NationStates Jolt Archive

...and it turns out that the man wasn't holding a head at all, but a chicken carcass with a crudely drawn face on it.

In other news, the 5th Field Hockey World Cup first round has been drawn, with the following groups:

Group A: (played in Mackintosh)

Timway (1)
The Never-setting Sun [8]
Marno (17)
Alex the tall

Group B: (played in Buchanan)

The Weegies (2)
Akbarland (7)
Liverpool England (16)
Englesreich

Group C: (played in Jamestoun)

Spauldmerica (5)
Tanah Burung (11)
Belmorian Scandinavia (22)
Sliponia

Group D: (played in Easter House Island)

Ravenspire (4)
Polkaton (12)
Clearwater (21)
Seed

Group E: (played in Barras)

Kaze Progressa (6)
Rejistania (14)
Zinkoland (20)
The most holy Kesler

Group F: (Played in Hanover)

Agnosticium (3)
The Belmore Family (9)
El Dorrado (23)
Five Civilized Nations

Starting soon, the FHWC will be the first major sporting tournament The Weegies has held, with matches from each group being held all around the islands. As The Weegies are second seeds, the fans are expecting big things from them this year, possibly even claiming the World Cup on home soil.

In the parliament today, Council Leader Alan Sharkey branded CR&CP Council Member Lawrence Denton as a "drunken fool", as it was revealed that...

OOC:
The scheduling of matches is as follows:

Day 1

1 vs 2
3 vs 4

Day 2

1 vs 3
2 vs 4

Day 3

1 vs 4
2 vs 3

Group F: (Played in Hanover)

Agnosticium (3)
The Belmore Family (9)
El Dorrado (23)
Five Civilized Nations

We are hoping to be very successful in qualifying for the Second Round!

The Never-setting Sun team participated in their first trainig session in The Weegies today. All cameras were banned but head coach Ron Logan said that all was looking good ahead of the first match, against no. 1 seeds Timway. Outside the trainig ground a group of fans assembled with banners reading "Bring it on Timway" and "We love you NSS."
The team is extremely impressed with facilities at the weegies.

OOC: When will matches commence?

OOC: When will matches commence?
Wehn TW TGs me his e-mail adress so I can send him the spreadsheets!

Snippit from the Sliponian Sports Network

Anchor: In Jamestoun the Sliponia national team lost a heartbreaker Scandinavian Belmore, falling 2-0 Wednesday night. Despite a valiant effort from every member of the Sliponian team and almost scoring many times in the match, the team was unable to stop a tremendous run by Belmore when it really counted. However, Sliponian coach Kevin Phalen was quoted as saying: "We messed up, plain and simple, but we will do everything we can to recover." Here are some video clips of what the players had to say.


"We were simply out played...We played the number 22 team and we stumbled."

"I hope we can do better, but I'm just not sure. Anything can happen in sports."

And once again, we go back to Coach Phalen:

"Whether we make it out of the qualifying stages or not, we were here and will continue to participate in this event for as long as we can."

At a time when much of Ravenspire's attention is on the World Cup of Football, the preparation of the Ravenspire Vixens, the national field hockey team, to depart for competition in The Weegies went almost unremarked. However, the fans, while fewer in number than those of the Ravens football team, are extremely devoted, and a small crowd of citizens -- like the team, mainly foxgirls, since the sport is most popular among the Kin -- saw the Vixens off.

The team, now rated 4th in the world, has developed a reputation for frenzied offense, but fans will be watching their defense, a weakness in prior World Cup competitions. Team members are confident. "Since our first competition, we've only gotten better," said team member Renata Mondain. "This could be the year we take everything."

Kathryn Malley, reporting for RNN

Spauldmerica wants to bounce off a great 4th Cup

After a great finish in the 4th Feild Hockey World Cup, the Spauldmerican Squad hopes to have an even better 5th Cup. " Well its really the only sport played in Spauldmerica, so each year our team is better than the last." states head coach Mark Thompson " The Goverment puts alot of money into this program."

Coach Mark Thompson also comments on the group Spauldmerica has drawn. " I don't see why we can't finish tops in our division!" he exclaims " We've got an 11th ranked team and a 20-something ranked team so we shouldn't have much difficulty, but I don't want to get cocky. We've been upset before. "

So now all the Spauldmerican Gal's can do now is wait and practise. Their first match is against 11th ranked Tanah Burung.

Englesreichs Reichchancellor has today proclaimed that he is looking forward to travelling to Buchanan and watching his team play in the field hockey world cup. he said at a promotional rally in Red Star City " I cant wait to come to Buchanan to see my team in their world cup debut, really hope they have just as good start as the ice hokey team. Bring on Liver pool England!!!!!!!!!!"

Burbank, DiFiore, Baker At It Again

Hanover, Weegies (AP) - Anessa Burbank, Liz DiFiore and Vanessa Baker will once again take the field in an effort to lead the third-seeded Agnostican Field Hockey team to the finals in the 5th Field Hockey World Cup. Burbank, who is the all-time leader in Agnos Field Hockey points and goals has expressed a dedication to be admired. Group play begins in a few days and Agnosticium will face a difficult opponent in the Belmore Family.

The last few years have seen teams from both of these countries fighting it out in what seems to be a budding friendly rivalry between the two nations. Agnosticium's group also includes 23rd ranked el Dorrado and the unranked Five Civilized Nations.

Goalie Liz DiFiore hopes to continue the stellar play she exhibited last year when it came down to the wire and she usually performed spectacularly. Once again, defensive captain Vanessa Baker is healthy and expected to control the defensive backfield along with rookie sensation Shannon Tamara.

Kaze Progressa have drawn a favourable group for Field Hockey World Cup 5, with 14th-ranked Rejistania the next best side in the group.

The manager, Pasagio, is believed to have made the semi-finals his goal - though with no schedule planned for the knockout rounds they could meet literally anyone along the way.

A major communications failure left Akbarland isolated and it's world cup place in doubt. Forunately the matter was resolved and the team is heading for the Weegis where they will have to contend with the hosts and number 2 seeds. Despite the fact that the team remains the only one to atleast reach the second round in all the cups, the national cynicism when it comes to sports is alive and well and optimism for cup glory remains to be low.

From the Daily Kangaroo:

FULLIATA SENDS PROGRESSANS TO VERGE OF LAST 16

Kaze Progressa secured a hugely significant victory in their group with a 3-2 defeat of Rejistania in Barras.

The Rejistanians took the lead after just three minutes from a penalty corner after dominating the start of the game, but 20-year-old star-in-the-making Sertai Fulliata equalised soon afterwards on a breakaway and then gave the Progressans the lead just before half-time with a fierce shot from distance.

After the break, the Rejistanians dominated again, and equalised after a slick passing move created the easiest of chances, but with just two minutes left Fulliata broke through the defence to score a priceless winner.

With 20th-ranked Zinkoland and newcomers The Most Holy Kesler to come, and the fact three points has tended to be enough to qualify as one of the best third-placed teams in any case, the Progressans can count themselves as probable qualifiers already. The real challenges are yet to come.

All Day 1 results have been TGed to the nations involved. Tables up soon. Same for my RP.

From the Sikenian Daily

Field hockey team loses first game again

Everyone, who thought, the curse of the bad start is finally defeated was proven wrong by the game against Kaze Progressa. With one exception, Rejistania always lost the first game in the field hockey world cup. Everything started very good as Rejistania began the game strongly. Y archieved the lead in the 3rd minute by a penalty corner, but as always they did not continie dominating the game. This led to the equalizer by Sertai Fulliata. When everyone thought, that the draw would last till half-time, he used a desperate position and a normally chanceless shot to make the 1-2. After half-time, the Orange-Blues started again strongly. Newcomer Hsi made his first world cup goal and equalised the score. But this Kaze'ian player again scored and secured the Kaze'ian victory.

Coach Ri said after the game: "The signs are not good: we lost the first game everytime, when we didn't qualify. But we have played a good match and especially the newcomers Hsi and Kal showed their class. At the end, it was a bit bad luck."

Liverpool England Hockey Team Lose To Unranked Side, Hockey Association considers withdrawing team.
(OOC: Won't happen, dont worry.)
<--RP to come.-->

Agnosticium Opens 5th Field Hockey World Cup With Win!

Hanover, The Weegies (R) - Anessa Burbank scored her 29th international goal and had an assist as Agnosticium defeated the ninth-ranked Belmore Family in opening play of the 5th Field Hockey World Cup. Scoring early on a long pass from Mariel Foster, Burbank set the tempo for the game for the Agnostican team. The majority of the game was played in the middle third as Burbank and Co. jockeyed with the Belmore players to keep posession.

The second goal was knocked in by sprinting rookie sensation Shannon Tamara as she steaked in from the defensive backfield and took a sharp pass from Burbank to make the score 2-0. Agnosticium then moved into a defensive game, attempting to simply keep possession in the latter half of the match, doing a good job of tying up the Belmore players.

A lapse in the second period, however, allowed the Belmore Family to knock in an excellent goal on a diving Liz DiFiore as she attempted to save. The loss of the shut-out obviously angered the Agnos player and she was ejected for foul language and kicking the goal. AISA (Agnos International Sports Association) fined DiFiore five-thousan holy dollars for her antics and she has been placed on probation. She is expected to start in the next match versus #23 El Dorrado.

"We have a great chance to take this World Cup if we continue to play hard," said team captain Burbank, "We just have to keep our focus and execute. We can't afford to be lax at all because there's always the chance that someone will outplay us. There are a lot of good teams out there who could do what we did last year as an unseeded team and reach the final rounds. I obviously want to win and I know that we're a very solid team, but there are a lot of unknowns and we have to approach every game like we were playing the best out there. If we don't, we're going to lose and I, for one, don't want to have to say "well maybe next year" again."

The Fighting Ostriches arrived in the glorious tropical sunshine of The Weegies, so much like home. This is s steam that has consistently under-performed, ever since its crash and burn at home in the first FHWC. In recent years, it has always started witha loss, then done the bare minimum necessary to qualify for the second round.

With the first match set against number 5 seeds Spauldmerica, an opening day loss was what all the fans were expecting. "Yeah, but even if we only beat Sliponia, we probably can go through," said one fan, already well into a keg of Weegies beer.

The beer flowed more and more freely as the Fighting Ostriches grabbed, obstructed, scrathed and clawed their way through a thriller of a match against Spauldmerica. At the final whistle, Tanah Burung was on the right side of a 3-2 scoreline. Fans began to party. "An opening day win? This has never happened before!"

From the Sikenian Daily

Field hockey team loses first game again

Everyone, who thought, the curse of the bad start is finally defeated was proven wrong by the game against Kaze Progressa. With one exception, Rejistania always lost the first game in the field hockey world cup. Everything started very good as Rejistania began the game strongly. Y archieved the lead in the 3rd minute by a penalty corner, but as always they did not continie dominating the game. This led to the equalizer by Sertai Fulliata. When everyone thought, that the draw would last till half-time, he used a desperate position and a normally chanceless shot to make the 1-2. After half-time, the Orange-Blues started again strongly. Newcomer Hsi made his first world cup goal and equalised the score. But this Kaze'ian player again scored and secured the Kaze'ian victory.

Coach Ri said after the game: "The signs are not good: we lost the first game everytime, when we didn't qualify. But we have played a good match and especially the newcomers Hsi and Kal showed their class. At the end, it was a bit bad luck."

OOC: Neat RP, but we're usually referred to as the Progressans.

IC: After the hard-fought victory over Rejistania, most expect Akbarland to pose little barrier to entry into the knockout rounds. The Progressans will still field a full-strength side though, as they fight for an easier route through to their stated aim of the last four, or at least the last eight - a stage the Progressans have never reached before.

Manager Pasagio is expected to emphasise attack, as the Progressans fight to improve their goal difference should that affect their draw.

Vixens Upset
Initial Match Marred by Injury

Easter House Island, The Weegies -- Weakened by an injury, the national field hockey team got off to a poor start yesterday with a 3-2 loss against Polkaton.

Initially, the match appeared to be going well. Strikers led half a dozen forays onto the Polkaton side of the field in the first ten minutes of play, one of them resulting in the first goal of the match. Polkaton equalized the score later, but the Vixens swiftly added a second goal to retake the lead.

At that point, however, the match took a tragic turn. Midfielder Alia Kitsune, in the process of stealing the ball, was apparently accidentally struck across the ankle by a Polkaton forward and had to be carried from the field. With the team distracted by the first serious injury in its history, the Vixens' defense, already shaky, essentially collapsed, allowing two goals in the remaining minutes of play.

(from The Red Star Comrade the govenments only complimentary news paper devoted to the FHWC)
The countrys divided attention in sport as suddenly been drawn away from, rugby, hockey, cricket and hover biking and the kids at the govenment subsidised sports clubs are suddenly asking for field hockey stuff after Englesreichs unexpected victory over Liverpool England. The RC is over the moon at deciding with the field hockey team instead of going with the ice hockey team. he will be due to fly out to New Hopeton for the rugby but he has said if the hockey team do well next match he might stay in Buchanan.

I think we're due for a few rounds?

From Progressa TeleSport:

...meanwhile, the national hockey side prepares for its match against Akbarland. The team has had plenty of rest after its 3-2 victory against Rejistania and are now hoping to assure progress to the knockout stages with victory against the side ranked 20th in the world.

Just checked, and The Weegies were active yesterday. Still no day 2 results.

KP will take over the result-generation process (TBF can generate our results) if there are no more results today. He has the spreadsheets, the only thing that has changed are the teams and rankings - therefore it should be manageable.

Maybe telegram the Weegies before taking over? Maybe the forums are causing them troubles....

*hangs head in shame*

Sorry, sorry, sorry. I've had numerous problems with my computer in the past few days: I couldn't get on the computer full stop, then I couldn't get online, then the forums did their wonderful stunts of collapsing and the dreaded "Invalid Session." I'm TGing the 2nd day now.

Again, sorry. I can only say one thing. Don't blame me, blame the evil that is AOL.

P.S - KP, you aren't taking on Akbarland, you're playing Zinkoland.

OOC: AOL = :evil:

All Day 2 results have been TGed.

The Day 1 scores are as follows...

Timway 3-2 The Never-Setting Sun
Marno 0-1 Alex the tall

The Weegies 1-0 Akbarland
Liverpool England 0-1 Englesreich

Spauldmerica 2-3 Tanah Burung
Belmorian Scandinavia 2-0 Sliponia

Ravenspire 2-3 Polkaton
Clearwater 0-2 Seed

Kaze Progressa 3-2 Rejistania
Zinkoland 1-1 The most holy Kesler

Agnosticium 2-1 The Belmore Family
El Dorrado 4-1 Five Civilized Nations

[code:1:8c40820c45]
Group A P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
Timway 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Alex the tall 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
The Never-Setting Sun 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Marno 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0

Group B
The Weegies 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
Englesreich 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
Akbarland 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0
Liverpool England 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0

Group C
Belmorian Scandinavia 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
Tanah Burung 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Spauldmerica 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Sliponia 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Group D
Seed 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
Polkaton 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Ravenspire 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Clearwater 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Group E
Kaze Progressa 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Zinkoland 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
The most holy Kesler 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
Rejistania 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0

Group F
El Dorrado 1 1 0 0 4 1 3 3
Agnosticium 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
The Belmore Family 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
Five Civilized Nations1 0 0 1 1 4 -3 0


[/code:1:8c40820c45]

I hate code.

Snippit from the Sliponian Sports Network

Anchor: In Jamestoun the Sliponia national team lost again, this time 3-0 Sunday night. Despite a valiant effort from every member of the Sliponian team and almost scoring many times in the match, the team was unable to stop the other team when it really counted. But again, Sliponian coach Kevin Phalen was quoted as saying: "We messed up, plain and simple, but we will do everything we can to recover." Here are some video clips of what the players had to say.


"We were simply out played...many people said we shouldn't have joined up, but of course we will get killed this year--next year and the upcoming years are what the important things are."

"I hope we can do better, but I'm just not sure. Anything can happen in sports."

And once again, we go back to Coach Phalen:

"Whether we make it out of the qualifying stages or not, we were here and will continue to participate in this event for as long as we can."

Here ya go Weegies, nice'n pretty:

[code:1:b60f95cc1f]
Group A P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
Timway 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Alex the tall 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
The Never-Setting Sun 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Marno 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0

Group B
The Weegies 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
Englesreich 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 3
Akbarland 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0
Liverpool England 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0

Group C
Belmorian Scandinavia 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
Tanah Burung 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Spauldmerica 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Sliponia 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Group D
Seed 1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
Polkaton 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Ravenspire 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0
Clearwater 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

Group E
Kaze Progressa 1 1 0 0 3 2 1 3
Zinkoland 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
The most holy Kesler 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1
Rejistania 1 0 0 1 2 3 -1 0

Group F
El Dorrado 1 1 0 0 4 1 3 3
Agnosticium 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
The Belmore Family 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
Five Civilized Nations1 0 0 1 1 4 -3 0
[/code:1:b60f95cc1f]

Damn you and your competency.

From the Sikenian Daily:

Draw against minnow!
After a boring 0-0 against a team called 'the most holy Kesler', the well-known-question rises: Will coach Nelil Ri resign, will he be forced to resign, or will perhaps the entire team be replaced? The fact is: The Orange-Blues played like they didn't want to play. It was mainly the defense and goalie Hangatil, who prevented another loss. the few chances, the Orange-Blue had were archieved by the newbie Hsi, who was the best player in the game.

After our last match report, we got angry letters to the editor. Many wirters from Kaze Progressa complained, that they are not Kaze'ians but Progressans. We excuse for this error, but we would like you to note, that it developed because our newspaper is rejistanian and the expression 'Kaze Progressa' would be the combination of a noun (Kaze) and an adjective (Progressa) in Rejistanian. That and the fact that we simply can not pronounce 'Progressans' caused this error.

Akbarland have bounced back from defeat to the weegis to win against Englesreich by a 3-2 margin in an exciting game in which Akbarland twice had to come back from behind. This keeps the team on course for being the only team to reach the second round of all the world cups.

OOC: Damn, it seems the random number gods who were so kind in the football World Cup have now turned on me. RP to come later.

The underachieving Fighting Ostriches of Tanah Burung opened with a big win, and have followed it up with another. This triumph saw three goals hammer the opposition from Sliponia, which was unable to answer with a single goal of their own.

The Ostriches' great start came as a nice contrast to Tanah Burung's ice hockey performance, where the team has just skated (well, fallen over while trying to skate) to a 0-5 record. Hopes are high that Tanah Burung may finally have found a sport at which it excels (apart from competitive piercing, that is).

The final groups stage game pits Tanah Burung against Belmorian Scandinavia. That's not a test the Cassowaries are relishing, as various forms of Belmore have usually defeated them in international sports of all kinds. Fans are already getting drunk in anticipation. "Belmores, all i can see are bloody Belmores," said one fan, already seeing double from too much Weegies beer.

From the Daily Kangaroo:

PROGRESSANS THROUGH, SHOULD AVOID GIANTS EARLY ON

Kaze Progressa look good for their best ever Field Hockey World Cup run after a 4-0 destruction of Zinkoland.

The Progressans took the lead on just 85 seconds, determined to avoid the troubles they had against Rejistania; new boy Steritak Muzziotai beat two Zinkoland defenders before sneaking a shot into the bottom corner, with a touch of luck off the inside of the post.

Frarti Nutasi doubled the lead on eight minutes from a penalty corner, before two second-half Sertai Fulliata goals completed the rout. The Progressans face new boys Most Holy Kesler in the final group game, and are expected to field a slightly experimental lineup; however, they will still be out to win or at least get a result, as defeat could theoretically sacrifice their top spot and that in turn could lead to them facing one of the other top nations in the last sixteen. Having already succumbed at that stage to Timway in FHWC4, they will be desperate to avoid this fate as they bid to reach the last eight for the first time.

Snippit from the Sliponian Sports Network

Anchor: In Jamestoun the Sliponia national team lost again, this time 1-0 Wednesday night to Spauldamerica. Despite a valiant effort from every member of the Sliponian team and almost scoring many times in the match, the team was unable to stop the other team when it really counted. But again, Sliponian coach Kevin Phalen was quoted as saying: "We messed up, plain and simple, but we will do everything we can to recover." Here are some video clips of what the players had to say.


"We were simply out played...many people said we shouldn't have joined up, but of course we will get killed this year--next year and the upcoming years are what the important things are."

"I hope we can do better, but I'm just not sure. Anything can happen in sports."

And once again, we go back to Coach Phalen:

"Whether we make it out of the qualifying stages or not, we were here and will continue to participate in this event for as long as we can."

From the Daily Kangaroo:

HOCKEY STARS TRIPLE UP

Kaze Progressa's all-conquering field hockey stars completed a 100% group phase with a 3-0 win over newbies Most Holy Kesler.

The oldest Progressan on the field was Sertai Fulliata, the 26-year-old attacking machine, and it was his two goals in seven minutes that sealed the deal. He was sacrified at half-time and debutant Bunlit Furrizak, 18, scored a spectacular third from long range late on.

The Progressans should now avoid the giants in the last sixteen in their bid to reach their first ever quarter-final - but nobody knows for sure.

http://www.freewebs.com/nsfhwc

Sign Up for FHWC6 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=97927&highlight=)

From the Sikenian Daily:

Orange-Blues did it!

Chaos broke out on the streets of Ligatania as the Orange-Blues defeated Zinkoland clearly by 2-0 and qualified the second consecutive time for the round of 16 (I don't even know if this article ever gets published). Again, Hsi'he and Y'he were the stars of the match, showing for the first time, that they can play together. Xatri Y said after the match: "There was this ...wall... between the newbs and the long-timers before. Much distrust and other things that don't belong anyhow into a team. But thanks to Ri'he, we got over all the differences and negative emotions."

The match started furious as Hsi'he archieved the lead in the 4th minute, assisted by Y'he. Even if the Zinkolanders are also no newbies and t would be assumed, that they know the start, they seemed to be upset. That allowed Y'he to make the 2-0 only some minutes after. After a furious start, the Orange-Blues always drop off and so it was in this game, too. This gave Zinkoland some chances, but they lacked a bit the determination to score and so the score did not change.

The second half started again fast, but this time the Zinkolandians knew the tactic and their defense prevented a higher victory.

The Fighting Ostriches stuck their heads in the sand and went down 2-1 to Belmorian Scandinavia. "Belmores," spat one fan, "they always beatses us, damn them!"

A 2-1 record is likely to be good enough to qualify, but fans eagerly wait news on the bush telgram of the game two result between Spauldmerica and the Scandinavian Belmores.

[code:1:51ce608250]
Group C* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Belmorian Scandinavia 2* *2* *0* *0* *4* *1* * 3* *6
Tanah Burung* * * * * 3* *2* *0* *1* *7* *3* * 4* *6
Spauldmerica* * * * * 2* *1* *0* *1* *3* *3* * 0* *3
Sliponia* * * * * * * 3* *0* *0* *3* *0* *6* *-6* *0
[/code:1:51ce608250]

Agnosticium Wins 2-0 over FCN, Sweeps Group Play

Hanover, the Weegies (AP) - Agnosticium advanced to the round of 16 with an impressive 2-0 win over Five Civilized Nations to wrap up a clean sweep of their group. Anessa Burbank was credited with another goal as she tripped and knocked an errant pass out of the FCN backfield back into the FCN goal for Agnosticium to take a 1-0 lead in the middle of the first period. Her goal was supplemented by Shannon Tamara's blast past the goalie in the second period.

Excellent defense was key as FCN players couldn't move past the midfield point for much of the game. Ball control was also a major factor in this shutout win. DiFiore was relatively unworked in this match, however she did have to make four spectacular saves off of excellent chance shots by the FCN forwards.

"We're totally stoked," said Coach Chipouras, "We knew we had the ability to give a strong showing in first-round action and we're just glad to be representing our nation as well as we have so far."

Scores, Days 2 & 3:

Final Scores - Day 2
Timway 3-1 Marno
The Never-Setting Sun 2-0 Alex the tall

The Weegies 2-2 Liverpool England
Akbarland 3-2 Englesreich

Spauldmerica 2-5 Belmorian Scandinavia
Tanah Burung 3-0 Sliponia

Ravenspire 3-3 Clearwater
Polkaton 2-0 Seed

Kaze Progressa 4-0 Zinkoland
Rejistania 0-0 The most holy Kesler

Agnosticium 2-1 El Dorrado
The Belmore Family 2-0 Five Civilized Nations

Final Scores - Day 3
Alex the tall 0-3 Timway
Marno 1-2 The Never-Setting Sun

Englesreich 0-4 The Weegies
Liverpool England 3-1 Akbarland

Sliponia 0-1 Spauldmerica
Belmorian Scandinavia 2-1 Tanah Burung

Seed 0-3 Ravenspire
Clearwater 1-0 Polkaton

The most holy Kesler 0-3 Kaze Progressa
Zinkoland 0-2 Rejistania

Five Civilized Nations 0-2 Agnosticium
El Dorrado 2-0 The Belmore Family

Vixens' Late Surge Guarantees Slot
Offense Carries Wounded Team Through

Easter House Island, The Weegies -- Though still feeling the loss of teammate Alia Kitsune, who suffered a broken ankle in the initial match of the Field Hockey World Cup, the Ravenspire Vixens rallied to claim a qualifying slot by a nose. Two high-scoring matches yielded a 3-all draw against Clearwater, followed by a 3-0 win against Seed. Group standings were left as follows:

[code:1:84cb128ce4]
Polkaton 3 2 0 1 5 3 2 6
Ravenspire 3 1 1 1 8 6 2 4
Clearwater 3 1 1 1 4 5 -1 4
Seed 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3
[/code:1:84cb128ce4]

With Lycea Mondain substituting for Kitsune at midfield, the Vixens returned to the all-out offensive style of play that had marked their earliest forays into international field hockey, abandoning the increased emphasis on defense that had marked them of late. The results of this strategy proved mixed: in the first match, the Vixens allowed as many goals as they scored, but in the second, they overwhelmed the Seed team, offering constant pressure and denying the opposing side the opportunity to counterattack effectively.

The Vixens, however, are not celebrating this victory. "We're playing for Alia," said striker Joy Akibana. "We're not going to withdraw or just fold. But it's not exactly easy to enjoy the matches, right now."

OOC: Sorry I haven't posted earlier, but I've been really busy. So I'll resume all my matches in this post. Sorry for the lenght.

From Polkaton Post:

Polkaton has been having a fantastic tournament this year and it seems that their luck from their first tournament has remained and combined with their skill it has led to a deadly combination. This year Polkaton is leading their division and has two wins. Compared to last year when they barley qualified and only won once, it is a huge improvement.


They started the tournament against their heated rivals the Vixens and won the match getting a little bit of vengance for last years loss in the round of 16.

Their returning captain, Viktor Polkatonnie, who scored the winner said, "We were really happy with the victory but feel very bad about the injury to Alia Kitsune, but stuff like that happens during big matches."

This win should give the Hyraxes some much needed confidence. The two other goals were scored by Nikolai Polkinnie and Igor Polkarnia. The final score was 3 - 2 Hyrax.


In their second game the Hyrax showed some strong defence and shut-out the newcomers from Seed. It was one of the Hyraxes better games with some great play by their netminder Vladimir Polkatonia. Stanislav Polkarenko scored the only two goals of the game.


Polkaton finally lost in a close 1 - 0 game against Clearwater. Both teams played very well especially the keepers on both teams. Unfourtunately, for Hyrax fans, Polkaton just couldn't get on the board.
Viktor Polkatonnie said, "It was a good game and neither team could be faulted for anything, I just hope that our team can rebound and get a win in our next game."


The future looks very bright for this young squad and it seems the only way to go is up!

[code:1:4bfe50a257]
Group A P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
Timway 3 3 0 0 9 3 6 9
The Never-Setting Sun 3 2 0 1 6 4 2 6
Alex the tall 3 1 0 0 1 5 -4 3
Marno 3 0 0 3 2 6 -4 0

Group B
The Weegies 3 2 1 0 7 2 5 7
Liverpool England 3 1 1 1 5 4 1 4
Akbarland 3 1 0 2 4 6 -2 3
Englesreich 3 1 0 2 3 7 -4 3

Group C
Belmorian Scandinavia 3 3 0 0 9 3 6 9
Tanah Burung 3 2 0 1 7 4 3 6
Spauldmerica 3 1 0 2 4 7 -3 3
Sliponia 3 0 0 3 0 6 -6 0

Group D
Polkaton 3 2 0 1 5 3 2 6
Ravenspire 3 1 1 1 8 6 2 4
Clearwater 3 1 1 1 4 5 -1 4
Seed 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3

Group E
Kaze Progressa 3 3 0 0 10 2 8 9
Rejistania 3 1 1 1 4 3 1 4
The most holy Kesler 3 0 2 1 1 4 -3 2
Zinkoland 3 0 1 2 1 7 -6 1

Group F
Agnosticium 3 3 0 0 6 2 4 9
El Dorrado 3 2 0 1 7 3 4 6
The Belmore Family 3 1 0 2 3 4 -1 3
Five Civilized Nations3 0 0 3 1 8 -7 0



Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
1. Kaze Progressa 3 3 0 0 10 2 8 9
2. Timway 3 3 0 0 9 3 6 9
3. Belmorian Scandinavia 3 3 0 0 9 3 6 9
4. Agnosticium 3 3 0 0 6 2 4 9
5. The Weegies 3 2 1 0 7 2 5 7
6. El Dorrado 3 2 0 1 7 3 4 6
7. Tanah Burung 3 2 0 1 7 4 3 6
8. The Never-Setting Sun 3 2 0 1 6 4 2 6
9. Polkaton 3 2 0 1 5 3 2 6
10. Liverpool England 3 1 1 1 5 4 1 4
11. Ravenspire 3 1 1 1 8 6 2 4
12. Rejistania 3 1 1 1 4 3 1 4
13. Clearwater 3 1 1 1 4 5 -1 4
14. The Belmore Family 3 1 0 2 3 4 -1 3
15. Akbarland 3 1 0 2 4 6 -2 3
16. Spauldmerica 3 1 0 2 4 7 -3 3
--------------------------------------------------------
17. Seed 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3
18. Englesreich 3 1 0 2 3 7 -4 3
19. Alex the tall 3 1 0 0 1 5 -4 3
20. The most holy Kesler 3 0 2 1 1 4 -3 2
21. Zinkoland 3 0 1 2 1 7 -6 1
22. Marno 3 0 0 3 2 6 -4 0
23. Sliponia 3 0 0 3 0 6 -6 0
24. Five Civilized Nations3 0 0 3 1 8 -7 0[/code:1:4bfe50a257]

Second Round Matches
Kaze Progressa [6] Vs Spauldmerica [5]
The Never-Setting Sun [8] Vs Polkaton [12]
The Weegies [2] Vs Rejistania [14]
The Belmore Family [9] Vs Belmorian Scandinavia [22]
El Dorrado [23] Vs Ravenspire [4]
Tanah Burung [11] Vs Liverpool England [16]
Agnosticium[3] Vs Clearwater [21]
Timway [1] Vs Akbarland [7]

Simon Dungates Predictions

Second Round
Kaze Progressa [6] Vs Spauldmerica [5] 2-1
The Never-Setting Sun [8] Vs Polkaton [12] 0-1
The Weegies[2] Vs Rejistania [14] 3-1
The Belmore Family [9] Vs Belmorian Scandinavia [22] 3-0
El Dorrado [23] Vs Ravenspire [4] 1-4
Tanah Burung [11] Vs Liverpool England [16] 3-1
Agnosticium [3] Vs Clearwater [21] 2-0
Timway [1] Vs Akbarland [7] 3-1

Quarter Finals
Kaze Progressa [6] Vs Polkaton [12] 2-0
The Weegies [2] Vs The Belmore Family [9] 2-1
Ravenspire [4] Vs Tanah Burung [11] 1-3
Agnosticium[3] Vs Timway [1] 2-1

Semi-Finals
Kaze Progressa [6] Vs The Weegies [2] 2-0
Tanah Burung [11] Vs Agnosticium [3] 2-3

3rd Place Play-Off
The Weegies [2] Vs Tanah Burung [11] 1-0

Final
Kaze Progressa [6] Vs Agnosticium [3] 2-3

Cheers TBF. I can't do code to save myself, I freely admit.

Woo! Not the last place team! :P

Unpredictable Akbarland have caused the biggest upset in world cup history with a 2-1 win over Timway Tigers. Written of by everyone inluding their own supporters after a horrendous display in the first round, the team was up against Timway, the best in the world. Miraculasly they somehow fought back to take 2-1 after conceding a first half lead. Who kows what they will do in the quarter finals ?

In a match reminiscent of the previous Cup, the Ravenspire Vixens defeated El Dorrado to advance to the quarterfinals. Despite the Vixens' relentless attacks, they had managed to score only one goal through most of the match. A late foul by midfielder Lycea Mondain provided the best opportunity to the opposition to equalize the score, but the shot went astray. Striker Jean Crispin, one of the few human players on the team, slipped another goal past the El Dorrado keeper with just minutes of play remaining, bringing the final score to 2-0.

Kathryn Malley, reporting for RNN

From the Sikenian Daily:

Orange-Blues eliminated!
The Weegies trashed the Orange-Blues 4-2. The Orange-Blues tryed hard, but they lacked skill, endurance and luck. The rejistanian scorers were Y'he and Len'he. None of the players was available for comment.

Coach Nelil Ri is very likely to be sacked after this tournament. After the abysmal game against the most holy Kesler and his failed attempt to create a newbie-established team, that can play together. Possible succesors of him are Taki~l Sa~o and Sa-Tri On. On'he was coach of the Rejistanha'ny during their first FHWC appearance.

From Polkaton Post:

The Hyrax qualify for the quater finals!

Polkaton defeated The Never-Setting Sun by a score of 4 - 3 to advance to the quater finals in the 5th Field Hockey World Championships.

It was a very exciting game with many scoring chances for each side and some beautiful stops by each keeper. The goals for Polkaton were scored by: Stanislav Polkarenko, Viktor Polkatonnie, Vyacheslav Polkalensov and Nikolai Polkinnie. Polkinnie had the winner.

This is great news for Hyrax fans as last tournament this is where Polkaton was eliminated by the Vixens of Ravenspire.

Hopefully, Polkaton can keep going, but only time will tell.

Agnosticium Rides Momentum, Wins Tough Battle in Round of 16

The Weegies (AP) - Agnosticium, riding the momentum gained from their sweep of group play, battled it out with Clearwater in the Round of 16 this afternoon. With advancing on the line, the Agnos women, led as always by Anessa Burbank, scored two goals in the first period and one in the last to move on in the Fifth Field Hockey World Cup. After fallign behind in the first six minutes of the game, goalie Liz DiFiore proved once again why she was so valuable to the team, shutting out the Clearwaterians throughout the rest of the match. With twelve saves, she provided the last line of defense as the Agnosticans were able to hold on despite a flurry or shots in the final period and outlast a very good Clearwater squad.

Aness Burbank retaliated shortly after Clearwater scored to tie the game at one-apiece and then scored again on a stick deflection past the Clearwater goalkeeper. Shannon Tamara once again showed her ability to race ahead of the pack as she retrieved a deflected pass and simply wove through the defense on her way to her third goal of the tournament .

"I hope we don't have to face this team next time around... they are scarily good. If Liz hadn't been on her best today after that first shot, we would have been in some serious trouble." Christine Foster assisted on the two Burbank scores and was the only member of the team available immediately following the match for comments.

Team Defeats Tanah Burung on Penalties To Qualify
16th-ranks looking for second World Trophy in barely 8 years

Yesterday, the hockey national side defeated Tanah Burung surprisingly on penalties after a 2-2 draw after extra time. The team now face Ravenspire in a tough quarter final test.

OOC: Oops, I meant to have another injury. Guess that'll have to wait till the next match.

<tag for depressing post - KP 2 Spauldmerica 3, KP still haven't made the last eight>

Feel free to print this off.
[code:1:2aa2bef071]
SPAULDMERICA_ |_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
POLKATON _ _ _|_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |_|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |_|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|_|[/code:1:2aa2bef071]

Team Defeats Tanah Burung on Penalties To Qualify
16th-ranks looking for second World Trophy in barely 8 years

Yesterday, the hockey national side defeated Tanah Burung surprisingly on penalties after a 2-2 draw after extra time. The team now face Ravenspire in a tough quarter final test.

I'd planned something a little more elaborate by way of report, but OK....

The Fighting Ostriches were coming off their best groups stage ever in the FHWC, and looking forward to a quarter-final clash with Ravenspire. But first, there was a roadblock called Liverpool England they had to get past.

"Never mind, we'll swat them," said team captain Jo Dimara. But the match was about as close as close could be. Dimara opened the scoring, but LE replied within minutes, sending the match into extra time. LE went up 2-1 but Delores Nuku'alofa replied in the last minutes of the extra time to tie it up again at 2-2. And then it was all up to penalties.

[code:1:938e8febe1]
Liverpool England x x x x x
Tanah Burung x x o x
[/code:1:938e8febe1]

So Liverpool England advanced, 5-3 on penalties, to face the Vixens. Once again, Tanah Burung's field hockey squad showed promise but under-performed and went home early. "Thing is," said Dimara, "we need more funding if we're ever going to reach the top in this sport." Authorities at home say that's unlikely to be given.

OOC: Are there ever upsets in any "Cups" on NS?

OOC: Are there ever upsets in any "Cups" on NS?
Look at the Akbar Timway result is all I say.

OOC: Yeah, there's seeds going out all over the place. I might be next...

TBF, if I get to the final, will you calculate the result? Just to be absolutely fair.

OOC: Yeah, there's seeds going out all over the place. I might be next...

TBF, if I get to the final, will you calculate the result? Just to be absolutely fair.
Sure....

Sure there are upsets. Last year I was ranked 16th and ended up as the third place finisher. It's just a lot like real life. Upsets happen but they are not commonplace. That's why they are upsets.

2nd round results.

Kaze Progressa 2
Spauldmerica 3

The Never-Setting Sun 3
Polkaton 4

The Weegies 4
Rejistania 2

The Belmore Family 4
Belmorian Scandinavia 2

El Dorrado 0
Ravenspire 2

Tanah Burung 1
Liverpool England 1
AET:
Tanah Burung 2
Liverpool England 2
LE win Pens 5-3.

Agnosticium 3
Clearwater 1

Timway 1
Akbarland 2

Once again Akbarland have overcome the mighty random-number gods with a 1-0 win over Agnosticum. Despite the hard draw which has seen Akbarland face the top three seeds before the semi-finals and a sluggish start, Akbarland have shown that they are one of the most dangerous teams in world hockey.

Agnostican Team Stumbles, Loses in Quarterfinals

The Weegies (AP) - Agnosticium, riding an eight-game winning streak in Field Hockey World Cup play, lost their first game since a loss in last year's group matches. The loss came after a clean sweep of their group in the first stage of the tournament and a significant 3-1 victory in the round of 16. Ranked third in the world, Agnosticium was looking like it might be headed for another repeat or even better placing this year.

Akbarland, the 7th seed played the Agnos women right from the get-go who seemed sluggish and almost aloof in their handling of this Akbarland team. Incidentally, it was that lack of concentration and hard work ethic, the very thing that got them to the quarterfinals, that allowed Akbarland to overpower the defense briefly and score an excellent shot on goalie Liz DiFiore.

The rest of the match was pretty much a midfield battle as the two teams played extremely aggressively, showing how evenly matched they were. The Akbarland goalie was also up to the task of defending the net, disallowing numerous excellent shots and shutting down this high-powered Agnos team. Anessa Burbank was held scoreless for the first time in nine months and over 120 field hockey matches.

This is the fourth Field Hockey World Cup Agnosticium has participated in. Says star defender Vanessa Baker, "We took it for granted that we could beat these guys. No offense to the Akbarland team, but we're one hell of a squad. If we had prepared for this match like we should have and come into it with our heads screwed on tight, we might not have gotten ourselves into this shit sandwich."

Rookie sensation Shannon Tamara also had a message, "For all of you who think that you have a sure thing, just remember that there is always someone who will work harder. Expect the unexpected. We should have come into this game knowing that this was a good team. We should have played them like we were playing for the Cup. Instead of playing like champs, we played like chumps and are going home because of it. We're better than this and we know it. It just sucks that it took an elimination match for us to find out. Watch out though... cuz we'll be back next time with a vengeance and we're not going to lay down and settle for less than we can acheive."

Second Injury Mars Vixens' Win

Easter House Island, The Weegies -- A 3-1 victory in the Field Hockey World Cup quarterfinals was marred by a second injury earlier today, leaving some questioning whether the team's style of play is reckless.

The day had dawned with a storm, and while the rain had let up by the time of the match, it had not ceased. Still, the rain-slicked grass seemed to pose few problems for either side initially, and the Vixens and opposing side Liverpool England battled to a 1-1 draw within the first 20 minutes of play.

At this point, the Vixens, who had been playing relatively cautiously, opened up their traditional high-speed, high-powered offense, claiming a second goal, out of seven rushed attempts, before the half. Upon resuming play, the national side maintained the same style of play, eventually overcoming Liverpool England's defense once more. With the score standing 3-1 in the final ten minutes of play, they showed no sign of letting up.

The injury occurred after defender Renata Mondain stole the ball from a Liverpudlian striker. Though she succeeded in taking possession of the ball and launching a pass to teammate Emerald Oguchi, she apparently then slid on the wet grass and fell badly, throwing her knee out of joint. The match came to a temporary halt while she was removed from the field, and the remaining minutes played out rather dispiritedly, as the Vixens simply ran out the clock.

While Mondain's injury is not considered serious, it is a trend that worries fans and critics alike. "Most of the players aren't being cautious enough," one team doctor said. "In the foxgirl variant of the game, you have to be aware of your own motion and your surroundings, because the other team is attacking you. In field hockey, that's illegal, so they've been concentrating fully on defense and neglecting to take precautions. Renata is a trained martial artist; she could have taken that fall easily, if she hadn't been more focused on getting the ball to a teammate."

So far, the manager has been quiet about any possible changes in the team's strategies. Two players were separately approached, but both refused comment.

Quarter Finals

Spauldmerica 2
Polkaton 2

AET:

Spauldmerica 5
Polkaton 4

The Weegies 2
The Belmore Family 2

AET:

The Weegies 3
The Belmore Family 4

Ravenspire 3
Liverpool England 1

Agnosticium 0
Akbarland 1

Feel free to print this off.
[code:1:ce82e93327]
SPAULDMERICA_ |5|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|_|
POLKATON _ _ _|4|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|3|
Vs AET TBF _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |4|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs LE_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |0|
Vs AKBARLAND _ _ _ _ _|_|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|1|[/code:1:ce82e93327]

Feel free to print this off.
[code:1:9e40c12510]
SPAULDMERICA_ |5|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|1|
POLKATON _ _ _|4|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|_|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|3|
Vs AET TBF _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|0|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |4|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs RAVENSPIRE_ _ _ _ _|1|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
Vs RAVENSPIRE_ _ _ _ _|_|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |0|
Vs AKBARLAND _ _ _ _ _|0|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|1|[/code:1:9e40c12510]

Feel free to print this off.
[code:1:9446884b73]
SPAULDMERICA_ |5|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|1|
POLKATON _ _ _|4|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|_|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|3|
Vs AET TBF _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|0|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |4|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs LE_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
Vs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |0|
Vs AKBARLAND _ _ _ _ _|_|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|1|[/code:1:9446884b73]

Who am I playing in the finals?

Feel free to print this off.
[code:1:1f47415885]
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs LE_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|_|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
[/code:1:1f47415885]

OOC: Erm... not quite. 8)

[code:1:1f47415885]
SPAULDMERICA_ |5|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|1|
POLKATON _ _ _|4|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|_|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|3|
Vs AET TBF _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|0|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |4|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs RAVENSPIRE_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|1|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
Vs RAVENSPIRE___ _ _ _|_|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |0|
Vs AKBARLAND _ _ _ _ _|0|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|1|[/code:1:1f47415885]

RP to come later tonight.

TBF LOOSE OUT IN SEMIS-AGAIN!

In a repeat of the first FHWC we have been narrowly knocked out in the semis. It was the Spauldmericans who will be going to the final after their number 10 scored a penelty flick after 78 minutes. TBF will play in their 2nd Third Place Play-Off in the hope for our best placing ever (3rd).

Vixens Advance to Finals
Historic First for Team

The Weegies -- The Vixens, though plagued by injuries this year, have managed to advance further than ever before, entering into the finals on the strength of a tough 1-0 victory over surprise side Akbarland.

"We knew going in that it would be a hard match to win," said striker Diane Hilary afterward. "It might not look it on paper, but we saw that they'd beaten both Timway and Agnosticum." The latter two sides were responsible for the Vixens' elimination from previous Cups.

Whether due to this fact or to the recent worries regarding the two serious injuries suffered so far this year, the Vixens played a more defensive game than normal, although they did maintain possession for a majority -- barely -- of play time, 52%. Akbarland's defense appeared, if anything, even tighter than Ravenspire's; none of the forays by either side in the first half made any real inway.

The second half began the same way, and the game looked as though it might run to extra time, but late in the match, an error by an Akbarland defender left Ilena Kuroda an opening, and her shot, a long drive from the right side of the pitch, slipped by the goalkeeper to score. A last-ditch offense mounted by Akbarland in return failed to tie the score before time was called, leaving the final result standing at 1-0.

The Vixens will go on to face Spauldmerica, who defeated the Belmore Family by an equally thin 1-0 margin, for the Cup.

Spauldmerica To Visit FHWC Finals For The 1st Time

Last year, Spauldmerica finished fourth in the cup. This year, they expect to win the cup and bring it back to their loyal fans in Spauldmerica. This will not be easy, after squeezing into the finals with a 1-0 win over The Belmore Family who put up an amazing fight.

"It was a tough match." said Spauldmerican Captain Kim St.Pierre. "They had some good chances, but our defense kept us in it along with our goaltending. We managed to score on a penalty flick."

They will face off against The Ravenspire's Vixens. A crowd of over 100,000 people are expected to attend, breaking the previous world record of a mere 39,982(Just a fun little fact.).

In a pact stadium in The Weegies The Belmore Family gained their best posistion ever! Alan Belmore had to claw back two goals in the last two minutes after the Weegies went 2-0 up in the first half. It went into extra-time with the scores at 2-2, but Alan Belmore won the day with two penlty flicks awarded in the 1st half of Extra Time giving The Belmore Family the 3rd Place Medal!

So, who won?

Ravenspire. I'd have thought at least one of them would have RPed.

Not RPing the final as winner should be a reason to lose the title!

Ravenspire. I'd have thought at least one of them would have RPed.
What was the result so I can write an RP.

OOC: No need, now that exams are over...

Will post tonight after work.

Finally! Please post next time, if you are unable to RP.

OOC: I see no need to repeat it in every thread I'm involved in, especially when most of the active posters in one are the same as in another where I did post (ie. football WC10).

I was going to do something a little different, but the hell with it. If quantity's more important than quality, I see no reason to further stress myself.

IC:

Vixens Victorious
Team Bounces Back to Capture Cup

The Weegies -- Field hockey fans across the nation rejoiced as the national team succeeded in capturing the World Cup for the first time. "It's a miracle year," one overcome fan shouted at the conclusion of the 4-2 match, capturing a common sentiment.

The team's chances had looked bleak earlier in the competition, as they were nearly eliminated during qualifying, and suffered two injuries during different matches: Alia Kitsune's broken ankle and Renata Mondain's dislocated knee. But the team, which had been on the brink of elimination when Kitsune was injured, clawed their way back to the top, launching a series of victories that led them through to the finals, sometimes by the thinnest of margins.

The same determination was on display today. Following their shift to defensive play against Akbarland, the Vixens surprised few fans by returning to their offense-centered play for the final match. Nevertheless, several early chances passed without a score, and it was the opposing Spauldmerica team who drew first blood. A desperate drive by Ilena Kuroda just before the half succeeded in equalizing the score.

The second half was a frenzy of activity, with a total of four goals scored. Spauldmerica opened strong, but were denied an early chance, and an error by a forward resulted in Ravenspire's second goal, a long drive by Emerald Oguchi. Following that goal, the Spauldmerican defense tightened considerably, even as their offense became more daring, but it was once again the Vixens who would score. Renata Mondain, who was able to return to play for the second half, found herself open only meters from the net, and promptly scored on a pass from Oguchi.

Spauldmerica launched an offensive blitz at that point, catching the Vixens' defense off-guard; the goalkeeper deflected one attempted shot, but it went directly to another forward, who put it away to bring the score to 3-2. The Vixens were determined not to risk going into extra time by allowing another goal, but instead of pulling back to focus on defense, as most teams would, they launched their most furious attack yet, keeping Spauldmerica occupied on the other side of the pitch. They proved unable to see any of their wild shots home, but late in the match, a tripping call against a Spauldmerican defender allowed a penalty shot, which Kuroda successfully converted. The few seconds remaining ran out before another serious offense could be mounted by either side, leaving the final score standing at 4-2 Ravenspire.

"Great!" Oguchi shouted in response to a reporter's inquiry as to how she felt about the match. "It's good to finally be here. We've gotten better every year, and this time, we've finally managed to reach the top. And we've seen some of the finest play out there, in the World Cup. To actually win it... it's just beyond words."

"I hope that this attracts some more interest to [field hockey] back home," Kitsune, who was being carried by Kuroda, said after the award ceremony. "We've got great, devoted fans, but field hockey was mostly a curiosity, not like football or judo. With more popularity, maybe we'll get better coverage and better venues."

The Vixens are already signed up to defend their title in the next World Cup. Kitsune has promised to make a return at that time.

OOC: Are there ever upsets in any "Cups" on NS?

FHWC2 was riddled with them because I used the unmodified WC8 formula. I needed to shrink the constants from 1000 and 850 to make it work. I'm using 270/220 for Cherry Cup 3, and also for FHWC6 if I host it with LE.

Edit: this is KP, with a new puppet. :D

[code:1:e925e207e4]
SPAULDMERICA_ |5|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|1|
POLKATON _ _ _|4|
Vs SPAULDMERICA_ _ _ _|2|
THE-WEEGIES_ _|3|
Vs AET TBF _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|0|
TBF _ _ _ _ _ |4|
Vs
RAVENSPIRE_ _ |3|
Vs RAVENSPIRE_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _|1|
LE_ _ _ _ _ _ |1|
Vs RAVENSPIRE___ _ _ _|3|
AGNOSTICIUM _ |0|
Vs AKBARLAND _ _ _ _ _|0|
AKBARLAND_ _ _|1|[/code:1:e925e207e4]

[code:1:ed13d5e6ef] Team P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
1. Ravenspire 7 5 1 1 17 9 8 16
2. Agnosticium 5 4 0 1 9 4 5 12
3. The Belmore Family 7 4 0 3 15 12 3 12
4. Spauldmerica 7 4 0 3 15 16 -1 12
5. The Weegies 5 3 1 1 14 8 6 10
6. Kaze Progressa 4 3 0 1 12 5 7 9
7. Timway 4 3 0 1 10 5 5 9
8. Belmorian Scandinavia 4 3 0 1 11 7 4 9
9. Polkaton 5 3 0 2 13 11 2 9
10. Akbarland 7 3 0 4 9 12 -3 9
11. Liverpool England 5 2 1 2 10 12 -2 7
12. El Dorrado 4 2 0 2 7 5 2 6
13. Tanah Burung 4 2 0 2 9 7 2 6
14. The Never-Setting Sun 4 2 0 2 9 8 1 6
15. Rejistania 4 1 1 2 6 7 -1 4
16. Clearwater 4 1 1 2 5 8 -3 4
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17. Seed 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3
18. Englesreich 3 1 0 2 3 7 -4 3
19. Alex the tall 3 1 0 0 1 5 -4 3
20. The most holy Kesler 3 0 2 1 1 4 -3 2
21. Zinkoland 3 0 1 2 1 7 -6 1
22. Marno 3 0 0 3 2 6 -4 0
23. Sliponia 3 0 0 3 0 6 -6 0
24. Five Civilized Nations3 0 0 3 1 8 -7 0[/code:1:ed13d5e6ef]