[the phantom]

There was much food, drink, and merriment to be found upon the rock strewn sands at the foot of Mount Taras. Even unaffiliated football fans, such as the dwarves hired to prepare the city, were looking forward to play. “This group will play in a style we dwarves can appreciate!” said one. “Stubborn and tough, and very determined- or at least that is what their talk is, and their practices certainly don’t dispel their words.”

Men from nearby Beleriand seem to be finding it easy to root for not only the team that bears their name, but for Ithilien as well out of respect for Lord Faramir and the bearing of his team, as well as for Aman which features some impressive and gracious members of the Valar. And then there’s the squad from Vinyamar to root for, with fan-favorites Tuor and Ulmo. Their biggest cheers will be reserved for Beleriand of course.

The Elves have little trouble wishing well for the other teams as well, and several of the dwarves already intend to stick around to watch the group winner in the first round of the playoffs, no matter who it is. “We’re rooting for quality play to win, and for the group as a whole!”

And in the first match of the day, the dwarves were not disappointed with what they saw. It was a hard fought battle, with Ithilien doing a fine job of controlling possession. But this didn’t disappoint Beleriand, as they enjoyed being defensive aggressors, and nearly capitalized on turnovers twice in the first half. Mumakil, however, was up for it, and made Faramir’s decision to place him in goal look quite intelligent indeed.

In the second half it was more of the same, except Beleriand turned up the pressure even more in the opening minutes. It got them a couple cards, but nothing more, as Ithilien maintained their composure and mounted their best looking assault yet, ending with a nice placement by Faramir after beating the defense to the ball on a nice send-over from Beregond.

Ithilien then looked to lock down and preserve the lead, but that proved a mistake, as Beleriand was then able to find their stride on offense and build the attack up, culminating in a rocket from Marach in the 76th minute that simply could not be stopped.

As time ticked away Ithilien got things working again, but their best effort, a header off a corner, was turned away in the closing minutes, and the contest ended as a tie. Obviously both squads wanted a win, but without a doubt gaining one point in the standings is better than none.

Beleriand 1-1 Ithilien
tot shots: 8-11
on target: 4-6
GOALS:
*59, 0-1 Faramir (Beregond)
*76, 1-1 Marach (Hathol)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Beleriand- Handir, Bregolas, Imlach, Baragund
*Ithilien- Adrahil

After enjoying the tenacious competition and fundamentally sound teamwork in the first match, the crowds were prepared to experience euphoria from the night match, as these were the two teams most heavily bet upon to go forwards from group play- Aman and Vinyamar.

Ar Pharazon looked almost smug during warm-ups, perhaps feeling unstoppable with an Ainu defense behind him. On the other side of the pitch Vinyamar showed little emotion, though far more life was in their steps than was witnessed in the friendlies. Play was for real now, and every minute counted!

The first half resembled the oft repeated cliché “chess upon grass”, with both squads attempting to push the ball methodically upfield, but countered expertly by the opposing defense. Both tried a surprise long-ball now and then, and the Vinyamar fans were certainly worried by the speed of Orome, the finesse of Finarfin, and the power of Ar Pharazon, but Ulmo and company rose to meet each challenge and stave off the attack. On the other side Aman gasped a bit whenever Vinyamar got control in deep, as Idril and Duilin dished out cunning passes, and Tuor and Penlod provided large targets, but as on the other end, the defense held them off.

Finally in the 72nd minute the scoreboard was put to use, as Finarfin managed to get the better of his marks with some nifty footwork and ran free into the box. Rog committed to him, but Finarfin sent it nicely to Ar Pharazon who had positioned himself perfectly to take advantage and did not waste his opportunity.

Vinyamar however, was not content to go quietly, and the forwards worked harder than ever to gain the ball in Aman’s half and hold it until support closed in. In the 83rd minute they were afforded an opportunity on a corner, and Idril and Penlod teamed up perfectly to capitalize! It was tied!

Not surprisingly, no more goals were put up in the closing seconds of the defensive battle, and the match ended with each side leaving with a point in the standings, which meant that Group A as a whole was one massive tie.

Aman 1-1 Vinyamar
tot shots: 7-9
on target: 4-4
GOALS:
*72, 1-0 Ar Pharazon (Finarfin)
*83, 1-1 Penlod (Idril)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Aman- Nahar, Este
*Vinyamar-