World Cup 88- Roleplay Thread

[Independent Athletes from Quebec]

In the meanwhile, we are moving back to the quiet, old house of the Coxwell Park Estate.

It was by all means a peaceful, pastoral sight of the couple whose peacetime had come. Eileen was watching young Claire, now just fifteen months old, run, when Asher had arrived. Hearing her father's footsteps, the young toddler ran towards him, well outpacing her mother with glee.

'Appa, appa, appa!' Claire said, as he approached his father. Without ado, Asher quickly hugged his daughter and held her in his left arm, while Eileen joined the two by hugging him from a distance.

Together they slowly moved to the middle of the living room, where Asher slowly lifted his daughter and carefully dropped her. Much to her parents' disappointments (but lack of surprise attached as well), Claire started running again. Eileen and Asher watched her run back and forth, and in circles all over the room, before they started to talk.

'Well, you are not late for once,' said Eileen to her husband, her blue eyes once again lighten up on a sunny morning. 'And oh my god, Claire's really happy her papa's back from a visit.'

'It was only three days away, to visit my cousin in the Morays. At least Monique was happy to see me for once.'

'Well, at least you're back home now.' Eileen smiled back at him, looking at the baby, while moving her hand to his. 'At least all's quiet and peaceful here, with nothing but music, the sea and the woods.'

'And mot importantly of all, you were right. You were right all along, and I thank you for saving me when it was all lost and I was ungrateful to you...'

Eileen's smile was radiant, and so was a light drop of tears shared between them.

'And the world that we live in will be as beautiful as one we live in.' Eileen said, touching her hair once before they found themselves into an embrace. It was like those enjoyed by a high school couple, dancing in the dark side of the gym at the tail end of their senior (sixth form) year. 'It's sunny outside, just a perfect day for picnic...maybe we should bring Irene and D'Arcy for lunch, and go...spend the afternoon together with the guitars.'

And it was then that the television, which was running a rerun of the QBC episode, had suddenly interrupted its regular programming. The next thing the young happy couple and their daughter, who quickly escaped her mother's hold on the toddler, saw was the televised broadcast of Christine II's televised Speech to the public about the Anexit:

Her Majesty Christine the Second's Speech to Quebec and Shingoryeo, Quebecois Commonwealth, Anaia and Atlantian Oceania

On my twenty-eighth birthday, I welcome the opportunity to speak to all the peoples of Quebec and Shingoryeo, the Quebecois Commonwealth and Anaia, no matter where they are from, where they live, and no matter where their lives will lead.

Let me begin by saying 'thank you' to all those out there, who have wished blessings and messages of goodwill. This is a special day for me, but it is also one day that reminds me of priorities, the priorities of this life that, like all of us watching this, whether home or away, face as one.

At such a time, it is a true delight to know that no matter what, there stands true friends around the Multiverse who wish me well and that of our beloved ones. As always, I am thankful. As I speak to you today from my home in Quebec City, I stand on the lands where my ancestors have arrived from the far lands of the Morning Calm. But I am never forgetful of those who have come from away, whose heart has brought life to this country and our soil. Anywhere I have travelled, in every corner of Atlantian Oceania, homely quarters of Anaia, or true homelands of our Quebecois Commonwealth of Nations, my parents, my brothers and I have taken to the core of what holds the strengths of the peoples together and reminded that the faith holds us stronger and together.

This is the great pride and privilege that belongs to us, the people of the Quebecois Commonwealth of Nations, in that we trust each other and not question ourselves out of dubitation and blindness. As I grow older, I hope I will continue to take the trails less taken, but rings truer to our hearts.

Today, as misunderstandings cloud the judgments and anger blinds the eyes of all of us in the days following the Foxchester Declaration, I am thinking especially of all the true souls of those who had grown up in the era of international coexistence and co-operative prosperity following the two wars against Nazi Felix and Holy Republican Empire of my father's time.

Will you, the people of Quebec and Shingoryeo, the Quebecois Commonwealth of Nations, and the prosperous regions of Anaia and Atlantian Oceania, let me speak on my birthday as your witness? As we face great challenges that need more understanding and tolerance from each pother, it would be an absolute joy for all of us to think that together, we shall overcome our historical challenges, current differences and the future challenges that lie ahead.

No matter what, we must not feel limited by the challenges that the 'shift' has brought to our lives, over the three seas that surround ourselves, the Quebecois Commonwealth and the corners of the world. We know that the opportunity, so rare yet often taken for granted, has come to us to strengthen our ties and redefine our priorities.

I am sure that you will see our faith and trust, in which we guide ourselves instead of blind hatred and unnecessary vigilance, as the great promise that binds all of us, from seas to seas, between you and me. Most of us have read, from the tales of our nation's initial dates, that our nation was built on its principles of unity and trust between argonauts and first peoples, and would continue to do so in service and servitude among our peoples. The same goes to our time with those of the Commonwealth and Anaia, for we ought to say that what appears to be a nuclear threat in the eyes of many, is no less than a reminder for our continued call for solidarity, and has to continue bridging the communities, a mari usque ad mare, et a flumine usque ad terminos terrae.

I think that binding ties of our Commonwealth of nations is even stronger than any that were hoped in the days of the Year 1404, and it is for us, who have lived under the time of prosperity, to continue carrying the torch of our enduring spirit and the light it brings to the dark world.

If we all wave our hands together with the trust in one another with a tolerant self, an understanding heart, and the compassionate spirit, all of which we hold as part of this ancient Commonwealth, we will cross the water together with no time.

To accomplish what we have been working together, we must stay true to ourselves. What our ancestors had spent endless sleepless nights for, in bridging the painted corners of our world together through patience and appreciation, is what I cannot do quite as they did. But through the power of technology, I can do what mankind has dreamed for millennia. I can make my declaration with the whole Commonwealth, and the regions listening. I would like to make the declaration now as a renewal to my promise to you all.

I declare before you all that my life, from now until the end of our time, shall be devoted to your service and the worlds that we all belong to. However far or close, Anaian or Oceanian, it is your service that I will promise on behalf of us all.

But I shall not have the strength to renew and bind this resolution alone, unless you join with me tonight. I know that your support, whether in the times of dark or not, will be given. May God help me to complete this vow, and May they hold ourselves true to the strongest of our faiths.

[The Hainan Union]

Jin Li was born and raised in downtown Haikou. In high school, he volunteered with the Hsintai (later Hainan Union) Environmental Services Organization. His volunteer work was simple, usually: picking up trash along Haikou's beaches, tending to the 2nd Haikou Community Garden, and posting signs about the Hainan Union's new recycling policies.

2017 was Jin Li's last year volunteering with the ESO. That year, the municipal government of Haikou announced that they would build a new, multipurpose stadium along the Wuyuan River. So, the ESO gave Jin Li and a few other members a task: scout the proposed construction site of the Wuyuan River Stadium and identify how the stadium would affect wildlife there. As construction would not begin for another six months, the proposed construction site was still open to the public, and Jin Li would not be breaking any laws.

Jin Li woke up around 5 or 6 to do this scouting work. With football practice and prep for college entrance examinations, there was no good time to do it otherwise. He would run to the construction site from his family's flat in downtown Haikou about 6 kilometers away; in doing so, he would also get his cardio in.

Jin Li's main findings? Two holes in the ground of the proposed construction site, with furry friends occasionally looking out from them. Hainanese gophers lived here – a unique species of burrowing rodents whose burrows had just a handful of entrances, but were exceedingly complex under the surface. (OOC: According to expert knowledge, Hainanese gophers do not exist IRL; they only do in the Hainan Union.)

Jin Li thought about how deep the foundation of the Wuyuan River Stadium would need to be and shuddered. "This won't do," he remembered saying to himself.

With his smartphone, he snapped a few geotagged photos – a few of them featuring gophers – and made a note to show up at the next Haikou municipal government meeting.

[Pasarga]

Watching all the flurry from Atlantian Oceania from afar was one that was like watching a train wreck, it was a terrible and awful event and yet you could not tear your eyes from the ongoing spectacle. For many Pasargans, the ongoing split between the breakaway region and those that they had left behind in Atlantian Oceania was just another reason why they believed that a predominantly isolationist policy was the best way to conduct international policy. For the government however it was a warning shot that reinforced the idea that the Common Rushmori Community was an important institution that needed the backing of all the major nations of the region. While not a military power, the dual islands were one of the four home nations of the modern Rushmore region, alongside Nethertopia, Sargossa, and of course Candelaria And Marquez. The four nations had come together when Rushmore were mere adolescents in the eyes of the footballing world and conceived the idea of the Copa Rushmori and well as the Copa de Campeones.

Some wondered how this split could have happened and come with such hostility and upset feelings, had those in the breakaway not considered talking to those that they were about to leave behind? It seemed like this could have been a peaceful transition that would not have brought such turmoil if there had been some discussions beforehand and not after the fact between the two separate institutions. It likely would have been awkward and not done much in the way of maybe dissuading those that had decided to declare themselves a different region to reconsider, it would have likely at least brought the sense of betrayal down several notches from those that apparently now felt like their region was on the brink of collapse.

It also provided a needed distraction away from the football pitch, where despite having the best ranking in over a decade, the Wanderers were having their worst start to a qualifying campaign that any living fan of the national team could remember. Nothing was going right, be it in front of the ninety thousand strong supporters in the Stade de Torgos or when the team ventured from the dual islands. Perhaps having already decided that this World Cup cycle was going to be his last in charge of the Wanderers, Griffiths had inadvertently allowed the team to have quit on him with perhaps the idea that he had decided to quit on them being among the squad. The struggles of the team are baffling and have left everyone completely clueless on what exactly is going wrong or how to fix it before it becomes an unmitigated disaster. As it stands, it is hard to fathom the Wanderers finding any way back into the idea of qualifying for the World Cup and it brings a sense of dread over the entire footballing community in Pasarga, as both national team and domestic team seem to be withering away into obscurity for reasons that seem impossible to figure out or grasp.

[Huayramarca]

OOC: This post is merely IC, there's no animosity towards anybody about anything.

Augusto Buendía walked through the halls of the Foxchester Palace, he tried to figure out where his seat would be into the immense room that was about to presence one of the biggest moments of Huayramarcan and, pretty much, several other nations that are near to the Windy Nation. Buendía had to take his glasses in order to see the small letters on the placards, he scratched his head and then grabbed his few hair when he read “Maximiliano Buendía, President of the Huayramarcan Republic” Some childhood histories popped in his mind, Maximiliano is his second name and the one that people used to bully him, he really despised his second name. Wilbur Hawes from Audioslavia, Assane Traoré from Osarius and Gavin Mycroft from the southern neighbor nation of Krytenia saw with weird eyes at how Buendía was being mentally tortured by his own name.

The main reason of Buendía’s presence, as leader of Ñucanchi Ñan Party, was to certify the firm decision of Huayramarca into a matter that can boost progress efforts for Huayramarca in the long term if the situation is well managed. This was the third meeting among the leaders, but this one was the definite one, there was need to provide heavy argumentation that would impulse the leaders to sign the treaty and then starting a new era. After a lot of false calls from the Vdaran representative, where he was fooled with a false button by the Old Shakerssen, the Wightling delegate into the meeting, it was turn for Buendía to deliver a speech about Huayramarca’s stance in the topic.

Buendía sipped some water and cleaned his throat, his indigenous outfit helped him to attract the attention of the gathered representatives, then, he said: “Atlantian Oceania has provided a lot for some nations and nothing for others, the latter is our case: We are an under-developed nation that needed support two years ago during Hugo Mina’s iron-fist dictatorship, when our fragile institutions succumbed, we asked support from AORDO and we were ignored because Huayramarca was a newly discovered nation in the region that wasn’t known in depth by the organization… That’s a cheap excuse that showed how much we care to them” he was being sarcastic in the last phrase, then, took some water and continued “Throughout their history, development, support and power has been focused only in Southwestern nations, but what about us in the North? Hey, we do exist and we also need help sometimes.”

Despite being a new nation, Huayramarca hasn’t remained closed to what was happening outside, proof of this was the next couple of words from Buendía “There were obscure passages in our history here in the North, the Corvidae war where nobody in the region, outside northern nation nations, cared about and helped to solve: Audioslavia, Royal Kingdom of Québec and Shingoryo, and several others were capable to turn this zone into what it is now, we didn’t needed the help of anybody else… Then, I proceed to ask you: Aren’t we capable to handle this new era by ourselves? This is an era of maximum stability, economic growth projections are favorable and we, as northern nations, are capable to interconnect ourselves via trust and partnership in order to maximize the effects of those growth projections. Let’s turn this into a real thing!”

Then, Buendía said “I, for one, am a proud Anaian citizen from now on. I trust in your knowledge, comprehension and will to benefit your nation by forming part of this deal, I know that you know how to ponder the points that I mentioned before, also, how we can handle great projects such as rebuilding after a war, a big joint league as it was LigAnaia, COCANEFA too, the cultural connections between nations such as Québec and Huayramarca; Audioslavia, Krytenia and Starblaydia; Chromatika and Ko-oren too. We are a melting pot of freedom, diversity, perseverance and resilience through hardship.” Then, he raised his fist and said “For Huayramarca, for Anaia ¡Revolución o muerte, venceremos!” while slapping the red button he had in front of him.

Some in the room applauded, some others showed themselves skeptical and deemed necessary to analyze the pros and cons of every argumentative intervention that was held during the meeting. No matter what, Buendía turned things into a direction that nobody would’ve expected before with his rousing speech, a day that won’t be easily forgotten in the minds of a lot of nations.

Before finishing his intervention, Buendía spoke once again “Life has dynamics and cycles, everything has a beginning and an end, there’s an imperious need to reinvent how our nations interact into a new era of technology, transport, economic and international affairs. We as northerners can understand between ourselves better than anyone else, that’s why I once again urge you to think about how your nation and its society can unleash their real potential in a friendly and cooperative scenario such as Anaia can be.”

Buendía sat, sipped some water and relaxed by stretching on his chair.

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

10 Memorable Moments in BPNT History
We pick up at number 7, which chronologically is the first...

7) After their debut on the scene in Baptism of Fire 67 in Banija, the Commonwealth National Team went into the qualifying stage of World Cup 80 with a sense of optimism, but Trevor Richmond and the coaching staff tried to keep expectations at a minimum; this would be a completely different scenario from the BOF, as Pam Scott had taken a squad of up & coming stars and several experienced vets, including five from her women's NT that she trusted most. She had gotten the first senior mixed gender side to blend together and play for one another.

For the 18 match WCQ tournament, there would be a squad more heavily skewed towards the men Richmond had been in charge of the for the previous several years; at the halfway point, there was a rotation where several regulars weren't called up in order to leave them available for their clubs.

This was the first time that either of the BPNT squads had called players in for international matches on such a frequent basis; generally in a calendar year there would be couple of home friendlies in early spring, which was at the tail end of the NL season, a summer tour of 3-4 matches played abroad, and another 1 or 2 matches in the early fall, possibly a home & away pair, that was right at the start of a new campaign. Obviously there would be more frequent matches nearly year round, and there was already a certain amount of 'disagreement' between the FAC and the League.

With that lengthy preamble over, let's move onto the actual match in question, or rather the pair of matches that made up the Qualifying Playoff tie between Baker Park and Qasden, who had co-hosted the BOF that the Bees had participated in. The Vans had finished runners-up in their 10 team group, which gave them a seeding edge in the draw among the 30 second & third placed sides that would battle over a single week to determine the other 15 nations who would make up the field in Equestria & Starblaydia.

From a logistical and supporters standpoint, drawing a near neighbor in Atlantian Oceania was seen as a stroke of good luck; from a competitive standpoint, it was probably not such a great matchup, as evidenced by this paragraph in the pre-match coverage by Mindy Cartwright in the Sporting Times:

… 'Qasden was the co-host of the BoF tournament with Banija, although the BP team did not play any matches there. They are 2 times winners of the Cup of Harmony and are seeking to qualify for the second straight WC finals; ranked 27th in the world they came home in a strong second place, unbeaten in all 9 matches of the second round of qualifying with 7 wins and 2 draws and outscoring them 27-9.'

In contrast, BP's two halves of the double round robin series were as different as night & day; after an opening match away draw with Newmanistan, there were 6 wins in the next 8 which put the Bees atop the table, but a four match winless streak put the record back to where it was probably expected to be with four fixtures remaining. Three wins in four saw them muscle past Kita-Hinode—in spite of losing to them in the penultimate match—for the third spot.

With the first leg to be hosted in Belle Haven, Trevor Richmond elected to have an evening kickoff, in spite of the advice of the Metro Police. Despite crowd control necessitating sections of the stands to go unfilled, there still were over 55,000 at Keller Field and the match kicked off to a full decibel roar from all of them.
BP had worked specifically in the week of training ahead of the match on sustaining control of the ball in the middle third of the pitch; Valerie Agahambri was Scott's 'pride & joy' for the ladies NT because of her versatility and skill, so the manager sold Richmond on having her support the front duo of Ian Coverstone and Ali Salih, the near automatic choices for the starting XI. The Jamestown City Ladies forward was deployed as a safety valve for the midfield if they found themselves under pressure, tracking back 25 yards from the box to show for the ball.

Her selflessness and work rate made the fact that she tallied the night's only goal even more monumental than it probably would be remembered today; Erica Shaw, Tony Santos, and Coverstone had “tiki-takka'd” the ball to about 25 yards from goal when Coverstone was closed down, Agahambri quickly rushing to a gap to provide an outlet, one touching back to Santos then cutting sharply towards the penalty area, where the return was instantaneous and perfectly placed. The ball was in the back of net before the keeper had a chance to react, and the celebration with her pointing to a pair of supporters with a J-City flag hanging over the rail became in iconic photo splashed across papers throughout the country.

The lightning bolt that was less than 20 minutes from full time seemed to suck much of the energy out of the stadium for a period, but as minutes ticked away, the traveling fans tried to urge their side on for an equalizer, while the home crowd worked back up into a full voiced din. At the final whistle there were respectful handshakes all around among the players and staffs; in the aftermath there were no major safety issues that MPD responded to outside of a typical Saturday night, and the sides looked ahead to the return in T.V City on the following Wednesday.

Commonwealth of Baker Park 1-0 Qasden
Agahambri 72'

World Cup 80 Playoff, 1st Leg
Keller Field, Belle Haven att—55,722

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Which brings us to one of those defeats we mentioned at the top. There was more than plenty of optimism back in Qasden that they would get what they needed at home to move on to the Finals, after all, Baker Park were still the 150th ranked team in the KPB, far & away the lowest side remaining. The Vans had played one of the earlier qualifying matches at the Royal T.V. Stadium, a massive structure in the heart of the capital, and they offered a relatively similar allocation of tickets to the FAC that had been given to them at Keller Field—1/7 of the capacity, which was about 8,000 for the Belle Haven venue, but around 12,000 here, which the FAC didn't even sell all of—which meant there would about ten times the number of supporters backing the home team than had made the weekend trip east.

The lineup only changed by replacing Salih and Coverstone with Evan Ashcroft to partner Agahambri and Jamari Bozeman playing behind them in the area that is positionally called “the slot”--between the lines and splitting the center-halfs in a back four. He was already showing the ability at 21 that would make him the greatest player in NT history when he called time on his career after World Cup 87.

The tempo of the match started out slower, with the Qads having more time with the ball probing the defensive alignment for room to operate, eventually finding what they were after; on 22 minutes it was 1-0 thanks to Icarus Darsten with the noise level rising and more energy the result.
BP began to gradually speed up their passing game, clawing back the possession disparity by the half hour, with Hafiz Idiekhume and Matt Villarreal on the wings threatening the defense more aggressively.
Ashcroft powered home a header off a Tony Santos cross in the 33rd minute to level the score, but it was the home side who took the lead and momentum into the dressing room after a another buildup led to the second Qasden tally four minutes before the break from Onyx Foster

The lead was 2 when another long period of Qad possession resulted in a third goal, this one by Ryan Xandreas five minutes in, the crowd sensing blood in the water now. After the kickoff, BP settled back into a consistent work rate, while the bench nearly en masse went to the warm-up area to send a subtle message to the side and the hosts.
Just near the hour mark, a sequence of events led to another change in the mood around the stadium; an Erica Shaw free kick from 24 yards was tipped over the crossbar, with the resulting corner leading to an unmarked Agahambri getting a clean look at goal but sending it wide. Off the ensuing goal kick, the ball came straight back into the Qasden defensive third, and Santos found Ashcroft, but he tapped it to Villareal, who made no mistake at the far post. The subs were waved back and only the traveling contingent were audible leading up to the restart.

Sunish Ismail replaced Santos a couple of minutes later and the tension built as the minutes ticked away; but it appeared that fortune would smile on the Vans this night, as substitute Valentin Munson restored the 2 goal advantage—and regained the aggregate lead—with just 14 minutes left.
Richmond motioned that the Bees should once again increase the tempo of the passing game, although the majority of the players were now late into a second consecutive match, and no apparent injection of fresh legs seemingly coming on to help. Bozeman was not one of those feeling the effects of back to back emotionally charged matches, and along with the sub Ismail started to use the others as training drill feeders—make a pass, run to a spot, receive a pass back, and repeat.

Ismail drew a foul about 20 yards out in a perfect spot a couple of minutes later, and Shaw—who was wearing the armband because of a deal worked out between herself and Salih, the two most capped players in the squad—lined up to take the free kick. She was unquestionably one of the very best set piece scorers in the Women's National League, and had proven herself from nearly the beginning of mixed-gender that she was tough enough to take whatever any man had to dish out on the pitch, and prepared to give no quarter in return.

She specifically wanted the distance walked off by the referee, and nodded Ashcroft out of setting up on the far post side of the 5 man wall.

As soon as the whistle blew, Shaw took one step to plant her left foot and arced the ball into the net past Macron Abbott, who never moved; she said later that if it had been a bit off target, someone in front of goal would've had a tap in.

Just four minutes after believing they were home safe, now Qasden were behind the 8-Ball once again.

Nathan Ohler replaced Bozeman before the kickoff, and Angelique Underwood came on for Agahambri about 3 minutes later. At the final whistle, the Baker Park National Team had joined a rare, exclusive club, qualifying for the World Cup Final at the first attempt. The pileup was worthy of a Championship celebration, and the handshakes among the coaching staffs were displays of mutual respect; Richmond himself didn't even join in the celebration until he'd gone and spoken to all the Vans XI who waited for the post match congratulations.

It was the final part of the first chapter of Baker Park's World Cup story, and it would probably be even higher on this list if there hadn't been a few other days and nights to talk about.

Qasden 4-3 Commonwealth of Baker Park (aggregate 4-4, Baker Park advance on away goals)
Darsten 22'Ashcroft 33'
Foster 41' Villareal 61'
Xandreas 50'Shaw 79'
Munson 75'

World Cup 80 Playoff, 2nd Leg
Royal T.V. City Stadium, Qasden att-93,000

Lineup vs Juvencus
Gaines; Brooks, Freeman;Edmonds; Grimaldi, D'Amico, Nolan, Ngoba: Craig; Pryor, West

Lineup vs Chartistan
Coffey; O'Connell, N Underwood, Wiseman; Delgarro, Stone, Nolan, D'Amico; Westmoreland (C); Simmons, Wadsworth

[Ranoria]

The Beach Field
Loosely Inspired by A Certain Classic Baseball Movie

"So Barry, what in the blazes is going on this season?" Vick Hamilton, RSSN reporter, started the interview, "A 4-1-0 start to the World Cup? After the Krauts won just 6 matches in World Cup 87, this early surge has to feel pretty encouraging. In just a couple years, we're seeing a ton of improvement out of this team."

Barry nodded, and took a sip of his water before he even started talking. "Uh, yeah. Guys are playing hard, Felix [Graf] is a weapon up front and having dudes like Vincent [Emilia] and Rayko [Grossman] behind us is a big help. You know the first few matches were great, but we'd all been giving our match with Xanneria sideways glances since we started training together again. That was supposed to be either a big loss or the game that would put a screeching halt to any momentum."

"But it didn't," Vick added on. The biggest name in Ranorian sports journalism flourished, "You and Felix Graf combined for three goals on the day, it was truly a masterful performance, and really the first time you've gotten to flash that leg of of yours. Both of those kicks were absolutely beautiful. The second, where you dribbled the ball back to avoid a tackle, stepped up to get an angle between two defenders and a goalie, then knocked it through what couldn't have been a three foot gap? Incredible!"

Barry rubbed the back of his head nervously, unused to all the attention, with his day job as a gridiron kicker generally attracting more negative attention than positive. Remember kids, hitting a 50 yard field goal to win the game in sub zero temperatures and swirling winds is expected, but god forbid you miss! "Yeah not gonna lie, I should've passed that one out, if you watch the tape, Tony Hamilton was wide open on the other side, it was more a panic shot than a skill thing, but it turned out alright."

"And work out it did, so, tell me how did some stuck up, millionaire kicker like you get into soccer in the first place, Barry?"

"Well, Vick..."

---

The screen fades to show just Vick Hamilton, who with a flashy grin, closed it out. “Stay tuned for part 2 in a week!”

[Le Choix]

Ligue Légère Saison 41 Preview - Part 2: The Dark Horses

4. Brillante
Last Season: Ligue 3rd Place, Cup Quarterfinals
Key Players: RB Isaac Morneau, RM Élise Lacan, AM Aurélie Dior, ST Rolande Peletier
Unsung Hero: GK Pierres Girard
Manager: Agate Sourd
Summary: Four players on the National Team? Brillante is on the cusp of another breakthrough - until their best players are poached by the big three. Having Morneau and Dior is such a luxury - Dior is someone who will be the face of The Chosen's attack with Lavigne for years to come. Can they actually eclipse the Top Three? Not likely, but it'll be exciting to see.

5. Glacée
Last Season: Ligue 5th Place, Cup Quarterfinals
Key Players: CB Ingrid Bureau, CM Émeline Doisneau, ST Maximilienne Granger
Unsung Hero: LM Anastaise Pape
Manager: Hugon Beaufort
Summary: The best bet for a miracle run, Glacée has their Captain of ten years, Maximilienne Granger as a wildcard. This is the squad that is most likely to either be third or eighth, which is why they slide into fifth place here. Anastaise Pape has become a decent scoring threat, too, which helps.

6. Étoile
Last Season: Ligue 6th Place, Cup Semifinals
Key Players: CB Adolphe Pleimelding, LM Henry Grant, GK Marie-Françoise Benett
Unsung Hero: AM Brigitte Babin
Manager: Alexandrine Sauveterre
Summary: Étoile has one of the best histories in keepers, and Benett is a gem that's being shined. It may take some time for the defense to get together to help Étoile back up to pole position, but it's going to be a solid building season.

7. Ailes
Last Season: Ligue 9th Place, Cup First Round
Key Players: GK Théo Plourde, RM Salomon Bonnet, ST Megane Chevrolet
Unsung Hero: CB Tristan Barre
Manager: Lionel Bonheur
Summary: The most boring squad of the ten, Ailes fans will have not much to cheer about. Sure - the core of Bonnet and Chevrolet will mean that they'll score as many goals as any other team in the Ligue.

8. Fidéle
Last Season: Ligue 10th Place, Cup First Round
Key Players: LB Jérémy Marchal, LM Campion Larue, ST Frédérique Guillory
Unsung Hero: AM Amorette Colbert
Manager: Viviane Paget
Summary: Hope for Fidéle as Larue and Guillory enter the age of twenty-four, where they are expected to do more. Maybe they can push for sixth?

9. Aube
Last Season: Ligue 7th Place, Cup Semifinals
Key Players: CB Éloi Bouthillier, GK Davy Kléber, LM Flore Dembélé
Unsung Hero: ST Victoire David
Manager: Ginette Tailler
Summary: Aube is missing their Captain and key playmaker, CM Barberie Guillome. She had twins last offseason and is recuperating with her babies. Bouthillier is a slid piece and Dembélé is exciting to watch, but that's about it.

10. Marquée
Last Season: Ligue 8th Place, Cup Quarterfinals
Key Players: RB Émile Leon, CM Yvette Travere, ST Dorothée Leandres
Unsung Hero: RM Joan Dereaux
Manager: Adelle Labelle
Summary: The issue with Marquée heading into the next season is the disappearance of three of their Starting XI. Two of them have been reassigned to other jobs while one has been sent to the Portal itself - Georgine Baille volunteered. With three missing, Marquée will be hard-pressed - which is a shame for all who didn't make the choice. Such is the life of a footballer in Le Choix...

[Vilita]

The cameras were still rolling in Nikkii Kater's studio as she quickly switched gears and packed her things for a trip to Siovanija & Teusland for a meeting amongst Leaders of Atlantian Oceania. For what purpose? It was unclear. The Leazi-Corada informed Nikkii that she would be briefed once she got to the transport. There should would be met by a pair of officers from the Vilitan Orbital Intelligence Agency who were following the situation in the North East and would be prepared to provide Kater with talking points to the other Regional Leaders.

Regional Leaders?

It hadn't really had time to sink in for Nikkii. One of her team had decided to keep the Camera rolling as she arrived at the transport and waited to be met by the VOIA representatives. As she waited another person arrived from Tropicorp who indicated that they would also be catching a ride on the transport to Stelburg representing Tropicorp and the Cocoabo Forest. They were headed to a meeting with the leaders of Atlantian Oceania. To discuss something going on in the North East. Nikkii had been checking twii.tur for more information but at this point she was probably less certain what she was walking into than she was when the news first broke a short while ago. Was there some political event going on? Was there a geographical event going on? Were the nations of the North East even there? Had twii.tur been hacked?

She assumed she would not have been called upon by the Leazi-Corada had twii.tur been hacked. Then again, she would never have expected to be called upon to represent Vilita and Turori at a forum of Regional Leaders in any situation, ever. It didn't really matter what it was, she was still confused.

Kater and the Tropicorp representative scrolled through twii.tur themselves then Nikkii realized... Tropicorp was on Calania - was this person there? She tried striking up a conversation but he was too interested in what was going on on his communicator device to keep up the conversation. Nikkii realized unlike her, he wasn't on twii.tur. "So um whatcha doin over there" She asked. Finally, after some doing, she elicited at least a welcoming response. He was actually already in Vilita when he was called to meet the transport - which kind of made sense. The ferry ride from Tropicorp isn't super quick. He mentioned some kind of Anomaly in North Eastern Tropicorp and outward towards the Great Calanian Desert. He really didn't know much more himself but that Tropicorp had already sent teams to investigate. He assumed VOIA had sent a fleet of Drones to investigate as well and that was likely the reason why the officers from the Vilitan Orbital Intelligence Agency were late.

Then he put his communicator down and looked toward Nikkii with a serious face. "You know, when we get there, everyone is going to be looking at you - what you have to say, how you carry yourself. This is going to be important."

Nikkii suddenly felt cold. She is used to being in the limelight. She is used to making jokes and indulging in hot takes and critical analysis. She can deliver the news in a fun and intriguing way and she could be straight faced while talking about complete nonsense. She could do these things. But she had always done them at the comfort of home. Either literally at home or in her studio - which was a home away from home. Stelburg was not home. World Politics and Regional leadership was not home for Nikkii. Or at least, it was not yet. The duo did not say another word as they awaited the arrival of the VOIA officers with the critical data they would need to be briefed on their way to Siovanija and Teusland.

---

The Road is Where the Heart Is

After Five matches of their World Cup 88 Qualifying campaign a trend started to emerge. After an early 1-0 victory at home over the 14 Stars, the Jungle Cats fortunes at home started to sour. A 2-2 Draw against Devonta and a defeat to Pluvia and the Saxean Isles at Marine World Park in Crosaibi put major dents in the Jungle Cats Qualifying hopes as they would struggle through their first half schedule in Group 2. Luckily, however, they were holding steady on the road.

While Vilita always drop points in their opening match of any given World Cup Cycle - so no fault can be held against them for that, they rebounded nicely with a 2-0 victory on the road against Eshialand on Matchday 3, a 2-0 victory over Lisander on the road on Matchday 4 and 1-0 victory over Sendhang on the road on Matchday 6. Three straight road matches, three straight victories, zero goals conceded.

Of course it was no secret that goalscoring had been an issue for the Vilitan National Team during World Cup 88 Qualifying thus far. After seven matches of World Cup 88 Qualifying, the Vilita National Team had just 11 goals. That was the same number of goals as Lisander who were second bottom in Group 2 and had just one victory in 7 games. That was just an average of 1.57 goals per game. That was less than half of the 3.2 goals per game that the Jungle Cats had achieved during World Cup 87 Qualifying.

As a result, the fans were getting a little restless. Vilita had fallen to third in the Group 2 table - an important moment that would incredibly mean that their upcoming match up with Savojarna would not even technically be a top-of-the-table clash. It would just be a heavyweight clash. Still, it would not undermined at all the importance of the match for the Jungle Cats. There were no excuses left for former National Team midfield Poloax Torerun who now served as head coach of the Jungle Cats. The first season was over with. Sure, he had helped ensure Vilita's qualification to the World Cup 87 Finals but then he managed to lead the Jungle Cats to their first Group Stage elimination in the '80's' - having not previously gone home from the World Cup Finals without a knockout match since World Cup 79 in Drawkland. Torerun got a pass after a difficult draw in their first Cup but now the team and its selection was fully on the Turoki Tide midfielder. A victory over Savojarna on Matchday 8 would almost certainly suppress any calls for change among the ranks as it would restore the Jungle Cats control over their Group 2 fate and ensure that running the table in the second half would be more than enough to secure a place in Cassadaigua and Chromatika for the Vilitan squad. A defeat, however, would put the Jungle Cats six points behind Savojarna and potential in a position where winning each of their second half games could not even be enough to assure a playoff spot. With only the Top 6 Runners-up advancing directly to the World Cup Finals, every point lost was a critical reduction in their odds to advance and it was entirely possible that a defeat to Savojarna could result in Torerun being one of the shortest serving coaches in Vilita National Team history.

Of course, having lost to Pluvia and the Saxean Isles just one matchday prior, many are hoping that the Jungle Cats have already completed their sacrifices to margaret for the first half of World Cup 88 and greener fields lie ahead - starting with the match against one of the Jungle Cats biggest and most prominent rivals of modern era World Cup Qualifying.

 Vilita 1 - 0 Sendhang	
	Goals:	:: 51' Nii'arala Milaaso              
	Team:	Mako Canopii, Jirak Trikala, Lohani Riiyaaw (Clarana Refiami 45'), Narri Sebapilo, Intikko Kuhilana, Kudii Davasarii (Berali Tzufarei 75'), Limu Katarakhna, Trezisi Rokopolis, Sipke Tarala (Jurzen Devmiko 17'), Nii'arala Milaaso, Enzoril Alabonni

 Vilita 2 - 0 Lisander	
	Goals:	:: 43' Lohani Riiyaaw:: 91' Kudii Davasarii             
	Team:	Mako Canopii, Jirak Trikala, Rojara Tiones, Lohani Riiyaaw, Kudii Davasarii, Limu Katarakhna, Trezisi Rokopolis, Polaox Torerun, Tenziki Kulakao (Lentali Purama 45'), Clarana Refiami (Enzoril Alabonni 45'), Nii'arala Milaaso (Sipke Tarala 79')

 Vilita 1 - 2 Pluvia and the Saxean Isles	
	Goals:	:: 53' Enzoril Alabonni              
	Team:	Mako Canopii (Vernasa Sanamun 19'), Rojara Tiones (Sipke Tarala 66'), Inteali Koranjo (Polaox Torerun 45'), Lohani Riiyaaw, Kudii Davasarii, Limu Katarakhna, Lentali Purama, Cywrenta Vlintejni, Va'a-Rio Kiwavn, Nii'arala Milaaso, Enzoril Alabonni

[Chromatika]

Matchday 8-9 Cutoff

Results

[Atheara]

What The Actual Hell Just Happened?

Type: Game Review
Time: After MD 8 and 9

---

Well... what do we expect? Two more losses down the drain, and one against fucking Deniria. Oh god what have we all gotten ourselves into? When we entered the World Cup i expected our team to be a mid group team, i guess that's how people call it these days, and now still stuck at the bottom of the table. Our team is really underperforming right now. I will only be analyzing the game between Atheara and EFL (though i don't think it counts as analyzing because we really can't find a way how the hell do we analyze the games because our special equipment was also ruined during the studio fire) as Deniria has kept their roster a complete secret. Suspicious if you ask me.

Atheara 1 - 3 Deniria
Urusov Cantonian - Myords (56') / Unknown (12' ; 45' ; 78')

Anyway since we can't really be doing analysis until i say Matchday 14, i guess we should be talking about MD10, oh boy. #StormAstena and #FreeAnaia has been booming on twii.tur, especially after former ENN Host Alana Markai rallied Eshian fans to got to Astena Stadium and protest against Valanora's choices to cutoff any relations with the countries that have decided to join Anaia and the ones who initiated the Foxchester Declaration in general. The Eshian fans according to government rumours will be allowed to protest as long as nothing happens, but i have a bad feeling something bad will happen. Anyway, here is Atheara vs EFL Results.

Eastfield Lodge 2 - 0 Atheara
Izzat Patton (43') Craig Girard-Vaillancourt (78') / None

Next Matchday is against Valanora, whom we got destroyed 1 - 0, but 1 - 0 can't really be count as destroyed but oh well. And Adab if i am not wrong. I really want some wins right now, but we can only hope that the teams will play well. Atheara vs Valanora in Astena Stadium, prepare for a massacre i would probably say. Also i better just watch from TV instead of going to the stadium, i have a feeling a massacre will obviously happen. I have been Nazer Ohwell, see you all later.

HELP ME! HELP ME! I AM BEI-

Sorry if this RP is shit, i have been quite lazy in general, and plus i am going to Manado either on the 21st or 22nd this Month, so maybe tomorrow or two days later. Anyway i do expect the worst, sorry if i feel so bummed out. Also that last part? Nazer got kidnapped and i plan to RP him to die. As well as one of my players for the World Cup.

[Baggieland]

Queenisa 1 – 0 Baggieland and Baggieland 1 – 1 Krytenia.

Len had decided that the change he desired was more important now than ever. Baggieland had suffered another humiliating loss to Queenisa and an okay-ish draw with Krytenia. He had been dropped for both games by the gaffer, but no one was saying "We would have won those games if Len had played."

He strolled down the road to the tram-stop to take the public transport to the centre of town where the Space Corps recruitment office was situated. No one from Baggieland had done this before, in fact no one from the region of B71 had ever joined the Space Corps. Baggieland doesn't even have cars!

He stood outside the recruitment office door for a bit, drew a deep breath and pushed the door open. The recruitment officer seemed surprised at having someone walk in, nevertheless he motioned for Len to sit down.

"What can I do for you Sir?"

"I'd like to apply to join the Space Corps."

"What can you bring to the Space Corps? No one from Baggieland has ever joined before."

"Well, I'm young, fit, healthy and strong. With perfect eyesight too. As a professional footballer, I know the importance of teamwork too."

"Professional footballer, eh? Yes, I saw your last game. How could you miss that sitter?"

"No one's perfect all the time."

"Okay, let me tell you the process. First, you'll be flown to our base on the moon, where you'll undergo rigorous health and fitness checks – you should be okay with that. After that, you'll receive pilot training and weapons training. Every member of the Space Corps has to be able to fly a fighter and shoot a gun; those aliens aren't friendly. Finally, if you pass all that, you'll be transported to one of our outer bases, where you'll be assigned to a battalion. Depending on where your battalion is located, you could be seeing action pretty soon. So… are you still interested?"

Len's eyes were wide open and a huge smile had appeared across his face.

"Yes, I'm definitely interested. Where do I sign?"

[Eraman]

CHAPTER 7
SOUTH DAULAPURA

Tun is really good at having two faces with his voters.

Tun is always in South Daulapura, his constituency every Friday from morning until almost midnight. Tun will start his Friday on Thursday night by reciting prayers at the temples in his constituency and eat supper after that at various restaurants around his constituency. He will be friendly and have conversations with everyone who was in the restaurants and paid for the foods ordered by everyone that was in there. Sometimes, Tun would even sit and eat at the roadside bakso stall.

From 7 am to 9 am, he would meet his political party colleagues at home, and at 9 am he would go to his constituency office. If elsewhere it is written, Office of the Member of Parliament, in the Tun constituency, it is written Office of the Servant of the People. I once asked why and he answered, "it is all about perception”.

Tun used the same strategy in the middle of the 88th World Cup qualifying campaign some 2 months before the election. Tun instructed all the media in Eraman to spread the news about the national team’s record of only losing twice, only 1 defeat more than the World Cup regulars, Commonwealth of Baker Park and Savigliane.

The whole country was thrilled with the results exhibited by the national squad just because of the record. So much so that some feel the national team has a chance to qualify for the World Cup.

The fact is, the national team is not that great. Despite only losing twice, they were far down in 6th place 9 points behind the group leader, the Commonwealth of Baker Park. But Tun knows the importance of controlling the narrative. If the narrative is successfully controlled, everything is much easier.

At 9 am, people were already queuing up almost up to the road to meet Tun. Ask for anything, Santa Claus is in town. Tun rarely refused any request from any voter in his constituency, regardless of whether the person was known to have voted against Tun or often talk bad about Tun in his constituency. Every Friday, Tun is very generous.

At noon Tun will pray again at the temples around his area. Tun will take some time with the temple committee members to say hello, ensure that all temple problems, especially those involving money, can be helped either through Tun's own money, political party allocation or through some generous donations from philanthropists that Tun will contact.

I was among the philanthropists that Tun contacted to solve not only the temple problem but whatever the people of South Daulapura needed.

After prayers, depending on the program arranged with other component parties, Tun will go from house to house, visit disaster-stricken areas, officiate various festivities or again have afternoon tea at home with visitors at home. Everything needs to be finished before 8 pm so that Tun can go to the temple to pray one more time and meet the temple night-goers.

This 24-hour period is enough for Tun to seem concerned with all the problems in his constituency. Tun is a warlord who rules justly and always fills the pockets of his supporters and strongmen. I observed all this as an outsider whom Tun asked to follow him to do his Friday activities. The frequency of Tun doing all this is seasonal but frequent enough that it seems like Tun does it every week without fail. In addition to doing so often enough, Tun would occasionally invite journalists and well-known friends to come and bring news of Tun's generosity in his constituency.

Tun's routine is embroidered between his responsibilities as a prime minister and a member of parliament who cares about the people in South Daulapura with his immoral activities that take place far away in Anara and occasionally abroad as well as corrupt activities to amass invaluable wealth.

I was involved in almost every part of the embroidery as a needle that stitched various threads of different colors to ensure that each color was sewn neatly so that the embroidery seen from afar looked beautiful and neat to form a highly respected and admired Tun Sengalang Petara who was voted again and again and again.

[Tumbra]

OOC note: For MD10-MD18, Tumbra's style modifier should be changed to -3.

Drawkland 2-1 Tumbra

Tumbra (4-3-3): 1 - Lennon; 2 - Hughes, 4 - Henderson, 5 - Brown (23 - Forrest, 61'), 3 - White (19 - Carter, 68'); 28 - Stansfield, 8 - McGrath, 10 - Herlinger; 31 - Hilton (7 - Fraser, 73'), 9 - Vaughn, 22 - Sheldon

Drawkland (3-3-4): 7 - Xander; 10 - Keys, 8 - Kingston, 16 - Bakker; 22 - Garnet, 0 - Southers, 2 - Hanson; 17 - Apollo; 11 - Rodney, 1 - Madison, 5 - Hunter

TMB scorers: Sheldon (57')
DRK scorers: Hunter (78'), Southers (84')

Player of the Match: Nicholas Kingston (DRK)

Tumbra 1-1 Gyatso-kai

Tumbra (4-3-3): 1 - Lennon; 2 - Hughes, 4 - Henderson (20 - Paterson, 64'), 5 - Brown, 3 - White; 28 - Stansfield, 8 - McGrath, 10 - Herlinger (29 - Cole, 73'); 31 - Hilton, 9 - Vaughn, 22 - Sheldon (11 - Cohen, 82')

Gyatso-kai (4-4-2): 22 - Armok; 16 - Tercar (12 - Kai, 81'), 5 - Hashimoto, 15 - Uthan, 23 - Huang (3 - Somchai, 81'); 7 - Takahashi, 17 - Yoshihada, 18 - Hisakawa, 8 - Yu; 9 - Skirata, 10 - Song (29 - Li, 74')

TMB scorers: McGrath (34')
GKI scorers: Li (90+1')

Player of the Match: Armok Hikari (GKI)

SPORT: DRAWKLAND 2-1 TUMBRA; TUMBRA 1-1 GYATSO-KAI
Single Point from Six Sees Slide in Fortunes to Fourth; Personal Isuses To See Hemmings Take Temporary Break, Asst. Mgr Gabriel To Oversee Team For Second Half

STRATON — The defensive woes faced by Tumbra's national team issues are "deeply worrying" and "could derail a previously possibly promising qualification campaign". Those were the words of Marco Hemmings after a disappointing injury-time draw with Gyatso-kai, which means the Black Eagles are now winless in three. Compared to some struggles stronger nations are facing, like Siovanija and Teusland, who went winless in seven; Astograth, seventh in Group 13, or Pasarga, currently figuring in sixth in Group 16; Tumbra's troubles pale in comparison; yet having a mini-crisis over the future of the national team's footballing identity seems like a hard ask for a team which is still exceeding expectations, what with wins over the first and fourth seeds. Yet there could be so much more.

The Gyatso-kai match had a downcast mood after the match; not least because the Tumbran team had now thrown two more points away, but also because Marco Hemmings' post-match press conference saw the usually jovial and upbeat manager announce he would be taking a break for the second half of qualifying due to personal issues; the Herald understands that this break is temporary, and that Hemmings will return for the final tournament that Tumbra qualifies for; if at all. Failing to make a berth at either the Cup of Harmony, Hemmings' contract is slated to run out at the end of the thirtieth Campionato Esportiva; no doubt the debate over whether he deserves a new contract will dominate and weigh heavily on that tournament. The TFF, breaking their taciturn cover over the course of the Qualifiers so far, no doubt wary of even more backlash over the question of females in sports, released a short press statement confirming the managerial switch and wishing Hemmings all the best. The TFF also confirmed that the recent spate of results did not affect this managerial switch in any way; Hemmings also confirmed as much in his press conference.

No doubt more press talk over what exactly happened will only serve to exacerbate the beleaguered manager's issues, considering he has come under fire from certain quarters for his style of play recently. Yet, as tongues wag, most will focus on the new manager in the hot seat for the next nine matches of Tumbra's qualification campaign — Peter Gabriel, Hemmings' assistant.

Where Hemmings had become a relatively known quantity for his eye-catching style at Fraser, Gabriel is a relatively unknown quantity in and of itself, with the former Straton FC assistant manager being brought in to ostensibly provide a counterbalance to Hemmings' attacking style. Gabriel did not speak to the media upon his announcement as Acting Manager; yet it is understood that, having played as a defender in his early career, he will seek to impress a more defensive style upon the team in hopes of letting them not ship too many goals and yet keep their qualification chances afloat. Whether that mean the offensive side of the game takes a beating, no one knows — but some are certainly hoping Tumbra can recapture their streak which saw six matches without a defeat at the start of these qualifiers.

Drawkland 2-1 Tumbra; Hard-Fought Match Goes Awry With Late Comeback

The away match in Raikennax saw Tumbra seek to exploit their opponent's stature — both figuratively and metaphorically — by deploying fast, nimble attackers against the hulking Drawk players, in hopes that they would be able to outmaneuvre the Drawkians. Ultimately, the Drawkians were caught amiss, particularly by the selection of third-choice left winger George Hilton making an appearance; while skilfully outrunning the Drawkians and on occasion drawing numerous fouls from the imposing defenders, managed to distract them long enough for Marcus Sheldon to lurk on the edge of the box, allowing him to convert one of the precious chances that came his way. The shot against Septimus Xander gave Tumbra the lead; Sheldon's twelfth goal for the Black Eagles moved him to within one of Philip Cohen's thirteen, with seven caps less to his game; making him, as of now, the team's most efficient scorer in WCC competitions.

Yet, while the round of substitutions were made for Tumbra, none were made for Drawkland; indeed, their players did not seem to be laboured by fatigue as time went on. The same old story of a defensive lapse in concentration then played itself out, though with the Drawkians running rings around the Tumbran midfield and defence, and with the presence of four fully committed attacking players instead of the typical three or two, a goal was bound to slip through somewhere.

That late goal was delivered, courtesy of striker Ross Hunter, who used his height advantage over defender Henderson to score a headed goal from a corner; not long after, defender Nicholas Kingston hit a shot on the outside of the box which sailed past John Lennon to confirm the Drawkian victory; the thirty-yard screamer was widely acknowledged as being "unsaveable" by commentators; and most did acknowledge that Lennon had done an excellent job to keep the scoreline to just two goals conceded.

The defeat against the second seeds was widely seen as a given; yet, the hope felt by the travelling Tumbrans for the marquee match was quickly subsumed when Kingston's shot sailed in, relegating Tumbra to fourth in the table; and, for the first time since Matchday One, outside of the top two spots.

Tumbra 1-1 Gyatso-kai; Late Injury Time Goal Denies Three Points for Black Eagles in Sordid Display of Defending

The home match against fifth seeds Gyatso-kai was seen as a must-win for there to be any hope of the Black Eagles improving upon their fifth-placed finish last cycle; and indeed, Tumbra managed to impress the home crowd with yet another display of its attacking prowess; possibly overwhelming the opposition box with shots, only to be denied by the steady hands of goalkeeper Armok Hikari. Much of this predicated on the display of the wingers, with Vaughn and Hilton utilising their great pace to run rings around the Gyatso-kai wingbacks; yet almost all of their shots found the safe hands of Armok, in a goalkeeping performance that kept the Avatarian Republic in the game.

The deadlock was finally broken by Craig McGrath in the thirty-fourth minute with a volley; Sheldon had earlier taken a shot, which was parried by Armok; the rebound was tapped in, putting the Tumbrans 1-0 ahead. Playing a defensive game for most of the second half, Tumbra looked like it was back on winning ways; yet the heartbreaker for fans of the Black Eagles came when Li Yuuta was tackled on the edge of the box; while the penalty shout wasn't given, the free kick was still given in an extremely dangerous place.

In the absence of regular free-kick taker Song Kaoru, Dag’da Skirata stepped up to the plate; and a inch-perfect free kick saw the Bisons level things up in injury time. Unable to find a way through in the last few minutes, Hemmings and the Black Eagles would end their qualifying campaign's first half with five wins, two draws and two defeats from nine matches for a total of seventeen points — a respectable record, by any means.

Moving Forward

The end of the first half of qualifying represents a pause, and an opportunity to reframe Tumbra's qualification chances. With a match at home against Saltstead before the return match against Kelssek proving crucial to Tumbra's hopes of improving on the dismal second quarter of qualifying, Gabriel has a task and a half on his hands to get the Tumbran squad back on track for either a World Cup or Cup of Harmony berth.

TUMBRAN SQUAD FOR MATCHES vs. SALTSTEAD @ TUMBRAN NATIONAL STADIUM, STRATON and vs. KELSSEK @ EXHIBITION PLACE, KIRKENES
Starters: 1 - Lennon; 2 - Hughes, 4 - Henderson, 5 - Brown, 19 - Carter; 6 - Hicks, 16 - Morgan, 29 - Cole; 7 - Fraser, 9 - Vaughn; 22 - Sheldon
Bench: 13 - Barker, 25 - Campbell, 14 - Ashburn, 23 - Forrest, 27 - Harris; 28 - Stansfield, 8 - McGrath, 15 - Aitken; 17 - van Heirolf, 32 - Anderson; 11 - Cohen, 33 - Riordan

---

OOC: All opinions expressed in this section are IC-only, and are not to be taken as the formal stand of the user behind Tumbra.

POLITICS: Weekly Roundup
From Foxchester to Straton; Foreign Policy Takes Centre Stage As Government Extends Hands of Friendship to Esportiva and Beyond

Stern stresses full support for "Foxchester Seventeen"; Formal Recognition and Invitation for State Visits on Table

Speaking in Parliament yesterday, foreign minister Natalie Stern announced that the Government would be extending its full recognition to the new Anaian region that has taken the world by storm; and would welcome any attempts by any of the Anaian nations to reach out to Tumbra. Stern stressed that the "right to self-determination" included not just individual peoples, but "nations and regions of nations as well". The Government is expected to introduce an act to formally recognise Anaian territories as Anaian, the Foxchester Declaration as legitimate, and set up full diplomatic relations with all countries involved; a measure of support, also, for Anaian nations who were experiencing blowback from certain nations of Atlantian Oceania.

Speaking in the Senate, Senator Kirsten Somersby, the Minister of State for Esportiva, Atlantian Oceania and Rushmore, echoed her superior's comments, and further announced that all Anaian nations were welcome to schedule state visits with the Tumbran government; multilateral dialogue was also an option on the table to "build closer relationships with that of Anaia." Whether this represents a pivot away from Atlantian Oceania (AO) (previously the world's strongest region in terms of members) to the new Anaian nations is yet to be seen — but seeing the blowback of the Southwestern nations of AO, it is not unlikely that relations with nations like Banija, or Siovanija and Teusland, might be adversely affected by these series of events.

Six-Nation Straton Summit to Shed Further Light on Esportivan Union

Commerce Minister Kate Sinclair also announced in Parliament today that Tumbra will be hosting a summit amongst six Esportivan nations to discuss further multilateral ties and methods to integrate Esportiva; as mentioned previously, these six are thought to be Tumbra, their western neighbours Damukuni, and across the straits, the Licentian Isles; and on the southeastern continent or near it, South Newlandia, the Grearish Union and the Nova Anglicana. Representatives of the six are expected to discuss exactly what measures can be taken to integrate Esportivan economies; the most common suggestions include the abolition of tariffs for members of any supranational union comprising Esportivans and a hefty tariff cut for any nations within Esportiva but not within said supranational union; and freer movement of peoples to and from the six nations.

In a statement after Sinclair's, Finance Minister William Stern (no relation to Foreign Minister Natalie Stern) reiterated the importance of intra-regional unity in an increasingly fractious world; and that peace had to be "built through strong relations, both diplomatically but especially economically." The eyes of Esportiva are on Straton, then, as a summit that could officially launch the project of the supranational union grows closer.

Could Bencoolen See A Green Government?

The 2021 federal elections, as analysed elsewhere, threw up several surprises; yet one story that flew under the radar was the Green Party picking up 24% of the vote in the free city of Bencoolen. A bastion of liberalism, progressivism and left-wing economics (as cities are wont to be), some are suggesting that the Green Party —which currently holds six out of the forty seats in the Bencoolen State Assembly, could leapfrog the Liberals (currently on or even become the largest party after elections scheduled for a few months' time.

Free City politics have always been more complicated and more liberal than that of regular states; while states can claim to be microcosms of the country as a whole, free cities have always been markedly different in their conduct of politics; for one, due to their baked-in demographical advantage, the left has always had a headstart over the right (with the exception being Harren, which has swung from left to right depending on how ship trade in the Harren Cape performs). With current Premier Geoffrey Sharp having come under fire for the uptick in train delays and mismanagement of the public transport system, many are looking to the Greens and their leader Charis Rae for an alternative left-wing government; and the latest poll, which saw Labour in second place, lends credence to that image.

The poll, released by Quantumatica, showed the Greens on 42%, with Labour on 39% — the Liberals and Moderates, the two other parties represented in Parliament, were far behind on 11% and 8% respectively. On these numbers, it'd be a neck and neck race between the Greens and Labour to finish first; with the Greens looking to form only the third non-Labour or Liberal state government in the country's history. Whether such an administration, if it comes to pass, will be more like Bill Kennedy's 11-year reign over Iswilyn politics or Neil Robinson's 121-day sojourn at the head of Severn's remains to be seen; but a lot of the Greens' election material will be focused on how the "Greens are Ready to Govern."

Final Thornton Poll Gives O'Connor Commanding Lead

In the state of Thornton (which completely surrounds Bencoolen), however, political order is back to normal, with a final polls released by several surveying companies seemingly confirming one outcome for the election; that Thornton Premier Edwin O'Connor will be re-elected for a second term, without the need for a coalition partner, and a free reign to implement most of O'Connor's progressive agenda for his second term.

THORNTON POLL OF POLLS

Labour - 53 ▲5
Liberal - 41 ▼3
Moderate - 4 ▼1
Green - 1 -0
SDP - 1 -0
Conservative - 0 ▼1
Bolded represents parties in government.

Averaging out these final sets of polls — which ranged from Labour winning 50 seats (one short of a majority) to 57 (a majority of 14), most pollsters are confident that Labour will get to the 51 required for a majority — the only question is how large the majority will be. Also a major surprise is the Conservatives losing their sole seat in the State Assembly; yet, most constituency polling has demonstrated a low level of support for Robert Kinnon's successor. Mr. Kinnon is retiring at this election, and his seat is likely to be picked up by the Liberal Party.

Questions are still to be raised about whether this result was more due to a poll bounce thanks to the federal Labour government, or the strength of O'Connor's election campaign; much like the federal election campaign, O'Connor's was sometimes criticised for being light on policy and focusing too much on the leadership of the Premier.

Polls open, much like that of the federal election's, at 8am tomorrow and run until 10pm; voting is compulsory and those in line at 10pm will be allowed to vote.

[Talamia]

Matchday 2/3 - Group 10
match report

Talamia 1-0 Istoreya

---

Valladares 0-1 Talamia

---

Lignus Fonè celebrates his goal against Valladares.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages. It's Tuesday and you know what that means!
I am Auxe Aggelia and I welcome you back from the Pro Diorux TV studios!

Three wins in a row! We won three games in a row! Nine points in three races. Talamia is now second on equal points with San Ortelio! This is how we close this first round of the qualifying group. The dream? It's called play-offs.

May 18, 2021
Sanisla Pedalisismi revolutionizes defense and the choice is rewarded. Asulon Artemis emblem on the left wing, the surprise Leimon on the right. In the center remain Fulatto and Skatezzo, supported however by the defensive midfielder Arees Sus. The away win came against Istoreya, thanks to a header from the sensation of the moment: Lignus Fonè. The top scorer of the last edition of the Alfa League gored the ball on a cut cross from Afobos Leimon in the 36th minute. From then on, it was solid defense. In the second half, with a great play, Pedalisismi replaced Ptirn Lagios with Afobos Iano, moving to 5-4-1. Italian "Catenaccio". Victory assured.

May 19, 2021
The second match was more difficult than the first, paradoxically. At the Edemar Au'tokra Stadium in Clienpalas we hosted a fierce national team. Valladares gave everything on the pitch, and we still managed to keep clean sheets. A stratospheric defense and an 80th goal of the usual Lignus Fonè, on an assist from Upe Bainika. Epacra Delphis' attacking midfielder's through ball cleared the Hellas Anen forward for a powerful placed shot. The stadium erupted in joy, and now we are second!"

[Jeruselem]

Princess Kate the virtual vtuber (aka Princess Katherine Annabelle Dallas) in front of a virtual stadium

Hello, this is Princess Katherine Annabelle Dallas for Naked News Jeruselem!
I'm back for another edition covering the World Cup 88 and how Jeruselem is going!
It's match day 8 and 9 in qualification, we only have like 9 left.
YEAH WE REACHED THE HALFWAY POINT

Group 10, which looks just weird because it is.
I mean the top 3 seeds aren't even in the top 3, none of them.

So let's examine match day 8.

San Ortelio at home faced off with top ladder team Bluecliff League.
Both teams needed to win to keep up with the leader, us!
A must win but good news for Jeruselem.
They had a rather interesting 0-0 draw so yeah they got points but seriously a win was they needed.
We're not complaining ...

Third seed Mercedini at home had to deal visiting top seed Siovanija and Teusland.
Both teams were in need of more wins and yes with other teams performing better, they had no excuses for motivation.
Siovanija and Teusland finally showed their class winning 2-1 and Mercedini probably not happy to give 3 points to this team.
Siovanija and Teusland finally win a game!

Seguidores de la grasas, last hosted Valladares who didn't have trouble with the hosts winning 2-0.
Well, if you can't beat Seguidores de la grasas - something is going wrong.
Valladares getting another win but they kind of need to really win a few more.

Talamia are proving they are contenders now.
Visiting Istoreya weren't doing so well, and faced a confident home team.
Talamia did ... enough, winning 1-0 but hey it's 3 points by any means.

Fujai are good for one thing, draws. They had the task of hosting the ladder leader ... us.
Siovanija and Teusland also good at draws, but seriously draws aren't what they want.
Fujai held strong against Jeruselem salvaging 2-2 draw despite having to fight off some efforts to break the deadlock.
Jeruselem really should have won to maintain the standard set earlier but hey it's 1 point. Better than no points.
Not one of our best but far from our worst efforts.

So, leaving the half way games ... match day 9.
When teams can rest and evaluate what to do next or in some cases, work out when to give up.
No one is eliminated as yet but the halfway point tells us who's in the better position.

Istoreya hosting master of draws Fujai.
Guess the result, yeah another bloody draw.
2-2 in the end so not a catastrophe but really at this stage not desired either.
So Fujai have draw number 5, over half their games.

Valladares back on track with a win last game but the new visitors were Talamia.
Talamia travelling well and looking really dangerous!
Valladares needs the win but Talamia knew they could win given they had 4 previous wins too.
Talamia crashed the party winning 1-0 and yeah another loss for Valladares.

Siovanija and Teusland back home and had the last placed team Seguidores de la grasas visiting.
Yes they did win 1-0 but the opportunity to pile on the goal difference?
Didn't happen.
Seguidores de la grasas have scored a grand total of 3 goals so you'd expect a more convincing win.

Bluecliff League started really well but contenders have swamped them and pushed them down the ladder.
One of these contenders was visiting Mercedini.
Must win for both teams because other teams are winning too, and you need to keep up!
Bluecliff League in the end tried hard but Mercedini did win 3-2.
Mercedini are still contenders.

Well, that left ... Jeruselem, the ruling Princesses at home to face off a real contender.
San Ortelio have impressed everyone and they went to Jeruselem to show, they were the real thing.
We've been preparing for this because they cannot be brushed off at all.
At the start of the campaign, they weren't a worry.
Now, they were a real menace to our position.

San Orterlio are nicknamed The Swordfishes.
A noble fish indeed!
But we're the Princesses and we did rule, winning 2-1.
So important this win as we play them again on match day 18.

So let's look at Group 10 table for the half way point.
Seguidores de la grasas still last with 3 points and a terrible goal difference of ... minus 11.
Fujai are 9th with 3 losses but 5 draws and one 1 win. 8 points.
Istoreya also have 8 points but that's because of 2 wins and 2 draws.
Valladares haven't left the bottom 5 being 7th with 9 points. Two wins and three draws is better than it was earlier.
Siovanija and Teusland 6th on 10 points.Two wins and four draws ... draws hurt when they should have been wins.

Let's get to current contenders

Bluecliff League slipping a little back in 5th but still can make life hard for others. 13 points, and those 4 wins and a draw.
Mercedini are 4th and with 16 points due to 5 wins and 1 draw. Watch out they are coming for the leaders.
Talamia and San Ortelio both on 17 points!
5 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses. San Ortelio ahead in 2nd spot because of goal difference - that's all the difference.
Talamia and San Ortelio must still be happy where they are.
And little Jeruselem top the table, with 23 points. 7 wins and 2 draws. And a goal difference .. of +12!

Jeruselem, most goals scored 21. Mercedini 2nd with 18. Seguidores de la grasas have the least with 3.
Least goals conceded goes to San Ortelio, with 8. Jeruselem doing great with just 9. Valladares have conceded .. 17! Fujai worst here with 18.
Remember last cup? Well forget that, we'll just be happy now!

Thanks for the support I get!
Most football coverage is traditional, you know.
VTUBERS don't talk football, it's just not normal - well we're in Jeruselem! We're just different probably for the wrong reasons.
And the fact I'm not wearing anything, and neither is my model.
Well, it's something worth testing. Even if my model is clothed, eh I'm not. I'm at home, eh.

Now, my daughter wanted to me to sing something. It's something do with a special cat.

Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya!
Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya!
Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya! Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya!

[Lisander]

THAT FAMOUS BRAND PRESENTS NEW JERSEY FOR LISANDER NATIONAL TEAM
Luís Septmer, for 433.LS

Well, this team may not be playing their best. The coach has been having problems closing down the ideal eleven and it seems the team has no chemistry. But at least the team remains well-dressed.

That famous brand of sporting goods (not the famous brand that produces the basketball uniforms, but the other one) presented this morning the new main jersey of the team. Apparently, the old model stopped being produced in the factories in Brasilistan.

The new jersey is green (as it should be, obviously), and has a thin horizontal stripe at chest height, which is split in half by the name of the nation. Just above it, the shield of the federation and the logo of that famous brand. The model has been criticised a bit on social media for being too simple and for displaying the supplier's branding so prominently, but sales of the first batch have already sold out.

Orders for the second batch are being taken on the federation's website at a cost of L$59.

[Audioslavia]

THE HISTORY OF

ANAIA

Chapter 2: Autumn 2013
The Inexplicable Syndicate
”I applaud the stupidity impulsiveness bravery of this bid”

It was indeed a stupid idea. An impulsive idea. One that was announced without fanfare to the bewilderment of the international community. You could call it brave if you also did that action with two fingers of each hand that looked like you were giving two budgerigars on perches either side of you a playful pat on their heads.

Mertagne, then known as The Inevitable Syndicate, would bid to co-host World Cup 66 with their brothers in arms, Audioslavia.

The hastily-stitched-together Audioslavian/Syndicatian bid for World Cup 66

The deal had supposedy been struck at the eleventh hour, having first been mooted in an otherwise casual meeting - we understand that several whiskies were involved on one side and several Dandelion and Burdocks on the other - following the Syndicate’s shock victory over the Bulls in AOCAF Cup 40. A bid was put together between the two Atlantian Oceanian nations, to rival the all-Esportivan bid of Apox/Licentia and the all-Rushmori bid of Ossidiacqua and Aels.

Audioslavia's defence can only watch in horror as sub Cervinka pokes home the Syndicatians' extra-time winner.
Up in the executive boxes, the well-watered FAs of both nations were hatching a plan

So how did people vote? On experience? Regional affiliation? Popularity? Nobody can possibly know for sure, but either way the Inexplicable Syndicate’s bid somehow attracted sixteen of thirty-six votes. Back in the days before run-off voting (which would be added to the constitution that very cycle in time for the razor-thin margins of Saintland/Legalese vs Cassadaigua/Equestria), it was enough to be awarded the hosting rights, with Apox/Licentia earning twelve votes and pre-vote favourite Aels/Ossidiacqua earning eight. Some opined that the two better bids had split the reasonable-person vote, allowing the crazy-person vote to steal the World Cup away. We'll never know how true that was.

No World Cup has since featured a qualifying series that was more compact, with only ten games played per team across thirty six-team groups. Each group had just one qualifying spot in each, meaning the likes of Eastfield Lodge would fail to qualify despite picking up eight wins from ten games, being left to rue the two defeats they would suffer to eventual qualifiers Mytanija.

Regional flags again featured prominently in World Cup 66’s graphics package, with both Mertagne and Audioslavia proudly displaying the blue and orange of AO

Though there had been a small hiccup at the start of qualifying, with many teams having been given the wrong fixtures for their opening match, qualifiers ran smoothly enough, with the real test being the finals tournament.

The more things change, the more they get renamed, come back stronger, delete and reanimate themselves, fade into obscurity and depart dramatically

Naturally we’d say they went off without a hitch. “World Cup 66 was a great tournament” said one commenter, the same who had given this chapter of Anaia’s history its tag line. “We know this becausee they kept telling us it was”

Eurans certainly agree, winning the final 4-2 in extra-time at Flynn Arena in The Inevitable Syndicate - a place that they ended up liking so much, they bought it.

The previous day, Audioslavia had used their own home stadium to their full advantage, facing their co-hosts in the third-placed playoff and gaining a measure of revenge for their AOCAF Cup defeat earlier in the cycle.

Another extra-time battle saw the Bulls prevail this time
This image was created by Polar Islandstates

Once more, the various football association suits from both nations would mingle in the luxurious executive boxes high in the stadium. They would use the ninety minutes and the thirty minutes of extra time to spitball further ideas of collaboration. They decided not on international football, but the domestic game. A league comprising of the best teams from Audioslavia and the Syndicate. A merger of the Claycomms Premier League and Audioslavia’s strictly amateur Corinthian League, whose clubs would finally turn professional for the very first time.

Such a league needed a name. Within days, the two associations would find sponsorship and award it the rights to give the multi-associational competition a monicker that would be echoed through the ages.

“Liga Batiob”

Yeah, no, it didn’t stick.

[Islands Of Ventro]

Do we dare believe?!?!!?
by: IOV sports society (IOVSS)


Islands of Ventro 1–0 Damukuni

Siapa ya 1–5 Islands of Ventro


The scores dont like, Islands of Ventro is back in this thing, with two major wins putting us in fourth place in the division. With us having beaten the two seed before. The game against Damukuni was way closer than it should have been, even though we technically were the lower seed than them. We had been playing decent in the tournament too far and they had not. If we had lost to them it would have been an embarrassment for the ages. Everybody thought the game would be a blowout in our favor after Kevin Hate scored a goal in the 14th min. Sadly that would be the last goal of the game. The fact that we could only muster 1 goal might come back to haunt due to the fact that our goal Diffendal for the tournament is sitting at a lousy +2 when the team below us (Independent Athletes from Quebec) has a +10 point, which means that we cannot afford to lose any more games. Going to the next game (which WAS in fact a blowout) against Siapa ya. This game ended very badly for them with this loss not officially but most likely knocking them out of the tournament. It was a hard-fought battle on both sides of the field. Just our IOV Islanders fought harder than them. Kevin Hate scoring 2 goals and then the rest dived up between Hanson, Vera, and Pilgrim. I mean no one expected us to lose, but no one expected us to win in the fashion. So far in the Tournament we have been the team that squeaks wins out of nowhere and somehow stays in this thing, but now, now we have a name for ourselves. People are saying this, "Did you hear that we scored 5 points in our last match; Oh Kevin Hate is Sooooooooo Hot; We might actually win.". We have not seen this sort of enthusiasm since the Reque brothers (and sister not to be forgotten). Though the only goal that got past Mitchel will teach him consider they bent the rules to get it. They flopped and acted like the play was over and bending down to pick up the ball, then when everybody was not looking they just kicked it in for a goal. I guess if you want to win when your that bad you have to cheat.

Until next Matchday Goodbye

[Eshialand]

THE OWLS ARE STILL FLYING!!!
Hebitaka 1 - 2 Eshialand

This RP will be told from the perspective of striker Alice Carroll.

So, Hebitaka. This was going to be an interesting match to be sure...

You know Hebitaka isn't in the best of places in the group table right now. In fact, they only have one more point than Eshialand. But Coach's starting XI left you with everything to prove... when you played before, that was because you had to. There was no other option. Now, he was choosing to put you in the starting XI. This was your make-or-break. You had to prove that you were better than Jacob Harran.

Training was a bit... intense. There was just something about it that reminded you of the last couple of Baptism of Fire matches. You and the other forwards were practicing shooting on both Christian Meers and Alex Kolek at the same time, just like before El Recentico (except then, Elizabeth Michaels was also in net).

Because of all of the training, you didn't have as much time as you'd normally get to travel around the city where you were playing. Instead, most of what you saw was either the inside of the pitch or the inside of your hotel.

You were just relaxing in your hotel room when Jake came barging in. What did he want?

JH: "Am I the only one who's completely burnt out by training?"
"You too? I thought you were always the one playing hard and training harder..."
JH: "There's only so much of this that I can take! Is this what it was like when you started out?"
"Yeah, pretty much... I understand why Coach wants us to train so hard, but it's so tiring..."
JH: "At least he still cares enough to make us train!"
"I suppose, he could've given up on us by now..." You would continue on like this for about half an hour. It was always good to get stuff like this off your chest...

The day of the match eventually arrived, and boy, you really weren't ready. You should've been ready after all of that training, but you still weren't. Nerves can do that to you.

The opening whistle blew, and you begin compulsively singing. It was an old coping technique your mother taught you, and it always seemed to work. The right lyrics can make anything better.

Could you wake me from this nightmare?
And just let me sleep peacefully?
Do you think that this is all fair?
Looking in... to death's dark stare?
Could you wake me from this nightmare?
Could you please just let me be?

In the 19th minute, it started to look like you weren't going to be woken from the nightmare, as Krishanu Ramesh Ravi stole the ball from Melissa Carey (come on Mel!). Ravi dribbled the ball all the way to Eshialand's defensive line before passing it to Ram Vijay, who easily beat Kolek. 1-0.

Well, this was a great start. On the bright side, there wasn't any more scoring in the first half, so that's great! Kind of.

Then came the 58th minute. It really didn't look like things were going well, as Tarun Masake was gearing up to shoot a shot that would inevitably score... until Dominique LaPlante got in the way, heading it to George Habisbrauer. You didn't have time to wonder what was going on, however, as George quickly passed it off to Mel, who redeemed herself for her earlier slip-up, shooting the ball well over Ganesh Tinnu's head and into the goal. 1-1.

The minutes ticked by, and nothing much happened. There were chances both ways, but nothing that would result in anything. That was, until the 79th minute, when Coach called for the Golden Goose. George and Dominique went to the midfield, Mel took over as right wing, and Jake moved next to you as a second striker. Would this lead to anything?

Well, no. Eventually, minute 90 came and went, and it looked like it was going to be a big fat draw. Granted, not a loss, but not a win either.

There would be 3 minutes of stoppage time, and in the second of those minutes... it happened. Sarah Silver got the ball from Nitin Masake, and then she passed it to George, then to Mel, then to you. Then, in what you knew would be the last shot of the match, you shot the ball with all of the power you could muster, and it went in.

When you realized what had just happened, you celebrated in the only way you knew how: you ran down the pitch with your arms spread out to either side, yelling at the top of your lungs... "THE OWLS ARE STILL FLYING!!!"

---

"Hello and welcome back to ENN Tournament Report, I'm your host Josh Seametzle. Matchday 8 was actually really exciting, so let's look at some of its matches together."

Lisander 2 - 1 Sendhang
"And so, it looks like Sendhang's hot streak is coming to an end. Will they be able to put it back together or is it game over?"

Pluvia and the Saxean Isles 4 - 3 Devonta
"And now, it's PSI who are on a hot streak! Will they be able to dig themselves out of this hole they're in?"

Savojarna 1 - 2 Vilita
"If ever there was a match to define this group, it was this one. This puts Vilita in a far better position than they were in before, with qualification more likely by the day."

Hebitaka 1 - 2 Eshialand
"The curse is broken!! WE WON!!!!"

Squornshelan Remnant States 1 - 1 The 14 Stars
"Once again, SRS draws a match that had no excuse to be a draw. Wowwww..."

Electrum 8 - 2 Eastfield Lodge
"Remember all of those goals Electrum didn't score against Atheara? They decided to take them all out on the poor Eastfielders. That's just EFL luck if I've ever seen it."

Atheara 1 - 3 Deniria
"In the Baptism of Fire, Atheara went 6-1-1 with a +12 goal differential, making them the best team in the tournament in both categories. Deniria on the other hand went 0-0-4 with a -10 goal differential and 14 goals scored on them, making them the worst team in all three categories. SO HOW THE H*LL DID THIS HAPPEN????"

"Until next time, I've been your host Josh Seametzle, hoping that #StormAstena is going to be as peaceful as Alana says it's gonna be."

[Bollonich]

Vreton City Journal

Match Reviews

Zwangzug 0 - 1 Bollonich

The players were coming off a horrifying experience from North Japan. Swanson, Sirigu and Marshall were shocked, their kidnapping had a comprehensive effect on their mental health. They had been cleared to play by their psychologists but the team wasn’t at their best mental position coming into the game against Zwangzug which was being played away. Gildiric needed to step up and inspire his team as he was under a lot of pressure following the disappointing performance against Trolleborg and North Japan. Zwangzug was in no capacity going to be an easy match, they were ranked 12th all over the multiverse. The team however had received a boost with the arrival of Miles Hum, who has returned from from injury. As the players walked onto the Simplex 3 in 102d their excitement could be felt. This match was going to be a competitive one and Gildiric had prepared as such too. He sent out a 4-3-3 formation providing a rest to Marshall who was affected the most by the kidnapping. The midfield like consisted of Fennimore, Swanson and Ed Douglas. The structure seemed to be one with a defensive midfielder and two central midfielders. The match started, and the Zwangzug immediately took the upper hand, keeping majority of the ball and delivering attack after attack. They came the closest during the 23rd minute when a shot by Amos Noile-Murne was deflected by the keeper to the feet of Johan Idmar, who put the ball into the goal with a touch. This goal however was quickly ruled offside as the Zwangzugians were back to square one. This chance to the dismay of the Zwangzugians was going to be their only chance in a long time. Following this chance, the Bollonischians picked up their pace and settled into the game but unfortunately couldn’t score. The second half began with the same style of play, the Bollonsichans were attacking and Zwangzug was defending. It seemed like Zwangzug were playing for a draw instead of a win. However Bollonich were struggling to break them down. Seeing this Gildiric brought on 3 players, Marshall for Fennimore, Miles Hum for Ed Douglas and Buck Moreno for Cummings. These three players provided much needed freshness to the team and revitalised it. And within a matter of minutes from the substitutions, Marshall played a brilliant ball through to Buck Moreno, who shot a powerful shot with his right foot and scored. Bollonich had pulled ahead, this was a huge moment for the team as they were about to win their first match against a strong opposition. And after a few moments of frantic defending Bollonich had defeated Zwangzug 1-0 and away nonetheless. This was a crucial win for both the team and Gildiric as this probably saved his job.

Match Events

Bollonich                            Zwangzug
68’ Marshall ▲ Fennimore ▼          55’ Hanna Suzuki ▲ Sophie Munshi ▼
68’ Miles Hum ▲ Ed Douglas ▼        68’ Gordon Blum ▲ Johan Idmar ▼
68’ Buck Moreno ▲ Cummings ▼
75’ GOAL - Buck Moreno (Marshall)

Bollonich 3 - 2 Rangers FC

Bollonich were back home and this time in red, hot form after the win against Zwangzug. We were back at the Rose Bowl in Bollonich to face Rangers FC a team that was sitting at 3rd position on the table, while us ourselves were at 7th. The win against Zwangzug provided confidence and motivation to the players to perform better and give it their all. Rangers FC had just drawn their game against North Japan, so we were looking good and had a fair chance. Gildiric decided to go for a 4-2-3-1 introducing Hum and Marshall into the team in place of Ed Douglas and Fennimore. Buck Moreno also played in place of Cummings. The match was expected to be a competitive one, and it started similarly. The match was up and down for a long period of time with no team scoring in the first half. This match seemed to be a dull one from the experience of the first half. Some changes were seen in the second half as in the introduction of Tad Rios for Swanson and Abbott for Schmit. It was Bollonich who broke the deadlock at the 60th minute with a goal scored by Tad Rios assisted by Buck Moreno. Perry then went on to double the lead from the penalty spot due to Konor Aurisorikis handling the ball. Rangers got back into the game with the means of Freud Morelikis who scored a brilliant curler. Bollonich’s two goal cushion was restored by Marshall who put away a rebound that came off a Perry shot. The last goal of the match still hadn’t come, as Freud scored a brace and put Rangers back into the game, for the last 2 minutes. These were probably the nerviest two minutes from the Tigers but they survived it and beat Rangers 3-2. This was a huge win as we reached closer to the 5th and 6th position. A respectable finish in the first cycle is what Gildiric and the players are hoping for and with that to score a Cup of Harmony invite which is yet to come. Right now the focus shall be on the World Cup and to see how The Tigers fare in their upcoming matches against Al Qurija and Sannyamathland.

Match Events

Bollonich                           Rangers FC
45’ Tad Rios ▲ Swanson ▼            63’ Giannis Ariboakis ▲ Yanis Giakos ▼
45’ Abbott ▲ Schmit ▼               71’ GOAL - Freud Morelikis (Giannis)
60’ GOAL - Tad Rios (Buck Moreno)    88’ GOAL - Freud Morelikis (Hagiriakis)
67’ GOAL - Perry (P)
83’ GOAL - Marshall

[Garbelia]

Garbelia (O. Vydra 66, Kawauso 72) 2 - 2 Kandorith (Honda 22, 29)

0 Kickoff taken by Ottoman
17 GOOD SAVE! After a goalmouth scramble, Honda looks to blast the ball into the top of the net, but Snaijer somehow gets a paw on it.
22 GOAL! Honda curls in a low cross from the left wing.
35 GOAL! Honda lauches a low strike from outside the box, and it deflects off L.Vydra into the net.
38 YELLOW CARD! Kawauso tugs Honda's shirt as the striker looked to be through on goal.
Half Time 2-0
SUBSTITUTION: Barnes on for Ottoman
SUBSTITUTION: Ottoerson on for McCat
60 WHAT A MISS! O. Vydra dazzles Kandorith's defence, and cuts back to Ottoman, who pokes it over from point-blank range.
66 GOAL! Vydra uses her fancy feet again, and fakes a shot to round Takayama, before chipping the ball over Tamatsuki delightfully.
72 GOOD SAVE! Otter's one-two with Kawauso opens up the defence for a curling ball to Goodotter, but the striker's header is scuffed, and Tamatsuki pushes it behind.
72 GOAL! Otter rolls the ball across the touchline to Findus, who backheels it for Kawauso, who blasts the ball into the net.
Full Time 2-2

Marigred 0–1 Garbelia (Otter 49)

0 Kickoff taken by Ottoman
40 WHAT A MISS! Huron arrives at the back post to finish off a beautiful corner routine, but ends up heading wide.
Half Time 0-0
SUBSTITUTION: Ottoerson on for Ottoman
SUBSTITUTION: Barnes on for Kawauso
49 YELLOW CARD! Calhoun comes out of his box to try and block a Garbelery counter, but ends up pulling the leg of Barnes, after the pacey winger rounded him.
49 GOAL! Otter stands over the free kick, and looks like he is swinging his boot to hit the ball hard into the top corner, but takes all the momentum off the runup, and rolls it under the wall, with Zakari Calhoun diving towards the other corner.
59 WHAT A SAVE! Blisset picks up the ball outside the box, and unleashes a rare shot, attempting to lob Calhoun, who only just got back to grasp the ball.
Full Time 1-0

Vydri: Looks like our form is finally picking up! A win and a draw takes Garbelia to a comfortable 7th at the end of the first half of qualifying. A surprise against Kandorith, and a (to be honest, rather boring) 1-0 triumph away to Marigred makes a good reading for Otterdottir's record, meaning that if she survives another half of the campaign, she will be the longest surviving boss that the team have ever had!

Lutra: And it is also lovely to see her promoting her impressive U-23 side, and seeing them flourish. Huron, Kawauso and O.Vydra have all shown themselves capable of great things, while Blisset and L.Vydra, while not outstanding, have kept a team running. And it is good to see Ottoerson get some game time again, and play a crucial role in the fightback at Kandorith, and play the through ball to win the free kick at Marigred.

GAB's player of the match at Kandorith: O. Vydra (1 goal)
10: O. Vydra
9: Goodotter, Kawauso,
8: L. Vydra, Huron, Otter, Blisset, Ottoerson
7: Barnes
6: McCat, Ottoerson
5: Findus, Snaijer

GAB's player of the match at Marigred: Otter (1 goal)
10: Otter, L. Vydra, Huron, Blisset
9: Goodotter, Kawauso
8: Ottoerson, McCat, Findus, Snaijer
7: Barnes, Ottoman, O.Vydra

Vydri: Good ratings there Lutra! I'd agree about Otterdottir's excellent subs; even though she seemed to forget about them for most of our games before this.
Shall we have a look at the prediction league and top scorers now?

Lutra: Stats or footballing experience?

Prediction Points:
Lutra: 4
Vydri: 4

Predicted Points Total:
Lutra: 20
Vydri: 16

Vydri: Looks like we are equal again! Some of your cheery predictions have actually come true, although neither of us have predicted any exact scorelines yet. And let's now have a look at our top scorers!

Top Scorers:
Goodotter: 4
Otter: 2
O. Vydra: 2
Huron: 2
Kawauso: 2
Ottoman: 2

Lutra: See you next time, for more Garbelistats!

Lineup for the next game (Formation 4-1-3-2):
GK: Snaijer (1), DL: Findus (2), DC: L.Vydra (27), Huron (13), DR: Otterata (33), DMC: Blisset (26), AML: Kawauso (23), AMC: Ottoerson (11), AMR: Otter (7), FC: Goodotter (10), O. Vydra (18)

[Savigliane]

Around the table sat five of Savigliano politics’ brightest stars - after all, anyone so closely associated with Prime Minister Alberto Caccini, The Lion of the West, was enjoying a long-awaited ascendency. Some, like Foreign Minister Dante Quaglia, had already reached the peak of their ambitions. Others, such as President Danielle Bernard-Ricci of the Alliance des Sociaux-Democrates, were yet to fulfill their own destinies. It was this latter camp that had been most cognizant of the fallout from the former’s unilateral decision to sign onto the Foxchester Declaration, formally separating from Atlantian Oceania. But it was the former who counted themselves as much closer to the Prime Minister, with the Villeneuve-raised Bernard-Ricci and the former Ligue-Est member Francois Maldini still relatively in the dark about his recent decisions.

“We’ve just heard from Miranda Russo”, started Populistas Whip Maximiliano Grossi, squarely in the latter camp and painfully aware of his own proximity to what the right-wing media was inexplicably calling “Foxchestergate”. “She’s threatened to take her wing of the party and support a Vote of No Confidence in our current government if we don’t put the Foxchester Declaration to a referendum. I’m afraid we won’t have the votes to block it if her influence with the authoritarian centrist wing of the party is as great as we fear.”

“ASD is united against any such vote, of course,” Bernard-Ricci followed. “But the ASD-Populistas-Greens majority is narrow enough to the point where even just Russo and her closest confidantes could end this government. Inviting Fronte into coalition talks might be able to stave off the vote, but that’d be suicidal for our chances next election.”

Quaglia, one of the more steadfast members of Caccini’s cabinet, interjected. “That’s acceptable. Prime Minister Caccini is determined to see us accede to the Declaration by any means necessary. Let them talk - Fronte may be controversial, but they’re a hell of a lot closer to our coalition than Miranda Russo is now.”

“You’re seriously suggesting we ally with the communists?” Grossi responded, aghast. “That’s a non-starter for far more of our party than any line on Foxchester would be. You’ll tear Populistas in two. Prime Minister Caccini - who I’d appreciate if he turned his chair around, by the way,” he added, gesturing to the man at the head of - but facing away from - the table. “may have valid reasons for wanting to join Anaia, but if we can’t cobble together a convincing enough platform around Foxchester, they’ll be dead in the water.”

“I’d have to agree with Maximiliano,” the normally quiet Maldini, nominally head of the Treasury but in practice a more direct economic advisor to Caccini, added. “The severing of ties from Raynor City do not affect us, since we never had any meaningful relationship with the Empire. And while the more measured diplomatic actions from the rest of Atlantian Oceania have had a greater effect, our patchwork regional integration, relative to other Anaians, has actually worked in our favor there as well. But coordinated AO-wide retaliation could undo a lot of the economic progress we’ve made, and without a compelling enough counterargument for joining, this could really hurt us in the elections.”

“Come on,” Quaglia cajoled. “This is Alberto Caccini we’re talking about. The man who won the most conservative district in Pietrargenta, who brought Populistas back from the dead, who’s maneuvered himself into the highest approval rating for a PM in years.” Even in their moment of doubt, the other cabinet members could only nod. “You think he’d join Foxchester without a strong political reason, or that he won’t be navigate his way out of whatever reaction Ligue-Est and Une Nation throw at us?”

“Nobody’s saying that!” protested Bernard-Ricci. “But how are we supposed to coordinate our response, our messaging, if he won’t even talk to us! Alberto-“

As if on cue, the Prime Minister turned around. Bernard-Ricci stopped speaking out of shock. Had Caccini been crying? The Prime Minister certainly looked worse for wear, more shaken, then they had ever seen him in his long political career.

“No more of this,” Caccini said, his voice hoarse, “but you all are right. I wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t for one reason. I don’t know if we can go public with it just yet. But you all need to know why I’m doing this.”

“What?” Bernard-Ricci leaned in, the others following suit.

Caccini’s voice dropped to a whisper. “They may have the technology to send us back to the dimension from which we came."

The table froze for the longest of moments, stunned into silence. Even Quaglia had clearly been left out of the loop, and it was the foreign minister who turned to Caccini first.

“You mean…” As he spoke, the three years of hurt that Savigliane had endured (since the Portal Event had thrown their nation into chaos) gradually replaced itself, first with bewilderment and then hope.

“This could be our ticket home, Dante.”

[Sarzonia]

[OOC: This is also on the RP thread on International Incidents.]

The first half of World Cup 88 qualifying figured to be a struggle for the Sarzonian national football team. After all, the Incorporated Football Federation's decision to withdraw from World Cup 87 qualifying hurt the team's preparation and dropped its world ranking precipitously.

That still wasn't reason for the IFF's newly inaugurated executive director Phillippe Absalon to frantically call Sarzonia's Vice President for Health and Athletics Carter Marshall at 3:30 in the morning a full 36 hours from the start of the second half of World Cup qualifying. A groggy and irritated Marshall answered his mobile after looking apologetically toward his wife.

"Marshall," he said in a half-whisper.

"Mr. Vice President," Absalon said with panic in his voice. "We've got a problem on our hands!"

"Yeah, a 2-3-4 record, but that's no fucking reason to call me at 3:30 in the morning," Marshall snapped as quietly as his growing anger would allow him. "Why the fuck are you calling?"

"Sir, External Affairs is not allowing any Nepharan supporters to travel to Woodstock for the return leg at Dave Wilson Stadium," Absalon said.

Marshall's eyes finally opened. He'd remembered the Cabinet meeting with President Haffner, Senior Vice President Conway and the other members in the Situation Room at the Gray House. He'd fought hard for an exception to allow the national teams of various Anaian nations to travel to Sarzonia and had secured that as an exception along with medical and other emergency purposes, but securing an exception for Nepharan supporters to make the trip for the match at the Sarzonian national stadium was a different matter. The two-week window that was approved was not going to be enough time for any Nepharan supporters of the top ranked, defending champions and fellow Grand Slam winners to travel to Woodstock and attend the match, to say nothing of exploring the nightlife and tourist attractions in Woodstock.

"I can't say this isn't news," Marshall said as he got up from his bed and made his way to the home office down the hall. He turned on the light and fired up his computer to send an email requesting an exception to be made for Nephara's supporters. The wording of the declaration would allow the players, the coaches, and the support personnel to make the trip and arrangements could be made at a hotel with Nepharan and other Anaian ex-pats as the staff. There wasn't a need to activate the military, at least not yet. So far, the geopolitical situation hadn't resulted in outright enmity toward Nephara any more so than football-related hostility against a team that dominated two of the three matches they played against the Stars.

"I just sent an email to Senior Vice President Conway," Marshall told Absalon. "I don't think it should be a problem. After all, these restrictions were implemented fairly hastily in my opinion. I'll let you know one way or the other." Before he could excuse Absalon and close the call so he could try to get back to sleep, he heard a telltale beep. He rolled his eyes and looked at the display on his phone. Then his eyes widened slightly. It was Conway.

"Excuse me, I just got a text from Senior Vice President Conway," Marshall said. He read it.

"Carter, under NO circumstances are we going to approve an exception to allow Nepharan fans to come to Woodstock. You can forget it." Marshall's heart sank.

"Mr SVP," he texted back, "These regulations were implemented less than two weeks before the return leg for them to face us in Woodstock. It wouldn't be fair or sporting of us to refuse to allow Nepharans to make the trip."

"Nepharans are making the trip," Conway texted back. "We're allowing the players, the coaches, and the support personnel into Woodstock, aren't we? We're putting up those traitors and seditionists in one of our hotels against our better judgment. Your request is denied with prejudice."

With prejudice. Marshall knew that meant "no, and don't fucking ask me again."

"Bryan," he texted back, making it clear that he was angry because he seldom broke protocol with someone higher in the Presidential line of succession than he was, "you're making a big mistake by doing this."

"Then perhaps you could consider a neutral site game. We'll reimburse you for any lost revenue you would have gotten from ticket sales or concessions."

"That isn't the fucking point, Bryan," Marshall texted back. "The point is, we're penalising Nepharan citizens, some of whom had nothing to do with a decision imposed by their government, by prohibiting them from traveling to Sarzonia to watch their team play us in a World Cup qualifying match. That's a bad look."

"That's my decision. Live with it. Good night," Conway texted back.

The next morning in the situation room, President Haffner offered a compromise. Play the match at Mike Sarzo Stadium in Nicksia and offer the team personnel and any Nepharan supporters willing to make the trip to stay in a hotel in Corcorran across the border with Delaclava. That is, if the Delaclav government were willing to house them. This time, it was Marshall's turn to become adamant.

"Absolutely not," he said. "Thus far, Catherina has shown no interest in getting involved with this whole Atlantian Oceania-Anaia mess. This would drag them directly into the maelstrom."

Plus, it would also up the ante in the whole mess. But that was also the case with Sarzonia allowing the visas of 15 Starblaydi consular personnel to expire without renewal. Granted, five of those 15 hadn't submitted paperwork to renew their visas, but 10 of them had. However, The Eastgate Gazette, a paper with a war hawk's reputation for exaggerating things, reported it as Sarzonia expelling Starblaydi diplomats. Even if only one low-level Starblaydi was actually expelled, it was moreso to do with drunken indecent exposure at a college bar than anything specific related to the kerfuffle between the two regions.

Either way, things were about to get worse, not better as the battle between legitimate Atlantian Oceania and the traitorous Anaian rogue countries continued.

[Adab]

KickTheBall.com
Bringing you the latest news and rumors in football, in Adab and abroad

---

May 17, 2033 / 18 Safar 1455
Geektopia 1-1 Adab
Livengood (83’) | Yargab (40’)

NEWS | WORLD CUP
By: Sinahhieriba Husayn

Adab lose lead to draw 1-1 at Geektopia

Adab scored towards the end of the first half to take the lead against 22nd-ranked Geektopia in their latest World Cup 88 qualifiers match but defender Livengood produced a magnificent long-range goal in the 83rd minute to salvage a draw for the hosts.

Visiting Geektopia’s Place of Valence, the unranked Adab squad found themselves punching above their weight from the start of the match, displaying assertive, attacking football against the Geektopians, who had been widely tipped even in Adab to win the match comfortably.

Spearheaded by Enlilbani Yargab, the Adabian offense sent Geektopia on the back foot and put their defense under severe pressure at some points during the first half. Nevertheless the Geektopians held tight, with Yargab, Jushur al-Kufa, and Rebekah Yissakar especially finding themselves swarmed by the opposing side and having the ball wrested away from him.

Yissakar got into to the penalty area and dangerously close to the goal in the 28th minute, shooting the ball just as Pitter caught up to her, however Geektopia keeper Lertora leapt on the ball at just the right time to stop it from going into the net.

Adab eventually took the lead in the 40th minute, as Yargab, receiving the ball from Alulim Sinmuballit, deceived Lertora into moving to Yargab’s right and then shot the ball securely to the back left of the goal.

The second half was relatively quieter than the first, as the Adabians tended to retreat to their own half of the pitch and defend their position, refraining from sending too many players over to the front. Adab keeper Mohammed Marramzi, whose sweeper-keeper tactics during the previous match against Mytanija were criticized as allowing Mersudin Smajic to score into an empty net, was now instructed by Adab manager Saad Kaykali to stay within the penalty area.

For a time, it seemed that the Adabians were poised to repeat their shock victory against Geektopia at Xanneria’s The National tournament. Eventually, however, they would pay for their tendency to remain close to their own net.

A concerted Geektopian attack in the 83rd minute threw the tired Adabians into disarray and saw defender Livengood, who had just joined the attack, exploit the lack of players blocking his way to shoot from well outside the penalty area and right into the goal to level the score.

Thulus: Both teams did their best

With Adab manager Kaykali having an “important phone call”, the post-match press conference was attended by assistant manager Inimabakesh Thulus, who praised Adab and Geektopia for their performance and asserted that both teams had done their best.

“I’m not disappointed about losing the lead. The players performed to the best of their capability today,” Thulus said.

“We will come back stronger from this. We have learned a lot and I’m sure we’ll continue to learn more in this tournament.”

---

KickTheBall.com
Bringing you the latest news and rumors in football, in Adab and abroad

---

May 19, 2033 / 20 Safar 1455
Adab 0-0 Electrum

NEWS | WORLD CUP
By: Elymur Amwan

Adab vs. Electrum: Goalless draw marred by referee’s shock retirement to Nepal

In perhaps one of the most bizarre events to occur during the World Cup 88 qualifiers thus far, the second half of the match between Adab and Electrum was delayed for an hour as referee Joe Shemon was found to have departed from Adab City Stadium during the half-time break, after which he would fly to Nepal to “seek enlightenment”.

Hosting the Electrumites at the Adab City Stadium, the Adab squad was certainly looking forward to a victory following their 1-1 draw at Geektopia, or at the very least to score another draw against a vastly superior and more experienced team.

Indeed, in the end there would be no goals for either side. They would go home, however, knowing that they had participated in one of the most bizarre matches in living memory.

The match started at 4 p.m. local time, with the Adabians immediately going on the offense in an attempt to produce an early lead. This strategy failed to produce results, though, as the Adabian players largely failed to break through the wall of Electrumite defenders William Stewart, Bayden Forest, Alan Moore, and Elenora Sapper.

Jushur al-Kufa nearly scored for the opposing side in the 38th minute, however his left-footed strike sent the ball flying far above the goal. Julius van Buren came close to delivering for the opposite side just before half time, but his shot was palmed away by Adab keeper Mohammed Marramzi.

At 4:47 p.m., both sides retired to their dressing rooms for the half-time break. They would not play again for nearly two hours.

Referee goes missing

At 5:03 p.m. the players returned to the pitch, but as they assumed their respective positions there, several security guards entered the pitch to inform players and staff that referee Joe Shemon could not be found and the match would not resume until he was present on the pitch and accounted for.

Assistant referees Hamid al-Baladi and Naftali Levin informed security that, during half-time break, Shemon had informed them that he was going to the restroom, but that they had not seen him since then. All calls to his phone went unanswered. A search of the restroom and surrounding areas were performed and people questioned, but Shemon was still not found and no one claimed to have seen him.

At 5:15 p.m., all roads into and out of the stadium complex were ordered closed and attendees instructed to remain in their seats. Players and staff were ordered to stay on the pitch.

In the meantime, the guards had gathered the parking lot attendants to inquire about any suspicious vehicles entering or exiting the stadium. One attendant claimed to have encountered “someone with sunglasses and a mustache that seems fake” exiting the stadium in a white Toyota Prius. Another attendant, after having Shemon’s physical appearance described to him, stated that he had seen the referee arriving in a white Prius.

Al-Baladi and Levin confirmed that Shemon drove a white Prius. At 5:23 p.m., as the guards prepared to call Adab City police, Shemon called al-Baladi on his phone, stating that he was going back home and that he would be submitting his resignation as referee to the Adab Football Association.

Shemon’s announcement condemned the match to a continued standstill, as officials waited to see if Shemon would indeed resign or if he was simply bluffing. At 5:50 p.m., however, the Adab Football Association (AFA) confirmed to the assistant referees that Shemon had indeed submitted his online resignation and ordered one of them to take over as head referee immediately and, if possible, find another match official to replace him as the second assistant referee. Al-Baladi agreed to assume the post of head referee.

Al-Baladi then called his friend, fellow match official Rashid Maktum, who lived nearby, and asked him if he could come to the stadium at once and serve as assistant referee. Maktum agreed. All roads into and out of the stadium were ordered opened once again, and Maktum entered the pitch at 6:20 p.m. to replace al-Baladi as assistant referee along with Levin.

At 6:34 p.m., having briefed both teams and their staff on the Shemon situation and confirmed his takeover as head referee as well as Maktum’s arrival to the AFA, al-Baladi informed them that play would resume.

Play finally resumed at 6:40 p.m., 97 minutes after the players had returned to the pitch for the second half. Both teams went on the attack, but neither succeeded in scoring. Van Buren once again almost scored for the visitors in the 77th minute of the match, but misjudged the timing of his shot and instead sent it flying right to Adab keeper Marramzi, who caught it easily.

The match finally came to an end well past sunset at 7:20 p.m. Having drawn two times in a row against superior opposition, Adab retained their fifth place in Group 4 with 14 points. Electrum is third with 16 points. Valanora leads with 23 points following their 2-4 victory over Deniria.

Shemon flies to Nepal; AFA threatens legal action

At around 7 p.m., Joe Shemon was seen arriving at the Adab City International Airport. The now-infamous referee’s presence was quickly noticed by fellow travelers who identified him and posted pictures of him on social media. Around half an hour later, Shemon confirmed his presence at the airport, stating on his Instabook account that he had booked an Adab Airlines flight to Kathmandu, Nepal and that he was traveling there to “seek enlightenment”.

Shemon stated in his post, “I’ve grown tired of the fakeness of this world. The truth is I had considered retiring from this material world circus since a few months ago, as I grew increasingly disenchanted with all this … I want to be where I can find myself, renew myself, become a better, truer person.”

In a statement released on its website at 7:45 p.m., the AFA condemned Shemon’s conduct and confirmed that it is considering legal action against the former referee.

“By abandoning the match and throwing tens of thousands in the stadium and millions more outside it into confusion, Joe Shemon has proved himself a disgrace to his profession,” the statement read.

“His unprofessional conduct and duplicity have caused great distress to many and we hope never to see a repeat of this occurrence in the future.”

[Flavovespia]

Torlands

Overview

The Torlands lie in the centre of Flavovespia, to the east of the nation. Despite their geographical location, in between two of Flavovespia’s major cities, they’ve never quite got the attention or development of the Eastlands and Centrelands for example. This is one of the regions under the new regional system of Flavovespia, that has been somewhat criticised for a lack of joint history and connection within the region. Some of the region was known as the “Yellowlands”. Apsbrooke, Nailwood and Frostbrook were the original 3 Yellowfields city-regions, but have since seen Locksmith and Northrise given municipality status as well. To the north of the Torlands lies Johns Park. Somewhat unfairly labelled as just a commuter town for Hadford Hill, it does try to carve out its own identity. Narrock Wood, central to the region, is a mid-sized city that’s always hoped for more attention than its historically got. South of that lies the large town of Cartswood, a town that’s identified more with Outer Waldster than Outer Waldster has with it. To the west of the region, are the smaller towns of Sandneston and Whittlesbury, finally now more recognised as their own municipalities, and not distant areas of another city. Tor Wood municipality is another one that’s a collection of small settlements dotted in woodland, none of which are big enough to be a town in their own right.

Municipalities

Apsbrooke Code: AP Population: 104’288 Land Area (sqkm): 473 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 220
Cartswood Code: CW Population: 272’502 Land Area (sqkm): 1’151 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 237
Frostbrook Code: FR Population: 70107 Land Area (sqkm): 252 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 278
Johns Park Code: JP Population: 242’528 Land Area (sqkm): 591 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 410
Locksmith Code: LO Population: 46137 Land Area (sqkm): 1’066 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 43
Nailwood Code: NA Population: 104’002 Land Area (sqkm): 448 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 232
Narrock Wood Code: NW Population: 439’320 Land Area (sqkm): 462 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 951
Northrise Code: NR Population: 71’320 Land Area (sqkm): 462 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 154
Sandneston Code: SN Population: 82’836 Land Area (sqkm): 436 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 190
Tor Wood Code: TW Population: 50’688 Land Area (sqkm): 2’325 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 22
Whittlesbury Code: WH Population: 87’553 Land Area (sqkm): 658 Population Density (pop/sqkm): 133

Geography

As the name suggests, the Torlands are hilly. Whilst there’s no official definition of where “The Tors” lie in Flavovespia, it’s fair to say now that they lie almost entirely within the region. The Middleshop peak range extends into the Torlands in the west. Quite where the Middleshop peak range end and The Tors begin is hard to say, although around Locksmith is the general consensus. The other feature of the Torlands is the valleys and rivers. The River Smith, River Farlea and River Newhill all begin in the Torlands. The Farlea and Newhill flow into each other to form the Apse, joined shortly afterwards downstream by the Smith, in the valley of Apsbrooke. Parts of the region in the east that aren’t populated tend to be full of heavy woodland, and rain and high wind is not uncommon in the Torlands. The west of the region is mostly farmland.

Transport

The M3 from Waldster to Hadford Hill (or Hadford Hill to Waldster depending on how you see it), has remained the backbone of transport through this region for decades. Whilst it is prone to issues with wind and wet weather from the hills and woods. Narrock Wood and Johns Park lie on the M3, with Apsbrooke and Northrise close by too. The m6 covers the west of the Torlands, as it connects up the north and south of the Centrelands. Rail transport is severely lacking in the Torlands however. No major railway line travels through here, due to the gradients and density of the woodlands. Whilst a tunnel between Narrock Wood and Johns Park supplies a local rail link between them, it’s poorly connected to the rest of the rail network. Hopes remain in the near future for this to change, talk of a direct Waldster to Hadford Hill rail link, with a potential intermediary stop in the Torlands continue to this day. There are buses for those needing public transport, but they’re also not as good outside the bigger towns compared to other parts of Flavovespia.

Economy

The Torlands, in particular the Yellowfields, were once called the bread basket of the nation, as it has the highest agricultural output of all the nation. However as time moved on, and trade grew, the importance of this sector diminished. The Torlands have suffered from not being an industrial powerhouse, and hasn’t progressed much into a services economy. Whilst Narrock Wood and Johns Park are decent cities, the other parts of the Torlands don’t score well on affluence. That may however slowly begin to change, with Apsbrooke and Whittlesbury 2 notable areas where commuters are moving to, and even some businesses.

Politics

As a region that’s seen a lack of strong economic output, and containing areas that had an independence streak from Greater Waldster, it’s no surprise that the Freedom and Democratic Party poll well here. The region is a mixed bag for the Socialists, they’re strong in Cartswood, okay in Narrock Wood and Johns Park, but historically struggle elsewhere. Other parties ebb and flow here, but none are notably strong or weak, given the divide between rural and urban areas in the Torlands. With more devolved powers now, it’ll be an interesting battleground politically, especially if parties that have typically been acrimonious to each other get the lion share of the seats.