World Cup 94 [roleplays]

[Elmyia]

The Beaucester Gazette
Rossi Completes His Journey to the Big Stage
Goal and an assist in 6 goal thriller

When Elmyia's attack is analysed, the dual threats of the mercurial Froggatt and the battling Whittingham are the ones usually picked out. Yet the third member of this attacking triumvirate has cemented his place, both in the side and Elmyian sporting legend. Kostas Rossi took a brilliantly carved out chance on the break to bring Elmyia back into the game, before a last minute equaliser ensured a share of the points in the last minutes of the match. What's worth remembering is just how hard he's worked to get here.

Kostas Rossi was present in the squad for the first ever Elmyian international, only 7 short years ago, a 2-0 defeat to Tikariot. He subsequently made a first appearance not long afterwards, setting up a goal for Jackie Froggatt in a 4-1 drubbing by Oberour Ar Moro. Yet, from here, starts were hard for him to come by. IAC-16 saw him come off the bench for Phoebe Harris to offer some pace, yet this would be the last start for a while.

As Varisco, his club manager, Benni Massi decided he didn't need a second look at him. Even during the Baptism of Fire, where Mosfleet Albion's players dropped out, he found himself left at home. Whilst young and talented, the options ahead of him were simply better. Carlo Beluigi held the slot on the right for most of the next couple of years, Phoebe Harris offered the alternative option and he wasn't considered again. This was a dual setback, Rossi's league starts had also started to tail off. The teenager had a breakout campaign for Italia in 2011/12, getting a string of appearances in both cup campaigns, and scoring a goal in Italia's successful Super Cup campaign. Next year he broke through in the league. As Beluigi suffered a string of injuries he notched 16 league starts, 6 goals and 5 assists to help them take back the league title.

Whilst Beluigi had offered the opening into the team with his injury, Rossi found himself setback when he regained form. Beluigi started nearly every game of each subsequent campaign, other forwards offered a strong alternative to the young winger and his number of appearances dwindled. With it came a crisis in confidence, Rossi looked timid on the pitch, more eagre to avoid mistakes than he was to dazzle or impress. He was described by staff at the club as kind but the sort to turn in on himself, always his harshest critic, Servetto worried that he wasn't backing himself.

Servetto was a key figure to help Rossi get turned around. His management style has been described as centring on belligerent optimism, much louder than his predecessors at the club. There was no immediate turnaround in Rossi's form, but his performances started to look a bit more fluid. The daily affirmation of telling him he's a good player and to worry less started to sink in. Rossi started to dedicate more time to honing himself individually. The content seemed to matter less than putting extra hours in, the idea he was putting more work in seemed to make him more secure in himself. Sources at the club praised his work ethic, which even on the fringes never faltered.

At this point he was considering a move for playing time, well off the national team radar at this point he needed minutes to get his career moving again. A mooted loan to Diepfleet Marine didn't materialise, having discussed it with his family he decided he was unlikely to get himself moving forward, even with a good season at the second division perennials. It turned out to be the right decision.

A series of increasingly bright cameos saw him move into view for the Di Bradini Cup squad. After Servetto's two years of building confidence, he needed no push. In a talented group, he played his part to perfection. The manager left him to simply play his natural game, running at defences, beating full-backs and sending balls in for Whittingham to convert. This would prove useful in chemistry terms for the national team. Lifting the trophy seemed to change him. In place of the shy teenager with a tendency for self-flagellation was a far more self-assured character. Talkative and ambitious without being a bore, his career trajectory was about to skyrocket.

This DBC was his prompt to seek his big move. At this point Italia, who would've happily bagged the profit from their academy product a year before, were begging him to stay and fill the first team spot. A significant amount of money has been spent to fill the hole he left for them, yet it still doesn't feel resolved just yet. Rossi took a big move abroad with his increased profile, washing up at Chamberley City of Sylestone. Another season saw him aid a tilt at the title, cruelly denied on the last day, this seemed to fuel a fire in him throughout qualifying.

Whilst Elmyia looked lost in the first half of qualifying, he was the one bright spark available. With Froggatt off her game and Whittingham crowded out entirely by massed defences, Rossi was the only part of the attack that seemed to work. When the qualifying campaign looked doomed, Rossi appeared to be the only one who believed it was a cause worth salvaging. Before 8 wins from 9, it did in fact look over. But between Porras' refusal to contemplate defeat was matched by Rossi's own confidence in himself and his teammates, it's thought that his discussions with Whittingham and Froggatt were a big part in their performances turning around in the crucial run of games around the halfway mark. Where most thought Elmyia had little hope of making the final bash, the mood in the camp was that it was still possible.

So, after ages in the cold, Rossi found himself starting in Vickery. In scoring Elmyia's first ever goal he's written himself into footballing folklore at home. But, with the trajectory he's on, there's nothing to suggest this will be his last significant intervention on the international stage.

[Chromatika]

World Cup Proper Group Stage Matchday 1: Chromatika 2-1 Squornshelan Remnant States @ Florus Stadion, Altendalur, Græntfjall; Forecast: Overcast, drizzle, still
Goals: Xuen-Zhukov 27', Hauser 82'
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Ansov - de Aea - Anbient; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Delaya.
Substitutes: Zuniga -> Larriet-Cortes (51'), Kruetzberg -> Fillar, G. (51'), Hauser -> Fillar, B. (70'), Régine -> de Aea (70'), Howard-Dawes -> Xuen-Zhukov (82')

Group Stage Matchday 2: Gnejs v Chromatika @ VG Arena, Maigburg; Forecast: Overcast, dry, still
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Ansov - de Aea - Anbient; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Delaya.
Reserves: GK Kathie Begley, GK Hailee Sourtois, DCR Ami Coulibaly, DC Klavida Régine, DCL Ipati Aimée, DCL Cylie Nodis, WBR Emilie Kruetzberg, WBL Ibayashi Haitou, BWM Mare Si, AP Haley Hauser, AM Alissar Phoen, BWM Kateryna Zuniga, P Sandara Park, AF Elaine Howard-Dawes, AF Marie Faucheux.

---

The Library between the Planes
Part 1: The Place between the Planes

Outside the confines of the various multiverses, away from the dramatics of everyday life, mercifully distant from the rigors of politics, was a library that was situated between. Only those with a membership knew how to enter, and the Library handpicked those who would gain memberships. At the present moment, there were 3,129 members for The Library; even the Librarian had no idea how the Library decided who would become a member, as that came from beyond their pay grade. Instead, it was the job of the Librarian to offer aide to all those that made their way into The Library - and no matter what they needed, The Library was the one place that would have exactly that.

To say that The Library was massive would be an understatement - it contained countless books, newspaper articles, and other sources of media, and the catalogue was refreshed daily from all across the various multiverses. How The Library maintained its extensive collection was also a mystery, as The Librarian and their Aide could never recall seeing any of the publications coming into The Library. Instead, it would just be there when it was called for - either by a member coming in, or by the Librarian or the Aide themselves as they continued their lifelong pursuit of learning as much as possible.

Daily work at The Library was repetitive, but purposeful. The Librarian and their Aide would split eight-hour shifts, as there was no sense of days at a place between the Planes. They only kept track of the hours to make sure that they had some rest, referring to the Master Clock to see what the date was across the various multiverses. It was the members that needed the semblance of time to be able to communicate what they needed, and so The Library provided. It was of The Librarian's opinion that The Library didn't actually need any staff, so vast was the nature of its magic and the automation with which it operated; however, it was the human element that The Librarian and The Aide provided.

The Librarian lacked the memory of when they first started work at The Library - it just had been a part of their life for as long as they could remember. There was no need for individual wants nor needs, no requirement of sense of self. No, there was supreme comfort in knowing that they served something that was far beyond themselves - and that everything that they could ever want was being provided for them. They didn't need any sustenance, save the eight hours of sleep that they got after an eight hour shift; their uniforms were always provided for, The Library was always at the most optimal temperature for both the staff and the preservation of books, and The Library was the safest place to be.

Or so it was, until one fateful moment - remember, there wasn't really a sense of days at The Library due to its mystical nature - that The Library admitted the 3,130th member. The Aide, with their long hair, glasses, and crystal blue eyes, had informed The Librarian of the new member at the end of their shift, noting that the stack of membership cards had grown by exactly one more. Usually, cards would appear barely an hour before the new member would enter The Library for the first time, so The Librarian prepared themselves for the inevitable barrage of questions to come.

Was it going to be from the multiverse of chaos, where the seventh Multiverse War was nearing its Zenith? The Great Kansai Empire was nearing victory there. Would it be, instead, the multiverse where people were still in the stage of forming villages? The Librarian had a keen interest in that one, as there was a group of people who were living on floating cities made entirely of boats. There were over 500 different multiverses represented among the 3,129 members that used The Library, and as a being who could know the particulars of every single multiverse, The Librarian thought of the appearance of a new Member as one of the most notable occurrences to happen at such a place.

Instead, what stepped through the door of The Library was a being that The Librarian had never seen before. Humanoid, yet floating, with a set of bright-white wings, a glow above their head, and a set of glowing eyes, the being looked most like the depiction of angels from the human mythos, save one key difference: they didn't look altogether very holy, Instead, they looked like every other being as it came to morality; not that The Librarian was a master in that area.

"I heard that this is the place you come to when you are seeking answers that are beyond the limits of your own realm," came the communication from the mysterious being. There was no mouth on this new member - instead, the communication came by thought - not unlike fifty or so other multiverses that also used telepathic communication. The voice was soothing, calm, and rather disarming, putting The Librarian at ease.

"Welcome to the Place between the Planes, to The Library," stated The Librarian, "You are welcome here. You've been chosen by The Library to make use of its services. We can help you get any publication that has ever been recorded in your multiverse, or in any of the other multiverses. We can help you delve into a topic that you would like to know more about, in order to gain an edge in whatever it is that you are doing. We only ask that you make it clear back in your home multiverse that the idea came to you in a moment of inspiration or a dream. Failure to do so will result in your immediate termination."

"Is that so?" inquired the new member, "I doubted that such a place existed... It was wrong for me to doubt. I do wonder though, if The Library brought me here knowing full well what I am looking for."

"It is possible," answered The Librarian, "Nobody knows the full extent to which this Library is aware of what it is doing."

Then came the words that changed the course of The Librarian's existence forever.

"I've been looking for a fundamental shift in the very fabric of the various multiverses. There are signs that point to something going wrong at the very core - and if what you're telling me is true, then there is a chance that this Library, as part of the core tenets of existence itself, may be in danger," explained the new member.

"My name is Fyrellel Brightwing, and I'm going to need your help."

[Brookstation]

It was a noteworthy scene, a scene of remorse and doubtfulness. The Brook changing room was yet again lost in emotions, some pleasant and some on the contrary, very unpleasant. The squad had made history by playing their first ever World Cup game and had in fact given their best on the field and had at one point of time even taken the lead but having played for quite a long time, all of them knew that football was just another unpredictable game. Liangde He however felt that his boys deserved better. Leon Michael Robes had just become the first Brook player to score a World Cup goal but he wasn't in the mood to celebrate it at all. The situation was a complete mess.

It was the first time Brookstation had faced Tumbra, a team which Brookstation had always desired to face. Known for their unique style of play which perfectly aligns itself with the lines of perfection, Tumbra was perhaps the most difficult team that Brookstation had faced in history. This game would also see Ga Yong Lee in the starting lineup following Johnson's injury and the experienced Brook striker had delivered his best on the field but neither of his attempts would prove to yield any results. Despite reaching the goal dangerously close several times, he would always miss out by an edge. It was just his luck that prevented him from causing a stir in the game. Robes would open Brookstation's game at the early 22nd minute after curving the ball smartly into the Tumbran goal which would be followed by Tudorache's brilliant free kick which would give Brookstation the lead into half time. The second half would just be disastrous. In the second half, it just seemed that Brookstation gave the game away to Tumbra and thus everyone knew deep down that they could have been much better.

"I guess that was how it was supposed to begin". Geovani Angeles, perhaps the quitest and unsophisticated member of the squad initiated the conversation. In other words, everything was working the opposite way that day.

"If you look at it from that angle, then sure." said Scott while taking off his inner thermalwear. Scott was a tough man, a man infamous in the squad but he was confident. Despite serving a two year ban, he was back with full faith in the team. He was used to playing under the scorching Brook sun, that's what he has been doing ever since his childhood days when he played in the streets of Brookstation. He was not familiar with the pleasant weather here in Kelssek and thus he felt uncomfortable wearing that many layerings. "Honestly, I think the Tumbrans have defeated me, they were clearly tougher than me."

Having observed whatever was going on, Leon Robes got up from his seat and quietly left the room, slamming the door behind him. It was an absurd reaction from the captain but it wouldn't be fair to question it either. Wague could sense the tense atmosphere which just grew more awkward with time and changing the topic a bit asked, " Does anyone know what's going on with cap these days ?" Having asked this, he glanced quickly at everyone's reaction, just to get everyone's validation before he could proceed.

"He will be fine."

"I hope he is." replied Travor, who had been one of Leon's closest associates in the team. They had grown up together and had always dreamt together of carrying the team to the World Cup one day ever since their debut in World Cup 88. The day had certainly arrived but it wasn't the scenario they had dreamt of. "He just hates stuff sometimes, especially losing. Once we get the other results and hopefully witness some upsets, he will hopefully be back in his senses."

"Did he ever talk to you about it? He seems weird these days." asked Wague while nodding his head slowly in a strange manner.

"He never does that. He won't reveal his weakness in front of us because he knows that we worship him as our leader." Travor sighed and then shrugging continued, "He has been under too much pressure lately, much more than his poor soul can carry."

Nate, another very close associate of Robes continued, " He has always found himself under the radar, under the absolute spotlight. Whenever there's an interview or press session, he is the only one who is called up. Some can deal with this popularity but I think Leon wasn't made to face the world; he was born to face the goal and that's it." All the three players had spent the majority of their careers with their domestic sides in Brookstation unlike the current generation of upcoming footballers and thus they knew what it felt like facing the world suddenly. Apart from the World Cup, they had barely faced any international exposure at all and now that they were suddenly deemed as one of the upcoming footballing nations, they just didn't know how to deal with it.

Every member of the team was different from the rest and everyone had their own methods. Ga Yong Lee, a relatively new member of the squad usually didn't find the confidence in front of everyone but nonetheless, being a very pious and disciplined player, he would usually combat his nervousness by performing strange rituals the day before the match, something which everyone in the squad found rather amusing. The point here is that everyone in the team had completed an important segment of their lives and thus all of them knew how the real world works. Everyone knew their comfort zones. Everyone knew how to combat depression even if their methods are just irrational.

"I think he will be alright. He is the strong guy; he knows that there's still hope left. We aren't eliminated yet, boys." Everyone was taken aback after hearing Lee speak but given the ambience of the room, everyone had no option but to nod their heads in solace.

It was just not the start anyone was looking forward, it was not the ideal start to a World Cup but it was destiny after all. Brookstation has to cope with it. The journey has just begun and the majority of it is still left to be faced. The team is immature and so is the coach and the captain but with time, they would be bound to face the harsh competitiveness of the world. What Brookstation needs a major confidence boost, the source of which doesn't seem to exist, in order to survive the coming matchdays. Yue Zhou were up next; not an unfamiliar face and thus there is quite the potential for Brookstation to probably make a comeback. The loss to Tumbra wasn't that bad after all but maybe a draw would've been much better. They had fought to their last breath against Tumbra and thus they had shown that they weren't a team which would give up. There are 90 minutes to face Yue Zhou and little do they know that these 90 minutes are going be a changing point in their lives.

[Mytanija]

And in the end, there was nothing. No goal, no brilliant moments, no unbelievable saves, just nothing, as 0-0 a match as you could ever imagine.

Misel Ravnjak strode over to shake the hand of Ager Alaba, the Astograthian manager of Audioslavia, muttered ‘well played’ in a language he wasn’t entirely sure he understood and then did the same to a few of his assistants. Then he headed out onto the pitch where his players were a mix of bemused, dejected and frustrated. When he looked across at the Audioslavian players, they were mostly the same too. Coming into the tournament, few neutrals would have had this fixture circled as one to tune in for. It was the exact sort of game you would be half-hoping was on during work hours, so you could miss it without too much thought and the better, more exciting game would be on when you got home.

But what was served up was perhaps even more dire than that. It was hardly the performance that the media would have wanted to sate their thirst for a more exhilarating Mytanar team, but Ravnjak wasn’t entirely sure that was down to him, a mix of unusually poor finishing and a collective stodginess in midfield did for Mytanija’s chances, whilst they had limited Audioslavia mostly to pot-shots from outside the penalty area.

“Play your own game, lads,” he had said prior to kick-off. “We want to keep things tight and we’re sure that they’re going to be doing the same, we’re familiar with their style of play. But when you have the ball don’t be afraid to use it, if we’re set-up and in decent positions to recover from then try things. It’s going to be the only way to break them down.”

And those words had rung true. Audioslavia were everything they had been in the Cup of Harmony which did for Dzvezdan Kitanchev’s job. Tough to break down, committed to slowing the game down and making everything really hard work. That was usually Mytanija’s game and it occurred to Ravnjak that a number of the younger players he had brought into the squad might be experiencing that for the first time at international level, being on the opposite end of some real shithousery, though most coped well and despite a few yellow cards, there was never really any sign of frustration threatening to boil over. It might even have been better if it had.

Denis Ovsyannikov’s delicately chipped through ball was the reason for Mytanija’s best opportunity of the game. Ravnjak had become increasingly reliant on Ovsi for creativity during the run-in in the qualifying stage and he was once again stepping up for him here, around thirty minutes into his first ever World Cup match. Drazen Skara, a striker who you could usually rely upon to finish a half-chance, took the ball down expertly with his left boot before side-footing the shot beyond the Audioslavian goalkeeper with his right. Unfortunately, it also trickled narrowly past the post. For most strikers that was a half-chance but given Skara’s quality and consistency in front of goal it was probably a bit more for him, it was usually the sort of chance he would bury without second thought.

Minutes later Skara threatened to turn provider, getting on the end of another Ovsyannikov pass and momentarily drawing Constance Creighton into the proverbial ‘no-mans-land’ and squaring for Damien Gannot to surely and easily (…and finally?) pass into an empty net. Not quite. Everton Bolding, a rival of both Skara and Gannot at club level, playing for Sabrefell Moths, managed to nip in and poke away from Gannot to save what appeared to be a definite goal. An intervention which one half of that particular Nepharan city would have enjoyed after their rather painful experiences over the last couple of years. It was also rather painful for Ravnjak to watch. He might have a reputation for pragmatism and defensive football, for hating the concession of cheap goals, but even he didn’t experience voyeuristic pleasure from watching something as turgid as this match. A horror own goal might have livened things up a bit, though he wasn’t sure any Mytanar could take another ridiculous exit at the hands of the Bulls so soon after the one in the previous Cup of Harmony.

As he shook hands with his players, the opposition and the officials after the match his mind was already turning to the next match. Both sides had really needed a win here, though neither really did enough to deserve one. Kelssek and Pemecutan were teams ranked much higher and with much more impressive recent track records. Kelssek had the little-known advantage of playing on home soil, too, which was demonstrated pretty confidently in their 5-2 victory over Pemecutan. Such a decisive win left Kelssek needing, in all likelihood, just one more win to progress. Playing Mytanija in the next game, on paper the weakest team in the group, would probably have them licking their lips at the prospect of having things wrapped up before they even needed to play Audioslavia on matchday three.

He might need to put something like that in his pre-match comments. Nothing like creating a siege mentality to get the players up for it. A tried and tested formula as old as time in the realm of football management. And he would tell Drazen Skara to shoot better, although he would hardly need telling. Dragging the match down to Mytanija’s level was very tempting too, turn it a bit of a kicking match and hopefully the star quality of Ovsi and Skara in the final third could make the difference.

[Squornshelan Remnant States]

Wonder Quadruplets Activate, Form of: Good Form?
What are form and class anyway and how do we measure them?
Salwan Mynhier

Despite their occasional difficulties closing out tight matches during qualifying, the betting line was still very much in favor of the multiverse's number five team as kickoff neared. People love to talk about how form trumps class, and it sure is fun when that turns out to be true. An upset's great for the headlines after all. The Fighting Fillars Anomalies might not quite have had the form the Black-and-Reds did through qualifying, but they were close, and the funny thing about class, which they have in spades, is that if you've got enough, you can win even when you're not on form. Was Chromatika on good form in this match? Hard to say to be honest. Trying to judge whether a first team of 11 plus up to 5 subs are all playing the best football they could be while another 16 people on the other side of things are trying to cause them problems is a fraught business.

In terms of class, some might argue that some kind of weighting of recent results to produce a numerical value that describes mathematically just how good a particular team is at the given moment is possible. Sounds like stat nerd talk to me. If chefs remember tisps and tibbles, are football pundits now going to go back and forth about how many kipbles each team have earned? Ridiculous. Besides, if form trumps class, then it seems that's really what we ought to be trying to measure.

So, when Lavrentiy Xuen-Zhukov knocked in the opening goal of the match after taking a quick ball forward from Edith Fillar and dribbling around Halfariani, it ought to be possible to determine whether he did so because he's really good at football, or just because he's playing football really good. Er, really well. Right now. Or wait, maybe it was Fillar who's really good at football, and Halfariani really bad, and Xuen-Zhukov was just in the right place at the right time between these really good and really bad players being . . . I guess really average? Halfariani did get the hook at halftime, so that seems to support this idea. Unless Halfariani is actually really good but was just playing really bad at the moment. For reasons. Ok this is getting a bit overcomplicated, maybe there's an easier example.

Ok, the winning goal then. Hauser at 82 minutes. Hauser started the match on the bench, ergo she must not be as good as the players in the first team. That stands to reason, right? But then Hauser scored while most of the others didn't, and if she's not as good as the others but played really better, then that must be form trumping class. Literally. Hmm, but what if Hauser is really the best player on the roster, and was only benched for being on bad form? They say that to win the big matches you need your best players to be your best players, which sounds kind of stupid to say but my dad assures me that it makes sense if you think about it for a minute. I dunno what says "best player" more than scoring the winner in your team's toughest match of the group stage. So depending which way you look at it and how much of a Haley Hauser fan you are, this might actually be class trumping form.

I wonder if we can learn anything about this from Caitrin Ness's goal. She's generally regarded as the best striker in the SRS for the past few years, and scored 11 goals through qualifying, twice as many as anyone else on the team, so that sounds like she has a lot of class and form both. On the other hand, she's been dating Joelinton Dyxkesson for the better part of a decade now, and rumors are that their relationship might have started when she was 23 and he was just 17. That doesn't sound very classy to me.

Ok, so I think this is it. Definitive proof that form trumps class. Now all we need to do is figure out how to precisely measure form and, most importantly, name the unit of form measurement after me.

Chromatika - 2
Squornshelan Remnant States - 1

Goals:
CMT: Xuen-Zhukov 27'; Hauser 82'
SRS: Ness 66'

Lineups:
CMT:  Fillar, J.; Ansov, de Aea (Régine 70' ), Anbient; Fillar, G. (Kruetzberg 51'), Larriet-Cortes (Zuniga 51'), Fillar, B. (Hauser 70'), Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov (Howard-Dawes 82'), Delaya.
SRS: Shimski; Nyberg (Nedeljkovic 90+2), Titov, Van (Fridtjofs 84'), Halfariani (Sauber 46'); Hashemi, Sevet-Ibilx (Zazagan 71'); Bondarov, Volam (Byqvist 84'), Maksimov (Yonte 84'); Ness

MD01: SRS 11- 1 BRS @ Killough Grove (cap. 31,400), Han Wavel, Han Dold, SRS
MD02: ROS 0 - 1 SRS @ TBA
MD03: SRS 0 - 0 BAR @ New Rudlit Arena (cap. 31,200), Rudlit, West Flania, SRS
MD04: KRY 0 - 4 SRS @ TBA
MD05: SRS 1 - 0 INS @ Synesoft Arena (cap. 46,950), Syneca, Sivolvia, SRS
MD06: DOR 1 - 1 SRS @ TBA
MD07: SRS 2 - 0 TGI @ Overburg Arena (cap. 46,222), Damogran, Algolia, SRS
MD08: CPT 2 v 1 SRS @ Captina Company Sports Ground (cap. ), Geneva City, CPT
MD09: SRS 1 v 0 PUG @ Viltvodle Civic Arena (cap. 58,300), Viltvodle, Megabrantis, SRS
MD10: CBA 0 - 1 SRS @ TBA
MD11:      BYE
MD12: BRS 2 v 3 SRS @ Wimbley Stadium (cap. ~100,000), Council Groves, BRS
MD13: SRS 2 v 2 ROS @ Smolak Systemy Stadion (cap. 31,200), Sjerezo, Molvania, SRS
MD14: BAR 0 v 3 SRS @ TBA
MD15: SRS 1 v 2 KRY @ Striterax Cybernetics Arena (cap. 64,325), Striterax, Isle of Squornshelous, SRS
MD16: INS 2 v 3 SRS @ Aditya Varma Kulashekara International Stadium (cap. 131,561), New Hind City, INS
MD17: SRS 2 v 1 DOR @ Emerald Coast Colliseum (cap. 38,500), Vassilian, Algolia, SRS
MD18: TGI 0 v 1 SRS @ TBA
MD19: SRS 4 v 1 CPT @ Black Raven Field (cap. 35,400), Yassaca, Sivolvia, SRS
MD20: PUG 2 v 2 SRS @ Kejm Park (cap. 28,000), Port Kejm, PUG
MD21: SRS 3 v 2 CBA @ Radlov Arena (cap. 76,800), Brantisvogan, Megabrantis, SRS
MD22:      BYE

First Round Schedule:

MD20: CMT 2 v 1 SRS @ Florus Stadion, Altendalur, GRÆ
MD20: SRS   v   PAS @ Grand National Arena, Háttmark, GRÆ
MD20: PUG   v   SRS @ TQG Langvöllur Arena, Hofvinger, GRÆ

[Independent Athletes from Quebec]

See: YZH RP on latest ep. of the Great War of Farfadillis.

Starting XI vs. Tikariot (4-2-3-1)
S. Middleton (C)
Yabusele - Cizeron - Salihamidzic - Joo P.S.
M. Bouck - Wawanolett
Huitema-Omeasoo - Babin - E. Kweon
Korniloff-Kouyate

Joongyeong

'For one, these banners do look beautiful,' said Royal Quebecois Football Association chair, Jean-Philippe Moon, as he looked into the sights of The Bubonic's banners. They, colourful and graphic as they could be, indicated the messages along the lines of 'Death To Farolera' or lot friendlier 'Glory To Ruland', fitting right along to the pro-Rulandese stance taken by the national team whose two of its stars, Mathinna Bouck and Mariano Kang Mêndêlöíndçêl (yes, Erin Kang's son and Yurpa M.'s grandson he is), happen to star for the Rulandea Kosta. 'If anything, Irene, the high prevalence of The Bubonic Plague in Hattmark suggests the continued strengths of the friendship shared between Graintfjall, a long ally of ours, and us.'

Three monitors - two side ones flanking the massive screen that would be primarily used for presentations - were showing the highlights of the previous night's match between the Grim Reapers and their fellow Commonwealth rivals of Banija's Kadongo Kamu. The match's kickoff time was in 16:00 Hattmark time, which had also meant that for those back in Joongyeong, those interested would have been able to catch it at 19:00, which was every bit convenient for those inclined and for the pubs, restaurants, and other establishments. And while the outcome of the match had been less than desirable, with a 0-0 draw from two firewagon sides being made possible thanks to strong defensive work, goalkeeping and of course offensive sloppiness, there was more a sigh of relief from both sides than anybody else with final whistle being played out.

Now, Moon and another person, a certain Irene Kweon Binnington, sat in the mahogany conference room of the Gwangmoo 11, the Prime Ministerial home, with the room decorated with a gift left from each departing Prime Minister. For Irene's predecessor, a short-lived not-John-Major of Jacques Lee Ellington, this came in the form of a rare, 13th-century ceramic vase from an old Inteachnian kingdom, but there were occasionally interesting ones, like Arsene Kim's CSKA Quebec jersey from their back-to-back Q-League championship teams. It was well known that the longtime Prime Minister, a lifetime Joongyeongite and was married to a former CSKA administrator Meghan Casavant, had enjoyed great relations with Sir. Lionel Mah who was on his second stint with the team at the time of hiring, and it showed with the gift.

Now, whether that had served his interest or not mattered little. Irene Kweon Binnington, while a general fan of Twin Cities-sides and did oversee the running of the 16th Summer Olympics six years ago to great success, held not as strong of general interest towards sports as both Arsene Kim and Jacques Lee Ellington had once done so. When Irene had meant business, it meant business - and today was going to be about that.

Jean-Philippe slightly moved his seat to the left, as he looked back at the Prime Minister. They had to talk about an urgent topic of their concern, especially one that had involved the banners and the RQFA.

'Prime Minister,' he opened his mouth, his middle-aged figure starting to show additional pockets of age and eating long after his playing days. 'Do we expect specific response as to what we expect to happen within the next hours or so?'

Irene Kweon Binnington, a calm, moderate woman, closed her eyes for a short while. She then her opened her eyes, looking straight into the monitor as a missed long-ranger by Zinaida Woodcarver was on motion. 'No, because Hertel's actions are that of a private individual who has long retired from his duties as a Quebecois international, which also means that he is no longer expected to report to you or Dolnight or any relevant individual at this time,' she said, her low vocal tone suggesting more deterministic. 'Not to mention that the individual profile of his does not represent that of our country.'

It was a warm, June afternoon in Joongyeong, and yet the temperature of the well-air-conditioned room had made it feel the opposite, almost as if they were standing on top of frozen temporal pane before a major moment. Jean-Philippe felt that too, having noticed the weight of Irene's response to the rumours of incoming arrival of Marco Hertel's personal army, a multinational 'Marco's Slaves', on the Faroleran shores. On other times he would be adding more words, especially as the chair of the RQFA, but Kweon Binnington did not exactly hold the interests of Quebec's allies, who would be more inclined in protecting Alex Teran's regime, either.

'So what would be your response, when the time comes?' Jean-Philippe rephrased the question, before being answered by Kweon Binnington with a clearer answer.

'We will not answer because damned they be, Jean-Philippe,' Irene responded, the sharp glare of her eyes suggesting her own annoyance with the latest updates of the news from Hertel and his personal army, which had numbered around twenty to thirty thousand people. Quickly, the screen had switched to a different news, as a television anchor began speaking. 'Look right there.'

---

Somewhere in the Shango-Fogoa...

On the other side of the world, in the meanwhile, Marco Hertel and his personal army, Marco's Slaves, cruising his way into a landing. With about hundreds of fishing boats, dozens of once-rusty training boats, and a half-dozen amphibious warfare ships all cruising into the Faroleran waters, every bit behind the invasion seemed slightly ill-prepared, and in many cases did not resemble that of a proper army. But they, whose intentions were singular, simple and perhaps too extreme for the likes of a normally functioning forces like that of most national defence forces, appeared more set than any others.

For Marco Hertel, who had quietly established a chain of properties across the Multiverse, from fabulous mansions in the heart of Multiversal metropolises to the quietest underground compounds in the most isolated of locations in deepest mountains and most isolated beaches, the voyage itself felt somewhat of a compensation. The journey was tempestuous, the kraken-repellent sirens constantly in place with missiles launched, while the soldiers expressed difficulties practcing some of the more refined of weapons, which they had found successful when in practice earlier, while on their way to Puerto Farolera. Not to mention the fear of being caught by Alex Teran's forces who, admittedly, held advantage on material and structures, even if they may lack the on-field experience the Rulandese or the Indujans did.

Marco knew there existed little margin of error in this strike, especially as it had involved a direct strike to the heart of the Imperial Aggressors that this bunch of 30,000 soldiers, whose demographics had all varied but mostly consisting of Quebecois civilians with pro-Rulandese sympathies, held a single goal towards. It was only six years ago since his retirement from the national team when
Hertel, with own actions at the The Faroleran Bonfire, would lead into anti-police riots throughout Farfadillis and subsequent the ongoing Great War of Farfadillis.

Many years have passed since then, with Hertel setting up a quiet, but closely-monitored eye in building up his own forces to make sure he, in close coordination with the Rulandese Revolutionary Army and his former compatriot Erin Kang, had a chance to return. The subsequent years since the incident would see Hertel, whose wealth would be accrued from both the majority-stake ownership of PlayToy Media corp. and from his highly-successful playing career with Fontvielle Impact, feel greater desire to make a difference past that of his own current career. And with the news of the Great War and how the lives of those around him - especially his compatriots back in the Grim Reapers struggling between the pro-Farolera federation and the players themselves - he knew that he had to do something to make a mark.

By this point, Hertel also knew that he's not in a position to retreat or change course. Not with the way that the current plan is built on. Not after the last night's l'Instagramme live video he had made, where he had promised the 'glorious day of charge, fire and glory' to hundreds of thousands who had managed to capture the live thread. Now, whether Alex Teran and the Farolerans had managed to caught onto the feed, or even had the slightest hint about what he was about to do with the landing on Puerto Farolera, was another story. There was a decent chance that somebody may have caught onto the livestream, and that whatever the resistance Marco and his own 'Marco's Slaves' would face may end up being deadlier than what he would expect. But then with the possibility of Yue Revolutionary Army on sight, at least from the intel shared by his staff members at a meeting over yesterday's lunch, and the Banijans too politically gridlocked to send any response...perhaps time was going to be in their favour after all.

So, when 'General' Claude G. - Gallimard apparently is his actual surnames - asked Marco what would be the order he would like to send, Marco left two words as a straightforward message: 'Burn' and 'Kill'. It had to be a multi-faceted and uncontrolled mission at same time, one where just launching fire on Puerto Farolera's buildings won't do it. Neither would targetted attack on certain individuals, and Marco knew that the landing would have be as chaotic as possible, especially in order to bring out the best capabilities of his own soldiers. Especially to bring out the soldiers their own capabilities.

Chaos Galore. Burn Baby Burn.

[Vilita]

♫ Climbing up the top sails, I lost my leg! ♫ I'm shipping up to // screech // scratch // Rebels Time... Back again... ♫

A Few Unexpected Things from Græntfjall

Lets just for a second go back in time. Not... actually back in time, but lets just think back in time. Somewhere around the start of World Cup 94 Qualifying. If we just set ourselves in the environment, you've got the Vilitan National Team, Top seed in Group 15. Sure, they aren't a high top seed. Not in the single digits and certainly not in the midst of a golden generation where anything but an unbeaten qualifying campaign and an easy ride to the World Cup Finals would be a shocker. Yet still, there was some thought that as the top seed in the group, their path to the finals would be fairly clear. Naturally, we already know that it wasn't, yet Vilita still achieved its goals by virtue of the playoffs. We've all experienced it, we've all been a part of it, and now we are here, in Græntfjall, for the World Cup Finals.

First of all, I want to apologize for everyone who was hoping I'd be doing a live room on twii.tur during the World Cup Finals matches. Unfortunately thats not going to happen this time out, I'm keeping fairly busy here in Græntfjall and will be primarily focused content wise on these very post-game conversations. Now, I want to focus on some other things looking back at the start of the campaign. Most notably, I want to focus on 2 or 3 Unexpected Things about the starting lineup for the Vilita National Team at the World Cup Finals in Græntfjall.

First Up: The Goalkeeper. I think if you went back to the start of the campaign and looked up the Vilitan Goalkeeper depth chart it would have seemed very clear. Zelkki Milake Jr. was the unquestioned starting goalkeeper for the Vilitan National Team. Ukamai Talingri had been impressive enough to earn themselves the backup role, particularly in their ability to pick up clean sheets when other Vilitan goalkeepers seemed to struggle at doing so. Finally, the youngster, Altirii Touiniki, would be available to sit on the bench and gain some experience in the lesser games, perhaps preparing themselves for a bigger role in the squad for the future.

Of course, thats not what happened at all. When Milake and Talingri found themselves in suspension trouble for a series of red cards in the first half of World Cup Qualifying, they not only lost their spot in the lineup to Touinki temporarily, but they were dropped by the Vilitan National Coaching staff in the depth chart all the way to the bottom of the National Player Pool. That meant surprising playing time in qualifying for Reino Kononen and Hanauama Ranbomahi. It was Kononen who guided Vilita through to the World Cup Finals in goal for the playoff game against Sendhang while Touiniki also rotated in to keep things fresh. Yet none of them did particularly well out on the pitch either. Vilita's only clean sheet came against the groups lowest ranked side and averaging over 2 goals conceded per game was certainly unexpected for a team that had been led by a defender.

Yet, despite all of these factors, the red cards, the struggles in qualifying and the high rate of goals conceded, it is still highly unlikely that anyone would have projected Vernasa Sanamun to be the Jungle Rebels starting goalkeeper in the opening game of the World Cup 94 Finals. Yet that is where we ended up. While Sanumun has been a regular in the Vilitan National Player Pool, the Jungle Strike FC goalkeeper hadn't traveled with the Vilitan National Team outside of their Alikki-Corra or Endur's Forest training bases since a 5-6 defeat on the final matchday of World Cup 89 Qualifying to Kandorith that would eliminate the Vilitan National Team from World Cup 89 Qualifying and ultimately cause them to miss the World Cup Finals altogether. In reality, Sanamun's banishment from the Vilitan lineup for the performance on that day in Kandorith was likely harsh as they had picked up clean sheets in each of their two previous starts during that qualifying which, over a three game stretch was still more clean sheets than any of the Vilitan goalkeepers were able to secure throughout the 20 matchdays of World Cup 94 Qualifying. But it didn't matter, It was one of the Vilitan National Team's all time greatest failures and the images of the ball trickling through Sanamun's body was permanently burned into the memory of fans and media alike.

Yet Sanamun has something that no other goalkeeper in the Vilitan National Player pool had. A World Cup title. One of just two goalkeepers from the Vilitan Golden Generation still active in the Vilitan League, the now Veteran goalkeeper was just making their National Team debut when the Jungle Cats went on their magical run of 3 World Cup Finals in Four cycles. A youthful Sanamun even had experience as a World Cup Finals starter after an injury plagued opening left Mako Canopii and Cilamara Issah on the sideline as the Jungle Cats turned to Sanamun for a group stage match against Cassadaigua and a World Cup Knockout round game against Sargossa, which the Vilitans won 4-3.

So, when TEST MANAGER sent Vernasa Sanamun out of the tunnel first in the pouring rain at the Fljarkfjall Arena in Þingsnitz, there were probably a lot of confused faces in the stands, back home in Vilita and in the media. But the reality is, nothing has worked so far to give the Jungle Rebels the defensive boost they needed to be challengers for the World Cup title, so why not get a helping hand from the only Goalkeeper left in the National Player Pool that actually has experience in a World Cup Title run? Thats exactly what the Vilitan National Team did, and thats why it was a familiar but highly unexpected name with the gloves on the opening matchday of the World Cup 94 Finals for the Vilitan National Team.

Secondly: The Attack. Now this one is obviously not out quite as far in left field as the selection of Vernasa Sanamun as starting goalkeeper was, but still it was worth noting. Unlike Sanamun who was 'unofficially' excluded from making Vilitan National Team appearances after the Khaos in Kandorith, Clarana Refiami was never truly excluded from the Vilitan roster, just fell out of favor as the coaching staff made a push toward a new unified core that featured the Tlikara siblings as the primary attacking duo.

Of course, sometime at the end of the World Cup 94 Qualifying cycle, Clarana Refiami impressed someone. Specifically, they impressed TEST MANAGER enough to re-claim a regular role for the Jungle Rebels leveraged most heavily as an impact substitute who could score goals late in a game. The Spartangrad attacker found the back of the net in every match they appeared under TEST MANAGER so seeing Refiami's name on the starting lineup for the opening match day of the World Cup 94 Finals was far less of a shock in context - but still something that would never have been projected at the beginning of the cycle before the upheaval in Alikki-Corra.

Finally, the coach themselves. I'm not going to talk much about TEST MANAGER here or get into any of the speculation or rumors that have been floating around on twii.tur. However, I think having a coach who can focus on the players, on team harmony and other things in the locker room without having to worry about all the media being in their face all the time is a massive boost to the Vilitan National Team. Yet, if you were to go back to the start of this World Cup cycle, it is likely you would have been very difficult to convenience someone that the Vilitan National Team was going to qualify for the World Cup 94 Finals in Kelssek and Græntfjall BUT they would do so without Endur Rotropii on the sidelines. It was the former Marine Coast United defender who built the modern Vilitan National Team program from the ground up and many felt the only way they would lose their job as head coach would be if Vilita failed to qualify for the World Cup Finals whatsover. Yet, Vilita are in the World Cup Finals and Rotropii is back to their old job running the training programme.

So now, the real question is: Did it pay off?

Well, bottom line up front, Clarana Refiami was freaking amazing and did everything you could ever ask a striker to do at the World Cup Finals. The time away from the team seems to have really motivated them and it wouldn't surprise me if they started every game the Vilitan National Team played at the World Cup 94 Finals - as long as the Veteran can stay healthy. Whether that means Vilita end up playing 3 at the top or some other formation to involve the Tlikara siblings as well, I don't know, the opportunities are endless. But you can't not play a forward who has two hat tricks in their last three games. Thats jut not a thing. Refiami is a lock and the gamble - though not a high risk one, certainly seems to have paid off.

As for Sanamun, I will say that the Jungle Strike FC goalkeeper wasn't perfect. The conditions certainly didn't help. The ball was wet. The winds were unpredictable. It certainly wasn't ideal - and even in ideal conditions no goalkeeper is perfect for sure, but when you concede three goals in the World Cup Finals, its usually not great. In fact, I dont know if the Vilitan National Team have ever conceded three goals in the opening game of World Cup Qualifying and not lost that game before. Heck, the Jungle Cats had a huge reputation for losing the first game of the World Cup Finals even when they didn't concede three goals. Dating back to at least World Cup 72 it hadn't happened. Ironically in that cycle the Vilitans did concede three goals on the opening match day of the World Cup Finals and lost handily, 0-3 to Saintland. That cycle would be notable for being the only time that the Vilitan National Team made the World Cup knockout rounds, won their final game of the tournament but did not win the World Cup. Yup, 3rd Place Playoff Champions.

Anyway, regardless of whether Sanamun is or is not the solution for Vilita, their presence on the pitch and in the locker room still had a purpose. That World Cup winning experience and showing the players what was possible. It wasn't just some dream, some mystic aspiration. Vernasa Sanamun lived it. Won it. Lifted the Trophy. So what if they conceded three goals. Even if they had conceded four, Vilita still would have won the match and picked up 3 points and at the World Cup Finals that's all that matters. Some teams win and some teams lose, you just need to hope to do enough to be on the winning side.

 Vilita 5 - 3 Saint Eleanor

I realize we've gotten this far in and didn't really talk much about the game, so of course if you were planning to watch the whole thing, well, you already know what happens at this point but here's just a quick review of the action. It was a great start for Vilita when Riku Kasslin opened the scoring 12 minutes in and it wasn't long after that the Refiami would also get on the scoresheet with a short range effort that was entirely unstoppable for the Eleanorian goalkeeper John Bailey. It would be no walkover, however, after having finally found their way back to the World Cup Finals Saint Eleanor fought back hard and the star of the game for them was undoubtedly Rick Goldsmith. Twice in the game, Goldsmith would claw Saint Eleanor back into the game scoring the 2-1 goal and 3-2 goal to keep things close. Ultimately, Vilita's early pad was enough to keep them ahead and they went into the break up 3-1 thanks to Refiami's second of the game that was merely a tap in after an awkward pass across from Sami Sammii'i.

After Goldsmith pulled Saint Eleanor to within one again, Refiami would complete their hattrick with a turning effort that Bailey had little chance to do anything about after being left hanging by the Eleanorian defense. Fyin Miateal would add their name to the scoresheet 15 minutes from time taking advantage of Saint Eleanor's desperate attacks to run into open space then fire a low shot into the far corner of the net. While Saint Eleanor would pull one more goal back late in the game to make the final scoreline 5-3, it shouldn't do much to effect the Jungle Rebels confidence after a strong opening matchday performance and a much needed three points earned.

I'm proud of the Jungle Rebels for the way they got things started in Græntfjall but ultimately it was just the first chapter of what will hopefully be a long story at the World Cup 94 Finals and we know that each Chapter will get a little harder than the last one. Now, the Vilitan National Team will head to Fjistjing Stadion in Hintersfjörður to face off against Atlantian Oceania regional rivals the Commonwealth of Baker Park in a matchup that suddenly has taken on critical importance as the two sides both earned victories on matchday 1. A win for either team could see that side guarantee their spot in the World Cup knockout rounds and even without that, as a matchup between the number two and number three seed in the group, it was always going to be a battle with massive knockout round implications. The two sides have met multiple times before in the World Cup Finals as well as having co-hosted World Cup 90 in what was one of the worst ever performances by a host nation at the World Cup Finals for the Vilitans. Now, they will hope to put that behind them and keep up their high scoring momentum to find three more points in their quest to return to the World Cup Knockout Rounds.

[Saint Eleanor]

RP completed at 2107 UTC. I had dinner with my husband and was therefore precluded from wrapping this up in full before the formal cutoff.

Thirty Years of Eleanorians - 2002: "I had no internet for a week and my son's to blame"
Published by Jack Mitchell on June 3rd 2005

At the best of times, Eastern Fell is hardly the most convenient of places to get to. It's barely serviced by one Metro stop and a couple of bus lines, it shares a fairly remote motorway junction with nearby Mount Dennis (still a town) on the other side of the hills, and it isn't within reasonable walking distance of anywhere else except its sister town. Oliver Carter made the Eleanorian Telecommunications engineers learn the hard way in April. His mother, Lucy Simpson, insists that "he literally tried to cut the cable off in our home. First he bit at it, but I told him off because it could electrocute him."

His next option was also his last: to absentmindedly grab a pair of scissors from the kitchen drawer, and then cut the cable. "It was devastating. We could have lost the TV too but I warned him no, that's not good. In the end I just snatched the scissors away from him and called Ellie Tellie to say look, my two-year-old son found a pair of scissors, I tried to stop him but he just snipped the broadband. They almost reported me to the Army but I told them I tried my best not to let him have them. Forty minutes of my life spent on that, but for a good cause, eh?"

ET warned the Simpson-Carter family that they would take a week to install a new broadband line. While they arrived on schedule and without disruption, the dearth of mobile internet in Saint Eleanor led the receptionist to live her off-duty life completely offline for the time being. "I mean, most of my job involves pen and paper but when you're talking about socialisinng, chilling out with friends and whatnot - really? Does it take a week for them to sort this out? Obviously they have to give priority to people but it's just a scandal they have to dither for so long."

In a statement provided to LocalTALK across the Northern City, Karen Bartlett - ET's vice-president for internet - said that there had been "a nationwide shortage of broadband engineers" since the service was introduced five years ago, replacing the dialup service first rolled out in 1991. She added, however, that "we are always looking to recruit new engineers, including those with prior work experience," and that "the duration of the work required" was a key factor in ET's insistence that people wanting new broadband remain on hold for a week.

Simpson - who had a brush with the law, the Telecoms and the clock in her fight to win her broadband back - remains unconvinced. "There are loads of new broadband options like getting your thing hooked up to a satellite dish, like they do in other countries with the TV. No wires, nothing, just instant, really fast internet. Can't they do that? Are we really going to remain stuck with eighty megabit per second speeds for the rest of known time or are we going to get a bloody move on?"

[Graintfjall]

Græntfjall – 5 (4)
Ásólfur; Hermione, Anarr, Asbjørn, París; Valtter (37’) (64’ Hrútur (78’)), Kæja (c) (10’, 23’, 43’ pen.), Danny (90’ Lotte ); Amandara (57’) (68’ Rebekka ), Járngrímur (14’) (64’ Joel ), Varða (45’ Sara V )

Eura – 3 (2)
Sharp (19’, 34’ pen.), Vincent (74’)

The dates in this are non-canon and just an excuse for a shitty joke I stole off Poaf.

---

It was mid July, and Amanda Guttisdóttir – former Snow Wolves midfielder, still plying her trade in the Euraleague, but increasingly transitioning into the more lucrative and less demanding world of media work – was meeting with her assistant about her upcoming calendar.

“We’ve had an offer from the network for you to provide some election commentary.”

“Elections? I’m not very political…”

“You’re a well known supporter of the Progressive Liberals, you’ve been outspoken about equal rights, and I think they’re looking for big names that will spice up the coverage a bit. No one’s staying up to watch four mad psephologists freak out a swing-o-meter.”

“I feel like I’d watch that if I were drunk,” Amanda mused, examining herself in the mirror. The make-up stylist at GS SuperSports+ did her eye-shadow so heavy she’d woken up this morning looking she had two black eyes. Next time she was going to request they tone it down a bit. It’s not like she was presenting NNN.

“Anyway, shall I say yes?”

“And there’s no clash? I know the World Cup’s coming up, and …”

“Amanda, don’t worry. I’ve got you sorted. The election’s not till August 1st. And the Eura game is in late, late July.”

A few days later, in a completely unanticipated and unforeseeable development.

“What do you mean, you ‘didn’t know July 32nd wasn’t a thing’?”

“I mean, I just thought… like the rhyme… thirty days has September. April, June, and November. All the rest have…”

Amanda’s assistant trailed off, and stared at her, then down at the planner, then back at her. Slowly, very slowly, he moved the page forward.

“So the day after July 31st is…

“Ohhh…”

---

“Hello and good evening. Welcome to Soccer Digest. Tonight we’re going to be joined by Amanda Guttisdóttir to reflect on Græntfjall’s frenetic opening game against Eura in World Cup 94. And welcome to Election Night Special, where we’re joined by Amanda Guttisdóttir, who will be reflecting on tonight’s election results.

“Amanda, thanks for joining us.”

“Th- thank you.”

“Amanda, what do you think was the key to the victory?”

“Do you mean Græntfjall’s, or the Progressive Liberals’?”

“Yes.”

“Oh… OK. Well, I would say that leadership really counts for a lot. Kæja…”

“You’re talking, of course about Prime Minister Kaija Michaelsdóttir, whose leadership on the campaign trail has helped the Progressive Liberals overcome some of their recent scandals and who’s steered her party very deftly towards retaining, if not a majority, then at least a clear first place that should give her the right to form the next government.”

“Well yes, that too. Though actually I was talking about Kæja Finnvarðsdóttir. I thought she played really well, led the team, was full of enthusiasm and had words for all her teammates, really a side of her we haven’t seen before. We all know how skilful she is with the ball at her feet…”

“Prime Minister Kaija Michaelsdóttir?”

“…again, these comments refer to Kæja Finnvarðsdóttir. But what we haven’t always seen from her is the leadership aspect, putting the team on her back, being willing to gee up her teammates who might not have as much talent as her and get the best out of them. I was as impressed by her performance in that regard as I was by her goals.”

“What about the left-wing? Were you surprised by how weak that performance was?”

“I was. Varða Vígsteinsdóttir has been an absolute find in the Tikariot Premier League and came in with big hopes of following in Sara’s footsteps. But she really didn’t find her way into the game at all, was quite anonymous, and I wasn’t surprised by the half-time change.”

“Thank you Amanda, yes, but I was actually asking about the Left-slate’s election performance.”

“Oh, right. Well, I don’t think it’s a secret that the party has had a lot of problems. They’ve lost key donors which may mean they weren’t able to run a properly funded campaign, and I think some of the more outspoken elements within their leadership haven’t been helpful.”

“I see, so would you expect to see a change going forward?”

“I… would? I imagine the Altendalur Convention is going to be revisited, especially if what some people are talking about with the Progressive Liberals trying to peel off the Social Democratic Party and go into government with them. It would be a big change that would really reshape Græntfjall’s political scene.”

“Thank you, but I was actually asking, do you expect Ingþór Auðbjörnsson to move on from Varða?”

“Oh. Well, yes I think he might try out a different look against Ko-oren, but I still think she’ll feature in the tournament. She’s still very young, you have to remember, and finding her way in international football. I’m not too worried, and if she begins the next game on the bench, I don’t think that means she’s not part of Thor’s longer term plans.”

“And what about the right wing?”

“I’m not sure it’s the best use of Amandara, who is just an amazing talent…” trailing off “You’re asking about the politics, aren’t you?”

“I’m asking about both, we have limited time here for reasons of plot contrivance.”

“OK. Well, I think the issue is the next game is against Ko-oren, and they’re a fairly narrow team in their standard set-up, much in the same way as, the Blue-Greens find it difficult to criticize the Progressive Liberals when the economy is generally strong. So with the two wing-backs, and París I thought played very nicely despite a couple of defensive blunders, but looked a real threat on the counter, there’s less need for a specialist wide midfielder, on either side, just as, perhaps, the Blue-Greens need to concentrate on regaining ground in the center rather than appealing to a pretty small electoral fringe on the right.”

“Amanda, that’s exactly the kind of analysis we were looking for tonight, thank you. Now, turning to defense.”

“Oh God.”

“A lot of concerns there?”

“Again, just for clarification…”

no response

“OK. Well, yes some concerns about defense. Conceding three goals, two in the first half, is not ideal at all, and while Eura might be a strong side offensively, it’s still something that Thor won’t like. The next two games are likely to be much lower scoring because Ko-oren and Sylestone are so defensive, and that actually puts even more pressure on the defense because just one mistake can be so costly, whereas against Eura maybe they backed themselves to outscore them anyway.”

“Thank you, but I was actually asking…”

“Oh for fuck’s sake. Yes, the Defense Department procurement scandal was an issue on the campaign trail, because the contract’s been given to a Euran firm, that’s not a good look. But, defense rarely features as even a top five issue for voters. How many voters can even remember the name of the spy plane? I can’t.”

“It was the…”

“And, besides. Both of the other major parties had mentioned in their manifestos they were committed to reviewing defense procurement, so both of them probably would have ended up making the exact same decision anyway!”

“You’re saying it was the right decision?”

“I’m saying… look, I’m not a military procurement specialist. But it seems to me if a project has run up billions and no plane spy-plane, and someone else is offering to sell you an actual, you know, plane, that physically exists, then at some point you take that deal?”

“Right, but I meant, was it the right decision to play Anarr Ebergsson over Eyvar Mathiasson?”

“Doesn’t it seem to you like there might have been an easier way of doing this?”

“Maybe but we’re in too deep for that now. Amanda, your opinion?”

“I thought Anarr played very well. I really don’t think he was at fault for the penalty at all, and actually, now there’s an injury cloud over Asbjørn Vilbjörnsson, the fact Anarr has 90 minutes under his belt is all the more important.”

“Now you mention that, who would you expect to come in?”

“I’ve heard that Thor is very impressed by Friðjón Manfreðsson who had a fine season in Mytanija. And of course there’s always Eyvar Mathiasson.”

“But both would be surprising picks as Finance Minister, no?”

“So we’ve moved on to that.”

“We have!”

“…no, I wouldn’t expect a professional footballer to take over the Finance Ministry. I think that’s probably a role that will be filled by Katinka Boraslavsdóttir.”

“You don’t see a role for Tara Elísdóttir?”

“I absolutely do, I just think she’s more likely to end up in either Justice or Interior as she doesn’t have the same economics background as Katinka.”

“No, I meant, you don’t see a role for Tara Elísdóttir in the center of defense?”

“OK, we’re done here.”

“Amanda, thank you, and good night. Amanda, what are you doing? Amanda, no, put down the –”

Transmission ends, as stupidly as it began.

[Kelssek]

Cutoff for MD2 in Græntfjall.

[Farfadillis]

War crimes are funny things... wait, no, scratch that. War crimes are interesting things. Horrifying, sure, but also very... stretchy. Flexible. What is and what isn't a war crime is in the eye of the beholder. Sort of. Most of them are fairly strictly codified, but there's an old adage in Farfadillis that goes roughly as follows: "If a tree spontaneously combusts but nobody is there to see it, it is an undeniable fact that it did not, in reality, spontaneously combust."

There's another old adage in Farfadillis: "There are months in which a day's worth of atrocities happen, and days in which a month's worth of atrocities happen. Maybe two." This day would not be such a day. This day would be worse. One of Farf history's numerous before-and-afters, right there with Banija nuking the island, the first Rulandese revolution, the second Rulandese revolution, the establishment of Lithico™, the descent into anarchy twenty-six years earlier, the defensive self-nuking of the Rulandese-Faroleran mountains... the list goes on and on, but this day would be up there with some of the most consequential for the history of the island, with its effects likely to reverberate through most of Farf society for a good ten years at least. Maybe more!

So, first, a primer on what is about to unfold. The Banijan navy, for quite a few years now, has been regularly getting rid of the krakens infesting the waters of the Mar del Fuego, specifically cleaning up only enough for Farolera—and only Farolera—to have access to international trade and pull ahead of the other Farf nations economically and militarily, which is why there's an ongoing war. Basically, someone should ring up the Banijans and tell them to stop trying this whole foreign policy thing because it's just flat-out not their thing. Let's not forget they're cleaning up krakens as a way to say sorry for accidentally nuking Farfadillis!

Anyway, as good as this has proven for Farolera, which has flourished quite a lot over the last few years partially because of this, it has essentially destroyed the natural defense they had set up against extremely unlikely amphibious landings. This would, typically, not really be a problem because no Farf nation has any respectable navy to speak of. However, what the Faroleran higher-ups (mostly Alex Terán, really) failed to consider is that sometimes out-of-left-field things happen. Like, for example, bat-shitting lithium sky-rocketing the economy of the people smack in the middle of the northern war front to the point they can push back, or Rülândéá having access to extremely advanced fission-based weaponry despite their apparent utter lack of anything except racism slash fighting spirit.

Today, specifically, Alex Terán's Farolera would be dealt an extremely cruel and potentially fatal blow. While it's true that no Farf nation would be able to pull off an amphibious invasion, the same was decidedly not true of more advanced nations with vested interests in the war's outcome. Most saliently, Yuezhou. Obviously, an aggressive attack on the Faroleran capital with essentially no warning would be almost unthinkable, but that's not where this ends. A few years ago, Alex Terán had to put out anti-police riots for months as a result of a Farfadillis-Québec match in Farolera in which Marco Hertel, then a player for the Quebecois team, killed a pig in cold blood. This would, it turns out, be far from the biggest headache Marco Hertel would inflict upon Alex Terán.

Marco Hertel and a thirty-thousand-strong army of similarly unhinged Quebecois were accompanying the Yue forces, which were numbering around twenty thousand, with potential reinforcements on the way if things didn't go as planned (or, indeed if they did). They were ready to kill, burn, then kill again. Completely and utterly destroy Puerto Farolero and cut the eagle's head off, potentially handicapping them enough for a swift and decisive end to the war, one that would favor Rülândéá and Lithico™, as was in the interest of the assailants.

The landing was approximately at three am. While the Yue military, far more trained and disciplined, limited itself to a bad apple style of warcriming, Marco Hertel's Slaves (not actually slaves) went to town and just went to town. Firing off with their advanced weaponry at what little Faroleran armed forces were ready to defend the capital from a totally unexpected attack, as well as prepared to set things on fire with the equipment they'd brought specifically for that, the city was soon in a lot of trouble. With most Faroleran forces far away in the war's two battlefronts, and the reserves in Farolera mostly... sleeping... it was essentially impossible for Farolera to mount an effective defense. An uncoordinated tactical retreat (read: everyone running for their lives) was what happened, with most of the Faroleran forces managing to escape the invading forces, who focused on securing the city besides carrying out the expected indiscriminate killing of civilians and destruction of vital infrastructure.

The capital had fallen almost in the blink of an eye.

Safe in one of Puerto Farolero's satellite cities, ready for his 7am briefing, Alex Terán entered the meeting room. "What's up lads, how we feeling today? Any good news?"

He was met by several nervous smiles and Marcelo hastily setting all reports on fire.

[Turori]

Turori Sport Report: Eels Stung by Hornets at Griffin Park

World Cup 94 Finals Matchday 1, Griffin Park, Novonaya, Kelssek :: After going through the first twenty matches they played of the 94th World Cup Cycle without tasting defeat, it all turned sour for the Turori National Team when they begin their tour of Kelssek at the World Cup 94 Finals. The Eels were never able to find a way to get the ball in the back of the net and would become the latest Vilitan Cove side to fall victim to Flavovespia's sting after the Hornets already succeeded at unseating the Vilitan National Team from their top spot in the World Cup Qualifying groups.

While Turori did not perform particularly poorly at Griffin Park, it was ultimately down to the generation of quality chances and the conversion of those chances which was lacking from the Eels. After a lot of early possession, Turori began to get frustrated and even when they had a decent goal scoring opportunity, Nathan Crewe would keep the scoreline level and keep Flavovespia in the match. This would prove to be crucial as Turori would get mentally worn down from their inability to break through and began making minor mistakes in trying to force the issue when, in reality, a 0-0 draw would not have been the worst result to kick off the Group Stage with.

Adrian Jones would be the first to find the back of the net on a play that saw Amakli Inuro'o give up on a ball that seemed to be destined to go out of play and was instead picked up by Johnathan Bagshaw who created the chance from seemingly nothing. With Inuro'o out of position, Moumounti Verre'elali made the decision to charge the ball but got beaten by Bagshaw who could see the lack of coverage inside the Turorian penalty area. Playing the ball in, Jones had little trouble connecting and at that point it was just guess work for Derizi Amatopa. The "Amatopa Wall" often has fortune on their side for such situations but this was not one of those days as the ball cleanly got past and into the back of the net to put Turori down a goal at the break.

It was more of the same in the second half, and once again, a minor mental error would have big consequences for the Eels as a poorly weighted pass from Naraiza Ruaplal to H'munao Cagomia was intercepted by Kieron Player. The move caught the entire Turorian defense off guard and Michael Cole was off to the races with only Derizi Amatopa standing between them an securing three points at the World Cup Finals. Cole made no mistake - there was little Amatopa could do with the cards that had been dealt to them, and just like that Turori were down 0-2 in Novonaya.

Tarek Edgeli was perhaps a bit hasty in using the final substitution to punish Ruaplal for the mistake, introducing Lumlao Noauryua but leaving one of their top scorers, Nua'oma Aikiki, sitting on the bench for the final half hour of play. While Turori had plenty of attacking options on the field, ultimately, they struggled to get the best of the Hornet's defense and probably would have benefitted from some fresh legs. As it played out, Turori would be unable to get anything past Crewe and it would be the Hornet's celebrating one of their all time great victories in taking down the World Cup 88 Champions.

 Turori 0 - 2 Flavovespia	
	Stats :: Turori 	:: Possession: 55%:: Shots: 4:: Corners: 5 :: Flavovespia :: Possession: 45%:: Shots: 5:: Corners: 7
	Turori Lineup :: 	Derizi Amatopa, Karek Edgeli, Moumouni Verre'elali, Amakli Inuro'o (Loala Inkabu 45'), Biliki Rona'atu'i, Cuoabaza Orani’aoa, Naraiza Ruaplal (Lumlao Noauryua 64'), Kiidallen Aeroluzzi (Planio’o Nrujsa 17'), Kinabo Telioa (H’munao Cagomia 45'), Lutara Makakio, Turakia Diijelhma (Lati'ala Giaoka 61')

While defeat was certainly unexpected for a Turorian side that hadn't lost a game since the Eagle's Cup, there was little time to dwell on what had happened in North-Western Kelssek as the Eels had to get on the Bus right after the game to begin their southern migration as they would have to head down to Burnaby of their matchday two fixture against HUElavia at the Stadium Konueira. Of course, defeat on the opening matchday to Flavovespia had significantly changed the cards for Turori for the remainder of the group stage, and their matchup with HUElavia was almost certainly a must-win matchup. While there was perhaps no single thing to point to that the Turori National Team would be looking to improve and no obvious lineup changes that would make a large quality change to correct any glaring issues, Turori would most likely be without midfielder Kiidallen Aeroluzzi who went off injured in the first half against Flavovespia. In the realm of Tactical changes it would surprise no one if there was a space found in the lineup for Nua'oma Aikiki but there is no expectation that Derizi Amatopa's job as starting goalkeeper is in danger despite the two goals conceded at Griffin Park - both of which were the product of mental mistakes by the defense allowing the opponent's attack to have more space than they probably should have to set themselves up against Amatopa's presence.

---

TURORI NATIONAL ✓

@TuroriNat

It was a frustrating day for the #Eels as the World Cup 94 Finals got kicked off in Kelssek. A performance riddled with poor execution would cost Turori as Flavovespia would come away with a 2-0 victory. @KEdgeli praised the Hornets for their poise in a post match interview but vowed that Turori would fight back against HUElavia on Matchday 2

#WC94F - #TURvFLV - #Group5

[Graintfjall]

Just another nice song.

Frightened Rabbit -- My Backwards Walk

Cutoff for MD2. There are no plans for MD3 cutoff to be delayed on my side and there will be no extensions granted to anyone.

[Banija]

Part I- Election Basics
Part II- The Issues
Part III- The Parties
Part IV- Election Day
Part V- Count Day & Election Results
Part VI- Election Analysis

Kabaka - King
Luguba - Queen Consort
Sarauniya - Queen Mother
Isebantu - Crown Prince
Omugabe/Omugaba - Prince/Princess
Omulangira/Kyabazinga - Duke/Duchess
Kagere/Kiweewa - Lord/Lady
Katikkiro - Prime Minister
Waziri - Foreign Minister
Lukiiko- Parliament
Kiongozi- Leader of the Opposition
Mkiiko- Elected Member of the Lukiiko

A few backbench members of the People's Protection Movement, watching the Banija v. Delte WC Match

"You know guys, these elections were obviously far less than ideal. Banija- our country- is paralyzed in a time of crisis." Said Mukasa Lutombo- who had previously gone viral for comparing Banija's left-wing government to Bastien-Luc St-Onge, the Quebecois footballer in Valladares. "What are the chances of a 298-298 tie? And we are looking across the Shango-Fogoa Basin- Farfadillis descending into chaos, foreign nations entering the island like it's a playground of destruction, even nations that we worked well together with, like the United Republics of Yuezhou, intervening militarily on behalf of our enemies."

"And because of our paralysis..." Said one of the four Mkiikos.

"Because of our paralysis at the highest levels- we cannot respond." Lutombo said. And that, of course, was true. If there wasn't a massive foreign policy crisis happening right next door, Banija's current governmental state would probably be fine. Let the democratic process play out- run down the clock and run back the elections. See if anybody can form a government. But that was not happening. The Kabaka was 92 years old. His heir was his 1 year old great-grandson. So the Royal Family in crisis as he struggled to name somebody who would be a Regent for whenever he croaked. And while he was in great health- Father Time was unbeaten.

But power struggle within the royal family would be fine if there was an elected government. But the Lukiiko elections simply served to divide Banija- neither left nor right could find a majority, and Farfadillis detoriating served to further divide the country. Farfadillis was the issue that would seemingly vex Banijan government after Banijan government- but the elected government right now was simply a caretaker. Banija's constitutional provisions only allowed for the clock to be ran down, and valuable time was being lost in Farfadillis.

The Four men in this room though, while they were not any sort of fans of Xolile Lubabalo, were big-time fans of projecting Banijan power. "Alex Teran is a friend of Banija's." Said Kabonesa Ssekabuuza, one of the four right-wingers in the room. "We must- we must- support this man in his hour of desperate need. But the government cannot do anything without a Lukiiko majority."

"So the answer is simple." Lutombo said. "We give them their majority." The four men looked at him- he said this right as Wesoloski-Okafor had scored the equalizing goal to level the game at 2. They paused their conversation briefly to celebrate, with Lutombo yelling "HELL YEAH" into the skies.

"Are you saying... We should Xolile freaking Lubabalo the reigns to power? The freedom-hating socialist?"

"We are patriots first." Ssekabuuza said. "But we must do this together. One of us walks alone- we don't give her governance, and we sacrifice this. But if we enter into a limited coalition government... Then at least Banija can operate properly on the world stage...."

The very next day

There were four right-wingers, all men, who were about to sacrifice their entire political career to try, in a likely futile effort, to save Alex Teran. Lutombo. Ssekabuuza. Lance Kagodo. And Birungi Kyuma. All of them were going to walk into a secret meeting with Xolile Lubabalo, to hammer out the details of them supplying confidence to a left-wing Banijan Government- one that would finally allow Busukuma to get off their hands in response to this conflict.

"Welcome, the four of you." Xolile Lubabalo said to them as they walked into the room. All four men knew that their political careers woudl likely be over after this- while recalls were not a thing in Banija, at least at this level, they would never be re-nominated, or re-elected, for any seat in the country after this. Party-switching in most democracies was always a no-no, and in Banija particularly, voters were very unforgiving, at all levels, at politicians who would abandon their party mid-election. But while the Farfadillis issue divided the left a little bit, it also divided the right. Most of the Banijan right was anti-Alex Teran, but these four represented the small section who supported him.

The moderates? Probably not a great term considering what Alex Teran stood for, but...

"I know we are here to hammer out the details for you to support my government. It is a big step you are making- and one that will be in major benefit for my country." Assuming she held on, getting these four to flip woudl change the calculus. 302 supporters of her government, out of 600 Mkiikos total- to give her the slimmest of majorities- a majority of 5. 302-297 (Speaker only tiebreaks). She knew that running back the elections would be a disaster foreign policy wise- if Banija did that, they would not have any ability to influence Farfadillis, and Alex Teran would be strung up and shot before those would be over.

"Look, the deal is simple. We have a strong and stable unity government. We support you for one year- that should be as long as it takes for the Farfadillis crisis to play out. If the war is still ongoing, we renew." Lutombo told the Katikkiro. "In exchange... Obviously you have our support on all-issues confidence, and all-issues Farfadillis. But you will not have support on any of your socialist reforms." Of course, that meant increasing the welfare state, anything further in terms of supporting Orange Shield health care, etc...

"We do what we must do." She said. Not ideal- but the longer her healthcare reforms stayed in place, even if they couldn't go further now, the harder it would be to replace. And then- she could finally do something to help Alex Teran. With Ruperto Fox in her ear, strongly supportive of this coalition, how could she say no?

---

The Busukuma Post
Covering All of Banija, All of our News, All of the Time

Shocker- 4 Right-Wingers leave the PPM to support a Xolile Lubabalo government, as her government is officially sworn into office

BUSUKUMA, NATIONAL CAPITOL REGION- We all thought the math was intractable. Because, truly, it was. But you never know how the human element will play into negotiations like these- and how surrounding, outside events influence things. In particular, the rapidly devolving situation in Farfadillis has put all sorts of pressure on Banijan politicians to reach an agreement, so that the Kingdom can get involved in the war in its closest neighbor- and so Quebecois mercenaries, alongside faraway Rushmori nations, don't treat the country as a playground of destruction.

Of course, as many people know, for many years this Banijan government has served as the stalwart support for Alex Teran and Farolera. With Ruperto Fox being the point man on this issue for the Banijan cabinet, the first ever elected Mkiiko of Farf origin, Xolile Lubabalo and the government have served as an important source of support for him. But with the government currently in flux, due to inconclusive elections, they have not been able to step up their support during this part of the war. Which is crucial- the Yue military has come out strongly in support of rebels, and there are big-time rumors that the White Winter Queendom will do the same.

But the era of paralysis is over. The Katikkiro has announced to the Lukiiko that it is time for them to elect a Katikkiro, and with 302 votes, the Lukiiko has elected its government. She then visited the Kabaka, and he invested her in the role. What happened, you might ask? There were 298 elected members who supported her- where did those other four votes come from?

There were four now former PPM Mkiikos- Mukasa Lutombo, Kabonesa Ssekabuuza, Lance Kagodo, and Birungi Kyuma, who have long been known as national security hawks, and supported a more interventionist foreign policy, who have decided to leave their party and support Xolile Lubabalo- so the government can effectively support Alex Teran. "We need a stable government, one with a working majority, so that we can fully support our man in Farfadillis, who has always had Banija's backs- Alex Teran." Lutombo said. "Alex Teran is like Wesoloski-Okafor during World Cup 93- an ice cold winner. He may be down right now, but with our support, he can turn his fortunes around."

Kabonesa Ssekabuuza, on the other hand, told reporters how he feared Farfadillis becoming an outpost for foreign militaries. "Look, obviously, Farfadillis has always been a little bit of a dangerous place." Ssekabuuza told reporters. "But we've got all sorts of dudes coming to that country, foreign militaries landing there, even Yue troops. This cannot be allowed to stand. Banija needs to be in a place where we can respond, rapidly, to events happening- and ensure that the interests of the Kingdom, and the interests of Alex Teran, are protected."

"The days of Banija standing in silence on the sideline are over." Xolile Lubabalo told reporters. "If anyone thinks that anything can be resolved on Farfadillis without Faroleran involvement, or Banijan involvement, think again... Further foreign military intervention against Farolera will be greeted with hostility."

There you have it. We have a government in Banija, who are talking the talk- but will they walk the walk?

[Audioslavia]

Bulls on the Brink
Defeat to Pemecutan means Bulls require Snookers in Group E

Fans were hoping for vengeance against a Pemecutan team that had so cruelly denied a decent Audioslavia team a place in World Cup 93, but it was not to be. The Bulls, still meek in attack, were powerless to stop Rama Karyadi popping up on the edge of the area to cannon a loose ball in off the foot of the post, with Creighton flat-footed, to take a lead that the Bulls never looked like turning around. Zendagorta was a ghost, Roy never allowed near the ball in the final third, the wingers parried away at every turn.

In short, it was the sort of performance fans have come to expect from an Audioslavia side in the early stages of a major competition.

Cast your mind back a couple of years, and the side were incredibly fortunate to have made it out of their Cup of Harmony group ahead of a superior, undefeated Qasden side whose 2-3-0 record, including victory over the Bulls, was pipped by an Audioslavia side hitting three wins on the bounce after losing their opening two games. Going only on the World Cup, there’s an example in ‘recent’ history of the Bulls struggling through to the second round despite attaining only a point through games one and two. In World Cup 88, an opening day defeat to Starblaydia came before a 2-2 draw with Tequilo. Three points back in the group, a tremendous two-nothing victory over Ko-oren put the side through on Head-to-Head record. The Bulls would go on to finish third in the tournament.

Few will be confident of the national side repeating that feat this time out. Sure, mathematically, it seems straight forward. Audioslavia win, Pemecutan don’t, Mytanija don’t win by more than us, and that’s it. Goal Difference is the key here, and Pemecutan’s 5-2 shellacking at the hands of the hosts on matchday one means they’re playing catch-up, or sorts, despite the 1-0 win over Audioslavia.

So the maths works out, but on the field it’s a vastly different story. Going not only on rankings but on results so far, the third and fourth seeds Audioslavia and Mytanija are a step behind their groupmates. Kelssek, victorious in each of their opening games, are now already through, and Pemecutan looked a step ahead of the Bulls throughout their matchday two encounter despite being thoroughly outclassed against Kelssek.

The hosts may just have too much for the Bulls on the final game. Kelssek football have always had a better handle on getting the best out of their players compared to Audioslavia, something proved by the fact that, after Shamrock Cathair found talismanic winger Colm O’Tuathail to be surplus to their retirements at age 31, he only went from strength to strength. Audioslavian footballers have a short shelf-life anyway, but even so, very few players have managed to maintain the form they showed int their twenties once they start the journey through their thirties. Such is the gulf in strength between the sides, you’d be right to be concerned for the Bulls even getting a single point even if the hosts field a B-team in preparation for the knockout stage.

Alaba has indicated, twice now, that he intends to stay on as manager regardless of the result. Having guided the Bulls to the World Cup after a three-cycle absence (despite being responsible for one of those three cycles) few are clamouring for his removal or replacement. You instead get the feeling that, if changes need to be made to Audioslavian football, they need to come from elsewhere.

—

The <Insert Number> Silliest World Cup Groups In History!
Number 10(↑↑(9↑↑))3 will shock you!

With Audioslavia joint bottom of World Cup 94 Group E, the side need a miracle to reach the second round. But what about the silliest World Cup groups in history? Yes, that's the segue. We're doing that.

If you’re like us here at Bullsfeed, you’re interested in football statistics almost as much as we are interested in spending quite a lot of money on research to find out exactly how many of you are interested in football statistics, which turns out to be enough to warrant us writing about football statistics.

World Cup 3

Thirteen teams have made it out of their World Cup group despite only scoring one goal across three games - a feat managed twice by Turori, who did it in cycles 35 and 93 - but only one team has actually managed to win their qualifying group on only one goal. Step forward Communism & Vodka from the wilder days of World Cup 3, the only team to win a game in their group. They’d finish the tournament in Fourth place, meaning their final record from World Cup 3 was a modest P7 W3 D2 L2.

World Cup 48

What’s the worst Goal Difference a team has ever had when making it through to the second phase of the competition? It’s a big fat Minus Four achieved first by Vephrall in World Cup 48. Having drawn against Septentrionia, the side were duly smashed 5-0 by Sorthern Northland. A final day game against the Macabees came next, but with the Macabees only two points ahead, victory there, and anything other than a Septentrionia win, would put them through to the second phase. They squeezed through by the skin of their teeth and promptly lost to Valanora in the next round.

World Cup 92

Vephrall’s dubious record would last until cycle 92, where Milchama equalled it on the way to pratfalling into the second round. Having held Huayramarca to a 2-2 draw and defeating Mytanija 1-0, Milchama found themselves in second place in Group G. Not only did they have a three point advantage over both their previous opponents, their goal difference was two better than that of Mytanija and three better than Huayramarca. If they could just about keep Graintfjall at bay, they’d be through for certain.

They lost 6-1.

Mytanija’s 4-4 draw with Huayramarca spared their blushes for a few days, but a 5-1 second round defeat to Turori meant the Milchamians finished with an unenviable -8 Goal Difference over the entire tournament.

World Cup 56

76 teams have scored 9 points in the first round and immediately been beaten in the second round. Of these, the most impressive Hero to Zero campaign is that of cycle 56 Valanora. Three games, three wins, sixteen goals for, none against, this is the greatest first round performance in football history.

Aguazul beat them 2-1 in the next game.

Aguazul’s prize was to face a Kazzoria side who had been eliminated from the tournament a few days earlier.

Wait, what?

World Cup 56

Kazzoria started their World Cup 56 campaign with a rollicking three-nothing win over Starblaydia, before losing their next two matches by two goals each and finishing on three points, with -1 goal difference. Level on points with Starblaydia and Churchma, Kazzoria missed out on Head to Head due to coming up short in the mini-league of the three teams: Starblaydia had beaten Churchma 5-0 in the other game to head it on goal difference.

Or so we thought.

After some backstage mathematics, and the hosts remembering that Goal Difference was the first tiebreaker, rather than Head to Head, the GD tie between Kazzoria and Starblaydia was broken by that matchday one win, sending Kazzoria into the second round when, for almost a full day, had thought them eliminated.

World Cup 37

With top seed position, home advantage and a fresh set of legs, the overwhelming majority of host nations make it out of the groups - 131 hosts out of the 178 we have on record have finished either first or second in the round of thirty-two. This is about 74%, with an impressive 15% going on to make the World Cup final itself.

Only eleven percent of groups have concluded with a co-host in last place. Of these, there are four which have ended with the host getting zero points whatsoever. Of these four, two happened in World Cup 37. Novapsolu were beaten by each of Quakmybush, Squornshelous and Milchama on the way to a last-place finish with a goal-difference of -3, but their weakness was overshadowed by co-hosts Adihan, who were defeated by each of Wentland, Zwangzug and Jasiyun on the way to a 3-11 goalscoring record. Their three losses and -8 GD is the joint-worst host performance, equalled the very next cycle by a Kura-Pelland side beaten by Valanora, Quakmybush and Bettia.

World Cup 33

DAMN.

World Cup 63

“I have a feeling” said Wight, possibly in the most cockney voice you’ve ever heard, “we’re going to do so well this tournament that we’ll outscore Farfadillis. They did, a feat aided by smashing them 4-2 on opening day. Wight would outscore each member of Group D on their way to last place in the group. When even the Farves are looking at you and saying ‘come on, defence is important’ you must be doing something wrong.

World Cup 4

Wight are arguably out-done by Svecia, who raced through to a 5-1 win to lead the group after one game. What must you be thinking? ‘I wonder who we’ll get in the semis’ maybe. Not for Svecia. They lost their next two games and went out, rock bottom of Group F.

The teams they finished behind each had a worse goal difference and had scored fewer goals. Haraki, in second, went through on a Goal Difference of minus one. Having been defeated in their game against Oglethorpia, you might argue it should have been the Ogles, and not Haraki, who made the next round. Well.. that’s a thing, and no team is more aware of it being a ‘thing’ than Commerce Heights.

Or Any Group with Mid-Jolt era Commerce Heights

The Head-to-Head tiebreaker wouldn’t be used until World Cup 28, too late for Commerce Heights’s tilt at World Cup 25 qualifying, where the former champions lost out to Casari on Goal Difference despite having beaten the side three-nil both home and away. Should it be possible to finish behind a team you’ve smashed twice if you both have identical records? To find out, please have an enormous fight in the comments section to boost the engagement statistics of this article!

Not content with having crashed out of World Cup 25 qualifying on Goal Difference to a team they’d beaten, they did the same in the first round of World Cup 26, beating Krytenia 5-4 on opening day and finishing behind them at the end of play. Were they angry at the hosts for having chosen Goal Difference as first tie-breaker again? Probably not: they hosted the tournament themselves.

Out on zero points in World Cup 27, eliminated from World Cup 28 on Head-to-head results (while also behind, it has to be said, on Goal Difference too) Commerce Heights were again screwed by the adolescent World Cup’s distrust of H2H in cycle 29, where they beat McPsychoville and finished on the same points as them yet were eliminated on Goals Scored.

After two forays into the second round, World Cup 33 saw the side again ousted on Goal Difference despite having beaten The Holy Empire, with whom they were joined on four points.

Future World Cup would utilise the H2H system much more. Was this the result of Commerce Heights’s politicking? I don’t know, I’m only using this as a rhetorical question to set up the following twist: They should thank their lucky stars that the system wasn’t used much earlier.

Back in World Cup 15, the side progressed from Group G in second place on only three points, a goal better off than Creedence Clearwater and Rejistania, who finished with equal 1-0-2 records. Had H2H been used here, however, they’d have finished last, having beaten CC 1-0 and lost 1-0 to Rejistania. The other game, a 2-0 victory for CC over Rejistania, would have been enough for them progress on H2H in that three-team mini-league at Commerce Heights’s expense.

Had we had that Creedence Clearwater Resuscitation, Commerce Heights would not have fulfilled their World Cup 15 destiny of winning the entire tournament.

[Gnejs]

Minutes of Operation Destiny’s Cup Task Force Post-Elimination Evaluation Meeting

Location:
Meeting Room Gneissic Banding, PUFF Headquarters, Meridian Quarter, Port Kejm.

Participants:
• Svea Vichy, Prosaic Union Football Federation (PUFF), Chairperson
• Valdemar Horn, Prosaic Union Football Federation (PUFF), Meeting Secretary
• Thom Öland, Ministry of Culture, Sports and other Charitable Activities (MCSCA)
• Sonja Hammare, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)
• Woman in gray suit and twintails, Ministry of The Interior (MTI)

Absent:
• Sverker Danielsson, Prosaic Union Football Federation (PUFF) (MIA).

Agenda:

1.
Welcome (coffee and pastry)
2.
Review of Operation Destiny’s Cup (background and project objectives)
3.
Achievements and Challenges (discussion)
4.
Areas for Improvement and Action Plan for Future

Meeting Summary:

1.
The meeting was called to order at 14.00, with Vichy chairing the meeting. Horn was appointed Meeting Secretary, and was also responsible for making sure everyone had coffee/tea and suitable pastry at hand. All summoned Task Force members were present, with the exception of Danielsson who is still believed to be held captive by «The Drake».

2.
A brief overview of Operation Destiny’s Cup was provided by Vichy, including the tribulations of the lost Cracquet delegation, the delivery of the prophecy and its contents, the quest for valleyman Enda Clentin and his subsequent hiring as the new coach for the Prosaic Union National Football Team, colloquially called «The Dandelions». Horn re-stated the objective set for Operation Destiny’s Cup, namely the winning of the World Cup by The Dandelions guided by Enda Clentin, and confirmed that it had not been achieved. Öland asked that successful aspects of the project, including achieving a +40 group stage goal differential and actually qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in Union history should be taken into consideration when evaluating the success of Operation Destiny’s Cup. Hammare lambasted Öland for bringing up something clearly belonging under meeting point 3 during meeting point 2, and all were in agreement that Öland’s intervention had been highly improper. Öland subsequently apologized.

3.
Vichy opened up the floor for discussion pertaining to project achievements and challenges, and Öland pointed out that there had been many successful aspects of the project, including achieving a +40 group stage goal differential and actually qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in Union history, and that these triumphs, although not primary project objectives, should be taken into consideration when evaluating the success of Operation Destiny’s Cup. Horn voiced his agreement with Öland, and also asked that the Task Force recognized Enda Clentin’s strong and innovative leadership in fostering teamwork and camaraderie amongst The Dandelions, something that had surely contributed to the teams success in, among other things, scoring many goals and qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in Union history. Hammare pointed out that even if all of the above might be true, the fact of the matter was that Clentin had indeed failed in guiding The Dandelions to winning the World Cup, and thereby the only true objective of Operation Destiny’s Cup had not been met. As for Clentin’s leadership, Hammare also pointed to the fact that Clentin’s actions were responsible for the injury, and subsequent descent into criminal madness, of Lokomotiv Esaias and Dandelion midfielder Göran Drake. Vichy voiced her agreement with Hammare and stated that no matter how you looked at it, Operation Destiny’s Cup had been a failure, and asked that the first point of discussion under meeting point 4 be the removal of Enda Clentin as Dandelion head coach and the disbanding of the Task Force.

4.
Vichy and Hammare made a motion that the Task Force should recommend PUFF to end their affiliation with Enda Clentin and then close Operation Destiny’s Cup and disband the Task Force, with future strategic choices concerning The Prosaic Union National Football Team to be handled by PUFF exclusively. Öland and Horn started voicing their disagreement, but were silenced by the woman in the gray suit and twintails telling everyone to «shut the fuck up». She proceeded to say that there would be no canceling of Operation Destiny’s Cup and no new Dandelion coach, lecturing the remaining Task Force members that the prophecy said Enda Clentin would guide The Dandelions to winning the World Cup, but said nothing about which World Cup, and therefore the project objectives had not failed to be met, they just hadn’t been achieved yet. After sternly scolding Vichy and Hammare about how Destiny and Prophecy work, the woman in gray suit and twintails called for additional pastry. The Task Force then collectively decided to implement monthly progress reviews for better performance tracking of The Dandelions. Öland volunteered to lead a team-building workshop to improve Task Force dynamics and Vichy agreed to conduct a thorough analysis of the challenges Operation Destiny’s Cup faced and propose preventive measures. Constabulary liaison responsibilities for the sub-project of aiding the capture of «The Drake» and rescue of Task Force member Danielsson were given to Hammare (despite her protests).

Closing Remarks
Vichy thanked all participants for their valuable contributions

The meeting was adjourned at 15.00.

Next Meeting:
The next Task Force meeting was scheduled for late October, where the progress on the action plan will be reviewed.

Action Items:

• Horn to develop a system for monthly progress reviews for better performance tracking.
• Öland to organize a Task Force team-building workshop.
• Vichy to conduct a thorough analysis of challenges and propose solutions.
• Hammare to take over liaison duties vis-à-vis The Constabulary in aiding the capture of «The Drake» and rescue of Task Force member Sverker Danielsson.

Note:
These minutes will be circulated among the participants for review and approval before the next meeting.

Prepared by: Meeting Secretary Valdemar Horn, PUFF

[Cassadaigua]

Loss shows that we are not there yet,
by Caitlyn Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

After playing at the smallest stadium on the Kelssek side, Team Cassadaigua made their way to a venue that is one of the largest: Waterfront Dome in Kirkenes. Many Cassadagans made the trip, and it was probably a pretty easy decision, given that it was more likely to have tickets available. They hoped for a grand showing, one in which their soccer heroes could show to the world that Cassadagan soccer is back and among the elite nations that participate. Instead, they were only able to see a performance on the pitch that indicated that the team was back. They still have a long way to go before they want to think about hoisting the World Cup, or even getting back to the semifinals, which still seem like such a long time ago. It was not the team's only two goal loss of this World Cup cycle, but this is the only one where it seems like we were more soundly beaten than that, rather than it playing like a closer contest. Give credit to Kate Di Marini, who might just be one of the most underrated World Cup managers of all time. Yes, of all time! Does anyone even talk about her all that much? She started out in Baker Park, where the only know how to qualify, and then showed that the Zebras could win championships in more than just baseball (not that there is anything wrong with that), by leading the team to the World Cup 92 title. And before people want to respond in the comments that "Zebras" is not the soccer team's official nickname, yes, I realize that. But they have no other official nickname, which is likely for at least one of two reasons: 1) difficulty in finding another catchy name that starts with "Z", or 2) not wanting a new official name to have an "e" in it. If you know, you know. Besides, look at their uniforms. Should we think anything other than zebras?

During this game, our Fillies were taken out of their game pretty quickly by the opposition, with the well-prepared side of Di Marini ready to step up and force out younger midfield (in particular), to make mistakes. Due to this, we were not able to see the initial pushes for the a goal by our team, simply because they could not generate anything. Defensively, we held our own for quite some time, with Tiffany Brown and Madison Rutland doing a great job, and then Stacey Schalberg making big saves when needed. After fifteen, then twenty minutes, it was looking like one of those games where we were getting away with being so badly outplayed due to the score remaining 0-0. The fact that it took 34 minutes for the first Zebra goal, delivered by Valerie Waugh, is a credit to great goalkeeping for Schalberg for the opening half hour. However, you cannot depend on that forever, and eventually, we were down. Seven minutes later, a dagger was delivered by Jordan McKinney, which was a bit fluky. Kind of the "Krystal Sherwin" type goal if it was on our end since he was not among the initial rush of players sent forward, and had a deflection essentially fall right in his lap when Rachel Becker misplayed a clear. Anyone at this level knows what to do with that type of chance, no matter how many goals they have scored in their past, and McKinney made it count. That made it 2-0, Zwangzug at the break. Maybe it should have been 3 or 4.

There was a brief period of time in the second half where it looked like maybe we would get back in the game, and when Kaitlin Millikan scored in the 55th, our fans finally had something to cheer about. Despite being outplayed, we were now only a goal down. In the 61st, Shannon Cunningham hit the crossbar with a shot that may have changed the entire complexion of this game had it gone in. From there, all Zwangzug, with Cixin Nguyen finishing off the scoring in the 76th. "There were things that we did not execute as well on, and we will need to look at those aspects and improve on them before we play Farfadillis," Chen Huikang said of the result, "We almost control our own destiny, but obviously the need to beat a good team by at least two is a tough task, and we cannot think about that or else we will make mistakes in that game, too."

Players still seem upbeat, not thinking that they are eliminated quite yet, because there is another chance, even though it is unlikely. The question we all have to ask is what needs to be done to turn this team into not only one that makes it into the World Cup, but what can make them a unit that can win games and have a shot on winning the whole thing? Right now, we have to remember that this was about re-laying the foundation of the program back into getting into the World Cup. With Chen Huikang leading the way, the hope is that we have the manager. Now, do we have the players? Obviously, that remains to be seen but this was a young group, so it is not as if we need massive roster turnover or anything. In fact, you could really roll out much of the same lineup again and hope that two more years of professional experience and the lessons that were learned from this one can be all it takes. There were plenty of positives that can be used for that valuable experience as well.

But, we could have more positives. This is not over yet! They need to defeat the Farves by two goals. Yes, there is also the variable of hoping Elymia doesn't rout Zwangzug, which could really throw Group F into tiebreaker hell. Beating Farfadillis by two means the teams would be even on goal differential, allowing the head to head victory to serve as what gets us over. "I believe that we can step up in the face of this adversity and get the result that we need," captain Madison Rutland said, "this is not over, and we know Farfadillis is a handful, but I know what we can do, too. We're not dead yet!"

[Sylestone]

SYLESTONE ASSERT DOMINANCE OVER FELLOW BUS PARKERS KO-OREN IN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS HELD IN GRÆNTFJALL

MAIGBURG, GRÆNTFJALL - While the nation is entranced by the heroics of their very own football team after the side coached by Mojmir Anac defeated Nyowani Kitara in the playoffs to reach the World Cup’s final 32 contestants, Sylestone’s professional bus drivers have pulled off a masterclass to win the 23rd edition of the biannual World Bus Parking Championships, even with no small element of luck. While the majority of the nation had their eyes peeled on the football match between their beloved Sentients and Ko-oren a mere few kilometres away at Maigburg’s VG Arena, the two nations were in reality tussling out in a far more important match at the city’s main bus depot in a match that would see Ko-oren either retain the international bus parking title for the seventeenth time in a row or first-time finalists Sylestone winning their inaugural championship.

On the road to the final, Sylestonean duo Toby Blaxland and Richard Beaumont reached the quarterfinals with relative ease, only to find themselves as misfits amongst a group of highly experienced bus parkers. Aside from Ko-oren, the likes of Mytanija, Audioslavia and a couple of prodigies from West Barack and East Obama rounded out the other half of the draw, while Blaxland and Beaumont found themselves facing an incredibly competitive Tumbran duo in the quarterfinals, while Polar Islandstates, back from a gazillion years doing nothing, returned just where they left off by reaching a quarterfinal berth against Poafmersia. Aside from them, Sylestone and the Obamen, though, the remaining five teams to reach the final few days in Maigburg were of absolutely zero surprise, although Sargossa came perilously close to progressing over the Sylestoneans and Mytanija came close to losing out to a determined Naixi outfit. With a strong mix of old farts and fresh new blood, the bus parking finals were going to be thrilling.

The quarterfinals didn’t disappoint either, with Ko-oren asserting their dominance over long-time rivals Audioslavia with a galloping triumph to face Mytanija in the quarterfinal after they knocked off a talented Obamen duo who simply lacked that finishing touch. However, on the other side of the draw, our very own Sylestoneans shocked the world with a clinical performance to defeat Tumbra for the very first time in the history of bus parking. Just one hundred metres away, Polar Islandstates completed an astonishing choke after leading Poafmersia the entire time, dropping one of the worst performances in the history of bus parking finals in the final round despite their opponents never really looking at their best yet again.

This was Sylestone’s chance. Before today, no previous Sylestonean duo had ever made it past the quarterfinals. And yet, here they were, in a semifinal against an under-par Poafmersia. Sure enough, Blaxland and Beaumont were not about to let their opportunity slide, putting up an even stronger performance to send their fifty bus parking fans into raptures ahead of a seemingly impossible final against a feared Ko-oren side.

In contrast to the rest of the finals which all saw a best of five system play out, the final was just one park each - it all came down to reliability and accuracy. Even with pressure from their opponents, Blaxland and Beaumont put up their best performance of the tournament to that point as all eyes turned to the heavily experienced Ko-orenite duo. Even with word coming in of a goal to the Anaians from the VG Arena a few kilometres away with only twenty minutes to spare in the football fixture, that was not about to disturb the Sylestoneans in the crowd as they looked on at a far superior sport playing out right in front of their eyes. However, hope sunk as the first park was centimetre-perfect - if the second was equally impressive, an eighteenth straight title would be on the way to the freezing island nation.

But no, the pressure was too much. As the timer ticked down, the parking space was simply too tight, and there was not enough room. Sure, the park was good, but surely it wasn’t enough…

In the end, it was by the barest of millimetres. Several painstaking minutes passed and the measurements were still coming in - it was clearly an incredibly tight call. Officials even had to backtrack to the parks completed by Blaxland and Beaumont to triple check their measurements in case there was any slight discrepancy. If anything, it was out of sheer disbelief.

Because sure enough, the title wasn’t going back to Ko-oren again. For the first time in thirty-four years since Audioslavia defeated South Covello (then known as Gregoryisgodistan) in a fantastic final almost as tense as this, there would be a new champion crowned. As controversy ensued between bus fanatics in each respective nation - even after such a long time, some argued the measurements still weren’t perfectly aligned - Toby Blaxland and Richard Beaumont held their replica bus up high over their heads, celebrating with the joy of the crowd. Perhaps there was a future to the sport, after all. Maybe Ko-oren might have to face some genuine competition in the future. Just maybe.

They’d simply gone too aggressive. In the heat of the moment, they’d made a couple of stupid mistakes and while it may have worked short term, come the end of the day, it had held them back.

Kids, this is the importance of bus parking. While you may garner the result you want from playing aggressively, if you relinquish defence then it will come back to bite you.

[Zwangzug]

The Spenson Star

Where does Kate DiMarini fit into the all-time pantheon of World Cup managers? Many would find the question preposterous, not specifically because it's poor form to brag about one's homeland (...although she's not actually Zwangzugian), but because she's still active. Who needs legacies when you're still hard at work? She might have more accomplishments this cycle; she might be given a long extension and fall on her face. One way or another, it's too soon to say. Nevertheless, the august Concord Heights Times has dared to broach this topic, and if they can talk about it, so can we.

DiMarini's playing career predates the Commonwealth of Baker Park's emergence into the accessible multiverse; by the time the Bees participated in the Baptism of Fire, she was 38 and a full-time coach, with the formerly sex-segregated teams. It was after the World Cup 83 cycle that she moved to Cham, renewing their commitment to attacking play and guiding them up to third.

Her appointment as interim manager, you may recall, was relatively inauspicious; the national team was struggling at the midway point of World Cup 87 qualifiers, and Brandon Sonnabend was pushed out of the job less because the federation felt entitled to better results and more because his interests in fantasy nonsequiturs were slightly patriarchical and not corresponding to success on the field. DiMarini was not considered a lock for the full-time position, not so much due to xenophobia as due to the reasonable assumption that citizens of proper countries with real understandings of football and suchlike had better things to do with their time than give glib soundbites to our absurd press.

But homes are what you make of them; whether or not DiMarini felt like she'd settled into Cham, her son Will was at an impressionable age, and came to see the city as his home. (He goes by his father's surname, Laughlin, in public life, in part to avoid suspicions of nepotism; although he did not go pro, he was a reliable defender and team player at Universitaet Schwandt, where Nancy Puyo-Sachar got her start. We forgot to tell you this when it would have been timely so we're telling you now.) The national team rallied to second in their qualifiers and won in the playoffs, making the proper and going out to none other than Cassadaigua in the group stage.

The next cycle also saw a wobbly qualification stage, and this time, Zwangzug missed out. In retrospect, DiMarini's shrewdest move was calling up Kayla Haugen, her protege from Cham, and quickly trusting her with a place in the starting eleven. Zwangzug failed to qualify, but this time, the federation took pains to avoid the appearance of entitlement/scapegoating foreigners/whatever, and gave DiMarini time to try again. In the Eagles' Cup prior to World Cup 89, Zwangzug were second to Turori, and they qualified directly for the proper. From there, they went from strength to strength, making the quarterfinals in World Cup 91 and triumphing the next edition.

How much of the team's success is due to the manager, versus the players she has the luxury of being able to pick from? The first-generation team might have claimed that managers are mostly figureheads, and the captain does the real work, but that can no longer fly in this day of organized, IFCF-level play. Even being able to evaluate the talent on offer, both in the 1./ and occasionally elsewhere, mollify player egos, and rotate the players through qualifiers so that nobody gets overworked is a difficult balancing act. But it's also the case that DiMarini has had extraordinary talent at her disposal; Haugen and Esther Axelrod-Conway are hall of famers, with at least one spot of Zwangzug's quota remaining unfilled--perhaps for DiMarini, if she ever gets around to retiring.

A more persuasive argument for her place among the world's elite comes from the recent "World Cup of Dreams" invitational. Whenever dealing with events of this nature, it's important to stress that it's not an even playing field; some teams are far more acclimatized than others, and some have better things to do (for which no one can blame them). Nevertheless, in a field containing such legends as Alexsandr van Sorensen (kind of), Alexander Pappas, even Pelayo Sortani, it was DiMarini's Zwangzug who emerged with completely arbitrary bragging rights.

"But that wasn't her, it was all the players she had to work with." Yeah, but she had to make a choice to cut some of the defensive midfielders available, we really have an embarrassment of riches at that position. Also, the players she work with spanned an extremely wide range of eras and tactical styles; just getting them to play nice with uniform numbers was an achievement!

"But any foreigner would have done that well, Zwangzugians hate putting words in foreigners' mouths so they have to be all polite and stuff." Maybe so, but that didn't change the fact that it was DiMarini whose growing pains adjusting to a mixed-sex system prepared her for Cham.

Anyway, like we said, this is probably a conversation to be had when or if she ever steps down. But it's very gratifying to have one of our own (ish) be praised in such high terms, so thanks, Caitlyn Dufresne. Also, let's not completely choke next game and make things awkward, okay?

[Chromatika]

World Cup Proper Group Stage Matchday 2: Gnejs 2-4 Chromatika @ VG Arena, Maigburg; Forecast: Overcast, dry, still
Goals: Xuen-Zhukov 8', de Aea 48', Fillar, E. 51', Fillar, G. 71'
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Ansov - de Aea - Anbient; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Delaya.
Substitutes: Coulibaly -> Ansov (58'), Haitou -> Fillar, E. (58'), Phoen -> Kuznetsov (75'), Aimée -> Anbient (75'), Faucheux -> Delaya (88')

Group Stage Matchday 3: Chromatika v Pasarga @ Laxenvöllur, Mühlrich Clear, dry, still
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Ansov - de Aea - Anbient; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Delaya.
Reserves: GK Kathie Begley, GK Hailee Sourtois, DCR Ami Coulibaly, DC Klavida Régine, DCL Ipati Aimée, DCL Cylie Nodis, WBR Emilie Kruetzberg, WBL Ibayashi Haitou, BWM Mare Si, AP Haley Hauser, AM Alissar Phoen, BWM Kateryna Zuniga, P Sandara Park, AF Elaine Howard-Dawes, AF Marie Faucheux.

---

Part 1: The Place between the Planes

The Library between the Planes
Part 2: Sparks of Discord

Now, before we go into what it means for Fyrellel Brightwing to look for corruption in the very source material of the fabric of what makes up the network of multiverses, it's important to distinguish what makes up reality as we know it. Every being exists on a plane of existence, and that plane is then part of a greater multiverse that contains all the parallel realities and alternate timelines of that plane. Then, the different multiverses exist in a higher dimension of their own, each dimension encompassing countless multiverses, within them countless realities and timelines, and within those, countless planes. They are, for lack of better terms, in varying degrees of infinity - a concept that is hard for most minds to possibly understand.

The Library is the source of knowledge for one of these higher dimensions that encompass those multiverses. If there is a higher dimension than the dimension that houses The Library, it is not known; logic dictates that such a dimension must exist, but there is no proof nor any way for one to ascertain up to this moment. So, what is it then that Fyrellel Brightwing is suggesting has been corrupted? Why does it matter? Why would The Library care?

As it was explained to The Librarian in an eloquent, well-established speech that was more like a lecture, there is an order in which the multiverses are established in the sixth dimension, which Brightwing's species called erwe. The latticework that made up the erwe kept everything in line so that the multiverses would not bleed into each other, and that each one would be allowed to exist in the particular manner that made that multiverse tick. Without this preordained latticework, the erwe would simply crumble, and the different multiverses would consume each other, ending up with mutual destruction or the creation of a mega-multiverse that would then involve other such disasters like timeline paradoxes, alternate versions running into each other, etc.

"So you're telling me," inquired The Librarian, "That The Library knew that this corruption was happening, and it gave you a Membership because your species in your plane in your reality in your multiverse is the one aspect that actually has noticed this corruption that is slowly eating up the latticework of the erwe that The Library was built upon? It's like a self-defense mechanism, and it's chosen you as the maintenance man?"

"I'm not sure what a maintenance man does," answered Brightwing, "But yes. We are the one species who can tell through rigorous logic and science that the very fabric is being changed, and as the researcher that discovered this phenomenon, I have been tasked with getting the information as to what is causing this corruption, and if possible, to figure out a cure."

"Do you have any suggestions or possible suspects?" was the next question asked by The Librarian. The very idea of The Library being in danger was a foreign concept to The Librarian, but they felt compelled to help this new Member to the best of their ability. If The Library needed The Librarian's help, it would be their duty to assist; without The Library, there was no Librarian, after all.

"What do you know about what created The Library, or what its foundations are made out of? Knowing the base nature of this place would assist greatly in figuring out what could've caused this corruption that we are looking for," answered Brightwing, "I promise that my intent is not to change The Library in any way; just to understand why it chose me, to figure out what is wrong with this erwe, and to do everything in my power to put things right."

Now that was a line of questioning that none of the 3,129 previous Members had ever asked for. They had all wanted solutions pertaining to their various planes, timelines, or universes, never about The Library itself. In all their time working at The Library, The Librarian had never inquired The Library about its own nature. For the first time in their existence, The Librarian was not sure what the answer would be - or if The Library would even hold the answer that this being sought.

"Wait here," they answered, and as Brightwing nodded, The Librarian had the instinct to communicate to The Aide to keep an eye on the telepathic humanoid. Something didn't quite fit, or they were being paranoid; regardless, it seemed to be the best course of action to make sure that Brightwing would not be supervised.

Heading into the very core of The Library, to the section of books and script that they hadn't ever been to, The Librarian devoted all of their brainpower and acumen into understanding the makeup of The Library itself. Usually, getting information from The Library occurred almost instantaneously - it would take The Librarian to exactly where the requested information was, or the information would be delivered to The Librarian from The Library itself. This time, though, it took The Librarian five minutes before they realized that they were stuck in a circle. The Library was not slowing down; it continued to move them along at a steady pace, and there was no sign of slowing down.

A shiver ran down The Librarian's spine as they realized that there would be no willing The Library to stop. Somehow, The Library was keeping them out, or it had been compromised. As they continued to build up speed, The Librarian made the instinctive decision to jump, landing on the floor with a loud thud and severely bruising their right knee in the process. The Library slowed to a halt almost instantaneously, as if it had no memory of the fact that it had almost taken the Librarian on a never-ending ride to perpetual motion and certain doom.

"What just happened?" they voiced aloud to The Library. There was no response, which put The Librarian more on edge than beforehand. It wasn't like The Library to have lapses in memory, nor was it commonplace for it to seek to harm its employees. Something was very wrong, and they had almost been victim to the very place that they called their home.

Slightly limping back to Brightwing, almost being overwhelmed by the sensation of being in pain for the very first time, The Librarian was greeted with the unwelcome sight of The Aide's unconscious form laying at the entry foyer. Even more disconcerting was the fact that no other members were visible. Usually, there would be at least two hundred or so members around the immediate vicinity of The Librarian, always waiting to ask another question, look to check out another book, or just prefer being near the staff; at this very moment, the coast was entirely clear, and the silence was deafening.

As The Librarian knelt down to check on The Aide, they took solace in the fact that The Aide was still alive - just out cold. Brightwing was nowhere in sight, The Library had just tried to kill them, and when The Librarian asked The Library one more question, it became clear just how much trouble they were in.

The Question: How many Members are in The Library right now?

The Answer: None.

Where was everyone? Where was Brightwing? What was going on?

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

© Sporting Times Weekend 2023
BP continue quiet march with 2-1 win
by Mindy Cartwright, National Soccer Editor

You have to go back to World Cup 88 to find the last time a Baker Park National Team advanced from the group stage in a tournament they didn't host; that was Jen Prescott's first cycle in charge and she led the side to the quarterfinals, only the second time the Bees had advanced as far.

The WC88 cycle was Annabeth Westmoreland's last hurrah, her career coming to a close against Banija at RCK Field in Alnio, Chromatika but it was just the start of the international careers of nearly half the squad currently in Græntfjall; 14 players appeared during the leadup to qualifying in AOCAF 63, Eagles Cup 10, or the first Jenna Raven Cup that marked the return of the Women's World Cup.

It was ideal conditions in Hintersfjordur at the Fjisfjing Stadium, at least under the roof shielding the all-AO matchup from the wind and drizzle outside. BP opted to wear their away white strip and on the front where the commemorative match details were displayed, a blue star on white diagonal separated the flags of the two nations, a subtle nod to the regional unity that has been strengthened coincidentally since prior to World Cup 88.

The Jungle Rebels put five past St Eleanor in their first match but there was a clear sign early that a high scoring affair was not going to be on the card here in the northwest of the White Winter Queendom. Lucie Shanahan's inclusion in the starting lineup has usually been a harbinger of a much more defensive posture in the center of the pitch throughout qualifying, and the defensive unit of Emily Bruce, Julia Edmonds and Jon Schulman are considered the more physical lineup than the Allen-Kucera-Bauer trio that started against Huayramarca (with Amy Freeman capable of swapping into either group).

Karrie Price started things off just 90 seconds in with a foul while the Bees were in possession just inside the Vilitan half, and as the first 15 minutes unfolded it appeared that Baker Park were content to play narrow front to back through the middle third of the pitch.

For his milestone 50th cap and first ever opportunity to captain his country, Alonzo Boyle probably wished for a better tactical assignment than to protect Schulman from the left side of the Rebels attack but he put in a performance worthy of wearing the armband with anticipating runs and disrupting buildup with timely tackles.

There were bursts of brilliance from both sides in the final third during the first 45 minutes—Luke Olivera finding Park Jae-sung breaking inside for a left foot shot that just missed the near post; Price tracking back before turning on a dime and taking a Hayley Gibson pass that she blazed over from 25 yards; Olivera taking advantage of a dummy run from Price to take an extra touch before also missing the target wide to the far post.

Halftime came with no score, but preceded before the whistle by a lengthy discussion between Will Barnard and Zoe Montgomery on the bench.

Vilita broke the deadlock after the resumption of play as Tukaara Milanzi finished off a clinical buildup in the 54th minute which was deserved based on the balance of play to that point.

Barnard went to the bench just past the hour mark, as Isabelle Wiley came on for the second straight match, taking up on left wing in place of Park while Ben Moorman came on for Price who had seen yellow not long after the Vilitan goal.

Olivera made a surging run into the box from a Wiley lay-off and might have gotten a shot on target if he hadn't been clipped on the ankle by Injyua Klizlo, which brought a definitive point at the spot from the referee from Sylestone, Mr Dehumidifier; Hayley Gibson banged home a well placed penalty past Monmouth Park's Ukamai Talingri for her third tally in this WC cycle to pull the score level with 20 minutes remaining.

The Bees shifted into a higher gear after the restart as Shanahan and Boyle began to threaten the Rebel left of defense having widened their positions from earlier. Gibson took a shift as the pressure valve on that side of the pitch which made the subsequent scoring chance possible, Boyle lifting a cross that Moorman headed down right to the feet of Harris, who placed the ball just inside the near post. Two scores in eight minutes had flipped the script as BP looked like they would finally get the group stage monkey off their collective back.

Gibson gave way for Bauer with 10 minutes to go as Barnard looked to a page from Darren Kirby's style manual with a back four to help close shop. Olivera and Shanahan took turns shielding the defenders which freed up Boyle and Wiley to support Moorman and Harris.

Vilita had one last stretch of good attacking as the watch clicked over into stoppage time, but McCormack was equal to the task and Baker Park made it five wins in a row with just a return to Folte to face a St Eleanor side that did both the Bees and Jungle Rebels a favor by getting past Huayramarca.

Lineup vs St Eleanor:

Rossi; Allen, Kucera, Freeman; C Logan, Wiley, Vetter, Altman; Baum; Mack (C), Diaz

[Nephara]

Nephara vs. Flavovespia. That conjured a certain image to mind. Tough, disciplined, firm in the tackle. Neither side afraid to go toe-to-toe with the other, but neither losing their heads, either.
They'd played two years ago, a tough and eminently sensible draw. Goalless for 85 minutes, before Loeher split it open, then Cole smashed one in the other end. That had been the kind of match you expected. Both sides knew how to make it count in decisive moments.
The match you expected... was not the one you got.

It started out about right. Fifteen minutes of dancing around the edges of the box, alternating between the side cautiously taking sterile possession and the side carefully keeping their ranks locked, shepherding the opponent out of the box.
Then, boom. Felixe Vetiver happened.
Obnoxious phrasing, but it's hard to describe it anyway else, sometimes. Seeker Biscan flattened Goldstone, got to the loose ball and shuttled it forward to Vetiver - a rare positive contribution on an overall somewhat torrid World Cup debut - and the ball stuck to her under pressure. Drop of the shoulder, she was no longer under pressure, dancing away from two yellow shirts and squeezing off her shot before the third could get to her. Low, and somehow, hard, but unsurprisingly, perfectly placed. Crewe had no chance.
The shags were pegged back to 1-1 just after the half-hour, in demeaning fashion. Talismanic striker Michael Cole had been deployed out on the wing, a gambit to attack Astrid Swain, standing in for the more solid Holden; it worked, this time, and he got the better of her before whipping in a vicious cross. A powerful downward header from Bagshaw was, miraculously, tipped over the bar by a diving Strand, a magnificent flick of her wrist inexplicably offering enough traction.
But just like against Huelavia, her moment of brilliance - there a penalty save - was immediately undone regardless by consequence, as Kieron Player's corner was dropped perfectly on Taylor's head. The centreback rose highest and drove in his first international goal, and what a stage to get it in.

But set pieces would not exclusively be Flavovespia's friend on the night. Just five minutes later, Player hacked down Bellona Sebold as she burst down the middle. Sebold stepped up quickly and took a quick set piece-- blown back by the referee. Sighing, she languidly rolled the ball forward to Arachne Loeher, prowling on the edge of the box. After a short run at the ball, as the wall broke to charge her, Loeher curled the ball almost diffidently around all of them, past Crewe and in off the inside of the far post. A moment of inspiration, just as she'd provided against the same opponent two years prior.
But Flavovespia had been well in it, and they weren't far off being able to go into the sheds, ready to regroup and tell themselves they were unlucky to be a goal down. Perhaps they'd have a point - Strand had saved strongly from Goldstone in the 41st - but they'd rather have been in that situation by the time they did reach the sheds as, by that point, Nephara were two to the good. Astrid Swain attempted to redeem herself by a long throw. Her attempt was terrible, but the clearance was unconvincing, the ball made its way back to her and her low, dangerous cross was turned out for a corner by Cookson. Madita Brewer's corner was as perfect as Player's had been; Vetta Roback glanced it home.

The Cormorants' support could be forgiven for feeling a little tentative. After all, they'd almost choked away the Huelavia game at 3-1. Flavovespia would know that, too, and they came out from the tunnel looking for all the world like the message had been rammed down their throats loud and clear. Perhaps it was with some newfound positive visualisation that bolstered Flavovespia's attack; either way, it was a properly thunderous shot from Michael Cole that saw Strand scramble across, get both hands to it and... not quite enough power behind them. A goalkeeping error, albeit only by high standards. In a league outside the top 32, one would not blink twice. But at the World Cup, and a woman like Strand? She was kicking herself, and Flavovespia were back in the game.
But this time, the Cormorants were determined not to lose the initiative. For a thirty-minute surge they played their best football of the game, football that deserved a clinching goal, threading intricate passing patterns through the yellow shirts at will, turning every defensive action into a rapid counterattack, the action relentless. Crewe saved sharply from Vetiver, brilliantly from Brewer.
But it was Vetiver once more, and inevitably, who provided the breakthrough. Crewe's errors came not in shot-stopping, but distribution, rolling the ball to Cookson, who immediately turned into pressure from Leandra Berenguer, froze and was slickly dispossessed. Yellow shirts sprinted back as Berenguer wheeled around, sized up her options and found the most predictable one, yes, Felixe bloody Vetiver hustling into the area. Ball to feet. Bottom left corner. 4-2.

There was still time for a substantial silver lining from Flavovespia. The decision to hurl on Peter Langdon instead of Birmingham was derided as a desperation move for all of four minutes, before the striker crashed late into the box to connect with a Cole cross and lashed home a vicious goal with the decisive edge he'd so often been accused of missing. A minor scrum emerged in the box over the ball, but the Cormorants did not need to fight over scraps. The final whistle blew, soon after. Deserved winners... but again, it had not been easy, and not in the way they, or anyone, had anticipated.

"Maximum points!" said the first interviewer, apparently finding it unnecessary to phrase his contribution as a question.
Cantor, after an awkward pause, waiting for a question to come, leaned in close to the microphone. "Yes."
"Happy with that, in your first two games?"
"... ... ... Yes."
Another interviewer rolled her eyes and gave it a shot. "Do you think this will mean you can take it relax about the Turori match to come?"
"No." Cantor grinned. She was having fun. "Alright," she said, cutting off an abortive follow-up question, "I get what you mean. Am I resting players for Turori? Not en masse. We can't afford to. We've had two very narrow wins, and a two-goal defeat to Turori and Flavovespia beating Huelavia means we'd be out. Even if we didn't want the seeding, or the coefficient, or the result: we do, obviously we do."
"The defence has had a pretty rough go of it, you must admit," started another. "Are--"
"Not necessarily. Look, very good sides can and have conceded three to these teams before, and they will again. There's no shame in it, no sign anything's gone terribly wrong. Besides, we've been without Tia and Demi today, Asti and Seeks did well to step in but it's a different structure altogether. I reject that anything's necessarily structurally wrong, no."
"Turori obviously loom as a tough opponent, they're top seeds, uhh... nevertheless, do you feel confident in picking up a result against them?"
"Well, we beat Flavovespia, and Flavovespia beat them. So frankly I don't see the point in a game against Turori, we should get handed the three points and a walkover. Playing it out's a waste of everyone's time." Cantor's grin faded as she heard pens scribbling furious shorthand, and she catapulted herself forward to the mic. "It's a joke, you fuckin' dip! A joke!"

Nephara 4 - 3 Flavovespia
(4-4-2 -> 4-2-3-1) 1 - Strand; 17 - Swain, 5 - Roback, 6 - Scales, 3 - Xu (25 - Mueller 90+1'); 13 - Brewer, 4 - Biscan, 24 - Sebold (26 - Kvasina 79'), 11 - Loeher; 14 - Berenguer, 21 - Vetiver (8 - Anhope 79')
Goals: Vetiver 16', Loeher 36', Roback 45+2', Vetiver 72'

Injuries: N/A
Suspensions: Roback

Lineup vs. Turori
(4-4-2) 1 - Strand; 17 - Swain, 18 - Copperhead, 6 - Scales, 3 - Xu; 23 - Drake, 15 - Constantine, 24 - Sebold, 11 - Loeher; 9 - Kulesza, 21 - Vetiver

[Vilita]

♫ Climbing up the top sails, I lost my leg! ♫ I'm shipping up to // screech // scratch // Rebels Time... Back again... ♫

Could Baker Park be a Bellwether?

So we didn't want to talk too much about our recent record against Baker Park in the World Cup finals because, well, we didn't want to jinx it. In fact, heading into the World Cup 94 Finals the Vilitan National Team had won two games on the trot against Baker Park at the World Cup Finals - though they had all been close games. In our most recent matchup together at the World Cup 91 Finals it was a 3-2 victory for the Jungle Rebels, their very first as a group under the leadership of Endur Rotropii. It was matchday 2 and Vilita had narrowly advanced to the World Cup Finals after a difficult qualification campaign that saw them in the same gorup as The Holy Empire - then #1 ranked in the multiverse. They had to go through a playoff against Cabo Verde which they survived but then lost their opening Group Stage match to the groups lowest ranked side, Drawkland.

The 3-2 victory over the Commonwealth of Baker Park would end up being the highlight of Vilita's participation in the World Cup 91 Finals. It was the only start for Baker Park based goalkeeper Ukamai Talingri - though maybe in hindsight they should have started more. The Tlikara siblings both got on the scoresheet in addition to a game winner from Jakku'u Naboyavi. However, a 1-1 draw with Pemecutan on the final matchday of group play would cut the campaign short for Vilita who would finish out of the running for a place in the knockout rounds.

Before that, it was another era - one where the Vilita National Team was closing out its Golden Generation. The World Cup 84 Cycle was nearly a perfect one for Vilita. Just one defeat in Qualifying - a 2-4 loss on Matchday 8 to Zwangzug, then a clean winning streak in the finals until ultimately losing the World Cup 84 Final to Regional Rival Farfadillis. In the midst of that, the Jungle Cats first knockout round matchup was against the Commonwealth of Baker Park - and it was, to this date, the only knockout round matchup ever played between the two nations at the World Cup Finals. While most of the names were different, the result was very similar as Vilita narrowly escaped a relatively high scoring game with a victory - and this time a ticket to advance onward to the next round.

Back then it was Mako Canopii in goal for Vilita while the goals came from a unique mix of four different players, Cywrenta Vlintejni, Rojara Tiones, Nii'arala Milaaso and the winner from Berali Tzufarei. For those players, the victory over the Commonwealth of Baker Park in the World Cup 84 knockout rounds was about revenge It was just one cycle early when the Vilitan National Team entered the World Cup 83 Finals as the reigning World Cup Champions only to get knocked down 0-1 by Baker Park at the BCEL Stadium in Jinja City, Banija, in a matchup that some have always wondered whether or not a conspiracy was at play with the Commonwealth based beverage conglomerate BCEL having such an influence over the stadium at what should otherwise have been a neutral venue matchup. Regardless, the Jungle Cats did recover ending the World Cup 83 Group Stage with their largest ever winning result in the World Cup Finals, an 8-2 victory over the Macabees, and Vilita would march on until they would eventually lose to the host nation in the Quarter Finals.

All that to say, that every game Vilita and Baker Park have ever contested in the World Cup finals has been a close one. Decided by a single goal. Also, the result between Vilita and Baker Park has never been a Bellwether matchup in the traditional sense. However, in the two occasions the sides had previously met in the Group Stage of the World Cup Finals, the result achieved by the Vilitan National Team against the Commonwealth has actually been the inverse of their fortune in that group. When Vilita have lost in the Group Stage to Baker Park, they have advanced through to the next round, and when they have defeated Baker Park, they have actually failed to move through to the knockout rounds.

So perhaps that knowledge will give the players of the Vilitan National Team a little bit of comfort about the fact that they suffered a narrow 1-2 defeat to Baker Park on Matchday 2 of the World Cup 94 Finals. After all, when Vilita lose against Baker Park in the Group Stage, they generally rebound and qualify through to the knockout rounds. Just... don't tell them who their opponent is on Matchday 3, where they are ranked or what the Jungle Rebels record is against that nation on the final matchday of the Group Stage at the World Cup Finals... in the 90's. Yea, don't do that.

 Vilita 1 - 2 Commonwealth of Baker Park	
	Vilita Goals:	:: 54' Tukaara Milanzi              
	Stats :: Vilita 	:: Possession: 48%:: Shots: 5:: Corners: 9 :: Commonwealth of Baker Park :: Possession: 52%:: Shots: 6:: Corners: 6
	Vilita Lineup :: 	Ukamai Talingri, Narri Sebapilo, Rojara Tiones, Kunala Jyvaiij (Kunaro Tlikara 45'), Fyin Miateal, Trezisi Rokopolis, Letirpsi Vulitn, Jakku’u Naboyavi (Antiviv Davaflei 45'), Lentali Purama (Injyua Klizlo 45'), Treasvo Tlikara (Sami Samii’i 45'), Tukaara Milanzi (Clarana Refiami 68')

Fjisfjing Stadium, Hintersfjordur, Græntfjall :: So I guess it was time to let bygones be bygones. After taking more than their fair share of punishment for the Jungle Rebels early qualification collapse - receiving a red card in the midst of the struggles and basically sitting out of the team since then, Logic finally prevailed and TEST MANAGER called upon Baker Park based goalkeeper Ukamai Talingri to take the gloves once more and represenet the Vilitan National Team on the pitch at the World Cup Finals. There was a logic to it, of course, with Talingri playing their domestic competition in Baker Park there was a perceived competitive advantage to be had. A perceived familiarity with the players. Being able to know details like... what side they prefer to take penalties on by virtue of having the experience of lining up head to head for a penalty against that player instead of through hours of cramming and studying right before the match. At least, that was the hope.

While the Vilitan offense had been firing on all cylinders in their first matchup against Saint Eleanor by scoring five goals, things were a little more tempered at the start against Baker Park. The teams would go into the break with the scoreline level at 0-0 but when they came out it was the Jungle Rebels who struck first through Tukaara Milanzi in the 54th minute. Of course, that put the Jungle Rebels in a difficult position with barely over thirty minutes to go in the game. Did they keep attacking? Something they were fairly good at, of course, with their average goal scoring rate hovering around 4 goals per game. Or did they sit back and defend - something they were quite honestly terrible at having had just one clean sheet during the entire World Cup 94 Qualification campaign. The "World Cup Manager for Dummies" Handbook certainly was leaning towards defend. Now, whether or not what TEST MANAGER did was defend or not I'll leave that up for the fans to decide. No matter what the given orders were, there was little that could be done about the foul committed by Injua Klizio on Luke Olivera. There was absolutely no debate about the call, it was a textbook penalty kick that even Mr. Dehumidifier could not have gotten wrong.

There were some jeers from the Vilitan supporters as it was Hayley Gibson who stepped up to take the spot kick and not Olivera - with Vilita having a longstanding tradition that it should be the player who earned the penalty kick who gets to step up and try to convert it. Either way, it was Gibson on the ball and she made no mistake sending Talingri the wrong way - negating the entire purpose that Talingri had been put into the starting lineup for to begin with. Just like that the scores were level but now all the momentum was with the Baker Park Bees.

Less than ten minutes after Baker Park had pulled themselves level they were able to push themselves out in front when Alonzo Boyle crossed in for Quinto Harris to turn the ball passed Talingri, giving the Commonwealth of Baker Park a 2-1 advantage that they would successfully defend until the final whistle.

Despite the defeat, the Vilita National Team were given a boost when the very same Saint Eleanor squad they defeated on the opening matchday would pick themselves up and pick up three points against Huayramarca, the groups top seed, putting the Condors deep down on the bottom of the table with just one matchday to play. Unfortunately, that one matchday would come against the Vilitan National Team.

Of course, it doesn't take long to find resentment and fear among Vilitan fans when it comes to a matchup with Huayramarca. This matchup is literally the entire reason that the Jungle Rebels exist today. It was the final matchday of the World Cup 90 Finals Group Stage. World Cup 90 as in... the first World Cup hosted in Vilita in two generations. None of the players had ever had an opportunity to play the World Cup Finals at home before. Most of the fans had never experienced it either. Before too long, they would all wish they hadn't experienced it either. Needing only a win against low-ranked Huayramarca on the final matchday to advance, the Vilitan National Team bottled up the job losing 0-1 to the Condors and crashing out of the Group Stage with one of the worst ever performances by a host nation at the World Cup Finals.

But even for the select few who argued the result was a good thing, clearing out the Vilitan National Team and shifting the focus to a new generation of younger players like the Tlikara Siblings, no one could stomach the ending to the World Cup 93 Group Stage. Once again it was Vilita against Huayramarca on the final matchday with the Jungle Rebels needing a win to advance to the knockout rounds, and once again, Vilita failed spectacularly, losing 1-3 to the Condors and once against crashing out of the World Cup finals to Huayramarca on the final matchday of the group stage.

Now, Vilita and Huayramarca will meet on the final matchday of Group play at the World Cup finals for the third time since World Cup 90, an incredible stroke of either luck or, thus far, pain and suffering. If the results had been bad before, they could be even worse as on paper this matchup has the potential to be the first one that Huayramarca are overwhelmingly favored. However, under the leadership of TEST MANAGER, the Jungle Rebels have been far less predictable, bringing in unexpected players and trying new lineups. Maybe, just maybe, the Vilitan National Team can finally find a combination that defeats Huayramarca and finally sends them back through into the Knockout Round of the World Cup Finals?

I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Oh, and because this was such a popular episdode, just going to link back here to that Wormhole that Soktiti Amakra previously did featuring Vilita and Baker Park. So. Many. Colors!!! Out~

♫Doo-DOO-Doo-Doo Doo-DOO-Doo-Doo.♫



♫Doo-DOO-Doo-Doo Doo-DOO-Doo-Doo.♫

[Ko-oren]

The National Team has been led by ex-players for quite some time. Juliasterinthen and Davenport, the past two head coaches, were both on the NT. The current head-coach-by-committee, Mivune, Brogley, and Hosorthaunden, have all had a fairly successful playing career: Mivune was arguably the best of the bunch with a long stint in Darmen, while Brogley's entire career was spent at Bruncester, and Hosorthaunden bounced around several clubs of debatable quality. He started out at Maethoru - a perk for many talented players in and around the capitals: you tend to get scouted by the biggest club - before 'relegating' to Strongfair but finishing his career at a stable-ish Cirelbourne environment. This was before Cirelbourne did what they are known for; relegating twice in a row.

What's maybe a bit stranger is that many of the bigger picture things are handled by a trio of 'selectors', which, for a few cycles, also have been ex-pros, and names you might even recognise: Yokota, legendary defensive midfielder and the only reason Katashi-Kanatsu didn't get that many negative goal differences, De Villepin, a quiet yet ultracompetitive Aminey winger, and Linderood, perhaps the least well-known in Ko-oren but possibly the most influential of the three as an excellent defender who spent most of his time in Banija. The selectors handle squad picks and have a say in the KFA's hiring policies, but they can't force a coach to use a squad the way they intended and picked.

Between the seven of them - coaches, selectors, and goalie coach Theshendan - they've got plenty of credit within the KFA. The KFA itself has a clear strategy: continue the 'post-football' ways. If an opponent can't score, they can't win, which was only proven further by a 1-0 win and a 0-0 draw in the World Cup. If you just don't let Graintfjall score, no matter how good they are and what their rank is, they're not going to win. An absolute tactical masterstroke and a victory for post-football fans everywhere. It's also the result of over three decades of continuity, consistent hiring, and selecting.

That said, the situation can't hold. The KFA had looked for defensive head coach prospect, mostly within Anaia and in fellow post-football nations - but hiring an Audioslavian is too much. That would never fly. Since then, the association cast its nets further and further away from the regular pool, with time ticking on since Davenport's sacking and after a CAFA and a World Cup it was time to get a long-term solution in place. Then again, qualifying for the World Cup with just a few assistants in charge might say something about the value of a head coach, but Ko-oren has always done things meticulously planned, and this was no different.

"Any new prospects?" Mivune said, laughing as he entered the KFA building adjacent to the modest national team facility near Maethoru. "As a matter of fact, yes," was Linderood's response.

"Are you joking? Who?"

"You know how they were looking for someone to continue our legacy?"

"Yeah, so they finally decided to just sign an Audioslavian?"

"But then they chose to do the opposite. In fact, he's in the building for an interview right now, with the suits."

"Who?"

"Lele Manguele."

"No fucking way."

---

Oaktree, the Ochre Islands
The Mertagnians did not have a good time in Oaktree, cursing their environment every few minutes. "Why is the radar not up yet?" and "What do you mean we have to use the flags AGAIN to communicate with our own ship?!" while the Ko-orenites treated their stay as a potentially life-threatening exercise in creativity. Most of them came straight from school and had fun trying out the tricks they learned. That attitude changed when the first Bostopian sighting came in, hours after the enemy took over Ochre's easternmost islands. From then on, reports of Bostopian troops came in from towns and cities further and further west. While a decent part of the Ko-orenite fleet was out collecting intelligence and trying to get any kind of reading of the waters just east of Mournhow, the Mertagnians scrambled to intercept the first Bostopian corvettes.

"What's that in the distance? Are we hearing something from beyond the wall?"

"No, captain..."

"Then that's combat we're hearing. Can we see anything through the fog?"

"Looks to be naval combat. The Bostopians must have gotten this far this fast, and the Mertagnians must have decided to sail all the way here and not wait for the first reports of Mournhow landings."

"We have to help and get an idea of how big this is. Signal the rest of the fleet to prepare for contact, and have everyone on the lookout for which ship belongs to whom. All men to battle stations. Let's assume that the western ship is Mertagne's, but let's keep our options open. Keep a tad to the west but be prepared that we might be sailing straight into trouble, so communicate what you see and be prepared to move quickly."

Part of the crew left to signal the commands to the rest of the fleet. Through the thick fog, the flashes of fire and direct hits started to become visible - the eerie noise of distant explosions reached the Ko-orenites well before that. Even with the occasional glow through the fog, it was still impossible to make out who was who, but it seemed to be one large ship versus several small ones.

"I don't recall our allies to have brought smaller ships like that. The big one is a lot like the types we saw in Oaktree. Could the smaller ones be Ochre?"

"I'm assuming they must be Bostopian."

"Have they seen us?"

"If we can see them, they can see us. We can't make out who they are yet. Prepare to fire?"

"Are you insane? We're here to keep the peace."

"We're here to fight, unfortunately."

"We do not fire until we've verified what we're looking at."

"Large ship is turning towards us."

"Hold your fire. We do not fire pre-emptively."

"Large ship has seen us. They're... a Mertagnian frigate. And..." a loud explosion interrupted him. "they're firing at the smaller targets."

"Hold your fire. But aim for the smaller ones. If they haven't spotted us, and we can get a salvo off first, we might be able to hold them off, and if we're lucky enough, fight them off for now entirely."

Commander de Blays of the Mertagnian frigate ordered his men to hoist a single flag underneath the Mertagnian one.

Commander Esadhaunen of the Ko-orenite fleet quickly signalled his ships to fire. "Fuck the protocol. We're firing first."

Thunderous roars rang out from the fleet within seconds.

[Flavovespia]

Flavovespia battled hard against Nephara, but The Cormorants held the edge in game, to claim the 3 points. A narrow loss for Flavovespia still keeps them in contention to qualify for the knockout stages.

It was an unchanged line up from that win over Turori in the opening Matchday. For the opening 15 minutes or so, it began a tentative, probing type of match. Neither side could quite breakthrough , with the play largely in the middle third of the game. Both sides knew a win would be a big boost to their chances of progression.

16 minutes in, and Felixe Vetiver proved her billing as one to watch. A tough, but ultimately fair challenge on Jonathan Goldstone saw Seeker Biscan play in Felixe Vetiver. Shrugging off Stan Scott-Wilson and Paul Taylor, Vetiver pulled off the shot before Stuart Cookson closed in. Point perfect placement, and Nathan Crewe was unable to do anything, Nephara led.

Flavovespia were undeterred, and managed to equalise in the 32nd minute. Jonathan Bagshaw would’ve got his first goal this World Cup, heading Michael Cole’s cross, had Medusa Strand not produced one of the saves of the tournament so far. However from the corner, Kieron Player, who plays domestic football in Nephara found Paul Taylor, the defender heading in to score his first international goal. A great moment for him and Flavovespia.

Flavovespia would find the rest of the first half tough going. In the 36th minute, Kieron Player gave away a free kick in a dangerous spot. Bellona Sebold’s actors to take it quickly were too quick. However it gave Arachne Loeher a chance to score direct, and with perfect placement did just that. 2-1 now, two brilliant goals for Nephara.

Nephara got a third before the break. Flavovespia couldn’t clear their lines and gave away a corner. Madita Brewer placed the corner well, and Vetta Roback headed it in, beating Jonathan Goldstone to the ball. 3-1, and it would be tough from here for Flavovespia.

Flavovespia needed a goal quickly in the second half to stage a comeback, and got one 7 minutes in. Michael Cole cut inside from the left to take a shot at goal. It was unconvincing, but Medusa Strand didn’t make a clean save, and the ball bobbled over the line. The comeback looked like it could be on.

Nephara however put paid to those thoughts, with some fluid, top quality football. Flavovespia barely got a sniff, and Nathan Crewe was forced into several fine saves, rare a goalkeeper could concede 3 up to that point and still have a good game. However he was partially responsible for the fourth. A pass to Cookson who was under pressure from Leandra Berenguer saw him dispossessed. A dangerous counter attack high up the pitch was on, the ball found Felixe Vetiver charging in, and she made no mistake to double the lead.

The rest of the game seemed like a mere formality, until the 93rd minute. Michael Cole’s quick cross in was met by a great half volley by Peter Langdon. He ran off celebrating, as Michael Cole got into a row over retrieving the ball for a quick restart. However, there was barely any time left, and Nephara saw it out well. A well deserved 4-3 win for them, although Flavovespia could also take some positives from the game, even if they took no points.

Qualifying for the knock out stages for Flavovespia has a few permutations. Win and they’re in. Should Flavovespia beat HUElavia, and Turori beat Nephara, but by not more than 2 goals more than Flavovespia win, then Flavovespia also win the group. A Flavovespia draw, and they’ll need Turori not to beat Nephara. A one goal Flavovespia loss, and they’ll need Nephara to beat Turori. A loss of 2 or more goals to HUElavia, and it’s bye-bye World Cup 94. There’s everything to play for in Matchday 3 at Millennium Park, Redswyth.

Provisional starting line up:

WC MD3: Crewe, Lyons©--Cookson--Taylor--Dance, Adams--Player--Wassell, Cole--Langdon--Bagshaw