Cup of Harmony 89 - Everything Thread

by **Brusseldorf** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 2:00 am

Football fans in Brusseldorf may feel a bit disappointed after a tough World Cup qualifying campaign that saw the national team finish 7th in their group, falling well short of a finals berth. It's not all doom and gloom however, as this morning it was confirmed that Brusseldorf has received an invitation to the 89th Cup of Harmony! It's good to be back. Whilst missing out on the main event will never not sting, the Cup of Harmony offers Brusseldorf a chance at redemption. Fans and pundits alike are eager to see if this team can turn disappointment into triumph as they prepare for the quick turnaround. At a media conference delivered last night morning, manager Hakeem al-Araibi announced the squad he will be taking to the 89th Cup of Harmony:

No.    Name                    Pos.         Club                
12     Gimenza Azoulay         GK        Atlas United        
2     Boronia                 RB        Casablanca City    
3     Gabriel Lellouche       LB        Oahu FC            
4     Ricard Sciolan          CB        Real Marrakesh     
5     Andrea Zidane           CB        Meknes al Morocco  
6     Sarah Pickett           CDM       Salé United        
 7     Michael Hernández       CAM       Behotzadt Casablanca
8     Vindark Al Maghribī     CDM       Sahara Compétitif  
 9     Teddy Wolfenden (CAP)   ST        Atlas United        
23     Marcev Steyr            ST        Casablanca City     
20     Aktha Akiveal           CAM       Bahias Serenadamiata
―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――
 1     Antony Providence       GK        Tangier Lions       
13     Dom Harrak              LWB       Tangier Lions       
14     Phil Lataste            RM        Salé United         
15     Leila Abidi             CB        Fez FC              
16     Dieter Van den Berg     CDM       Siem Reapers        
17     Amina Khelifi           LW        Oahu FC             
10     Santa Dominguez         ST        Real Marrakesh      
 19     Yasmine Benamar         CDM       FK Kragujevac 1928   
11     Giroud Sidi             CAM       Casablanca City     
21     Harry Koehl             CM        Club de Fútbol Rabat
22     Sven Prote              CB        Club de Algiers     
18     Lukas De Wit            GK        FC Stockholm        


Managing Staff
Hakeem al-Araibi  Team Manager    
      Fatima El-Khouri  Assistant Team Manager
Marc Verstraeten  Head Coach      
             Ahmed Benali  Assistant Coach (Offense)
         Jan Vandenbroeck  Assistant Coach (Defense)
Mustafa Al-Mansouri  Technical Director 
Franz Müller  Head Scout  
Youssef El-Mansour  Fitness Coach     
  Hugo Vandenberg  Goalkeeping Coach
          Amina Abidi  Team Physiotherapist 
  Sofie Van Damme  Team Psychologist
      Nadia Fassi  Team Nutritionist
            Ali Ibrahim  Media Relations Manager
     Sophie Leclercq  Team Liaison Officer
               Hassan Belhadj  Youth Development Coordinator
 Matthias Wouters  Equipment Manager
  Karim Ben Youssef  Performance Analyst
    Isabella De Jong  Language Interpreter

Home Stadium
The Fennec Stadia is the largest stadium in Australialia, with a monstrous capacity of 93,000 spectators.
As the premier footballing facility in Brusseldorf, Fennec Stadia is the de facto national stadium and serves as a frequent venue for Brusseldorf's national team. During international tournaments such as this one, the stadium hosts all home matches. Throughout the remainder of the calendar year, Casablanca City is lucky enough to call this stadium home, though usually only the lower tier is filled with spectators.

I Give My Opponent Permission To:

Choose My Goalscorers:        Y
Godmod Goalscoring Events:    Y
Injure Players:               Y
Godmod Injury Events:         Y
Red Card Players:             Y
Yellow Card Players:          Y
Godmod Other Events:          Y
Style Modifier               +4

by **West Vdara** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 8:48 am

Vdaran Western Territories Football Federation
B

Kits commissioned by the Plough Islands' very own Red Flag. For more information, contact The Plough Islands.

’Comrades! What an exceptional shift you all put in during the World Cup! We really gave the capitalist pigdogs that plagued our group a kicking, eh? Avoiding defeat against HUElavia, Drawkland, and Bears Armed has filled our nation with an immense sense of pride, moreso than the Baptism of Fire. But alas, we failed to qualify. For our propaganda efforts, this is tough - especially considering that the Treacherous Eastern swine managed it. We ought to make yet another impact on international football, and with this new tournament coming up, let's show all these capitalists what the powers of collectivisation and togetherness can offer...' -- Supreme Leader of West Vdara and the KKV, to the squad

State-Approved Biography

The People’s Democratic Republic of Vdaran Western Territories, more commonly known as West Vdara, is a small group of islands located off the west coast of Africa. Having separated from the Republic of Vdara during a period of political turmoil for the ruling communist party (KKV), many of the nation’s important left-leaning figureheads fled to the newly-established nation to ensure the continuation of an ideal socialist paradise as Crete and Cyprus began to seek more moderate politics. Since then, West Vdara has enjoyed a period of relative peace and isolation, with neither the Republic nor the West seeking any form of immediate unification - in fact, quite the opposite, despite some attempts to mend and strengthen the ties between the two. The KKV have easily sustained political dominance in the country, having won every election since 1995, leading many to label West Vdara as a dictatorial, one-party state. Despite this, the KKV maintains that all elections are free and fair, decrying all doubters as ‘agents of Chania’ and preventing independent observers from keeping an eye on things.

State-Approved Geographic Info

There are seven islands that make up West Vdara:-

- Nifaria: With a population of just under a million, Nifaria is West Vdara's largest and most important island, with all government business going through the capital city of Agios Stavros. Mountainous and agricultural, Nifaria serves as the nation's main source of sustenance, with bananas and fish serving as crucial parts of the West Vdaran palate. Most footballers from the squad hail from this island.

- Kanaria: Slightly smaller in both population and landmass, Kanaria could just as easily be called "Nifaria's wee brother". The island nonetheless serves as West Vdara's industrial hub, with factories and ports across the island allowing it to be the nation's transport and export hub.

- Ploufialia: Small and agricultural, Ploufialia is mainly known for its vineyards more than anything else. This does, however, mean that West Vdaran wine is quite divine.

- Ombrion: A rather unassuming island, Ombrion is primarily known for its avocados and cattle - as well as its volcanic activity, making the soil extremely fertile and thus very suitable for agricultural usage.

- Tzounonia: Miniscule and boring. Let's move on [NOTHING SECRET IS OCCURRING ON THIS ISLAND].

- Planasia: One of the larger islands by landmass (but not by population), Planasia's size and lack of population allows for it to be used as West Vdara's dairy and cereals capital, with nationalised cheeses and grains making their way to the rest of the islands from the various farms and mills.

- Kapraria: Tiny and forested, not much goes on here either, so long as you don't look in the- [NOTHING SECRET IS OCCURRING ON THIS ISLAND]

State-Approved Football Team

West Vdara will play with the greatest and most infallible tactic ever, the fabled 4-4-2 formation. Thus, the squad shall utilise a style modifier of 0. Players will be listed with their names, positions, numbers, and birthplaces. Please note that information may be redacted at will by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau.

Name - POS - Num. - Birthplace (starters in bold, substitutes in italics)

Dimitri Petrovic - GK - 1 - Nifaria
Alexei Papadopoulos - DF - 2 - Kanaria
Nikolai Stamatakis - DF - 3 - Ombrion
Boris Konstantinidis - DF - 4 - Ploufialia
Ivan Georgiadis - DF - 5 - Nifaria
Mikhail Vasilakis - MF - 6 - Planasia
Vladimir Katsaros - MF - 7 - Kapraria
Yuri Markakis - MF - 8 - Nifaria
Sergei Dimitrakopoulos - MF - 9 - Kanaria
Andrei Christodoulou - FW - 10 - Ombrion
Viktor Alexiadis - FW - 11 - Ploufialia
Leonid Pappas - DF - 12 - Tzounonia
Grigori Antonopoulos - MF - 13 - Planasia
Pavel Nikolaidis - MF - 14 - Nifaria
Artemis Pavlov - FW - 15 - Nifaria
Serafim Sokolov - FW - 16 - Kanaria
Vasil Nestorakis - DF - 17 - Ombrion
Stefan Manousakis - GK - 18 - Nifaria

State-Approved Stadium

All home matches will be played at West Vdara’s state of the art Grand Amphitheater of the Proletariat, or the GAP for short. Some scumbag capitalists may refer to it as outdated and crumbling, but they are mere pigdogs who hate to see such great collectivised success. It holds as many people as required, and away fans must go through a simple process involving the submission of thirty-two different documents, a pledge not to commit espionage, and the surrender of all foreign currency. (OOC: this means we’re not letting your fans in. okay, maybe two.)

State-Appointed and Approved Staff

The government of the Vdaran Western Territories has made sure to appoint the best person from the job: Ivanis Grigorelis. Born on Tzounonia in 1972, Ivanis' humble upbringing and his parents' connections to the state allowed him to seamlessly rise through the ranks. Additionally, having been a long-time neighbour of the Minister for Sport, Culture, and Nationhood, it was inevitable that he would be given some form of government position - so why not management, one of the highest honours of them all? Furthermore, Mr. Grigorelis will be assisted by several men in immaculate suits and sunglasses, who we can call [REDACTED], but who you can call 'tactical analysts'. You will find yourself getting rather familiar with these ‘technical analysts’, and we are compelled to inform you about their expertise in classical martial arts.

State-Approved Permissions

Reluctantly, the West Vdaran government has agreed to follow the tournament regulations and provide a small permission slip. This must be adhered to, and detractors may be [REDACTED] by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau.

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my goalscorers: Yes. The Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau takes pride in its players.
Godmod scoring events: Yes. However, all scoring events will be written and verified by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau.
RP injuries to my players: Yes. All injury events will be written and verified by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau.
Godmod injuries to my players: Yes. However, all injury events will be verified by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau.
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes. West Vdara will comply with the decisions of referees.
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes. However, all refereeing decisions will be verified by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau, who may [REDACT] anything at any time.
Godmod other events: Yes. However, all events will be verified by the Vdaran Information and Intelligence Bureau, who may [REDACT] anything at any time.

by **Darmen** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 9:48 am

National Football Team of Darmen
presented by the
Darmeni Football Association

Record (Modern-era only, since Copa Rushmori 24): 602 matches, 278 wins, 116 draws, 208 losses, 1219 GF, 1056 GA, .526 Win %

Caps
 1 Hyman Campo          284
 2 Silver Abbey         267
 3 Craig Blackwood      255
 4 Víedharr Svendsen    215
 5 Riley Mac Pharlain   212
 6 Alberich Goldschmidt 204
 7 Aurelio Di Stefano   169
   Feliciano Espinosa   169
 9 Juanito Stafford     165
10 Bill St. John        164

Goals
 1 Craig Blackwood      168
 2 Felix Lucanus         80
 3 James January         58
 4 Skylar Hurst          49
 5 Víedharr Svendsen     48
 6 Kennard Hale          46
 7 Darnell Halle         42
 8 Daniel Norton         38
 9 Marianne Lee          33
   Riley Mac Pharlain    33

Coaching Staff

Position          Name               Age
Manager           Riley Mac Pharlain 47
Assistant Manager Abraham Akers      50
Goalkeeping Coach Hyman Campo        46
Fitness Coach     Robert Odell       38
Psychologist      Emmanuel Everett   58

26 Player Roster

#  Pos Name                Age Club                      Caps Goals
 1 GK  Ildefonso Daube     32  Romanopolis United         19   0
 2 LB  Philip O'Hara       34  Olympique Chuckio         122   3 
 3 LCB Amias Shelby        27  Royal PFC                  20   2
 4 RCB Corentin Melsbach   32  Scott City FC              29   1
 5 RB  Markus Thomasson    29  Tempala United Saints      48   2
 6 LM  Fabricio Tobias     35  Scott City FC              81   9
 7 CM  Dwayne Loritz       27  Tempala United Saints      51   7
 8 RM  Kara Falkner*       27  MTK Kingsville             41   0
 9 LF  James January       33  Scott City FC             111  58
10 CF  Marianne Lee*       32  Tanques AOE (KOR)          85  33
11 RF  Torger Woodward     28  Scott City FC              41  13

12 GK  Morris Mathews      27  Scott City FC               3   0
13 LB  Ferdy Adkins        27  Scott City FC               9   0
14 LCB Cally Meadows*      28  MTK Kingsville              2   0
15 RCB Comgán MacGowan     28  Romanopolis United          4   0
16 RB  Natanael Suárez     27  Rogerton Valladar CF        9   0
17 LM  Delma Russell*      27  Tempala United Saints      18   2
18 CM  Silvester Fairburn  28  Royal PFC                  25   0
19 RM  Keefe Ó Maoil Eoin  32  Scott City FC              15   1
20 LF  Idonea Santiago*    28  Rogerton Valladar CF       24   9
21 CF  Kaylin Hobbes*      29  Scott City FC              11   2
22 RF  Karter Clayton      27  Johnho United              12   3

23 GK  Corina Mendoza*     30  Rogerton Valladar CF        0   0
24 LB  Kyro Perrin         28  Rogerton Whitecaps         18   0
25 CM  Nolan Tanner        27  Chippewa Valley United FC   1   0
26 LF  Kelli Lovell*       27  Johnho United               7   1

* Female Players

Tactics
Formation: 4-3-3
Style Mod: +2.5
In attack, Darmen will employ one of two tactics: the first involves the team playing down the flanks while the second is a possession oriented short-range passing style that closely resembles tiki-taka. The later tactic is normally only employed against weaker opponents or when Darmen has a multi-goal lead and involves connecting many passes together to slowly advance the ball towards the opponents 18-yard box. It is not uncommon for 30+ passes to be completed in the sequence, especially against weaker opponents.

Darmen's primary tactic however is a heavy emphasis on flank play, with the wide midfielders (also referred to as flankers in Darmen) being the linchpin of Darmen's attack. Upon gaining possession, Darmen will look to distribute the ball to one of the two wide midfielders as quickly as possible. After receiving the ball, the wide midfielders will look to advance the ball as far down the flanks as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, the forwards and the central midfielders will crash the box, hoping to be on the receiving end of the wide midfielder's cross. The wide midfielder (or sometimes even the fullback) on the opposite flank will linger behind waiting to collect the cross should it overshoot the box. While scoring via headers is the primary goal, a player may also look to score by volleying or half-volleying the ball if they're in open space. Should the first attempt at goal not be collected by the goalkeeper, Darmenis are more than willing to take advantage of the ensuing chaos in the box and poach a goal as well. If the wide midfielder's path forward down the flank is blocked, they are not averse to cutting inside and taking a shot on goal themselves.

Defensively, the defenders have one job... to defend. They rarely venture out of their own half, but if they do it will only be one of the fullbacks (see above). Darmen will employ zonal marking when facing the counter-attack and man marking in all other situations.

Team Roles
Captain: Philip O'Hara
Vice-Captain: James January
Left Corner: Fabricio Tobias
Right Corner: Kara Falkner
Penalties: James January
Free-kicks: Dwayne Loritz

Team Personality
The Darmeni team will never argue with the referee. Indeed, if anything needs to be brought to the attention of the referee it will be done by either the Captain or Vice-Captain in a respectful manner (or to the fourth-official by the Manager). With regards to foul/dirty play, the Darmeni team will not provoke, or retaliate against any opposition player. Darmeni's expect each team to keep to itself and deal with its own trouble makers; any opposition player who attempts to prevent a conflict by pushing or pulling a Darmeni away from the scene will be promptly told off, as that is the duty of the Darmeni Captain.

Nonetheless, Darmen will play in a relatively aggressive manner. Tackles will be conducted in a way which ensures the opponent ends up on the ground, but causing injury will be avoided as much as possible. On set pieces, Darmenis will stand their ground and will not be easily pushed around. However, they will not engage in hugging. In fact, if any opposing player tries to push past them, it is not uncommon for the Darmeni player to feign resistance before simply stepping aside and watching as the opposing player stumbles past on their way to ground. This occasionally backfires however, as the referee may mistake the incidence as having been a foul in the box.

RP Permissions
Choose my scorers: YES PLEASE! If you name your goal scorers, please also name mine.
Choose my scoring events: YES
Godmod scoring events: YES. If you have anything major planned, give me a heads up.
RP injuries to my players: YES, no more than one per match. If you have anything major planned, give me a heads up.
Godmod Injuries to my players: NO
Give Yellow Cards to my players: YES, no more than two per match. If you have anything major planned, give me a heads up.
Give Red Cards to my players: YES, no more than one per match. If you have anything major planned, give me a heads up.
Godmod other events: MAYBE. If you have anything major planned, give me a heads up.
Style Modifier: +2.5

If you need to contact me, TG's are preferred over Discord DM's.

by **Riena** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 2:07 pm

Riena Football Association
First-team squad for Cup of Harmony 89

Players highlighted in orange are the expected starters in their respective primary positions (the first listed position for a particular player). All statistics are accurate as of the start of this tournament.

•
1 • Miku SUZUTSUKI
Goalkeeper; 25; 21 caps; 4 clean sheets

A steady and calming presence in goal, Suzutsuki is a physically imposing goalkeeper who breaks the mould of the conventional Riennese goalkeeper — instead of playing as an aggressive sweeper keeper, she prefers to remain close to her goal, trusting in her keen reflexes, instinctive positioning, and shot-stopping ability to prevent the opposition from scoring. While in possession of the ball, Suzutsuki does not take unnecessary risks unlike some modern keepers; she tends to distribute quickly into her defenders and midfielders, and when under pressure, is not averse to putting the odd agricultural clearance into touch. Her imposing frame allows her to command her own area well, and she often takes on the responsibility of catching or punching balls delivered into her area instead of leaving her defenders to sweep up the danger. Her proactive approach to goalkeeping, especially in her own six-yard box, allows her defenders the peace of mind to focus on tracking opposition runners, safe in the knowledge that she will be there to take care of dangerous crosses floated into the area.

30 • Utaha KAMIKATA
Goalkeeper; 23; 2 caps; 0 clean sheets

Kamikata is an aggressive sweeper keeper who is not afraid to help out her defenders whenever the team are caught short in possession. She possesses the requisite pace and technical ability to thrive in a Riena tactical setup that can place significant demands on the goalkeeper's footwork. Her game revolves around sweeping up through balls and shutting down opposition counterattacks using her anticipation and speed off her line, allowing the team to adopt a higher defensive line than would otherwise be possible, and initiating attacking moves with accurate long range distribution, bypassing high pressing manoeuvres by the opposition. The high risk, high reward nature of her play style means that Kamikata is more susceptible to committing high-profile errors leading to goals. Her particular skillset means she is more likely to see the pitch in matches where Riena are expected to dominate possession, typically against lower-ranked sides favouring a counterattacking style.

35 • Meguru JOUMAE
Goalkeeper; 33; 0 caps; 0 clean sheets

A well-travelled veteran goalkeeper approaching the prime of her career, Joumae serves as an experienced pair of hands that can be relied upon to deputise whenever the need arises. A jack of all trades but master of none, she is about equally as good at handling as she is with the ball at her feet, without being particularly outstanding in either department. Her role is to serve as a capable backup option for the other two keepers in the squad, and she will expect to spend the majority of her time on the bench unless exceptional circumstances arise.

•
Overview
Riena will tend to set up in a highly fluid 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 formation, but they are also adept at playing 3-4-3 and 3-5-2 when the situation necessitates it, primarily against technically superior opposition in which Riena are expected to have less of the ball. The team can and will rapidly transition between different formations when necessary, and Riena's players will, in general, be given freedom to roam from their assigned position as well as exchange positions with other players. The team tends to play in a 3-2-5 formation when in possession, with one of the full-backs inverting into midfield alongside the holding midfielder while the other full-back bombs forward, and the central midfielder pushing forward to join the attack — out of possession, the formation resembles a 4-5-1, with the two wingers dropping into wide midfield to provide defensive cover.

The team's physical shortcomings in terms of height and jumping reach means they will tend to play the ball short on the ground rather than looking to go long when in possession — a notable exception is in the final third, where the comparatively more physical forwards provide a useful focal point for crosses. In attack, the team will look to move the ball vertically at speed, but will also be content to patiently probe the opposition defence if there are no immediate openings. Riena is particularly reliant on their wingers in attack, and if the opposition manages to stifle Riena's wing play, they will inevitably be neutered as an attacking threat. In defence, Riena uses a high defensive line and will try to make use of offside traps. Zonal marking is preferred at corners and free kicks.

Stadia (only if applicable)
The Riena national team play their football matches at the Wavelet Arena, in the capital city of Nagato. The pitch dimensions are short, but wide, by multiversal standards for football pitches, facilitating wider play on the flanks. The pitch itself is usually well-watered and slick, allowing the ball to travel at speed across the natural grass surface. For teams who prefer a spot of beach football, Riena's original national sport, Riena maintains the Radiant Sands Arena, also in Nagato, with the same pitch dimensions as the Wavelet Arena, but with a sand surface instead. Riena will usually default to the Wavelet Arena, but opponents are free to specify a stadium preference if they wish to do so.

Set piece assignments
The following set piece assignments are listed in order of priority. Positions are indicated relative to the opposition goal. Central free kicks can be taken by players assigned to either left or right sided free kicks. Indirect free kicks given within the opposition area are counted as direct free kicks for the purposes of this section.

Indirect free kicks
- Left — Kanna NAGARA, Ichika KIRIKAZE, Saori SKAMANDROS
- Right — Kanna NAGARA, Shiori MIHANE, Kanata SHIKIMORI
Direct free kicks
- Left — Meruto MERCERIAN, Nagisa NAKIRI, Origami SANGOMIYA
- Right — Ichika KIRIKAZE, Emiri NEKODA, Nagisa NAKIRI
Corners
- Left — Origami SANGOMIYA, Reisa YUZURIHA, Nagisa NAKIRI
- Right — Shiori MIHANE, Meruto MERCERIAN, Nagisa NAKIRI
Penalties
- Origami SANGOMIYA, Nagisa NAKIRI, Emiri NEKODA, Ichika KIRIKAZE, Meruto MERCERIAN

by **Kamijiro** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 3:19 pm

衞。Defend, Part Zero: The Roster & The Expectations

Shortly after being knocked out of the World Cup...

Raiji Kagawa is still the manager of the national team. But the talking heads are talking. And their words are not kind. A prominent front-page headline following the ultimate collapse to the Kytler Peninsulae simply just read: "CHOKE ARTIST." With just one cycle left on his contract with the national team, this Cup is one of his last real shots at glory (and an extension) as a manager. As such, he's cutting the fluff. Toning back the offense that he tried to incorporate and ramping up the defense once more, his specialty.

The press conference to announce the roster for the Cup is underway shortly after the invitation's reception by the Kamijiroan FA. Raiji tries his best not to snap at the reporters, of course, but that's never easy when one of them is wearing a shirt that simply says "Kagawa Out!" After about five minutes of answering the routine questions, it's time for the meat and potatoes - the call-up.

"In net... Jokichi Asumi and Azael Costa."
"Defense... Philippe Seraphin, Ryo Murai, Michael Azevedo, Wagner Machado, Akinari Akaminai, Sadatoshi Kameda, Azuma Kogushi."
"Midfield... Nicácio Xavier, Katsu Fujiwara, Saiichi Demizu, Kaneto Kanazono, Hiroya Kioka, Dominique Joseph, Tadahiro Abiko."
"Attack... Soji Kokubun, Darren Williams, Haruki Kagawa."

An abridged roster from the World Cup edition - several players who were called up for the qualifiers were not named for the Cup, mostly due to the shorter schedule (meaning fewer chances at injury). However, the team is heavily lacking in defensive depth; likely due to very poor showings from some of the rotational players at the World Cup.

The expected lineup looks something like this, with the wingbacks being essentially used as extra defenders and only pinging deep crosses in on occasion.

In an interview post call-up, Raiji was quoted as saying:
"Of course I'm upset. Nobody is more upset than I am about how the qualifiers went. We got complacent and that's on me. I should have prepared the squad better for the fights that they [Al-Tamazgha and The Kytler Peninsulae] were going to put up. And I didn't do that. So end of the day, I'm lucky to have a job, considering the fact we had a game in hand and a points advantage and still came away with nothing."

"And what of the rumors you nearly attempted suicide?"

"Those are extremely misconstrued. When Haruki [Kagawa, his daughter and back-up striker] came to see me, I was in an already bad mood, she knew that - then she found me leaning over my balcony and looking down. She thought I was going to jump. In reality, I was simply looking down. I do it when I think about stuff. But suicide? No. I'm not that type of guy. Never have been. Never will be."

"So you rebuke the claim?"

"Yes. In the strongest terms possible, yes. What happened that day was simply a misunderstanding. She knows that, I know that. I wish I knew who leaked that rumor to the press, because you people have run away with a story that simply isn't there. I won't answer any more questions on that subject. If you wish to have more information, you'll have to beat it out of me."

"Thanks for your time."

"Yeah, yeah. You too, pal."

The mic cuts off suddenly as Raiji yanks it off of himself and walks away. He hates dealing with the press, even on a good day. But the rumors of suicide? Now that's a low blow, even for the ravenous Miraisaki press. They're reaching new lows, especially after smacking his name on the front of the newspapers and labelling him a choke artist.

"Like Hell I'll interview with those dickheads again." Raiji mutters to himself as he hops into his car and pulls out of the parking lot. "To Hell with 'em."

Style Mod: -4.5
Permissions: Yes, you may. Unless it involves the death, dismemberment or (permanent) disability of my players, go crazy.
My only request is that if you name my goal scorers for me, please also name who assisted the goal when applicable. Thanks!

by **Qusmo** » Thu Sep 05, 2024 4:18 pm

Qusmo has limitless ambitions for Cup of Harmony 89

After a long absence, Qusmo has returned to the world of international football. Under the stewardship of two-time former Galactico Manager of the Season Tlanx-Nulzk Hal, the Quxruxy have reestablished themselves as a credible team who can present even the toughest opponents genuine challenges on their day. However, despite the tournament’s expansion, they haven’t quite been able to make the leap needed to qualify for their first World Cup since the Reforms, which commenced during World Cup 83 in Equestria & Banija. The team’s consolation prize this cycle is a trip to Banija for Cup of Harmony 89.

Qusmo has finished every previous WCC cycle in which it has competed as a top-forty-eight team: in the thirty-two-team World Cup era, Qusmo has reached the Cup of Harmony knockout rounds or qualified for the World Cup itself in each of its previous attempts. With forty-eight teams now qualifying for the World Cup, the Quxruxy will surely settle for finishing forty-ninth in the Multiverse this cycle. & with many of the teams which would have been top Cup of Harmony threats in other years now safely ensconced in the main tournament elsewhere in Rushmore, Qusmo knows its time to claim a trophy is now — especially if the team plans to make its fourth appearance in this tournament its last.

It’s a new dawn for Qusma football. It’s a new dawn for Qusmo. Glory to Qusmo, glory to Qusmi’y.

Personnel
N°   Ps     Name                  Pronouns   Age     Club                               Caps  Gls     AEF   Notes
 1   GK     OXOLT-ULUTU Nev       they/them   33     Wilmington City (MYR)                 4    0           
12   GK     KARAR-FALAX Zev       they/them   37     Northern Union (BRE)                 11    0           IFCF Champions League 2 & 17 champion; Super Cup 2 & 17 champion; UICA Youth Cup 25 champion
25   GK     KEPEX-CHENG Yan        she/they   25     Beian Bats (YZH)                     12    0     YZH   
 3   CB     NIRLO-ZYLYZ Bel       they/them   34     Midtown AC (CBP)                     18    0           
 4   CB     NEXEV-PILTA Val       they/them   36     Nyva Zvornik (MYT)                   17    1     MYT   
13   CB     GAVAZ-AJARK Tez       they/them   29     Yassaca FC (SRS)                     20    0     SRS   
11   CB     IBILX-IRTIX Ono       they/them   39     Northern Union (BRE)                 12    0           IFCF Champions League 2 & 17 champion; Super Cup 2 & 17 champion; UICA Youth Cup 25 champion
14   CB     Ida SEVET-STOKES       she/her    35     AFC Corvistone (NPH)                 28    2     NPH   CB/LB/DM; records do not include 14 previous caps for Nephara
15   LB     XELEZ-MATEZ Wek       they/them   23     Olympia Arkintoofle (SRS)            23    1     SRS   
20   LB     OTOLN-PRANT Ezi       they/them   38     Northern Union (BRE)                 29    1           IFCF Champions League 2 & 17 champion; Super Cup 2 & 17 champion; UICA Youth Cup 25 champion
16   RB     SEVET-AJARK Tez       they/them   25     AFC Edencliff (KYP)                   7    0           
17   RB     LYNUL-SEVET Pul       they/them   28     Occidental Olympic (EXT)             25    0           
 2   DM     BELAJ-TRENJ Marko       he/him    21     La + Querida (FFD)                   21    2     SRS   
 5   DM     INTOV-GELAN Nun       they/them   33     Ituraitz Victory (ASG)               32    1           DM/CB
 6   CM     JERAT-FORZU Mal       they/them   33     Sivolvia Capitalizt (SRS)            34    7     SRS   
18   CM     KYNDA-TYLYR Ezi       they/them   24     Sporting Jaglan (SRS)                 4    1     SRS   
19   CM     ILINX-WINAD Bel       they/them   31     KF Atlov (QUS)                       21    5           CM/AM/RM/LM/RW/LW
 7   AM     HELEK-PERTZ Zev       they/them   32     Megabrantid SC (SRS)                 43   18     SRS   AM/ST
 8   AM     TANAR-ILINX Wek       they/them   33     FC Axel Heiburg (PIS)                 4    0           CM/AM
22   LW     BELAJ-RILAN Dar       they/them   25     Latrobe Athletic (KSK)               42   14     SRS   LM/LW
23   LM     KRESP-KRESP Wek       they/them   34     Hillsborough FC (CBP)                 2    1           
 9   RW     CULAK-ZELEZ Guv       they/them   23     Millsburgh Revolutionaries (TMB)     21    8     SRS   ST/LW/RW
21   RM     SEVET-ZORNO Faz       they/them   26     KFX Halazem (SRS)                     3    1           
10   ST     SEVET-MATEZ Fox       they/them   31     Brantisvogan FC (SRS)                31   14     SRS   
24   ST     XILIT-OXOLT Mal       they/them   33     Fraser Valley (TMB)                  23   10     TMB   

Role        Name                  Pronouns   Age     Notes
Manager     TLANX-NULZK Hal       they/them   79     Former manager of KF Qastyr (QUS), Saltstead, Savigliane, & Starblaydia; two-time former Galactico Manager of the Season
Assistant   HELEK-NENZI Ono       they/them   45     Former KF Vlonz (QUS), KF Qastyr (QUS), & Qusmo national team left-sided midfielder
GK Coach    PRANT-TELEW Wek       they/them   50     Former KF Poldanz (QUS), Stahlburg City (NPH), & Qusmo national team  goalkeeper

Cap & goal figures are accurate as of the beginning of Cup of Harmony 89
All biographies are accurate as of the beginning of World Cup 97 Qualifying.

Goalkeepers
Yamaj-Zorno Mal’s retirement has left a void in Qusmo’s goal. Former Champions League champion Karar-Falax Zev will get the first opportunity to fill it, but they have already announced their own retirement after the conclusion of this World Cup cycle. Moreover, the reason Yamaj-Zorno got the opportunity to play for their national team in the first place is that both Karar-Falax & Oxolt-Ulutu Nev failed to impress. If history repeats itself, Kepex-Cheng Yan could make her international debut. The former refugee, who fled Qusmo during its Reforms, Yuezhou during its Civil War, & Nyowani Kitara during its Crisis, is already an inspiring story, but with all Qusmo’s other international-calibre goalkeepers already in their thirties & a retirement wave having already begun, Kepex-Cheng has the potential to make the position their own for many cycles to come.

Centre backs
Qusmo’s entire Matchday One back line from their most recent tournament, Copa Rushmori XLVI, has been dropped for the start of World Cup 97 Qualifying. Faced with an aging player pool, Tlanx-Nulzk has struggled to find the balance between experience & obsolescence, with defence in particular emerging as a consistent trouble spot. Ibilx-Irtix Ono will captain the side in what will be their final World Cup cycle before retiring to focus on managing their business &, it is rumored, beginning a managerial career in football. They will be partnered by Baker Park National League champion Nirlo-Zylyz Bel. However, Nexev-Pilta Val, Gavaz-Ajark Tez, Olorz-Nexev Zev, & Ida Sevet-Stokes have all had spells as starting centre backs for the national team in the past, & any of them may be drafted in again if Ibilx-Irtix & Nirlo-Zylyz cannot arrest Qusmo’s defensive player churn.

Left backs
With two aging players in the middle of defence, Tlanx-Nulzk has opted for younger players on the outside. The youngest defender on Qusmo’s roster, at just twenty-two, Xelez-Matez Wek will return to Qusmo’s starting XI, where they have traded the starting left back job with Otoln-Prant Ezi for some time. The veteran Northern Union player has announced their retirement after the coming cycle, however, so this could be a preview of Qusmo’s left back situation for many years to come. Meanwhile, Ida Sevet-Stokes has been listed as a left back, despite being listed at centre back & defensive midfield in her previous appearances with the national team. She will be a versatile depth piece at all three positions.

Right backs
Lynul-Sevet Pul will get the nod on the right side of defence to open World Cup Qualifying, with Sevet-Ajark Tez waiting in the wings. With only two right backs listed, there is no spot on Qusmo’s thirty-player Qualifying roster for Wanar-Xeral Zyn, who was Qusmo’s starter at the position during their winning streak at the end of the team’s previous Qualifying campaign & was the opening-day starter at the position for both Cup of Harmony 88 & Copa Rushmori XLVI. However, they lost their starting place midway through both tournaments, & now they’ve lost their place on the roster entirely. At thirty-seven, they have played their final match in red & gold. Likewise, although Sevet-Stokes managed to scrap her way back to the team’s roster, fellow Nepharan-Qusma defender Ash Betva will not be joining her, as the most-capped right back in Qusmo’s post-Reform history will be watching the team’s Qualifying matches from home.

Defensive midfielders
There is more room on Qusmo’s roster for defensive-minded midfielders, however. Working backwards towards the front, Intov-Gelan Nun is the first player who began Copa Rushmori XLVI as a starter to retain their place after that dreadful performance. In fact, Qusmo’s whole midfield will be left in place for the beginning of World Cup 97 Qualifying. Intov-Gelan provides strength & steel in the middle of the park, providing an effective, experienced shield for the defence. The only U21-eligible player on the team, Belaj-Trenj Marko provides Tlanx-Nulzk with a different sort of profile, as the La + Querida player functions better as a deep-lying playmaker, but they aren’t nearly as imposing a physical presence as Intov-Gelan. Meanwhile, Biyambi First Division champion Rax Chalopi represents a compromise candidate, not quite as technical as Belaj-Trenj or as physical as Intov-Gelan.

Central midfielders
In central midfield, long a storied position in Qusma football, Jerat-Forzu Mal is the clear first-choice starter. The Squornshelan Superleague champion has been an integral piece in the middle of the park for Sivolvia Capitalizt, & they are the tempo-setter for their national team. However, Tlanx-Nulzk may play with multiple midfielders at a time who fit a more box-to-box profile, & they have brought along three additional younger options to fill that role. Chifuniro Lenpi, Wanar-Xalan Tla, & Kynda-Tylyr Ezi are all jostling for roles as the team’s primary backup, situational starter against certain opponents, & future first-choice midfielder after Jerat-Forzu. Only Wanar-Xalan has ever started a match for Qusmo before, but none of the three are head & shoulders above the others, & they may all have opportunities to prove themselves during Qualifying.

Attacking midfielders
Helek-Pertz Zev is an easy choice as the national team’s most creative midfielder. Helek-Pertz is Qusmo’s record post-Reform cap earner, has scored the second-most post-Reform goals for Qusmo, & has featured in every competitive fixture for Qusmo since the Reforms. It should be no surprise they’re often considered the best player on the team. There’s very little the Squornshelan Superleague champion can’t do on the pitch. They possess a lethal combination of technique & vision that allows Qusmo to contend against any opponent, whether unlocking a low block or creating a moment of magic against the run of play. They’re even clinical enough to play striker. However, the drop-off in quality behind Helek-Pertz is quite noticeable. Aside from them, attacking midfield is clearly the weakest position in the national team pool, & Tanar-Ilinx Wek plays a more reserved role in central midfield naturally. Although an improvement over a now-thirty-nine-year-old Raxat-Avarn Zev, Helek-Pertz’s previous backup on the national team, they aren’t expected to be a major contributor in Qusmo’s Qualifying campaign behind the ever-present Helek-Pertz.

Left wingers
Kelssek Championship champion Belaj-Rilan Dar is Qusmo’s young star. Firmly entrenched as a key national team starter at twenty-four, Belaj-Rilan’s streak of consecutive starts in Qusmo’s past twenty-two competitive fixtures represent more caps than anyone else in Qusma post-Reform history bar Helek-Pertz Zev. A prototypical Tlanxball winger, Belaj-Rilan can stay wide or cut inside & can set up others or finish off chances themself. However, the rest of Qusmo’s winger options are more complicated. The only other natural left winger on the roster is Kresp-Kresp Wek, a player nearly a decade older than Belaj-Rilan who plays with their club as a wide midfielder & has only one cap to their name: a substitute appearance in a shutout loss in a friendly.

Right wingers
The state of the other side of Qusmo’s front three is inverted, without such a clear-cut starter but with more credible options from which to choose. Getting the start, at least initially, will be Culak-Zelez Guv. Though a natural striker, Culak-Zelez can play every position across the forward line, & Tlanx-Nulzk is experimenting to see if they can fit as the national team’s starter on the right side. With very clear starters at left wing & striker, it’s Culak-Zelez’s best chance to get off the bench & make an impact for their national team. Waiting in the wings will be Ilinx-Winad Bel, an even more versatile player who is a natural central midfielder but has experience playing any other position more advanced on the pitch save for striker. Ilinx-Winad has been entirely serviceable as Qusmo’s starting right winger, so they could easily take over if Culak-Zelez’s transition to the wing is more difficult than expected, or they could deputize at any of several positions across the pitch. Meanwhile, Sevet-Zorno Faz has received their first-ever national team call-up. While they are not nearly as positionally flexible or as experienced on the international level as either Culak-Zelez or Ilinx-Winad, they are the lone natural right winger on the roster, & their presence can allow both their teammates listed at the position to fill any other gaps they can at the same time.

Strikers
Finally, we’ve reached striker, where the job is still somehow Xilit-Oxolt Mal’s. Players like Kai Dynom were left off the roster entirely despite playing their club football in the same nation & in a tier higher than Xilit-Oxolt. However, when Xilit-Oxolt got the opportunity to play for Qusmo, they played incredibly, scoring nine goals in seventeen matches, good for the most goals & best goals per match ratio of any player in Qusmo’s post-Reform era. The result is leaving players like Dynom off the roster, shunting players like Culak-Zelez Guv to other positions to find playing time, & relegating players like Sevet-Matez Fox & Belaj-Blonz Tez to the bench. Belaj-Blonz is a rare bright spot in the Q-League for a struggling Wansan Noksaekjeonsa team, while Sevet-Matez is one of the best strikers in the Superleague for Brantisvogan, but Sevet-Matez hasn’t been anywhere near as spectacular in a Qusma kit, & Belaj-Blonz only made it onto their first tournament roster for the national team thanks to the vacancy opened by Culak-Zelez’s move to right wing. Striker is the one position where Qusmo is genuinely spoiled for choice, but somehow, the player with a lock on the team’s starting position is someone who doesn’t even play for a club in a top-flight league.

Tactics

Tlanx-Nulzk will nominate the following players to start Qusmo’s opening match of the tournament against Hispinas. They have started together for Qusmo on eight prior occasions, all in World Cup 97 Qualifying, winning seven matches together in the process. The team’s starting XI is subject to change throughout the course of Qusmo’s Qualifying campaign, & confirmed lineups will be posted for each matchday.
|’                            |¯¯¯|                            ’|
|¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|¯¯|¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|¯¯|¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|
|                       |  ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯  |                       |
|                       |_______________|                       |
|                                                               |
|                          Sevet-Matez                          |
|       Belaj-Rilan                           Culak-Zelez       |
|                                                               |
|                  Helek-Pertz                                  |
|-------------------------------O--Jerat-Forzu------------------|
|                          Intov-Gelan                          |
|                                                               |
|  Otoln-Prant                                     Lynul-Sevet  |
|                  Sevet-Stokes     Nirlo-Zylyz                 |
|                                                               |
|                       |¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|                       |
|                       |  Kepex-Cheng  |                       |
|_______________________|__|_________|__|_______________________|
|,                            |___|                            ,|
MD   Venue     Opponent                        Result
 7   Visitor   The Grearish Union              W (4-1)
 8   Host      Quakmybush                      W (4-0)
 9   Visitor   United States of Nova Calania   W (6-0)
11   Visitor   The 14 Stars                    L (4-5)
14   Host      Chromatika                      W (1-0)
15   Visitor   Alanis Star                     W (4-0)
16   Host      The Grearish Union              W (8-2)
17   Visitor   Quakmybush                      W (1-0)
Tlanx-Nulzk’s teams play in a dynamic, aggressive, high-pressing 4-3-3 shape. Historically, the system has been at its best with dynamo centre midfielders who can make a difference in both boxes and everywhere in between, as well as a technically gifted forward line which can equally create chances for each other or put those chances away. Fullbacks will not push very high in attack, but Tlanx-Nulzk’s goal is to liberate the rest of their squad to have freedom with the ball.

Kits

The official kit supplier of the Qusma national team is the Starblaydian-based enterprise ediraf. Though many expected Fuzpon Qusma to select uni·q to win the new Qusma national team contract, the federation has opted to equip the team in the same kit in which they competed in World Cups 82 and 83, as a link to Qusma footballing heritage.

Culture

Gender: All people of full Qusma descent are nonbinary and androgynous and use they/them pronouns. Male or female Qusmi’y generally are children of multinational heritage.
Names: For those with traditional Qusma names, family names are followed by given names.
Nomenclature: Qusmo refers to the country of Qusmo itself, Qusma is an adjective for something that is from or of Qusmo, a Qusmi is a person who is Qusma, Qusmi’y are a group of more than one Qusmi, Qusmi Bez is the title of the leader of Qusmo, & Qusmu is the native language of most Qusmi’y.

Competitive record

Qusmo debuted in World Cup 80 Qualifying & qualified for World Cups 82 and 83, but it had not played any more recent fixtures until the ninety-sixth World Cup cycle, & it has failed to qualify since. The team has also infamously recorded only a single point in two Copas Rushmori since the Reforms. Meanwhile, following a World Cup 96 Qualifying campaign where the team finished one place & three points short of their group’s final successful qualifier, despite a win over their qualifying group’s top seed at Mastad Qusma, the Quxruxy finished one place & three points short of their World Cup 97 Qualifying group’s final successful qualifier, despite a win over their qualifying group’s top seed at Mastad Qusma. Having previously competed in Cups of Harmony 72, 73, & 88, the Quxruxy have recorded finishes in the octofinals, quarterfinals, & semifinals. Qusmo will be eager for the opportunity to potentially go even further in this tournament than the team has ever managed before.
Records (as of CoH89)          M    W    D    L        P/M    W%    GF   GA    GD
All-Time Record              176   86   30   60       1.64   49%   286  236   +50
Competitive Matches          138   72   23   43       1.73   52%   231  172   +59
WCC Competitions             117   67   18   32       1.87   57%   213  142   +71
Cups of Harmony               16   10    4    2       2.13   63%    28   18   +10
Post-Reform (All Fixtures)    44   20    5   19       1.48   45%    96   83   +13

Technical details

Permissions: Anything short of godmodding, death, or permanent injury; feel free to DM me to ask or talk about anything
Starting XI: Will be posted at the end of each RP for the subsequent matchday
Style modifier: +2

by **Savojarna** » Fri Sep 06, 2024 10:01 am

Savojar Roster for the 89th Cup of Harmony

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
I would prefer you choose these scorers: Roughly follow "normal" football distributions
Godmod scoring events: Yes within reasonable bounds (i.e. things that could conceivably happen IRL)
RP injuries to my players: Yes, I choose duration
Godmod injuries to my players: No
Hand out yellow cards to my players: Yes
Hand out red cards to my players: Yes, contact me for more than one per match
Godmod other events: Yes within reasonable bounds (i.e. things that could conceivably happen IRL)
Generate stadium happenings: Yes

MANAGING TEAM

Head Coach: Nikolai Kruul Jensen (49)
Assistant: Morten Poulsen (43)

Nikolai Kruul Jensen has led Partisan Sjoedrhavn out of a difficult rebuild back into the light, using a three at the back that he has experimented with in the youth outfit. Now, he brings similar tactics to Savojarna, demanding his players pressure the opponent and try to win the ball back in midfield. Kruul Jensen has managed to bring together an underperforming Partisan and showed in the SFS that he is adept at managing the different egos and playstyles in a team with expectations, but it remains to be seen whether he can form a stable Savojarna after two years of absence from the international scene. He is joined on the bench by a legend of the Savojar game: Former Northlights playmaker and captain, and Partisan Sjoedrhavn one-club-man and legend, Morten Poulsen is giving his debut as an assistant coach. He used to work in the Partisan Academy and followed his mentor Kruul Jensen to the SFS, working with plenty of former teammates.

Style Mod: +1.5

SQUAD

Nr.	Pos.	Name			Club*			Gender	Age
1	GK	Olga VALUJEV		CASK Thorsborg		F	33
2	RB	Roman JARMOLENKO	Libertas Bergheim	M	29
3	CB	Hedvig RIKSDAL		Tihon United (CMT)	F	25
4	CB	Kenneth RÖYSVEIT	CASK Thorsborg		M	28
5	LB	Tom KROGSTRUP		Directus (EUR)		M	27
6	CB	Thea LEIFSEN		Partisan Sjoedrhavn	F	28
7	LM/RF	Ruslan NOVIKOV		Starling (NPH)		M	31
8	CM/DM	Anton VITOL		Libertas Bergheim	M	25
9	ST	Rasmus MEDBERG HANSEN	Tihon (CMT)		M	30
10	CM/OM	Knud VINGEGAARD		Partisan Sjoedrhavn	M	31
11	RM	ASMUNDUR Sigthorsson	Lokomotive Jarnstad	M	25
12	GK	Jonas HILDE		Libertas Bergheim	M	29
13	CB	Kristian THELANDER	Libertas Bergheim	M	27
14	CM/OM	Jelena TRETJAKOV	Dynamo Sjoedrhavn	F	33
15	CB	Henrik PEDERSEN		Dynamo Sjoedrhavn	M	21
16	CM	Roman SADIANOV		Lokomotive Jarnstad	M	29
17	RB/RM	Jekaterina IVANOV	Traktor St. Andrei	F	22
18	CM	Elina VANTANEN		Admiral Storevik	F	24
19	ST	MY MÄKELÄ		Lokomotive Jarnstad	F	23
20	LB	SIGFRIDUR Magnusson	Admiral Storevik	M	25
21	LM	Simon BARISJNIKOV	Lokomotive Jarnstad	M	25
22	GK	Andrei HATTANEN		FK Metall Jarnstad	M	20
23	ST/OM	Lasse HOLTBY		CASK Thorsborg		M	27

*: Foreign clubs as of last hiatus - may be outdated.

TACTICS AND LINEUP

In most games, Kruul Jensen will line up in a 3-4-3, although 3-5-2 is occasionally used as well. In possession, the front three play relatively narrow, with the wingers trying to get between lines and carry the ball forward or link up with the more offensive midfielder, while the wingbacks are sticking more to the line and provide width. Of the central midfielders, one will be tasked primarily with winning the ball and carrying it forward, while the other acts as a more creative player (in the lineup provided below, Sadianov is the ball-winner and Vingegaard the creative player, although the lineup shifts depending on the opponent). Off the ball, the emphasis is on trying to win the ball in the midfield. Failing to do so, the wingbacks will fall back into a line of five with the three centre-backs. Attacks are generally supposed to happen quickly and over the wings, and Medberg Hansen plays mostly as a finisher. If two forwards are used, he is paired with a more technical, faster forward who plays more between the lines.

KITS

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by **North Oharan Valley Union** » Fri Sep 06, 2024 5:16 pm

Timestamp: 7 September 2024 - 01h16
Tags: Football, Cup of Harmony 89, Green Lions

Players With A Purpose
Their first tournament offers the Green Lions more to win than to lose

In a way, it was a bit of a surprise when the invitation for the Cup of Harmony fell on the doorstep of the FA headquarters in Vilarme. In general, the field for the WCC’s secondary tournament got stacked with countries that posted mediocre results: not necessarily in a sentimental way but in a mathematical one. All but a few finished in the mid tier of their nine team qualifying group. The Union disappeared from that section after three games, never to be spotted in its vicinity again. They did improve after the halfway point (from six points going up to amass twelve in the return fixtures) but could not stake any claim on the World Cup tickets. In fact, of those welcomed in Banija, only Yakk collected fewer points during the qualifiers.

Despite the track record, the hosts extended a welcome and coach Baltuk was eager to take this with both hands. During the last third of the qualifying series, the phlegmatic manager eagerly shared that those games should be viewed through a lense of preparation for the next rendition. The opportunity for at least (and most likely) five more encounters with seasoned nations that force our Green Lions to punch a bit above their weight follows the same train of thought. The tail end performances against Zenic and Tumbra prove that there is a chemistry among the selection: there is little desire to let that bubbly spirit settle down. There are no guarantees that the team can continue on that same level but judged by the enthusiasm of the players as they boarded a WringAir jet, they have the right vibe to avoid a pointless retreat.

A few men in the selection might be even more motivated than their compatriots. Hovnatan Zakoyan was doing an excellent job to fill the Danylyuk-shaped hole in the back, finally coming back to speaking terms with the audiences across the valley. A long suspension crossed that out and allowed other center backs to step up and win a place in the line up. Baltuk confirmed that Zakoyan will start the opening game but the possibilities shown by the sturdy Cekunovs and youngster Sumbulyan opened up a whole new range of options to the gaffer. The pressure is on Zakoyan to put any unrest in Baltuk’s head back to bed and only clean sheets will be able to do that.

One row further up the field, all eyes will zoom in on Yaro Metakvili. The youngster in the Oharese line-up went through some ups and downs lately, mixing solid performances with a few gaffes and being completely overrun against Baker Park: even Baltuk admitted, without using those exact words, that the only reason he had kept the Akademiyi player on the pitch for 45 minutes was to not torpedo his moral. But that decision fueled a narrative where Metakvili kept getting chances for being favored by Baltuk. That the manager and midfield Karapetyan had a bit of an altercation a few years back does not help the visuals: both parties claim it is water under the bridge but even the blind can see that the warm, nearly fatherly, affection from the gaffer to Metakvili is not shared towards Karapetyan.

While Metakvili and Zakoyan spend more time off the pitch than desired and must focus on protecting their spot in the starting line-up, few analysts would bench third focal point Jens Holmsen these days. That does not mean that his position is guaranteed. As the Green Lions were assembled quite hastily, Serhey Baltuk was the first to admit that the diamond four-four-two was a bit outdated. Still, it was a system of which he was assured that all players had been accustomed to it at one time or another in their career, if only during the youth category games. Spice it up with the clever tactical accents set by T3 Mikhail Avnetadze and you have got yourself a sufficiently robust system to present yourself to the world.

That does not mean that Baltuk will categorically hold on to the idea and his allusion on the press conference that he aims for ‘a philosophy, rather than a number set’ seems to imply an interest in mixing it up. A second hint in that direction is his stubborn desire to keep on bringing wingers along for the flight. As a selection leader averse to difficult characters, he nonetheless invited the capricious Ilichberg to back up for the injured Andrushenko. An HR decision only made if you want to experiment some more with alternatives to the 4-4-2 that could put Holmsen out of the line-up. As the interaction with attacking partner and national star Timur Ghazaryan so far resulted in optimistic figures (16G/5A between the two), the always underestimated Holmsen won some credit but nothing guarantees a prolonged stay: you are only as good as your last game.

This trio, along with their teammates, will at least be assured of some vocal support in Banija. While the feelings of the press and pundits remain mixed, the supporters have flocked to Arrosia in unexpected numbers. On the one hand, there is the improving form of the team that created a bit of a buzz. In a young nation that is still finding its footing, the Green Lions are one of the (if not the) strongest positive signals for those supporting the Union. Add to that the great experience shared by those who spend time in Banija as they followed the IBC and you get a warming welcome. Nearly ten thousand Oharese are rumored to make the trip and be in the stands for one of more games: an unmatched number. For comparison, eight hundred visiting fans traveled with the team to Tumbra and that was seen as a success.

by **Indusse** » Sat Sep 07, 2024 11:40 am

OOC: The Copyright message at the end of the post has been used from the standard copyright message from multiple books.

LexiRead™ > Web Edition
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The Half Blood Saga I
Chapter II
Echoes of the Past
Previous Chapters:
Chapter I Part I
Chapter I Part II
Chapter II Part I

A group of rough-looking men were talking to a merchant, their voices low and threatening. As Adael watched, he saw one of them slip a hand inside his cloak, revealing the hilt of a sword. "We should tell the guards," Ashear said, tugging on Adael's sleeve. But Adael hesitated. Something about the scene struck him as odd. He edged closer, straining to hear their conversation.

"...the map to Jehnara," one of the men was saying. "We know your family has it. Hand it over, and no one gets hurt." The merchant was shaking his head in terror. "I don't know what you're talking about. Please, just leave me alone!"

Without thinking, Adael stepped forward. "Hey! Leave him alone!" The men turned, their eyes narrowing as they took in Adael and Ashear. The leader, a scarred man with a crooked nose, laughed. "This doesn't concern you, boy. Run along before you get hurt."

Adael's heart was pounding, but he stood his ground. He could feel the Conseqh techniques his father had taught him running through his body. There seemed to be a voice inside him that's keeping on saying, "Adael, Go Help Him!"

"I said, leave him alone," Adael repeated, his voice steadier than he felt. The leader nodded to his men, and they started to run towards Adael with their swords. Adael dropped into a fighting stance, ready to defend himself.

But before anything could happen, a loud voice was heard. "What's going on here?" Azahl strode into view, his presence immediately changing the atmosphere. The men hesitated, eyeing him warily.

"Nothing that concerns you," the leader growled, but there was uncertainty in his voice. Azahl's eyes flicked between the men, the terrified merchant, and Adael. "I think it does concern me. Now, I suggest you leave. Immediately."

For a tense moment, it seemed like the men would stay and argue. But then, with a final glare at Adael, they turned and mixed away into the crowds.

Azahl turned to Adael, his expression a mix of anger and concern. "What were you thinking? You could have been hurt!" "I'm sorry, Father," Adael said. "But they were threatening that merchant. They were asking about a map to Jehnara."

Azahl's face suddenly turned pale at the mention of Jehnara. He glanced around, then put a hand on Adael's shoulder. "We need to talk. But not here. Come, let's go home."

As they walked back, Adael's mind raced. It seemed the myth of Jehnara was more than just a story, and somehow, his family was caught up in the middle of it all. He had a feeling his life was about to change even more dramatically than he could have imagined.

To be Continued...

Copyright © Akiho Banwari.

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

http://www.lexiread.org

by **Oberour Ar Moro** » Sat Sep 07, 2024 6:48 pm

Just What Is John Antheaume Talking About?
By Vincent-Joseph le Passeeur

John Antheaume potentially gives something equivalent to instruction on the pitch.
OOC: AI image generated through midjourney

REGIUM - The Manager of the Oberour Ar Moro national football team strode up the podium in front of the collected press. Leaning into the microphones, and staring dead-on to the collected men, women, and cameras, he started talking.

“We drew. We drew against StrayaRoos, when we knew what the stakes were. More than anything, we failed to win the match. I failed to win the match,” John Antheaume said, even-voiced, nodding sadly. You won't often see a manager not just try to take the heat off their players, but martyr-like take all the responsibility? Especially rare.

"I wouldn't put the blame on the stars, the rain, or the players. The blame is on me as the manager, alone." It had rained in the first half, and some of his tactical choices, such as his two substitutions before the half, had not worked. So far, so unexpected.

And then John Antheaume really got into the meat of his comments.

“It’s not just Oberours that can perceive and experience the energy on the pitch, StrayaRoos can as well. They tapped into that energy better than we did, and it’s on me as manager for not helping my players act without limitation, like I know they can.

It’s a culture shock for the average Dragoon fan. For fans of Meridian in Miletus, Occident in Genulca, and Politoria Lions in the Mouchard region, they might have got a glimpse of this. Current and former players across the Dominion can attest to it. They’ve heard John Antheaume get deep into metaphysics beyond anyone elses understanding. Which leaves the average man wondering: What is John Antheaume talking about?

Lunaire de Combiaus was a sweeper for four seasons at Politoria Lions under John Antheaume’s management. Now a Lions scout, he shrugs when asked about his former manager. “He’s always been kind of like that,” he said. “We’d be playing Concord and he’d spend his pre match talk discussing how they were a source of negative energy and how we needed to block that kind of unsettling void. Which is pretty accurate when you remember Concord.”

De Combiaus is now a scout for the Lions. John Antheaume hired him directly after his retirement at age 38. “John said I had a good eye for frequencies and how they operate,” explained de Combiaus.

Does he?

“I advocated pretty strongly for us to pick up Deniel Bouillon on our senior squad. Though that was more about his dribbling capacity, and his potential tactical abilities. But I guess that’s ‘frequencies’” - Lunaire air quoted there- “in its own way.”

“I think it was more vague in the past,” said Fieg de Fresnes. De Fresnes played Right Wing under Antheaume at Politoria Lions, then joined him in Genulca with Occident. “It started out with a lot more, let’s say, vibes based talk. Unlike the ‘align yourself with the ineffable harmonies’ he would break out in Occident.”

Did he actually say that?

“Something along those lines. Or maybe ineffable vibrations? Maybe both.”

“He’s definitely talked about ‘ineffable harmonies’,” confirmed Sebastian Chapuisseur, Meridian Sweeper. “But he said you can process them, transmutate them, and emerge with a kind of transcendence and increased intuition.”

Would you say you’ve done that?

“He described the noise the crowd makes at Cyrene Bay games that way, and we’ve come from behind to win on the road there. So I suppose in a way we have.”

Later in our brief interview, Chapuisseur interrupted me when I was asking a question.

“I just want to make it clear, really clear,” said an impassioned Chapuisseur. “It sounds like a lot of woo, and I know some players that initially tried to tune that out. Even I did at first. But something about him. He is an impeccable man manager. I don’t know what he’s talking about half the time. But whatever he’s saying breaks through and just works.”

After John Antheaume left Genulca to take the head position at Meridian, his former assistant Maheu Rousset became manager for the new Genulca Occident. He later became an assistant at Invicta, and then with the National Team.

“John is, and I don’t want to sound negative, tactically naive. He works hand-in-hand with his assistants there, and would let us do our jobs. Elar [Denis, now a National Team Assistant] and I would plan the strategy, and implement it. But John would go into games and talk about insight and intuition, and good ideas as energy and vibrations. The players would nod along with it, and then go onto the pitch and make incredible things happen. I guess there’s something powerful he’s tapping into. I couldn’t make heads or tails of it.”

“I’d say it’s harmless,” said Celestin Mersenne, a midfielder in the National Team qualifying pool who did not make the Cup of Harmony roster. Mersenne is working towards a Theology degree at Saintlily University, while his older brother and uncle are priests in the Cathedrist Church. “He’s not claiming to be the son of God, or even a disciple. He hasn’t claimed he got a vision in a dream that he is to have six wives or to start a crusade or whatever. It’s not heretical, it’s just…odd.”

And how did his metaphysical views impact him as a player?

“I was on the roster at Lisander. In the match talk he said that matter is 0.00045% of reality and that the other 99.99955% is energy, frequency, and vibration outside of time and space. He said we need to feel this other 99 percent, then be aware that we may not be feeling what we feel, and to be sure to free our mental channels for elevated emotions. Not the slightest idea what any of that meant, but I definitely felt like my nasal passages were opened wider that day.”

The Football Management Committee allowed Vainqueur to ask John Antheaume for an interview. In an e-mail Antheaume declined the request. But in the signature block, Antheaume had written: “Set your intentions to be protected from thoughts that aren’t yours. Raise your vibrations just by being in the present!”

And for whatever reason when I got a coffee that day when I asked for a medium I got a large. So who knows?

by **HUElavia** » Sat Sep 07, 2024 6:51 pm

Back to the 'Harm Again

HUElavia enters CoH 89 with serious aspirations for a deep run with a solid field opponents awaiting them.

After what has been seen as the worst World Cup Qualifiers cycle since WC 87, HUElavia return 16 years later from their last appearance to the Cup of Harmony. As disappointing, if not embarrassing, it is to not make the World Cup (especially after the expansion), the Cup of Harmony is still a chance for the team to win their 3rd ever title for the senior team. And this is the first time in a while that HUElavia has a serious argument to be a title favorite.

Los Amarillos/Os Amarelos come in ranked 13th in the Multiverse, dropping a little from their all-time high of 10th in the rankings and are the highest ranked team in the tournament. The next immediate competitors is No. 24 Audioslavia, No. 29 Xanneria, No. 32 Drawkland, and No. 33 Indusse. Potential dark horses includes the likes of No. 47 Reçueçn, No. 52 Kamijiro, No. 55 Valentine Z, and No. 65 Darmen. Still, no team is to be taken lightly. After all, these are the most notable performers of the Qualifiers that didn't make it to the World Cup.

HUElavia (13) was drawn into Group 4 with the likes of Alanis Star (129), Brusseldorf (115), Captina Island (87), Restresas (103), and Kamijiro (52). It's a favorable group, but one that nobody can sleep on and think each game is a gimmie. Coach Casillas was seen stressing this idea, stating "We've had some tough early eliminations in the Cup of Harmony in the past and we have to take it a game at a time. Everyone had 9 matches to play for glory, but we need to stay grounded and work hard and play well to make that desired Final." Fans have booked their tickets to Banija, where thousands of HUElavians will flock in droves to cheer on the National Team, with the traditional take over of one of the endzones to drape it with HUElavian flags and banners. Even if it is a Cup of Harmony, the crowd wants to make the matches feel like the team is back home throughout its many venues in HUElavia. Fans back home have been purchasing the Cup of Harmony 89 Sticker Album to collect the teams, especially HUElavia, but also there have been solid sales with the World Cup 97 sticker album. Overall, it's a fantastic time for both the Sales and Book Publishing industry in HUElavia with the sales of albums, packets and boxes.

For the roster picked for CoH 89, there is a solid amount of veterans, but many young players were called up, with Coach Casillas seemingly opting to gamble on young players in a bid to build a strong core for the coming years. The notable omissions includes Clara Nascimento, who was not selected due to her pregnancy (a big congratulations to her and her husband); Tejana Zetticci, who tore her ACL during this past March in an HFL match; Felipe de la Cruz and Marco Ricci were not selected due to poor form in their respective clubs. Still, Coach Casillas relies on star players like Canchon, Uchee, Oh, Alvarez, and Lobo, while having rising stars like Milano, Narita, Aguero, Schmidt, Brandt and Ancel. All are led by the serviceable captain Raphael Taylor-Calañas, who is likely playing his last major tournament for HUElavia. While some cite concerns that this feels like a transitional team, Coach Casillas came back with "Teams are constantly transitioning. Players go in and out of form, they age, they get injuries. It's just a part of the sport. Although, we've had very strong runs when we've had young players on the team, and I have faith in these young players they can make a name for themselves. Many of these are already household names in HUElavia, and it's time we bought some more names to everyone's mouth to talk about."

The team trains with diligence as always, but with a more playful mood, as Coach Casillas wants the players to still play well, but be expressive on the pitch. Even as more and more tactics go for people fitting in a single role on the pitch, Coach Casillas (and HUElavian Football as a whole) opts to hang on to the creative players. After all, what's the point of football if one can't have fun with it? Still, the team know they have to perform well and they know what is at stake with this tournament.

Here's to hoping we make the most during our time in Banija.

FORCA HUELAVIA! VAMOS HUELAVIA! GO HUELAVIA!

World Cup 81/82/83/84

shhh...

by **Kanzlia** » Sun Sep 08, 2024 12:26 am

Kanzlia out of the World Cup
SPORTS

LAHAIRA – Loss to Aleirave lacerates all chances for a Kanzlian appearance in the World Cup.

A commendable effort by the Exiles was not enough to overpower the Seagulls at their home ground. Jam-packed with hundred of spectators the Kanzlian national team headed into the game without Sylverio van Coevorden who remained injured. Nick Hesselink was entrusted to start on the left wing - much to the dismay of Kanzlian supporters.

A swift first half saw Aleirave lead by 1 goal but the second half proved more entertaining. Reiner van Coevorden scored twice early in the second half but the Seagulls would not go defeated in their home ground. Aided by Z. Mido's blunder - Aleirave would also score twice in the second half securing the victory for the Seagulls with a 3-2 scoreline.

The loss secured Aleirave's 3rd place finish - the last qualification spot. Basically, Kanzlia failed to qualify.

"We're disappointed at the moment - but considering we are debutants, I think we should be proud of what we achieved so far. We have 2 more games left, lets prove what we can achieve in those two games." - remarked Vassilis van Coevorden during the post-game interview.

ZAOUANE MIDO COSTS KANZLIA QUALIFICATION - RETIREMENT PENDING
SPORTS

VDARA – Zaouane Mido yet again disappoints the entire nation with his abyssmal performance against Vdara which ended 3-3. This is not a standout underperformance either, against Aleirave, Crpostran, and UMR we have seen Zaouane Mido showing his age.

"Theres a time for everything, and I think its the time to hang up the boots for Zaouane Mido." remarked Maarten Gijkel.

"During the game against Aleirave - in which we lost all hope for qualification must I add - Mido failed to catch a ball that was basically going straight to him. Instead he attempted to play the ball and pass it to Ardentius. Ardentius who was clearly expecting Mido to catch the ball - and even clearer was already man marked by Aleirave's forward - was caught off guard by Mido's pass. This eventually led to the goal which knocked us out."

Kanzlia to participate in the Cup of Harmony in Banija.
NT

SZBEDANSK – Kanzlia has received an invitation to the Cup of Harmony confirms VVK President, Anzor Timori.

"It will be a refreshing opportunity for the Exiles - especially following our exit from the World Cup" said Anzor in a press conference. "We've done well in the qualifiers despite failing to qualify and I think we can carry this momentum for our debut in the Cup of Harmony."

by **Captina Island** » Sun Sep 08, 2024 8:01 am

Cup of Harmony beckons Captina
The Captina Company Press Association

The Captina Company National Football Team were invited to be part of the 30 team field for the Cup of Harmony to be held in Banija following their World Cup Qualifying campaign which saw the side split their 16 matches right down the middle—seven wins, seven defeats and a pair of draws for 23 points, good enough for 5th place in Group 12.

It will be the first time the Rosso e Oro will participate in the COH, the third official NSWC tournament after the Baptism of Fire and the World Cup itself; Captina rose to 87th in the KPB Rankings at the conclusion of qualifying and a decent showing in Arrosia will help to boost that position a bit higher.

Manager Jonas Yarborough has hinted that he will use the experience to get a good look at several of the younger squad members ahead of the next Copa Rushmori; TCCFA is eager to bring along players that have come up through the youth teams that the Agency is supporting, meaning the final group from the original National Team era will be seeing the end of their careers.

The Agency is expected to introduce a national young player academy scheme using some of the profit from the hosting of the Under-18 World Cup, modeled on a system in use other nations that centralizes player training rather than leaving Super League and Women's Super League clubs to fend for themselves. However there is also some interest in a different approach that would allow clubs to continue their own player development through an education based academy setup; Yarborough is expected to compare the two types of organization by observing the way they operate in the COH host nation and in the Arrosia nation of Baker Park which has faced the Captina NT on a few occasions in the past.

The Rosso e Oro will come up against a familiar foe in Banija as Kamijiro have been drawn into the same group; during qualifying Captina dropped both matches, losing 3-1 away and 1-0 in Geneva City.

by **Katzeburg** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 3:52 am

Anton Waldo was excited. On his way to Banija to follow Katzeburg’s first ever participation in the Cup of Harmony, he was struggling to sit still as he waited for his flight’s boarding call at Katzstadt International Airport.

He turned to the group of two people sitting next to him, also decked out in replica’s of the national team strip.

“Right, well while we wait, we might as well have a fan group meeting,” Anton said to a pair of disinterested nods from the two sitting beside him.

“Welcome to the meeting of the Katzeburg Royal Cats - the third largest Katzeburgian fan group in the nation. Let’s take a rollcall of our full membership before we get started. Greyson?”

The man to the immediate left of Anton, a heavy-set man who was balding in several patches on the top of his head, grunted in acknowledgement - he was clearly more interested in the latest issue of Katzeburg Weekly than whatever Anton was saying.

“I’ll take that as a present, shall I?” Anton said, making a small note in his reporter pad. “What about Mathias, are you here?”

Mathias was here, but mentally miles away - the tall and gangly Katzeburgian was sitting there zoned into his own world with his headphones on and tapping his foot to the beat.

“Mathias? Mathias?” Anton said, waving frantically to gain his attention. Mathias snapped out of it and said “What?”

“Are you here?”

“Obviously, yeah.”

“Right, well I’ll mark you down as present too then. Where is Arno?”

“He forgot his passport, so he’s running home to try and get it before the flight boards.”

“He’s heading back to Avonsend? He’ll never get there and back in time! It’s like he didn’t even read the 200-page guide I produced about travelling overseas as part of the Royal Cats group.”

Mathias shifted nervously - while he skimmed through the first ten pages, he stopped reading once Anton got going into his 50 page fan-fiction about a weekend spent camping with Drake Wruck and Owen Levitt deep in the heart of the Campbellnia National Park.

“Well, we’ll just have to mark him down as Absent then, won’t we?” Anton sighed. “And finally, Anton - present,” he said to himself, marking down a big tick next to his name.

“Moving on to Item 1 - Membership numbers. Ahead of what is going to be a very exciting Cup of Harmony campaign, I am proud to say that we’ve had record breaking application numbers to join the fan group!”

“How many?” Mathias asked.

“Two.”

“Two hundred? Two thousand?”

“Two people,” Anton said with a puff of excitement. “We’ll be the number two fan club in Katzeburg in no time at this rate!”

“I’m sure we will,” Mathias said, reaching for his headphones. “Anything else?”

“Well, yes - I’ve got a whole agenda here!” Anton snapped.

“How many items are on it?” Mathias asked, warily.

“Don’t worry, it’s a nice short one - only 32 more items.”

“You are joking.”

“If there’s one thing you know about me Mathias, it’s that I never joke about an agenda.”

Mathias slumped down in his chair. Still two hours before they boarded - Anton had made sure they got there with a lot of time to spare.

“Right, item two - our fan chants for when we get over to Banija,” Anton continued. “If you revisit your travel packets, you’ll notice that I’ve taken the liberty of writing us a new selection of chants for when we play in the Cup - my personal favourite is ‘Plank-ing All Over The World’, but I'll let you pick your ones…”

by **Recuecn** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 4:08 am

"Aren't summer birthdays the best?"

"Yeah, this has become quite a nice little tradition!"

Samantha Firaut, the wife of Reçueçn's star goalkeeper Gerauld Firaut, was enjoying a picnic at the park. She was chatting with Franky Adams, the équipe nationale's most prolific scorer, who had, over the last several years, become a fast friend to both Gerauld and herself. A few yards away, Gerauld was attempting to guard a small portable soccer net they'd packed along for the picnic against his daughter Rébecca, the birthday girl.

Over the last few years this birthday picnic at the park had become a regular occurrence. Sometimes all of Rébecca's friends would be there, sometimes her teammates from her youth soccer club, or occasionally, like this year, it was a smaller affair with just her family. Franky, however, was a staple. He was always there, every year. One year he'd shown up despite not having been invited, so after that the Firauts gave up and just invited him anyway. They would pack up a baguette and some saucisson, find a park with some space to kick around a soccer ball, and just hang out, whiling away the afternoon and enjoying the early summer weather.

Usually the celebration did not fall on Rébecca's actual birthday. Typically, the "birthday party" would take place a bit early--sometimes by as much as a couple weeks. The reason for this was that the preteen's birthday fell squarely in the beginning of tournament season. When she'd been born, her father had had to miss a World Cup Qualifying match against Osarius, way back in World Cup 72. (Yet somehow she was still only turning twelve this year, twenty-five World Cups later--time had moved slowly in Reçueçn.) Because Rébecca's birthday was always the beginning of summer, it almost always fell during the beginning of the World Cup, or the IAC, or the Cup of Harmony. This meant that either her dad Gerauld was always away to play in the tournaments and wouldn't be there for her birthday party, or she herself would be off to some far-flung corner of the multiverse to watch her dad play. Either way, if a birthday party was going to happen with all her friends and family, it had to happen before the tournament kicked off.

Franky, sitting on a checkered blanket with Samantha, took a bite of a pickle as he watched Rébecca neatly slot the ball into the net, just out of reach of the hands of her diving father. "Wow, she improved again this year," he said. "That was a nice shot--I'm not sure I even would have seen that."

"She's been working very hard," said Samantha. She beamed with pride. "She gets her dedication from her father--and you know how he is."

"Well, I take all the credit for inspiring her," joked Franky. "Ever since I gave her that soccer ball as a toy, she's wanted nothing except to play striker, like me."

"Okay, reality check, Franky," said Samantha. "You're talking about the daughter of Gerauld Firaut. You were not the first person to give her a soccer-related gift."

"Sure, but she hasn't put on those gloves you just gave her yet," said Franky. "She's a striker through and through."

Both of them watched as Rébecca dribbled around, headed for the goal, and chipped a perfect shot over her father as he closed in on the ball.

"Seriously, though, Samantha, she's good," said Franky. "You've got to get her playing at a higher level."

"She started in the women's amateur league last year," said Samantha. "She still plays in the youth club too, since that's where all her girlfriends are, but she keeps up the adults just fine."

"No, Samantha, you need to aim higher. She has genuine potential--I know you know. She's young, but she could be a prodigy. I was in the pro league when I was sixteen--she could do the same. She could be semi-pro in the next year or two--or now."

"There is no 'higher', Franky. Reçueçn doesn't have a pro women's league."

"I knew that," said Franky, blushing. "But the other week when I was in town and I stopped by to watch her team practice--she's not just keeping up with them. She's better than that amateur club. She should go to the next step up. Semi-pro or whatever it is."

"There is no women's semi-pro league, Franky," said Samantha. "The amateur league that she's in right now--at twelve years old--is the highest level of soccer that exists for girls in Reçueçn."

Franky fiddled awkwardly with a carrot stick. He glanced sidelong at Samantha, and caught a glint in her eye. He sensed he'd accidentally landed on something sensitive.

"Do you realize that, Franky? Did you realize there's nowhere left for her to move on to? She's already at the top of the game as a twelve-year-old. And don't get me wrong, for a twelve-year-old, she's great, but she's still just a kid. She's not superhuman or anything. That's just how little opportunity exists for women to play sports in our country."

Franky shifted uncomfortably. "That's f--" He glanced at Rébecca, still within earshot, and caught himself. "That's messed up," he said, for lack of anything better to say.

"Isn't it, Franky?" Samantha wasn't letting it go. "All the big footballing nations have integrated their teams or their leagues by now. Meanwhile in our country, women can't play in the LNRF or on the équipe nationale, but we don't even have a league of our own, either!"

"Yeah, that's crazy," said Franky. "I wonder why we have such inequality--I always think of Reçueçn as a modern country."

"Maybe an oversight by the patriarchs who founded the FNRF," said Samantha. "It's not like it's ancient history--it wasn't that long ago, so you'd have hoped for better. I don't ascribe it to ill-will or anything--just a typical inability to see past oneself."

"You're talking about the team owners who founded the league and the federation?"

"Sure, the team owners, the reps, the managers--those positions of power were all held by men--and they all still are. Ever since the league started off as male-only, there's been no sign off any change on the horizon."

"Surely the ministry of sport could do something?" It seemed from Franky's tone that if he'd meant to make a statement, it was one even he questioned. "I spent some time working there this past year," he added, with a bit more confidence. "They have some great people there. Jeanne Chartray, for example--"

At that moment Rébecca took another shot on goal. Gerauld, diving, made the save, and the deflected ball flew toward the picnic blanket, interrupting the conversation. Franky managed to catch it before it smashed up the food.

Rébecca ran up, giggling. "What are you guys talking about? Come play soccer!" She took the ball from Franky and then grabbing his hand, pulled him to his feet. "You too, maman! Two on two!"

"Mais la collation..." Samantha complained.

"Maman! It's my birthday party!"

Samantha realized she was not going to be able to win an argument against the birthday girl. "Allez, j'arrive." Samantha followed Rébecca and Franky onto the field.

"I can score on Papa now!" Rébecca was saying. "I don't need Franky on my team anymore!"

"Oh yeah?" said Franky. "You think you can beat both of us?"

"Bring it on!" said Rébecca. "Maman, you're on my team!"

"We got this!" Samantha knew there was no way she and her 12-year-old could beat Reçueçn's best goalie and striker, but she was nothing if not supportive. "C'mon! Girls versus boys!"

Gerauld caught her eye, and he, too, saw the glint there. "Did you just give Franky the speech?" he asked.

"Oh, she's rehearsed it on you too?" Franky asked. He felt himself warming up for some pre-match trash talk. But Gerauld took a tack he didn't expect.

"I helped her write it," he said. "No way I'm going to let my daughter peak before lycée. She's going to be on the team someday."

Franky caught Gerauld's eye this time. He was serious. Well, if there was a couple that could change the world for their daughter, it was the Firauts. And Franky wanted to be on the team that made it happen.

"Now you go in net," said Gerauld. "See if you can stop her from scoring on you."

by **Langenia** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 4:39 am

Noticias: Deportes

Los Azules Arrive in Banija to Play in Cup of Harmony

After heartbreakingly being eliminated from World Cup qualification by the more experienced teams in its group, it can be considered a source of consolation for many Langenians that the country earned itself an invitation to play in the Cup of Harmony tournament for a last attempt to gain silverware in this year's international competition cycle. Despite the previous disappointments of being knocked out of the Baptism of Fire in the Round of 16 and finishing its World Cup qualification campaign with 5 wins, 3 draws, and 6 defeats, Los Azules arrived in Banija yesterday with an air of excitement and hope in making one more fresh start.

Despite the difficult World Cup qualification campaign exposing the numerous issues the Langenian national team would have to improve on to get better at international competition, the campaign also did have the positive effect of raising Langenia's ranking in international football standings to the 131st place, up from the 238th place where Los Azules initially started. With this improved standing behind them, the Langenians hope to do well in Banija. Nonetheless, their Cup of Harmony group does consist of four other more highly-ranked teams that bring much experience to table, indicative of the challenges the inexperienced Langenians will face in the hope of securing an upset.

Even so, coach Enrique Vargas sounded an optimistic note to the media which had surprisingly refrained from calling for his firing after the World Cup qualification exit, likely because Vargas's team gained an invitation to the Cup of Harmony. "Like I've always said, our competitors will be tough. They bring much experience to the table and have been in our position before. However, it is on us to play our best game, and we will do so and hope to get a breakthrough at this tournament." Los Azules will play their first match on Monday.

by **Audioslavia** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 6:33 am

Where Do We Go From Here

Winfridh is on the way out, the national team are preparing themselves to make the best of a Cup of Harmony tournament whose standing in world football will only lower over time, and the kinds of people who use social media cesspit [color=b00fed]Boofer[/color] are too busy talking about statues of Saint Audius to be outrageously sexist to women they’ve never met.

So where does this leave the national team? The famous claret and green, the often slow and dim-witted bull that can occasionally flip the best matadors over the fence, yet more often than not will end up with its horns trapped in a wrought iron gate yelling at the people on the other side for being on the other side.

The simplest answer is nowhere. The slightly less complex answer is ‘somewhere in the middle’.

Here’s every team who have ever played a game in the finals of the World Cup, plotted against each team’s Points Per Game from the finals.

Here, teams that have played a lot of World Cup games generally have a higher Points Per Game. This makes enough sense. If you qualify for the World Cup quite a lot, you’re probably quite a good team.

The outliers are on the top left, with HopNation’s 5-1-1 performance in their first and only World Cup coming ahead of Bonesea and Crosshill, who each did very well throughout the few World Cup finals they played in.

For teams who have ever played more than fifty games in the World Cup, very few get close to two points per game. Candelaria and Marquez, Aguazul, The Babbage Islands, Polar Islandstates and Valanora (way out to the right, naturally) are the only teams to hit or approach this mark.

Audioslavia, in red, have a record of 1.68 Points Per Game over the course of 244 games.

The Cup of Harmony version of the chart is more interesting.

Here, the teams with the most appearances are those with the most average records in the competition. Like the World Cup graph, this makes sense. If you’re consistently qualifying for the Cup of Harmony, you might not be a good team. Or, at least, not one known for causing trouble at the business end of World Cups.

On the far right, there’s Taeshan with a PPG of 1.51 over 115 games, with a cloud containing Krytenia, Jerusalem, Darmen and Sargossa, with Milchama a little further north. The top left is full of teams taking a short, successful vacation in the CoH before going on to better things.

Audioslavia, in red, have a record of 1.68 Points Per Game over the course of 60 games.

In short, over the last 93 cycles, Audioslavia have the exact same record in the Cup of Harmony as they do in the World Cup Finals. In short, Audioslavia remain a team who are, for all their bluster, somewhere in the middle.

Whichever suit the FFA decide upon to take the reigns for cycle 98, their task is to figure out a way to drag the side out of the mire.

by **Doubeia** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 8:19 am

Shenanigans at the Women's National Team: Part 1
Why is my roommate acting a little weird to me?

Context
When Scarlett Rozhkova first found out that she'd be assigned a roommate for the duration of the Cup of Harmony, she didn't mind it one bit. After spending a few days with her roommate, however, she started to have her doubts.

Of course, Maddison Barkova wasn't antagonistic or mean to her. In fact, it was the opposite! Maddison was probably the most helpful roommate in the world. Well, at least she tried to be. She offered to do Scarlett's bed, but she often woke up so late that Scarlett had woken up before her and made her bed. Maddison also offered to wash her clothes, but Scarlett didn't really trust her to wash her clothes properly. Also, didn't the hotel already have an in-house laundry service?

Other than trying to be a personal maid, Maddison also had some... interesting displays of behaviour. They were largely tame, like randomly squealing in bed whilst taking peeks at Scarlett. She wasn't oblivious so as to not notice her little stares. Scarlett was also very sure that her roommate had went through some of her clothing, but Maddison always fervently denied ever doing so. Although, she do so while blushing hard and avoiding Scarlett's gaze, so that was a little suspicious.

Scarlett specifically remembered one morning when she woke up to realise she was running late for breakfast. Noticing that Maddison was still sound asleep on the adjacent bed, she went to wake the sleeping girl up. A light tap on the shoulder was all Scarlett did to her, but when Maddison woke up, as soon as she made eye contact with Scarlett, she began to roll around on her bed while muttering some incomprehensible gibberish. She swore she could hear some laughter under those thick blankets. In all honesty, the scene kind of shocked Scarlett, taken aback as she looked at Maddison tumbling around on her bed. Maddison then stopped her actions but remained in place for a good minute. Scarlett didn't know what to do so she went on with her morning routine.

When she came out of the bathroom she was greeted with the sight of Maddison sitting on the edge of her bed, dazed.

"So, are you going to get yourself ready, or...?" Scarlett asked the light-headed woman.

Maddison seemed to be stunned by Scarlett's sudden question. She practically jumped out of the bed, and intensely stared at Scarlett for a good few seconds.

"Oh, oh! My God, uhh... of course not— I mean, yeah! Uhh... yeah! Better get going! Haha..." Maddison seemed very sheepish, and her constant stumbling over her words didn't help her case. At all. She scrambled to take her belongings and rushed past Scarlett for the bathroom. All while dutifully avoiding Scarlett's gaze. Scarlett looked on as the bathroom door slammed shut.

What an interesting person... she thought.

Breakfast was boring enough. She'd grown tired of eating the same bread and jam, although the other options didn't look particularly appetising.

Scarlett sat down with Bridgett Oborina, the captain of the Women's National Team and probably the most normal person in the entire team. She enjoyed Bridgett's company; she was a very pleasant person to talk to and work with. There was a reason why she was the captain after all.

From the corner of her eye, Scarlett could see Maddison blabbering away with friend group. She was a very, very talkative person when with others, but for some reason shut up when Scarlett was around. Scarlett hated to admit it, but Maddison was more pleasant when she wasn't talking. In other words, when Maddison was around her.

Scarlett caught her roommate throwing some glances at her. She was not making it subtle at all. If Scarlett had to guess, Maddison was probably talking about her right then. There was no other reason why she was constantly throwing looks at her, right? When Scarlett sensed that Maddison was going to look at her again, she directed her gaze towards her. When the two locked eyes, chaos ensued (for Maddison).

Maddison spit her drink right at poor Karina Mamykina's face.

"Maddie, what the fuck." It was probably the most animated Karina had ever been.

"Oh my god! I'm so, so sorry I'll go clean i—"

Maddison then knocks a cup down, spilling its contents onto Paisley Kuznetsova.

"I literally just got changed."

"Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod I'm so fucking sorry, like I swear I'll get you a new pair of clothes!"

Maddison then ran out of the dining area, leaving everyone to stare at a very disgusted Karina wiping mouth milk from her face and a dismayed Paisley earnestly rubbing away at the juice stains on her white shirt. Scarlett looked on, amused. She was laughing internally too, knowing she was the one who caused all this. Still, what was with Maddison's reactions? Spitting out your drink after someone looks at your definitely wasn't normal.

The whole incident still weighed in Scarlett's mind even throughout the day's training. When she went back to her room, she saw Maddison cuddled up, looking at her phone. When she looked up to see Scarlett, she hiccuped and looked back down. Her face was clearly a strong shade of red. That wasn't normal, was it?

"Are you alright? Are you sick?" Scarlett walked up to Maddison and put her hand against her forehead. Maddison didn't seem to be sick at all. When Maddison felt Scarlett's touch, she froze in place for a while, before hugging her pillow and lying down on her bed.

"I'm fine, I swear. Sorry about earlier," Maddison said, her voiced muffled by her pillow.

"Sorry for what?"

Maddison did not respond.

Scarlett looked at Maddison, worried and amused. Was this girl alright? Genuinely?

Ask Ms Manager, the segment where you ask your manager anything!

Hello Ms Manager

I couldn't help but notice that my roommate has been acting a bit off. She would act all shy and embarrassed whenever I'm in the room with her, but when she's with others, she seems to be her normal chatty self. No signs of shyness! Thing is, she would always avoid my gaze when I'm looking at her, but take peeks at me when I'm not looking. I'm also suspicious that she might have gone through my things, but she keeps on denying it.

A few days ago, when I looked at her she made a whole mess at the dining table she was in. One look and she had dirtied not only the table but her friends as well! I don't know why she keeps on acting like this when I look at her. I don't know what her deal is, but I'm getting a bit weirded out by her. It's like she acts like a teenager when I'm around or when I look at her. How do you think I should approach this issue, Ms manager?

Sandy R.

Ms Manager's Response:
Hello Sandy!

Your roommate's behaviour definitely doesn't seem normal. From what I can tell, it's definitely related to you. Do you know what she has said about you? Perhaps she might be shy around you because she looks up to you! Of course, I can't really tell for sure, but why not ask her about it? Perhaps it could help you understand how she feels towards you and why she feels that way. Communication is key after all!

If she is not receptive to you asking questions, I suggest you leave her be. Maybe she feels a bit embarrassed talking about it, but who knows?

Good luck with your roommate!

Ms Manager

by **Savojarna** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 10:44 am

A New Seriousness

Banija, a hotel room

“I play Laugrim, King of the Ice…” -

A loud knock interrupted the game of Field of Legends, the Savojar trading card game that everyone and especially their school-aged kids had been playing ten years ago (and still did nowadays, if you were a bit of a nerd), followed by a door flying open just seconds later.

“What the fuck, guys? We’re playing in nineteen hours and you’re here playing Legends like some dorks? We can fucking hear you over there, and we want to sleep like good footballers trying to represent their nation!”. Clearly, the captain wasn’t in a great mood. Kenneth Röysveit commanded respect even in the hotel bathrobe he had thrown on over his otherwise only underwear-clad body. Even the fluffy white fabric slippers provided by the hotel only mildly softened the view of the 1.97 m tall centre-back in a clearly not great mood.

His sudden appearance and stern words seemed to have their intended effect on Jelena Tretjakov and Ruslan Novikov, who looked aside somewhat sheepishly, the latter’s hand dumbfoundedly retracting the Laugrim before Ruslan even noticed. Olga Valujev was a bit harder to impress, however. “Ahhhh”, her raspy, still Russian-accented voice sounded, “that’s where you go wrong, Kenny-boy”. The name got a raised eyebrow out of Röysveit. He hated being called Kenny, but tolerated it if it came from Olga or Thea; “Kenny-boy”, however, was usually reserved for when he fucked up on the pitch. Or for when Olga really wanted to mess with him, apparently. “What’s this thing called, the Cup of… Harmony, right? We’re bringing some harmony to this team… you’re in Banija, chill. The whole country is watching the World Cup proper anyway, why don’t we do as we’ve always done and join them in their party? Playing some football, watching some football, a holiday in a warmer country, that’s what this tournament is about, so come join us” she finished, patting the ground next to her.

Kenneth’s brow twitched, and this time it wasn’t just the name. He looked like the only thing stopping him from flinging one of the hotel slippers at Olga was that the cloth would be too soft to really hit her anyway. “Fuck…” he muttered instead. “Fucking hell! Does the coach know that shit? Do the youngsters?” The muttering was over, and the defender was now just straight up yelling at his keeper. “There’s a hundred players who’d give their god-damned left hand to be here right now in a Northlights jersey, and you’re having a holiday? You know Andrei was doing extra units every afternoon with Rasmus and My, because he wants your position, right? Should I go tell him he can’t play because the spot belongs to some veteran having a holiday? And next time Katya agonizes over playing too long a pass, will I tell her it’s not her fault, but you’re too busy playing dork games to bother running for the ball, Ruslan?” Kenneth was now really getting warmed up, clearly. “Look guys, maybe that was the way it was in your days. I know we’ve not done well at this tournament, I do. But we’re here to change that now, not to keep fucking it up in the Cup of Harmony. As long as I’m the captain of this team, I’m gonna leave every bit of me on that pitch, and I expect the same from EVERY. FUCKING. ONE. OF. YOU. And now let us sleep, before I go tell the coach you’re just here for a holiday”, he finished and left without letting his teammates say anything, banging the door shut behind him.

“So much for not waking anyone up, I guess. Rich words from a man dressed for the spa”, Olga joked as the door slammed, but neither of her teammates reacted. “Oh come on…”, she continued, but this time Jelena interrupted her. “He’s got a point, Olga. I also know this is what it used to be like, I’ve been on some of those teams, but… you gotta admit, he is right that we never got anything done like that”. Olga looked at her teammate like she sprouted a second head. “Really, Lenka? It’s the Cup of Harmony, you’re not here to win anything”, she said, disbelief in her voice. “Okay but… what if we did try? Look, I know it was true for us, but… that’s just us, that’s just Savojarna. Did you ever realise how many teams came to the Copa Rushmori with young teams, inexperienced players? They’d crucify our coaches if they did that, but those countries don’t care for the Copa. We’re the same, but with the Cup of Harmony… but why? Wouldn’t it be fun to win something?” Then Jelena Tretjakov smirked at her teammate, knowing she’d be pushing Olga’s buttons now. “Besides, we can’t let those young ones be the first ones to bring back some silverware in over thirty years, can we?”.

by **Kamijiro** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 11:39 am

衞。Defend, Part One: Choking, Old Foes and Banija.

-- Choke Artists --

Choking in sports is an art form in and of itself. You can almost feel when a team starts to psych itself out and collapse. You'll see it, too. The anguished looks, the nervous laughs, the disbelieving smiles. The hands over the head is a classic look, too.

And when Soji Kokubun skied a penalty against Al-Tamazgha to keep the score level and doom the Kamijiroans to a single point against a much weaker side, every one of those looks were evident for the Lightning. For Kokubun, it was hands over the face in an "I don't believe it" look.

Then, the disastrous Kytler game. Oh, the looks were quite shocking. Michael Azevedo looked like he was on the verge of tears when the first goal dribbled past Jokichi Asumi's outstretched leg and nestled into the bottom right corner. The Kamijiroans turned to all-out attack in the final five minutes, bringing Jokichi up the pitch every corner kick for that extra man in the box...

But that just meant that when the ball was cleared, all it took was a strong (and somewhat accurate) boot to score the dagger. And when they did - oh boy, the distraught was obvious. Players fell to their knees. Some went all the way down to the ground and hid their heads as the Kytler players celebrated. The fans themselves weren't angry. At least, not outwardly. A stunned silence fell over the Kamijiroan crowd as the travelling fans went wild.

The walks home from the stadium post-match, usually jovial, occasionally rowdy and rarely angry, was just... silent.

-- Old Foes --

The group draw for the Cup of Harmony is kind of funny, however. Oddly enough, this group features two teams the Lightning are familiar with. HUElavia (World Cup 96 Qualifiers, 0-1-1) and the Captina Islands (World Cup 97 Qualifiers, 2-0-0).

When Kamijiro and HUElavia last faced off, it was the final match of the WC96 Qualifiers. A win for the Lightning and a loss elsewhere (Baggieland) would have propelled the Lightning to a berth at the World Cup proper. But alas, a 0-0 draw and a big win for Baggieland sent Kamijiro tumbling down to the Cup of Harmony. Captina Islands were a groupmate of the Lightning during this Qualifier (WC97) and although they were a tough opponent (CAP 0-1 KMJ) when the Kamijiroans travelled to their stadium, they were a six-point fixture set.

The upshot is that the Lightning are a pot two side for this tournament. By rank, they're the eighth-best side. And now, with Raiji Kagawa finally getting back to what he does best (defensive football), hopefully the end product is at least a quarter-final appearance. In order to really have a shot at job retention past the next cycle of the World Cup, Raiji must do well in this tournament. Otherwise, well... it might be over for the ex-yakuza man.

-- Banija --

Going to Banija for the Cup isn't a hard trip for the Kamijiroans. A short flight within the region, the country has hosted the Lightning a few times, not necessarily just for football. But this time, the mood for the travelling fans is... not pleasant. Resentment and anger due to being relegated to the second-tier international tournament is rife within the supporters. The Porto ultras have not yet arrived, so the fact that the usually-calm Chamonix and Raijin-shi crowds are upset already is not a good sign. A bit of Kamijiroan history - Porto ultras are the ones that caused a match to be abandoned due to referee abuse, homophobic chants, launching flares onto the pitch, etc. With that in mind, the Kamijiroan FA has warned about sanctions (including purchasing out all tickets and not selling them) for misbehavior. The Porto ultras are expected to arrive just before kickoff for the first match.

The team has rented out an entire resort for the stay, courtesy of the King himself. The goal is to isolate the team from outside distractions.

Good luck, Kamijiro! Go Lightning!

by **Qusmo** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 12:07 pm

The Mathletic
Informed analysis.

Can Qusmo win Cup of Harmony 89?
Determining if the goal the program to have set for itself is realistic

Qusmo has a resume primed for Cup of Harmony success. By some metrics, their World Cup 97 Qualifying performance was the best out of anyone else in the Cup of Harmony field, no matter which nations get invited. Qusmo recorded more points than any other team that missed the playoffs, or indeed any other team that played in them. Qusmo finished with a better Qualification record than five Qualifying group runners-up, & they were just one point away from ranking above even Group 13 winners Mertagne on goal difference.

On the matter of goal difference, only ten nations in World Cup 97 Qualifying had a better record in this statistic than did Qusmo, with a record of +23, compared to +15 for Elmyia, the next-highest figure for any nonqualified team. That is in large part thanks to the team’s prolific attack, as Qusmo finished World Cup 97 Qualifying having scored only two fewer goals than highest-scorers Baggieland, & with the joint-fourth-most goals scored overall & seven goals more than the next-most prolific nonqualifiers, Elmyia & Josifovo.

Qusmo’s attack was remarkably consistent. Not only did Qusmo score in every World Cup 97 Qualifying match in which it played, setting a new team record for most successive matches with at least one goal in the process, but the Quxruxy also recorded at least four goals scored in fully half of the team’s fixtures, including an eight-goal outburst against the Grearish Union which cleared the team’s previous single-match goals-scored record by a two-goal margin. That fixture window, which saw Qusmo outscore their two opponents by a combined 12-2 margin, wasn’t even a part of the team’s run of six straight matches with three goals or more.

A bevy of precedents can be found for a team like Qusmo using the momentum from a competitive, high-scoring Qualifying run to win the subsequent Cup of Harmony. Cup of Harmony 77 winners Kandorith were ranked forty-eighth at the time, & twenty percent of the past twenty Cup of Harmony champions were ranked even lower. Cup of Harmony 71 champions Juvencus finished Qualifying as the fifty-second team on the standard Multiversal Qualifying rankings, just as Qusmo did, & others finished lower.

Qusmo found itself in the sixty-sixth percentile of that standard Multiversal Qualifying table, as did Qasden ahead of Cup of Harmony 70, & six of the past twenty champions had just finished fourth in their group, as well as Eura, which had finished fifth ahead of Cup of Harmony 85. Just like the Holy Empire, Mriin, & Tinhampton ahead of Cups of Harmony 86, 79, & 73, Qusmo was the best team in Qualifying not to at least make the playoffs. Qusmo would have the tenth-best Qualifying record by points per match among the past twenty Cup of Harmony champions, the third-best Qualifying offense by goals scored per match, & the second-best Qualifying goal difference per match, behind the Pasargan team that went on to win Cup of Harmony 87.

Most of all, Qusmo may take heart from the example of the Holy Empire just three cycles ago in Cup of Harmony 86. The team was ranked thirty-second at the time, mirroring the forty-eighth ranking Qusmo takes to the tournament for teams outside the top forty-eight. They had been the best Qualifying team to miss the playoffs after finishing fourth in their group, with only 0.05 points per match & less than 0.1 goals per match more overall than Qusmo has just accomplished. Qusmo even boasts the slightly better defensive record &, thus, goal difference. Surely, if the Holy Empire could win Cup of Harmony 86, Qusmo could do it in Cup of Harmony 89?

Indeed, Qusmo is in a great spot. They finally have found a settled lineup, which has won seven of the eight matches they’ve played together. Their four-headed monster of an attack includes players at Millsburgh Revolutionaries, Latrobe Athletic, Megabrantid, & Brantisvogan who each scored anywhere from 0.47 to 0.85 goals per cap during World Cup 97 Qualifying. This team is experienced, having reached the Cup of Harmony knockout rounds & won a match while there in the prior edition of the tournament. Perhaps this tournament poses a chance for Qusmo to win its first senior international trophy & to send veterans like the imminently retiring Ibilx-Irtix Ono, Karar-Falax Zev, & Otoln-Prant Ezi off on the sweetest possible note.

However, by no means is Qusmo guaranteed a trophy — or, even, is the favorite. After all, Qusmo is still just a pot two nation, with six entrants in this tournament ahead of the Quxruxy in the KPB rankings. Those nations include Audioslavia, former World Cup champions who also won Cup of Harmony 83. That includes nations like HUElavia, ranked thirteenth in the Multiverse now & very far ahead of Qusmo by that metric. Qusmo would have to survive the group stage & then navigate four knockout rounds to hoist the trophy. Not even the favorites could be said to be favorites against the field.

Another good comparison to Qusmo is Squornshelan Remnant States at Cup of Harmony 87. That team accumulated over 3.33 goals per match on average, good for the third-best rate in the Multiverse, & they accumulated thirty-two points & a positive-twenty-three goal difference in two matches less than Qusmo achieved precisely the same figures. Like Qusmo, the Squornshelan Remnant States were the best team in the Multiverse not to reach at least the playoffs. In fact, had racked up more points in the Qualifying group stage than did three group winners. They were confident, too. They were discarded in the Cup of Harmony 87 group stage.

This is likely one of the most confident tournaments Qusmo has been a part of. They know they could well have qualified for the World Cup, & now they’re seeking to go further in the tournament than they ever have, even before the Collapse. But the realities of the Cup of Harmony, its format, & its fellow participants mean that Qusmo will have an incredibly difficult job accomplishing the impressively ambitious goal they started this year. Can Qusmo win the Cup of Harmony? Clearly, yes. But will they? Only time will tell.

                                  Immediately-Prior World Cup Qualifying Performance
CoH  Champion               KPB   TotalRk   %ile   GrpRk   Pt/M   GD/M   GF/M   GA/M
88   Sarzonia               059   026/140    81%   02/07   2.17   +1.2    2.2    1.0
87   Pasarga                013   022/160    86%   02/08   2.50   +1.9    3.2    1.4
86   The Holy Empire        032   046/165    72%   04/11   2.05   +0.9    3.2    2.3
85   Eura                   032   063/180    65%   05/12   1.91   +1.0    1.9    0.9
84   Saint Eleanor          033   047/165    72%   04/11   2.05   +0.8    1.7    0.9
83   Audioslavia            008   053/165    68%   04/11   1.85   +0.7    1.1    0.5
82   Chromatika             020   044/160    73%   03/08   1.93   +0.6    2.6    2.0
81   Trolleborg             035   029/180    84%   02/10   2.11   +0.8    1.2    0.4
80   Græntfjall             042   049/180    73%   03/10   1.78   +0.7    2.3    1.6
79   Mriin                  013   039/190    79%   03/10   2.28   +1.4    2.5    1.1
78   Krytenia               047   067/180    63%   04/10   1.56   -0.1    1.9    2.1
77   Kandorith              048   036/195    82%   03/13   1.96   +0.9    2.7    1.8
76   Pasarga                028   032/165    81%   03/11   2.10   +1.1    2.6    1.5
75   Main Nation Ministry   042   038/168    77%   02/07   1.83   +0.4    1.0    0.6
74   Kita-Hinode            025   032/150    79%   03/10   1.94   +0.9    2.8    1.9
73   Tinhampton             056   039/190    79%   03/10   2.22   +1.0    1.5    0.5
72   Mercedini              032   020/150    87%   02/10   2.11   +0.7    2.4    1.8
71   Juvencus               064   052/150    65%   04/10   1.83   +0.4    2.4    2.1
70   Qasden                 039   051/150    66%   04/10   1.83   +0.9    2.3    1.4
69   Qasden                 050   042/135    69%   03/09   1.88   +0.7    2.3    1.6
na   Qusmo                  048   052/153    66%   04/09   2.00   +1.4    3.1    1.7

P Nation                                  Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts
2 Sarzonia                                 12    8   2   2    26   12  +14    26 - Playoff (6/20)
2 Pasarga                                  14   11   2   1    45   19  +26    35 - Playoff (2/20)
4 The Holy Empire                          20   13   2   5    64   46  +18    41           (1/15)
5 Eura                                     22   13   3   6    41   20  +21    42           (3/15)
4 Saint Eleanor                            20   12   5   3    33   18  +15    41           (2/15)
4 Audioslavia                              20   10   7   3    22    9  +13    37           (8/15)
3 Chromatika                               14    8   3   3    37   28   +9    27           (4/20)
2 Trolleborg                               18   12   2   4    22    8  +14    38 - Playoff (11/18)
3 Graintfjall                              18   10   2   6    41   29  +12    32           (13/18)
3 Mriin                                    18   13   2   3    45   20  +25    41           (1/19)
4 Krytenia                                 18    8   4   6    35   37   −2    28           (13/18)
3 Kandorith                                24   13   8   3    64   42  +22    47           (6/15)
3 Pasarga                                  20   13   3   4    51   30  +21    42           (2/15)
2 Main Nation Ministry                     12    7   1   4    12    7   +5    22 - Playoff (14/24)
3 Kita-Hinode                              18   10   5   3    51   35  +16    35           (2/15)
3 Tinhampton                               18   13   1   4    27    9  +18    40           (T1/19)
2 Mercedini                                18   12   2   4    44   32  +12    38 - Playoff (5/15)
4 Juvencus                                 18   10   3   5    44   37   +7    33           (7/15)
4 Qasden                                   18   10   3   5    42   26  +16    33           (6/15)
3 Qasden                                   16    8   6   2    37   26  +11    30           (12/15)

by **Sangti and the Filindo Isles** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 1:01 pm

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 1–1 The 14 Stars
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Jiorjohn Pico (79')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque, Analyn Joyce Berin ▼ (▲ Julie Ashley Limpiado 74'), Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal ▼ (▲ Jomark Sampang 64'), Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio ▼ (▲ Tomio Sulangi 60'), Aletta Abigail Reano

Baggieland 2–1 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Dartmouth Hill, Hawthorn, Baggieland
SFI Scorers: Owen Makalintal (68')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Julie Ashley Limpiado ▼ (▲ Aljon Syquiatco 62'), Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque, Analyn Joyce Berin, Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado ▼ (▲ Mary Virginia Fonder 77'), Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio 73'), Aletta Abigail Reano

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 3–3 Chromatika
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Tomio Sulangi (8'), Tomio Sulangi (61'), Nur-Ranji Escuyos (73')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque ▼ (▲ Nur-Ranji Escuyos 53'), Analyn Joyce Berin ▼ (▲ Julie Ashley Limpiado 62'), Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Jeremil Jomerson Boire 85'), Aletta Abigail Reano

Alanis Star 0–0 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - MoBo Stadium, Node 93, Alanis Star
SFI Scorers: none
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Katrina Charlaine Pernia, Jiorjohn Pico, Nur-Ranji Escuyos ▼ (▲ Analyn Joyce Berin 74'), Julie Ashley Limpiado, Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno ▼ (▲ Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio 58'), Jomark Sampang ▼ (▲ Aletta Abigail Reano 69'), Tomio Sulangi, Jovelyn Daleon

The Grearish Union 0–1 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - The Grearish Union
SFI Scorers: Tomio Sulangi (40')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Lysander Nomel, Jiorjohn Pico ▼ (▲ Nur-Ranji Escuyos 67'), Aljon Syquiatco, Julie Ashley Limpiado, Mary Virginia Fonder, Renze Coligado ▼ (▲ Erika Madlangsakit 61'), Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio, Aletta Abigail Reano ▼ (▲ Owen Makalintal 90 + 3'), Tomio Sulangi, Jovelyn Daleon

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 4–0 Quakmybush
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Jovelyn Daleon (33'), Serio Irorita (36'), Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio (72'), Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio (85')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Nur-Ranji Escuyos, Arshed Basque ▼ (▲ Aljon Syquiatco 63'), Analyn Joyce Berin, Meira Madlangsakit ▼ (▲ Mary Virginia Fonder 67'), Erika Madlangsakit, Jeremil Jomerson Boire, Jomark Sampang ▼ (▲ Aletta Abigail Reano 65'), Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio, Jovelyn Daleon

Nova Calania 3–3 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Zhāng Jiānglǐng Guójiā Tǐyùchǎng, Yuzhong District, Shanzhou, Nova Calania
SFI Scorers: Cherlotte Penafiel (19'), Tomio Sulangi (44'), Aletta Abigail Reano (71')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque, Julie Ashley Limpiado, Cherlotte Penafiel ▼ (▲ Mary Virginia Fonder 85'), Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno ▼ (▲ Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio 70'), Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Jeremil Jomerson Boire 90'), Aletta Abigail Reano

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 1–1 Qusmo
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Arshed Basque (36')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita ▼ (▲ Katrina Charlaine Pernia 77'), Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque ▼ (▲ Nur-Ranji Escuyos 78'), Julie Ashley Limpiado, Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal ▼ (▲ Jomark Sampang 76'), Tomio Sulangi, Aletta Abigail Reano

The 14 Stars 3–2 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Starset Stadium, The 14 Stars
SFI Scorers: Tomio Sulangi (21'), Serio Irorita (24')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico, Nur-Ranji Escuyos ▼ (▲ Katrina Charlaine Pernia 50'), Analyn Joyce Berin, Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Jomark Sampang ▼ (▲ Owen Makalintal 90 + 2'), Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Jeremil Jomerson Boire 65'), Aletta Abigail Reano

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 2–4 Baggieland
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Aletta Abigail Reano (35'), Tomio Sulangi (44')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Aljon Syquiatco, Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque ▼ (▲ Analyn Joyce Berin 70'), Julie Ashley Limpiado, Mary Virginia Fonder, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio 60'), Aletta Abigail Reano ▼ (▲ Jovelyn Daleon 83')

Chromatika 2–0 Sangti and the Filindo Isles
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Capitalizt Dome, Chromia, Chromatika
SFI Scorers: none
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico, Arshed Basque, Julie Ashley Limpiado, Cherlotte Penafiel ▼ (▲ Mary Virginia Fonder 62'), Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Jeremil Jomerson Boire 87'), Aletta Abigail Reano ▼ (▲ Jovelyn Daleon 59')

Sangti and the Filindo Isles 1–0 Alanis Star
World Cup 97 Qualifying - Nuevo Estadio Nacional, Nuevo San Marco, Sangti and the Filindo Isles
SFI Scorers: Rutchel Cerdeno (73')
SFI Lineup: Federick Roncal, Serio Irorita, Jiorjohn Pico ▼ (▲ Analyn Joyce Berin 60'), Arshed Basque, Julie Ashley Limpiado, Cherlotte Penafiel, Renze Coligado, Rutchel Cerdeno, Owen Makalintal, Tomio Sulangi ▼ (▲ Rowel Rizaldy Mercurio 89'), Aletta Abigail Reano ▼ (▲ Jovelyn Daleon 62')

Reactions from the latest qualifying campaign of the Agilang Dilaw highly varies, depending on where those fans are located.

Fans from the mainland got the message current manager Vicenzo Frain wanted to send to the fans - temper their expectations. Despite an encouraging first half of the campaign for the Sangtians, inconsistent results including a five-match winless run have all but ended their hopes of qualifying for this edition's World Cup finals. Despite this, those results had close scorelines and no spanking has been recorded, other than a disappointing 4-2 loss at home against Baggieland when they had a 2-0 lead at half-time. Majority of the mainland fans are happy though that they were able to make it to the Cup of Harmony field but as a fifth seeded team, Vicenzo again asked the fans for patience as they are expected not to progress beyond the group stages.

This brought mixed responses to the mainland and Filis fans, but the majority agreed that it will take time for the team to be built or grown into a bona fide contender for the World Cup. The minority criticized the selection Frain made, which was labelled as "lazy", as they deemed that there were outstanding league players that seemed gatekept from the playing squad. Frain told the public that it was due to the consultant advising him to select the same squad that played in the qualifiers, and was told "there are other competitions going on right now, such as the Olympics"

Most Indos fans still did not care about the sporting teams, as the discrimination of managers not selecting any Indos players are still prevalent in the sporting scene. What they ask is to have at least Indos representation for the Agilang Dilaw, similar to the U18 World Cup squad which had two Indos players registered in the squad. However, managers and their consultants have been skeptical on doing this as the move may have angered their mainland fans as well as the government.

by **Kronbia** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 1:26 pm

Will the problems defeat the national team before the Cup of Harmony begins?

The Kronbia men's national football team faced difficulty in traveling to The Kingdom of Banija and almost apologized for participating in the Cup of Harmony because the Ministry of Youth Sports refused the to provide the necessary financial support for the team's travel while the Kronbia Football Federation's treasury was empty after the World Cup 97 qualification. However, in the end, Estrella, Aerolineas Kronbia and HalconCola companies provided financial support so that the team could finally travel to The Kingdom of Banija to participate in the Cup of Harmony 89.

As soon as the team arrived in the Banijan capital, Busukuma, the Kronbia national team began training to prepare for the tournament. On the first day of training, goalkeeper Humberto Benigno suffered a broken elbow, which will prevent him from playing for a long time. On the second day, due to friction with the defense, Ismael Gabriel was injured in his foot, which was injured before the Baptism of Fire 84. The injury worsened, which may prevent him from participating in the entire Group Stage, and he may be able to participate for a few minutes if the team qualifies for the Knockout Stages. This prompted coach Atilio Lamberto to include young midfielder Justino Vito and second goalkeeper Rosendo Porfirio. The Kronbian youth dream of being able to achieve a good result in the Cup of Harmony after their exit from the World Cup 97 qualification.

by **Riena** » Mon Sep 09, 2024 2:31 pm

The Riena Sentinel

Cup of Harmony 89: What should we expect from Riena?
Wavelets turn their attention to invitational Cup of Harmony after disappointing end to qualifying

After what has been a rollercoaster qualifying campaign in Cocoa Haneda's first cycle in charge of Riena, the Wavelets are heading to Banija to participate in the Cup of Harmony. Haneda saw her young side fall at the penultimate hurdle in their qualifying campaign — they had needed to at least secure a draw against the Survivors to keep their hopes of qualification alive going into the final matchday of the campaign, but a narrow single-goal loss did for the Wavelets in Nagato. Despite their elimination, hopes remain high for this enterprising, enthusiastic side that Haneda has managed to assemble from scratch over the course of a cycle. They have massively overperformed expectations for an unranked side — no one had expected them to still be in the hunt for qualification heading into the penultimate matchday — and the fact that they pushed the likes of established football powerhouses Baker Park, Tumbra, and Zenic for qualification is perhaps a sign of optimism when it comes to the talent and potential of this Riena side. Nevertheless, they will have to quickly pick themselves up after seeing their run for qualification ended in such heartbreaking fashion if they are to keep performing to the level they are capable of going into the Cup of Harmony. With that in mind, here are three things to look out for as the Wavelets travel all the way to Arrosia to take a crack at the Cup of Harmony.

Cocoa Haneda will keep playing her characteristic brand of football

Going into her first cycle as national team manager, there was widespread doubt about Cocoa Haneda — having only been a professional manager for just over a year prior to her appointment, she was perhaps not the obvious choice for the coveted position, but was nonetheless headhunted by the RFA and president Ryuji Kagami to take on the mammoth task of heading the national football programme. Naturally, there were some questions regarding the brand of football that she espoused. Having played under Kanata Shiranami for the entirety of her international career, Haneda was, and still is, a committed Shiranami acolyte, and her commitment to fast-paced, vertical attacking football is well-known. Haneda's tenure got off to a stuttering start as her players struggled to acclimatise to her brand of football, and she infamously lost to Nova Anglican Admin Zone of Esportiva on home soil in the Campionato Esportiva in one of her first few matches as manager, but despite a few setbacks along the way, this Riena team now look like they have gelled, and most importantly, have adjusted well to the demands of their manager's brand of football. Haneda is known to be uncompromising when it comes to her football philosophy, and for the Cup of Harmony, she is expected to stick with the same tactical system that she employed throughout the qualifiers — a hard-running, high-pressing 4-2-3-1 that makes use of an inverting full-back to provide stability in the midfield and allow one of Riena's key attacking outlets, the attacking midfielder Nagisa Nakiri, to push forward and wreak havoc in the final third.

Will Shiori Mihane retake her place in the starting XI?

Shiori Mihane has long been billed as one of the brightest defensive talents of her generation of Riennese players. Born and bred in Nagato, the attacking right-back joined the capital's most prominent club, Nagato Spirit, at a tender age, and progressed through the age groups while earning rave reviews from the Spirit youth staff. A potent combination of defensive nous and attacking verve meant that she was fast-tracked through the age groups into the Free Spirits' first team, and she made the right-back position her own after being given a run in the starting XI ahead of more established teammates. Haneda will no doubt have hoped to harness Mihane's boundless talent when she included the twenty-one year old in her squad for the World Cup qualifiers, but as luck would have it, Mihane suffered a torrid run of injuries that meant the manager could not rely on her to play consistently, and as a result she was displaced by Origami Sangomiya for a good portion of the Wavelets' qualification campaign. While Sangomiya is a good player in her own right, Riena desperately missed Mihane's attacking ability down the right hand side, and her absence deprived Haneda of a more direct attacking outlet down the right flank. Reports coming out of Nagato that Mihane is approaching full match fitness will have been music to Haneda's ears — indeed, the manager showed her faith in her by naming her in the Cup of Harmony squad despite her previous unavailability through injury — but it remains to be seen whether Haneda will risk playing her best right-back right off the bat in Banija. Riena fans will be hoping and praying that Mihane has put her injury troubles behind her — a fit and firing Mihane is arguably one of the most potent weapons Haneda has at her disposal, capable of making game-changing contributions in both the defensive and offensive thirds of the pitch.

Stability and consistency key for Haneda

Haneda might well be tempted to throw Mihane in at the deep end for Riena's opening match in the Cup of Harmony, but she is not likely to make any other sweeping changes to her starting XI. Throughout the cycle, Haneda has shown a marked preference to stick with a largely-settled starting XI, and she has reaped the benefits as the players were able to build chemistry with each other and familiarise themselves with each others' play style. One only has to look at the Wavelets' final game of qualification — a topsy-turvy 3-4 loss to fellow unranked side North Oharan Valley Union — to see how much of an effect rotation can have on a settled first choice XI. Having been mathematically eliminated at that point, Haneda used that game to give her fringe players a run-out, and as expected, the raft of changes meant that the Wavelets were chaotic and disjointed in falling to defeat, a far cry from the disciplined, regimented performances that Haneda's preferred starting XI put out over the course of the second half of the qualifying campaign. In defence, expect Akari Kisaragi and one of either Shiori Mihane or Origami Sangomiya to line up either side of the first-choice central defensive pairing of Saori Skamandros and Kanata Shikimori; the established trio of Ichika Kirikaze, Kanna Nagara, and Nagisa Nakiri should get the nod in midfield barring a late tactical adjustment; and in attack, Emiri Nekoda's fine goalscoring form throughout the cycle should guarantee her a spot as Riena's center forward, and she will likely be ably supported by Meruto Mercerian from the left flank.

Right back and right wing are the only two positions where there is some semblance of doubt as to who will start — as mentioned above, Shiori Mihane will likely be the first choice for right-back ahead of Origami Sangomiya if she is match fit, but the right side of Riena's attack is a conundrum that Haneda has yet to solve. Reisa Yuzuriha and Kaoruko Moeta have flattered to deceive at various points throughout the Wavelets' qualifying campaign, with just a handful of goal contributions between them, and neither of them have managed to truly stake a claim for that coveted starting spot. One option open to Haneda is to play center forward Iroha Shishido at right wing as a target player, a tactical ploy she has previously employed to varying degrees of success, but that would leave Riena without a specialist center forward on the bench. Other left-field solutions include playing Yume Waraku, Rui Kazamaki, or Kaede Owari out of position, but these come with their own disadvantages — Waraku has a similar profile to Mercerian, and would leave Riena without a direct threat to run in behind the opposition defensive line, while Kazamaki and Owari are both attacking midfielders who have precious little experience of playing out on the wing. For now, it appears Haneda's most realistic option is to stick with one of either Yuzuriha or Moeta for the Cup of Harmony, but they may well find themselves dropped for subsequent squads if they don't find their form soon.

Cup of Harmony 89 - Everything Thread

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