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AOCC2 Rosters and roleplaying thread

Posted: Mar 5 2007, 02:12 AM

Revenge is Sweet: Myrtannia Ices Amarenthe, Advances to Final

NORTOPALAZZO, Antigonia, Pacitalia - For the second consecutive AOCC, Myrtannia's national team reached the Semi-Finals and clashed with Amarenthe. This wasn't just any curling battle between two AO nations, but a test of will on ice with rocks and brooms. Last AOCC, Amarenthe handed the Myrtannian team a stunning defeat that put the orange and blue in a funk. That funk foiled Myrtannia's attempts to end the tournament respectably with a medal, as they fell apart against Bettia.

This time, the Bettians aren't around for AOCC, but Amarenthe has looked unstoppable so far. This time, however, it was they who entered the match undefeated, with Myrtannia the lower knockout seed. Coach Filiberto Luangxay remembered what happened the last time the two nations clashed.

"It was a huge dissapointment for us to finish AOCC 1 that way. Amarenthe caught us with our heads in the clouds, and we needed to make sure that didn't happen again. We knew how dangerous they were this time. This time, we were going to be ready," Luangxay told SNM on Curling Tonight.

A sight not seen since the heady days of AOCC 1, the Myrtannian contigent in Nortopalazzo's Arena dell' ABNAmro was vocal and visible. The Sun Burst once again proudly and defiantly waved in the crowd, with fans shouting their support for the young Team Myrtannia curlers. Air Myrtannia confirmed that all of the flights to Pacitalia over the last week have been sold out. For the Semi-Final match, all of the tickets that were left to be had were snatched up by fans in orange and blue.

Against this backdrop, Team Myrtannia took the ice with steely glares for their opponents. It was clearly their intent to show they meant business from the get-go; to establish themselves early instead of waiting until late in the match. No last end comebacks this time, they wanted the win against Amarenthe. With the other members of the first Myrtannian curling team present in the crowd, there was some added pressure for the new edition.

If they felt that pressure, they didn't show it. Sachiko Noia and Ellyn Mockler set the tone for Myrtannia's offense, helping the national team storm out of the gates. In the first end, Team Myrtannia scored thrice, taking a comfortable lead early in the match to the delight of their roaring fans. Amarenthe responded by scoring once in the second, and again in the third.

With the score standing at 3-2, Myrtannia didn't crumble this time - they attacked again, swiftly and deliberately. Renaldo Givliani led the way to a two-point fourth end that extended Myrtannia's lead to 5-2 heading into the fifth. Again, Amarenthe put up a single point in the next end to draw that much closer. Myrtannia answered again with a multiple-point end, scoring twice in the sixth to go up 7-3, a fairly comfortable lead.

"We felt comfortable with that lead, sure, but we knew better than to just ride on that alone. These guys aren't ranked second in the region for nothing," Givliani told Curling Tonight.

Amarenthe did make another effort to reduce the defecit, and this time did so by striking home two points in the next end. All of the sudden, it was 7-5, and the chance of another Team Myrtannia Semis collapse seemed all too certain. That is, until Team Myrtannia took care of business in the eighth end; they scored twice again to make it 9-5.

With a loud approval from their cheering section, Myrtannia went on to play defensively enough to stop Amarenthe from making a big comeback. Despite two more points (one in the ninth, one in the tenth), Amarenthe couldn't make up the entire defecit. As the final point was tallied, the sea of orange and blue went insane, cheering at the top of their lungs, waving about the brightly colored national flag, and occasionally chanting catch phrases.

On the ice, the team simply nodded acknowledgement to the crowd, then shook hands with their defeated opponents. As their cheering section continued to party, Team Myrtannia calmly headed off the ice for a post match meeting with coach Luangxay. Twenty minutes later, they headed back to their hotel to rest up before practice on Sunday, and then the ultimate match on Monday.

"We came out and did our job on Saturday. Now we just have to finish the job on Monday and we'll have gone out the right way," said coach Luangxay.

Myrtannia advances to its first AOCC Gold Medal match at the Arena dell' AeroPacitalia in Timiocato, where it will face an opponent that seemed unlikely at the start of the tournament. Manhattan Prime has been on fire, most recently ending the unlikely run of Ereeland's nuns with a 7-4 win on Saturday. It seems as if Myrtannia is, for whatever reason, now the overdog in the match.

But for all the talk about Manhattan Prime's run, and their popularity due to underdog status, Team Myrtannia doesn't seem the least bit bothered. Their own cheering section will be present and as loud as ever. Popularity amongst foreign fans doesn't seem to be a factor for the youngsters on Team Myrtannia.

"We're here to curl and do our best to win for the United Isles. If we're not so popular, so what? It's kind of fun to be the 'bad guy' every now and again," said Sachiko Noia, "The 'bad guy' meaning the guys who end the Cinderella's run, and turn their carriage back into a big old gord."

Noia went on to add, "But that doesn't mean we're going to be too confident out there. The Chippers are here for a reason. We've just got to go out and do this our way - we've got to play Myrtannia-style curling."

SNM will broadcast both the Bronze Medal match (Amarenthe/Ereeland) and the Gold Medal match (Myrtannia/Manhattan Prime) live - the first such broadcast of AOCC matches in the United Isles. On a related note, ratings for Curling Tonight skyrocketed after the Semi-Final victory over Amarenthe. When polled, a whopping 90% of Myrtannians said they planned to watch the broadcast of the Gold Medal final.

"Curling is back, and better than ever," was how Sophea Hakkon, host of Curling Tonight summed up the resurgence of Myrtannian interest in the odd sport.

Myrtannia

Experienced Senator

Posts: 362

Posted: Mar 5 2007, 10:05 AM

Manhattan Herald – 5th March 2007

AOCC2 – Rundown to the Final

Westwood to Myrtannia: “Don’t Underestimate Us!”

Taking a break from his team’s intensive training preparation for today’s final, Manhattan Prime Skip Owen Westwood had defiant words for Myrtannia in his match day interview to the MPNN.

“I don’t like to put words in other people mouths”, he said “but I get the feeling certain sections of the Myrtannian press, and possibly even their team don’t think we deserve to be here. He admitted that “we are certainly the underdogs here, and they have the experience as last tournament’s semi-finalists, whilst this is our first international Curling tournament full stop” but maintained that that was no reason to underestimate his team’s skill and fantastic run of form.

“Maybe we are the underdogs here” Westwood commented, “but if they don’t rate us then that only gives us an advantage, and hopefully we’ll show them not to underestimate us”.

Westwood was unwilling to comment about the team’s preparation, other than to say that he was pleased with how they were progressing.

When asked how he felt about the large majority of foreign support planning to back the Frozen Chips, including significant contingents from close allies Pacitalia and Sarzonia he replied:

“Relations have always been warm between the Imperial Republic and our Sarzonian and Pacitalian friends. The Sarzonian system has suffered upheavals with the resignation of their President, but I’m happy to see our positive relationship has survived. I thank them for getting behind the team, and I hope to reward their support by bringing home the Gold”

Manhattan Prime

Royal Scribe

Posts: 194

Posted: Mar 5 2007, 01:24 PM

Harvey Baze back at the Furious Colleen Pub in St. Peter's. It was bound to happen sooner or later and we all knew it. The Sisters of Hope Abbey finally met their match in the surging Manhattan Prime Frozen Chips. Inspired play had gotten the Holy Sweepers into the semi finals, but that was where the wins stopped. For now, at least.

The massed crowd in Green Square and fans who made the trek to distant Pacitalia found themselves dissapointed Saturday. Rather than another shot at Myrtannia they'll have to settle for the bronze medal match. More than dissapointment, they found themselves proud of the Sweepers' accomplishments. Not every day that a team of nuns reaches the semi finals in a sporting competition.

The scoreline from Saturday's semi-final:

Ereeland 4, Manhattan Prime 7 (10 ends)

ERE 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 [ 4 ]
MP 0 0 2 0 2 0 1 2 0 0 [ 7 ]

Things started off well enough for the Sweepers when they scored a stone in the second. But things came back around to stop them dead as Manhattan Prime scored with determination. Four stones in three ends for the Chips before Ereeland scored again. By then Manhattan Prime was too far ahead to catch. The Frozen Chips added three more stones for assurance purposes. That was all she wrote as Manhattan Prime advanced 7-4.

Manhattan Prime advances to face Myrtannia for the gold. The Holy Sweepers head to the bronze medal contest where AOCC1 runner up Amaranthe awaits. This' still the best run by any Errish team in a regional competition. Support for the team hasn't faltered - signs reading 'C'mon Sweepers!' still decorate buildings in Ereeland. In Pacitalia the Errish fans are happy to see their team with a chance at a medal.

"Manhattan Prime was very, very good out there. We hope to see them again on the medals podium when this is all over," said an anonymous Errish fan staying in Timiocato, Pacitalia.

To beat Amarenthe the Holy Sweepers will be needing the kind of effort that beat Myrtannia in the group stage. That win has convinced us that in this sport nothing is impossible. So as strange as it seems our rallying cry now is 'Nuns for the Bronze!'.

Regularly scheduled match day festivities in Green Square have been cancelled due to Sunday's election results still being uncertain. Fears of partisan violence have cancelled mass gatherings all across Ereeland. So far they've been unfounded. A major announcement is expected from the apparent election winning National Law party.

Until next time this is Harvey Baze signing off from the Furious Colleen Pub in St. Peter's.

Ereeland

Scribe in Training

Posts: 21

Posted: Mar 5 2007, 09:41 PM

Manhattan Herald – 5th March 2007

AOCC2 Final – CHAMPIONS!!!

Gold Medal Game: Myrtannia 10, Manhattan Prime 11 (12 ends)

CODE
2 0 2 0 0 1 0 2 0 3 0 0 [ 10 ]
0 2 0 2 1 0 3 0 2 0 0 1 [ 11 ]

Amidst incredible scenes in Timiocato Manhattan Prime’s own Frozen Chips have come from behind to defeat top seeds Myrtannia, clinch the gold medal and emerge as this year’s champions in the Atlantian Oceania Championship of Curling; the nation’s first sporting trophy since Unification in 2005.

Street parties continue in Timiocato tonight, with fans of all nations coming to celebrate the victory and a fantastic tournament. It’s certainly a treat for Pacitalian bar owners, with celebrations continuing long into the morning.

In front of a packed house in the Arena dell' AeroPacitalia in Timiocato, the match kicked off to a riot of noise as both teams took to the ice. From the outside the game showed none of the initial nervousness unlike the quarters and semi finals. Both teams looked fixed on one aim only; victory.

Team Myrtannia took the 1st with two points, with Pete Kowalski equalizing in the 2nd end. Both teams took 2 more points each in the 3rd and 4th ends, leaving the score at 4-4 with 4 ends played. The scores remained level by the 6th end, with both team picking up a further point.

Manhattan Prime were on high form, and fired up by their Skip’s fighting words this morning – Westwood himself grabbed 3 points in the 7th end and 2 more in the 9th. With Team Myrtannia keeping pace all the way, the score was 10 a piece going into the 10th end. The tension of neither team being able to make a breakaway seemed to be telling at last, with a no scoring end being registered, before Pete Kowalski made history by scoring the 11th point that gave the Chips the game.

It was a very close run thing – after a game that was back-and-forth right to the end, the final round saw Myrtannia on course to grab the win, with their rock being the only one in the house at the time, until Kowalski, with a measured throw knocked the opposing rock out, and kept his own in to seal the victory.

After being mobbed by his team, Kowalski led his team to the podium to receive their Gold medals, and to see their opponents also get their well-earned rewards. Lofting the medals high, the team celebrated with the roaring crowd for a time, savouring the moment, before the PBC’s own ‘native’ Manhattanite journalist Lloyd Hunter ran towards the barriers in search of an interview with the team..

It wasn’t that long ago that the man dodging bullets, so security weren’t too much of a problem, although it appeared they let him alone after recognizing him, allowing him the first exclusive interview with his countrymen at this historic moment for Manhattan Prime.

Obviously overcome a very choked up Owen Westwood managed “Wow, I don’t know what to say, just wow. I never imagined going into this tournament that we’d be standing here today – I was just looking forward to showcasing our skills and making some new friends. But champions? Wow! I’d like to thank everyone who turned up to watch us play – you guys are the best, and your support means everything to us.” Westwood thanked the Myrtannia Team for a thrilling game, and the Pacitalian hosts for putting on such a successfully run tournament.

The Frozen Chips found themselves the guests of honour at what has got to be one of the biggest street parties Timiocato has ever seen, as ecstatic Manhattanites rushed to congratulate their heroes. Inviting along any other teams remaining in the city to watch, the Frozen Chips bought the first round for Team Myrtannia and things really never looked back from there as fans from Manhattan Prime, Pacitalia, Sarzonia, Myrtannia and many other nations mixed freely to enjoy the last day of the tournament. By all accounts the celebrations went off peacefully, and were kept in order by the Pacitalian authorities, although there are bound to be more than a few sore heads in the morning.

President Andrew Cuthbert, known for following Manhattan Prime’s performances in any sport they enter made a brief announcement wearing a replica Frozen Chips shirt. He too thanked the organizers and teams for contributing to a most enjoyable tournament, and praised the team for bringing glory upon themselves and the whole nation. He also noted that the cup has had a positive impact on youth interest in the sport within Manhattan Prime.

A parade through the streets of Manhattan in a tour bus in said to be planned for Chippers fans unable to get tickets to be able to greet their heroes. Myrtannia take home the silver medal for their achievements whilst in the Bronze medal game Amarenthe took home 3rd place, defeating the Holy Sweepers of Ereeland 8-3 over 10 ends.

First: Pete Kowalski - age 22
Second: Chad Brown - age 25
Third: Jimmy Hopkins - age 26 (Vice)
Fourth: Owen Westwood - age 28 (Skip)

Manhattan Prime

Royal Scribe

Posts: 194

Posted: Mar 6 2007, 10:17 PM

Curling hits widely-publicised high point within region after AOCC2
Originally a "niche sport", curling is now in the regional top-10 of sports

TIMIOCATO, PACITALIA (PSN) -- Forgive the Federazione di Cambarada Pacitaliana (Pacitalian Curling Federation) for celebrating just a teensy bit.

Attendance is way, way up at draws across the region, new curling federations are being formed in other countries, the Atlantian Oceanian Championship of Curling drew nearly a million spectators over 56 matches in its second issue, and general interest in the sport has spiked beyond belief.

Those celebrations are with good reason. A niche sport going in; curling has come out smelling like roses, capturing the hearts and minds of Atlantian Oceanians but especially those nationals whose countries were among the sixteen hitting Pacitalian ice for the region's top tournament in this oddball sport. FCP-PCF officials thought they were boasting when the ten-team AOCC1, which had a total of 48 draws, drew 137,130 spectators. A great chunk of those attendees only took in the semifinals, and the Amarenthe-D&S gold medal draw in Mandragora. So it's not hard to say they find a number like 958,817 over 56 draws simply magical.

"We didn't expect such a reaction from the regional sports fans," FCP-PCF president Giordana Semperesta told PSN Tuesday. "Such a spike in interest was not anticipated, suddenly we have more than a handful of countries that are curling powers let alone even interested in the sport. It's fantastic. We can't wait for AOCC3 now."

The tournament's gold medal draw between Myrtannia and Manhattan Prime saw a packed house, a sellout crowd in the 29,220-seat Arena dell'AeroPacitalia in Timiocato: the first time in the AOCC's short history that an arena sold out. The bronze-medal matchup between Amarenthe and Ereeland in Monterio was 94 percent sold, another first. To compare, the final in Mandragora in the last tournament saw the arena 76 percent filled; the arena for the bronze-medal draw in Timiocato only about half-full.

The big winners in this were the local economies, especially in Monterio, where the nearly six million residents found a vehicle for "new"-sport interest. Matches held in Monterio had the highest number of spectators in attendance, in proportion to the capacity of the arena, for the entire duration of the tournament. Revenue for the province of Margheria is expected to hit Ð 10.43-bln as a result of the AOCC, its advertising contracts and the province's 9.3 percent tax on sporting event tickets.

From start to finish

The second Atlantian Oceanian Championship of Curling got off to a roaring start in Monterio with Milchama rocking fellow top-five-ranked Chacor 9-4 on Sheet A at the Palestrato Santo Bernardo. On the second sheet it was Bazalonia taking control early with a 3-0 lead in as many ends over the inexperienced Sarzonians, going on to steal one in the 8th to win 5-3 despite a last-end try by the Spokes in what was the competition's first real defensive battle. Down in Nortopalazzo, Group B was heating up with regional neighbours Amarenthe taking on Az-Cz in a battle between two nations whose curling foursomes had earned second place in two separate tournaments: Amarenthe in AOCC1 and Az-Cz in the winter Olympiad. In the end, Az-Cz's squad just couldn't keep up with the more matured and battle-hardened Amarenthians, going down 10-7. Nojika received a wake-up call; hoping to make waves in their first major curling tournament, they were essentially knocked out of contention after just one draw, egged 14-1 by fellow newcomers Ubundi.

Group C contained a top-three squad in Krytenia (or so everyone expected), a nation with previous Olympic experience in Quakmybush and two newcomers: Demot and Manhattan Prime. From the get-go it was supposed to be Krytenia's group to win with either the Frozen Chips or the Quackers getting second berth. But Manhattan Prime's squad proved you don't need previous experience to prove that you can play with the big boys: sometimes, what you're doing the moment you need to do it is proof enough. The Chips showed grit and wisdom, stealing two in the last end to defeat Demot 7-5, while the Kryties kept pace with their upstart group rivals, earning a 6-5 shaving on Quakmybush. In Group D, Myrtannia's squad of hand-picked teenage phenoms was ready to improve upon its fourth-place finish in the last championship, a final standing that both fans and the team alike thought was a sharp underachievement. Myrtannia doubled up on Olympic-experienced Jasi'yun from the UCS, 6-3, in its opening match, looking more comfortable than the average PSN reporter on a pillowy-soft sofa. Vilita & Turori battled hard for every stone against fellow newcomers Ereeland but in the end fell victim to their own fatigue and dropped their opening draw 4-3 after an exhaustive 14 ends.

More to come, stay tuned...