Arda Cup Football 2010

[the phantom]

Doubtless there was no other playoff location that featured such confidence from both sides entering the first round match. Barad-Dur had great talent and was led by a champ from the year before, Sauron, while Gondolin had looked nearly flawless at times this tournament (against Dale, Dol Guldur, and Wold especially).

Barad-Dur supporters were quick to point out that at other times Gondolin hadn't looked so good, but Gondolin fans countered that it hadn't been necessary to go full bore every game and that would leave them better rested for a playoff run. Gondolin also had the advantage of their beautiful home field, but a much larger than expected party from Mordor was there, and a surprising number of them had tickets- certainly more than the original percentage allotment given to the away side. Many of the locals were very upset by this, but there was no foul play involved- simply the very deep pockets of Sauron's kingdom offering too many gold pieces for many ticket holders to resist.

And so it was that the stadium was split only about 60-40 when the highly anticipated match kicked off, and the group of men from Gondor and orcs and trolls from Mordor were making as much noise as the elves. But only for a very short while.

Gondolin came right out of the gate charging hard and looking dangerous, and the players from Barad-Dur and their fans were taken aback. The speed, the precision, the flare- it was simply too much. At eleven minutes Gondolin went up on the scoreboard thanks to Maeglin and Fingoflin and they pressed for more. Just before the half hour mark Aredhel was assisted by her husband, now working together again, and doing so beautifully. Just to make the point, they reversed their order and scored another goal before the half, and it turned into a party in the stands! This was what the elves had come to see!

After the half Barad-Dur made their best push yet, but time and again it was only Sauron who was able to make any progress against the defenders and Huor. In minute 58 he managed with a brilliant long run to save Barad-Dur from the embarrassment of getting shut out, but the three goal margin was quickly reclaimed by the Gondolin midfield tandem of Ecthelion and Glorfindel and Gondolin joyfully and skillfully kicked it around the rest of the game, with Barad-Dur unable to do a thing about it. They were simply outclassed here, and Sauron was sent home to dream up new schemes of claiming another Arda Cup, while Gondolin would advance to face Tirion in what was certain to be one of the most anticipated quarterfinal matches ever in Arda Cup.

Barad-Dur 1-4 Gondolin
tot shots 8-19
on target 4-10
GOALS:
*11, 0-1 Maeglin (Fingolfin)
*29, 0-2 Eol (Aredhel)
*43, 0-3 Aredhel (Eol)
*58, 1-3 Sauron (Isildur)
*65, 1-4 Ecthelion (Glorfindel)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Barad-Dur- Nazgul #7, Isildur
*Gondolin- Eol, Maeglin

[the phantom]

It was no surprise to Barrow-Downs supporters when their team earned the right to host a first round match. They were a contender every year, after all- one of the elite. But not a dynasty. For that, they had to win some titles first.

Nearly every Downs dwellers could be seen wearing green and gold upon black in the days leading up to the match. The words on their shirts read everything from "Go Downs!" to "This is our year!" to "Hail King Nog!" Gondor was well respresented, but they kept to themselves, wary of the extremely odd population of the Downs. It was a well known fact that many of the Downers changed into werewolves on a regular basis, and the Gondorians weren't anxious to rub elbows with such dangerous folk.

The stadium filled early the day of the match, and an exhibition match was played between many of the Downers who were not on the actual squad. The people of Gondor were astounded by what they saw, as the players on the pitch looked good indeed- good enough to compete in the Arda Cup surely. And these were the back-ups? As the match finished up the sky clouded over and it began to drizzle. The Downers laughed and spread out their arms, clearly enjoying themselves, while the men and women of the south huddled beneath their robes and eyed the Downers, thinking them weirder than ever.

Soon the stadium was filled to the brim and the two playoff squads made their way onto the field, while at the same time the rain really began to pour, and rolling thunder began to be heard in the distance. The home supporters screamed, shouted, blew horns, shook bells, clanged weapons, and beat drums. The noise was just deafening. Team Gondor did their best to take no notice of it, but it was clear that they were a bit taken aback, and were concerned by some of the more insane looking Downers waving huge Barrow-blades around in the air. Captain Nogrod approached the Gondor side and kindly informed them that the Downs crowd, while noisy, was never the sort to do physical violence to the opposition, but right after he left Phantom swept past and added, "Unless you tackle me or Sally too roughly, of course. Then you're all kinds of dead. The crowd really loves us, you see. Especially that group over there with the long bows."

It was almost certainly an idle threat, but as the match began Gondor did look extremely uncomfortable defending against the pair of midfielders, clearly afraid of getting too close. And they paid for the space they allowed 25 minutes in when Sally was allowed to run free down the right side and sent one at the goal. The effort was deflected away by a defender, but Nogrod mopped up the loose ball and the home team was up by one! The rest of the half Gondor did their best to push back, and gained a couple of solid efforts, but the great warg in goal was on guard and in position each time.

During the halftime break the winds picked up and the lightning and thunder increased to a near constant flash and boom. A handful of Gondor fans left their seats for shelter, but the Downs fans stuck around and were not dismayed. As the second half kicked off things got worse, as decent sized pieces of ice began falling from the sky. The players from Gondor looked pleadingly at the refs, but the match went on and soon Gondor was in a two goal hole as Phantom was allowed a lane to approach and sent it off to Wilwa for an easy header.

The crowd grew louder and louder and the hail got larger, and lightning actually struck the Downs goal! The keeper, Eomerwarg, laughed heartily and leaped to the top of the net, waving his hands in a welcoming fashion towards the sky. He wanted another strike! The crowd began chanting, ""Tor-na-do! Tor-na-do!" and as if they were one single force they began running in giant circles around the arena, leaping from chair to chair in their respective rows. The Gondor fans cowered in their seats as the Downs fans whirled over them, stepping on the backs of their seats, armrests, and occasionally their heads. Upon reaching their original seats, the Downers stopped and began chanting again, clearly building up to another rush around the stadium. Gondor supporters turned tail and left- every last one. The conditions were insane, and the players and supporters of the Barrow-Downs were even more insane! They had not signed up for this.

The players from Gondor still tried to fight it out, but after Nogrod scored his second goal (again assisted by a free-roaming Phantom), the fight was out of them. Mercifully the refs called the game early, though it's possible they did not know what the actual time was, as the stadium's clock and scoreboard had been struck by another bolt of lightning and was no longer functioning, and the personal watches of the refs had been battered by hail and invaded by rain. It goes without saying that there was a party of epic proportions that night upon The Barrow-Downs. The people of the realm were crazy to be certain, but the happy sort of crazy.

Barrow-Downs 3-0 Gondor
tot shots 15-8
on target 8-3
GOALS:
*25, 1-0 Nogrod (Sally)
*49, 2-0 Wilwa (Phantom)
*64, 3-0 Nogrod (Phantom)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Barrow-Downs- Wilwa, Steve
*Gondor- Eldacar, Fastred

[the phantom]

THE GAME WITHIN THE GAME
The Phantom, "The Downer" Sports News

We all know what is going on in the Arda Cup, so I won't waste any time writing about that. It's only the biggest sporting event in Middle Earth! It's receiving plenty of coverage. What I want to talk about is a game withing the game that has been going on here on the Downs. I'm talking about the Arda Cup Phantasy Competition.

If you haven't checked the standings lately, guess who's back on top? None other than the winner from two years ago- Gwathagor. He vowed that he would be back with a vengeance this season, armed with new info and new stats and more dedicated than ever. But while he has been impressive, he has by no means run away from the field.

Only two points behind him is the early round leader and perennial competitor Nogrod. He had a bit of a down round in the playoffs (by his standards), but if that's the only bump in the road he experiences he'll be tough to beat.

Another player behind by mere single digits is none other than the Prince of Predictions- Boromir88. He gained more points than anyone in the first playoff round, thanks in part to his perfect predictions, and opponents fear him getting on a roll. If you'll recall, last year he was just ridiculous at this stage, predicting the exact scores of 7 of the 8 quarterfinal teams correctly! If he catches fire again- look out.

Lurking a dozen points off the leader is Skip Spence, and many think that he is still the favorite at this stage. He's the defending champ, and he loves to wait in the wings and storm to the lead in the final rounds, so he is exactly where he wants to be right now.

Just two points under is the extremely sneaky Nerwen- you don't want to overlook her! With the two former champs plus the co-mods in the front four, it'll be easy for them to focus on each other a bit too much and forget the very real threat of the lady down under.

Now those are the Downers who currently look to be in the best shape right now, but the next ones down- Shasta, McCaber, Sally, and others are technically within striking distance if the leaders mirror each other too much and run into bad luck, while those behind hit their predictions and pick up a few pre-tourney prediction points to put them over the top. Teams Magnum and Ben Jonson however need a downright miracle, as their owners have chosen the odd strategy of leaving disqualified players on the roster rather than replacing them. Perhaps it's a clever ploy of some sort?

But anyway, it looks to be an exciting race to the finish in the game within the game, and it is difficult to say who holds the advantage at this stage. We'll just have to watch and see.

[Nogrod]

We here at the AKM have been looking through different stats and considering the fitness of the key players now as the stakes get higher. Especially we have been looking at the difference between the overall stats versus those of playing against sturdier opponents (the difference between the overall stats vs. the stats from the first play-off round & against the other team going through from the group phase).


Vinyamar – Barrow Downs

The AKM truly acknowledges the criticism made by the Two Towers Network for not taking Vinyamar’s defence seriously enough thus far. It is a solid one and a touch tougher than the BarrowDowns defence. Even if their stats do fall considerably when counting only the tougher matches they are the top of the tournament in defence save for Utumno.

But if Vinyamar looks better in defence then they have little to boast on offence. With Wilwa (3+2) aiding the veterans the phantom (1+4) and Nogrod (5+1) the BD looks clearly the more dangerous side. Their efficiency in scoring is one of the best in the tournament – but they should create more chances to score; only Norbury, Vinyamar and Numenor create less chances! To their relief Vinyamar creates even less scoring opportunities though.

An interesting question also is will Ulmo step up his game when it matters, like he did in the game against Dol Guldur – or can he outscore Nogrod who seems to be in flames scoring twice against Gondor in the first play-off round? And how many reserves the teams have to step in in time of need? On Vinyamar side Idril can surely perform, but especially Tuor and Penlod have been disappointments thus far. How will Fea perform? Or Nerwen? Will Sally find her gusto? Wilwa? the phantom?

Summa summarum: It is a tough game to call. The stats give the BD a slight edge but there are great chances the game ends 1-1 and then it will be a question of individual merit (or failure) to decide the game. Also on that the AKM turns towards the BD as slight favourites – unless the game is decided by a failure in goalkeeping, for there Rôg surely has shown much better quality than Eomerwarg.


Mithrim – Numenor

It is clear Mithrim is the favourite of this game as they tend to score twice the goals Numenor does while letting in the same amount. But there are a few ”buts” one should consider before making any bigger bets on the game.

First of all there is a surprising weakness in the Mithrim team and that is indeed Huan! He has more or less respectable overall saving percentage of 81,8%, but when looking at the tougher matches only the number comes quickly down to 71,4%!

Secondly there is the question of Turín. He has made 4+1 thus far but can be moody as was seen in the last game. So a lot depends on the humour of Turín no one can predict for certain in advance.

But then there is the fact that the Mithrim defence led by Curufin and Celegorm is just a superb one – and add to that the fact that Numenor is the worst offencive team still in the competition and you could start seeing why the scales will turn into Mithrim’s favour. And whatever the problems Mithrim might have with Turín, they have still Beleg and Hurín who can turn games themselves without the unfortunate son.

Summa summarum: Even if Numenor has stepped up their performance as the games have grown older it looks it would take a miracle for them to beat Mithrim. Numenor has a tough defence but it is far from the quality of last year whereas Mithrim boasts a wide range of scoring talent. So in the end it’s more or less maths… Numenor wil not create the chances to test the possibly unsecure Huan but Mithrim wil have chances enough to score once or twice. Mithrim wins 2-0 or 2-1.



Utumno -Norbury

It is clear that Norbury is the number one surprise this year: throwing Valimar out from the games is just a rare treat. It was talked before the tournament that Norbury might get better with their opponents being the sturdy northeners they are, but few would have guessed they would end up in the quarterfinals. So next target Utumno?

Without downplaying the great descendants of even greater men it is hard to see them beating Utumno. They will force Utumno to play it for real and Melkor will not have it easy this time. Gothmog’s waking-up in the last game promises good for the Utumno team – and if Tilion can come back with the drive he had in the first games… well then it is goodbye to Norbury how brave they ever are.

Really. No one thought they would beat Valimar but it was a possibility. But by all means Utumno looks ten times sharper this year than Valimar. Ungoliant has a clean sheet thus far and it remains to be seen whether Araphor can break that spell, but it looks clear he cannot score two goals which Utumno will probably make.

Summa summarum: Norbury gave spice to these games and they really made a difference but Utumno is just too big and ugly for them.


Gondolin – Tirion

Had it been any other team facing them on the quarterfinals the AKM would have wished team Tirion the best luck to the final. But of all teams Gondolin will be the nightmare to Tirion and the game will be a real treat. There’s no saying who will win this one.

Tirion’s weaknesses can be summed up in three words: defence, defence, defence. Thus far they have outscored all their opponents, but now they face a team that can both defend and score. Tirion’s strength can be summed up in four words: Feänor (4+3), Finwë (4+3), Miriel (4+2) and Nerdanel (2+4).

Meanwhile back in the jungle Gondolin beat Barad Dûr 4-1 in the first play-off match coming back to their astonishing performances they made during the friendlies. So they too can score four goals in a game but unlike Tirion they always defend effectively: the difference in goals allowed between the two teams is astonishing indeed. But to be frank, it is also true that looking at Gondolin’s games against tougher teams Huor’s performance isn’t that spectacular anymore (even if it’s still better than Aulë’s).

Summa summarum: The AKM thinks both the teams should be in the semifinals but now it clearly is impossible: a great team will be relinguished after this game. The game will end either 1-1 or 2-2 and it will go on overtime. On overtime either team can win, but if it goes to the penalties the AKM predicts that Tirion’s phenomenal shooting capability will outdo any defect in Aulë’s goalkeeping. But it will be anybody’s call.

[the phantom]

There are a lot of competitive juices flowing regarding the Downs Phantasy Challenge. Here are just a few quotes from some of the participants taken from their weekly media meeting.

Boromir88- Highest point output last round, baby! I'm on a roll. Come next round, that point lead is MINE!

Magnum- Well, darn it! Why didn't anyone tell me my players were out of the tournament!

Shasta- I'm going to come back and win this thing. I have forseen it.

Eonwe- I'm totally going to win the award for coolest team name. And I'm going to beat Morm, if it's the last thing I do.

Morm- I'm going to stomp Steve into the ground. Heck- I'll use my modding skills and edit his posts to give him a really garbage squad.

Fea/Nienna- Great performance last round from us. We're totally going to pass Eomer, Morm, and Steve. And this is our first time! We're just naturals at this.

McCaber- The Next-to-Last Alliance is determined not to live up to their name and finish next to last.

Wilwa- Muffins smash cupcakes any day of the week! Muffins don't need frosting to be awesome. Muffins have substance!

Sally- Muffins are for every day. Cupcakes are super special, for special stuff, and they get decorated cool. Muffins can go jump in the blender for all I care.

Eomer- Is there seriously only one Warg in this tournament? Ridiculous. They're clearly the best footballers in Middle-Earth.

Gwath- Guess who's back on top, people! Um, no, not Nog. Nope, not Boro eith- NO not Skip. I was trying to imply that- NOOO, it's NOT Saucepan Man. IT'S ME!!! ME!!!

Skip- I'm right where I want to be- comfortably within striking distance, and strike I will! Remember, the Phantasy trophy is sitting in my living room. I'm still the champ.

Lari- I know you people think I'm crazy for leaving "dead" players on my team, but when all the current playoff squads get disqualified for using banned substances, their points will be voided out and the teams will be replaced with teams featuring MY players. Ha! Crazy like a fox.

Nogrod- I've been leading the whole way, and it took a terrible round for me to drop into second. No worries. I'll be back on top in no time.

Nerwen- Let those boys think they've got this thing. It'll only make it hurt worse when I slip past them at the end. Mwu ha ha ha ha!!!

[the phantom]

Monster Magazine
Ruharg the Red, dragon of the Withered Heath

Well, I managed to go 6 out of 8 in the first round folks. Not terrible, but I hope to do better this time around. But really- who could have fortold that Norbury victory over Valimar? And as far as Vinyamar over Dol Guldur, well- I'll admit when I'm wrong. I undersold the tenacity of Mount Taras. Ulmo definitely has it going more than some of his passive cousins in Valinor, and Osse and Rog definitely have the fire and swagger. But-

Barrow-Downs 2-1 Vinyamar (overtime)

Though I admit I undersold the defense, I don't think Vinyamar has what it takes up front to score on the Warg keeper from the Downs and the experienced defense in front of him. Though they aren't Werewolves this year, I think they still have some of the same attitude and aggression, and I trust they'll get the job done. And even the Vinyamar defense won't be able to stop the scorers from the Downs forever.

Mithrim 3-0 Numenor

Numenor is the defending champ, has great team work, blah blah blah- they don't have that extra something! But Mithrim does. Turin has the will and rage that it takes to dominate in the playoffs, and so does daddy Hurin. Celegorm and Curufin are underhanded schemers and know how to make things move, one way or another. And the reaction and speed of Huan in goal is just unmatched.

Utumno 3-0 Norbury

Don't make me laugh. Melkor has one of the baddest collection of monsters ever, and he's got them under just enough control where they don't make silly mistakes. This team is going all the way.

Gondolin 3-2 Tirion

This is the match that everyone is looking forward too, and I can see the appeal (two teams very capable of scoring), but I think this match is ultimately pointless. The winner isn't going to get past Utumno. But for what it's worth, I think Gondolin comes out on top here due to them being overall the hardier, more fiery, and more competitive squad. Maeglin isn't afraid to betray a kingdom for his wants, and Eol will go to extreme lengths to take what is his. Ecthelion has guts certainly- the guy stabbed a balrog with his head! And Glorfindel dueled one on a peak. Fingolfin demanded a one-on-one with the most powerful being in Arda. Feanor can't overcome all of that surely.

Westernesse Weekly
Ar-Tar-Aradil of Numenor

Seven out of eight matches right last round! Looks like my theory about playing "mannish" football was correct. Let's see if I can keep it going.

Vinyamar 1-0 Barrow-Downs

It's a shame these two have to meet here, as I think both have the potential to go all the way. Vinyamar has played things properly ever since the friendlies, and the Downers have been winning me over as of late, proving that their reckless Werewolf days are behind them, and that they are dedicated to playing a mistake-free team based game. This game will be a beauty to watch (for those who truly appreciate the game), and in the end I think Vinyamar will be able to protect their goal by holding the ball for large portions of the game, and that their defense will be up for the challenge when they are tested.

Numenor 2-1 Mithrim

Now this one is really tough to call. I think Mithrim has the edge when it comes to talent, but Numenor has the champ attitude and the experience edge. Tar Telperien and friends should be able to slow down Turin and friends enough for Tar Atanamir to hold their score down, and I believe that Ar Adunakhor, Elros, and company at the other end can get one past Huan with their execution and saavy. The question is, who gets the deciding goal? I give the edge to Numenor, but it could go either way.

Norbury 2-1 Utumno

They shocked the world once. Why not twice? Remember two years ago Araphor, Arvedui, and others were playing for Annuminas and were placed in a group with Valimar and Angband, and they unexpectedly tied them both. This is a chance to repeat history, only replacing the ties with wins. These guys play well together and aren't intimidated by anyone, and won't give Utumno anything easy. I believe Norbury will frustrate Melkor's squad and cause them to make mistakes- pressing too hard, getting carded, etc.

Gondolin 3-2 Tirion

Both of these teams have talent coming out of the ears, and so in the end I think the team that wins is the squad that plays entirely together and stays in control of things. Feanor is notoriously streaky, and Miriel tends to fade away when things get tough, and the defense tends to focus on offense too much unless they have the lead. Now- if Tirion goes up by two early, then the game is over, but it's the same for Gondolin, and I like their chances better in a tie game going down to the wire, as Tirion's pushing tends to get them in trouble.

[the phantom]

The great arena by the docks of Eglarest was filled to the brim and even a bit beyond for the highly anticipated match between Mithrim and Numenor. The team from Numenor was largely the same team that had won the title the year before, while Mithrim was perhaps the most statistically dominant squad in this year’s tournament thus far.

Men and Elves had flocked down from the north to support the house of Hurin and the sons of Feanor, while an equal sized armada from Numenor streamed in from the west. Locals wished to see the contest, but there were very few willing to hold onto their tickets in the face of the prices they were being offered. In the end there were equal numbers of fans from both sides (around 35,000 each), and about 5,000 Elves from the Havens mixed in (and that isn’t counting the individuals who snuck in to stand in the aisles, or somehow managed to climb to the top of the walls surrounding the stadium).

Everyone was looking forward to seeing a hard fought game, but in the early minutes it looked as if they’d be disappointed. Mithrim came out extremely flat and Numenor owned the ball for the first 20-plus minutes, earning a couple of great opportunities that were barely turned aside by the great hound of Valinor, Huan. The valiant hound barked at his defense to get it together, and as time neared half an hour Mithrim finally got things on course and started shutting down the Numenor attack, and soon had the ball on the attack.

In minute 32 the deadlock was finally broken thanks to a brilliant run by Turin and Beleg. The best buds worked together as one entity, taking it right down the middle on the counter and putting it in for the lead. Numenor tried to swing things back their direction by upping the effort, but the sons of Feanor were by this point fully on top of things and Numenor simply did not have the speed or energy to attack them, and the half ended 1-0.

In the second half it was clear from the start that Mithrim was only getting better, while Numenor did not have that higher gear to kick it into. After building several nice attacks, fifteen minutes in Mithrim struck again, this time on a long-range thundering strike from Hurin, who, as usual, shouted “Day shall come again!” as he drove it home.

For the final half hour Mithrim went into a more conservative mode, holding the ball brilliantly and stopping every attack cold. Numenor simply did not have a player with the game-breaking ability necessary to kick the door down and storm the castle. As the final minutes ran off the clock the Numenor fans filed out, knowing the defeat was inevitable. The loss of Tar Minastir, Ar Pharazon, and Sauron was just too much to make up, or at least it was when playing a highly skilled and on fire team like Mithrim.

Mithrim was through to the semis!

Mithrim 2-0 Numenor
tot shots 12-8
on target 6-4
GOALS:
*32, 1-0 Beleg (Turin)
*60, 2-0 Hurin (Morwen)
YELLOW CARDS:
Mithrim- Hurin, Celegorm, Gelmir
Numenor- Tar Meneldur, Ar Zimrathan, Ar Adunakhor