[Nilpaurion Felagund]

Group A

The Havens 2-1 The Barrow-Downs

It must be terrifying for Olwë and company to be a good Bombadil game away from being eliminated. But they have to win, and they have to keep something in the tank for their game against Valimar.

Armenelos 1-1 Valimar

Unless Arien gets her chances and makes them, this game has the makings of a draw. Valimar’s defence could blunt Armenelos’s on-form offence, while the Westron defence would be enough to contain any Valimar attacker short of a dominant Arien.

Group C

Hithlum 3-1 SB United

While one could argue that SBU’s offence can give Hithlum’s defence problems, no one would argue that SBU’s defence would be in for a proper shellacking.

Doriath 0-3 Real Valinor

A game even more one-sided than the other fixture in this group.

Group D

Barad-dûr 2-0 Isengard

A Sauron-led team finally has a proper defence. This doesn’t bode well for Saruman’s squad.

Gondor 1-3 FC Valinor

Provided the Black Tower doesn’t spring an upset in the last round, the second spot of this group would go to whomever outscores Isengard—and whoever gets hammered by FC Valinor less.

Group E

Misty Mts 2-3 Wilderland

Misty Mts offence looks stronger than expected (with a goal against Elrond), while Wilderland’s defence looks as brittle as ever. This has the makings of another high-scoring affair.

Erebor 1-1 Eriador

Eriador’s defence won’t be as porous as Wilderland, but their offence doesn’t pack the same punch as Wilderland’s, either.

Group G

Imladris 0-3 Tol-in-Gaurhoth

Much has been made of Varda in Imladris’s back line. She is just one defender, whereas TiG has three quality attackers who can overpower or outmanoeuvre defences.

Angband 1-1 Anfauglith

A tough game to predict. One came off a bad loss, while one managed a narrow win. Still, it’s difficult to imagine Angband losing twice in a row. But it’s also difficult to see how they can score more than one against Anfauglith without opening themselves up to counterattacks.

Group H

Arnor 2-1 Mordor

Rohan was a favourable match-up for Mordor (Minas Morgul also beat Dunharrow in the 2011 Arda Cup), but the Men of the North won’t be similarly intimidated—especially since the Witch-king leads their line.

Anduin 2-0 Rohan

Anduin finally lives up to the quality shown by their price tag, defeating a decent Arnor squad featuring last year’s finalists Witch-king, Malbeth, and Arassuil. Surely they could also dominate against last year’s quarterfinalists who have lost much of their quality.