Category Archives: RoboTeam Twente

BuGa 2023: Game Schedule

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Group Stage (Saturday, 12.08.2023)

Points Table

Platz Team Spiele Punkte Torverhältnis
1 TIGERs Mannheim 3 9 21:0 21
2 ER-Force 3 6 13:1 12
3 Immortals 3 3 3:20 -17
4 RoboTeam Twente 3 0 0:16 -16

Results

Time Match Article Stream Final Score
10:00 AM ER-Force vs. TIGERs Mannheim Article 00:01
11:30 AM Immortals vs. TIGERs Mannheim Article 00:10
01:00 PM ER-Force vs. RoboTeam Twente Article 03:00
02:30 PM ER-Force vs. Immortals Article 10:00
04:00 PM TIGERs Mannheim vs. RoboTeam Twente Article 10:00
05:30 PM RoboTeam Twente vs. Immortals Article 00:03

Knockout Stage (Sunday, 07.07.2023)

Time Match Article Stream Final Score
11:00 AM TIGERs Mannheim vs. RoboTeam Twente Article 10:00
12:30 PM ER-Force vs. Immortals Article 01:00
14:30 Uhr TIGERs Mannheim vs. ER-Force Article Livestream 03:00

BuGa 2023: TIGERs Mannheim vs. RoboTeam Twente

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After the group stage concludes with the last game between Immortals and RoboTeam Twente on Saturday evening, today’s day begins with the first semifinal match between the first and fourth-placed teams: TIGERs Mannheim vs. RoboTeam Twente.

Without wanting to speculate too much, we already assume that TIGERs Mannheim will easily win against RoboTeam Twente. Yesterday, the Mannheim team pretty much dominated our friends from the Netherlands, so everyone expects a very one-sided game.

First Half

05:00 The game will be kicked off soon.
05:00 As has become usual, this game is also starting with a delay. The time is being filled for the spectators by explaining the robots and the rules.
05:00 With an 8-minute delay, it’s finally underway. TIGERs in blue, RoboTeam Twente in yellow.
04:44 First shot on goal by TIGERs, but it doesn’t hit the target yet.
04:14 Well defended by the Twente goalkeeper! That could have been the first goal of the day, but the Dutch goalkeeper shines once again. However, there are problems with Twente outfield players touching the robot in their penalty area.
04:08 Now, however: TIGERs takes a shot, and it’s a goal! The score is now 1:0!
TIGERs Mannheim 1 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:35 Beautiful passing by TIGERs in Twente’s half. You can tell that they have excellent ball control and precision in their passes. Eventually, TIGERs is rewarded: 2:0 for Mannheim!
TIGERs Mannheim 2 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:00 After some discussions about a penalty for TIGERs and a ball placement by RoboTeam Twente, unfortunately, the Dutch player messes up the shot, and TIGERs gains the upper hand. Naturally, Mannheim doesn’t waste time and increases the lead to 3:0!
TIGERs Mannheim 3 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
02:33 And another goal by Mannheim right away! The game is primarily taking place in the Dutch half, but it’s good to watch.
TIGERs Mannheim 4 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
02:16 With full commitment, the players from RoboTeam Twente are doing everything to keep the ball away from the goal, even if they have to commit a foul to do so. This makes the game quite watchable, as it’s not a complete blowout.
01:56 The Dutch can defend well for a long time, with several attempts on their goal. But in the end, the Mannheim team manages to get past the goalkeeper and convert a shot into a goal! Twente is now also replacing a robot.
TIGERs Mannheim 5 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
01:31 It might sound like a massacre here, considering that TIGERs now extends the lead to 6 goals. Nevertheless, the Dutch are doing very well. While they can’t break through in attack against TIGERs, they’re doing their human—or rather, robot—best to keep the goal safe. Definitely the best game from RoboTeam Twente this year!
TIGERs Mannheim 6 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
01:14 Still, it’s as it is: a game against the world champions. And so, TIGERs directly increases the lead to 7 goals!
TIGERs Mannheim 7 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
01:05 Correction: 8-goal lead.
TIGERs Mannheim 8 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:40 The Twente robots position themselves well in the shooting lanes of the Mannheim team, making it not so easy for them to get a good shooting angle. Sometimes, they even lose the ball, but eventually, another goal for Mannheim! Now they’re only one away from ending the game early in this half.
TIGERs Mannheim 9 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:20 Ghost goal for Twente! Although the ball, along with the entire RoboTeam Twente, is actually in the half of TIGERs Mannheim and even in front of the goal, there was definitely no shot on it, just a small skirmish with a few crashes. Nevertheless, a goal in Mannheim’s goal was briefly recognized, and as a result, the AI referee briefly decided it was a goal for Twente! But of course, only briefly.
00:14 Indeed! 14 seconds before the end, TIGERs finally manages to score the tenth goal of the game and thus end it early.
TIGERs Mannheim 10 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:00 With that, TIGERs advances to the final as expected, and unfortunately, Twente is eliminated from the tournament. Nevertheless, there’s no reason to be sad: The improvement of the Dutch undoubtedly culminated in this game, which was also very short, lasting only 20 minutes!

RoboCup 2023: RoboTeam Twente vs. Immortals

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And now the last game begins: RoboTeam Twente vs. Immortals. Yes, you heard it right: Immortals made it to the tournament!

About an hour after their arrival, Immortals now have the chance to show what they’re capable of. If Immortals win the game, they will face us in the semifinals tomorrow at 12:30 PM; otherwise, we won’t have an official match against them during the tournament.

First Half

05:00 The game starts with a delay of about 10 minutes. Twente plays as the blue team in a purple and white kit, while Immortals is the yellow team in their classic black kit.
04:21 Immortals has already received a yellow card for three consecutive fouls, reducing them to play with only 5 robots. Currently, there are only 4 robots on the field for Immortals. The ball moves from one half to the other, but it’s mostly in Twente’s half.
04:00 After the Immortals robot pushed the ball into Twente’s penalty area and touched it there (which, as we know from Twente, is a foul), one of the Twente bots loses its topping: blind and without a color pattern, it stands on the field, and the game is stopped.
04:00 Immortals takes a timeout. They don’t seem as strong as in the RoboCup, but it’s worth noting that the Iranian exiled team hasn’t had much time to adapt their robots to the BuGa playing environment.
04:00 By now, Immortals has received two yellow cards, so they’re left with a maximum of 4 robots on the field. Both yellow cards still have nearly their full 2 minutes on the clock, mostly due to crashes.
03:54 Now a yellow card for Twente as well. Surprisingly, this also affects the Dutch since they previously had all 6 robots on the field.
03:18 Lack of Progress between a Twente and Immortals bot. Well, the Twente bot didn’t even move and was consequently taken out of the game.
03:14 Presumed goal for Immortals, but the ball is moving at a noteworthy speed of 7.1 m/s, which is significantly above the allowed 6.5 m/s.
03:14 So far, this game has been the toughest of all, as there’s no flow due to the many fouls, despite the absence of an out rule. Admittedly, this was also the most challenging team pairing during the RoboCup.
02:12 Two more fouls by Immortals, as the ball’s speed was again too high at 7.2 m/s and 7.1 m/s. It’s a shame because the second shot was on target. It must be mentioned in their defense that Immortals hasn’t had time to calibrate their robots for this playing environment.
01:39 After a short Cola-kisses-Orange session (Immortals’ version of ball placement), the game continues, with both teams officially back to 6 robots. However, currently, there are only 3 Twente bots and 4 Immortals on the field.
-01:00 The last two and a half minutes were quite watchable, with the ball moving consistently across the field. However, attacks were primarily directed at the Dutch goal, but the goalkeeper managed to keep it solid until the end. He’s the standout robot for Twente in this game, as most others are just motionless on the field.
00:00 The first half ends with a game interruption, tied, and we’ll see you in five minutes for the second half.

Second Half

05:00 The second half starts right away. Twente now has 5 robots, just like Immortals.
04:47 Immortals immediately with a hot attack on the goal. The ball ends up in the net, but it exceeded the maximum allowed height of 15 cm before entering the goal, so the goal doesn’t count. Balls are not allowed to exceed a certain height when entering the goal, as otherwise, the opposing goalkeeper wouldn’t have a chance to defend it.
04:08 A missed chance for Immortals. Even though their robot had the ball right in front of them and at the edge of the Dutch penalty area, it didn’t take a shot. Instead, it gave the goalkeeper and a defender enough time to defuse the situation.
03:56 Another successful shot by Immortals on the second attempt: after the first shot didn’t work, a second robot takes another shot and scores. However, there’s a debate about this goal as well: if the goalkeeper touches the ball and successfully shoots it back forward, attackers are allowed to take a new shot. However, if the ball continues moving towards the goal despite hitting the goalkeeper, meaning it only rebounds off the goalkeeper, a second shot is not allowed. Whether the relevant angle of 90°, which separates these two cases, has been reached or not, is currently being discussed. Decision: No goal, the angle was greater than 90°.
03:23 However, this time, Immortals finally manages to score the deserved goal. Relatively unspectacularly, one of their robots drives towards the goal while the Dutch defense stands still!
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 1 Immortals
03:18 Twente still can’t seem to manage proper kick-offs. Instead of kicking the ball, the robot pushes it a lot. According to the rules, the player is not allowed to touch the ball more than once consecutively after the kick-off. As a result, there’s now a yellow card for Twente, leaving them with 5 robots, while Immortals still has 5 as well.
01:48 By now, there are already two yellow cards for Twente and one for Immortals. However, this only truly affects Twente since Immortals already has no more than 5 robots.
01:26 Finally, something interesting is happening again, as most of the past hour wasn’t very exciting: Goal for Immortals.
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 2 Immortals
01:08 Actually, the pace is picking up a bit, another valid goal by Immortals!
RoboTeam Twente 0 : 3 Immortals
-00:08 The game ends with a robot melee in Immortals’ half, but nothing comes of it, and the game ends 3:0 for Immortals.
00:00 This game certainly wasn’t pleasant to watch, and it was definitely the most challenging of the entire tournament so far. While the sidelines generally significantly enhance the entertainment value of the games, it wasn’t enough to make this match enjoyable. However, thanks to the victory, we now have the opportunity to play against Immortals tomorrow.

BuGa 2023: TIGERs Mannheim vs. RoboTeam Twente

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Soon the fifth and penultimate game of the day between TIGERs Mannheim and the Dutch team RoboTeam Twente will start. To be honest, we’re expecting a massacre with a clear victory for Mannheim.

First Half

05:00 Once again, the game is delayed by a few minutes, but this is hardly noticeable as the president of DHBW Mannheim gives a brief speech and introduction to the SSL League and our robots. It’s evident that he’s well-versed in the subject matter, and the introduction to our league and its challenges was very knowledgeable.
05:00 And again, the game starts with a timeout for Twente, but TIGERs gracefully passes the time with some dances, songs, and maneuvers, much to the delight of the spectators.
05:00 With about fifteen minutes, the game is finally kicked off, with TIGERs having the kickoff as the blue team.
04:49 Things heat up immediately, and TIGERs scores a goal, but apparently, the Dutch have luck on their side, as one of their robots touches the ball in their own penalty area just before it rolls into the goal, nullifying the goal.
04:39 Another strong situation in Twente’s penalty area, but once again, the Dutch have luck. However, this luck is unlikely to last forever.
04:20 This time, though! At first, it seems like bad luck as TIGERs loses the ball. But they quickly clear the situation in their favor and finish with a shot on goal. Initially, the goalkeeper seems to save, but then he turns the ball into his own goal!
TIGERs Mannheim 1 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:54 And again! Another goal directly by TIGERs Mannheim, making it 2:0 now!
TIGERs Mannheim 2 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:03 Another hot shot, but one of the Dutch robots clears through a foul: He positions himself in the defense area and defends with his body.
02:57 However, the defense doesn’t hold for long, another goal by TIGERs!
TIGERs Mannheim 3 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
02:25 The Twente goalkeeper, the strongest man on the team. He can actually prevent goals quite confidently, even though he may face minor mistakes and the dominance of TIGERs, he won’t see the sun in the long run.
01:42 Good ball exchanges and nice duels, mostly in Twente’s half. But in the end, as in most of this game, it happens: a goal for TIGERs!
TIGERs Mannheim 4 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
01:09 Now TIGERs steps up! Another goal by the Mannheim team!
TIGERs Mannheim 5 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:48 And again… a goal for TIGERs, the celebrated devastation is in full swing, the team firmly in the grip of the Tiger’s jaws.
TIGERs Mannheim 6 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
00:11 For a while, the ball was even in Mannheim’s half, but then, as always, it goes as expected: TIGERs can regain possession of the ball and tighten the noose even further. Eventually, TIGERs increases the lead to 7 goals.
TIGERs Mannheim 7 : 0 RoboTeam Twente

Second Half

05:00 The second half starts directly with a penalty for TIGERs, as it seems Twente committed a foul at the end of the first half (again, a Twente robot touched the ball in the penalty area).
04:53 And TIGERs naturally converts the penalty, extending their lead to 8 goals.
TIGERs Mannheim 8 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
04:37 And immediately, the next goal. Now only one more is needed to end the game prematurely.
TIGERs Mannheim 9 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
04:14 And with that, the game ends prematurely: TIGERs scores the last goal of the match and secures the top spot in the group.
TIGERs Mannheim 10 : 0 RoboTeam Twente

BuGa 2023: ER-Force vs. RoboTeam Twente

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And it’s already 1:00 PM, and our next game, ER-Force vs. RoboTeam Twente, is up. If we can deliver a comparable performance to the last game against TIGERs Mannheim, this should be an easy victory. But we’re curious, and as they say: Don’t count your chickens before they hatch!

Unfortunately, there’s no livestream for this game either, but it will be recorded, so a stream should be available later.

First Half

05:00 Just like the last game, it seems this game will also experience some delays. Both Twente and ER-Force seem to need more time, even though ER-Force already has all 6 robots on the field.
05:00 The game hasn’t properly started yet, but Twente has already taken a timeout. Meanwhile, it’s great to see 3 substitute robots relaxing on the bench next to our field, waiting for their chance to shine. Of course, we still hope it won’t come to that and our robots will hold up completely, just like in the last game.
05:00 And the 5-minute timeout granted to each team during regular game time is over. Since Twente apparently can’t get their robots moving, we use our timeout to give Twente a bit more time. So, timeout for ER-Force.
05:00 Now our 5 minutes are up too. The future of the game is definitely secured; in case Twente doesn’t get their robots running, we’ve already arranged to play against TIGERs Mannheim again. Nevertheless, we really hope that Twente can turn things around and get their robots going.
05:00 And the robots are moving! After about 2 more robots, the problem seems to be fundamentally resolved! Let’s hope that this will be the only incident for this game!
05:00 Kickoff by Twente. The Dutch team plays with purple-white robots and yellow jerseys, while ER-Force is in white attire and plays as the blue team.
04:40 A direct dangerous shot on Twente’s goal, after we got a free kick due to a Double Touch by Twente. Twente already has a foul as well, as they were too close to the ball during the kickoff.
03:18 Good attack by our robots, but the ball rolls just narrowly past the goal at a sharp angle.
03:14 But now! Another attack by us on Twente’s goal, and this time we score, increasing the lead to 1:0!
ER-Force 1 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:14 Minor issues at Twente. But that’s not all: Even the vision, meaning the camera system above the field, doesn’t seem to work perfectly, resulting in one of the robots in the Twente penalty area not being recognized. The game is temporarily halted, and Twente uses the time to get robots back on the field.
03:14 Small issue with the automatic PA system that comments on the game: After a shrill whistle, it continuously says “Free kick by Twente,” much to the amusement of all present. The automatic PA system was developed specifically for BuGa (Bundesgartenschau) to make it easier for the audience to understand the game.
03:14 Indeed, 6 new robots from our side are now on the field! The tournament has been running fantastically so far, aside from the unfortunate own goal! Meanwhile, outside: It’s pouring down. Thunderstorms from all sides. If you open the door, you’ll be blown back into the hall immediately.
03:14 Now, there’s even been a bug! No, not a software bug, but one that detached itself from the wall drawings and ventured onto the field! But we quickly took care of it, and the field is clear again. That’s probably why the hall is named “Pests and Beneficial Organisms.”
00:00 As the game is already quite exhausting, and Twente is facing many problems, it’s decided to move the game to the beginning of the second half. Therefore, we conclude the first half with a score of 1:0.
05:00 The clock time seems to be reset to 5 minutes. Why, I don’t know, but that’s the way it is. Twente has also gotten the kickoff but messed it up again.
04:11 At first, it seemed like our #8 couldn’t shoot. It kept nudging the ball instead of taking a shot. But that was apparently a feint, as it finally shot just in front of the goal and scored!
ER-Force 2 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
03:16 Another attack by us on the goal, but this time, we missed the target. No problem so far, as we are leading comfortably.
01:59 The game is somewhat meandering. Although we dominate strongly, a goal hasn’t been scored yet.
00:00 The halftime whistle is blown, after approximately 5 minutes have passed in total. As mentioned before: It’s not fully understood, but at least it was 5 minutes.

Second Half

05:00 The second half is kicked off by ER-Force.
04:23 As nothing happens, the game is eventually halted due to “Lack of Progress” (i.e., nothing noteworthy happens for 5 seconds), and a so-called Force Start is given, where both teams have an equal chance to reach the ball first. However, one of Twente’s robots starts spinning uncontrollably, so it must be taken off the field to protect the carpet.
03:50 Now we’re playing in power play mode, meaning with 6 robots against 5. However, this doesn’t make much of a difference, as Twente currently has only 4 robots on the field due to hardware limitations. Meanwhile, we continue to have 6 robots on the field without a single dropout.
02:36 A missed chance by us: We defend well in our half and pass the ball to one of our robots in the opponent’s half, but it prefers to wait for the opponent rather than aiming for the goal.
02:17 Now, a robot has to be replaced, but we currently have 4 substitute players.
01:57 And another goal for us! Now it’s 3:0.
ER-Force 3 : 0 RoboTeam Twente
01:02 Short break: Both AI referees say that a Twente robot touched the ball in their own penalty area. This is only allowed for the goalkeeper, making it a foul. However, since no one really saw anything, there’s currently a discussion.
00:55 It’s decided that the robot did touch the ball, so we get a penalty shot. Unfortunately, the robot we subbed in just a short while ago misses the shot right in front of the goal, so the score remains unchanged.
00:23 Flex first, then mess up: One by one, robots from our team take part in an endless series of dribbles, and the game seems perfect. We lead the Dutch team around by the nose. But instead of finally deciding to take a shot on goal, a dribble is messed up, and the ball goes to the opponent.
00:00 And thus, this game also comes to an end, fortunately with a score of 3:0 in our favor!