Maybe this is the Year of the Dragon as a pair of them advanced to the Semifinals after triumphs in their quarter series. The end of the road finally came to #2 Las Vegas Scorpions F.C. as their amazing tournament run full of draws finally met their match. After a 2-2 tie against #10 SwampDragons United, the return game had none of the drama that we had come to expect. Winslowe Grey scored in the 8th minute to set the pace for Swamp U and they never let off the gas pedal. Borivoj Fales' header right before halftime gave the Scorpions a brief glimmer of hope but the 2nd stanza was all Dragons, as they added three more to win the game 6-1 and the series 8-3.

Swamp U will meet their Canadian Dragon brethren in the Semis after #14 Swamp City Dragons just got past #6 FC Not Very Athletic after a scoreless draw in the first game. Athletic took the lead twice after goals from Scully Malony and Garr Manston but a hat trick by veteran German striker Ryszard Bretschneider kept the Dragons level, leading to the closing moments with the game and series tied at 3-3. Midfielder Serdar Haas, who had not scored in Cup XIX up to this point, found himself open in the 88th and he buried the winner in the upper corner from distance. A last minute shot by London Jamison hit the crossbar and the English side never got another look at the goal during stoppage time.

Finally, #12 Bad News won on the road 5-3 against the last single-digit seed left in the tournament, #4 FC Gimli Vikings. The game was a close affair and changed leads several times, with a Stearn Rentería goal in the 66th knotting the score at 3-3. What was looking like a draw turned into a French victory late when Nadir Brocard and Cristian Leonard each scored a goal in the final 10 minutes to give Bad News the home field advantage in the series return game tomorrow.

That return game in the 4/12 series is the only game on tap as the Quarterfinals have entered the home stretch. Also, the semis in the Bums has their last game scheduled for August 2.

A record 3rd Quarterfinal series has gone to Sudden Death as #4 FC Gimli Vikings overcame a 2-goal aggregate deficit on the road to draw level with #12 Bad News, as the French club was unable to hold a 5-3 lead in today's 2-0 Gimli victory. Much like the first game, the two squads had even statistical lines but unlike the opening match, once the Swedes grabbed the lead, they didn't relinquish it. Stearn Rentería and Zlatan Benda scored again for Gimli and goalkeeper Marecek Palecek played much better in net to keep the clean sheet.

With the series tied at 5-5, Gimli will host the first extra game. Bad News has told me that their season is about to flip and if the game isn't scheduled in the 1st challenge slot, they might need to delay the game to sign a couple of players. So, the Semifinalists that have already qualified might get a little extra rest before the next round of the knockouts begins.

Just to give you all an FYI, looks like the Sudden Death between Gimli and Bad News will get delayed for a few days. Both teams are actually in a world rollover, so it wouldn't surprise me if both also need a couple of new faces.

The Bums Bracket Finals are now underway as #5 Slough FC held its one goal advantage over top-seeded Not Very United, winning the series 8-7 after this morning's 2-2 draw. United had home cooking working for them and a sellout crowd of 43,000 to help them get over the hump but the game ended up being a one-on-one struggle between a pair of veteran forwards. Takeshi Takada stretched the Slough lead to two goals in the 15th when header beat David Silva to the upper corner to make the aggregate 7-5. Tate Papia, who turned 51 a few months ago, brought United back a few minutes later when his attempt deflected off a defender an in to close it back to 7-6. Both players added their 2nd goals of the game after the break but the Slough defense denied United any more shots after Elbanco Cardenas' 81st minute strike that Silva got a fingertip on, pushing it just wide of the far post. Slough was able to run out the clock and earn their right to play Hardknoxs F.C. for the consolation title.

The Bums Finals do hot have seeds and also does not have a time frame. Both teams can schedule their home game at their convenience. I will be doing a coin flip tomorrow to determine which team will host the first Sudden Death game, if necessary. Based on how the tournament has played up to this point, the extra game has a decent chance of actually happening.

We are still waiting for the extra game in the main draw as both teams' worlds (78 and 92) flip tomorrow.

After evaluating their roster, Bad News has informed me that they can play the Sudden Death game with their current lineup. That leaves FC Gimli Vikings free to schedule the game and send the challenge in the earliest slot when they are able.

I appreciate everyone's patience. We used to settle drawn playoff match-ups with a coin toss, which kept things moving swiftly but was a fairly lame way to call a series. Since we don't have a penalty shootout to turn to, this is the next best option.

Bad News is now in Week 2 and Gimli is in Week 1, so it shouldn't be too much longer. I have asked News to send a challenge back to Gimli after the first Sudden Death game is scheduled just in case we have another draw.

After a pause, we are getting back to live action in the playoffs. The Sudden Death game is scheduled for August 9th.

Also, Slough FC opens up the Bums Bracket Final at home against Hardknoxs F.C. on the 11th.

#12 Bad News made the most of its off-season signing period by acquiring veteran Italian defender Augustine Lupoli, who immediately paid dividends in the French club's Sudden Death game against #4 FC Gimli Vikings in this morning's final game of the Quarterfinals. With the series knotted at 5-5, both teams had a chance to sign an impact player to get them through to the semis but it was Lupoli who scored the opening goal for Bad News and then added a 2nd score in the 62nd to stretch the lead to 10-7 and assure his new club's advancement. Gimli's Stearn Rentería got one back late to cut the margin to 10-8 but the Swedes could get no closer. The Rentería goal did vault him to the top of the Golden Toe standings with 13 scored but that probably won't be good enough for the individual honor.

With the Quarterfinals now complete, I'll set up the Semifinal match-ups later this morning.

The Semifinals are set and scheduling can begin. Check out those seeds as none of the single-digit teams survived.

The time frame to schedule the home and away will be Aug 10th thru Aug 20th. If we go into sudden death, as we have been doing this tournament, extra days will be added.

#10 SwampDragons United and #14 Swamp City Dragons will be kicking off the semis right away as their games have already been scheduled. Best of luck to the final four teams still standing. Win and you advance to the Championship...lose and you'll be playing for the Bronze.