A Tale Of Two Crescents - WC97 Roleplay Thread

[Katzeburg]

“Look, I just think the wording doesn’t fit the vibe of the messaging we are trying to convey.”

Josef Brand rolled his eyes in disdain. Patrick Loris was one of the ‘new generation’ of spin doctors at the KFF - someone who paid more attention to engagement and attrition rates than media coverage figures. Someone who had a clear vision as to what they wanted something to look like, only to then not inform anyone until the hard yards had already been put in.

Josef was decidedly not a fan of the methods Patrick brought into the organisation.

“Should we really be saying something like ‘great regret’ in our release? It doesn’t really fit our organisation’s tone of voice nor our positioning as a challenger nation pushing to break into the big boys of football.”

“What should we be saying instead?” Josef asked.

“Hmm… Maybe something along the lines of ‘with astounding sorrow?’ - more of an engaging word to build into the piece while also expressing some regret about how Kerr is stepping down.”

“But, wouldn’t regret work there if we want to express regret?”

“We can’t say what we mean, it’s not on brand.”

“So what would be on brand then?”

“Something which draws eyes to us, but explains clearly what we are talking about while also avoiding the common pitfalls of other organisations who will be saying the same thing.”

“Right.”

“I’ll leave it with you to put your magic in there,” Patrick said, drumming his fingers on the table from which Josef sat at the other end of.

Josef sighed, and deleted the words ‘great regret’ to replace them with ‘astounding sorrow’ - there was no need bringing your own thoughts in here, you either go with Patrick or drive yourself insane.

It was at this point that Marvin burst through the door, on his phone and carrying a big bundle of papers and folders. It was pretty clear that he was mid-beatdown of someone Josef was very relieved not to be at the moment.

“-can tell him that if he wants to bring up embarrassing shit that we’ve all done than I’m happy to add to the conversation by showing his team the recording of his fucking reggae electronic jazz band which he played in as a younger lad. I’ve never wanted to gouge my eyes out more, other than watching Avonsend try and string three passes together.”

Josef studied him with caution. How could one man be so angry all the time?

“Yeah, yeah, yeah - well here’s the bottom line. Brendan Kerr is a credit to Katzeburgian football and has no plans to step down from the role, nor is there any need for him to consider stepping down at this stage. He has run the organisation with credit and has been instrumental in guiding our nation to its first ever silverware over in Riena. Now fuck off.”

Marvin hung up and then took a slight breath before turning to the two men sitting at the table.

“Ahh, great to see our entry to this year’s world cup of absolute shite has arrived! Patrick - what have we done for you to grace us with your presence?”

“Very friendly as always Marvin,” Patrick scoffed. “I’m just here assisting our young Josef with a media release about our ongoing situation.”

“Oh right, let me have a look here then.” Marvin said, crouching down to see the handiwork Josef had been typing out.

“Fucking hell - we can’t say this! We’ll look like a bunch of blind twats who have been let loose on a mountaintop and told to point to the top.”

“This will test well with our core demographic Marvin,” Patrick interjected.

“So will Kerr pulling down his pants on live TV and shoving a grapefruit up his ass,” Marvin replied. “Doesn’t mean we have to put that in here too.”

“So what would you have us say?”

“Oh, how about something like Brendan Kerr has respectfully decided to stand down as head of the KFF ahead of a shitfuck of an investigation which will rodger the organisation senseless and paint the entire thing as one baked in corruption, because the moronic TWAT decided a couple of ‘how do you dos’ under the table was better than funneling money into our local programmes and boosting the excellence that is our national team.”

Silence.

Josef looked across to Patrick, who sat mouth agape.

“I’ll paraphrase that, I guess.” said Josef.

---

Katzeburg 3 - 1 Darkmania
(Field 24’, 61’, Wruck 87’ // M.Ret 44’)

Possession - 37% // 63%
Shots on Target - 6 // 8
Shots - 9 // 15
Fouls - 9 // 15

1 Whinery, 2 Howland, 3 Levitt (Clarkson 65'), 4 Knepp, 5 Colbert (Morton 65'), 6 Plank, 7 Horsfall, 18 Arkwright, 9 Cummings (Spears 65'), 10 Wruck, 35 Field

Player of the Match - Field (KAT)

Gnejs 5 - 1 Katzeburg
(Bardo 28’, 55’, Mack 37’, 68’, Tistel 87’ // Wruck 90’)

Possession - 75% // 25%
Shots on Target - 16 // 6
Shots - 17 // 14
Fouls - 10 // 9

1 Whinery, 2 Howland, 3 Levitt (Clarkson 65'), 4 Knepp, 5 Colbert, 6 Plank, 7 Horsfall, 18 Arkwright (Nelson 50'), 9 Cummings, 10 Wruck, 35 Field (Niles 40')

Player of the Match - Bardo (PUG)

Horror show in Gnejs threatens to derail Katzeburg campaign

A ‘disastrous’ effort against the Dandelions of Gnejs has seen Katzeburg suffer their first major derailment as part of Group 6 of World Cup Qualifying.

Katzeburg opened the third international window in high spirits, pulling off an upset and securing the Blue Cats’ first ever international home victory with a 3-1 win over Darkmania at Katzestadt Arena. Lloyd Field opened the scoring for Katzeburg, but a leveller on the stroke of half-time kept the sides square at the break. Field would pick up his second of the game midway through the second half, before Drake Wruck nabbed a late goal to see out the fixture and secure a huge three points from Katzeburg and move the side into third after five matchdays.

But the second fixture - travelling to high-flying and in-form Gnejs - proved to be anything but a successful clash, with the side absolutely played off the park by their higher-ranking opponents. Gnejs grabbed hold of the game early on, with a dangerous front three of Torkel Mack, Georg Bardo, and Nicho Tistel causing numerous headaches for a slow moving Owen Levitt in the backline.

Bardo and Mack would score before the half-time break, with the game quickly slipping away from competitiveness, Katzeburg’s worries compounded with a pair of injuries forcing early substitutions. Field was forced off just before the break after stretching for a long ball, while the ever-creative Meriel Arkwright had to come off 50 minutes in after a head clash with Samuel Falkmar in the midfield.

Another goal for both Bardo and Mack would kill the game off by the 70th minute. Wruck would pull a sole goal back in stoppage time to save some face, but the result and the injuries stemming from the clash leaves the Blue Cats in a precarious position.

Katzeburg now sit in fourth, level on points with Carpathia and Ruthenia but behind on goal difference after seeing their +4 advantage vanish in 90 minutes. The Blue Cats now face a tough run of fixtures which will test their mettle - hosting Carpathia and Ruthenia before travelling to Legalese in a must win match for Katzeburg if they want to stay in the mix for a top four finish.

Katzeburg manager Becka Haberkorn defended the side which ran out against Gnejs, but said more would be needed from the team going forward.

“We simply weren’t good enough against Gnejs,” Haberkorn said.

“They are a quality side and we maybe had a bit too much complacency from our early run of form - this was a disastrous showing and some players simply weren’t up to the task.

“It’s disappointing to lose two important players as well in Lloyd and Meriel - but I’m confident we can pull from our wider pool and bring in some quality players who can hopefully make a difference in the next window.”

With two huge games coming up, Haberkorn has made a handful of changes to the squad as well as some proposed changes to the starting lineup.

Field and Arkwright will not be included, with their injuries too severe to have them back in the squad for the next two fixtures at least, with Littleport AFC striker Walton Hershey and Royce Earls from Axmund United replacing the pair.

Elsewhere, Emery Nelson - who had already been heading out of the squad with her starting role given to Arkwright - has been replaced in favour of Shorham FC midfielder Petra Moores, who enjoyed a breakout season for the KNL side.

Gideon Wilkins has been replaced by his Katzestadt AFC teammate Laurence Herman, while the big news is planned changes to the starting XI - with captain Owen Levitt due to be replaced by Erik Clarkson, and Tilman Cummings dropping to the bench with Elmer Spears - who has been coming off the bench regularly for the Barenwold midfielder - due to the take the role.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Roster   Position   Player              Age   Gender   Nation   Club                   League Apps   League Goals   National Apps   National Goals  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1        GK         Ry Whinery          27    F        KAT      Katzestadt AFC         26            0              14              0               
  2        D          Katharine Howland   18    F        KAT      Barenwold FC           26            3              14              0               
  15       D          Erik Clarkson       19    M        KAT      Inverhaven City        26            2              10              0               
  4        D          Deena Knepp         29    F        KAT      Axmund City            26            4              14              0               
  5        D          Faithe Colbert      28    F        KAT      Katzestadt Rovers      26            4              15              1               
  6        M          Serena Plank        18    F        KAT      Katzestadt AFC         26            10             15              3               
  7        M          Vera Horsfall       30    F        KAT      Katzestadt Rovers      26            10             15              3               
  19       M          Elmer Spears        17    M        KAT      Axmund City            26            4              11              0               
  17       M          Heilwig Courtney    26    F        KAT      Katzestadt Rovers      26            6              3               0               
  10       F          Drake Wruck         31    M        KAT      Katzestadt Rovers      26            20             15              17              
  11       F          Lambert Niles       30    M        KAT      Axmund City            26            19             11              5               
  13       GK         McKinley Clinton    33    F        KAT      Inverhaven Ironworks   26            0              0               0               
  23       GK         Geffrey Queen       22    M        KAT      Inverhaven City        26            0              0               0               
  3        D          Owen Levitt         35    M        KAT      Inverhaven City        26            4              15              1               
  16       D          Elicia Morton       19    F        KAT      Katzestadt Rovers      26            2              5               0               
  27       D          Laurence Herman     22    M        KAT      Katzestadt AFC         26            3              0               0               
  9        M          Tilman Cummings     35    M        KAT      Barenwold FC           26            4              12              0               
  32       M          Royce Earls         23    M        KAT      Axmund United          26            6              0               0               
  34       M          Petra Moores        17    F        KAT      Shorham FC             26            6              0               0               
  20       F          Jaxxon Johns        24    M        KAT      Axmund United          26            14             7               1               
  22       F          Clay Marsh          17    M        KAT      Axmund United          26            13             4               5               
  36       F          Walton Hershey      19    M        KAT      Littleport AFC         26            8              0               0               
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Sarzonia]

Caleb Rush felt like he didn't need to ride his Sarzonian national football team hard for the team's bye prior to their home match against Osterhalten.

He'd save the usual "trap-match speech" for the actual run up to said match. A 16-match group stage was still a grind, especially after the previous World Cup qualifying campaign lasted just 12 matches. He expected the likes of a Spencer Wilson to be a self-starter and not need him to have his manager's foot lodged permanently up his bum.

He was right about Wilson, but the majority of the Stars had plans other than taking the time allotted to actually rest up and study their opponents. They had a team-building activity going to a bowling alley in the Woodstock suburb of Saugerties and a pizza party nearby.

Then they opted not to have their intended watch party for the Osterhalten-Legalese match, choosing instead to go out and perform some less official "bonding activities" involving drinking, carousing and generally acting the fool at a downtown club. Because they were on the national team, police detective George Ralston chose not to arrest them, opting instead to take names and phone the Incorporated Football Federation.

When Rush got word about how his team spent the night of their bye, he was furious. With the players, most of whom had gone out that night with the notable exception of Wilson himself, who opted to stay in his room since the bar the rest of the team went to not-so subtly made a point that it was not a gay bar. But also, Spencer was a Wilson. He felt the weight of his family name and the responsibility of donning the Navy and Silver.

The next morning, Rush glowered at the bleary-eyed players whom he felt disgraced Sarzonia with their antics. He'd asked Wilson to sit in the lounge area and wait until he was done talking to the rest of the team, but Wilson insisted on sitting amongst his teammates. He didn't want to be excluded the way he felt his mates had done the previous night.

"Folks, I'm disappointed. I'm disgusted, and I'm downright pissed the fuck off about your behaviour last night," he said, shooting an icy stare at goalkeeper John Wells, who had looked like he wanted to speak.

"Right now, I'm speaking," Rush snapped. "If I let you speak, I'll let you know when." He then began walking slowly, ominously around the room, punctuating his words with a scowl. "I give you all one freaking day off to do as you please and you pull this shit? Not only drink yourselves stupid, but to do so at the exclusion of one of your own mates?"

"Coach," defender Bill Kelley said.

"I'M SPEAKING!" Rush snapped. "I told you if, IF I let you speak, I'll tell you. Until then, shut the... hell up!" Rush glared at Kelley and looked for all the world like he wanted to fight his player. Kelley was about to stand up and challenge Rush, but team captain and fellow defender Ken Webb put his right hand forcefully on Kelley's shoulder and pushed.

"You went to the one bar in the city that specifically excludes the LGBTQIA+ community when one of your mates is LGBTQIA+," Rush said. "That, to me is even worse than just going to a bar. As of now, I'm revoking your privileges as a team. From now on, you'll only take part in activities that I or my higher-ups at the IFF authorise.

"I was going to save my 'trap-match speech' for the first day of training for our match against Osterhalten, but you leave me no Goddamn choice but to give it now. And after we're done here, you're all going to run five laps around the practice pitch." Rush paused, waiting for his words to register with the players. He knew the temperature was a scorching 33 degrees Celsius with unusually high humidity for Woodstock. He had one more trick to illustrate his anger over excluding Wilson.

"Except for Wilson. He doesn't have to run laps."

[The Ko-orenite Constellation]

Now for the most patchwork nation in the Constellation. Cang Prathoren (or officially, Bandar Cang Prathoren) was established as a group of trading posts and its neighbours all left a lasting impression on the fledgling territory. Every single trading post grew out to be village, then a small town, and ultimately the sprawls connected to form one continuous urban area. Some towns had more of one or two cultures, but generally - and especially in the newer constructed neighbourhoods - you'll find the three main groups living among each other with little divide in class, income, or geography. That said, the territory has three subdivisions, each one named for one of the three main groups, but there are no legal differences between them: policies are decided on for all three, and the subdivisions merely help out in pointing out roughly where you live, where you work, and what day your garbage gets picked up, for instance.

Cao Tre, its symbol a dragon, is the largest in area but the smallest in population, with Cam Dinh and Cao Ky as the biggest towns. Cao Tre as a whole takes up quite a bit of the inland area, where municipal services uses up a lot of space - desalination plants, energy, etcetera. Taking up most of the coast is Mahabun and its elephant symbols. Most visitors will assume the elephant is a symbol for all of the territory, but that's just because most visitors - tourists - will end up in the coastal, flashiest, most accessible towns, like the central business district of Ayokhla, the entertainment district of Saranulok, the opulence of Mae Jotharam, and every small business you can think of in the narrow alleys of Rangkhon. Lastly, most official functions take place in Kawasan Air (a tiger as their symbol), with embassies, offices of foreign businesses, but also high density residential areas. Teluk Payau might not ring a bell as the neighbourhood with de facto the biggest population, but a lot of that is because of an incredible density even for this territory's standards. Pelabuhan Mekar and Bandar Bendungan are similar examples, while luxury Kota Jangkar and Bangunan Merah might be better known.

As for their position in the Constellation, they're pulling the cart on most issues and help those who lag behind, though Cang Prathoren is slowly developing in other areas. A complete lack of urban planning until the last few decades mean that there are few universalities across neighbourhoods, let alone the subdivisions. Everything constructed since then just works with the subway as the crowning achievement. From everything before the national government, it's a miracle it connects cross-subdivisionally at all. Kawasan Air working with a different voltage for a while there, too. Or Mahabun's traffic on the right - that was a puzzle to undo and merge with the other two left-driving subdivisions. We're lucky the road widths are more or less the same throughout all three. For everything else, strict policies have undone most of the damage, with education and finance as pillars of Cang Prathoren's success.

---

You've probably seen it coming, but until relatively recently, there were as many as six competitions: one for each of the subdivisions, and one for each of the linguistic-cultural communities. Clubs played in two of them, sometimes even three if they could get away with it. For a time, the Cao Tre league (and the Dragon League as its linguistic-cultural counterpart) were the pinnacle of football in the territory, though all have had their ups and downs. The inclusion of governmental service teams in the leagues didn't help for neutrality, but by now, a single national league has emerged that has surpassed the doubts of the past.

*  BCP Premier Football League  Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Cam Dinh Cuu Rong             39   24   7   8    68   45  +23    79
 2 Cao Ky United                 39   22   9   8    78   49  +29    75
 3 Ayokhla United                39   24   3  12    64   44  +20    75
 4 PSBB                          39   20  11   8    78   51  +27    71
 5 PTP                           39   19   9  11    57   43  +14    66
 6 Traphaeng FC                  39   17  10  12    65   50  +15    61
 7 PKJ                           39   18   6  15    60   62   −2    60
 8 Trung Tam Ninh La             39   14   9  16    56   51   +5    51
 9 Bien Tinh Phong Tuc           39   14   9  16    55   58   −3    51
10 Samarat United                39    9  11  19    56   81  −25    38
11 Rangkhon AFC                  39    8  11  20    35   65  −30    35
12 Bao Ngai Dai Hoc              39    7  12  20    46   59  −13    33
13 Dong Loc Ngan Hang            39    8   9  22    47   68  −21    33
14 Saranulok FC                  39    6  10  23    45   84  −39    28

Two Cao Tre clubs finish atop the league - Cam Dinh and Cao Ky - with Mahabun's traditional heavyweights Ayokhla right behind. For Kawasan Air, it's PSBB, PTP, and PKJ (Bandar Bendungan, Persatuan Teluk Payau, and Persatuan Kota Jangkar) all with respectable outings. Traphaeng had expected a bit more and looked fine in most games, but dropped the ball when it comes to actually turning dominance into points. A bit of a gap between 9th and 10th, but normally we'd expect Bao Ngai north of it and Bien Tinh south of it, but it is what it is. It's not a paper game.

[City of Myrtle Beach]

CBCSports Myrtle Beach

---

MATCHDAY FIVE
North and South Slavo-Baltia 1 – 1 Myrtle Beach
@ Worker's Stadium, Slavo-Baltia; attendance unknown; overcast 63F; kickoff 6pm local time

North and South Slavo-Baltia:
49' Vasylyk

Myrtle Beach:
67' Brennan

This match was a complete snoozefest. Somehow, we ended up with just a tie against a team who has never participated in international competition before. I guess we just got unlucky. The team had fine form, and they got several shots on goal. Today just wasn't our day. The first half ended 0-0. A goal was almost scored by Farmer around minute 30, but unfortunately it just barely missed the goal. Slavo-Baltia came out quickly in the second half. Forward Mihovil Vasylyk scored a goal in the 49th minute, putting them up 1-0. Several more fruitless attempts by Myrtle were made before Brennan could put one in at minute 67. Slavo-Baltia would not get anywhere near the Myrtle goal for the remainder of the match, but all of the attempts on goal by Myrtle proved futile. The match ended 1-1 at full-time.

Next time we go up against West Vdara. We are favorites to win.

---

MATCHDAY SIX
Myrtle Beach 3 – 2 West Vdara
@ Grand Strand Stadium, Myrtle Beach; attendance 18,334; intermittent rain 87F; kickoff 6pm local time

Myrtle Beach:
21', 77' Farmer
33' Fulton

West Vdara:
56' Christodoulou
84' Alexiadis

Today, Myrtle Beach played at home versus some communist backwater in Vdara. "West Vdara." Very derivative. As expected, we won. As always, capitalism wins over the evil forces of communism, and they should think twice before coming back for more. Although, we do have to go there eventually, so... maybe they'll get the last laugh. I'm sure capitalism will win anyways before a tragic fire strikes and takes out the Myrtle Beachian team after our dominant 10-0 victory at West Vdara.

The match kicked off quickly, with Myrtle gaining momentum and taking control of the match before the communists could get their calloused hands on the ball. Farmer lobbed a ball in past the West Vdaran keeper, who appeared as if he hadn't eaten much before the match. I doubt he's ever eaten much. Myrtle Beach went up 1-0 in the 21st minute. This was quickly ("quickly") followed up by Fulton, who slid another one by the West Vdaran keeper to put Myrtle up 2-0. The West Vdaran manager yelled something at his team in some language nobody understands, but I assume it was something along the lines of, "Comrades! You must win this or we will be sent to the prisons!" Although, even if he didn't say it, they'll probably be sent to the prisons anyway for losing. The first half ended with Myrtle up 2-0.

The second half went a bit slower for the Myrtle Beachian team, but the West Vdaran team was out there and ready to go. I find two likely possibilities here: either (a) the "tactical analysts" threatened to kill the players' families (they are trained in classical martial arts), or (b) drugs. It might be a bit of both, actually. Either way, in the 56th minute West Vdaran striker Andrei Christodoulou kicked one in, finally putting West Vdara on the board 2-1. This was met with an excellent counter-attack from Myrtle. Farmer and Brennan may have set the record for "most easy goals missed" between minute 56 and 77. Thankfully, after 20 minutes of terrible shot after terrible shot, Farmer was finally able to put another one in. Myrtle was now up 3-1 with just about 10 minutes left on the clock. West Vdaran striker Viktor Alexiadis was able to kick one in at minute 84, narrowing Myrtle's lead to one goal. The end of the match was a nailbiter, as West Vdara was able to get the ball back and move it over towards the goal, but unfortunately for them, they moved it towards their goal instead of ours. The match ended 3-2 with a Myrtle Beach victory.

Next time, Myrtle will travel to the Yakk in a match that will be a close one for matchday seven. We have a bye for matchday eight.

Ps Group 9                            Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
 1 Bears Armed                          5    4   1   0    15    9   +6    13
 2 Drawkland                            5    3   1   1    12    7   +5    10
 3 Qasden                               5    3   0   2    10    8   +2     9
 4 Myrtle Beach                         6    2   3   1    13   13    0     9
 5 HUElavia                             6    2   1   3     9    7   +2     7
 6 North and South Slavo-Baltia         5    1   2   2     8   10   −2     5
 7 Yakk                                 5    1   2   2     6    9   −3     5
 8 West Vdara                           5    1   2   2     6    7   −1     5
 9 Vaishnavaria                         6    0   2   4     6   15   −9     2

Top two qualify for the World Cup. The top seven third-place teams will qualify for the World Cup- the rest will participate in playoffs.

[HUElavia]

HUElavia 1-2 Qasden
(Canchon 30' | Orville 35', Galleon 58')
Estadio Internacional, San Rafael, HUElavia

Bears Armed 1–0 HUElavia
(Brent 39')

For quite some years now, HUElavian Football was just languishing at midtable results, but with the steady grow the team had in the Multiversal rankings, it was just about time that the team would start a massive push for better position. World Cup 80 Qualifiers had arrived and HUElavia was determined to at least pump up their skill in a pretty large field. We jump right into the fray to open up the 80s.

(Song)

Amarelo/Amarillo

The Story of HUElavian Football

Episode 3:

Welcome To The Multiverse

World Cup 80 Qualifiers

HUElavia 1–1 AL-Hind Indus D, Valborne 0–4 HUElavia W, HUElavia 1–0 Yezur W, HUElavia 3–3 Kernovi D, Barunia 4–1 HUElavia L, HUElavia 1–3 Cosumar L, Vacolicci Haven and Celeria 1–0 HUElavia L, HUElavia 4–0 Zwangzug W, Valladares 2–2 HUElavia D

Right off the bat, HUElavia was coming off strong with an undefeated run, but got derailed with a horrid 3 consecutive losses. Despite the setback, HUElavia rebounded with a historic 4-0 checkmate over the chessboards at Zwangzug, a nation that will be a central character later in our story followed by a valiant draw against Valladares. It seemed that 4-0 beatdown over Zwangzug inspired the players, as HUElavia would go on to produce these results for the 2nd half of the Qualifiers:

AL-Hind Indus 0–1 HUElavia W, HUElavia 1–0 Valborne W, Yezur 0–0 HUElavia D, Kernovi 2–3 HUElavia W, HUElavia 0–0 Barunia D, Cosumar 4–0 HUElavia L, HUElavia 4–2 Vacolicci Haven and Celeria W, Zwangzug 0–0 HUElavia D, HUElavia 3–1 Valladares W

8-6-4, 29 GF, 23 GA, +6 GD, 30 Pts

4th of 10, 1 Point off Playoffs

HUElavia rally back to have options open for the playoffs right up to the final Matchday. Even after defeating Valladares, it was not enough to make the playoffs as Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos as they fall short by a single point. One has to wonder what could've been had the team actually capitalized on some of the matches. Maybe if they had scored a single goal at Yezu, Barunia, or Zwangzug to avoid those scoreless draws things could'be been different. Maybe if they hadn't lost those three straight games, things would've been different. But, it can't be helped. HUElavia fell short, but it was signs that this team was willing to fight. And here, we start to give our first congratulations to a team: Congratulations to Brenecia! This is their 1st World Cup title.

HUElavia would once again appear at the Independent Associations Championship, this time in IAC 5, being pinned in a decent group with the likes of Savalen, Yanghoon, Space and Drawkland, the last of whom will be immensely important to the story of HUElavian Football. Once again, the HFA thought about sending a team to a regional tournament, but let's see what happens this time!

Independent Association Championship 5

HUElavia 0–1 Drawkland L, Savalen 2–1 HUElavia L, HUElavia 2–5 Space L, Yanghoon 1–3 HUElavia W

1-0-3, 6 GF, 9 GA, -3 GD, 3 Pts

It took HUElavia 7 official IAC matches to finally record a victory, let alone some sort of points. While it was a tough elimination, such is expected when the team wasn't given enough resources. Still, the victory was a feel good moment and standing up to Drawkland for a respectable 1-0 loss was at least some good points to see. Still, it will be a while before HUElavia would become a mainstay at this regional tournament. That Drawkland team would end up making it to the Final, losing out in the end and going along with what would mark part of a "Legacy of Failure" in the IAC. Congratulations to the Free Republics. This is their 1st IAC Title (and subsequently their only one).

(Song)

World Cup 81 Qualifiers

9-2-7, 39 GF, 21 GA, +18 GD, 29 Pts

5th of 10

World Cup 82 Qualifiers

8-5-5, 26 GF, 23 GA, +3 GD, 29 Pts

3rd of 10, 7 Points of Playoffs.

The next two Qualifying Cycles were more of letdowns for the National Team as they fell very short of the highs they experienced in the World Cup 80 Cycle. World Cup 81 Qualifiers saw HUElavia get some blowout wins, including a 6-2 and 5-0 win over Tasrailia and Tanzanique respectively, as well as a 2-1 revenge win over Britonisea. Although the team suffered tough sweeps against Cosumar and Juvencus, and the team fell to a lackluster 5th out of 10. Congratulations to Vilita! This is their 4th World Cup title (although one that would be marred in controversy much later on).

World Cup 82 Qualifiers saw the team rebound once again, doing notably well with a shock 1-0 win over Brenecia and two draws over Banija. Yet, the team would drop points against teams that they should've been mopping the ground with and end up finishing in a decent 3rd place, but 7 points away from a direct qualification spot, which ended up being Banija getting that spot. Congratulations to Vilita! This is their 5th World Cup title.

World Cup 83 would mark a genuine start for the team, as they felt they really could go up against the Multiverse and give it their push to their first World Cup. Going in these qualifiers, the team was very much motivated to give it their all.

World Cup 83 Qualifiers

Mercedini 2–4 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–0 Aurevbush W, Krytenia 3–2 HUElavia L, HUElavia 1–0 Schottia W, San Carlos Islands 0–6 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–3 Sinyal D

Right at halfway, HUElavia sat in pole position, leading on goal difference over Mercedini, which included that historic 4-2 upset victory over there. Despite a loss to Krytenia, the team still had great momentum to go into the second half of the qualifiers with great options to qualify. All the team had to do was not choke and they'd likely be at the World Cup!

HUElavia 1–2 Mercedini L, Aurevbush 1–1 HUElavia D, HUElavia 2–2 Krytenia D, Schottia 1–0 HUElavia L, HUElavia 2–1 San Carlos Islands W, Sinyal 1–4 HUElavia W

6-3-3, 29 GF, 16 GA, +13 GD, 21 Pts

3rd of 7, 5 Points off playoffs

YOU WHAT. How could this happen??? Dropping 10 out of 12 possible points to start off the 2nd half of qualifiers. This is horrible. In fact, horrible is an understatement! This is a nuclear meltdown in terms of how horrible the choke is. It's such a horrid disgrace to HUElavian Football that the manager resigned right after the qualifiers ended. Terrible 2nd half, and it may be the very worst 2nd half collapse that HUElavia has had in its football history. Anyways, Congratulations to (co-hosts) Equestria! This is their 1st World Cup title.

Despite the collapse, life and the multiverse moves on and HUElavia get their very first ever invite to the Cup of Harmony, a 2nd tier tournament for teams that were great, but just fell short of the actual World Cup. Put into a group with the likes of Port Ember, 95X, Timuria, and Dreamplanet, there was at least some hope that the team can do decent in a debuting tournament!

Cup of Harmony 75

Dreamplanet 3–1 HUElavia L, HUElavia 3–3 Port Ember D, Timuria 1–3 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–3 95X D

And it's another Group Stage elimination yet again. It's in this tournament where HUElavia's known skill of "high scoring, high conceding" begins, as the team was the highest scorer to not make the knockouts at this Cup of harmony. Congratulations to Main Nation Ministry! This is their 1st Cup of Harmony title. While a tough moment to take in, the last two years would serve as the motivation for HUElavia to no longer languish in the Multiverse Football world. Coming up to the National Team and the country itself would be some of its grandest moments, filled with much joy and pain.

(Song)

Overall Record:
64-29-75 Record, 276 GF, 298 GA, -22 GD, 221 Pts

[Indusse]

IFA Today
More Work Needed?

The World Cup 97 Qualifiers continue with the Indussean National Team continuing with their victory streak. The team in their last match squeaked past Beepee with a nail-biting 3-2 victory. This win adds another feather to their cap, but it's not at all smooth for the team.

The match against Beepee was a real nail biting affair. Mersiás, living up to his captain's armband, kicked things off with a stunning goal in the 15th minute. That one early goal made the fans think that there's more left and the team would secure a large margin win against their opponents. Adding to the goal by the captain, Grundjee doubled the lead in the 34th minute with a clever chip over the keeper. Things were going smooth until Beepee fought back, scoring just before halftime.

The Indussean squad in the second half wasn't as strong and active as what it was in the first half. "Where's the fun we had?" says a fan who is very much disappointed with the second half play of his team. Much to everyone's disappointment, They saw Beepee equalize in the 79th minute sending the fans into a panic. But Grundjee came to the rescue again, scoring the winner goal in the 86th minute. But that wasn't the end of it, Beepee turned more agressive as the third goal went inside the post. The final four minutes had entirely been a nightmare for the Indussean Squad as well as the Fans. The final whistle brought relief and joy to the Indusse camp. All of them thought that they were about to lose an easy win against Beepee.

The team won keeping themselves up with others in the qualification run, but not everyone is happy. The internet's buzzing with criticism aimed at goalkeeper Jahangir Shehzad. Fans are frustrated that Shehzad hasn't kept a clean sheet this qualification cycle. Social media is flooded with calls to give the gloves to Peter Bashfork, the second-choice keeper.

Some of the trending posts said, "Shehzad's letting in goals like he's running a charity! #BringOnBashfork"
Another posted, "How many chances does Shehzad need? Time for Bashfork to show what he can do!"
Shehzad's who has been seeing the criticism that's been trending over the media replied, "I hear the fans, and I understand their frustration. I consider myself to be the biggest critic of myself. I'm putting in extra hours in training and working closely with our goalkeeping coach. I'm confident I can turn this around if given the chance. Clean sheets are coming, I promise you that."

Adding to the drama, veteran player Butea dropped a bombshell in the post-match press conference. He hinted that this might be his last World Cup campaign for Indusse. "I've had an incredible run with the national team," Butea said, his voice braeking with emotion. "But it's time we start looking to the future. We've got some amazing young talent coming up."

Butea specifically mentioned two rising stars he thinks deserve a shot at the national camp. "Michael Djenkzo, that 18-year-old striker from Dhalopura FC, he's been on fire in Liga Prime this season and Akshay Adhaan, the defender from Sindvpore FC, he's rock solid at the back. These kids are the future of Indusse football."

The idea of new blood in the squad has got fans talking. Some are excited about the prospect of fresh talent, while others are reluctant to see old favorites step aside. One such fans posted online, "It's sad to see the old chaps leaving. I grew up watching them, and now it seems they are gonna go. First it was BHK then everyone started to leave. I just don't want to stop watching my team, but I think the new folks in would surely bring us glory."

As Indusse continues its World Cup 97 qualification campaign, it's clear there's more than just matches being played. The team's dealing with goalkeeper controversies, potential retirements, and the excitement of new talent joining the camp. The road to World Cup 97 promises to be an exciting journey for Indusse, both on and off the field.

[Baggieland]

Chicanery

King Alsqueak, Madame Xianggu, Dundee Talke, Sunny Austin and Sammy the parrot (as well as some nameless pirates) all retired to their sleeping quarters. Fandango wished each and every one of them a good night's sleep.

Two o'clock in the morning

Madame Xianggu: "Right, quiet everyone! We be needing to find this Molineux fortune."

Dundee Talke: "The king and I will check the western wing."

Madame Xianggu: "Okay, Sunny and I be checking the eastern wing. You pirates check the gardens… Sammy keep an eye on them!"

The two pirates ghosted through the long and winding corridors of the old château as they stealthily made their approach to the eastern wing. All of a sudden, a familiar figure appeared before them.

Fandango Molineux: "Shouldn't you guys be asleep?"

Madame Xianggu: "Yaar… ahem… Why Mr. Fandango, what a pleasure to see you at this early hour."

Fandango Molineux: "What are you doing?"

Madame Xianggu: "We're… umm… looking for a good place where we can release the plague cure. Tell me, what is up there in that high tower?"

Fandango Molineux: "I'm afraid that tower is off-limits. No one's allowed up there except for Molineux family members only."

Madame Xianggu: "But it looks like the perfect place to release the cure."

Fandango Molineux: "In that case, I'll get the keys right away. Don't go anywhere!"

Madame Xianggu: "Sunny, tell all the others to be coming here and get the crew to bring the crate o' weapons!"

Meanwhile at the château's kitchen table, two other people were having a late night cuppa together.

Hedvig Molineux: "Tell me Oddstein, you've lived amongst the Baggies, what are they really like? It seems strange to me that such an uncouth lot could have discovered the cure to the root vegetable plague. What's really going on here?"

Oddstein Øye: "I can tell you a thing or two about Baggies… "


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[Langenia]

Noticias: Deportes A Victory and Yet Another Loss Match Day 7 and Match Day 8 spoke to the strengths and weaknesses of Langenian national team Los Azules in their push for World Cup qualification. It began with a 4-2 win at home over Al-Tamazgha at Diego Talaman Stadium in Aragon. Relentless attacks allowed the Langenians to score four goals in the match while conceding two, but as usual concerns were raised over their defensive problems that continuously allowed opponents to find opportunities to gain points. These concerns would come to a fever pitch after a 2-1 defeat against the Kytlerian national team abroad. The game against Al-Tamazgha was a classic display of the Langenian style of attacking football in addition to Los Azules coach Enrique Vargas's attempts to improve the Langenian defense. Al-Tamazgha would open up the scoring at the 8th minute as they would head the ball into the Los Azules net from a corner kick. However, a goal from Raul Guzman, who had returned after an injury scare against Libesia in Match Day 3, would bring the Langenians back to life at the 15th minute, as the striker would be assisted by midfielder Rafael Semprun to penetrate the Al-Tamazghan defense, dribble towards the goal and score. At the 36th minute, midfielder Daniel Gallegos would cross the ball to captain Oscar Galindo for a finish that would put Langenia up 2-1. In the second half, Los Azules would show no sign of their constant attacks abating as they sought redemption in front of their fans after being defeated at the first home game against Huayramarca earlier. An attack from "The Three G's" at the 57th minute would be foiled only for the ball to end up at the feet of Rafael Semprun, who dribbled forwards and unleash a long-range missile that made it squarely into the top of the Al-Tamazghan goal. Al-Tamazgha, galvanized now that they had fallen behind even more, would attempt a comeback by counterattacking at the 65th minute. It was clear they had studied up on Los Azules's issues in preventing crosses, and would do just that to score and give the Langenians a run for their money. A second counterattack would be prevented by the Langenian defense, with center-back Zacarias Montes clearing the ball back to the Los Azules attackers at the front. This time, Daniel Gallegos would attempt to put his name on the score board, dribbling towards the opposing net and unluckily having his powerful shot hit the top of the post to go skywards. Fullback Pablo Molina would steal the ball from Al-Tamazgha to stop their counterattack, sending it to Gallegos at the front via Semprun. Gallegos would play the ball backwards to winger Jaime Cruz, and Cruz would surprisingly attempt to score on his own, attempting a bending shot that would bounce off the post and into the Al-Tamazghan net to seal the Langenian victory. It was a successful match for Los Azules, but their conceding two goals would hint at the continued defensive problems that have plagued them and would be their undoing against the Kytlerians. Once again playing abroad against the Kytler Peninsulae, Los Azules would attempt to replicate their previous away success over Libesia, which had also been a defensive-minded team like the Kytlerians. Nonetheless, the Kytlerian defense would stifle the Langenian attacking machine, conceding only one goal in which Rafael Semprun's corner kick found the head of fullback Ivan Elvira for the Langenians to score at the 19th minute. However, within the span of 15 minutes, two devastating Kytlerian counterattacks would put the Langenians behind for the rest of the match as Los Azules could not match the stamina of their opponents. At the 31st minute, the Langenians would fumble an attack and turn over the ball to the Kytlerians, who would capitalize on the opportunity to have midfielder Vincent cross to striker Danny Markusson to score and tie the match at 1-1. Only eight minutes later at the 39th minute, Vincent would score with a long-range shot from his powerful right foot that would graze the hand of Los Azules goalkeeper Eduardo Arnal and go into the back of the net for the Kytler Peninsulae to take the lead. Down by one goal at the halftime, the Langenians would attempt to make a comeback at the second half, however, Oscar Galindo's shot from the penalty area line would just barely roll past the post and miss, and Raul Guzman's attempt at breaking through the opposing defense with some quick dribbling and step over tricks would only end in his shot being saved by Kytlerian goalkeeper Kuno Zeelen. Failing to equalize, Langenia would be defeated 2-1, and in the process fall to 5th in their World Cup qualification group standings. Los Azules manager Enrique Vargas has started to come under fire from the press over Langenia's defensive woes and high number of goals conceded. Commenting on the fact that despite scoring 15 goals Los Azules have allowed 11, Vargas angrily stated "You are the same people who demand we keep the same attacking style. Naturally, these are the results. Nonetheless, we're working to fix whatever problems we have when forced on the defensive, and I am willing to put my job on the line to make sure these issues are solved." In another interesting roster change, Eduardo Arnal, who has been Langenia's starting goalkeeper since the Baptism of Fire tournament, was benched for Match Day 7 and 8. In his place will be Isidoro Alvarado, who recently signed with Liga Nacional club FC Jala in free agency after his prior contract with Trujillo came to an end. Upcoming Los Azules Matches MD7: Langenia vs Kamijiro MD8: Captina Island vs Langenia

[Avisora]

Avisoran streak snapped

Image AI generated
13 August, 2024

The Penguins drop to 4th place after 6 matches, with their lossless streak ending after 5. First off, the Avisoran team managed to snatch a late draw against a Doubeia women's team that had faced serious criticism. Just a game after, a visit to Poafmersia ended terribly and the team returned with a 5-4 loss on its record. Allowing 7 goals in 2 matches won't do the team any favors, and the defense is starting to show the same cracks as they did in the Baptism of Fire. The next games will be key, as just 3 points separate Avisora either from the top of from 7th place.

"It's inevitable, in sports you sometimes lose," spoke manager Pedro Valencia. "Of course we're not happy but to say we're mentally defeated is an overstatement. We're in a good spot, just because we had the best of starts doesn't mean we can't afford to lose. Just remember what happened in the Baptism of Fire, we lost the first game and still qualified for the next round. We'll keep working hard and I think we've proven we're capable of beating anyone."

Avisora 2-2 Doubeia
The Avisoran team was confident, but they didn't consider the Doubeia squad they would face had a point to prove. Just half an hour in, Miloradova received a ball that went right over the heads of the Avisoran defenders, allowing her to control, turn and shoot it to the right of Bocachica. The Indigo Army had a one goal advantage as the teams returned to the locker rooms. Valencia clearly thought something was going very bad with the team, as he replaced Ayala and Zafra for the second half. The game turned unto a grueling battle in midfield, with several players earning yellows on both sides. Then, in a stroke of genius or luck or both, Edgardo Vega took the rebound off a corner and hit it from outside the box. The ball went into the top right corner as Avisora equalized! The emotion lasted all of 2 minutes, when a free kick from Shubina was flicked by an Avisoran defender, with Miloradova alone once again to easily head the ball in. It seemed like Doubeia would be getting on a plane with the 3 points, but some messy defending allowed Sanabria to cross it in for Horacio Vega to head into the back of the net. The game ended 2-2, with the Avisoran players and staff quite disappointed. In the stands some rowdy Indigo Army fans had to be escorted out of the stadium after overreacting to the Avisoran celebration of the last minute goal.

Timeline
'12 - Yellow card to Zafra
'25 - Yellow card to Antipova
'30 - Doubeia goal (Miloradova)
'42 - Yellow card to Menshikova
'46 - de la Renta subs Zafra
'46 - H. Vega subs Ayala
'46 - Yellow card to Marin
'48 - Yellow card to Miloradova
'51 - Avisora goal (E. Vega)
'53 - Doubeia goal (Miloradova)
'55 - Yellow card to Colón
''58 - Jiménez subs Cruz
'75 - Mamykina subs Miloradova
'75 - Kuznetsova subs Oborina
'82 - Yellow card to Leonova
'82 - Yellow card to Barkova
'84 - Yellow card to Pacheco
'88 - Avisora goal (H. Vega)
'88 - Kuzenkova-Domínguez subs Semerikova

Avisora 4-5 Poafmersia
It was a disappointing collapse for Avisora, specially after they were ahead 2-0 early in the game. However, Poafmersia proved to be the stronger team, coming back with an offensive surge capped off by 2 goals in the last 10 minutes of the game.

Timeline
'13 - Yellow card to Zafra
'18 - Avisora goal (Sanabria)
'28 - Yellow card to Bocachica
'32 - Avisora goal (Pérez)
'33 - Poafmersia goal
'39 - Poafmersia goal
'40 - Urrutia subs Colón
'44 - Yellow card to Delgado
'50 - Poafmersia goal
'54 - Avisora goal (Sandoval)
'68 - Guerrero subs Sandoval
'71 - Avisora goal (Sanabria)
'83 - Serrano subs Pérez
'85 - Poafmersia goal
'87 - Poafmersia goal

Top Avisoran goalscorers in the World Cup qualifiers
1. Diego Sanabria - 5
2. Julio Sandoval - 3
3. Eduardo Pérez - 2
4. Benito Colón, Oscar Cruz, Edgardo Vega, Horacio Vega - 1

Top Avisoran assisters in the World Cup qualifiers
1. Andrés Pacheco - 4
2. Eduardo Pérez - 3
3. Benito Colón, Diego Sanabria - 2
4. Chibiú Bocachica - 1

[TJUN-ia]

The Random Rambles of a Jaguar - WC97 Qualifying Edition
with Killian Looker

Welcome back to this Random Ramble. TJUN-ia is finally on the board but at 1-3, we are not exactly in a good place right now. Everyone knows we have to do better if we want any chance of flying deep in this cycle so with that in mind, let's see what we could do here.

The Matches
Game 5 was over in Megistos against a team that we had no real knowledge of prior to this contest. I mean. we knew where we were going, but we had no teamsheets and limited film to go over heading into this game. Considering they had started 0-3, we were quietly confident of getting a result, but nothing is set in stone in sport and this game was a good example of that reality coming true. We scored three goals in this game through Kristina Bay, Stephan Fiedtkou and substitute Alisha Carlton, but Megistos managed to peg us back everytime and that would mean this 'easy' game ended in a 3-3 draw. Huh.

Then we came home, to Kepu Manu in fact, as The Godlands I made the trip to Ke Kahua Pāʻani o Pua Aloalo for an interesting game. How do I describe The Godlands I as an entity? Well, The Godlands I is a team of 5 main players - Abraham (Ra) in goal, Iris (Gaia) and Acorn (Odin) in defense, Juno (Leviathan) in midfield and Anon (Indra) in attack - that are very powerful beings in their own right. These five are the only citizens of The Godlands I, there were no traveling support or substitutes to speak of unless if you counted the numerous mannequins in black and blue, but what we did get was a dangerous team...and that was proven here. They took the lead after only 5 minutes through Indra and that came together like a bolt from the blue. We got one back before half time thanks to Fernandino but we couldn't do much after that and so, a 1-1 it was.

Reactions
3-3 and 1-1 against two teams of unknown backgrounds did not go down well at all. It just felt like we had run out of steam already, ran out of ideas already and ran out of luck already. Sure, we are only 3 points off the Top 3, but the Top 2 are already so far ahead that they are basically ucatchable baring some minor miracle. It sucks, it really does.

What's Next...
What is next? Just the one game due to a bye, that being over in the Equestrian States. If we want to be Top 3, we have to beat teams like them. It's as simple as that. GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group 3)
MD1: @Sudilia (84) L 0-2 (T-8th)
MD2: vs Zwangzug (19) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky L 0-1 (7th)
---------------Ramble---------------
MD3: @East Leaf (266) W 2-1 (7th)
MD4: vs Valanora (1) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City L 2-3 (8th)
---------------Ramble---------------
MD5: @Megistos (UR) D 3-3 (6th)
MD6: vs The Godlands I (201) - Ke Kahua Pāʻani o Pua Aloalo, Kepu Manu D 1-1 (7th)
---------------Ramble---------------
MD7: @Equestria (Equestrian States) (108)
MD8: BYE
---------------Ramble---------------
MD9: vs Polar Islandstates (69) - Stade de la Victoire, Roi Ville
MD10: vs Sudilia (84) - Estadio Universidad Carlandas, Carlandas
---------------Ramble---------------
MD11: @Zwangzug (19) - Wayr Stadium, Rackham Range
MD12: vs East Leaf (266) - Estádio do Pacífico, Rio Pacífico
---------------Ramble---------------
MD13: @Valanora (1) - Hatire Memorial, Capri
MD14: vs Megistos (UR) - Zebra Stadium, Toropo/Almadinat
---------------Ramble---------------
MD15: @The Godlands I (201) - Ascended Stadium, Koroa City
MD16: vs Equestria (Equestrian States) (108) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong
---------------Ramble---------------
MD17: BYE
MD18: @Polar Islandstates (69) - Nasjonale Stadion, Franz Josef City

[Flavovespia]

The Pyramid
Level 6

Level 6, and commonly known as Alliance D2 in Flavovespia. The second level of non-league football, and for a while the bottom of the pyramid a side could be. Formed during the expansion by the FFA controlled FAF (Football Alliance of Flavovespia), it took the 64 best eligible sides outside the pyramid at the time, to form 4 16 team divisions, split North, West, South and East. Initially Level 5 when it formed in 4AU, it became Level 6 in 30AU when the Western and Eastern League of Level 3 became the National League Division 1 and National League Division 2. The geography of those divisions has encountered collisions with logistics and competitive balance, with the southern coast in the Central parts of Flavovespia in the “Northern Alliance D2”, due to the concentration of clubs in the south and east. Furthermore, the 20 or so years of an effective closed shop at the bottom saw allegations of many teams hanging on with no competitiveness.

This is the lowest level where semi-professionalism is a requirement. A minimum salary of £100 per week, in practice higher for some players, and for a minimum of 18 squad players, is required. Players at this level will almost certainly have other jobs or sources of income, but plenty began careers as professional footballers or youth academy rejects. There are others though who rose up with their sides through the regional leagues, or were trialled. Scouting at this level tends to be little more than “my mate knows this guy in the area” or “this bloke who’s played around here is looking for a club”. Indeed any long term fan of a Level 6 side will remember some players for the wrong reasons, although plenty are remembered for the right reasons. Stadium wise, a minimum seating capacity of 500 is required, with rules also regarding facilities for players, fans and a small number of corporate spectators.

Level 6 sides have recently seen 3 relegation spots, up from 2 before, and 1.5 up to Level 5 per division (North/West and South/East 2nd and 2rd placed sides playoff for a promotion spot on each set of 4 teams). Here there’s a variety of teams that have never been as high as this, or as low as this. Some have been rewarded by the opening of the pyramid, like Ellerstone Open Space, Westwood North FC, Stanmorn Spirit and Mervale FC. At the other end of the scale, teams like Buchraston Heath, Leabury, Capton Heath Village, all have had stints at considerably higher levels, and are stuck in the grind of semi-professionalism. A handful of clubs here have shedded their past to become eligible for this level, such as Old Saints, formerly a side of ex-St Astons University players, but still as an internal rule playing at least one each game, and Hadford Aerodrome, formerly a workers team of the aforementioned site.

Clubs at this level enter the Flavovespia Gold Cup at Preliminary Round 1, the ambition is a Round 1 proper berth. A few teams get to Round 2, with the biggest sides entering, and occasionally thry are some huge upsets. Fullertons defeating Marthorpe City is the most recent example of a Level 6 side defeating a Level 1 side. There’s also the Alliance Shield, a competition for the 96 Alliance sides. Some at Level 6 have made deep runs there, and the tournament is fairly well respected amongst the sides. Nevertheless, the true glory lies in the Flavovespia Gold Cup.

Level 6, once the foundations of the pyramid, now sits at an interesting level. At one end, there’s the plucky, formerly amateur sides starting their semi-pro journey, hoping to go further. At the other end, clubs who’ve fallen uncomfortably low, and want to get back on more solid footing. A competitive level, even if the stakes are still relatively low financially.

[Loch Dearg]

Defensive Masterclass has Loch Dearg Dreaming

The Evening Gazette
New Fernia 0-1 Loch Dearg
Loch Dearg 0-0 Recuecn
Delaclava 0-1 Loch Dearg

Loch Dearg manager Rory Daniels pointed to the heavens as the final whistle went, he'd masterminded a 4th consecutive clean sheet as Loch Dearg climbed to 4th in the group and just a point behind the automatic qualifying spots. Many had criticised the appointment as overly conservative with Daniels specialising in relegation dogfights and defensive football. However his critics have now done a 180 and are fully backing the former Clover Athletic coach. After the game Daniels said: "I know what the media reaction was just a few weeks ago, people were overreacting to our friendly results but within the camp we kept things positive. Now I'm telling them to ignore media opinions during the good times and it'll be easier to ignore the noise when things go badly. What I do is right for underdogs, it helps us punch above our weight. If you want attacking football and flair then come back to me when we're a top 20 ranked nation, otherwise it doesn't help get actual results". The away game against Delaclava showed the Loch Dearg strategy going exactly to plan, with a deep and compact defence frustrating the hosts throughout the game. Loch Dearg countered quickly midway through the second half, with De Búrca being taken down on the right flank. From the resulting free kick Doyle whipped a cross towards the back post where the big centre half Cian Mac Cormaic was there to nod home. From there it was about game management, a kind way to describe time wasting and diving. Daniels added; "As an unranked team we were coming up against a side who are 63rd in the world. This is a tough group and it's our first tournament, I think what we're doing together here is special". De Búrca in particular had a key role late in the game, single-handedly shielding the ball next to the corner flag for 3 minutes as the clock ticked down. The final whistle was met raucous applause from the travelling fans. Loch Dearg have conceded just once across 5 matches, with a very competitive race developing for 2nd and 3rd behind runaway group leaders Saint Eleanor. The nation has gotten increasingly behind the national side and their defensive approach, the underdog spirit helping to unite the country from school playgrounds to office water coolers. Many tough challenges await but there are murmurs throughout the nation about potentially qualifying for the World Cup on the first time of asking.

[The Archregimancy]

The match against the Krytenians had gone surprisingly smoothly, the visitors unable to cope with the pace, dribbling skill, and spring-loaded boots of the Imperial garden gnomes. Even more encouragingly, the gnomes had actually behaved. Well, sort of behaved; by their standards. There had been no ankle biting of the opponents, and only a little enthusiastic leaping into the air after each of the five goals, which did eventually find Gnomish shown a yellow card for over-enthusiastic celebrating.

So long as they played to that standard, and kept the mischief to a minimum, Juan remembered thinking after the match, then qualification would surely be a doddle.

The Darmen match, though.... Juan shook his head at how the gnomes had thrown that one away.

The Holy Empire had been leading for most of the match following a 10th-minute direct free kick by Gnostic, and - just like in the Krytenia match - they'd been on their best behaviour, even toning down the 'WEEEEEES' of excitement when flying in the air. It was clear that Darmen manager Riley Mac Pharlain was deeply unhappy about playing the gnomes - had even said as much in public before the match - and was completely flummoxed by the Imperial squad's tactics.

And then.... 5 minutes into injury time, with the Holy Empire leading 1-0... After almost two matches when the gnomes had been on their best behaviour...

Juan Tzimisces sighed to himself.

The problem with fielding a squad of knee-high argumentative ankle-biting garden gnomes (with springs in their football boots) is that it wasn't always going to be the opposition they argued with. Five minutes into injury time, Gnap accidentally stepped on Gnomon's foot. Soon the two right-sided midfielders were tugging on each others' beards, and slapping at each other in a pathetic, slightly ridiculous, and wholly unnecessary argument. Before Juan and Simeone could react, they were rolling around on the ground. Before anyone in the stadium really knew what was going on, the rest of the gnomes started fighting each other, tugging on beards, getting into ridiculous slap fights, and then rolling around on the ground, fighting each other utterly ineffectually. Both Juan and Simeone were strongly reminded of an obscure form of entertainment known as 'animated cartoons' that were apparently popular in some of the more obscure mundy realities.

All of which is how an utterly bemused James January found himself standing in front of a completely empty Holy Empire goal for the simplest of equalising tap-ins with the very last kick of the match.

Goodness the gnomes were going to get a whipping tonight, Juan Tzimisces thought to himself.

But the gnomes would be brilliant if they weren't so erratic...

Maybe there was still time to train them properly; maybe.

[Zenic]

Trouble brewing on the horizon for the Survivors?

It is no secret that despite changes to the format, the road to the World Cup would paradoxically get easier and harder than before. More teams would be able to qualify than at any previous point in time but it also meant that teams that would normally be eliminated and maybe play with less aggression would now be going full force almost until the end for a chance to sneak in via the third place spot playoffs. Thus, games that would normally be easier matches that could be used to rest up are now battles to the final whistle.

And with that, some teams that were not expected to be challenged for a qualifying spot are doing just that while teams expected to do well are going through tough adjustment periods. Our Survivors are one of the latter teams. Despite being amongst the top 3 in total goals scored after 5 games in 6 matchdays, they sit squarely in 5th place in Group 8 at a record of 1 win, 3 draws and 1 loss with a +6 goal differential. They are firing on all cylinders so far but seem unable to stop even the greenest of newcomers to the World Cup Qualifiers.

A game expected to be the start of a rebound became another footnote of frustrations as Zenic dropped 2 points to the North Oharan Valley Union as the most recent match ended 2-2. Goals from Nakazawa and Dejulio put the Survivors up early and the lead held until the second half. However, the Green Lions got top performances from Jens Holmsen and Ievalds Krastins to equalize. Another example so far of Zys' squad being good enough not to lose but not good enough to get the win. Below we have included an excerpt from the latest press conference held by the management for the Zenician National Futbol Team before the next qualifying matches:

1st Reporter: Based on analysis from experts, this squad should be higher up in the group standings at this current moment. Some would say that this squad is underperforming relative to expectations. What do you have to say to that?

Zys: Well, I agree and disagree. Obviously, I know what this team can do and the heights that they can achieve. It's the reason I haven't made any changes to the squad yet: everyone on this team has potential to be champions. So, we should be doing better in that regard. However, I think most of that 'expert' analysis fails to take in the human element. Players can overperform, underperform or perform as expected. But thinking you'll be able to know or predict when and what someone will do every time ESPECIALLY in a sport with a bit of luck involved is crazy or a liar. We aren't the first team with expectations to struggle and we will not be the last. So, yes I hope our recent adjustments in focus resolve the issues we've been having but it's definitely not time to hit the panic button right now.

2nd Reporter: Since the players on the squad were mentioned, any updates on injuries or changes to the lineup?

Zys: In regard to changes, none at the moment. As mentioned before, we just made some adjustments which will take some time to take effect. IF those changes do not pan out, we will consider it but nothing is set in stone. Injury wise, Giuseppe's knee is doing well. A bit of a sprain but it's mostly healed so he will be starting. We will be without Satoshi for these next two games as he will be with his wife, who's expecting any day now. So, congratulations to them ahead of time. A few bruises here and there but nothing else too bad to report.

3rd Reporter: What do you have to say to the supporters of the national team at the moment?

Zys: Faith and Patience. There are still a LOT of games left to play and plenty of time to find changes that get us winning more. New Citium wasn't built overnight: it took careful planning to make sure it was the best it could be. We have the same idea in mind for the Survivors. So please have even a tiny bit of faith and patience with the squad: I promise it will pay off. Thank you. Enjoy the rest of your days.

As you've just read, there is cautious optimism from within the FZF that a change in attitude, and a slight change in gameplan, will indeed be enough to right the ship and get Zenic back into the top three spots of Group 8. But it won't be a smooth ride: up next are the top seed of the group, Tumbra, tied for the lead with the Commonwealth of Baker Park, followed up with upstarts Riena, who have more wins than Zenic does but are just below them in the standings. Back to back wins here would be a shockingly quick reversal of fate and would put the squad right into the middle of a 5 team logjam at the top of the group.

All we can do now is have a bit of faith and patience as we see how things play out.

-- Koralia Dev

Koralia Dev is one of our newest and most enthusiastic writers at The Leinz Herald. A graduate from the prestigious New Citium University, Koralia graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and has been working for the Herald covering foreign and international sporting events. We are excited to have her cover the Empire of Zenic’s return to sporting events, both domestic and international.

[Kronbia]

---

3. Primera Liga Kronbia

In 1997, the Ministry of Youth and Sports announces the formation of the Kronbia Football Federation (Federación de Fútbol de Kronbia). Eleven teams from all the cities of Kronbia apply to establish a football league. The association begins studying the matter, then announces the conditions for the teams that will join the league, including the team’s budget, owning a stadium with a capacity of no less than 4,000 seats, owning a roster of 23 players and a Management staff, and some other matters such as the logo and colors of the team’s kits, etc. After that, only 8 clubs are able to enter the league, and in 1998, the first season of the Kronbia First League (Primera Liga Kronbia) begins.

---

The First Defeat for Kronbia

The Kronbia men's national football team suffered its first defeat in the World Cup 97 qualification at the hands of the Siovanija and Teusland team and the surprise was the defeat in Home at Estadio Cerro del Sol in front of its fans, so the match ended 2-0 in favor of Siovanija and Teusland with goals from Aleksander Kosch-Kovarik, which caused sadness among the fans in a gloomy scene when the fans’ cheers fell silent after the second goal.

In the sixth round, the Kronbia men's national football team travels to territory of Valentine Z to face its counterpart, and there at the Fate Stadium – Naypyithaw, the Kronbia team wins 3-2, with two goals by Ovidio Florencio and goal by Valerio.

---

[Zwangzug]

The Bassabook Baritone

The national football team rolled to a comfortable victory over East Leaf. The "Green Samurais" made their debut in the recent Baptism of Fire, but still have a long journey to reach the standards of World Cup qualification. Ryuya Kotani, Brian Spand-Maunk, and Beppo Hegesa all recorded goals for the home side at Eglantine Park.

Being able to post three-goal victories in a perfunctory fashion is not something any country should take for granted; nevertheless, fans could be forgiven if some of Zwangzug's players occasionally looked as lackadaisical as the now-nameless Samurais. Fortunately, I just returned from a visit to Nuel, where I had the pleasure of meeting with the local chapter of the Ancient and Honorable Guild of Tower Ringers. And let me tell you, if you think sports fans are obsessive and nerdy about recording statistics, these guys are nuts. But they also have lots of advice on how to add additional constraints to their pastime, and we sure do love constraints. Who knows? Maybe some of these could rejuvenate football culture.

-Shorter matches. Ninety-ish minutes is a lot; it would be more accessible to have twenty-three minute "quarter games." Not only will that help families on school nights, but it increases the likelihood of an upset result for sides like East Leaf! Of course, it probably also increases the probability of scoreless draws, but what can you do.

-Lots of awkward asides about the relationship between the team and the pitches where they play. Sure, we're kind of limited in what we do, in that we can't exactly relocate and play football out on the train tracks, but stadiums also have lots of other uses, from snack bars to...occasional concert venues? And we want to make sure people feel free to come to those even if they don't believe in the whole "football" thing.

-A fun challenge: recruit a national team consisting of only players with the same first name. Mr. McDonald from Trebuchet Cham is probably the cream of the crop among Johns, but there are surely at least ten others in the country, right? I don't know about Awidlyons.

-Another "hard mode": the manager has to submit her list of planned substitutions to the referee before the match begins, and can't communicate with the players once they began. It's on them to remember the minute when they're supposed to leave and pay attention to the game clock. If anyone gets injured, too bad, we'll try again some other time.

-Instead of actually running around on the pitch, why not play foosball? You can practice tactics without so much of the physical commitment.

-When even in-person foosball becomes impractical (lockdowns or whatever), there should be a way to simulate an entire match just by sitting in front of your computers and working in synchronicity with other people in web browsers. I know it sounds radical, but just hear me out.

[Libesia]

For all the Libesian Football Association’s well meaning attempts at integration, the changing room of the Cheetahs had taken on a certain self-enforced sorting. Sulaimaan Cismaan, Busar Hamidi, and Agour Semaan – coincidentally, the three Watoto players – kept to their own corner. While the goalscorers – Leon Mzuzi and Gaston Rouanet, whose header in the 5th minute of added time had saved the first point in the history of the independent Libesian national team – were loudly celebrating with the Ihlathi, Akraman, Babban Jemage, and Kuroo players, the Watoto players marked out their own, rather more sombre, space. Busar and Agour were consoling Sulaimaan. Far from glorying in leading the team to a fine (if slightly undeserved) draw against The Kytler Peninsulae, he was in a deep existential funk.

Footballers get their aches and pains. Their knees, backs, groins. Sometimes their head might ache a little after some overenthusiastic heading of the ball. But a deep malaise arising not from some physical complaint, but a psychic melodrama, was a more rare condition. Nonetheless, there was no mistaking the gravity of Sulaimaan’s expression of ennui.

“Just tell us what’s troubling you, brother,” Agour advised him. He’d replaced Busar in the match but the two had put aside any rivalry for the starting right-back position to console their friend.

“OK, just promise me you won’t laugh.” Sulaimaan took a deep breath, and looked up. “Are we…

“Are we AI generated?”

Busar frowned. “No,” he ejaculated forcefully. “What? Why? Why would you think that?”

Yet despite his seeming confidence, Agour noticed him turning over his hands and slowly counting his fingers.

“I’ve just heard it’s going around,” muttered Sulaimaan.

“I think that’s mpox.”

“No, no. I definitely read something. In the foreign press.”

Agour let Sulaimaan know what he thought of the foreign press, blowing out air from his cheeks. “Pfffft. Those clowns always trying to put us down. Ignore them.”

“But, how could we tell? If we were? AI generated? It’s gotten so clever that we wouldn’t be able to tell, would we?”

Busar shook his head. “No, no. We’d tell. There are ways of telling.” As if in evidence, he proudly held up his hands, fingers spread. Unfortunately, Busar had been born with a rare, though not unknown, congenital defect, giving him an extra finger on each hand, so it didn’t really inspire much confidence on Sulaimaan’s part. (It also didn’t seem to help with the accuracy of his throw-ins.) “See, brother? Twelve fingers, count them.”

Sulaimaan muttered warily. “They’re getting better at avoiding that.”

“OK,” cut in Agour. “What makes you think we are AI generated?”

Sulaimaan waited, and then eventually sighed. He reached into his bag and brought out a photograph, taken to mark the event of the team’s inaugural home game against Langenia. Around the players were clustered various supporters who’d flooded the field after the final whistle, undeterred by the meagre efforts of security, and the 2–3 result doing little to dampen their spirits.

“I read something. That AI is getting good at making faces. But only in the middle. The faces around the edge look really screwed up and creepy. And look!” He stabbed at the photo with a finger, pointing out a looming figure to one side of the team, not quite in focus, their face an obscene parody of human flesh, a procedurally generated horror of…

“That’s my daughter,” objected Busar.

Sulaimaan looked again. “Is it? Oh… oh. She’s a… handsome young woman.”

Busar snatched the photo away angrily. “She came on the pitch with the rest of my family. And you’re saying she’s too ugly to be a real person?”

“Strong jawline,” Sulaimaan offered weakly.

Stewing, Busar stomped off, leaving Agour behind with Sulaimaan.

“At least you know that wasn’t AI generated either,” Agour shrugged. “Feeling better now, brother?”

Sulaimaan nodded, but did not look convinced. “I just think we need to be on the lookout. Until we’re sure…”

Gabino entered the changing room, and was met by cheers from his players. Mamoon Mahuroos Saba shook his hand warmly and clapped him on the back. One point from four games wasn’t much, but in the land of the people whose eyes have been eaten by crocodiles, the one-eyed man is chief.*

“OK boys, that was much better,” he said. “But we still need to work on our defence before the trip to Kamijiro. So enjoy tonight, but be ready for practice tomorrow.”

“You coming out for a drink, coach?” Kwamba Moléngo asked, before casting a guilty eye towards the (tee-total) Watoto players.

Gabino shook his head. “No, no. No rest for me. I need to go upstairs and delve into the stats.”

Sulaimaan, whose head had slumped between his knees, shot up, fixing the coach with an angry stare.

“What did you just say!?”

Gabino took a step back, side-eyeing Kwamba, who shrugged helplessly and mouthed ‘no idea!’.

“I was just, uh, saying I needed to delve into…”

“Delve? Delve?! DELVE! Aaaaaah! You’re one of them, you robot son-of-a-bitch! Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!”

---

A week later, as the Cheetahs trooped off victims of a 5–1 thrashing at the hands of a rampant Kamijiro side, coach Gabino Ikeno did not explain why he was sporting a black eye. When a reporter asked about team morale, his terse reply: “Not great, to be honest. Not great.”

---

* Traditional Libesian folk tale.

[Edsmontik]

AWAY AND TIRED- DER-GHAVYR'S EAGLES UNABLE TO DO MUCH
LIVE ON ISN NOW

Following the horrifying performance at the Saint Eleanor match, these BoF84 winners aren't very happy.
According to der-Ghavyr, there's much to improve on, and the team may or may not get used to the new positions soon.
And if they don't by matchday 6, he says, he might change it up to their winning 4-3-2-1 Wide Formation.
No one exactly knows why he changed to 4-3-3 Wide, but many say it's to push Bervaign up and give Aespana a chance on the left wing.
With that, I'm your commentator, Undest Vikronfirm, and we are here this early morning, in Loch Dearg.

---

NS WORLD CUP - QUALIFIERS MD3
LOCH DEARG HOME STADIUM, LOCH DEARG
LOCH DEARG VS EDSMONTIK

PRE-GAME
"We have to do something this game. We're playing unranked Loch Dearg, who we beat a while back in a friendly!" Stuero says.
"Loch Dearg has played one game, that being against Saint Eleanor. We lost 4-1, and they somehow only mustered a 1-0 loss." der-Struvos says. "And boss, can I at least get some game time? My injury is healed."
"I'll see if the situation gets too dire." der-Ghavyr says.
"When will we change up our lineup again? I feel like the 4-3-1-2 was much better." Aespana says.
"By matchday 6, if you guys aren't used to your new positionings, then I'll change it back." der-Ghavyr tells him. "Meanwhile, our bus has arrived."
Not too long later, the Eagles hop off at Loch Dearg's home stadium.
"Touve could use a bigger stadium. It has less than 25,000 capacity. I mean, we've already upgraded the Woodhill Arenæ. 50,800 seats now." Fruedenne says.
"True, this stadium makes ours look small." der-Suiozkeafter adds.

KICKOFF
"Welcome, welcome all, to this morning's 3rd world cup qualifier! We have Edsmontik in a 4-3-3 wide, der-Zyfragken in net, followed by Kizani, Javarqa, der-Suiozkeafter and Jervanois in defense..."
Javarqa walks up to the referees.
The Edsmon fans are loud, looking for a win.
The coin flips.
A Loch Dearg start.
The team is still uneasy from the loss just two days ago.
"This might not be easy. Something tells me that." Berviagn says to Recikt.
"Gud Lubreskinen" he tells his teammates before walking back to his position.
Anything could happen.
Donohue takes the ball.
*TWEET!*

FIRST-HALF
Donohue passes to De Búrca.
The game starts up, and the Edsmons begin pushing.
De Burca passes backwards to Mahoney, who begins holding possession.
Stuero calls for pressure, and Bervaign rushes forwards.
Mahoney does his best to hold off Bervaign, but move after move, he slips up.
Eventually, Mahoney attempts to pass, but Bervaign barely traps it and begins the Edsmon attack.
Stuero moves along the wing with Ghreksbvy, and Rehcikt follows on the left.
Mac Cormaic moves forward, attempting to block Bervaigns path.
But he passes, catching the center back off guard and handing the ball to Stuero.
With a few flicks, he manages to outrun the wing back as well as the left center back.
Already, the goal was in clear sight for the Eagles.
Mac Cormaic tries to chase Stuero down, but a pass to Rehcikt forces the defense to organize.
Rehcikt winds up his leg, and fires a finesse into the corner.
"Surely, this game is an easy win for the Edsmons?"
But no. There had to be a twist?
Loch Dearg's goalkeeper, McDaniels, proudly pushed it right over the crossbar for a corner kick.
"And here I thought they were still bad." Rehcikt comments before walking into the penalty box.
"Same. I guess this might not be as easy as we thought." Wejikaj says.
The Edsmon defense loads into the box, preparing for Ghreksbvy's kick.
Maktholm Ghreksbvy takes a breath.
And he kicks it.
The ball soars over the box, and Javarqa jumps right up along with der-Suiozkeafter.
Javarqa hits the ball, sending it towards the left corner.
"JAVARQAAA!!!!!!"
But McDaniels was there, catching the ball right when he was thought he was about to miss the save.
"McDaniels is svaing Loch Dearg here, Edsmontik have had two attacks and no goals!"
"Darn, he's going to be a Skzblitxentrauf to get past." Javarqa whispers to Stuero, who nods.
The game starts right back up, with McDaniels throwing the ball out to O'Bannon.
He then passes forward to Doyle, who attempts to pass to Donohue.
But the pass is intercepted quickly by Ystermakt, who slides the ball back to Javarqa.
Javarqa then passes to Kizani, who lobs the ball up to Wejikaj.
A quick header, and the ball is right to Rehcikt.
Edsmontik continue their tactic, pushing along the most likely weaker wing and preparing to cross.
Rehcikt slides past Mac Oda, and sends a strong lob into the center, where Bervaign attempts a kick...
"It's a strong volley... SAVED BY MCDANIELS! ONCE AGAIN! GOOD REFLEXES RIGHT THERE!"
Bervaign huffs in defeat, as Mac Cormaic gets to the ball and clears it right out of the box.
Even though it was still early- only the 10th minute, the Edsmons were already feeling worn out.
They had put power into their shots, but all were stopped.
"We have to wear the goalie out. But we have to watch out own stamina too." Stuero calls out to his teammates.
Not too long later, when Edsmontik regained possession, they pushed to hold it instead of fire.
Stuero passed,
Bervaign passed,
Ghreksbvy passed,
Jervanois passed,
Ystermakt passed,
Kizani passed,
And so on.
The players continued passinga round, preventing their opponents from getting even a touch at the ball.
But Ystermakt slipped up, passing right into the path of De Burca.
Now, the Eagles were in danger.
De Burca slipped around Kizani, and raced down the wing against Javarqa.
Javarqa's blistering pace allowed him to catch up, but De Burca had just luckily managed to slip a pass to Donohue, who now had only der-Zyfragken and der-Suiozkeafter in his way.
Donohue shot low, sending the ball between der-Suiozkeafter's legs, but not past der-Zyfragken.
der-Zyfragken was able to stop it with a strong dive.
The ball kept rolling, but Jervanois was close enough to clear it before Doyle got too close.
Time passed quickly, with the 20th and thirtieth minutes going without attacks.
They followed the same passing and possession dominating sequence for both Loch Dearg and the Edsmons.
Eventually, between the 30 and 35th minutes, Stuero did grab a chance, but the shot was caught midair by McDaniels.
"McDaniels is a brick wall, it doesn't look like the Eagles are setting any in the net this morning!"
The Eagles continued their attempts, but they only seemed to wear themselves out, as the Loch Dearg defense had a great time letting McDaniels save everything.
Either way, the defense was capable of stopping shots too, as an explosive shot from Ghreksbvy was barely deflected by O'Bannon's left leg.
*TWEEET! TWEEEEET! TWEEEEEEET!*
Eventually, what felt like seconds was really forty-five minutes.
Fans chanted as the players walked back into the locker rooms.

HALFTIME
"Good performance team, if we can secure a goal behind 'Sir Brick Wall McDaniels', then that'd most likely be enough to end the game with some points." der-Ghavyr says.
Javarqa nods, and responds "How is anyone going to score against McDaniels? It seems like he's saving power shots for fun."
"Well, we can change things up. Try not to wear yourselves down and make a signal to me if you feel worn out. I'll put on someone new. But seriously, hold still, use harsh attacks towards the middle of the second half." he replies. "Anyways, halftime's almost over. Get ready to head back out there."

SECOND-HALF
"Oe! Oe! Oe! Aeiben Vdes! Oe! Oe! Oe! Berger Fredeioz!"
Fans chant from the top and bottom of the stadium.
Fans in Touve are loud, cheering, and they can be heard across the city.
The Eagles walk right back out, waving to fans who fly their large banners over the Loch Dearg Stadium.
Bervaign walks to the kickoff position, and Stuero readies up.
Anything can happen this half.
*TWEEEET!*
Bervaign kicks off, passing to Stuero, who begins running up the wing.
He skipped past Doyle and Neville, before coming to a stop and sliding the ball around O'Bannon.
"Edsmontik have their first chance early in the second half here, what can they do?"
Stuero crosses the ball, which soars over Bervaign, and right to Rehcikt, who lands a volley.
The ball soars right into the top corner, but instead of it touching the net, McDaniels punts it right out for a corner.
Ghreksbvy walks over to the corner, picking up a fresh ball and setting it on the corner.
"Your team counts on it, don't mess up." he told himself.
Javarqa moved quickly around the box, having his attempt at not catching anyone's attention.
Mac Cormaic blocks him, and der-Suiozkeafter prepares to move in.
With a strong kick, the ball soars into the box.
Wejikaj headers the ball, but the shot bounces off the crossbar.
Mahoney attempts to clear, but der-Suiozkeafter blocks the clearance...
"SAVED ONCE AGAIN BY McDANIELS!"
What had been der-Suiozkeafter's defelction and chance at goal, had been another nice save made by McDaniels.
The Eagles wouldn't be able to do much against him.
McDaniels cleared the ball, rocketing it out for Donohue, who only had to deal with Kizani, Jervanois, and Ystermakt for the time being.
De Burca slipped passed Jervnois, calling for a pass, which he received.
Kizani chased, and soon, Ghreksbvy was also sprinting down alongside him, trying his best to clear the ball away.
But De Burca passed back to Donohue, who took a quick shot.
The ball soared, but not that powerfully, as der-Zyfragken was able to catch it midair.
After quickly standing up, der-Zyfragken threw the ball to Kizani, who dribbled up the wing and passed to Bervaign, who passed to Rehcikt.
The Edsmons continued keeping possession, slipping in passes and attempting a few chances.
Wejikaj had a long shot on goal,
Stuero took a trivela that was saved,
And Bervaign attempted a header as well, but failed to score.
Eventually though, Loch Dearg caught up, stealing possession and attempting chances.
De Burca almost managed to score, but due to a small slip, Javarqa was able to clear the ball out.
Not too long later, around the 60th minute, O Ceallaigh fired a long shot, but the ball was sent over the crossbar by der-Zyfragken.
The corner that followed wasn't very eventful, with Jervanois winning a header and sending the ball out to Ystermakt.
Eventually, as the 65th minute approached, der-Ghavyr brought on Aespana for Rehcikt, Makanvakt for Jervanois, and Reuhans for Ystermakt.
Loch Dearg soon brought on some substitutes of their own, Daly and McClean.
The substitutes clearly paid off, with both teams being more aggressive for the following minutes.
Aespana attempted two shots on goal, with one coming off a defender and the other being stopped by the crossbar.
"Neither team is very lucky with their shots here..."
The Eagles seemed to be firing at an invincible metal wall with a rubber slingshot.
"We have to hold out until the end, and if we draw, I'm going to hope it's good enough." Stuero tells Aespana.
"So, we just pass back and forth until time runs out?" he replies.
"Yes, but we also don't let them take chances and we take chances." Stuero says.
"Alright, I'll tell the others." Aespana says.
The Edsmon tactic shifts, and soon, Edsmontik is dominating over 70% of the possession.
Shortly after, loch Dearg has to go mainly defensive, as Aespana, Ghreksbvy, Stuero, Bervaign, and Wejikaj all stay up the field and unleash as much as they can.
However, McDaniels hold them up, saving the game with every touch.
McDaniels seemed to predict everything, saving a shot right after a fake by Ghreksbvy.
Eventually, the 75th minute neared.
Time was running out.
der-Ghavyr pulled Wejikaj off, bringing on thirty-year-old Fruedenne.
Edsmontik held on to possession for as long as possible.
Fruedenne attempted a shot, which as usual, was saved quickly by McDaniels.
With basically no change of scoring, the Edsmons decided to park the bus.
Reuhans fell into a center back, and the rest of the team up front stayed in the lower half.
However, on occasion, Stuero or Bervaign would rush up and take chances.
Minute after minute passed, and slowly, the game began to die down.
But the 80th minute brought a yellow, for Mac Oda, who launched a dangerous tackle against Aespana.
Shortly after, in the 83rd minute, der-Suiozkeafter gained a yellow for the Edsmons after tackling Donohue.
What was bad here, was that now, their opponents had a chance in the last few minutes of the game.
De Burca would have the chance to send Loch Dearg a win.
One chance.
A swift kick sent the ball into the air, over Javarqa, Stuero, the Loch Dearg players, and the rest of the Edsmons,
But not der-Zyfragken.
A quick reaction saw the ball rolling down the goal line, before Javarqa cleared it all the way out to the half line.
And just like that, 8 minutes later, the game ended.
*TWEET, TWEET, TWEEEEEEET!!!*

---

KEY MOMENTS
80' Yellow Card Mac Oda (LOC)
83' Yellow Card der-Suiozkeafter (EDS)

EDSMONTIK DRAW WC97QMD3 VS LOCH DEARG

[The Kytler Peninsulae]

If a vacancy for the Kytlerian national team job arises any time soon, the new occupant will know who to thank for creating it.

His name is Gaston Rouanet, he is from the unheralded state of Libesia, and his 95th-minute headed equaliser secured the first positive result in Libesian soccer history - at the expense of a Kytlerian team whose dreams of making the World Cup finals for the first time in their history look like just that, dreams. Andrew Patterson - with just one win from five qualifying matches - is now under actual honest-to-goodness pressure rather than idle speculation.

"The worst thing about it," argued one contributor to a post-match radio phone-in, "is that the Libesians weren't all even celebrating this historic moment. Some of them looked angry and upset! It's like they thought they should never have been losing to us in the first place! How bad do we have to be for a team like that to not completely celebrate a win over us? That's a level I thought we'd flown past, but apparently not."

In the short gap between this match and the subsequent home tie with fellow debutants Langenia - who had won three of their first four, and if you could cite a schedule difficulty gap before you couldn't now - Bay City United publicly declared that they would "hang up" on any calls to release their Yueven manager Chen Hulkang, and AFC Edencliff boss Paula Foster (who managed the Kytlerians' last Di Bradini Cup entry and has long been touted as a potential successor to Patterson) told one interviewer "I've got a job to do here at Chalk Field and I want to keep doing it."

Less than 20 minutes into this second part of the double-header, full-back Ivan Elvira headed in a Rafael Semprun corner and Langenia had a lead at the Zube Olympic Stadium. That sparked the loudest boos anyone can remember here, certainly for an international fixture, and chants of "we want Andy out" rung from almost every section and probably leaked through the stadium's famed pillar gaps between the upper and lower bowls at either end to ring out throughout the entire Donaldson Olympic Park and beyond. Bay City United's telephone operators were presumably phoning each other to practice their call-rejection swipes. (Even business phones use touchscreens these days, right?)

Then, with Los Azules still on top as the clock ticked past the half-hour mark, a loose pass from the marauding Elvira left the visitors wide open for a counter. Vincent drifted into the right channel rather than his usual left as Elvira's absence created an overload opportunity there, and a teasing cross was poked in by Danny Markusson to settle at least some of the nerves. Eight minutes later, Vincent tried his luck from distance, and caught it so cleanly that while Langenia goalkeeper Eduardo Arnal got a finger to it, if he'd got his whole hand on it that may have been the last thing said hand ever did. The ball duly took the faintest of turns, one that simply changed the angle from which the net rippled as the crowd roared. Whatever this team does or doesn't have, they will always have Vincent; he may singlehandedly be the reason that nine points from six qualifying matches at this stage, which is what the Kytlerians now have after that 2-1 score held throughout a tense second half, genuinely does feel disappointing.

For now, he will still have Andrew Patterson in his dugout when he is on international rather than Q-League duty. The speculation will continue, but media analysts at the Margaret Institute noted that Langenia's manager is under genuine domestic pressure despite those victories - based on the number of goals conceded by this attack-minded side, even though they have yet to lose by multiple goals (their other defeat being 3-2 at home to Huayramarca, who happen to be the only team in the group who've topped Langenia's 15-goal total) and despite the same press expressing these concerns being responsible for calls for this inexperienced side to embrace an attacking style in the first place. At a time when intolerant Kytlerian media is in the spotlight following the latest RTX Radio scandal in the World Baseball Classic, it's safe to say that some countries really do have a brutal media environment for their sports teams.

Andrew Patterson may owe his continued employment to the fact The Kytler Peninsulae is not one of them.

[Captina Island]

Rosso e Oro headed into important stretch
The Captina Company Press Association

The Captina Company National Football team split their two World Cup Qualifying fixtures against Carribba and Huayramarca, getting the offense into gear with a 4-2 away win against the first timers followed by a 2-1 defeat in Geneva City to the top seeds in Group 12.

Barnabas Morningstar, Charleston DiCanio, Patience Wedgewood and Marcella Lillywhite found the net against Carribba while Silvia Riviello made the scoresheet in the second match.

The Rosso e Oro now begin a stretch of three away matches over the next four dates beginning with Libesia, the lowest seeded team, with seventh seeded Langenia at home followed by trips to Al-Tamazgha and finally The Kytler Peninsulae which will mark the halfway point of the tournament.

With two wins and a draw from their five matches to date Captina are on a pace to reach 22 points by the end of the campaign in addition to having their bye early in the fixture list they will have a game in hand that could make a difference depending on how close the race for the top three is.

Lineup vs Libesia/Langenia

Recchio/Jaconelli; Colucci, Coverdale, Caruso/Santangelo, Ellington/Owenby; Morningstar/DiCanio, Rizzuto/Riviello, Lillywhite/Tardelli; Overstreet/Negroni, Wedgewood, Donati/Fontana
subs--Rizzolini, Rossetti, A .Vastano, P.Vastano, DiStefano, Perrone, Capaldi, Hammersmith

[Huayramarca]

OOC: This post has been written in Spanish, and translated through DeepL. This has been proofreaded by me after the translation. The original text is under the spoiler.

In football, as in many other things in life, there are inexplicable connections between groups and specific behaviours that can be displayed in different contexts, be it in matches, training, day-to-day life, etc. From the coolness that a hunter must have to wait for his prey, to the unflappable spirit of an athlete at the highest level. Even so, there are also other moments when consistency fails, of course, you can't be perfect, but you can correct these undesired behaviours, especially if they are too repetitive as in this case.

Huayramarca and overconfidence is a sentimental relationship, apparently, as old as the very existence of the national team. Taking advantage in matches, handling them calmly until they decide to lower the revolutions of the game, but how much should they be lowered? Is it bad or good to do that? The results speak for themselves, Huayramarca let go a relatively manageable 3-1 lead against Kamijiro to end up with a 3-3 draw, splitting points and leaving the first bad image of the qualifiers (and, hopefully, the first and last).

Bryan Tello with his 300th goal in his national team career, Diego Uscamayta and an Ian Mamani, who continues his ingratiating form, put Huayramarca in relative comfort despite Kokubun Soji's early goal early on from Nicácio Xavier's assist, but what led to this relatively uncomfortable situation for Los Cóndores? I spoke to a couple of sports journalists to get their opinions, then contrasted them with some of the players' responses at the press conference and then deduced.

Juan Mercado: "I think Huayramarca sinned in having control of the game by trying out players who need to get more experience, yes, but they need to gradually build up rather than be thrown in against direct competition in the knockout group. Everything takes time, and Aginsogno must consider that it was not the time to throw in youngsters and compromise their performance with this draw which undoubtedly puts them under the spotlight of those desperately looking for culprits."

Kayla Choque: "You take me by surprise with the question, I didn't expect something this direct, but I answer: I think there were failures on the part of some key players, especially the defensive full-backs, as they believed the opposition would not attack anymore, but allowed Kanazono Kaneto and Dominique Joseph to change the dynamic of the match, the passes to the left side let Demizu Saiichi do too much damage, especially against Ismael Lobaton who didn't get enough support from Kevin Quispe in the defensive relays. Collateral damage, which could have been mitigated, was the inclusion of youth players. Even so, I think it was only an isolated case and that it is correctable for the key match against West Barack and East Obama".

David Perlaza: "Ooooofff... There's a lot to say about this game, I think, but I'll break it down into two things: One, the coach's approach to the game wasn't the best... Why would you decide to use youth players in a risky game like this? That's exposing them to circumstances like what happened, which puts them in front of criticism that surely won't do any good and which are the usual ones a fan makes with the next day's paper. My other view is that Kamijiro were a fully committed opponent determined to leave the stadium with at least a point. They fought and they got the reward, that's the attitude we should have, not the attitude of a team that thinks it can win with the ranking alone... That's disgusting.

Now, what do the protagonists think about the match? Ian Mamani responds "A match that promised a good result, but we slacked off too much when our opponent started to press. Timing was not our thing on this occasion, a total shame that we didn't manage to get the desired result. Even so, I must emphasise that there is still a lot to do in the play-offs, we need to pick ourselves up and correct our mistakes, be at our best against our next opponents and make our home advantage count.

Another response from Mamani to the situation was the following: "The marking in the middle [where he plays] slackened, we were a bit tired, but that's no excuse for the lack of consistency in the game." Now, if the word tiredness alarms me a little, could it be that the coach was not wise enough to make the corresponding changes? Probably, although to delve into it just because of this result is to make an unnecessary drama, we all have mistakes.

Gabriel Sayritupac said: "From the last twenty minutes onwards, we no longer received passes into our zone due to the pressure from our opponents... They were able to stifle the midfield and we didn't know how to decipher it as a team, that's where we failed. We have to correct that, as West Barack and East Obama is a very disciplined opponent with their marking, as well as being quite difficult to open up defensively, so we must take advantage of every opportunity we have in front of us.

Blaas Aginsogno mentioned at the press conference, "The fault is mine, I made inappropriate changes and I am not referring to the quality of the players, that is never in question that I have highly competent players. I didn't read the game correctly, the opponent pressed hard and I think we didn't know how to respond to that situation or to the initial symptoms. That's schematic and I have to work on it with my team, especially if we have an opponent coming at us who decides to do that to nullify the opposition like West Barack and East Obama. If we manage to correct that, I will be satisfied, because we are always looking for constant improvement, not stagnation".

When asked about "reacting to pressure from the opposition," he said. He commented "Yes, it was quite a radical change of attitude on Kamijiro's part, they didn't give up and that's quite commendable on their part. Not just anyone decides to go at it with a knife between their teeth when being 3-1 down and away, that bravery is commendable and should be recognised as such; now, I may make a couple of adjustments for the next window to ensure more consistency in the team's performance throughout the 90 minutes of the game, we must not take our foot off the gas at any time."

My own reading of the match is that Huayramarca paid dearly for their sloppiness in the match, losing home points in the World Cup qualifiers is something you don't want to happen, more so in a match against one of the direct rivals and playing at home. The good thing is that it was corrected with a 1-2 win against Captina Island and just in time for the toughest test of the qualifiers against West Barack and East Obama. The Obama's have a very defensive, tightly marking mentality and their numbers show it, only one goal conceded in six games played, which is quite respectable.

Considering the clash of opposing styles, as Huayramarca is just the opposite, it is necessary to show that they have the attacking ability to suppress their opponents' defensive abilities and nullify any space for them to react. Therefore, reading the game will be crucial on the part of Blaas Aginsogno on this occasion, as he will need to plan more and avoid leaving space for the opposition to do anything unwanted against Los Condores. This means making the conditions clear to the opposition and to our players, the attack must be intense and consistent, the concentration maximum and the lack of concentration minimum if we are to get the three points. We are performing well so far, and that is why we must ensure that our opponents do not play their style of play, but that ours continues to impose itself and we manage to get more advantage in the standings of this playoff".

En el fútbol, así como en otras muchas cosas en la vida, hay conexiones inexplicables entre grupos y comportamientos específicos que pueden ser mostrados en diferentes contextos, ya sea en los partidos, entrenamientos, día a día, etc. Desde la frialdad que debe tener un cazador para esperar a su presa, hasta el ánimo de no bajar la marcha de un deportista en el más alto nivel. Aún así, también hay otros momentos donde la consistencia falla, claro, no se puede ser perfecto, pero sí se puede llegar a corregir esos comportamientos no deseados, más si son demasiado reiterativos como en este caso.

Huayramarca y el exceso de confianza es una relación sentimental, aparentemente, tan antigua como la propia existencia de la selección nacional. Tomar ventaja en los partidos, manejarlos tranquilamente hasta que se decide bajar las revoluciones del mismo, pero ¿Qué tanto deben bajarse? ¿Es malo o bueno hacer eso? Los resultados hablan por si solos, Huayramarca dejó ir una ventaja relativamente manejable de 3-1 ante Kamijiro para terminar con un 3-3, repartiendo puntos y dejando la primera mala imagen de la eliminatoria (y, ojalá, sea la primera y última).

Bryan Tello con su gol N°300 en su carrera como seleccionado nacional, Diego Uscamayta y un Ian Mamani, que continúa con su estado engraciado de juego, pusieron a Huayramarca con relativa comodidad a pesar del gol tempranero de Kokubun Soji al apenas iniciar el partido a través de la asistencia de Nicácio Xavier, pero ¿Qué llevó a esta situación relativamente incómoda para Los Cóndores? Conversé con un par de periodistas deportivos para conocer sus opiniones, luego contrasto con algunas respuestas de los actores del partido en la conferencia de prensa para después deducir.

Juan Mercado: “Considero que Huayramarca pecó de tener control del partido al probar jugadores que necesitan tomar más experiencia, sí, pero necesitan ir gradualmente fogueándose en vez de ser lanzados contra competencia directa en el grupo de eliminatorias. Todo lleva un tiempo, y Aginsogno debe considerar que no era tiempo de lanzar a juveniles y comprometerles su rendimiento con este empate que, indudablemente, los coloca a ellos bajo las luces de quienes buscan culpables de forma desesperada.”

Kayla Choque: “Me tomas de sorpresa con la pregunta, no me esperaba algo así de directo, pero contesto: Creo que hubo fallas de parte de algunos jugadores clave, especialmente de los laterales defensivos, ya que creyeron que el rival no atacaría más, pero permitieron que Kanazono Kaneto y Dominique Joseph cambiaran la dinámica del partido, los pases hacia el lado izquierdo dejaron que Demizu Saiichi hiciese demasiado daño, especialmente contra Ismael Lobatón que no recibió el suficiente apoyo por parte de Kevin Quispe en los relevos defensivos. Daño colateral, que pudo ser mitigado, fue incluir juveniles. Aún así, creo que solamente fue un caso aislado y que es corregible para el partido clave ante West Barack and East Obama.”

David Perlaza: “Ufff… Hay mucho que decir sobre este partido, considero, pero desgloso en dos cosas: Una, el planteamiento del partido de parte del entrenador no fue el mejor… ¿Por qué decides usar juveniles en un partido riesgoso como este? Eso es exponerles a circunstancias como las que ocurrió, lo cual los pone al frente de críticas que, seguramente, no aportarán nada bueno y que son las usuales que un aficionado hace con el diario del siguiente día. Mi otra opinión es que Kamijiro fue un rival completamente entregado y decidido a irse con un punto, al menos, del estadio. Ellos lucharon y tuvieron la recompensa, esa actitud es la que debemos tener, no la de un equipo que cree poder ganar con el ranking nada más… Eso es asqueroso.”

Ahora, ¿Qué piensan los protagonistas sobre el partido? Ian Mamani responde “Un partido que prometía un buen resultado, pero aflojamos demasiado en el momento que nuestro rival comenzó a apretar. El timing no fue lo nuestro en esta ocasión, una pena total que no logramos obtener el resultado deseado. Aún así, debo enfatizar que queda mucho en la eliminatoria, toca levantar cabeza y corregir, estar fino ante nuestro próximo rival y hacer pesar la localía.”

Otra respuesta de Mamani ante la situación fue la siguiente: “La marca en el medio [donde él juega] aflojo, estábamos un poco cansados, pero no es excusa para la falta de consistencia en el juego.” Ahora bien, alarma algo la palabra cansancio, ¿Será que no hubo tino a la hora de hacer los cambios correspondientes por parte del entrenador? Probablemente, aunque ahondar en ello solo por este resultado es hacer un drama innecesario, errores tenemos todos.

Gabriel Sayritupac mencionaba: “A partir de los últimos veinte minutos, ya no recibimos pases hacia nuestra zona debido a la presión del rival… Ellos supieron ahogar el medio campo y nosotros no supimos descifrarlo como colectivo, ahí fallamos. Toca corregir, ya que West Barack and East Obama es un rival demasiado disciplinado con las marcas, además de ser bastante difícil de abrir defensivamente, por lo que debemos aprovechar cada oportunidad que tengamos en el frente de ataque.”

Blaas Aginsogno mencionó en la conferencia de prensa: “La culpa es mía, hice cambios no adecuados y no me refiero a la calidad de los jugadores, eso jamás está en tela de juicio de que tengo jugadores altamente competentes. No hice una lectura correcta del partido, el rival presionó fuerte y considero que no supimos responder ante dicha situación ni ante los síntomas iniciales. Eso es esquemático y debo trabajarlo con mi equipo, más si nos viene un rival que decide hacer eso para anular a los rivales tal como West Barack and East Obama. Si logramos corregir, me sentiré satisfecho, ya que nosotros buscamos siempre mantenernos en constante mejoría, no en estancamiento.”

Ante la consulta hecha sobre “Reaccionar ante la presión del rival.” Comentó “Sí, fue un cambio de actitud bastante radical de parte de Kamijiro, no se dieron por vencidos y eso es bastante meritorio de parte de ellos. No cualquiera decide lanzarse con el cuchillo entre los dientes al estar 3-1 debajo en el marcador y de visita, esa valentía es encomiable y debe reconocerse como tal; ahora bien, puede que haga un par de ajuste para la próxima ventana para asegurar más consistencia en el desempeño del equipo durante los 90 minutos del juego, no debemos bajar el pie del acelerador en ningún momento.”

Mi propia lectura sobre el partido es que Huayramarca pagó cara la displicencia en el partido, perder puntos de local en la eliminatoria al mundial es algo que no se busca que ocurra, más en un partido contra uno de los rivales directos y jugando en casa. Lo bueno, que se corrigió con un gane de 1-2 contra Captina Island y justo a tiempo cuando viene la prueba más dura de la eliminatoria, contra West Barack and East Obama. Los Obama tienen una mentalidad muy defensiva, de marca férrea y sus números lo demuestran, un solo gol en contra en seis partidos jugados, algo bastante respetable.

Considerando el choque de estilos opuestos, ya que Huayramarca es justo lo contrario, es necesario demostrar que se tiene una capacidad de ataque que suprima las habilidades defensivas del rival, que nulifique cualquier espacio de reacción de ellos. Por tanto, la lectura del juego será crucial de parte de Blaas Aginsogno en esta ocasión, ya que deberá planear más y evitar dejarle espacio al rival para que haga algo no deseado en contra de Los Cóndores. Esto implica dejar en claro las condiciones al rival y a nuestros jugadores, el ataque debe ser intenso y constante, la concentración máxima y la displicencia mínima si buscamos sumar los tres puntos. Estamos teniendo un buen desempeño hasta ahora, y por eso mismo debemos asegurar que los rivales no hagan su estilo de juego, sino que el nuestro se siga imponiendo y logremos sacar más ventaja en la tabla de posiciones de esta eliminatoria.”

[StrayaRoos]

6 games in, and the Emus are back in their groove with a 6-3 win over Caerbannog in Circunses, and a 3-0 win over Lisander on the road, moving into 4th place, a point behind Elymia, who are currently occupying the seventh and final AQ spot for third-placed teams, and a win against Brusseldorf this window, assuming Elymia picks up two points or less, will put the Emus into third place, and prime position to fall in the playoffs and break the nation’s hearts for the third time in a row heading into the halfway mark.

Playing Caerbannog in Circunses, the Emus had a bit of a fright early, as the opposition hit two goals in the first ten minutes, one off a dodgy back heel from Daniel Poalian that was intercepted by their number 9 before being sent past Seyma, and the second off a corner that was scored by their midfielder. 2-0 against an unranked side, and it’d only been 10 minutes. Fortunately, the corner kicked Calixto Conti’s side into gear, as one of the best front lines in international football started working its magic. In the 13th minute, Ella Vidya sent a through ball to Ibtisam Zümra, who scored it without an issue, making it 2-1, then in the 26th, Cruz Kaiplo knocked a penalty past the Caerbannogian goalkeeper, making it 2-all, before scoring a header in the 38th, making it 3-2 at the half. The second half started with Alana Kerr being pulled off for Lucille Yuaua, who was making her international debut and made her presence known immediately, first setting up an Ella Vidya volley to make it 4-2, and scoring her own off a Kai Kuyta free kick in the 73rd minute, making it 5-2. The emus kicked back a bit after this, letting in another goal because of poor defending, but the deficit was back to three after Ali Ari netted a penalty in stoppage time. 6-3 Emus.

Next, Lisander were thought to be able to pull off an upset. Still, those thoughts were put to bed almost immediately, as the Emus started attacking from the get-go, making 20 shots to one. Alana Kerr scored first, a shot from the penalty arc in the 29th, which took surprisingly long for the dominant display from the Emus. Still, they didn’t stop there, with Alex Keane scoring a goal off a Yasmeen Kamea pass in the 49th. Kerr netted a second in the 83rd, assisted by Cruz Kaiplo, making it 3-0, and putting the Emus back into the qualification conversation.

[Recuecn]

Edsmontik was lined up for the kick-off, wearing their black away jerseys with the blue and orange strip across the chest like a sash. Across from them stood the Reçuecians, who were to begin the match with the ball. The national anthems had been sung, and the crowd of 30,000 Reçuecian fans--max capacity for the Stade National--cheered with excitement as they waited for the whistle.

The players' minds were all on the game they were about to play. Would they be able to win? What would it take? Would the strategy they'd chosen be successful, or would it need adaptation? Which opposing players posed a threat? All these questions raced through their heads as every player focused everything he had on the imminent match.

Each player except for one, that is. Franky Adams, Reçueçn's number ten, was distracted. He thought he'd just caught a glimpse of something on the electronic advertisement display that ran around the edge of the pitch. He was glancing around, trying to see if it would reappear, when the sound of the whistle called his attention back to the matter at hand, and he kicked the ball to his teammate, Helibert Wolf.

Characteristically, the Reçuecians began their game with caution. There was no immediate rush forward. Wolf had not gotten far before he was confronted by Steus Kizani, the Esdmon left back. And at this very first sign of pressure, Wolf, as he had been instructed time and time again by the équipe nationale manager Bonheur Relié, turned and passed backward to his teammate Théophile Theriault, about fifteen yards behind him. Theriault saw Kyv Wejikaj approaching, and promptly passed back to Eric Konig, who without hesitation, and under no pressure at all, sent the ball all the way back to Emanuele Cutrona, standing just a few feet in front of the eighteen-yard box. And already, the Reçuecians were on the defensive.

The fans were used to this kind of thing. Les licornes had a particular style of play, one which was not always the most exciting to watch. But the fans' patriotism had brought them to love it. A few of them cheered as the ball made it all the way back to their sweeper, happy to see their team use its classic strategy and eager to watch them wear down and wait out their opponent. Most of the stadium quieted down--not out of boredom, but in quiet anticipation, watching and waiting to see what moment the ÉNRF would choose to strike.

Reçueçn made a few tentative essays during the next few minutes, but no serious pressing attacks. In the locker-room before the game, Bonheur had told his boys that he was expecting a win here, but even so, there was no need to be reckless; with the odds in their favor, there was even less reason to try any risky moves. The plan was simply to retain control and wait for an opening. But after the first twenty minutes, the Baptism of Fire winners were not giving les licornes any openings, and seemed to be playing very solidly.

Franky, as ever the first to grow impatient, decided a little more pressure was needed. He called for the ball, but Lapix, loyal to his manager's instruction, seemed unwilling to pass to him while he was that far up the field. Franky walked reluctantly closer. Still nothing. He jogged over to Wolf. Lapix was still busy in the midfield, deftly dribbling his way out of any attacks.

"Let's make something happen," Franky hissed to Wolf. "Get someone to get me the ball, then get open."

Wolf gave a nod, whispered something back, and jogged away. And it was just a couple minutes before the moment arrived. Wolf fell back, hanging near the sideline, open. Franky also found himself on the sideline, a bit further down, but in coverage. Certainly nowhere Lapix would risk passing when Bonheur had been so strict about his expectations before the match. But Wolf was another matter. Lapix rolled him the ball... and Wolf, with just a slight tap to keep it in bounds, let it continue on its way down the sideline towards Franky, surrounded on either side by Kizani and Javarqa.

"Franky!" Wolf yelled, and began to sprint after the ball, peeling off to the left to run past Javarqa on the other side. Der-Suiozkafter, hanging back, kept him dangerously on-side, but was the only defender there to stop a run for the goal. No one expected such a sudden attack from a Reçuecian side that had seemed so lackadaisical so far.

Franky darted back toward the pass, getting there only fractions of a second before Javarqa. He whirled around, turning tapping the ball toward the outside to block Javarqa's attack. He looked up. Kazani was still in front of him, but Javarqa had overcommitted to the attack this time, and there was just enough of a gap toward Wolf and the goal--Franky hesitated. Behind Kivani, there it was--again, something had caught his eye on the advertisement boards. But the ads changed, and anyway this was not the time. Franky kicked! But he had waited just a split second too long and a diving tackle from Kizani intercepted the pass and knocked it away toward Ystermakt.

Franky turned and jogged back as the Edsmon counterattack got into motion. He gave an apologetic wave to Wolf. "Sorry!" he called. "Great pass, I just mistimed it!"

Wolf gave him a thumbs up and shook his head as if to say "Not to worry!" Hopefully he hadn't noticed Franky's moment of hesitation. After all, the Edsmon defense was sharp enough that it wasn't hard to believe they would have stopped Franky's pass anyway, even if he hadn't been distracted.

Kayserling shut down the counterattack. He returned the ball to Lapix, who passed the other direction this time, to Daecher. He glared at Wolf and Franky. Franky held up his hands, palms facing up.

"Don't play dumb, Franky!" called Lapix. "We've got to be more careful than that!"

The Reçuecians did continue to play carefully. At half-time, the match was still scoreless.

"You're doing well, boys," said Bonheur. He didn't seem to have noticed Franky's error, or rashness. "We do need to score a goal in the next forty-five minutes, though," Bonheur said. "You can start to apply a little more pressure. Don't take unnecessary risks--just push a bit more."

The second half began in a more lively fashion. The Edsmon eagles started with the ball this time, and they too began to play with a little more zeal, launching several dangerous attacks deep into Reçuecian territory. Les licornes had watched some footage of the Edsmon games, and expected their attack patterns--repeated runs down the wings to set up a cross into the center--but it was still difficult to counter. The Reçuecian defenders tried to force the passes toward the center far enough up the field that they weren't as dangerous, so that Cutrona and Kayserling could shut things down. More or less, the strategy seemed to work.

Finally, the ÉNRF got its chance. Konig, leaping into the air, intercepted a cross with a well-placed header that sent the ball toward Lapix. Lapix, deftly as ever, and with Bonheur's instructions to "push a bit more" ringing in his ears, dribbled down the field, Ystermakt and Ghreksbvy before passing to Trommler. Trommler sprinted down the left sideline with the ball, passing right in front of Bonheur and Heissler, standing in the technical zone at the side of the pitch, cheering him on. Confronted by Jervanois, Trommler passed quickly to Franky, losing no speed or momentum, and continuing his run toward the net, now without the ball. Franky, in the center and surrounded by the Edsmon defense, managed to send a through ball toward the left post. Trommler, sprinting full speed, got on the end of it just before der-Zyfragken saved it, sending the ball across the net to the empty far post, where it slammed off into the net. Goal! One-zero Reçueçn!

The crowd went wild. Trommler wheeled with his arms outstretched like wings, and ran to the corner to celebrate in front of the cameras. Franky sprinted over and jumped on his back. Wolf and Lapix joined the huddle to clap him on the back before the ref gestured them all back toward the center circle to restart the game.

The fans were excited now, on their feet and singing. But it was not to last. It was less than ten minutes later that a cross from Ghreksbvy connected with Maartin Stuero's powerful kick to bury into the back of the Reçuecian net, rocketing past Gerauld Firaut's outstretched fingers. Cutrona was caught out of position to defend the volley to Stuero and once the Edsmon striker had it, there was no stopping his shot. The Reçuecian fans went suddenly quiet (while the small contingent of Edsmon visitors began to cheer and wave their flags). With twenty-six minutes left, it was a tie game.

Reçueçn redoubled its attack. Lapix was no longer boycotting passes to Wolf or Franky, but rather fed them as many passes as he could, hoping that something would work. But the Edsmon defense held strong. More than the ÉNRF, Edsmontik was more willing to accept a draw, and they fought tooth and nail to prevent a Reçuecian goal.

But not even the fiercest defense could stop Franky. With six minutes left in regulation, a ball from Trommler found him just outside the box. Franky darted in, then juked away and twirled back toward the net, confusing his opponents with his footwork. He managed to put Javarqa on the wrong foot. He outpaced der-Suiozkafter. Here, in the final minutes of the match with the game on the line, Franky found himself one-on-one with der-Zyfragken, the Edsmon goalie the only thing between him and the game-winning goal.

Der-Zyfragken came toward Franky, low to the ground, arms outstretched, blocking as much space as he could. But he was too late. Franky saw the angle. The far post was open, and Franky could visualize the goal--no one would be able to stop his shot, all he had to do was kick it right now, before der-Zyfragken could stop him--

Then he saw it. The advertisement that had distracted him twice earlier. It ran along the edge of the field, flashing on the electronic displays. A bright white background with repeating black text--an unimaginative but practical design.

"Paume Personnel", read the ad. "Commencez votre demain, aujourd'hui".

"Paume Personnel," thought Franky. "I've got to remember that, it's got to be a staffing agency." Then he looked down at his feet. Der-Zyfragken was there, wrapped around the ball.

---

The scolding Franky got from his teammates was surpassed only by the one he received from Bonheur after the game was over. "What were you thinking, putain!" screamed the manager. "What was going through your head? Our goal-scoring opportunities are not the time for you to be philosophizing! If you want to daydream, you can retire and go do that all you like!"

Franky said nothing. He knew that if he told Bonheur that his retirement was precisely the thing that was occupying his thoughts to such a degree he couldn't even focus on a soccer game, Bonheur would only redouble his verbal assault. Franky had already learned that no one else understood his preoccupation with the future of his career. Today it had cost him and his team a soccer game. But tomorrow he would call Paume Personnel, the staffing agency, and then finally he might be able to stop worrying about his next job.

[Kamijiro]

Bolts of Lightning, Part Three: Naraku-shi and the Nishigaya Ruling

Long before becoming the manager of the Kamijiroan football national team, Raiji Kagawa graced news stations as passing mugshots and 'have you seen this man?' notifications. He was a growing star of the Miraisaki mob scene, known for his ruthless enforcement of 'justice,' even at the tender age of nineteen. A member of the then-massive Nishigaya yakuza, which at one point controlled nearly all of downtown Miraisaki, he was in and out of holding cells more times than he could count. However, the life he was leading was a dead-end one. He knew that, he could see the writing on the wall. Being the muscle in a yakuza in the crime-heavy district of Naraku-shi isn't exactly a profession with a high life expectancy. Life like that didn't last long, either way. On a night that seemed ordinary, federal police busted into the family headquarters and arrested everybody and seized hundreds of thousands of Jiroes worth of illicit items. Even the Oyabun, usually untouchable by the standards of police work, was hauled off to a cell.

Everybody except for Raiji Kagawa. Raiji wasn’t in the city when the raid happened, he was away in the coastal town of Ōzu visiting his parents gravesite as he had done every anniversary for four years. He caught wind of the raid and laid low for months, waiting and waiting. Once the guilty verdict was reached, he immediately set up visitation with the Oyabun. When he visited the Oyabun in Aoshima’s maximum security prison, he had one question:

“May I be released from the family?”
There was a long silence.
“On one condition, young Raiji.”
“Condition?”
“Finish school. Learn to lead and become a leader of men.”
“What? No big ‘avenge us’ speech? No ‘you are our last hope?’”
“No. It’s over. The Nishigaya family is over. They took everything. And we all are serving 25 years minimum. You are beyond lucky you weren’t at the house that day. Matter of fact, you didn’t need to ask me to leave, there’s nothing to leave.”
“… got it.”

Raiji turned to leave. And when he walked back out into the fresh air, he nearly cried. The closest thing he’d had to a family in the four years since his parents passed was gone, just like that.

Raiji did end up finishing high school and then went to college. He became interested in coaching and leading sports teams, starting on the path to the highest position the country can offer: the coveted team manager role for the national football side. It took him 16 years of coaching, but he made it. He also raised his only child, Haruki Kagawa, to be a strong woman who is now the prized striker for Miraisaki City.

All he has left now from those days is the scars, tattoos and bad temper. Oh, and the cigarettes and the whiskey. And there he is now, standing in his black-on-black suit on the touchline as the Lightning of Kamijiro work their ass off against Huayramarca. Urging them to find an equalizer late into stoppage time.

“Katsu! Shoot!” Raiji yells to his star midfielder as Katsu Fujiwara suddenly finds himself in miles of space. Katsu squares up on goal and lets it rip. The net ripples. Goal! Cue the fist pumping and roars of delight. “Fuck yeah!”

One point against the highest-ranked squad in the group? Nice. Doing it on a stoppage-time equalizer away from home? Even nicer.

The next game’s against Libesia. There’s fighting in the visitors dressing room before the match. Something about artificial intelligence and people not being real? Bizarre. However, cue the goal barrage. Soji Kokubun got two, Darren Williams got one, along with Haruki Kagawa and Akinari Akaminai. Raiji’s Lightning keep their goal-scoring streak up - hopefully for the ex-yakuza man turned manager, that results keep flowing and his side keep pace in the group.

And hopefully for him, he also doesn’t end up like Libesia’s manager. That black eye he’s sporting post-match is not a good look.

[Qasden]

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Greene, but No Gold
False Start leaves Vanbase Vampless as Resurgence Struggles for Retention

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By Wallace Wallows

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You can say just as many things about this crop of Qads as you can't say; but if consistency is one of them, you're better off cheering for a less chaotic team, like Farfadillis or The Holy Empire.

After the stellar campaigns leading up to World Cups 94 & 95, in which the Blue-Reds fell just 1 goal short of the long-fabled return to the gilded screen, hopes for the final hurdle to clear skyrocketed under the steadfast leadership of notable tactician, Lori Vandelhaar. Under her, we were promised qualification, regional dominance, and the best buckwheat bread this side of Baker Park.

Unfortunately, buckwheat bread is terrible, and so is Vandelhaar's tactics.

Despite the rather competent-looking performance at the first Arrosian Regional Championship, the Vans followed that up with by far the worst performance logged in QAFA history, failing to beat any opponent outside of Sea Dome at the 96 qualifiers. It was like watching a beautiful paper swan, painstakingly crafted under Munson, get repeatedly waterboarded for about 15 hours worth of excruciating, wishy-washy pitch-dragging. It takes half that time for a hobby to morph into someone calling an intervention, and yet, the association sat there and did nothing for 900+ minutes.

For some reason, an actual dumpster fire, lit outside the QAFA headquarters in protest of the piss poor 'Over the Hump' campaign they were promised, instigated a decision to keep Vandelhaar and the same players around for another ARC. In the never traumatizing commonwealth of Baker Park, the brambles in bronze were grouped by the likes of Oontaz and Yakk, two names that sound more associated with vintage gross-out toys marketed for boys than countries that can (and did) beat our best and boldest. To avoid the next dumpster set alight being the headquarters building itself, the FA finally gave the mob its meal in Vandelhaar's sacking; which, like a sugary drink, quenched the immediates, but still left the populace overtly dehydrated. The violently revolving door keeps on violently revolving, with the hot seat now being nothing more than a pile of ash wish a jpeg of a chair laid haplessly overtop. The public demanded a real manager, someone with the experience and know-how to not make the Pot 3 team finish 6th out of 7 in a group whose only justified losses were to those against the eventual World Cup winner, Brookstation, who we invented losing to. So, with all this dire ire fire needing to be put out, who did QAFA elect as fireman to put it out?

Aldous Greene.

An actor.

A C-List actor.

"A C-List actor with prior NT knowledge!" the suits say, half-drunk and in the middle of deciding which of 2 shades of dark blue and red to stitch together. And so, the Qasden National Team vanished into thin air, end the...

...

...alright, fine, let's talk about this guy's first 6 games in charge. Only because I'm late on rent.

Unlike what those stuffy elites on the southern coast think, the unilateral election of Aldous Greene to the managerial mantle was bold, inspired, and off to a really bad start, PR and all. Sure, the man was part of the Starting XI under Sylvia Zimari, but without a desire to engage in domestic club money, his time in the primaries felt less like a service to the nation and more like stylized busking in order to bask in the real goal of cinema stardom. He left the silver stars for the silver screen, never even mentioning his time as a Van beyond an occasional ramshackle charity auction every here and there. So, when it was revealed that he'd not only return as head honcho, but was due to be filming a documentary of the qualifying process, fans since 76 were understandably not too keen. As if one social media nightmare wasn't enough, QAFA then announced the return of every player responsible for the woes of 96, even the ones that lost games.

Righto, we've been tag-dragging for too long without even mentioning the current qualifying campaign in a paper about the current qualifying campaign, so let's get on with it.

So the real neat thing about this squad is that now we know there aren't any growing pains left with this squad; just pains, lots of general pains. And it's not like there aren't any multi-million dollar players in the bunch. Cameron Allan has been a staple in Qasden's defenses and a thorn in Jaylyn Bone's side in the Squornshelan Superleague, and Ronin Otero just won the freaking Champions League with CF Outineau. The further down the line we go, however, roster picks just don't like to make sense. Since the retirement of Bone from the Blue-Reds, both Vandelhaar and Greene are now trying to bring back Cloveria No'Bell to the top, a striker whose best finish in domestics was barely escaping the relegation zone one season. And depth-wise, all the really good people are clogged up in midfield reserves, leaving the ends of the field filled with first squad backups and second tier starters, something that became abundantly clear in the run-up to WC97 at a friendly in the famous Dave Wilson Stadium. Despite the efforts of midfield legends like McCracken and Orville, the regional rivals took advantage of a worryingly lackluster show of chances by Galleon and Ruby, allowing Sarzonia to nab a golden goal against the silver stung to make the trip out to Woodstock not much more than an aerial car trip.

The first round of qualifiers would feel no better.

Selected as a Pot 4, Qasden's draw would see them against the two most well-known, non-human, all-women's teams in this leg of the group, against Bears Armed and Drawkland. We don't know how these stars aligned, we just know Marlene likes to make them. Aside from them, there's the always feared HUElavia, the best of Vdara in West Vdara, and that one nation that knocked us out from ARC 2, Yakk. A lot of games were due to play, but with the proper field making a historic expansion from 32 to 48, it truly felt like now was the time more than ever for this team to do something productive...even if most of them are on the way out...eventually.

Home sweet home against the Bear-Belles, the audial space inside the Stade de Solis filled with the cheers of Qads and Urrs-horns of Ursines (and a few curious Qads to engage in trades) alike. The opener of Qasden's campaign was a go (just don't tell them that it was Match 2 for everybody else). Fortunately, the attack was at least awake in this clash, with goal contributions from Galleon and Noel giving the Vans a fighting chance. Though whether it was the sapient ravens in the enclosed sky or the sheer desire to remember that we're Qasden, the defense folded just as quick as ground was gained. For every attack, a counter from Bears Armed felt twice as potent, and ultimately, the grand opening in Fyre burned down into a 2-3 defeat.
For some reason, the Drawkian people thought it was a good idea to put the Qads up at the National Stadium in the beating heart of Sonnel itself, Metropolon.

And truly, it was a good idea.

If the loss to the Bear-Belles was like being served a meal that you can't afford, then playing the Kick-Corps away was like the rich friend telling the waiter to split the check. Like shoes, the Vans one-two buckled under the pressure of a team they were able to beat in the CoH one time several years ago. A pity goal meant very little to our allegedly 'defense-oriented' shagged carpet of a backline, as the Drawkies returned the 3 goals scored in Montana Verde right back in front of Metropolon's six-figure fanbase, jolting the GA stat up to an uncomfortable 6 just 2 games in.

Truly, I wonder how the documentary will portray this as a good thing.

The Vans left Sonnel shaken, but not stirred, because nobody stirs the Qads more than the beasts within. Anyhow, back to the west we go, now in Destiny, the little sibling city to the much more grandiose Fyre. Hotchskarth Cabin, the jewel hidden in the shadows of Stade de Solis' ego, is a must-see in the world of Arrosian football, though not for the actual football. It may be a beauty, but this venue almost exclusively hosts the team's 'freshest' opponents, generally BoF hotshots and nations not wanting to make the effort to be BoF hotshots. This time it welcomes Vaishnavaria, a young squad looking to take advantage of a beleaguered and befuddled Blue-Red camp in order to gain their first win in qualifiers. And wouldn't you believe it, something changed in the home town team that night that continues to elude Qasden's greatest minds.

Despite getting sent back 1 early, the Vans, in a bid to actually win a game, scored 3 unanswered, giving the (at the moment) dead last Pot 4 team a revamped revitalization that allowed them to ascend to the pearly gates of...second to dead last. Fair enough.

While I jest partially about such a position, the win over the Concordians did allow Aldous to leave West Qasden unscathed, though it'd be bravado to proclaim him invincible going into the next away day in San Rafael. While this may sound like a relaxing trip to the Pacific, it was there that awaited HUElavia, #10 in the multiverse; a team we had beaten thrice out of 4 historically, though now they looked less...amicable to the idea of that happening again...

...which is too damn bad! As bizarre as fate would bake it, the counter vanguard of Qasden actually delivered at Estadio Internacional; with Orville and Galleon answering a early goal with two of theirs, the team that had gone 0-3 with 7 GA across the friendly and first two qualis had stunned the HUElavians at home, the first try (out of 2) to get a win under the Calcio Calico banner. We don't know how that happened, though maybe it's because I don't know what the 'xG' stat means and I actively refuse to learn it. Regardless, the party-rocking goal song rung hollow in San Rafael, and with it, it was back to...

...Hotchskarth? Again? We're really knocking out all these western games early, huh? Well, it's the last one in my logs so far, versus North and (importantly) South Slavio-Baltia. The twin directions under Pavel Jelen enter the competition unranked, the most dangerous form of ranked, proven against the strangely mighty Myrtle Beach, as well as our own bad history against nations who just don't care about being baptized in fire. Don't blame them, that stuff's made of fire.

Regardless, the welcome back to Destiny served as vindication for previous misendeavors, as the Blue-Reds (not our own, we wore the thirds for this one) fought fiercely, but not enough to keep Qasden its true name. While it may have taken 5 matches, the defense finally awarded the nation a clean sheet, with goals from Otero and Sauvage bringing the total of 9 points to the 9 lives.

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A brutal beginning gave the forgotten giants of Arrosia everything shy of everything. Yet, with a 3-0 run in the wake of Metropolon, the Vans now sit in an unprecedented 3rd place. Like, qualification 3rd place. Granted, 3rd spells a doom cycle leading into quali playoffs, and the 'match in hand' advantage is useless when both Bears Armed and Drawkland also have the same symptom, but considering we were 8th like 2 games ago, that's a pretty good turnaround! Or, like, a really congested midtable, which is also true. Aldous and the Vans now sit with more wins in 5 matches than Lori did last time in 10, and the reaction from fans?

Eh.

The documentary, while nice and shiny, has failed to refurbish much of the Blue-Red loyal after the initial disparities in days 1 and 2. So far, the home wins, while appreciated, have been against the two lowest ranked sides of the entire crabapple tree. The stunner in San Rafael, however, was just that. A stunner...in San Rafael. Y'know how much intradimensional travel is to the Pacific right now? Even the budget airlines are charging full price. Still, the fans crave a marquee win, and while HUElavia Away really should be that one, the desire for it to not be the last is just so much stronger. Greene's Blue-Reds now must take a vacation to a place on several trip advisory watches in West Vdara, a nation like Vdara, but with a lot less East. A bout at 'Hell in the Heartland' (Merellin Park) to exact revenge against the ne'er do wells of Yakk will cap off our next small batch of matches, with a trip to the city of Myrtle Beach expected to mark the halfway point of our journey.

Things are only just getting started, so can the Vans, as tiresome as they are, reinvigorate a tired crowd to consume their merchandise once more? Stay tuned, stay updated, and stay alert for more qualifying news stories, harvested from the unexpected dual hosts of Pasarga and Eastfield Lodge!

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