unemotional at the prospect. When asked what his future plans were, he'd planned to "go abroad", taking his unique style of managing with him; time would tell if he would succeed elsewhere. Nantwich would end on 57 points; Carter on 51, which was still a good result for them nonetheless.

Ridgewell United 0-1 Straton FC

Daniel Galbraith's last match for Straton FC would also end up bearing the final time he'd score for the club, with his goal being the one that separated Straton and Ridgewell United. That goal - the 397th he'd score across the 17 years he'd played for the club - would end up giving Straton Challengers' Cup football, as they would finish the season on 63 points; third, denying Couno the return to third they so wanted; and would leave Ridgewell at the mercy of Marray on 38 points. They had the superior goal difference, however - only a Marray win would doom Ridgewell to the ignominy of the Second Division. A lot of the focus on the match was on Galbraith's last match for the team, though he - typically taciturn - refused to speak about it and departed the match on the train back to Straton like he did every other match.

An end of an era, indeed.

Sturrey Athletic 1-0 Hesham FC

Sturrey would end their season on a high. First securing their place in the league when a lot of people tipped them to go down, the outfit that played in red and black would survive for another season. For the Clearmont-based outfit, however, it was less impressive finish for the team, with the match 0-0 until the 83rd minute of the game when midfielder Tony Leonard accidentally hit the ball into David Burnet's face, and the deflection ended up going into the goal. On either side of that, however, it was an entirely dour affair, and most pundits agreed it should've ended 0-0, but Sturrey would take any points they could get. Sturrey would end the season on 43 points - 20 more than they got the last time they were in the league - and Hesham would end the season, perhaps disappointingly, on 54 points.

Port Marray FC 1-2 Lakewood City

More people than expected tuned in to this match - perhaps to see Lakewood steamroll another opponent, perhaps to see Marray try to escape the clutches of relegation. And indeed, Marray sent a lot of people into a frenzy when they scored early on, but deep into the second half, needing something to end the season on a high (for them, at least), Robin Vaughn scored two in quick succession to give Lakewood the win, and for those listening in Ridgewell, a sigh of relief as the result meant that they'd survived yet another season by one point. Marray would end the season on 37 points - one off safety - while Lakewood City would end the season on an eye-watering 93 points.

Nobody would blame Marray for not trying their best, though, and the outfit certainly gave it all they had. The spunky team from Marray would try to make it back into the Premier Division at first asking, but with the chaotic nature of it, nobody really knew.

Clyde Park 3-2 Columbia City

Another keenly contested match, Clyde Park and Columbia City went up against each other to see who would finish sixth, or if they would share the spoils on the final day to give Nantwich the sixth spot and for them to just linger on 56 points each. In the end, wonderstar Neil Fraser - increasingly linked with moves abroad - would hit the visitors for two, but be pegged back by two goals from the visitors, courtesy of Tim Rowland and Sean Delap, deputising for Frank Wilson. A late goal by Nigel Erskine would settle the match in favour of the home team, meaning Clyde Park would end the season on 58 points, and finish eleven positions ahead of where they did last season, since Nantwich finished with 57. Columbia would remain on 55 points, and fall behind Fraser Valley.

Clark City 0-3 Lakewood United

Lakewood would try to finish the season trying not to let the gap to their neighbours grow to 23. They'd have to visit Clark City to do so, but they'd finish the season strongly, winning 3-0 against a Clark City team who were taking it easy after their survival, and send off their captain, William Wight. Lakewood would score three, but the match was even-tempered and both would celebrate with each other following the game. Clark would end on 41 points, behind Sturrey, and Lakewood United on 73.

West Couno United 0-1 Readale Wanderers

Nobody really gave much of a crap about this match. Both teams had nothing to play for. West Couno couldn't move up or down in the table. Readale were already relegated. So when Alan Morgan scored in the sixty-eighth minute to put Readale ahead, it was seen more as an attempt to drum up interest in his services from elsewhere rather an attempt to salvage some pride for the Wanderers, who would be playing second division football next season. Norm Watson could hardly give much of a toss about the game either, three caps be damned, and he looked more interested in sieving out potential destinations at home or abroad for the next season of football. WCU would end on 45 points, Readale on 36 to cap off a disappointing season for both teams. Had a few results gone the other way, WCU would be in the position Readale was now...but the cruel reality was that they didn't.

Ridgewell Rovers 2-2 Kingsbury United

In yet another match that nobody really cared about, Ridgewell Rovers hosted Kingsbury, and a general snoozefest would occur outside of four moments. Those four moments, coincidentally, would also be the moments in which the two teams scored. Neither team really cared too much about the lead at either point, their minds perhaps already on the beaches of Alexandria or Harren, and less so on the actual standard of football. Both teams would gain a point from this - Rovers ending on 54 points, Kingsbury on 51.

And that was how the season ended.

Division One Standings

    Team                      P   W   D   L For  Ag  +/- Pts
  1 Lakewood City            38  30   3   5  98  35  +63  93 Champions, Champions' League, CEdC
  2 Lakewood United          38  22   7   9  86  48  +38  73 Challengers' Cup, CEdC
  3 Straton FC               38  19   6  13  63  54   +9  63 Challengers' Cup
  4 Couno Rangers            38  19   5  14  74  60  +14  62 Challengers' Cup
  5 Serrapince FC            38  18   6  14  65  44  +21  60
  6 Clyde Park               38  17   7  14  42  60  -18  58
  7 FC Inter Nantwich        38  17   6  15  69  59  +10  57
  8 Fraser Valley FC         38  18   3  17  51  50   +1  57
  9 Columbia City            38  16   7  15  50  48   +2  55
 10 Ridgewell Rovers         38  14  12  12  41  37   +4  54
 11 Hesham FC                38  14  12  12  37  39   -2  54
 12 Kingsbury United         38  14   9  15  45  50   -5  51
 13 Carter United            38  14   9  15  39  48   -9  51
 14 West Couno United        38  11  12  15  33  38   -5  45
 15 Sturrey Athletic         38  12   7  19  24  45  -21  43
 16 Clark City               38  10  11  17  53  77  -24  41
 17 Ridgewell United         38  10   8  20  29  40  -11  38
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 18 Port Marray FC           38  10   7  21  21  42  -21  37 Relegated
 19 Readale Wanderers        38   9   9  20  26  45  -19  36 Relegated
 20 Newton Warriors AFC      38   7  12  19  28  55  -27  33 Relegated

2020/21 Tumbran Premier Division Champions
Lakewood City
10th Premier Division title

by **Tumbra** » Mon Mar 08, 2021 12:43 am

PREMIER DIVISION, SEASON 2020-21
POST-SEASON

With the dust settling on the Premier Division season, it became a time for review, reflection and recuperation. Some players would be going off to pastures new, some retiring, and some staying where they were. But there were always time for some awards.

PLAYER OF THE SEASON - ROBIN VAUGHN (LCI)

Vaughn, played a critical role in the Lakewood City's run of unbeaten matches as they slowly marched towards the title, destroying much in its wake. As part of a team that steamrollered the league, Vaughn's contributions - fifteen goals and sixteen assists in thirty-four games; were a key part of how he contributed. But even then, outside of the on-pitch actions, there were also multiple things he did off the pitch that won this award for him - keeping his team's morale up, acting as a natural leader, etc. Already seen as a natural successor to the captaincy, Vaughn's career looks set to continue on an upwards trajectory.

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE SEASON - BRUCE NOLAN (COU)

Nolan scored twelve and assisted eight in twenty-nine matches. Filling in on the right or up top whenever starting striker Marcus Sheldon was out, the youngster proved his chops and versatility whenever asked to by manager Siakam, and rightfully deserves this award for evolving his style of play beyond the typical "run fast and in between the defenders" type striker, though he can still fall back upon that when asked.

GOLDEN GLOVE - NIGEL PHILIPPS (RIR) - 16 clean sheets
SILVER GLOVE - DEAN ROWDEN (HES) - 15 clean sheets, 39 conceded
BRONZE GLOVE - DAVID GOUGH (SER) - 15 clean sheets, 44 conceded
Hon. Mention - DAN CROSBY (STU) - 15 clean sheets, 45 conceded

The Golden Glove, surprisingly, went to Nigel Philipps of Ridgewell Rovers. Conceding the second lowest amount of goals (behind the eventual champions), Philipps' heroics in goal led to his team scraping a top-half finish, despite scoring only 41 goals. The Silver Glove went to Hesham No.1 Dean Rowden, who won by virtue of the fact that he conceded less goals than either of the two other goalkeepers who were in contestation for the Silver Glove.

An honourable mention must be given to Dan Crosby, Sturrey's no.1, who kept 15 clean sheets and was an integral part of keeping his team up. By contrast, Lakewood United (and Tumbra no.1)'s Louis Addison only kept 12 clean sheets, while the champions' John Lennon kept 14.

GOLDEN BOOT - DANIEL GALBRAITH (STR) - 26 GOALS

One last hurrah for Galbraith, then, as he hung up his Straton FC shirt in search of pastures new. Despite Marcus Sheldon of Couno endlessly pursuing him throughout the season, Galbraith's individual quality and contributions led to him snagging the Golden Boot for a sixth time. The awards ceremony also included plenty of tributes to the departing striker.

MANAGER OF THE SEASON - JOHN RIEDWELD (LCI)

Unsurprisingly, this award went to Riedweld, whose team absolutely steamrollered the rest of the league. Despite a somewhat shaky start, the team recovered to garner 30 wins from 38 games, and 3 draws. Winning the league by twenty points meant that he was a shoo-in for the award, having won a fourth league title in five years.

TEAM OF THE SEASON

GK: Nigel Philipps (Ridgewell Rovers)

RB: Russell White (Clyde Park)
CB: Will Collins (Hesham FC)
CB: Ian Ashburn (Lakewood City)
LB: Chris Carter (Lakewood City)

CM: Craig McGrath (Serrapince FC)
CM: Adam Herlinger (Lakewood United)
CM: Robert Powell (Lakewood City)

LW: Robin Vaughn (Lakewood City)
RW: Daniel Galbraith (Straton FC)
ST: Marcus Sheldon (Couno Rangers)

TWELFTH MAN: Neil Fraser (Clyde Park)

Tumbran Domestic Football Newswire

Tumbran Domestic Football Newswire

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