NationStates Jolt Archive

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh106/newtypezaku/bof31.jpg

Welcome to Baptism of Fire 31, a precursor to World Cup 44 held in the Kingdom of Dancougar between nations making their first foray into international football! The full bid details can be found here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=573240), but I'll also enumerate some of the points here:

* Scorination will take place between 8-10 PM EST on most days, which translates to 0100-0200 GMT. Scheduled delays are two hours on Monday nights and four hours on Saturdays. Additional delays will be posted. The first matchday will be Monday Dec. 8 (Tuesday morning GMT), with a full schedule to follow after the signup deadline.

* Teams can earn a maximum of five RP points per matchday based on quality of posts. Because all Baptism of Fire teams start on an equal footing, this is the only way you can improve your chances of winning (but note that it is not a guarantee!). An off day is treated as an extension of the previous day for RP-grading purposes. That way, you aren't penalized for being inactive on your day off, but you can't pile up extra RP points, either.

* Teams may choose a style modifier anywhere between -1 and +1, with -1 being more defensive and +1 being more offensive. This should be included with your roster. If you do not provide one before the first day, it will default to 0. Teams may change their style modifier once with an accompanying RP describing the change, regardless of whether they set one at the beginning or not.

Good luck to all competitors! The group draw and schedule will follow after the signup deadline passes.

Group Stage

The official group draw for the Baptism of Fire has concluded! Group play will begin with Matchday 1 scorination on Monday night, Dec 8 (Tuesday morning GMT) and end on Sunday night with matchday 7. Teams which have posted rosters will have them linked from here; each matchday will also be linked to its results and tables.

Group 1
Opereta (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14285330&postcount=9)
Senatus Populusque II
IseeRussiafrommyhouse
Lecland (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14276634&postcount=4)
Syktyvkar (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14286259&postcount=11)
Idanno
Googlewoop (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14276592&postcount=3)

Schedule:
MD1 (Mon Dec 8): 1v6, 2v3, 4v5 (off: 7) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14287349&postcount=13)
MD2 (Tue Dec 9): 6v7, 2v5, 3v4 (off: 1) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14290691&postcount=18)
MD3 (Wed Dec 10): 5v6, 1v3, 4v7 (off: 2) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14293625&postcount=21)
MD4 (Thu Dec 11): 2v6, 5v7, 1v4 (off: 3) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14296425&postcount=25)
MD5 (Fri Dec 12): 3v6, 2v7, 1v5 (off: 4) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14299282&postcount=29)
MD6 (Sat Dec 13): 1v2, 4v6, 3v7 (off: 5) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14302256&postcount=36)
MD7 (Sun Dec 14): 3v5, 1v7, 2v4 (off: 6) (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14304417&postcount=37)

Group 2
Benelsdon
Peisandros (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14285196&postcount=8)
AruthKandageLand
Bears Armed (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14280121&postcount=6)
Deep South Sopia
Akbarabad (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14279802&postcount=5)

Schedule:
MD1 (Mon Dec 8): 5v6, 1v4, 2v3 (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14287349&postcount=13)
MD2 (Tue Dec 9): 1v6, 2v4, 3v5 (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14290691&postcount=18)
MD3 (Wed Dec 10): Off
MD4 (Thu Dec 11): 2v6, 1v5, 3v4 (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14296425&postcount=25)
MD5 (Fri Dec 12): 4v6, 2v5, 1v3 (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14299282&postcount=29)
MD6 (Sat Dec 13): Off
MD7 (Sun Dec 14): 4v5, 3v6, 1v2 (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14304417&postcount=37)

Knockout Round

The top four teams from each group will be seeded from 1-8 based on record. For seeding purposes, all group 1 teams will have the result against the weakest team in the group dropped. The order for tiebreakers is the head-to-head result (if applicable), goal differential, goals scored, and then a special playoff game. This will create a bracket pairing #1 v #8, #2 v #7, and so on. Each matchday will be linked to its result.

(Seeding and matchups (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14304417&postcount=37))
MD8 (Tue Dec 16): Quarterfinals (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14310976&postcount=41)
MD9 (Wed Dec 17): Semifinals (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14313976&postcount=46)
MD10 (Thu Dec 18): Third-place game (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14316929&postcount=47)
MD11 (Fri Dec 19): Championship game (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14319839&postcount=50)

PRIME TIME GOOGLEWOOPER TELEVISION

“From Googleopolis to the Endless Islands and everywhere around the nation, you’re watching SPORTS TONIGHT on channel TEN with your host, four time GCC player of the year, Tim Flinton!”

“Thank you, and good evening Googlewoop! Leading our bulletin tonight; Opening batsman and captain of the Hunters, Justin Stitt out with injury as finals time approaches, Googlewoop’s own Robert Cherryby takes out the gold jacket in the Googlewooper Masters and the Secretary of Civics talks to us about Slazenger’s chances of hosting the next Nova Games.

But first to football and Googlewoop will contest its Maiden international tournament in only a few days as preparations get underway for the first match day of the 31st ‘Baptism of Fire’. Manager, Hunten Footar today named his final twenty-man squad as well as the starting line up for Googlewoop’s first match of the tournament.

The last team drawn in Group One, after a bye on match day one, the ‘boys in orange’ take on Idanno on Tuesday in a fixture that is building intense anticipation from the fans at home. Speaking at a kit unveiling from Dancougar, the host nation, Footar said that as with the rest of the tournament, the clash with Idanno, another nation of football anonymity, was sure to deliver entertaining, attacking play.

After announcing his final squad including domestic, free kick goal scoring machine, Scott Gorday, Footar was quoted as saying that in a tournament such as this, “there is no point in dying wondering” and that his team would be approaching the game aggressively and be looking to score goals. Footar would not be drawn on how he expected the team to fair in the tournament, which is a lead up to the next world cup, but said only that the players were training and playing well together.

Footar is expected to start with an attacking 4-3-1-2 formation. For full details on the squad, visit our website.
Well, from all of us here at Channel TEN, good luck boys.

Now to cricket…”


GOOGLEWOOPER SQUAD – ‘Baptism of Fire’ 31

Style Modifier = +1

Kit – Orange, white trim, white socks
Away – White, orange trim, white socks

Starting Line ups will be edited into this post before each game


Starting Line up – Idanno, Tuesday December 9

GK – 1 Mark Garner
RB – 4 Lucas Strand
CB – 2 Craig Lee
CB – 3 Scott Freeman
LB – 5 David Gill
RM – 7 David Heinam
CDM – 6 Owen Christiansen
LM – 8 Sebastian Seward
CAM – 9 Scott Gorday
RS – 10 Jack Barrie
LS – 11 Harry Holt

Bench

GK – 12 James Brown
DF – 13 Benjamin Patterson
DF – 14 Louis Wilton
DF – 15 Alex Denton
MF – 16 Michael Bean
MF – 17 Wesley Omar
MF – 18 Mikhael Matherson
ST – 19 Jonathan Strawn
ST – 20 Eric Matthews

Announcement: Lecland annouces Baptism of Fire Cup squad

Lecland has annouced it's squad, which is on it's way to take part in the 31st Baptism of Fire tournament.
This is the second tournament that the national side will take part in after competing in the recent Oxen Cup, winning one match and losing the two others.

Having done what was expected in the oxen cup and performed well as a side, the team and fans were looking forward to this tournament and hope to see Lecland perform well against other debutant sides

There squad is the same as the squad sent to the Oxen Cup




Coach: George Robinson

Formation: 4-4-2
Modifier if there is one: +1 towards attack.

Gk: David Smith Age: 28: Has been the national goalkeeper for four years now, and is a solid force in between the post (Leyton Utd)
Gk: Freddy Bar: Age 23: Touted as the replacment to Smith though not there yet. (Keel Utd
Def: Harry Lawson: Age 26: Though inexperienced on the international stage, Harry Lawson has been a huge part of Leyton City's title winning team this season thus has come into the national set up. (Leyton City)
Def: Gary Coleman Age 30: Been part of the international set up for a number of years, and is Lealands vice captain (Leyton Utd)
Def: John Ford: Age 28: Experienced right back, also part of Leyton City's title winning team this year. (Leyton City)
Def: Carl Manning: Age 24: Young fast left wing back, know for his lethal crosses as well as his tough tackles. (Weston Rovers)
Def: Joe Hartson Age 23: A star for the future (Newpool)
Def: Shaun Cole: Age 25: right back by trade though can play in any position in the defence or midfield with out much trouble. (Harecastle)

Mid: Michael Parson: Age 22: Right Midfielder, Burst onto the international stage having ripped through the various defences of the teams in Lealand's domestic league. (Keswick City)
Mid: Gareth Johnson: age: 30: The experience heart of Lealand, and their captain. (Leyton City)
Mid: Harry Fairfield: Age 30: Along with Johnson, forms the heart of Lealands midfield. (Leyton Utd)
Mid: Stuart Carson: Age 25: Quick Left Winger, with was most assists in the domestic league this season. (Wootton Utd)
Mid: Anton Daring: Age 25: central midfield and one for the future (Botley Utd)
Mid: Zak Stevenson: Age 27: Winger (Keel Utd)

Str: Gary Owen: Age 24: Fast, quick and deadly one on one, plagued by injury (Leyton Utd)
Str: Carl Young: Age 28: great holder of the ball and not slow either (Bow City)
Str: Joe Mare: Age 32: What he lacks in pace, he makes up for in experience, the top scorer ever in Lecland's domestic league (Harecastle)
Str: Leighton Stevens: Age 21: Top scorer in the domestic league this season, though is known to choke at this level. (Newpool)

1st XI
GK: David Smith
DL: Carl Manning
DC: Harry Lawson
DC: Gary Coleman (VC)
DR: John Ford
ML: Stuart Carson
MC: Gareth Johnson (C)
MC: Harry Fairfield
MR: Michael Parson
FW: Gary Owen
FW: Carl Young

Subs:
GK: Freddy Bar
D: Shaun Cole
D: Joe Hartson
M: Anton Daring
M: Zak Stevenson
F: Joe Mare
F: Leighton Stevens

Choose my goalscorers Y
Godmod Scoring Events Y
RP injuries to my players N
Godmod injuries to my players N
Hand out Yellow cards to my players Y
Hand out Red cards to my players N
Godmod Other Events N

The Akbarabad football federation (AFF) has it's squad for BOF 31, the national teams first international tournament.

The starters
#1 Aminul Islam - (GK)
#2 Mahbub Alam - (DR)
#5 Adil Rahman - (DL)
#3 Hasan Mohammed - (DC)
#4 Zakir Ahmed -(DC)
#6 Khaled Assad -(ML)
#8 Mossadeq Chowdhury -(MR)
#7 Mohammed Rashid - (MC)
#11 Hamid Kabir -(AMCL)
#9 Zahid Mohammed - (ST)
#10 Samin Akbar –( AM/F)

Substitutes bench:
#12 M.R. Matin (GK)
#13 Rashid Khan (DC)
#14 Vladimir Budtkov (DC/L/R)
#15 Saeed Akbar (ST)
#16 Ali Imran (MR)
#17 Vassily Zaitsev (MC/L/R)
#18 Kamrul Hassan (DMC)
#19 Shehzad Ashraf (AMCLR)
#20 Hassan Akbar ( DL)
#21 Hossain Ashraf (MC)
#22 Aleksandr Serov (ST)
#23 Shahid Hassan (GK)

Starting lineup will always be this unless stated otherwise.

Home Kit: Green, red and red socks.
Away Kit: Red, green and green socks.

Choose my own goal scorers Y
Everything else N

Team: Bears Armed (alias "the Bear-Belles"...).
Yes, it's another all-female team, but not for the same reason that certain other nations seem to field those. It's because the main ball-game that's been played in BA so far is actually a form of Rugby, but [for several reasons] the professional league for that sport is all-male and so some of the female players have decided that switching to Soccer instead -- and trying to establish a professional league for that -- might be a viable alternative...

Almost all of the players are actual Ursines (i.e. anthropomorpic, bipedal Bears), but there are also two [female] members from the Harr'aynau people -- who are physically human (more-or-less, although inclined towards heavy builds & hairyness) but spiritually & culturally Ursine -- as well, and one from another non-Ursine minority.
(The management/coaching team will mostly be humans, however, recruited from our neighbouring nations in the IDU: the manager/chief coach is Bob Smith, from the nation of Old Ceorana...)

Style: Offensive, modifier = +1... "A good offence is the best defence"... and remember, most of these players have more experience of Rugby than they do of Soccer. Their usual formation will include a front row of at least 5 (normally as 3 strikers & 2 wingers), plus either 3 midfield & 2 backs or 2 midfield & 3 backs, plus the goalkeeper, but they might go 6-2-2 (or 6-3-1, or even 7-1-2) sometimes.

Kit (home) = lime-green shirts with bear's-paw emblem (as on the national flag) in pale brown on both front & back; pale brown shorts, with trimming & side-stripes in bands of black, gray & white (representing the other Ursine stocks...); socks = lime-green.
Kit ('away') = white, with emerald-green bear's-paw emblem & trimming.
Kit (goalkeepers) = emerald-green, with bears-paw emblem in white.
(Identifying numbers will be in black, except on the goalkeeper's emerald-green where they'll be in white instead: Bears Armed has traditionally used base-8 arithmetic, for several reasons, so the sequence used here will be _ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, etc...)

Ursines may tend to be a bit less agile & slower to accelerate than humans on average, but this team's members were carefully selected so the gap between them & their opponents in this respect should be narrower than some people might expect. They do tend to have slightly poorer eyesight than humans, on the whole, so long-distance passes & shots at goal will be rarer behaviour for them than they are for human teams... but their size & strength mean that when they're running with the ball it will probably take a very brave human -- as well as a very skilled one -- to tackle them successfully, which should balance that factor pretty well.
They're physically robust, of course, which means that they're less likely than humans to suffer injuries in falls or collisions but also that the form of Rugby in which most of them played before switching to Soccer was even more physical than the humans' versions of that game... and unfortunately some of them might forget the change of rules, in the excitement of the match, and use those tactics here...
Forgetting that they're playing Soccer now, rather than 'Ursine-Rules' Rugby, will actually be the most likely reason for any rule-breaking that they might commit, but they're generally bright enough not to make such a mistake more than once per match per player (and after one of them has been penalised for doing so in any particular way it's fairly unlikely that any others would repeat the exact same mistake...). The females of this species are morte even-tempered than the males, and the team's members will try to stay on their best behaviour not only in order to do well in this contest (which they probably need to do in order for their planned Soccer league to become a reality) but also to impress upon the watching humans that Ursines aren't just "dumb beasts". They will not 'dive', or feign injury in other ways, because suggesting that they could be harmed so easily goes strongly against the grain.

_______________________________

Roster


(#1) Charra o Barrdenn _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Barrdenn Barbariennes', 3 years experience of Soccer; age = 24, left-pawed, fur = medium brown, noted for her long reach.
(#14) Urra Thunder _ Clan = Gunnar, home team = 'King's University (U-am-B)', category & usual position = Goalkeeper, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 19, right-pawed, fur = medium brown.

(#2) Urratharra o Strongpaw _ Clan = March, home team = ‘Mighty Marchers’, category = Defender, usual position = Left Back, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = dark-medium brown.
(#3) Borrinna o HighPeaks _ Clan = Redwood, home team = ‘’Free City Furies’, category = Defender, usual position = Right Back, Soccer experience = 6 years; age = 23, left-pawed, fur = light-medium brown & quite long.
(#15) Correene o SwanWater _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Heroes's Park Harlequins', Soccer experience = 1 full year & the start of this season, category = Defender, preferred position = Right Back.
(#16) Beorra o SouthWoods _ Clan = WestWoods, home team = Wiston United, Soccer experience = 2 years, category = Defender, preferred position = Left Back; age = 23, left-pawed, fur = medium brown.
(#22) Harroya 'Silver' Gray _ Clan = Eastern Hills, home team = ‘Dynamo OstPort’, category = Defender/Midfielder, usual position = ‘Centre Back’ or Midfield Centre, Soccer experience = 4 years; age = 20, left-pawed, fur = light greyish-brown.

(#4) Urra ‘Honey’ SunBlessed _ Clan = Sun, home team = ‘Sun Valley Smashers’, category = Midfielder/Defender, usual position = Midfield Centre, Soccer experience = 3 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = ‘honey-brown’, very good eyesight even by human (rather than Ursine) standards. She is a very accurate kicker, and therefore the usual first choice for taking free kicks & penalties; her nickname comes from her fur-colour, her very sweet nature, and (it must be admitted) the fact that she's a bit thick (but her 3 years experience of Soccer means that, by now, she's pretty unlikely to make mistake of trying to play Rugby instead despite that thickness...)
(#5) Marra-Urra o Redwood _ Clan = Redwood, home team = 'Mighty Redwoods', category = Midfielder, usual position = Midfield Left, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 22, left-pawed, fur = medium brown.
(#6) Beorrtha o Parram _ Clan = Zurrarr Parram, home team = 'LakePort Lionesses', category = Midfielder, usual position = Midfield Right, Soccer experience = 4 years; age = 21, left-pawed, fur = medium brown.
(#17) Karra Thunder _ Clan = Gunnar, home team = PassPort Athletic, Soccer experience = 2 years, category = Midfielder, preferred position = Midfield Left; age = 17, left-pawed, fur = dark brown.
(#20) Zargie o Harruor _ Clan = Harruor Erruur, home team = 'LakePort Lionesses', category = Midfielder, preferred position = Midfield Centre.
(#21) Ilga NorthWalker _ Clan = WildWoods, home team = ‘WildFair Warriors’, Soccer experience = 1 year, category = Midfielder, preferred position = Midfield Right; a member of the ’Harr’aynau’ people color=gray](OOC: i.e. humanoid, at least physically, rather than Ursine…)[/color], age = 19, right-footed, red-haired.

(#7) Beorra ‘Locomotive’ o Barrdenn _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Barrdenn Barbariennes', category = Striker, usual position = Centre Forward, still in her 1st season of playing Soccer but has 7 years of Rugby experience; age = 26, left-pawed, fur = medium brown. Her nickname comes from the fact that she's big, fast, tough, and definitely intimidating...
(#10) Marra SunDaughter _ Clan = Sun, home team = 'Sun Valley Smashers', category = Striker, usual position = Left Forward, Soccer experience = 5 years experience; age = 26, left-pawed, fur = golden-brown, good eyesight even by human (rather than Ursine) standards. She is the team's CAPTAIN.
(#11) Karramarsar Sarra _ Clan = Ostbora, home team = 'Victories of Vichr', category = Striker/Winger, usual position = either Right Forward or Right Winger, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = medium brown & fairly long. She is the identical twin sister of Karramarsar Karra, #13, with whom she has a close mental rapport that’s very useful for teamwork, and they're both pretty bright anyway.
(#13) Karramarsar Karra _ Clan = Ostbora, home team = 'Victories of Vichr', category = Striker/Winger, usual position = either Right Forward or Right Winger, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = medium brown & fairly long. She is the identical twin sister of Karramarsar Sarra, #11.
(#24) Harrya o Herrchaum _ Clan = Herrchaum, home team = 'Mighty Redwoods', category = Striker, preferred position = Right Forward, Soccer experience = 9 years; age = 31, left-pawed, fur = light brown.
(#25) Marrla o GreenWoods _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'National U Tigers', category = Striker, preferred position = Centre Forward, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, left-pawed, fur = dark brown.
(#23) Beorranna o Dawn _ Clan = Urrset, home team = ‘Sun Valley Smashers’, category = Striker/Winger, preferred position = Left Forward, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 19, right-pawed, fur = light brown with a red tinge.
(#26) Theodelphia Karramarsar _ Clan = Ostbora, home team = ‘Urrvan’s Avengers’, category = Striker, preferred position = Right Forward, Soccer experience = 3 years; age = 24, right-pawed, fur = light brown; Christian (Eastern Orthodox).
(#32) Harroya ‘of the Rovers’ o Redwood _ Clan = Redwood, home team = Merlchester Rovers, category = Striker, preferred position = Right Forward, Soccer experience = 5 years; age = 21, left-pawed, fur = light brown; she will NOT break the rules (not even at the 'yellow card' level), managing to be an "attacking" player without being an "aggressive" one... Good at setting up goals foe her team-mates, but only seems to score herself when the team really NEEDS that goal.

(#12) Ulga WestWalker _ Clan = WildWoods), home team = [just signed by] ‘LakePort Lionesses’, category = Winger or Midfielder, usual position = either Left Winger or Midfield Left, Soccer experience = 7 years (the last 2 of which were actually in professional football, across the border in Mikitivity…); from the Harr’ayanau people (OOC: i.e. humanoid, at least physically, rather than Ursine…), age = 24, right-footed, red-haired, very fast on her feet.
(#27) Harroya ‘She-Lion’ Lightning _ Clan = Gunnar, home team = 'LakePort Lionesses', category = Winger, preferred position = Left Winger, Soccer experience = 3 years; age = 19, left-pawed, fur = light brown.
(#30) Margarret o WestWoods _ Clan = WestWoods, home team = 'WestPort U Wonders', category = Winger, preferred position = Left Winger, Soccer experience = 4 years; age = 18, right-pawed, fur = dark-medium brown; Christian (‘Roman’ Catholic).
(#31) Verrina Serrnarra’s-daughter _ Clan = Verravokssur (Free Sept), home team = 'Vasrrorgrath Valkyrrs', category = Winger, preferred position = Right Winger, Soccer experience = ; a member of the ‘Verravokkssur’ people (who are anthropomorphic foxes… that’s as in LARGE anthropomorphic foxes, she’s 6’1” tall…), age = 22, ambidextrous, fur = orange-red.


________________________________

Opponents may _

Choose my goalscorers: Y (but when I post the roster I'll suggest the most likely candidates for this)
Godmod Scoring Events: Y

RP injuries to my players / Godmod injuries to my players / Hand out Yellow cards to my players / Hand out Red cards to my players: Y to all, at least to start with, but remember what I've written here and keep it in limits accordingly... Any serious offences by my players would probably result in injuries to your players, and causing any serious injuries to my players would probably require such obviously-deliberate attacks that your players would get yellow or even red cards as a result too.

Godmod Other Events: Y, I suppose... but please remember that Ursines are fully sapient beings, as much as Humans are (well, almost so, anyway....), NOT instinct-driven animals. Oh, and of course female Ursines are NOT sexually interested in Humans (of either sex), and it's very unlikely that female Harr'ayanau would be either.

If the organisers permit then the team's members, including subsititutes, will do a [short] traditional war-dance (similar to the [RL] New Zealanders' 'haka'...), on the pitch, just before each match begins: This is called the 'harrdiharr'... ;)

Match Preview

Lecland - Syktyvkar

This would only be Lecland's fourth international match, but this would be the second time they will have faced Syktyvkar, having played them in the first round of the recent Oxen Cup. That match had ended in a 1-0 victory for Lecland, who were now hoping for a repeat result having lost their other two matches in the Oxen Cup, 2-1 against Miroxia in a close match, then getting a thumping 4-1 defeat against Taeshan.

Squad news

And unfortuate injury to Gary Owens in training has put him out of contention to play against Syktyvkar, possibly longer, so Joe Mare comes into a otherwise unchanged first 11. This is a big loss as Owens was the top scorer in the recent Oxen Cup, scoring two of Lecland's three goals in the tournament.

So the squad for the match against Syktyvkar is as follows:

GK: David Smith
DL: Carl Manning
DC: Harry Lawson
DC: Gary Coleman (VC)
DR: John Ford
ML: Stuart Carson
MC: Gareth Johnson (C)
MC: Harry Fairfield
MR: Michael Parson
FW: Joe Mare
FW: Carl Young

Subs:
GK: Freddy Bar
D: Shaun Cole
D: Joe Hartson
M: Anton Daring
M: Zak Stevenson
F: Leighton Stevens

Injured:
F: Gary Owens (Hamstring)

Peisandros prepares for second dose of international football

After a failed Oxen cup 9 campaign which saw Peisandros lose two games from two, the Peisandros public and football community is very excited for the upcoming Baptism of Fire 31 tournament. Playing against tough, internationally ranked opponents, gave the team an idea of how hard it is at this level. But at the same time it proved a valuable learning curve for all involved. The Baptism of Fire will be just the second time Peisandros has sent a national team to an international football event. The team for this tournament is exactly the same as that which played in the Oxen Cup and coach Alexander Pappas has sprung no surprises.

It has been decided the team will again play in a 4-4-2 formation. Style modifier = -1.

The Peisandros roster for BoF 31 is:
Starters for first game in bold.

GK: #1 Calisto Pappas.. Age: 19
GK: #17 Alexander Vlahos.. Age: 27
GK: #23 Dorian Theotokis.. Age: 26

Def: #2 Narcissus Theodore.. Age: 22
Def: #3 Luke Sisinis.. Age: 19
Def: #4 Alex Andreou.. Age: 27
Def: #6 Yannis Chrisou .. Age: 31 **Captain
Def: #12 Stefanos Leandros.. Age: 23
Def: #15 Angelos Papakonstantinou.. Age: 22
Def: #19 Luke Erasmus.. Age: 17
Def: #21 Terry Roubanis.. Age: 20

Mid: #5 Urias Halkias.. Age: 27 **Vice-captain
Mid: #7 Zarek Chatzi.. Age: 18
Mid: #8 Tobias Xanthis.. Age: 29
Mid: #10 Barnabas Dranias.. Age: 35
Mid: #14 Esaias Ioannou.. Age: 19
Mid: #16 Dionysos Karras.. Age: 31
Mid: #18 Paris Sisinis.. Age: 21
Mid: #20 Praxis Nikolaidis.. Age: 16

Str: #9 Costa Theotokis.. Age: 22
Str: #11 George Theotokis .. Age: 22
Str: #13 Myron Pavlopoulos.. Age: 21
Str: #22 Lefteris Diakos.. Age: 16

The announcement of Coach Pappas' son as starting goalkeeper came as no surprise after the more experienced Vlahos was unable to stem the flow of goals in Qazox -- conceding seven in just the two games. Young Calisto Pappas has shown enormous potential and the public are exciting to see him in action. Also of interest in the starting line up is young Praxis Nikolaidis. The 16 year old is still at school, but is already a superstar. After coming off the bench in both games, Coach Pappas has decided Nikolaidis is ready for the full 90 minutes.

"We think he is at a stage now where there is no need to protect him. He has developed extremely well in the last 12-18 months and we believe he is ready to start and play a full game for his country. Obviously he is a great talent and we are excited to see what he can produce in this tournament. There is a chance we will push him up to striker, but we'll see how the twins do. As for my son, well, I guess his time has come too. The coaching staff and I took a long time to decide on the starting keeper, as Vlahos has so much experience. We just think after a rough tournament in Qazox, that now is a good time to make a change. Vlahos has actually been a great help in getting Calisto prepared for this game."

The first round game for Peisandros, versus AruthKandageLand, should be very interesting as (as far as media research can prove!) they too are an unranked team. Still searching for their first victory, this is a prime opportunity for Peisandros to succeed. Back in Peisandros, the general public appears to be getting in to the swing of things with many people following the Oxen cup with interest. The PFA is hoping this BoF will give Sandrians something to get excited about and more interested in football.

Stay tuned as we follow the team through group play.

Oh, and.. If you RP first, you may:
Choose my goalscorers: Y
Godmod Scoring Events: N
RP injuries to my players: Y, but leave me to decide how serious it is.
Godmod injuries to my players: N
Hand out Yellow cards to my players: Y
Hand out Red cards to my players: Y, but keep it reasonable.
Godmod Other Events: N

Try keep injuries + red cards = 0-2 per game.

Opereta's National Team:

Composed by poor people that live in the subway of the main Urna Eletrônica city, Caixa Dois, an area called Opereta by its citizens these players are very determined and willing to win the game, so they can win some money to buy food and subway tickets to reach other parts of the city. The "country"'s team wear a bright orange shirt and white shorts in its games.

Manager: Metro Esepetrans

Starting XI:

Goalkeeper:
1- Heitor Vila Madalena

Defenders:
2- Formoso Anhangabaú
3- Consolação Brigadeiro
4- Franklin Brás
6- Joaquim Liberdade

Midfielders:
5- Tiradentes Luz
7- Artur Itaquera
8- Paulista Trianon-Masp
11- Cruzeiro Tietê

Attackers:
9- Mário Barra Funda
10- Bento Sé


Reserves:

Goalkeepers:
12- Bresser Mooca
22- Jequitibá Jabaquara

Defenders:
13- Santana Carandirú
14- Vital Butantã
16- Giovanni Amaro
21- Paraíso Vergueiro

Midfielders:
15- Catiguá Tatuapé
17- Antônio Tucuruvi
19- Arnaldo Clínicas
20- Noé Vila Mariana

Attackers:
18- Arouche República
23- Francisco Morumbi

The Enchanted Siberian Forest of Syktyvkar, the most autonomous of Myedvedeya's regions, is inhabited by hugely diverse and strange quasi-magical creatures. As such, the roster is composed of satyrs, elves, vampires, and pretty much anything else you could imagine. They have no substitutes, as they do not suffer injury.

STYLE: +1
FORMATION: 4-3-3

Manager:
Svetovid (Demigod)- Age Unknown

Forwards:
Svarog (Demigod)- Age Unknown

Aeschylus Silenus (Satyr)- 457

Mircha Dragulescu (Vampire)- 5,215

Midfield:
Thorontur Aerdirnaithon (Elf)- 789

Miroslav Istuion Kravnik (Half-elf)- 109

Romulus Saturnius (Satyr)- 302

El Juli (Minotaur)- 1,005

Defense:
Imrahil (Djinni)- 10,207

Neurion Minyadan (Elf)- 3,032

Ciprian Corneliu (Vampire)- 2,501

Gabriel Ileana (Angel)- Age Unknown

Goalkeeper:

Salvinius Varda (Demon)- 142,012

Whoops, sorry, confirming that the above is in fact us... forgot to log out of main nation.

MD1 RP cutoff!

Group 1
Opereta 1-1 Idanno
Senatus Populusque II 1-0 IseeRussiafrommyhouse
Lecland 0-2 Syktyvkar

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Syktyvkar 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
2 Senatus Populusque II 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
3 Opereta 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
4 Idanno 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
5 Googlewoop 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0
7 Lecland 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Group 2
Deep South Sopia 2-6 Akbarabad
Benelsdon 0-3 Bears Armed
Peisandros 2-1 AruthKandageLand

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Akbarabad 1 1 0 0 6 2 4 3
2 Bears Armed 1 1 0 0 3 0 3 3
3 Peisandros 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
4 AruthKandageLand 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
5 Benelsdon 1 0 0 1 0 3 -3 0
6 Deep South Sopia 1 0 0 1 2 6 -4 0

Excitement as Peisandros holds on to win first game

In news that excited and shocked some people, the Peisandros national football team has won it's first ever international game. They won a close game over AruthKandageLand, 2-1. The win gave the football followers in Peisandros something to celebrate after years with nothing but national leagues to follow. But tonight there were people spilling out of bars and football clubs staying open all night.

The game itself was a close affair. Defence was overpowering and it took a few moments of brilliance to get on to the scorecard. The first such moment came in the 22nd minute after a smart attack down the left wing by Peisandros' Praxis Nikolaidis. With youthful exuberance he sent a great ball in to the box, where club team-mate Costa Theotokis used all his goal-scoring experience to steer the ball away from the AruthKandageLand keeper. A top class header and Peisandros had the 1-0 lead.

The rest of the first half was played out with no real chances for either team, although AruthKandageLand had one shot on target which was comfortably saved by Calisto Pappas and also earned a corner late in the half which the Sandrian defence dealt with easily.

Second half play was more lively. The AruthKandageLand team came out of the sheds the stronger side, although they were unable to finish off a lot of their opportunities. Against the run of play, in the 56th minute, Peisandros was able to capitalise on the AruthKandageLand strikers lack of finishing ability. After captain Chrisou stole the ball deep in Peisandros' own half, he set of on a wonderful run beating midfielders, before finding his vice captain Urias Halkias, just outside the 18 yard box. He steadied himself with a good first touch, before firing in a fantastic shot into the top right corner. The keeper had no change. 56th minute and the score increased to 2-0.

It didn't take long for AruthKandageLand to get on the board though. Finally the strikers were able to finish off the good work and platform the midfielders had set. The Peisandros defence was broken and the striker finished off for the 3rd good goal of the game. 2-1 the score with 30minutes on the clock.

AruthKandageLand searched hard for the equaliser but were unable to find it thanks to some good goalkeeping and defence. Stefanos Leandros who replaced Luke Sisinis in the 66th minute, looked especially good at the dying moments when the opposition pushed forward. The last five minutes were tense after the Sandrians gave up consecutive corners, but alas AruthKandageLand was unable to find a second goal. After two minutes of extra time the whistle sounded and Peisandros celebrated.

Game Summary

Peisandros 2 (C. Theotokis 22' Halkias 56') - AruthKandageLand 1 (Striker 60')

Yellow cards: Peisandros 1 (Leandros 88') - AruthKandageLand 2 (Defender 43' Midfielder 71')

Red cards: 0

Injuries: 0

Match Review.

Lecland loses to Syktyvkar

A disappointing match from Lecland's point of view, after all the hype surrounding the tournment, to lose convincingly in the first match when the team seemed to be doing well. Syktyvkar just outplayed them, clearly having done their homework after playing Lecland the first time.

In reality the scoreline flatter Lecland, who only managed two shots on target compare to Syktyvkar's ten.

In the first twenty miutes of the match, the teams were pretty even until a counterattack by Syktyvkar, a mix up in Lecland's defence and Aeschylus Silenus's brillant chip over a stranded David Smith in no man's land left Syktyvkar 1-0 up on the 22nd minute and a very embrassed defence. The rest of the half saw Syktyvkar press their attacks, finding a scrappy second goal just before half time. After the break Syktyvkar were just content to sit back, keep possession and make the occasional attack, which seemed to break down Lecland's defence with worrying ease. Lecland had a glimmer of hope when the ball appeared to cross the line from a Joe Mare shot five minutes from time, but the ref wave away the goal and the following protest, which resulted in a yellow card for Stuart Carson for arguing with the ref.

All in all a bad match for Lecland who now have to concentrate on winning the reminding games, starting with IseeRussiafrommyhouse (Match Preview to come later when i have time)

(from the 'Sports' section of 'The Bear Necessities'...)

BEAR-BELLES BATTER BENELSDON!

Well our country's Soccer team (alias 'The Bear-Belles', because of their all-female membership) got off to a very good start in the 'Baptism of Fire' tournament, beating the team from a nation called 'Benelsdon' by 3 goals to 1, which puts them into second place out of the six teams in their group.
(Yes, that was the full-time score: if you didn't already know, the results of Soccer games are determined solely by the numbers of goals scored, rather than by numbers of tries & conversions as in Rugby...)


The Team

The starting line-up that manager & chief coach Bob Smith (a human who was imported from Old Ceorana to do this job, due to the shortage of experienced candidates here) chose for this match was _

Goalkeeper: Charra o Barrdenn (#1) _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Barrdenn Barbariennes', 3 years experience of Soccer; age = 24, left-pawed, fur = medium brown, noted for her long reach.
Left Back: Urratharra o Strongpaw (#2) _ Clan = March, home team = ‘Mighty Marchers’, category = Defender, usual position = Left Back, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = dark-medium brown.
Right Back: Borrinna o HighPeaks (#3) _ Clan = Redwood, home team = ‘’Free City Furies’, category = Defender, usual position = Right Back, Soccer experience = 6 years; age = 23, left-pawed, fur = light-medium brown & quite long.
Midfield Centre: Urra ‘Honey’ SunBlessed (#4) _ Clan = Sun, home team = ‘Sun Valley Smashers’, category = Midfielder/Defender, usual position = Midfield Centre, Soccer experience = 3 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = ‘honey-brown’, very good eyesight even by human (rather than Ursine) standards. She is a very accurate kicker, and therefore the usual first choice for taking free kicks & penalties; her nickname comes from her fur-colour, her very sweet nature, and (it must be admitted) the fact that she's a bit thick.
Midfield Left Marra-Urra o Redwood (#5) _ Clan = Redwood, home team = 'Mighty Redwoods', category = Midfielder, usual position = Midfield Left, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 22, left-pawed, fur = medium brown.
Midfield Right: Beorrtha o Parram (#6) _ Clan = Zurrarr Parram, home team = 'LakePort Lionesses', category = Midfielder, usual position = Midfield Right, Soccer experience = 4 years; age = 21, left-pawed, fur = medium brown.
Centre Forward: Beorra ‘Locomotive’ o Barrdenn (#7) _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Barrdenn Barbariennes', category = Striker, usual position = Centre Forward, still in her 1st season of playing Soccer but has 7 years of Rugby experience; age = 26, left-pawed, fur = medium brown. Her nickname comes from the fact that she's big, fast, tough, and definitely intimidating...
Left Forward: Marra SunDaughter (#10) _ Clan = Sun, home team = 'Sun Valley Smashers', category = Striker, usual position = Left Forward, Soccer experience = 5 years experience; age = 26, left-pawed, fur = golden-brown, good eyesight even by human (rather than Ursine) standards. She is the team's CAPTAIN.
Right Forward: Karramarsar Sarra (#11) _ Clan = Ostbora, home team = 'Victories of Vichr', category = Striker/Winger, usual position = either Right Forward or Right Winger, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = medium brown & fairly long. She is the identical twin sister of Karramarsar Karra, #13, with whom she has a close mental rapport that’s very useful for teamwork.
Left Winger: Ulga WestWalker (#12) _ Clan = WildWoods), home team = [just signed by] ‘LakePort Lionesses’, category = Winger or Midfielder, usual position = either Left Winger or Midfield Left, Soccer experience = 7 years (the last 2 of which were actually in professional football, across the border in Mikitivity…); from the Harr’ayanau people (OOC: i.e. humanoid, at least physically, rather than Ursine…), age = 24, right-footed, red-haired, very fast on her feet.
Right Winger: Karramarsar Karra (#13) _ Clan = Ostbora, home team = 'Victories of Vichr', category = Striker/Winger, usual position = either Right Forward or Right Winger, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, right-pawed, fur = medium brown & fairly long. She is the identical twin sister of Karramarsar Sarra, #11.


And the 'substitutes' whom Smith selected were _

(#14) Urra Thunder _ Clan = Gunnar, home team = 'King's University (U-am-B)', category & usual position = Goalkeeper, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 19,right-pawed, fur = medium brown.
(#15) Correene o SwanWater _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'Heroes's Park Harlequins', Soccer experience = 1 full year & the start of this season, category = Defender, preferred position = Right Back.
(#20) Zargie o Harruor _ Clan = Harruor Erruur, home team = 'LakePort Lionesses', category = Midfielder, preferred position = Midfield Centre.
(#22) Irriti WestFells _ Clan = WestWoods, home team = 'WestPort Wanderers', category = Winger, preferred position = Left Winger.
(#24) Harrya o Herrchaum _ Clan = Herrchaum, home team = 'Mighty Redwoods', category = Striker, preferred position = Right Forward, Soccer experience = 9 years; age = 31, left-pawed, fur = light brown.
(#25) Marrla o GreenWoods _ Clan = GreenWoods, home team = 'National U Tigers', category = Striker, preferred position = Centre Forward, Soccer experience = 2 years; age = 20, left-pawed, fur = dark brown.

Match Summary
(Full report on page S-5, inside.)

The players from Benelsdon had evidently never faced Ursines before this, and as the game began they seemed rather unsure about doing so. Their caution let the Bear-Belles seize the initiative, and the ball, so that Beorra o Barrdenn was able to charge straight down the pitch and drive a shot successfully past their goalkeeper and into the net -- for our first goal -- in only the third minute of the game. Benelsdon then attempted an attack, but this splintered against the Belles' defensive lines and when Urra SunDaughter took the ball from one of them she passed it a long way forwards to Karramarsar Karra, who set it up for her sister Sarra to score again in the twentieth minute.
For the remainder of the first half the Benelsdon players concentrated on simply keeping the ball away from our girls, with what was admittedly a fair bit of success.
When the second half started it could be seen that Bob Smith had made some changes to the team's front line, mainly to give a couple of our substitutes some experience of playing against humans but also to give the openers whom they replaced on the field a rest ready for their next match in case that turns out to be against tougher opposition: Irritti WestFells and Marrla o GreenWoods came out to play, as Left Forward and Centre Forward respectively, instead of and Beorra o Barrdenn, whilst the sisters Karramarsar were allowed to exchange positions with each other.
As that second half progressed it could quickly be seen that Benesldon had apparently given up hope of winning, and were now just trying to minimise the extent of their defeat. They put up a dogged defense, and actually had possesion of the ball for almost twice as long as the Belles did, but then -- in the last-but-one minute of the game -- a feint by Karramarsar Karra drew enough of their attention away to give Marrla o GreenWoods clear space for a good shot at the goal... and she scored!

__________________________________________________________

The Belles' next game will be against the humans of 'Peisandros', who won their first match of the tourney -- against the team from a nation called 'AruthKandageLand' by 2 goals to 1, and who favour a much more defensive style than the girls. This should be interesting...

Sandrian's ready for tough game

After a fantastic first up victory, the Peisandros team has had to come back to earth quickly -- faced with the challenge of playing a team of bears in their second game. The Bear-Belles also won their first match and it appeared that the 'bear factor' certainly played a part in helping them to victory.

"Obviously it is going to be tough for the players. I mean, these guys have never played against bears before and probably never will again. We have to make sure we stick to what we know best -- football. Bears or not, if we play good football, we should come out on top. I think we are ready to do that. Practice has been good today and the boys are feeling well. After our first victory it definitely gave us a lot of confidence, but I made sure it did not become over-confidence. We need to keep our minds on our goals."

Coach Pappas also announced the starting line up, which was unchanged from their first victory.

MD2 RP cutoff!

Group 1
Idanno 0-1 Googlewoop
Senatus Populusque II 4-2 Syktyvkar
IseeRussiafrommyhouse 1-1 Lecland

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Senatus Populusque II 2 2 0 0 5 2 3 6
2 Googlewoop 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
3 Syktyvkar 2 1 0 1 4 4 0 3
4 Opereta 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
5 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 2 0 1 1 1 2 -1 1
6 Idanno 2 0 1 1 1 2 -1 1
7 Lecland 2 0 1 1 1 3 -2 1


Group 2
Benelsdon 1-1 Akbarabad
Peisandros 1-0 Bears Armed
AruthKandageLand 0-1 Deep South Sopia

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 2 2 0 0 3 1 2 6
2 Akbarabad 2 1 1 0 7 3 4 4
3 Bears Armed 2 1 0 1 3 1 2 3
4 Deep South Sopia 2 1 0 1 3 6 -3 3
5 Benelsdon 2 0 1 1 1 4 -3 1
6 AruthKandageLand 2 0 0 2 1 3 -2 0

Channel 10 Prime Time Evening News, from Googleopolis, Googlewoop


”…and now to sport with Adam Russell, Adam?”

“Thank you Liz. Googlewoop has snatched a goal at the death to clinch victory in their first international football match, downing Idanno earlier today on match day 2 of the 31st ‘Baptism of Fire’ tournament. Prolific domestic competition striker Jack Barrie sealed the three points with his clinical finish to a long range effort in the 83rd minute. With full details, here is football correspondent, David Beaufoy.

Match highlights begin to play with a reporters voice over and cuts to live commentary from the game.

Reporter: ”Googlewoop stepped onto an international football pitch for the first time today in the football mad nation of Dancougar. Manager Hunten Footar promised action earlier in the week and it didn’t take his players long to respond when defender Lucas Strand was carded for a rough sliding challenge in just the 6th minute”

Commentator: ”…the ball up with the Idanno strikers early here…OOOOOHHHHH a dangerouse challenge from Lucas Strand there and the attacker still hasn’t got up from the turf! Strand is carded by the referee, an aggressive start!”

Reporter: ”The Googlewooper defence survived the free kick… just, thanks to a deflection from the wall and a fabulous reflex save from keeper Mark Garner and soon asserted there dominance in midfield with captain and domestic goal scoring machine Scott Gorday coming closest to scoring, hitting the cross bar in injury time just before the break.”

Commentator: ”…a good ball into Seward, he’s been floating into the box all night, a quick back-flick to Gorday… SCOTT GORDAY!!!... OOOOOHHHHH denied by the wood-work! That’s the best chance of the match so far!”

Reporter: ”Googlewoop’s dominance faded early in the second half with close to 60 minutes of attacking football taking there toll on the players. A spate of changes by manager Hunten Footar failed to inject the required energy into the orange attack as all three attacking substitues, Wesley Omar, Jonathan Strawn and Eric Matthews failed to hit the back of the net from half chances. In the end it was a piece of brilliance from Googleopolis Slazenger’s stalwart, Jack Barrie that broke the deadlock…”

Commentator: ” Seward up the wing now, great footwork from the young winger… and there’s yet another ball into the Idanno box dealt with be the defence. Jonathan Strawn just couldn’t get high enough and the ball’s back out into midfield… Idanno doesn’t want to give up the game now and all 10 outfielders are behind the ball as it’s passed around by the men in orange… there really is nothing on here… Seward again, to Christianson, to Strawn, he’s now out of the box… passes across the D to Barrie who lays the ball up… BARRIE FROM OUTSIDE THE BOX…

BAAAAARRIIIIIEEEEE!!!!! THE TOP OF THE FAR CORNER! WHAT A GOAL!!!!!

It’s his and Googlewoop’s first international goal and what a time to get it! What a clinical finish from the veteran striker, from outside the box into the far corner! Out of nowhere he puts Googlewoop in the box seat to take the points!”

Reporter: ”A historic goal and a historic win. From Dancougar, this is David Beaufoy.”


“And Liz, I can tell you that Hunten Footar has named an unchanged starting line-up to face struggling Lecland in tomorrows third round clash.”

“Thanks Adam. Weather is next and guest forecaster, Ted Barnarby from the Bureau of Meteorology will let you know what to expect from this cyclone season…”


Summary

Y Card - Strand 6' (Googlwoop)

Goal - Barrie 83' (Googlewoop 1 - 0 Idanno)

More celebration as Peisandros team wins second game

Peisandros' football team has completely reversed it's form from the Oxen Cup 9 (where they lost two from two) and has started Baptism of Fire 31 with two wins from two. They overcame the initial shock of playing against bears and recorded their victory in a close game against The Bear-Belles from Bear Armed. The win pushed Peisandros to the top of group two and left them the only unbeaten team. Again the Sandrian defence was instrumental in building a solid base and Calisto Pappas was fantastic as keeper, recording his first clean sheet for the international side.

The game opened with a few fiery exchanges as the bears looked to intimate the Sandrians. Inparticular striker Beorra o Barrdenn had some heavy clashes with Peisandros captain and defender Yannis Chrisou. It was clear the Peisandros team was not going to back down, and after just 20 minutes, three yellow cards had been handed out. This seemed to settle the teams, as the threat of a red card was enough to reign the players in. When the teams did settle and concentrate more on playing football, it was clear the contrasting styles was going to prove interesting. The bears were keen to press forward and the Sandrian's were more than happy to drop back in defence. This lead to the bears having much of the possession in the first half and creating more chances. The twins from Bear Armed had much more ball than the Theotokis twins and looked the more likely to score in the first half. Karramarsar Sarra especially gave keeper Calisto Pappas a work out on two occasions with on target shots. Peisandros were lucky to have oranges at the half-time break on equal footing.

In the second half it was clear coach Pappas had given his players a good shouting to. While still being defence focused, they did look to press forward on more occasions. This lead to an early chance in the 49th minute when Costa Theotokis latched on to a through ball from his captain, but the keeper Charra o Barrdenn used her long reach to 'paw' the ball away for a Peisandros corner. Nothing resulted from the corner though, mainly because of the considerable height advantage the bears had.

Having recognised the Sandrian's looking more attacking, the bears stepped up their offence too and enjoyed a period of near-misses and close calls. Pappas was again called on to make a few saves and the wood-work saved Peisandros on one occasion. In the 63rd minute, Coach Pappas was sick of seeing his side struggling. Luke Sinisis was taken from defence and he replaced him with midfielder Zarek Chatzi. The formation was changed to 3-2-3-2. This had an immediate result and the Sandrian's were able to get better ball forward and stem the flow of the bear attacks.

This change directly lead to the only goal of the game. After a quality Chatzi tackle, Peisandros launched a counter-attack up the left wing. The ball was played quickly to Nikolaidis, who is becoming a real star. He cut in-field after entering bear territory and found fellow midfielder Xanthis. After a smart first touch, he laid it on for Costa Theotokis who proved again what a quality striker he is, by lashing in a shot from 25 yards out. On this occasion the long-reaching keeper could do nothing to keep the ball out. 1-0 after 74 minutes.

Peisandros made another change in defence, bringing on Andreou for Theodore in the 76th minute, in an attempt to keep the bears out and maintain their lead. It worked well and the bears did not look so threatening in the last 14minutes -- Peisandros able to hold on for the tough 1-0 victory. Coach Pappas was "very happy, but realistic" about the result.

"Yeah, it is good. But now that we've found our groove, we want to focus on the next game. We're not going to dwell on our early successes. It means nothing if we can't make it through to the next round."

That's all for our coverage today. Stay tuned as we follow the Peisandros national football team through Baptism of Fire 31.

Game summary

Peisandros 1 (C. Theotokis 74') - Bear Armed 0

Yellow cards: Peisandros 3 (Chrisou 11' Theodore 16' G. Theotokis 55') - Bear Armed 2 ( B. Barrdenn 20' K. Karra 81')

Red cards: 0

Injuries: 0

MD3 RP cutoff!

Group 1
Syktyvkar 3-1 Idanno
Opereta 1-1 IseeRussiafrommyhouse
Lecland 0-1 Googlewoop

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Senatus Populusque II 2 2 0 0 5 2 3 6
2 Syktyvkar 3 2 0 1 7 5 2 6
3 Googlewoop 2 2 0 0 2 0 2 6
4 Opereta 2 0 2 0 2 2 0 2
5 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 3 0 2 1 2 3 -1 2
6 Idanno 3 0 1 2 2 5 -3 1
7 Lecland 3 0 1 2 1 4 -3 1

Group 2
Off

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 2 2 0 0 3 1 2 6
2 Akbarabad 2 1 1 0 7 3 4 4
3 Bears Armed 2 1 0 1 3 1 2 3
4 Deep South Sopia 2 1 0 1 3 6 -3 3
5 Benelsdon 2 0 1 1 1 4 -3 1
6 AruthKandageLand 2 0 0 2 1 3 -2 0

The Googleopolis Times, back (sports) page, 11 December


BOYS IN ORANGE DOWN LECLAND IN THRILLER

A determined if somewhat unlucky Lecland strike force were not strong enough to overcome a confident Googlewooper backline and salvage a draw in another thrilling 1-nil win for the Orange in the Baptism of Fire yesterday.

After a scoreless first half, substitute Jonathan Strawn, who set up Jack Barrie for the nations first international goal in their first outing, had the favour repaid as he tapped in a Barrie pass following a corner. Set play specialist Scott Gorday troubled the opposition all night long with balls into the box from both free kicks and corners and finally found some success when his out-swinging missile avoided charging Lecland Keeper, David Smith to find Barrie’s head and allow him to set up Strawn in the 74th minute.

The late winner came somewhat against the run of play as the Googlewooper defence and keeper Mark Garner were forced to defend furiously as the Lecland defence launched an assault on Garner’s goal. Garner was twice forced to make tough saves and on one occasion was saved only by the far upright as a beast of a free kick from captain Gareth Johnson shook the frame of the goal. However manager Hunten Footar said he was not phased by the close calls and happy with his defence at a post match press conference.

“That’s football! When a team is coming at you that hard and taking tough chances like that trying to get a winner one or two are always going to come close. I think if anything it’s to the credit of the boys, especially Mark (Garner) that they didn’t let one in. This is a developing team and I think it’s pleasing to see these guys cementing themselves as the first pick backline.”

Footar has good reason to be happy with his defensive men as this second clean sheet leaves Googlewoop as the only team yet to concede in the tournament and he is understandably yet to make a substitution in the backs.

“I like the formation we are using and I like the football I’m seeing from the boys on the park. If anything I’d like to start seeing a few goals scored before half time or before we have to make an attacking substitution, just to give us that little bit of extra flexibility.”

Attacking intent is definitely not lacking from the starting 11, however failure to convert half chances early has been one of very few negatives from the team’s play so far. Perhaps in an effort to rectify this problem for the next fixture against Syktyvkar, Footar has made his first change to the starting line-up with midfield container Owen Christiansen making way for the more attack minded Wesley Omar. Omar, the only Tiki Tokoan player in the national side was used as a substitute early in Googlewoop’s first fixture against Idanno and came close to scoring on that occasion. His ability to play both centrally and on the wing as well as float into the box combined with his lethal long range shooting and playmaking are expected to add another dimension to the Orange offence.

Footar would characteristically not be drawn on his prediction for this next match but highlighted a perceived gap in class between his defenders and Syktyvkar’s. Syktyvkar have conceded 5 goals in only 3 matches and maintain there high position in the group 1 table only through brilliant attack and a tournament high 7 goals. The battle between their strike force and Googlewoop’s unconquered backline will be pivotal to the outcome of the match.


Summary

Goal - Strawn 74' (Lecland 0 - 1 Googlewoop)

My apologies for the lack of copies of today's issue of 'The Bear Necessities', for you to read, here: It seems that, unfortunately, severe Winter storms have temporarily blocked international travel into & out of Bears Armed.

Our team's line-up for today's match, against 'AruthKandageLand', will be the same as it was for both of our previous two matches in this contest except that Beorra o Barrdenn (#7) will be on the substitutes' bench when the game beings and Marrla o GreenWoods (#25) will be our initial Centre Forward instead.
In the absence of any statement from the organisers on our request, so far, the players (including the substitutes) will perform their people's traditional 'harrdiharr' war-dance on the pitch just before the actual match begins.

Bob Smith,
Manager & Chief Coach,
Bears Armed Soccer Team.

_______________________________________________________________

"Oh God! Why on Earth did I agree to take this job? I must have been MAD!"

No changes in what is proving to be successful formula

Coach Pappas today confirmed that there would be no changes for today's group 2 top of the table clash. The Sandrians take on Akbarabad -- the only other team not to lose in the group and just two points behind Peisandros. This will be a real test for the Peisandros team who have started extremely well. The Akbarabad team has been very aggressive and offence based while the Sandrians have been more conservative with defence at the fore-front. This should be a cracking game.

Stay tuned for more news.

MD4 RP cutoff!

Group 1
Senatus Populusque II 1-3 Idanno
Syktyvkar 1-1 Googlewoop
Opereta 1-0 Lecland

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Syktyvkar 4 2 1 1 8 6 2 7
2 Googlewoop 3 2 1 0 3 1 2 7
3 Senatus Populusque II 3 2 0 1 6 5 1 6
4 Opereta 3 1 2 0 3 2 1 5
5 Idanno 4 1 1 2 5 6 -1 4
6 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 3 0 2 1 2 3 -1 2
7 Lecland 4 0 1 3 1 5 -4 1

Group 2
Peisandros 3-1 Akbarabad
Benelsdon 0-1 Deep South Sopia
AruthKandageLand 1-2 Bears Armed

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 3 3 0 0 6 2 4 9
2 Bears Armed 3 2 0 1 5 2 3 6
3 Deep South Sopia 3 2 0 1 4 6 -2 6
4 Akbarabad 3 1 1 1 8 6 2 4
5 Benelsdon 3 0 1 2 1 5 -4 1
6 AruthKandageLand 3 0 0 3 2 5 -3 0

Teams in green have advanced to the playoffs, while teams in red are eliminated. As a reminder, the top four teams from each group will qualify for the playoff bracket.

ORANGE TAME SYKTYVKAR

Googlewoop has come from a goal down to snatch a draw against rampaging Syktyvkar in the Baptism of Fire football tournament yesterday.

The 65th minute equaliser from an unstoppable free kick by captain Scott Gorday came on the back of another stellar performance by the Orange back four who managed to tame one of the most prolific attacking teams in the competition. In the end it took brilliant lead up play, a lot of luck and a stunning finish from the opposition to score against the previously unconquered Googlewooper defence.

The draw allows the Orange to maintain second spot on the table in group 1 but the next clash against former ladder leaders Senatus Populusque II will be an excellent indication of just how the team are travelling. ‘SP2’ are playing hit and miss football after dominating early games with attacking flair but falling to struggling Idanno last round, a team that were somewhat easily dispatched by the Orange earlier in the tournament.

Despite there high position, good results are still vital for Hunten Footars’ men as only 3 points separate 1st and 5th although that statistic doesn’t take into account an uneven number of matches played so far. Despite tinkering with attacking option Wesley Omar in the encounter with Syktyvkar, Footar has reverted to his original starting 11, reinstating Owen Christiansen to his central containing role in midfield. In Christianson’s absence there was a noticeable lack of pressure on the Syktyvkarian attackers and Omar and main playmaker Gorday seemed to cancel each other out when started together.

The move will send a message to starting strikers Jack Barrie and Harry Holt as well as wingers Seb Seward and Davind Heinam, who are expected to take up the extra attacking duties, that it is up to them to threaten opposing teams more.
Given there current form and attitude, Googlewoop should be looking for nothing less than a win when they clash with SP2 tomorrow.


Summary

Syktyvkar Score (Syktyvkar 1 - 0 Googlewoop)

Y Card - Holt 57' (Googlewoop)

Goal - Gorday 65' (Syktyvkar 1 - 1 Googlewoop)

Joy as Peisandros makes it three from three

The dream run continued for the Peisandros team as they won their third game on the trot. With solid defence which has seen only two goals scored against them, and an attacking unit which is growing in confidence, the Sandrians did not look troubled (bar a ten minute patch in the second half). The win ensured that they would dabble in play-off football for the first time -- a fantastic achievement for a team in just it's second international tournament.

Once more it was teen superstar Praxis Nikolaidis who played a big part in the game going Peisandros' way. The 16 year old has been the pick of the team, outshining even striker Costa Theotokis who is fine form too. It took the young man just 7 minutes to make his mark and score his first goal of the tournament. On a Peisandros counter attack, the ball was played to him by captain Chrisou on the half-way line and he did the rest. Evading two attempted tackles, he went right around a third and fired in a low, hard shot. Keeper Aminul Islam had no chance and could only watch is the ball flew in to his left.

From there Peisandros did not look back. They controlled much of the possession and looked the far better side. This was confirmed in the 24rd minute when striker Costa Theotokis gifted his twin brother George a goal. A fantastic long ball from Roubanis found the twins behind the defence with just the keeper, who had rushed forward, to beat. Costa passed to George and he was able to easily find the net. 2-0 after 24 and Peisandros looking good.

After the goal the match went in to a holding period through to half-time, with the Akbarabad players pushing back and Peisandros rather content with their 2-0 lead. But the Akbarabad coach wasn't too pleased with this and clearly had a few words to the players as they came out of the sheds with far more intent. They were rewarded after not too long -- 10minutes in to the half midfielder Chowdhury left Peisandros captain Chrisou looking stupid and scored a great goal. 2-1 after 55 and the game was back on. Would Peisandros pay for their relaxed approach?

Apparently not. The goal sparked Peisandros back in to action and within no time they had the ascendancy again. However the third goal took a long time coming. It wasn't until the 78th minute infact, that Costa Theotokis put his name on the scorecard for the third game running. It was a team goal this time though, with Theotokis being the last link in a great build up. The passing was fantastic and the goal ensured the victory.

Coach Alexander Pappas has praised his team. He said his team has worked hard and deserved to be three from three.

"I think we are where we need to be, sure. Obviously a lot of hard work has gone in to our preparation and we really want to be here. When you win you enjoy your football more and I think that's one reason we're doing so well. I'm very impressed with the way the boys have gone about things. We're still focusing on each game -- not getting too far ahead of ourselves."

Game Summary

Peisandros 3 (Nikolaidis 7' G. Theotokis 24' C. Theotokis 78') - Akabarabad 1 ( Chowdhury 55')

Yellow Cards - 0

Red Cards - 0

Injuries - 0

News: Subway Athletes get first win in the Baptism of Fire

The Subway Athletes gave to all the people that use the most efficient transport system of Caixa Dois reasons to commemorate, as after two draws, in which the players from the Opereta region (Opereta region = subways of Caixa Dois, capital of Urna Eletrônica) left the field lamenting some missed opportunities and feeling that they could get the victory, this time they were able to finally get three points in one game, in the game against Lecland, with the single goal being scored in the first half by Sé.

The game was followed on the television by the people who were using the subway at that moment, and some decided to stay inside the trains even after it reached their destination, just to see what would happen in the game, and they were able to see the dominance of Opereta in the first half, with some strong shots, with Sé and Itaquera playing good, although they also saw the team's difficulty to score more goals in the second half, having even to defend from some dangerous Lecland shots.

But in the end Opereta managed to keep the single goal victory over Lecland, and the Subway Athletes now have five points in the table, very close to the group leaders. The coach Esepetrans said that now the players now are more used to play with their team mates, something that didn't happen earlier, as they didn't know each other, because they live in separated stations of the subway system and don't have money to use the trains to transport themselves, something that harmed the team's development before the Baptism of Fire.

(from the 'Sports' section of 'The Bear Necessities'...)


Win Some, Lose Some, Win Some...

The Bear-Belles returned to victory last night, in a closely-played match against the team from AruthKandageLand, and regained second place in their group. The 'harridharr' evidently un-nerved their opponents, who gave way before their initial onrush so that Marrla o GreenWoods was able to score a goal in only the seventh minute of the match. After that the AruthKandageLanders went into an extremely defensive style of play, and never posed any threat: The only goal awarded to them was actually knocked accidentally into our net by Karramarrsar Karra, who was trying to pass it back to goalie oBarrdenn, in the fiftieth minute... and then Harrya o Herrchaum -- who'd been substituted in at the start of the second half -- broke the tie that that had caused with a long shot (that paid off) in the sixtieth minute.

(Full details on page S-9)

__________________________

OOC: line-up for tonight's match = as for yesterday's...

MD5 RP cutoff!

Group 1
IseeRussiafrommyhouse 2-1 Idanno
Senatus Populusque II 1-4 Googlewoop
Opereta 1-2 Syktyvkar

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Googlewoop 4 3 1 0 7 2 5 10
2 Syktyvkar 5 3 1 1 10 7 3 10
3 Senatus Populusque II 4 2 0 2 7 9 -2 6
4 Opereta 4 1 2 1 4 4 0 5
5 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 4 1 2 1 4 4 0 5
6 Idanno 5 1 1 3 6 8 -2 4
7 Lecland 4 0 1 3 1 5 -4 1

Group 2
Bears Armed 2-0 Akbarabad
Peisandros 4-0 Deep South Sopia
Benelsdon 1-1 AruthKandageLand

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 4 4 0 0 10 2 8 12
2 Bears Armed 4 3 0 1 7 2 5 9
3 Deep South Sopia 4 2 0 2 4 10 -6 6
4 Akbarabad 4 1 1 2 8 8 0 4
5 Benelsdon 4 0 2 2 2 6 -4 2
6 AruthKandageLand 4 0 1 3 3 6 -3 1

Remember, tomorrow, scorination will be around four to five hours later than usual, and Group 2 is off!

Enchanted Forest Stars Continue Winning

The Denizens of the Enchanted Forest of Syktyvkar, an autonomous region of the Unified Tsardom of Myedvedeya, have put up a surprisingly good run at the 31st Baptism of Fire. Looking to emulate their mother country, and bring a second consecutive BoF victory to the Frozen Lands, the team was hastily assembled from various athletic-looking magical creatures, none of whom had previously played football professionally. Syktyvkar so far have amassed a record of 3-1-1 in five games. While this is not as astounding as Myedvedeya's undefeated conquest of last year's BoF, it is good enough to put the Scimitars in second place, in prime position to qualify for the knockout rounds of this tournament.

Matches and Scorers
Syktyvkar 2-0 Lecland
Aeschylus Silenus '22
Thorontur Aerdirnaithon '41

Syktyvkar 2-4 Senatus Populusque II
Aeschylus Silenus '37
Mircha Dragulescu '73

Syktyvkar 3-1 Idanno
El Juli '12
Mircha Dragulescu '31
Romulus Saturnius '84

Syktyvkar 1-1 Googlewoop
Svarog '38

Syktyvkar 2-1 Opereta
Aeschylus Silenus '27
Ciprian Corneliu '59

Top Scorers:
1. Aeschylus Silenus- 3 goals
2. Mircha Dragulescu- 2 goals
3. Ciprian Corneliu- 1 goal
3. El Juli- 1 goal
3. Romulus Saturnius- 1 goal
3. Svarog- 1 goal
3. Thorontur Aerdirnaithon- 1 goal

-snip-

Confirming the above is me... always forget to log out of my main account

Sandrians have eyes on #1 seed

After a comprehensive 4-0 victory over Deep South Sopia, the Peisandros team have a real shot at claiming the #1 seed for the knock-out round. Three points ahead of second in their group, they are also two ahead of the top team in group one. A draw in their last game could well be enough to claim that top spot.

Coming in to the tournament Peisandros were none from two in international outings. While many have been surprised by the monumental rise of the team, the Sandrians themselves knew they had the talent. They have gelled now and are not looking back.

"I think we always knew we had it in us," vice-captain Urias Halkias said. "It was just a matter of us applying ourselves and working hard. At the Oxen Cup we were shell-shocked -- it wasn't going to happen again. We're a team that strives for a strong defence first and foremost. Our goal difference shows that, having only conceded two goals from four games now."

The game was a great one for striker Costa Theotokis who scored two first half goals (23' and 35') to give Peisandros a 2-0 lead going in to the break. They continued the good work in the second half with defender Luke Sisinis scoring a great set-piece goal (51'). The last of Peisandros' goals came in extra time with 'the other' Theotokis twin scoring his second goal of the tournament (90' + 2').

Game Summary

Peisandros 4 (C. Theotokis 23' 35' Sisinis 51' G. Theotokis 92') - Deep South Sopia 0.

Yellow Cards - Peisandros 3 (Theodore 24' Roubanis 44' Xanthis 60') - Deep South Sopia 2 (Defender 10' Midfielder 55')

Red Cards - 0

Injuries - 0

WORTH THE WAIT

The prayers of Googlewoop’s football faithful have finally been answered! Starting attacking combination of Jack Barrie, Harry Holt and Scott Gorday have found form in the most spectacular of fashions to thump Senatus Populusque II 4-1 in the Baptism of Fire yesterday.

A double from a previously unsuccessful Holt as well as another spectacular long range effort from Barrie set up the win before half time as the two strikers answered their critics who have been speculating they do not threaten the opposition enough early. By the time Scott Gorday’s free kick sailed into the corner in the 82nd minute, Holt and Barrie were both resting on the bench happy in the knowledge they have now cemented there spots as the nation’s leading strike combination.

Holt’s first goal of the tournament came in just the 7th minute as he met a pinpoint David Heinam through-ball and wove past the keeper to open his international account. The veteran forward’s tally didn’t remain at one for long. In the 23rd minute he found himself on the end of another Seb Seward ball into the box and tucked the volley away into the top corner. Barrie’s long range beast just before half time will have every defence in the competition worried as it is the second time he has launched the ball into the net over the heads of the entire defending team.

The return of Owen Christiansen to the starting line up was the ‘x’ factor in the Orange defence as his tackling and clearances dominated midfield play. In a subdued second half, Gorday’s free kick and a late consolation goal by Senatus Populusque II were the only highlights as Christiansen and the Googlewooper back four squeezed the life out of the opposition attack with a smothering pressing defence.

Not surprisingly manager Hunten Footar was named an unchanged starting 11 to play IseeRussiafrommyhouse tomorrow as he looks to nail down a spot in the knock-out rounds early.


summary

Goal - Holt 7' (SP II 0 - 1 Googlewoop)

Goal - Holt 23' (SP II 0 - 2 Googlewoop)

Goal - Barrie 45 + 1' (SP II 0 - 3 Googlewoop)

Goal - Gorday 82' (SP II 0 - 4 Googlewoop)

SP II Score (SPII 1 - 4 Googlewoop)

The Bear-Belles are rehearsing their 'harrdiharr'.
Formed up into two lines, facing in the same direction, eighteen Ursines are going through the synchronised moves of a 'war-dance' that's designed to intimidate opponents before combat -- or, as in this case, a sporting event -- begins. This consists of taking a step forwards, backwards or to one side or the other (with those different options alternated so that they actually stay in roughly the same place overall), stomping heavily as they do so, with a pause in between each two steps during which they all simultaneously utter either a grunt or a growl, make a grimace (perhaps baring their teeth, sticking their tongues out at their opponents, or rolling their eyes), or flex their forearms to show-off their muscles. this process is punctuated, at regular intervals, by the front row miming the bare-handed (or should that be "bear-pawed", instead?) infliction of grievous bodily harm on their opponents whilst the back row's members all chant a phrase -- in the Ursine language -- that would basically translate into English as

"Come and have a go, if you think you're hard enough!"

So we've got a day off from playing, and how do the team react? They held a drinking party last night, and I haven't seen a sports team sink so much booze in a single session since I was working down in the nation of Check And Mate -- in the Antarctic Oasis -- and we had to share a hotel with a visiting team of 'American Football' players from Omigodtheykilledkenny... And, to add insult to injury, none of them even have hangovers this morning!
Theyll be doing Soccer practice this afternoon, but this morning they insist on practicing their bloody war-dance instead, "for religious reasons" they say... well, except for the squad's only two Christian members, and those aren't talking to each other at the moment because they belong to different sects and they had a row last night that was triggered by -- Would you believe it -- the order in which the strokes should be made when 'crossing' onseself!
Where's that bottle, I really need a large drink...

OOC: The team's line-up for our next match will be significantly changed from the one used in the earlier games, to give some of the other players some experience before the 'knockout' stage now that we've safely qualified for that.

Starters

Goalkeeper: Urra Thunder (#14)
Left Back: Beorra o SouthWoods (#16)
Right Back: Borrinna o HighPeaks (#3)
Midfield Centre: Harroya 'Silver' Gray (#22) -- actually positioned slightly behind the other midfielders.
Midfield Left: Karra Thunder (#17)
Midfield Right: Ilga NorthWalker (#21) -- a Harr'aynau humanoid.

Centre Forward: Beorra 'Locomotive' o Barrdenn (#7)
Left Forward: Marra SunDaughter (#10; CAPTAIN)
Right Forward: Harroya 'of the Rovers' o Redwood (#32)
Left Winger: Harroya 'She-Lion' Lightning (#27)
Right Winger: Verrina Sernarra's-daughter (#31) -- one of the Verravokkssur Fox-people.


Substitutes
Goalkeeper: Charra o Barrdenn (#1)
Defender: Urratharra o StrongPaw (#20
Midfielder: Urra 'Honey' SunBlessed (#4)
Striker: Harrya o Herrchaum (#24) -- almost certain to be brought on at the start of the second half, even if not needed earlier...
Striker: Marrla o GreenWoods (#25)
Striker/Winger: Karramarsar Sarra (#11)
Striker/Winger: Karramarsar Karra (#13)


(There's now a complete roster in my first post in this thread...)


I don't have enough time online available today to create a write-up about our last match, but the goals were scored (one each) by Karramarsar S. & Karramarsar K...

OOC: I'm going away for a week and won't have internet access.. Won't be able to RP our last game or our knock-out game(s). So, good luck to everyone and go Peisandros :)

MD6 RP cutoff!

Group 1
Opereta 0-1 Senatus Populusque II
Lecland 2-1 Idanno
IseeRussiafrommyhouse 0-1 Googlewoop

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Googlewoop 5 4 1 0 8 2 6 13
2 Syktyvkar 5 3 1 1 10 7 3 10
3 Senatus Populusque II 5 3 0 2 8 9 -1 9
4 Opereta 5 1 2 2 4 5 -1 5*
IseeRussiafrommyhouse 5 1 2 2 4 5 -1 5*
6 Idanno 6 1 1 4 7 10 -3 4
7 Lecland 5 1 1 3 3 6 -3 4

* Opereta and IseeRussianfrommyhouse are level on all tiebreakers going into the final matchday. Should they remain tied in fourth place, a special playoff game will be contested.

Group 2
Off

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 4 4 0 0 10 2 8 12
2 Bears Armed 4 3 0 1 7 2 5 9
3 Deep South Sopia 4 2 0 2 4 10 -6 6
4 Akbarabad 4 1 1 2 8 8 0 4
5 Benelsdon 4 0 2 2 2 6 -4 2
6 AruthKandageLand 4 0 1 3 3 6 -3 1

Tomorrow's the last day of the group stage, which will be followed by a day off (Monday). There's a chance that scorination will be late again. After the final games, teams will be seeded and the playoff draw posted, with the first games being contested on Tuesday!

MD7 RP cutoff!

Group 1
IseeRussiafrommyhouse 1-1 Syktyvkar
Opereta 1-2 Googlewoop
Senatus Populusque II 1-2 Lecland

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Googlewoop 6 5 1 0 10 3 7 16
2 Syktyvkar 6 3 2 1 11 8 3 11
3 Senatus Populusque II 6 3 0 3 9 11 -2 9
4 Lecland 6 2 1 3 5 7 -2 7
5 IseeRussiafrommyhouse 6 1 3 2 5 6 -1 6
6 Opereta 6 1 2 3 5 7 -2 5
7 Idanno 6 1 1 4 7 10 -3 4

Group 2
Bears Armed 2-0 Deep South Sopia
AruthKandageLand 1-2 Akbarabad
Benelsdon 2-7 Peisandros

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Peisandros 5 5 0 0 17 4 13 15
2 Bears Armed 5 4 0 1 9 2 7 12
3 Akbarabad 5 2 1 2 10 9 1 7
4 Deep South Sopia 5 2 0 3 4 12 -8 6
5 Benelsdon 5 0 2 3 4 13 -9 2
6 AruthKandageLand 5 0 1 4 4 8 -4 1

Knockout Stage

Note: For seeding purposes, teams in Group 1 had their result against last-place Idanno dropped.

Pos Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts
2.1 Peisandros 5 5 0 0 17 4 13 15
1.1 Googlewoop 5 4 1 0 9 3 6 13
2.2 Bears Armed 5 4 0 1 9 2 7 12
1.3 Senatus Populusque II 5 3 0 2 8 8 0 9
1.2 Syktyvkar 5 2 2 1 8 7 1 8
2.3 Akbarabad 5 2 1 2 10 9 1 7
2.4 Deep South Sopia 5 2 0 3 4 12 -8 6
1.4 Lecland 5 1 1 3 3 6 -3 4

Coastal Bracket
QF1: (1) Peisandros v (8) Lecland @ City of Eastport Municipal Stadium, Eastport
QF2: (4) Senatus Populusque II v (5) Syktyvkar @ Kemaridohyou, Mizuno
SF1: QF1 winner v QF2 winner @ Aclaf Stadium, Port Royal

Central Bracket
QF3: (2) Googlewoop v (7) Deep South Sopia @ Satoshi Hirano Stadium, Kishin
QF4: (3) Bears Armed v (6) Akbarabad @ GNC Bank Stadium, Grandborough
SF2: QF3 winner v QF4 winner @ King Daniel III National Stadium, Yuki City

Third Place Game @ Alfred Nomura Memorial Stadium, Chuuoushi: SF1 loser v SF2 loser
Championship @ King Daniel III National Stadium, Yuki City: SF1 winner v SF2 winner

The Googlewooper National Broadsheet Newspaper, FRONT PAGE, Monday December 15th, 2008


UP BOYS AND AT ‘EM!

A tidal wave of Orange pride has hit the nation and will roll onto television screens across the continent and region late tomorrow night as billions of people watch Googlewoop’s national football team play their first ever tournament quarter-final. The Orange take on Deep South Sopia at Satoshi Hirano Stadium in the city of Kishin, Dancougar.

Two wins in their last two games of the group stages have propelled the Orange juggernaut to a commanding 5 point lead at the top of group 1 and leave them yet to loose a game with an impressive international record of 5-1-0. Despite his teams excellent group position and favourable seeding in the knockout stage, manager Hunten Footar would again not be drawn on any expectations he had of a place or the championship.

“The only expectation I have is that the boys will give there all in every game we have left to play in this tournament,” he said. “If that’s good enough to bring home the silverware then that’s a bonus. We didn’t come here with any other expectations than that so we can only be happy, no matter what stage we make it to.”

Despite not having to face any team seeded higher than his, Footar would not hear talk of an easy progression to the championship game.

“You all forget that every team in this stage of the tournament had to qualify as well! They all had to beat other teams and they all had to score goals to beat those teams. Every squad we encounter from here on in is dangerous and every squad is a chance at the championship.”

Footars comments may be construed as kind to Googlewoop’s quarter-final opponents, Deep South Sopia who have won only two games of the five they have played and scored only four goals while conceding twelve although they have had to battle through a tough group including a shellacking by rampaging group 2 leaders Peisandros. The biggest hurdle between the Orange and a spot in the final is the Bears Armed squad who have played tough, gritty football to be seeded 3rd.

However, until the final whistle blows in tomorrow nights match, all focus is on striking combination Jack Barrie, Harry Holt and Scott Gorday and all hopes are that they can punch through the Deep South Sopian defence early.

Gorday has hit fine form late in the tournament scoring in both of Googlewoop’s last two victories, from free play to win the match 1-nil against IseeRussiafrommyhouse and again from a free kick in the Orange’s come from behind 2-1 win over Opereta. His 70th minute winner in the later game is the third time he has scored from a dead ball in the tournament and the fourth a goal has come from one of his set plays. Substitute Jonathan Strawn scored again to equalise against Opereta after he was brought on early to replace Holt who tweaked his calf. His header from a Seb Seward cross in the 46th minute instigated a midfield assault as Googlewoop took control of the game.

Holt has been cleared to play again after team physiotherapists and doctors diagnosed him with nothing but cramp however no striker’s position in the starting line-up is cemented as after 6 games, the goals have come from everyone's boots and the bulk of the scoring has been from midfield lynch-pin Gorday. The captain has four of the Orange’s ten goals with strikers Barrie, Holt and substitute Strawn sharing the spoils with two each. Bench striker Eric Matthews also waits in the wings after solid contributions in the group stages.


IseeRussiafrommyhouse Summary

Goal - Gorday 31’ (IsRfmh 0 - 1 Googlewoop)

Y Card - Lee 47’ (Googlewoop)

Y Card - Patterson 89’ (Googlewoop)


Opereta Summary

Opereta Scores (Opereta 1 - 0 Googlewoop)

Goal - Strawn 45 + 1’ (Opereta 1 - 1 Googlewoop)

Goal - Gorday 70’ (Opereta 1 - 2 Googlewoop)



OOC: For the group 2 teams and other players in general, in the knockout rounds I would prefer to RP my own goal scorers and bookings but have no problem letting whoever RPs first deciding times or sequence of events. Cheers!

(from the 'Sports' section of 'The Bear Necessities'...)


Quarter-finals, here we come!

Our team, the Bear-Belles, had already qualfied for the knock-out stage in the 'Baptism of Fire' contest with their fourth game (& third win) in the 'group' stage, but completed their prgress through that stage in style anyway with a 2:0 win over Deep South Sopia (Goals: Beorra o Barrdenn [12], Marra SunDaughter [37]). Their opponents never really seemed to get started, and simply withdrew into a tight defensive position after our girls' second goal, so the Belles -- having a good enough result by then in any case -- basically spent most of the game's second half practicing passes...

So now the Belles travel to the GNC Bank Stadium, in the city of Grandborough, for a rematch against group-mates Akbarabad whom they defeated in another 2-0 triumph in their group-stage game but who went on to be seeded in 6th place out of 8 as opposed to the Belles' 3rd place.
"We beat them before, we can beat them again," said the team's captain Marra SunDaughter confidently, "and in fact we're going to use exactly the same line-up of players for this match as we did when we played them before. They seemed even more reluctant than our other opponents have been to tackkle us then, apparently they think that we're 'unclean' for religious reasons or something of the sort, and if they still respond like that then of course that will give us an even better chance of success."

(OOC: from the Akbarabad players' names, I'm assuming that they're Muslims, and Bears ARE 'unclean' to that faith's followers... as the RL news-story about the British teacher who was jailed in the Sudan earlier this year, for letting her class name a teddy-bear 'Mohammed', showed...)

(More details on page S-3.)

Lecland makes the quarter finals, just.........

With two games to go, Leclands tournament look over, having lost three games and drawn the other and rooted to the bottom of group 1. To have any hope of getting through to the quarters they would have to win their remaining games and hope other teams slipped up.

The first game was against Idanno, fellow sturggler in the group.

The first half was a boring stalemate, Lecland was too timid, having been rip apart on the counter attack in the other four games.

The game sparked to life in the second half with an early goal from Idanno, this sparked Lecland into life, culimating in two goals in four mintues as Gary Owens, back from injury, and Stuart Carson both scored to provide Leclands first win in the tournament.

Not only that they had provided what had seemed unlikely chance to qualify from the group and progress to the quarter finals.

To do this and have a realistic chance, they would have to beat Senatus Populusque II and hope Operta and IseeRussiafrommyhouse didn't win their final games

All kicked off at the same time, and things went badly straight away for Lecland as Operta and IseeRussiafrommyhouse scored first in there respective matches, while Lecland struggled to break down a tough Senatus Populusque II side. At half time some good news cam in as Googlewoop equalised. After half time Lecland were pressing alot, to get the win they so desperately needed. And they came, on the 65th and 71th minute, both from a much missed Gary Owens. THe first goal was an excellant solo goal as he charged through the oppenants defence to neatly chip the stranded goal keeper. The other was a little fortuate, with a error by a defender passing back too softly towards the goalkeeper, OWens pounce and once again beat the keeper.
The news of Googlewoops second bought cheers from the crowd, but still IseeRussiafrommyhouse was leading and as it stood, took the last quarter final spot. Then the news that Syktyvkar had scored, in the last 3 mintues of normal play, the supporters suddenly became almost celebrately, this caused the Lecland players to lose concentration and let in a late, that ensured a nervy finish to what had been an amazing turn around in fortune. All over Lecland people took to the streets in celebration of their progression to the next round, what had been a depressing tournament after their performances in the Oxen Cup, had now come alive again.

Now though they faced a very tough test against Peisandros, we shall see if the magic seen in the last two games will inspire Lecland again......

Changing modifer to -0.5 for next game please :)

MD8 RP cutoff!

QUARTERFINALS
(1) Peisandros 2-0 (8) Lecland
(4) Senatus Populusque II 0-2 (5) Syktyvkar
(2) Googlewoop 4-0 (7) Deep South Sopia
(3) Bears Armed 3-0 (6) Akbarabad

SEMIFINALS
(1) Peisandros v (5) Skytyvkar @ Aclaf Stadium, Port Royal
(2) Googlewoop v (3) Bears Armed @ King Daniel III National Stadium, Yuki City

ORANGE CHARGE INTO SEMIS!

The Googlewooper football team has obliterated a severely outclassed Deep South Sopian defence to record a crushing 4-nil defeat on their quarter-final opposition. Goals to Jack Barrie, Sebastian Seward, Harry Holt and Wesley Omar, set up what is sure to be a cracking semi-final against Bears Armed. Football fanatics with tickets to the match at King Daniel III National Stadium in Yuki City, Dancougar are salivating at the chance to see two of the most potent attacks of the tournament go at each other for a place in the final. However, the Orange will be without midfielder David Heinam who succumbed to a side strain late in the second half.

Another clinical strike from form striker Jack Barrie opened the scoring in the 23rd minute after a tense opening. Barrie finally rediscovered the footwork that has served him so well in domestic competition as he latched onto the end of a Scott Gorday through ball on the left wing. His control and reflexes were absolutely stunning to watch as he cut back inside the defender before drawing the keeper and firing into the far corner.

Not to be outdone, left midfielder Sebastian Seward picked up his first international goal just minutes later when his cross from the edge of the box took a deflection, leaving the keeper well out of position and rolling into the bottom of the net.

After a lacklustre first half, Barrie’s starting strike partner Harry Holt was gifted a free header from a Seward corner incredibly, seconds after his number appeared in red on the substitute board. The Dancougar referee was required to break up the celebrations as the Orange, as well as the huge crowd went wild, telling Holt that he had to leave the field. Any reservations Manager Hunten Footer may have had about the substitution were soon forgotten however as Holt’s replacement Wesley Omar belted a beast into the net from well outside the box in the 70th minute, handing Googlewoop an unassailable 4-nil lead.

Footar not available briefly for comment as the team bunkered down in preparation of tonight’s big match. Here at home however, optimism has penetrated every corner of the nation, including the bookmaker’s offices with Googlewoop currently $1.70 favourites to win. In a battle between two teams in brilliant attacking form, the result may hinge on the performance of Googlewoop’s defensive lynch pin, midfielder Owen Christiansen whose absence has put extra pressure on the backline whenever he has not started. Wesley Omar has also earned his second start of the tournament replacing David Heinam on the right wing.


Starting Line Up

4-3-1-2 Formation

GK - 1 Mark Garner
RB - 4 Lucas Strand
CB - 2 Craig Lee
CB - 3 Scott Freeman
LB - David Gill
RM - 17 Wesley Omar
CDM - 6 Owen Christiansen
LM - 8 Sebastian Seward
CAM - 9 Scott Gorday
RS - 10 Jack Barrie
LS - 11 Harry Holt

Bench

GK – 12 James Brown
DF – 13 Benjamin Patterson
DF – 14 Louis Wilton
DF – 15 Alex Denton
MF – 16 Michael Bean
MF – 18 Mikhael Matherson
ST – 19 Jonathan Strawn
ST – 20 Eric Matthews


BIG GUNS EYE EACH OTHER OFF

Continuing our coverage of the Baptism of Fire, members of the number 1 seeded Peisandros squad and support staff may well have reason to worry after downing struggling Lecland 2-nil. They are now likely to meet one of Googlewoop or Bears Armed, who put on seven goals between them in their respective quarter-finals, in the championship game. Peisandros will be looking to pile the goals on against fifth seeded Syktyvkar, who have found late form, in a bid to rediscover the attacking flair that netted them seventeen goals in the group stages. The knowledge that Bears armed and Googlewoop have conceded the least goals of any two teams in the tournament will play on all four semi-finalists minds as they head into their matches tonight.


Quarter-Final Summary - Googlewoop vs. Deep South Sopia

Goal - Barrie 23' (Googlewoop 1 - 0 DSS)

Goal - Seward 27' (Googlewoop 2 - 0 DSS)

Y Card - Heinam 42' (Googlewoop)

Goal - Holt 65' (Googlewoop 3 - 0 DSS)

Goal - Omar 79' (Googlewoop 4 - 0 DSS)

Injury - Heinam 84' (Googlewoop)

Syktyvkar Advance to Semifinals

The Scimitars, football squad of the enchanted forest of Syktyvkar, advanced to the semifinals of the Baptism of Fire today with a convincing victory over Sentaus Populusque II, the very same nation that put the tarnishing mark on their 3-2-1 record in the group stages. Syktyvkar continued their high-scoring, attacking play, defeating the boys from SPII by the score of 2-0, even while missing a few good chances.

The match started out well for Syktyvkar, as their attack gave them a free kick 25 yards out in the Seventh Minute. Aeschylus Silenus blasted a rocket, which was skillfully tipped over the crossbar by the SPII goalkeeper. On the resulting corner, defender Neurion Minyadan missed the net by inches, sending the ball out to the left, for a goal kick. Sentaus Populusque pressed the attack for a few minutes after that, resulting in a few tests of Syktyvkar keeper Salvinius Varda, but nothing too dangerous for the Enchanted Forest boys. Syktyvkar opened up the scoring the Twenty-Third, as Miroslav Istuion Kravnik singlehandedly flew by three defenders, before centering the ball for El Juli, who tapped it back across the net to a wide open Aeschylus Silenus, who netted his fourth of the tournament, tapping the ball into the open goal. There was no more scoring by either side until the second half, and the teams went in for the break with the score at 1-0.

In the second, Syktyvkar's midfield prowess began to show, as Thorontur Aerdirnaithon and El Juli made a mess of the Sentaus Populusque back four, giving forwards Silenus, Dragulescu, and Svarog many chances to put the ball on goal. In the Sixty-Fourth, however, Syktyvkar were given a scare, as defender Imrahil was called for a yellow card, and a penalty was conceded to the SPII squad. Thankfully for the Scimitars, Salvinius Varda was well up to the task, and deftly parried the shot. Thinking quickly, defender Gabriel Ileana took the rebound, and smashed it up the wing to Svarog, who centered a beautiful cross. Running up to meet the cross was none other than Ileana himself, who, at the end of his massive full-field sprint, smashed the header into the lower-right corner, to put the Scimitars up 2-0 in the Sixty-Sixth. There were no further goals, and the Scimitars finished the game with skillful defense, securing them a spot in the semifinals.

Syktyvkar 2-0 Senatus Populusque II
Aeschylus Silenus '23
Gabriel Ileana '66

(from the 'Sports' section of 'The Bear Necessities'...)


Belles Do Best Yet

The Bear-Belles continued their triumphal progress through the 'Baptism of Fire' yesterday evening, with a 3:0 Quarter-Final win over Akbarabad (whom they'd already vanquished during the tournament's group stage, in that case 2-0, too).
I don't know whether the Akbarabaddies were initimidated by the VERY impressive harrdiharr with which the girls preceded the game, or put off by religious concerns as the Belles' captain Marra SunDaughter had suggested before the macth, or simply remembered their previous loss and lacked confidence because of this, but -- whatever the reason was -- they made hardly any attempt to win and let the Belles control the course of the game right from the start. Marrla o Greenwood successfully hammered two shots into the Akbarabad team's goal during the first half (at 12 & 29 minutes into the game, respectively), although goalkeeper Aminul Islam did manage to stop another shot from here and three by other members of our team, and then Marra SunDaughter added our third goal of the match -- after several more unsuccesful shots on goal by her team-mates in the seventy-first minute.

"This was a good game for us," said SunDaugter afterwards, "and I'm very pleased with the levels of skill, aggression and team-work that our players showed. Now we're down to the really tough opponents, though: We mustn't forget that Googlewoop actually came out as first-ranked overall from the group stage, and have won their Quarter-Final match very decisively as well. We'll be using the same line-up for that game as we had for this one, because of the set-up's proven effectiveness, but I and Mr Smith will be telling the girls to take a bit more thought about defence as well as attack from now onwards..."

(OOC: reduce style modifier from +1.0 to +0.5, please...)

Scimitars and Sandrians Square Off

Top-seeded Peisandros, who have had incredible success in this tournament, scoring 19 goals and conceding only 4, while winning all six of their games, will face underdogs Syktyvkar today in Dancougar. The Scimitars have amassed a record of 4-2-1, over seven matches, and just convincingly beat the only team that has defeated them, Sentaus Populusque II, in the quarterfinal. Still, the high-scoring Sandrians, due to their 6-0-0 record, and their massive goal-scoring ability, will face Syktyvkar as the heavy favorites to advance to the final.

Syktyvkar's defenders will have to step up massively to defeat the tournament leaders in scoring. This will probably mean that the central midfielders, Miroslav Istuion Kravnik and Romulus Saturnius, will fall back often to assist the back line of Imrahil, Minyadan, Corneliu, and Ileana. Still, expect keeper Salvinius Varda to be tested frequently.

With two offensively-minded, skilled teams facing off, there is also a large possibility of the game becoming a score-fest. Expect Aeschylus Silenus, in fantastic form throughout the tournament, to net at least one of the Scimitars' goals, and expect much of the space-creation to be accomplished by Midfielder El Juli, and by forward Dragulescu.

All in all, a Syktyvkar win is not likely, but they have played well through the tournament, and should not by any means be counted out of the match against Peisandros.

MD9 RP cutoff!

SEMIFINALS
(1) Peisandros 3-1 (5) Syktyvkar
(2) Googlewoop 0-2 (3) Bears Armed

THIRD PLACE GAME (Tomorrow)
(2) Googlewoop v (5) Syktyvkar @ Alfred Nomura Memorial Stadium, Chuuoushi

FINAL (Friday)
(1) Peisandros v (3) Bears Armed @ King Daniel III National Stadium, Yuki City

MD10 RP cutoff!

In third place...
(2) Googlewoop 4-2 (5) Syktyvkar

Tomorrow night, a champion shall be crowned in Yuki City!
(1) Peisandros v (3) Bears Armed

Alfred Nomura Memorial Stadium, Chuuoushi, Dancougar, 18 December, 2008...

Scott Gorday looked over his shoulder at the scoreboard once more. “Googlewoop 3 - 2 Syktyvkar”. The clock had ticked past the 94th minute. He turned his attention again to the ball resting, almost with a lazy personality, three metres in front of him. The regulation ten metres away, two orange shirts jostled their way into the Syktyvkarian wall. In the distance, the white, metal frame of the goal and the net stood out like neon in the bright stadium lights. Scott thought to himself that whenever a fowl was blown and he took up his now familiar position, just outside the box, the goal always seemed to shrink and the keeper looked like a giant. He closed and opened his eyes, clearing his mind and refocusing on the ball. Now it occurred to him that in this kind of form it felt almost as though he had the white sphere on a string. He felt an itch in his right foot, yearning to make contact.

He felt as though all the emotion of the last two weeks was culminating in this kick; Jack Barrie’s last minute goal in the nation’s first win, his goals as he carried the team through the group stage, the grit of the entire team in their close games and of course the devastation just twenty four hours before when he watched from metres away as Bears Armed buried their second goal, ending Googlewoop’s championship campaign. But none of that mattered now. His squad had stepped onto the international stage without fear and proved that they belonged. Now the captain had the chance to put away Syktyvkar for good after a frantic struggle and gain some measure of consolation for his men.

The Dancougar crowd appreciated good football and they all stood, barracking for the team they had grown to love and the chant of Gorday! Gorday! echoed around the stadium. The referees whistle blew… Jonathan Strawn sprinted towards the ball, leaping over it, Owen Christiansen tapped it, laying it up just metres in front of Scott. He took two steps and swung his boot. The contact felt good and the ball shot like a bullet to the right of the wall curling back and dipping sharply. A shockwave of sound hit Scott as the crown erupted, the ball taking a deflection from the crossbar with a satisfying and spectacular clang and burying into the bottom of the net. Scott fell to his knees, looking skywards, arms outstretched and fists clenched. As his team mates swarmed around him, only they could hear his hoarse scream of satisfaction.

A few days later he would land at Googleopolis and, as thousands upon thousands of fans, the President among them, greeted the team, realise that there was no need for him, or any of the squad for that matter, to make amends for the semi-final disaster. The nation has proud and the promise of the world cup loomed. But none of that was relevant now as the Referee blew full time. It was another victory and he didn't want to be anywhere else but on the Chuuoushi turf with the boys.


Third Place Game Summary - Googlewoop vs. Syktyvkar

Syktyvkar Score (Googlewoop 0 - 1 Syktyvkar)

Goal - Christiansen 28' (Googlewoop 1 - 1 Syktyvkar)

Syktyvkar Score (Googlewoop 1 - 2 Syktyvkar)

Goal - Strawn 49' (Googlewoop 2 - 2 Syktyvkar)

Y Card - Matthews 78' (Googlewoop)

Goal - Matthews 86' (Googlewoop 3 - 2 Syktyvkar)

Goal - Gorday 90 + 4' (Googlewoop 4 - 2 Syktyvkar)


Googlewoop’s Record

7 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss - Proud 3rd Placers

18 goals for, 7 goals against

Goal Scorers: Scott Gorday (5), Jack Barrie, Jonathan Strawn, Harry Holt (3), Sebastian Seward, Wesley Omar, Owen Christiansen, Eric Matthews (1)


Congratulations to everyone who took part in the tournament especially to Bears Armed and Peisandros. Best of luck in the championship game!

(OOC: I'm really sorry about not writing more, yesterday as well as today, but... busy, busy, busy!)

_________________________________________________________________

In the changing room, Marra SunDaughter -- the Bear-Belles' captain -- is giving her team a final pep-talk before they go out onto the pitch for the final.

"You've all done well, so far, and after all nobody really expected us to get this far... but let's all do REALLY well, now, and make our first venture into international competition our first time as WINNERS too!
Peisandros are a good team too, we all know that: After all, they wouldn't have got this far themselves if they weren't, and they did hand us our only defeat during the earlier rounds... But we're a better team now than we were when we played against them before, with more experience of playing together and more experience against Humans and simply more experience of playing 'for real' rather than just for fun.
So, remember what Mr Smith and I have already told you: Keep up the strong attack that we'll probably need to pierce the Sandies' emphasis on defence, but" (Here she directed her gaze & words specifically at the Midfielders_ ) "don't leave our own half of the field uncovered while you're doing that."

The signal is given, and they jog out onto the pitch and commence their pre-game 'harrdiharr' ritual.



Starters
Goalkeeper: Charra o Barrdenn (#1).
Left Back: Urratharra o Strongpaw (#2).
Right Back: Borrinna o HighPeaks (#3).
Defensive Centre: Urra 'Honey' SunBlessed (#4)
(She is initially positioned about halfway between the Backs & the Midfielders...)
Midfield Left: Karra Thunder (#17).
Midfield Right: Beorrtha o Parram (#6).
Centre Forward: Beorra 'Locomotive' o Barrdenn (#7).
Left Centre: Marra SunDaughter (#10; CAPTAIN).
Right Centre: Karramarsar Sarra (#11).
Left Winger: Harroya 'She-Lion' Lightning (#27).
Right Winger: Karramarsar Karra (#13).


Substitutes

Urra Thunder (#14) _ Goalkeeper.
Harroya 'Silver' Grey (#22) _ Defender/Midfielder.
Ulga WestWalker (#12; Harr'aynau humanoid) _ Midfielder/ Winger.
Marrla o GreenWoods (#25) _ Striker.
Harroya 'of the Rovers' o Redwood (#32) _ Striker.
Harrya o Herrchaum (#24) _ Striker.
Verrina Serrnarra's-daughter (#31; 'Verravokkssur' Foxwoman) _ Winger.

MD11 RP cutoff!

FINAL
(1) Peisandros 2-3 (3) Bears Armed

Congratulations to the champions, and thanks to everyone who participated. The true test lies ahead, as World Cup qualification looms...

(from a 'Bears Armed Broadcasting Corporation' broadcast...)

"And with only six minutes left of the Game's regular time, and a free kick just awarded to Peisandros, the score remains tied at 2 goals each. But now Bob Smith has signalled for a substitution, he's calling the Belles' captain Marra SunDaughter off to make way for Harroya 'of the Rovers'.
Play re-starts, George Theotokis takes the kick but his pass to his brother Costa in successfully intercepted by Beorra o Barrdenn. The Locomotive is taking the ball down the field into the Sandies' half, she passes it sideways to Karramarsar Karra, Kay-Kay then sends it on a long pass to her sister Sarra who's just outside the Sandies' penalty area... and goalkeeper Calisto Pappas sets up to stop Sarra's shot at the goal, but she flicks it across to Harroya 'of the Rovers' instead, and it's Harroya who shoots... and she SCORES, she's put the ball clearly over Pappas's head and into the net, Bears Armed are now leading by 3 goals to 2, will they be able to maintain this position right through the few minutes of regular time and the eight minutes of injury time that remain to be played?!?"

"And the referee's whistle blows, calling an end to this game, and the Bear-Belles have DONE it: This 'Baptism of Fire' was their first ever venture into international competition, and they've WON it. Their supporters go wild, cheering, and beating the drums that many of them brought along, as the Belles -- having just congratulated their opponents on playing such a tough game, and keeping the result in doubt for so long -- spontaneously start jogging a 'lap of honour' around the edges of the pitch.

And now the Belles have all taken their shirts off, and are throwing those into the crowd..."


___________________________________________

(on the pitch...)

"Just the shirt, Honey."
"But isn't this why they call it a 'football strip'?"
"No, Honey, it isn't."
"Oh."

____________________________________________________________________________

OOC


Goals
Bears Armed: Beorra o Barrdenn (26), Marra SunDaughter (41), Harroya o Redwood (87).
Peisandros: Costa Theotokis (43), George Theotokis (52).

(BA's goal-scorers in the Semi-Final were _ Marra SunDaughter [75], Marrla o GreenWoods [just ten seconds before the end of injury time]... The Googlewoopers were very skilled opponents*, that's why our goals were so late in that game...).


Total of Goals scored by BA players during this contest _
5 goals: Marrla o GreenWoods (#25).
4 goals: Marra SunDaughter (#10, CAPTAIN).
3 goals: Beorra 'Locomotive' o Barrdenn (#7).
2 goals each: Karramarsar Sarra (#11), Karramarsar Karra (#13; also responsible for the team's only own-goal).
1 goal each: Harrya o Herrchaum (#24), Harroya 'of the Rovers' o Redwood (#32).
= 17 goals in all.

_________________________________________________

So, is there a physical trophy of some sort -- a Cup, or shield, or whatever -- involved?

_________________________________________________

(* In fact, before the Semi-Finals' results were announced, I more than half expected it to be the Final -- rather than the 'Third Place' game -- that would be Googlewoop vs. Syktyvkar...)

..So, is there a physical trophy of some sort -- a Cup, or shield, or whatever -- involved?...


NO, but you get to add BOF champion to your sig...:eek:

There's always the official championship merchandise?

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh106/newtypezaku/winnar.jpg

There's always the official championship merchandise?

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh106/newtypezaku/winnar.jpg

LOL :eek: BEST BOF championship merchandise ever!

OOC: Just got back tonight.. Shame I couldn't RP anything, but very happy with 2nd place! Looking forward to WC.

NO, but you get to add BOF champion to your sig...:eek:
Already done (as you'd seen?) ;)

There's always the official championship merchandise?

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh106/newtypezaku/winnar.jpg

*chuckle* :)


Well, in that case I think that the government of Bears Armed might have a suitable trophy made... or perhaps have two identical trophies made, one for our own 'Association for Soccer' to keep permanently and the other for it to pass on to the next contest's winner (and them to the one after that, and so on, although maybe each subsequent winner could have a copy made to keep as well...). The design that initially springs to mind is _
A silver shield, inlaid with gold: In the centre, a football surrounded by a corona of flames (and charged with the World Cup Committee's badge, if it has one...); the words 'Baptism of Fire' in large letter at the top in English, and then repeated around the other edges -- in rather smaller letters -- in Ursine & as many other relevant languages as we can fit in; between the centre-piece & those labels, the names of the winners (with the numbers of the contest, and the host-nation's/nations' name[s], bracketed together in smaller writing beneath each of them) in chronological order... We'll leave room for 64 winners in all, i.e. slightly over twice as many as there've been so far.
Any objections?

(Oh, and I've just updated NSwiki's lists of BoF hosts & winners to cover this tournament... Okay?)