“A very gritty match with luck telling the difference in the end. The first half began well for the Sewer Trance, who scored easily in 2 turns. The Getbackers received well, but dropped their pass pattern in the middle of the pitch, and then proceeded to fail four times in a single turn to strip the ball from the gutter runner in the centre of the pitch, allowing the Sewer Trance to scramble home another goal. The Getbackers then made a tactical decision to go only for one goal and wait out the half. Kagami Kyouji duly did the honours.

As the last turn of the half unfolded half time, things were looking up for the Getbackers. They were down 2-1 but the strategy to contain Rop'Tch'Tch and Hamster had so far been successful: Rop'Tch'Tch 's Claw /RSC was a major threat and Hamster's brute strength was unchallenged on the pitch. The team was also up by 1 SI. But as the turn started, The Sewer Trance finally got their casualty, Rop'Tch'Tch finally sinking his claws into Kudou Himiko for a BH. Revenge was immediate, however, and the Getbackers maneuvred their blocks to throw Rop'Tch'Tch into contact with Kyouji, who proceeded to demolish him. 2 rats down and a few more to go!

The sun had also come out now, and the sweltering heat was taking a toll on the players, with both teams struggling to field a full side. The Getbackers quickly pulled level with a quick score through Fuyuki Shido, pressing Jubei into action as a secondary thrower. The next drive then started with a lucky blitz for the Getbackers. The Getbackers got the ball, but the Sewer Trance quickly won it back. Hamster also hit Kazuki with a fatal injury, but the apoth was on hand to save his life. However, with the blitz having disrupted their play, the rats were wide open for the Getbackers to take advantage, and Ginji, who had run deep to cover the Sewer Trance thrower, was on hand to easily score.

With the Getbackers ahead, the Sewer Trance were now under pressure, and it was telling. In an exciting climax to the game, the Sewer Trance tried to rush the ball through but fumbled the ball over and over. Somehow, the ball ended in Hamster's hands as the Getbackers attempted to wrest the ball free over and over again. As Hamster tried to blitz the ball home, a cynical Sewer Trance foul killed Paul Wan! He'll be back eventually, but the boss will be sorely missed. Angered, Ginji rushed Hamster and killed him - fortunately for the Sewer Trance, the apoth was on hand and Hamster gets to keep his hard won first advance.

A clever play allowed Natsumi to extract the ball despite Trance pressure to advance up the pitch, but a poor pass kept the heat up. Despite this, the Trance were unable to capitalise and eventually the Getbackers managed to wait out the clock for a draw. Hard-won win, but very satisfying. 10k more to get Paul Wan back!”