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GRYSON'S CONTRACT WRANGLES OVERSHADOW NARROW DEFEAT

The continued issues surrounding Barry Gryson's contract at the Unicorns took a turn for the worse this week. During the game against the heavily-fancied Foxes, Gryson refused to follow his coach's instructions no less than four times.

Before the kick-off, pundits gave the home side no hope against opponents on a six-game unbeaten run and sitting pretty at the top of the division. Coach Wilson confirmed as much in his post-match presser; "Today's objective was to keep it tight, make it tricky for the Foxes, and come out with as little damage as possible."

Sadly, not all of those outcomes were achieved in the hostile crowd at The Tin Spur. In the first half, Leboucher, Lobato, Torrosa, and Giza were all eliminated and only Cox and Collier suffered in response. Just as Torrosa was receiving treatment from the team apothecary, Lobato took a violent blow to the throat and, sadly, could not be saved. The Unicorns thank him for his service.

Just before the break, Esiason carried the ball across the line, evading the pursuit of the Unicorns defence thanks to his well-drilled team.

The hosts tried everything to try to even things up but the referee was particularly observant, banning Ottmar Wirt, BJ Hill, Ola Adeniyi, and Logan Woodside. Not only that but the partisan crowd invaded the pitch, assaulting Hill, Isaiah Blaide, and Rafa Brigante. That meant that almost every Unicorns player was involved in a death, injury, red card, or attack from a disgruntled fan.

Despite the odds being against them before kick-off and the subsequent ludicrous number of misfortunes, the Unicorns would only concede once more through Rayan Khefif, despite a numerical advantage for the entire second half.

Sean Bunting then suffered a permanent neck injury, which puts him out for the next game week.

Wilson's closing words were uncharacteristically pragmatic; "We're clearly disappointed to lose but with Otty and Bruno getting removed early on in the game, we save them for next week. Yes, we'll feel the loss of Carlos who was a wonderful player and a big-hearted human being. Yes, Bolt being out means we have to rely on others to deliver speed. But the Foxes are my tip for the title this year, unless someone takes out Savage, McDuck, Esiason, or Kapow who were all real thorns in our side."

Wilson refused to be drawn on the matter of Gryson's contract; "I refuse to be drawn on the matter of Barry Gryson's contract. He is a key player here and a fan favourite, but we won't be held to ransom. We have a salary cap for a reason."”