TWP Rugby World Cup [rosters, roleplays, results]

[Clarkov]

 VS. 

Matchday 6 - Quarter-Finals - Victory

Härtferdsierndeambeu Ragbi Junjen 19-0 Sensorland (HT: HRJ 12-0 SEN)

Tries: Ongo Vidopliassova (3'), Bello Salman (5'), Mikhail Agnelli (49')

Conversions: Chris Morituros (4'), Bello Salman (50')

Robert Lee & Scott Bevan have fully recovered from their injuries and participated in the Hertfordshire and Jammbo - Sensorland match.

First Half Report: The match began, and pretty much blew up in just a few minutes. Ongo Vidopliassova basically just made a try happen with little fuss, before Chris Morituros scored the conversion. The match restarted, and then unstarted almost immediately, when Bello Salman ripped a try through the Sensorian defence. No conversion, because was there really any need? From then on, the rest of the half soon turned into a park-the-bus display, as Sensorland tried and failed consistently to break the Hertfordian/Jammbian lines.

Second Half Report: Enter the second half. This time, Hertfordshire and Jammbo did not score straight away, something which baffled commentators present. Instead, 9 minutes into the second half, the ever-present Mikhail Agnelli, perhaps the HRJ's star player so far, placed another one of his trademark tries on the ground. By trademark, I mean he intimidated his way through the lines, because no one on team Sensorland wanted to annoy the most powerful mafia boss in Andolia. Afterwards, a conversion occurred, courtesy of Bello Salman. One of his favourite pastimes is reading comic books, his favourite being one of his own creation - Jammbo Man. For the rest of the match, park-the-bus mode was reinstated, and after what felt like a googolplex (10^{10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000}) years, the game finally concluded.

Post-Match Analysis: Following the HRJ's best performance of the tournament so far, the semi-final will be a rematch against Dalimbar Union da Rugby.

News Report: Relations threatened to spill over after Dalimbar found out about the attendance of Hertfordian/Jammbian Prime Minister Clarkov at an anti-landmine rally at the Dalimbari embassy. Since then, PM Clarkov has turned his attention to the serial dopers of Dilber, openly condemning their use of performance-enhancing drugs on children and old people. Clarkov gave the following statement: "Drugs are the last resort of the feeble-minded. There simply is no need for PED's at any stage of ever. Look, the HRJ has 5 children playing for it - Ongo Vidopliassova, Bello Salman, Isaac Ozbek, Homer Goomo and Mina Klebitz - who have never needed to take PED's to perform well. 4 of the 5 have been involved in at least one successful try/conversion/penalty for the Härtferdsierndeambeu Ragbi Junjen. The other one has yet to play. So don't come telling me that drugs are needed in the TWPRWC, because that is a load of incessant twaddle".

          

[Reçueçn]

Semifinal Results

 

 

1

Fujai 0–0 Giovanniland (10–0 AET)

 

2

Hertfordshire and Jammbo 20–7 Dalimbar

 

 

Third Place Game

Giovanniland vs Dalimbar

Arena der Alpen, Heldingen

 

1st TWP Rugby World Cup Final

Fujai vs Hertfordshire and Jammbo

National Stadium, Reçueçn

[Giovanniland]

Semifinals - Loss

Fujanske Landslaget i Rugby 0-0 Gïovannilandiäna Equïpa Nacïonalia di Rugbio (AET: Fujai 10-0 Giovanniland) 

First Half: In the semifinals, the Giovannilandian team would play against a known opponent from the group stage. With both defensive teams against each other, the match did not have much action on the first half. All attempts, whether if they were Giovannilandian or Fujansk, did not result in anything as the defenses were effective in blocking attacks.

Second Half: The timer was closer to the end, the players were more nervous, and the supporters of both sides cheered even harder. But nothing. Not even on the second half. It looked like it would have to be solved in extra time, and so it went.

Extra time: The first extra time in all of this TWP Rugby World Cup was about to happen, with two halves of 10 minutes each. Like in the 80 previous minutes, the teams continued their attacks, but sadly (for the Giovannilandians), a Fujansk player broke the defense and scored a try near the end of the first 10 minutes. Giovanniland tried desperately to level the game again. The exhausted Giovannilandian defense, however, let one more try from Fujai to slip through, and it was game over. 

Post-Match: While Hertfordshire and Jammbo and Fujai play for the title, the Giovannilandians will play against Dalimbar, who lost to H&J in the other semifinal. How will it go? The coaches congratulated the players even with the loss, and hope the team gets a 3rd place in the next match.

 

[Clarkov]

 VS. 

Matchday 7 - Semi-Finals - Victory

Härtferdsierndeambeu Ragbi Junjen 20-7 Dalimbar Union da Rugby (HT: HRJ 5-7 DUR)

Tries:  Mikhail Faustin (14'), Benjamin Morrison (76'), Bello Salman (79')

Conversions: Robert Lee (80')

Penalties: Benjamin Morrison (51')

Before the match, Toni Bandera was discharged from the team after being found guilty of inciting a mass genocide of Teralyians in the western parts of Hertfordshire and Jammbo. He is currently residing in a Cambrayan concentration camp.

First Half Report: As mentioned, Bandera is no longer on the team, so he has been replaced with Richard Clarkson. The start was very much like the start of the Darkesia match, in that the Dalimbari side put a try and a conversion through in the first 2 minutes, and all of a sudden HRJ fans began to worry. There really was no need though, because that is all the Dalimbaris would see of the H shaped goalposts. In the 14th minute, top scorer Mikhail Agnelli, now actually Mikhail Faustin, actually failed to intimidate the Dalimbari's. So he had to resort to unleashing his full talent and soon, a try was brought. Yet, no conversion. The DUR and the HRJ became involved in a massive brawl at the end of the first half, incited by Richard Clarkson threatening the Dalimbari coach, Hasse Siemon, with a shovel. He allegedly said "I'm holding this shovel. Leave, or it's gonna go very black for you all of a sudden." A mass brawl ensued, the largest seen in the tournament, fuelled by Richard's outburst and tensions involving Dalimbari landmines. In the chaos, Hertfordian/Jammbian manager Jennifer Hammond attempted to gouge the eye out of DUR captain Theodor Rybar, so she was sent to the stands. 3 HRJ players came out with injuries: Chris Morituros, Scott Bevan and Peter Cipriani. They were replaced with Michael Johnson, Niko Bellic (Roman had urged him to change his last name to Bellic after he found out they were cousins. Roman has done the same.) and Elizabeth Berwick, who happens to be part of the House of Broxbourne, the H&J royal family. Two other players, Ashraf Memento and Richard Clarkson, were booked. The DUR had no injuries, and no yellow cards.

Second Half Report: After the insanity of the first half, the HRJ were still trailing. But at 51 minutes, the situation was remedied by a penalty from Benjamin Morrison. Then, nothing much really happened for the next 25 minutes. With just under 5 minutes to go and with Hertfordshire and Jammbo leading 8-7, Dalimbar cracked down on the pressure against the Hertfordian/Jammbian defensive wall. However, they broke their own lines in the process and Benjamin Morrison finished off a superb counter attack started by Niko Bellic. Just as the match was about to end, the desperate attack had taken it's toll on the Dalimbari team. Bello Salman steamrolled past the exhausted Dalimbari's and secured the win for the HRJ. Robert Lee placed the cherry on top of the proverbial cake with a conversion.

Post-Match Analysis: The win sets up Hertfordshire and Jammbo to appear in the first ever TWP Rugby World Cup Final, where they will battle Fujanske Landslaget I Rugby at the National Stadium. Dalimbar, despite being knocked out, have one match left. The DUR will duel with GENR (Gïovannilandiäna Equïpa Nacïonalia di Rugbio) in the third place playoff. Giovanniland were defeated by Fujai in extra time in their semi-final.

News: Clarkov Ongo Clarkson, Prime Minister of the Confederal Kingdom of Hertfordshire and Jammbo, has heard of attempts by the junta in Dalimbar to pressure the international community to condemn him for his peaceful attendance of a protest at the Dalimbari embassy in Reçueçn, where attendees were rallying against the use of landmines along Dalimbar's borders. Consequences will not be pushed, supposedly because they can hide behind the landmines if things get out of hand. Prime Minister Clarkov has personally waded in on the situation, and he was very unhappy with how the junta were handling the state of affairs. He accused the Dalimbari junta of being insecure and boastful about their border protection. Some Hertfordian/Jammbian citizens have begun to call for a show of force by the Anglian Royal Navy, Pirate Fleet of Hertfordshire and Jammbo and Royal Privateer Fleet of Hertfordshire and Jammbo on Dalimbar's coast. Clarkov though has stated that he sees military action as ridiculous and has refused to go along with it. The Verkhovna Anglia is set to debate the protest in the next PMQ's. Isambard May, coach of the HRJ and fiery as always, claimed rather outlandishly that the junta were being sore losers, pointing to the HRJ 20-7 DUR scoreline. Meanwhile, the convicted genocider Toni Bandera has been sentenced to death by the Crown Court in Great Parndon. He will be executed in a few days time.

North vs. South
West vs. East
Polaris vs. Andolia
Germano-Nordic vs. Anglo-Slavic
Fujai vs. Hertfordshire and Jammbo

Bleeding Heart Hippies vs. Proud Ethnic Nationalists

Enter The Final, 'Tis Now Time.
Slava Anglia!

[Libterraria]

Libterraria would like to congratulate all the finalsts!

[Fujai]

DU-UKH, UUK – Keiserholde, Fujai — Hej folks, Berit here from DU-UKH, Den Blå Duken, UiKeiserholde's officially unofficial student radio. Jens is on "assignment" so it's just me for today's Idrottsminutt, and Fujai is in the FINAL!!!!

Over the last couple days, we've plunged forward into playoffs, coming out with some pretty tense wins. Honestly I'm surprised but incredibly grateful that we've somehow made it this far. First in the quarters, we scraped by against the small(er) nation of Taledo, from off in Doll Guldur, with only 3 points to their nothing. The first two points came in the second half as Bertil Vik scored a penalty kick after being tackled by Taledan full back Barza Nicolo while not having possession. The third came after an impressive drop kick with ten minutes left by Farre Jorg.

The Semifinal at Stade de la Réformation in Genève was accompanied by another protest. After the arrests at the Dalimbari Embassy, the FRF and Fujansk government were furious at Chief of Police Rocher-Éby for ordering protesters arrested and called for their immediate release. While the protest was indeed peaceful, the arrests occurred after firecrackers were used, assumedly symbolizing the Dalimbari land mines. Due to the lack of a case against them, the protesters arrested were released the next day by court order.

Vann I do ramble off sometimes. Today's protests consisted of a large number of Fujansk fans unveiling a giant version of the same red Dalimbari flag that had been seen at the embassy. As the banner was only unveiled after extended time—when the most people would be paying attention—stadium and police officials did not intervene. After the game, and impromptu protest was held outside Stade de la Réformation by the Fujansk supporters, centering around a 15-person marching band adorned in red and white.

But the real kicker at the Semi was an incredibly tense comeback after the match ended naught naught and headed into overtime. The Landslag pulled through at minutes 6 and 8 for two tries and one successful goal kick.

In the Final we'll be seeing Hertferdshire and Jammbo for the first time. Their side is very offensively minded, while ours is heavily defensive, so you might want to watch for sparks when they meet. In non-sports news, however, it was discovered that Prime Minister Clarkov Ongo Clarkson of Hertferdshire and Jammbo personally attended the Embassy protest, which has further stirred the tensions surrounding the Cup. The Dalimbari junta is pressuring the international community to denounce Clarkov's presence, but has not demanded consequences—probably because they don't care so long as they have a wall of land mines to hide behind.

ANYway, that's all for today's Idrottsminutt, and I'll see you tomorrow for the recap!

[Reçueçn]

The Reçuecian government really didn't know what to do about this whole protest situation with the Fujansk and others, concerning the Dalimbar landmine issue. Given the nation's own laws and attitude toward public protest, not to mention longstanding alliance with Fujai, they couldn't really file charges against the protesters who'd been arrested or try to detain foreign citizens. Yet the foreign affairs ministry found itself in a difficult situation where the government policy and public opinion aligned with Fujai on the issue, but the ministry couldn't just ignore Dalimbar's complaints, which were entirely valid. The sanctity of their embassy had to be protected. The last thing Reçueçn wanted was to be seen as  a distant, unstable foreign country where people rioted outside your embassy. Some sort of crackdown was needed, or at least measures to make sure that this never happened again.

So, the ministry issued a statement: protests would be allowed, but not near any embassies. New laws would be passed to make sure that any activity that might be seen as a threat to an embassy or any foreign property would become a very serious offense, and gendarmes—the only branch of Reçuecian law enforcement to carry weapons—were stationed outside the Dalimbar embassy until the tournament was over. An official apology was sent to Dalimbar about the incident, and Rocher-Éby felt herself totally exonerated.

But in the meantime, Reçuecian citizens began to join in with the Fujansk protests and to take on the cause as their own.

[Clarkov]

Quick Report from H&J: The Verkhovna Anglia (Parliament) have officially declared that an embassy, no matter where it is, can be considered protest ground if people wish to use it as such. This probably explains why so many Hertfordians/Jammbians are involved in the anti-landmine protest, because they see no issue in protesting at an embassy. Nor do the Parliament, or indeed the Prime Minister. The government has vowed to protect it's citizens abroad and will not tolerate forceful removal by Reçu or Dalimbari officials of Hertfordian/Jammbian rugby fans from the protest site.

Some citizens have taken it too far though, as they begin to actively breach the Dalimbari border and remove landmines any way they can. Dalimbari and Reçu authorities have ordered them to leave, and Clarkov has demanded the extradition of said individuals back to H&J where they will face punishment for illegal violation of a border and destruction of a border security measure. Meanwhile, the fans of this nation refuse to leave the embassy, where a few have set up camp.

That is all.

[Reçueçn]

Third Place Playoff

Arena der Alpen, Heldingen

Giovanniland 6–3 Dalimbar

 

1st TWP Rugby World Cup Final

National Stadium, Reçueçn, Reçueçn

Spoiler

Fujai 3–3 Hertfordshire and Jammbo (3–13 AET)

 

[Giovanniland]

Third Place Playoff - Win

Gïovannilandiäna Equïpa Nacïonalia di Rugbio 6-3 Dalimbar Union da Rugby (HT: Giovanniland 3-3 Dalimbar)

Drop Goals: Simone Hamilton (33')

Penalty Kicks: Piëtro Zapata (69')

First Half: Having lost the semifinals to Fujai, the Giovannilandians still wanted a place on the podium, so they had to win this match for 3rd place. Soon in the start, Thëodoro Hayes injured a Dalimbari player pretty badly, and thus was sent off, with the Dalimbari scoring 3 points due to the penalty kick. With one man down, the Giovannilandians had to be even more careful in the defense. After some time, Simone Hamilton scored a drop goal, turning the match into a draw again, which stood at half-time. 

Second Half: For a good chunk of the second half, nothing much happened, as both teams defended with strength. However, a confusion involving two Giovannilandians and a Dalimbari player was solved with the Dalimbari being sent off and a penalty kick awarded to Giovanniland. The young Piëtro Zapata did not waste the chance, and earned 3 points for Giovanniland, which, after some uneventful last 10 minutes, got the team the 3rd place in the world cup.

Post-Match: With the tourney coming to an end, the coaches consider the Giovannilandian 3rd place very successful, also because this was Giovanniland's first rugby world cup of its history. On the other match, Hertfordshire and Jammbo got their title after defeating Fujai in overtime.

[Reçueçn]

Reçuecian Response to Jammbian Protesters

The Reçuecian government found itself in a tricky situation hosting the world cup. No one had expected it to be such a political event. But the, of course, the protests started. At first the response was deemed to harsh, when Rocher-Éby had a few dozen Fujar arrested. But then, on releasing them, the Dalimbar government complained that Reçueçn was being too soft. So the gendarmes were sent to the embassy and a new executive order passed by the government, but the protests allowed to continue elsewhere.

Now, more protesters from Hertfordshire and Jammbo were making things even worse by directly doing what the new edict had expressly forbidden—interfering with embassies. The gendarmes watched in disbelief as the crowd of protesters tried to break into the Dalimbar embassy and start tearing down security installments, before rushing to stop them. It wasn't difficult—unlike the police, the gendarmes were fairly heavily armed given the situation they were facing, and there were a lot more of them now.

This time the Reçuecians could not be so soft. In both cases they had given warnings ahead of time, but this was a second, more aggravated assault (if it could be called an assault). With the new law treating this as a direct threat to national security, the Jammbians were facing many years in prison.

But it didn't quite work out that way. There was no way to deal with so many citizens of a foreign nation without it becoming an issue. Their government was bound to step in, and when it did it was almost a relief for the host nation. They hadn't wanted to deal with this problem in the first place—in fact, they sympathized with the protesters, even if it did start to seem that they'd taken things too far. So the Reçuecians were more than happy to extradite the Jammbians back to Andolia, once they were assured that they would indeed be tried once they came home and face charges in the kingdom's Crown Court, with a possible sentence of up to 14 years if convicted of a breach of a nation's sovereign territory with intent to harm. The Reçuecians couldn't just let the people get off scott-free—they'd have to answer to Dalimbar if they let that happen—but they didn't want to wind up with them in Reçuecian jail cells either.

So was it a happy ending to the tournament? Well, hopefully the Jammbians could enjoy winning the tournament anyhow. And Reçueçn had mostly successfully hosted the event. It may have caused crisis, but at least it brought the different members of The West Pacific together for a moment on the rugby pitch.

[Clarkov]

 VS. 

 VS. 

Matchday 8 - Final - Victory - TWP Rugby World Cup winners

Fujanske Landslaget I Rugby 3-3 Härtferdsierndeambeu Ragbi Junjen (AET: FLR 3-13 HRJ) [HT: FLR 3-0 HRJ]

Tries: Ongo Vidopliassova (84'), Byron Tobu (90')

Penalties: Peter Cipriani (73', 97')

Pre-Match Report: This was the day. The day that rugby fans all across the West Pacific hoped to see, and yet most would be deprived of this experience. Behind the pleasant exterior of the National Stadium, 30,000 fans of both Fujar and Jammbian descent crammed themselves into the stands, full nearly to the point of bursting, for the one game that would decide the fate of the tournament. Who would walk home as the winners of the first ever Rugby World Cup? The answer would be available after the next 80 minutes. For now, it was final time, Fujai vs. Hertfordshire and Jammbo! And so it began...

First Half Report: Unfortunately, due to the conflicting styles of play of the defensive FLR and the offensive HRJ, the first half had very little to offer it's devoted followers. Indeed, all there was to report was an injury for Isaac Ozbek. No one knows his age, but he is somewhere between 6-12 years old, making him the youngest player in the tournament. Roman Bellic (He changed his surname back to his original one) came on to play for the first time. Oh, and Fujai took the lead through a penalty. I was rather hoping I didn't have to mention that.

Second Half Report: Luckily, the second half provided arguably the closest battle the tournament had seen. This time, the conflicting play styles benefitted the match, where the HRJ constantly banged on the door of the FLR, which kept itself firmly locked looking for that one opening where they could finish the game off. The excitement eventually produced an injury, to General Robert Lee. No one knows what had just occurred before, but it was bad news for the HRJ, as one of their best players was out of action. James Zeki entered the game. 10 minutes left, and the reality was settling in for most fans of Hertfordshire and Jammbo. The reality that they may actually lose the game, and the tournament. Fans of Fujai were becoming more and more confident by the minute. But, the will of the referee would prove to be a very volatile one. HRJ got the chance it so badly needed when Mikhail Agnelli was fouled by a Fujar defender. Up stepped Peter Cipriani, recently a made man. One kick later, the roar of the Jammbian crowd can be heard as far away as their native Andolia. Cipriani was the made man in more ways than one, and all of a sudden, Hertfordshire and Jammbo were in with a chance. The pressure increased on the Fujar defence, but they remained calm. They believed that the Hertfordian/Jammbian players would tire themsleves out, and the FLR could snatch the victory in extra time.

Extra Time Report: The HRJ's first extra time couldn't have been more important for them, their fans and their nation. The Origin of Music, the Saxons of the South had no better thing to do than hope. Beginning extra time and Fujai immediately scored a penalty, seemingly dooming hopes of a glorious comeback. Even worse, Mikhail Faustin, the top scorer, was struggling after the penalty incident in normal time, and now could bare it no longer. He limped back to the benches, where he would remain. It was over, it was truly over, the cup was completely lost...

And then it happened. Any plans that Fujai had went up in glorious dark green smoke. Spurred on by the fall of Faustin, the HRJ decided they would take no more punishment from these northerner wusses! Hertfordshire and Jammbo committed the rugby equivalent of Blitzkrieg and completely steamrolled the shocked Fujanske team with lighting fast movements and insane encircling manoeuvres! Within a matter of minutes, Ongo Vidopliassova at the 84th and ex-rapist Byron Tobu at the 90th fleeced a try each and just like that, Hertfordshire and Jammbo were on their way to the ultimate glory. The Fujar team panicked and became desperate, taking out Graham Foster shortly after Byron's try. This did not deter their opponents one bit, and to cap off a match to go down in the history books, original saviour Peter Cipriani stepped up and scored his second penalty, the cherry on top of the glory laden cake.

Post-Match Report: The match was over, and with that the TWP Rugby World Cup. Against all concievable odds, the winners of the Rugby World Cup, the certified greatest rugby team in The West Pacific, was a small isolated nation in southern Andolia that once fell into the sea. At the ceremony, the flag of Hertfordshire and Jammbo waved proudly, as the players, led by captain Robert Lee, lifted the trophy and displayed to the world that they were a nation at the very top of the chain. The national anthem, Aenglie haz nat peris/Đegl Cri n Frîdem av Aenglie Hav Nat Jet Peris, subsequently blared into the stadium, a pressing reminder for the Fujar team that they were unable to achieve greatness. Hertfordshire and Jammbo returned home the victors, Fujai returned home the first of the losers. In the third place match, Giovanniland showed Dalimbar why landmines are bad with the GENR defeating the DUR 6-3 to claim third place in the tournament. The Dalimbari team are going to have a very long journey home. In the meantime...

Olympics, anyone?

News Report: The protest at the Dalimbari embassy has ended, with the Reçuecian government extraditing around 1,230 fans of Jammbian descent back to their homeland. They will face trial at the Crown Court in Great Parndon, the capital of Hertfordshire and Jammbo, for charges of illegal breaching of a national border with intent to harm and vandalize. Most members of the protest group are likely to be sentenced to 14 years in prison with the chance of parole. The most peaceful of them may be given a reprieve, of only 5 years with parole.

Hertfordshire and Jammbo would like to thank Reçueçn for holding such a wonderful tournament, the HRJ for bringing the title home, and to all participants of the TWP Rugby World Cup for joining us in the spirit of ramming into each other with body armour on. You made this tournament what it was.

Slava Anglia! For The West!

[Clarkov]

Now, the final thing I need to do: A scorers chart! It is quite odd.

Härtferdsierndeambeu Ragbi Junjen Scorers Board

1^st - Mikhail Faustin - 23 points (AKA: Mr. Faustin) [Age: 45]

2^nd - Ongo Vidopliassova - 20 points (AKA: Purple Boy) [Age: ? {Child}]

3^rd - Bello Salman - 13 points (AKA: The One With The Tooth) [Age: ? {Child}]

4^th - Robert Lee - 12 points (AKA: General Lee) [Age: 213]

5^th - Benjamin Morrison - 8 points (AKA: Bibi) [Age: 70]

6^th - Mina Klebitz - 8pts (AKA: Miss Know-It-All) [Age: ? {Child}]

7^th - Chris Morituros - 7pts (AKA: Red Field) [Age: 47]

8^th - Peter Cipriani - 6pts (AKA: Mr. Tough Guy) [Age: ? {Adult}]

9^th - Niko Bellic -  5pts (AKA: Mr. Mention) [Age: 30]

10^th - Byron Tobu - 5pts (AKA: Pierce) [Age: ? {Adult}]

11^th - Britannia Degre - 5pts (AKA: Ruler of the Waves) [Age: 98]

12^th - Scott Bevan - 3pts (AKA: Aussie) [Age: 51]

13^th - James Zeki - 2pts (AKA: Captain Slow) [Age: 57]

14^th - Isaac Ozbek - 2pts (AKA: The Genesis) [Age: 6-12]

15^th - Carl Jefferson - 2pts (AKA: CJ) [Age: 35]