Ahead at Half-Time

The NF academy officials followed the progress of the game closely from the technical area. They were—confined to a marked section close to the touchline, where only substitutes and officials sat during matches.

The academy had sent three coaches, one medic, and an administrative assistant to Riga. They all had specialized roles to fulfill on the team.

Bjørn Peters was the coach responsible for the physical fitness of the players. He also secretly doubled as a scout to spy on the tactics of the other participants.

He had immediately noticed when the Riga team sealed off ways to pass to Zachary by saddling him with two marking players. Although the action had left their wings short of one attacking player, it looked like a fair tradeoff for them—since it was tiring out Zachary faster than usual.