2018 AHFA World Cup

[Spam78]

MATCH 40
OCEANIC IMPERIUM VS. GREATER AUSTRIA
ARENA AN DER BERLINER BRÜCKE, WOLFSBURG

LINEUPS:

OCEANIC IMPERIUM

1. Carl YORK

12. Dick DENMARK
5. Ariel WINDSOR ©
15. Kiernan HANOVER
6. Nabil ALPIN

7. Ewan MERCIA
8. Freddie BALLIOL
20. Farrokh DUNKELD

9. Kay ORANGE
13. Gareth STUART
10. Constantine BRUCE


GREATER AUSTRIA

1. Petr ČECH ©

16. Sead KOLAŠINAC
3. Sebastian PRÖDL
15. Tamás KADAR
5. Šime VRSALJKO

6. Julian BAUMGARTLINGER
18. Muhamed BEŠIČ
8. David ALABA
20. Mateo KOVAČIĆ

23. Andrej KRAMARIĆ

21. Ádám SZALAI


19:30
Welcome to Wolfsburg. My name is Tian Xuexiang and I'm joined in the studio by Zhao Lee and Zoe Guanglie. We're going to be bringing you coverage of tonight's game between the Oceanic Imperium and the USGA. Also tonight is the other decisive match in this group, between Flanders and Anatolia, which will be broadcast on CBC Sports. As the group stands, both of these teams' fates are mostly decided: The Oceanic Imperium's two defeats have left them mathematically eliminated, while Greater Austria can afford to draw tonight and still qualify regardless of what happens in the other match, though given the gulf in quality between these two teams surely they'll expect to do better than that, Zhao?

If my experience as a player is anything to go by, once you start adopting that mentality you've already lost. While it should be an easy game, they still have to play it, and play it well otherwise they risk getting caught out. They're already gambling a lot in my opinion with their starting lineup - only six of the eleven that started against Flanders are starting again tonight, and that includes Kolašinac over Dragović but neither of their goalscorers in Džeko or Pjanić, so in their minds, they're already through but they need to wait until the final whistle to be sure.

So Zoe, do the Oceanic Imperium have any chance at all tonight?

To be blunt, not really. I think they're just happy to have made it this far but they've failed to make their mark against either Flanders or Anatolia. If they're lucky they might find USGA only want to play for a draw today and they'll avoid going home pointless, but if they want to go for the win, I'm not sure what would stop them.

Do you think they will play for a draw then?

Well resting half of their first team shows that they're definitely not going all in for the victory, but there is still an advantage in going for the win as drawing would virtually guarentee they finish second unless the other match also ends in a draw, while if they win they go top unless Flanders can win by an even greater margin. Of course, qualifying top means they get an easier draw in the round of 16 against the PNC rather than a strong looking Patagonia side.

19:53
It's nearly time to throw down to our commentary team. Zhao, Zoe, how are we calling this?

Greater Austria are playing a very uninspiring lineup. They'll probably get an early goal and sit on it for the rest of the match. 1-0.

I concur. Maybe they might go for a second, but they won't be challenged hard.

Well I believe in the Imperium enough to say 1-1. Commentating this match for you will be Fang Sen and Zhao Smith.

19:58
The Oceanic Imperium win the coin toss and will kick off.

00:00
Orange kicks off to Bruce.

01:38
Vrsaljko plays the ball forward to Kovačić, who knocks it square to Alaba. Alaba passes forward to Kramarić - but Stuart gets a foot in and knocks it to Orange. Orange marches forward, past Kolašinac before trying to cut inside Prödl but the Austrian stands firm. Orange then knocks back to Stuart, who shoots from the edge of the box - off the crossbar and Čech collects the deflection.

05:53
Long goal kick from Čech finds Alaba, who quickly passes up to Bešić. Bešić passes to Baumgartliner on the wing who advances, but is fenced in by Alpin and passes back to Bešić. Bešić plays a long curling pass to Kovačić on the opposite wing, who easily gets past Denmark and plays in a cross which finds Kramarić on the opposite side of the six-yard box, but the angle is too tight and he heads it against the post and out.

07:42
Vrsaljko dispossesses Dunkeld and dribbles forward. A quick one-two with Kovačić leaves him with an open wing to charge down and his teammates rush up in support. Windsor moves out from the centre to block his run and is able to punt the ball out for a throw-in. Vrsaljko throws to Kovačić, who takes his time controlling the ball before knocking it central to Alaba. Alaba again takes his time before delivering a through ball to Szalai who shoots, but sends the ball just the wrong side of the post.

09:18
Mercia plays the ball across wings to Dunkeld. Dunkeld controls the ball and is able to dribble past Baumgartlinger and continue his run before finding Bruce on the edge of the box. Bruce continues onwards towards the line before passing to Stuart who gets a foot to the ball, but it goes straight into the hands of Petr Čech.

14:11
Kadar to Prödl. Prödl to Bešić. Bešić to Alaba. Alaba dribbles forward and passes to Kramarić. Kramarić plays it back to Bešić who finds Baumgartlinger on the wing. Baumgartlinger dribbles down the wing and crosses into the box - York gets a glove to it and the ball finds Alaba on the edge of the box. Alaba passes to Bešić, who shoots - but York is able to hold it this time.

19:26
Balliol passes to Dunkeld, but is intercepted by Bešić. Bešić knocks it forward to Baumgartlinger who quickly finds Kramarić. Kramarić continues the run forward and makes a speculative shot, which is deflected by Hanover. But the referee blows his whistle - the ball had hit Hanover's hand as it deflected. The Oceanic players are furious with this decision and are clearly angry with the referee, none more so than Ewan Mercia who is too aggressive for the referee's liking and earns himself a yellow card for his effort. He would miss the next match if the Oceanic Imperium had qualified.

20:01
YELLOW CARD
7 - Ewan MERCIA

20:24
Szalai lines up the free kick and shoots - but it deflects upwards off the wall and York jumps to catch it.

24:13
Bešić plays back to Prödl, who knocks it wide to Kolašinac. Kolašinac advances, managing to easily get past Bruce and Dunkeld before playing a long ball that finds Baumgartlinger 25 yards out. Baumgartliner dribbles to the edge of the box and cuts inside, before playing a through ball that finds Szalai. Szalai however takes one touch too many and York is able to recover the ball.

28:39
Play has devolved into USGA players passing between each other. They are more than capable of preventing the Oceanic Imperium from creating any chances yet have grown reluctant to create their own.

39:55
Kolašinac throws the ball to Baumgartlinger. Baumgartlinger passes to Bešić, but is intercepted by Dunkeld. Dunkeld knocks it on to Balliol who dribbles on through the centre, escaping Bešić and Alaba. Balliol makes his run before chipping the defenders to find an onside Stuart who hits the volley all wrong, sending the ball sky high and resulting in nothing more than a goal kick.

43:41
Kovačić knocks it back to Vrsaljko. Vrsaljko plays it long to Alaba, who forwards it to Bešić. Bešić controls the ball before passing back. Alaba then knocks it forward to Kramarić, who dribbles up to the central defenders and shoots, but Windsor gets a foot to it and knocks it wide, where Baumgartliner collects. He takes his time before crossing the ball in but Bešić can only get a weak header which goes straight into the hands of Carl York.

45:00 + 0:02
The fourth official indicates one minute of stoppage time will be played.

45:00 + 1:03
The referee blows the half time whistle, with the score 0-0.

45:00
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 8 - David ALABA
ON: 10 - Luka MODRIĆ

45:00
Szalai kicks off to Kramarić to restart the match.

47:31
Baumgartliner passes the ball centrally to Bešić. Bešić knocks it to Modrić who runs with it and executes a brilliant one-two with Kovačić, giving him the ball in the box, but a last ditch tackle from Hanover is able to get the ball from his feet and Alpin clears.

52:28
Kovačić intercepts the pass from Balliol to Mercia. Kovačić then dribbles down the wing before passing to Modrić who himself moves out wide and passes back to Kovačić. Kovačić then passes to Vrsaljko who knocks it to Kramarić. Kramarić controls the ball before finding Szalai in the box who dribbles into space and shoots - back of the net. Ádám Szalai breaks the deadlock to take the lead for Greater Austria with a clinical shot.

53:15
GOAL
21 - Ádám SZALAI

58:36
Dunkeld throws the ball in to Balliol, but overshoots and Balliol heads it wildly. Bešić collects the loose ball and knocks it to Modrić who sprints forward with it and tries to get past Windsor, but is forced into an odd angle and the resulting shot is easy for York to save.

64:16
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 9 - Kay ORANGE
ON: 21 - Angel HAHN

68:59
Hanover plays it to Windsor. Windsor walks forward with the ball tentatively before knocking it to Denmark before an advancing Szalai can get too close. Denmark dribbles forward with the ball, threading the needle between Kovačić and Modrić before passing onto Mercia. Mercia continues the run and knocks it to Hahn who uses his fresh legs to sprint forward and tucks between Vrsaljko and Kadar to get through on goal. He takes his shot, but Čech gets a hand to it and with no-one to collect the deflection, Kolašinac clears the ball.

72:27
Kadar makes a long pass to Kovačić. Mercia comes wide to try and tackle him, but Kovačić passes back to Vrsaljko who dribbles forwards and inwards. Balliol dispossesses Vrsaljko, whose attempt to recover the ball is misjudged and instead sends Balliol to the floor. Though Vrsaljko tries to argue his case, the referee had a clear view of the incident and has his mind made up.

72:55
YELLOW CARD
5 - Šime VRSALJKO

75:49
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 5 - Šime VRSALJKO
ON: 2 - Aleksandar DRAGOVIĆ

78:00
Kolašinac forwards the ball to Baumgartlinger. Baumgartlinger makes another advance down the wing, but Alpin blocks his advance and he passes back to Kolašinac, who then passes onto Bešić. Bešić advances, but is harried by Balliol who brings the Bosnian down and the referee awards a free kick 24 yards out from goal. Modrić is quick to volunteer to take it and calculates his shot while the Oceanic players plead their case to no avail. With the Oceanic players now settled down, he lines up his shot and shoots - beats the wall - beats the keeper - right into the top corner of the net! The USGA lead is doubled, surely cementing the victory with that fantastic free kick.

79:22
GOAL
10 - Luka MODRIĆ

83:11
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 6 - Julian BAUMGARTLINGER
ON: 17 - Ádám NAGY

SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 20 - Farrokh DUNKELD
ON: 22 - John SMITH

85:15
Mercia plays a long ball that finds Hahn. Hahn sprints forward, but is fenced in by Kolašinac and Kadar, so passes to Balliol who links it to Smith who himself sprints forward down the opposite wing. Smith gets past Bešić and Dragović and passes to Bruce, who flicks it to Stuart near the penalty spot who shoots - straight into the hands of Petr Čech who continues to hold on to his clean sheet.

88:10
Alpin passes to Smith who makes another run down the wing, dribbling between Nagy and Bešić before knocking onto Bruce. Bruce tries to move towards the centre, but is tackled by Prödl who tries to dribble out of danger, but Bruce follows at his heels eventually pushing the Austrian causing him to fall over. The referee awards a free kick and decides Bruce's tackle was worthy of a card.

88:47
YELLOW CARD
10 - Constantine BRUCE

89:59
The fourth official indicates 3 minutes of stoppage time will be played.

90:00 + 0:47
Prödl passes to Dragović. Dragović wastes no time dribbling forward beyond the flagging Oceanic strikers and passes to Nagy, who outsmarts Smith and is able to continue his quick run down the wing. Another piece of skill puts him past Alpin and able to get a cross into the box which finds the head of Modrić, but York is able to tip the ball wide for a corner. Weary of a counterattack, many USGA players hold back and Kovačić's corner is easily caught by York.

90:00 + 3:09
The referee blows the full time whistle, with the score 2-0, sending USGA through top of their group and finishing the Oceanic Imperium's pointless run at the 2018 World Cup.

22:15
This rounds up tonight's games. I hope you can join us tomorrow as Aragon play Atlantica, which kicks off at midnight, then the Philippines take on Tamazgha at 4AM. From all of us at CBC Three, goodnight.

 

[Skeffyhoof]

SPORTS.NH
2018 WORLD CUP BLOG
by Max Fillon

25 June:- Match Review:- New Holland V Levantine

What a HELL of a match that was. Once again, a wobbly first half followed by an absolute BLINDER of a second. I was confident of a comeback and a draw (still enough to qualify, given Germany's victory over Nigeria) but a win- clinched in injury time by Poisson and LAPPIERE (we'll get on to that later)- no wonder we all went wild last night and I'm using CAPITALS (sorry I'll stop that now).

I was surprised that Mallet had been put in goal for a third game- a rare formation error from Blanc that lost two goals. However, he's very much a pragmatist, and the substitution was actually cheered (sorry Mallet!). Similarly, playing an extra striker at half time. Every minute, the lead was clawed back, and it just exploded in injury time. Lappiere's incredible gamble is going down in history- he's been called the "Miracle Goaly now". The Levantines just cracked after that- Poisson's goal, another for the golden boot tally, was practically unopposed. For a few seconds after the final whistle, you could feel sorry for them- the final nail in a disappointing year for them. Unfortunately for our side, there was just too much to be excited about, and the fans left singing well in to the night.

Whilst they celebrate the Southern Dutchmens' best campaign in twenty four years (and outperforming the Imperium, of course) the focus is now on the Round of 16 match against Brittany in Cologne. As always, I'll have a preview before the match starts.

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

sports.proletariat.as presents
2018 AHFA World Cup: Greater Norway vs. Sierra Madre
​

Greater Norway:

Ørjan Nyland

Tore Reginiussen (8' Ole Selnæs)
Jonas Svensson
Håvard Nordtveit

Stefan Johansen
Aron Gunnarsson
Markus Henriksen (70' Iver Fossum)
Birkir Bjarnason

Trond Olsen (90+3' Alexander Sørloth)
Kolbeinn Sigþórsson
Alexander Søderlund

Sierra Madre:

Álvaro Alcorta

Miguel Garza
Santiago Tamez
(90' Guillermo Sánchez) Francisco Alanís
Mauricio Martínez

(69' Luis Mier) Víctor García
Andrés Cervantes
Carlos Vidaurri

Gerardo Sada
(64' Rafael Torres) Rodrigo Castillo
José Flores
​

The Disgrace of Gelsenkirchen! Goalless and uneventful
Greater Norway 0 - 0 Sierra Madre

Goals: none
Yellow cards: 2 - 1
Red cards: none
Corners: 2 - 0
Free kicks less than 40 m: 0 - 1

Referee: Erich Breng: Grade B:
No mistakes, but not much happened where mistakes could be made. Correct to book Carlos Vidaurri.

Both coaches fielded their best elevens, as nobody was injured or barred due to a second yellow or any other card. And though both teams, especially Greater Norway, are known for their good defending, this was not expected at all. Especially as none of the teams could build on a draw or any other method of advancing independent of the Phillippines vs. Tamazgha match.

To say that "not much happened" in the match is an overstatement. Both teams did not seriously want to score, and this was made worse in the 8th minute, as Tore Reginiussen injured himself and had to be substituted.

Only passing back and forth in midfield could be seen, while it was Sierra Madre that tried a bit more seriously. And thus, attempts by Andrés Cervantes (37') and a solo by Gerardo Sada (45'), both from the distance, had to be picked up by Ørjan Nyland.

But this passing back and forth continued in the second half. Greater Norway did not even once try to play offensively, while Sierra Madre did at least once: After the substitution of Luis Mier in the 69th minute. Andrés Cervantes gained the ball in midfield and, while everybody feared he would play it back to his own defence again, this was not to be the case: Cervantes instead played the ball to the left winger Gerardo Sada, who attempted a dribble into the penalty area, but was blocked by Ole Selnæs. Though no shot could be recorded, this was probably the most dangerous situation of the whole match.

And passing became even worse in the last fifteen minutes, as now, the goalkeepers were frequently included and both eams did not even try to undertake any offensive action.

After all, this was a true disgrace. One can only hope that the Phillippines and Tamazgha will also draw, hopefully with some goals (2-2 or 3-3 for example), as a draw between the Phillippines and Tamazgha will lead to this match being forever remembered as the Disgrace of Gelsenkirchen and both of the teams from this match have to take the flight home! ​

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

sports.proletariat.as presents
2018 AHFA World Cup: Phillippines vs. Tamazgha
​

Phillippines:

Arturo Palalin

Óscar Canellas
Rafael Vidal Zuñiga (86' Iñigo Gadu)
Zulficar Ali Dimasangca

Miguel Tañag
Alfredo Ibáñez (74' Jesús Melliza)
O. A. Mindanang-Cader
Alejandro Lim

Javier Patiño (69' Francisco Duana-Duarte)
Arturo Malingenán
Felipe Younghusband-Placer

Tamazgha:

Maghdan Nasrallah

Hasdrubal Haddad
Zerzer Halaby
Messani Khalil
(90+2' Maday Bina) Meztata Shahid

Meddour Hakin
Azad Kharroubi
(55' Atrahr Selah) Abdelkader Fouen

Amulas Saphir
(78' Bahada Vohra) Axamux Bashara
Azure Battuta
​

Two set pieces - and Norway profits from the Disgrace of Gelsenkirchen!
Phillippines 0 - 2 Tamazgha

Goals: 0 - 1 Shahid (28')
0 - 2 Saphir (73')

Yellow cards: 4 - 1

Red cards: 0 - 0

Corners: 5 - 9

Free kicks less than 40 m: 3 - 5

Referee: Fernando Carrión Penaherrera (Revolutionary Colombia) - Grade A-:
No mistakes, excellent cooperation with the VAR team around Arcato Milombye from the Sultanate of Zanzibar and Qasheed Hakim al-Akhjani from Oman - and this in a difficult match. Notably, correct to disallow Mindanang-Cader's early goal for offside (5') and to not give Tamazgha a penalty kick (Malingenán against Shahid) - the foul was outside the penalty area. A booking for Dimasangca instead of a red card was lenient, but within the rules and consistent (52' - no professional foul).

Both teams again fielded their best starting elevens, in their usual formations. And this game started much more vividly than the parallel game in Gelsenkirchen ever was. Even by half-time, most people who were not absolute hardcore Norway or Sierra Madre supporters had probably switched over to this game.

It was to became very dangerous very soon after kickoff. The first few passes took place in midfield, but then, in his own half, Tamazghan defender Messani Khalil lost the ball to Miguel Tanag. He passed the ball high onto Mindanang-Cader, into the penalty area, and Mindanang-Cader had no difficulties at all - and was under little pressure from Tamazghan defenders - to take the ball and shoot it into the lower left corner, without a chance for Nasrallah to save! Everybody thought that this meant 1-0 for the Azcals, but during the celebrations, the VAR signalled Penaherrera that this was probably offside. And Penaherrera indeed went to the control area, reviewed the scene, and then signalled: Goal disallowed for offside (5')! And rightfully so - Mindanang-Cader's foot was offside during the pass.
The game proceeded with a free kick for Tamazgha from their own penalty area!

The initial dynamic was lost to some extent after this early dampener, although both teams actively tried to attack and came to several shots towards the goal, even if none of them proved so dangerous that anybody had to make a brilliant save. The Phillippines seemed to have some more promising chances, while Tamazgha had the majority of possession and an advantage in passing.

This was until A good shot from the distance by Abdelkader Fouen was deflected for a corner, the first corner at all on this side, by Canellas. Corner for Tamazgha, although Palalin would have likely saved the ball anyway.
Azad Kharroubi brought the corner. Tamazgha had lined themselves up in their well-known and well-feared way, with at least three of the large players behind each other. Kharroubi brought it into the penalty area, every Filipino defender seemed to look after Saphir and Battuta, and thus, Meztata Shahid was free and headed the ball in! 0-1 Tamazgha (32')!

The Phillippines were now somewhat demoralised, and gameplay became more equal. Tamazgha now wanted to do something with their advantage in possession, and was out for more set pieces. And they came, if not too frequently. Another corner was awarded to Tamazgha in the 40th minute, and the same lineup was chosen. The header, this time by Amulas Saphir, became very dangerous again, but Palalin made an excellent save.

Half-time arrived, and soon after, but not before the Filipinos had another good chance over Mindanang-Cader and Lim, whose attempt at a cross was blocked and made into a corner by Meztata Shahid (49'), the next hectic scene took place. Dimasangca had levelled the offside during a counterattack, as Fouen managed to cross the ball to Azure Battuta. And he, Dimasangca, was also the only defender only to keep up with Battuta. Saphir was in an even better position, and just before the penalty area, in a central to slightly centre-right position, Dimasangca fouled Battuta. Penaherrera gave him a yellow card - and was confirmed by the VAR! Dimasangca stayed on the pitch, and pundits in TV - although some would claim this should have been a red - agreed that it was very lenient, but still within the rules to show only the yellow card (52'). And as it was consistent with Penaherrera's generally lenient way, the decision was mostly lauded.

Tamazgha was now dominant and passed the ball around the Filipino penalty area, as an attempt to find some space. Space was scarce, but after minutes of such attacks - and a blocked attempt at a Filipino counter (58') - even strikers, especially those good at headers, were to be found around their own penalty area. And just as Shahid got the ball and wanted to dribble into the penalty area, he was fouled by such a striker. Namely by Arturo Malingenán. Penaherrera pointed towards the spot! Penalty for Tamazgha! But the VAR signals him again, and Penaherrera walks out to the control zone - and sees that the foul took place just outside of the penalty area!
The penalty kick is taken back, but Tamazgha gets a free kick instead. And Azad Kharroubi brings it in. All the header players of Tamazgha, including Shahid of course, have come forth - and it lands on the head of Amulas Saphir! Deflected by Selah! Goal, and again no chance for Palalin! 0-2 Tamazgha (73')!

The Azcals did not at all give up, though. They had already brought in Francisco Duana-Duarte and now reacted with also bringing Jesús Melliza. Space for counterattacks was there, and now, they were finished more quickly than ever before. Shahid deflected a shot/cross attempt from Lim (78'), another cross by Lim found Duana-Duarte and Nasrallah over the bar! He saved the lead of the Mighty Atlas with a world-class save (81')!
A Filipino free kick was brought in by Alfredo Ibáñez, but a bit too close to the goal for Jesús Melliza. He made the best out of this opportunity hitting the post (83')! And now, bad luck set in for the Filipinos: Tamazgha did not even manage one counterattack anymore, but a wonderful shot by Mindanang-Cader (87') hit the crossbar! A minute earlier, excellent header player Inigo Gadu had been brought in.
But play was to move to the other side: Nasrallah tried a long goal-kick, and it did indeed arrive with Azure Battuta, who ran off with the ball and outran all defenders, but Palalin could also prove his abilities with an excellent save out of the upper right corner of the goal (88')!

Not too much happened after this final offensive of the Phillippine team, as Tamazgha wanted to administrate the result and wasted some time with another substitution. Nevertheless, some more offences on the part of the Filipinos took place, including a direct free kick (90') by Mindanang-Cader. It was well-shot over the wall and to the right of it, but Nasrallah once again made an excellent save, deflecting it for a corner (90+1')! And the corner found nobody in the penalty area, but behind the penalty area, Alejandro Lim shot directly! But Nasrallah again! And again a corner! This second corner in succession for the Azcals in injury time was brought in by Ibáñez, but safely picked up out of the air by Nasrallah!

With this result, the Filipinos will have to take the flight home, while Greater Norway advances over the Sierra Madre on goal difference! Together with group winners Tamazgha!​

 

[riskyrofl]

HOENN vs GREAT LAKES REPUBLIC
Both sides come into this matchday with 4 points, both with a chance to win the group but also facing potential elimination if Aragon can beat the already eliminated Atlantica.
​

1: Christian Pulisic, star of the Dortmund side that usually plays in this stadium and favourite of the locals, begins the game as the GLR kick off
6: First real chance of the game, as several shots deflect off Guzan before Hamada's flick goes into the hands of the Lucky 11 goalkeeper.
11: Shipp beats Sato and starts running down the flank, he finds Morales... Morales shoots from just outside the box and... OFF THE CROSSBAR. Miyagi was nowhere near the ball
17: Fujiwara clears the GLR's corner, finds Ochi who is now on the counter attack, one two with Sakamoto... Hamada is clear on the right, Ochi passes. Hamada dummies to his left and then shoots to HIS RIGHT!!! GOAL!!! HAMADA FINDS THE TOP RIGHT CORNER WITH A LOVELY SWURVE!!!
19: Guzan gets finger tips to a header from Yamashita! The Atlanta United keeper keepss the game at 1-0
25: Maheda finds Hamada who is knocked down by Trapp. It's a yellow for Trapp for that tactical foul
28: Brady crosses in, Sargeant is open.. AND HE'S SOMEHOW KNOCKED IT WIDE! All he had to do was tap it to his left but his touch was unusually poor. The Hoennese defence was nowhere to be seen
32: Bit of a tussle from Onishi and Brady over a throw-in, ref rushes to settle everything as the two teams start crowding in.
39: Pulisic cuts in from the left, he beats Makoto Tanaka and he shoots! Miyagi gets a punch to it
44: Fujiwara passes back to Miyagi... OH HE'S MADE A BIG MISTAKE! Sargeant runs up from behind and intercepts, he's one on one with Miyagi... and Miyagi got a leg to it! Sargeant with the GLR's best chance and Fujiwara with an uncharacteristic mistake.

Half time: It's been a tight match but Hoenn have won their battles in midfield and have been less wasteful with their challenges, and it reflects in the scoreline.

49: Shipp has gone to the ground... he looks like he is in a lot of pain... and he's coming off as Tyler Adams is sent on.
55: Brady crosses in, he finds Pulisic who taps it to Adams... Adams with the shot! And it's cleared off the line! Fujiwara with some last gasp defending to keep Hoenn in the lead
61: Brady finds space on the right, he curves it in! Smacks off the left post! GLR unlucky not to equalize
64: Sato's shot is deflected by a Lichaj header, right into the path of Sakamoto who goes for the volley that flies just over!
67: Expert freekick taker Sato sets up for a direct free kick at the 30 yards mark... he runs up... it's over the wall... AND IT'S IN!!! SATO WITH AND INCREDIBLE CURVING FREEKICK TO BEAT GUZAN!
74: Pulisic goes down! Ref points to the spot! Onishi clearly pulls the striker's shirt and brings him down. Sato's given a yellow as Pulisic prepares himself... ref blows his whistle...he shoots...AND HE BLASTS IT WIDE OVER!!!
80: The game has been very cagey after that second goal, Hoenn are on the defensive and the exhausted GLR can't put the pressure.
86: Adams crosses it in, it finds Grella who's header is saved by the foot of Miyagi
90+1: A cheeky nutmeg by Pulisic lets him run onto the Hoennese goal, he puts it low and its easily saved

And that's the end of the game! Hoenn claim top spot while GLR wait on the results of the Atlantica-Aragon match to see if their dream continues! The final score here in Dortmund is Hoenn 2-0 GLR

 

[Capibara]

(Better late than never)

Canton 1-1 Dutch Republic
Fun game ends in a tie that leaves both teams with great chances of advancing to the knockout stage

Fans at Erfurt enjoyed a game that closed second round matches before the start of the decisive third round. This result left both teams on the top of their group, with 4 points each, 1 more than the Caribbean team, while Mogadishu, already eliminated stays at the bottom of the group. Each half was dominated by one of the teams, which translated in a goal for each side.

Canton dominated from the start, with quick attacks spearheaded by Yingzhi, who managed to score at the 25th minute with a precise header to the bottom of the goal, with the Dutch keeper only watching the ball pass by. The Cantonese still had several chances during the first half, but didn't manage to score again. Dutch player de Boer had to leave the pitch after getting injured in an accidental collision with Sorrentino.

For the second half, Wever entered the pitch for the Dutch Republic, giving his team the forward push they needed. However, accuracy wasn't on their side, as the ball refused to go in, whether crashing against the post or stopped by Chueng. Finally, when the clock marked 85, Winternik, who had entered five minutes prior, left behind two defenders and sent the ball above the keeper who was trying to block him to score the equalizer.

For the final game of this round, Canton will face Mogadishu, who will be looking to score at least a win in this tournament, while the Dutch Republic will battle the Caribbean Confederation for a spot on the knockout stage.


Canton: Chueng, Chi Hing, Ho, Jianqiao (Ma, 48), Wilshaw, Leung Hiu, Sorrentino, Yueng, Wu, Talbot-Zhang, Yingzhi (Smith, 56)

Dutch Republic:
Lehmann, Füller, de Boer (Matthäus, 34) , Vieira da Silva, Binot, Snijer, do Nascimento (Wever, 46), Cruijff, de Souza faria, Taffarel, Orsel (Winterink, 80)

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

sports.proletariat.as presents
2018 AHFA World Cup: Asturias vs. Syndicalist American States
​

Asturias:

Juan Alvarez

Miguel Ángel Palacio
Jose Rantada
Jonas Barenda
Javier Berin (79' Nico Fernandez)

Miguel Espiga (86' Antonio Lopez)
Juan Pablo Noboa (53' Marcos Dávalos)
Didac Beldad
Lorenzo Carballal
Erick Fontirroig

Alberto Gastón

Syndicalist American States:

Talal Ali Silo

(88' Emil Andersson) Jens Spahn
Hamilton E. da Souza
Gaël Germany

Hans Apel
Vincent St. John
Chris Kettings
(71' Mukul Dristi) Ethem Nejat

(46' Nguyen Sinh Cung) Gordon McLennan
Viriato da Cruz
Anand
​

A good game of the two (quasi-)reserve teams!
Asturias 1 - 4 SAS

Goals: 0 - 1 Viriato da Cruz (3')
0 - 2 Anand (31')
1 - 2 Beldad (51')
1 - 3 Nguyen Sinh Cung (67')
1 - 4 Nguyen Sinh Cung (75')

Yellow Cards: 3 - 0
Red cards: 0 - 0
Corners: 3 - 14
Free kicks less than 40 m: 2 - 7

Referee: Upendranath M. Deka (Christian Republic of India): Grade B:
The match was relatively easy to official, and he led it without any mistake. Both penalty kicks for Asturias were correct.

This game was not that important, as both nations were already qualified for the knockout stage. It was mainly about group victory, and thus both teams mostly fielded their reserve squads. Many changes were made to the squads of both teams, but not as many as were expected.

And it started off vividly - Asturias placed an early attack as Silo had to save a shot against Fontirroig (1'). And the Reds initiated an immediate counter: Gaël Germany recieved the goalkick, passes it wide onto Ethem Nejat, and he onto the right wing of Chris Kettings. An excellent shot, but it was deflected by Juan Alvarez for a corner!
The corner was brought in by Vincent St. John, and everybody knew how dangerous the SAS are with set pieces (and how dangerous set pieces are in general, especially in this World Cup). Vincent St. John excellently brought it onto Viriato da Cruz - while everybody was looking after Jens Spahn and Gaël Germany - who headed it in! 0-1 for the SAS (3')!

Then it seemed as if not much would happen. No, there was no non-aggression pact, but the dynamic was dampened by the early goal for the Reds, and none of the teams wanted to make any mistakes or to concede a goal. However, there were several corners and free kicks and every one of them - on both sides - was, at least to a certain degree, dangerous. Alvarez saved well against McLennan (15'), Germany (20') and picked the ball up safely against Anand (29'), while Silo had to intervene after a direct free kick from Fontirroig (27').
And then came another set piece, a direct free kick in a left wing position. Vincent St. John brought it to the right wing for Ethem Nejat, who crossed into the penalty area. Perfectly onto Anand, who just had to put his foot in! 0-2 for the SAS (31')!

And before half time, several more set pieces proved dangerous. The biggest chance was when McLennan recieved a cross from Vincent St. John from the left, but Juan Alvarez saved heroically! But McLennan was also involved in the most dangerous scene on the other side: He lost the ball near the centre line to Didac Beldad, and then he tried to help out in his own defence. Didac Beldad passed onto the right to Lorenzo Carballal, who ran into the penalty area and - while he tried to cross the ball to Gastón - was fouled. He was fouled by Gordon McLennan. No reason for a red card, but for a booking. And a penalty kick for Asturias (44')!
Now it was Fontirroig vs. Silo! Fontirroig, as usual, wants to shoot it high into the centre, but Silo jumps - and directs the ball over the crossbar! Still 0-2 for the SAS!
The counterattack after the goal-kick proved ineffective, and even in the two minutes of injury time, not much happened before the half-time whistle.

And immediately after play resumed, Asturias proved dominant. And not only set pieces were dangerous, but also combinations: Rantada - Espiga - Noboa - Berin - Espiga - Beldad - Espiga - Beldad - Carballal. And Carballal was harshly taken off his feet by Hamilton Efigenio da Souza (50')! And again, the referee had no choice but to point towards the ominous spot!
Fontirroig didn't dare shoot again, and thus, it was taken over by Didac Beldad! Beldad against Silo!
And Beldad safely converted the spotkick into the lower right corner! 1-2 (51')!

Asturias of course remained the dominant team, and substituted central midfielder Noboa for a second striker, their first-eleven striker Marcos Dávalos. Asturias became more offensive by the minute, but Talal Ali Silo, together with his defence, seemed unsurmountable. One shot by Dávalos was deflected by Gaël Germany, for yet another corner. This corner was brought in by Didac Beldad, Erick Fontirroig's shot from the centre-right was then deflected by Gaël Germany. Germany immediately initiated the counter by passing wide onto Ethem Nejat. While Asturias was still reorganising, and Jonas Barenda levelled the offside, Nejat passed onto Anand, who crossed into the penalty area, quite close to the goal. But Nguyan Sinh Cung was there and put his foot in! 1-3 (67')!

This was likely decisive. Asturias could no longer muster energy to be dominant, though they did want to use counterattacks. The Reds were the better team again, and Mukul Dristi, a star player, was substituted in. And another goal was to follow - and, of course, after a set piece: Miguel Ángel Palacio separated Dristi from the ball, resulting in a throw-in. But this throw-in became a cross, and Espiga made this the next corner for the SAS.
Again, Vincent St. John brought it in - and Gaël Germany headed it. But the ball came in a way that Nguyen Sinh Cung had to put his foot in. Nevertheless, no defender could prevent this goal! 1 - 4 Nguyen Sinh Cung (75')!

After this goal, chances were few and far between. The SAS tried to conserve and administer the result and did no longer put as much effort in, while Asturias was demoralised and - despite several attempts and substituting offensive players in - could no longer produce a really dangerous offensive action. The most dangerous situations in this last period of the game arose, on the SAS side, after another corner brought in by St. John and followed by a header by Gaël Germany (80') and, on the Asturian side, from a direct free kick by Erick Fontirroig (84') - picked up on the second attempt by Silo.

The SAS is thus the winner of this group, with three victories!​

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

sports.proletariat.as presents
2018 AHFA World Cup: Mogadishu vs. Canton
​

Mogadishu:

Taagaane Warsame

Ali Nuur
Mohammed Shirdon
Ahmed Farah
Guleed Kihoro

Hasan Bekele (67' Aden Okayo)
Abdihakim Dhere
Liban Sinimo (76' Abdisalam Ibrahim)
Sharmaarke Hussein

Amin Daud
Mustafa Askar (81' Hasan Shebelle)

Canton:

Lee Chueng​

Michael Wilshaw
Huang Jianqiao
Tan Ho
David Chi Hing​

Thunder
(89' Thomas Zheng) Vincenzo Sorrentino
(74' Dinesh Krishna) Lucas Yueng​

Henry Wu
(80' Rodney Ma) James Talbot-Zhang
Liang Yingzhi​

Morale, but not quite enough of it - three lucky points for Canton.
Mogadishu 2 - 3 Canton

Goals: 0 - 1 Talbot-Zhang (27')
0 - 2 Thunder (45+1')
1 - 2 Ankar (53') (p)
2 - 2 Dhere (76')
2 - 3 Ma (90+1')

Yellow Cards: 7 - 3
Red Cards: 0 - 1
Corners: 5 - 10
Free kicks less than 40 m: 5 - 5

Referee: Mohammadou Camara (French Syndical Communes): Grade A-:
All decisions correct, and, although quite harsh, he was always consistent in individual penalties. A good, if strict, official for a relatively unfair match which was difficult to lead.

In this game, both teams once again fielded their best elevens. No changes were made, as nobody was injured or barred from playing for any other reason.

And the match came alive immediately, but not because somebody scored - Tan Ho rudely fouled Sharmaarke Hussein, but only saw the yellow card. This was the only lenient decision the referee was to make. A free kick was given to Mogadishu, but it proved harmless as the ball was picked up by Lee Chueng.

And then, the line became harsh. Free kicks were awarded galore, and play was often interrupted. No flow could come up, and set pieces were thus the main opportunities to score. The first team to make use of this was Canton: Ali Nuur fouled Henry Wu, and the following free kick was brought in by Vincenzo Sorrentino. Onto the head of Talbot-Zhang, and he headed it into the goal! 0-1 Talbot-Zhang (27')!

And shortly before the break, it was to be another set piece. The last free kick before the half-time whistle was awarded when, in a central position, Farah tackled Liang Yingzhi. It was harsh to award a free kick, but it was still possible under the rules. And this was a direct free kick. Thunder directly shot it into the goal, into the left corner! No chance for Warsame! 0-2 Thunder (45+1')!

But just after the half-time whistle, Mogadishu seemed like a completely different team. They were on the offense now, and Canton seemed shocked! Mogadishu seemed to have total freedom to pass the ball around, and even to the players in the forefront! Sharmaarke Hussein was, inexplicably, not attacked on his right wing even though he was quite close to the penalty area, and then, right within the penalty area, Michael Wilshaw fouled Hussein. Brutal foul and professional foul at the same time, and it justified a straight red card and a penalty kick! And both were awarded immediately! The VAR later revealed that the foul was not quite as brutal as it appeared at first, but it was still a professional foul as no other defender could have stopped Sharmaarke Hussein and prevented him from shooting directly at the goal!
Michael Wilshaw was sent off, Canton was one player fewer, and Mogadishu got a penalty. Mustafa Ankar was responsible for penalties!
Mustafa Ankar against Lee Chueng. And Ankar shot it hard into the centre! Impossible to save for Chueng! 1-2 Ankar (53')!

And the offense of Mogadishu continued. Not quite as dominant as at the beginning of the second half, and Canton did manage several dangerous counterattacks (60' Wu, 69' Yueng), but it was Mogadishu again who was to score next. And again over the right wing, a weak point of the Cantonese team since Wilshaw was sent off. Abdihakam Dhere brought the ball in, onto Liban Simino, and he played one-two with Dhere. Ankar would have been in a better position, but Dhere tried it directly! And Chueng saw himself nutmegged! A big mistake on the part of the goalkeeper, and it is the equaliser! 2-2 Dhere (76')!

Mogadishu substituted offensively again, in order to at least achieve a win in this World Cup. And they were indeed close, but of course they also knew that this ran the risk of counterattacks. Injury time was just being announced as Abdihakam Dhere made an attempt at a cross by Henry Wu onto Dinesh Krishna into a corner. The corner was brought in by Dinesh Krishna, and Rodney Ma shot it into the lower right corner from just behind the penalty spot! With his foot! 2-3 Ma (90+1')!

And thus, Mogadishu must fly home with three losses - despite having mostly played well. ​

 

[riskyrofl]

Aragon Eliminated After Being Held to 1-1 Draw By Atlantica

Another World Cup favourite eliminated

The 2018 World Cup has seen another big upset as favourites Aragon leave the competition having drew all 3 matches. A Selección came into today's game in Leverkusen against The Mariners needing a win as both Hoenn and the Great Lakes Republic started the day on 4 points but a scrappy game against Atlantica sealed their fate.

Things started off nicely for Aragon, Simone Zaza almost turned a defensive error from MacKay into a goal as the defender failed to clear the ball, but a brilliant save from LeBlanc denied the Valencia forward his first World Cup goal. The rest of the first half would be frustrating for the Aragonese, as Atlantica, despite being eliminated refused to back down. Sergio Busquets' header was cleared just before it crossed the line by MacKay and a top of the corner save by LeBlanc denied Fabregas after his shot from outside the box, but apart from that they saw very few chances as they were held by a confident defence. Atlantica themselves made a few chances on the counter attack. Alzaminaro managed to break after a Aragon corner, only to be beaten by Sirigu on the final one on one. By the end of the first half Aragon had 68% possession but nothing to show for it.

The second half followed in a simliar pattern as Atlantica continued to frustrate the Aragonese, and it began to show on the Aragonese faces. Barella was lucky not to receive a red for lashing out at LeClerc and yellows also followed for Abate and Verrati. Then things went from bad to worse for Aragon, as a counter attack in the 61st minute saw a speedy run from Fitzgerald on the counter, as he crossed into Macdonough who had broken away from his defender to easily head the ball past Sirigu to give Atlantica the lead. The Atlanticans crowd was euphoric as their side celebrated their first goal at a world cup.

Now trailing, things became more desperate for Aragon and lapses of concentration almost let Atlantica double their lead as the unmarked Watson managed to volley towards goal, requiring Sirigu's fingertips to save. The match became hopeless in the 73rd minute as a dangerous lunging tackle by Verrati saw him sent off.

It was only the brilliance of Barcelona striker Ciro Immobile that kept Aragon in the game. In the 78th minute his strike from just outside the box managed to glide past LeBlanc to give Aragon a chance at victory. However it was not to be for A Selección. The 10 men put up a desperate fight but the Atlanticans refused to back down and the ref's final whistle blew with the game still at 1-1. With 3 points Aragon have been eliminated, while the Atlanticans celebrate their first point and goal in a world cup as if they won.

Final Score: Atlantica 1-1 Aragon
Goals: Macdonough (61), Immobile (78)

 

[Capibara]

Dutch Republic 2-2 Caribbean Confederation
Caribbean knockout stage hopes crushed by a Dutch last-minute goal

Fans of the Caribbean Confederation must be proud of their team, despite of this tie that means they’ll be taking the next flight home. The team played throughout their three games better than anyone expected, going toe to toe against great teams.

Both teams entered the match with eyes upon the knockout stage. The Dutch only needed a tie to advance or, in case of a loss, a victory of Mogadishu against Canton and a favorable goal difference. For the island nation, only a victory would suffice.

With this in mind, the Caribbean coach modified his traditional 5-4-1, putting only three midfielders, and two attackers, Seaton and Mattocks, hoping to still have enough ball possession in the center of the pitch while having more presence in the last meters of the pitch. Meanwhile, the Dutch repeated the same lineup used against Canton.

To everyone’s surprise, the first half was evenly matched, with the Caribbean Confederation making some shy attempts against the Dutch goal without much success. At the end of this half, it seemed the European side would go ahead, after a pass by Binor left Orsel alone against Miller, the striker tried to chip the ball above the goalkeeper, but it went way above of the goal, wasting the best chance his team had had during the first half.

For the second half, the Caribbean side started attacking more aggressively, which resulted in a goal by Seaton, the third in his personal count during the tournament, at the 56 minute. After that, the team adopted a more conservative approach, trying to defend their advantage. The Dutch weren’t willing to take any risks with the other match’s result and so sent Winterink and Snuivert to the pitch looking for the equalizer, which arrived in the 73 minute, courtesy of Winternik, with a beautiful shot from the left side of the box.

The American side was forced to go on attack again, trying to score the goal that would mean the pass to the second round. Their attempts were rewarded with a second goal on minute 85, when Reid, who had less than 10 minutes on the pitch crossed the ball, Seaton stopped the ball with elegance and class, brushed the keeper aside and sent the ball to the back of the net.

It seemed everything was done for the Dutch, as Canton was already winning against Mogadishu in the other game, so coach van Geel sent yet another striker to the pitch. With less than one minute left on the clock, a corner kick was awarded, with all 22 players scrambling inside the box: do Nascimento sent a ball that was headed, kicked and spun around, but refused to leave the box, until an orange-cladded leg appeared and sent the ball just across the goal line, sealing the destiny of both teams for this World Cup.

The Dutch Republic will now face favorites Syndicalist States of America in the knockout stage, while the Caribbean Confederations players will head back home.



Caribbean Federation: Miller, Ritchie (Benbow, 75), Solomon, Lawrence (Hardware, 56), Harriot, Morgan Jr. (Reid, 77), Watson, Shaw, Seaton, Mattocks.

Dutch Republic: Lehmann, Füller (Barcellos Freda, 87), de Boer, Vieira da Silva, Binot (Snuivert, 64), Snijer, do Nascimento, Cruijff (Winternik, 60), de Souza Faria, Taffarel, Orsel

Goals:
0-1: Seaton, 56
1-1: Winternik, 73
2-1: Seaton, 85
2-2: Vieira da Silva, 96

Yellow cards:
Lawrence, 48
Watson, 89
de Boer, 89

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

As the group matches are now all done (is that correct?) could you, @Yanranay , update the table and insert all Round of 16 matches into the table? Also, @Xibalba , would it be possible for you to update the graphics?

 

[Capibara]

I think we're missing Shannon vs. New England and Korea vs. PNC.

 

[Yanranay]

This is the current state of the cup.

Please tell ma about any mistakes so I can fix them.

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

Many thanks, @Yanranay ! Lovely! Is it possible that you make a list of goalscorers, too? So that we can, at the end, know who has won the Golden Boot?

 

[Capibara]

Thanks, Yanranay! I agree with SaveAtlacami. If you want, I can send you the list once the two last matches of the first round are posted.

 

[Yanranay]

Many thanks, @Yanranay ! Lovely! Is it possible that you make a list of goalscorers, too? So that we can, at the end, know who has won the Golden Boot?

Thanks, Yanranay! I agree with SaveAtlacami. If you want, I can send you the list once the two last matches of the first round are posted.

I think I can make something, especially if you send me the list @Capibara!

 

[Spam78]

MATCH 48
SHANNON VS. NEW ENGLAND
WALDSTADION, FRANKFURT

LINEUPS:

SHANNON

23. Kieran WESTWOOD

2. John O'SHEA ©
5. Marc WILSON
4. Stephen WARD
17. Sean ST. LEDGER

7. Seamus COLEMAN
10. Darron GIBSON
14. Harry ARTER
6. Wes HOOLAHAN

11. Shane LONG
13. Jonathan WALTERS


NEW ENGLAND

1. Tim MURRAY

5. Chris TIERNEY
4. Michael PARKHURST
2. Aaron MAUND
6. Sheanon WILLIAMS

14. Geoff CAMERON ©

8. Scott CALDWELL

11. Stefan DEFREGGER

7. Mac STEEVES
20. Ashkhanov APOLLON
9. Ben MINES


19:30
Welcome to Frankfurt. My name is Tian Xuexiang and I'm joined here on CBC Three by Zhao Lee and Zoe Guanglie. Cuthbert Chin is hosting coverage of the Asturias-SAS game on CBC Sports but this is the match neither team want to play. With both teams losing their first two games, this match is purely for pride as neither team can qualify for the knockout stages. That said, both teams will be looking to salvage something from their World Cup and with no further matches to distract them, both teams will be going all out for the win. Zhao, how do you think the Shannon team are feeling about this one?

Shannon exceeded expectations by qualifying, so I can't imagine they're too upset about losing to Asturias and SAS. I'd imagine they'll be playing for fun and soaking up the World Cup atmosphere while it lasts, though as you said getting a win will be very sweet indeed. They will be suffering from a loss of Aiden MacGeady, whose World Cup ended early after getting a second booking against Asturias and Ciaran Clark is still out after his injury in the first match so this will count against them, not that they were favourites anyway.

The favourites of course being New England. Zoe, how are they looking going into this match?

They're under a lot of fire for their early exit, which is possibly harming their morale. The New English public and media were rather confident of success despite being drawn against higher ranked teams, so for them to be eliminated with a game to spare has not gone down well at all. If they can't get a consolation win here, there will be big changes to this team. In particular, their rather unique midfield setup hasn't been as effective as hoped and the full backs have looked rather overstretched as a result. Ashkhanov Apollon, who is their only goalscorer at the World Cup so far has replaced Johann Smith on the starting lineup and pushed Mac Steeves out to the wing. Jay Heaps better hope this proves effective otherwise his head may be on the line.

19:54
It's time to throw down to our commentary team, but before we do, we need last predictions. Zhao?

This should be New England's game. I think 1-0 or 2-0 are the most likely scores.

I can see it ending 2-1 to New England. Shannon will be able to make good plays down the wing, but New England simply have more talent to get the win.

I'll say 1-0. Bringing you the commentary for this match are Fang Sen and Zhao Smith.

19:58
New England win the coin toss and will kick off.

00:00
Steeves kicks off to Mines.

03:02
Williams passes to Caldwell. Caldwell executes a good through ball to find Steeves. Steeves escapes St. Ledger and has the wing to himself. Steeves dribbles along, turns and passes St. Ledger again before crossing into the box, but Wilson heads the ball away. Defregger collects the loose ball and shoots against the post. O'Shea attempts a clearance, but Mines deflects it with his foot and Apollon quickly shoots, but Westwood saves and is finally able to get a glove to it and shut down the early attack.

07:12
Parkhurst plays a long ball, but only as far as Harry Arter. Arter passes long to Hoolahan. Hoolahan dodges Tierney with a good piece of skill and continues the run, but is closed down by Cameron. Hoolahan passes back to St Ledger, who squares the ball back to Arter who lifts it over the New English defenders and onto the head of Walters, but the ball flies just over the bar.

11:43
Ward passes to Gibson. Gibson dribbles forward tentatively, before executing a one-two with Arter and sprinting forward and knocking the ball onto Long. Long dribbles forward into the box, but Maund just gets a foot to it and kicks it wide, where Williams collects the loose ball.

15:26
Maund plays it to Williams. Williams considers his options before playing it long to Mines, who immediately knocks it back to Defregger. Defregger dribbles to the edge of the box and passes to Steeves, who quickly sends it back into the box for Apollon, who can only just get his toes to it and the ball goes well wide of the goal.

21:29
Tim Murray kicks the ball short to Parkhurst. Parkhurst takes a few steps before knocking it onto Cameron. Cameron takes his time to control the ball and dribbles forward, before knocking it onto Caldwell who passes to Defregger, who plays it right to the feet of Apollon, who takes two touches and shoots - Westwood parries and Mines volleys the loose ball over the crossbar.

25:48
Gibson knocks it to Coleman, who controls the ball for a few seconds and passes back to Gibson. Defregger closes in on Gibson and attempts to kick the ball from his feet, but Gibson controls it defensively and Defregger ends up kicking him instead, sending him to the ground. The referee spots this and awards Shannon a free kick, while Defregger becomes the first player to enter the book.

25:59
YELLOW CARD
11 - Stefan DEFREGGER

29:31
Hoolahan passes up to Arter. Arter plays a lofty ball up to Coleman on the wing, but Coleman plays it square back to Gibson. Gibson chips the defenders, allowing Long to run into the box, but he struggles to control it and instead dribbles towards the side of the box and crosses the ball back in, but Murray gets to it before Walters can.

33:25
Caldwell and Defregger pass the ball between each other a few times, before Defregger knocks it wide to Mines. Mines dribbles past O'Shea into the box, but is cut off by Wilson and forced to pass instead. Apollon collects the pass and shoots, but Westwood gets a glove to it and pushes it wide for a corner kick. Williams crosses the ball into the box and onto the head of Defregger, who heads it down and into the bottom left corner of the net. New England take the lead with just over half an hour gone!

34:03
GOAL
11 - Stefan DEFREGGER

38:51
Tierney executes a one-two with Cameron to get past Hoolahan. Tierney continues to dribble down the wing, before passing to Steeves. Steeves dribbles between Ward and St. Ledger and shoots, but Westwood saves it and controls it to
prevent his team from going two down.

43:03
A long ball from Maund finds Caldwell, who quickly knocks it wide to Steeves. Steeves controls the ball, allowing the other attackers into the box, before curling a cross in that Apollon heads towards goal, but Westwood just tips over the bar. Williams takes the corner kick, but Westwood plucks it out of the air to break down the attack.

44:59
The fourth official indicates two minutes of stoppage time are to be played.

45:00 + 1:12
St. Ledger plays the ball up to Arter, who knocks it back wide to Hoolahan. Hoolahan dribbles forward and passes through to Walters on the edge of the box. Walters tries to cut inside, before playing a through ball that Long just about gets to, but hits straight at Murray who has no problem holding it.

45:00 + 2:03
The referee blows the half time whistle with the score New England 1 - 0 Shannon.

45:00
Walters kicks off to Long to resume the match.

49:32
O'Shea passes to Wilson, who soon passes back. O'Shea dribbles down the wing and knocks it onto Coleman who continues the run but is unable to get past Williams and passes to Gibson instead. Gibson dribbles around Cameron and knocks it through to Walters, but overhits the pass and Murray collects the loose ball first.

54:17
St. Ledger plays a long ball down the wing to Hoolahan, who sprints forward and with a good piece of skill is able to dodge round Tierney and continue his run up to the edge of the box, before curling in a cross, which Long volleys past Murray and into the back of the net - goal! Long celebrates wildly as Shannon equalise and it becomes anyone's game once again.

54:41
GOAL
11 - Shane LONG

59:23
Wilson passes forward to Gibson, who plays it forward into space. Arter and Caldwell both run for it and Arter gets to it first, but Caldwell slides in and collects him, knocking him to the ground. Though he soon picks himself up again, the incident is enough to put Caldwell into the book.

59:38
YELLOW CARD
8 - Scott CALDWELL

62:15
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 8 - Scott CALDWELL
ON: 16 - Ryan MALONE

63:49
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 13 - Jonathan WALTERS
ON: 22 - Leon BEST

68:13
Gibson passes wide to Coleman. Coleman dribbles down the wing and Williams runs up to meet him, but before he can Coleman plays a long aerial ball onto Leon Best, who sprints through a gap in the defence and shoots, but fails to hit the target.

69:58
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 14 - Harry ARTER
ON: 18 - James MCCARTHY

72:38
Gibson passes to McCarthy who sprints forward. McCarthy plays it to Coleman on the opposite wing, who dribbles up to Tierney. He attempts to get past the defender, but Tierney knocks the ball from his feet and Coleman goes down to the ground, causing the referee to give a foul. Unfortunately for him, the linesman had a clear view of the tackle and could see that no contact was made, so Coleman is booked instead for simulation.

72:55
YELLOW CARD
7 - Seamus COLEMAN

75:34
Tierney dispossesses Hoolahan on the wing and quickly passes to Cameron. Cameron knocks it to Malone who dribbles forward between Gibson and McCarthy before passing to Defregger. Defregger controls the ball and quickly analyses his options before passing back to Malone, who then knocks it wide to Mines. Mines dribbles round the defensive line and into the box, before passing in front of the face of goal to the feet of Mac Steeves, who shoots, but the shot is blocked by Ward and goes out for a corner. Tierney takes the corner short to Cameron, who plays it to Malone on the edge of the box. Malone shoots but Westwood catches the ball and quickly clears it downfield.

79:53
McCarthy dribbles the ball forward, escaping Malone before passing it to Hoolahan on the flanks. Hoolahan continues to dribble forward but is unable to get past Tierney and instead plays it centrally to Best instead. Best tries to pass to Long in the box, but Parkhurst deflects the ball and Gibson collects the loose ball. Gibson plays the ball to McCarthy who knocks it back wide to Hoolahan, but Hoolahan moves inwards instead and dribbles to just outside the box before unleashing a curling shot that bounces off the opposite post and into the net. Shannon take the lead with ten minutes remaining! The Shannon substitutes rush off the bench to celebrate with Hoolahan while the New English defenders stand around not knowing what hit them. That may prove the winning goal!

80:43
GOAL
6 - Wes HOOLAHAN

84:03
Maund passes forward to Cameron. Cameron charges forward and knocks onto Malone. Malone continues to run forward, getting past Gibson and McCarthy and tries to get past Ward, but Ward kicks the ball from his feet, though only as far as Mines. Mines swings in a cross, but Westwood collects it easily.

86:16
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 9 - Ben MINES
ON: 10 - Johann SMITH

88:34
Williams passes to Cameron who quickly forwards the ball to Malone. Malone waits, then passes back to Williams who knocks all the way to Smith. Smith runs along the wing, effortlessly passing O'Shea before passing back to Apollon. Apollon controls the ball for long enough for Smith to run into space in the box, allowing Apollon to pass back to him and he shoots, but it goes straight into the gloves of Westwood.

89:59
The referee indicates 3 minutes of stoppage time will be played.

90:00 + 1:04
SUBSTITUTION
OFF: 5 - Chris TIERNEY
ON: 17 - Chris TSONIS

90:00 + 3:10
The referee blows the full time whistle. Cheers erupt from the Shannon supporters who are more than happy with today's result, while the New English fans are virtually silent and their players noticeably disgruntled. This will be a hard defeat to swallow.

22:15
There are no matches tomorrow as we're at the end of the group stages, but the action picks up again with West Germany playing Rhodesia at midnight on the start of the 31st, and Patagonia take on Flanders at 4:00AM. Both of these matches will be on CBC Sport, but until then it's goodnight from all of us at CBC Three.

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

sports.proletariat.as presents
2018 AHFA World Cup: Korea vs. Pan-Nordic Confederation
​

Korea:

Guk Jin-hyuk

Bak Dong-jun
Choi Ki-Nam
Park Chi-won (65' Sa Chang-min)
Lee Ki-nam
Seung Do-yeon

Jeon Seong-hoon (55' Dam Man-sik)
Kim Yeon-woo
Ryeo Sang-hoon

Yeong Ji-hwan (73' Gwon Tae-suk)
Han Jae-Jin

PNC:

Karsten Mouritsen

Emil Andersson
(90' Björn Brahe) Roger Haglund
Leopold Ivarsson
Stojan Donarski

Jurgen Padar
Theo Edgren
(79' Rein Vitsut) Kusta Reppo

(66' Signar Skallgrimursson) Isak Bergh
Steffen Straube
Hardis Priedītis
​

An absolutely dominant PNC sends Korea home!
Korea 0 - 3 Pan-Nordic Confederation

Goals: 0 - 1 Reppo (34')
0 - 2 Bak Dong-jun (o) (70')
0 - 3 Hardis Priedītis (90+2')

Yellow Cards: 2 - 3
Red Cards: 0 - 0
Corners: 2 - 6
Free kicks less than 40 m: 2 - 4

Referee: Muhammad as-Sayyiri (United Arab Workers' Republics): Grade C-:
No major mistakes, but the VAR intervention disallowing the potential 0-3 (offside Priedītis?) was debatable. The decision ended up correct, but as this was not a "clear mistake", debate will remain whether the VAR should have intervened.

Again, both teams fielded their starting elevens in this match as both, with a victory, still had the chance to advance into the Round of 16.

And while at first, it seemed that both teams wanted to play football here and not just defend or avoid mistakes, defensive play set in quickly, especially on the part of Korea. The only somewhat dangerous situations thus were a header by Leopold Ivarsson after a corner (16') and a shot by Priediltis (25'). Both times, Guk saved and everything was safe again.

This was the case until Seung Do-Yeon lost the ball to Stojan Donarski on the right wing. Donarski quickly passed onto Kusta Reppo, who ran a long way from the centre line nearly to the Korean penalty area before passing into the centre to Haris Prediltis. In a centre-left position, Reppo got the ball back and shot from the distance, from more than 25 metres! Into the goal! 0-1 Reppo (34')!

And from this moment onwards, the dominance of the PNC began. And despite excellent and continuous passing, the Korean defence was insurmountable and blocked every free space which could have led to a good chance quickly enough. Only a distance shot by Edgren (41') showed some danger, so that Guk had to intervene, but picked the ball up.

And such dominance continued unabated after half-time. Not even Korean counterattacks were to be seen, just steady and continuous passing from the PNC. And it was actually the merit of the Korean defence that it was still only 0-1! Surprisingly, the spectators actually had to wait for a set piece.
And it was a throw-in, a well-known danger with many Nordic teams: Lee Ki-Nam separated Signar Skallgrimursson, who had been brought in for the ineffective Bergh, from the ball which landed out of play. Skallgrimursson himself threw the ball in, and this throw-in came, much like a corner, deep into the penalty area. The Korean defence was unordered to some extent, and suddenly, the ball was in the net! Only time-lapse video could reveal that it actually was Bak Dong-jun with a very unlucky own goal when he "put the foot in" after Jurgen Padar attempted to shove the ball over the line! 0-2 Bak Dong-Jun (70')!

And soon after, the VAR became centre-stage: Another lovely passing combination was, for once, converted into a chance by the pass of Kusta Reppo to Hardis Priedītis, who scored, left alone in front of goalkeeper Guk Jin-hyuk! But then, referee al-Sayyiri walked out and into the control area - seemingly, the VAR, Leonid L. Silayev from the Russian Empire, had signalled offside! And indeed, the goal was disallowed for offside! TV and timelapse pictures should prove this decision correct, but as Hardis Priedītis's knee was barely offside, you could definitely not talk about a "clear and obvious mistake" which was supposed to be the high hurdle for VAR intervention.
But anyway, the decision was right and so, the game proceeded with a free kick for Korea. Of which nothing became.
Instead, the PNC remained totally dominant. However, this was one of the better phases of the Koreans. A shot by Ryeo Sang-hoon from a left position out of the distance went only narrowly wide of the right post (77'). And Karsten Mouritsen did indeed have to intervene against a lovely shot from the border of the penalty area - which would have gone into the upper left corner of the goal - by Kim-Yeon Woo (78') and against a shot after a well-played combination from Gwon Tae-suk (82').

But the PNC was still dangerous, and this not only from counterattacks. Late in the game, when nobody reckoned with another goal as it was already decided and everybody had prepared for a time-wasting strategy, Björn Brahe - substituted in only seconds before - made a high and wide pass, which arrived close to the penalty area with Rein Vitsut. The Korean offside trap did not work this time as Park Chi-won levelled it, and Vitsut passed the ball to Hardis Priedītis just at the right moment! And Priedītis was in just the right position to shoot into the lower left corner, which is just what he did! Again, Guk Jin-hyuk had no chance! 0-3 Priedītis (90+2')!

Five more minutes of injury time were to follow, but in this time, none of the teams managed - or was willing to - create a proper chance or even a truly offensive situation anymore. The only attempt at an offence by the Koreans was stopped by Stojan Donarski with a tactical foul.

And so, it is the Pan-Nordic Confederatiton which advances into the round of 16 and now faces the United States of Greater Austria!​

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

Now, all reports in the group stage are finished! @Capibara can thus begin to compile the data regarding goalscorers (and maybe own goals, too?), and @Yanranay can finish the tournament sheet above with the last two results and the last Round of 16 match which was to be determined.

 

[Pragmatic Progressive]

Also, @riskyrofl , could you threadmark the recent influx of matches? And the revised) tournament sheet, too?