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Hawks go up against Pedriana next
After a 1-0 loss to Starblaydia, the Hawks have simply shrugged that match off and are really getting ready for the upcoming match against last place Pedriana. Pedriana has yet to do anything but lose, and if the Hawks can win this match, they will be able to carry the momentum against their final opponent, hosts FMJPhoenix. The Hawks will continue to use the new 3-4-3 diamond formation, which reduced the Starblaydi margin of victory to one goal; which is a noteworthy achievement indeed. The Hawks have always been good at come from behind (in the standings) rallies, and this will likely turn out to be just such a case for the Hawks.
Lamoni - 0
Starblaydia - 1 (8) |
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Location: Aboard flight from Bettia to Vilita
Coach Fisk was watching the tapes in his airplane seat on his laptop of the game earlier in the afternoon. He then looked at the rankings and cursed. One of his players looked at him and asked waht was wrong. Coach Fisk without looking noted that, 'someone poured salt in my coffee when I wasnt looking and we play the top two teams in our pool tomorrow and the following day'.
Both individuals were then interrupted by the sound of one of the players screaming as he ran out of the lavatory naked into the plane.
Coach Fisk shook his head as the other player just noted to him, 'ah I see someone found the liquid heat I put on the toilet seats the hard way'
As the commotion died down Fisk thought to himself that stunts like these might be why his team could not even score a goal during the games.
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Jastica |
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It's official: We don't suck as badly as we thought!
Football Fans everywhere from the wilds of Jayla, to the educated superiority of Featbridge, to deepest darkest downtown Mathdon were astounded today as the matchday 3 standings were announced.
It would appear that the rank outsiders in the region, our very own Mathdon Falcons representing Falcania, are currently ranked joint-third with Spruitland. This amazing state of affairs came about largely due to Falcania's excellent performance earlier today, against said team.
| CODE | Group 4:
Starblaydia 1 Lamoni 0
Fmjphoenix 3 Pedriana 1
Spruitland 0 Falcania 2
Region 4 Pts W D L GF:GA GD
1. Fmjphoenix 7 2 1 0 7:2 5
2. Starblaydia 7 2 1 0 4:1 3
3. Spruitland 4 1 1 1 3:4 -1
4. Falcania 4 1 1 1 2:3 -1
5. Lamoni 2 0 2 1 2:3 -1
6. Pedriana 0 0 0 3 1:6 -5 |
Caption: The astounding table today.
The match got off with a good start, with our keeper getting plenty of action, as the unsuccessful, yet painfully powerful shots of Harry Ooyevaar bounced off his body one after the other. The solid defence locked tight, and Ooyevaar and Thorsen were repulsed for long enough to get the ball into midfield play, where Jonathan Mayhew picked up the untended ball and passed it through to the Falcons' resident Goal Machine, Silas Miller, who promptly thwashed it past a flummoxed Tristan Verelst. The rest of the first half proceeded without incident.
After a quick pot of tea, the Falcons were all set for what would become a sterling second half. At first, the Falcons had it a bit tough, with Torsten Prins landing a solid foot in the thigh of Falcanian midfielder Chris Tamplin, who was stretchered off. Rowan Clapp danced in to replace him on those magical feet of his. Those feet got good use, as he slithered around Noegel and Budts and tapped home the winner a few minutes before the final whistle went.
FINAL SCORES:
Falcania: 2 (Miller, 35; Clapp, 88)
Spruitland: 0
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Winging It Since 2004 |
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Ouch
Spruitland – Falcania: 0 – 2
With a painful defeat by what was before the start considered the ‘whipping team’ of the group, the Spruitland Wegional Wabbits more than likely blew their chance of advancing to the second round. The Falcanians out-ran, out-maneuvered and out-scored the Wabbits, and the two-nil final score was by no means undeserved.
“We got cocky,” coach Pete Peeters explains it. “We were already looking ahead to the last two group games, and dismissed Falcania as an easy opponent. That was a mistake, their draw against Lamoni should have been a clear warning. Now we’ll have to try and take points against Starblaydia and Fmjphoenix, and that’s not gonna be easy.”
Host nation Fmjphoenix is up next, leaving Starblaydia for the last matchday. In both cases a draw would be a good result, but the Wabbits do not intend to field a defensive squad.
“It’s tempting,” Peeters says, “I was a defender back in my days, after all. But scoring goals is still the best way to try and get points. For a moment I considered trying something totally excotic to try and confuse the opposition, like Lamoni did with their 3-4-3 diamond, but I think it’s still best to stick with our standard line-up and just give it all we’ve got.”
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Bedistan Beaten Too
Hypocria’s players have responded in the best possible way after the opening day defeat to reigning champions Vilita. Two wins in the next two games have lifted the Hyppos from sixth to second in Group 3. It means that qualification to the next round is now a real possibility but is no certainty as every other team in the group is still in contention. Vilita lead the rest with 7 points from their three games. The Hyppos are next a point further back. Sarzonia have 5 points, Bettia 4 and Bedistan 3. Even Jastica, who have yet to register their first AOCAF point, may have a chance in they win their two remaining games. Although with the champions up next that seems unlikely.
Hypocria 2 - 0 Bedistan
West
Marshall
There will be some smug looks in the offices of the HFA back in Hypocrium after this result after the Bedistani media had overlooked Hypocria in their AOCAF coverage. Perhaps that inspired the players or perhaps they simply played better than their opponents? Who can say? What is certain is that first half goals from West and Marshall and a strong defensive performance in the second half saw Hypocria move above Bedistan and matchday 4 opponents Sarzonia into second place.
In the other group games leaders Vilita battled out a 1 - 1 draw with Sarzonia while Bettia finally got their first ever AOCAF victory at the expense of tournament newcomers Jastica. The results still leave everything to play for going into the fourth round of matches. Vilita look certain of 3 points against goalless Jastica, Bettia will be confident ahead of their derby game with Bedistan after their first win and Hypocria have a tough match against Sarzonia. No doubt the Hypocria players will be out to show Stars coach Chris Trautwig just what they can do as he could be joining the Hyppo’s backroom staff after the World Cup.
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Rams put three past Pedriana, still on top by goal difference
In what has been a plesant suprise, the Fmjphoenix Rams, the regional squad, has been playing at a high level. Bennie Sharp, Brian Dougood and Laura Boyd each scored a goal against the Bedistani colony, which was more than enough to cover the goal that Pedriana scored.
Sharp put the Rams up in the 8th minute with his powerful kick that sailed past the keeper without any problem. 5 minutes later came the equalizer form Pedriana, but it would not be enough. Boyd would get her goal in before the end of the first half. A yellow card from a Pedriana challenge gave Boyd a free shot that she capitalized on in the 42nd minute. Dougood's shot didn't come until much later in the match. After a lot of running up and down the field a misplayed pass was gotten to by Dougood and he managed to fire one from 20 feet from the right side for the 3-1 in the 81st minute that would hold out until the match was finished. Next up for the Rams is Spruitland.
Fmjphoenix 3 Pedriana 1
Fmj: Sharp 8, Boyd 42, Dougood 81
Ped: Forward 13 |
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Stars tangle with Cats, 1-1
Before the 10th AOCAF tournament began, the Sarzonian second choice national team knew that it would have to earn a quality result against a Vilita side that has set a standard in the Atlantian Oceania Cup of Association Football. While other countries, namely NEWI Cefn Druids and Starblaydia have AOCAF glory, the Stars have one trip to the finals in spite of an early history of advancing to the semifinals in five straight trips.
Sarzonia kept its hopes of advancing to the knockout stages with a 1-1 draw against a Vilita side that joined the ranks of teams Sarzonia has a strong dislike for with antics before the Cup began. The match saw more fouls (50) than usual in a Jungle Cats-Stars match, with each side losing a player to red cards, but Coach Chris Trautwig said the match was a statement.
"Absolutely," Trautwig said. "We were embarrassed by not even advancing past the group stage in the previous AOCAF and we wanted to show the region we were serious about this tournament."
Sarzonia showed it was serious in spite of a war that has dominated headlines throughout the nation. It showed it was serious, most likely, by its reaction to a report the Stars were being kicked out of the tournament in favour of a new country. The Stars set a team record by drawing 29 fouls, many of them aggressive fouls against the Vilitan skill players.
"Several of their guys are going to be waking up with bruises tomorrow morning," forward Roy Spencer, who scored the team's goal in the 23rd minute after Vilita jumped on top in the ninth. "But we're going to be missing some guys." Spencer drew a yellow card for a hard tackle in midfield that he said was lucky wasn't a red card, but goalkeeper Margo Taglianetti drew the red card for punching Vilita's top forward. Tom Beneditti will get the start and assistant coach Troy Perkins will servre as the reserve goalkeeper.
"Marco just didn't keep his head," Perkins said. "That may cost us a game against Bedistan." |
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It's all about the Navy. |
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Class Proves The Difference
Starblaydia leap to top of group
Young star Raul Diaz-Arca and aging veteran Syku Lyku-Agbayani were both on the scoresheet today as Starblaydia defeated newcomers Falcania and took their place as Group-Leaders thanks to the Rams slipping up against Spruitland.
Diaz-Arca opened the scoring on twenty-eight minutes as he met a beautifully-curled Cherry Garcia cross with his head and bulleting it past Callum Welch in the Falcons' net. Half-Rejistanian veteran Lyku-Agbayani came on as a substitute and scored the goal that put the game firmly beyond the Mathdon side as he broke through and converted a defence-splitting pass from Menecrates by rounding the 'keeper and tapping in from close range.
Starblaydia now require just a draw in their final grouop match against Spruitland to ensure they go through as top of the group, though a win would signal their intent to take a fourth title back from the claw-like grasp of Vilita.
Final Score:
Starblaydia 2 - 0 Falcania
(Diaz-Arca 28, Lyku-Agbyani 73) - (none) |
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OOC: What do I do, just was told that unlike World Cup games, here the host nation actually hosts the round robin games. Is it possible that they do not host mine? I would change the posts so that they all happened at a hotel or something but I cant even edit my posts so was hoping that is acceptable. *groans*
NOTE: Don't change the past posts, just make a swing out of it and adjust now 
NOTE #2: In the World Cup, all matches are played in the host nation. |
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Back in with a shout!
Fmjphoenix – Spruitland: 0 – 1
The match against Fmjphoenix was an important one for the Wabbits if they wanted to stay in the running for third place, and they did not disappoint – though admittedly, they got a little help from the Rams. Perhaps the Fmjphoenix players had a bit of a heavy breakfast, or perhaps they were inspired by their Under-21 team’s new playing style – in any case, their attacks were surprisingly few and far between, which gave Spruitland enough breathing room to try and set up their own combinations.
Those weren’t always successful – in fact, most weren’t, as the Fmjphoenician defense was more than up to the task. But occasionally the Wabbits managed to break through to create half a chance, and persistence eventually paid off. Substitute striker Edmund Kidder managed to pop up in the right place at the right time to put his foot against the ball and score the winning goal, fifteen minutes before the end.
This slightly surprising victory gives the Wabbits a decent chance to advance to the second round, though not quite as decent as the standings might suggest at first glance. Spruitland now sits seemingly comfortable at third place – tied on points for second, even – with three points more than the number 4 with one match to go, but they still might come up just short.
If the Wabbits lose against Starblaydia – which is certainly not inconceivable – and fourth placed Falcania wins against Pedriana – also not inconceivable – there’s a good chance Falcania will take third place on goal difference. Only if both matches end with only one goal difference could Spruitland hang on to third, in that case. So the task is simple, at least to put into words - executing it will be another matter entirely: get at least one point against Starblaydia.
“It’s certainly not impossible,” team captain Ben Thorsen says. “We’ve done it before, we can do it again. We’ll be cheering for Pedriana just the same though.”
Fmjphoenix – Spruitland: 0 – 1
0-1 Kidder (76’)
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Stars can't adjust to Hyppos, 2-0
Chris Trautwig wanted to make a statement to his future employers. With two potential employers watching the match between the Sarzonian second choice national football team and the Hypocria side that will be coached by legendary Sarzonian field boss Dave Wilson.
Unfortunately, the only "statement" emanating from the Stars on the pitch was a thud. Sarzonia played "the worst game I've ever seen," according to Trautwig, and dropped a 2-0 decision to Hypocria, damaging the team's chances to advance to the groups stage in the 10th Atlantian Oceania Cup of Association Football.
Sarzonia didn't do itself any favours in the match, as they were playing a reserve goalkeeper (Tom Beneditti) and several field players due to yellow card or red card suspensions). Even assistant coach Troy Perkins, a former Sarzonian national team goalkeeper, suited up as the reserve goalkeeper. But the team played like it hadn't even met each other before the match, let alone played together.
"I don't think I've ever been around a football team that has played that poorly wearing the navy and white," Trautwig said. "That was an insult to national team football. I don't care whether it's first time or ninth team."
Sarzonia must have known the match wasn't going to go their way when they lost possession of the opening kickoff and conceded a shot on goal just 45 seconds in. Three minutes later, Beneditto was caught unawares as West pounded home the first of his two goals and Trautwig was off the bench and pacing the sidelines. At the 32nd minute mark, West found the range again and Trautwig "seriously considered" pulling Beneditto in favour of Perkins. Beneditto eventually settled down and made six saves, but by then, the match had long since been decided.
"We've got one game left," Trautwig said. "And we'd better be ready to play or some heads will roll." |
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It's all about the Navy. |
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Dear diary...
It would've appeared that normal service had been resumed. Yes, Hypocria beat us thanks to a second-half Danny West brace, and they could've had more. Last time around we were the deserved winners, but this time they were well on top right from the kick-off. I guess they were fired up after losing to Vilita, and decided to take out their frustrations on us.
So there we were thinking "Here we go again... Bettia = AOCAF whipping boys".
But then the unbelievable happened... we won. That's right dear diary, our barren run has at last come to an end thanks to our very first win in this competition... the sky's the limit from here! We have Badr Warlow to thank for that - he's certainly a bit handy with a free kick, as Jastica's keeper found out. He was so busy marshalling his defence that he didn't notice Badr curl the ball around the wall until it was too late. A vicious little shot he has too... I wouldn't like to be on the receiving end of that, I tell you.
And so we went into the fourth match against Bedistan feeling rather confident that we could get some sort of revenge for their doing the double over us in the World Cuop. Our boys were soon brought back down to earth as the Lions B squad went in front after quarter of an hour.
Still, to our credit our heads didn't go down as it has done so much recently, and the lads kept pluggin away. Of course, Bettians prefer the more melodramatic side of footy, and so true to form the equaliser came quite late in the game thanks to a blistering run down the left hand side by Judson York, followed by a shot from the corner of the box which somehow swung inside the near post.
And so we come into our last game with an outside chance of qualifying for the second round. Unfortunately we have to get past Vilita first. Oh bugger.
Hypocria 2 (West 53 87)
Bettia 0
Bettia 1 (Warlow 21)
Jastica 0
Bedistan 1 (Greene 15)
Bettia 1 (York 76)
MD1: Sarzonia 1-1 Bettia
MD2: Hypocria 2-0 Bettia
MD3: Bettia 1-0 Jastica
MD4: Bedistan 1-1 Bettia
MD5: Vilita vs Bettia
This post has been edited by Bettia on Sep 9 2005, 04:56 AM |
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We don't do defence |
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Hyppos Qualify!
If Dave Wilson, Sarzonia’s World Cup coach, had fancied watching a bit of football he may well have tuned in to Sarzonia’s AOCAF game with Hypocria. If he did he probably had mixed feelings about the result. He may have seen a performance from his nation’s B side that has been labelled as an “insult to national team football” but he also saw evidence that suggests the side he inherits after the World Cup should be in pretty good shape.
Hypocria 2 - 0 Sarzonia
West(2)
Once again it was Sporting Mayo striker Danny West who was Hypocria’s goal scoring hero as he bagged another brace, his fourth and fifth goals of the tournament, to down highly rated Sarzonia and secure the Hyppos passage into the next round. There is still a chance that Hypocria could bypass the second round altogether and go straight into the quarter finals but that is dependant on finishing top of the group. To top the group the Hyppos will have to better Vilita’s result. Vilita have a tricky match up against Bettia who, despite their poor record in the competition overall, have only been beaten once this time around and still harbour their own hopes of finishing third. On paper Hypocria have a much more straight forward task against new boys Jastica. But considering the national side’s recent form against unranked nations, a trend the Under-21 side are continuing, victory is a long way from being certain.
In the other games Vilita edged past Jastica by a single goal win to stay top. Jastica remain at the bottom with no points and no goals. Hypocria join Vilita in the later stages but third place is still up for grabs after Bettia and Bedistan drew 1 - 1. That leaves Sarzonia in third place with 5 points but only above Bettia on goal difference. Bedistan are still in the mix too being just a point further back. Expect real fireworks when Bedistan and Sarzonia meet tonight.
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Another loss
In surprising bad run for the Lamonians in AOCAF X, the Hawks lost 1-2 to Pedriana, slipping to the bottom of the group. The Hawks are not expected to qualify, which would be a disasterous second for the Hawks. The Hawks will be facing hosts FMJPhoenix next, and will be playing for nothing more than pride at this point.
Lamoni - 1 Julio Litz (80)
Pedriana - 2 (20, 21) |
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Democratic Maniac |
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Stars slam Lions, set to face hosts
The easy part of the Atlantian Oceania Cup of Association Football tournament is over for the Sarzonian second choice national team. The Stars clinched the third of three berths in the knockout stages by defeating Bedistan 2-0 in a continuation of a fierce World Cup rivalry and sent the Lions packing.
Jenna Raven and Roy Spencer scored the goals for the Stars, one at the beginning of the match and one at the very end, and goalkeeper Marco Taglianetti looked sharp after his one match suspension, turning aside five Lions shots en route to the clean sheet.
"It was important for us to respond after losing against Hypocria," Coach Chris Trautwig said. "We needed to handle adversity and we did just that."
The Stars (2-2-1) did that despite being fouled 28 times by the Lions, who played like a team that was looking for revenge for yet another loss in the late stages of World Cup finals competition. The Stars committed only 11 fouls, choosing to heed their coach's advice to "let our play get our revenge for us." The Stars dominated possession against the Lions, holding the ball in the Bedistani offensive third for 42 minutes, while the Lions only managed 29 minutes in the Sarzonian third.
The Stars face hosts Fmjphoenix in the second round matchup with the winners to face Starblaydia, a team the Stars have considered their bogey team in the AOCAF tournament. The Stars have never beaten Starblaydia in several tries in AOCAF play, but strangely, the Stars have never lost to Starblaydia in World Cup fixtures. However, Trautwig said his team was focusing squarely on Fmjphoenix.
"They're the host nation and we'd be foolish to let ourselves get distracted," he said. "We've got a tough road to the championship, but if we want to lift the Cup, we've got to take that road." |
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It's all about the Navy. |
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