World Cup 98 | RP thread

[Of the Golden Harp]

The Golden Harp vs Qasden 0-0
Summary
1’ kickoff
8’ yellow card for Mondy
8’ pen for Qasden: saved
45’ halftime
63’ yellow card for Qasden
90’ end of full time
Stats
SOG
TGH 3-1 Qas
Shots
TGH 6-3 Qas
Bookings
TGH 1-1 Qas
Fouls
TGH 7-2 Qas
Blocks
TGH 1-0 Qas
Saves
TGH 1-3 Qas

[Aleirave]

Replacement
Aleirave 0-2 Ko-oren
Grand Exultia 3-2 Aleirave

Every 4 years, as is the case in the provinces of Eshialand, Aleirave elects its Governor. Unlike the provinces, however, Aleiravan elections are weird and the office of Governor has some special powers they don't.

Aleirave has the unique status of being a Special Administrative Unit. This means that, while some government functions are handled by the federal government back in Eshialand City, the Governor, and whatever government they choose to form, have a lot of additional duties that most governors in Eshialand do not have, such as the ability to have separate foreign relations with other nations in Anaia, and the ability to control where federal investment goes (and make suggestions about how much investment is needed).

Additionally, thanks to its small size, the notion of political parties, one that is always on the minds of everyone else in Eshialand, just doesn't exist on the Sunshine Isle. Instead, one of the most powerful things you can have on island politics is name recognition. If people know you around the island, which is much easier to do when there aren't as many people as even a medium-sized Eshian city, you're likely to get votes, as long as they don't know you for attempting to kill a baker to get 15% off a cake back in 2026. (Yes, this happened. No, the person who did it is not in jail because he allegedly paid off Refilene Adari'ena. No, we will not know if these allegations are true until the Lahaira Papers are released in full.

In 2023 and 2027, these elections were a slam-dunk for Refilene Adari'ena, who emerged as the political face of Aleirave following the deposition of the Tereyev regime in 2023. However, with word of the Eshian Investigation Service's investigation into his ties with Tony Beaujoleil, the question is no longer whether he'll be re-elected, but whether he'll even be a free man come election day. He still vows to stand for a third term, but it's looking increasingly likely that the only term he'll be serving is inside Wakeley Federal Penitentiary.

With this being the first really well-contested election in Aleiravan history, a few candidates has emerged as possibilities, with backgrounds ranging from the expected to the downright bizarre. One of the early favorites to win, announcing his candidacy on the first day he could, was Malako Eterena, the man who had shot Aleksandr Tereyev those eight years earlier.

While he was well-known for being a radical, the only person on the island actually willing to do what needed to be done, recent years had seen him step back into a more reasonable position, although it remained to be seen whether this was just to make him less of a controversial figure. While he was still viewed as a hero by many, the Klysevian population viewed him skeptically, as they hadn't seen true signs that he was all about the modern, multiracial Aleirave that Governor Adari'ena built. They weren't the largest voting bloc, but they definitely could make a lot of noise.

Speaking of the Klysevian voting bloc, Sergei Alinov, the head -- er, only -- writer for the Lahaira Reporter, also emerged as a candidate, and out the gate he didn't seem like such a bad option. Sure, he was a lazy bum who couldn't be bothered to write an article unless his job literally depended on it, but everyone on the island knew him and why would they be inclined to trust anything his boss, editor-in-chief Lakalo Paha'ina, said about his work ethic? After all, he was viewed as a salty boss who couldn't stand to see the employee he hated the most get ahead in life. Surely, a vote for Sergei would be a vote for four years of nothing getting done, but nobody on the island knew it or would believe him if they were told.

There were a couple of other candidates who were either complete longshots for obvious reasons, like the afore-mentioned Adari'ena, or had complete non-starter campaigns, like Kalaio Pahoteka, the owner of Kalaio's Beach Bar who, although beloved, didn't really present himself as a politician rather than as the sort of guy you vote for to protest the system. While protest vote campaigns can be effective, this wasn't exactly needed in this case and his campaign was practically a write-off. However, one surprise name came up who might've actually had a shot: Yekaterina Olayeva, the recently retired footballer from the Aleiravan NT.

On paper, she, like Kalaio, just wasn't a politician, but what she did have was plenty of experience representing the island on the international stage, and that experience was invaluable. Additionally, she had some of the most reasonable opinions out of the bunch, tending similarly to Malako Eterena on most issues while stressing the racial unity that both Governor Adari'ena and her old coach, Haulafo Paka'ula, worked to build for Aleirave. It may have been touch getting a lot of older Aleiravans to vote for a Klysevian so soon after the Tereyev years, but at bare minimum she was still a better option than Alinov, and she had a lot of fans from across the island. Sure, she needed to become a proper politician in the next few months, but she at least had the fundamentals of a good campaign.

And so, the stage was set for the next few months of campaigning. Soon, one of these individuals would end up being the next Governor of Aleirave, and hopefully whoever was picked wouldn't be serving that term behind bars. It was going to be a fun year on the island.

[Oberour Ar Moro]

It's not like the weather had been that odd in Regium that year.

There had not been any snow all winter, but that's not incredibly uncommon. The Dominion of Oberour Ar Moro is hardly Polar Islandstates or Graentfjall. Outside of the mountains along the Oberour-Tentalon border any given part of the country can only expect a couple centimeters of snow per year.

The Regium winter had been relatively mild. There had been precipitation, sure, though when it was over freezing it had rained and when it was below freezing it didn't snow.

A mild winter had continued into March, and meteorologists of the Ministry of Research were predicting that the early spring would continue at the same level. But they continued, the conditions were there for some late winter snow.

The week before qualifying for World Cup 98 began, however, the temperature had dipped to below freezing. And it had sat there for days, almost guaranteeing that fans would be bundled up in the Parade Ground stands, and the most sensible players on the pitch would wear long sleeves in play.

The Parade Grounds in Regium were ready to host all Oberour Ar Moro National Team games over the next year, beginning with NexxusDrako. NexxusDrako were an interesting side, a nation that had not been involved in international football for 30 cycles. Oberour Ar Moro had finished one point away from qualifying for World Cup 97, and were hoping that new manager Eleiran Bonshoms could keep the Dragoons from wilting late.

World Cup qualifying began under heavily overcast skies and bitter cold. The Drakonians hoped to pick up where they left off in World Cup 69 qualification, going 7-5-2 and finishing two points short of qualification. It looked like the time away had caused them some harm. Daniel Demisserriche scored almost immediately. Demisserriche almost scored again, but his hard hit shot was just stopped by the Drakonian goalkeeper, but Blaise Leboeuf easily got the rebound and put the ball in the net.

From there the rout was on. Jozef 't Veld added a goal shortly after the half time break, and sweeper Jacques-Maurice Destelan de Saint-Joseph scored late to add a fourth. The Drakonians admirably kept up their defense through the match, and Oberour desire to score ended up exceeding their capacities. At least for this match.

As the game ended, the Oberour Dragoons temporarily held a lead in Group 1, ahead by goal difference alone. Oberour and Drakonian fans filtered from the Parade Grounds. Some to cars in the parking lot, some to the Parade Grounds metro stop, others (mainly Drakonian) who didn't account for the distance between the Parade Grounds and hotels began their marches. As these fans moved on, thinking about the next matches, a light snow started to fall. Barely perceptible flakes, falling gently in fluorescent light. Some Oberour fans, having missed out on snow for ages, stopped to take it in, enjoying a surely temporary phenomenon before moving on.

It will continue to snow in Regium for the next year.

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

BP hit the road for pair of matches
Scott McCrae
The Mail on Sunday Chief Soccer Writer

Following the opening doubleheader of World Cup Qualifying, the Commonwealth of Baker Park National Team prepare for away trips to Panay Islands & Guimaras and Hapilopper with an opportunity to build a cushion at the top of the table if they can come away with victories in both fixtures.

Top seeded Yuezhou dropped all six points to begin WCQ, leaving Hapilopper's Ellis Football alone at the top of Group 3, with the Bees and Al-Tamaghza two points back as a result of their scoreless opening contest; Al-Tam inflicted defeat on the Rushmori side on match day 2 while the Haps and Carabaos faced off in Hapilopper City with the home side prevailing 3-2.

The defense has been key in the opening two wins, as Gillian Albertson and Geoff Cotterill both kept the opposition off the board with Beth Rossi slated to get the start at the Paulino Alcántara Stadium in Panay & Guimaras.

Manager Will Barnard used all of his allowed subs in both matches, giving minutes to key players due to the lack of pre qualifying friendlies in addition to looking for the win against Al-Tam.

WCQ Notebook
--Kate DiMarini stepped down from her position in charge of Zwangzug which leaves Shane Newman as the only BP native currently in charge of an overseas national team, as he remains the Indusse manager.
--Arrosia nations occupy three of the top five spots in the KPB+ rankings as WCQ began: Valanora (1), Farfadillis (4), and Sqournshelan Remnant States (5).
--Baker Park will reach 300 WCQ matches played at the conclusion of the current series and after the 5-0 win on MD2 are just 3 away from their 200th WCQ victory.
--James Hardison scored his 15th NT tally against Of the Godless in his 50th NT appearance. He will captain the side against Hapilopper on MD 4 in commemoration of the milestone.
--Joe Finnegan's next cap will see him join the Half Century club in appearances.

Lineup vs Panay Islands and Guimaras MD 3
Rossi; J Morris, Lohmeyer, McKenzie; Douglas, C Logan (C), Morgan, Bryant; Grayson; London, Engels
subs: Dickerson, Frost, A Jones, D'Alessandro, Kirby, S Logan, McDavid, Hardison, Cohen-Abdullah

Lineup vs Hapilopper MD 4
Cotterill; Frost, Kucera, A Jones; S Logan, D'Alessandro, Kirby, Prince; Cohen-Abdullah; McDavid, Hardison (C)
subs: Dickerson, J. Morris, McKenzie, Douglas, Bryant, C Logan, Grayson, London, Engels

[Banija]

Banijan manager George Wangolo, speaking to the press after Banija's 2-1 road W over Cafu & Malaguay on Matchday 2 of World Cup Qualifying

ABSM Reporter: Gaffer, this was a solid opening window for your boys. 6 points from 6 possible- what is the importance of getting off to a strong start in World Cup Qualifying?

George Wangolo: Qualification campaigns, of course, are not won and lost in the first couple of Matchdays. You can start disastrously and still get there by coming in hot late- and you can get hot early and then fizzle off later, before you are staring down the barrel of an invitation to the Cup of Harmony. That said, for our goals, we wanted to get off to an early start. It certainly makes navigating the campaign a little bit easier- if you're at Matchday 5 or 6 talking about must-win games, because you bombed a bunch of early games, then you are going to be in a rough, rough position. So these points are important. Now we are back in Pot 1, it comes with a certain amount of pressure- and our players responded well.

We, especially, needed a good start. After the ARCs, those were rough, and we haven't played a competitive match since then. We needed to get the taste of that tournament out of our mouth- and we did so here, and clearly. Team has fully moved on, and when there are 'only' 14 matchdays, you never know how invaluable these 6 points could be.

Busukuma Post Reporter: George, this game, the first away game of the cycle, was shaky for a little bit. What were your thoughts immediately after the team conceded, allowing a headed goal in the 12th minute to go down 1-0 early? Were you thinking upset?

George Wangolo: Obviously, you never want to trail in ag game like this- especially away from home. It was good for our players though- a team like Cafu & Malaguay, you know, unranked, first cycle, they are looking for a scalp- and they wanted this one badly. It injected a sense of energy and belief into the stadium that may not have quite been there before. So mentally, it was going to be a challenge. But I knew that it was a good one for us. These are the types of matchups you have to win in Qualifying. You can't just coast through- some games you'll start strong, and others, you'll have to claw back from behind. I was thinking that it would be a great taste of our mental fortitude, and I'm happy to say that we passed with flying colors.

Aissa Gazette Reporter: George, your team responded extremely well to the goal. They kept attacking, and we responded twice in the first half- with the star attackers, Odongo Kagenda and Son-Saka, each scoring- the former in the 23rd minute, and the latter in the 39th minute. Of course, we were pressing for a third in the second half, but it did not come. The response to the goal was excellent- but how do you feel it went after we took the lead? Do we need a stronger killer instinct to 'kill off' games?

George Wangolo: Obviously, as you guys know, sometimes it can be difficult to score goals in these situations. I'll tip my cap to the squad- we responded well, and went forward to get our goal. The finishing could have been better in the second half, but I am not worried. We have a three headed monster up top, with the two goalscorers plus Jônn Wérséô. There are goals to be had, and the goals will come. Ultimately, we were much closer to getting a third goal, on multiple occasions, than the home team were to getting an equalizer- and that's all we can ask for. Some challenging matchups coming up- but a lot to build on.

[TJUN-ia]

The Random Rambles of a Jaguar - WC98 Qualifying Edition
with Killian Looker

Welcome back to this Random Ramble and welcome back to World Cup Qualifying action! It certainly has been a while since we entered this domain looking to try and give things one last go...and then we all know how that turned out. Making it all the way to the Quarterfinals of the inaugural 48-team WC was, by far, the best thing TJUN-ian football has ever produced in its history...but now, we have to go again and build upon that success into this new cycle. We did brilliantly to begin with in the CE, but lost out in the first round of the knockouts so we will be looking to improve upon that. So that's the hope...what about the reality?

The Games
The Estádio do Pacífico in Rio Pacífico, the smallest venue we will use at home this cycle, would kick off the new adventure against debutants in the form of der Ritterlichkeit von Ralsalin. Thankfully for everyone in the stands, we did have detailed information about the Knights entering this game - managed by Seibold von Niermann, captained by Dietrich von Erlaid, a semi-neutral style with attacking ability if needed. You always have to face an enigma when facing a debuting team, simply because you never quite know how things could play out and you don't want to be caught out at the wrong time. Thankfully for us, that didn't happen...we went to work and won this game with relative ease. It was that simple. Diana Sharafutdinov managed a hattrick in this game, the ultimate sign of a team going big, with both Stephan Fiedtkou and Olena Zinchenko (off a corner) also ending up on the scoresheet. 5-0. Job done.

Then it was time for the first road game of the season, over in a place called Delitai. We certainly weren't familiar with this team but in the new ranking system the WCC is using that takes Regionals into account, they put them at 105th...not too shabby, in other words. Playing on the road is always going to be tough no matter the opposition and things certainly felt tougher in this guise, but we still managed to come away with the result we all wanted. Stephan Fiedtkou scored in both halves, as silky as you like, and 2-0 was the final score. Simple, simple, simple.

Reaction
Two games, two wins, 6 from 6. No complaints here, see you next time!

Up Next...
So what is next time? A homestand, of course. Darkmania in Tiankong, Poafmersia in Roi Ville. Not gimmies at all in any sense. If we want to make it back to the dance, we have to prove we belong there...and that comes with performances against teams like these - experienced teams that have been through this song and dance many times before. The road back to the dance is underway...let's see what we can make of it. GO JAGS!

---

SCHEDULE (Group 13)
(Stadium Guide can be found here)
MD1: vs Ralsalin (UR) - Estádio do Pacífico, Rio Pacífico W 5-0 (1st)
MD2: @Delitai (105) W 2-0 (1st)
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD3: vs Darkmania (153) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong
MD4: vs Poafmersia (67) - Stade de la Victoire, Roi Ville
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD5: @Natkr (215)
MD6: vs StrayaRoos (48) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD7: @Baggieland (24) - Dartmouth Hill, Hawthorn
MD8: @Ralsalin (UR) - Ralsalien Grandmaster Kotarlok Arena, Rinkan
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD9: vs Delitai (105) - Estadio Universidad Carlandas, Carlandas
MD10: @Darkmania (153)
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD11: @Poafmersia (67)
MD12: vs Natkr (215) - Ke Kahua Pāʻani o Pua Aloalo, Kepu Manu
--------------------------------Rambles--------------------------------
MD13: @StrayaRoos (48)
MD14: vs Baggieland (24) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City

[Pyazhnaya]

Phoenixes’ Flames Dimmed in Jinja City: Pyazhnaya Falls to Banija 4-1

**By Daniil Rostovin, Pyazhnyi Sportske Novosti**

The Calm Before the Storm
The Pyazhnayan delegation arrived in Jinja City, Hangaza, with a mix of optimism and determination. While there was a definitive buzz in and around the team, the fact that they had to play the top favourites for the group win first was a more than daunting prospect. However, they arrived in Banija with literally nothing to lose. The BCEL Stadium, with its 52,400-capacity crowd, loomed large as the stage for their World Cup opener against a Banijan side under immense pressure to rebound from recent failures at the ARC.

As the team settled into their accommodations, head coach Aleksandr Zavrashin was focused but calm. Training sessions emphasized defensive discipline and quick counterattacks, areas Zavrashin hoped would exploit Banija’s early nerves. Naira Akhatova, nicknamed “The Scythe” for her uncompromising defending, was a prominent figure in drills, offering vocal encouragement to her backline.

Off the pitch, the team’s chemistry showed flashes of both camaraderie and tension. Captain Danila Terentyev and vice-captain Dilyara Shaykhutdinova were often seen strategizing over tactics, while a disagreement between Marat Zakharchenko and Danila Mukhametshin during a set-piece drill required Zavrashin’s intervention.

Match Day: BCEL Stadium Erupts
Jinja City’s BCEL Stadium came alive as fans poured in hours before kickoff. Banijan supporters, bedecked in green and orange, drowned the air with rhythmic chants, drums, and vuvuzelas. Despite the intimidating atmosphere, the Phoenixes walked out onto the field with heads held high, greeted by a small but vocal contingent of travelling Pyazhnayan fans.

Pyazhnaya’s Starting XI:
Goalkeeper: Elisey Moroshkin
Defenders: Ayrat Bilyaletdinov, Fyodor Solodnikov, Naira Akhatova, Marat Zakharchenko
Midfielders: Danila Terentyev (C), Dilyara Shaykhutdinova, Alexei Chernobrovin, Liliana Maksimushkina
Forwards: Danila Mukhametshin, Maksimilian Kartashov

Banija’s Starting XI
Goalkeeper: Biran Jarju
Defenders: Opio Ssambwa, Kutaaka Muteesa, Otem Ssema, Daraja Kanka
Midfielders: Yob Yeyeh Aan, Araba Fanja, Yob Banda
Attackers: Layvin Son-Saka (C), Odongo Kagenda, Jônn Wérséô

A Tale of Two Halves
First Half:
The game began cautiously, with Banija visibly tight and anxious under the weight of home expectations. Pyazhnaya pressed high, forcing early errors, and nearly took the lead when Maksimilian Kartashov’s curling effort narrowly missed the far post.

Banija broke the deadlock in the 29th minute when captain Layvin Son-Saka delivered a pinpoint free kick into the top corner. The Kadongo Kamu’s relief was palpable as the stadium erupted in celebration, hoping for the spell to be broken. However, Pyazhnaya, undeterred, equalized in the 42nd minute. A swift counterattack saw Danila Mukhametshin play a clever one-two with Kartashov, who evaded his marker and slotted the ball past Biran Jarju. The Phoenixes went into halftime buoyed by their ability to stand toe-to-toe with one of the world’s best.

Second Half:
Momentum shifted early in the second half when disaster struck for Pyazhnaya. Naira Akhatova, already on a yellow card, was shown a second yellow in the 51st minute for a late challenge on Jônn Wérséô. Reduced to 10 players, the Phoenixes struggled to maintain their defensive shape and all they could hope for was to pull back and hope to park the bus. Banija capitalized on their numerical advantage almost immediately. Araba Fanja’s low drive from the edge of the box made it 2-1, and Jônn Wérséô added a third in the 65th minute with a clinical finish. Substitute Muhangi Wentibwa rounded off the scoring with a thunderous strike in the 83rd minute.

Despite the lopsided scoreline, Pyazhnaya fought until the final whistle, with Elisey Moroshkin making a string of saves to prevent further damage.

Reactions and Press Conference
In the Dressing Room:
The post-match atmosphere was one of frustration and reflection. Naira Akhatova, visibly distraught, apologized repeatedly to her teammates. “I let you down,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Coach Zavrashin addressed the squad with a mix of encouragement and sternness. “We proved we can compete, but discipline is non-negotiable,” he said.

Press Conference Highlights:
Aleksandr Zavrashin:
“The first half showed our potential. The second half showed the importance of discipline. We’ll learn and move forward.”

Danila Terentyev (Captain):
“We’re disappointed, but we’re not defeated. This is a long campaign, and we’ll come back stronger. Anybody can lose against Banija, especially here, so while 4-1 is not exactly what we've been looking for, we still gave it our all.”

Maksimilian Kartashov:
“Scoring was great, but it doesn't mean much without the result. We'll pick ourselves up and see that we can give our fans more against Sargossa.”

Phoenixes Rise in Krasnograd: Pyazhnaya Defeats Sargossa 1-0
Four days later, the Phoenixes returned home to a packed Krasnograd Arena, determined to make amends. The atmosphere was electric, with 35,000 fans bathing the arena in turquoise and burgundy, roaring their support. Krasnograd’s icy winds did little to dampen the enthusiasm as Pyazhnaya faced Sargossa, a defensively solid but always very dangerous opponent.

Match Report: Redemption on Home Soil
First Half:
The match began with Pyazhnaya taking the initiative, dominating possession and probing Sargossa’s compact defense. Dilyara Shaykhutdinova showed why she is considered the up and coming breakout star of Pyazhnayan football, orchestrating the midfield with her trademark composure, while Maksimilian Kartashov tested the Sargossan goalkeeper with a venomous volley in the 17th minute.

The breakthrough came in the 38th minute when Alexei Chernobrovin delivered a perfectly weighted through ball to Danila Mukhametshin, who rounded the goalkeeper and slotted home. The Krasnograd crowd erupted, chanting Mukhametshin’s name as the players celebrated together, a weight lifted off their shoulders, hoping the goal would give them buoyance to maybe steal three points from the favourites.

Second Half:
The second half saw Sargossa push for an equalizer, but Pyazhnaya’s defense, led by young Fyodor Solodnikov, deputized by Miron Skuratov due to Akhatova's one-game suspension, held firm. Elisey Moroshkin made a crucial save in the 73rd minute, diving low to deny a powerful header.

Zavrashin introduced fresh legs late in the game, with Liliana Maksimushkina and Ayrat Bilyaletdinov helping to see out the victory. The final whistle was met with relieved cheers of the crowd as the Phoenixes secured their first points of the campaign.

Reactions and Press Conference
In the Dressing Room:
The mood was overjoyed as players hugged and celebrated the hard-fought victory, especially as Sargossa as number two seed was the favourite coming into the game. Naira Akhatova, suspended for the match, was among the first to congratulate her teammates.

Press Conference Highlights:
Aleksandr Zavrashin:
“This was a team effort. We didn't let the first loss deter us and we showed that we can beat pretty much anybody. Big thanks to the fans in Krasnograd to give us the boost we needed.”

Danila Mukhametshin:
“Scoring in front of our fans was special. This win is for them and for everyone who believed in us. We can definitely build on this against Brusseldorf and Safiloa in our next to matches.”

Dilyara Shaykhutdinova:
“We stayed disciplined, and that made the difference. but it was a fun game. Just a little chilly, can we get something with a roof next time?”

Looking Ahead
With three points secured and lessons learned, the Phoenixes now turn their attention to their next challenges against 120th ranked Brusseldorf and 291st ranked Safiloa. The journey is far from over, but for one cold night in Krasnograd, the flames of the Phoenixes burned brightly, and you never know, once the fire has been stoked, maybe they can take the momentum moving forward.

[Vaishnavaria]

Alecsander Komich scores 2 as Vaishnavaria ties Adab 2-2

Roddens City

The Kytler Peninsulae





A Brilliant game by the Vaishnavarian Tigers that unfortunately resulted in a tie just took place against the #70 ranked struggle qualifying Adabians led by a old Adabian Premier League player like Gahand named Saad Kaykali. The Adabians were old yet experienced and showed incredible prowess on the pitch. The Midfielders played extremely well but the Vaishnavarian Defenders played disappointing. It was an offensive shootout with ALecsander Komich playing as incredible as he did in his Hat trick verses Yakk.






The first part of the first half was a defensive grindstone like the way the Game should be played. the Vaishnavarian unusual 2-4-4 opening position was confusing the seasoned and experienced veterans of the Adabian National Football team and they failed to get any sort of attack going. Zakaraya Kar and Nahari Jain immediately put the Adabians on the back foot playing brilliant passes. Alecsander Komich was awing everyone with his incredible finesse and skill showcasing incredible athleticism and basic football skill mastery. They had 2 chances that should have gone in but was fumbled away by Nathaniel Grant. One was when Komich had managed to expertly cause enough trouble that the defenders were pushed up out of the box. Komich timed it perfectly as one defender slowly dropped back to cover the box, timing it so he was not offside. Jain played a Brilliant first touch but got off a bad shot that tonked off the goalpost. The second chance was when Jain had burnt his man and Nik Rosario played a fast and good pass to him but Jain struggled again on his shot putting it in the keepers Zone where he easily grabbed it.



They got their first goal off the brilliance of Alecsander Komich. Fred Belfast had managed to rip possession from a Adabian attacker and played it deep to Zakaraya Kar at midfield. Kar

[Grand Exultia]

Well can you believe it? The Grand Exultians, buzzing after their Baptism of Fire success, have continued that winning habit in fine form.

Going into the first matchday against the Christian Brothers, a game in which many might have expected Grand Exultia to win, facing off against an unranked team but on their soil so never an easy venture but a 4-2 victory underlines the strength of Exultious attacking football. Still some questions to be asked of our defence as another game without a clean sheet would suggest a weakness that Apollinaris keeps overlooking. A high intensity first half saw action at both ends of the pitch with some clinical finishing from both sides, first blood drawn by the Exultians after a run down the wing from Gillyflower saw them run out of room, jinking back and forth trying to create a gap that just didn’t materialise, forcing an attempt at a cross that deflected out for a corner. The resulting corner whipped in by the right winger and was met by a thumping header from Steiner who fired the ball into the top right corner having leapt above the defenders. An almost instant response from the Christian Brothers players saw the score levelled after some less than acceptable defending from Daskruger permitted a two on one and as Elenion came out to close the angle a simple pass across the box allowed a simple tap into the empty net. More forward pressure from the Exultians saw a few close chances, Vielener skimming the bar and Brambleberry not quite getting enough curl on the effort to trouble the Christian Brothers keeper. As the Exultians pushed forward anticipating their second goal a quick counterattack from Christian Brothers saw Thoth-Manon out of position, too far up the field, and a darting run and delicious lofted effort over the ensuing Elenion saw the Exultians 2-1 down. Stoic as ever Apollinaris, with a few words of encouragement but no movement to change anything, was vindicated as the Zerynthian double, Duskstriker and Hazeeye, moved the ball forward effortlessly with some exquisite one touch passing round the near standstill Christian Brothers midfield then defence and just before the stroke of half time levelled the game once again with a simple finish into the bottom corner out of reach of the Christian Brothers keeper.

An improved second half was needed and Apollinaris must have made one emotional speech as the players came out with a fire in their bellies. A couple of heavy challenges did see a couple of the Exultians pick up yellows but this did give the Christian Brothers players something to think about and with the momentum now a long ball from Steiner brought down by Vielener whilst holding off the defender allowed Starkzahn to fly down the left wing closing in on the keeper before faking an effort to the near post and dribbling the ball round the keeper and running it into the goal for a 3-2 lead. The Exultian play kept up the intensity and but for the Christian Brothers keeper making some extraordinary saves including a quick double save to stop Vielener putting the game out of reach. As the game drew to a close, a couple of substitutes from Apollinaris saw the carded Duskstriker and Steiner replaced by Greenfeather and Haldia respectively, and it was the change in the middle that helped put the final nail in the coffin as Haldia dispossessed the Christian Brothers midfielder moved the ball forward with a grace unseen on the pitch as of late and just breezed past two challenges, as if the players where made of cardboard and just set in position on the field, before playing a perfectly weighted pass to Brambleberry who slotted the ball into the net in one of their more simpler finishes.

An overall good demonstration from the Exultious players as to what they are capable of and how deadly they can be in front of goal and finally a squad that actually makes sense with no clubs from the relegation zone represented except for the talented Starkzahn.

The squad rolled into a much tougher, on paper, match day 2 facing up against Aleirave who are ranked 33 and who must have been thinking they had a good chance to capitalise on an early fixture but clearly the Exultious players have been trained hard under Apollinaris and have cone together as a team well over the last few weeks and that home advantage cannot be overlooked as we saw the Gyrinxes run out 3-2 victors in a closer fought game that once again demonstrated attacking prowess and is starting to highlight defensive concerns.

As always the young team starts spryly with aggressive   energetic football covering lots of the pitch and looking to punish languid defenders and so they did as the raucous crowd lifted the players to find that extra gear. An early breakthrough for the Exultians saw a cross from Starkzahn fired in low from the left only for TESUNA’E to hook it clear straight to Hazeeye who brought the ball down with their chest and on the volley rifled in an unstoppable effort right into the stanchion, wheeling away to celebrate his first national team goal with the Exultious fans, and what an effort is was a 30 yard volley. The first half had little of note as neither side could quite find that killer pass in the final third.

The first time in qualifiers that the Exultious team has been leading at half time and against such a strong team nobody could believe what was happening but that feeling didn’t last long as the Aleiravans came back strong and a quickfire double from HO’UMINALU would see the Exultians trailing, a scoreline that would better reflect the two sides standings. A tactical substitution sees Grosslaufer come off for Syllis, now with three at the back and only two in midfield the pressure would be on the trio of strikers to press hard and cover a lot of ground, which to their credit they did, Brambleberry very much leading from the front did not stop running for a moment and it would pay off half way through the second half as Brambleberry would track back intercepting a surprisingly slack pass from FUSERAKA and turn distributing the ball out wide to Starkzahn who first time, probably because their legs couldn’t carry them anymore, fired crossfield to the recently brought on Torres who controlled and floated the ball forward to the far post finding the head of Vielener who all thought would try and bury the effort but instead gently nodded down for Brambleberry to hit on the half volley from just 12 yards out, 2-2 and the Exultious fans are ecstatic. The game drawing into the final moments, play ebbing and flowing as both teams looked to secure a winner and finally a stroke of luck as Vielener slowly coming back from an attack is left in an offside position by the defence but LEHI’ONA hadn’t noticed the slow moving giant as he looked to roll the ball back to their keeper, a race to the ball between Vielener and RUKIPIATO saw Vielener use all their height and reach to get their big toe to the ball a second before RUKIPIATO who had no option but take put Vielener and penalty! A yellow to RUKIPIATO and Starkzahn steps up to take the kick, a tired looking set and steps back, a deep breath and as if by magic energy flows through them as they stride forward powering the ball to the top right, RUKIPIATO guesses right but just can’t quite keep the ball out. For the rest of the game the Exultians would camp in their own half and launch the ball in any direction that wasn’t goal bound.

Another victory and Exultians are definitely getting ahead of themselves thinking they can win it all, but for now that winning Magazine feeling does taste sweet and the team has been playing so very well and it is an exciting time to be looking forward to the remainder of the group games.

 

Report by Patsy Orchinaoff for the Independent Football

 

[Omerica]

.

[Squornshelan Remnant States]

all salt purely in character, all jabs meant in love

The Black-and-Reds have had one of the busiest pre-qualifying workloads in their history as Madeiros works the team into shape and assesses the players available for callup this cycle, all aimed at the goal of defending the coveted title the SRS currently holds. Rather than a random smattering of sides wanting to test themselves against the reigning champions of both Arrosia and the multiverse at large though, this time the SCFA announced a friendly series with a distinct theme. The team would revisit several old opponents from the nations days as a footballing independent, some of whom still compete in the IAC to this day, others of which have, like the Confederacy itself, moved on to new things in new places. Black-and-Reds would, then, meet with Red Panjias, Jaguars, Kick Corps, Licornes, Attacanti, and Seleção in a grand tour of Poafmersia, TJUN-ia, Drawkland, Reçueçn, Juvencus, and HUElavia before ending things off back at home with a second match against the HUElavians at home. The final two matches would of course pit Independent and Arrosian champions against one another, as well as Cup of Harmony and World Cup holders to compete for the unsanctioned, but very shiny Multiversal Super Cup.

The trip started out just about as well as the Black-and-Reds could have hoped for in Libira, at National Stadium in Poafmersia. The Black-and-Reds got out to an early lead thanks to a pair of goals from Minakshi Kriz, who is finally starting to get some attention from Madeiros after years spent terrorizing defenders in Tikariot. With the lead even more comfortable by the half following a goal from Aaltonen, Madeiros cycled through team depth in the second half, giving a few younger, less-capped players opportunities to perform. He was rewarded by Aodhan and Raynott in particular, but got excellent play across the lineup as Sotelo kept the score sheet unblemished at the Squornshelan end with a little help from the back line. You had to feel for Malloye by the end of things, as the Attawapiskat backstop was visibly frustrated with the consistent quality of shots allowed by his back line. Poafmersia were, though, the lowest ranked of the opponents on this tour, at 67th in the new World Rankings, er, that's the World Rankings, which are new, not the New World Rankings, or were they the KPB+ rankings? Whatever they're called, we can agree that they are, in any case, the Official Rankings, and that fifth is quite a long way from sixty-seventh no matter what the system is named.

The next stop would present a much sterner test for the team, fellow former independents TJUN-ia, now happily resident in Esportiva alongside our own former neighbors, Hapilopper, among others. The 22nd-ranked Jaguars were certainly not going to just roll out the welcome mat because a top team were coming into town. Both Madeiros and Seems opting for their first team, a tight match was in the offing. After all, this very Black-and-Reds roster proved just a cycle ago that teams as far down as the thirties can challenge for World Cup glory. In TJUN-ia they must certainly be thinking, why not us next? And it was the hosts who would strike first, weathering the constant pressure of the Squornshelan attack through a scoreless first half. It was Sharafutdinov who threaded the defense onto the end of a well-timed ball from Carlton and beat Bláha for the opener. As happens so often though with such narrow leads, things fell apart, the center could not hold, and Thakkar and Sargsa came off the bench to attack the middle of the TJUN-ian defense with a one-two punch of youthful energy and savvy know-how.

Up next was Drawkland, multiple-time champions of the IAC and considered a drawk horse for deep World Cup runs or among the favorites at the Cup of Harmony in fairly recent memory. It's fair to say though that while the Elite Eleven may live forever, Drawkian football has not proven quite so timeless. Still, it's not totally grim. Climbing up out of 45th isn't the dire upward slog it used to be before the expanded World Cup format. Wells is going to have to teach the Kick Corps to play defense before she can make much progress on that though. They say familiarity breeds contempt, but you'd think Sevet-Ibilx and Ksudach might've had a little more regard for their club teammate Arrowsword. Knocking seven past a team is just plain rude. And yes, the Drawkians were able to play for a bit of pride, Cross picking up a brace and Butler adding a third coming off the bench, but this certainly won't be a performance any of them will want to remember. As for the Black-and-Reds, the match presented another opportunity for the new blood to get their names on the score sheet, with Emry Heltain finding the back of the net, and Jere Kademaki of all people adding the seventh from a corner kick. Not sure whether Madeiros's tactics or the youngster's exuberance is more to blame for why a fullback was that far forward in the dying minutes of a 6-3 match.

Maybe it was overconfidence from that wild match in Sadeg, or just plain fatigue from the marathon tour, but it was about then when the team's form took a turn for the ugly. They headed to Reçueçn, home of what was at one time one of the more disappointing losses in the history of the SRS, falling to HUElavia in the semifinal of the eighth Independent Associations Championship en route to a consolation victory over Drawkland in the third place match. The other team in that semifinal picture were, of course, the hosts and eventual champions of that tournament, Reçueçn, who bucked IAC tradition by winning the tournament in the same cycle they hosted, rather than the cycle before. The match against les licornes was likely envisioned as something of a warmup for the difficult stretch of the final three friendlies heading into qualifying, as they would be the second-lowest ranked opposition during the tour. Either no one shared that part of the plan with Heissler's side, or they did and the Reçueçians took offense. Their first team came out ferociously against a mixed bag of starters and hopefuls in black and red. The result was an uncharacteristically back-footed match from the Squornshelans, taking until late in the second half to tally their first goal, and it took a real screamer from Arenz to beat Firaut, such was the Reçueçian keeper's form that afternoon.

The attacking struggles continued even as the first eleven reunited for a proper challenge: facing the multiverse's eleventh-ranked side in front of over 100,000 screaming supporters in Pomena. It was a date no doubt circled in red on calendars from Arrosia to Sonnel and quite a few places in between as Madeiros brought his championship side into his old home ground. Well, gli attacanti certainly brought their A-game. Pity the Black-and-Reds looked as if they were expecting a victory parade rather than a football match. They conceded almost right away, Bevilacqua slashing in from the side and showing off the sharp finish that's seen him carve out a place for himself in the multiverse's finest league. They attempted to regroup, keeping the ball, pushing numbers forward, generating dangerous pressure and forcing Ungaro to fend off a few shots over the next ten minutes. Then promptly gave the ball away somehow with both fullbacks on the wrong side of the play, leaving Van to try to take the ball away from all three Juven attackers by herself, to predictable result; Soares on the finish this time. It was a frustrating evening for the few Squornshelans in attendance, as the side, while able to get their share of possession and then some, never made the most of it. Skied shots, scuffed crosses, just plain bad passes far too easily intercepted. The most troubling thing was the lack of significant improvement after halftime. The team continued to misfire, and the sense when Alfonso gave the hosts a third coming off the bench was really more resignation than fury. The home crowd, of course, were jubilant, and serenaded Squornshelan supporters and players alike as they made their way out of the stadium after full time.

The effort was, maddeningly, little better when the team arrived in Curumba. Yes there were chances, but not of the quality and danger level that we're accustomed to a Madeiros-led team producing, and certainly a team that has shown as much will and ability to win, as much clutch know how lately as anyone anywhere, should not be shut out for over 180 consecutive minutes of football! A free kick conceded by Tirel and a misplayed close-down by Tutku proved all the difference HUElavia needed. Not to say the defense played poorly, they were under pressure far more than accustomed to, and Madeiros was managing the team's workload a bit by that point, perhaps regretting taking on such a congested slate of fixtures so near the beginning of their title defense. In any case, the feel of home soil beneath their feet certainly seemed to do the team some good, playing in front of nearly 65,000 who packed the gleaming new stands of the arena in Striterax, freshly redone for the Knights return to the top tier this season. Starovoitov was the man of the evening, taking flight over top of his marker to get on the end of Raynott's pass (Madeiros again leaning on his team's depth), and added a second shortly after the restart, this time with a wicked curler. Having erased the deficit from the first leg, the Black-and-Reds looked reinvigorated, holding and keeping possession, pressing forward again with fresh legs. Salovaara stretched the defensive line out, freeing up space for Detkov to find Tatsinan for the goal giving the Black-and-Reds the aggregate lead. Hell of a comeback story after the previous two matches. And yeah, it didn't last; Kim's last-minute tally gave the HUElavians the dish on away goals (c'mon though, even the IFCF doesn't use that rule anymore). I didn't catch the award ceremony though, had two World Cups in front of my eyes.

So what did we learn from this friendly tour? The team is pretty damn good, pretty damn deep, but far from unbeatable. Madeiros, in his presser after the second leg against HUElavia, described it in positive terms, and alluded to planning further matches against teams the SRS has history with to take place after qualifying. As regards the team, being able to lean on such a large stable of world-class talent is a luxury, and one Madeiros already doesn't appear shy about using, with over 30 different players seeing at least some of the field during the tour. Still, good teams can still give them trouble, and while they won't face any teams ranked so high as HUElavia, Juvencus, or TJUN-ia during qualifying, Audioslavian anti-football can put anyone off their gameplan. The other problem about being the guy, as the team found out in a few of their stops, is that you always get everyone else's absolute best. No one's going to be taken by surprise by this Squornshelan side the way a few were last cycle. If they're going to defend, and certainly they can, they'll have to do it honestly this time.

And after all that, it was time to actually play World Cup football, though fortunately for the team's mounting jet lag, no major travel was required this time, as The Koorenite Constellation and Xanneria would pay visits to the Confederacy to start things off. We'll catch you up with all that action after we collect add revenue from *checks notes* Nissegløgg? I thought the holidays were over. Ah well, roll the ads and we'll be back in a bit.

Qualifying Schedule and Resutls:

FRND: PFA 0–5 SRS @ Libira National Stadium, Libira, PFA
FRND: TJU 1–2 SRS @ National Stadium, TJUN-ia City, TJU
FRND: DRK 3–7 SRS @ Spartan Veteran Stadium, Sadeg, DRK
FRND: RCN 0–1 SRS @ Stade National, Reçueçn City, RCN
FRND: JUE 3–0 SRS @ Il Nuovo Stadio Olimpioco della Pomena, Pomena, JUE
FRND: HUE 2–0 SRS @ Estadio Nacional, Curumba, HUE
FRND: SRS 3–1 HUE @ Striterax Cybernetic Arena, Striterax, Isle of Squornshelous, SRS
 
MD01: SRS 5–4 TKC @ Castle Street, Jaglan, Algolia, SRS
MD02: SRS 4–2 XAN @ Chernov Stadium, Viltvodle, Megabrantis, SRS
MD03: HMM  v  SRS @ Phitsomlong National Stadium, Chonlapur, Viengxay, HMM
MD04: SRS  v  BOS @ Synesoft Arena, Syneca, Sivolvia, SRS
MD05: VET  v   SRS @ Instrum Arena, Oxelövik, Feldrland, VET
MD06: SRS  v  AUD @ Albrechtsson Park, Damogran, Algolia, SRS
MD07: LGL  v  SRS @ National Stadium, Central Junction, LGL
MD08: TKC v  SRS @ Cang Prathoren, TKC
MD09: XAN  v  SRS @ TBA
MD10: SRS  v  HMM @ New Rudlit Arena, Rudlit, West Flania, SRS
MD11: BOS  v  SRS @ [stadium here], Newfort, BOS
MD12: SRS  v  VET @ Green Heart Center, Han Wavel, Han Dold, SRS
MD13: AUD  v  SRS @ Likely a bog, or other such place antithetical to playing actual football
MD14: SRS  v  LGL @ Smolak Systemy Stadion, Sjerezo, Molvania, SRS

[Kimi-Suomi]

The Huuhkajat of Kimi-Suomi are a Top 100 ranked team, managed by Esko Laaksonen and captained by Remu Jantunen and Karl Leif Svonsson in a joint capacity. We enter this campaign, WC98 Qualifying, looking to improve on the mistake of the past and try to get to the Playoffs again. Maybe more than that, if we are lucky. But we were drawn a crap hand, against Chromatika and World #2 Tumbra, and so expectations were pretty low entering this cycle. Once upon a time, we were underdogs that played for the thrill of the game...can we recapture that spark.

Kimi-Suomi 1-0 Darmen
Pesä was tense, but packed for the opening game of the campaign against #54 Darmen - team who certainly liked to attack when they could, but also knew to defend well if under pressure. Our more balanced approach to the game, a system Esko has been running since we entered our first World Cup, came in handy here as we pushed forward when possible and tried to get past one Ildefonso Daube. That's not to say Alexander Ekdal wasn't busy, he had his own trouble blocking Toger Woodward and his abilities, but Daube seemed like the one with the most pressure...and that finally caught up with him in the 68th, a fine pass by Jantunen finding Anne Marie Leppälä who made no mistake. That was all we needed to get the first three points of the campaign...not bad start, eh?

Hispinas 1-1 Kimi-Suomi
Game 2, first road game of the campaign, up against Hispinas and in this battle between Pots 5 and 6, everything was actually pretty tight. Both teams, quite similar tactically, produced a stalemate only broken twice - by Jason Jenner-Pokka in the 1st half and Arcelia Solorzano Mantilla in the 2nd. It was a fairly even crunch, so a 1-1 seemed fair. That means we end Part 1/7 on 4 points...not too shabby at all!

Things are expected to be much tougher in the next split, with Chromatika making the trip to Lumikukkulat before we head to Yamal to face Bir Matras. Things are certainly rosey to start...but how far can we keep this up? NOSTA KUIN HUUHKAJAT!

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SCHEDULE/AJOITTAA (Group 4)
MD1: vs Darmen (54) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki W 1-0 (T-2nd)
MD2: @Hispinas (142) D 1-1 (3rd)
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MD3: vs Chromatika (32) - Galaktien Colosseum [Colosseum of the Galaxies], Lumikukkulat
MD4: @Bir Matras (UR) - Yamal Community stadium, Yamal(?)
---------
MD5: vs Kronbinen [Kronbia] (82) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki
MD6: vs Tumbra (2) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki
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MD7: @Marsin Itsenäinen Tasavalta [Martian Independent Republic] (177)
MD8: @Darmen (54) - Northumberland Stadium, Oldtown
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MD9: vs Hispinas (142) - Galaktien Colosseum [Colosseum of the Galaxies], Lumikukkulat
MD10: @Chromatika (32) - RCK Field, Alnio
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MD11: vs Bir Matras (UR) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki
MD12: @Kronbinen [Kronbia] (82) - Estadio Cerro del Sol, Ciudad de Halcon
---------
MD13: @Tumbra (2) - Bencoolen City Stadium, Bencoolen
MD14: vs Marsin Itsenäinen Tasavalta [Martian Independent Republic] (177) - Galaktien Colosseum [Colosseum of the Galaxies], Lumikukkulat

[Damukuni]

Namagoro
DAX presents Damukuni: A Travelogue

Overview

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Namagoro is the state capital of Namagoro, and the seat of Namagoro County. While it is Damukuni's most populous single city, the West Bay-Youngstown-Green Grove and Shinzoba-Nasutani statistical metropolitan areas contain more residents in total. The city is situated at the foot of Mount Ogaichi in the Western Mountain range of the Damukunian mainland; the mountain range stretches from Atarashii-Damushuto in the southeast and defines part of the state border between Desert Province and Reishu Circuit. It is also home to the nation's only dedicated baseball stadium, on the campus of the University of Namagoro.

The Feudality of Namagoro was created in 1200 AD. Its imperial vassals were the powerful Takeuchi family from 1200 to 1363, the Ueshigi family from 1363 to 1714, and the Minami family from 1714 to 2014. Under the Takeuchi family, much of the city of Namagoro was built and fortified for use as a protective city against attacks from other manors and feudal states in the Imperial era. In 1363, Takeuchi Yoshinobu, the last lord of that dynasty, was poisoned by his captain of the guard, Ueshigi Koichi, who centralized power into a repressive dictatorship, which he ruled by decree and paid off the Holy Emperor to keep his mouth shut. In 1714, Emperor Sachiki refused to accept this "tribute" to keep the people of Namagoro under the cruel thumb of the Ueshigi dynasty, and besieged the city of Namagoro for nearly an entire month. Ueshigi Otobe, the lord of the manor, surrendered and was tried and executed for crimes against humanity by an Imperial tribunal. The Minami family was then installed in place as a loyalist to the Emperor. Under the Minami dynasty, the city and land flourished and the family afforded the people a limited level of personal freedom.

After the January 31 Revolution, as Damukuni was federalized, the land of Namagoro became the first state to ratify the Shinagawa Constitution of 2015. Namagoro has since enjoyed a lofty place as the cultural capital of the country, with many traditional practices, foods, and customs from the feudal-imperial era well preserved.

Damukuni 3, Busoga Islands 0 (T-2nd, 3 pts, +3 GD)
Namagoro Cricket Complex, Namagoro, NG, Damukuni
DKI: Sugimoto 34 - Kynaston 45 51.
BSG: -

Damukuni 0, Siovanija & Teusland 3 (T-4th, 3 pts, 0 GD)
Namagoro Cricket Complex, Namagoro, NG, Damukuni
DKI: -
SIO: Korlikov 12 47 - Burger 60.

[Eastfield Lodge]

The Lodger

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Sport >>> Football >>> World Cup 98

Eastfield Lodge kick off qualifying in style

Eastfield Lodge line-up

GK: Amin Horak
CB: Jazzmine Guillou
CB: Zakaria Webber (<> Nino Duncan-Berntsen 80’)
RB: Keyshawn Strong
LB: Sadid St Cleer
DMF: Harun Farrow
DMF: Vonn Cope (<> Emmie Toure 80’)
RMF: Boet Caceres (<> Lalo Allred 80’)
LMF: Monique Fredrich
AMF: Paisley Lysander (<> Daisi Hackett 73’)
ST: Fidelina Noble (<> Ramsey Dean-Jamal 73’)

Mertagne line-up

GK: Saif Dedec
CB: Conwal Ibarborde
CB: Aato Irizarri
RB: Dominic Moko (<> Emone Rockas 78’)
LB: Karon Murell
CMF: Jordan Will (<> Stacy Tompkins 68’)
CMF: Aislin Du Moucel
RMF: Amy Quennell (<> Charlotte Callan 58’)
LMF: Stewart Bickley
ST: Trebuchet (<> Nazer Armenadriz 68’)
ST: Burro Curwood (<> Ian Virpike 78’)

World Cup 98 Qualifying Group 2 Matchday 1
Eastfield Lodge 2–1 Mertagne
Noble (11’, 47’); Bickley (78’)

60% - Possession - 40%
19 - Shots - 13
11 - Shots on Target - 7
6 - Corners - 6
8 - Fouls - 7

Location: Lodger City Memorial Stadium, New Lodger City, Eastfield Lodge
Attendance: 148,103

Corinne Mersiades’ first qualifying campaign in charge of the Imperial Commonwealth starts with a major statement victory, holding off a late comeback to secure three points against the group’s top seeds Mertagne.

There were many questions from the match-going fans in New Lodger City, such as how the squad would line-up to open the qualifying campaign, and exactly how the return to 4-2-3-1 would look in this side. Nonetheless the squad came out exactly as predicted with the strongest line-up from the called up squad, with Mertagne also doing the same. Mertagne never travelled to Eastfield Lodge in the finals of the last World Cup, spending their group stage and the Round of 32 in Pasarga, but it was a near capacity crowd in the Memorial Stadium that came out to witness history.

All thoughts of a tight cagey match were quickly cast aside early, as the hosts came firing out of the gate with Paisley Lysander testing the gloves of Saif Dedec from distance within the first couple of minutes before Boet Caceres fired a low shot across the face of goal. The visitors also came close in the first ten minutes, captain Burro Curwood getting on the end of a deep cross to head the ball straight at Amin Horak. The opening goal came shortly after, and it went the way of the hosts, Olympia FC striker Fideline Noble breaking the deadlock with a well placed daisy cutter from the edge of the box, courtesy of Monique Fredrich’s bombing run down the left before she pulled it back to her club mate. The hosts nearly doubled their lead a few minutes later from a corner, Caceres’s delivery almost turned in by an inadvertent header from Aato Irizarri onto his own crossbar.

The rest of the first half saw the visitors take more control of the play, trying to slow the match down and build a chance for an equaliser - ironically though, their first close chance to equalise was on a counter-attack as Curwood got onto the end of a long clearance and ran down Horak 1-on-1. His shot however could only find the legs of the Wasps keeper. Trebuchet, who had been relatively quiet for the first half hour, also popped up with a golden opportunity as he crashed a diving header against the post with Horak beaten. The Imperial Commonwealth did however have a slate of opportunities themselves as the game approached half time, with a Caceres free kick forcing a top corner save from Dedec before Noble nearly grabbed a second goal herself with a first time shot on the end of a through ball, firing into the side netting.

Noble quickly made up for her miss at the end of the first half with a spectacular finish at the start of the second, capitalising on a short backpass from Conwal Ibarborde to chip Dedec from 25 yards. At 2-0, the match started to look like it was going one way, with Mertagne struggling to make their periods of possession and chances count. Noble couldn’t quite secure her hat-trick before coming off, her best chance coming around the hour mark where she just missed a low cross from Caceres across the face of goal, whilst Lysander also hit the post a few minutes later with a whipped effort from the corner of the box. At the other end, the visitors' best chance in the first twenty minutes of the half was from a free kick that Jordan Will fired onto the top of the crossbar.

Mertagne’s breakthrough came towards the end of the match and it was largely against the run of play, with Stewart Bickley dispossessing Keyshawn Strong on the wing and fashioning the chance through a one two pass with substitute Nazer Armenadriz, playing around Zakaria Webber and tucking the shot beneath Amin Horak. The match did start to slow down afterwards, the hosts keeping the ball as much as possible to run down the clock in the last ten minutes of the match, before the final whistle blew to confirm Eastfield Lodge’s first ever victory over Mertagne in World Cup competition, and a big win in the grand scheme of qualifying for the World Cup finals for a first consecutive time. And with a match against lowly-ranked Olastor coming up in a few days, this will bolster the morale of both the fans and players going forwards.

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WC98Q MD2: Eastfield Lodge 5–0 Olastor
Line-up (4-2-3-1): Horak - Webber, Guillou, Strong (<> Kirkup 75’), St Cleer - Farrow (<> Mordecai 65’), Cope - Caceres, Fredrich (<> Ashby 75’), Lysander (<> Gebo-McCraw 65’) - Noble (<> Holdsworth 65’)
Goals (Assists): Noble (21’ - Lysander), Lysander (37’ - Caceres, 64’), Webber (43’ - Caceres), Own goal (80’ - Holdsworth)
[u]Headline: Five-star performance as Eastfield Lodge demolish Olastian dreams

Likely line-up to play United States of Nova Calania/Natanians and Nosts (4-2-3-1)
Horak - Webber, Guillou, Strong, St Cleer - Farrow, Cope - Caceres, Fredrich, Lysander - Noble
Suspended: N/A
Injured: N/A

[Vdara]

Cooking

Opening up the group against the group’s top and third seeds was statistically the hardest opening that Vdara could have had to the qualifiers - and yet, they had managed two wins from two. With the small group sizes, this meant that Vdara had already played and won 14.2% of their games in this group. A not insignificant sum, that is sure. However, 14.2% is still quite low. If you got 14.2% on an exam, you may as well call it a day. If your drink's ABV is 14.2%, however, you may find yourself on the floor after a few of them. In the context of a World Cup Qualifiers group stage, two wins is nothing. But for now, it's quite literally everything, as only these two fixtures have been played.

Home Team Dressing Room
VdarArena
(15 minutes after the full time whistle)

As usual, the players dawdled about whilst Markos did his usual: pace around the hallway, jump around a bit, and comb his hair. Once his moments of madness were done, the players could enjoy another good-natured rant from the rantmeister himself. Frankly, they had gone far too long without a rant from Markos, and it was time to get reaccustomed - which would happen quite quickly, as the door slammed open.

"Yes lads! Yes lasses! That's what we love to see! That's the sort of stuff that wins you group stages, the free-flowing stuff, the prolific stuff, the stuff that makes you repeat yourself in awe. Oh, I just love it! Why can't yous be like this every week? We'd be champions by now! But mark my words, we will be... well, after yous sort yourselves out. As a team, we have to strive for perfection, and as much as I can excuse yous missing the odd chance or two, I'd really like yous to pull the finger out and start scoring more goals. I mean, Sophia's bagged three on her own in the past two games, but you can't just rely on her to pull yous forward. At some stage, you will all have to step up for both the team and your very own moment of glory, and that may come very soon. When that comes, you fucking take it, or you may find yourself with your arse perched upon a seat on the sub's bench. Either way, I'll keep this rant brief - the FA fucked up our flight bookings and we leave in 2 hours. Pack your shit and leave."

The players, having enjoyed their victory, boarded their Vdaran Airways flight to Kamijiro and enjoyed the live-streamed broadcast of the 2025 World Darts Championship through Vdaran's in-flight entertainment system. With all the Vdaran participants eliminated in the second round or earlier, there was very little ardent support for either finalist, but in the end it was Callan Rydz who took the win.

Disembarking at Kamijiro's largest airport, Markos had very little to say about the final, instead choosing to diss those who watched it.

"I don't know why any of you watch that pish. It reflects poorly, watching pot-bellied 'athletes' participate in their sorry excuse of a sport while a drunken, disorderly, and jingoistic crowd jeers them throughout. If you take any inspiration from that, you'll be dropped for the next game."

"Oh, lighten up, Markos. Don't you have a guilty pleasure of your own?"

"Well, yes, but my guilty pleasures are both far more guilty and none of your fucking business."

"Go on, spill the beans. You know you want to."

"Tell you what, you cheeky sod. I'll tell you all my worldly desires if we win every game in the group, qualify for the knockouts, and then win more than two games. How does that sound?"

"Gaffer, you know we've never done that before!"

Markos smirked.

"Then get to a level where you can, fannybaws."

[Drawkland]

These are the venues for Drawkland's World Cup 98 Qualifying home games.

Thought we wouldn't do it this time? Wrong! The qualifying tour is back in Drawkland. Rather than limiting all the national team action to one or two cities in the nation's central cluster, DISC has once again elected to spread the fun across the huge nation of Drawkland. With 7 home qualifying games (haha, seven), the Kick Corps will get to play in a lovely assortment of venues this time around, including a couple cities they haven't been to in many cycles.

With the creation of The Outbox League (patent pending), a foursome of venues were intentionally selected. The four teams participating in this multi-national domestic league, the Drawk Corps, Jaffro Storm, Pittsennat Reds, and Sadeg Strikers, are all hosting the Kick Corps in their home stadiums for this cycle.

As usual, the larger stadiums and those in bigger cities with more significant soccer fanbases get preferential treatment in match scheduling. The "traditional" home venues of Drawk City Stadium and Spartan Veteran Stadium get the home opener and home closer, of course. Unfortunately for Raikennax fans, this will be the first cycle since WC94 that the qualifying tour will not have a feature a home game at Castle Stadium. Fans of all teams in Group 12 are welcome! We hope you enjoy your stay, except for the part where your team loses (please).

WC98 Qualifying Home Schedule
Matchday, Opponent, Stadium Name, Capacity, City
Kick Corps record at stadium (plus a nickname if one exists)
Fun fact about venue

MD2 vs Kelssek: Drawk City Stadium (175,000), Drawk City
Kick Corps record at the de facto national soccer stadium: 44-16-8
Drawk City Stadium has still hosted the most Kick Corps games, thanks to the several cycles without a tour where every home game was held here.

MD4 vs Lisander: Corps Central Pitch (105,500), Drawk City
Kick Corps record at Drawk Corps' home ground: 7-7-3
Yes, the Kick Corps and Drawk Corps are different. This is only the second time the Kick Corps will be playing a qualifying game here.
A majority of the 17 matches played here by the national team were early friendlies or Seven Nations Cup matches.

MD7 vs Damukuni: Metal Mills Park (103,350), Pittsennat
Kick Corps record at the home of the Reds: 1-0-0
The only Kick Corps game played in Pittsennat was a 2-0 victory against Saint Eleanor on MD9 of World Cup 90 qualifiers.

MD8 vs Siovanija and Teusland: Kanyo Pitch (164,000), Kayo
Kick Corps record at the Crown Ring: 7-2-3
Going into last cycle, the Kick Corps was 5-0-0 with 14 goals scored to just 3 allowed in their last five matches played there.
They proceeded to lose to HUElavia 2-4 last qualifiers.

MD10 vs Jeckland: Thunder Park (105,500), Jaffro
Kick Corps record in the Eye of the Storm: 3-0-0
Home of Cam Cross in the domestic season, the Kick Corps has won all three of their qualifying matches held in Jaffro, each by 1-goal margins.

MD12 vs United Hawkland: National Pitch (149,000), Metropolon
Kick Corps record in NatPitch: 6-2-2
Raikennax fans, seethe. It looks like Metropolon doesn't have to break their qualifying matches hosted streak.
Maybe the 3-1 victory in Metropolon compared to the 1-4 loss in Raikennax last qualifying played into that decision.

MD13 vs Busoga Islands: Spartan Veteran Stadium (107,500), Sadeg
Kick Corps record at the Vet: 36-12-13
The last time the Kick Corps played here was a friendly prior to this qualifying cycle, where they lost 3-7 to Squornshelan Remnant States.
Let's wash the bad taste out this time, eh ladies?

If you want more details about any of these venues, let me know and I'll be glad to provide them.

[Saint Eleanor]

Group of Six meeting (XLIII) --- Patriotlandia 0-6 SAINT ELEANOR
Participants: Gentle Breeze, Reniira Clevinger, Stephen Mitcham ~ Bridget Coombe [C], Cathy Winchester [VC], Arielle Richardson [ballot]
Location: Premium Coffee; Deepchester district, Saint Eleanor city, EXT

MAJOR MATCH EVENTS: Coombe 56; Ovsyannikov 24, Vdovichenko 68. Nobody got themselves into hot water or made themselves look silly, so well done everyone.


LESSONS LEARNED: "That was pretty fucking brutal, wasn't it?" (~ Arielle). The general consensus was that there were actually no lessons to learn, except perhaps keeping calm and carrying on: "this was as close as we've ever been to perfection" (~ Cathy), "a couple dozen more of these, please" (~ Reniira).


RECOMMENDATIONS: 4-2-3-1 is, at this point, one of our trademarks - it's worked incredibly well for us, despite all the turnover. "I'd say our wide talent did pretty well at blocking off the Patriots; without that, and all the swamping in the centre, they were nowhere" (~ Stephen). We agreed that no changes would be made either to strategy or lineup ahead of the next game against Dheximia, injury excepting; given Dheximia's usual 3-1-4-2 lineup, however, we've agreed to encourage the three central midfielders to be as flexible as possible and the four wide players to hold fast to their usual positions (except when cutting inside is objectively necessary).


MOVING FORWARD: No changes will be made ahead of the Dhemixia game, after which Cathy will be taking notes. As a reminder: Richardson; Winchester, Vickers, Launceston, Curran; Coombe, Matsuda; Lawson, Felaraneta, Northend; Woodward.

~GB

Naclé Öhân: "Everybody on the team cares at least somewhat for reading"
Chief Football Correspondent Jamie Rodgers tries, with relatively great success, to understand the first of Saint Eleanor's three new callups
Originally published on Thursday 31st January 2013

When it comes to iconic Eleanorian wide midfielders, Naclé Öhân might not be the first name you think of. "I'm probably the youngest name the scouts had in mind, though - I've won a couple of things and people think I'm good, so in I've gone."

Öhân, being of Rulandese descent as he is, had an almost-immediate grasp of Terranean. "I was quite a way ahead of my peers in those regards, shall we say? Thankfully, I didn't take my schoolwork too seriously; I don't think anyone wants you out of a job." He insists that his favourite subject was "having needless debates with teachers about just about anything that comes to mind. If you want an actual subject name, definitely chemistry. Yes, fire is definitely a lot of fun, although I'm not as fond of it as some of my compatriots." Despite attending the University College, "I had no pressure to go to university - they knew I was good at football and acted accordingly, which is great because I got to live my passion and, so far as I can tell, everyone's always looking for someone. As I said, worked for the scouts."

The highlight of Öhân's early career is undoubtedly his part in Uni Coll's 2005 Charles Trump Shield-winning team. "You have no idea how good that team was. We had Esther Vaughan, later of Grand Beach infamy; Rosa Strong and Bill Murphy too, who were good players, if not exactly all-time legends. That very first defeat against the Marketplace was disappointing - they do have the cheerleaders, though - but I would say that drove us to win literally every game following that. Definitely my standout game was the 4-1 win over Allington in the quarters: they were a good challenge and looked to be the surprise package, and I'm thankful I was around for all 120 minutes of it. I got the first goal, quite famously - it was from some way out - but I think everyone ignores all the work I did in the following 90 minutes. I was running all of their lot ragged, had tons of fun, almost burned myself out, set up Rosa's final goal - I think I was voted the unofficial man of the match by Academy, the local paper. Basically, that was the first best game I ever had, and what an experience it was, too: it's the game that's shaped all of the games I'll go on to play."

{OOC note: by convention, each player recounts to Jamie Rodgers the three matches that shaped their careers the most. This section is under development and will be finished hopefully in the coming days.}

Öhân is certainly more familiar with his Sword and Shield teammates: "Olympia Woodward is simply iconic in every way possible and I would definitely call her the closest thing I have to a best friend on this team. I don't begrudge Hugh Roanoke for his comments about method acting; he's not on the team, although I feel thankful to be sort-of-replacing him." Does he think he's meshed in well with the unofficial literary set - Coombe, Richardson, Hollenberg, et al? "Everybody on the team cares at least somewhat for reading, even if it is just the subtitles in Rose's [Carter] case. But yes, I have talked a lot to those ladies; they seem to like me, consider me one of their own and think I definitely give off some sort of... how should I put it? Wise grandmother vibes. Not that I am a grandmother, of course."

To be sure, Naclé Öhân's focus is on playing rather than parenting (he doesn't have a girlfriend as of this writing) - but that dedication has made him all the more better. He saves the pretentiousness for his speeches, always gets on with the job on the pitch, and has a firm sense of what he is and isn't doing - and he might be as good as you can hope for in a footballer from the Rulandese community, never mind Saint Eleanor's first.

Group of Six meeting (XLIV) --- SAINT ELEANOR 2-0 Dheximia
Participants: Gentle Breeze, Reniira Clevinger, Stephen Mitcham ~ Bridget Coombe [C], Cathy Winchester [VC], Steve Pilchard [ballot]
Location: A really fancy pasta place near the City Stadium; Eshialand City, ESL

Match summary: Goals: Woodward (36), Öhân (71). Yellow cards: Hawkins (68); me (56) - oops! This was largely not a very remarkable game in the grand scheme of things; it wasn't as bad as some people feared, but we were defensively solid, offensively effective, and well-tested by an underrated but more-than-capable squad - it's generic enough as to not be worth the detailed notes. Dhemixia aren't quite world-beaters yet, but they gave us a shockingly good fight and I'm genuinely looking forward to seeing what they do in the future. Anyway, enough about them...

Tactical discussion
* "4-2-3-1 is God," per Steve
* Saint Eleanor has not lost a single qualifier since December 2007 (vs Cassadaigua!!) but Eshialand poses an extremely real threat to us
* Both teams have won all six points so far; Eshialand are the second seeds but playing at home, are undeniably attack-minded (de-facto 4-3-3), and might even be favoured
* All the reports are that manager Kenny Morgan has massively reformed the Owls - making past performance a useless indicator
* The players are untested but Stephen tells me they have worked cohesively so far: the goal here is to break down the team, not the individual parts
* Zonal marking will be enforced, given the flexibility of the players and the general lay of the land...
* ...and there's no need to put the offside trap in the bin given that their frontline may be easily caught out by it
* Defence will be the key for this game - we also have a record of clean sheets to maintain - but once we get the ball it's important for us to rush it to any free Eleanorians
* Depending on how the Eshialandian press is shaping up, this could mean quick series of passes, the long-ball game, or a reasonable combination
* We should enjoy flexibility in midfield, but the hard part will be getting past their attack - everyone expects Olympia to push the boundaries of Eshialand's own back four
* We will still be fielding the same eleven players as in the first two games: if there is any need for change, Reniira will take care of that with her trademark brand of rage/glory

TAKEAWAY: THE OWLS ARE READY TO SWOOP - LOOK TO DENY THEM, AND MAKE YOUR OWN CHANCES IF NEEDS MUST

AGREED LINEUP (4-2-3-1): Richardson - Winchester, Vickers, Launceston, Curran - Coombe [cdm], Matsuda - Lawson, Felaraneta, Northend - Woodward

- Cathy

[Vaishnavaria]

align=center][/align]

Alecsander Komich scores 2 as Vaishnavaria ties Adab 2-2

Roddens City

The Kytler Peninsulae





A Brilliant game by the Vaishnavarian Tigers that unfortunately resulted in a tie just took place against the #70 ranked struggle qualifying Adabians led by a old Adabian Premier League player like Gahand named Saad Kaykali. The Adabians were old yet experienced and showed incredible prowess on the pitch. The Midfielders played extremely well but the Vaishnavarian Defenders played disappointing. It was an offensive shootout with ALecsander Komich playing as incredible as he did in his Hat trick verses Yakk.






The first part of the first half was a defensive grindstone like the way the Game should be played. the Vaishnavarian unusual 2-4-4 opening position was confusing the seasoned and experienced veterans of the Adabian National Football team and they failed to get any sort of attack going. Zakaraya Kar and Nahari Jain immediately put the Adabians on the back foot playing brilliant passes. Alecsander Komich was awing everyone with his incredible finesse and skill showcasing incredible athleticism and basic football skill mastery. They had 2 chances that should have gone in but was fumbled away by Nathaniel Grant. One was when Komich had managed to expertly cause enough trouble that the defenders were pushed up out of the box. Komich timed it perfectly as one defender slowly dropped back to cover the box, timing it so he was not offside. Jain played a Brilliant first touch but got off a bad shot that tonked off the goalpost. The second chance was when Jain had burnt his man and Nik Rosario played a fast and good pass to him but Jain struggled again on his shot putting it in the keepers Zone where he easily grabbed it.



They got their first goal off the brilliance of Alecsander Komich. Fred Belfast had managed to rip possession from a Adabian attacker and played it deep to Zakaraya Kar at midfield. Kar then passed it and tapped it slowly between the midfielders as they slowly inches up the field. Then Kar took a pass from Kyle Russo and played a risky pass to Alecsander Koch on his back foot. Komich was guarded by 2 defenders heavily. Komich ran up to collect the pass stopped short and then suddenly nutmegs the defender on his right side who h is something he usually never does. The defender collided shoulders and foots with the second defender causing 2 to stumble. Komich was on a break towards a goal towards a terrified goalkeeper. The east defender came streaking in and made an unclean slide tackle on Komich drawing the referees whistle and a penalty kick. Komich who is the master of penalties nailed it using ungodly techniques to keep the keeper on his toes. It sailed in the right side of the goal uncontested as the Tigers went up 1-0






But the Adabians responded well to that amazing goal by Komich by ramping up their attack. The defenders unfortunately struggled against the veteran Adabian team as they let up 5 shots on goal which were all blocked by Giovanni Marcilo a legend goalie performance. But the goal was near and the Adabians got a lucky free kick which was nailed in by Yahad A. The free kick came after Hastan Raystone made a bad Tackle on Yahad A too close to the goal. No shot was made and no attack was also made so it was a close free kick and Yahad played a brilliant cutting and curving ball to nail it in the middle of the net.





As the first half came to a close it was 1-1 and it seemed like it was gonna be an exciting game and whoever made a crucial mistake first would lose the game and it would be damaging to their chances for a qualification to the World Cup Ro48. But here's the thing no one made a mistake that cost them the game. Sure there were bad mistakes that cost a goal or an attacking chance but they could not make a dent in the tie




The Vaishnavarians blundered many goal chances in the first half. They could have put the game away or broke the tie easily but too many missed chances at the beginning of the half and later in to it. One big one was when Alecsander Komich played a brilliant pass to a wide open Zakaraya Kar in the corner an he forced his way in. Nahari Jain was streaking down the middle with Komich open for a pass as Kar worked his way up the field. But instead he tried to work his way to the middle on front of the goal and lost the ball to Adabian defender. Another one was when Fred Belfast missed a wide open Zakaraya Kar in the Adabian Zone and instead forced a pass to Alecsander Komich who managed to beat his defenders and get off a tough shot that nearly sailed in but was reflected by the keeper.




But luckily not all was lost the Adabians offensive and attacking position was struggling as they failed to push past the suddenly hardened Tigers defense and were failing to get goal chances in. A brilliant picked pass by Kapil Nartar who then hit Alecsander Komich deep down the field. He basically passed him open and Komich sped past his defenders lightning quick. Komich had a one on one with the goalkeeper and he won it by faking left and punching the shot through the top right side of the goal to put the Vaishnavarians up on a lead in a dangerous position late in the game at the 85th minute





The Adabians were desperate on offense. There veteran playe d were suddenly met by a wall of rejuvenated energetic and aggressive Vaishnavarian defense and there offense collapsed and stagnated. In the 91st minute with little time to go they had the ball and were driving down the field. Yahad managed to push a lucky pass to an Adabian striker and he got on a break. He then pushed it back to Yahad who was unmarked. Yahad took it and sped past the frozen defenders and hammered a shot on goal. The ball rocketed into the back of the net with so much force people thought it was gonna break. Tie game. Unbelievable. The final whistle blew seconds later

[Libesia]

Good News Libesia!

Our recurring section challenging international preconceptions of Libesia by highlighting the positive and uplifting events that happen here every day.

Priest avoids being completely eaten by crocodile!

In a narrow but heartwarming escape, young assistant parish priest Nthando Khamalo has managed to skirt danger and avoid being completely eaten by a crocodile in the market town of Mwandevu. Khamalo, 26, had recently been assigned to St. Mark’s Church in Mwandevu, in the Kumbasi region, where he worked as an assistant to the Reverend Kamau Simbai. Popular with the young children of Mwandevu and known for his love of football, Khamalo had organised a viewing party in the market square to watch Libesia’s World Cup qualifying match against Reçueçn.

The match itself was a slightly disappointing affair. The Cheetahs twice took the lead through Kwamba Moléngo, who scored either side of the half to spark joy across the nation (and among Khamalo’s excited young charges) only to see his efforts cancelled out, firstly through a penalty, then a Théophile Thériault equalizer in the 78th minute. Samuel Susungi won a late corner in injury time, only for Mamoon Mahuroos Saba’s header to be well saved at the near post by Gerauld Firaut.

After the game finished, Khamalo led the younger members in song before staying behind to clear up the viewing area as spectators drifted off home. Attracted by the smell of discarded popcorn and snacks, a crocodile emerged from the river and came upon the lone junior priest. But, in a joyous turn of events, it failed to completely eat him, and instead only ate a bit of him.

“Actually, Mr. President,” said the coroner after inspecting the remains, “That’s not entirely a curate.”

[Dhemixia]

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The Columbus Dominion(Est.1873)

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Dhemixian momentum grinded to a halt; Serpents start 0-0-2

Dhemixia definitely had too much hope for the first two games, but such is life as the 6th-highest ranked team in a group of eight. The Serpents actually made it a relatively close game away in Eshialand, losing on a 75th minute chipshot from striker Will Sandrie when Williamson came out to challenge him. Scoring two against a top-30 team isn't small feat, but if Doug McMahon wants to win games for his team, he's probably not going to want to also let up 3.

In a very forgettable affair with Saint Eleanor, Dhemixia just forgot how to play football in front of the home fans. The defense utterly broke down, letting in two wide open nets to freak of nature Olympia Woodward and reserve midfielder Nacle Ohan. Dhemixian fans' dreams were destroyed, as they came to see what they thought would be a good game and good start for their country. Droves of people leaving at half indicated that it was, in fact, not a good one. In all manners, it appeared that the Serpents had lost all semblance of consistency and momentum, especially devastating for a young team like this one.

If Doug McMahon wants to pick it up from 7th in the group, he's going to have to start now, beginning at Carpathia and Ruthenia, before coming home to face unranked Paringo. Having played their first domestic seasons on opposing teams, Marvin Bolton and Sam Obisana have seemed to just lose chemistry with each other, due to the nature of their rivalry on the club level. Disconnections like this one are rampant across this side, of which, all absolutely NEED to be fixed if the Dhemixians want a shot at qualification in their first attempt.

____███ - - - - - - ███

_____Eshialand__3 - 2_'_Dhemixia

____Sandrie 27', 75'| Baker 48'
_______'Meilling 41'| Obisana 63'


MotM: ESH ST Will Sandrie

____███ - - - - - - ███

___Saint Eleanor__2 - 0_'_Dhemixia

_______Woodward 36'|
___________'Ohan 71'|


MotM: STE ST Olympia Woodward

Schedule

@ Eshialand, Eshialand City SuperDome L 2-3 (6th)
vs. Saint Eleanor, Brigantine Park L 0-2 (7th)
@ Carpathia and Ruthenia, C&R Home Stadium
vs. Paringo, Brigantine Park
@ Island Fusion, Island Fusion Home Stadium
vs. Patriotlandia, Brigantine Park
@ Saterun, Saterun Home Stadium
vs. Eshialand, Brigantine Park
@ Saint Eleanor, Saint Eleanor Home Stadium
vs. Carpathia and Ruthenia, Brigantine Park
@ Paringo, Paringo Home Stadium
vs. Island Fusion, Brigantine Park
@ Patriotlandia, Parc du Nord
vs. Saterun, Brigantine Park

[The Kytler Peninsulae]

This is the MD3/4 cutoff

[Patriotlandia]

Assemblée Nationale readies for upcoming elections

The new elections will fill the 130 seats of the national assembly. For the newcomers, the lower house of parliament has 65 district seats separated in municipalities throughout the nation and 65 representative seats using a closed entry party list system. The latter 65 are distributed according to popular results which can result in overhang seats. In this assembly, both the GREEN party and Union Fait la Force (UFF) have an overhang seat each, bringing the total to 132. At present Rassemblement République, one of the nation's top parties, which hold 53 seats are cooperating with Mouvement des Régions (MDR) in order to gain the majority needed to hold onto power. They have pushed a couple of MDR policies in the past four years giving municipalities and regions more leeway and freedom in regards to road infrastructure and other regional issues. Meanwhile, the official opposition, Parti Patriot, are starting to build momentum following years of Rassemblement République policies have left ordinary citizens yearning for new leadership. "Things just cost more now", said Port-la-Ville resident Janie Fecteau. "I visited an apartment yesterday and there was a lineup outside just to go see it. For 1300 piastres a month too!" Housing looks to be a key topic leading into the campaign as young Patriotlandians feel like the market is being gatekept by older owners triving off the outlandish values of their properties. UFF leader Frédérique Rousseau plans to set up a new program for subsidised housing. "I think years of conservatives policies have proven that the market will not be able to provide Patriotlandians with the cheap housing solutions they need. We must be able to fill that need and it can even boost the economy by allowing the renters to save on rent and pay for other goods and services."

Catastrophic start in the Qualifiers

The Bleus had two tough opponents to start the proceedings of World Cup qualifying. After a matchup with expected group leaders Saint Eleanor, the team had a quick turnaround before facing Carpathia and Ruthenia on the road. While one could expect the Carpathia match to be somewhat close the Patriotlandians ended up with a total deficit of 10 to 1 in both games putting the dreams of qualification in serious jeopardy.

"It's definitely a tough start. We expected a tough opening matchup against Saint Eleanor, but the home field advantage didn't seem to phase them that much. At the end of the day we could not clear the defensive third efficiently and it cost us 6 goals" said manager Jean-Alexandre Carignan. "For the second game I thought we played solid and generated opportunities but the finishing was lacking."

The next two matches against lower ranked opponents should provide the needed tune up so the team can get firing on all cylinders. However with the quality of play we have seen out of our compatriots it is not impossible that they drop points along the way.

Group 9
MD1 - vs Saint Eleanor (19), at Lockhart Lane, Blackbay - L 6-0
MD2 - @ Carpathia and Ruthenia (69) - L 4-1

[Gnejs]

Enda Clentin’s last dance

Chapter one: PUFF Civil War

Part two: The Enchilada Heard Around The World

Years from now, when historians look back and try to pinpoint exactly when the PUFF Cold War (also called the «Tepid Feud» by some) transitioned into the PUFF Civil War, it’s very likely that they’ll put their finger on that Friday when someone threw an enchilada. It was a Friday, and as always it was «Taco Friday» in the cafeteria. At 11.30 precisely, all PUFF employees stopped whatever it was they were doing and started descending on the first floor cafeteria. By now, the bad vibes in the office were so prominent you could almost touch them and seating in the cafeteria was strictly divided between the Pro- and Anti-Clentin factions. There was severe discord amongst the troops (which is what bureaucrats often like to refer to themselves as) and the office polarization was bordering on unbearable. Despite the increasing hostility, the organization had still managed to function to a reasonable degree for a sustained period of time, but on that Friday it all broke down.

Nobody truly knows who started it, and in the grand scheme of things maybe it matters little. Maybe it was Communication Officer (and Task Force member) Svea Vichy, who had undergone a radicalization process and turned into one of the most fervent Anti-Clentinists? Or maybe it was Valdemar Horn, the geriatric Senior Adviser (and Task Force member) who had likewise undergone a stunning revitalization and grown into a most prominent spiritual leader for the Clentinistas? Whoever it was, at precisely 11.45 a round of particularly mean spirited smack talk, with insults flying left and right, ended with old Molly Karlsson - who worked down at Implementation Efforts - getting a fully equipped enchilada square in the face. At first, there was silence and shock. Moments passed by where all present held their breath in anticipation of what would come next. «This has gone too far», many of them likely thought to themselves. Maybe some of them saw the inherent madness of it all and whispered «We have to stop this before someone gets hurt».

And if it hadn't been a friday, but say a wednesday, maybe the lunacy had never escalated. If the cafeteria had been serving lukewarm pea soup and flaccid pancakes with boysenberry jam instead of spicy enchiladas, maybe it had all gone down differently. Alas, when that salsa found its way to Old Molly’s eyeballs and the sharp stinging sensation made her flesh boil and brain fry, she let out a guttural scream so eerie that it sparked some sort of collective zoonosis in everyone present. Someone produced a warhorn and sounded it, and after that a fistfight of epic proportions broke loose. The initial battle went on for hours and ended with a slim victory for the Clentinistas. The Anti-Clentinists retreated to their fourth floor stronghold, but quickly regrouped and launched an ambush counterattack by the office supplies room on the third floor. Pro-Clentin morale took a hit, but not enough to discourage a mounted (office chairs) counter-counter attack to reclaim dominion of the ottoman sitting group by the south facing windows on the third floor.

By the end of the weekend, a stalemate of sorts had been established where the Anti-Clentinists controlled the top floor and the west wing of the third floor, in addition to an enclave encompassing strategically important parts of the northern section of the first floor. The Clentinistas, who had strength in numbers, were going into siege mode, but after young Ruben Saltman of the Anti-Clentinists suggested the digging of trenches at strategic positions, the demarcation lines soon became firmly established. There were daily skirmishes, of course. Like when the besieged Anti-Clentinists on the first floor made a run for the bathrooms, or when bands of Clentinistas tried to raid the third floor kitchenette to resupply on the good biscuits. Despite this, it quickly became evident that the festering conflict was developing into a war of attrition, which not only took its toll on the participants but also made the entire PUFF organization more or less grind to a halt.

All this unfortunately coincided with the ongoing gauntlet of qualifying for the 98th World Cup, and it goes without saying that this would turn out to be pivotal to the story of how the 98th World Cup cycle became Enda Clentin’s last as the head coach of the Prosaic Union National Football Team.

[Aphrilia]

Still Smooth Sailing (For One of Them)
Aphrilia's qualifying campaign has been going pretty good so far... Is what people have been saying.

The first two games were solid enough. Even though The Anchors lost their opening game to Hapilopper, it was considered to be a close match, and The Haps played great. The team would rebound anyway with a single goal win against Cobrio, with new addition Theresa Villa scoring the winning shot inside the box from a corner kick. However, that would be the last we see from some of the new additions. Many of them were still part of the U21, and had flied to Valanora in preparation for the Di Bradini Cup, captain Jessica Rhine-Faust included.

When many people though Nathaniel Rosberg would re-take his position as captain momentarily to replace Jessica, captaincy was instead given to Amelia Haze. She led the team into two wins on the third and fourth matchdays, a simple 1-0 win against Al-Tamazgha with the team scoring early on and protecting the lead as well as a 4-0 demolishing of "Of the Godless" featuring an Erick Marshall free kick goal as well as a brace by Ines Forrestal and a late addition outside-the-box strike by Kevin Lacey.

As it stands, Aphrilia is in second place and only a point behind Hapilopper whilst two points ahead of Cobrio.

- Group 3                         Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts
1 Hapilopper                        4    3   1   0    10    4   +6    10
2 Aphrilia                          4    3   0   1     7    2   +5     9
3 Cobrio                            4    2   1   1     7    5   +2     7
4 Yuezhou                           4    2   0   2     7    3   +4     6
5 Commonwealth of Baker Park        4    1   2   1     5    4   +1     5
6 Al-Tamazgha                       4    1   1   2     5    7   −2     4
7 Panay Islands and Guimaras        4    1   1   2     4    8   −4     4
8 Of the Godless                    4    0   0   4     0   12  −12     0

Yet whilst the senior team is sailing through somewhat calm open waters, there are worries regarding the players who are on both the senior and U21 team.

Rumors within Aphrilian footballing circles are circulating that the U21 team that will be playing in the Di Bradini Cup had a bit of an implosion between several players. Whether these rumors are exaggerated or not, since rumors hold some truth in them, this has been worrying many fans that are also hoping for a good performance from the U21 team. There's no exact reason why it happened, but speculations are saying that it may be related to the call-ups from the U21 to the senior team.

Christopher Vermont isn't the type of person to believe rumors, but U21 manager Anthony Christwell hadn't spoken to him regarding anything about it. For someone as old as he was, he knew that rumors had a thin veil of truth within them. And if the rumors are true, then perhaps the U21 team might explode during the tournament... Which would not be a good look on Christwell or himself since he was the one that chose those specific players without consultation. It wouldn't be good for his reputation.

And as he was thinking of all that, his phone had received a text message notification. And wouldn't you know it, it was Christwell.

"Team's already getting unstable. Morgan-Keynes blew up on Villa about certain players getting promoted over others without assessment. I'm lucky Rhine-Faust de-escalated the problem, but with the team like this I'm not sure we'll even survive the group stage. Christopher, you were the catalyst of all this. Please give me a way to solve this." The text hinted at a tint of desperation and worry. Vermont wasn't really sure on what to reply with. But thinking back on the past while and what's been happening, there was one response he had.

"Take the risk and tell them. You're a manager, step up and make them hear you. Be truthful yet authoritative. Be blunt yet caring... Defuse it in the way you see fit."

[Grand Exultia]

Reality hits hard when living in fantasy!

I’ll be the first to admit I got caught up in the excitement, after the success of winning the Baptism of Fire and then winning our first two qualifiers, to think we could win the whole thing and that our football was that good and why hadn’t we started playing in the multiverse sooner and then we’re brought crashing back down to reality, oh how Margaret can be cruel.

Matchday 3 saw us traveling to, top ranked in the group, Ko-oren for what should be the toughest game of the group stage. An introduction to post-football saw a lot of running from the Exultious players, really putting the youthful exuberance to the test, and not a lot of playing with the ball. Throughout the first half it seemed as if the Ko-oren players were always ready and in position, an Exultian would turn and there was a Ko-orenite! A compact defence and midfield stymied any attempt by the Exultians to penetrate and the close passing from the Dragonflies drew out the first half to an empathically boring 0-0.

Regardless of what Apollinaris said at half time the Dragonflies were not about to let the Exultians have any fun with the ball, pass after pass going anywhere but football, an impressive fluidity amongst the players that could see defenders in midfield and vice versa yet the ball never travelled much beyond the centre circle and once again the Gyrinxes were powerless to stop this style of football. An early substitute saw captain Brambleberry make way for Lebedyenko to offer an extra body in the middle of the field to try and stem the lack of possession being offered, it did not. More boring passing as the clock dragged on somehow the usually raucous Exultian fans being drowned out by the literal silence from the Ko-orenites in the stands, another uneventful half everyone assumed which clearly was the gameplan as Elenion must have fallen asleep having not been tested all game as in injury time was the first time the Dragonflies moved past the centre circle and it was Aomelirea who took a touch and fired from distance with Elenion getting nowhere near the ball as it bulged into the back of the net.

One of the most boring games I have ever had the unfortunate honour of having to watch as the Exultians were made to look like headless chickens running after the Ko-orenites. Brief moments of positivity from the Exultians as they looked to press forwards on the rare occasions that they had the ball but with little room to breathe any attempt was snuffed out brutally effectively. A strong opponent faced who clinically put the Exultians to the sword, this is a team to watch especially whilst they have home advantage as the deafening silence seems to drain the energy out of all in attendance including the players.

Matchday 4 brings us on another road trip this time to Valentine Z to face off against the Kittens. Another higher ranked nation with home advantage and they definitely took full advantage by systematically breaking down the Exultious defence and making certain players just look silly.

A first half that saw plenty of attacking potential but nothing of note as both Vielener and Brambleberry seemed particularly ineffective when faced up against the Kitten defence, likewise the Exultious defence stood resolute against the pressure that was mounting as they must have realised more and more, they were playing a better calibre opponent. The naïve youthfulness of the Exultian team starting to show and Apollinaris will have his hands full to prove his experiment was correct and that Exultious football can improve cycle on cycle. More dispossessions occurred in the first half with Daskruger being disposed cheaply for holding onto the ball for too long and lucky not to be punished as Elenion turns Van De Hoogtes effort around the post, another moment required Elenion to save a defenders blushes as Steiner attempted a relaxed pass to Thoth-Manon but Polańska reacted first to intercept it bursting into the box and forcing Elenion to get down low to their right to stop the shot then smother the ball before Polańska could get the rebound. Just before the stroke of half time the Exultious defence was finally undone as a linkup play between Polańska and Dániel saw the defenders pulled out of position as Steiner closed the gap only to watch the ball fizz round them Dániel was able to put the ball out of reach of Elenion.

1-0 down at half time and the Exultious players heads were well and truly down, it would take a miraculous speech from Apollinaris to get the players fired back up but the faces showed a different story as they came back out for the second half, two noticeable absentees as neither Brambleberry now Vielener came back out for the second half instead being replace Strongtower and Greenfeather, an extra midfielder in Greenfeather showed a tactical change with the shape changing to more of a 4-3-3, the slightly more experienced pair replacing the teenagers who had both bad a surprisingly poor game so far.

A change in shape clearly didn’t benefit the Exultians as the Kittens leapt to the front foot sensing blood as time and again they came at the Exultian defence only for Elenion to come to the rescue, the Kittens playing as if the defenders aren’t there. Another early double substitution saw Daskruger and Steiner replaced by Galadrieth and Mendoza, confusion ensued as the message clearly hadn’t been relayed appropriately as both Galadrieth and Thoth-manon went to line up on the right side of defence. The Kittens looked to take advantage of the mishap as Steinason moved the ball forward into the gap looking to fire a cross into the box only for Grosslaufer to deflect it for a corner, the ensuing corner whipped in near perfectly and met by Hashempour put the Kittens 2-0 up. The defensive positioning sorted with Galadrieth taking an uncomfortable position at left back and the Exultians restarted the game only for the Kittens to push them back once again a ball fired out to Steinason again who wrong footed Galadrieth allowing them into the middle and curled in an impressive effort from 25 yards that Elenion couldn’t keep out.

At the full time whistle there was not many Exultians left in the away end and quite rightly so, a moment to reflect on perhaps for Apollinaris who clearly misused his substitutes as no change had any effect whatsoever and with not much to write home about the Exultious momentum has truly taken a big hit and qualification hopes sit on the precipice as we are starting to realise we may not be as invincible as we felt. A much needed home fixture against Riena sees a challenge ahead but maybe the home crowd can lift the players to achieve the dreams of all within the nation, followed quicky with an away trip to Reçueçn which will be another test of character.


Report by Patsy Orchinaoff for the Independent Football