At Toward we've always stuck to the 'work hard, play hard' philosophy. So lunchtime at the studio will usually see us gather in the 'meeting room' to watch a film or have a go on the X-Box.
For a while now our game of choice has been Zombies mode on Call of Duty, but in the last week or two we decided to try a different challenge so we dusted off Pro Evo and Toward Athletic was born, a formidable and unbeaten football team. Or not.
We set our sights high and invested time in getting the foundations right. An imaginary 'Academy of Excellence', the all important club shop and a strong management structure gave birth to what will soon become a global footballing brand. Before even kicking a ball our team of creatives worked tirelessly on developing a symbol that would out-live the UTD Red Devil and Arsenal Cannon. We need to look our best and have created the perfect symbol to represent Toward Athletic. A bird of prey rising from an egg that's blue. A truly inspiring example of storytelling through brands and communicating team personality - it's what we excel at!
One of our superstars Minanda demolishing the defence
We started our life in Division 2 which has given us the opportunity to learn the professional game with a pre-formed squad of underachievers and a loyal fan base. We couldn't wait to kick off our inaugural season.
From day 1 we were being taught lessons and things got off to a shaky start. An opening day loss followed by some dubious draws created unrest amongst the Athletic Faithful. We needed to turn things around fast, and we did. The introduction of innovative training techniques and a diet plan brought out the best in the team. Minanda, Costolo and Ximenez led from the front and the others followed. We started to control possession and soon picked up an imaginary reputation for playing a solid passing game. As each game passed it was clear that our players were beginning to gel and losing was no longer an option. We were hungry for promotion and deserved it.
Our efforts paid off and following a 1-0 trouncing of AIK we finished the season in 2nd place giving us automatic promotion to Division 1.
Today we prepare for the start of our 2nd season where the stakes are even higher. There will be new additions and as always some casualties but we aim to push on with our dream in playing amongst footballs elite.
We must not rest on our laurels. We have many matches ahead of us, no doubt a few injuries and perhaps even some red cards but like the best of them, Toward Athletic will survive and face these challenges head on, rising like a phoenix from the flames. Or maybe an eagle from an egg.
(We'd like to remind our clients that this type of activity only increases our creativity and productivity. Promise!)
