Middle-Earth Football World Cup 2007 [Archive] - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Sleepy Ranger

07-04-2007, 04:48 AM

Barrow-Downs 3 - 2 Mordor

It was a very evenly matched contest which the 'Downs snatched in the closing moments of the match. The first half was rather listless and neither team seemed to be trying too hard. The closest anyone came in the first half was when Rune headed the ball towards Sleepy who volleyed wide. Just as the second half kicked off the first goal was produced, after a dangerous tackle by Rune while earned him a yellow card and gave Mordor a free kick in a good position. Gothmog lobbed the ball and Dark-Lord headed in with ease.

It was then at the 70th minute that the Barrow-Downs finally managed to find a gap in the Mordor defence and a blistering run by Saucepan Man capped by a beautiful cross was converted bu Sleepy Ranger who chested the ball and slotted it past Shelob with ease. The Witch-King then broke past the 'Downs defence and was only denied by a fantastic save from the Barrow-Wight. Mordor wasted the resultant corner and Saucepan Man picked up the loose ball and made it all the way to the Mordor goal, his shot however bounced off the post, quite luckily to a lurking Phantom who made no mistakes in heading in the rebound.

At 2-1 in the 80th minute it seemed the match had been buried but barely five minutes later a long range screamer by Snaga levelled things up again. As the match entered injury time the 'Downs had a throw in near the Mordor goal. Glirdan employed the long throw brilliantly and Sleepy headed the ball towards Saucepan Man who unselfishly lobbed it towards Rune who volleyed from hardly a metre away.

Shots: 7(5) - 9(7)
Posession: 51 - 49

***

Gondor 0 - 1 Shire

It was a very evenly matched game and the Shire can consider them lucky to have picked up the win though a draw would have been a fair result. Gondor dominated the early proceedings with Faramir coming agonizingly close, his shot beating a helpless Lobelia but also rolling past the wrong side of the post. Moments later Lobelia managed to hold onto a powerful low drive from just outside the area by Boromir. The Shire didn't really get a look till the 30th minute when Pippin showed some great individual skill to dribble past the entire Gondorian defence unfortunately he was at too tight an angle to pull of a shot and instead, cleverly played the ball off Denethor for a corner.

Sam took a very pin-point corner, the ball going straight to Pippin who was kept from scoring only by a last ditch goal line clearance by Imrahil. After that the match went back and forth quite a lot with nobody really threatening. The break-through came in the 85th minute when Sam crossed from the right win and found an unmarked Bullroarer Took who calmly headed in the winner. Gondor did get a final chance with a free-kick in the final few moments but Lobelia held onto the ball as the referee blew the final whistle.

Shots: 8(4) - 5(4)
Posession: 50 - 50

***

Angband 1 - 0 The Inklings

Although the result seems predictable since Angband are a far superior team to the Inklings and on paper one could safely assume Angband might have won it by two or three goals but football isn't played on paper. The Inklings dominated the entire game and were let down by poor finishing in the end. They made it clear that they're no push overs right in the start of the match when CS Lewis' header just grazed the crossbar. They came close many times after that and at the end of the first half they were very unlucky to go in with the scores still level.

The second half started much the same with Christopher Tolkien forcing an acrobatic save out of Glaurung with a brilliant lob from the edge of the box. In the 55th minute though a blistering run by Ulfang from one end of the field to the other produced Angband's only chance of the game which lead to the only goal of the game. Though it seemed the ball would get away from him Ulfang managed to slide in a cross which Melkor had to dive to connect with, none the less sending the ball into the back of the net.

Shots: 1(1) - 7(3)
Posession: 43 - 57

***

Valinor 0 - 0 Gondolin

It was a fairly boring match with neither team really commiting to attack. Though the first half was dominated by Gondolin they could only muster up two or three decent attempts. Hurin drilled a through ball towards Glorfindel who lobbed the ball upwards and headed only for the ball to harmlessly go out off the post. Soon after Gondolin were given a free-kick just outside the area. Hurin took a hard shot but it deflected against the wall, only to land at the feet of Turgon who shot hopelessly wide.

In the second half the game was a bit more evenly matched with Valinor getting a few shots under their belt but none were really going to trouble Ulmo, rated as one of the best goalkeepers of the tournament. Valinor did come close when Eonwe drilled a shot aimed at the bottom left corner only to see his shot miraculously held by Ulmo. After that Gondolin were content to hold onto the ball and pass it around rather than build an attack.

Shots: 8(5) - 5(4)
Posession: 54 - 46

***

That's the action from the first four matches. The other four shall be up later. I hope you enjoy these pre-World Cup friendlies. :)

Elmo

07-04-2007, 04:56 AM

A 0-0 is expected when both teams have the terrible 4-5-1 formation. If I had my way that would be banned from all football.:mad: Good to see the Down's making a winning start but their 4-3-3 will ensure they'll leak goals like I leak embarassing secrets when drunk.

Sleepy Ranger

07-04-2007, 05:03 AM

I'm not much of a fan of the 4-5-1 myself but I reckon both Valinor and Gondolin have exceptional mid-fields and hopefully will play more attacking football later on. As they showed in the last tournament Gondolin are capable of some high-scoring games.

I'll admit that even the 'Downs defence is attack-minded but our goal-keeper is truly world class. I expect him to actually save us in a couple of matches. However I fully expect our front line to stay ever alert and knock in a fair number of goals for us. While it is good to make a winning start it's also good to see that two of the teams in our group (Gondor and The Inklings) both lost although they played very good football and were unlucky to lose. It does give us the mental edge.

The Saucepan Man

07-04-2007, 06:41 AM

... none were really going to trouble Ulmo, rated as one of the best goalkeepers of the tournament.Eh? The team rosters indicate that Varda is Valinor's goalkeeper ...:confused:

Sleepy Ranger

07-04-2007, 06:43 AM

Indeed, Saucey. It was Valinor shooting and Ulmo saving, who plays in goal for Gondolin. :)

The Saucepan Man

07-04-2007, 06:50 AM

Oops! Fair 'nuff.:D

Sleepy Ranger

07-04-2007, 02:08 PM

Moria 0 - 0 Buckland

Just moments after the whistle Moria had a free-kick well within shooting distance which is exactly what Durin did but alas, his shot bounced off the crossbar and Azog was not quick enough to pounce on the rebound and the ball was whisked away for a corner. The resulting corner was cleared away quickly. The first half saw Moria dominate the match and come close a number of times but were thwarted by moments of indecision.

The second half began in similar fashion with Balin whipping in a low shot only to have it smack the post and be cleared away immediatly. Momentum seemed to shift for a bit when Durin's Bane was shown a yellow card for a late tackle and Buckland were given a free-kick. However, this didn't prove to be of much avail as the ball was quickly back in Moria's posession. The match may have ended right here, in the 60th minute since neither team were able to build any attacking momentum after that. It seems Moria's team work issues are re-emerging at the worst possible moments which cost them their match. They'll be hoping to work them out sooner rather than later.

Shots: 10(8) - 1(0)
Posession: 55 - 45

***

Ham 1 - 0 Niggle's Parish

Right at the start of the match Ham built a very good attack. They kept the ball moving about, passing and weaving through their opponents defence till Miller decided to go for goal even though he had has back towards it. He sent a backwards lob which beat the goalkeeper but then struck the post on the line and went out instead of in. After that painful missed oppurtunity Niggle's Parish took control and began some quick runs keeping nearly 60% of posession the first half.

Around the 30th minute, Mr. Parish began an explosive run down the right wing but King Augustus Bonifacius slid in recklessly and picked up a yellow card. The free kick was too far away to actually present any real danger but none the less it was a very good cross from Second Voice that caused panic in the Ham defence till Chrysophylax collected the ball out of the air. The first half ended with Niggle's Parish firmly on top but the scores level.

The second half started in the same trend as the first with Niggle's Parish pushing at Ham. At the hour mark an oppurtunity came, stood for a minute and passed by as Inspector failed to pounce on it. A through ball by Mr. Parish sliced the Ham defence and left Inspector with the simplest of jobs of tapping the ball into an empty net, which he failed quite miserably by letting the ball run through his feet. Very, very embarassing.

Niggle's Parish just keep growing in confidence till eventually they became over-confident and ruled out all possibility of an attack by Ham but they did just that. Ham broke on them swift and fast on the counter-attack and Niggle's Parish were fortunate only to concede a corner. However, the high cross from the corner by Parson resulted in a simple headed goal by Farmer Giles. Niggle's Parish pushed on after that, trying to dribble past Ham but their defence stood strong and let nothing by, leading to a very undeserved win. Ham just sat back and defended the whole match but came out on top and a win is a win no matter how it's achieved.

Shots: 2(1) - 9(6)
Posession: 40 - 60

***

Misty Mountains 0 - 0 Arnor

Dull. The first 80 minutes were dull beyond belief. In total, they could only muster up ONE shot between them in the first 80 minutes which was a header by Dwalin which must have gone 20 metres over the goal. Luckily, Misty Mountains woke up in the last 10 minutes of the game and put on a real show.

The won a free-kick some 40 metres out and a lob sent in by Bofur was headed goal-wards by Stone Giant only to see Aragorn (back on defensive duities) valiantly clear the ball off the line but his clearance only went as far as Dwalin whose shot was punched away by Trotter. The ball flew into Gwahir's path who volleyed it wide of the goal. The game ended just after the resulting goal-kick. If only Misty Mountains had played like this the whole game they would've easily won it. Arnor really need to start going forward, considering they play such an attacking formation they really shouldn't defend all game long.

Shots: 4(2) - 0(0)
Posession: 50 - 50

***

Lothlorien 0 - 0 Mirkwood

Fantastic! This match was amazing. Quite easily the best match of the day. Yes, there were no goals but really this match was truly amazing. Lothlorien started off quite strong, piecing together good moves, quick dribbles but were prevented from building any real momentum because of quick shoves and steals by Mirkwood players. While Lothlorien seemed to prefer complex moves and beautiful dribbles, Mirkwood seemed to be happy ploughing through whatever stood in front of them. The first half ended without a goal and quite strangely no cards.

The second half began in favor of Mirkwood who managed to edge closer to goal. Up till now I didn't realize there had been no shots at all in this match so far and yet it managed to be so amazing. Quite absurd really. Eventually Celeborn seemed to lose it and slide in dangerously at Khamul earning himself a yellow card and a bit of a brawl erupted between the two but luckily they were seperated before anything escelated. The ball was passed on from the free-kick and Legolas lashed in a grounder that zipped past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net. The supporters went crazy.

However, much to everyone's horror the goal was disallowed due to offside. It was a very controversial decision since the offside was given on principle that Necromancer was behind Lorien's last defender but he was not interfering in play so the decision made no sense at all. Very, very bad decision here and Mirkwood are right to feel hard done. I am very impressed with the way they got on with it though, they kept their heads up and put on a truly entertaining game. Though officialy there was only one shot recorded, which went wide at that, it was a true classic. Brilliant match. Fantastic effort from both teams and I'm sure they'll go on to greater things once the tournament begins.

Shots: 0 - 0
Posession: 49 - 51

***

Here's the matches for today. I don't have time for any more today I'm afraid and I very much doubt I'll be able to do any tomorrow so I don't think it'd be fair to tease you with any fixtures. :)

Sleepy Ranger

07-05-2007, 02:55 PM

We'll have some more friendlies played tomorrow. I'm glad to see that interest is picking up as people swing into that familiar World Cup mood. We've already recieved a decent start on the number of people in the Fantasy Cup. Hopefully more will pop in as we draw closer to the start.

Numenor vs. Nargothrond
Tuna vs. Doriath
Erebor vs. Fangorn
Rohan vs. Tol Eressea

I can confirm four matches for tomorrow and if any other are scheduled then rest assured we will present complete coverage of all the action.

We're now ready to reveal the date of the start of the World Cup. The Middle-Earth Football World Cup 2007 will begin on the 9th of July 2007. You may register your fantasy team or make any changes to your team at the latest by the 8th of July. More information will be released as it is recieved. :)

the phantom

07-06-2007, 05:12 PM

And here it is! The not-at-all anticipated Phantom's Tournament Guide!

GROUP A

EREBOR- Smaug is a wise and cunning goalie, and is usually able to guess right on penalty shots, but as everyone knows a goalie can’t win everything by himself. I don’t think Smaug will get enough support from the rest of his team. Roac is great at getting in the way of the ball, but he can’t actually kick the ball. The dwarves are fundamentally sound and tireless, but slower than some of the opponents they will be facing. Bard is an accurate shooter, but a team like Angband has good enough defenders to keep Bard off balance, and generally keep the ball from even getting to him.

MORIA- Azog and Durin’s Bane have proven themselves to be dangerous, but will team chemistry be a problem like last year? Also, the Watcher in the Water has a tendency to nap on the job and allow balls to slide right past. Look for one of the dwarves to toss a rock at him periodically to keep him on his toes. The defense benefits greatly from the addition of Celebrimbor.

VALINOR- Valinor has some real talent (Orome, Eonwe, and Tulkas in particular) but the question is, can they carry the team? For a couple games, sure, but I expect they’ll wear down as the tournament goes along. They certainly won’t get much help from Mandos, who is prone to standing in the middle of the field, completely unmoving. He often tries to “doom” the ball away from their goal, or towards the opponent’s goal, not quite realizing that action is more effective on the football field. Manwe also is prone to inactivity, often letting a game get entirely out of hand before moving. His judgment is also suspect, as he is easily fooled by clever opponents. Due to his unwillingness to act, he has developed a slight fear of the ball, and has been known to feint when it comes too close, or sometimes when anyone on the field kicks it forcefully.

ANGBAND- Ulfast, Uldor, and Ulfang are newcomers, but the fact that Melkor put them in the starting line-up must mean they are capable players. Surrounding them is a cast of well known and widely feared footballers. Ungolient will cause all sorts of problems with the cloud of darkness that surrounds her, Melkor and Gothmog can really pressure a defense, the vampire and the wolves are very fast and aggressive, and the two dragons, Glaurung and Ancalagon, make scoring on Angband a real chore.

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING
Angband- 99%
Valinor- 89%
Moria- 6%
Erebor- 6%

Likely to go all the way- Angband

GROUP B

BRETHIL- Brethil is a good team. Good enough to advance out of group play, anyway. And with Turambar shooting the ball, they are also capable of an upset or two once out of group play. But they’re not in Tuna’s league.

LOTHLORIEN- Lothlorien is a solid team, but lacks the scoring abilities of Brethil and Tuna. And as she will soon find out, Galadriel is no Melian in goal, no matter how much she pretends to be.

TUNA- Tuna has possibly the most athletic team across the board. Fingolfin is a talented and fearless goalie, and the combination of Finwe and Feanor on the attack is enough to make any opposing goalie wet his shorts. In many circles Tuna is considered the tournament favorite.

SHIRE- Every single member of the Shire team will be slower, weaker, and shorter, and have less reach than his/her opponent in every single game. So naturally, they will win lots of matches. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Teams of twelve year olds regularly beat World Cup teams after all, right? But seriously, so long as officials refuse to crack down on various illegal activities, I fully expect the Shire to carry on winning matches by continuing their practice of poisoning opponents’ water jugs, paying referees, rigging the ball with magnets, and other such nonsense.

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING
The Shire- 100%
Tuna- 80%
Brethil- 15%
Lothlorien- 5%

Likely to go all the way- The Shire, Tuna

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING WITHOUT CHEATING
Tuna- 99%
Brethil- 81%
Lothlorien- 20%
The Shire- 0%

Likely to go all the way without cheating- Tuna

GROUP C

NIGGLE’S PARISH- This team will not win. Their name is ridiculous. And really- voices playing positions? Good luck with that.

NUMENOR- This team is stocked with royal talent. It would be a severe disappointment if they do not advance out of group play. However, I can’t see them challenging for the title.

NARGOTHROND- Nargothrond is a very dangerous team, capable of challenging for the title. Their primary, and possibly only, weakness is Mim the petty dwarf, a known backstabber that often dooms his own team. But if my sources are correct, Mim’s stay in the starting line-up will be short lived. Gwindor, who has been on the DL, has nearly recovered from his injury, and will certainly be reinserted into the starting line. This will complete a solid team that boasts fantastic defense led by experts Celegorm and Curufin, as well as the too-good-to-be-believed scoring talents of Mormegil.

BUCKLAND- Buckland boasts a roster that consists primarily of extremely short, somewhat overweight hobbits. Merry is certainly a cut above the hobbits, but even he will be dwarfed by those defending him, and outpaced as well. Gildor won’t have this problem, but what can one elf do alone?

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING
Nargothrond- 99%
Numenor- 95%
Buckland- 5%
Niggle’s Parish- 1%

Likely to go all the way- Nargothrond

GROUP D

DOR LOMIN- With Hurin and Huor not playing for them this year, Dor Lomin will be hard pressed to equal the success they’ve had in years past. Fingon and Turin are certainly capable of putting up goals, but the formation and lack of experience in the field behind them will likely lead to the opposition scoring goals as well. They’re good enough to make it out of group play, but they won’t make a deep run.

MORDOR- As usual, Mordor has fielded a solid team. Despite the possibility of team chemistry problems between the orcs, Sauron’s teams always maintain focus so long as there is an enemy on the field. Also, as a cold and calculating sort of chap, Sauron is not prone to the red/yellow cards that other baddies often receive.

TOL ERESSEA- While TE might feature some quality talent (Earendil and Osse in particular), I can’t see them advancing out of group play. Their forwards, Frodo and Earwen, have never proven themselves to be potent attackers, and I don’t really see them being able to keep up with Mordor and Dor Lomin, who both feature world-class duos (Turin-Fingon, Sauron-WK).

ROVERANDOM- This is another team that you can write off immediately. Roverandom had so much difficulty fielding a team that their roster includes two dogs and a random unnamed boy. Even more puzzling is Roverandom’s assertion that the “Man in the Moon” will be playing forward for them. I expect that means they have not actually found an 11th member for their team thus far.

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING
Mordor- 90%
Dor Lomin- 80%
Tol Eressea- 29%
Roverandom- 1%

Likely to go all the way- Mordor

GROUP E

FANGORN- I fully expect Fangorn to be a disaster. Ents and orcs do not mix. It’s really too bad, because from a sheer talent perspective, the team is pretty good.

OLD GREY HILL- Here is another team that won’t go anywhere. But really, can you expect a high level of football from kitchen utensils and drunken cats? Also, the Sun is likely to receive a red card rather quickly for burning opponents.

TOL IN GAUROTH- I’m not sure what to expect from this team. I think I’ll pick them to advance just because of how weak this group is, but I don’t have any sort of read on them at this point.

MISTY MOUNTAINS- The dwarves and the goblins will have a tough time getting along. The success of this team depends on whether or not Gwaihir is able to intimidate the orcs into good behavior and team work.

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING

Misty Mountains- 80%
Tol In Gauroth- 75%
Fangorn- 44%
Old Grey Hill- 1%

Likely to go all the way- none

GROUP F

GONDOLIN- Gondolin is advancing. Definitely. They have all-star talent all over the field and a Vala in goal. They would be a smart pick to win it all.

BREE- With help from the neighboring Downs and Old Forest, Bree has managed to field a solid team. It’s a shame they weren’t placed in a weaker bracket, because I really think they’d have a shot at advancing.

WOOTON MAJOR- They aren’t a bad team, but they’re not on level with Mirkwood, and don’t have the individual talents to match up with Bree’s Tom Bombadil. And Gondolin… well… that game could get terribly lopsided.

MIRKWOOD- This is a team that needs to be watched. A team featuring a wizard and two immense bear-men always is formidable, but when you add Sauron and a Nazgul, you are talking about a real contender. Mirkwood could sneak up on some teams. Sauron and his Nazgul sidekick cleverly entered their names as “Necromancer” and “Khamul”, and so will possibly be overlooked until game time, when suddenly the other team realizes “Oh crap, it’s a Ringwraith. Oh, double crap- Sauron’s on their team!”

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING

Gondolin- 99%
Mirkwood- 95%
Bree- 4%
Wooton Major- 1%

Likely to go all the way- Gondolin

GROUP G

ROHAN- Rohan is very good. And I mean very good. Unfortunately, they’re matched up with two other very good teams.

BARROW-DOWNS- In what is probably the toughest group in the tournament, BDs is likely the best team. They have, I believe, just a slight edge at most positions, and most importantly, a fine spirit of camaraderie and a team mentality.

GONDOR- Just reread what I said for Rohan, only substitute “Gondor” for “Rohan”.

INKLINGS- I don’t know what to expect from The Inklings. They are all untested, inexperienced players thrown into the toughest group in the tournament. This makes me think they won’t advance, but who knows?

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING

The Barrow-Downs- 70%
Gondor- 55%
Rohan- 55%
Inklings- 20%

Likely to go all the way- The Barrow-Downs

GROUP H

ARNOR- Arnor is athletic and well trained. Their players are physically imposing, enduring, and quick. Arnor supporters are fully expecting a semifinals appearance at the least.

DORIATH- Doriath owns a tight defense, a prolific offense, and a solid midfield, and is certainly able to challenge for the title.

RIVENDELL- Rivendell did not get the roster they were hoping for, and that will likely lead to an early dismissal. Aragorn, Celeborn, Gandalf, Gildor, Valandil, and others could have opted to play for Rivendell, but luck was not with the Last Homely House. Instead, they have a suspect midfield that is unlikely to be able to keep possession, and likely to allow other teams into their half of the field with ease. While Elladan, Erestor, and Glorfindel are amazing defenders, and Elrond is one of the greatest goalies of all time, they probably can’t be expected to shut out the opponent in every single game.

HAM- I expect Ham to play well, but I also expect Ham to be eliminated. Arnor and Doriath are just too good.

PROBABILITY OF ADVANCING

Doriath- 95%
Arnor- 95%
Rivendell- 5%
Ham- 5%

Likely to go all the way- Doriath, Arnor

And now finally, my pre-tournament top 10.
AP/BCS Poll (Ask Phantom/Bull Crap Slanted Poll)
1. Tuna
2. Gondolin
3. Angband
4. Nargothrond
5. Arnor
6. The Barrow-Downs
7. Mordor
8. Doriath
9. Valinor
10. Numenor

Sleepy Ranger

07-07-2007, 05:05 AM

Numenor 0 - 2 Nargothrond

In the first half, despite the posession being about even Nargothrond very much dominated the game. Whenever they touched the ball they looked like scoring, it was only some brilliant defensive play (10 men behind the ball) by Numenor that kept them alive. Most of the time the sheer numbers of the Numenorian defence choked out all Nargothrond attacks.

The closest they came was a powerful header by Felagund which skimmed the top of the crossbar. Near the end of the first half Numenor won a free-kick and Gundor was shown a yellow card. Numenor built a swift passing move but a last ditch tackle by Curufin assured they would go in without a goal.

Numenor began to push back Nargothrond with some wonderful attacking play early on in the second half. Amandil pulled off a shot that whistled through a crowd and was magnificently saved by Beor. Numenor continued their smooth attacking till Nargothrond hit a swift counter-attack which gave Mormegil a chance to knock one in, which he did quite gracefully.

Numenor began to play very, very attacking football upon going a goal down and seemed to harass the Nargothrond defence at times but they held strong. Towards the end of the match Nargothrond broke on another counter attack, Finduilas provided a cross from outside the area which was easily converted by Mormegil to seal the game.

Shots: 4(4) - 6(4)
Posession: 50 - 50

***

Tuna 1 - 0 Doriath

Tuna played fantastic football and outright dominated the first half and their skilled plays resulted in a very well taken goal. In the early moments of the match Tuna won a free kick. Unfortunately the ball fizzed past everyone and out for a goal-kick. Around the 30th minute a high cross from Maedhros was chested down by Feanor who, after some fancy footwork, chipped it past Melian for an easy goal. Tuna's dominance is very much reflected in the posession of the first have, a cool 65% was seen by Tuna.

Tuna continued their dominance in the second half and kept pressing Doriath's defence. Though it seemed they preferred upstaging their opponents by dribbling circles around them and holding onto the ball in dangerous places even when there were brilliant chances to score another. It was some very fancy play by Tuna who seemeed to prefer using the second play to relax and warm up for the coming tournament.

Towards the end of the match Doriath actually began to see more of the ball but Tuna held them back, not letting them really get any shots in. Doriath will feel totally humiliated after this match, Tuna upstaged them on every front and even took time to taunt their opponents, in fact they dedicated an entire half to it. It is believed that Doriath have lodged an official complaint agains this.

Shots: 3(2) - 1(0)
Posession: 59 - 41

***

Erebor 0 - 0 Fangorn

What a boring match. Neither team commited to attack as can be seen by the ZERO shots taken in the entire match. Fangorn may have gone forward a bit in the start and then Erebor towards the end but that's about it. Nobody bothered shooting and this match was just plain... boring.

Shots: 0 - 0
Posession 45 - 55

***

Rohan 0 - 1 Tol Eressea

This was a fairly boring and very one sided match. Tol Eressea walked all over Rohan, who failed to even get to the other half. Tol Eressea's domination didn't really do much for them anyway as they only managed to get one shot on target through the entire affair. Around the 65th minute Elwing sent in a cross for Earwen to head home with relative ease. All in all, a boring game.

Shots: 0 - 6(1)
Posession: 43 - 57

***

That's that for today's round of friendlies. I might have a match or two more later today. The fixtures for the first round of the group stages will also go up today. :)

Sleepy Ranger

07-08-2007, 07:51 AM

We have one special match lined up before the opening fixtures are announced. This will be a clash of last time's finalists. It will be the Barrow-Downs vs. Angband once again. Let's see how it pans out this time...

Barrow-Downs 1 - 2 Angband

It was a disastrous beginning for the 'Downs as right at the start Melkor played the ball in for Gothmog who stole into the penalty area and drove a shot past the Barrow-Wight. Moments later a loose pass from Glirdan was picked up by Ungoliant and in a repeat of the first goal, Gothmog stole away and drove past the Barrow-Wight again.

After the initial shock of being 2 goals down with hardly five minutes played had sunk in the 'Downs began to play some very good attacking football. At the 10th minute Glirdan burst forward and played in for Sleepy Ranger but the 'Downs front man saw his shot pushed away by Glaurung for a corner. The resulting corner was cleared and led to a counter attack by Angband. However, this time Barrow-Wight got the upper hand and knocked away a lobbed shot from Melkor and immediatly after punched away a rebound attempt by Gothmog.

The 'Downs kept pressing on attack and soon Saucepan Man tried to blast one in only for his shot to bounce off some defenders. Next it was The Phantom's turn. A cross in from Rune was headed just wide of the post by Phantom. Near the end of the half the 'Downs won a free-kick not too far out but alas, The Phantom sent it fizzing over the post to bring an end to an exciting (and disappointing for 'Downs supporters) first half.

The second half started with Angband holding onto the ball and slowly building their way forward until Nogrod snatched away the ball and played it front tp Rune who ran forward playing a one-two with Arcticstorm until the ball was finally crossed over to Saucepan Man who put himself in a wonderful position to shoot but instead held onto the ball till Arcticstorm was up front, Saucey sent a neat pass in for Arctic who blasted in from point blank only to shockingly see his shot saved by Glaurung.

The 'Downs kept piling on the pressure but were unable to find the back of the net. They were let down by poor finishing on some ocassions and on others they just had some horrible luck. Nogrod had a chance off a corner but his header was held onto by Glaurung. Towards the end of the match Sleepy Ranger knicked the ball away from a defender but unfortunately it was too tight an angle and his shot hit the cross-bar. Quite to the 'Downs luck the ball landed straight at the feet of Feanor of the Peredhil who chipped one in for Arcticstorm only for his header to come back off the crossbar as well.

This time the ball wound up at the feet of Rune who crossed the ball over to Saucepan Man at the other end who immediatly played the ball into the box for Sleepy Ranger to head home. With mere seconds left to play Angband restarted. A fired up Rune stole the ball and began a furious run, passing the ball over to Firefoot eventually who was just about to cross to an unmarked Sleepy only for the referee to blow the whistle. Quite unfortunate as the 'Downs were perfectly set up for the equalizer. Well, either way they played a fantastic match but Angband played slightly better and deserved to win it in the end.

Shots: 15(11) - 14(10)
Posession: 52 - 48

***

It was quite a match, wasn't it? Anyway, the fixtures will be up soon. :D

Sleepy Ranger

07-08-2007, 10:29 AM

The opening day will be postponed to the 10th due to an addition to the fantasy tournament. Therefore you have ONE day more to make any changes or register your team. The opening fixtures may also influence your team's final line-up. Without further ado, here they are.

All matches to be played on the 10th of July at around 1:30pm GMT.

Group A
Erebor vs. Angband

Group B
Lothlorien vs. Shire

Group D
Mordor vs. Roverandom

Group G
Rohan vs. Inklings

The Saucepan Man

07-09-2007, 06:35 PM

Group A

It looks like, after the poor showing of Erebor and Dale in last year’s competition, they have combined under Erebor’s banner to improve their prospects. In Thorin and Bard, they have two good strikers, but neither lived up to expectations in 2006, and I suspect that they will struggle to find the service that they need from the weak midfield. Roac is well past his best and Fili and Kili, while enthusiastic, lack experience at this level. The defence is solid, but lacks mobility, and Bombur is a definite weak link in this regard. Smaug will no doubt acquit himself well in goal, but the team would have been better advised to use his fiery pace up front.

Moria will undoubtedly once more experience problems with their team spirit. Combining Orcs, Balrogs and Dwarves in the same team never bodes well. There are some brilliant individual talents, but can they play as a team? Balin and Azog are redoubtable forwards, but can they build a partnership? Durin’s Bane is a sizzling talent on the wing, but how well can he combine with Durin? The defence is packed with journeyman players, with the exception of Celebrimbor. But even he lacks guile and can be easily be fooled by trickery. The Watcher in the Water was born to play in goal, but I suspect that it won’t be nearly enough to stop this team leaking goals.

Valinor has always had a strong defence and will let in few goals. Varda is a star goalkeeper and, in Manwe and Aule, they have two of the most experienced central defenders in the competition. Tulkas is a strong forward, who will hold up play well, allowing Mandos and Eonwe to get forward into the box. Their prime weakness lays in the two Blue Midfielders, who are prone to go missing at times. However, while they may not score as many goals as some of the teams in this competition, they won’t let many in either. Expect a quarter final finish at least.

I fully expect Angband to win this Group. Finalists last year, they have always shown themselves to be dangerous. Melkor is one of the most masterful forwards in the competition. Strong, relentless and ruthless, he has an excellent understanding with his strike partner, Gothmog. The midfield is talented too, with Thuringwethil’s blood-curdling pace and the trickery of Ulfast and Uldor providing strong support to the forwards, while Ungoliant lurks further back in a holding role to pick off the unwary. If they have a weakness, it’s their defence. It is simply too crowded with big beasts and big egos. But expect them to make up for this by scoring far more goals than they let in.

Saucepan’s prediction:

This is a strong Group and both Erebor and Moria would stand a good chance against weaker opposition. But I can’t see them prevailing over the might of Valinor and Angband.

Group winners: Angband
Group runners up: Valinor
First round elimination: Erebor and Moria

Group B

Brethil are newcomers to this competiton, and I can’t see them going very far. Turambar is by far their strongest player, but will lack support from the relatively unknown midfield. Haleth is certainly a strong defender, but Brandir’s mobility must be suspect as he is carrying a long-term injury. This team might be able to hold out for a while, even against some of the better teams, but they will be overmastered in the end.

On paper, Lothlorien looks like a good team, and its defence is definately strong. Galadriel can stifle even the most determined attack and has a good understanding with Celeborn in central defence who, in turn, marshals the remaining defenders wisely. The midfield is strong too. It is heartening to see a veteran like Gandalf still doing the business, while Gimli is always eager to get on the attack. Arwen tends to hang back, particularly after having been vilified by fans for trying to get into the action up front, but she provides good support. The problem is up front. Amdir and Amroth, both relatively unknown, simply aren’t up to it at this level.

Who can argue with the quality of a team that boasts Elf Lords all over the pitch? Tuna, although new to the competition, has to be one of the favourites. Feanor and Finwe combine magnificently up front, with fantastic support from an exceptional midfield. Amras, Amrod and Maglor are experienced defenders and, even if a skilled attacker can find his way through Maglor’s gap, he will still have the strength and skill of Fingolfin in goal to beat.

The surprise package of last year’s competition, The Shire are fielding a somewhat different line up this year. The superb partnerships of Merry and Pippin up front and Sam and Frodo in midfield have been broken up, with Merry’s move to Buckland and Frodo’s transfer to Tol Eressea. But Pippin is still a class striker and the promise of his pace with the power of the Bullroarer is a mouth-watering prospect. Similarly, I expect Sam to combine well with his Gaffer, although I have my doubts about the remainder of the midfield. The Old Took provides experience in defence, but the Cottons are yet to prove themselves and Ted Sandyman is prone to lapses in judgement. Lobelia can be intimidating in goal, but they will let a few in. They will have to score more than they let in to have any chance of repeating last year‘s performance.

Saucepan’s prediction:

Tuna are the runaway favourites, but expect strong competiton from the Shire. Brethil are also-rans, while Lothlorien are unlikely to score enough to get them through the Group.

Group winners: Tuna
Group runners up: The Shire
First round elimination: Brethil and Lothlorien

Group C

We can’t expect much from Niggle's Parish, I’m afraid. They struggled to qualify for the finals, and have only two players worthy of note. Niggle is a reasonable enough goalkeeper, but prone to distraction, while Parish is a decent finisher, but may struggle to find his form in the early stages. The defence is utterly insubstantial and they have very little going forward. They are completely out of their depth here.

Numenore proved last year that their defence is strong, although the central partnership of Aldarion and Erendis is prone to misunderstanding. While none of their players stands out as an exceptional individual talent, they combine well as a team. If they have a weakness, it is their eagerness to go on the attack, which can leave them liable to be swamped at the back when their attacks break down.

In Mormegil, Nargothrond have the top-scoring player of the 2006 competition. He has established a superb partnership with Felagund and they can expect excellent support from the midfield. Curufin and Celegorm are great defenders, but the team has a tendency leave itself vulnerable at the back against opponents quick to counter-attack. Expect lots and lots of goals, both for and against.

Buckland have an accomplished striker in Meriadoc Brandybuck but, as a lone stiker, he needs support and he is not going to find it in this very defensive midfield line-up. Farmer Maggot is sturdy and dependable, while Gildor is skilful and swift of foot. But neither they nor their midfield partners are players who like to get forward. Fatty Bolger is alert, marshal’s the defence well and has a surprising turn of pace, but there’s not enough here to persuade me that they can progress.

Saucepan’s prediction:

Niggle’s Parish are no hopers in this Group. Expect Buckland to put up a reasonable fight, but I don’t think it will be enough.

Group winners: Nargothrond
Group runners up: Numenore
First round elimination: Buckland and Niggle’s Parish

Group D

Brodda is an unknown quantity in goal and Dor Lomin cannot necessarily rely on him, but they nevertheless have a good defence, with the steely Morwen leading the line, although Nienor can be anonymous at times. They also have a formidable attacking trio in Turin, Fingon and Galdor. But the midfield is static and uninspiring, and Sador is another player hampered by long-term injury.

Mordor proved themselves a worthy team in last year’s finals, and they look to have strengthened in the interim. Team captain Sauron and the Witch-King are a proven and deadly strike force and they can expect good support from well-disciplined midfield. Orcs can be prone to dissent among themselves, but Sauron maintains strict discipline over them with a firm nine-fingered hand. Shelob doesn’t let many through her net, but can be prone to consume her defenders. Ufthak had better watch out!

Tol Eressea are new to the competiton, but are my pick for this year’s surprise package. Frodo played a big part in The Shire’s progress to the semi-finals last year, playing as an attacking midfielder. He has now been given the opportunity to prove himself up front, and I see him overcoming the odds to come good in the end. Earendil and Elwing provide pace on the wings, while Uinen plays the holding role, allowing the tempestuous Osse to get forward with the ball.

It’s easy to underrate an unknown quantity like Roverandom. But, with a Dragon and a Sea Serpent in defence and a midfield Wizard, they should not be underestimated. Team captain Roverandom is dogged on the attack, but cannot expect much support from newcomer the Man in the Moon, whose fitness is subject to question (if the rumours of late night parties are to be believed). They may put in some decent performances, but they probably don’t have enough to advance from a strong Group like this.

Saucepan’s prediction:

A quite tight Group, but Mordor will certainly go through. Of the others, I see Tol Eressea having the quality to progress.

Group winners: Mordor
Group runners up: Tol Eressea
First round elimination: Dor Lomin and Roverandom

The Saucepan Man

07-09-2007, 08:43 PM

Group E

Fangorn is another team that looks good on paper. But they have made a strategic error in fielding their Ents in attacking positions and holding their Orcs back in defence. Their attack, while powerful, is woefully lacking in pace. Ugluk was a prolific goalscorer last year, so I cannot understand why he has been relegated to the back four. He is Ugluk and he commands the defence, but he cannot rely on Grishnahk or Wormtongue. Team captain Saruman is a capable leader, but past his best. This is a weak Group, so I think that they will progress to the next round, but I don’t see them going much further.

Hey diddle diddle! The Old Grey Hill certainly add variety to the competition, but I wouldn’t bother dwelling on them too much. With a Tipsy Cat, a Dog helpless with laughter, an Ostler and a Landlord forming the back row, their defence is sadly lacking in focus and they will leak goals like the sieve they nearly picked to play up front. As an attacking force, the Dish and the Spoon can combine well on forward runs and they do have the blistering pace of the Sun up front, but it won’t be nearly enough to save them from an early trip back home.

Tol In Gauroth is another newcomer, and it certainly has a big following. The problem that I see with this team, however, is the in-fighting. They are notoriously bad at trusting one another. Some will no doubt contribute more than others, leading to arguments, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they have difficulty working out each other’s tactical roles. That said, the Mythomaniac can be unpredictable in midfield and may cause a few surprises, while the Seer has a good eye for the game. It’s unlikely to see them through the Group, though.

Like the Moria team, the Misty Mountains may find themselves with a discipline problem, and the Dwarf players will find it difficult to build up any kind of a working partnership with their Goblin team-mates. However, the Stone Giant is strong and powerful up front (though prone to handball, being used to hurling stones, rather than kicking footballs), and he will be supported by a generally workman-like midfield, with Gwaihir providing the pace on the wing. A strong defence also includes Gollum who is undoubtedly resilient, but his form is unpredictable and their performance may hinge on which Gollum turns up for the match: the tricksy Slinker or the hopeless Stinker.

Saucepan’s prediction:

I can see this being quite a tight Group, with the exception of the Old Grey Hill. But Fangorn and the Misty Mountains should have sufficient quality to prevail. It’s a toss up between them who will win the Group, but I see Fangorn edging it, as their ability to stifle the midfield will break down most attacks against them.

Group winners: Fangorn
Group runners up: Misty Mountains
First round elimination: Tol In Gaurhoth and the Old Grey Hill

Group F

Gondolin are an excellent all-round team and have talent all over the pitch. Defensively, they are strong, and capable of guarding their goal well. Having re-signed the talented Maeglin following his defection to Angband last year, they had better hope that he doesn’t let them down again. Huor and Tuor combine well in the midfield and provide loyal support for Turgon, allowing him to get forward on occasion and to slip back into a more defensive role at other times. With the dogged veteran Hurin and the talented Glorfindel up front, they will score lots of goals too. The class of the Group.

Bree proved themselves to have a sturdy defence in last year’s competition, but failed to score enough goals to progress very far. This year, they have strengthened their squad by signing the star players of the Old Forest team, following the latter’s failure to qualify for the finals. Old Man Willow in goal will certainly help maintain their strong defence, while wing-backs Goldberry and the River Woman like to stream forward on each side and shower crosses into the box. Harry Goatleaf normally plays in defence and has been promoted as a make-shift striker, so don’t expect too much from him. But Tom Bombadil, the winner of the inaugural Yellow Boot trophy, remains a class act. Although Butterbur, Bob and Nob are mainly defensive-minded midfielders, the Barrow Wight’s forward runs are a chilling prospect. I’m not sure that it will be enough to get them the goals that they will need, though.

Another team out of their depth, Wooton Major are very unlikely to progress. Smith in goal is a dreamer and easily distracted from the realities of competitive play. They have one star in the Chief Cook, but the rest of the team is hopelessly inexperienced, while Nokes up front is desperately lacking in match fitness.

Mirkwood, on the other hand, are fielding a very good team and showed their class last year. Spider “the Spider” Spider in goal is a great shot stopper, although Thrain will have to be doubly alert in defence as the Wine Steward and the Guard are prone to doze off at times. The midfield is solidly anchored by Grimbeorn, while Thranduil and Legolas provide attacking verve. With the powerful Beorn and the ruthless Necromancer up front, this team will certainly score a lot of goals.

Saucepan’s prediction:

Gondolin are the clear Group winners, while Wooton Major will be hopelessly outclassed. It will be tight between the other two for second place, but I‘ll plump for the attacking spirit of Mirkwood.

Group winners: Gondolin
Group runners up: Mirkwood
First round elimination: Bree and Wooton Major

Group G

I had high hopes for Rohan last year, but they sorely disappointed. They should be a good team. Erkenbrand, Hama and Eorl provide a solid defence, although Eowyn has a tendency to neglect her defensive duties in her eagerness to get on the attack. The midfield is strong too, with Ghan-Buri-Ghan in particular excelling at the hidden pass to help the pacy Eomer and strong Helm up front unlock defences. As I said, they should be a good team. But I suspect they may disappoint once more, particularly in a strong Group like this.

As reigning champions, the Barrow-Downs team has much to live up to. But they have the quality all over the pitch to help them do so. In Sleepy and Saucepan, they have two highly prolific strikers (having been joint runners-up in last year’s Yellow Boot Trophy competition) and Rune has been promoted from defensive duties to provide good aerial support. The phantom is a free-kick specialist and a great provider as well as a talented goal-scorer himself, and he will be ably supported in midfield by the unpredictable Feanor of the Peredhil and the tempestuous Arcticstorm. Glirdan and Firefoot are excellent defenders but also like to get forward, providing pace on the wings, while the solid defence has been strengthened with the addition of the implacably philosophical central defensive pair, Nogrod and Formendacil. A classy team is rounded off by one of the best (and most feared) goal-keepers of the competition, the inscrutable Barrow-Wight.

Gondor are a solid team, but have undoubtedly been weakened by the loss of star striker Aragorn to Arnor. Nevertheless, brothers Faramir and Boromir have forged a good partnership up front with Anarion. I suspect, however, that they may lack support from a static midfield, with Thengel well past his best and Forlong (the Fat) lacking match fitness. They have a good defensive line-up though, with Imrahil worthy of particular mention, and so should not give too many goals away.

The Inklings are an unproven side, although they may provide a few surprises. Veteran striker JRR Tolkien has shown himself to have an uncanny insight into the nature of the other teams in this competition. In the past, he has shown good understanding with his strike partner, CS Lewis, although it is rumoured that they may have fallen out in recent times. He can, however, expect good support from his son, Christopher, in midfield. Indeed, Christopher likes to get forward and has shown himself to have great skill in finishing off moves started by his father.

Saucepan’s prediction:

This is an exceptionally strong Group. The Barrow-Downs undoubtedly has the talent to progress from the Group, and I would expect a semi-final finish from them at the very least. Of the others, my heart says Rohan, my head says Gondor, but I will go for the dark horses as Group runners up.

Group winners: The Barrow-Downs
Group runners up: The Inklings
First round elimination: Rohan and Gondor

Group H

Arnor have three very good strikers in Aragorn, Arathorn and Elendil and they can expect good support from a talented midfield, with Isildur standing out in particular. However, with the formation that they play, Arvedui and Malvegil will have to concentrate on their defensive duties, particularly since, Halbarad aside, the defence is fairly weak, and Trotter, in goal, is not quite the finished product. This team is going to give away a lot of goals, so their attackers are going to have to be in great form for them to progress very far.

For Doriath, the darkly charismatic Eol and the dependable Mablung are both very talented strikers and, in Beleg Strongboot, they have one of the best attacking midfielders in the competiton. Huan likes to get forward too, and is capable of penetrating even the most forbidding of defences. I expect lots of goals from this team, and I can’t see them letting too many in either. Melian provides a strong protective girdle in goal, ably supported by the defensively-minded Thingol, while Luthien and Beren have a great defensive understanding and are not shy about getting forward on the attack. Saeros, is perhaps, the weak link in the team and he is likely to get a rough ride from some of the more skilful opposing players, such as Turin and Mormegil.

Rivendell have a strong defence, with a talented goalkeeper, the skill and agility of Elladan and Glorfindel and Erestor’s ability to read the game. Bilbo plays the sweeper role, and is adept at confusing opposing players by disappearing with the ball only to reappear further up the pitch to put in a deadly pass to Gilraen or the pacy Elrohir. The team is hampered, however, by the presence of the three Stone Trolls in midfield, who often fail to see eye-to-eye and can be dreadfully static at times, particularly in sunny conditions.

I suspect that Ham may provide a few upsets in the opening stages of this competition. Chrysophylax Dives is sly and cunning in goal, while the Giant provides an imposing presence in defence. Garm is a terrier on the right wing, and the midfield makes up for in enthusiasm what it lacks in experience. The forward partnership of Farmer Giles and Tailbiter is likely to nab a few unlikely goals, too.

Saucepan’s prediction:

Doriath should easily win this Group, but second place is more difficult to predict. Arnor, I think, will give away too many goals, while Ham perhaps do not yet have quite the experience that they need at this level. Despite their poor midfield, I think that Rivendell will just about scrape through.

Group winners: Doriath
Group runners up: Rivendell
First round elimination: Arnor and Ham

Sleepy Ranger

07-10-2007, 07:30 AM

Ladies and gentlemen we are reporting to you live from the national stadium in Mordor, nicknamed the Eye of Fire. The first two matches of the 2007 Middle-Earth Football World Cup will be played here. We are just moments away from the beginning of Erebor vs. Angband. We have some famous faces in the crowd today. It seems Sleepy Cowell has showed up for the Erebor vs. Angband match.

I also think I saw ME Idol winner, Elempi, and the runner-up, TORE, walking about in Shire jerseys but then again I may have had a tad bit too much wine. Without further ado, the first two matches of the World Cup are ready to kick off!

***

Group A
Erebor 0 - 1 Angband
(Thuringwethel 85th)

The first half was relatively actionless with neither side really threatening despite Erebor's three corners. Erebor began the match very positively and won three early corners but were unable to really threaten with them. Angband kept trying to break through but very foiled time after time and after a relatively sedated first half the teams went in level.

The second half played out more or less the same as the first half with neither team really able to do much in attack. The deadlock stood till the 85th minute when Thuringwethel broke away and slide in a neat shot past the goal keeper to give Angband a well fought win. Moments later Erebor came close to equalizing through a drilled in shot by Thorin that fizzled wide of target.

Shots: 3(0) - 6(2)
Posession: 43 - 57

Group B
Lothlorien 0 - 0 Shire

So far this has been a pretty boring and defensive match. The Shire soon reverted to long ball tactics and the first half ended without a goal. While Lothlorien's dribbling and graceful play may have lit up the play at parts on the whole neither team has shown and signs of being able to win. Neither team having taken a shot the entire half.

The second half showed no improvement and both teams still struggled to find any quality in front of goal. Lothlorien were the first to create an actual chance when Gandal cracked in a shot from the edge of the box but it was wide, very wide. Soon after, Shire's long ball tactics finall paid off and Bullroarer found himself free with the ball but his volley was hopelessly wide.

The Shire found themselves with another very good oppurtunity when Pippin was taken down outside the box and Rumil recieved a YELLOW CARD. Sam sent the resultant free kick over the goal, well over. Moments later Lothlorien recieved a free kick in an identical position but no card was shown this time. However they too sent the ball well over the goal. In stoppage time Bullroarer had a wonderful oppurtunity, open goal, and wham, he sends the ball into the post and out of play. Disappointing game, neither team deserved the win quite frankly.

Shots: 3(0) - 4(0)
Posession: 50 - 50
Bookings: Rumil

***

It doesn't seem either of these matches were all that exciting but Angband will be pleased to have picked up the three points. Lothlorien and Shire played it out sensibly seeing as they're the strongest of their groups maybe a draw isn't that bad a result for them. Every point counts. Hopefully we'll see some more attacking games later on. The other two fixtures will kick-off soon and of course, we'll be providing live coverage available over eagle and palantir.

Sleepy Ranger

07-10-2007, 08:33 AM

Here we are, ready and waiting for the kick-off the next two matches of the day. Angband won in a rather listless match and Lothlorien and Shire played to a goalless draw in a match were they both played a very careful game. Next up we have Mordor taking on Roverandom in what should be, on paper, an easy win for Mordor. After that we have Rohan taking on the Inklings, which seems to be an interesting match to say the least.

***

Group D
Mordor 0 - 1 Roverandom
(Roverandom 88th)

Fantastic attacking play by Mordor all through the first half. Why, Roverandom hardly got a touch on the ball. It was a thrilling performance as Mordor managed to dribble past the Roverandom defence over and over, putting on quite a show. They won a free kick very early on in the game which deflected off the crossbar and out leaving Gothomg very annoyed. After some more fantastic moves ended in disappointment, Gothomg managed to play a ball in to Witch-King who beat his marker and unbelivably saw his shot saved by Tinker. The resulting corner was headed over by Dark-Lord.

The second half started off in the same way the first half ended with Mordor dominating quite about everything, but not finding the target. They knocked on the door ceaselessly but Roverandom held on quite unbelivably. Shot after shot after shot, Roverandom denied Mordor quite... quite luckily to be honest. Towards the end it became apparent that all this fast paced attacking had worn out the Mordor team and they began to make some costly mistakes.

A very frustrated tackle by Snaga led to a yellow card for him and a free kick for Roverandom. Wizard Artaxerxez took the free kick rather well but it was easily handled by the Mordor keeper. With only two minutes of regular time to be played a lob into the area from Wizard Artaxerxez was converted easily by Roverandom, pulling off what may be one of the biggest upsets to date. A lot of the blame should be placed on Shelob for diving before the shot came in, giving Roverandom a very easy job.

Shots: 14(5) - 5(3)
Posession: 55 - 45
Bookings: Snaga

Group G
Rohan 0 - 2 Inklings
(J.R.R Tokien 23rd, 79th)

The match started with the Inklings making a fine break of goal but a slide tackle on the edge of the area by Theoden ensured he didn't let in a goal right off. After that Rohan pretty much dominated the game. Eomer came close to score but his quick fire shot just grazed the post on it's way out. Around the 23rd minute, Christopher Tolkien provided a neat pass to Charles Williams who crossed in for J.R.R Tolkien to head in the opener. After that goal the match began to play out a bit more evenly though no other note-worthy chances were created.

Though Rohan saw more posession in the second half it was the Inklings made use of theirs. The game played out rather evenly when everything is taken into consideration. Rohan held the ball more and Inklings shot more. Neither team was able to find a goal though. In the 79th minute that changed as C.S Lewis broke past the Rohan defence and slotted back a through ball for J.R.R Tolkien to tap into an empty net, Bullroarer Took better be taking notes. The Inklings prove Saucepan Man's analysis true and emerged victorious by a two goal margin.

Shots: 3(0) - 6(2)
Posession: 54 - 46

***

Wow... I'm still stunned that Mordor LOST to Roverandom. I really have no idea what to say. The Inklings impressed with a fairly good performance which saw them beat Rohan two goals to none. Now it remains to be seen how they stack up against Gondor and the Barrow-Downs.

Also, photos from the game shall be up later on in the day.

The Saucepan Man

07-10-2007, 09:11 AM

I would have expected Angband to slot more past Erebor, but the win sets them off on the path of likely Group winners.

I can understand the caution of The Shire and Lothlorien, but one of them may come to rue this result with hotly tipped Tuna (mmm, tasty ;)) in the Group. The Shire, in particular, should have looked to capitalise on their many chances. It looks like Pippin is missing his former strike partner Merry already. The fact that they ended up resorting to the long ball suggests that the midfield is a shadow of its former self. The Shire need to improve, and quick, if they are to repeat last year's achievement. Still, Lothlorien are a difficult team to break down.

Well, I said that Roverandum should not be underestimated, but I didn't expect this! There is no other way to describe their result against Mordor other than as a major upset. And, in quite a tight Group, Mordor could come to regret all those missed chances (14 shots on goal, 5 on target) big time.

And it looks like Rohan are going to flatter to deceive once more. They really should have done better. But it seems that The Inklings are as good a side as I suspected they might be, and it also appears that JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis have patched up their recent differences to combine well up front.

Yellow Boot Trophy competition

Day one sees John Ronald Reuel making an early bid for the prize:

JRR Tolkien (Inklings) – 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) – 1
Roverandom (Roverandom) - 1

the phantom

07-10-2007, 10:31 AM

Erebor 0 - 1 Angband

The result was not surprising here, but I am shocked that Angband didn't outshoot Erebor by more than 6-3. Thuringwethil played up to expectations, displaying the speed and guile of a true vampire queen.

Lothlorien 0 - 0 Shire

Boring to watch, and honestly these two teams deserve to be disqualified after that gutless performance. They played as if they had already sewn up births in the next round, which they may have just kept themselves from doing by being content to pick up one point instead of three. Within their group, Tuna is superior at every position and Brethil is solid with an all-star scorer up front, so really I don't understand Lothlorien and Shire's tactic. At least there was one positive note- I didn't see blatant underhanded play from the Shire. Perhaps it was Frodo and Merry behind all the schemes last year, and with them gone we will see better sportsmanship.

Mordor 0 - 1 Roverandom

Sauron has got to be furious after dominating shots and posession and yet still managing to lose. This was not so much a great game by Roverandom as it was Mordor swooping in and seizing defeat from the jaws of victory. Of course, that sort of thing seems to happen to Sauron now and then.

Rohan 0 - 2 Inklings

Despite the fact that I didn't pick Inklings to advance, this result is not terribly shocking to me. I knew Inklings had a bit more potential than the other new teams, but I didn't want to rate them too high early on seeing as they've never been in the tournament before. If today's match was any indication, they are a real contender, because Rohan is no push over.

The Saucepan Man

07-10-2007, 11:13 AM

SHIRE- Every single member of the Shire team will be slower, weaker, and shorter, and have less reach than his/her opponent in every single game. So naturally, they will win lots of matches. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Teams of twelve year olds regularly beat World Cup teams after all, right? But seriously, so long as officials refuse to crack down on various illegal activities, I fully expect the Shire to carry on winning matches by continuing their practice of poisoning opponents’ water jugs, paying referees, rigging the ball with magnets, and other such nonsense.Aw, you're just smarting still from the success of The Shire last year. :p

Within their group, Tuna is superior at every position ...Last year, I would have put this down to your traditional contempt for Hobbits and bias towards anything Feanor-related. Unfortunately, though, I think that this asessment is correct this time round. The Shire is clearly not the team it was last year.

... Rohan is no push over.Logically, that's right. But Rohan are Middle-earth's Spain. Great players, great team, much expected of them by fans and analysts alike but, year after year, they fail to deliver. :rolleyes:

Sleepy Ranger

07-10-2007, 11:32 AM

"The Referees are NOT being paid!" claims respected official Boromir88 in reply to the Phantom's accusation of the Shire. He went on to send in this press release. We can only assume that it is not directed at anyone, especially not the phantom.

***

Popular football analyst and columnist, the phantom, in his breakdown of the 2007 Middle-Earth Football World Cup accused The Shire of bribing officials to win matches. Since his remarks World Cup referee, Boromir88, has come under heavy fire and his ability to officiate games fairly has come under scrutiny. On Monday Boromir released a statement responding to tp's accusations:

"I assure you all that I have never, nor will I ever, take bribes from any team. I call each game fairly and honestly. That is to say I call it by the books, I call it by the rules, nothing else.
The columnist who made these accusations has absolutely no proof, and they are completely unfounded. He is a crack-job conspiracy theorist who gets his panties in a bunch anytime an underdog team rises up and spoils his self-acclaimed 'predictions we all are waiting for.'
If he, and he knows who he is, wants to question my officiating, he can come right into my office. I'll be waiting for him."

The World Cup Association still has yet to decide whether they will investigate further into tp's accusations. We will keep you updated on this story as it unfolds.

Credit: Bormomir88

***

It was later announced that no action will be taken unless an official complaint is recieved from a team. It was then announced that The Phantom on his own is not a team, no matter how much he thinks he is.

Sleepy Ranger

07-10-2007, 04:32 PM

Before we reveal the next set of fixtures I'd like to show you some pictures from the earlier games.

Thorin's shot against Angband moments after Angband took the lead. (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e41/SRanger123/10072007133.jpg)

Wizard Artaxerxez's Free Kick against Mordor. (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e41/SRanger123/10072007134.jpg)

Roverandom's volleyed goal against Mordor. (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e41/SRanger123/10072007135.jpg)

J.R.R Tolkien's first goal against Rohan. (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e41/SRanger123/10072007136.jpg)

Now for the fixtures,

Group C
Numenor vs. Buckland

Group E
Tol In Gauroth vs. Misty Mountains

Group F
Bree vs. Mirkwood

Group H
Rivendell vs. Ham

Sleepy Ranger

07-11-2007, 07:44 AM

Here we are live and ready for the next set of games. First up we Numenor vs. Buckland and Tol In Gauroth vs. Misty Mountains. They should prove to be good games. Hopefully none will be lackluster like the snorefest that was Lothlorien vs. Shire. I had a chat with some of the folk from the Numenor team, they seem to be in high spirits for their game. Let's see how it pans out.

***

Group C
Numenor 1 - 0 Buckland
(Tar Ancalime 70th)

It was a mildly entertaining first half which saw Nymenor control play. They managed to get in a fair amount of shots but their persistance did not lead to a goal unfortunately. Their finishing was poor and though they got the shot in it was never going to trouble anyone.

Early on in the second half it seemd that Numenor would rue their missed chances as Buckland almost, almost got a goal in but the shot from Merry edged past the post. That was about the only look that Buckland got the entire game as Numenor then began to press forward, one wave of attack after another. Their defence standing their ground very well. Their was a momentary lapse in which a harsh tackle by Tar Miriel earned him a yellow card but the resultant free kick was never going to trouble anyone.

Around the 70th minute a rash tackle by Drogo earned him a yellow card and gave Numenor a free kick in a decent position. The free kick taken by Amandil found it's way to Tar Ancalime who blasted it into the back of the net. The Buckland defence will have to take the blame. They gave Tar Ancalime way too much space.

Shots: 11(6) - 2(0)
Posession: 50 - 50
Bookings: Tar Miriel - Drogo

Group E
Tol In Gauroth 0 - 2 Misty Mountains
(Stone Giant 66th PK, Dwalin 80th)

The first half was a very even contest, with both teams seeing a lot of the ball and making good flowing moves. The passing by both teams was very accurate and smooth. The first good chance fell to Tol In Gauroth after Hunter's cross was lobbed goalwards by Lover only to be bravely deflected away by Gollum. The next good chance came to Misty Mountains when Dwalin blasted a goal bound rocket that was only prevented from entering the net by a very, very surprised Cobbler. The first half ended even, which is a pity since both teams deserved at least a goal each.

Misty Mountains were in firm control throughout the second half. Gwaihir managed to weave through defenders and make a shot which was punched out by the 'keeper for a corner. The resulting corner was cleared but only as far as Bofur who played the ball in to Dwailin who was about to turn but.... Cursed Villager with a tackle from behind! The whistle blows, everyone freezes. The referee points to the spot and shows Cursed Villager the red card. PENALTY! Stone Giant stepped up to the spot, shrugged his shoulders and blasted the ball in the back of the net. Advantage Misty Mountains.

Misty Mountains were in firm control of the game with a goal and a man advantage. They expressed this by increasing the tempo and playing more attacking football. This resulted in another goal for them in the 80th minute. Gwaihir played in Dwalin who rocketed the ball in the top right corner to put the game beyond doubt.

Shots: 5(3) - 8(7)
Posession: 40 - 60
Sent Off: Cursed Villager

***

There we have it! Our first red card and first penalty of the tournament and it comes in just the 6th match. Controversial? Not at all. A tackle from behind like that is nothing but trouble and the referee was spot on with the decision.

Sleepy Ranger

07-11-2007, 08:40 AM

We're now ready to begin the next two matches. Bree take on Mirkwood in what should be a fairly good match. Tom Bombadil has brought his old yellow boots out and is raging to go. Mirkwood sharpshooter Legolas hopes his team win a free-kick as he claims to have a feeling that he will score off every single one he gets in this tournament.

In the other game Rivendell take on Ham in what should be a win for the more experienced Rivendell. Time has taken it's toll though and Rivendell are no longer the team they once were but they are still a formidable force. Ham, newcomers to the tournament have a knack for taking down stronger opponents who on paper should be quite impossible to beat.

***

Group F
Bree 1 - 0 Mirkwood
(Tom Bombadil 61st)

Despite Bree holding onto the ball for longer it was Mirkwood that completely dominated the first half making wonderful use of their posession. The managed to get in a lot of shots owing to some wonderful linking play but unfortunately they lacked the killing edge with their shots fizziling wide or taking a deflection at the wrong time. Their best chance came when Legolas sent in a deadly through ball to Beorn who lashed in a hard shot which was barely punched away by Old Man Willow.

In the second half Bree began to tackle hard and sometimes quite viciously. Such play resulted in yellow cards for Harry and Nob. However both these fouls were in quite safe positions and Mirkwood were unable to capitalize. Completely against the run of play Bree managed to nick a goal. A well played counter attack led by Butterbur ended with a save by Spider but he could only watch helplessly as Tom Bombadil pounced on the rebound and put Bree one goal up.

It was all insanity after that. Mirkwood launched attack after attack, ceaselessly trying to pull a goal back but Bree managed to hold on. Mirkwood almost pulled one back through Necromancer after a well designed play resulted in a fanyasyic oppurtunity for him. However his shot was agonizingly cleared off the goal line by Badger. The Mirkwood players complained that the ball had crossed the line but the referee said it had not and the goal did not stand much to the anguish of Mirkwood. Bree did not deserve a win but stole one right from the jaws of defeat. This reminds me of a certain match Mordor had...

Shots: 3(2) - 10(6)
Posession: 38 - 62
Bookings: Harry, Nob

Group H
Rivendell 2 - 3 Ham
(William 31st, Gilraen 75th) (Farmer Giles 53rd, 80th, Tailbiter 72nd)

Rivendell dominated the attacking flow of the first half and created a couple of chances. All in all it was a fairly good half for Rivendell despite Bert being booked early on. Around the 30th minute a pulled volley by William after a failed clearance by Garm led to the opening goal of the game. Rivendell began to ease their attack a bit after going a goal up.

This turned out to be a costly mistake early on in the second half as Ham finally managed to get together an attacking rhytym. Miller lobbed in a ball for Farmer Giles who chested it down and lobbed it over Elrond to equalize with a fine goal. So far this has been the first time in this tournament that a team has equalized. The game really opened up after this and there were some fine displays of attacking football.

The 70th till 80th minutes were very exciting, producing three goals. It was a fantastic spell. It started off as Miller played a neat one two with Farmer Giles and spun past Elrond but instead of taking the shot himself he played it in for Tailbiter to finish with ease. Only minutes after play resumed Gilraen was in a wonderful position owing to a ball lobbed into the area by Glorfindel. Gilraen then tapped the ball up and headed it in to equalize.

Right at the 80th minute, Miller drove the ball in for Farmer Giles to blast in, honestly it was a bit of mis-hit but the ball knocked off the crossbar and spiked down into the goal. Fantastic build up. It was a well paced match and in the end Ham walked out winners. Rivendell will very much be rueing the fact that they did not press for a second earlier in the game when they had a chance. Hats off to both teams though. They played superbly.

Shots: 9(5) - 8(6)
Posession: 51 - 49
Bookings: Bert

***

Fantastic stuff! Mirkwood really did not deserve to lose but that's football for you. The tournament really seems to have picked up now. It was an amazing match between Rivendell and Ham with Ham managing to squeeze in the win. So far all the newcomers have been doing very well in the tournament, even managing some major upsets. However these were just the first set of matches. Theres plenty of twists and turns still to come. Where is the trophy going this year?

Sleepy Ranger

07-11-2007, 04:27 PM

The group tables are in the attached document. I'll keep updating it and reposting it everyday. :)

Tomorrow's Fixtures

Group A
Moria vs. Valinor

Group B
Tuna vs. Brethil

Group D
Tol Eressea vs. Dor Lomin

Group G
Barrow-Downs vs. Gondor

The Barrow-Downs will be playing tomorrow. Hopefully they'll get off to a winning start. However that may prove to be a tough task against a resilient Gondorian team.

The Saucepan Man

07-11-2007, 07:36 PM

The Numenor v Buckland result doesn't surprise me. Numenor have one of the best defences in the tournament. And Buckland are hardly the team to breach it, as they have built their team around a lone striker, without giving him the support that he needs. However good Merry is (and he is), he's not going to score many with such an average midfield behind him.

Tol in Gaurhoth against the Misty Mountains was only surprising in the extent that Tol in Gaurhoth managed to put up a reasonable fight for the first half. The end result, however, was no surprise. Misty Mountains aren't an excellent team, but they are capable. Gwaihir is a class act and the Stone Giant is a powerful force up front. Tol in Gaurhoth, on the other hand, look distinctly average to me. The Cursed Villager's sending off was no doubt a result of frustration borne of the poor team spirit which I highlighted earlier.

The win over Mirkwood was an excellent result for Bree as, with the excellent Gondolin in their Group (and leaving aside the no-hopers of Wooton Major), it is likely to be between these two for the second qualifying position. The quality of Bree's defence is clear from the fact that they managed to keep out talented players like the Necromancer and the ace sharp-shooter, Legolas.

Finally, we were treated to a peach of a match in Rivendell v Ham. Bracing stuff! Rivendell aren't the team that they once were but, even though they lost, they still look to have something of the old magic about them. And Ham were a revelation. I knew that Farmer Giles and Tailbiter would combine well, but I was quite surprised by the quality of the support that they received from the Miller. I had thought him rather an average player, but I may have misjudged him. Ham could well give Rivendell a run for their money as Group runners up, although I remain confident that Doriath will top Group H.

PS Sleepy, any chance of posting the Group table in rich text format or pdf, as I can't open Word documents on my home computer?

the phantom

07-11-2007, 10:25 PM

Numenor 1 - 0 Buckland

As expected, Numenor's athleticism showed forth as they dominated the shots 11-2. Buckland is fortunate that Numenor's aim was a bit off, otherwise the score would've been nasty.

Tol In Gauroth 0 - 2 Misty Mountains

And yet another expected result. Misty Mts is now in good position to advance out of group play, but Tol In Gauroth is by no means out of it. Group E isn't particularly strong, with likely cannon fodder Old Grey Hill and the very troubled Fangorn team rounding out the quartet. Of course, if Fangorn could ever unify they'd be pretty good. Tol In Gauroth will have to hope against that, pick up their play a bit, and avoid any more red cards.

Bree 1 - 0 Mirkwood

Ah- here we have our first hobbit-biased refereeing of the tournament. If you'll look at replays of that Necromancer shot, the ball clearly crossed the line, but surprise surprise- the ref sided with the hobbitish Bree. It's ridiculous. Now, I have no problem with the fact that Bree scored a goal. It's pretty difficult to completely shut down old Tom Bombadil. But Mirkwood should have been able to put up a couple goals of their own. Their shooting was far below what they are capable of, and the one time they did it right their goal was taken away. Ask yourselves- how could sharpshooters Necromancer, Beorn, and Legolas not put in a single goal in ten tries, considering that the goalie is a sluggish willow tree? I'd check their Gatorade cooler for athletically inhibiting drugs. Hobbits have been known to spike drinks in tournaments.

Rivendell 2 - 3 Ham

This game was very fun to watch! Of course, it is likely to end up meaningless, seeing as Arnor and Doriath are in that group. But I suppose now if Ham can catch one of those two clubs on a very poor and unlucky day, they might manage a tie at least, and then they would have a chance at advancing.

the phantom

07-11-2007, 11:11 PM

All right, all right… so you say you weren’t being paid last year to favor The Shire. Well that’s even worse! You should at least make some money if you’re going to turn the other way and allow a team to be crooked. But I guess you just do it for free. Wow. I could’ve at least respected an enterprising cheater, but it turns out you just have a soft spot for hobbits and allow it to show forth in your reffing. I have no respect for that.

And as far as this investigation business, why is the committee waiting for some kind of “formal complaint”? You know good and well there’s something fishy going on with those hobbits. It’s a simple matter of physics. Given the strength of their muscles and length of their appendages, hobbits should not be able to produce the necessary amount of kinetic energy to kick the ball with anywhere near the velocity of their opponents. And yet somehow they are able to pass effectively and score goals? Also, it is proven that they cannot run as quickly as dwarves, and yet they can somehow play defense against Elves? They aren’t tall enough to challenge any sort of head-shot, and their goalie isn’t tall enough to cover the upper half of the goal, so how are they not outscored 10-0 in every game? It makes no logical sense!

Either their opponents are drugged, or all the hobbits are on extreme performance enhancing meds (or both). It’s as simple as that. If you aren’t conducting an investigation, it’s because you don’t want to. There’s plenty enough reason to initiate one.

*sigh*

But I guess if you require an official complaint from a team, I'll see if I can get one to do it for me. If Mirkwood makes an early exit, perhaps I will be able to convince Necromancer and his cronies to lodge a complaint. I know he's not happy with that goal-line call in that last game versus Bree, and he has no love for hobbits.

Of course the complaint process (formal complaint, investigation, statements, appeals, etc) will likely not be over till after the tournament, which means that I have no choice but to put up with those little hooligan hobbits for a while yet.

Sleepy Ranger

07-12-2007, 06:08 AM

Today's matches will be up late since I have some friends coming over. I'll probably be able to sim the matches at around say, 8pm my time, which is 5pm GMT. So the matches will be up from around 6pm GMT onwards.

Sorry for the delay today. :(
There'll probably be similar timings this Saturday as well due to band commitments.

Regards,
Sleepy

Thenamir

07-12-2007, 10:25 AM

To Whom it may concern:

I must take serious umbrage with The Phantom's complaints about the performance of the Hobbits and the officiating of their matches.

Several of the traits he cites are in error, and as for the rest hobbits have other skills which give them a lift over their natural disadvantages. For example, Phantom points outhobbits should not be able to produce the necessary amount of kinetic energy to kick the ball with anywhere near the velocity of their opponents. This may or may not be true, however the hobbits are possessed ofthe art of disappearing swiftly and silently, when large folk whom they do not wish to meet come blundering by; ...their elusiveness is due solely to a professional skill that heredity and practice, and a close friendship with the earth, have rendered inimitable by bigger and clumsier races.The hobbits do not need size to dominate, their speed and elusiveness is enough to outwit the bigger opponents.

As to how they can score goals and pass so effectively, allow me to quote again from the Learned Professor:(Hobbits are) difficult to daunt ... doughty at bay ... they could survive rough handling by grief, foe, or weather in a way that astonished those who did not know them well and looked no further than their bellies and their well-fed faces...they were keen-eyed and sure at the mark. You can't intimidate a hobbit by mere size, they will take all you dish out and still come back to surprise you. Their marksmanship and accuracy seem to be nearly legendary, especially in Bilbo:As a boy he used to practise throwing stones at things, until rabbits and squirrels, and even birds, got out of his way as quick as lightning if they saw him stoop; and even grownup he had still spent a deal of his time at quoits, dart-throwing, shooting at the wand, bowls, ninepins and other quiet games of the aiming and throwing sort.
As for goalkeeping, they are renowned leapers:Straight over Gollum's head he (Bilbo) jumped, seven feet forward and three in the air.Now let's think about this for a minute. Bilbo was somewhere between 3'4" and 3'8" tall. An equivalent vertical leap for a 6' man would be 5'6", vertically, and 12' forward. This means that Bilbo's overhead reach at the top of his leap must have been something like 7'4" or thereabouts. Add to that the fact that, as a physical specimen at the time, Bilbo was hardly a trained athlete ready for goalkeeping -- for a hobbit, he wasn't even very well fed! With proper diet and strength training, combined with their keen eyesight and deft dexterity, a hobbit could be a very formidable goalkeeper indeed.

http://forum.barrowdowns.com/images/buttons/infraction.gifIn light of the foregoing, I am showing The Phantom the figurative yellow card for unsportsmanlike conduct in accusing Boro falsely. Enjoy those sour grapes, Phantom -- the Hobbits will go far in this tourney.

Sleepy Ranger

07-12-2007, 12:41 PM

Pardon the further delay but here are the results. We have a rather fascinating line up for today. It will be interesting to see if Moria can gel together and how Valinor kick off their tournament. The much talked about Tuna will finally be getting a game in, it will by no means be an easy one as they face off against one of the best strikers in the game, the dreaded Turambar. Without further ado, on to the matches!

***

Group A
Moria 0 - 0 Valinor

It was a rather well played first half. Both teams managed to string together some decent play but neither team really had any luck with the final product. Around the 25th minute Varda was shown a yellow card, though the tackle was a soft one. I've seen harder tackles go without so much as a whistle. The only real chance in the first half came around the 30th minute for Valinor when Eonwe crossed the ball in for Tulkas who nodded the ball down for Orome but the shot was narrowly wide. Moria's lack of organization was evident by their large number of offsides.

Valinor dominated the second half but were shut out by a phenomenal Watcher in the Water who is pretty much the only reason Moria hung on for the draw. Valinor will obviously be frustrated, the took many shots in the second half and completely disrupted Moria but it was just impossible to beat Watcher today. While I generally would accuse a team that plays like Moria did in the second half, of being overly defensive and a blemish on the beautiful game but since Moria seemed to have no sense of teamwork and because of the amazing agility shown by Watcher I'll excuse them this time.

Shots: 2(0) - 9(7)
Posession: 47 - 53
Bookings: Varda

Group B
Tuna 2 - 0 Brethil
(Finwe 11th, Finarfin 62nd)

Brethil looked very good going forward in the first half but their defence barely held at all. Tuna played masterfully all over the pitch and scored a goal very early on. Maedhros made a brilliant dash down the right flank and crossed in for Finwe to head in an early goal. Not too long after that a rather rash tackle by Finarfin earned him a yellow card. Haldir's free-kick was met by the foot of Turambar but the ball deflected out for a corner. The resultant corner was quickly cleared.

There were a fair number of chances created in the first half with both teams playing some beautiful attacking football. Feanor played in a brillaint ball for Finwe but the striker held on his shot and Niniel was able to rush forth and collect the ball. Another brilliant chance fell to Hareth after he was played in by Hunthor. Unfortunately his shot went askew, it really should have been an easy take and he just made a fool of himself. Tuna went in ahead at the end of the half.

Brethil started the second half with some smooth attacking plays and nearly equalized with Turambar's diving header but a motivated save by Fingolfin ensured Tuna stayed in front. Around the 55th minute Dorlas was shown a yellow card for a harsh tackle on Finarfin. During a rather careless Brethil advance Tuna was able to brilliantly reverse the flow with a wonderous counter-attack. Maedhros played a neat one two with [/b]Finarfin[/b] before tapping the ball front for the mid-fielder to chip in. Tuna held back after that and let the clock tick down for an easy win.

Shots: 11(9) - 6(2)
Posession: 52 - 48
Bookings: Finarfin - Dorlas

***

Well, we were certainly treated to some very good attacking football in the first two matches and I can only hope that the other two games are played at high tempos as well. Although the Tuna - Brethil game did drop in tempo once Tuna scored their second goal. None the less, they were fascinating contests.

Sleepy Ranger

07-12-2007, 01:20 PM

In the next two matches we'll see Tol Eressea battle it out with Dor Lomin and the Barrow-Downs face Gondor. Finally, we get to see the champions in action. They should be fairly good matches. Anyway, time to kick off!

***

Group D
Tol Eressea 1 - 0 Dor Lomin
(Frodo 1st)

You couldn't ask for a better start. The first play of the game resulted in a goal. Frodo began his run right from kick off and took Dor Lomin by surprise as he ran through to the box and blasted in a shot. Brodda did get a hand to it but could not prevent it from going into the net, giving Tol Eressea a very early lead. Alas, this was not an indication of what was to be as the rest of the first half was fairly boring. The only other highlight was a yellow card to Earendil in the 43rd minute.

The second half started off very poorly with Elwing been shown a yellow card. Turin took the free kick and it was a good one at that, but in the end it went straight to the 'keeper. Tol Eressea then began to sit back and try and defend their lead. It seemed to work out quite well for them as Dor Lomin seemed unable to get a shot past a stern Tol Eressea back line. In the 80th minute though Turin broke away and rolled a shot under Eriol only for Lindo to make a heroic clearance.

Shots: 4(2) - 4(3)
Posession: 48 - 52
Bookings: Earendil, Elwing

Group G
Barrow-Downs 2 - 0 Gondor
(Rune son of Bjarne 68th, The Phantom 83rd)

Gondor took the game to the 'Downs right from kick off. They began to push back the 'Downs. After some well thought out plays and desperate clearances, Gondor had their first real chance. Anarion played the ball in to Faramir whose header was somehow saved by the Barrow-Wight. The 'Downs began to slowly piece together an attack from here. After a few good passes, Saucepan Man played a magnificent through ball for Rune, whose shot unfortunately went just wide of the mark.

From then on the 'Downs began to get in the groove and started to dominate proceedings. A lobbed ball from Phantom found Saucepan Man whose chip wound up in the back of the stands instead of the back of the net. Towards the end of the half, Sleepy Ranger nabbed the ball from Imrahil and frenzied goalwards. Ecthelion threw himself at Sleepy to stop him. The young forward appealed for a penalty but the referee judged that Ecthelion had got the ball first.

Gondor began the second half in similar fashion to the way they began the first half. Thengel forced an acrobatic save out of the Barrow-Wight. Gondor were able to build a few more attacks before the 'Downs were able to hit them on the counter-attack around the 68th minute. Sleepy Ranger and Saucepan Man played some brilliant one twos before Slepey Ranger played the ball through to Rune who made no mistakes this time and scored a fine goal.

Gondor were quite visibly annoyed as they had dominated the second half till this point and it was only fantastic keeping by the Barrow-Wight that had denied them a goal so far. Towards the end of the game the 'Downs had a free kick in a fairly good position. Phantom and Arcticstorm stood over the ball. Arcticstorm faked by jumping over and Phantom unleased his right foot, blasting the ball into the top corner, sealing a good win for the 'Downs.

Shots: 8(5) - 11(5)
Posession: 45 - 55

***

A lucky win there for Tol Eressea while the 'Downs managed to net two in their opening fixture against a resilient Gondor. This result will leave the 'Downs tied for top spot with the Inklings who also recorded a two goal victory earlier in the tournament. I expect to see some celebrations here now that the 'Downs have won... ;)

the phantom

07-12-2007, 03:51 PM

Ladies and gentlemen, my esteemed colleague, Mister Thenamir, is a fine journalist, but unfortunately he is allowing his bias to show through in his coverage of this tournament. Either that, or this hobbit conspiracy reaches even farther than I thought, and they have even bought the mod team of The Barrow-Downs! :eek: I hope that is not the case. Now, if you were exposed to his words and bought into them, allow me to disillusion you.

First, let’s take care of a point he did not challenge.
hobbits should not be able to produce the necessary amount of kinetic energy to kick the ball with anywhere near the velocity of their opponents
This may or may not be true
Thenamir does not challenge this statement, admitting that it may in fact be true. By doing this, he has already done irreversible damage to the idea that hobbits can compete in this tournament. Think of it this way. No matter how accurate/speedy/athletic a tennis player may be, he will not be able to hang with the best in the world if he is unable to swing his arm hard enough to generate an amount of pace and/or spin that is close to that of his opponent. You won’t win Wimbledon serving 70 mph and hitting 30 mph ground strokes, no matter what sort of other incredible traits you may possess.

So really, I could just leave you with that bit of irrefutable logic and not bother to address the rest of Sir Thenamir’s statement- but I’ll do it anyway, just because I’m a loudmouth.
the art of disappearing swiftly and silently
…plays no part in football. There is not a varied landscape to hide in. There are not trees to clamber up. No plants, weeds, or tall grass to seek shelter in. In addition, you must wear a jersey of a particular color- camouflage is not allowed. On the football field, to spot a hobbit one must simply look.

Next, please.
they were keen-eyed and sure at the mark
As I pointed out earlier, accuracy alone cannot carry you. In a fight, it doesn’t matter one little bit that all your punches are perfectly accurate if they aren’t hard enough to do damage, or quick enough to keep your opponent from dodging them at will. In football, the accurate passes of the hobbits will not go far enough to stretch the field, or arrive quick enough to avoid interception. And if the hobbits are lucky enough to work the ball down into the offensive zone, any shot attempt will have to be taken from point blank, because longer shots won’t get to goal with enough pace to challenge a goalie. And how easy is it to gain a point blank shot when passing ability is limited? And head shots should be near impossible, seeing as opponents do not have to challenge with their own heads, but rather with bodies and feet given their size advantage.

And to address Bilbo’s leap, that was one single extraordinary jump by an amazing hobbit. The same with Beren’s leap in the 1st age. Just because Beren can leap onto a galloping horse one time does not mean that we can expect that from him again and again on a regular basis, much less expect it from every human being on the earth. Bilbo’s legendary leap is not the norm.

That's all for now, folks. I will give my take on today's games in about eight hours.

Sleepy Ranger

07-12-2007, 06:34 PM

Sorry for the Fantasy tournament not being updated. I'm kind of tied up and have no clue why Arctic was unable to do it. Anyway, the results will go up late tomorrow as well probably due to some unexpected band work that's popped up. I may still be able to get them up on time. I'll keep you updated. :)

Sorry for not being able to update the tables either, busy day!

Group C
Niggle's Parish vs. Nargothrond

Group E
Fangorn vs. Old Grey Hill

Group F
Gondolin vs. Wooton Major

Group H
Doriath vs. Arnor

the phantom

07-12-2007, 11:45 PM

Moria 0 - 0 Valinor

I was pleased to see Valinor on the attack in this game. They didn't convert, but at least they have the right idea. They ought to advance if they continue playing like that.

Tuna 2 - 0 Brethil

No surprise here. Sure, Brethil is a solid team, but if Tuna plays up to potential they can shut out anyone.

Tol Eressea 1 - 0 Dor Lomin

As I said in my pretournament breakdown, this year's Dor Lomin team is not up to the standards of years past. It showed in this game. Turin was almost good enough by himself to make up for it, but Lindo saved the day for TE and secured the win. If Dor Lomin wants to advance, their midfield needs to shape up and get the ball forward to Fingon and Turin. Those two are very dangerous, but they can't do a lot of damage when they're getting shot opportunities only once or twice per game.

Barrow-Downs 2 - 0 Gondor

Don't let the score fool you- this game was a good contest. Gondor was able to apply decent pressure and generally played smart. Fortunately the Downs was focused and determined and for the most part had their "A" game going. Particularly outstanding was SPM and Sleepy's teamsmanship. They really seemed to be playing with their eyes open, looking to make the extra pass and moving well without the ball.

Go Barrow-Downs! :smokin:

The Saucepan Man

07-13-2007, 06:48 AM

Unfortunately, phantom, you appear to be basing your analysis (and misplaced accusations) on a fundamental misunderstanding of the beautiful game.

Unlike American 'football', the game of football is not based primarily on power. While strong, powerful players can be useful in certain positions (for example, central defence or as a 'target man' up front), there are many more skills which go towards making up a talented football player. Pace, agility, movement off the ball, positioning, accurate passing (both long and short), the ability to read the game are only some of the skills which, in varying degress, go towards making up a decent footballer. Hence, you will find that players do not need to be 7ft+ man-mountains to thrive in the game.

The particular qualities of Hobbits gives them great potential for becoming highly skilled players - accurate at passing, crossing and shooting, skillful in avoiding the tackle, surprisingly pacy, deceptive when moving off the ball, good positioning, difficult to 'man mark' etc.

There is no question of them having to rely on cheating to win their games. They have more than enough natural ability. Indeed, I would expect those teams with a generally far less moral approach to the world, such as Mordor and Angband, to be much more prone to cheating, and I fully expect this to be reflected in the disciplinary record by the end of the tournament.

In any event, your allegations, against Hobbit teams and Boromir88 and now seemingly extended to the Downs admin/mod team, are entirely without foundation. Unless you are able to come up with a single shred of supporting evidence, rather than pure speculation and rumour based upon a sloppy understanding of the game, I suggest you desist, lest you become subject to disciplinary scrutiny yourself.

:p

The Saucepan Man

07-13-2007, 07:05 AM

Interesting that the commentator picked up on Moria's lack of teamwork. This will be a problem throughout the tournament, I suspect. Still, Valinor are a good team with a strong defence, so it was a difficult game for Moria. They did well to keep Valinor from scoring, and they appear to have an exceptional goalkeeper in the Watcher. Not a great result for Valinor, though, as they will be hard pressed now to beat Angband to top spot in the Group.

The Tuna v Brethil result is no surprise. As I expected, Turambar looks good up front for Brethil, but he cannot carry the team on his own. Tuna are living up to expectation, and could well go far in this competition. It was, however, rather disapoointing that they did not press ahead and try to score more. For all they know, goal difference may become an issue. Typical Noldorin arrogance and complacency, in my view.

Frodo looks a good prospect up front for Tol Eressea, and they appear to have a reasonable defence. They disappointed in this game, as Dor Lomin are a fairly weak team in my view, but I think that there is more to Tol Eressea than we have seen thus far.

Finally, a good win for the Barrow-Downs, since Gondor are no slouches. Not quite the team that they were last year, perhaps, without Aragorn, but the Downs nevertheless did well to achieve the 2 goal win. Muchy credit, of course, must go to the Barrow-Wight, who looked to have as many arms as the Watcher in the Water at times. Credit too to the phantom, Rune and Sleepy although I was rather disappointed with the Saucepan Man's performace. I hope to see more of him in future matches.

Update on the Yellow Boot Trophy competition:

JRR Tolkien and Farmer Giles of Ham are the class of the field so far:

JRR Tolkien (Inklings) – 2
Farmer Giles (Ham) – 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) – 1
Roverandum (Roverandum) – 1
Tar-Ancalime (Numenore) – 1
Stone Giant (Misty Mountains) – 1
Dwalin (Misty Mountains) – 1
Tom Bombadil (Bree) – 1
William (Rivendell) – 1
Gilraen (Rivendell) – 1
Tailbiter (Ham) – 1
Frodo (Tol Eressea) – 1
Rune Son of Bjarne (Barrow-Downs) – 1
The phantom (Barrow-Downs) – 1

Thenamir

07-13-2007, 12:53 PM

Sports Opinion and Editorial, by Thenamir

It should come as no surprise that The Phantom, having screamed "cheat" far too many times, is finding no one paying attention any longer. After working himself into a corner with predictions of Hobbit losses, he seeks to save face as a football commentator with pernicious feats of legerdemain, bringing into question the integrity of Team Shire, the referees, the Tournament Administration, and finally, finding no traction for his spurious claims, the entire governmental system of the Barrow-Downs.

Perhaps The Phantom has fallen victim to the same prejudicial attitude that brought down the known corruption of the Mordorian regime, "who did not know them well and looked no further than their bellies and their well-fed faces." Could it be that the heretofore well-researched and reasonable analysis of The Phantom has, just for once, been mistaken? These accidental lapses are common to us all. We are none the worse for admitting our mistakes freely and moving on -- we can even earn a measure of respect for being honest and sincere about our shortcomings.

But The Phantom has chosen a different tack. Sloppy Pre-Cup analysis has resulted in bad forecasting -- Garbage In, Garbage Out -- and the usually reliable Phantom has been caught with his pants down. But rather than pull them back up and chuckle over the quality of his suspenders, he shuffles around with his trousers around his ankles insisting that his pasty white thighs are not really exposed, but rather that there is a conspiracy afoot to promote kilts over pants.

And all this without one shred of evidence. Though it is still early in the running, Frodo is only one goal off from taking the Yellow Boots trophy, Samwise and Lobelia are quitting themselves well, and the avid golfer Bullroarer Took headed one in against the might of Gondor. When all is said and done, the Phantom's accusations are just that -- phantoms, without form or substance, spectres which cannot be grasped, both elusive...and delusive.

Post Scriptum: One wonders how a phantom, himself an apparition or spectre without material substance manages to score a goal, as he has for the Downs team. If the hobbits cannot generate enough "kinetic energy" to drive a ball past a goalkeeper, then it is difficult indeed to understand how a ghost can do so.

Sleepy Ranger

07-13-2007, 02:17 PM

In the first match we have Nargothrond take on Niggle's Parish in what should be a one sided game, with Nargothrond clear favorites. In the other match we'll see Fangorn face off against newcomers Old Grey Hill. Fangorn were crticized for their team selection but perhaps this is their chance to silence their critics.

***

Group C
Niggle's Parish 1 - 4 Nargothrond
(Atkins 27th) (Mormegil 31st, 53rd, 88th, Felagund 33rd)

Unbelivable... after a very quiet start that was mostly spent with Nargothrond attempting to piece together some attacks but often floundered due to some fault of their own. Then... around the 27th minute... the impossible happened. Niggle's Parish broke on the counter attack, Inspector found the ball at his feet and crossed in for an unmarked Atkins to score a frightfully easy goal.

Niggle's freak lead did not last too long as a few minutes later Felagund played in Mormegil who held off two defenders and equalized. Niggle's Parish would have been more than happy with just a point but apparently it was not to be as moments after Nargothrond equalized, they took the lead. A well built move that was built around Gundor was superbly finished off when Gundor crossed in for Felagund to head Nargothrond ahead.

The second half began much like the first with Nargothrond building up small attacks. This time though, they found the cutting edge. Mormegil managed to snatch the ball from Perkins at the halfway line and made a fantastic run to the area where he slotted in with ease putting the result beyond doubt. Nargothrond played around Niggle's Parish now, upstaging them at every possible moment. However when Mormegil had a chance to complete his hat trick after fleuent passing with Felagund put him clear, he blasted it in. Making him the first player to score a hat trick in this tournament.

Shots: 1(1) - 12(8)
Posession: 37 - 63

Group E
Fangorn 1 - 1 Old Grey Hill
(Skinbark 60th) (Guest 74th)

There really isn't much to say about this match. It was fairly straightforward. Neither team really commit much to attack and it seemed they both weren't really trying here. Apart from the goal each there isn't anything really worth noting. Treebeard provided the pass that led to Skinbark's headed goal. Old Grey Hill equalized when Guest nabbed the ball from a defender and drove in the eqalizer.

Shots: 2(1) - 1(1)
Posession: 55 - 45

***

Nargothrond certainly showed some of the big guns how to avoid an upset. Once they score, you pop in a bunch and then just stare blankly at them while they cower behind the corner flag... or something to that effect. Fangorn should be sorely disappointed with the draw. Perhaps their lack of firepower up front is to be blamed for this.

Sleepy Ranger

07-13-2007, 03:09 PM

Next up we have Gondolin taking on Wooton Major, much like Nargothrond vs. Niggle's Parish, Gondolin will be considered firm favorites to win this. However so far, the favorites haven't done too well. Let's see how this one goes. The next game, Doriath vs. Arnor should be an exciting game as both teams have very attacking line ups and very skilled players. Then again, The Shire vs. Lothlorien should have been a good match too...

***

Group F
Gondolin 2 - 1 Wooton Major
(Turgon 55th, Hurin 90+1) (Fairy Queen 4th)

Gondolin got off to a horrible start with Ulmo being forced to conede a corner almost immediatly. Fairy Queen converted after Ned sent in a brilliant outswinging corner. Surprisingly, despite Gondolin's attempts to equalize, Wooton Major went in ahead at half time.

Luckily for Gondolin, in the second half their attacks actually began to look threatening. They finally managed to get a goal in after a poor clearnace by Wooton Major landed at Turgon's feet. The midfielder turned past a defender and burst into the area, neatly tucking the ball away before anybody had any time to realize what was going on.

After scoring Gondolin began to increase the tempo, trying to undo the Wooton defence and score again. Unfortunately for them their aim was horrible and they wound up shooting all around the goal. Gondolin were saved blushes right at the death when Glorfindel's aimless cross blitzed through a crowd in the box and found it's way to Hurin at the edge of the area who volleyed in an excellent goal.

Shots: 11(4) - 3(1)
Posession: 57 - 43

Group H
Doriath 1 - 0 Arnor
(Mablung 43rd)

This match started off in quite a boring fashion. Both teams started off cautiously, expecting an oppurtunity to be given to them rather than try and make one themselves. This did work out for Doriath eventually. When careless marking by Arnor let Eol sneak past and blast in a shot that bounced off the crossbar. Mablung was ready and waiting though and pounced on the rebound to give Doriath the lead. Unfortunately for them, moments after the goal Huan was shown a yellow card for a rather dogged tackle.

The second half was a disaster! Arnor began to play rough and muscle about their opponents who in turn began to hit back. Harsh tackles flew about as did the cards. The second half barely had any actual football played. It seemed to be a game of the American version instead. It was rather disgusting. Daeron and Saros from Doriath were booked while Halbard, Elendil, Argeleb and Isildur were all shown yellow cards in a very poor second half.

Shots: 9(1) - 1(0)
Posession: 52 - 48
Bookings: Huan, Daeron, Saros - Halbard, Elendil, Argeleb, Isildur

***

Gondolin just barely edged out Niggle's Parish who put on a decent performance for their first game. I am very, very disgusted by the way Doriath and Arnor played and strongly feel both teams should be punished. I would not expect such kind of play from orcs or goblins even.

Sleepy Ranger

07-13-2007, 05:53 PM

Here is the next set of fixtures. Moria vs. Angband should be a decent match if Moria can work together. Tuna vs. Shire will perhaps put an end to this Hobbit debate that's been going on, but as is more likely it will only add fuel to the fire. Mordor will be very much looking to avenge their loss to Roverandom by whipping whoever they have to face next, I sincerely pity Tol Eressea. The Barrow-Downs will square off against The Inklings in what should be an exciting match up. Both of them won their opening games 2-0. Let's see how they face off.

Group A
Moria vs. Angband

Group B
Tuna vs. Shire

Group D
Mordor vs. Tol Eressea

Group G
Barrow-Downs vs. The Inklings

The Saucepan Man

07-14-2007, 09:25 AM

Actually, Thena, I thought that the phantom’s pre-tournament analysis was pretty much spot on, save that he over-rates Arnor and has a bee in his bonnet about The Shire (who, it should be noted, have not exactly acquitted themselves as well as might be expected thus far). It is a shame, though, that he is letting his blinkered view of Hobbits detract from his usually well-observed insight. ;) :p

So, to the most recent batch of matches.

Nargothrond v Niggle’s Parish was completely predictable. Niggle and his players never stood a chance against a great attacking team like Nargothrond and Mormegil fully lived up to expectations. It doesn’t even surprise me that they let a goal in, even to a weak team like the Parish, as they are so focussed on attacking that they can leave themselves exposed at the back. This may cause a problem for them against stronger teams, but they will simply look to score more than they let in.

The Fangorn v Old Grey Hill match was a pretty dull affair. Fangorn really should have done better, but the fact that they let in a goal against a weak team like Old Grey Hill and managed to score only one against them underlines the tactical shortcomings of their chosen line-up.

I am disappointed that Gondolin let in a goal to a weak team like Wooton Major. Their defence should be much better than that. Corners can be a bit of a lottery, but they left the Faerie Queen totally unmarked. That said, credit must, I suppose, go to Ned for the quality of the corner. Gondolin will be happy to get a win under their belts, but they need to work on their set-play defence if they are to prevail against stronger teams.

Finally, the Doriath v Arnor game. As I have said, I consider Arnor to be over-rated and I think that they had rather let all the acclaim go to their heads. When things weren’t working out as they expected on the pitch, they got frustrated. Hence all the cards they picked up. I am disappointed that Doriath reacted in the way that they did, though, since they are a better team than that, but Huan can be a bit of an animal at times and Saeros definitely has an attitude problem.

Yellow Boot Trophy competition update:

After the first round of Group matches, the current holder, Mormegil, has reclaimed top spot. All is right with the world.

Mormegil - 3
JRR Tolkien (Inklings) - 2
Farmer Giles (Ham) - 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) - 1
Roverandum (Roverandum) - 1
Tar-Ancalime (Numenore) - 1
Stone Giant (Misty Mountains) - 1
Dwalin (Misty Mountains) - 1
Tom Bombadil (Bree) - 1
William (Rivendell) - 1
Gilraen (Rivendell) - 1
Tailbiter (Ham) - 1
Frodo (Tol Eressea) - 1
Rune Son of Bjarne (Barrow-Downs) - 1
The phantom (Barrow-Downs) - 1
Atkins - 1
Felagund - 1
Skin bark - 1
Guest - 1
Turgon - 1
Hurin - 1
Fairy Queen - 1
Mablung - 1

the phantom

07-14-2007, 12:26 PM

Niggle's Parish 1 - 4 Nargothrond

This game was lopsided, as it should have been. Nargothrond is very good, and Mormegil is fantastic. Niggle's Parish is not. There's not much else to say past that. I only wish Nargothrond had not lapsed and allowed that one silly goal at the start. It cost me four fantasy points.

Fangorn 1 - 1 Old Grey Hill

What a yawner. But Fangorn did show some promise in the sense that they weren't fighting with one another. Maybe they've got things put together.

Gondolin 2 - 1 Wooton Major

Similar to the Nargothrond game, the team that was clearly better won. And also, just like the Nargothrond game, the one dumb goal Gondolin allowed cost me four fantasy points.

Doriath 1 - 0 Arnor

Someone needs to do a bit of investigative reporting to find out what is wrong with Arnor. They have very good players, but they were just a train-wreck on the field. They didn't look like they wanted to be there, and when they did look purposeful it was while dealing a cheap-shot or dirty tackle. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Sleepy Ranger

07-14-2007, 02:59 PM

Really sorry but I was unable to sim the matches today since I had family over later on. Due to which I'll double on the matches tomorrow, and we'll have both today's fixtures as well as tomorrow's done tomorrow to make up for it. :)

Group C
Nargothrond vs. Buckland

Group E
Old Grey Hill vs. Misty Mountains

Group F
Gondolin vs. Mirkwood

Group H
Doriath vs. Ham

Sleepy Ranger

07-15-2007, 04:21 PM

We'll have four matches played together now. Moria vs. Angband, I reckon if Moria can get over their teamwork issues they may actually threaten Angband but in the end I can see Angband picking up the three points regardless of what happens. Tuna take on the Shire in the next fixture. The Shire made it to the semifinals last time around but have failed to impress in their first match, whereas newcomers Tuna have been on fire. Can the Shire pick themselves up? Phantom says no.

Mordor will still be hurting after their loss at the hands of Roverandom and I'm certain they'll be looking to murder whoever they face. I pity Tol Eressea, they'll be lucky to make it out alive. In the final fixture the Barrow-Downs take on the Inklings. Both teams won their first match 2-0 and I reckon this match will probably decide who tops the group.

***

Group A
Moria 1 - 3 Angband
(Durin's Bane 23) (Melkor 64, 83, Thuringwethel 72)

Moria did not seem to have any team work issues at all in a brillant first half display. They managed to outclass Angband several times and created some breath taking chances including a good freekick which resulted in a goal. Moria's first chance came around the tenth minute when Balin headed just over the goal after a fine cross from Azog. Only moments later Azog went for the fancy and bycycled the ball over the goal. Much to the relief of Moria, Durin's Bane found the back of the net with a sweet curving free kick that swerved past an outstreched Glaurung.

After the break Angband came out guns blazing, desperate to try and get the match back in their control. So far Angband had not done much wrong but Moria were just fantastic. However in the second half the Morian defence began to get a bit edgy and more or less stopped playing as a team. The midfield held solid though and prevented any real threats from developing. Around the 55th minute Melkor blazed a long effort just over the crossbar. The rather unkempt Angband supporters began to boo their team.

Finall at the 64th minute their attacks paid off and Melkor found himself clean through after a pass from Thuringwethel. He calmly slotted in to bring the scores level. Not even ten minutes later Gothmog's shot struck the post but the rebound was shuffled in by an alert Thuringwethel, who scored her second goal of the tournament. Angband were back in control of things. The match decreased in tempo a bit and the Moria team began to disintegrate, their teamwork all but lost. Melkor capped off the win with a cheeky penalty after he was brought down in the area by Oin.

Shots: 5(2) - 6(4)
Posession: 49 - 51

Group B
Tuna 2 - 1 Shire
(Finwe 10, Maedhros 15) (Pippin 87)

Tuna started off the match superbly. Right from kickoff, Finwe and Feanor began to play some nimble one-two's to blitz past the Shire defence. Feanor then played the ball front for Ingwe who had burst forth. The midfielder's shot whizzed into the goal only for the linesman to raise the flag. Goal disallowed due to offside.

Aggrivating as that is, Tuna kept their heads up and played good football. It did not take long for them to score. Maedhros' tenth minute corner provided the break through. The defence failed to clear the inswinging corner on the first bounce and it proved fatal as Finwe latched onto it and struck in beautifully. Only five minutes later, a poor clearance landed at Maedhros' feet. The midfielder struck the ball from about 30 yards out, his shot seemed to take a deflection off of Tom Cotton on the way in but the Tuna midfielder was given the goal.

Tuna relaxed after the early two goal lead. While they could have pressed on to score more they decided to sit back and keep their players rested. Smart tactic, as an injury or suspension could prove very costly. The game was played out slowly, with Tuna seeing most of the ball and dictating tempo. The Shire hardly got a look in at all, it really does make one wonder if Frodo and Merry were perhaps not the driving force behind their success all along. However right towards the end, around the 87th minute a rather soft tackle by Amrod earned him a yellow card and Shire a penalty. Pippin converted it but in all honesty you have to question the referee's judgement.

Shots: 5(4) - 2(1)
Posession: 59 - 41
Bookings: Amrod

Group D
Mordor 4 - 0 Tol Eressea
(Dark Lord 3, 56, Witch-King 60, Shagrat 81)

The first half was oddly quiet apart from a third minute goal scored by Dark Lord. It was the Witch King who did most of the work here, dribbling past the Tol Eressea defence and faking out their goalkeeper, instead of taking a shot though he pulled the ball back for Dark Lord to tap the ball into an open goal. One goal, one shot. The Mordor fans are ecstatic after having to go through the painful experience of fourteen shots with no goals. Tol Eressea did not commit to attack even after going down while Mordor found it hard to find rhytym.

Everything changed in the second half though as Mordor began to unleash hell on their opponents. About ten minutes after the restart a fantastic cross in from Gothmog was headed in by an enthusiastic Dark Lord to double the lead. Only minutes after this goal, at the hour mark, Gothmog sent in a swinging cross upfield which was volleyed in by Witch King to solidify Mordor's lead. Only moments later Dark Lord came within touching distance of a hat trick but his shot fizzled wide of the left post. Mordor mellowed out a bit but still had room for one more goal.

Near the 80th minute they won a corner. Snaga lofted the ball and Shagrat knocked it in with full force to wrap up an easy day's work. Mordor completely bull dozed Tol Eressea, sending out a clear message that they can crush just about anyone they want quite easily.

Shots: 15(10) - 2(0)
Posession: 64 - 36

Group G
Barrow-Downs 4 - 1 The Inklings
(Sleepy Ranger 44, 47, Saucepan Man 51, Phantom 60) (Christopher Tolkien 88)

The first half started out quite slowly with both teams sizing each other up. The Inklings had the first chance when Formendacil was judged to have pulled C.S Lewis' shirt, earning him a yellow card and the Inklings a penalty. Everything went wrong though and J.R.R Tolkien's spot kick was punched out by the Barrow-Wight who then held onto the ball firmly when Charles Williams headed the rebound goalwards.

The 'Downs managed to begin a brilliant move towards the end of the half which involved Phantom, Feanor and Sleepy moving the ball among themselves. Finally, Phantom sent the ball towards Saucepan Man who lobbed it into the box for a diving Sleepy Ranger to head into the goal. The crowd was ecstatic as the 'Downs went in ahead.

Only minutes after the restart Sleepy Ranger doubled the advantage, when together with Saucepan Man he moved goalwards. The young striker played the ball front to Saucepan Man who had made a run into the box. Instead of shooting he selflessly snaped the ball back for Sleepy Ranger who lashed his foot forward knocking the ball in for his brace. Only minutes after that goal, Sleepy Ranger turned creator and curved in a ball for Saucepan Man to volley in. The Barrow-Downs seemed to have run away with it at 3-0 but there was still a lot of football to played.

However at the hour mark it looked buried and done with as Glirdan broke forward to play in Saucepan Man who held up the ball for Phantom. The midfielder did what he does best and drilled in a low shot which nearly knocked over Adam Fox. The Inklings did have something to sing about at the end of the game though as Christopher Tolkien picked up a loose ball after the 'Downs defence failed to clear a corner, and tapped it past a rather disappointed Barrow-Wight. None the less, that's three points for the 'Downs.

Shots: 8(6) - 5(3)
Posession: 59 - 41
Bookings: Formendacil

***

We've had a rather exciting day of football here with a bunch of penalties as well. There were no real upsets on the day except perhaps the upset fans after a Shire loss. However, I reckon that will leave a smiling Phantom. Angband did very well to stay calm after going down and made a fantastic comeback. Tuna should have pressed on for more but I can understand why they would have wanted to play it easy. Mordor demolished Tol Eressea much as I had expected. The 'Downs won by quite a margin and to be honest, it is not something I had expected at all.

Sleepy Ranger

07-16-2007, 03:35 PM

First we have Nargothrond face off against Buckland in what should be a pretty one sided game. Misty Mountains will then be taking on Old Grey Hill. Though Old Grey Hill did manage a draw against Fangorn I suspect that Misty Mountains will be too much for them. I predict an easy win for Misty Mountains.

***

Group C
Nargothrond 2 - 0 Buckland
(Mormegil 2, 88)

It was a fairly straightforward game. Buckland made their intentions clear right from the start, they just parked their horses in front of goal. Then again even Nargothrond made their intentions clear right off the bat, with a goal coming just two minutes into the game. Mormegil slugged his way past defenders after being played in by Gundor. Unfortunately after this goal Nargothrond calmed their approach and their attacking flair from the last match seemed to have been lost.

Buckland could barely piece together an attack as Nargothrond played a very central game, barely leaving the midfield. It was fairly boring and not really anything worth watching. The only other highlights came when Mormegil blasted a shot from some 30 yards out only to have it hit Mim and go out of play. Near the end of the game Mim made up for his earlier goal costing mistake by providing a cross for Mormegil to head in with relative ease.

Shots: 5(3) - 1(0)
Posession: 60 - 40

Group E
Old Grey Hill 0 - 1 Misty Mountains
(Dwalin 66)

This was a fairly good match. Both teams managed to create a decent number of chances it's such a shame that they could only manage to score one goal between them. The first chance fell to Old Grey Hill when their striker, Guest played in Sun who waited for too long before he took his shot. Only minutes after that Sun had another wonderful chance when he broke free and was only stopped by a last ditch tackle by Bolg.

Right after that Misty Mountains began a fantastic counter attack which saw Stone Giant's lobbed shot blocked by a resilient Man in the Moon. Stone Gian got another chance from the resulting corner but this time Man in the Moon held onto the striker's attempt. Despite a good show from both teams we went in all square at half time.

In the second half Misty Mountains began to show their dominance and build up swift attacking plays. However they were unable to find the breakthrough till the 66th minute when Dwalin who recieved the ball after a goal kick by Bolg took a potshot from 45 yards out. His screamer of a shot whistled by a stumbling Man in the Moon to open up the scoring.

Apparently this was enough to break down Old Grey Hill who just found it impossible to build up any worthwhile attack after letting in a goal. Misty Mountains dominated the rest of the game but failed to really make much of an impact or even cause any danger in front of goal. In fact their only goal could be called a bit of a fluke. Forty five yards out? What are thd odds?

Shots: 5(3) - 7(3)
Posession: 46 - 54

***

Nargothrond won in a very one sided game. I'm surprised they did not score more but that is down to their reluctance rather than Buckland's defensive prowess. Misty Mountains secured a fairly simple one goal win over Old Grey Hill. They were pretty evenly matched in the first half but Old Grey Hill just had no character to deal with going a goal down. Job well done by Misty Mountains.

Sleepy Ranger

07-16-2007, 03:41 PM

Group F
Gondolin 2 - 0 Mirkwood
(Hurin 83, 87)

Exciting game. It would keep you on the edge of your seat for at least eighty minutes after which Gondolin proceeded to run away with it. There were a fair number of chances in this game but none looked overly threatening. Despite this the quality of play was superb. Fantastic dribbling by Mirkwood and skilled attacking by Gondolin. While a loss here is harsh on Mirkwood leaving them in a must win situation for their next game. The main highlight of the first half was Legolas being shown a yellow card for recklessly challenging Turgon.

The goals ended up being a fairly simple affair. Turgon passed to Hurin who had positioned himself brilliantly just outside the area and struck in a magnificent shot. The next goal was an even simpler deal. Glorfindel headed down a lofted cross to the feet of Hurin who only had to tap into a practically open goal. Mirkwood can feel disappointed, they've had a horrible shooting record and it hasn't improved much here.

Shots: 4(4) - 7(2)
Posession: 50 - 50
Bookings: Legolas

Group H
Doriath 2 - 2 Ham
(Mablung 22, 26) (Farmer Giles 35, Tailbiter 57)

It was a fantastic game. Brilliant play by both teams, especailly Farmer Giles who managed to creat space brilliantly and always got into areas that caused some major problems for the Doriath defence. Though Doriath did play the offside trap very well catching Farmer Giles offside on several ocassions. Mablung provided the first goal after Beren crossed from outside the area, finding Mablung unmarked and ready to provide an excellent header. Only four minutes later Mablung blazed in a rising shot from thirty yards out after being played into position by Dior.

Farmer Giles pulled one back for Ham before the break. Hame showed great character and kept attacking even though they went two goals down. Tailbiter faked his way into the box and then rolled the ball up past the keeper for Farmer Giles who had made a fantastic run forward to tap the ball into an empty net. Despite some more decent attacks by both teams they went in at half time with Doriath leading by a goal.

Ham managed to equalize before the hour when Miller's inswinging corner found the head of Tailbiter and in a spiked header it rocketed into the roof of the net, nearly tearing through. Both teams played a solid game after this, neither really risking their necks for the winner. The game was dampened though when Miller took down Daeron from behind. Many people believe that he should have been sent off, even his own fans began to boo him. That was a horrible tackle.

Shots: 8(5) - 6(3)
Posession: 52 - 48
Bookings: Miller

Sleepy Ranger

07-16-2007, 05:12 PM

Here are the next set of fixtures:

Group A
Valinor vs. Erebor

Group B
Lothlorien vs. Brethil

Group D
Roverandom vs. Dor Lomin

Group H
Arnor vs. Rivendell

Here are the group tables, in MS Word and there is a RTF file in the zip folder for all those who can not use MS Word. Since I could not upload a RTF file directly I had to zip it. Hopefully it works. :)

Nogrod

07-16-2007, 06:29 PM

The Blue Mountains council of elders releases this statement to make clear their intents and their aspirations.

At Tumunzahar the things have been considered and reconsidered by the board of the team.

With many players in this tournament a further shot at a show-off / show-up is given.

The team Nogg's Ball will stick to the following principles:
- No hobbits or any other shorter than dwarf persons in the team.
- No outsiders to the ME will join the team (not even J.R.R. himself).
- No BD "hot-players" in the team - just to be sporty.
- Possibly an elf or two - just to be sporty.

From the opening line-up the Nogg's Ball's board trusts wholeheartedly at this moment Nogrod (the name should tell you why), Ancalagon, Maedhros and the Witch-King. Whatever happens, Nogg's Ball will probably go through the tournament with these players - unless a team of one of these drops out after the round-robins.

But Nogg's Ball's directorate would also express it's willing to reconsider the goalie-situation as even if they honour the skills of Smaug they are a bit worried about his condition and the chances of Erebor in the first place. But with only one game behind the board will wait for more results.

The same worry seems to hang over the strikers as well. Tulkas (two games) and Gothmog (one game) have been pretty unimpressive so far and a trade might be coming in timely. Gothmog will be given a second chance but trading Tulkas off looks quite tempting... not the least as we seem to have premier-class strikes like Mormegil (a two-edged sword as a choice, admittedly :)), Felagund, Finwë or Tar-Ancalime (whom we were initially signing in to our team)... Bullroarer Took and J.R.R. Tolkien we will let out of this discussion as well as Sleepy Ranger and the Saucepanman - they are excellent players and fantastic scorers but we must obey our principles.

For our defence and the midfield we need to look more closely at the team performances before we make our decisions. A few changes will take place after the second round is completed.

The Saucepan Man

07-16-2007, 06:45 PM

Hmm, a few to deal with here, so without further ado ...

Group A
Moria were unlucky to be drawn in the same Group as a clearly in-form Angband and, with Valinor in the Group too, they are going to struggle to qualify. Which is a shame, as they don't look half bad. They put up a good fight against Angband for most of the match, but Thuringwethil looks to be on excellent form and Melkor is now coming up with the goods too. If Valinor win against Erebor, which is more than likely, it looks to be all over for Moria. Angband, on the other hand, are almost certainly through (like anyone expected them not to qualify from the Group ...).

Group B
Unfortunately, with Frodo and Sam gone, The Shire are nothing like the exciting team that they were last year and, while Pippin grabbed a consolation penalty, I am sorely disappointed in his form. Still, perhaps this will put paid to the cries of foul play against them. It certainly looked like a clumsy tackle from Amrod to me, so I think that the penalty decision was a fair one. Tuna, on the other hand, are nicely living up to their pre-tournament hype and look very likely to qualify at the top of the Group table, although I am disappointed that they didn't press more towards the end. While some have attributed this to prudence, they should remeber that the fans want to see exciting football from the flair teams. I would have expected less caution from a team that contains the likes of the feiry Feanor and his sons.

Group C
Buckland really disappointed in their match against Nargothrond. It was always going to be difficult for them, but they could at least have made a fight of it. Sitting back and defending against an excellent attacking side, with perhaps the best striker in the competition in Mormegil, was always going to invite trouble. They are lucky that Nargothrond, uncharacteristically I might say, took their foot off the pedal, or it could have been a complete bloodbath. In any event, as just desserts for their disappointing play, Buckland now need an absolute miracle to have any chance of progressing. It will also be a miracle if Nargothrond don't now go on to win this Group in style.

Group D
Well, it looks like Mordor, and particularly their sinister front pair, the Dark Lord and the Witch-King, are back on form. They needed a win and they got it in spades. I am disappointed that Tol Eressea didn't do better, since they looked to be quite a good prospect in their first match. If Roverandom continue to surprise, they could be looking at an early trip back across the Sundering Sea. Still, the Group is interestingly poised at the moment, with Roverandom, Mordor and Tol Eressea all on 3 points.

Group E
I am surprised that Old Grey Hill put up such a good fight against the Misty Mountains. Buckland could learn a thing or two from them. It looks like they have the Man-in-the-Moon-in-the-goal largely to thank for that. Misty Mountains look to be a capable team, having seemingly resolved their differences and have deservedly cemented their place at the top of the Group. I am particularly impressed with the unlikely 'little and large' partnership of Dwalin and the Stone Giant up front, but Bolg looks to be a good prospect in goal too.

Group F
After losing two matches on the trot, Mirkwood are staring down the barrel of an early exit. Which is a shame, because, on form, they can be a team with great attacking flair. Legolas has been a major disappointment, as he is usually a prolific provider and scorer from midfield. I can only think that he is missing his partnership with Gimli, with whom he plays at club level. The two of them are known to have a friendly competition going to see who can score more goals than the other, and he perhaps lacks the spur that this normally provides him. It's no excuse though, as playing for his realm should be incentive enough. Still, it was always going to be a tough match against the sturdy defence of Gondolin, and Hurin looks to be in great goal scoring form.

Group G
The Inklings were a revelation in the first match, but they came up against a Barrow-Downs side who look to be building up to last year's championship-winning form. I was glad to see the Saucepan Man back on form and linking up well with the phantom and Sleepy Ranger. To be fair, the Inklings might have done a lot better, but for some great goal-keeping from the Barrow-Wight. Who knows what might have happened had they converted that early penalty? It was awful at the time, but in hindsight, the spectacle of Formedacil tugging on the shirt of CS Lewis was rather amusing. :D

Group H
I am yet to watch the highlights of the Doriath v Ham match but, from the result, it looks to have been a good one. A draw is actually quite a good result for both teams as, regardless of the result between Arnor and Rivendell, it will keep them both at the top of the team table.

And now for that Yellow Boot Trophy update ...

It's no surprise that Mormegil remains in top spot, although his father, together with Mablung and (surprisingly) Farmer Giles of Ham are hot on his heels.

Mormegil (Nargothrond) - 5
Mablung (Doriath) - 3
Hurin (Gondolin) - 3
Farmer Giles (Ham) - 3
Melkor (Angband) - 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) - 2
Sleepy Ranger (Barrow-Downs) - 2
The phantom (Barrow-Downs) - 2
Tailbiter (Ham) - 2
JRR Tolkien (Inklings) - 2
Dwalin (Misty Mountains) - 2
Dark Lord (Mordor) - 2
Finwe (Tuna) - 2
Rune Son of Bjarne (Barrow-Downs) - 1
The Saucepan Man (Barrow-Downs) -1
Tom Bombadil (Bree) - 1
Skinbark (Fangorn) - 1
Turgon (Gondolin) - 1
Christopher Tolkien (Inklings) - 1
Stone Giant (Misty Mountains) - 1
Witch-King (Mordor) - 1
Shagrat (Mordor) - 1
Durin’s Bane (Moria) - 1
Felagund (Nargothrond) - 1
Atkins (Niggle’s Parish) - 1
Tar-Ancalime (Numenore) - 1
Guest (Old Grey Hill) - 1
William (Rivendell) - 1
Gilraen (Rivendell) - 1
Roverandum (Roverandum) - 1
Frodo (Tol Eressea) - 1
Pippin Took (The Shire) -1
Finarfin (Tuna) -1
Maedhros (Tuna) -1
Fairy Queen (Wooton Major) - 1

PS Thanks for providing the Group Tables in rtf, Sleepy. One observation, though. Gondolin should have 6 points.

Nogrod

07-17-2007, 11:35 AM

The board of Nogg’s Ball has observed the current situation of the competition and has arrived to the following predicament.

On the first knock-out phase the teams to challenge each other will be:

1. Angband – Ham/Doriath
2. Valinor – Ham / Doriath
3. Tuna – The Inklings
4. Lothlorien / Shire – Barrow-Downs
5. Nargothrond – Bree
6. Numenor – Gondolin
7. Mordor / Roverandom – Fangorn / Old Gray Hill
8. Mordor / Roverandom – Misty Mountains

And if standard rules apply, then it will be the winners facing each other from matches:
1-8 = Angband – Misty Mountains
2-7 this is a hard one to predict…
3-6 = Tuna – Gondolin
4-5 = Barrow-Downs – Nargothrond

So Angband and The Barrow-Downs will meet in the semifinal!

On the other semifinal a group of nobodies (unless Mordor gets it’s act together and will proceed to this stage) will face Tuna, and Tumunzahar will be betting heavily on Tuna – elves they are but however…

So a final between Tuna vs. Angband / Barrow-Downs to be seen?

Due to these considerations Nogg’s Ball’s directorate will announce the following change to their line-up.

Sold out:
FW Tulkas (Valinor)

Signed in:
FW Finwe (Tuna)

Other changes will take place after the rest of this round’s matches are played out.

Generally the team will be considering selling off the Erebor goalie Smaug in the first place but as said earlier, he will be given an opportunity to show his skills as well as his team to show up some actual playing before any action is taken by the board of Nogg’s Ball. The same goes with Valinor’s defender Mänwe.

Depending on today’s fixtures Nogg’s Ball will be highly interested in changing their Barrow-Downs midfielder Feanor of the Peredhil (a winning teams midfielder to be sure but a bit ineffective) to either Dwalin (Misty Mountains) or Wizard Artaxerxez (Roverandom). Also Ham’s midfielder Miller would be an option – depending on today’s results and the consecutive standings in the charts (whether Ham will meet Angband in the first knock-out round or not).

But the time will tell…

PS. Sleepy & Arcticstorm: I have made the change in Nogg’s Ball’s initial line-up.

Sleepy Ranger

07-17-2007, 12:54 PM

First up we have Erebor facing off against Valinor. I reckon Valinor should be able to win this match. If they fail to win they will have the nearly impossible task of besting an in form Angband. Valinor have it all to play for. Lothlorien are second though only on goal difference. They have to win here to keep any hopes of making it through. They will have a hard time against Tuna who have been on fire.

***

Group A
Valinor 0 - 1 Erebor
(Bard 87th)

This match was not really one of high quality but Erebor managed a last grasp victory with a cheeky goal from their forward Bard. Valinor did start the game rather gracefully almost going ahead after an Eonwe free kick floated goalwards struck the crossbar. Near the end of the first half they had another great chance when Pallando swept in from the right flank but his shot rolled harmlessly past the left post. The teams went in all square with Valinor dominating the chances.

In the second half it was Erebor that created the first chance when Bard broke away. He was taken down in the box by Manwe. An appeal for a penalty went up but the referee said the tackle was a clean one. Only moments after that Manwe was booked for a tackle on Bard outside the box. Ironically the tackle in the box looked more like a foul than this did. The refs need to be more consistent.

The only goal of the match came in the 87th minute after a corner. The corner was taken by Fili. After some anxious headers by both teams the ball wound up loose in the box. Bard swooped down on it and blasted it in from point blank. Erebor manage to win out of nowhere.

Shots: 5(2) - 3(1)
Posession:50 - 50
Bookings: Manwe

Group B
Lothlorien 2 - 0 Brethil
(Gandalf 12th, Amroth 53rd)

Lothlorien have finally got their game on. Gandalf scored off a free kick in the 12th minute to finally give Lothlorien a goal. The game was a good one for them, they played some beautiful football and while their chances were few and far in between they made the most of them. In fact you could say that Brethil dominated attacking play in the first half. They got in five shots, three on target but lacking power or just shooting them straight Galadriel while Lothlorien could only manage two, the one on target resulted in their goal.

Soon after the second half began Lothlorien had another great oppurtunity. Gandalf played in Gimli who crossed in well from the right flank. The ball went over a crowd in the box and found Amroth who was standing wide and shot the ball into the bottom corner giving Lothlorien a two goal advantage. Brethil came close to equalizing when Turambar forced an exceptional save out of Galadriel from point blank.

Shots: 4(2) - 6(3)
Posession: 48 - 52

***

Valinor lost! To make it through the have to beat Angband. I guess it's safe to say that they won't be making it through to the next round. Lothlorien managed a good win which gives them moral advantage going into the next round. More importantly they have two precious goals which will certainly put the pressure on the Shire.

Sleepy Ranger

07-17-2007, 01:20 PM

Next up Roverandom will be taking on Dor-Lomin. Roverandom managed to sneak a win past Mordor but what about Dor Lomin? They may have lost their first game but they have a very good attack and are very capable of scoring a goal. I reckon Dor Lomin may snatch the win. Rivendell impressed me very much in their loss against Ham while Arnor played disgracefully. If the last games were any indication, Rivendell will win this with ease.

***

Group D
Roverandom 0 - 1 Dor Lomin
(Turin 19th)

This was a boring game. Dor Lomin won with what was pretty much to only real chance of the game. Amazing really since the two teams managed to take about twenty shots between them. I have never seen such dreadful shooting before. Can you believe that this team beat Mordor?!? Ugh... dreadful.

Dor Lomin's goal came when Turin picked up on a defensive lapse and stole the ball off of a defender to knock the ball in before anyone so much as realized what was happening. Turin then managed to get himself a yellow card for a dangerous tackle. Boring game.

Shots: 7(0) - 12(2)
Posession: 49 - 51
Bookings: Turin

Group H
Arnor 3 - 0 Rivendell
(Aragorn 67th, 78th, 83rd)

*Report Pending* Sorry, have some work to do elsewhere. Won't have time to do this right now.

Assist: Arathorn, Arvedui, Isildur
Bookings: Isildur - Bilbo
Shots: 8(8) - 3(1)
Posession: 56 - 44

***

The Saucepan Man

07-18-2007, 07:09 AM

Grrr! I am not at all happy with these results, because most went contrary to my expectation and most are dreadful for my Fantasy World Cup team. :rolleyes:

Group A
Disaster for Valinor! One of the fancied teams pre-competition, they now need to beat the mighty Angband by a significant margin and rely on a favourable result from the Moria v Erebor game. It's not looking good for them. But they only have themselves to blame. They are far too cautious as a team, as their failure to score even a single goal so far shows. I am also wondering whether they are unsettled, as Manwe is usually a very calm and focussed player and his poor tackling was most out of character. A great result for Erebor, of course, who now have a realistic chance of going through. Personally, though, if Valinor goes out, I would prefer Misty Mountains to go through, as I think that they are the better team.

*News just in: Valinor team coach, Eru Iluvatar, has been quoted as saying that he does not mind if Valinor are eliminated, as he created the competition and all the teams in it, and there is no outcome that would not be to his greater glory.*

Hmm, perhaps that explains their lacklustre approach ...

Group B
Isn't it great to see Gandalf still banging them in, even at this late stage in his career? A good result for Lothlorien, and a surprisingly good turn of play from the inexperienced Amroth. Still, they are not through yet. They still have the superb Tuna to play, whereas The Shire will be facing a poor looking Brethil (with Turambar their only player of note).

Group D
Well, on the basis of Roverandom's previous performance, I certainly didn't expect them to lose to Dor Lomin. Like Brethil, Dor Lomin, only have one player of any note, and that's Turin. Mind you, he's not half bad. He reminds me of a young Mormegil, which is no bad thing, given Mormegil's record in this competition.

Still, the result makes Group D very interesting - each team on 3 points with it all to play for. I'm still backing Mordor and Tol Eressea.

Group H
Well the highlights of the Arnor v Rivendell match are still pending, but the result means that Rivendell becomes the first team to be eliminated for sure. It's a shame, as they looked in their first match like they might be able to recapture the glories of competitions past, and I would have expected them to beat Arnor. Still, Aragorn proved that he was a good player when at Gondor, and his hat-trick in this match shows that he clearly still is. The Ham v Arnor match is likely to determine second place in this Group, and I still have high hopes for the plucky folk of Ham.

Sleepy Ranger

07-18-2007, 07:41 AM

Group C
Niggle's Parish vs. Numenor

Group E
Fangorn vs. Tol In Gauroth

Group F
Bree vs. Mirkwood

Group G
Rohan vs. Gondor

I just added the group tables in RTF this time. I hope it's convenient for everyone. :)

Sleepy Ranger

07-18-2007, 08:24 AM

Group A

Angband are surely through to the next round now. They've probably done enough to secure top spot as well. The hunt for second place is still on though. Any of the three teams could take it. Realistically though only Erebor and Moria have a chance. Valinor face the daunting task of having to beat Angband while hoping that Moria beat Erebor. Even then they'd have to rely on a superior goal difference.

Erebor only need a draw against Moria to qualify. Moria would need to beat Erebor to make it through, while hoping that Valinor do not defeat Angband. I can not really see Valinor taking any points off Angband and therefore reckon it will come down to Erebor and Moria. If Moria can sort out their issues I think they may have a chance but at the moment I believe the group will end like so,

1st- Angband
2nd- Erebor
3rd- Moria
4th- Valinor

Group B

Tuna have booked their berth in the next round and their match against Lothlorien will decide who tops the group, then again in Lothlorien's case a loss could threaten their qualification. I believe Lothlorien will play cautiously and look for a draw. The Shire are up against Brethil. It is a game that I would expect the Shire to win. They would however have to hope that Tuna beat Lothlorien by at least two goals for the goal difference problem to clear.

I believe Lothlorien may just snatch a draw in here but even if they fail to do that I can not see the Shire closing the gap on goal difference. Then again Brethil have leaked in plenty of goals. I think Lothlorien will follow Tuna out of this group, just barely.

1st- Tuna
2nd- Lothlorien
3rd- Shire
4th- Brethil

Group C

Nargothrond have been the dominant force in this group. Numenor too have done quite well though what happens in their second match is yet to be seen. I assume that the last day match-up of Numenor vs. Nargothrond will decide the group leader. I really doubt Niggle's Parish or Buckland have any chance of making it out of the group and will be playing each other for third place.

While I'm undecided as to whether Nargothrond or Numenor will top the group I am willing to take a risk and predict the following,

1st- Nargothrond
2nd- Numenor
3rd- Buckland
4th- Niggle's Parish

Group D

This is a very interesting situation. With two games played by all, each team finds themselves with a one and a loss, in other words 3 points each. It will definitely be an interesting final day. Mordor take on Dor Lomin and Tol Eressea take on Roverandom. I do not think there will be any fluke wins and I believe Mordor will top the table on goal difference after Mordor and Tol Eressea win their respective matches.

1st- Mordor
2nd- Tol Eressea
3rd- Roverandom
4th- Dor Lomin

Group E

This group is still fairly open although I guess Misty Mountains have secured their place in the next round. I guess it's a toss up between Tol In Gauroth and Fangorn. Whichever of them wins is better poised to finish second. It's really not an interesting group decide being so open. It's too weak in my opinion.

1st- Misty Mountains
2nd- Fangorn
3rd- Old Grey Hill
4th- Tol In Gauroth

Group F

Gondolin have secured their spot in the next round and as soon as Bree beat Wooton Major they too will have secured their place in the next round. I had expected Mirkwood to do better but that's football, things tend do go as they want to.

1st- Gondolin
2nd- Bree
3rd- Mirkwood
4th- Wooton Major

Group G

Interestingly enough at this point in time any of the four teams could go through. Although some only have a very slim chance. I very much expect Gondor to defeat Rohan today but the outcome is still to be known and Rohan are very much capable of winning.

Barrow-Downs: With 6 points one can assume they are through to the next round. However, Inklings, Gondor and Rohan are all capable of matching their points tally. Matching their goal difference will be highly improbable though hence I believe the 'Downs are certain qualifiers. Their last day match is against Rohan which, perhaps, could be called an almost definite win.

Inklings: Currently second on 3 points. They will be facing off against a rather tough Gondor team. The Gondorians gave the 'Downs a run for their money in a game in which the scored perhaps was a bit unfair. Gondor could very well beat the Inklings here which should give them six points and a qualifying position.

Gondor: They will have to face the Inklings on the final day. I believe they will beat Rohan today and then go on to beat the Inklings and finish second.

Rohan: I expect them to lose to the 'Downs and finish on zero points.

1st- Barrow Downs
2nd- Gondor
3rd- Inklings
4th- Rohan

Group H

Group H is open for Ham, Doriath and Arnor. The final day fixtures will see Ham take on Arnor and Doriath face Rivendell. Doriath will be playing for a win as that is the only thing that can assure them qualification. It will not be that easy a task as Rivendell will be looking to prevent an embaressment and score at least a point. Ham and Arnor have it all to play for. A draw here wouldmean Ham go through while Arnor have to rely on Rivendell to beat Doriath. A Ham win will see them through, an Arnor win would see them through. This group is really too close to call.

the phantom

07-18-2007, 10:30 AM

Wow- I've got a lot of matches to get through! I hope you don't mind that I've fallen behind a bit. It's difficult to find the time to play in the World Cup, own a fantasy team, and be a sports writer.

Moria 1 - 3 Angband

Angband was not on top of things in that first half, but put it together to score three times in a twenty minute span during the second half. It's easy enough for Angband to get away with that sort of play during the group stage, but they'd better be ready to play a full game once the knock-out rounds begin.

Tuna 2 - 1 Shire

Tuna played this game smart, using their complete superiority to nab a two goal lead immediately out of the gate and then just coasting from there, conserving their energy and saving themselves for the knock-out rounds.

Mordor 4 - 0 Tol Eressea

Ouch. Yeah, I expected a Mordor win, but wow... possession 64-36, shots 15-2... Mordor looked scary good in that game. They looked like the Mordor team that won three cups in a row back in the day. The question is, was this a one game fluke, or a sign of their return?

Barrow-Downs 4 - 1 The Inklings

All the big guns were playing well, and so it is not surprising that the Downs ran away with the game. When all their forwards plus Phantom are on top of their game, it's impossible to keep the Downs off the board. But will everyone stay consistent? SPM and Phantom are famous for the inconsistency of their teamwork, seeming to share a brain and racking up lots of goals in one game, and then in the next game they can't get on the same page and sometimes they will feud and outright refuse to pass to one another. Let's hope a spirit of unity prevails throughout this World Cup.

Nargothrond 2 - 0 Buckland

Mormegil scored again? No way. I'm shocked. But seriously, things went as expected. Buckland doesn't have the athletes to push Nargothrond.

Old Grey Hill 0 - 1 Misty Mountains

Honestly, Old Grey Hill is playing way way better than I thought they would. I expected at least a two goal victory for Misty Mts. So, kudos to Mts for the win, and kudos to Hill for competing well. This is a weak group though, so don't get too excited.

Gondolin 2 - 0 Mirkwood

Mirkwood finally played up to their potential. Unfortunately, the opponent was Gondolin, who can beat just about anyone. Hurin certainly showed us all where Mormegil gets his scoring talents from.

Doriath 2 - 2 Ham

Doriath has got to be disappointed with this result. They are the better team. After taking the 2-0 lead they should have gone conservative and clogged up the field, but they chose not to, and paid for it.

Valinor 0 - 1 Erebor

As much as I dislike Angband's Melkor, I really think he said it right in his pre-tournament interview when he called out Manwe, telling him to "grow a pair". Valinor has some fantastic scorers on their team- just turn them loose! But it's probably too late now.

Lothlorien 2 - 0 Brethil

Personally, I thought the match was boring. Brethil played like a junior high team. I think they're eager to get back to the forest.

Roverandom 0 - 1 Dor Lomin

This result just makes it look even dumber that Mordor lost to Roverandom. It's downright suspicious.

Arnor 3 - 0 Rivendell

Ah, so Arnor is finally showing us what that offense can do. Poor Rivendell... it's like I said before the tournament- with that midfield they have there is no way they are advancing.

Sleepy Ranger

07-18-2007, 02:55 PM

Sorry, no results today. I'm exhausted and will be unable to do them. Sorry! :(

Thenamir

07-18-2007, 03:03 PM

ANd here I was all a-twitter about the latest set of standings and results. Get some sleep, Sleepy Ranger...we won't tolerate this two days in a row. :D

Thenamir

07-19-2007, 03:22 PM

Hmmm...we may have no choice but to put up with this two days in a row. It's getting late...

Nogrod

07-19-2007, 03:45 PM

Hmmm...we may have no choice but to put up with this two days in a row. It's getting late...Oh, Mr. Ray-Gun... (Regan it was in the Matrix?), we have no choice but to endure... Sadly many times people who are involved and just get interested is when the hosts get bored... :p

Let's hope Sleepy will pull his act together.

Thenamir

07-19-2007, 04:17 PM

I just want to see how badly I'm doing since I traded out over half my team...

Sleepy Ranger

07-19-2007, 05:06 PM

Oh, Mr. Ray-Gun... (Regan it was in the Matrix?), we have no choice but to endure... Sadly many times people who are involved and just get interested is when the hosts get bored... :p

Let's hope Sleepy will pull his act together.

Hey! I'm right here! Results will be up in a bit. I'm writing them now.
Sorry that I've been busy lately, just had things to do with my band and such. Also, I met two really old friends so I got a bit caught up there as well. Anyway, results to follow in the next post. :)

Arcticstorm has been quite busy as well but when I talked to him earlier today he had been updating his list. :)

Nogrod

07-19-2007, 06:14 PM

I just want to see how badly I'm doing since I traded out over half my team...You just traded nobodies to the top-scorers and those in the highest end of the points-list... so what's the problem? The points will be pouring into your basket. :D

Wouldn't it have been more sporty to pick up others than the current leaders of the +- board?

Whatever, I hope we will hear from Arcticstorm soon...

Sleepy Ranger

07-19-2007, 06:36 PM

Group C
Niggle's Parish 0 - 1 Numenor
(Tar-Miriel 32nd)

Numenor scored the only goal of the game which came in a very one sided one half. In the second half Numenor seemed to be taking it easy and letting things happen at their own pace. That one goal however was the result of some superb play. Erendis began the move which ended up consisting of perhaps a dozen quick passes until the ball finally wound up at the feet of Tar-Miriel after being knock on by Tar-Ancalime.

Tar-Miriel first took a fake shot, sending the keeper the wrong way after which he flicked the ball into the goal putting Numenor ahead. After this Numenor did get another brilliant chance when Tar-Miriel crossed in for Ar-Pharzon. The midfielder let the chance go running as he failed to put foot to ball. Niggle's Parish never looked capable of scoring, not even when they got near goal. Numenor did enough to win, no more no less.

Shots: 5(2) - 1(1)
Posession: 58 - 42

Group E
Fangorn 0 - 0 Tol In Gauroth

Horrible game. Total sleeper. I pity the fans who turned up to see this drivel. The tone was set for the game when Ugluk got SENT OFF in just the 10th minute. Things did not seem to get any better for the game as Ranger picked up a yellow card soon after. Just before the break things got ugly and in the heat of the game, Cobbler made a viscious challenge which earned him a red card.

More or less the only chance of the game came when Werewolf leaped at Quickbeam and took him down. The referee was forced to flash another red card and Fangorn had a penalty. Ordinary Villager had to be the stand in goalkeeper. He did not really have to do anything as Treebeard shot well wide and well over. Truly horrible match.

Shots: 1(0) - 2(0)
Posession: 45 - 55
Bookings: Ranger
Sending Offs: Ugluk - Cobbler, Werewolf

***

Numenor did what they had to to win. They played safe and it paid off. Good for them. I'm sorely disappointed at the Fangorn - T.I.G game though. It was a pain to watch.

Sleepy Ranger

07-19-2007, 07:09 PM

Group F
Bree 0 - 0 Wooton Major

Wooton Major did very well to hang onto a draw here. Bree should kick themselves for not winning this game considering the chances they created. I'll admit that none of the chances looked threatening at all but on account of the shots they took... I think they should be looking at replays of this game for a long, long time. There isn't much to report except that watch out for an flying balls, some of them still haven't been recovered.

Shots: 21(6) - 3(2)
Posession: 65 - 35

Group G
Rohan 0 - 1 Gondor
(Faramir 82nd)

Rohan dominated most of the posession but failed to use it effectively. Gondor had the best chances despite lacking posession. I don't mean a small difference, I mean a huge difference. Rohan just held the ball for most of the game but whenever Gondor got on the ball it looked like a certain goal. As the scoreline suggests they hardly touched the ball at all.

I've never understood posession football. How is holding the ball supposed to win you the game? Gondor had the right idea, you take the ball, make a kamakaizee run towards the opponent's goal and score. They just that. With the scores locked in the final ten minutes, Faramir knicked the ball off Eomer from his own box. From there the Gondorian made a fantastic sprint all the way to the edge of the Rohan box from where he lashed in a mean drive which nearly tore through the net. Despite the stats, the better team won this game.

Shots: 4(2) - 6(3)
Posession: 66 - 34

***

Both matches were fairly odd. Bree should have capitalized, they may well pay the price for failing to win this while someone needs to teach Rohan how to play football. They kept the game for most of the match but you don't win by passing in midfield. Gondor on the other hand, even with such little posession they played some electrifying football.

Thenamir

07-20-2007, 07:49 AM

Wouldn't it have been more sporty to pick up others than the current leaders of the +- board? I thought "sporting" (as in the Englishism "give 'im a sporting chance") meant that you were at least trying to win...

Nogrod

07-20-2007, 10:27 AM

I thought "sporting" (as in the Englishism "give 'im a sporting chance") meant that you were at least trying to win...Touché. :)

The Saucepan Man

07-21-2007, 10:32 AM

Group C: Numenor 1 - 0 Niggle's Parish

Numenor hardly raised a sweat in beating the hopelssly outclassed Niggle's Parish. Tar-Miriel and Tar-Ancalime played well up front, although Ar-Pharazon must have been hoping the ground would swallow him up after that mis-kick. This result assures Numenor a place in the next round, but they now have to play the highly impressive Nargothrond to decide who get's top spot in the Group.

Group E: Fangorn 0 - 0 Tol in Gaurhoth

It's hardly surprising that this game was so dreadful, with Fangorn's slow and ponderous attack and Tol In Gaurhoth's inexperience and poor team spirit. Ugluk's aggression is one of the things that makes him such a great player, but it also earned him a red card in this match. I still think that Fangorn would have done a lot better harnessing his strength and aggression up front. With two TiG players also being sent off, Fangorn should have done better, but they lacked the pace to make use of the extra space. This result puts Misty Mountains through in top spot and Fangorn still have the opportunity to progress. On the evidence of this performance, however, they may be hard pressed to do so. Unlikely as it may have seemed at the outset, I can see Old Grey Hill beating Tol in Gaurhoth to snatch second place in the Group.

Group F: Bree 0 - 0 Wooton Major

It's no surprise that Bree kept a clean sheet as they have a great defence. It is surprising, however, that they weren't able to snatch a goal or three here, particularly with The Old Master, Tom Bombadil, up front. With all those shots, they really really should have put at least two or three of them away. They should still go through to the next round, but they could have secured their place with a better performance here.

Group G: Gondor 1 - 0 Rohan

Unlike the match commentator, I do understand possession football. Teams that can't keep the ball are never going to win trophies (*coughEnglandcough*). Hoever, Rohan showed here that possession is only part of the equation. You need to be able to use it. They have the players to do that, so I can't for the life of me understand why they never perform as they should. A brilliant piece of individual play from Faramir showed Rohan exactly what you should do with the ball when you get it and earned Gondor the victory. The forthcoming match between Gondor and The Inklings will determine second place in this Group (and my money's still on The Inklings), while Edoras beckons for the Riders of Rohan.

Yellow Boot Trophy competition update

No major changes from the last update, just a few additions to the 'one-goalers':

Mormegil (Nargothrond) - 5
Aragorn (Arnor) - 3
Mablung (Doriath) - 3
Hurin (Gondolin) - 3
Farmer Giles (Ham) - 3
Melkor (Angband) - 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) - 2
Sleepy Ranger (Barrow-Downs) - 2
The phantom (Barrow-Downs) - 2
Tailbiter (Ham) - 2
JRR Tolkien (Inklings) - 2
Dwalin (Misty Mountains) - 2
Dark Lord (Mordor) - 2
Finwe (Tuna) - 2
Rune Son of Bjarne (Barrow-Downs) - 1
The Saucepan Man (Barrow-Downs) -1
Tom Bombadil (Bree) - 1
Turin (Dor Lomin) -1
Bard (Erebor) - 1
Skinbark (Fangorn) - 1
Turgon (Gondolin) - 1
Faramir (Gondor) -1
Christopher Tolkien (Inklings) - 1
Amroth (Lothlorien) - 1
Gandalf (Lothlorien) - 1
Stone Giant (Misty Mountains) - 1
Witch-King (Mordor) - 1
Shagrat (Mordor) - 1
Durin’s Bane (Moria) - 1
Felagund (Nargothrond) - 1
Atkins (Niggle’s Parish) - 1
Tar-Ancalime (Numenore) - 1
Tar-Miriel (Numenore) - 1
Guest (Old Grey Hill) - 1
William (Rivendell) - 1
Gilraen (Rivendell) - 1
Roverandum (Roverandum) - 1
Frodo (Tol Eressea) - 1
Pippin Took (The Shire) -1
Finarfin (Tuna) -1
Maedhros (Tuna) -1
Fairy Queen (Wooton Major) - 1

Sleepy Ranger

07-21-2007, 03:16 PM

Alright! The final round fixtures are here. I'm hoping that I could get a couple of volunteers to help me right the match. The only requirement is that you have decent knowledge of the sport. I'll send you the match details along with notes on the match. All you have to do is put in paragraph form. While it doesn't seem like much, it would really be a big help. :)

Also, do let me know (by PM) which matches and how many, you wish to cover.

Without further ado, onto the final fixtures. (These matches are to be played over the next two days)

Group A
Angband vs. Valinor
Moria vs. Erebor

Group B
Lothlorien vs. Tuna
Shire vs. Brethil

Group C
Nargothrond vs. Numenor
Buckland vs. Niggle's Parish

Group D
Tol Eressea vs. Roverandom
Mordor vs. Dor Lomin

Group E
Misty Mountains vs. Fangorn
Old Grey Hill vs. Tol In Gauroth

Group F
Wooton Major vs. Mirkwood
Bree vs. Gondolin

Group G
Inklings vs. Gondor
Barrow-Downs vs. Rohan

Group H
Arnor vs. Ham
Rivendell vs. Doriath

Sleepy Ranger

07-23-2007, 02:02 PM

Here we are with the final round for Group A. The matches will be played simultaneously so that the results are not influenced. Angband have already qualified while both Valinor and Moria are in a must win situation. Erebor should make ith through with just a draw as many people have predicted that Valinor do not stand a chance against Angband. We'll have to see how things work out.

Group A

Angband 0 - 2 Valinor
(Eonwe 15th, Tulkas 36th)

Angband started off the match quite comfortably, creating the first chance of the game when Ulfang shot just wide of target. They maintained decent pressure for a while but then to everybody's shock Valinor scored a goal. Tulkas managed to get a pass forward after he was superbly marked out. The defenders failed to deal with the pass as it wound up with Eonwe who lofted in a shot despite being closed down. Angband nearly equalized moments later when Melkor blazed a header wide.

Much to everyone's surprise Valinor did the impossible, they scored again. This time Eonwe crossed in for Tulkas who headed the ball down and then volleyed it in quite powerfully putting Valinor in quite a good position. Angband seemed to be quite frustrated and weighed down. This was emphasized when Gothmog made a rash challenge earning him a yellow card. The half ended with Angband down two goals.

Angband played with a fire in their belly through out the second half managing to break on goal several times. They played masterfully but Valinor defended as if their lives defended on it. Angband looked good enough not only to equalize but also to go on and win it, instead poor finishing handed them a two goal loss.

Shots: 9(3) - 3(2)
Posession: 55 - 45
Bookings: Gothmog

Moria 1 - 0 Erebor
(Balin 5th)

What an amazing start for Moria. Durin headed the ball towards Balin who took it past a defender with his first touch and then blazed in a fantastic shot. Game on! The rest of the half was pretty fiercly contested. Both teams managed some very good build ups both unfortunately failed to really threaten.

Erebor completetly dominated posession in the second half but really failed to do anything with it. The second half was of fairly poor quality with neither team really creating anything. The match drew to a close with Moria ahead thanks to an early goal.

Shots: 4(2) - 4(2)
Posession: 40 - 60

***

Quite a shocking day. Both teams that were desperate for a win, Valinor and Moria, managed to win. Now let's see how things turned out, here are the final standings of Group A.

Group A
1st- Angband (6pts, +1)
2nd- Valinor (4pts, +1)
3rd- Moria (4pts, -1)
4th- Erebor (3pts, -1)

Valinor have managed to qualify, beating the team on form. They may have done quite bad in their first two matches but they've done the hard part to make it through. Angband and Valinor will be going on to the next round.

Sleepy Ranger

07-25-2007, 02:15 PM

This group is closed. Nargothrond and Numenor have six points each and book have book their berths in the next round. Their match will be a face off for top of the group while Buckland taking on Niggle's Parish will be a fairly insignificant event. None the less, the match must be played. Now, to the games!

Group C
Nargothrond 0 - 0 Numenor
Buckland 0 - 0 Niggle's Parish

Both games were fairly boring events. Nargothrond and Numenor seemed relaxed and neither tried to attack at all. They both played good holding football, building up in midfield but never really going forward. As for the other match, that was even more boring. Honestly, neither team wanted to be out there. They didn't really play well at all, with the ball being out of play most of the match. Neither of the games had anything really noteworthy happen. I was very surprised that Nargothrond did not attack but what does it matter, they've topped the group anyway.

Group C
1st- Nargothrond (7pts, +5)
2nd- Numenor (7pts, +4)
3rd- Buckland (1pt, -3)
4th- Niggle's Parish (1pt, -4)

Sleepy Ranger

07-25-2007, 02:28 PM

Misty Mountains have already qualified for the next round. So far no team has been able to win all three matches. Misty Mountains are another team to have chalked up three points but will they also be able to get out of the group stages on a three match winning streak? Second place is very much in contention with all the other teams in the group very much able to seal it. Let's see how it goes.

Group E
Misty Mountains 2 - 1 Fangorn (Dwalin 34th, Stone Giant 54th) (Treebeard 88th PK)
Old Grey Hill 0 - 0 Tol In Gauroth

Neither of the two games were really all that entertaining. Misty Mountains kept their match lively with a fair host of chances but neither Old Grey Hill nor Tol In Gauroth could do much to save their game. T-I-G's poor discipline continued as Cursed Villager and Ordinary Villager were both SENT OFF in the first half. While this was the perfect time for Old Grey Hill to capitalize they failed to really do so which lead to this game being a very boring draw.

The first goal in the Misty Mountains game came when Stone Giant was tripped outside the area. Dwalin scored off the free kick after his shot deflected off the post and into the net. Early on in the second half Dwalin turned creator and crossed in an early ball to set up Stone Giant who blazed in a neat shot. All hope seemed to have faded for Fangorn now. If results stayed like this Old Grey Hill would qualify over them. Very late in the match Gollum took down Quickbeam in the area to give Fangorn a penalty. Treebeard calmly converted it. This goal may very well see them through.

Game 1:
Shots: 8(5) - 2(2)
Posession: 55 - 45
Game 2:
Shots: 1(1) - 3(1)
Posession: 43 - 57
Sending Offs: Cursed Villager, Ordinary Villager

Group E
1st- Misty Mountains (9pts, +4)
2nd- Fangorn (2pts, -1)*
3rd- Old Grey Hill (2pts, -1)
4th- Tol In Gauroth (2pts, -2)

PS: Fangorn go through due to a higher number of goals scored.

Nogrod

07-25-2007, 03:43 PM

Welcome to the match reports on two odd matches. Nothing is then written in the stone after these matches… but from groups B and D we now do have something to report.

In group B Shire still stands a chance if they win Brethil confidently and Tuna beats Lothlorien at the same time. Shire’s goal difference is now -1 and Lothlorien’s +2. So Shire would be eager to score a lot of goals and wishing to see Tuna trash Lothlorien. Brethil will play only for their honour today.

Group D is the tightest one. Every team has a chance - all being on three points - so these will be games with all to win and all to lose for every team. They will fight for every ball like that was their last lifeline. We’re anticipating a clash of wills and skills when Mordor meets Dor-Lomin. Can Dor-Lomin hold on to the result-bringing swing they got into their last game against Tol-Eressëa or will the players of Mordor, infuriated by their first round loss to Roverandom, sweep them like they did to T-E? A draw will not be acceptable to either team.

Group B

Shire 2-0 Brethil
(Sam Gamgee 21st, Pippin Took 67th)

Brethil came into the game spiritedly, clearly caring for their reputation and wishing to show their qualities. Already at 3rd minute Hunthor’s nice long pass to Turambar left Shire’s defence unarmed within the scope of the rules. Rosie Cotton’s yellow card was deserved for the ugly tackle she performed.

Slowly Shire managed to make some counter-attacks and on 21st minute Sam Gamgee’s personal skill gave them the lead: a beautiful low and curved shot taken from the edge of the area went to the back of the Brethil net. Niniel had no chance there.

After the Shire goal Brethil started mounting some real pressure. Turin had two chances from breakaways at the latter part of the first half but the first time he shot it wide and on the other one Lobelia managed to save the day for the Shire-team.

Brethil came to the second half with a fighting attiutude while Shire just defended their lead. But the final nail to Brethil’s coffin came at 67th minute from the beautiful inswinging corner given by Sam and headed in by Pippin Took. After that there was no real game any more. Brethil seemed to settle with their destiny to drop out from the tournament being two goals down and it was just playing to and fro the last twenty minutes. Shire had the most chances in the end of the game but seemed to be shooting wide more than on the mark.

Shots: 8(3) - 5(3)
Posession: 47 – 53
Bookings: Rosie Cotton

Group D

Mordor 1 - 0 Dor Lomin
(Snaga 2nd)

Mordor was just fire and flame from the very first seconds on. And already at the 2nd minute the Witch-King’s nice pass within the box freed Snaga to hammer the ball in. It really was a shock-start for the Dor-Lomin team.

Dor-Lomin’s coach made a loud show of character and the team managed to tighten it’s defences after that first goal. Not that we could call this a game between two teams in any meaningful use of the term. Mordor had the ball and moved it from player to player but as Dor-Lomin had pulled all the players down – probably wishing for a sudden breakthrough - the game became boring pretty soon.

Mordor had the ball and eleven Dor-Lominers were always under the ball. Slowly the fire of Mordor died out and even they seemed to be content in just moving the ball from one to another at the second half.

Not a great match but Mordor did secure their qualification and sent Dor-Lomin out of the competition.

Shots: 3(1) - 0
Posession: 69 – 31