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Cup of Nations III


Michael McBride

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Welcome once again to those tuning in from all over the world for the official AFIS Cup of Nations III selection show. As you are all well aware, the tournament has been moved this year to Vereinigte Deutsche Länder, and we are certainly looking forward to what they have in store for us. But first, let's find out who will be playing who in the group stage of the tournament. Let's head to Group A first.

[i]The teams in Group A are... Atlantis... the Republic of Tahoe... the Hakaarian Empire... and the Slavorussian Empire.[/i]

This group should be a real cake walk for the Republic of Tahoe. The real question is, who will be joining them? The Hakaarian Empire or the Slavorussian Empire both have chances that are about as equally as good here, though the smart money is on the Hakaarians to make their first trip to the knockout stages. However, an upset is always possible with Atlantis waiting in the wings should they falter or become unfocused.

[i]The teams in Group B are... the Funky Republic of Puerto Rico... the Maritime Republic of J Andres... Transvaal... and the Union of Myanmar.[/i]

Another group where the top team should simply waltz through and the real drama is who will be filling spot number two. As strange as it is to call the FRPR a favorite, they are here due to their international tournament experience. Still, don't count out either of the new teams. If Transvaal doesn't get a full 9 points out of this group, I will be shocked.

[i]The teams in Group C are... Marscurian Pakistan... Las Malvinas... Vereinigte Deutsche Länder... and Revelstone.[/i]

This group is only slightly harder statistically speaking than the previous two, but the same storyline keeps returning, except now with less drama. Marscurian Pakistan should also cruise relatively easily into the knockout stage with the bottom two teams being just that: at the bottom, neither with any international tournament experience.

[i]The teams in Group D are... Zargathia... the United States of China... Minilla Islands... and the Republic of York.[/i]

I should just start playing a record. The defending champs should waltz through unscathed. China and the Islands should battle it out for the second slot in the Round of Last 16. Don't count Zargathia as dead in the water though... they are close enough to both China and the Islands to perhaps cause some trouble.

[i]The teams in Group E are... the Greater Japanese Empire... the Athenian Federation... the Alaskan Union... and Louisiana.[/i]

Groups are starting to get a little tougher, finally. Louisiana actually has a rather decent chance to advance for the first time in three Cups if they keep their wits about them. The Athenian Federation should breeze through. If Louisiana falters, look for the GJE to get through.

[i]The teams in Group F are... the Romanov Federation... the Koryo Confederation... the Kingdom of Cochin... and the United States of America.[/i]

Now this is what I call a group. Too bad for the Romanov Federation, bad draw here. Cochin and the USA are only two ranks apart, and the Koryo Confederation is inside the top 20. We will see a very good team not make it to the knockout stage from this group.

[i]The teams in Group G are... Arctica... Southern Sudan... the Republic of Vietnam... and Denmark.[/i]

Wow, another hell of a group. Arctica, the RoV, and Denmark are all in the top 12... this whole thing will be a slugfest from start to finish. What an exciting group to watch this will be. Too bad for Sudan, they really don't stand a chance.

[i]The teams in Group H are... the Empire of France... the North Pacific Commonwealth... the Isara Alliance... and the Queendom of Australia.[/i]

Another stellar group to close out the tournament. Three of the teams are inside the top 15, with only the NPC on the outside looking in. While still a very tough group that will see a very good team eliminated, this is not the Group of Death. That designation belongs to Group G.

[u][b]Play-in Match[/b][/u]
[b]North Pacific Commonwealth[/b] v. Republic of Madurastan 1-1 (4-2p)

[u][b]Match Day 1[/b][/u]
Slavorussian Empire v. [b]Atlantis[/b] 0-1
Hakaarian Empire v. [b]Republic of Tahoe[/b] 0-3
[b]Union of Myanmar[/b] v. Funky Republic of Puerto Rico 1-0
[b]Transvaal[/b] v. Maritime Republic of J Andres 1-0
[b]Vereinigte Deutsche Länder[/b] v. Marscurian Pakistan 3-2
Revelstone v. [b]Las Malvinas[/b] 0-1
[b]Republic of York[/b] v. Zargathia 4-0
[b]Minilla Islands[/b] v. United States of China 2-0
Louisiana v. Greater Japanese Empire
Alaskan Union v. Athenian Federation
United States of America v. Romanov Federation
Kingdom of Cochin v. Koryo Confederation
Denmark v. Arctica
Republic of Vietnam v. Southern Sudan
Queendom of Australia v. Empire of France
Isara Alliance v. North Pacific Commonwealth

[u][b]Match Day 2[/b][/u]
Hakaarian Empire v. Slavorussian Empire
Atlantis v. Republic of Tahoe
Transvaal v. Union of Myanmar
Funky Republic of Puerto Rico v. Maritime Republic of J Andres
Revelstone v. Vereinigte Deutsche Länder
Marscurian Pakistan v. Las Malvinas
Minilla Islands v. Republic of York
Zargathia v. United States of China
Alaskan Union v. Louisiana
Greater Japanese Empire v. Athenian Federation
Kingdom of Cochin v. United States of America
Romanov Federation v. Koryo Confederation
Republic of Vietnam v. Denmark
Arctica v. Southern Sudan
Isara Alliance v. Queendom of Australia
Empire of France v. North Pacific Commonwealth

[u][b]Match Day 3[/b][/u]
Slavorussian Empire v. Republic of Tahoe
Atlantis v. Hakaarian Empire
Union of Myanmar v. Maritime Republic of J Andres
Funky Republic of Puerto Rico v. Transvaal
Vereinigte Deutsche Länder v. Las Malvinas
Marscurian Pakistan v. Revelstone
Republic of York v. United States of China
Zargathia v. Minilla Islands
Louisiana v. Athenian Federation
Greater Japanese Empire v. Alaskan Union
United States of America v. Koryo Confederation
Romanov Federation v. Kingdom of Cochin
Denmark v. Southern Sudan
Arctica v. Republic of Vietnam
Queendom of Australia v. North Pacific Commonwealth
Empire of France v. Isara Alliance

Edited by Pravus Ingruo
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The Association of Football for International Squads is pleased to announce that the third Cup of Nations tournament has officially begun.

Due to overwhelming demand this Cup where 33 teams signed up, there will be a play-in match for the first time ever in Cup of Nations history. All teams who signed up without previous international tournament experience, which would be the North Pacific Commonwealth, Las Malvinas, the Alaskan Union, the Republic of Madurastan, Zargathia, Revelstone, the Union of Myanmar, the Romanov Federation, the Maritime Republic of J Andres, Southern Sudan, and Atlantis, have been placed in a number lottery. The two teams with the lowest numbers in the lottery will play in the play-in match to secure their spot in the Cup of Nations III. And the two teams that will face off in the first ever play-in match are…

The Republic of Madurastan and the North Pacific Commonwealth.

Once the play-in match has been completed, the groups will be chosen and the Cup of Nations III will truly begin.

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Play-in Match
[b]North Pacific Commonwealth[/b] v. Republic of Madurastan 1-1 (4-2p)

In the first ever play-in match for the Cup of Nations, the North Pacific Commonwealth faced off against the Republic of Madurastan. Both teams were new to the international tournament stage, and they both received their baptism by fire as their first match went to penalty kicks.

The Republic of Madurastan struck first in the 54th minute. The first half had been mostly mundane, both teams trying to get their bearings and their legs under them for international play. Wayne Day pushed a very nice aerial forwarding pass to Ganrial Liekria, who raced ahead through a North Pacific double team and fired a shot from just outside the box past the Commonwealth keeper Everett McKinley. As Liekria and his teammates celebrated, the North Pacific team looked defeated already.

Except for one player. Petrus Stecklenburg never looked like he was giving up, many times pressing the attack on his own even without help from his teammates. Finally, they gave him some support in the match’s waning minutes, and Stecklenburg fired a shot from inside the penalty area past Batukhan Kinghaar in the 86th minute. Stecklenburg was mobbed by his teammates and neither team could score in extra time, sending the match heading for penalty kicks.

Even though both sides were inexperienced, the North Pacific Commonwealth managed to keep their wits about them, coolly nailing their first four penalty shots in succession. The Republic of Madurastan was only able to make two. When Stecklenburg nailed the penalty shot for the Commonwealth, it was all over, and the North Pacific Commonwealth won 1-1 (4-2p).

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"First and foremost we would like to congratulate our opponents for a true test and great game. They played great football and we send our best consolation on their unfortunate early ride home. That said we will be amping up our game. We are ecstatic that we won but there are some glaring issues that we will be working double time to correct before our next match. We may be ranked at 31, but we want to play beyond our ranking and international expectations"

-NPC Captain Dallas Horne

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The Cochin National Football Team is now traveling to Vereinigte Deutsche Länder and the Cochin Football Association has requested VDL to allot them some training grounds to prepare for the tournament.

"Group F is indeed a tough group, we expect tight competition from United States of America, Koryo and Romanov Federation, but our team is well prepared and we are hoping to improve upon our performance from last Cup of Nations. Our players are on full form and our team of well experienced players are all on excellent form. The team is currently preparing for our first match against Koryo Confederation," Anthony Pereira, Captain of the Cochin National Football Team said at a press briefing.

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[quote name='Pravus Ingruo' date='20 July 2010 - 07:09 AM' timestamp='1279602577' post='2380002']
Play-in Match
[b]North Pacific Commonwealth[/b] v. Republic of Madurastan 1-1 (4-2p)

In the first ever play-in match for the Cup of Nations, the North Pacific Commonwealth faced off against the Republic of Madurastan. Both teams were new to the international tournament stage, and they both received their baptism by fire as their first match went to penalty kicks.

The Republic of Madurastan struck first in the 54th minute. The first half had been mostly mundane, both teams trying to get their bearings and their legs under them for international play. Wayne Day pushed a very nice aerial forwarding pass to Ganrial Liekria, who raced ahead through a North Pacific double team and fired a shot from just outside the box past the Commonwealth keeper Everett McKinley. As Liekria and his teammates celebrated, the North Pacific team looked defeated already.

Except for one player. Petrus Stecklenburg never looked like he was giving up, many times pressing the attack on his own even without help from his teammates. Finally, they gave him some support in the match’s waning minutes, and Stecklenburg fired a shot from inside the penalty area past Batukhan Kinghaar in the 86th minute. Stecklenburg was mobbed by his teammates and neither team could score in extra time, sending the match heading for penalty kicks.

Even though both sides were inexperienced, the North Pacific Commonwealth managed to keep their wits about them, coolly nailing their first four penalty shots in succession. The Republic of Madurastan was only able to make two. When Stecklenburg nailed the penalty shot for the Commonwealth, it was all over, and the North Pacific Commonwealth won 1-1 (4-2p).
[/quote]
The first match of the cup, which technically wasn't quite the opening match because of the play-in match, would be played in the Allianz Arena in Munich. The finals were scheduled for the Olympiastadion in Berlin.

The ceremony was as large as could be managed in the stadium; a huge banner suspended by scaffolding at the top of the stadium unfurled to say 'Welcome' and was followed by singing from a choir and 182 drummers from Upper Bavaria slowly building up the atmosphere
There was a mixture of old and new as traditional dancers were followed by the more modern hip-hop contingen and.later twenty-four extravagantly dressed women were carried on to the pitch to the sound of drumming as the stadium reached capacity.
Over the course of the ceremony, flags of each participating nations would be brought in, as well as showing both VDL- and international culture through the troupes carrying these flags.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/Lynneth_del_Serpentas/AE/CNRP/VDL/Cup/_41746870_drummers220.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/Lynneth_del_Serpentas/AE/CNRP/VDL/Cup/_41747090_suspendeddancers416.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/Lynneth_del_Serpentas/AE/CNRP/VDL/Cup/_41747828_hat220.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/Lynneth_del_Serpentas/AE/CNRP/VDL/Cup/10410_news.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v284/Lynneth_del_Serpentas/AE/CNRP/VDL/Cup/177572943_062cec8745.jpg[/IMG]

Once the ceremony had ended, the stadion was cleared, and the first match of the cup could begin.


OOC: Used the ceremony from 2006, sue me.
Also, didn't have much time to write this, otherwise it would be longer. Sorry.

Edited by Lynneth
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OOC: Doing half of Match Day 1 today, half tomorrow. Enjoy the first half.

IC:
[b]Match Day 1[/b]

The first official match of the tournament pitted the worst team in the world against one that wasn’t a whole lot better. Many expected jittery nerves from the Atlantis side, their team never even having played an international match before, let alone one in a tournament setting. And for the first 45 minutes, it looked as if the majority was right.

Atlantis played terribly in the first half, missing passes all over the pitch, never getting a rhythm going, and, as one announcer put it, “were finding new ways to fail at things that eight year olds on a pitch have long corrected.” Harsh. Still, their defense held up enough to not allow a Slavorussian goal in the first 45. Slavorussia looked just as bad as the Atlantians at points, and a smattering of boos serenaded both sides as they headed for the locker rooms.

The halftime speeches seemed to calm nerves on both sides of the ball, and the crowd grew more amicable as chances started occurring. A mistake by the Slavorussian defense led to Atlantis’ best chance of the match, when Timothy Messerschmitt was able to sneak past his marker deep in the penalty box and fire a shot past Igor Astafurov. The Slavorussian keeper and his defense pleaded their case for the official, saying that Messerschmitt had been offsides. Replays showed it was too close to call and the goal stood. Atlantis was up 1-0 in the 68th minute.

Slavorussia tried to mount an attack but never was able to fully recover, and fell 1-0 to a team playing their first international match.

Slavorussian Empire v. [b]Atlantis[/b] 0-1

The second match from Group A was very much a David versus Goliath, with the 24th ranked Hakaarian Empire taking on the 4th ranked Republic of Tahoe. Unlike the Biblical story, David was not able to beat Goliath this time around.

The Republic of Tahoe attack put on an absolute clinic, carving up the Hakaarian Empire defense like they were carving up a Christmas ham. Gersom Salem started this tournament exactly where he left off the last one, notching two goals in the first half in the 7th and 34th minutes. He set up his teammate Ibrahim Atik for a goal in the 58th, putting Los Saints up 3-0. After that, the team took its foot off the gas to coast to an easy victory.

The match was not without some physicality, however. Seemingly frustrated with the rough play of the Hakaarians even when up 3-0, a pair of stupid fouls by Bouaziz Hanouf and Samir Yapoi led to a yellow card being shown to each player. Tyler Canton of the Hakaarian Empire was also booked.

Hakaarian Empire v. [b]Republic of Tahoe[/b] 0-3

Another new squad in the Union of Myanmar faced off against the Funky Republic of Puerto Rico. Again, neither team was spectacularly proficient at either end of the pitch, with easy attacking chances missed, defensive lapses, and poor finishing plaguing both sides. The match was scoreless at halftime, along with most of the way through the second half.

Finally, in the 77th minute, Naing Aung took advantage of a foul by Puerto Rico’s RB that allowed a free kick. N. Aung put the ball into the back of the net past the Puerto Rico keeper to make it 1-0. The Funky Republic never got another chance along the way and fell to the new team from Southeast Asia.

Khin Khin was also booked for the Union of Myanmar.

[b]Union of Myanmar[/b] v. Funky Republic of Puerto Rico 1-0

The number one team in the world came into their first match of this tournament against another team playing in their first international match of any kind. Unlike others though, the Maritime Republic didn’t seem awed by Transvaal’s stature, their history, or their playing prowess. J Andres hung with Transvaal most of the match, but Transvaal’s experience showed when they scored on their best chance of the match which came early on.

Detlef Botha received a pass from a teammate near the top of the penalty area, moved towards the center of the pitch and then turned and fired a slicing shot on net. The ball skimmed past two J Andres defenders before settling just inside the post for a 1-0 lead in the 25th minute. Transvaal would never really threaten again but never let J Andres close either as they won their tournament opener.

[b]Transvaal[/b] v. Maritime Republic of J Andres 1-0

The home side was greeted to much fanfare as they strode onto the pitch for their first match against Marscurian Pakistan. From the opening whistle, the match was highly entertaining and kept all fans on the edge of their seats.

Sebastian Marin struck first to the delight of the home faithful in the 19th minute, smashing a volley home past Chaim Schastlivtsev. Pakistan responded quickly, however, as Shlomo Yidah took off on a breakaway that burned past all German defenders before putting the ball into the back of the net in the 31st minute. Right before the half, Marin struck again, this time from outside the box with a powerful shot that nicked the underside of the crossbar and skittered over the line in the 44th minute.

The Germans struck first in the second half as well when Toni Trochowski blasted in a header off a free kick in the 53rd. The Germans now led 3-1 and their fans were on their feet and vocal. The Pakistanis refused to die though, and Michael Solomon pounded in a header of his own in the 68th off a corner kick. Still, the momentum wasn’t enough and the Germans fed off the energy of their fans to hang on for a 3-2 opening match victory.

[b]Vereinigte Deutsche Länder[/b] v. Marscurian Pakistan 3-2

Two teams with no international tournament experience met in this first round match-up, and the jitters were evident. It took more than an entire half for each team to get their legs under them, it seemed. Many had the feeling that whomever got their jitters out the fastest would win the match, and they were right. A pretty series of passes from the Las Malvinas side led to an El-Hadji Diouf strike that snuck inside the near post in the 63rd minute. Las Malvinas held on to win as Revelstone never really looked comfortable out on the pitch.

Revelstone v. [b]Las Malvinas[/b] 0-1

The defending champions began their title defense against Zargathia, a team that had no international tournament experience but had played in some very convincing friendlies. Many analysts had said that if the Republic of York slept on Zargathia they could be upset. The Crimson Lions never slept on Zargathia.

From the opening minutes, it was clear which team was in control and which team would win the match. Phillip Kelly scored a hat trick in his first international tournament match, notching goals in the 4th, 19th, and 56th minutes. Oscar Willman punctuated his performance with a goal of his own in the 72nd.

Willman and Robert Labant were both booked for the Crimson Lions. C. Yu was booked for Zargathia.

[b]Republic of York[/b] v. Zargathia 4-0

Before the Minilla Islands/United States of China match, everything on Day 1 had basically gone according to plan. The teams that were supposed to win had done so for the most part and there weren’t any huge upsets. This match wasn’t so much an upset in terms of the levels of the two teams playing, China is 22nd and the Minilla Islands are 29th, but rather in the international perception and way in which China lost.

From early in the match, China couldn’t even get the ball out of its own end. Frustration boiled over multiple times at this failure, finally culminating in yellow cards to both Tang Feixi and Hai Buxi. The Islands took advantage of this disadvantage for China and responded with two goals in quick succession.

Alexander Totti struck first in the 37th minute, and Rolf Abrams followed soon after in the 41st to make it 2-0 at the break. Even with a halftime speech and adjustments, China was still able to get nothing going. Minilla Islands defeated China 2-0 without even allowing them a chance on net.

[b]Minilla Islands[/b] v. United States of China 2-0

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President of the United States of America, Bill Caudill has reserved a box seat for every United States of America and Republic of Tahoe game and will be attending for each. When asked about his decision, he made this observation. "They are all the sons and daughters of the Union. Perhaps it is the only time they will ever play each other in the course of history. I will be there to support both."

Edited by Maelstrom Vortex
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The Marscurian Pakistani coach congratulated the Germans on their hard fought victory, and was glad that he could give the home team fans some good entertainment. The team went to rest for the night so that they would be at the top of their games for their match against Las Malvinas.

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[quote name='KaiserMelech Mikhail' date='21 July 2010 - 09:51 AM' timestamp='1279698679' post='2382273']
The Marscurian Pakistani coach congratulated the Germans on their hard fought victory, and was glad that he could give the home team fans some good entertainment. The team went to rest for the night so that they would be at the top of their games for their match against Las Malvinas.
[/quote]
"It was a good and fun game. Your team fought well, they deserve to win the next match."

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If today's embarassing loss wasn't enough for the Slavorussian players to deal with they would have to deal with even more personal loss. The team's coach was found dead in his hotel room. He was the apparent victim of two gunshot wounds to the face. A suicide note found beside the body will be shipped home with his coffin..

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[quote name='Justinian the Mighty' date='21 July 2010 - 01:33 PM' timestamp='1279737176' post='2382891']
If today's embarassing loss wasn't enough for the Slavorussian players to deal with they would have to deal with even more personal loss. The team's coach was found dead in his hotel room. He was the apparent victim of two gunshot wounds to the face. A suicide note found beside the body will be shipped home with his coffin..
[/quote]
A 1-0 loss isn't that embarrassing. And we are sorry that Slavorussia lost its coach, but what kind of person has aim so bad that he has to shoot himself twice in the face to die?

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AFIS has ordered the flags of all nations to be lowered to half staff in remembrance of Slavorussia's coach. AFIS security teams will be doing thorough sweeps of all luggage and personal belongings of each team to remove any remaining firearms. The United States would do well to watch their comments and show respect for the dead and the Slavorussian team. Even though you may be opponents on the pitch, there is no reason for snide and sarcastic comments aimed at a team already going through immeasurable loss.

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