-Xenon- Posted April 12, 2011 Author Share Posted April 12, 2011 Extra Time Adama Ouattara looked to be still struggling from the knock he had taken when extra time commenced, however he was quickly called upon, making a great block on a shot by Asamoah Gyan. Ghana still looked to emphasise their quality, but they were starting to look ragged and having made all of their substitutions in normal time, they would have to soldier on. Meanwhile, Burkina Faso were sensing an opportunity. The fresh legs of Kambou and Toure were starting to wreak havoc and for what felt like the first time in the match, the Burkinabes had a good phase of dominance. By now, the surface was absolutely drenched and the ball was skimming off the top of it erratically. Tall tried to take advantage of this and he sent in a shot from range that reared up horribly off the wet surface in front of the Ghanaian keeper, who managed to adjust his reach to finger tip it wide. Tall thought he had scored and moments later took his frustration out on Sulley Muntari with a late challenge, earning himself a yellow card. It was the last action of the first half which had seen Burkina Faso emerge from the shadows to become the dominant force in this match. As the second half kicked off, despite the fact they had the physical edge on Ghana, even the younger and fitter Burkinabe players were exhausted. The game petered out and for all the world looked to be heading toward the dreaded penalty shootout. With four minutes left, Burkina Faso conjured one last piece of magic. Kiema threw the ball out to Seydou Kone who advanced down the left. Kone then picked out a precise pass to Mamadou Tall, who found himself free of his marker. He powered towards goal but felt Shilla charging across to meet him. Checking, he left Shilla thundering into an empty space and from around 20 yards, bent a glorious shot round the defender and in the 'postage stamp' of the goal. A goal worthy of winning any game and the striker's first of the tournament. Ghana simply had nothing left to give and showed no sign of unlocking the Burkinabe defence, who simply shored up once again for the final minutes. Burkina Faso had out-thought their African rivals and pulled off yet another astounding result. To the delirium of their fans they had advanced to the Quarter Finals. Burkina Faso: Kiema, S. Kone, I. Ouattara, A. Ouattara, I. Kone, Kabore©, Coulibaly (Barry, 81), Nebie, Ouedraogo (Kambou, 95), Traore (Toure, 99), Tall Ghana: Dauda, Inkoom, Adjei, Vorsah, Quartey (Basit, 74), Essien©, Muntari, Asamoah, Torric (Shilla, 45), Ayew, Gyan (Sarpong, 100) Burkina Faso 1-0 Ghana (After Extra Time) Other Results: Switzerland 2-1 South Korea, Portugal p0-0 Brazil, Uruguay 0-3 Italy, Spain p0-0 France, Australia 0-0p England, Japan 0-1 Germany, Argentina 3-1 Ivory Coast World Cup 2018 Quarter Final Spain vs. Switzerland Portugal vs. Italy BURKINA FASO vs. Argentina England vs. Germany Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makonnen Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 W00t! We are the Burkinabe, The battling Burkinabe! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldkohmew Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Go for the win!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
leonavich Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Edge of your seat type stuff! I'm guessing a goal in 120+4 or something outrageous along those lines to see Burkina through. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Xenon- Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Au Revoir Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid It was a goal of astonishing beauty. The movement, the passing, the delicate and graceful way with which it had been constructed. The wonderful chest control as the world's greatest ever footballer, on his 100th appearance for Argentina, brought it down on to his left foot and gracefully swept it with the utmost finesse, past the static Aboubacar Kiema. Lionel Messi had just scored Argentina's fifth goal of the evening. They were on their way to the Semi Finals and the little maestro had helped book the ticket with a hat-trick. But it had not been one way traffic for the Argentinians. Twice, the minnows of Burkina Faso had been in front. They had shocked the world by merely being here. With the breakaway goal from Mamadou Tall and the free kick from Coulibaly, it at times looked like the unthinkable would happen. However, the Argentinians were simply too good. A stunner from Aguero, a dink from Higuain and a hat-trick from the master had seen them through. The final whistle went and the local commentator summed up the scene: "EL RESULTADO FINAL ES ARGENTINA 5:2 BURKINA FASO! UNO DE LOS GRANDES PARTIDOS EN LA HISTORIA DE LA COPA DEL MUNDO! The Burkina Faso players were stoic in their defeat. They knew what they had done. It was a remarkable achievement and they carried their English manager aloft on their shoulders. They went over to the fans and they celebrated as though they had won the whole tournament. A minor commotion was caused when former military leader Ibrahim Dagano rushed on to the pitch and tried to congratulate the manager, but he was restrained and escorted from the ground. Even that could not steal the moment from the players and staff. There were tears all round and afterwards, Byrne spoke to the assembled press. "We did it for the whole country. It ends in defeat but our heads held high. Most of all, we did it for Jimi Kabore, a former coach who lost his life in the civil war. May he always rest in peace. Thank you" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Xenon- Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Épilogue It was a beautiful summers day in the Spanish countryside, and perfect for driving with the top down. Joe relished the open road and put his foot down. In the end he had to get away from the media, especially after he had announced his resignation. What next? How do you feel? Questions he didn't want to answer right down. He had only one thing on his mind. A nice extended holiday. The road was blissfully empty and he really let rip on the open straights. the wind cooling his slightly sunburned skin. His passenger wasn't too enamored with his driving. "Slow down! Are we in a rush." "No, I just feel like letting go a bit, it's all over." Lucia looked radiant and as the wind swept her face she fixed Joe with those piercing blue eyes. He relented and slowed the car down to a normal pace. She relaxed. They were on their way to a coastal villa that belonged to her parents. Things seemed back to normal for them. "Is it really over? I'm not going to have to watch you pack your bags and head out to another inhospitable jungle again am I?" He looked at her and pulled the car over on the hard shoulder. "I have to work! I can't sit there and be a kept man! We are going to have to face the reality. I am a football coach." She continued to stare at him, looking more and more put out with every second that passed. "Nah, I'm just kidding. I'm done. It's me and you now." With that he lunged forward, kissed her and drove off into the setting sun. ~finis~ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Xenon- Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 That's it, finished. Just wanted to very briefly thank all of those who have read this and have offered their encouragement along the way. It was really appreciated. This story was immensely good fun to write and I enjoyed it all the way. Mostly because although I had a brief outline of the entire story, I had no idea of how to get there in between, so usually it was just as interesting for myself I would have loved to have carried on, but this was the right ending at the right time. Thanks to all those that voted for it in the awards, it was a nice touch. Thanks to Gav and Offy for the infamous 'pep talk' otherwise this may well have died. Yeah, that it I guess, cheers Vive Burkina Faso! Sam Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makonnen Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 A moment of silence and appreciation ... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoehrst Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Epic. A tale well-spun, Xenon, which I enjoyed from start to finish. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HorusFM Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 A pleasure to have read this, Xen. Hope to see something more from you, maybe you could get around to some posts for The Venetian? Or is another pep talk required? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Xenon- Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Hope to see something more from you, maybe you could get around to some posts for The Venetian? Or is another pep talk required? I won't lie, I'm really regretting starting that. But that is exactly why I did it, so that I would eventually have to write it. How's your appointment book looking? Or is Offy's group therapy pounding your schedule? ;) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldy Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Been very much a dormant reader of these forums for a number of years but this has been my favourite read by quite some distance. I tip my hat to you, Xenon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HorusFM Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 I won't lie, I'm really regretting starting that. But that is exactly why I did it, so that I would eventually have to write it.How's your appointment book looking? Or is Offy's group therapy pounding your schedule? ;) Well get a move on. Some of us are waiting. Offy has quit therapy now, his writing had become so dormant that volcanoes were getting annoyed, but oh look, he started up again recently. Magic I am. <3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Offspring8 Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Great work Xen glad you saw it through after the brief stutter, if you're in need of a pep talk to get you going on The Venetian or another story then let us know I'm sure that Gav in particular would like to claim more praise by helping to pull another story back onto the board! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldkohmew Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Thread no. 2? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
leonavich Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Sad to see this end but a great story that ended at the right moment. In some ways, getting as far as you did seems more of a fairy tale than winning the World Cup because it adds just that bit of humanity and humbleness that the story has been carrying all along. It's not about winning everything, its about going above and beyond the expectations whilst still keeping that realism to it. I also like the ending, not knowing the results of the World Cup... It keeps the focus on Burkina, and thats what's important! All the best and thanks again for a wonderful story, Leonavich Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dane0 Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Aww, had hoped to see Mr. Byrne taking over some Spanish segunda división club and seeing some wacky hijinks with an Iberian version of Dagano. Probably for the best though. Very nice story! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Xenon- Posted April 19, 2011 Author Share Posted April 19, 2011 Thread no. 2? I don't think so, I think this has reached a logical conclusion. Although, dane0 seems to have been reading my mind. If I were to do a sequel, it would most probably involve Joe rattling around the Spanish lower leagues, or maybe a spin off featuring Kossivi. Thanks for the comments from the rest of you guys. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilDave Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 A little late to the party, but allow me to echo the congratulations of the others for a brilliant story - an excellent mix of characters (was anyone else worried as soon as Dagano turned up in Madrid?), story and on-field success that you've managed to draw to a close perfectly. It's a shame to see it end, but on the other hand I'm certainly looking forward to seeing how The Venetian develops. Well done sir, well done indeed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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