QWC-1999

Chapter Two

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April 11, 1999

It was a bright and pleasant spring morning in the packed National Quidditch stadium in the outskirts of Madrid. The flags for Sri Lanka and England fluttered merrily in the breeze as the hundreds of people who had gathered on this Sunday morning took their seats to witness what promised to be a closely contested match. But the chatter of innumerable fans did not reach the England changing rooms: a tense atmosphere prevailed within.

Oliver paced to and fro, in front of the long row of lockers. One by one his team-mates emerged in their blue and white Quidditch uniforms, and took their places on the bench or on the floor, awaiting the customary pre-match pep talk from their captain. As the last member of the squad took his place, Oliver stopped, and turned to face them.

He smiled.

'Haven't we come a long way?'

Katie and Elizabeth smiled back at him, and he continued.

'It was only two months back that the England team was on the worst losing streak in history. There was shame, outrage, and then the team was reformed completely. I had never expected to be asked to assume the role of captain. I had never expected to be given the chance to play on the same side as players whom I consider my idols. I never expected England to be able to win that match against Japan, our first win in six months. And I never expected to be here today, within reach of a berth in the next Quidditch world cup. I don't think any of us expected that, but we all hoped. And with our skill, and hard work, we made those hopes, those dreams, not just ours, but of every Quidditch fan in England, come true. We may be on a winning streak, but we go out today in this match as underdogs, yet again. But we know how to beat the odds. Most of all, we have nothing to lose. And to win? Glory... for each and every one of us. So let's do it!'

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'Welcome! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the last qualifying match for the four hundred and twenty-third Quidditch world cup! It's a lovely day in Madrid today, and it warms the heart to see such a large crowd for a match not involving the home team! For those who might not already know, this match is going to decide the last team for the second pool for the upcoming world. Eleven teams have already qualified. The first pool will contain the following teams: FRANCE who defeated Argentina; NEW ZEALAND after defeating Malaysia; ZIMBABWE who took care of Germany; the UKRAINE who finished off Portugal; RUSSIA after edging past China in a thrilling match yesterday; and the finalists from the last tournament after trouncing Transylvania, BULGARIA!'

The name of each team was greeted with loud cheers from the fans below. The commentator continued.

'The second pool will have INDIA who defeated Brazil last week; USA who edged past Australia; UGANDA who defeated Luxembourg, the surprise semi-finalists from last year; SOUTH AFRICA who defeated Scotland; WALES after they defeated Bangladesh in Dhaka earlier today; and the last team in the second pool will be decided today, in this match between ENGLAND and SRI LANKA!'

'And here comes the Sri Lankan national team! Led by captain and chaser Aravinda de Manya, followed by fellow chasers Karuna and Chandra Vaas, the only married teammate-couple in world Quidditch to date, beaters David Arnold and Arjuna Zoysa, keeper Romesh Silva, and seeker Kumar Kumarasinghe!'

Seven dark blue blurs flew into view and soared in formation around the Quidditch pitch.

'Of course, Sri Lanka has had a very good season so far under the capable leadership of de Manya, but the star of this season has been none other than England, all but written off merely six months ago. And here come the ones responsible for this sudden and exciting change in form! Captain and keeper Oliver Wood, chasers Katie Bell, Elizabeth Ryan and Raj Sinha, beaters Jimmy Moran and James Halliday, better known as 'Jimmy and James' and seeker David Locksley!'

Seven white and light blue Quidditch players on custom-made Nimbus 3000s burst onto the pitch in bright sunlight to deafening roars from the crowd below.

The two teams landed on the green Quidditch pitch and faced off on the two sides of the referee, who stood behind a large wooden box. The captains shook hands, and the referee shouted, 'Mount your brooms please!'

The referee kicked the crate open to release the four balls into the air: the large red quaffle, the two bewitched black bludgers and the tiny walnut-sized golden snitch. The whistle sounded, and fifteen brooms rose into the air.

'And they're OFF! It's de Manya with the quaffle, passes it to Vaas, who passes it back! Throws it to - but no! Smart bludger work there by Halliday, de Manya drops the quaffle, intercepted by Bell, throws to Ryan, Sinha, back to Bell, streaking up the pitch, dodges a bludger from Zoysa, Vaas in close pursuit, oooo that was a pretty neat tackle, pity it didn't work, Silva takes guard, Bell passes to Ryan, Ryan shoots - AND SCORES! First blood drawn by England! The score stands at 10-0!'

Oliver kept a close look on the match as he circled the goalposts, listening to the commentary keenly and taking note of his team's performance, in this do-or-die match. He had no complaints, they were playing superbly.

'And now its Karuna Vaas in possession of the quaffle, throws it to her husband, passes it to the captain, dodges a bludger from Moran, halfway up the pitch now, Bell and Sinha in pursuit, Ryan attempts a tackle, de Manya still in possession, heading towards the goal-posts, the two captains about to face off, de Manya feints left, shoots for the right hoop, Wood dives... AND MAKES IT! The score still stands at 10-0, in favor of England. Well done Wood!'

Oliver threw the quaffle to Raj, and continued to circle the hoops, keeping an eye on the proceedings as the chasers formed a cordon and charged across the pitch, passing the quaffle frequently to throw off the opposing chasers. He mentally noted the use of the Hawkshead Formation, analyzing it for any weaknesses, as the England beaters swooped around their teammates, sending well-aimed bludgers towards the Sri Lankans.

England scored twice in quick succession, moving the score up to 30-0. The crowd was going wild below them, but Sri Lanka rallied back. De Manya was the chief striker, scoring five of the nine goals for Sri Lanka. Soon the score was 30-90.

'This is going to be some game folks! The chasers for the two teams seem to be well-matched, but Sri Lanka's beaters are having a ball out there! Jimmy and James are not having a good day, and skipper Wood must be feeling the heat.'

Oliver willed himself to maintain his composure: it would not do for him to lose his cool. He knew he was giving his best shot; the Sri Lankans were just ... good! Oliver had been playing Quidditch for far too many years to think that a 60 point lead could clinch a match. But he knew that it was hurting the morale of the team. They needed to pull back. Soon.

But the Vaases were beginning to get into the action, and the three Lankans were scoring at will. Within moments the score was up to 210-50 in Sri Lanka's favor.

'And Chandra Vaas is headed to the goals again, dodges Bell, takes aim, and - beautiful bludger work by Halliday there! Vaas drops the quaffle, it's picked up by Sinha and he's streaking up the pitch, Romesh Silva taking guard there, hasn't had too much to do this morning... Sinha takes aim... AND SCORES! Is this a turnaround for England folks?'

And suddenly Jimmy and James were back in the action; with all four beaters on song, scoring was almost at a halt. Thirty minutes passed without either team scoring a single goal, before Katie shot the quaffle past a diving Romesh Silva into the Sri Lankan goals. Oliver's joy, however, was short-lived, as the Sri Lankans scored twice in quick succession. Another thirty minutes saw three more scoring shots for both teams.

'It's well matched right now ladies and gentlemen, but can England recover from their initial slump? And the question everyone wants answered: where is the snitch?'

Oliver was wondering the same thing, high above the ground, an ear on the commentary, scanning the skies for the elusive snitch: a difficult task with a full stadium. The match had already lasted five hours.

'AND KUMARASINGHE HAS SPOTTED THE SNITCH!! He's in pursuit, Locksley close behind... Remember, the score's 240-100 in favor of Sri Lanka... if Locksley gets the snitch, England will win this match, and...WAIT! De Manya has the quaffle and is headed to the goals!! Dodges a bludger beautifully... Raj Sinha attempts a tackle, but de Manya is on a roll! If de Manya scores, and England gets the snitch we might have a tie on our hands!'

Oliver surveyed the action from his vantage point in front of the three goal-hoops. Elizabeth and Katie gave pursuit to the Sri Lankan captain, but he swerved around them expertly. He was streaking across the field...

'England's chasers are left far behind... meanwhile Locksley and Kumar are still chasing the snitch, this is gonna be close, there's Wood circling the goalposts for England, and Kumar edges ahead of Locksley, de Manya is almost there, hold on now...!'

Oliver took guard in front of the England goals.

Concentrate on de Manya... David will be fine... concentrate on de Manya... forget the crowd... concentrate...

Aravinda closed in, the quaffle in his right hand, moving towards the right goal hoop.

Wait for it... he might be faking it...

Oliver dove to his right the moment the quaffle left Aravinda's hands, stretching out to the extreme, reaching for it... When he righted himself with the quaffle secure under his arm, the crowd had already erupted in cheers.

The match was over.

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