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After Isengard’s humiliating opening night defeat to Minas Morgul, Saruman retreated into Orthanc without a word to the press. That night the earth trembled and the wind carried the howling of wolfs. Next morning black clouds obscured the pinnacles of the Tower and the visitors wondered what the old wizard was up to. Ahead of the second day of matches Saruman was all smiles though, and at a press conference he had all the journalists believing his team could hardly avoid winning the whole tournament, let alone the match against Gondolin later that evening.

Before the fate of the host team was to be sealed, the two victorious team from day one would first face off. All-star Hitlum was the big favourite of course, but Minas Morgul, led by the dreaded Witch-King, had made a very impressive start to the tournament and should not be underestimated.

Match 3: Hithlum vs. Minas Morgul

Straight from the start, this Minas Morgul team showed everyone their good first-round result was no fluke. Although Hithlum came at them with dizzying movement and lightning-quick passes, the Morgul back four held up well under the leadership of their terrible captain. They also looked dangerous on the break, and as Castamir almost broke free in the 20th minute, Caranthir was forced to stop him with cynical tackle, earning him a yellow card. Beruthiel took the resulting free-kick, and it was a decent effort, but Huan in the Hithlum goal grabbed the ball and quickly threw it up to Fëanor, who spun past the onrushing Khamul and speeded up towards the Minas Morgul goal. He then took on and beat Gothmog and advanced into the box, and when everybody expected a shot, he played a perfect ball to Maedros instead, who slotted the ball into the net past a diving Lugdush.

Now Hithlum threatened to run away with it, but the Witch-King rallied his men, and Fëanor were denied on several occations, despite his sublime skills with the ball. A few minutes before the interval, Minas Morgul got the break they needed to get back into the game. A queen Beruthiel cross was headed away by Ulmo, but only as far as the Witch-King, who tried a volley from 25 metres that he only got a piece of, but the mis-hit shot became a perfect pass to Castamir, who beat a surprised Huan with ease.

After the interval Hithlum stepped up the pace even more, and despite very strong defensive performances by the Morgul-players, the Elvish side was beginning to wear them down. 15 minutes into the period Caranthir could and perhaps should have put his side into the lead with a free header, but only a few moments later the ball came to Aredhel the White Lady, who showed good composure by back-heeling the ball towards the onrushing Fëanor who hit an unstoppable projectile into the roof of the net for his second goal of the tournament.

If it weren’t for the wickedness of the Witch-King and the rash temper of dark Caranthir, this match would surely have been won by Hithlum, but when the Lord of the Nazgul made an obscene gesture with unseen hands, the Hithlum defender could not control himself and pushed his opponent in the chest. Naturally the Witch-King collapsed in a heap on the ground, and the ref reached for his pocket to give Caranthir his second yellow card. This happened with 15 minutes to go, and with time running out, Minas Morgul grabbed a very controversial equalizer. Beruthiel played in Castamir on the right, and when he dashed into the box, and Ulmo came in for the challenge, the Morgul striker went down like he’d been shot! The referee pointed to the spot, but if there had been contact between the two, it was slight indeed. The Hithlum supporters in the crowd booed, but the Witch-King cared not, and made no mistake from the spot-kick. 2-2 was the final score and this Morgul team has shown that they are to be taken seriously indeed.

Hithlum 2-2 Minas Morgul
shots 14-11
on target 6-4
GOALS:
*22, Hithlum (Maedhros, Feanor)
*38, Minas Morgul (Castamir, Witch King)
*61, Hithlum (Feanor, Aredhel)
*82, Minas Morgul pen (Witch King, Castamir)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Hithlum- Caranthir, Balrog #1, Fingolfin
*Minas Morgul- Sangahyando, Angamaite, Nazgul #1
RED CARDS:
*Hithlum- Caranthir, 77 (second yellow)

Match 4: Gondolin vs Isengard

Isengard had their back against the wall tonight and they knew that nothing short of a win would spell doom. Unfortunately for Saruman and co., their opponents were in the same situation, and would give nothing away for free. The desperation of the host team however took a more devious form than their Elvish counterparts, at least according to the word on the street. Rumours spoke of how the team had indulged in the banned performance-enhancing drug Ent-draft ahead of the match, smuggled inside the compound by Wormtongue. Gondolin had also complained that black crows were spying at their training facility. These accusations were never proven, and Saruman objected to them with great indignation, but as play came under-way, the Isengard-players did look much more energetic and sharp than on the opening night. But would it be enough? Gondolin was a very strong team, and there were indications that Gothmog and Ecthelion were starting to gel out there, an ominous sign for any opponent.

The first chance of the game fell to Isengard, and Quickbeam showed his pace and strength by speeding past the Gondolin back four. Saruman’s weighted through-ball was perfect, but the big Ent let himself down with an awful first touch, allowing Rog to snatch the ball in front of his feet. The Gondolin fans laughed heartily, and sang teasing songs about how close control and wooden legs don’t mix. A quarter of an hour into the game, it was Gondolin that took the lead. Gothmog was come into a good position on the right, and he spotted Ecthelion making a strong run. His pin-point cross was struck perfectly and the Elf hit a volley on the run that Lugdush could do nothing to stop. It was a great goal made by two great players!

All credit to Isengard though as they didn’t give up. Maybe it was the Ent-draft, but for the rest of the first half Gondolin were pressed hard, and had the host team had the same kind of quality up front as Gondolin they could well have turned the match on its head. They did manage an equalizer, but it needed the help of a wicked deflection, as Saruman’s shot hit an outstretched foot and left Rog helpless. But in the middle on a sustained period of Isengard pressure, Gondolin managed to take the lead again on a quick break. Gothmog was again the instigator when his through-ball found Duilin who scored with a low shot. Saruman was furious, claming Duilin had been off-side, but the ref were having none of it.

After the break Isengard went looking for a way back into the game, and surely Saruman had made a great Speech in the locker room, for the host team played as if there were no tomorrow. Under the leadership of Turgon, Gondolin defended extremely well however, and although Isengard did get a few half-chances, they never really threatened to equalize. This match as a contest was settled in the 61th minute, when central defender Turgon scored his first Arda Cup goal on an Egalmoth corner. The Isengard team was now broken, and did not manage to rise from the shambles again. On the pitch discipline now deteriorated, and the ref had his hands full to keep things under control. Sadly, these problems spread to the stands also, where a group of Uruk Hai tried to get onto the pitch among other incidents. Later that night there were several outbursts of violence between Orcish Isengard supporters and Elvish Gondolin fans, and three of the Orcs were slain. These are the sort of events real football-fans hate to see.

Gondolin 3-1 Isengard
shots 15-12
on target 8-3
GOALS:
*15, Gondolin (Ecthelion, Gothmog)
*29, Isengard (Saruman, Wulf)
*42, Gondolin (Duilin, Gothmog)
*61, Gondolin (Turgon, Egalmoth)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Gondolin- Penlod
*Isengard- Beechbone, Freca, Lurtz, Ugluk

Standings: Group C

Team................W D L GF GA P
1) Minas Morgul..1 1 0...5 - 2 4
2) Hithlum..........1 1 0...4 - 3 4
3) Gondolin........1 0 1...3 - 3 3
4) Isengard........0 0 2...1 - 6 0