[the phantom]

The entire western bank of Nen Hithoel was absolutely crawling- Men, Elves, Dwarves, Ainur, Orcs, Hobbits, and everything else Middle-Earth had to offer was represented. Hotel courtyards and patios were littered with loungers, the pubs were overflowing, and the hiking trails were being trampled into small roads. Many folks were flocking to the beaches intent on gaining some color, and boats dotted the lake from side to side (but all steering well clear of mighty Rauros, of course).

The day was warm and sunny- a bit too warm for some, but the evening promised to be more comfortable. And the evening was what it was all about in the end. The Arda Cup championship match- Real Valinor versus Eriador!

Gamblers, fans, and the paid publication experts were very much split on predicting the outcome. Eriador hadn’t lost a match in the tournament, but five of its six victories had been by a single goal. Real Valinor on the other hand lost badly in their opener to FC Valinor but had a +5 goal margin in the playoffs. Would the hot team win, or would the consistent squad get it done again?

The rooting interest of the Elves was split. Rivendell natives were firmly behind Elrond and Glorfindel, the Elves of Lindon were behind Gil-galad, Tirion natives were solidly behind Real’s Noldor, and Beleriand Elves had to choose a side. A contingent of Gondolin Elves was there in support of Glorfindel, while quite a few residents of Himring and areas to the east and south were there to cheer for Caranthir.

Unaffiliated Elves and other peoples of Middle Earth tended to gravitate somewhat towards the flash of Real, and added to that number was a good number of Ainur and Elves of Valinor that turned up to cheer on Real, but this was balanced out by the nearby Gondorins (the largest group by a good bit) who were for the most part on the side of their northern Dunedain cousins. But in the end it was the Witch King that decided things- pretty well every dragon, orc, troll, etc. was supporting him, and thus supporting Eriador. They were expected to own a 60-40 advantage in the coliseum when the game kicked off.

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As the sun disappeared behind the Emyn Muil, excitement and anticipation reached a fever pitch. Throughout the late afternoon and early evening the gargantuan Amon Hen Coliseum had filled, and now there was not an empty seat left. Several thousand more spectators were seated on blankets higher up the slopes of Amon Hen, as they knew they’d be able to see just fine thanks to the magic of the Hill of Seeing.

Both teams looked steady and competent in warm-ups, and they were sporting during the pregame midfield meeting and player introductions. But their lack of hostility did not predict a lackluster game, for their faces and body language showed forth focus and determination.

From the first touch Eriador showed they intended to dominate possession. The four Arnorian midfielders moved the ball accurately, occasionally giving the forwards a touch or sending it back to Malbeth or Gil-galad. But though they could not steal it away, the Real defense gave Eriador little opportunity to do actual damage, and when they tried to force the issue they were able to clear the crosses or force the speculations off target.

And when Real got the ball on their feet, Eriador found themselves in the same position- unable to interrupt the flow of their opponent. Real’s midfield with assistance from Caranthir and Tilion showcased speedy and effortless movement, little by little forcing the action closer to Elrond between his posts. But like Eriador, Real found their final steps to be tough going. Nerdanel and Miriel on the wings only got touches when dashing out to meet a pass from the midfield, as Eriador kept a marker by them and always sent help when a pass came in towards one of the playmakers. Arien hardly got a sniff of the ball forward in the middle, marked by the muscular Asfaloth, and with her wing feeders always forced to give up the ball.

As time neared the half-hour mark Real began pushing things, moving their defenders up tighter and tighter. At minute 31 Tilion made a great dash from center-field and Nessa found him on the move. He booted it forward and after one stride struck a high rocket from 25 yards. The ball was perfectly on-target just under the bar, but the foresighted Elrond was miraculously there, fisting it up and over.

On the ensuing corner Nerdanel bent in a beauty that was headed solidly by Nienna at the top of the box, but that space gave Elrond just enough time to make another save, this time snatching it out of the air. Real fans and players betrayed no signs of disappointment, however. Elrond was going to make some saves. The good news was that they were the ones getting the shots. One would go in eventually.

Just before halftime it looked like Real would finally have their breakthrough. Miriel received the ball towards the left sideline and showing her first real burst of the match she somehow split her defenders and kept the ball, and after freezing the defense with a fake pass she closed in on the goal and pulled the trigger for real. The ball slid between the outstretched feet of two defenders and curved away from the goal- it was a cross, not a shot! And Arien dove into it full speed, beating Asfaloth by mere inches, earning herself a point-blank header!

But Elrond was there again! His dive took him directly into her path and they collided heavily, and the end result was the ball going off her head and hitting his hands and falling to the near post. Both regained their feet immediately to continue the play, but Asfaloth was first to it and immediately cleared it far down the field.

The Real fans groaned and Eriador supporters sighed, but quite quickly their relief turned to happy screaming as Asfaloth’s clearance was masterfully touched down by Glorfindel right in front of Rumil and both Eriador forwards were off to the races with only Nienna between them and Tulkas in goal!

Nienna retreated at pace equal to the dashing forwards, and she swerved ever so slightly between the two- Glorfindel on the right and the Witch King on the left. She hoped to force a poor pass, but Glorfindel refused to pull the trigger and continued the run. Finally as they neared the box Nienna made the choice she knew she’d be forced to make eventually and wheeled towards Glorfindel swiftly, looking to block his path at goal while simultaneously leaning slightly towards the Witch King in order to force a wider pass.

Glorfindel faked a pass, Nienna veered a bit too far towards Witch King, and Glorfindel pulled the trigger without hesitation. It was a fine hard shot, but Tulkas had it played correctly near post and with a leap knocked the shot down- but it bounced directly towards the feet of the Witch King on the opposite side! The Witch King swung his mighty leg forward, but the ball went flying sideways and up into the stands! Caranthir had run down the play and slid from behind and toed the ball up and over so that the Witch King struck the ball with the inside of his shin! Tulkas sprinted over and lifted Caranthir off the ground and into a mighty embrace, and was soon joined by Nienna and the other defenders. Caranthir had spoiled a sure-fire goal!

In the remaining minutes of the half neither side was able to accomplish much, and soon the athletes were disappearing into the tunnels to regroup. The fans in the stands could be heard arguing over which tactics would be changed, but there was no obvious answer. Both had played well and both had gained an opportunity or two that was stuffed by a fine defensive play. Did it make sense to switch tactics when playing well? Would that be a sign of panic? Or perhaps the opposition could actually be caught off guard…

As the second half started, it looked to be more of the same- Eriador grabbed possession and passed intelligently. But Real fell back farther this time, allowing Eriador to push upfield without resistance, but leaving little room for their forwards to try and get open in. Eriador didn’t appear to be bothered, however, as they weren’t ones to force things unwisely. Real was giving them prime real estate, and an opening to make a play would emerge.

At minute 49 a golden opportunity arrived- Arassuil wrong-footed his mark and went forward fast, played a nice one-two with Arahael and gained entry into Real’s box. The defense closed quickly and Arassuil displaying excellent touch lifted the ball sideways to the Witch King who headed it solidly to the opposite side where Gil-galad’s proud brow redirected it to the near post!

It was definitely a goal- but a desperate leap from Caranthir into the path of the ball sent it slightly off course and directly into the arms of Tulkas! Eriador was foiled again. The Real supporters shrieked in delight- particularly those Noldor who were loyal to the Sons of Feanor. The cameras particularly zoomed in on Maedhros, Amrod, and Amras who were seated together in one of the front rows, and definitely trying to shout themselves hoarse.

Real fans slowly took their seats again as Eriador gained possession once more, but they wouldn’t stay seated long. In minute 52 Valandil sent the ball across the box for the Witch King, but he was too bothered by Tilion to get a good jump at it, and it went straight through to Nienna who boomed it straight out of the air on a line about halfway between the center and the right side.

Real fans leaped to their feet as they realized Arien would be first to it ahead of Araphant! Miriel and Nerdanel were dashing down the center with Malbeth between and Asfaloth guarding their right flank. All three ladies turned the burners to the max and Araphant and Malbeth fell a stride behind, and Amon Hen Coliseum began rumbling and roaring like a giant-sized Rauros. As the forwards neared the box Asfaloth pulled up hard to close on Arien and send Miriel and Nerdanel offside past him, but Arien was expecting that exact tactic and immediately sent a laser to Miriel, who was running at the left post.

Had the pass been even a hair slower Malbeth would have caught up to it, but it crossed right in front of his face and an entirely open Miriel took in Elrond’s hopeless position with her peripheral vision and deflected the ball forward and right to an unmarked Nerdanel, and the dexterous right foot of Nerdanel easily slotted it home! Real Valinor was ahead!

The cameras swept the field and the stands, capturing the joy of the players and fans. The girls up front were piling on one another, and one camera managed to sneak a shot into one of the luxury boxes where Feanor and Finwe could be seen wearing grins and high fiving, obviously pleased with the skill displayed by their wives.

As the game restarted, Real shifted out of their defensive set and into a more balanced field-spreading alignment, and even showed a bit of pressure of the ball. Eriador played it smart, but the energized Real side was anticipating everything and seemed to be playing on a different speed setting. Suddenly Eriador couldn’t work the ball into favorable positions, and Real was controlling the ball and looking like they would add a second goal before Eriador would get an equalizer.

At minute 65 Arien came free off a perfect pass from Enerdhil, but Malbeth forced the shot off target. Just minutes later Tilion made a run deep into Eriador territory and forced Elrond to make a flying save, and the resulting rebound was sent just a bit high by Nessa.

As time approached the final 10 minutes Eriador flushed their regular building offense and tried to win longballs or straight up dribble through the defense, but Caranthir, Nienna, and Rumil would have none of it, and as time continued to flow through the fingers of Eriador Real tightened up their defense more and more, forcing Eriador to be more careful- which cost them precious time.

When there was but 3 minutes left there wasn’t a viewer left seated. Eriador supporters were begging for an equalizer and Real fans were nervously willing their team to hold off the attack for just a few more kicks. They cheered wildly with every clearance, and as the final seconds ticked away they let loose with every bit of noise they could still muster.

Before Eriador could manage a respectable effort at the net the referee signaled the end of the game, and from all sides of the field the Real Valinor players raced towards one another and collapsed together in a celebratory pile! The Ainur and Elves of Valinor went crowd-surfing in the stands and began singing, Feanor and Finwe climbed out of their box to join the party, and NogWolf went bounding onto the field to congratulate Real personally, shouting something or other about his “Phantasy predictions”.

Real lost their first game by three goals, but then they didn’t lose again! It’s all about the finish at Arda Cup, and Real Valinor was without a doubt the strongest at the end.

Eriador 0-1 Real Valinor
on target 3-6
tot shots 12-17
GOALS:
*52, 0-1 Nerdanel (Miriel)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Eriador- Araphant
*Real- Nienna