NationStates Jolt Archive

Pre-World Cup 28 Baptism of Fire Cup in Legalese and The Kazoo Peoples
Rosters, RP and Scores Thread

The Baptism of Fire is a pre-World Cup tournament for debutant teams to send their World Cup squad to their first warm-up competition to gain vital experience (and crucial KPB-ranking points). For instance, the BoF17 runner-up, Aquiliana, jumped from rank 200 (new nation status) to rank 69, and made it to the Quarter-Finals of the 17th World Cup. This unbelievable performance just shows you what RPing can produce. Consider, also, that a nation that played in the same BoF without RP'ing merely went from 200 up to 183, and finished last in their World Cup Qualifying group.

Unlike the proper World Cup, RP bonus is extremely important in the BoF, as all teams start off equal. This means that if one nation has a better RP bonus than another, they have a better chance of winning. Roleplaying your matches gives you a better chance of winning your matches. RP Bonus will be the only seperator in the pack. We hope that the non-participating nations will be weeded out or at least noted prior to the start of the World Cup, as we like to feel special by you RPing in our tournaments, so we give you bonuses to help you win.

There will be two regions in the competition, The Legalese Region, and the Kazooian Region, which will then each be divided into groups. Each team will play one match against the other teams in their group, followed by Quarter- and Semi-Finals within their own Region. The Champions of the respective regions will meet at the 91,523-seat Titanplex in Francopolis, Legalese, for the BoF Championship.

The Draw will be held after the close of signups, and the results and schedules will be placed below:

Legalese Region

Black Group
Boudra-Boudra
New-Lexington
Burning Penguins
Molvania
Radke

Red Group
Gaspland
Lisburn Mateys
The Emperialist
Talmeria
Narbithia


Kazooian Region

Blue Group
Slakaj
Anastasiania
Rosberg
Blitzwehr
Nouvelle Angleterre

Orange Group
N00bzors
St. Happenin
Zorinia
Canabinol
Vejar


Schedule:
MD1: 2v5, 3v4 1 off
MD2: 3v1, 5v4 2 off
MD3: 1v5, 2v4 3 off
MD4: 2v1, 5v3 4 off
MD5: 1v4, 3v2, 5 off

Top 3 will advance to the next round. The Group winner will participate in the Regional Semifinal, the next two advance to the Regional Playoff Round

Regional Playoff Round: #2 v #3 from opposite group in region
Regional SF: Group Winners vs. Regional Playoff Winners
Regional Final: RSF winners

MD1 will take place on April 11, 2006. Each succeeding matchday will occur the day following. Good luck to all teams!

Results
Kazooian Region
Blue Group
Matchday 1
Anastasiania 3-1 Nouvelle Angleterre
Rosberg 1-1 Blitzwehr

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 1 1 0 0 3 1 2 3
2 Rosberg 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
3 Blitzwehr 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
4 Slakaj 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5 Nouvelle Angleterre 1 0 0 1 1 3 -2 0

Matchday 2
Rosberg 2-0 Slakaj
Nouvelle Angleterre 2-0 Blitzwehr

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Rosberg 2 1 1 0 3 1 2 4
2 Anastasiania 1 1 0 0 3 1 2 3
3 Nouvelle Angleterre 2 1 0 1 3 3 0 3
4 Blitzwehr 2 0 1 1 1 3 -2 1
5 Slakaj 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Matchday 3
Slakaj 0-4 Nouvelle Angleterre
Anastasiania 5-0 Blitzwehr

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 2 2 0 0 8 1 7 6
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 3 2 0 1 7 3 4 6
3 Rosberg 2 1 1 0 3 1 2 4
4 Blitzwehr 3 0 1 2 1 8 -7 1
5 Slakaj 2 0 0 2 0 6 -6 0

Matchday 4
Anastasiania 5-1 Slakaj
Nouvelle Angleterre 3-1 Rosberg

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 3 3 0 0 13 2 11 9 Q, B1
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 4 3 0 1 10 4 6 9 Q, B2
3 Rosberg 3 1 1 1 4 4 0 4
4 Blitzwehr 3 0 1 2 1 8 -7 1
5 Slakaj 3 0 0 3 1 11 -10 0 E

Matchday 5
Slakaj 2-2 Blitzwehr
Anastasiania 4-0 Rosberg

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 4 4 0 0 17 2 15 12 B1
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 4 3 0 1 10 4 6 9 B2
3 Rosberg 4 1 1 2 4 8 -4 4 B3
4 Blitzwehr 4 0 2 2 3 10 -7 2 E
5 Slakaj 4 0 1 3 3 13 -10 1 E


Orange Group
Matchday 1
St Happenin 0-2 Vejar
Zorinia 1-0 Canabinol

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Vejar 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
2 Zorinia 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
3 N00bzors 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Canabinol 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0
5 St Happenin 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Matchday 2
Zorinia 3-0 N00bzors
Vejar 0-3 Canabinol

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 2 2 0 0 4 0 4 6
2 Canabinol 2 1 0 1 3 1 2 3
3 Vejar 2 1 0 1 2 3 -1 3
4 St Happenin 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
5 N00bzors 1 0 0 1 0 3 -3 0

Matchday 3
N00bzors 0-2 Vejar
St Happenin 0-0 Canabinol

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 2 2 0 0 4 0 4 6
2 Vejar 3 2 0 1 4 3 1 6
3 Canabinol 3 1 1 1 3 1 2 4
4 St Happenin 2 0 1 1 0 2 -2 1
5 N00bzors 2 0 0 2 0 5 -5 0

Matchday 4
St Happenin 0-2 N00bzors
Vejar 0-4 Zorinia

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 3 3 0 0 8 0 8 9 Q, O1
2 Vejar 4 2 0 2 4 7 -3 6
3 Canabinol 3 1 1 1 3 1 2 4
4 N00bzors 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3
5 St Happenin 3 0 1 2 0 4 -4 1

Matchday 5
N00bzors 1-0 Canabinol
St Happenin 1-3 Zorinia

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 4 4 0 0 11 1 10 12 O1
2 N00bzors 4 2 0 2 3 5 -2 6 O2
3 Vejar 4 2 0 2 4 7 -3 6 O3
4 Canabinol 4 1 1 2 3 2 1 4 E
5 St Happenin 4 0 1 3 1 7 -6 1 E

Schedule
Kazooian Region
Blue Group
Slakaj
Anastasiania
Rosberg
Blitzwehr
Nouvelle Angleterre

Schedule:
MD1: Anastasiania 3:1 Nouvelle Angleterre at KCK Stadium
Rosberg 1:1 Blitzwehr at Manni Aka Field
Slakaj off
MD2: Rosberg 2:0 Slakaj at KCK Stadium
Nouvelle Angleterre 2:0 Blitzwehr at Melodiphone Dome
Anastasiania off
MD3: Slakaj 0:4 Nouvelle Angleterre at Manni Aka Field
Anastasiania 5:0 Blitzwehr at Untitled Stadium
Rosberg off
MD4: Anastasiania 5:1 Slakaj at Melodiphone Dome
Nouvelle Angleterre 3:1 Rosberg at Untitled Stadium
Blitzwehr off
MD5: Slakaj 2:2 Blitzwehr at KCK Stadium
Anastasiania 4:0 Rosberg at Manni Aka Field
Nouvelle Angleterre off



Orange Group
N00bzors
St. Happenin
Zorinia
Canabinol
Vejar

Schedule:
MD1: St Happenin 0:2 Vejar at Untitled Stadium
Zorinia 1:0 Canabinol at Melodiphone Dome
N00bzors off
MD2: Zorinia 3:0 N00bzors at Untitled Stadium
Vejar 0:3 Canabinol at Manni Aka Field
St Happenin off
MD3: N00bzors 0:2 Vejar at Melodiphone Dome
St Happenin 0:0 Canabinol at KCK Stadium
Zorinia off
MD4: St Happenin 0:2 N00bzors at Manni Aka Field
Vejar 0:4 Zorinia at KCK Stadium
Canabinol off
MD5: N00bzors 1:0 Canabinol at Untitled Stadium
St Happenin 1:3 Zorinia at Melodiphone Dome
Vejar off

[[OOC: RL Timeline (All days/times are US Eastern, UTC-4):
MD1: April 11th, after 3 PM (actual: 5:05 PM)
MD2: April 12th, after 5 PM (actual: 4:29 PM)
MD3: April 13th, after 3 PM (actual: 3:51 PM)
MD4: April 14th, after 3:51 PM (actual: 3:13 PM)
MD5: April 15th, after 3:13 PM (actual: 6:05 PM)
---
(scheduled, postponed) MD6 (Regional Playoffs): April 16th, after 6:05 PM
MD6 (Regional Playoffs): April 17th, after 9 AM (most likely after 12 PM)
MD7 (Regional Semifinals): April 18th, after 3 PM
MD8 (Regional Finals): April 19th, after 3 PM
MD9 (Third Place Playoff): April 20th, after 3 PM

Questions about what time I will be scorinating can be directed to me on IRC at irc://irc.esper.net/#sport ]]

Here are the stadia in The Generaly United Nation of The Kazoo Peoples that will host World Cup 28's Baptism of Fire:

Kazoo City Kola Stadium (KCK Stadium)
Located in Kazoo City

http://static.flickr.com/42/123496270_0d24f6cb95_o.jpg


Built for the Kazoos' momentous World Cup 26 Qualification campaign, Kazoo City Kola Stadium seats 105,917. The naming rights to the stadium have been sponsored by the Kazoo Kola Company -- "Bringing you caffeinated drinks since 1909."

Kazoo City Kola Stadium is currently the national stadium (meaning that World Cup qualification games are held here), but plans have been formulated to rotate hosting in the future among other stadiums. Whether or not this plan will come to fruition has yet to be determined.

Kazoo City Kola Stadium also hosts the Kazoo City Kazoos, one of the domestic teams of The Generally United Nation of The Kazoo Peoples.

Kazoo City Kola Stadium will host the following matches: the Third-Place Playoff (3PPO), one of the two Regional Semifinals, one of the two Regional Playoffs, and five of the twenty group matches.

MD1: Anastasiania 1:3 Nouvelle Angleterre at KCK Stadium
MD2: Rosberg 2:0 Slakaj at KCK Stadium
MD3: St Happenin 0:0 Canabinol at KCK Stadium
MD4: Vejar : Zorinia at KCK Stadium
MD5: Slakaj : Blitzwehr at KCK Stadium

Manni Aka Field
Located in Untitled

http://static.flickr.com/34/123496293_141b017939_o.jpg

Built for use by the Untitled Understudies, this 42,097-seat stadium was named in honor of the great Head Coach of the national soccer team, Manni Aka.

Aka has led the national team to two consecutive World Cup Finals appearances in as many appearances in the World Cup itself.

Manni Aka Field will host the following matches: five of the twenty group matches.
MD1: Rosberg 1:1 Blitzwehr at Manni Aka Field
MD2: Vejar 0:3 Canabinol at Manni Aka Field
MD3: Slakaj 0:4 Nouvelle Angleterre at Manni Aka Field
MD4: St Happenin : N00bzors at Manni Aka Field
MD5: Rosberg : Anastasiania at Manni Aka Field

Melodiphone Dome
Located in Kazoo City

http://static.flickr.com/1/123496317_3510813961_o.jpg

Built to replace the decrepit stadium that the Kazoo City Kangaroos had been using for matches, the 99,999-seat Melodiphone Dome was also built for Baptism of Fire matches.

The name comes from two sources. The first is another word for "kazoo," (the kazoo is the national instrument, and is prominently displayed on our flag, by the way) or at least, that is what the native tribes of The Generally United Nation of The Kazoo Peoples tell us. The second is because the chief manufacturer of kazoos is Melodiphone, Inc. Melodiphone, Inc. bought out the naming rights.

For a construction photo, you can go to the following address: http://static.flickr.com/1/123496376_e0bb1e7ac8_o.jpg

Melodiphone Dome will host the following matches: the Regional Final, one of the two Regional Semifinals, and five of the twenty group matches.
MD1: Zorinia 1:0 Canabinol at Melodiphone Dome
MD2: Nouvelle Angleterre 2:0 Blitzwehr at Melodiphone Dome
MD3: N00bzors 0:2 Vejar at Melodiphone Dome
MD4: Anastasiania : Slakaj at Melodiphone Dome
MD5: Zorinia : St Happenin at Melodiphone Dome

Untitled Stadium
Located in Untitled

http://static.flickr.com/36/123496415_d9ad8bf695_o.jpg

Untitled Stadium and its unimaginative name in the unimaginatively-named city seats 89,999. It is used for Untitled U-Boats matches.

If there were something else of importance, we would list it here. But there isn't anything.

Untitled Stadium will host the following matches: one of the two Regional Playoffs, and five of the twenty group matches.

MD1: St Happenin 0:2 Vejar at Untitled Stadium
MD2: Zorinia 3:0 N00bzors at Untitled Stadium
MD3: Anastasiania 5:0 Blitzwehr at Untitled Stadium
MD4: Nouvelle Angleterre : Rosberg at Untitled Stadium
MD5: N00bzors : Canabinol at Untitled Stadium

Malgadelt Flying Trout Stadium
Located in Malgadelt

http://static.flickr.com/35/123496402_373366b59b_o.jpg

This 29,000-seat stadium normally holds home matches of the Malgadelt Flying Trout Stadium.

Malgadelt, about an hour's drive outside Untitled, is a charming little retreat which sports a large traffic circle (creatively nicknamed "The Circle") in the centre. Eight spokes eminate from The Circle in compass directions: East, Northeast, North, etc. Malgadelt's population is 32,000.

This small stadium will be used for practice and friendly matches only in the Baptism of Fire. Friendlies can be arranged with Kazooian officials via telegram or letter. The following teams are "off" (with the possibility of a friendly) on the following days:

MD1: Slakaj off
MD1: N00bzors off
MD2: Anastasiania off
MD2: St Happenin off
MD3: Rosberg off
MD3: Zorinia off
MD4: Blitzwehr off
MD4: Canabinol off
MD5: Nouvelle Angleterre off
MD5: Vejar off

Following an intense and searching selection process, Rosberg announces its squad. The squad is as follows:
4-4-2:

Manager: George Zip
Asst. Manager: Steve Benitez

*Starters in BOLD*
Goalkeepers:
#25 Ivan Borota
#20 Gary Williamson
#1 David Cole

Defenders:
#5 Sean Moore
#4 Bill Moore
#23 Geoff Warne
#6 Gary Veenstra
#3 Andrew Denley

Midfielders:
#14 Jaap Korver
#2 John Holley
#8 Paul Williams
#22 Peter Van Humm
#7 Michael Law(c)
#12 Vaughan Dodd
#16 Charles Tauhore

Forwards:
#11 Patrick Holmes
#9 Daniel Te'o
#15 Gareth Evans
#10 James Bradfield
#19 Fraser Alexander

Rosberg's inaugural World Cup entry is much anticipated by people of the football-mad nation, President Bernd Meyer pronouncing himself "satisfied" with the quality of the players at Manager George Zip's disposal. Expectation is high, and the nation is hopeful of at least getting through the Baptism of Fire stage.
Manager George Zip is one of the most high-profile sports-people in Rosberg, having also been nominated as Test Driver for Rosberg's Formula 1 team. His assistant Steve Benitez is one of the most respected people in Rosberg football, having managed dominant club side Red Star Newmarket to 6 consecutive Rosy Cup triumphs, as well as 2 national championships.

Striker Patrick Holmes is tipped by many to be a future world star, his form in the past 12 months for Waterview Wednesday making him possibly the first name on the team-sheet after the captain. Aggressive midfielder Michael Law is expected to have a big say in the team's hopes for WC28 after being issued with the captain's armband following the retirement of legend Paul Montgomery. Meanwhile there has been much controversy over the breaking up of the Moore brothers partnership in the heart of the defence. They have been rock-like for their club side Parnell United, but the massive frame of Gary Veenstra has been preferred for the early part of the tournament at least, leaving Sean Moore to warm the bench. Incumbent Goalkeeper David Cole has lost his place due to a sustained period of injury, and has been selected for the tournament on reputation alone. 21 year-old Ivan Borota therefore makes his competitive debut for his country after a remarkably consistent campaign for Henderson City.
Other players to watch out for in include pacey winger Jaap Korver, and veteran midfield general Charles Tauhore, who, while at 38 and not the all-action player he once was, can still be expected to provide impetus from the bench as required.
Over 6000 fans are expected to be travelling to support the team, with 3000 of them forming the hard-core Rosy Rage fanbase. They can be easily spotted with their distinctive bright green Silly Bull horn headresses, a tribute to the national animal found only in Rosberg's many forests.

Give My Opponents Permission To:

Choose Scorers: Y
GodMod Goalscoring Events: Y

Injure Players: Y
GodMod Injury Events: N

Red Card Players: Y
Yellow Card Players: Y
GodMod Other Events: N

I know this should probably go in the discussion thread, but roleplaying isn't that hard. Basically, it means writing something relating to your team, be it a newspaper article about your team, a footballing talk show, one of your players getting abducted, anything along those lines. While they don't have to be that extreme, those are just examples.

Also, when you use another person's team, managers or anything really relating to them, it's common courtesy to get their permission before doing anything with them.

By the way, it's obvious the names of your team and those of Liverpool's team are coincidental. There's no way Peter Crouch is ever going to be a good player for Liverpool. >_>

Lisburn Mateys
4-4-2 (starters in bold)

Home Kit (http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9178/mateyshome8by.jpg) Away Kit (http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/4941/mateysaway1ye.jpg)

Manager - Paul Kirk

Goalkeepers
01.Brian Livingston - 23 - Pika City (Quzox)
12.Alan Mannus - 35 - Lisburn Distillery
18. Stuart Buffel - 25 - Crumlin United

Defenders
02.Andrew Stewert [DR] - 16 - Lisburn Distillery
03.David Armstrong [DL] - 31 - Lisburn Distillery
04.Jonathon Bell [DC] - 24 - Lower Maze
05.Marvin Andrews [DC] - 28 - Blackwater (Liverpool England)
13.Jonny McJovi [DC] - 33 - Lisburn Distillery
16.Chuck Gonzalo [DR] - 25 - Grappenhall (Bettia)
19.Scott Mitchell [DL] - 22 - Crewe

Midfielders
06.Stephan McNiece [MC] - 22 - Crewe
07.Chris Kingsberry [MR] - 21 - Lisburn Youth
08.Gregg Gregg [MC] - 27 - Downshire FC
11.Aaron McCann [ML] - 18 - Lisburn Distillery
15.Richard Higgenbottom [MC/R] - 29 - Crumlin United
20.David Irwin [DMC] - 28 - Ballymacash Rangers
21.Joe Bellucci [ML/R] - 23 - Lisburn Distillery

Attackers
09.Amusi Akobyi - 28 - AS Timiocato (Pacitalia)
10.Richard Dougherty - 24 - Crewe
14.Dominic Patton - 26 - Dromara Village
17.James Curry - 20 - Lisburn Distillery


Because of the clash with under 21 tournament which the commonwealth of Lisburn Mateys is also involved with, the Lisburn Matey team is slightly reduced in quality missing a key player, in Keith Livingston who although young is playing at a standard way above himself. The FA voted that taking both Keith Livingston and Christopher Reims would leave the under 21 squad too week and would aslo add inexperience to what is an already young national squad. But there is a bonus these youngster add alot of pace and new ideas to the team with some sections of the media deeming them 'the Golden Generation' of Lisburn Matey football.




Give My Opponents Permission To:

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Mcpsychoville i have made the appropriate changes. Oh and BTW Peter Crouch is going to win England the real World Cup. There, ive said it:)

Since you're just starting, do you want some help roleplaying to start with?

Besides, Peter Crouch? No, no. Darren Bent, top scoring English striker, is going to win us the World Cup my friend.

Yes mcpsychoville I would like some help:) You wouldnt be an Everton fan would u?:)

Everton? Pfft, no, it's Charlton all the way. I just happen to think Crouch is a beanpole.

So is curbishley leaving then?

OOC: Thanks for being helpful, McPsychoville. Now take the rest of this to the DT, please: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=293066 :p

Seriously, please limit the OOC and clutter in here, thank you.

Molvania National Team Roster:
Starters:
GK: Zvetmir Tkermec
D: Jurjst Kjonopist
D: Vedjuz Bcekjecmec
D: Mejed Slavjia
M: Tozi Vzintga
M: Alic Romjaci
M: Mzino Gdansk
M: Zjez Vadjroza
M: Djabgor Zjekl
M: Jceje Zivjukrek
F: Viordar "Cze" Czervkle

As tryouts are still underway to fill the remaining positions, a list of substitutes is currently unavailable and will be provided as soon as tryouts are completed.

Potential Stars

Amusi Akobyi
With this raw talent a player with Amusi Akobyi will be able to put away any chance he gets and he is possibly the best forward to come form the Commonwealth of Lisburn Mateys. Born in Pacitalia but qualifying to play for the Lisburn Mateys due to to his Dad who is from Ballymacash. A 6 foot striker who also has a vicious right foot and is very dangerous at corners.

Aaron McCann
During his youth had various trials with forgein teams, but after contracting a very serious virus didnt kick a ball for nearly two years. Lukily he came back to the football scene eager to play and had lost none of his talent. An absolute flyer down the lft wing and with a bundle of tricks, he may be the difference between a win or a lose on the day.

Stephan McNiece
Only starting due to playmaker Keith Livingston player for the under 21 side, but is still a quality player. Playing for Primerio Liga champions Crewe Stephan is no stranger to pressure games. A very creative player but can get a bit agressive. The player was also fined 2000 primeros for continual diving over the domestic season.

Brian Livingston
Part of the increasingly famous Livingston family which has come through the Hillsborough Boys youth Development scheme. He is a very aerobatic and eccentric goalkeeper. Shorter than the average goalkeeper at 5 foot 9 which can let him down at times.


Spotlight on the Defence

The defence on average is the oldest part of the Squad with an average age of 29.
Marvin Andrews stands out above the rest as a quality player playing for Blackwater in LiverpoolEngland completing a transfer last season after winning 3 Primerio Liga's in a row.

There is a surprise selection choice in Jonathon Bell who has endured a disasterous season with Lower Maze, who after moving into the new national stadium finished in a disgraceful ninth place in the Primerio Liga, with Jonathon being injured for most of the season with a broken leg. Manager Paul Kirk said he was happy with the performance Jonathon put in for Lower Maze at the end of the season playing in 6 of the 18 games this season, and interestingly Lower Maze didnt lose a single game in which he played.

A late call up was 16 year old right back ,Andrew Stewert who was original down to play in the under 21 tournament was called up to the full squad as he is current young player of the year in Lisburn. Grappenhall right back Chuck Gonzalo is reported to be very annoyed at the decision for Stewert to start as he thought he was quarenteed a place on the starting 11 but Stewerts pace, technique , and tough tackling puts him head and shoulders above Chuck.

Holding the defence and squad together is 31 year old captain David Armstrong. Has won six Primerio Liga titles one with Lisburn Youth and 5 with Lisburn Distillery and has seen nearly everythin football has to offer. Doesnt run up the line as much as he did in his younger days but still like to cross from deep positions and his ability to read the game and players makes sure that cocky wingers rarly break past him. Andrew Stewert even declared " it is an honour to play with one of my idles, David is one of the players as i child that i hope to emmulate one day and is a true national hero"

Reported by the Lisburn Star

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Boudra-Boudra BoF Squad

With the second season of the Virsliga (http://ns.goobergunch.net/wiki/index.php/Virsliga) coming to an end, some new Boudran players have showed their skills on the Boudran soccerfields and impressed various sports fans across the country. However, the BBFA (Boudra-Boudra Football Association), together with the head coach of the Boudra-Boudra national team: Linus Gunfi-Pok, have decided that there will be no changes in the current selection. This means that the squad that was created during the ongoing qualifiers for WC27 remains unchanged and that it's very probable that the starting eleven who featured in the very first international match ever for Boudra-Boudra (vs Schiavonia) will probably not change much inthe upcoming matches. However, should the results be unsatisfying, coach Gunfi-Pok might fly in some players who are currently playing well in the Virsliga. No names were released so far of the possible candidates.

The current selection for the Boudra-Boudra national team:

Head Coach:
Linus Gunfi-Pok (52, former tennisplayer and sports commentator. Co-creator of the Virsliga)

Goalkeepers:
- Guido Smith (25, Kanzi)
- Ohène Strok'pah (23, Boudra-Boudra-City)
- Flip Vandecasteele (25, Wolarr-Tsli)

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (29, Kanzi)
- Dia Dzigbode (24, Wolarr-Tsli)
- Faraji Gimelstob (22, New Salst-Gungen)
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson (31, Sjlipp)
- Mark Oahp (22, New Salst-Gungen)
- Samuel-Fred Van Overstraeten (26, Bakss)
- Simon Samuelsson (33, Higglamu)

Midfielders:
- John Böhm (23, Wolarr-Tsli)
- Geert Boudra (24, Krill)
- Rikke Gallucio (22, Kanzi)
- Nikolajs Gelders (22, Higglamu)
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado (26, Krill)
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook (30, Bakss)
- Njjik Rahlii (23, Trojsno)
- Abraham Whiler (25, New Salst-Gungen)

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb (27, Kanzi)
- Jarno Karvi (24, Wolarr-Tsli)
- Teodors McGlothen (22, Trojsno)
- Malimbo Tar (26, New Salst-Gungen)
- Andris Zdelizj (22, Trojsno)

====================
My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:

Choose Scorers: Y
GodMod Goalscoring Events: Y

Injure Players: Y
GodMod Injury Events: N

Red Card Players: Y
Yellow Card Players: Y
GodMod Other Events: N

Anything you like really. Just no killing and such. :)
But, if you RP first, please DO choose my goalscorers, yellow/red cards, injuries, be inventive! :)
====================

Excuse me, why are we on the list. we did not sign up for the BoF.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Unsure about Lineup

With both the BBFA and head coach Gunfi-Pok being somewhat vague about the upcoming matches, the main question is who will be standing in goal for Boudra-Boudra. Of the three players currently in the squad, it looks like Flip Vandecasteele has the least chances, since he was already second choise for the friendly against Schiavonia behind Guido Smith. Smith performed superbly there as he only let in 1 goal, with that being a penalty also. But, there is also Ohène Strok'pah, who was injured at the time of the friendly against Schiavonia, but his injury (broken ankle) has now healed completely. Strok'pah is a very popular player amongst the Boudra-Boudra fans, mainly because of his extraordinary skills and superb saves which he showed during the first half of the first season of the Virsliga. There's no doubt he is a good keeper, with his 'Goalkeeper of the Year' trophy proving that, but questions are reased if his condition is already good enough for an international tournament like the Baptism of Fire and secondly, if he will get back upto his earlier level after such a big injury like a broken ankle.

For the other positions it's also quite unsure who will play with only one match played, but knowing the 'never change a winning team'-theory in which Gunfi-Pok firmly believes, the defensive 3-5-2 formation which proved successful against Schiavonia is a near certainty and the possibility of seeing an almost identical team as seen against Schiavonia is quite large. However, left winger Nikolajs Gelders is unsure due to a severly bruised knee after a bicycle crash whereas forward Jarno Karvi has recently performed a lot less during the second season of the Virsliga compared to his outstanding 11 goals during the first season. Both players could be left of the field.

Predicted Lineup: (very uncertain)
Defensive 3-5-2

Goalkeeper:
- Guido Smith

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain, central)
- Dia Dzigbode (right)
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson (left)

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook (central, offensive)
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado (right wing)
- Rikke Gallucio (central, defensive)
- Geert Boudra (left wing)
- Njjik Rahlii (central, defensive)

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb (left)
- Andris Zdelizj (right)

Bench:
- Ohène Strok'pah (Gk)
- Samuel-Fred Van Overstraeten (Def)
- Faraji Gimelstob (Def)
- John Böhm (Mid)
- Teodors McGlothen (For)

Excuse me, why are we on the list. we did not sign up for the BoF.

You were listed as "unconfirmed" on the WC28 sign-up thread, meaning that you didn't say "yes, I want to be in the BoF" nor "no, I don't want to be in the BoF." Legalese and I decided to add all unconfirmed entries in the BoF for two reasons.

The first is that if an "unconfirmed" nation wished to participate, and we had not included them in the draw and left them out of qualification, they could have complained, saying that they had intended to enter the BoF. Think of it as erring on the safe side.

The second, and a more selfish reason, is because we wanted even groups. Adding in all of the unconfirmed entries gave us an even 20 entries, split into four groups of five.

EDIT: You have been replaced by Zorinia.

Any further questions, TG me or Legalese.

As the teams in the Legalese Region enter the country, the head of the delegation is given a large manilla folder. The contents are as follows:


Pre-World Cup 28
Baptism of Fire Cup
Legalese Region

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I welcome you to the nation of Legalese for the Baptism of Fire! We hope your accomodations are acceptable to each of you. Enclosed, you will find a full schedule of the matches being played in Legalese, as well as a quick description of each of the venues hosting the event. If you have any questions, you can feel free to contact me.

Yours,

Laci Nivenct
Legalese Baptism of Fire Organizing Committee



Behind the letter was a page of venues and the schedule, as Laci promised:


Baptism of Fire
Legalese Region Schedule
First Round

Black Group

Matchday 1
New- Lexington v. Radke Settlement Stadium
Burning Penguins v. Molvania Daii Park
Boudra-Boudra off

Matchday 2
Burning Penguins v. Boudra-Boudra Daii Park
Radke v. Molvania Settlement Stadium
New-Lexington off

Matchday 3
Boudra-Boudra v. Radke Settlement Stadium
New-Lexington v. Molvania Daii Park
Burning Penguins off

Matchday 4
New-Lexington v. Boudra-Boudra Settlement Stadium
Radke v. Burning Penguins Daii Park
Molvania off

Matchday 5
Boudra-Boudra v. Molvania Daii Park
Burning Penguins v. New-Lexington Settlement Stadium
Radke off


Red Group

Matchday 1
Lisburn Mateys v. Narbithia Mallaber International Pitch
The Emperialist v. Talmeria Portside Stadium
Gaspland off

Matchday 2
The Emperialist v. Gaspland Mallaber Intl. Pitch
Narbithia v. Talmeria Portside Stadium
Lisburn Mateys off

Matchday 3
Gaspland v. Narbithia Portside Stadium
Lisburn Mateys v. Talmeria Mallaber Intl. Pitch
The Emperialist off

Matchday 4
Lisburn Mateys v. Gaspland Portside Stadium
Narbithia v. The Emperialist Mallaber Intl. Pitch
Talmeria off

Matchday 5
Gaspland v. Talmeria Portside Stadium
The Emperialist v. Lisburn Mateys Mallaber Intl. Pitch
Narbithia off


And then, the final page with the venues listed:

Venues for the Baptism of Fire, Legalese Region

Daii Park

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/DaiiPark.png

Located in Tiberia, Daii Park is the home of Legalese club Daii Juniors, named after the Starblaydi club Israka Daii, thought to be the favorite club of Starblaydi Lord-Protector Tiberius Starblayde (the namesake of the city). Built 8 years ago, the 35,000-seat Daii Park will host Black Group matches during the BoF.

Settlement Stadium

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/SettlementStadium.png

Located in the young border city of Snowcroft, Settlement Stadium's name actually is derived from the accidential destruction of Snowcroft City's old playing grounds. The red-faced city government settled with the club by building this park, which was 20,000 seats larger than SC's old ground; the club and city split the ownership of the stadium. Settlement Stadium will host Black Group matches in this BoF.

Portside Stadium

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/PortsideStadium.png

The newest of the stadiums in Legalese, Portside Stadium is located, fittingly, in the city of Pt. Diem. The 71,400-seat park is used by Bekknia United during the Legalese Soccer season, but will host Red Group matches during the Baptism of Fire.

Mallaber International Pitch

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/MallaberInternationalPitch.png

After Portside, the second-newest stadium in Legalese, Mallaber International is located in the southern city of Bellona. It seats 55,000, and is normally the home ground of Oatka United FC, a club started by the stadium's namesake, Jack Mallaber. It will host Red Group matchest during the BoF.

The Castle

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/TheCastle.png

Known as the "Jewel of the Former Capital", The Castle remains Legalese's only retractable-roof stadium, with a removable grass pitch. Originally built as a second national team venue, The 69,000-seat Castle is now shared as the home ground for both Curia City and Curia United. All of the teams advancing out of the Black and Red Groups will travel here, as The Castle will host the Regional Playoff and Semifinal Rounds.

Titanplex

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b135/oatkautd/Titanplex.png

The largest stadium in Legalese. The Titanplex was built as Legalese National Stadium, and remained as such throughout the early years of the nation. After the occupation of Legalese by Starblaydia, the stadium was operated by Titan FC of Francopolis, and as such, underwent major renovations, and a renaming. The 91,000 who fit into this hallowed ground can sit either along the touchlines, or in the curved area behind the south goal. Behind the North Goal sits the TitanHouse, the headquarters for Titan FC, and former home of the Legalese Association Football Federation.

Titanplex will host the Regional Final, as well as the Baptism of Fire Championship.

The Zorinian Vipers

Being the first major tournament the Vipers are participating, everyone on the Zorinian Vipers, including Head Coach Mike Zimmerman, was a bit nervous. However, the entire Federation of Zorinia was excited to be represented in such an honorable tournament, no matter the outcome. The Vipers have players ranging backgrounds and experiences, some soccer veterans most of their lives while this is the first season for others. After several days of pre-tournament practice, not to mention months of intense training on top of that, Coach Zimmerman has announced his tenative roster lineup for the first match:

Predicted Formation: 3-5-2

Defenders
George Prodde, Left
Steven Albertson, Center
William Kirpatrick, Right

Midfield
James Chi, Center, Offense
Greggory Jennings (Captain), Center, Defense
Charlie "Chuck" Aber, Center Defense
Craig McGuire, Left
Jason Carter, Right

Forwards
Dustin Peterson, Left
Fred MacIntyre, Right

Goalkeeper
James Hamilton

Substitutes
John Tagge, Forward
Steven Hille, Goalkeeper
Robert "Bobby" Stegbert, Midfield
Ty Walker, Midfield
Alex Romoa, Defense

Quick OOC Note: The Legalese Region scores will be posted late tonight (probably around midnight US Eastern Time), due to a slight difficulty this morning. My apologies for the inconvenience, but with the extra time, be sure to get your RPs in!

The Kazooian Region should be scorinated as scheduled, as far as I know.

Blue/Orange Groups

RP Cutoff! Any RPs past this marker will count for MD2.

Scores have been posted for matchday one. Go to the beginning of this thread, or, click here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=10727376&postcount=2).

****THE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION OF NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE (FANA)****

FANA is pleased to announce the Nouvelle Angleterre squad for the Baptism of Fire.

GK TOMMY HARRIS
GK TIMI HIGHFIELD

D FRED JONES
D GEORGE HARPER
D LEE HOOPER
D LEVI THOMAS
D TOM McCONNELL

M KELVIN ROBERTS
M ROBERT SAMUEL
M JOE LEWIS
M JASON DRESSEL
M PAUL O’BRIEN

F DAVID THOMPSON
F AARON O’DOYLE
F JAMES WARDER
F HARRY BOYD

Manager- Lee Marshall
Coach- Jim Smith
Physio- Steven Jackson

The Chairman of FANA, Sir Leon Kirk, spoke at the press conference.
“ It is with great pleasure that FANA announces the Nouvelle Angleterre squad for the nations first ever international sporting competition. We are absolutely commited to the development of football in Nouvelle Angleterre and we believe that this is a step in the right direction. We have clear goals that we have set out and whilst this competition and the World Cup are important steps they are only the start of the long road to success. The hard work starts here”.

The Sports Secretary of Nouvelle Angleterre, Matthew Buxton MP, also spoke.
“It is a proud day for the country. It is a proud day for the team. It is a proud day for me personally. There was a time not so long ago, during the dark days of occupation, that the thought of a day like today was exactly that, a mere thought, an impossible dream. Well today that dream has been realised. Today the flag of Nouvelle Angleterre is flying and the world is saluting. The nations pride is manifested in this team. We are commited to ensuring that the flag of Nouvelle Angleterre continues to fly high and that sport in Nouvelle Angleterre continues to develop. This is why the Government is pledging
NA£ 1 billion to the development of sport in this counrty and to help FANA achieve the goals set out by Sir Leon Kirk earlier. I am sure the nation joins me in wishing Lee and his team the best of luck in the Baptism of Fire and the World Cup”

The manager of the Nouvelle Angleterre national team, Lee Marshall, said
“The lads are delighted to represent their country and I am confident that we have the talent and team spirit around which we can build a successful team in the coming years. This may be our first competition and we are not expected to succeed but I am confident that this is a major stepping stone in the development of football in Nouvelle Angleterre.”

THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE
“LAND OF OUR FATHERS, LAND OF THE FREE”

“Oh land of our fathers, land of the free,
We are singing our song in honour of thee.
You raise up the weak and champion the poor,
So we sing our song of honour once more.

Oh land of hope, land of dreams,
Land of the mighty river that gleams.
Land of the mountains, land of the hills,
We sing of the pride that your name enstills.

Land of justice, land of truth,
Our song to your is our solemn oath.
Libery and hope must prevail,
As we advance with your wind in our sails.”

CARPE DIEM

What about the Opponents?

Black Group

Boudra-Boudra
http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Boudra-Boudra is hoping to live up to the big expectations from the fans and at least make it amongst the first three of the group. Prediction: 3rd

New-Lexington
http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/new-lexington.jpg

Little is know about the team from New-Lexington, but with the matchup against them only being on Matchday 4, more information about the team should be available by them. For now, a victory against them is what we're looking for. Prediction: 4th

Burning Penguins
http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/burning_penguins.jpg
Also quite unknown, but somehow the BBFA thinks they will be a tougher opponent. Maybe the fact that they will be the first team that Boudra-Boudra will meet plays a role. Prediction: 2nd

-Molvania
http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/default.jpg
-Molvania have a very strong defence and it will be hard to score against them, their 6 man defence helps ofcourse :) Prediction: 1st

Radke
http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/radke.jpg
Again an unknown team, the games played by Radke during the first two matchdays will need to be analysed to get some information about their no doubt motivated team. Prediction: 5th



With most of the opponents being complete unknowns, this round up was quite useless, but if you read this, you probably noticed that already ;)

Narbithia's team:

4-4-2:

Manager: Thomas Archer
Asst. Manager: Warren Jones

*Starters in BOLD*
Goalkeepers:
#22 James Knight
#2 Oliver Martin
#11 Daniel O’Sulliven

Defenders:
#15 Mark Spencer
#12 Peter Maxwell
#20 Michael Tyrone
#7 Edward Maxwell (c)
#4 Brandon Green

Midfielders:
#1 William Page
#21 Samuel Smith
#5 Arthur Weaver
#24 Frank Ogden
#17 Sean O’Rourke
#6 Lee Miller
#16 Terry Collins

Forwards:
#14 Christopher Adams
#8 Nathan Doyle
#10 Victor Wayne
#9 Zachary Redford
#13 Henry Brooks


Give My Opponents Permission To:

Choose Scorers: Y
GodMod Goalscoring Events: Y

Injure Players: Y
GodMod Injury Events: N

Red Card Players: Y
Yellow Card Players: Y
GodMod Other Events: N



NARBITHIA FIELDS FIRST WORLD CUP SOCCER TEAM!

That's right ladies and gentlemen, Narbithia will indeed be competing in the 28th World Cup, including the pre-cup Baptism of Fire. While soccer on this level is still relatively new to our kingdom hopes are high for a good showing by the national team, especially twin defensive players Peter and Edward Maxwell.

Legalese Region
Matchday 1 Results

Black Group
New-Lexington 1-2 Radke
Burning Penguins 1-2 Molvania

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Radke 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
2 Molvania 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
3 Boudra-Boudra 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 New-Lexington 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
5 Burning Penguins 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0

Red Group
Lisburn Mateys 2-0 Narbithia
The Emperialist 1-0 Talmeria

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Lisburn Mateys 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
2 The Emperialist 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
3 Gaspland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Talmeria 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0
5 Narbithia 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

With all of the Vipers and staff sitting in the locker room on the day of their first match, Coach Zimmerman addressed all the eager young (relatively) players. Their practices had been proceeding fairly well; shooting, passing, defensive, and conditioning drills all showed that the team was ready to perform their best. Even Ty Walker, midfielder, who had been recovering from a hamstring injury two weeks prior looked like he could take on the entire opponent single-handedly without breaking a sweat (unfortunately, in order to guarantee a speedy recovery, it was determined that he would most likely be sitting out most of the match to prevent further injury of one of the best long-distance runners on the team). With about 10 minutes to go before match warm ups, the Coach gave a motivational speech worthy of a sports almanac from on top of a small wooden bench in the locker room as all the players looked and listened intently in their crisp, clean blue and gold uniforms.

With their cleats all laced up, ankle guards strapped on, and shirts crisply tucked into their shorts, the team stood up and gathered in a circle around Coach Zimmerman, a pre-game ritual. Placing their hands on top of one another's, the Vipers started their favorite chant (coined primarily by the team's fans), jumping up and down methodically in excitement. This was the big moment. Zorinia was proud of their team simply for being invited to the tournament, no matter the outcome. The Zorinian fans were perhaps some of the most loyal in the region, if not world...not hesitating to show pride for their nation's team nor hesitating to show sportsmanship to the opponent.

The Vipers now hyped up and ready to go, began to file out of the small locker room under the stadium and proceed up the ramp to the field where their moment in the spotlight would begin...

A good day for the Mateys

The Commonwealth of Lisburn Mateys today was in a julibant mood as the country's football team won their first ever professional match, 2-0 against a reallativly unkown Narbithia. Around 10 000 football mad Mateys pillied into the south stand of the Malleber International ground, and sang their hearts out for the entrie 90 minutes. With a favourite song being "we'r not Bedistan we' Lisburn Mateys, we'r not Bedistan we'r Lisburn Mateys, we'r not Bedistan we'r Lisburn Mateys but it's all the same to me!!!!"

The match itself was fairly one sided with Lisburn Mateys controlling most of the game and finished up with 72% of the possesion. The Mateys forwards will be slightly disappointed with their performance after missing countless shots but they also have to thank a very resillient defensive performance from Narbithia, with defender Edward Maxwell playing a superb part in the defensive effort as he was marking 6 foot 1 striker Amusi Akobyi, who under constant pressure from Edward barely got any free headers.

The first goal from Lisburn Mateys was simply stunning and came on 41 minutes. Aaron McCann picked up the ball around the half way line after Narbithia wasted one of their few chances by blasting a free kick into the wall. Aaron played a quick one, two with Richard Dougherty and then began his run with a series of step overs and party tricks which the Narbithians couldn't deal with. After skinning 3 players it was down to him and goal keeper, and Richard Dougherty racing into the box screaming for the pass. Aaron the cocky and composed youngster that he is didn't pass, he simply nuts' the goal keeper in what will be a very memorable goal for years to come.

The second goal arrived in the 67th minute after some slick passing by the whole team and an excellant placed and powerful shot from Amusi Akobyi, who managed to slip marker Edward Maxwell who at that stage was on a yellow card. The passing and moving from the team in the build up to the goal was world class and if the Mateys can keep up this sort of form they have a good chance of winning the tournament.


Final score
Lisburn Mateys 2 - 0 Narbithia

Goal scorers,
Aaron McCann (41)
Amusi Akobyi (67)

Yellow cards
Andrew Stewert (40)
Edward Maxwell (52)

Lisburn Mateys are off for the next matchday but have announced that they will send scouts to both of the other games to get some info on them.

Rosberg 1 Blitzwehr 1

Rosberg began their Baptism of Fire snatching a fortunate draw courtesy of veteran Charles Tauhore, who took advantage of a momentary lapse in the Blitzwehr defence to fire past their unsighted goalkeeper.
It was a disappointing performance from the Silly Bulls, with little happening in midfield or up front, as Blitzwehr dominated possession. After conceeding inside 65 seconds, Blitzwehr took full control, without really creating many chances. However their forwards were given enough opportunities to put the game out of reach for Rosberg, and were made to pay with just 2 minutes left in normal time.
With Rosberg Manager George Zip away attending the launch of the Rosberg F1 team, it was left to Assistant Steve Benitez to explain his side's listless performance.
"We are obviously very disappointed with our efforts today. It didn't look good for long periods, but we showed what we are made of with the late equalizer", he said.
"At least we can say we didn't play well but we still managed to get a point" he added.
Rosberg will be looking to provide much more competitiveness in their next group fixture, against Slakaj.
"We won't be making any changes, this is our strongest lineup, they will be much better for the run', claimed Benitez.
Slakaj, who had a bye on the 1st matchday, are a largely unknown quantity, but there are never easy games at this level.

NOUVELLE ANGLTERRE LOOSE IN INTERNATIONAL DEBUT
Nouvelle Angleteree 1 - 3 Anastaisiania

It was the day the nation had been waiting for. Finally a team representing Nouvelle Angleterre was running out in a competitive competition. The atmosphere was electric as the players ran out at the KCK Stadium. 30,000 Nouvelle Angleterre supporters joined the players in a rousing rendition of “Land of our fathers, Land of the free” which was enough to make the hairs on the backs of the necks of the most hardened Anastaisiania fans stand up.

The fans kept up the atmosphere as Lee Marshalls team kicked off. The Nouvelle Angleterre team played some good football in the opening five minutes with captain Joe Lewis coming close on 4 minutes. The early dominance of Nouvelle Angleterre didn’t last though and Anastaisiania showed their superior ability by cutting the Nouvelle Angleterre defence apart several times before opening the scoring on 32 minutes, much to the delight of the 45,000 fans that travelled to the match from Anastaisiania. Anastaisiania were 2-0 up before the break, a wonderful counter attack from the forwards drawing a foul from Lee Hooper on the edge of the box. The free kick was duly converted and Anastaisiania looked to be cruising towards a comfortable victory.

Lee Marshall’s half time team talk certainly did the trick as Nouvelle Angleterre came out for the second half eagerly. Nouvelle Angleterre’s moment of glory came on 51 minutes when David Thompson broke free of the last defender and slotted home to record the country’s international goal. The fans went wild in the stands and the players on the pitch celebrated like they had won the world cup. Even the King and Prime Minister Daniel Allen were jumping up and down in the VIP area.

Anastaisiania were not too bothered by the goal and although Nouvelle Angleterre gave a fighting performance in the remainder of the game Anastaisiania added a third 10 minutes from time to complete a comprehensive victory. Not that you would have known it from the noise being made from the Nouvelle Angleterre fans, who did their nation proud with their vocal performance.

Nouvelle Angleterre certainly did them selves proud in their first ever match and manager Lee Marshall spoke to us after the final whistle. “I am absolutely delighted at the way the lads played today. We were making history and we knew it. We played with great enthusiasm and passion and there are a lot of positives that we can take out of the match”. Goal hero David Thompson also joined us after the match. “I am absolutely thrilled you know. It is amazing to be out there representing Nouvelle Angleterre. The fans were great today and a lot of credit needs to go to them. We all had tears in our eyes when the nationa anthem was played and to hear 30,000 fans singing along with you was an unbelievable experience. To score a goal in front of them was the best moment of my life and the fact it was our first ever international goal was even more special”.

Lee Marshalls attention now turns to preparing his players for the clash with Blitzwehr, who shared a 1-1 draw with Rosberg in their first match, at Melodiphone Dome.

CARPE DIEM

Legalese Region
Matchday 2 Results

Black Group
Burning Penguins 2-4 Boudra-Boudra
Radke 1-3 Molvania

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Molvania 2 2 0 0 5 2 3 6
2 Boudra-Boudra 1 1 0 0 4 2 2 3
3 Radke 2 1 0 1 3 4 -1 3
4 New-Lexington 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
5 Burning Penguins 2 0 0 2 3 6 -3 0

Red Group
The Emperialist 1-1 Gaspland
Narbithia 0-0 Talmeria

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 The Emperialist 2 1 1 0 2 1 1 4
2 Lisburn Mateys 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
3 Gaspland 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
4 Talmeria 2 0 1 1 0 1 -1 1
5 Narbithia 2 0 1 1 0 2 -2 1




Breaking News: Authorities search rooms in Tiberia; hotel hosting teams participating in BoF


Tiberia, Legalese- An unnamed source has just told Channel #sport that members of the Legalese Federal Investigation Unit were seen searching rooms, likely with a warrant, in the Purple Arms Hotel. The 4-star hotel is currently housing teams from the Black Group for the duration of the Baptism of Fire tournament. More on this story as it develops.

(OOC: there's a starter for some of you guys ;) )

Kazooian Region
Matchday 2 Results


Blue Group
Rosberg 2-0 Slakaj
Nouvelle Angleterre 2-0 Blitzwehr


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Rosberg 2 1 1 0 3 1 2 4
2 Anastasiania 1 1 0 0 3 1 2 3
3 Nouvelle Angleterre 2 1 0 1 3 3 0 3
4 Blitzwehr 2 0 1 1 1 3 -2 1
5 Slakaj 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Orange Group
Zorinia 3-0 N00bzors
Vejar 0-3 Canabinol

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 2 2 0 0 4 0 4 6
2 Canabinol 2 1 0 1 3 1 2 3
3 Vejar 2 1 0 1 2 3 -1 3
4 St Happenin 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
5 N00bzors 1 0 0 1 0 3 -3 0

MARSHALL’S MAGICIANS BRUSH ASIDE BLITZWEHR
NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE 2 - 0 BLITWEHR

There was dancing in the streets of Noumarche, the capital of Nouvelle Angleterre, as the national team recorded their first ever competitive victory, a 2-0 will over Blitzwehr at Melodiphone Dome.

Once again the atmosphere created by the Nouvelle Angleterre fans was second to none and there were tears in the eyes of the players as 40,000 Nouvelle Angleterre fans joined them in singing “Land of our fathers, Land of the free”. The emotion of the occasion coupled with the positive response to the 1-3 defeat to Anastansiania by their manager, seemed to give Nouvelle Angleterre the edge in the opening 30 minutes with both O’Doyle and Thompson coming close. Nouvelle Angleterre’s dominance was under threat for a time, though, when Blitwehr came out of their shells and passed the ball around well creating some half decent chances.

Lee Marshall’s half time team talk was inspirational as always, as Nouvelle Angleterre came out for the second half with renewed vigour. Passing the ball about brilliantly and creating some great chances, Nouvelle Angleterre’s patience was rewarded on 56 minutes when captain Joe Lewis scored a wonderful free-kick from 30 yards. After that, the result was never really in doubt as the Blitzwehr team seemed to crumble. It was party time in the stands for the Nouvelle Angleterre fans and the noise was deafening. It did, however impossible it may have seemed, get even louder on 81 minutes when Aaron O’Doyle put them 2-0 up. The performance that the Nouvelle Angleterre players delivered today was second to none and at the final whistle this was recognised by 5 minutes of wild celebrations in the stands, the King and PM Daniel Allen seen jumping up and down hugging each other before they joined in with the 5 minute standing ovation that the players received for their efforts.

The victory lifts Nouvelle Angleterre to third in the group, 1 place and 2 points above the disappointing Blitzwehr.

Lee Marshall, manager of Nouvelle Angleterre, spoke to us after the victory. “Unbelievable. The lads were outstanding today. The performance was inspired. To get our 1st ever win is an amazing feeling. The lads put in an absolutely stunning performance and we tron them apart from the begginig to the end. The fans played their part again and seeing the scenes from bak home on the TV just gives the lads an extra boost. Brilliant mate, just brilliant.”

Nouvelle Angleterre take on bottom of the group Slakaj at Manni Aka Field and they will be hoping to record another good result and build on the progress made so far.

CARPE DIEM

Rosberg 2 Slakaj 0

The return of inspirational Manager George Zip has brought the Silly Bulls into the winners circle for the 1st time, after Rosberg accounted for Slakaj by 2-0 today.
Zip, who had been away with the F1GP squad during MD1, returned to add the required impetus to the Silly Bulls, who had looked strangely dis-interested against Blitzwehr, and had been lucky to scrape a last minute equaliser against them. Today was very different however, with Rosberg immediately settling into their stride against a timid-looking Slakaj side.

The opening goal came after 14 minutes, during which Rosberg had their opponents camped in their own half. The goal, when it arrived, was a cracker, Jaap Korver opening his account for this campaign with a 25-yard thunderbolt after good leadup work from Gareth Evans and Michael Law. The goal was greeted with a thunderous roar from the Green end of the ground, and they were on their feet again soon afterwards as Law produced a typically aggressive surge up the middle, his shot just being tipped around the post by the Slakaj goalkeeper. Rosberg continued to press for the rest of the half, but were denied a second by the athletic Slakaj goalkeeper, who made some fine stops, most notably from Patrick Holmes' near-post header just before the break.

The second half was only seconds old when Rosberg went 2-0 up, a Slakaj defender bringing down Holmes in the area when he was set through on goal by a pinpoint pass from Law. Holmes put away the penalty with aplomb. The Silly Bulls throttled back considerably there-after, never looking as threatening as in the 1st period. Nevertheless there was much to like about the performance, and Manager Zip was delighted.
"We were magnificent today"; he beamed, "Slakaj never had a look-in. If we continue to play like that, we are going to be very hard to beat for the rest of the tournament. We certainly sent a message to the other teams today."

The Silly Bulls have a bye in MD3, but will be looking to maintain their leadership of the group by accounting for Nouvelle Angleterre, who got off the mark with victory today, in MD4.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Andris Zdelizj, the Trojsno striker, was having trouble falling asleep that night, as his day had been quite strange: Instead of waking up from the sound of his alarm or from the girl from room service bringing breakfast, he found himself suddenly surrounded by five policemen going through his stuff. Before he knew what was going on his room was upside down and all his belongings were scattered all over the floor. As unexpectedly as they had appeared, the policemen suddenly also had vanished equally fast to go rearrange the furniture in the room next to his, which he knew because he heard fellow teammate Njjik Rahlii curse and yell.

After breakfast, still without fully knowing what that all had been about, the team went straight to the training fields, as they were going to do some basic exercises to get warmed up for the game that late afternoon against Burning Penguins. However, all the roads were fully jammed as police cars were holding up the traffic everywhere. Arriving two hours late, training was cancelled and the team spent their time before noon running laps while discussing what all that fuss had been about that morning.

To his surprise, coach Gunfi-Pok told him during dinner that he was selected for the upcoming match that day against Burning Penguins. A big surprise to him as he never thought he would be chosen above fellow teammates Karvi and McGlothen.

The match itself went great, for Boudra-Boudra that is, but Andris injured himself after a reckless tackle by a player from Burning Penguins and had to be replaced after 7 minutes already. Luckily however, after a few checks, the team physio found that Andris had some internal bruises and would be out for about 10 days. The tournament was over, but at least not his career. Andris gained a lot of popularity amongst the Boudra-Boudra population and would never be forgotten, he would always be known for being the first ever player to be substituted after an injury, but more important, for being the first ever goalscorer for Boudra-Boudra as he had scored after 2 minutes already the opening goal.

Returning to the hotel late that night, most of the players never noticed they were in new rooms while being too happy about winning their first ever match. But Andris lay awake, too tired to search through his stuff to see if anything was broken or missing, too disappointed for missing the rest of the tournament, too proud for scoring the first ever goal for his team and setting them up for the victory and too curious to know what all those policemen were looking for that morning.

Narbithia Suffers First Loss


Narbithia’s soccer team lost it’s first match in the Baptism of Fire yesterday to fellow first time World Cup participant Lisburn Mateys. Our defense, lead by team captain Edward Maxwell, did their best to aid goalie James Knight, but even their best wasn’t enough to stop the opposing team from scoring two goals.

In contrast the Narbithian team’s offense was lackluster, with a scoring attempt by Zachary Redford that only just missed being the highlight of their play. “We let the fact that it was the first game get to us,” said midfielder Sean O’Rourke.


Second Match a Tie


Narbithia’s match today against Talmeria resulted in a scoreless game for both teams, despite a much improved performance by the Narbithian offense. In fact, only a miraculous save by the Talmerian goalie prevented Christopher Adams from scoring in the second half of the match. The defense, led by the Maxwell twins, once again put in a stunning performance, allowing only one attempt at scoring by the Talmerians, which was caught by Knight and quickly sent back up the field.

Team manager Thomas Archer is reported to be confident about the upcoming match against Gaspland, where it is hoped that the team’s continued improvement will result in a goal or two.

Fjootbjallecupdat Molvanja

Molvanja Uber Alles!
[English]-
Molvania has leaped out ahead of their fellow competitiors in this Baptism of Fire Cup, winning their first two matches 2-1 and 3-1 against Burning Penguins and Radke. This gives Molvania a total of 6 points, tied with only Zorinia for the most in the tournament. However, there appears to be some confusion among other teams as to Molvania's secret. We, of course, know that our success comes from a strong midfield, comprised of six players. Oddly, in their preview of the Legalese Groups, the Boudra-Boudra media confused our six man midfield and somehow interpreted it as a six man defense. On the contrary, Molvania employs only three defenders in front of keeper Zvetmir Tkermec. Perhaps they are confusing us with San-Lorenzo, a team that took third in the BoF a few tournaments back, playing in a 6-3-1 formation.[/shameless brag] However, we certainly agree with their prediction of our finishing position. Molvania can only succeed if we continue to play this well.

Burning Penguins vs Boudra-Boudra

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/burning_penguins.jpg vs http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Boudra-Boudra triumphs!
Victory dedicated to Zdelizj

As the team lined up for the national anthem, many of the commentators were not silent out of respect for the anthem, but out of amazement for the lineup. First of all Ohène Strok'pah was standing in goal, chosen above Guido Smith, who was not looking happy on the bench. The defence saw a new starter in the form of Simon Samuelsson whereas in midfield, Nikolajs Gelders was actually on the field instead of the expected Geert Boudra or Abraham Whiler. But the biggest surprise came up front as Jarno Karvi had been replaced by Andris Zdelizj, which was quite strange since coach Gunfi-Pok had announced just the day before that Jarno was in really good shape and almost sure to be in the starting eleven.

It only took the commentators 2 minutes however to realise that coach Gunfi-Pok had made some good decisions as Andris Zdelizj scored after a nice double pass with fellow forward Sosimo Bradkorb. Before the team from Burning Penguins realised what was going on it could have been two-nil already as Zdelizj lead the break away as he went storming straight towards the keeper with just 5 minutes played. Unlucky for Andris however, the keeper was fast enough to grab the ball before Andris could go around him.
In the seventh minute, Andris was again on the run, as the long balls played over the Burning Penguins midfield were working quite well together with his speed. This time however, he was brought down by an outrageous challenge which remarkably, the referee had not noticed. Andris had to be carried off, being replaced by his fellow teammate at Trojsno, Teodors McGlothen.

The Boudra-Boudra team lost it's concentration due to the sudden loss, and the Burning Penguins' team scored the qualiser after 19 minutes. Soon however the Boudran team regrouped and managed to score two more goals, both headed in from a corner kick, the first through Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado, the second through Sosimo Bradkorb.

After the break the match never came up to the same level as the first half, as Boudra-Boudra controlled the ball but had trouble finding openings through the Penguins' defence. With only about twenty minutes to play Teodors McGlothen finished the match as he scored from a free-kick which left the keeper standing without an answer. The Penguins scored a late consolation goal through a nice combination through the center, but it came too late for them to score any points.

The final score:
Burning Penguins 2 - 4 Boudra-Boudra

Andris Zdelizj '2,
??? '19,
Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado '32,
Bradkorb '39,
McGlothen 71'
??? '83

The Boudran lineup:

Goalkeeper:
- Ohène Strok'pah

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain)
- Simon Samuelsson (out, 84 mins)
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado
- Rikke Gallucio
- Nikolajs Gelders (out, 62 mins)
- Njjik Rahlii

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb
- Andris Zdelizj (out, 7 mins)

Replacements:
- Abraham Whiler (Mid, 62 mins)
- Teodors McGlothen (For, 7 mins)
- Dia Dzigbode (Def, 84 mins)

Other BoF related news:
- The authorities searched the rooms of the Purple Arms Hotel in Tiberia where the five teams playing in the black BoF group (-Molvania, Radke, Burning Penguins, New-Lexington and Boudra-Boudra) are staying. No official announcement has been sent out but rumours have been ongoing that the -Molvania players have illegally imported warty cheese from their home country. This news however has not been confirmed.

- Meanwhile in the black group the scores are:

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 -Molvania 2 2 0 0 5 2 3 6
2 Boudra-Boudra 1 1 0 0 4 2 2 3
3 Radke 2 1 0 1 3 4 -1 3
4 New-Lexington 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
5 Burning Penguins 2 0 0 2 3 6 -3 0
With the next matches being:
Boudra-Boudra v. Radke at the Settlement Stadium,
New-Lexington v. -Molvania at Daii Park,
while the Burning Penguins have their day off

- Earlier we reported that -Molvania was playing a six man defence, ofcourse we meant midfield. However this does not change the fact that 3-6-1 can be quite defensive. The main goal for the Boudran team will be to gain possession against all those midfielders.

[English]-
Molvanian players hotel rooms were searched today in what was termed by Molvanian Prime Minister V. B. Tzoric, "a totally unfounded and unessecary action." The authorities were apparantly searching for warty cheese, which would have been illegal if imported. However, no illegal items were found. The only things turned up by the search were several cases of zeerstum: traditional Molvanian garlic brandy, and zvadovar: heavily-sugared chicory extract. However, these items were declared when the team entered the country, making their presence totally permissible. Two women who were originally suspected to be prositutes by the officers present turned out to be the teams physical training aides, and appropriate papers were provided by team Manager Ulgmat Valgzos. While the police refuse to reveal the identity of the party who originally provided them with the tip that warty cheese may have been present in the Molvanian rooms, Manager Valgzos suspects that another team, perhaps intimidated by Molvania's excellent performance thus far may have attempted to have Molvania's best players arrested. We certainly hope the tournament authorities will look into this possibility and appropriately punish the guilty parties, should any exist.

Anastasiania Kick Off Football With Success
Forwards Show Talent in Opening International

The Anastasianian football side opened its international career with a 3-1 victory over Nouvelle Angleterre today, after the U-23s had suffered horrible results in the Tyrellian Ylompics. Many of the U-23s have, however, been given places in this line-up, as coach Ylva Pettersdotter said "we need to pick our best, and although the U-23s were shown up recently, with a bit more experience they should do fine."

They certainly did fine against Nouveau Angleterre in the KCK Stadium, filled almost to capacity with 105,742 spectators. 45,000 Anastasianians certainly got a night to remember - with Blain, Henriksson and Markku Vanhala all recording goals, Anastasiania showed plenty of talent, although the defending of Nouveau Angleterre left something to be desired.

With three matches to go, Anastasiania look well set in qualifying for the "regional playoffs", which everyone else would call the round of 16, at least the second round. Four teams from each group of five make it through, and with three points from one game, elimination would be somewhat of a miracle.

We leave you with the Anastasianian squad:

Keepers:

1 Iiro Kuivasto, 27, Vaaranta*
16 Michael Leahy, 22, FC Allenby

Defenders

2 Steve Wyndham, 29, FC Köksberg, left back*
3 Kalervo Kottila, 21, Ärvo, right back/winger
4 Oliver Dyren, 20, FC Köksberg, central defender*
5 Pekka Ollinsalo, 32, Maimsville Athletic, right back*
13 Mike Walliams, 27, Ordwich, central defender*
17 Jonny Larsson, 21, Björntorp, central defender
18 Sven Andersson, 24, IFK Fuglängen, central defender/right back

Midfielders (8):

6 Neil Wells, 30, Sveaborg FK, winger
8 Turkka Kivelä, 19, Liitojärvi, central midfielder/right winger*
9 Bengt Henriksson, 28, Sveaborg FK, right winger*
11 Glenn Olsson, 21, SK Älgborg, central midfielder
15 Paul Briggs, 22, Gardwick Albion, attacking midfielder*
19 Johan Uddling, 24, Bunbury City, left winger*

Attackers (6):

7 Phil Blain, 26, Ribbersback City, forward*
10 Richard Munday, 22, Maimsville Athletic, striker
12 Vince Peterson, 34, SK Älgborg, striker*
14 Olli Ryynänen, 28, Ellissi, forward
20 Aarto Eskelinen, 22, Määtelinna, striker

Legalese Region
Matchday 3 Results

Black Group
Boudra-Boudra 2-2 Radke
New-Lexington 2-4 Molvania


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Molvania 3 3 0 0 9 4 5 9
2 Boudra-Boudra 2 1 1 0 6 4 2 4
3 Radke 3 1 1 1 5 6 -1 4
4 New-Lexington 2 0 0 2 3 6 -3 0
5 Burning Penguins 2 0 0 2 3 6 -3 0

Red Group
Gaspland 1-3 Narbithia
Lisburn Mateys 2-1 Talmeria

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Lisburn Mateys 2 2 0 0 4 1 3 6
2 The Emperialist 2 1 1 0 2 1 1 4
3 Narbithia 3 1 1 1 3 3 0 4
4 Gaspland 2 0 1 1 2 4 -2 1
5 Talmeria 3 0 1 2 1 3 -2 1


OOC: Note that only the top 3 advance, so calling a "Round of 8, plus 4 who enter later" would be kinda awkward :p

Kazooian Region
Matchday 3 Results

Blue Group
Slakaj 0-4 Nouvelle Angleterre
Anastasiania 5-0 Blitzwehr


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 2 2 0 0 8 1 7 6
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 3 2 0 1 7 3 4 6
3 Rosberg 2 1 1 0 3 1 2 4
4 Blitzwehr 3 0 1 2 1 8 -7 1
5 Slakaj 2 0 0 2 0 6 -6 0

Orange Group
N00bzors 0-2 Vejar
St Happenin 0-0 Canabinol

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 2 2 0 0 4 0 4 6
2 Vejar 3 2 0 1 4 3 1 6
3 Canabinol 3 1 1 1 3 1 2 4
4 St Happenin 2 0 1 1 0 2 -2 1
5 N00bzors 2 0 0 2 0 5 -5 0

Tiberia, Legalese - Two days after the police searched the rooms of some teams playing in the Baptism of Fire tournament, it is still unsure what or who exactly they were looking for and for what reason. With all that being unsure, rumours and accusations are currently flying around. After a first rumour, supposedly coming from the Boudra-Boudra team, the police was looking for illegally imported warty cheese. The -Molvania team, who had various legal homemade products with them, but no such thing as warty cheese, has officially announced they suspect another team of their group of warning the authorities as to disturb their performance in the tournament.

However, with all teams undergoing the same treatment, it looks unlikely that that is the case. The team from -Molvania might not be completely wrong as the teams from Narbithia and Lisburn Mateys, red group, got the same visit this morning. Also looking for warty cheese? Word goes that the 'anonymous tipster' who caused the first search has been tracked to be a member of the Narbithia or Lisburn Mateys team. But still, the police has not released an official statement.

On other news, the Boudra-Boudra national team drew their second match, against Radke 2-2. Scorers for Boudra-Boudra were McGlothen and Rahlii. The other match saw New-Lexington lose to a strong -Molvania team who were very effective while countering. 4-2 the score. The -Molvania team are now sure to progress as first or second in the group. Boudra-Boudra needs one victory in its next two matches to be sure. New-Lexington and -Molvania being the opponents.

Lack lustre Mateys, win again!!, just

A lacklustre Lisburn Matey side today turned up for matchday 3 at Mallaber Intl. Pitch for the game against Talmeria.

The Mateys started off brightly with Aaron McCann making some nice runs down the left and Chris Kingsberry down the right wing. Lisbrun Mateys first goal came after a Talmeria attack was broken down by Gregg Gregg, who quickly passed out to Andrew Stewert. Stewert then burned down the line creating a two on one situation with the Talmerian left back, giving Kingsberry plenty of space. Stewert passed to kingberry who continued down the right wing until a defender came across. Kingsberry hit a perfect cross which was met with some power by Amusi Akobyi to make it 1-0. The Mateys bright display started to disappear as they for some reason sat back for the rest of the half with the ball bogged down in midfield for most of it.

After half time it was clear that the Talmerians had a very motivating team talk as they came out with guns blazing, scoring within 7 minutes of the restart.

The Mateys who went into the match as favourites realised an upset could be on the cards picked up their standard of play, by the Talmerians dug in and kept the Mateys forwards at bay.
It became apparent that Aaron McCann was trying as hard as could, perhaps to hard as he continuously tried to "skin" the opposition, captain David Armstrong seemed to have a very heated argument with him for Aarons lack of team work, who was subtitued some minutes later for Joe Bellucci .

The task for the Mateys took a turn for the worse when Stephan Mc Niece who was already on a yellow card was sent off, after making a surging run into the box and was supposidly brought down by a Talmerian player. The ref decided that it was a dive and showed Stephan his second yellow card and sent him off. Now the Talmerians poured forward hoping for an unexpected victory, but the Mateys defence held firm and had most people in their own half but this played to one of the Mateys strengths,,,,, the counter attack!!

With so many pacy players the Talmerians should have been aware of this threat especially as the first goal was scored in this fashion, but they wernt, the Mateys gave them many scares in the last 25 minutes.

It was the 91st minute when Stewert picked up the ball and saw Bellucci completly unmarked, he quickly hoof the ball over to let Joe start his run into the box. His soaring pace saw him reach the box in no time, and an inexperienced defender took his legs from under him ,,, PENALTY!!
With practically the last kick of the game Amusi Akobyi thundered the ball into the top right corner

Final score
Lisburn Mateys 2 - 1 Talmeria

Goal Scorers
Amusi Akobyi (21, 91-pen)
Talmerian player (51)

Yellow cards
Stephan McNiece (16, 67)
Marvin Andrews (71)

Interview with Manager Paul Kirk
Reporter:"There where many flash points in the match today what are your views on them?"

Paul Kirk:"We hopefully we dont get anymore days off, because i feal it distracted the players, as they were able to get involved in all the media hype taking their minfds off our game plan, which was clearly evident in young Aaron as our playing style is passing and teamwork which he just through out the window today. The sending off i would like to see again because i do not think it was a dive. Stephan does have a reputation for diving which i think influenced the refs decision.

Reporter:"What about the news of the Police visit to your hotel this morning?"

Paul Kirk:"I have no comment to make about this subject as it is my job to manage the football team, and not make up vicous rumours. If you dont mind i've got a post match team talk to get too."

Blain Downs Blitzwehr With Hat-Trick
Army Full of Holes

The Blitzwehr rolled over meekly in the second game of the Baptism of Fire tournament, as it was Anastasiania who continued with a blitz of goals, mostly from the boot of Phil Blain. He scored a hat-trick in the first half, ensuring that Anastasiania went into the break with a 4-0 lead, and just controlled from there with little trouble. Blitzwehr were unable to pose any kind of challenge, and as Blain said afterwards: "They call this international football? I'd like to get home and play in Division 1, then, because that challenges my football skills more. Today I just ran and got free - a bit lucky, I'd say, but it boosts my confidence."

Ylva Pettersdotter was not too pleased with Blain's cocky attitude, and noted that "we need to take all teams seriously in this tournament - Blitzwehr had an off day, but there are plenty of good teams in our group and we need to get some more wins on the board to get through to the semi-finals."

Contrary to popular belief, the organisational committee has also announced that only 3 of 5 teams from each group qualify. Presumably the winner from each group gets a bye to the semi-final - which would be good for Anastasiania, seeing as they top the group and Nouvelle Angleterre, whom the team beat comfortably last week, are lying second.

NARBITHIA WINS THIRD MATCH 3-1!


Fans poured out of the stands to congratulate the members of the Narbithian team on their first Baptism of Fire win at the end of today’s match, the third of the series. Our defense held the opposing team scoreless until about halfway through the second half of the game, when the Gaspland offense managed to make a goal during the confusion caused by a collision between Sean O’Rourke and a member of the Gaspland team. O’Rourke is reported to have a sprained ankle, and will be replaced in Narbithia’s fourth and final match by Lee Miller. No word yet on the condition of the Gaspland player, who was seen limping off the field after the collision as well. “Sean’s going to be missed tomorrow,” said team captain Maxwell when asked about the line up change. “Which isn’t to say that Lee’s a bad player, but we’ve been working with Sean for three games now, so we’ll have to get used to playing with someone else in his spot really quick if we want to win this next one.”

Other than O’Rourke’s injury the Narbithian offense had a great showing today, with Adams scoring shortly after the start of the match to put our team in the lead early. The Gaspland defense was kept busy for the rest of the first half, though our team didn’t manage to actually put one in the net again until the second half, when Narbithia’s final two goals were made in rapid succession near the end of the match.

Manager Thomas Archer had this to say regarding the next match, versus The Emperialist, “Even with the need to sub in Miller for O’Rourke this late in the game I think the match is going to go well for us. The current tie for second place in our group is going to be broken tomorrow, no matter what, and I see it being Narbithia that comes out on top.”

Potential Champions??

Ok with matchday 3 already completed a little more is known about the teams making their international debuts in the Baptism of Fire Tournament. This has also prompted ex Lisburn Distillery manager , Dave Gorman to make his predictions about the tournament.

Anastasiania, 3-1 (Joint Favourites)
Have played two matches so far in the tournament and are currently sitting top of the Blue group. Seem to have the best strickers in the tournament so far scoring 8 goals in those two games including a 5-0 demolition of Blitzwehr.
Star player = Phil Blain

Molvania, 3-1 (Joint Favourites)
Playing with a hard to break down 6 man midfield in somewhat extravogent tactics employed by the manager, and it seems to be working for them. Have won every game they have played so far but have failed to keep a clean sheet so far, but have managed to win by scoring enough goals.

Zorina, 4-1
Yet to conceed a goal after two games and if the defence can hold then they definatly have a real chance. The strikers also know how to score after there 3-0 victory against Noobzors. Play in a similar style to Molvania except with a 5 man midfield instead of 6.
Star player = Greggory Jennings

Nouvelle Angleterre, 6-1
Lost their first match to current group leaders and joint favourites for the tournament Anastasiania, but since then won both their games wihtout conceeding a goal and scoring 6.
Star player = David Thompson

Lisburn Mateys, 6-1
Our boys have made a promising start winning both games, but have scored relativly few goals compared to other teams. Strength is definalty in the defence having only let in one goal so far. Their relliance on Amusi Akobyi to score the goals could cost them.
Star player = Amusi Akobyi

Boudra-Boudra, 8-1
Won their first game 4-2 but in their secong game drew 2-2 in a very unconvincing display. Defence looks shaky, and if their forwards cant score they could be in some trouble.
Star player = Andris Zdelizj

Rosberg, 9-2
Played in a dull opening game against Blitzwehr which ended 1-1 and then beat Slakaj 2-0 in the next game. Don't seem to have any real stars, strengths or weaknesses, but have a resounding team spirit, which could see them getting through some difficult games.
Star man = Micheal Law

Narbithia, 9-1
The dark horses of the Tournament, seem to be getting stronger as the tournament progresses, started of with a loss against the Lisburn Mateys then a draw and then most recently a win against Gaspland.

[OOC: Soory I haven't been able to get around to the BoF. I've been really busy. I should've at least posted a roster. I won't be RPing BoF, I'm going out of town until April 20 or 21)

FANTASTIC FOUR! MARSHALL’S MEN DEMOLISH SLAKAJ
NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE 4-0 SLAKAJ

Lee Marshall’s men have surpassed even the wildest fans expectations in the pre- World Cup Baptism of Fire. Nouvelle Angleterre got off to a poor start with a 3-1 defeat to joint favourites Anastasiania. They picked up , however, and have won their last two games and keeping two clean sheets in the process. It is this impressive form that has lifted the once rank outsiders to 6-1 joint third favourites. Anastasiania remain joint favourites at 3-1 with Molvania, Zorina are 2nd favourites at 4-1, with the Lisburn Mateys joining Nouvelle Angleterre at 6-1 as joint third favourites.

The match itself was a spectacular affair and the 25,000 Nouvelle Angleterre fans outnumbered the Slakaj fans at a packed Mani Aka Field. The atmosphere was, as always, electric and this was added to by the fact the King and PM Daniel Allen left the VIP area and joined the fans in the stands.

Nouvelle Angleterre started brightly and were ahead after 5 mins through a spectacular long range effort from Aaron O’Doyle. Nouvelle Angleterre were 2-0 up scarcely 3 mins later as man of the moment David Thompson netted from 6 yards. The fans favourite could have had a hat-trick before half time but a combination of poor finishing and good goalkeeping kept Slakaj in the game.

Lee Marshall’s team talks would go for a fortune on eBay as his half time words did the trick again today. Nouvelle Angleterre were magnificent in the second half and ‘keeper Timi Highfield had nothing to except watch and enjoy the brilliant football that was being played. Time and time again the Slakaj defence were cut open by a rampant Nouvelle Angleterre attack. The pressure paid off as David Thompson netted his second and Nouvelle Angleterre’s third on the hour mark. The best was yet to come however. A superb pass from O’Doyle found the run if Thompson who dribbled passed 3 defenders and slotted the ball passed a stranded goalkeeper scoring Nouvelle Angleterre’s first ever hat trick. The roof was almost lifed of the magnificent arena as the final whistle blew and the Nouvelle Angleterre fans partied. If Nouvelle Angleterre can continue to put in performances like these then they may well reach the later stages of this competition.

Le Marshall spoke to us, as always, after the final whistle. “We were outstanding. It is some of the best football I have seen from any international side. We tore the defence apart and should have been 4-0 up by half time. The lads can be very proud of there performance today.”

The result sees Slakaj still marooned at the bottom of the group with 0 points as Nouvelle Angleterre move up to second place with 6 points although the teams in 1st and 3rd each have a game in hand. Nouvelle Angleterre face third place Rosberg in their final match of the group on MD4 and are off on MD5. Victory against Rosberg would virtually guarantee 2nd place for Nouvelle Angleterre.

The New-Lexington Confederates Roster:
Def. Chaz Williamson 6-3 210
Def. Eric Adleston 6-3 195
Def. Mason Crosby 6-4 213
Mid. Trevor Trudueau 5-8 154
Mid. Jason McCray 6-0 186
Mid. Terry Holthausen 6-1 175
Str. Eric Bennett 6-3 197
Str. Anthony Marinelli 6-0 175
Str. Trevor Griggs 6-2 175
Goalie Michael Lee 6-3 186
Goalie Frazier Smith 6-2 168

The New-Lexington soccer team soccer club is looking to WC 28, and the Baptism of Fire with great anticipation, but low excpectations. A defenceman, Mason Crosby has looked good in drills, hes big and very physical, he lead the New-Lexingon premeire leauge drawing 46 yellow cards during the 50 game season. Trevor Trudeau is one of the best dribblers in the world, but lack size. He could get banged around by opposing defencemen. Trevor Griggs is a profolic goalscorer at striker, and he has good size. Michael Lee is s superb goaltender with quick feet. Frazier Smith... well he sucks, but he still made the roster.

As excpected New-Lexington's top soccer club has produced lackluster results after a superb effort in each match. While they are currrntly 0 and 2, Coach Abi Grudzelanic has high hopes. "Maybe we can pull out a win or 2.. or not"

I will be scorinating at approximately 6:15 PM UTC, 2:15 PM US Eastern.

Legalese Region
Matchday 4 Results

Black Group
New-Lexington 0-6 Boudra-Boudra
Radke 0-1 Burning Penguins


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Molvania 3 3 0 0 9 4 5 9
2 Boudra-Boudra 3 2 1 0 12 4 8 7
3 Radke 4 1 1 2 5 7 -2 4
4 Burning Penguins 3 1 0 2 4 6 -2 3
5 New-Lexington 3 0 0 3 3 12 -9 0


Red Group
Lisburn Mateys 4-0 Gaspland
Narbithia 3-0 The Emperialist

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Lisburn Mateys 3 3 0 0 8 1 7 9
2 Narbithia 4 2 1 1 6 3 3 7
3 The Emperialist 3 1 1 1 2 4 -2 4
4 Talmeria 3 0 1 2 1 3 -2 1
5 Gaspland 3 0 1 2 2 8 -6 1



Teams in Gold have won their group, teams in Blue are assured at least a spot in the Regional Playoffs, and teams in Red have been eliminated.

Kazooian Region
Matchday 4 Results

Blue Group
Anastasiania 5-1 Slakaj
Nouvelle Angleterre 3-1 Rosberg


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 3 3 0 0 13 2 11 9 Q, B1
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 4 3 0 1 10 4 6 9 Q, B2
3 Rosberg 3 1 1 1 4 4 0 4
4 Blitzwehr 3 0 1 2 1 8 -7 1
5 Slakaj 3 0 0 3 1 11 -10 0 E


Orange Group
St Happenin 0-2 N00bzors
Vejar 0-4 Zorinia


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 3 3 0 0 8 0 8 9 Q, O1
2 Vejar 4 2 0 2 4 7 -3 6
3 Canabinol 3 1 1 1 3 1 2 4
4 N00bzors 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3
5 St Happenin 3 0 1 2 0 4 -4 1



"Q" - qualified for playoffs
"E" - eliminated from contention from playoffs
"B1" - clinched first round bye in playoffs as winner of the Blue Group
"B2" - clinched second-seed, B group, will face O3 in playoffs
"O1" - clinched first round bye in playoffs as winner of the Orange Group

B1_____Anastasiania__________

B2_Nouvelle Angleterre_
|_____
O3_____________________|
Rebracketing will occur
O2_____________________
|_____
B3_____________________|

O1_________Zorinia___________

Second Round:
If B2 and O2 wins:
B1 v. O2
O1 v. B2
If B3 and O3 wins:
B1 v. O3
O1 v. B3
If B2 and B3 wins:
B1 v. B3
O1 v. B2
If O2 and O3 wins:
B1 v. O2
O1 v. O3

New-Lexington vs Boudra-Boudra

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/new-lexington.jpg vs http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

New-Lexington kicked around!
...as Boudra-Boudra scores six.

The somewhat mediocre betting ratings for Boudra-Boudra went firmly up tonight as the defense acted as a brick wall and the offense just scored goal after goal leading up to a 6-0 slaughtering of the New-Lexington team. As a result the team from New-Lexington are now eliminated as they can never progress to the second round, even if they win their last match against Burning Penguins. For Boudra-Boudra, progress to the next round is certain, the next match against unbeaten -Molvania wil determine which team finishes first and gets to 'skip' one round. Only if Boudra-Boudra wins can they still overtake -Molvania.

The final score:
New-Lexington 0 - 6 Boudra-Boudra

Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado '37,
Torsten Oppt-Sjlook pen '39,
Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado '62,
Sosimo Bradkorb '64,
Njjik Rahlii '77
Hanz Buyakasha pen '83

The Boudran lineup:

Goalkeeper:
- Ohène Strok'pah

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain)
- Simon Samuelsson (out, 72 mins)
- Dia Dzigbode

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado
- Rikke Gallucio
- Abraham Whiler
- Njjik Rahlii

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb
- Teodors McGlothen (out, 66 mins)

Replacements:
- Jarno Karvi (For, 66 mins)
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson (Def, 72 mins)

Mateys Qualify!!!!!

On Matchday 4 the first teams qualified for the regioanl finals and playoffs. The Lisburn Mateys where officially the first team to qualify for the regional finals after a magnificant display against Gaspland. Tournament favourites Anastasiania will also be there as well and 2nd favourites Zorinia.

With the manager sensing that it would take much to at least qualify for the regional playoffs he decided to change things around a little bit to see how things would go, therefore Richard Dougherty was replaced by Dominic Patton and Aaron McCann by Joe Bellucci who played well in the last game against Talmeria and James Curry takes the place of suspended midfielder Stephan Mc Niece, meaning a change in tactics to 4-3-3.

With match kicking off the new boys knew they had something to prove and where very enthusiastic and worked hard. Dominic Patton's hard work paid off when in the 16th minute he tackled a Gaspland defender and slotted the ball in the net easily.

The next goal at 27 minutes was quite nice with the front three linking up nicely playing alot of one, two's around the box before Amusi Akobyi found enough space to get a shot off which deflected off a Gasplander and went in the net.
The pressure continued for the rest of the half with Gaspland barly touching the ball in what was so far a far superior team, Gregg Gregg came close with curling shot from the edge of the area just tipped over by the goal keeper as did Chris Kingsberry from a free kick.

The Lisburn Mateys started the second half as they ended the first with a goal comming within 11 minutes of the restart. Jonathon Bell after making a well timed tackle, passed to Gregg Gregg and with the Gasplanders standing off him he decided to take a shot from 30 yards out which thundered into the net!!,,he will remmeber that one for some time to come.

The fourth goal came towards the end of the game after a fine run down the left wing by Joe Bellucci who crossed the ball into the area , however most of the forwards where under considerable pressure and Amusi Akobyi tried a dazzaling over head kick,, which somehow connected with the ball!! He looked as suprised as anyone else that he was able to pull it off, the 18 000 Mateys fans went mental singing ," We've got the best Pacitalian in the world!!"


Final score
Lisburn Mateys 4 - 0 Gaspland

Scorers
Dominic Patton, (16)
Amusi Akobyi (27, 79)
Gregg Gregg (56)


The players rested for todays game will have to work hard to get back in the squad as the new boys definatly proved themselves today in a fine display.


Manager Paul Kirk also quickly commented briefly stated, " that is possibly the best performance we have ever put in and, i now have a problem of who to select for any more up comming as the debutess today were fantasic. If Amusi can keep up his form we have a real chance of winning this tournament

Anastasiania Power Onwards
Quarter Final Spot Booked

Phil Blain continued on his amazing run of form as Anastasiania put five past the hapless Slakaj goalkeeper in Anastasiania's third official international game. The Slakaj media have been strangely silent thus far, and it has enabled Anastasiania to earn the public support of the Kazoos - and many others.

Today's match was over after thirty minutes, though, as Anastasiania made three substitutions when being 3-0 up. Ylva Pettersdotter faced criticism during the post-match press conference for being "complacent", but argued that "the team needs rest for the knock-out stages. There's no doubt we've been slightly lucky with our group, so we got to use that." This was slightly different from Pettersdotter's melody after the Blitzwehr game, when she, as coaches usually do, stressed the importance of taking one game at a time.'

The quarter-final opponent of Anastasiania will be ready at a later date; Anastasiania face Rosberg in the final game of the group, then face the winner of some quarter-final, but it is probable that the opponent will come from the other group, where Vejar, Canabinol and N00bzors appear to be the candidates for the two second round spots.

"Oi! Jonny! What paper is that?" Ylva Pettersdotter said in the dreary dressing room of the Untitled Stadium.

"The Lisburn Ahoy, ma'am," substitute defender Jonny Larsson replied in his thick Swedish accent.

"Ahoy? What sort of name is that for a paper?"

"They're from the Lisburn Mateys. Some Irish pirates, apparently. They're saying we're favourites to win the whole tournament."

"Favourites? Cos of what? We won two games? Honestly, you shouldn't believe everything that's in the paper. If we don't think about that kinda thing, we'll be safe."

"Come on, ma'am - stop being so professional and psychological and all. We all know it's just a game, so why can't you have some fun today?"

Petersdotter looked aghast for a second. Then she said: "You may have a point there, Larsson. However, right now we've got a ruddy game to win, which would make those Lisburn guys even more convinced we're favourites - well, that just means they're scared of us. Good. What was the guy called again who said we were the best?"

"Dave Gorman."

"Well, none of us are Dave Gorman. Remember that."

"Um...ok..."

The Zorinian Chronicle, 14 April 2006

Zorinia National Soccer Team Qualifies for Tournament Playoffs

In an unbelievable and unexpected first competition, the Zorinian Vipers have qualified for the playoffs in the Baptism of Fire Tournament. The tournament is a pre-liminary competition to the 28th World Cup, consiting of 20 teams from different regions of the world. Many fans are applauding Head Coach Zimmerman and all of the members of the team, some hailing them as heroes.

"The Vipers represent more than our country, they represent our people and spirit," said soccer enthusiast Marty Weire at a post-victory celebration in downtown Hampton Thursday evening.

Having a record of 3 straight wins, Coach Mike Zimmerman credits the victories to, "outstanding defense, and superior offense." In 3 games, Zorinia has no goals against the team yet, with goalkeepers James Hamilton and Steven Hille leading the defensive strength. On the offensive front, forwards Dustin Peterson and Fred MacIntyre have been successful in keeping the pressure on their opponents, both scoring multiple goals each. The Vipers' newest player, Jason Carter (midfield), fresh out of the Lac Hills University, has proven his worth as well, being accounted with two assists and countless blocks in the Vipers' most recent match.

Coach Zimmerman also announced that James Chi will be substituted with Ty Walker for the next match (at least for the starting half).

Hype countinues to build as the Zorinian Vipers enter the playoffs, more fans and curious onlookers are rallying behind the team. The Vipers will be getting an extra day of hard practice in with a first playoff round bye, having soared to first place in the Orange Group.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

New Outfits to Boost Morale

The BBFA has announced, together with famous sportswear giant JMC, that the outfits for the Boudra-Boudra national team are ready. The official new kit was presented this morning in a short fashion show where together with the reporters also the whole Boudran team was present.
Some reactions:

- Andris Zdelizj, forward: "I believe it is an awesome kit, the colours represent those of our flag and the design is really modern. I hope to be playing in it soon enough after my injury heals."

- Linus Gunfi-Pok, head coach: "Hopefully the morale will be upped some more so we can beat -Molvania and still take the first place in the group!"

- Melinda Klizz, model: "Well personally it's not my color, but I must say it felt really comfortable while walking down the catwalk, so that's a plus also"

- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado, midfielder: "I especially like the fact they didn't put my whole last name on the back, hehe, just 'de la Col Delgado' is good enough for me."

- Mark Oahp, defender: "Superb outfits, really, I hope I get to play in them once since I'm getting tired of sitting on the bench!"

The outfits:

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c58/Krytenia/BRB3.png

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

“This is Gwiedo Triujo for Boudra-Boudra Soccer Weekly with a special report of the Baptism of Fire tournament. Together with me here in the studio are Freddo Dahl-Arvidsson, member of de Boudra-Boudra Football Association and Qubo Liberr, former pro athlete, now coach of the Trojsno team playing in the Virsliga and not doing badly at all. So gentlemen, we've seen a very good performance by our team so far, before we commence the discussion let's show our users a short overview of what happened so far.”

<footage begins to roll>

“With the Boudra-Boudra national team only having played one match ever before the start of the Baptism of Fire tournament, opinions were divided about the chances of the team. However, on the day of the first match, instead of being nervous, the players were distracted as they were woken up early by the police who searched their rooms. The reason of this search is still unknown, some say the police were looking for illegally imported warty cheese, but it certainly helped our team as they beat an underachieving Burning Penguins side 4-2. Unfortunately, Andris Zdelizj got injured and was out for the rest of the tournament. In their second match, the team struggled, not getting past Radke, the match ending in a 2-2 draw. However, they regrouped and were never in trouble against New-Lexington, shifting to a higher gear in the second half to set an impressing 6-0 score on the board. With only one match to go the Boudra-Boudra national team is now sure of progressing to the next round.”

<footage ends and the picture returns to the studio>

“So mister Dahl-Arvidsson, ...”

“Call me Freddo.”

“Hehe sure, so Freddo, all good news then for the team?”

“Well not really, as we saw in the footage we saw Andris Zdelizj get injured, he will be out for the rest of the tournament, too bad since he was in very good shape. However the comfortable 6-0 victory proves that he is definitely not the only one who can score a goal for Boudra-Boudra. Then there is that unfortunate "Warty Cheese" incident, as I would like to call it. Which the police is still investigating and where we still don't know what it all was about. And lastly, the structure of the tournament is quite awkward and to keep it short, becoming first get's you one round further than becoming second and we still have to play the best side in the group and win to become first.”

“But if Boudra-Boudra doesn't win against the, let me see ..., "-Molvanian" team, then the tournament is still far from over is it? I believe we already are through to the next round. Your thoughts mister Liberr?”

“You can say Qubo Gwiedo, but ehm, although it's true that becoming first indeed gets you a better setup for the next round, I believe that is not a big problem. We just need to concentrate on ourselves and play it match per match. I believe the team has already reacted very positively to the loss of Zdelizj and with the recent 6-0 victory and the new kits finally arriving I believe we have not seen the last of this team in this tournament.”

“More about those kits later in the show, but now let's talk about Zdelizj, will it affect the Trojsno team in the league?”

“Well yes ofcourse he's one of our best players together with Teodors McGlothen and Njjik Rahlii, who are both in the selection. But I have spoken him on the phone a few days ago and he told me he should be fit in about a month, I believe he could still play a role in the last few matches of the Virsliga. But overall I'm really proud of all three of them, Andris wil now forever be remembered as the first ever goalscorer for Boudra-Boudra and I must say Teodors and Njjik have both performed outstanding, both scoring twice in the tournament already.”

“Indeed, are they the key players Freddo?”

“Oh well Gwiedo, we have to be honest, some other teams have got real extraordinary players and although I believe we also have a few very good players, our real strength is in the teamwork.”

“Yes but McGlothen and Rahlii for instance, with two goals each, they were quite outstanding, maybe better than the average in the team?”

“Well yes, there are always players who perform a bit better than others, but really I think that's nothing we should be worrying of right now. Let coach Gunfi-Pok decide, he's doing a great job so far.”

“Ok. Then now, let's have a chat with the top-scorer for Boudra-Boudra until now, Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado!”

<footage begins to roll with reporter Tjippne Fklazjar asking Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado asking him about the new outfit he is wearing>

“Well the tournament as a whole has been great for us, we really performed good so far, I'm happy with my performance also and now these new outfits, which are really great, everything is going terrific!”

“You're also our nation's all-time top scorer now with three goals, which one did you enjoy most?”

“Well first of all I would like to say it's not important who scores the goal, it's the team effort which is important, but if I have to make a choice I believe I'll take the opening goal against New-Lexington.”

“And why is that? It didn't seem like a special goal.”

“No indeed, just easily headed in from the corner, but it meant a lot for us, since everyone thinks we had it really easy after the 6-0 victory, but the first goal only fell after 37 minutes, it was really a relief for us to finally get a goal in after we had been trying for almost a whole half already. And after that it went a lot easier.”

“Thanks for the interview, good luck and some more goals against -Molvania, back to the studio.”

<footage ends and the picture returns to the studio>

“Thanks Tjippne. So gentlemen, before we end this show with the footage from the catwalk were the new outfits were shown in which you just saw Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado give his interview, could you give your short thoughts about the upcoming match, Freddo?”

“I believe we're going to win by just one goal, scored a few minutes from the end, say 3-2.”

“Are you also so positive Qubo?”

“Well yes actually, the -Molvania team have been outstanding so far, back to back victories, but i believe we can take 'em. Possibly even by a bigger margin, let's say 2-0.”

“On that positive note we end the show for tonight, enjoy the outfits, and the beatiful models ofcourse, *he winks*, goodnight”

<footage rolls, followed by the credits and commercials>

Legalese Region
Matchday 5 Results

Black Group
Boudra-Boudra 0-0 Molvania
New-Lexington 1-0 Burning Penguins


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Molvania 4 3 1 0 9 4 5 10
2 Boudra-Boudra 4 2 2 0 12 4 8 8
3 Radke 4 1 1 2 5 7 -2 4
4 Burning Penguins 4 1 0 3 4 7 -3 3
5 New-Lexington 4 1 0 3 4 12 -8 3


Red Group
Gaspland 1-4 Talmeria
Lisburn Mateys 3-0 The Emperialist

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Lisburn Mateys 4 4 0 0 11 1 10 12
2 Narbithia 4 2 1 1 6 3 3 7
3 Talmeria 4 1 1 2 5 4 1 4
4 The Emperialist 4 1 1 2 2 7 -5 4
5 Gaspland 4 0 1 3 3 12 -9 1
Note: Talmeria advances on goal differential


Congrats to Molvania and Lisburn Mateys, the group winners! The will advance to the Regional Semifinals, where they will face the winners of the Regional Playoffs.

Regional Playoffs
Legalese Region

Boudra-Boudra v. Talmeria
Narbithia v. Radke

Both matches will take place at The Castle, in Curia. Check back to the stadium info post for more information on it.

New-Lexington's baptism of fire is mathematically over today after recieving a vicious 6-0 masterbation by Boudra-Boudra. Lexitonain forces walked off teh field heads slumping after this terrible loss. No players or coaches were avialiabe for comment.

Take that Penguins!
The New-lexington soccer club acheived their 1st international game victory today over the penguins. It was a scoreless game until the final minute when Trevor Griggs put in a goal off of a deflection by the penguin goalie. No players were avaliable for comment, however there is a sense of hope that this team may not be a complete failure. Fans were pleased as a crowd of 15000 Lexitonians packed the stadium to see the Confederates first international win in any sport.

Kazooian Region
Matchday 5 Results

Blue Group
Slakaj 2-2 Blitzwehr
Anastasiania 4-0 Rosberg


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Anastasiania 4 4 0 0 17 2 15 12 Q, B1
2 Nouvelle Angleterre 4 3 0 1 10 4 6 9 Q, B2
3 Rosberg 4 1 1 2 4 8 -4 4 Q, B3
4 Blitzwehr 4 0 2 2 3 10 -7 2 E
5 Slakaj 4 0 1 3 3 13 -10 1 E


Orange Group
N00bzors 1-0 Canabinol
St Happenin 1-3 Zorinia


Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Zorinia 4 4 0 0 11 1 10 12 Q, O1
2 N00bzors 4 2 0 2 3 5 -2 6 Q, O2*
3 Vejar 4 2 0 2 4 7 -3 6 Q, O3*
4 Canabinol 4 1 1 2 3 2 1 4 E
5 St Happenin 4 0 1 3 1 7 -6 1 E

*N00bzors is seeded second because of superior goal difference.



"Q" - qualified for playoffs
"E" - eliminated from contention from playoffs
"B1" - clinched first round bye in playoffs as winner of the Blue Group
"B2" - clinched second-seed, Blue Group, will face O3 in playoffs
"B3" - clinched third-seed, Blue Group, will face O2 in playoffs
"O1" - clinched first round bye in playoffs as winner of the Orange Group
"B2" - clinched second-seed, Orange Group, will face B3 in playoffs
"B3" - clinched third-seed, Orange Group, will face B2 in playoffs

B1_Anastasiania______________

B2_Nouvelle Angleterre_
|_____
O3_Vejar_______________|
Rebracketing will occur
O2_N00bzors____________ after first-round matches.
|_____
B3_Rosberg_____________|

O1_Zorinia___________________

Second Round:
If B2 and O2 wins:
B1 v. O2
O1 v. B2
If B3 and O3 wins:
B1 v. O3
O1 v. B3
If B2 and B3 wins:
B1 v. B3
O1 v. B2
If O2 and O3 wins:
B1 v. O2
O1 v. O3

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

-Molvania stops Boudra-Boudra

The Boudra-Boudra national team started offensively, knowing that a victory would put the in first place and give them a direct ticket into the regional semi-finals. However Zvetmir Tkermec, the keeper from -Molvania, performed outstanding and was chosen as "man of he match" afterwards as he was the only -Molvanian player who did not underachieve.

Sosimo Bradkorb reacted: "Unbelievable, truly unbelievable. It should have been at least 3-0 at halftime already. Oh well, we're not out of it, I believe we're now playing Talmeria to progress. I hope we meet -Molvania again after we beat Talmeria, because I truly believe we will not let the chance to win against them pass by again, but I'm not sure if we play -Molvania or the Red Group winner if we beat Talmeria."

Indeed Boudra-Boudra will now play Talmeria, who just edged out on goal difference above The Emperialist after they impressively beat Gaspland 4-1. The other matches in the Legalese region were Lisburn Mateys 3 against The Emperialist 0, were the already qualified team from Lisburn Mateys also won their fourth match and doing that also caused The Emperialist to be knocked out of the tournament. In the Blue Group, New-Lexington narrowly edged out 1-0 over Burning Penguins and so scored their first points of the tournament. For Burning Penguins a victory could have seen them goind through, but now they are also elminated.

Regional Playoffs
Legalese Region

Boudra-Boudra v. Talmeria
Narbithia v. Radke

It is still unsure which playoff winner will play -Molvania and which will play Lisburn Mateys.

Narbith Herald

NARBITHIA WINS FOURTH MATCH 3-0!
ADVANCES TO REGIONAL PLAYOFFS






Narbithia won their fourth match in the Baptism of Fire yesterday, to progress to the Regional Playoffs. Before that however they have a by, allowing for some much needed rest and recuperation.

Both the defensive and the offensive line-ups played their best so far, with the defense quickly clearing the ball from their end of the field and getting it back up to the offense each time the team from The Emperialist sent it their way and the offense scoring twice in the first half. Things slowed a bit in the second half, with our offense only able to score one goal against a revitalized Emperialist defense.

Narbithia will be facing Radke, from the Black Group, in the Regional Playoffs, held at The Castle. The winners of the Playoffs will be advancing to the Regional Semifinals.

OOC: With today being Easter, TKP and I decided to hold off on scoring the Regional Playoffs. They will be scorinated in the afternoon (US Eastern) on Monday, April 16.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

No Supporters?

It was a bit spooky for the team as they entered The Castle in Curia and found not one supporter present. The immense stadium looked even more impressive than when fully packed. But now, how could this stadium be empty, Boudra-Boudra was to play Talmeria wasn't it?

Well yes ofcourse, unfortunately though, the match was postponed for one day due to easter festivities.

Coach Gunfi-Pok: "oh well, we've put in an extra training and for us it doesn't matter much. Maybe it's even an advantage they've been in the stadium already. I really believe we can take Talmeria. I'm more worried about the match afterwards, I'm still unsure if we'll play Lisburn Mateys or -Molvania."

"Happy Easter guys!" Edward tossed chocolate eggs to the other members of the team as he entered their common area. His twin followed behind him with a large easter basket.

Sean O'Rourke looked up at them from his position on the couch. "Oh, so that's where the two of you disappeared to after the service this morning, the candy store."

"We figured we could use a small break before the Playoffs kick off tomorrow."

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Remaining Teams Overview

With the Regional Playoffs to be played tonight, a quick roundup is made of all the teams still present in the tournament.

Legalese Region
Group Winners
-Molvania
Started strong with victories against Burning Penguins (2-1), Radke (3-1) and New-Lexington (4-2). As they watched from the sidelines on MD4 they saw Boudra-Boudra close in to within two points. On MD5 they faced Boudra-Boudra and were overrun on the pitch and never created a chance, still they also managed their first clean sheet of the tournament to see the match end in a goalless draw which made them finish top of the black group. So mixed feelings for them as they progress to the regional semi-finals but have some things to work on.

Lisburn Mateys
The mateys were the most impressive side so far in the Legalese region as they managed to win all four of their matches. Narbithia (2-0), Talmeria (2-1), Gaspland (4-0) and The Emperialist (3-0) were no match for them as they cruised to the Red Group title and are now awaiting their opponent in the regional semi finals. Nuff said.

Group Runners-Up

Boudra-Boudra
With a convincing 4-2 win against Burning Penguins, the Boudran team took a flying start only to be faced with reality after drawing Radke 2-2. However, the draw was followed by a 6-0 trashing of New-Lexington and a 0-0 draw with group winners -Molvania which now sees them full of confidence heading into the regional playoffs against Talmeria as second placed team in the black group. Overconfidence might cost them dearly though.

Narbithia
After two MDs it did not look so good for Narbithia as they had lost to Lisburn Mateys (2-0) and drawn with Talmeria (0-0) and were lying in last place at that time. Luckily for them however they were not out of tricks just yet as they convincingly beat Gaspland (3-1) and The Emperialist (3-0) and managed to become second behind the untouchable side from Lisburn Mateys. If they play like they did in their last two matches, the regional semi-finals should easily be reached.

Numbers Three

Radke
The whole team was celebrating as the result came in that New-Lexington had beaten Burning Penguins on the last MD of the black group and thus had prevented Burning Penguins from overtaking Radke. Radke progressed after only scoring 4 points which came from a 2-1 victory over New-Lexington and a 2-2 draw with Boudra-Boudra. The team now needs to take this chance against Narbithia and maybe progress further.

Talmeria
Talmeria was quite lucky to progress as they lost to The Emperialist (1-0) on the first MD but still edged out in front of them on goal difference after five MDs. Their overal performance was not convincing however as they only managed a scoreless draw with Narbithia and a 4-1 victory over struggling Gaspland. They need to work on their game if they want to reach the regional semi-finals.

Kazooian Region
Group Winners

Anastasiania
The most promising looking side of the tournament so far is Anastasiania. Winning all their matches very convincingly in the blue group and ending with a final goal differential of +15 they are tough nuts to crack. Their results: 3-1 vs Nouvelle Angleterre, 5-0 vs Blitzwehr, 5-1 vs Slakaj and 4-0 vs Rosberg.

Zorinia
Not to underestimate for Anastasiania however, are the team from Zorinia who also are still holding a perfect record after victories against Canabinol (1-0), N00bzors (3-0), Vejar (4-0) and St Happenin (3-1) in the orange group. Quite unexpected as they were only last minute substitutes for the team from Khenas, who refused their invitation.

Group Runners-Up

Nouvelle Angleterre
After starting with a 1-3 loss to Anastasiania, the team from Nouvelle Angleterre got back up to its feet and managed to win all their remaining matches to comfortably take second place in the blue group. If they keep playing on the same manner they ended they could go far.

N00bzors
After 3-0 and 2-0 losses to Zorinia and Vejar respectively, the tournament looked to be over for the N00bzors team, but with hardfought victories against St Happenin (2-0) and Canabinol (1-0) they even managed to claim second place on goal differential. Of all the progressing sides, this is maybe the side that could produce the most unexpected results as they could both suddenly lose and win by a big margin.

Numbers Three

Rosberg
The Rosberg fans are quite happy with their team progressing, but probably unhappy with the position in which they ended. After starting with 4 points out of two matches, the two following losses 3-1 and 4-0 have really taken all the morale out of the team. Hopefully for them they can still put up an effort against N00bzors or else the fans won't be happy at all anymore.

Vejar
With the third and fourth placed team facing eachother, the team from Vejar was already qualified for the regional playoffs as they had accumulated 6 points from 4 matches already. Unlucky for them though, third placed N00bzors won that match and overtook them which left them in third position. They will now face Nouvelle Angleterre and hope they play the same way they did against St Happenin and N00bzors, both winning by 2-0.

Kazooian Region
Regional Playoff Results


Nouvelle Angleterre 3-1 Vejar
N00bzors 0-2 Rosberg

B1_Anastasiania_____________________________________
|__________
B2_Nouvelle Angleterre_ B3_Rosberg_____________| |
|_ / |
O3_Vejar_______________| \ / |
\/ |__________
O2_N00bzors____________ /\ |
|_/ \ |
B3_Rosberg_____________| B2_Nouvelle Angelterre_ |
|__________|
O1_Zorinia__________________________________________|

Legalese Region
Regional Playoff Results

Boudra-Boudra 4-0 Talmeria
Narbithia 1-0 Radke


Regional Semifinals
Legalese Region

Lisburn Mateys v. Boudra-Boudra
-Molvania v. Narbithia

Both matches will take place at The Castle, in Curia. Check back to the stadium info post for more information on it.

Talmeria vs Boudra-Boudra

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/talmeria.jpg vs http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Boudra-Boudra wins by four.

Although the players and staff had shown great confidence in their match with Talmeria, some fans were concerned that the Talmerian team could be stronger than expected. But, with Sosimo Bradkorb scoring the 2-0 after 55 minutes, most fans were assured that the team would be progressing to the next round. The Talmerian team had not been able to create mentionable chances as the Boudran team had been strong defensively throughout the match so far, with Faraji Gimelstob performing strong in his first international game. Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado had given the Boudra-Boudra national team an early lead after nicely heading in a corner kick after 12 minutes, but the star of the match was Sosimo Bradkorb, as he scored a real hattrick in the second half. The team will now face Lisburn Mateys, who looked very convincing in the first round, winning all their matches.

The final score:
Talmeria 0 - 4 Boudra-Boudra

Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado '12,
Sosimo Bradkorb '55,
Sosimo Bradkorb '69,
Sosimo Bradkorb '87,

The Boudran lineup:

Goalkeeper:
- Ohène Strok'pah

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain)
- Simon Samuelsson
- Faraji Gimelstob (out, 77 mins)

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado (out, 88 mins)
- Rikke Gallucio
- Abraham Whiler
- Njjik Rahlii

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb
- Teodors McGlothen (out, 59 mins)

Replacements:
- Mark Oahp (Def, 77 mins)
- Jarno Karvi (For, 59 mins)
- John Böhm (Mid, 88 mins)

The BoF "Quarterfinals" now look like this:
Lisburn Mateys v. Boudra-Boudra
-Molvania v. Narbithia
Anastasiania v. Rosberg
Nouvelle Angleterre v. Zorinia

The Zorinian Chronicle, 17 April 2006

National Soccer Team Ready for Playoffs

After a short Easter morning rest period, the Zorinian Vipers were seen yesterday afternoon hard at work practicing again for their first playoff soccer match. Having clinched a bye in the first round certainly has not made the team underestimate any of the remaining nations, according to Head Coach Zimmerman, in a press conference early this morning.

Zimmerman stated he had no criticisms of the Zorinian team, "I'm very proud of the fact that we have made it this far, surpassing all expectations. This has been a learning experience for all of us. All we ask for is the continued support of our fans nationwide and worldwide, they are the true spirit of the team. The upcoming matches will be challenging, and a heavy burden falls upon our defense again, but if they keep up their hard work as they have been recently, I am confident that we will put up a good fight. Our offense has been doing an outstanding job as well."

Zorinia's next match will be televised on several major networks, with several restaurant and tavern chains already planning on hosting pre-match and game parties. This report wishes the team the best.

Fjootbjallecupdat Molvanja

[English]-
Molvania in Regional Semi's
After drawing 0-0 with Boudra Boudra on the last matchday of the group stage, Molvania was given a bye, as they had won their group, and an automatic berth in the region semifinals. After the first round of knockout matches have been played, we see Molvania facing Narbithia, a team which played fairly well in the group stage, despite struggling early on. This will be a very close match, probably decided by the ability of the Molvanians to score goals, something they were unable to do against their last opponent. Luckily, Zvetmir Tkermec is playing way beyond anyone's expectations, holding Boudra Boudra scoreless to hang on to the draw, and allowing only four goals in the previous three matches. As Boudran sports analysts have noted, the Molvanian team has much to work on, but we feel that we got a lot of good work in during our bye, and hope to advance to the regional finals.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

New Formation?

As the reporters were refused to be present at the last training from the Boudra-Boudra national team before their match against Lisburn Mateys, rumours are saying that coach Gunfi-Pok might be changing his 3-5-2 formation to something more offensive, with 3-4-3 and even 3-3-4 topping the list of possibilities. However, this all might be a trick to deceive the team from Lisburn Mateys. Tonights match will tell.

NARBITHIA ADVANCES TO SEMIFINALS



Both teams played an amazing game, holding each other scoreless until late in the second half, when Christopher Adams managed to slip past the Radke defense to score the only goal of the match. Midfielder Lee Miller, still subbing for the injured Sean O'Rourke, made the pass that allowed the game winning goal, after stealing the ball away from Radke.

Fans from all over the Kingdom are flocking to The Castle, in Curia, to watch the Narbithia team play -Molvania in the Regional Semifinals. Everyone is hoping for yet another win, and our team is willing to deliver.

Legalese Region
Regional Semifinal Results

Lisburn Mateys 1-3 Boudra-Boudra
-Molvania 4-1 Narbithia


Legalese Regional Final
@ Titanplex, in Francopolis, Legaelse

Boudra-Boudra v. -Molvania

Lisburn Mateys vs Boudra-Boudra

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/jersey--67.jpg vs http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Boudra-Boudra through to Regional Final!!!
Lisburn Mateys drops out.

Strangely, coach Gunfi-Pok, known for never changing a winning team, had changed the formation of his winning team. For the first time ever, the Boudra-Boudra national team did not enter the pitch in it's usual 3-5-2 formation, but in a more offensive 3-4-3. Jarno Karvi, smiling widely for not starting on the bench for once, was the third striker in play. His smile did not last very long however as the Lisburn Mateys team started fiercely, which led to none of the three Boudran forwards touching the ball in the first twenty minutes. Lisburn Mateys' Stephan McNiece produced a fierce shot aimed at the top left corner after 17 minutes, but Ohène Strok'pah showed everyone that his injury was completely healed as he floated towards the ball and seemed to easily grab it in slow-motion. A few minutes later it was Amusi Akobyi who almost scored a magnificent goal after a clean lob, unfortunately the ball went just over the bar. At that moment the crowd senced it would not take a lot longer before the ball would be in the net, surprisingly however, it was Sosimo Bradkorb who scored however after 26 minutes, as he combined with Jarno Karvi to shoot the ball past the Lisburn Mateys' keeper Brian Livingston, who did not have a chance. From that moment on, the Boudra-Boudra team created more and more chances as they gained possession ans took control of the midfield. However now it was their time to be surprisingly scored upon as Amusi Akobyi scored a truly brilliant goal as he dribbled past all three Boudran defenders and put the ball through the legs of Ohène Strok'pah just before the half time interval.

After the break, both teams were not eager to take risks as they both realised that the team that scored first probably would take the victory. After 52 minutes, Jarno Karvi was fouled in the penalty area. The referee pointed to the spot and awarded defender Jonathon Bell a yellow card, Hanz Buyakasha missed the penalty kicked however as he aimed it a meter wide of the left post. About 10 minutes later, Amusi Akobyi scored his second goal for Lisburn Mateys, or so he thought, until he saw the linesman's flag raised which meant he was offside and the goal didn't count. With both teams already thinking about the extra time and possible penalty kicks, suddenly Sosimo Bradkorb fired in a long range shot which deflected off a few players and thereby wrongfooted Brian Livingston, who had played a perfect match so far but again was without a chance, as the ball slowly rolled over the line. The team from Lisburn Mateys gave it all they got but as they conceded another goal just 2 minutes form time through a nice free kick by Hanz Buyakasha they lost faith and with that also the game.

In the end it stood:
Lisburn Mateys 1 - 3 Boudra-Boudra

Sosimo Bradkorb '26,
Amusi Akobyi '44,
Sosimo Bradkorb '82,
Hanz Buyakasha 87'

The Boudran lineup:

Goalkeeper:
- Ohène Strok'pah

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain)
- Simon Samuelsson
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado
- Rikke Gallucio
- Abraham Whiler

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb
- Teodors McGlothen (out, 77 mins)
- Jarno Karvi

Replacements:
- Malimbo Tar (For, 77 mins)

Boudra-Boudra BoF 28 Overview:
MD1: no match
MD2: Burning Penguins 2-4 Boudra-Boudra
MD3: Radke 2-2 Boudra-Boudra
MD4: New-Lexington 0-6 Boudra-Boudra
MD5: -Molvania 0-0 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Playoff: Talmeria 0-4 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Semi Final: Lisburn Mateys 1-3 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Final: -Molvania vs. Boudra-Boudra

Kazooian Region
Regional Semifinal Results


Anastasiania 3-0 Rosberg
Nouvelle Angleterre 0-0 Zorinia (0-0 AET) (Nouvelle Angleterre wins 2-1 on penalty kicks)

B1_Anastasiania__________________________________
|_Anastasiania________
B2_Nouvelle Angleterre_ Rosberg_____________| |
|_ / |
O3_Vejar_______________| \ / |
\/ |_____
O2_N00bzors____________ /\ |
|_/ \ |
B3_Rosberg_____________| Nouvelle Angelterre_ |
|_Nouvelle Angleterre_|
O1_Zorinia_______________________________________|

Fjootbjallecupdat Molvanja

[English]-
Molvania vs. Boudra Boudra part 2
Molvania played extremely well in their regional semifinal match, outplaying Narbithia at every turn, and racking up four goals to their one. Viordar Czervkle was phenomenal, recording his first hat trick of the tournament. After the match, Cze told reporters, "I am happy for prove I am scoring again," probably referring to the Molvanian attack's inability to score in their last match against Boudra Boudra. Coincidentally, our opponent in the regional final will be Boudra Boudra, who defeated a team from Lisburn Mateys who seemed to be incapable of making a mistake. However, Boudra Boudra apparantly spotted a weakness in their opponents, and a formation change allowed them to exploit it. While Molvania does not know which of the two highly successful Boudran formations they will face, we are determined to win. In our opinion, Boudra Boudra and Molvania have proved themselves to be the best teams in this tournament, and we predict the winner of the regional final will go on to take home first place. Goalkeeper Zvetmir Tkermec, who has quietly dominated opposing teams, has not spoken much to the press, who are anxious to know if he expects another shutout. If the Boudran players come out in their new, aggressive formation, Zvetmir wil be hard pressed to get one. We predict, in a total opposite of the last meeting between our teams, a high scoring match, probably finishing with a score of 4-2, in favor of Molvania.

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

Virsliga to be plundered!
Boudran players show intrest in transfers.

With the Boudra-Boudra national team showcasing extremely good football at some moments throughout this tournament, teams from the bigger soccer nations have sent scouts to the BoF to have a look at the Boudran players who are currently playing in the moderately strong Virsliga. Although the level of the Virsliga is improving fast with the gaining of its popularity, several players of the Boudran national team have shown interest in leaving their squad. Here's a short list:

- Goalkeeper Ohène Strok'pah has been playing at international level since he returned to the team after his broken ankle, being one of the best players at Boudra-Boudra City he could soon be on the move to a bigger club.

- Captain of the team Hanz Buyakasha is unhappy with the current league position his team Kanzi is in, being voted Defender and Player of the Year in the previous season he has shown interest in moving to a bigger club.

- Nikolajs Gelders has recently been dropped from the starting lineup but rumours are saying he is unhappy with his role at Higglamu, a team in the lower Superettan league.

- Forward Malimbo Tar has not played very much for the national team so far but his performance at New Salst-Gungen has been quite strong so far. It is unknown if he is wants a transfer, but Boudran clubs Bakss and Trojsno have shown interest already.

- Trojsno has announced they will let Forward Andris Zdelizj be transferred if they receive an appropriate offer, Andris himself is still injured. Latest estimates count him out for about a month.

- Several other players have mentioned they are happy with their current team, but are always open to suggestions.

But, not only the Boudran players have drawn the attention of the scouts, a few other players could also be on the verge of signing a new contract:

Lisburn Mateys:
- Defender Andrew Stewert
- Midfielder Aaron McCann
- Forward Richard Dougherty

-Molvania:
- Goalkeeper Zvetmir Tkermec
- Forward Viordar "Cze" Czervkle

- Narbithia
- Twin defenders: Peter and Edward Maxwell

Zorinia, Nouvelle Angleterre, Anastasiania and Rosberg could also see a few of their players transferred to bigger clubs after a few good matches.

From the Boudran teams themselves, concrete intrest is known for
- Zvetmir Tkermec, -Molvanian (from Zjam, 8th in Virsliga last season)
- Andrew Stewert and Aaron McCann, Lisburn Mateys (from Troquivit, 6th in Superettan last season. Concentrating on youth)
- Turkka Kivelä, Anastasiania (from Higglamu, 2nd in Superettan last season. Need a good forward to achieve promotion to Virsliga.)

Knowing the Virsliga is quite unknown and still at a moderate level being relatively new, it is very well possible that there will be a lot more outgoing than ingoing transfers. Coach Linus Gunfi-Pok has announced, if teams show interest for and of his Boudran players, they are asked to please not contact the players themselves but rather their team or the BBFA, because the players themselves now need to concentrate on their two last matches in the BoF.

Legalese Region
Regional Final Result


-Molvania 0-1 Boudra-Boudra

Congrats to Boudra-Boudra, who will remain in Legalese for the Baptism of Fire Championship match, and commisserations to -Molvania, who will participate in the third place playoff in TKP.

Kazooian Region
Regional Final Results


Anastasiania 0-1 Nouvelle Angleterre

B1_Anastasiania__________________________________
|_Anastasiania________
B2_Nouvelle Angleterre_ Rosberg_____________| |
|_ / |
O3_Vejar_______________| \ / |
\/ |_Nouvelle Angleterre
O2_N00bzors____________ /\ |
|_/ \ |
B3_Rosberg_____________| Nouvelle Angelterre_ |
|_Nouvelle Angleterre_|
O1_Zorinia_______________________________________|

Anastasiania will face -Molvania in the third-place playoff match, to be held sometime after 3 PM US Eastern time (UTC-4) tomorrow.

-Molvania vs Boudra-Boudra
(Yet Again)

http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/-molvania.jpg vs http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/boudra-boudra.jpg

-Molvania tries Flagtrick
But Boudra-Boudra still triumphs!

In a dull first half, no one came to a decent scoring chance as both teams were familiar with the strengths of the other team. Afraid of eachother, no team took any risks and altogether probably produced the worst first half of the tournament.

Even before the start of the second half, something weird happened, as suddenly all -Molvania fans had changed outfits to yellow and red during the break and the large -Molvanian flag had changed from


http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/default.jpg to http://www.nationstates.net/images/flags/uploads/-molvania.jpg


A big surprise and extremely impressive to the Boudran players, they were overwhelmed by the play from the -Molvanians on the field and the cheers from the -Molvanians besides the field. The fans went wild as half of the stadium had coloured yellow and red and the -Molvanian national team starting playing better than ever before. They only needed one more thing, goals. Many chances were saved by Ohène Strok'pah who performed strongly again, and after hitting the frame for the third time in ten minutes, the -Molvanian side was becoming desperate, the crowd started to grow silent, while the Boudra-Boudra national team started to create more space, more passes connected, belief started growing. Within a few minutes, it was not the Boudran keeper having to put up his best effort, but the -Molvanian. Zvetmir Tkermec, performing good so far through the tournament was again playing a very good match but he made just one mistake which proved to be one mistake too many. In the 77th minute it was Hanz Buyakasha who directed a blistering shot towards the center of the goal, the kick was so hard that Zvetmir had to loosen te ball... and Torsten Oppt-Sjlook was there to tap it in. The Boudrans were cheering while the -Molvanians were quiet. The -Molvanian team gave it all they got for the remaining ten minutes, but never created a big chance as the Boudrans massively started defending. A good shot from far out of the penalty area left Ohène Strok'pah beaten just seconds from time, but it clipped the post and rolled out for a goal kick. With that the game ended, which left -Molvania to play Anastasiania for place 3 while Boudra-Boudra are playing Nouvelle Angleterre in the Baptism of Fire Cup final.

Result of the Legalese Regional Final:
-Molvania 0 - 1 Boudra-Boudra

Torsten Oppt-Sjlook '77

The Boudran lineup:

Goalkeeper:
- Ohène Strok'pah

Defenders:
- Hanz Buyakasha (captain)
- Simon Samuelsson
- Rintje Jacobus-Fredriksson

Midfielders:
- Torsten Oppt-Sjlook
- Bernardino Maria Eduardo Garcia de la Col Delgado
- Rikke Gallucio
- Abraham Whiler

Forwards:
- Sosimo Bradkorb
- Teodors McGlothen
- Malimbo Tar

No Replacements were made.

Boudra-Boudra BoF 28 Overview:
MD1: no match
MD2: Burning Penguins 2-4 Boudra-Boudra
MD3: Radke 2-2 Boudra-Boudra
MD4: New-Lexington 0-6 Boudra-Boudra
MD5: -Molvania 0-0 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Playoff: Talmeria 0-4 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Semi Final: Lisburn Mateys 1-3 Boudra-Boudra
Regional Final: -Molvania 0-1 Boudra-Boudra
Tournament Final: Nouvelle Angleterre vs. Boudra-Boudra

Baptism of Fire Pre-World Cup 28
Third Place Playoff


-Molvania [1-2] Anastasiana

Baptism of Fire Pre-World Cup 28
Championship Match


Boudra-Boudra [3-1] Nouvelle Angleterre

Congrats to Boudra-Boudra, the Baptism of Fire Champions! And Thank You to all those who participated in the BoF!

OOC: Some small notes:

- Thanks to the organisers, also The Kazoo Peoples, although Boudra-Boudra never played there :)

- Personally I had expected to see a bit more RP's from my opponents

- Sorry I did not make a RP for the final (yet), I might still do it in the World Cup RP thread tho...

- The post where I say the Boudran players could move abroad to play for a foreign team was a small hint that people can msg me if they would like to see a Boudran play in one of their club teams. Ofcourse not everyone is for sale, but try and who knows :)

- I updated the wiki with the results on the Baptism of Fire page (http://ns.goobergunch.net/wiki/index.php/Baptism_of_Fire) and am currently updating the page with the info concerning the Boudra-Boudra national football team (http://ns.goobergunch.net/wiki/index.php/Boudra-Boudra%27s_national_football_team). (For which I still need a nickname!) :)

OOC:


You dont need a nickname for a national team, its more club teams that have them.


You may have realised that i went quiet and didnt RP, that was because i was on Holiday for a week, i may have won the tournament otherwise ;)


Thanks to the hosts, Legalese and Kazoo People they where very helpful and made sure everything went as smoothly as possible and they put alot of effort into it., so once again thanks.


When do we get KPB rankings??

OOC:


When do we get KPB rankings??


Whenever Bedistan decides to update them. However, he is currently busy with a project for school. They will be updated by the start of WC28 (because, you know, they're necessary for having accurate match scores :p). So, we'll find out then. :)

I haven't posted to thank everyone who helped make this BoF a nice hosting experience.

In retrospect, I didn't do a few things:

1. I forgot to post stadiums for playoffs. Sorry RPing people. Wait -- nevermind, no one from my region RPed after the first round of the playoffs. So, it wasn't that bad of a goof.

2. I didn't put all the results in the two posts I had at the beginning like I wanted to, but oh well. Sorry guys!

But all in all, it was a good hosting experience. Good luck in future WC events, everyone! I was the runner-up in WC26, and now look where I am now! Keep it up!

NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE DEFY ALL EXPECTATIONS
BOUDRA-BOUDRA 3 1 NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE
BAPTISM OF FIRE FINAL

The performance of Nouvelle Angleterre has defied even the wildest expectations of the most fanatical fan at the recent Baptism of Fire. Lee Marshall's team have been the surprise package of the tournament and caused a major upset by finshing runners up in the competition.

Lee Marshall, manager "The lads have been absolutely fantastic from first to last in this competition. We have excelled and ecxeed all expectations. This has done wonders for the profile of football in Nouvelle Angleterre and I hear that some major club sides are interested in a few of our players. I would also like to thank the fans for thier amazing support throughout the tournament, not just here at the venues but back home as well. You were and inspirarion to me and the team. Oh and no I wont be selling my team talks on eBay!!"

Matthew Buxton MP, Sports Secretary "Our congratulations go to Lee and the team. The performances have done wonders for the reputation of sport in this country and long may it continue"

HM King Tristan MP, Elected Leader of The Socialist Elected Monarchy of Nouvelle Angleterre "Wonderful!! Absolutely stunning!! I was lucky enough to be at the matches and witness the performances and atmosphere first hand. We were brilliant and I would like to thank Lee and the team. I hope that this sends a message to our rivals that the World Cup that we will not be a pushover and we will give anyone a tough test"

With the World Cup just around the corner Nouvelle Angleterre will be hoping that they can continue their good form and cause a surprise.

CARPE DIEM

Pre- World Cup 28 Baptism of Fire Runners Up

Burning Penguin's Starting Lineup

Head Coach: Einar Kahlen

Assistant Coaches: Tom Smith, Ted Brown

Keeper

Keeper: Blas Baneulos (Panama)

Defence

Right Back: Marlon Johnson (USA)

Right Central Defender: Alfonso Arcila (USA)

Left Central Defender: Charles-Francois Robitail (Canada)

Left Back: Vladimir Vallarta (Mexico)

Midfield

Right Winger: Elmer Hollrotter (Germany)

Right Inner Midfielder: Marek Barnowski (Poland)

Left Inner Midfielder: Eugenio Caca (Italy)

Left Winger: Tom Garner (USA)

Forwards

Right Forward: Kerry Eubanks (USA)

Left Forward: Teobaldo Dominguez (Mexico)

=================================

Substitutes

Sub (Defender)

Darrell Chaney (USA)
Michael Gabriel (USA)
Joshua Williams (USA)
Steven Vaughan (Canada)
Jamie Lucas (USA)
Mickey Garrett (USA)


Sub (Inner Midfielder)

Tomasz Kludka (Poland)
Edgar Willis (Canada)
Lee Bignucolo (Canada)
Hernan Urena (USA)
Marcellus Sexton (USA)
Noe Oleary (USA)


Sub (Winger)

Don Stewart (USA)
Nafarroa Alfonso (Chile)
Perfecto Cuenca (USA)
Raleigh Orourke (USA)
Michael Preston (USA)


Sub (Forward)

Pascual Botello (Mexico)
Ian Hall (Canada)
Jeff Bellamy (USA)
Philip Le (Mexico)