The opening game of Cup XIV has gone final this morning and it involved one of the new participants to Cup play. FC Stolpen Steamroller is an old team that was rebooted 2.5 seasons ago in a new world. Now, one would think that a team less than three seasons in would be cannon fodder in a tournament like this...but not so fast. In their 2nd season in World 71, they went 35-1-2 and are undefeated (17-0-2) in the current season halfway through. So, this young team comes into the Cup meaning business.

...and business is what they took care of in the first game out of Group B as they hosted FC Not Very Athletic in Saxony this morning. The new kids on the block pitched a dominant shutout, scoring two goals in the first half and then cruising after halftime to register their first ever stage points in FC Dynasty Cup. Forward Greg Eardensohn openend the Cup XIV scoring with a pretty header that pinballed off the post and into the goal to give Steamroller a 1-0 lead in the 29th. Rollie Kohlberg then scored unassisted just before halftime with a blast that easily beat Athletic goalie Ormond Brodeway and an insurance goal by Nicanor Monreal just after the 2nd half whistle put a bow on it as the game ended with a 3-0 Steamroller victory.

The other game this afternoon comes out of Group A, where Fianna AFC hosts the Champs Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi. See you in about 6 hours for the results.

And by the way, feel free to post comments, trash talk or anything else you want that involves the tournament or FC Dynasty in general. This is the time to talk with coaches in other worlds directly...so take advantage!

Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi makes a statement right from the start and opens their defense with a solid 4-1 road win against a very good Fianna AFC club in Group A play. Four different players scored for the Ecuadorian side as they controlled the tempo and the scoreboard throughout the game. A sold-out Greens crowd of 40,000...with a few thousand more in the standing room only areas, watched a very competitive first half as the game remained scoreless until the 43rd minute when Maeyken Bastin struck a grass-burner that skimmed past Greens goalie Deegan Colcroft to give Cotopaxi the 1-0 halftime lead.

However, the adjustments by the Champs' coaching staff made a huge difference as Cotopaxi came out firing on all cylinders and put the game away midway through the 2nd stanza. Goals by José Valdés and Weyland Watkins made the score 3-0 with little more than 30 minutes left and Fianna only avoided the shutout late when Cundles Andrews scored on a riccochet in the 83rd. An irrelevant red card against Aescby Nix, who was still pumped about his goal moments before and got a little too animated for the referee's liking, left the Champs short-handed but came with too little time remaining to change the outcome as Cotopaxi won 4-1.

There are several games tomorrow and then the schedule starts to get busy. Keep sending those challenges.

Looks like there are two games today and both are in the afternoon...so I'll be making the update at 7pm.

See you then.

A couple of good games today as the tournament gets rolling. The return game out of Group A between the Champs Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi and Fianna AFC ended up being a reversal of the opener, which Cotopaxi won 4-1 on the road. This time, Fianna got to show its grit as the away team and exact a measure of revenge. The Ecuadorian side opened up the scoring in the 17th minute to the delight of the home crowd when José Valdés painted the far corner with his header that found the back of the net. But from that point forward, it was all Greens. Cowal Chernock tied the game up in the 38th minute and the advantage in halftime adjustment went clearly to the Irish club. Fianna took the lead for good in the 53rd when Baylen Rafter showed off his own heading acumen and Melvyn Ashton capped off the 3-1 win with a last-minute blast that beat a diving Rose Luyten. The series ended with each team taking all three points on the road, although the Champs did walk away with a couple of slim tiebreaker advantages. Clearly, the two teams are evenly matched and the rest of Group A has their hands full.

Group C got underway with the crutchanators of soccer hosting VB Hibernian in a season where Hibs is in a rebuilding mode. Despite their lack of senior talent, they played a competitive game, eventually falling 4-2. crutchanators, not lacking veteran leadership, got two goals from Heinz Hagelin, including a rocket from inside the penalty area that gave Hibs goalie Sonny Miki no chance to even react to the shot. The home side was never seriously threatened as they held the lead throughout the match, going into halftime up 2-0. Damion Perciful got Hibs as close as they would get in the 50th minute when his header beat crutchanators goalie Sasson Treppe but the lead swelled back up to to 4-1 before a last minute goal from Enriqueta Montaner minimized the goal differential damage.

More games tomorrow and then we will start to enter the meat of the Group Stage schedule. I'll start to track unscheduled games this weekend.

Only one game this morning as first-timer FC Stolpen Steamroller continues to impress out of Group B. Southeast Indiana Football Club rolled into Germany for their opening game of Cup XIV and was treated to not a lot of hospitality from the home team. Scoring opportunities were in Steamroller's favor by a whopping 32-13 and shots on goal 21-9. Given those discrepancies, the final score ended up fairly respectable. Streamroller forward Greg Eardensohn goes into the very early L'Orteil D'or lead as he scores two more goals to give him a total of three in the tournament. His first one today came in the 19th minute when he inched a diving header just past Indiana goalie Wareine Beeton. After Austyn Collins got Indiana on the scoreboard right after the 2nd half whistle blew, Eardensohn put the game away when he broke free in the middle of the defense and powered a running shot that almost broke the netting. The 3-1 win gives Steamroller all six points in its first two games and is beginning to look like a potential Knockout Round participant.

There is one game this afternoon when Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi will demolish my own Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V. If I keep the game within 5 goals, I'll consider it a win.

Well, I managed to keep the game within five goals so I guess my team "won."

Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi had no problem disposing of Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V. in a 5-1 game out of Group A that probably should have been worse than that. Free kicks 30-11, opportunities 30-9, corner kicks 10-3...you get the idea. The only thing the Cologne club won was the stat line for fouls, which is not the category you want to have a 28-11 advantage in. Weyland Watkins scored twice and Cotopaxi only yielded in extra time in the first half when 18 year old Leonhard Richmond flashed a little bit of skill for someone so young.

I'll send a reminder sitemail to those that haven't started scheduling yet. I usually do that right at the start of the tournament but it slipped my mind until this morning.

Today's updates will be in the afternoon. My car is going i the shop and I won't be bringing my laptop. Fun times...

Have not seen any Challenges from Rushmore / Rushmore hs not accepted any challenges - other teams in the division having that issue too?

Posted by brandon5135 on 4/25/2024 10:45:00 AM (view original):
Have not seen any Challenges from Rushmore / Rushmore hs not accepted any challenges - other teams in the division having that issue too?

I just sent bert a sitemail. I'm sure he'll check in soon enough. Rushmore FC is one of those teams that participates every Cup. Just keep an active challenge out for him.

Three games were played this morning and one club is already on the verge of clinching a transfer spot.

FC Stolpen Steamroller continues their perfect run as they win a very hard-fought game over Southeast Indiana Football Club in the return match in Group B. The game was highlighted by defense and sloppy goaltending as each team gave up a score on a goalie miscue. Rodiger Brenner gave the Saxons the 1-0 lead when his effort in the 7th minute was muffed by Indiana goalie Wareine Beeton. Andrea Iglesias scored what proved to be the game winner, and the only clean goal in the game, in the 58th when his shot snuck just inside the corner to extend the lead to 2-0. Steamroller then returned the goalie blunder when they yielded a corner with minutes remaining, Peer Weinstein received the cross and Steamroller goaltender Estevon Zabaleta mis-handled the ball. The game ended 2-1 and puts Stolpen in a commanding position with 9 points in three games.

FC Not Very Athletic evened its Group B record at 1-1 when it hosted FC Cackalacky and walked away with a 4-1 win in front of 24,469 home fans. Four different Athletic players scored, including some highlight reel shots from Jabari Pickens, who juked the defender and lifted a shot into the upper corner and Regan Holian, who decided to strike the ball from distance, leaving Cackalacky goalie Bobbi Sloth with no chance to cover. Cackalacky did avoid the shutout when Israeli forward Sinai Kupferstoch scored unassisted in the 23rd but it was not nearly enough.

In Group C, the crutchanators of soccer improved to 2-0 when they hosted and defeated Kobelco United Football Club, delighting the 42,000+ in attendance. Kobelco drew first blood when Japanese defender Koichi Murakami pushed forward and scored a surprise goal with a perfectly placed strike in the 11th minute. After that, it was all crutchanators. Henry Berry tied that game just before the halftime whistle blew and Erik Adu scored the game winner in the 76th when his redirected header caught Tetsunori Saotome leaning the wrong way. For good measure, Shadow Striker Touko Pesola netted an insurance goal in the 88th minute, stopping any chance Kobelco had of drawing level and ending the game as a 3-1 crutchanators win.

There is one game this evening at 7pm.

Posted by brandon5135 on 4/25/2024 10:45:00 AM (view original):
Have not seen any Challenges from Rushmore / Rushmore hs not accepted any challenges - other teams in the division having that issue too?

Sorry folks! I have not been checking the forums. I’m engaged now and will stay that way!

Another Group A game has gone in the books as Fianna AFC beats Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V. in a game that was fairly competitive on the stats line, although the Greens really weren't threatened much on the scoreboard. Melvyn Ashton scored two goals in a seven minute span as Fianna built up a 3-0 lead at halftime. The Billy Goats did manage to avoid the goose egg when Jayvon Burch, one of the team's veterans (he's 23 years old,) scored in the 64th minute as his shot deflected off the hands of Greens goalie Deegan Colcroft and into the netting. A few more desperate chances for the visitors amounted to nothing and the game went final at 3-1. Fianna now sits tied atop the Group A standings with 6 points and Köln's chances of advancing are getting smaller and smaller.

We are now entering the heart of the schedule as Groups D, E and F finally get going.

I'll be updating the morning games in about an hour. There were also 2 games last night (11pm start) that were not included in the 4/25 update. I'll get that game into the standings as well. Time to get some coffee.

OK, we have a lot of ground to cover so let's get right into it.

FC Stolpen Steamroller became the first team to clinch a transfer spot and get the coveted blue highlighting after improving their Group B record to 4-0 with a 2-0 victory over FC Cackalacky. Steamroller was greatly aided by Cackalacky's Swiss hothead Raphael Meyer, who tried to break the ankles of Otho Mann in the 1st minute of the game and was immediately sent to the showers with a red card. Playing a man down, Cackalacky was punchless, only managing 2 shots on goal. Meanwhile, Steamroller did just enough to secure the win, getting goals from Cesar Vanney and Greg Eardensohn, who sits atop the early Golden Toe leaderboard with 4 goals. With 12 points, Steamroller clinches a spot in the playoffs and is now eyeing a First Round bye. Cackalacky need to regroup before the tournament gets away from them.

The defending Champs Club de Fútbol Deportivo Cotopaxi took another step towards the Knockout Rounds as they beat SwampDragons United 2-0 in the Dragons tournament opener. Dutch forward Maeyken Bastin scored again as his 3rd goal in Cup XIV ended up being all Cotopaxi needed to grab all three points. His header in the 9th minute caught Dragons goalie Morrison Gulley flat-footed as the ball sailed past him and Tilbrand Verstraete added another goal about 20 minutes later to stretch the lead to 2-0, where it stayed until the final whistle. United played a solid match but was unable to find the quality in the finishing third of the pitch. Cotopaxi leads Group A with 9 points and is looking excellent for grabbing a transfer spot.

Group D got underway when Bordeaux Fighting Bovines host and beat 4-2 FC Kingston in a game Kingston dominated in every facet except the scoreboard. Five goals were scored in the first half, including a goal by the Cattle's Italian midfielder Barzagli Busce'. No, that name is not a misprint. The man really has an apostrophe at the end of his name. Mr. Apostrophe showed his skill in the 20th minute when his header was perfectly guided into the upper corner of the goal, giving Bordeaux a 2-1 lead at the time. Kingston's Sadahige Kanai cut the Cattle lead to 3-2 right before halftime but could find the equalizer in the 2nd half and Lionel Insua's goal in extra time finished off the game right before the referee blew the whistle.