[Nogrod]

Real Valinor vs. FC Valinor @ Armenelos


Already at noon the Armenelos downtown was buzzing. Tourists were taking their sightseeing tours following guides wawing the flags of the different travel agancies, and locals hung around in parks and cafes just enjoying the general mood the town filled with tourists created. Various marching bands and child-choirs from different schools performed on the Eärendil square playing classics like “Rule Armenelos, Armenelos Rule the Sea” and “Star Dotted Banner” with its famous lines “realm of the free and the isle of the brave”.

With the soft westerly wind the crispness and dim of the morning faded away and finally the sun came up from behind the curtain of clouds fast withering to the east. It was going to be a perfect day for football, a Valar-proof weather one could say.

Slowly but steadily the crowds started to wander towards certain focal points of the city. Those lucky ones who’d got tickets to the game were heading towards the Armenelos Stadium, while the rest took in their sights the Eärendil Square and the great Meneltarma Hall – where the games would be shown live from giant screens with the hugely popular Vëantur and Tar Minastir as commentators.

The Arda Cup holders from the last season Real Valimar were about to take off against their friends and toughest opponents FC Valimar who have so many times proved the better of the ruling champions. At the eve of this year’s tournament they played a draw though – so would Real’s somewhat upward trend continue or would FC prove the better of them yet again? These questions were filling the minds of millions of creatures all around Arda as they gathered around the giant screens of their home-town provided by the Palantir Networks.


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As expected, both teams started the game avoiding unnecessary risks – and all the top-scorers soon found themselves wearing an overcoat or two.

When Real was having the ball, Thorondor was following Oromë where ever he tried to move while Miriel and Nerdanel were shadowed by Eönwë and Maglor – and Indis kept keeping up with anyone, mainly Nessa and Enerdhil, who tried to advance forwards from behind the actual strikers or offer her support to the others when needed. FC Valinor did a great job holding Real’s options in attack at minimum for it was clear Tilion or even Quennar were not willing to take the risk of advancing deep into FC-side that early in the game and risk a diminished defence in case of a turnover.

But Real Valinor was marking the FC players quite efficiently as well. Firstly they had realised it takes an Aratar to hold one and Yavanna was held tightly by Nienna leaving her in anguish indeed. The brothers in turn were marked by Ingwion (Celegorm) and Nahar (Curufin) whilst Tilion was always at hand doubling the marking in need – finally Quennar and Enerdhil had both dropped a bit lower when FC was having the ball to either help the others or to mark any attempts by Argon or Findis to break through from behind.

So the first twnety minutes went without any remarkable deeds even if the level of the game and the personal skill on the field were quite dashing indeed – it was just that for any brilliant attacking manouver there was at least as brilliant a defensive move to counter it.

At the 21st minute Tilion gave a bad tackle to Celegorm as he was wrestling himself free from Ingwion ending up in Celegorm falling down like a huge tree and Tilion getting carded. The ensuing free-kick was one of the most beautiful ones executed in this year’s tournament.

Eönwë came from defence to give it and the FC attackers spread themselves around the wall of defenders – except Yavanna and Findis who took positions at the edge of the wall; getting immediately accompanied by Quennar as trying to block them from getting away from the ball’s route if that was what they were up to. And Nienna stood right behind Yavanna breathing on her neck.

Eönwë blasted the ball from 25-meters and it seemed to head straight towards Yavanna and Findis who both reacted – Findis by crouching and Yavanna by leaping outwards away from the wall. Nienna and Quennar made instinctively the very same decision and leaned in to fill the gap that had opened into the wall – but the ball was doing something completely different. It went flying just past the wall (had Quennar not leaned towards the center it would have hit him) and suddenly started swerwing heavily towards the middle. Tulkas had realised the trajectory of the ball a wink of an eye too late and when he dashed for it the tips of his fingers did make a contact – but wth the power of the shot there was no way for him to stop it or even have an influence to its direction. FC Valinor had taken an early lead!

Real Valinor kept their cool after the goal and didn’t went on a rampage to try and even the game out immediately but kept on playing their own game making sure the defence was always organized first. But there was a new intensity in the game. FC Valinor seemed somewhat more confident with their one goal lead daring to play a bit more intuitively and resulting in some oohs and well-earned cheers from the spectators. But Real Valinor had more spirit in their game as well and with determination they seemed to win more one-on-one’s in offence creating a few nice shots that sadly (from their POV) just went an inch wide or high from Huan’s goal.

So the teams went for a breather for the half-time in FC Valinor’s 1-0 lead.

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The second half started more or less from where the first had ended – but with fresh legs on both teams the speed of the game increased considerably. Even the most cynical know-all Armenelos fans who were so well learned in the art of the game and its history were gasping with the athletism, creativity and skill on display in front of their eyes.

Miriel did an astonishingly fast double-dribble leaving first Maglor and then Indis behind her but was forced then to shoot in a flash-of-an-eye moment while turning herself almost 180 degrees at the same time – and yet Huan managed to tip the ball off via the crossbar only just and just.

On the ensuing corner Oromë went for a bicycle kick avoiding the onleaping Thorondor - and hitting the post!

On the other end Celegorm released Curufin into an open shooting opportunity by leaving the ball to him with a heel-kick that distracted Ingwion just for the moment needed – but Tulkas saw it coming and saved the ball from the top corner with an amazing leap.

A little later Argon got the ball behind the frontline of the attack and had a second to really boot the ball from the bottom of his heart – and what a cannon-shot it was! Hitting the crossbar it felt like the goal-structure would break down into pieces – and the bars did tremble a long time after the hit. Even if it was shot from well over thirty meters there would have been no chance for Tulkas to stop it had it landed just that bit lower.

On the other end it was time for a classic Miriel – Nerdanel show. Nerdanel played wall-play to left with Miriel to get rid of Maglor and getting inside the box. Charged by Indis she faked a shot and let Indis slide pass her. Left with only Huan to beat Eönwë leaped to help. Nerdanel took a fast step forwards and away from onrushing Eönwe, looking like she was aiming for a shot with her better leg at the same time: both Huan and Eönwë were diving towards her… but she did not shoot! Instead she tossed the ball calmly forwards left where Miriel had dashed at the moment Eönwë had left her free for a second – and it was an easy task for Miriel to just set her foot on the path of the ball directing it into the back of the empty net in front of her.

Real Valinor had evened the game and the crowds were roaring with cheers. It was going to be a thriller as everyone had kind of anticipated. With 25 minutes on the clock everything was open once again.

For a short while the intensity of the game actually dropped a bit as both teams felt they needed to breathe in some air and neither team wished to be on the receiving end just after the equalizer. But with the clock ticking away the minutes the energy started coming back and the last ten minutes were just great football – even if both teams did tighten up their defences the closer the 90-minute whistle was coming. No team would wish to lose a play-off game at the last minute – and these two teams were professional enough to keep that in mind even in the midst of their best efforts to score a late one.

Neither succeeded in scoring in the last minutes and it was going to be an overtime – and if the overtime would not solve it, then a shoot-out. The crowds had been drawn into the game even if most of the spectators weren’t having strong preferences as to which team should win in the beginning (to Númenorians it was more or less the same in principle and many guests from the West were just feeling divided loyalties) but now they were getting really warmed up, and many had chosen their favourites according to the performances on the field.

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So the overtime started with the thunder and roar of the crowds as they lived the game now with their hearts – and in the close stadium the audiences really breathed the air the players did – and the players really felt the emotions of the crowds at their skin.

What was clear from the outset was that neither team seemed too happy to be forced into a penalty shoot-out. Paradoxically the game was at it’s most open at the beginning of the overtime when normally teams start playing a hedgehog-style defence just to avoid a goal scored on – but these teams wished to score themselves, in game, not from the penalty spot.

Real Valinor had the first real chance when four minutes into the overtime Oromë centered the ball from near the corner-flag and Nessa dived forwards from behind heading the ball from around the edge of the box dangerously close to the totally open lower-left corner of the goal – only to be slided off by Eönwë at the last moment.

FC Valinor had their chance a few minutes later when Celegorm made a diagonal pass into the box and Curufin slided into it only to miss the ball by inches.

Real Valinor took the possession of the ball and started rolling a passing-play at the FC-half forcing the whole FC Valinor to retreat into defence – except Curufin who wandered near the midfield guarded by Nahar, and Nienna and Tilion hanging around on the bottom of the attack ready to dash backwards if needs be, as usual. And they really pinned FC Valinor down – the passes went from left to right and to and fro, and Real was forcing FC Valinor to use their feet running after the ball while they themselves made the minimum physical effort trying to keep their feet fresh and letting the ball do the running for them.

Finally Miriel noticed a minute positioning-failure by Thorondor who had left just a little bit too big a gap between himself and Oromë when he glanced centerwards to check that others were well positioned – and that was enough. Miriel made a quick waist-high pass to Oromë who charged away from Thorondor the two steps he had time to and volleyed the ball while turning towards the goal at the same time. It was a perfect shot heading towards the upper left-corner of the goal and Huan was clearly late.

But Thorondor was quick enough to make good his error in judgement and leaped towards the ball bouncing it high in the air with his chest. The ball came down just behind the box and Nerdanel fought for the header together with her son Maglor – and neither won the possession. Indis managed to kick the ball and was only trying to clean it away from the FC-half of the field, but it took a new angle hitting Enerdhil just a few meters away and bounced higher up right and forward the field.

When Yavanna saw Thorondor bouncing the ball up in the air she started creeping forwards just in case and with Indis trying to clear the ball she saw her chance and dashed for it as it was coming to her reach. Nienna saw what was happening and reacted charging towards where the ball was going to land – and Curufin leapt leftwards trying to create distance between him and Nahar who had a second of problems choosing between following Curufin to the side or back slightly away from the oncharging Celegorm – as he couldn’t hold the two of them after the possible pass would be given and the off-side danger for the attackers be released. Tilion shouted at Nahar to take Curufin and closed himself on Celegorm.

Yavanna reached the ball first just in front of Nienna and sent it immediately fast forwards diagonally towards the Real goal – and suddenly everyone was running.

Celegorm tried to break through from the middle with Tilion following him a step or two behind – Nahar turned around and charged after Curufin who was running like mad on the left towards the trajectory of the ball…

Curufin got the ball with him about 35 meters and pushed it forwards while turning slightly towards the goal. Nahar was outpacing him though, and was fast approaching him from the right – Tulkas was coming forwards from his goal to diminish the angle Curufin would have to make his shot, if he could do that. Celegorm kept Tilion behind him making the run of his life in the middle almost reaching the level where Curufin was running. The whole stadium held their breath.

Just as Nahar was reaching Curufin, Fëanor’s son made a sudden stop and leaped towards the middle tossing the ball ahead of him. Being much slower to stop from a full gallop Nahar had problems following Curufin’s sudden move and lost a few seconds – and that was enough for Curufin to re-charge forwards and gain the hold of the ball once more. Curufin coming more and more towards the center as he advanced forced Celegorm to steer right while he was calling his brother to lend the ball – and Tilion made the decision to dash rather between the two to cut the passing-line than trying to outrun Celegorm. And Tulkas was almost on Curufin as he was approaching the edge of the box – and he was clearly coming for Curufin outside it.

Curufin faked a shot and Tulkas dived to beat it, but Curufin didn’t shoot. Instead he passed the ball forwards to himself to the left before the sliding-towards goalie could reach it – and jumped over Tulkas in full speed himself. There was a roar gathering in the crowds when Curufin landed and tried to reach the ball that was rolling steadily towards the empty goal – but just a tiny bit off the post!

And Curufin slided for it – just in time to change the direction of the ball – and it rolled into the back of the net! Curufin had scored! FC Valinor had beaten Real Valinor once again! It was over.

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While cheering and yelling their throats sore the crowds stood up in spontaneous admiration – not only of Curufin’s personal skill and determination, but for both teams and the battle they gave to each other. And many were moved by the scenes they saw after the referee had blown his whistle to mark the game over.

They saw Celegorm and Oromë changing shirts and patting each other to the shoulder while changing views of the game. They saw Yavanna coming to form a group-hug with Nessa and Nienna, and all three leaving the stadium with arms wrapped around each others’ shoulders. They saw Eönwë and Tulkas shake hands and joke about something – and then deciding to change shirts as well. Nahar and Thorondor were seen laughing about something and then being joined by Huan – and later Celegorm – and they all went off the stadium together.

But the most moving scene sure was when Maglor came to her mom and took her by the shoulder holding her close for a fleeting moment, and was rewarded by a kiss on the forehead. Even Miriel was seeing shaking hands with Curufin – the most like their father of the brothers – but few can figure what she thought about…


The late-game would be the one where the feelings would really get high as the homecrowds would be going nuts for their team, but seldom has there been a warm-up game like this!


FC Valinor 2-1 Real Valinor (OT)
on target 5-4
tot shots 14-11
GOALS:
*22, 1-0 Eönwë
*63, 1-1 Miriel (Nerdanel)
*11, 2-1 Curufin (Yavanna)
YELLOW CARDS:
*FCVal- Curufin, Findis
*RealV- Tilion, Nienna, Quennar