A Tale Of Two Crescents - WC97 Roleplay Thread

[Ko-oren]

It has been a while, but we're back! Your favourite - one of your favourite - or at least in your top 30 - football data analysts in the business. And this time we've tried to apply some order to chaos once more, working together with data helpfully provided by the folks at Jarongi's Fantasy World Cup Qualification division. Jarongi, for if you want to get yourself closer to the action! Daily odds and season-long bets available.

If you haven't checked out the Fantasy in a while, the core gameplay has been the same for about fifteen cycles now - pick a team from each group and get points if they win, more points if they win big, and lose points if they lose big - but quietly the group behind the game has been offering more insight in results and trends. We still have the regular stuff - the Polar Islandstates are once again fan-favourites with a huge majority picking them from Group 3 - but we can compare a team's output to their pot's output now, to see if a squad stacks up to teams of similar quality. That tells us that Kronbia, pot 6, is picking up well over a point per game more than the rest of their pot. Edsmontik come close to that at 0.99 points per game more than the rest of pot 6. Crpostran - pot 3 - is outperforming that cohort by nearly as much as Kronbia, also getting a full point and a bit more than the average pot 3 team.

Pot 3 is a pot of extremes, as you'd imagine: it's full of teams that are really pushing to qualify, not in the least because of the 48-team format, and teams that have been trying for a while and are now running out of their current generation of players, failing to adapt, and losing because of it. We find more Pot 3 teams in the 'fantasy points minus pot fantasy points' top group than any other pot, with Crpostran, Tero al Disco, Kamijiro, Sargossa, and Sajnur in the top 20. That means that other teams from the pot must bring down the average: Abanhfleft (-1.35), the US of Nova Calania (-1.07), TJUN-ia, the Ochre Islands, and Delaclava are all having a hellish campaign.

If you're wondering what team's the worst when it compares to their pot: it shouldn't be too much of a surprise, but the United Mandaran States are dead last at -1.63 points per game compared to the rest of pot 1. HUElavia's not much better off - in a field of 48, they might actually be left out.

In more boring stats, Farfadillis, Saint Eleanor, and Delte have picked up the most Fantasy Points, but it's Sangti and the Filindo Isles, the Ko-orenite Constellation, HOT-DAMN, Loch Dearg, Langenia, Panay Islands and Guimaras, and Kanzlia who have offered the most return of investment, all picking up a hefty amount of points for their modest KPB cost. Crpostran, StrayaRoos, Josifovo, Mertagne, and Farfadillis have all won the most games by a big margin (3) while Delte and Sargossa are the only authors of multiple 5+-margin beatdowns (two each) and the Holy Empire combine the two categories with two 'regular' big wins (by 3+ goals) and one huge win (by 5+). Meanwhile, those who picked Carbannog or The Fortem will likely resent their choices, as both have already lost by three or more goals four (!!) times.

Because we're still a Ko-orenite outlet, we have to talk about our Dragonflies a bit: we're still pretty good all things considered, but compared to our pot-mates - and especially as a team ranked in the top 10 in the multiverse - it's not all that great. With only one big win (then again, who looks to the Dragonflies for big wins??) and a few losses, we're at 2.13 FP per match, tied for 42nd overall. As for actual results, there was a great start with a 4-0 win over the Union of the Burnt Proclamation but it was loss-win-loss after that, against Avisora (remember that one). The team did string together two wins, over Sargossa and Srednjaci, then a Juvencus draw, and a narrow 2-3 away win at Cattstan, to let the Dragonflies enter the halfway break at 5-1-2 (2 points per game), a four-game non-losing streak, and a good position for the second half. With the two points per game this campaign is in our worst 33% of qualification attempts - but World Cup 89's sits even lower than this one and we all know what happened there. Aside from 89, the worst third is full of late 50s, early 60s, and late 70s campaigns were we weren't exactly in contention.

Now for the actual new stuff. We lost to Avisora, one of our worse losses in the 90s. But how bad was it? To answer that, we came up with a formula for upsets. It has to do a few things:

1) A low ranked nation beats or ties a better ranked nation;
2) The further apart their ranks, the bigger the upset;
3) An upset away from home is even better;
4) An upset draw is funny, an upset win is funnier, but an upset win by multiple goals is the funniest.

So, factoring in all four aspects, we have an Upset Coefficient. It's proper science. It's got a methodology. It's flawless.

And Avisora 1–0 Ko-oren comes in at... second. An Upset Coefficient of 62.19, it's one of two Truly Bad Results of the cycle so far, all because Avisora has a KPB of 1.00 in pot 7 (we have 38.87 in pot 1), it's a win rather than a draw, but at least it wasn't by multiple goals and the Dragonflies saved some (but not a lot of) face for it not being in Ko-oren at the very least. So which result is in first? That'd be Indusse 3–5 HOT-DAMN, where HOT-DAMN 1) wins, 2) by two goals, 3) away from home, 4) while being unranked versus a pretty good Pot 2 team. Ouch. And still that only comes in at 67.35 as Indusse's KPB is just over half of ours - KPB gets a little crazy up near the top, it's a good thing the Squishening will happen through the World Rankings (name is still a Work in Progress, the Scientists from Audioslavia and Farfadillis ensure me).

Third in the list at 'only' a mild 47.34 is Xanneria's home loss to Hetaru, and following that it's another HOT-DAMN hot mess as they tied Kelssek 3-3 away (Kelssek being third in the Multiverse) for 46.3. It was a draw, not a win, but it was away from home, and the KPB difference could not be bigger. Also bad: Sylestone failing to score at home versus Aquitayne, East Leaf getting a point versus Valanora, and Kronbia beating Delte 3-2. From there on the upsets get milder and milder, but Srubnaya culture 5–2 Darmen is worth mentioning as Darmen's only a pot 5 team - but it's the three-goal disparity that puts this one in the top 10 for now.

Some teams appear multiple times. HOT-DAMN being the first, the United Mandaran States being second (1-0 loss to Kanzlia, 1-1 versus Burikinia). HUElavia suffered two upsets away from home (West Vdara 1-0, Vaishnavaria 1-1). Juvencus then shows up in the next two spots, single-handedly keeping the Dragonflies in a qualifying spot, with their two Group two two-two draws against Cattstan and the Union of the Burnt Proclamation. Effectively, every Pot 1 or 2 team loss to a pot 5 or worse nation is going to pop up here in some form or another. And no doubt that the second half of qualifying - which we're not at for all teams, Pot 1 has a bye though - will add a fair few more as some of the bad teams hit their stride while some of the good teams falter and fade.

Oh, and bet Jarongi, don't forget them. Bookmakers need to put food on the table too. And let's be honest, don't you agree they deserve sustenance more than you?

[Xanneria]

The following is taken from a picturebook entitled "The Railroads of Xanneria" a sister publication of "The Railroads of the Yak Empire"


* there is a typo in here, it should be "serves both roasters" not "rosters"

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XANNERIA - 0
NONE'

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SAINT ELEANOR - 0
NONE'

XANNERIA - 4
Burnes 11' 75' 80'
D'Arcy 56'

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LOCH DEARG - 0

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[TJUN-ia]

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

Welcome back to this Random Ramble. One one game to talk about in this edition as our bye came up on MD8, the 2nd-to-last MD of the first half. This bye sequence means that we will a bye before the final game of our campaign in Franz Josef City so that may end up changing the dynamics heading into the final day if we are in any position to challenge the Top 3 on that day. So will all that in mind, what could we do to end this first almost-half?

The Match
The Equestrian States, which everyone just calls Equestria for simplicity's sake, was a World Cup champion once upon a time but those days are far in the past and they entered this campaign ranked 108th in the WCC. To take on this fallen giant is a testament to how far we and they have come since our heyday in WC84's cycle...but we couldn't reflect on that, we had a game to play. This game was chaotic in the first half as Stephan Fiedtkou countered two goals from the hosts, both times in what seemed like a hurricane of goals. The second half was quieter but tense as all hell, with the winning goal coming in the 78th minute through substitute Paek Un-hui. 3-2. That's all we needed.

Reactions
A good result that gets us back on track, that's the majority opinion. After our bye, the gap between us and Top 5 increased slightly to 5 points - but that is certainly doable, right? Sure, our form needs to be better, but a 5-point gain certainly isn't impossible at all.

What's Next...
It's back to the full swing of things next time out as we end the 1st Half in Roi Ville against 4th place Polar Islandstates before we start the 2nd half in Carlandas against Sudilia in a very important back-to-back homestand that could define the rest of our campaign. If we want to mount a serious challenge here, we need more than 3 points across the NAU and UAC. That is the full fact. GO JAGS!

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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) W 3-2 (5th)
MD8: BYE (6th)
---------------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

[Sarzonia]

Lloyd Caster was a policy wonk, nothing more, nothing less.

He was chief counsel for the Incorporated Sarzonian Football Players Association, in part because he knew the ins and outs of Sarzonian labour law. Executive Director Marketa Gregoire leaned heavily on Caster when the subject of player discipline came up. He was responsible for delving not just into bylaws, but also whether the various organisations within Sarzonian football followed established precedents.

He had been closely following Sarzonia during World Cup 97 qualifying, so he was familiar with the controversy surrounding Stars manager Caleb Rush and now-former defender Bill Kelley. He'd started the initial phase of discovery by requesting documentation from Rush and the rest of the Incorporated Football Federation regarding Rush's decision.

Rush had been meticulous about documenting his managerial decisions when it came to things like discipline. He even documented the times he sat goalkeeper John Wells, knowing how much Wells hated not being amongst the starting 11.

The situation with Kelley was no different. He'd sent the documentation to technical director Horace Sandt and copied Incorporated Football Federation chairman Zack Wilson, not just because he was the head honcho, but because his younger son Spencer was on the team.

Thus, discovery was an easy enough endeavour for Caster. He was easily able to determine whether the decision to expel Kelley from the team violated labour laws, established precedent or even the usual norms.

He'd pored over every potential law that could possibly apply to Kelley and a potential lawsuit. When he saw Gregoire approach his office, he knew what she was going to ask.

"May I come in?" she asked before she crossed the open threshold of the doorway into his office.

"Sure, Marketa," he said. The two were friendly enough to be on a first name basis, but not so much so that Caster would feel comfortable with calling her Markey, the nickname her husband and actual close friends called her.

"I assume you've been following the news about Bill Kelley," Gregoire said.

"Of course," Caster said. "I've been looking through case law, established precedent, the whole bit." He paused, looking at Gregoire and seeing the expectant look on her face. He sighed, looking down at the stack of papers on his desk. Gregoire's eyes looked at the same stack of papers with a hint of disappointment. She could tell the answer from Caster wasn't what she hoped.

"The IFF didn't violate labour law," he began. "Employers have the right to terminate employment, especially in an at-will employment scenario. The country's sporting teams are governed by at-will employment statutes by established precedent.

"Thus, Rush was well within his right to terminate Kelley without cause. That would cover anything like violating curfew, speaking out of turn a la Charlie King years ago, or simply lack of fit within a formation or system."

"He's terminating Kelley with cause, though," Gregoire said.

Caster smiled faintly. "I was getting to that," he said. "Managers have leeway to determine whether they need to terminate a player for cause, which in the work world would render them ineligible for unemployment benefits. In this case, Rush submitted paperwork indicating that he released Mr. Kelley from the team due to insubordination."

"On what grounds?"

"Disrespecting Rush in front of the team on multiple occasions, nearly fighting Wilson in the dressing room."

Gregoire's eyes widened. "Wilson?"

Caster saw the surprised look on Gregoire's face and knew she thought he meant Zack Wilson.

"Spencer Wilson," he said. "His teammate. Based on what I've read, it's a miracle Kelley's been on the team this long. We don't have grounds for a lawsuit," Caster said. "Not even close. Frankly, I don't think we could win a grievance.

"If we get Vance, we might," Gregoire said. Creighton Vance was a labour-friendly arbitrator who was especially friendly with players on sporting teams who filed grievances against managers in the past. However, Vance was winding his career down and wasn't likely to take on a case as contentious as this one.

"Not likely," Caster said. "He's labour-friendly, but he won't be an activist arbitrator. He'll recognise that Rush gave Kelley an opportunity to address concerns privately the next day after the public scolding, but Kelley escalated the matter.

"There's really no there there. I wish I could tell you differently."

When Kelley made the phone call to the ISFPA office, it was Caster who had to break the bad news to the player and Gregoire who announced the Player's Association would not pursue a grievance against Rush or the IFF.

All of that overshadowed Sarzonia's 5-3 victory over unranked Ossidiacqua in front of 66,904 at Dave Wilson Stadium. The result prevented the Stars from enduring a losing streak, but also snapped a five-match winless skein. It did not prevent the anxious Wells from pacing about the sidelines impatiently, leading Rush to decide on Scott Harkey to start the next match with Dayne Marks only making one save and playing extremely poorly.

The Stars offence bailed out Marks and Harkey, who entered the match after Ossidiacqua took a short-lived 3-2 lead in the 51st minute before Wilson equalised in the 56th.

Wells was going to have to learn patience, but Sarzonia still had work to do to build toward the sort of effort that allowed it to slay giants during the previous World Cup cycle. They were only three points out of third place and a possible automatic berth in the expanded World Cup finals, but they didn't have much room for error.

[Recuecn]

Les licornes were all going canoeing together. It had been Emanuele's idea. He had known he wouldn't be able to convince Coach Relié, but he talked to Gerauld. Gerauld had liked the idea, so he persuaded Ägidius, and he in turn had explained the idea to Bonheur. Somewhere along the way the outing began to be described as a "team-building activity", a rumor which Gerauld was possibly responsible for (he'd suggested to Ägidius that calling it that might make Bonheur more likely to consider approving the idea). In reality, Gerauld had just thought it sounded fun, and Emanuele had come up with the idea because he wanted to support his friend Franky.

Franky, you see, had been looking for work. No one had been able to talk him out of the idea that he needed to find a job. Gerauld had talked to him, Emanuele had talked to him, family members and career coaches had talked to him. Every one explained in detail to the star striker that precisely because he was a star striker, not just for Association Genève, but also for the ÉNRF, (Équipe Nationale de Reçueçn de Football), he really didn't need a third job. In fact, Franky had no financial worries at all. But he was having some sort of identity crisis and was convinced the solution was finding a "real" job--something he could do once he got too old to play professional soccer and had to retire.

Recently, he'd visited a career coach and then reached out to a staffing firm in Reçueçn City--in fact, the ad for the firm that he'd seen had caught his eye at an inopportune moment and distracted him from a game-winning scoring opportunity. Franky resolved that since he'd already sacrificed a World Cup qualification game, he had a lot of sunk costs already and had better double down on his efforts with the staffing firm. He had sent his curriculum vitae to the firm, "Paume Personnel", along with a cover letter, but he hadn't yet heard back. He was planning to follow up soon, but in the meantime, he had found something else.

What he had found, of all things, was a job as a guide for a company that gave canoe tours in the Rhône. When Emanuele had told the rest of the team, he described it as "the most Franky thing ever," and it was hard to disagree. It was easy to imagine Franky out for an adventure in a canoe, packing far more snacks along than could possibly be required, and striking up easy conversation with recreationists bewildered by their celebrity guide.

Emanuele had convinced Ägidius to let them use the team bus to carpool up to Genève from Reçueçn, and the two hour drive passed quickly as the group wound their way up through the mountains toward Lac Léman. At Helibert's suggestion, the team had not told the plan to Franky. Emanuele had surreptitiously figured out Franky's work schedule without arousing suspicion, and Ägidius had booked the trip for a day they knew Franky would have to be their guide. The website advertised the afternoon as a "Three-hour canoe tour from the captivating city of Genève through the peaceful surrounding countryside".

"If Franky's not wearing a fanny pack when we get there," said Emanuele, "we ought to get our money back."

"I can't wait to see his face," said Théophile.

When they arrived, the spectacle was even better than they had hoped. Franky was indeed wearing a ridiculously oversized fanny pack over a pair of swim trunks that barely came down to his mid thigh. A large straw hat shaded his face, but his skin, beet red everywhere except for his pasty pale thighs, indicated that the need for shade was a lesson that had only recently been learned. Franky had doubled and tripled down, however, with large aviators and a layer of sunscreen over his face so thick that his face was white enough to resemble a mime's. The whole team burst out laughing.

"Surprise!" said Emanuele.

"You bastards, what are you doing here," said Franky.

"We're here for the tour, of course," said Laurent, with a smile. "I hope you are ready to be our guide."

If Franky's sunburned skin hadn't already been so red, he would have been just as red anyway with embarrassment. Not that it matters, since it was all caked under a thick layer of sunscreen. "Oh, I'm ready," he said.

The team climbed into their canoes, laughing now not at Franky, but just with the merriment of a day on the water. Ägidius had reserved four larger canoes that fit three each.

In one, Ägidius rode with Théophile and Romain. "I better keep an eye on the kids," Ägidius thought to himself.

In another canoe rode Lukas and Laurent, with Gerauld at the stern. "As is fitting for the captain to be at the helm," he said to his two shipmates with mock pride.

The third canoe bore Paulin, Eric, and Marco. Bonheur had decided not to come along. And all three canoes were to be led by Franky's, in which he was joined by his buddies Emanuele and Helibert.

Gerauld and Laurent shared a look when they saw Emanuele and Helibert climbing into Franky's boat.

"That looks like trouble," said Laurent.

"I'm not disagreeing," Gerauld murmured. He smiled wryly. "But I'm curious to see how it goes."

Everyone helped each other into their life-jackets and chose their paddles and pushed off into the water. Things started off well. The tour followed the slow current of the Rhône from the shores of Lac Léman, winding lazily through the centre ville of Genève. Franky did his best to sound official in his role as guide. He gave frequent safety instructions to people in the other canoes, particularly Ägidius. Laurent turned from his seat in the prow to smile knowingly at Gerauld. It was obvious that Franky was enjoying his chance to boss around the assistant manager.

Gerauld must have been able to see it too, but all he said was "Don't rock the boat!" Laurent faced forward again.

As they passed various historical buildings, Franky would also frequently announce various historical "facts" as part of the tour. "That is the tour des alliances, a tenth century castle," he proclaimed, pointing at a spire that was very clearly part of a cathedral. "It got its name in the fourteenth century when the treaties of alliance were signed there that made Reçueçn into a nation. Genève's ratification of the treaties was the catalyst that convinced the rest of the states to join."

"I don't think any of that is true," hissed Laurent over his shoulder.

"It happened in Reçueçn, I know that much," said Gerauld.

"Yeah, in 1256, not the fourteenth century."

"He might think 1256 was the fourteenth century," Gerauld returned.

Lukas, in the center of the canoe, had been mostly quiet. He often had difficulty following the conversations, which took place in French, so when he joined in now, both Laurent and Gerauld went quiet in surprise. "Baden's signature convinced Genève to sign," he said. "Not the other way around."

The trio's boat was not the only one to notice some inaccuracies in Franky's account. Paulin pointed to the "tour des alliances". "What about the cathedral over there?" he asked. "What can you tell us about Jean Calvin? Didn't he spend a lot of time here?"

"Who?" said Franky. "Oh look, do you guys see the fish down there?"

Franky's change of subject was a distraction, but not a lie. The water of the Rhône was a gorgeous deep blue color. Soon they came to the confluence where the Arve poured in. The difference in the color of the water was striking; the Arve was an exquisite shade of turquoise that seemed to be impossibly clear. As the Arve and the Rhône flowed into each other, the two waters flowed side by side without mingling. A long, low, narrow peninsula at the confluence gently guided the streams into one broader river, where the water on one bank was a deep blue and the water at the other bank was clear. Franky called it "la jonction" and said it had something to do with the glaciers.

The tour continued downstream, away from the city, and into the countryside. It was a beautiful day to be on the water. The sun was bright but not overbearing, and birdsong rang out from the trees at the riverbank. After a while Franky announced that if they were hungry, now was as good a time for lunch as any, and began to conjure provisions out of his fanny pack.

Nothing that came out of the fanny pack seemed to belong in a fanny pack. First there was a mini portable chess set with magnetic pieces. "I keep meaning to learn how to play this game," said Franky, putting it down in the bottom of the canoe. Next to emerge was a liter carton of chocolate milk, which Franky handed to Helibert. "Have some if you like," he said. Next was something yellow and rolled up, that unfolded into a second, even larger and floppier straw hat. "Just in case the other one falls in the water," Franky said. Then a stick of pepperoni--but no knife--a jar of Nutella, a packet of instant ramen, a bag of Swedish Fish, and a corkscrew. "Did anyone bring a baguette?" Franky asked.

No one had. "I have, uh, trail mix," offered Eric. Franky offered to trade for the Swedish Fish, but Eric said he was happy to share and "was close enough to enough fish already."

"Can you guys stop your boats?" asked Franky. "Let me pull up next to you so I can grab some trail mix."

"Careful, Franky," said Helibert.

Franky held out his paddle toward Marco, in the front of Eric's canoe. "Grab on," he said, "pull me toward you." They docked their two canoes next to each other, facing opposite directions, holding onto each other's paddles to not drift away, while Gerauld and Ägidius' canoes slowly began to drift away, their occupants also engaged in digging their lunches out of their bags.

Franky reached out to grab the bag of trail mix from Eric, but as he put his hand on the side of the boat and leaned over, the canoe began to tip.

"Careful, Franky!" yelled Emanuele, leaning the opposite way to balance things out. Franky felt the canoe beginning to tip and centered his weight. So did Emanuele, just in time, but not soon enough to prevent the canoe from rocking from side to side and splashing some water into the bottom.

"Franky!" said Helibert. "My shoes are gonna get wet!"

"Sorry, it'll be fine, I can bail out the water," said Franky, only half-paying attention. He was leaning over again to try and grab the trail mix which Eric was still holding out.

The two canoes had begun to drift apart with the rocking and jostling, and Franky had to lean out just a bit further than last time. His fingers clasped onto the bag of trail mix but slipped for a moment. "My trail mix!" cried Eric.

Fortunately, he was still holding on. But Franky thought he had dropped the bag and lurched violently to catch it before it fell in the river. And that's when it happened.

Franky fell into the water. Helibert and Emanuele, both leaning the other way to balance the canoe, promptly followed suit as the whole boat capsized. "Franky!" they yelled together, but their yells were muffled as they plunged face first into the Rhône and their mouths filled with water. The entire trio came up spluttering and yelling. Two large straw hats slowly floated to the surface and began to float downstream with a stick of pepperoni.

"Franky!" yelled Helibert, fishing his phone and wallet out of his pocket and holding them above his head while he treaded water. But before a fight could ignite, it was doused by a chorus of laughter from the other canoes.

"Our brave guide is unafraid to lead the way, I see," Gerauld cheered.

"His knowledge of local history is matched only by his love for the water," said Laurent.

Even Ägidius joined in. "If you were that thirsty, Franky, you could have had some of my water!"

The laughter continued. "Oh ha ha ha, laugh it up," said Franky. "Glad you all can sit in your canoes and laugh at the working man, here to make sure you're all having a good time."

"Come on Franky, don't be mad," said Gerauld. "The water looks nice anyway." And kicking off his sandals, he jumped over the edge of his canoe and joined Franky in the water.

"Is that the next part of the tour?" asked Théophile, and followed suit with a graceful swan dive.

One by one, les licornes began to throw themselves out of their canoes and into the river. They laughed, they smiled, they splashed each other. By the time they made it to the pull-out point at the end of the tour, they were exhausted and over an hour behind schedule.

"I don't know if I'm cut out to be a canoe guide," Franky confided in Gerauld.

"Maybe not, but that was the best canoe trip I've ever had in my life," said the goalie. "Just be glad you didn't take us white-water rafting."

[Mertagne]

MERTAGNE CLING TO TOP OF TRICKY-DICKY GROUP 13
Critics claim of fatigue from national squad as qualifying campaign draws into winter months

Mandrid, HISPINAS-- Mertagne’s World Cup 97 qualifying campaign is halfway complete, as the Green Goblins wrapped up their final match of the half against Hispinas last night with a 3 - 4 victory at the Estadio Nacional en el Castillo in Mandrid that, in an uncharacteristic manner for the 16th ranked squad in the multiverse, they had to fight for to achieve the victory.

Mertagne have, at this stage in the qualifiers, been handed a single loss - a 3 - 5 falter against a strong Elmiya side that got the better of the Mertagnians on the night at a rainy Dannin City Stadium where the solar panels of the stadium, and some could argue the team, were operating at minimum efficiency. Their single loss in eight games - all other teams have played seven - puts them on equal pegging with Oberour Ar Moro, who, like Mertagne, have won five of their games and drawn two, on seventeen points. OAM have a game in hand, however, so it is likely that Mertagne will be coming into the second half of the qualifiers in second place, or possibly third, given that current third placers Elmyia are just one point behind with sixteen points.

As we’ve seen many times, it’s typical at this stage that the front runners of the pack are separated by the thinnest of margins. To perform within your station as a first seed is to face everyone and come away without a loss - which is, statistically, unlikely even for the strongest of teams in the competition. To date in ‘97, of the seventeen first seeds, only five teams have made it through their entire first half of the qualifiers undefeated and remained atop their group. (Crpostran still has one more game to test their mettle and join the undefeated and on top club from outside the first seeding). However, even of these five teams, few are clearing their groups by a significant margin, with none coming 3 points clear of the top of the group. This means that it is still all to play for, and with an expanded World Cup field at play this cycle, all the teams will be trying to clinch first second, and even one of the best placed third spots to get a place in the finals.

Based on previous performance, Mertagne should make it over the line, but it would be foolish to make any assumptions of future performance at such a pivotal point. Teams that Mertagne have plucked points from on the road will be looking to do the same when they come to Mertagne, and those that have already done so will be looking to turn their stadiums into fortresses when Mertagne come knocking on the back leg.

A few teams will certainly be ones to watch out for. Oberour Ar Moro tied it up at the Nine Star Arch, but as they are in fierce contention for the top of the group, when the Green Goblins face them again, it’s likely to be for most of the marbles. John Antheaume’s attacking 4-3-3 tends to gum up Mertagne’s defending half, with plenty of options available for the Oberour midfield to play into. Mertagne’s core defensive pickups tend to be spread out to the wings, and it seems that players such as Peire de Baingneus have an awareness of the Green Goblin’s comparative lack of strength along the centre line.

Another team that Hazaluta will be looking to find a way around is certainly found in Elmiya. The only team to steal the full three points from Mertagne at this stage of the qualifiers, and on paper the team most likely to do so in this group, the current Rushmori champions are in a very similar upshot to our Calanian heroes. Also sporting a 4-3-3 in a typical affair, Pau Porras, like Hazaluta, has recognised the talent latent in his squad after claiming silverware and has led a largely unchanged side forward to the World Cup qualifiers. Also managing to slip a few past Mertagne’s central back line, forcing the Mertagnian goalkeeper into a challenge that a lot of the time, they don’t want to make, players such as Vesper Benedetti have proven to be a menace. This is something that in the short training period afforded to Mertagne by their bye, the team will be looking to get under control or nullify completely.

Many sports pundits believe that during these critical games in the second half, Hazaluta will adopt a more defensive strategy than previously seen during this qualifying campaign. While the Mertagnian side is certainly more conservative with its scoring opportunities than it was under Ázëwyn Fëanáro, now preferring to only commit to a chance on the pitch if the players feel certain it won’t cause a loss in possession, the side has not shied away from enabling these moments, as seen at the start of the campaign as the Green Goblins snatched a pair of 3-0 victories from Caerbannog and Lisander. Options for player combinations that have been floated to enable this more defensive operation include pairing Gregor Charlton with Jon de Vymont, as the two tend to focus on keeping the ball firmly within their sphere of influence, preferring midfielders to drop back to receive the ball. De Vymont and Charlton have not been paired together this tournament, with Hazaluta preferring to pair either of them with the two first-choice centre-backs, but this could be a key piece of preventing the battering ram afforded by these attacking 4-3-3 sides from storming the castle gates.

No matter how you slice it, this second half of the qualifiers will be a key test to ensure Mertagne still have the edge to make it to the World Cup on their own merits, after taking a cycle in the hosting seat. To many across the multiverse, Mertagne in the World Cup remains a fluke confirmed by a freebie, and therefore qualification is truly critical to be seen as belonging at the adult’s table. Luckily for us, someone’s got the lawn chairs out for Christmas, so more of us can sit around this time. Hopefully Farfadillis won’t scoff all the turkey when the finals roll around.

Other news from across the nation:

• NATIONAL: MaxiMillions lottery reaches record high for Friday’s draw - have you got your ticket?
• POLITICS: Autumn budget commits federal spending to tackling veteran homelessness
• CULTURE: Alasdair Colby author has statue unveiled in hometown
• TECHNOLOGY: Boofer social media outage affects thousands

[Drawkland]

generated with MidJourney AI then slightly modified in paint.NET

Praxis Collingwood

In pretty much every other country, when athletes hit 40, they're toast. If their career isn't over, they're certainly on the way out. At the very least, they're unlikely to be making a big difference for a national team. In Drawkland, where the lifespan is longer and the career starts a little later, 40 is the tail end of the prime window. Still, having a starter on the wrong side of 40 generally means you're low on talent or somehow, this player still has gas in the tank. Drawkland certainly has no dearth of talent at the forward position, so why is 40-year-old Praxis Collingwood getting starts in qualifiers? Why shut out promising youngsters? Well, in short, Praxis still bangs.

Drawkland's hyper-offensive tactics are a product of both a preference for high-scoring games, and a sport that was invented and developed independent of the wider multiverse (which conveniently happened to follow the same ruleset as everyone else despite the tactical differences). The Withdrawn Forward position is probably a bit of a misnomer - in the classic Drawkian 3-3-4, they're more of an attacking midfielder. Truly, the Drawkian 3-3-4 is more like a 3-3-1-3, with the WF being the "1" in that formation. Playing this position requires extreme versatility, while also being able to score from long distances and dish out the ball effectively.

Praxis Collingwood has been the starting WF for Drawkland in every major tournament since World Cup 94, where the Elite Eleven were finally ousted and a "regular" Kick Corps took back the reins. It's a testament to her flexibility and field vision, as well as her durability.

Career Arc

Praxis was a relatively unknown midfield prospect in rural northern Drawkland as she went through high school. In her junior and senior year, she blossomed into an elite scorer known for her excellent finishes. The nearby Cavsar University decided to take a chance on her, despite the fact that her physical attributes weren't exactly top notch. This move paid dividends. In her five seasons with the Gladiators, Praxis became a prolific striker, making the official move from midfield to forward in her sophomore year. By the time she graduated, she was one of the more hyped up prospects on DLK draft boards. She wasn't entirely interested in staying on Drawkland's shores, especially because she was projected to be drafted by the Masteser Assassins (apparently she despises the south of Drawkland and would hate living there). Praxis took a different door, deciding to open up to the international transfer market.

Praxis was picked up by Trojana Condommakers FC of the Q-League. After a year or two in Trojana, she was flipped for cash to Forest City Athletic of the same league. There in Quebec and Shingoryeo, she became a true star. Though FCA hasn't made any title runs since signing Praxis, she's made a few Team-of-the-Season lists in Quebec and is always a featured player for her club. It was commonly stated by pundits that, if the Kick Corps went back to a normal roster rather than trotting out the Elite Eleven, Praxis would certainly be on the squad list.

The Break

Even with her obvious talent on the field, it wasn't exactly guaranteed that she would make the Kick Corps roster in World Cup 94. Praxis was on leave for nearly two seasons in Quebec - maternity leave, that is. Her decision-making during the 90 minutes of a match may be elite, but her decision-making off the field, not so much. It's not exactly couth to criticize somebody's personal life and habits, but when you're getting paid large sums of money to play a game, it's a little inconsiderate to your team and fans to put your playing status in jeopardy. At least, that's how some people viewed this maternity leave.

See, Praxis Collingwood has never been married. When she became pregnant a few months before her 33rd birthday, it was with a man she wasn't even dating. Some might recognize the name of Lane Proudfoot - notorious womanizer known for his explosive play on and off the field in Fiston, Ranoria. The Redwolves quarterback Proudfoot is also a Cavsar alumni. Apparently Proudfoot and Collingwood met at an alumni event in Cavsar during the offseason, and one thing led to another. Praxis made an announcement a few months into that next season at Forest City that she would be temporarily leaving the team as she had become pregnant.

Lane

---

Hey. Thought I would let you know that this kid is yours. It's a boy.

Wrong number.

Cut the shit, Lane. It's Praxis. From Cavsar. Got your number from the alumni department

Okay, whatever. You can't confirm it's mine, though. I didn't take a test.

You can take my word for it. Trust me, I'd rather it not be yours anyway.

At least we're on the same page

You're not getting a cent from me, hon. You have a multi-million dollar contract anyway

I have great lawyers here, they haven't lost yet

I don't want your money, jackass. Just a little acknowledgement or responsibility would be nice.

lol

You're a strong, independent woman. I believe in your ability to handle this yourself

This is literally your child. He could be your firstborn son.

Honey, I probably have enough bastard sons to fill a 53-man roster. Your kid ain't special

I mean, he's still going to be your kid. Do you at least have any names you like?

I literally could not care less what you name your kid

Call him Jimothy or some shit, idk

this is why I avoid women who have my number

My bad for giving you the benefit of the doubt. Bye.

At age 33, partway into the offseason, Praxis gave birth to Jimothy Proudfoot-Collingwood. On one hand, marking your child with the name of his scumbag father is probably not the best move. On the other hand, Praxis figured it was a smart move. Because Lane lived in Ranoria and she gave birth in Quebec, legal loopholes allowed her to use Lane's last name for her son. Even without a true paternity test in hand, the child was fullblooded Drawkian, not a human-Drawkian hybrid. She'd only been with one Drawkian in the time frame that the conception could've occurred, and that was Lane. Even though she knew he was going to be absent and didn't want to deal with the litigation of trying to establish a full custody relationship, she at least wanted some level of acknowledgement from Proudfoot. Of course, if Proudfoot took offense to his last name being used for her child, he'd have to sue her and prove that he wasn't the father, which of course he'd fail.

Anyway, Praxis took off the beginning of the next season to raise her child. Though many Forest City fans hoped for her triumphant return, many were doubtful. A female athlete retiring from professional play after having a child isn't exactly uncommon, and as Praxis continued to delay her return from maternity leave, more and more believed that the return would never come. Even Praxis herself was starting to reconsider her professional involvement. Then The Elf came knocking.

The Corps

Ellzidan was going to be the future manager of the newly reestablished Kick Corps. While the Elite were still roaming around in Kick Corps kits, Ellzidan was always scouting out the best Drawkian talent both inside and outside the country. The moment the Elite were fired, Ellzidan had a shortlist in hand. When she strongarmed her way into the managerial position, she immediately began knocking on doors and calling phones. It was time to put a team back together.

Praxis Collingwood was one such recipient of a call. Praxis had a long call with the Drawkionel, who was well aware of the baby situation. It didn't take much convincing. The prospect of playing in Quebec for a team that wasn't really contending every year wasn't super enticing. The chance to play for Drawkland's national team, to be competing for the World Cup ... that's something else entirely. Praxis wasn't totally out of shape, but she did have to work hard to recondition herself for competition. She worked hard enough to earn a starting position, slotting into the WF spot which allowed her to take advantage of her midfield background.

For the last few cycles, she's quietly been a solid contributor, scoring every few games to justify her inclusion on the roster. At the beginning of these World Cup 97 Qualifiers, though, Praxis reminded everyone why she was considered one of Drawkland's best striking prospects. On opening day at home vs Yak Empire, Praxis opened the score with a nice crossing shot in the 17th minute. She added on two more, taking advantage of Yakk's late-game desperation formation. Two counterattack goals buried in the space of 4 minutes completed her first hat-trick as a member of the Kick Corps. Then she scored a go-ahead goal against Myrtle Beach in Matchday 2. Then she added a goal apiece in the win vs Qasden and high-scoring road loss against Bears Armed.

Is it safe to say that Praxis is now the premier scorer on the Corps? Probably not. Hot streaks come and go, and Praxis's career will likely begin its downturn over the next few years. Hopefully it's more graceful than others, and Praxis will be able to ride out a few more good contract years. Childcare isn't cheap, after all, and Jimothy is now in grade school. Soon she's going to have to start paying for extracurricular activities. Still, having some great performances on the international stage is something you can be proud of for a long time.

[HOT-DAMN]

Laughing Dog Bar and Grill, Kensington Town, Hapilopper
A day after Match 8 of World Cup 97 Qualifying: Kensington Town 5-3 Indusse

Regardless of the circumstances, regardless of the craziness that had unfolded in the last few weeks - particularly in the aftermath of the end of the Ellis Football-Kensington Town scrap, where Jimmy Eaton spent a night in the Hapilopper City Jail, the people of Kensington Town, that small suburb of Buckridge, still saw the beer leaguers as their own. Regardless of the fact that the team was nominally representing the under-construction HOT-DAMN (Hapilopper Overseas Territories: Dominion Anaia Maritime Neighborhood), the people of Kensington Town, and to an extent the Buckridge area, viewed these players for the Kensington Town Soccer Club as their own.

So it shouldn’t have been any surprise when, at 8:30 in the morning, on a cold, dreary and gray day that looked like it was going to spit rain at any moment, a sizable crowd stood on the sidewalks on Mill Lane, the road that Laughing Dog was located, waiting for the team bus to arrive from Buckridge Municipal Airport. Many of these people felt a kinship with the beer leaguers - and probably justifiably so.

Standing near the front was the head of Alexander and Michaels, one of the largest accounting firms in all of Hapilopper and the largest in Buckridge. The man, Aaron Munson, was the kind of man whose idea of fun was wearing more than two colors on his necktie. His gray flannel suits were always pressed perfectly, and it never seemed like he was going to crack a smile. But yet, he was there because of Jim Dash, the starting goalkeeper for the beer leaguers, who had taken some time off specifically to travel to other countries to compete in the biggest sporting event in the multiverse.

And it was because of Jimmy Dash that the beer leaguers had held off the team from Indusse. It was because of Jimmy Dash that the team from Indusse, in spite of their intense charge in the last few minutes, just could not score three goals - two to tie the beer leaguers and one more to beat them.

And everyone knew it. The Buckridge Sentinel, the biggest newspaper in the area, had on the front of its newspaper on this morning a picture of Jimmy on his knees, in front of goal, clutching the ball, a look of tired desperation on his face. It almost looked like there was a tear running down his face, as the stress of holding off the 28th ranked team in the multiverse - a team considered by many to be “very likely” to qualify for the World Cup proper - was getting to be too much.

After the match ended, some of the beer leaguers put Jimmy up on their shoulders and carried him back to the Kensington Town locker room. Even as he was hoisted up on the shoulders, you could see the exhaustion penetrating Jimmy’s face. You could see the pain and the fatigue, but more importantly, you could see the relief. It had sunk in that he had held off the Indusseans, he had kept them from scoring those goals they needed to score, and helped the beer leaguers defeat Indusse.

On this dreary morning in Buckridge, Jimmy sat near the back of the bus, looking out the window, contemplating what had happened the night before. He heard someone say something about how the beer leaguer win over Indusse was both subjectively and objectively the biggest upset of the World Cup qualifiers, according to some Ko-orenite analyst - and by a long way too.

Jimmy looked straight ahead and saw some of his teammates get up and point at the crowd in front of Laughing Dog.

“Can you believe this?” asked Darrell Hawkins, a backup defenseman. “I mean...”

“Guess we’re going day-drinking!” responded Chris Spears. “Won’t be the first time.”

“Bullshit, we’re not going day-drinking,” Jimmy Eaton snapped. “I’m tired and I want to go to bed. We can come back tonight. I got shit to do anyway.”

When the bus stopped, it was pretty quickly mobbed by fans, friends, family and well-wishers. Jimmy’s eyes widened when he realized Aaron Munson - who just happened to be his supervisor at work - was in the crowd.

Jimmy’s first reaction was that Munson was going to fire his ass. After all, Jimmy had told him that he needed to take some time off to take care of his sick dog, take it to appointments in Hapilopper City and come back - conveniently for the same timeframe as away matches that the beer leaguers were in.

And Munson’s first reaction was to want to fire Jimmy for lying to his face. Munson hated dishonest people, and he hated it when someone lied to him. But as he thought about it, he realized that he might not have believed Jimmy if he had told him the truth. Not many people - especially a bean-counter like Jimmy, that planned the financial budgets of multi-billion dollar corporations, would have come up with an excuse like “I’m traveling to Kelssek or to Indusse or Mytanija to play in the biggest sporting event in the multiverse.”

As Jimmy got off the bus, Munson walked over to him.

“Look, boss, I can explain it...” Jimmy started.

“Sure,” Munson said. “How’s your dog, Mr. Dash?”

“It’s... it’s... uh, fine,” Jimmy responded.

“That’s what I thought,” Munson responded with a suspicious look on his face. “Listen, I get why you did it but I don’t tolerate it when people lie to me. Next time you need to take off to play in this tournament, just be up front with me, say you’re the keeper and you need to do these guys proud.”

“Look, sir...”

“I don’t want to hear it,” Munson responded. “I was flipping through the channels and saw you save a goal last night. Obviously you don’t think I’m gonna believe that you - a guy like you - is going to beat national football powers. And I can see it. So... next time, just tell me what you’re doing.”

“Yes, sir.”

[Crpostran]

---

[*]NOTE: Images of the players on the scorecard & of players at the beach generated with AI-image generators, solely for aesthetic purposes. Viva Crpostran!

[Mytanija]

HAPILOPPER 3-4 MYTANIJA

HAP: Radomia 23’, Fairchild 40’, Schuyler 58’

MYT: Papić–Papratović 45’, Papež 48’; Kovačec 66’, 89’

MYT: 1. Besak; 2. Jesenko (sub. Beganović 61’), 3. Mbala-Ekakia (c), 4. Vlahovljaković, 5. Lusamba (sub. Klanac 71’); 6. Papež; 7. Vdovichenko (sub. Gicić 61’), 8. Šaranja; 10. Ovsyannikov (sub. Stojadinović–Srpkinja 90+1’); 9. Issoumou (sub. Kovačec 61’), 11. Papić–Papratović

“You don’t need to tell me who you’re working for, Nevenka.” Ermin Držić grinned, his mood buoyant following Mytanija’s late victory over Hapilopper in a vital qualifier for World Cup 97. The two teams had been locked together towards the top of Group 11, both progressing through their matches in similar form and with similar results. Neither had played the other yet, so a win could prove significant in deciding the outcome of the group. Both nations were nervously looking over their shoulders, too, with the group’s top-ranked team Kelssek looking like they were regaining their own form after a slow start and they both needed to get points on the board before the Kelssekian train reached full speed. “I’m pretty confident I know at this point!”

“I’m sure, Ermin.” Nevenka Planinc laughed back. She, as always, had the first question at the press conference, occupying the role as Mytanija’s most respected sports journalist and working for Gazeta Sporta for so many years and it wasn’t something that was going to change until she decided to retire – unlike most of those she had interviewed over the years her position was pretty much untouchable. “I can see that you’re absolutely buzzing with the win, but you must be especially pleased with the manner of the victory? The players stayed in the game and tore it back from Hapilopper from a difficult position.”

“Absolutely Nevenka,” Ermin turned slightly more serious with the question. “I am so pleased with the team, they were put in a difficult position with the two goals Hapilopper scored in the first half and they hung in there. It’s not easy to go behind like that, in front of a partisan crowd, we’ve done the same to other countries so many times before when we’ve played important matches at home. Goran and Nurija are two of our more experienced players and they came up big for us when we needed them. But then we concede another, Schuyler coming on and scoring is exactly what you want as a coach so fair play to Hapilopper for getting that substitution as right as they did. But we came back and showed some real steel to do so, it’s not easy to overturn a deficit the way we did even just once in a match, but we managed to do it twice! That’s a really good sign.”

“You made a lot of changes after that third Hapilopper goal, what was the thinking behind those changes?” Nevenka asked.

“Yeah we just felt that we needed to make some changes to both the players and the way we were playing after going behind the second time, we went a bit more defensive at the back and brought on a bit more physicality in midfield with Uglješa and that set us right. We also decided we wanted to go a bit more fluid up front with Blaž Kovačec in Lacina’s place and look at how that worked out! We like using Goran with Blaž, they have a good relationship out on the pitch but sometimes we need someone up front with a bit more presence like Lacina so we can’t always have them on alongside one another. Blaž is so young but he has so many qualities and is so dangerous in front of goal, always in the right positions and he gets into a good spot to score with basically his first touch and then again for the winner – a very similar goal inside the penalty area and that’s exactly what we want from him long term.”

“Is there any concern about the number of goals which we are conceding at this point?” Nevenka asked. A trickier, question, certainly. Mytanija had conceded thirteen goals through their first seven games, nearly two per game, and more than a handful of them were entirely preventable goals stemming from mistakes in different areas of the pitch. They also seemed to concede them in bunches, one goal leading to another as the team struggled to recover from the setback. It should be a concern.

“Always, Nevenka.” Ermin replied, employing a diplomatic expression, almost slightly pained by the concept of conceding goals during football matches. “We have a number of experienced defenders in our team and in our national pool, players who play for teams that are usually better at preventing goals from going in. That’s something we have to try to replicate here with the national team. Bigger and Irfan play alongside one another with Atletik and have won titles on that basis, we just need to get Mumin and Nnamdi on the same level and develop that on field understanding. I think a lot of our issues have come in the fullback areas and the spaces between our fullbacks and central defenders, we must tighten up that shape defensively. We’re comfortable with Nurija in front of the defence, and Potap’s showing that he’s starting to get it too, everybody knows what Ante offers in terms of physical presence and his ability to get around the pitch. We just need to get them all working together, so we aren’t conceding the sorts of chances that we have been giving away. There’s a fair bit of work to do in that regard.”

“And just on Blaž Kovačec, you mentioned he has the sense of where he needs to be in the box, what is it that makes him so good at this specifically? Particularly so early on in his career.”

“Some players just ‘get it’, to be honest with you Nevenka.” Ermin started, lifting his hand and rubbing his thumb and fingers together to emphasise the point. “They just have this natural sense for where to be, where they need to be to get on the end of chances. It’s a natural instinct I think, I didn’t have it and it’s why I got moved back from being a striker to playing more as a creative number ten during my playing days. The best strikers will create chances for themselves with their movement, being able to get on the end of chances in the penalty area, but they will also almost instinctively know where to be to position themselves for bounces and second balls in the box too. It’s something you can train and try to drill into players too, but I think it’s something the very best are born with, a bit of anticipation, a bit of studying patterns and knowing where your opponents position themselves to make sure you’re in the places where they aren’t and you can create yourself some space on that basis. Blaž does that so well, he's shown it at Raven Thöni and they’re all going mad about him there – we’ve spoken to one or two people well-connected with football in Taxhavn and they rate him incredibly highly, we love him too and when he’s scoring two goals like that at the age of 22, two vital goals… He’s going in the right direction and we’re super lucky to have him and excited to help his development.”

[Banija]

Kabaka- King
Omugabe/Omugaba- Prince/Princess
Katikkiro- Prime Minister
Waziri- Foreign Minister

Afiya Oyange, Banijan Ambassador to S&T, at a Banijan WCQ watch party in St. Jakob

Afiya Oyange most certainly was not, at the moment, jealous of her hosts here in Borograd. She had just been watching the RBC News- this situation in Saint Konrad was in a quagmire now. Valljas Bancu was, what the Ambassador liked to say, 'certifiably insane'- but unfortunately, he was the man in charge of Saint Konrad. He was problematic for all sorts of reasons- and for the trained eye, it seemed clear that he and his Blue Sun Party were manufacturing this crisis to get the Teuslanders out of Saint Konrad. The demands he had for the return of the prisoners were crazy- no nation would ever accept those terms, particularly one as strong as the United Republics. But the heavy handedness had betrayed their cause- the death of a fisherman promptiong a supercarrier to be sent from Siovanija & Teusland, a force of soliders, when combined with the soldiers already in Saint Konrad, large enough to probably take over the island.

But of course, doing that over in Rushmore- Banija knew quite well how foreign military adventures from Arrosian nations were received in Rushmore. Oyange felt that there was no definite and destined path to war, just yet- although things were clearly escalating. The amount of space to reverse course was rapidly dwindling. It was still there, of course. But it was dwindling.

Oyange was here to represent her Government, and she was doing that exceptionally. The Kingdom of Banija, as of yet, had not really taken a position on the matter- as the country's decision makers started to become more divided amongst themselves as the crisis developed, they could not come to a consensus. And the Kabaka- at his ripe old age of 95 years old, seemed unwilling to drag his advisors to coalesce and unify behind his plan. Which meant, well, there was really nothing that Afiya Oyange could do, at that moment, except for continue to observe, continue to analyze.

Personally, she knew her job- represent the Government to the best of her ability. Could Banija serve as a mediator? Unlikely. Ultimately, it was like this- the vast majority of decision makers in Banija basically supported the position of the United Republics. The kind of government the Blue Sun were running, the aggressive attacks against civilians and immigrants alike. Plus, there was a strong affinity for Siovanija & Teusland- Banija wanted to be known as a strong ally. On the flip side, while to the trained eye it was clear that the Blue Sun were the instigators, to the untrained eye, it looked different.

Imagine if you didn't watch the news. Scrolling on social media, the headline you were most likely to see is 'Teus supercarrier deployed to the edge of Saint Konrad's waters'. While they weren't, to much of the unassuming public, they did look like it. So aggressively backing them pubicly would not be a popular decision- maybe of little consequence now, but if the crisis spiralled into a full on war- the Banijans would be in a bind. So, no decisions were made. Oyange would simply keep herself abreast of the situation. Just reading, learning, and analyzing- looking at this thing from all angles.

It meant her mind was distracted when a Banijan reporter walked up to her after the match. The Banijan community in this town was strong- and spirits were bright. A 2-2 draw, as a last gasp equalizer from Jônn Wérséô gave the team a crucial point in the Dreamed Realm. "Afiya Oyange- I am a reporter from the Busukuma Post." The reporter flashed her press credential. "What are the country's thoughts on the developing Saint Konrad crisis?"

Afiya Oyange sighed, and then spoke. "The Kingdom, of course, supports peaceful relations between Saint Konrad and Siovanija & Teusland. The two have been interlinked for centuries, and everybody is a winner from their positive relationship. We pray for the soul of the son of Charlotte Eicher, and the safe return of her family and the other fishermen. We implore to Saint Konrad that cool heads can prevail." When asked about conflict escalation, Afiya Oyange firmly maintained her full confidence that 'there would be no escalation'.

Was she confident in that? Of course not. But that was a question that, at least for now, could not be answered in Busukuma...

Select Prinicipals Meeting on the developing Saint Konrad crisis

Saint-Konrad Crisis Principals

His Majesty the Kabaka- Mwanga
The Waziri- Omugaba Immaculate
The Katikkiro- Boaz Gor
Banijan Ambassador to Siovanija & Teusland- Afiya Oyange (NOT PRESENT)
Omugabe Ssemanda

Omugabe Ssemanda walked into the cabinet meeting room, prepping for a prinicipals meeting on the Saint Konrad crisis. His gambit a week prior had worked out- the Kabaka had declared him a Principal, and he was invited into the meeting room. This wasn't necessarily public, of course- when specific issues had working groups, all sorts of people could be named Principals. But this was something that Omugaba Immaculate noticed. She felt that she was the frontrunner to be named Regent due to her extensive working relationship wtih her Father. But if her nephew came in to take that from her? Well... Let's not let that happen.

Eventually, the meeting started. A roundup on the situation was given by an aide, bringing everybody up to speed on current events. They all even saw a clip of Afiya Oyange's comments to the press, just the day before. They knew a more formal position was needed on Saint Konrad. And yet...

"The United Republics are one of our closest neighbors, one of our strongest allies." Omugaba Immaculate, the Waziri, said in the meeting. "Their people are being unjustly targeted by a raving maniac, who, by the way, stands against our political values. Eroding the rights of minorities, the overabuse of police power to throw quite a few dozen people in jail, the use of the state to terrorize those with differing political opinions. The Blue Sun are everything we fear." She paused, and then spoke again, knowing her next words would have impact. "Saint Konrad are basically ran by an Albmot Matthias Mutebi." A name still widely remembered in Banija. A far-right dictator of the country who took advantage of a famine to consolidate power, and used his rage against Busogans to drive the country both to war and ruin. World Cup 80 was a long time ago- but the Banijan-Equestrian War had quite a legacy.

"They also have a responsibility to the Teus on Saint Konrad." Said Boaz Gor, the Katikkiro. He found himself on the side of the Waziri- that the country must take a decisive step in favor of backing their allies in Siovanija & Teusland. "You see what this dude is doing? Just getting rid of Teus rights. Terrorizing people who have the legal right to fish on those waters. Non-political people, whatever- and if you speak up for yourself, his police are going to throw you into prison. We need to stand up against those kinds of people whenever and wherever the opportunity exists. And, of course, we should show ourselves as firmly putting ourselves in camp with our allies."

Omugabe Ssemanda then stood up, to talk himself. He had a different point of view- and he was going to express it. "Your Majesty." He said, addressing the Kabaka- the room's true decision maker. "We cannot recklessly back the United Republics, no matter what they do here. Being a good ally means that we sometimes have to speak hard truths, right? Look- once that supercarrier was deployed, with all those soldiers and supporting weaponry, a fight is going to seem to be a matter of when, not if. Ultimately, they are the bigger, responsible power. They need to back down if they want to lower the temparature."

The debate continued, with Omugabe Ssemanda on one side, and both Omugaba Immaculate and Boaz Gor on the other. Suddenly, the Kabaka stopped the arguing- he had come to a decision. This was a situation that continued to twist and turn- there was no need to take a definitive position, as of yet. But, they still wanted to show support for their S&T allies.

So the next day, the Kabaka himself gave a prepared statement to the press- quick, but effective, and did not take questions.

The crisis on Saint Konrad is rapidly escalating to a level that can be bad for everyone. Nobody wants war in this situation, and Banija, where we can, will be a constructive partner for peace. We still believe that there is plenty of space for a peaceful resolution to happen to this crisis, and thanks to the calendar, the Kolonialvereinigung Summit is going to come up soon. Siovanija & Teusland have just cause for complaint- the death of a civilian, the repeated attacks on the Teus and political minority within the country, and the reneging by Saint Konrad on their interational agreements. We hope that, with the face time between leaders at the Summit, this crisis can be resolved peacefully.

Endorsement of Siovanija & Teusland- but no endorsement of any escalation (yet). Could the Banijans continue to tread that line? They would find out soon..

[Baggieland]

Abscondment

They had done it. Those uncouth Baggies, whom you would have thought of as not being able to organise a piss-up in a brewery, hatched a cunning plan to steal the Molineux family's fortune – and they had pulled it off, quite successfully too!

Madame Xianggu: "Yaar! We be rich!"

King Alsqueak: "This really gets the adrenalin pumping! How much do you think we've got?"

Dundee Talke: "It's a copious amount Your Most Scrupulous Majesty, enough to replenish the royal coffers, no doubt."

Tanngrisner and Tanngnjost hauled the stolen carriage with all their brawniness, careening around uneven roads whilst heading back towards the harbour for a rendezvous with the Kiss of Death. However, back at the Molineux château…

Oddstein Øye: "Ma'am, we can't let them get away with this. Call all your servants and we'll chase them down together."

Hedvig Molineux: "Oh my, oh dear! Let me get my loyal footman."

Footman: "I would love to help you me Lady… but my legs are grey, my ears are gnarled and my eyes are old and bent. All the other staff are mostly middle-aged ladies and I bet the local constabulary are all tucked away in their beds."

What was Hedvig to do? The Baggies had to be half way towards the port already! Besides all that, she had to deal with that nincompoop of a son of hers too.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Avisora]

Avisora extend losing streak

Image AI generated
August 15, 2024 - Pikwee, Central

The Avisoran national team loses two more games, dropping all the way to 6th place after 7 matches played. With just the game against Juvencus remaining in the first round of the double round robin, things are looking bleak for the Penguins. First, a 9-man team were defeated at home by the Sargossan Corsairs, before visiting Srednjaci where it wasn't even close. National team manager Pedro Valencia had only a few words to say in the press conference following the 4-1 defeat in Srednjaci: "It's clear we've got work to do. We've set our goals and we'll be working even harder towards them. Thank you."

Here's the detailed action:
Avisora 1-2 Sargossa
Things were looking good for the Penguins after a Julio Sandoval header put them ahead, but the 61st minute sending off of Benito Colón changed everything. Sargossa took control of the game, resulting in the desperation of the Avisoran team and a foul. It was Jesús Blaya who equalized the game for Sargossa from the resulting set-piece play. Tempers boiled over, with Miguel Sánchez being sent off for shoving a Sargossan player. 5 minutes later Nicolás Riesgo headed in Collazo's corner kick to put the final nail in the Avisoran coffin.

Timeline
'5 - Yellow card for Colón
'28 - Avisora goal (Sandoval)
'52 - Yellow card for Alarcón
'54 - Recoba subs Alarcón, Collazo subs Pozo
'61 - Yellow card for Colón (sent off)
'66 - Urrutia subs Sandoval, Jiménez subs Cruz
'72 - Alegre subs Benito, Fernández subs Romero
'75 - Yellow card for Ribas
'77 - Bermúdez subs Pacheco
'85 - de la Renta subs Zafra, Sánchez subs Sanabria
'87 - Sargossa goal (Blaya)
'87 - Red card for Sánchez
'92 - Sargossa goal (Riesgo)
'92 - Yellow card for Riesgo

Avisora 1-4 Srednjaci
Once again, Avisora start with a goal. Zafra hits a penalty after a handball from Mašić. A flick inside the area allowed Zimmer to hit it past Bocachica on his left foot, equalising the game just before half time. Srednjaci piled it on in the last half hour, with a hat trick from Tomljanović sealing the fate. Tomljanović was allowed to roam deep into Avisoran territory, with him losing his man easily and scoring, twice. He was allowed to take a 95th minute penalty to secure the hat trick.

Timeline
'9 - Yellow card for Zimmer
'13 - Yellow card for Mašić
'15 - Avisora goal (Zafra)
'22 - Kozlević subs Majić
'29 - Yellow card for Cruz
'33 - Yellow card for Usović
'36 - Srednjaci goal (Zimmer)
'43 - Yellow card for Urrutia
'59 - Hrković subs Mašić
'60 - Srednjaci goal (Tomljanović)
'66 - Serrano subs Pérez
'74 - Rublev subs Peng
'75 - Jiménez subs Cruz
'84 - Bermúdez subs Zafra
'86 - Srednjaci goal (Tomljanović)
'95 - Srednjaci gial (Tomljanović)

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

Top Avisoran assisters in the World Cup qualifiers
1. Andrés Pacheco - 5
2. Eduardo Pérez - 3
3. Benito Colón, Diego Sanabria - 2
4. Chibiú Bocachica - 1

[HUElavia]

HUElavia 0–2 Drawkland
(Collingwood 56', Jain 88')
Estadio Capital, Curumba, HUElavia

Vaishnavaria 1–1 HUElavia
(Belfast 30' | Nascimento 84')

It's been a trying time for HUElavian Football, but with the promising campaign of the World Cup 83 Qualifiers, the HUElavian Football Association feel that now is the time that the team gets full support from the FA and the country. We enter one of the great periods of HUElavian Football.

(Song)

Amarelo/Amarillo

The Story of HUElavian Football

Episode 4:

Golden Sparks

We start our episode going into the Regionals, and at long last the HFA has decided to commit solely to the Independent Associations Championship. Given that the country never committed to any of the sporting regions in the multiverse, the HUElavian National Football Team opted to perform with the Indies, in hopes that the team can be a contender in this competition (F O R E S H A D O W I N G). The tournament is being hosted by Reçueçn, and HUElavia gets put into Group E with the likes of Omerica, Barsland, Ouna, Tamgu and Monglechabagd. This is where the team seeks to be recognized and wants to give it their all in their full return to the IAC!

Independent Associations Championship 8

HUElavia 1–3 Barsland L, Omerica 3–1 HUElavia L

Well, that escalated quickly. What a terrible start in the team's return to the IAC. Getting mogged by Barsland and Omerica, conceding 6 goals in 2 games. Genuinely terrible stuff. Thus, HUElavia are like a cornered animal and every match moving forward is an elimination game. There is only one objective: Survive.

HUElavia 3–0 Monglechabagd W, HUElavia 6–2 Tamgu W, Ouna 1–4 HUElavia W

And HUElavia do just that. Outscoring their opponents 13-3 and sneak in as Group E Runners Up. The team moves on to take on Lisander, one of the sporting rivals for HUElavia at the time, especially in Futsal where the teams had met in the Finals at the time.

HUElavia 2–1 Lisander W

HUElavia show they're no longer minnows, as despite falling 0-1 down at first, Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos strike back with two unanswered goals, including a late winner where HUElavia made the Quarter-Finals for the first time.

Kelssek 0–3 HUElavia W

Arguably one of the greatest victories in HUElavian history, Kelssek were one of the strongest teams in the Multiverse and one of the more reoccurring teams at the World Cup. And HUElavia smashed them 3-0, showing that they meant business in a historic upset as the team found themselves in the Final Four of the Indies.

HUElavia 0–0 Squornshelan Remnant States (1–0 AET) W

My God, we've made it. We've made it to our first ever International Final. And waiting for us on the other side is none other than hosts Reçueçn, who have had a fantastic tournament themselves, making it to the Final on their home turf. Of course, at the time it was seen that the pattern was that the Host would lose in the Final, but the Host taking on a relative newcomer to the tournament meant that the game was up in the air. In the face of their biggest game yet, this can be a historic day for HUElavian Football.

Reçueçn 3–1 HUElavia L

Unfortunately the difference in levels showed in that Final. Three first half goals was enough to knock the wind out of HUElavia and despite a goal from (future legend) Cristiano Aveiro Lima to cut the distance, it was not enough. HUElavia fall short in their first Final and come home with a silver medal in their 3rd IAC. It's a moment for HUElavia to reflect as with just some funding and proper training and motivation, this team has put its name out there in the Football Universe. It was an inspiring cinderella run, but alas it was not meant to be. Back home in Curumba, the National Team had its next task to handle: World Cup 84 Qualifiers. Congratulations to Reçueçn! This is their 1st IAC Title.

Entering World Cup 84 Qualifiers, HUElavia was a Pot 3 team that had outside aspirations to make the World Cup. And in an unprecedented move, the HFA allowed female players to join the National Team, in what was an attempt to make it into a straight up National Football Team where both men and women can join. At the end, the HFA wanted it to be the very best men and women of the country representing the team at the World Cup. Kira Smirnov, Natalia Ramirez and Ayuka Hamada-Fukuda were the three women chosen to be part of the Qualifying roster.

World Cup 84 Qualifiers

The Sarian 0–2 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–5 Competitive Solitaire L, Schiavonia 3–4 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–1 Mercedini W, Tara & Cambray 1–3 HUElavia W, HUElavia 1–3 Starblaydia L, The Ross Isles 0–2 HUElavia W, HUElavia 1–3 Folmara L, Magnaterrica 3–5 HUElavia W, HUElavia 1–0 Eastfield Lodge W

Right off the bat, HUElavia was high scoring and really wanted to display the attacking quality the nation had to offer. Once again, HUElavia would get the best over Mercedini in a World Cup Qualifier and another famous win over Eastfield Lodge, one of the more veteran nations of the Multiverse. Of course, there was the surprise loss to Folmara and Competitive Solitaire, but the expected loss to Starblaydia ended up happening. At halfway, the team was sitting in 3rd with striking distance to claim the 2nd qualifiers spot.

HUElavia 1–0 The Sarian W, Competitive Solitaire 3–4 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–3 Schiavonia D, Mercedini 0–1 HUElavia W, HUElavia 3–2 Tara & Cambray W, Starblaydia 2–2 HUElavia D, HUElavia 1–1 The Ross Isles D, Folmara 2–3 HUElavia W, HUElavia 2–1 Magnaterrica W, Eastfield Lodge 5–3 HUElavia L

13-3-4, 48 GF, 38 GA, +10 GD, 42 Pts

2nd of 11.

Qualified to World Cup 84

(Song)

At long last, HUElavia would be at the World Cup. 11 Attempts at qualifying, 2 near misses and finally Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos would be among the 32 best nations in the Multiverse. The HUElavian Government called for a Public Holiday the day after HUElavia clinched the direct qualification on the Penultimate Matchday thanks to Tara & Cambray upsetting Mercedini in a 3-2 upset. HUElavia would be the 2nd worst team to qualify for the World Cup and would be put straight into Pot 4. The team was ultimately drawn into Cassadaigua, put into Group C with the likes of Farfadillis, Banija, and Zwangzug. A tough group regardless where Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos were going to be placed in, but the team was hungry and determined to make their mark at the World Cup, much like what they did at the IAC. It was a new dawn for HUElavian Football and HUElavia itself.

Overall Record:
83-32-82 Record, 346 GF, 349 GA, -3 GD, 281 Pts

[North Oharan Valley Union]

Timestamp: 15 July 2024 - 23h42
Tags: Football, World Cup 97, Green Lions

---

The One Point Victory
A most memorable night at the Kaujas Lauks Stadium

It is an old witticism: lies, damned lies and statistics. But the overview listed for national viewing after the home game against Tumbra gave a rather complete image of what had occured. Possession: 27 vs 73. Shots: 4 vs 27. Shots on goal: 1 vs 14. And still, as the commentator took a second of silence, in part as he was hoarse from screaming forward the Green Lions through the extra time, in part as there was nothing left to say, you could hear the chanting fans in the background. No one had left their seat yet, well, all had, but only to stand upon the weary plastic and make as much noise as humanly possible.

Attentive viewers might notice that it was not the fiercest eleven Black Eagles that featured for Tumbra. Manager Michael Campbell might have been the only Esportivan to claim this one to be a ‘tricky match’ in advance, yet his line-up showed his thoughts. The number nine of the world should be able to field a reserve goalie or give a first start of the campaign for the so-far overlooked Rachel McLaren without a loss of quality. Seeing Lynne Crossley limp off early on after an unfortunate contact with Japaridze, more as a precaution than anything else, is annoying but featuring Lilith Kendall on her second cap instead could not be considered the reason for the goalless draw.

So what was it then? Inside the Union, people will call upon the lionheart shown by the fifteen heroes who played in this match for eternity. They will refer to the natural inclination of the people, formed by the roughness of the always nearby mountains: resilient and hard working under all circumstances. Flowers will be thrown to Orest Zornakyan, the eccentric goalkeeper who kept a pair of magnets in his gloves tonight. But also to Sandors Calitis, the veteran in this player group. After one particularly crowded situation in the box, he reappeared with a gash on his forehead. The haphazard bandage from the medic, quickly red stained, might be grotesque (and rather unsanitary) for most but the blooded captain only added to the imagery of a tiny nation holding the fort against all odds.

The neutral observer might point to the droves of bad luck for Tumbra, a cascade that started with the untimely substitution of Crossley. Susan Monaghan missed her usual spark and saw her best chance splinter the post. In the second half, Edward Maddison created three chances in the span of two minutes but his major one landed on the back of Danylyuk who was lying on the goalline after an earlier collision: the kind of bizarre save that goes against you on a day where it just does not want to happen for you.

From the viewpoint of the Tumbrans, we can only assume that they want the head of Michael Campbell on a pike. His cautiousness is about as legendary as his superstition but to stick with the initial, counterattacking, plan till minute eighty can not sit well with the fans. Too often, the central defenders had to pass to one another in search of a hole in the low block with an utterly bored Cvitkovic behind them. Replacing Monaghan for Leighton after an hour already created discontent in the away stand, game’s end led to a whistling effort that remained audible amid the celebrations of the Green Lions. The fans had sat through a very frustrating last fifteen minutes in which they finally saw their side advance, only to get hacked down repeatedly: the resulting free kicks were continuously headed out of danger. Even a lenient referee had to hand out seven cards for the Union team and that is with the knowledge that he seemed oblivious of the rules for time wasting.

The truth, as is frustratingly common, probably was somewhere in the middle and all at once. The Tumbrans played below their level to drop points for the third time this campaign, against a team that chose result over style. Add to that a bit of luck for the Oharese and they got an unexpected reward for what had been an impressive performance in terms of fighting spirit, tactical discipline and physical readiness after a well-deserved day off. If anything North Oharan Valley Union looked like a team out there, something for which Serhey Baltuk and his staff deserve all the praise that will come their way.

But it touches on something far deeper, far more meaningful. That element will make sure that while this will be, assumedly, a quickly forgotten stumble from the Tumbrans ahead of a next qualification but a day for eternity for our nation. The Valley Union is yet to celebrate its first birthday but stood firmly on its sometimes wobbly legs. Only four days ago, Cherpahoran regionalists made a statement with an attack on a police outpost, making two victims before swapping the flags to round up their provocation. And whilst many disapprove of the associated violence, as many would still support a disbandment of the Union.

The players always did their best to stay away from the political frontlines. Even more, some claim that their lack of explicit viewpoints allowed them to board the plane to Baltuk’s selection. Truth or not, the excellent, strong forward Nils Sendall was surprisingly snubbed and stayed at home, sitting on his couch and posting memes about Dinsdaller independence movements. So far, that line of conduct was followed closely and tricky questions were quickly derailed to other subjects. But inadvertently, young substitute Ross Darby broke that guideline in an on-pitch flash interview.

Twenty-two thousand fans were chanting in the football stadium equivalent to unison. That in itself was notable: in the first few home games, the lack of collective repertoire showed itself and damaged the atmosphere. But now the same message came from all mouths, one that spoke of belief in the Union and its representatives on studs. They no longer bothered about the differences between the stuck-up Dinsdaller, the hotheaded Mteborian or the provincial Cherpahorian but only saw the courage and spirit of the valley and all its inhabitants. It inspired Darby, native of Gledeiradh, the region closest to secession attempts to an uncanny pearl of wisdom. “I was not born an Oharese but look at this. Nights like these make you Oharese.” And in truth, we believe that nights like this make the Union, a Union that for so many sports fans across any borders became Our Union tonight.

[Chromatika]

World Cup 97 Qualifying - Matchday 7: Chromatika 2-4 Baggieland @ The Capitalizt Dome, Chromia, Capital District (Cap. 144,000)
Goals: Xuen-Zhukov 51', 68'
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Coulibaly - Jackson-Jones - Nodis; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Howard-Dawes.
Substitutes: Paterson -> Coulibaly (68'), Kruetzberg -> Fillar, G. (68'), Françine-Miklavivec -> Kuznetsov (76'), Aimée -> Nodis (76'), Régine -> Jackson-Jones (83')
Summary: Wow. Second-seeded Baggieland came into the Capitalizt Dome and silenced the raucous home crowd with three goals in the first half on their way to a four-two victory, the first defeat in this cycle for the Anomalies. Lavrentiy Xuen-Zhukov was the saving grace for the Chromatiks, answering with a brace in the second half, but the Throstles had a lead that they would not relinquish. It wasn't all Juxon Fillar's fault, but the lack of chemistry between the keeper and the back three was apparent. They say that you can learn a lot from a loss, so the Anomalies will be hoping that they recover quickly.

---

World Cup 97 Qualifying - Matchday 8: Sangti and the Filindo Isles 3-3 Chromatika
Goals: Fillar, E. 32', Howard-Dawes 50', Xuen-Zhukov 86'
Starting XI: Fillar, J. (C); Coulibaly - Jackson-Jones - Nodis; Fillar, G. - Larriet-Cortes - Fillar, B. - Fillar, E.; Kuznetsov; Xuen-Zhukov - Howard-Dawes.
Substitutes: Mesic-Mizayaki -> Larriet-Cortes (76'), Kruetzberg -> Fillar, G. (76'), Delaya -> Howard-Dawes (83'), Mátyás -> Fillar, E. (83'), Aimée -> Nodis (89')
Summary: Playing a spirted team from Sangti and the Filindo Isles, it took Lavrentiy Xuen-Zhukov getting a late equalizer to prevent the Chromatiks from dropping their second match in a row - and against an unranked team at that. Tomio Sulangi gave the Chromatik back three problems, as the issues with the back three continued to persist; the home team also scored off of two set pieces to show that they were ready to be in the global limelight once again. This one-point window suddenly makes it very possible that Baggieland will be the team leading the group at the halfway point, as the Anomalies have their Bye soon; although true that the top two of every group automatically qualifies, the Chromatiks suddenly find themselves in more of a dogfight for the group than they ever imagined provided the state of things just two matches prior. They'll have to turn things around quickly.

---

WC 97 Qualifying - Fortnight 5 Roster Selection - @ (UR) Alanis Star
Starting XI: Do (C); Van der Plas Bouwmeester - Lethbridge-Antonio, C. - Ataciara; Van der Wel - Gundsdorf - Prenn - Janissen op Colmans; Þyrill; Jean-Baptiste - Baïe-Verte.
Reserves: GK Jill Swanson, GK Rafaela Pilzer, DCR Odwin Muir, DC Rowan Harry, DCL Uemura Saburo, DCL Ipati Aimée, WBR Crystle Tracey, WBL Moreno Keel, WBR Cyrus Vette, CDM Cassandra Van Der Borght, CDM Jayla Lethbridge-Antonio, AP Evin Françine-Miklavivec, P Sandara Park, CF Nam Il-San, AF Adélaïde Bittencourt.
Preview: After a much-needed off day to talk things over, the Anomalies will travel to Alanis Star to open the second half of qualifying. They'll be fielding a lineup of mostly reserve options for this match, hoping to put things away while giving a lot of these players their very first cap. It's Matchdays 13-16 that will really decide things for Chromatika, as they'll be facing the United States of Nova Calania, traveling to Qusmo, facing The 14 Stars, and then traveling to Baggieland. Until then, it's all about getting back up to form while staying healhy.

---

LIFE BEHIND THE ROYAL FAMILY
Part 2: GK Kathie Begley - The Old Reliable

In this six-part series, we take a look at six players that have had their chances at being the starter for the Chromatik National Team utterly stymied by the emergence of the Royal Family of Chromatik Football - the Fillars. They are, in no particular order: Goalkeeper Kathie Begley, Right Winger/Wingback Emilie Kruetzberg, Advanced Playmaker Haley Hauser, Left Winger/Wingback Ha'nei Ighv, Goalkeeper Do Seung-Min, and Attacking Midfielder Alissar Phoen. We will look at the players' history, the players' skills, and why/how the particular Fillar in front them was able to get the opportunity to represent Chromatika at the highest level in the international stage.

Some say that football is "The Beautiful Sport". That may be true, especially when watching the fluidity and the creativity that can come from some of the best minds out there. However, especially when it comes to determining who will be representing your country in the World Cup, it can also be ruthless. Just ask Kathie Begley, who may be the one player that was the most hard done by the existence of a Fillar, that being Juxon Fillar. Having been the starting Goalkeeper for a decade now - he was first named starter in World Cup 88 - Juxon's poise, composure, leadership, and ability to show up in big matches has absolutely made him one of the best Goalkeepers in Chromatik history. He has 128 caps to his name in an era where Chromatika relies on a heavy rotation throughout the qualifiers, and still has a number of good years in him before he hangs it up. So, what did this do for Kathie Begley's career?

It's only when you have such a talent in front of you that you can be unquestionably the best goalkeeper the Red League has seen in League History - she was named to the All-Decade team - and still retire with only forty-seven caps for your nation. Part of many a legendary run in the IFCF Challengers' Cup with Wirr Tsi, Begley remained the unquestioned leader for the Shock for a long, long time, consistently setting the bar for what the position could do for stability and for strategy. To play the way that Wirr Tsi did (and continue to do), you need to have a world-class keeper, and Kathie Begley was that.

So, why did she never truly threaten Juxon for his starting job? The reason is threefold. First, she never wanted it. In numerous interviews, Begley stated time and time again that she was okay with being the perennial backup behind Juxon, conceding to his prowess, his skill, and his importance on the team. She likened her role to be more of a mood manager on the team, as well as someone who could absolutely make sure that they knew what the plan was in the locker room. The fact that she woulnd't be needed to come in very often made it so that she could focus on the mental side of the game, while making sure that she was ready should anything happen to Juxon. This also meant that Juxon himself didn't have to do that as much - he could instead remain the charismatic Captain that he wanted to be.

Second, it would've caused way too much drama. By the time that Juxon took the helm, the Fillars were already on the scene - and it seemed like a matter of time before they would end up being all part of the Chromatik Starting XI. For Begley to fight against Juxon publicly would be to fight against the Chromatik sentiment that the four Fillars were meant to be on the pitch together at the same time. Begley could really have made a mess of things by standing up for herself and voicing her opinion that she deserved to be the starting keeper for Chromatika, and she instead chose peace and team cohesion instead. Probably the best move, considering all that's happened.

Last but not least, there has to be a mention of the difference in philosophy of play between Chromatika and Wirr Tsi. For the Shock, absorbing pressure that came at her in waves was the calling card for Kathie time and time again; the Shock, to their credit, did make sure to surround her with an abundance of defensive talent, relying on counterattacks and set pieces to score their goals in return for a defensive shape that was very hard to break. Chromatika, on the other hand, needed their keepers to be way more prominent in calling out the strategies, being ready to face one-on-ones, and not afraid to take risks. Chromatik football under Sybill and Repin, along with the other Managers prior, has not been as defensive as Wirr Tsi's. There is no denying Begley's talent, but it may have been for the best that Kathie was never asked to play a role that she was not used to. It definitely fit Juxon, who had been tested by the quality of the National League of Audioslavia, better.

There may have been a timeline where Kathie Begley was the keeper in the last decade that had more than a hundred caps, potentially helming the Chromatik side to glory. Instead, she was an irreplaceable voice in the locker room, a role model for plenty, and a club hero. If you would ask Kathie if she made the right decision, she would say yes - Begley will be fondly remembered for her role in the history of Chromatik football, and Juxon Fillar was given free reign to spread out his wings and fly.

[Zwangzug]

(The below is entirely IC.)

This is a message from Zwangzug:
Second place in World Cup Forty-Two.
Our country has gone down in history
And someday, this could be you!
Heroes will be consecrated.
Antiheroes might redeem themselves.
It's a climax that needs no denouement--
But it's Tuesday for the elves.

So you've made the World Cup final.
You strive to attack and defend.
The Narrative's heeded your hopes,
And an era has come to an end.
You'll be famous as the victims
Who extended an epic streak.
Meanwhile, in Valanora,
It's the third day of the week.

Your hearts will be caught in your throats
As an hour and a half on the clock
Elapses to bring a grim destiny
(For you. Not Laborious Hawk.)
A collection of silver medals
Will soon take their place on your shelves.
This night will be etched in your memory--
But it's Tuesday for the elves.

It's not about losing or winning:
It's really about taking part,
Respecting your friends and opponents,
Competing with a noble heart.
In the end, that's what the Great Scorer
Will notate in the final score.
(Except if you are the Marauders,
Cause they won three cups out of four.)

Yes, if you try hard and get lucky,
Then your feet can become footnotes
In the dynasties that become legend,
The tails that get wagged by the GOATs.
So tell all your starting elevens
And warn them by tens and by twelves:
Where there's triumph, there will be tragedy,
But it's Tuesday for the elves.

(Gården 36, Hawk 58, Holmberg 81; Marcus 27, McGovern 33, Palmetto 62)
(McDonald 20, Spand-Maunk 35, Carre 67, Flen-Willis 83)

[Kronbia]

---

4. Rocio de Hielo Scandal

In 2001, a local newspaper in Santa Rosana publishes an investigation into match betting and the manipulation of match results by a betting company for profit. The scandal erupts, causing the Kronbian Police to open an investigation and arrest several players, coaches, referees, and even bettors and officials in the Rocio de Hielo betting company. After the investigations and the accused are transferred to court, trials begin, which reveal that the company paid bribes to manipulate the results of several matches to achieve results that lead to profits for the company and for the benefit of fake people who later appear to be just a front for a group of Sicarios from the Don Jose Cartel who bet through the company. The company manager, two referees, two coaches, and a five football players are imprisoned on charges of fraud for profit, and two teams from the league are dissolved, El Leons and Los Cruzados.

---

The Team is doing well

The Kronbia men's national football team continues its good performance in the World Cup 97 qualification. In the seventh round, the Kronbia team wins on its home ground in Estadio Cerro del Sol, Ciudad de Halcon with a score of 2-1 against Abanhfleft team, with goals from Ovidio Florencio, while in the eighth round, the team loses 1-0 against the Cardenao team in Cardenao. The team drops to third place in Group 10, but the team is doing well.

---

[Milchama]

"What! A! Game!"

"I know! Coming back from 1-0 down, 2-1 down, and 3-2 down to win!"

"Just a delightful win over Raspotochje and now we get a real grip on third place"

"Yeah, we're going to have start looking at other groups"

"There are other groups?"

"Well 48 teams have to qualify for the World Cup and our group doesn't have 48 teams so of course there are other groups"

"Wow! That's crazy, who knew?"

"Literally everybody else"

"Ok well what's happening in these other groups"

"Some teams are winning, some teams are losing, some teams are tying"

"So we don't know"

"Precisely"

"Why does it matter?"

"Well some amount of the top 3rd place teams auto qualify for the World Cup while some other amount do not"

"Ah so we need to be in that top amount"

"Precisely"

"And how can we do that?"

"Usually by scoring more goals than the other team"

"Fair, but what else"

"Just keep winning baby"

"Oh this isn't going to be a sophisticated tactical analysis"

"It's a Milchama RP yo, we never do sophisticated tactical analyses, our core formation does not make sense tactically and hasn't since it was debuted between 20 and 200 years ago"

"Fair enough, can our meme players age?"

"No"

"Cool"

"Any more dumb questions?'

"Yes"

"Please don't say them"

"Ok"

"Pray?"

"OK"

"Say what I say and do what I do"

"''Ringa pakia!''
''Uma tiraha!''
''Turi whatia!''
''Hope whai ake!''
''Waewae takahia kia kino!''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Ka mate, ka mate''
''Ka ora, ka ora''
''Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru''
''Nāna nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā''
''Ā upane, ka upane''
''Whiti te rā, hī!''

"Now repeat after me!"

"Forini! Forini!"
"Finidi! Finidi!"
"George! George!"
"Oh Brother! Oh brother!"

*They strip and run around for 14 minutes*

"We pray the Margaret of SnubNose 38 and Random Number God that you may deliver us victory over all infidels that we face in international play"

"Sacrifice the Rubber Chicken!"

*Swoosh of an axe and the chicken is dead*

"Margaret we pray that you take this sacrifice of a rubber chicken in good faith and that by your deliverance Milchama does well in all international competitions"

"Come on You Warriors!"

"Let's Go Milchama!"

[Kirungabi]

---

---

World Cup 97 — Matchdays 7 and 8

---

Kirungabi 0 - 1 Tero al Disco

Ochre Islands 0 - 1 Kirungabi
74' 'Umuku'

---

Memoirs of a People's Plight: Repercussions

---

KBLF-B Base Camp, Butare, People's Republic of Democratic Kirungabi
October 28th, 1988

It had been a while since Innocent Uburiganya had had such a restless night, and he couldn't quite explain why. Maybe it was the buzzing mosquitos gathered on the tulle draped over his bench bed, or the occasional flashes of lightning that cast the shadow of the watch tower on the walls of his large suite tent, or the distant rustling in of one of the coltan mines just outside Butare, that operated late into the night when they didn't meet their weekly quota. It was a strange feeling: he'd spent the better part of the last three years running from, hiding from, and bribing FAPAKI patrols; sleeping with one eye open in case one of his men, or one of the complicit government officers, had a sudden change of heart with the Kirungabi Barebare Liberation Front; and trudging across the thick, marshy jungles of northwestern Kirungabi to circumvent customs, commerce auditors, and violent anti-Barebare Fupi Pride militias. He'd think that, with so many years in lawlessness under his belt — and having enjoyed relative peace in the most recent months, as the KBLF-B grew well past ten-thousand members and began to cement their de-facto control over the hardly monitored far north — he could sleep with a little rain patter, lightning flashes and resilient mosquitos.

After a while of tossing and turning, Innocent decided he'd be better off killing time with a cup of tea and a bout of introspection, looking out towards the pitch-dark, damp hills of Butare. Late night lounging at the entry to his tent, oftentimes alongside his second-in-command in the KBLF-B, Théophile Sendashonga, usually got him drowsy enough to doze off.The monotony of Théo's chatter in the background of his own meandering thoughts served as the perfect backdrop, as he reminisced about the months spent at the smugglers' camp on the outskirts of Kirungabi — today moved to within the country's borders, with the full avail of a corrupt, unreachable, and underfunded cluster of FAPAKI troops stationed near the border; of the sight of Pasteur Gisa spreading out his map of Kirungabi under the oil lantern in their Vilima Natural Reserve stronghold, tracing the plan to avoid the FAPAKI patrols and migrate to Abongereza with a mud-caked finger; of the gleeful faces of the Barebare displaced to the outskirts of Abongereza, as they saw the KBLF arrive on foot from the impenetrable green of the Reserve after weeks of hiking on torn, rotted boots; of the empty look in the eyes of the dozens of disgruntled Fupi peasants who protested trek towards Butare, the reflection of the barrel of his rifle doubled in the blacks of their pupils.

Once Innocent clambered out from under the tulle and out of his bed, he made his way to the desk on the far side of his tent, located right next to an opening in the canvas wall where an extension cord lay on the floor, just beyond the reach of a growing, intruding puddle. He unscrewed the cap off the water bottle set beside the Morse receiver on the table, poured a mugful of water into his tin mug, dropped the heating coil — a somewhat rusty railroad stake wrapped in copper wire, connected to a switch and a two-prong plug upstream — into the water, and flipped the switch. As he did so, a flash of lightning and a gust of wind lit and moved the tent walls — and the floodlights dotted around the base camp flickered to the tune of a beep. No sooner the water started to fizz up around the coil, the floodlights around the camp flickered again, and so returned the sound of the beeping, except this time, it continued. The pattern was unmistakable: three short beeps, three long beeps, and three short ones again — and it wasn't just coming from the Morse receiver on the table beside him, but he could hear the feeble dits sprouting across the base camp's other receivers, too. A searing realization clutched the back of his neck and gnashed at the center of his chest: the voltage surge had not come from the coil in the heater.

With his jaw trembling, Innocent collapsed onto the chair at his desk and leaned into the Morse receiver, fiddling for a pencil and a notebook as the message was relayed through.

... --- ... / ... --- ... / ... --- ... / .-.-.- / --. ..- ... .... ..- -- . -.- .- / -... .-. --- .- -.. -.-. .- ... - / ----- ..... ...-- ----- / .-.-.- / .- -... --- -. --. . .-. . --.. .- / ..- -. -.. . .-. / ... .. . --. . / .-.-.- / -. --- / .--. --- .-- . .-. / -. --- / .-- .- - . .-. / .-.-.- / -.. --- --.. . -. ... / --- ..-. / -.- -... .-.. ..-. / .... .- ...- . / ..-. .-.. . -.. / .-.-.- / ..-. .- .--. .- -.- .. / -.- .. .-.. .-.. . -.. / -... .- .-. . -... .- .-. . / .- -. -.. / ..-. ..- .--. .. / -.-. .. ...- .. .-.. .. .- -. ... / .-.-.- / -.-. --- -- -- .- -. -.. . .-. / --. .. ... .- / .- -. -.. / .- .-.. .-.. / -.- -... .-.. ..-. .- / -.- .. .- / .-.-.-

SOS SOS SOS . GUSHUMEKA BROADCAST 0530 . ABONGEREZA UNDER SIEGE . NO POWER NO WATER . DOZENS OF KBLF HAVE FLED . FAPAKI KILLED BAREBARE AND FUPI CIVILIANS . COMMANDER GISA AND ALL KBLFA KIA .

Innocent's pencil snapped in his fingers, his hands contorted into claws and his heart barrelling out of his chest, the code loud and clear and disemboweling; as the voltage surged again, and the lights across the base camp flickered, the hissing water in his tin mug boiled over, and it splashed across his right hand and scrawl of paper. Civil war was on the horizon; the horizon, below their feet.

[The Kytler Peninsulae]

The entire Andrew Patterson era could be about to be defined one way or another in the next two matches.

64th-ranked Kamijiro and 88th-ranked Captina Island - the latter of whom have already beaten the Kytlerians at home - both come to Zube Olympic Stadium in the same international window, and speculation is growing that they could make it Patterson's last. The teams entered this cycle below the 55th-ranked Kytler Peninsulae - but both are looking more likely to reach the World Cup than the team in Margaret green, sparking a potential crisis at SO-KP (Soccer Organisation of The Kytler Peninsulae).

Raiji Kagawa's Kamijiro side - almost all based domestically and with a majority of their first-choice XI coming from one club at that - have seemingly taken the leap some thought the Kytlerians could in this cycle, to the point that they would actually top the group at the halfway stage if they beat the Kytlerians. Their 5-4-1 formation feels profoundly defensive on paper, but their 19 goals so far is second only to Huayramarca in the group - and the eight goals they've conceded is also second-best in the group, behind West Barack and East Obama. (Now there's a profoundly defensive team. Ten goals in their seven games. Total.)

Their position is no fluke, in other words, and even away to a team in the pot above them they should probably be going in as favourites. But they are now dealing with a genuine degree of expectation, and the Kytlerians suddenly aren't; is that going to be a problem for the visitors? "It's a big game for both teams, I don't think anyone has it easy in this situation," Patterson insisted ahead of the match. "We're here to win just like always, and we really just need to execute as a team better than we have done this cycle so far, we haven't quite put everything together and we've also had some bad luck with a couple of matches, but let's not forget we've gone six unbeaten including matches with the top two teams in our group. This has been a very good group, I think every team in it is on a legit upward trajectory with no fading giants, so of course it's tough and there's still a long way to go."

However, those referenced matches with Huayramarca and the Obamen were both home draws; the Kytlerians still have to face those two teams in some of the most inhospitable environments in the sport over the two windows after this. And it is perhaps telling that some of the chatter on RTX Radio isn't even calling for Patterson to be sacked - that's taken as a given in those circles - but explicitly calling on him to not be replaced by Paula Foster, who's been the subject of full-on character assassinations from shock jocks on the right-wing station in the week building up to this game. It's almost like they aren't ready for a female manager of a team that only recently added its first female players - and the sum total of their on-field involvement this cycle was 23 minutes off the bench for Agnes Oddkellsdóttir in the easy away win at Caribbia - and which the RTX types embraced initially precisely because Patterson had all-male squads throughout his first cycle in charge.

And while soccer remains the notional national sport, baseball is growing in the country's affection - especially with the Phoenix rising as they continue another encouraging World Baseball Classic showing - and the gridiron Green Machine are drawing hype of their own ahead of the next World Bowl. Throw in the small matter of a Summer Olympics on the horizon, and there are ever more reasons for the country to not worry about a Kytlerian team who aren't one of the 50 best in the multiverse and instead worry about the Kytlerian teams plural who extremely are.

As one RTX Radio caller put it: "So much of being a sporting fan is just about belief, and you can't get that with this team anymore, if you ever could, you've got to look to the other sports for that."

Zube Olympic Stadium - tellingly not quite sold out yet for either half of this double-header - is about to be the scene of 180 minutes of action that could decide if a generation of Kytlerians end up thinking the same way.

[Zenic]

"This international play period definitely went better than the last few."

"Technically, you are correct," replied Luke Killian to the current Emperor, Santiago Cuauhtémoc. He had been asked to brief the Empire's leader on the most recent developments in the futboling world as they pertained to Zenic. They were roughly at the halfway point of the qualifiers and Zenic sat squarely in 5th place after their last two matches. "The Tumbra game was a loss, as the advance statistics predicted but we played far better than the last few matches and we were actually competitive." Killian paused as the Emperor gleamed over the post match report and analytics the FZF had compiled. Once he looked back up at Killian, the Federation President continued.

"Meanwhile, the Riena game was a very nice bounce back game. Dettmann came out and scored an uncharacteristically nice goal off of a Nakazawa corner. Riena scored shortly after but we managed to equalize after a spectacular free kick by Dejulio. The last 5 minutes of the first half had Maruscak make it a 2 goal lead before the Riennese pulled one back in stoppage time. There was definitely a hum of nervousness permeating throughout the Philosophia Colosseum. But luckily, it would change to raucous cheering," Killian stated. The Emperor gave his an inquisitive look. "Dimi told me I had to flourish the report analysis a bit or it would come across as 'too robotic'. But also not too flowery because then it would be 'too unprofessional'." The Emperor nodded in understanding.

"Trust me, I get that all the time when I'm writing my speeches. Everyone and their mother is a literary critic; although some people are legit talented writers so you take the good with the bad," replied Emperor Santiago. "Indeed. In the second half, Maruscak and Gentile came off at halftime for Aldhard and Nori respectively. Pilypas Aldhard proved to be the difference maker as he put two goals into the net during the 66th and 72nd minutes. The squad made a few more defensive changes to combat Riena's more offensive changes and the 5-2 lead held until the final whistle."

"Good, good. So, the win and the loss effectively cancel each other out?" Killian sighed as he gathered his strength. "Yes and no. Physically, yes, we're still in the same spot in the group as we were before this international period of play. For the nations in the top 4 spots of the group, the teams in even spots swapped places with the teams in the odd spots. Meanwhile, 5th through 9th stayed where they were. However, thanks to the actual results, we are much closer to getting into a qualifying spot now than before these two matches." The Emperor perked up. Killian's energy began to rise.

"After the last international period, we were trailing the 3rd and 4th teams by 4 point and the top 2 by 7 points. We were just outside their grasp barring a miraculous pair of wins. Now though? One win could help us jump into fourth via goal differential tiebreaker. Two wins? We could leapfrog all the way into second place thanks to a mix of goal differential tiebreaker and simply having more points." The Emperor's interest was peaked. "Of course, we would need some favorable results in other games to have a shot at that last scenario but third after these two upcoming matches is much more realistic as we don't need as many matches going our way."

"I think the most important question we can ask ourselves is: can we do it?" Killian thought long and hard on his answer.

"As long as we focus on the momentum from the Riena matchup, we can take a nice trip up to Northern Rushmore after these qualifiers and show the world that we can survive any challenge."

[Huayramarca]

OOC: This RP has been written originally in Spanish and translated via DeepL. The original text is under the spoiler, while the proofchecked translation is the main part of the RP.

Huayramarca's qualifying campaign so far can be summed up in one word: consistency. Although we are only halfway through the process, it is surprising that Huayramarca is achieving a consistency that is not quite normal if we look back at the historical annals of this team, characterised by making the difficult easy and the easy difficult. To the delight of the fans, Blaas Aginsogno and his players have hit the right key, found the right form for each player and have been able to balance when to attack more and when to be conservative and lower the revolutions at their convenience.

Leading the table, albeit with one game more than the rest as they have to rest on the last day of each round, Huayramarca has 18 points from five wins and three draws, 26 goals scored and 13 conceded. The wins have come against the lowest ranked teams in the group according to the most recent rankings, while the draws have come against direct rivals (two of which have been at home). They score goals against us, almost a goal and a half per game on average, but we score almost 3.5 per game (twice as many), so there is a nice balance that is worth preserving or looking to improve for the second round.

Now, what have been the keys to Huayramarca achieving this level of stability on the road, and what will be the keys to ensuring it continues or improves? This is something we will look at in the following paragraphs, simply but sufficiently explained to give the best possible notion to the common fan as well as the foreigner who likes Huayramarca football. Come, there is something for all tastes and colours!

Keys to stability:

1. Group commitment: after the bitter elimination on penalties in our World Cup (the ninety-sixth edition), the group seems to have reached a consensus. Now is the time to make the leap in quality that the national team needs to make. Why is now the time? A new generation of players is coming in while another is in the twilight of their careers, on both sides there is a commitment to start on the right foot or to leave on a high note.

Interests are converging, desires are running high and that has made it easier for everyone to understand that they must give their best when defending the Condors' shirt, it is a time for the veterans to transfer knowledge and experience, as well as for the rookies to absorb and learn from it. A beautiful moment of harmony and development for the national team is taking place with the convergence of these two generations hungry for victory.

2. A change of mentality? It seems to have been understood that every opponent deserves the same level of attention and demand, so that there is no room for complacency and the surprises that come with being caught off guard. In past qualifiers, the cases of low-profile teams causing headaches for Huayramarca have been notorious, to the point of causing disasters such as in the 95th edition, when we did not even qualify for the knockout phase of the Cup of Harmony. After the disaster, it was understood that we had to win, no matter how or who the opponent was, victory had to be achieved if we wanted to fulfil the interests and goals we talked about in the previous point.

Now, the role of the coach has been fundamental to this change of attitude which, although it has taken time, has come at a good time and can generate positive changes (we all hope so). Aginsogno received a team that put its foot off the pedal in some games and generated complications by stimulating the opposition to attack, now, the pace is high and sustained throughout the game, which allows there to be no hesitation during the game, this product of a better physical preparation that the team now has to ensure that pace. Consistency between words and actions.

3. Match management experience: It sounds like an interesting point, as there are several new players in the national team, as well as a large crop of veterans, but this allows for experience transfer and learning how to read matches. With everything that our players have now developed, a point has been reached where the balance of effort is quite constant, there are no points of overexertion or relaxation, but there is a proper behaviour during the match.

This match management is evident in the control of the ball, the passing sequence that the players manage (when deciding whether to attack or to organise the play from the defence). Huayramarca now have much more maturity in this aspect, which is shown in the team's performance by avoiding meaningless passes, now, every movement of the ball has a clear intention, to go on the attack, or to conserve energy for a moment later in the match.

4. Ian Mamani's awakening: it has been noticeable that our captain is having an awakening of sorts, one in which he is no longer the shy player we knew earlier in his career. Mamani is now a player who doesn't hide behind the ball, on the contrary, he wants to play with it and distribute the ball to his teammates, and even take it forward himself to create scoring chances through his own efforts. This awakening of Ian Mamani has led to the team becoming more vertiginous in their attacking phase, complemented by Orlando Mina who does feel more supported by Ian than before.

These are points that, if we look at them calmly, are part of the main pillar of good results that Huayramarca has managed to obtain, with the stamp of balance and consistency that had always been lacking until now. However, let's not get carried away by the good feelings, there is always room for improvement initiatives, this is not the exception to the rule, as there are very particular things to fix, those are the following.

1. The handling of direct rivals: we must enforce our experience advantage against them, of course they have very good selections, but our players have much more experience and we must take advantage of that factor. In the first matches against The Kytler Peninsulae, Kamijiro and West Barack and East Obama, we have lacked more skill to get better results, and I'm not complaining about drawing against them, but having drawn against Kamijiro and Obama at home leaves a bitter feeling.

In the next round, there is only the visit of The Kytler Peninsulae to our lands, being a good opportunity to reverse the trend of draws against direct rivals, make our home advantage count and get three points. Against Kamijiro and Obama things change as, depending on the situation when we face them again, we must ensure we have more than favourable results and thus widen the gap against them in the qualifiers, that is a crucial aspect if we want to make Huayramarca secure the first place in the qualifiers or, at least, qualify directly to the World Cup.

2. Maintain consistency: once you have a defined way of doing things, it is necessary to stick to that sequence and seek to improve it, but without departing from the objectives you initially set out in your script. Huayramarca has good resources to ensure that there is consistency, only that some elements must be fine-tuned in the definition of key moves up front, as the failure of these has cost us points that we could have achieved at the moment. Of course, I'm not asking for perfection, but I am asking to secure as many points as possible at home, to define clear plays and not to forgive our opponents.

Now that the second half of the qualifiers is upon us, it is time for Aginsogno and the players to put into practice what they have learned, correct and ensure the best possible results with a view to qualifying for the World Cup.

La eliminatoria de Huayramarca, hasta el momento, puede ser resumida en una palabra: consistencia. Si bien vamos a la mitad del proceso, es sorprendente que Huayramarca esté logrando una consistencia que no es del todo normal si vemos hacia atrás en los anales históricos de esta selección, caracterizada por hacer lo difícil algo fácil y lo fácil tornarlo difícil. Para la alegría de la afición, Blaas Aginsogno y sus pupilos han dado en la tecla correcta, encontraron el estado de forma adecuado de cada jugador y han sabido equilibrar en qué momentos atacar más y en cuales ser conservadores y bajar las revoluciones a conveniencia.

Estar liderando la tabla, eso sí que con un partido más que el resto ya que toca descansar en la última fecha de cada vuelta, Huayramarca se asienta con 18 puntos producto de cinco victorias y tres empates, 26 goles a favor y 13 en contra. Las victorias han sido contra los rivales más bajos del grupo de acuerdo a los más recientes rankings, mientras que los empates con los rivales directos (de los cuales dos han sido en casa). Nos anotan goles, casi un gol y la mitad por partido en promedio, pero anotamos casi 3.5 por partido (el doble), por lo que hay un bonito balance que vale la pena preservar o buscar mejorar para la segunda vuelta.

Ahora bien, ¿Cuáles han sido las claves para que Huayramarca alcanzase este nivel de estabilidad en su camino? ¿Cuáles serán las claves para asegurar que siga o mejore? Esto es algo que veremos en los siguientes párrafos, de forma sencilla pero lo suficientemente explicado para darle la mejor noción posible al aficionado común como al extranjero que gusta del fútbol de Huayramarca. ¡Vengan, que hay para todos los gustos y colores!

Claves de la estabilidad:

1. Compromiso grupal: Después de la amarga eliminación en penales en nuestro mundial (la nonagésima sexta edición), el grupo parece haber llegado a un consenso. Ahora es cuando para dar el salto de calidad que la selección debe dar. ¿Por qué razón es el momento? Está entrando una nueva generación de jugadores mientras otra está en el ocaso de sus carreras, por ambos lados existe el compromiso de iniciar con el pie derecho o de irse por la puerta grande.

Los intereses convergen, los deseos están a mil por hora y eso ha facilitado el entendimiento de todos, de que deben dar lo mejor de sí al defender la camisa de Los Cóndores, es el momento para que los veteranos transfieran conocimiento y experiencia, así como de absorberla y aprender para los novatos. Un bonito momento de armonía y desarrollo para la selección se está dando con la convergencia de estas dos generaciones con hambre de victoria.

2. ¿Cambio de mentalidad? Por lo visto, se ha entendido que cada rival merece el mismo nivel de atención y exigencia, para así no darle cabida a la displicencia y a las sorpresas que conlleva ser sorprendido fuera de guardia. En las pasadas eliminatorias, los casos de selecciones de bajo perfil causándole dolores de cabeza a Huayramarca han sido notorios, al punto de llegar a causar desastres como en la edición 95, en la que ni siquiera clasificamos a la fase eliminatoria de la Cup of Harmony. Después del desastre, se entendió que había que ganar, no importa como ni el rival enfrente, la victoria debía ser alcanzada si buscan hacer cumplir los intereses y metas de las que hablamos en el punto anterior.

Ahora bien, el rol del entrenador ha sido fundamental para este cambio de actitud que, si bien ha demorado, viene en buen momento y puede generar cambios positivos (esperamos todos eso). Aginsogno recibió una selección que bajaba el pie del acelerador en algunos partidos y se generaba complicaciones al estimular al rival a que atacase, ahora, el ritmo es alto y sostenido durante todo el partido, lo cual permite que no haya vacilación durante el mismo, esto producto de una mejor preparación física que ahora tiene el equipo para garantizar dicho ritmo. Coherencia entre decir y actuar.

3. ¿Experiencia en el manejo de partidos?: Suena como punto interesante, ya que hay varios jugadores nuevos en la selección nacional, así como una gran camada de veteranos, pero esto permite que haya transferencia de experiencias y aprendizaje de la forma en cómo se leen los partidos. Con todo lo que ahora han desarrollado nuestros jugadores, se ha alcanzado un punto en el que el balance de esfuerzos es bastante constante, no hay puntos de sobresfuerzo ni de relajación, sino que hay un comportamiento adecuado durante el partido.

Este manejo de partido se ve evidenciado en el control del balón, de la secuencia de pases que manejan los jugadores (al decidir si atacan o si mejor organizan la jugada desde la defensa). Huayramarca ahora tiene mucha más madurez en este aspecto, cosa que se ve mostrada en el desempeño del equipo al evitar dar pases sin sentido, ahora, cada movimiento del balón tiene una clara intención, ir al ataque, o conservar energías para un momento más delante en el partido.

4. El despertar de Ian Mamani: ha sido notable que nuestro capitán está teniendo una especie de despertar, uno en el que ya no es el jugador tímido que a inicios de su carrera conocimos. Mamani es ahora un jugador que no se esconde detrás de la pelota, al contrario, quiere jugar con ella y distribuir el balón a sus compañeros, e incluso, llevársela por si mismo hacia adelante para crear ocasiones de gol por su propio esfuerzo. Este despertar de Ian Mamani ha propiciado que la selección se vuelva más vertiginosa en su fase ofensiva, esto complementado con un Orlando Mina que sí se siente más respaldado por Ian que antes.

Son puntos que, si los vemos con calma, forman parte del pilar principal de buenos resultados que Huayramarca ha logrado obtener, con la estampa del equilibrio y consistencia que siempre había carecido hasta ahora. Ahora bien, no nos dejemos llevar por las buenas sensaciones, siempre hay espacio para impulsar iniciativas de mejora, esto no es la excepción a la regla, ya que hay cosas muy particulares que arreglar, esas son las siguientes.

1. El manejo de los rivales directos: debemos hacer respetar nuestra ventaja de experiencia ante ellos, claro que tienen selecciones muy buenas, pero nuestros jugadores tienen mucha más experiencia y debemos aprovechar ese factor. En los primeros partidos contra The Kytler Peninsulae, Kamijiro y West Barack and East Obama, nos ha faltado más tino para poder tener mejores resultados, y no es que me queje de haber empatado ante ellos, pero el haberlo hecho contra Kamijiro y Obama en nuestra propia casa deja un poco de sensaciones amargas.

En la próxima ronda, solo quedará la visita de The Kytler Peninsulae a nuestras tierras, siendo una buena oportunidad para revertir la tendencia de empates contra rivales directos, hacer valer nuestra ventaja en casa y lograr tres puntos. Para contra Kamijiro y Obama las cosas cambian ya que, dependiendo de la situación para cuando los enfrentemos de nuevo, debemos velar por tener resultados más que favorables y así ampliar la diferencia ante ellos en las eliminatorias, ese es un aspecto crucial si buscamos hacer que Huayramarca asegure el primer puesto de las eliminatorias o, al menos, clasificar directamente al mundial.

2. Mantener la consistencia: una vez tienes ya una forma de hacer las cosas definida, es necesario mantenerse en esa secuencia y buscar la mejora de la misma, pero sin salirse de los objetivos que planteaste inicialmente en tu libreto. Huayramarca tiene buenos recursos para asegurar que haya consistencia, solo que debe afinarse algunos elementos en la definición de las jugadas clave en la delantera, ya que la falla de las mismas nos ha costado puntos que pudiésemos haber logrado de momento. Es claro, no pido perfección, pero sí asegurar la máxima cantidad de puntos en casa, definir jugadas claras y no perdonar al rival.

Ahora que la segunda parte de la eliminatoria se avecina, es cuando Aginsogno y jugadores deben poner en práctica lo aprendido, corregir y asegurar los mejores resultados posibles en miras a la clasificación al mundial.

[Flavovespia]

The Pyramid
Level 4

Level 4, now time to enter the league proper. Operated by the FFL (Flavovespia Football League), a subsidiary of the FFA, this is the National League Division 2. Level 4 as is formed in 30AU, when the then Western League and Eastern League of Level 3 merged and split into 2 national divisions. The name National League Division 2 was chosen, despite some opposition to this naming convention, not least as the previous National Division 2 was a Level 3 league, but that’s another story.

Level 4 is where the boundary of semi-pro to pro blurs. Officially there are no salary expectations, in practice it’s rare for a player to not get around £500 per week, and more for some. Squad size has recently increased to 22 now at this level. Other key changes include the allowance of shirt sponsorship, a minimum stadium capacity of 1000, and capability to broadcast matches for TV in full, including at night. The current FFL TV Deal has 1 of the 10 games it broadcasts each Matchday in this division, a boost for clubs as they get some time on TV.

What clubs occupy Level 4? A handful of main clubs from municipalities, who’ve struggled in recent years such as Oxwich, and rivals Saltearth and Boleland Wood Town. There’s some formerly relatively strong sides returning up the ladder such as Floombury United and Capton Valley, and then the plucky semi-pros looking to go pro such as Waldster Harriers and South Hadford United.

Level 4 also sees clubs enter the League Cup. A secondary cup competition, the main benefit is a guaranteed Round 1 tie at home to a Super League or Challenge League side. Not easy to win those games even if the visitors rotate their squad, but upsets happen. The Flavovespia Gold Cup is where teams hope to make their mark. Getting through Round 1 for a shot at Round 2 where the big names enter. The Cup run of Ashland Common in 41AU would be very hard to beat, they defeated many teams above them to reach the Final, where Langmere Green Rovers eventually proved a step too far. Nevertheless, it secured the clubs finances for many years.

National League Division 2 has always struggled with a reputation that it’s inferior to the Western League and Eastern League and that a fourth national tier is one too many. However amidst that, there’s a division of great competitiveness, where newly promoted sides can, and have won consecutive promotions, and clubs who were for a while in Level 3 or even Level 2 find it tough going. There’s a lot of fun to watch, as semi-pro becomes pro.

[Eshialand]

Unexpect the Expected
Tanirinthia 1-2 Eshialand
Eshialand 1-0 Alezian Union

With those two wins, the Owls found themselves in a fascinating position.

As the halfway point of the qualifying stage rapidly approached, pretty much every group had some form of an interesting chase going on. An odd quirk of the group draws meant that every single first seed had a bye on Matchday 9, which meant that there were a lot of groups where the first seeds were leading the group with lower seeds being just a point or two behind with a game in hand. And so, the same was true of Eshialand's Group 14.

Tanirinthia, despite tanking a loss on Matchday 7, remained in first place, concluding their first half with 6-0-2. However, the two teams they lost to, Eshialand and Sajnur, were both sitting on undefeated records after their draw between each other on Matchday 2, standing at 5-2-0 and 4-3-0, respectively. With Eshialand heading to Restresas for their next game and Sajnur hosting the team from Kimi-Suomi, it was quite possible for Tanirinthia to drop as low as third place before their next game... and Eshialand need only a draw to snag first place, even if only for a moment.

Restresas was not going to be an easy team, however. While they had been in last place as recently as Matchday 6, they were quickly finding their foothold in this competition, drawing against Kimi-Suomi and defeating the powerful side from Pyazhnaya, mirroring the performances the Owls had against them earlier on (beating Kimi-Suomi but drawing Pyazhnaya). Especially with this being an away match, first place in the first half would be something the Owls would truly have to earn.

But there would be no rest for the weary, as the ceremonial checkpoint was no break at all, with Eshialand continuing their road trip in Savojarna immediately after. Their difficult start had rebounded into a fourth-place standing after 7 games... albeit one that found them 6 points out of a playoff spot, as this group was one with a very clear divide between the top 3 in positions to advance and the other 6 who were not. (4th place was in fact closer to 9th than 3rd!)

The Savojars had been doing a lot to claw themselves out of the pack and climb up to the top, however, and Eshialand would have to stop them dead in their tracks if they were going to keep their momentum going. Obviously, while this matchup was one they should probably win, it was one that, again, Kenny Morgan would have to ensure nobody was sleeping on. A road trip like this one could mean the difference between controlling their destiny into the final 8 matchdays and sitting on the sidelines trying to catch up once again... and when World Cup qualification was on the line, there was only one position they wanted to be in.

As for Coach Morgan's plans for the team, one thing was for sure: what worked for Tanirinthia would not work for Restresas. The same strategies that threw off the established Tanirinthian side had almost led them into disaster against the relative newcomer Alezians, and against first-timers Restresas, the unexpected would perhaps even be what they'd be expecting. It was time for good, solid soccer, and that's what was on the menu for the next two matches.

Did Kenny have any motivational words for the team before their big game?

"Dammit, I forgot my wallet at the airport!"

...I suppose not.