The friendly football match organised by the foreign ministries of the Empire of the Romans and the Republic of Dalmatia has finally taken place in the Poljud stadium. The game began with the Dalmatian and Roman national anthems being played as their respective [1] [2] flags were flown at full mast. The initial coin toss favoured Rome ; the whistle blew and the teams were off.

Within the first few minutes, the Dalmatian team was able to cut across the field and score an early goal (Dalmatia 1-0 Rome) ; embarassed, the Romans were soon able to score a goal of their own, within the next 10 minutes (Dalmatia 1-1 Rome). Ten minutes later, the Romans were once more at the Dalmatian goalposts, and they managed to score another point (Dalmatia 1-2 Rome). Keen to maintain at least a draw throughout the game, the Dalmatian team counter-attacked and quickly made an attempt at scoring a goal ; the Roman goalkeeper threw himself towards the ball and managed to deflect it, but this only gave the Dalmatian striker a second opportunity, which he was able to seize, earning his country a second point, to the jubilation of the crowd (Dalmatia 2-2 Rome).

Now, in turn, it was Rome's turn to counterattack ; within a matter of minutes, the Romans faced the Croatian goalposts ; through similar theatrics to that which had earned Dalmatia its second point, the Romans were able to have two cracks at the goal ; however, the second ball was outright caught by the goalkeeper, who sent it far into the field, robbing the Roman team of its precious opportunity. Ten minutes later, the first half-time was finished : the score was 2-2.

The second half-time began with Dalmatia taking the ball. Fairly quickly, the Roman team began to attack, and it seems that the break had reinvigorated them and they might yet win the match ; but an overly optimistic long shot from the Roman striker kicked the ball straight into the hands of the Dalmatian goalkeeper, who cast the ball far back ; after a small struggle, Dalmatia was able to break through Roman lines and earn an easy goal (Dalmatia 3-2 Rome). Desperate, the Romans immediately began a counterattack ; but both attempts at a goal were deflected by the cool-headed Dalmatian defenders and its expert goalkeeper. The Roman agitation seemed to be the opportunity Dalmatia had been waiting for to attack once more ; but the Roman goalkeeper was now on point, twice blocking Dalmatian attempts and sending the ball over to his team-mates. However, the third time was the charm for Dalmatia, and they earned their fourth goal only a few minutes before the end of the second half-time (Dalmatia 4-2 Rome). An overzealous attempt to score a fifth was blocked by the Roman goalkeeper only a few minutes before the final whistle rang.

The final result was a Dalmatian victory against the still-young Roman national team. Experience, funding, and training had triumphed over green, raw talent.

Dalmatia 4-2 Croatia