Arda Cup Football 2010

[skip spence]

The atmosphere was electric as Tirion and Gondolin, mightiest of Elven teams, made it out on the pitch here in the grand Tol Eressea Stadium, always green as if it were the first days of spring in the Elder Days. Of course no one knew about electricity at that time, but some it has been said it was this night the idea first arose. Gondolin, the Hidden Rock, was of old fashioned as an image of Tirion upon Tuna, and most of its residents came out of that fair city, so the two teams had an intimate knowledge of each other; they knew exactly how their opponents played, their strength and weaknesses, each player’s personal quirks and habits.

Most pundits also agreed that the two teams were evenly matched. Tirion had had some defensive issues, but their offence was unmatched by any other team in the past or present. Gondolin, under the new leadership of Fingolfin, also had a new-found attacking flair but without losing the defensive solidity his son Turgon had built up. But would it be enough to stop the lethal quartet of Feanor, Finwe, Nerdanel and Miriel? Everyone was dying to find out.

There was fire in the eyes of Feanor as he and Finwe kicked off, and the Noldor superstar was lucky not to get booked as he went in heavy and hard on his brother Fingolfin when he first got the ball at his feet. Or “half-brother” as the Fiery Boot was keen to point out in the pre-match press conference.

The high expectations ahead of the game were not betrayed. The match was played at a break-neck pace and the crowd gasped for breath time and time again as the players were outdoing each other in individual brilliance. And they were not denied goals for long. In the 12th minute Gondolin won a corner-kick. Captain Fingolfin took it and Aredhel, the White Lady, shook off her marker and made perfect contact with her forehead, sending the ball crashing off the crossbar and into the net, past a furious Aule in the Tirion goal. He was not at all happy with the defending.

Tirion was behind once again and once again they came roaring back. The Gondolin goalkeeper Huor was twice forced to palm behind in the 10 minutes following the goal, firstly from Miriel’s curling effort from the edge of the area and then later from Feanor's speculative but fiercely-struck 35-yard dipping drive. But suddenly Tirion was caught out on the break and Aredhel showed wonderful awareness by spotting Maeglin and lifting a perfectly timed ball over the Tirion back-line, releasing the Sharp Boot one-on-one with Aule, and he made no mistake, rounding the Vala and slotting the ball into the open net. The Gondolin players and fans celebrated wildly now, feeling they had a solid grip on the match, and they remained on top of things for the remainder of the first half.

In the second half Tirion came out like a team possessed, determined to make a match out of this. But Gondolin defended with applause, and remained dangerous on the break. In the 60th minute Eöl came inches from making it three as he hit the outside of the post with a header from a Fingolfin free kick. Seeing the hope of his team shattering, Feanor took it upon himself to make a difference, and the game looked set for a frantic finale when The Fiery Boot latched on to a knockdown by Nerdanel and let fly with a low shot that fizzed past Huor and into the bottom corner of the net.

Now Tirion was all over Gondolin like a rash, and they created chance after chance, despite some heroic defending by the Gondolin team. And with 15 minutes left of the clock the Tirion fans could celebrate the equalizer and once again, almost inevitably, it was Feanor who scored the goal, sliding in to finish a flowing move that had the Gondolin defender’s heads spinning.

Now the momentum was with Tirion who pushed furiously for a winner. In the 80th minute Huor made a great save, denying Feanor a hat-trick, and moments later, Mahtan headed just over from a corner kick. But there was to be heartbreak for the brave Tirion players. With only minutes left, Gondolin made a rare attacking move, and Maeglin whipped in a cross towards Glorfindel in the area, who was all alone against five Tirion defenders. There appeared to be no danger whatsoever, but inexplicably Aule, coming out to gather the ball, fumbled and spilled it right in front of the Gondolin midfielder, who had an easy task of putting the ball into the open net.

A shell-chocked Tirion could not believe their eyes. Feanor did not look happy, not happy at all. A Vala had let him down once again. The superstar tried to take matters into his own hands again, but he was now desperate, and trying to dribble past the entire Gondolin defense was too tough a task even for him. 3-2 to Gondolin it finished, and the Hidden Rock players celebrated as it they had won the final already. Aule however left the stadium with his head bent down, a sad sight for any lover of the beautiful game.

Gondolin 3-2 Tirion
tot shots 14-15
on target 8-7
GOALS:
*13, 1-0 Aredhel (Fingolfin)
*27, 2-0 Maeglin (Aredhel)
*62, 2-1 Feanor (Nerdanel)
*75, 2-2 Feanor (Miriel)
*86, 3-2 Glorfindel (Maeglin)
YELLOW CARDS:
Gondolin- Thorondor, Salgant, Ecthelion, Glorfindel
Tirion- Finwe, Amrod

[the phantom]

Many grand arenas love to boast of being “the greatest”, “the biggest”, and “the most beautiful”, but it is possible that such claims will soon come to an end.

Three years ago in a backroom deal Gondor was awarded the opportunity to host the semis and finals of the 2010 and 2011 Arda Cups, with the possibility of an extension. The Cup Committee was tightlipped on the specifics of the plan, but inside sources managed to confirm that Gondor had promised the construction of a new and glorious stadium to host the event.

Even more tightlipped was the Gondor Cup Planning Committee however, and as the months passed no one was able to get a bead on any plans for a new arena, and there were certainly no obvious signs of construction around Minas Tirith (at least on the scale of a stadium).

And then came the announcement this past March- the new stadium was complete! An extremely surprised populace asked the obvious question- where? The answer- Amon Hen.

Some ingenious chap had been struck with the idea that the magic of “The Hill of Seeing” would be perfect for a stadium. Tests were conducted, and the results were fantastic! Even though the full magic of the hill only worked at the very top, there was a sort of trickle effect down the rest of the slope, and the farther up the hill a spectator was the greater ability he had to surpass his natural visionary abilities.

And so it was that the stadium was built in a rather lopsided fashion into the northeast slope of the hill. At the top of the eastern end of the arena guests could look directly down upon the falls of Rauros, while the northern edge of the arena was lapped by the waves of the lake. That half of the arena was of more average size, seating around 40,000. But as the stadium circled towards the southwest, the top rose higher and higher up Amon Hen, thus the seating capacity of that half of the stadium was a whopping 100,000, making the arena by far the largest ever constructed.

But the planning committee had not been content to merely toss up a large stadium- it was beautiful and interesting to boot. The stadium acted as a tribute to football throughout Middle-Earth, with each section featuring the architecture, décor, and adornments favored by a group of football fans from a different location in Arda. The walkways, restrooms, eateries, and entrances beneath the sections also reflected the theme, and thus one could experience a part of what it was like to attend a football match in Angband, Mirkwood, Mordor, Gondolin, etc all in one stadium.

In the final month before the Cup workers labored night and day to finish work on the inns, rentable homes, and pubs around the shores of the lake, as well as the dock at the foot of Rauros and the cunning lifts that had been constructed to quickly take guests up through the cliffs from the docks to the lake.

On a less football related note, the investors on the planning committee were hoping to permanently develop the area in order to come out ahead on the venture, and given the lovely setting they seemed likely to succeed, as the lake promised summer boating and swimming, and soon after the cup rafting trips on the Anduin and rock climbing ventures into the Emyn Muil were scheduled to commence. In addition, ski runs were said to be in the works on some of the higher hills for attracting winter tourists.

[the phantom]

Nearly all the prognosticators were backing Mithrim and nearly all the money was moving in that direction, so oddsmakers were offering excellent numbers for Vinyamar in the lead up to the first semifinal, and the supporters of Vinyamar were more than happy to oblige by placing all their pocket change on their team. And why not? They were after all the only team left in the tournament that had not suffered a single loss in friendlies, group play, or the playoffs.

The supporters of Mithrim seemed to give little respect to this stat however, and could be heard far and wide guaranteeing a beat-down. After all, since group play started their defense, led by the sons of Feanor and Huan, had looked just as formidable as Vinyamar’s, while their feared trio of Turin, Hurin, and Beleg up front had put up four more goals than the team they now faced. This combination of defense and offense had boosted them to the best goal differential in the tournament- an excellent +11 through five matches.

When presented with this stat in interviews, players from Vinyamar seemed unmoved. Typifying their responses was captain Ulmo yesterday. “At this stage a one-goal victory counts for just as much as a two-goal victory. We do what is necessary to advance and that is all one can ask of a team. Not to mention the stat is slanted due to different competition faced. I think our first round opponent was just a bit tougher, and so was our quarterfinal match. And in group play, we were definitely facing stouter defenses overall.”

The Elves that showed up to watch the match were divided in loyalties between the sides, with Beleg drawing most of the woodland Elves while the Noldor of Vinyamar along with Ulmo and his Maia helpers drew slightly more Noldor than the sons of Feanor. The men and women however were more on the side of Mithrim, as Tuor was the lone man for Vinyamar while Mithrim featured Turin, Hurin, Morwen, Aradan, and Androg. And as expected a large group of dwarves had turned out to join their relatives in rooting for Vinyamar.

But not all the crowd had a preference, as there were several thousand “baddies” there to enjoy the match- orcs, trolls, werewolves, and even a few dragons. There were also many attendees from Gondor that did not have a strong rooting interest and thus could be won over through the course of the match.

And early on it was Vinyamar that looked set to win them over, as their movement was just beyond skilful. They gained only one quality look in the opening minutes, but they held the ball with relative ease, shortening the game and making Mithrim chase the ball around the pitch. The only thing that saved Mithrim early on was Celegorm and Curufin completely denying any sort of action in the corners, forcing Vinyamar to try and take it up the more muddled middle.

In the 25th minute Morwen deflected a risky pass towards the front and on the bounce Gelmir sent it immediately towards the right corner where Hurin tracked it down with a great first touch and dashed in leaving Salmar in his dust. The hero of Arnoediad then sent the ball skidding right across the face of the goal out of the reach of Rog, hoping a charging Turin or Beleg could deflect it in. Turin got a foot on it, but Osse came sliding in from the left and managed to deflect the shot and it bounced just a couple feet wide of the post.

On the corner sent in by Beleg Turin again had a shot at it, but Rog read it well and gathered in the header and the threat was over. It was then Vinyamar’s turn to go on the attack, and as usual they built it up slowly and carefully, until minute 33. The up front players for Vinyamar had been passing it back swiftly on nearly every touch, but Idril managed to surprise the defense and catch them flat footed when instead she took it and immediately made a run down the middle. The sons of Feanor came from the sides to cut her off, but she had broken through too quickly and they didn’t have the angle, giving her a clean shot at the keeper. She sent a drive low to the right, and Huan dove for it, barely tipping it with the tips of his claws, deflecting it just enough to hit the inside of the post and careen away to the left of the goal. Unfortunately for Huan, Celegorm had just vacated this area to try and contest or rush Idril’s shot and Tuor was first to it and wasted no time in sending it into the left side for the 1-0 lead!

Mithrim’s forwards looked determined to strike back, but the defense of Vinyamar maneuvered with skill and experience and turned aside every attack and the half arrived with the score still at 1-0.

The second half was much the same, with Vinyamar holding possession for frustrating amounts of time while not allowing Mithrim much in the way of scoring chances. Morwen and Curufin both forced Rog to make a save, but both shots were rather distant speculations and not enough to challenge a goalie as hot as Rog.

When the clock showed under twenty minutes to play the Mithrim supporters started getting extremely nervous, but they soon found relief. No surprise it was Turin, one of the most feared strikers in the game, who broke through. The goal was set up much the way their last serious threat had been- Hurin made a nice move from the corner and sent it into the box. Turin won position and used his height and strength to rise clear of the defense and nod the ball beautifully down onto the right side of the line and in.

Vinyamar surprisingly showed little disappointment, and Ulmo could be heard encouraging his squad. “They’re a great team. We knew they’d fight back. Now we just have to throw the final punch. We’re still okay. We can win this!” And the team obviously bought into his words, as they showed just as much confidence as ever in the final minutes of the half, forcing overtime to the delight of the impartial observers. Happy shouts of “Extra football!” could be heard throughout the arena.

During the overtime Mithrim looked a step slower. Perhaps they had tired themselves out in their efforts to gain the equalizer? Whatever the cause, Vinyamar looked extra sharp to begin the period and steadily built the attack. They gained a corner at minute 7, but it was just out of reach of Ulmo who came forward to use his height on the play. Minutes later Vinyamar had another nice look off a longball won by Duilin and sent swiftly out front to Penlod, but his quality header was grasped by Huan in a great save by the hound.

But at minute 16 the squad from Mount Taras could be denied no longer, as Penlod got his head on yet another Duilin cross. He placed it expertly into the near top corner and soon found himself mobbed by teammates. It was Vinyamar out front once again, and Mithrim had less than 14 minutes to score against one of the stingiest defenses in the tournament.

The ending was less than dramatic, as Mithrim never seriously threatened to equalize. Turin’s turn and power drive from 35 yards that zipped past the right side of the goal was as close as they managed, and Vinyamar and their fans were soon free to celebrate this unexpected and well-fought victory. They were through to play for the Arda Cup championship!

Mithrim 1-2 Vinyamar (OVERTIME)
tot shots 13-9
on target 6-5
GOALS:
*33, 0-1 Tuor (Idril)
*72, 1-1 Turin (Hurin)
*16, 1-2 Penlod (Duilin)
YELLOW CARDS:
Mithrim- Morwen, Beleg, Hurin
Vinyamar- Tuor, Galdor

[the phantom]

After the hard-fought surprise result of the first match, the crowds were mighty pleased and looking at the evening match as the cherry on top, and Gondolin and Utumno were keen not to disappoint. Gondolin came in with a hot offense, while Utumno had been just dominant on defense, and everyone wondered who would give way to the other.

Surprisingly it turned out to be the Angband offense looking the best in the opening minutes as the horses and great eagle of Gondolin were outwitted by the clever attacks led by Melkor and Thuringwethil, and the forwards Tilion and Gothmog were both set up nicely inside the opening 15, though they did not crack the scoreboard sending one over the top and the other wide.

But just a few minutes later Melkor again sent a floater to the opposite side for Gothmog and this time he made sure and got it down and Huor had no chance and it was 1-0 Utumno! The big bads then settled into a hold pattern for the next several minutes. Some fans even thought that they planned on doing it through the rest of the match. “After all,” they remarked, “They haven’t surrendered a goal yet this tournament. A one goal lead could be enough!”

But it was soon evident that the optimism was likely overdone, as Gondolin truly threatened Utumno in the minutes that followed. First there was a flurry of brilliant passes up and back through the middle that resulted in an uncontested Fingolfin shot from the top of the box, forcing Ungoliant to make her best save yet. Then there was a long ball controlled by Aredhel and sent over to a dashing Ecthelion who blasted a wicked bender from range that glanced off the outside of the crossbar. And finally there was Maeglin making the Balrogs look a bit clumsy as he dribbled all the way from midfield, weaving and ducking displaying excellent ball control, culminating in a drive that surely would have beaten Ungoliant if the final Balrog had not managed to get part of his foot on it and send it wide.

But just as the crowd grew certain that the equalizer was coming, Telvildo outfought his man for the ball and sent it back to a free Balrog (#5 to be specific) who immediately sent it high up the middle for a sprinting Melkor. Melkor had timed his run perfectly and brought the ball down on the first bounce with a perfectly in-stride touch and even the horses and Thorondor could not catch him before he gained a one-on-one with the goalie and put it in for the 2-0 lead!

The Gondolin supporters groaned and cradled their heads in their hands. This was not how this match was supposed to unfold! They had just spotted the defense with the most sparkling numbers in the tournament a two goal lead and had but one half left to make it up! And of course on the other hand the supporters of Utumno were singing and drinking with delight. For many the cup was already won, for they doubted seriously the ability of Vinyamar to challenge them in the finals.

The opening minutes of the second half did nothing to change the moods, as it was Utumno on the attack once again. But if the Gondolin fans were paying attention closely they noticed that at the least the attacks were no longer as threatening. Huor was ordering the defense in front of him with great passion, and they responded with full effort and heady play. Finally after the 60 minute mark possession started swinging back the way of Gondolin, and the Balrogs were made to sweat just as in the first half.

And then in minute 68 a shot in the arm for Gondolin- a goal! Eol gained the ball in the left corner and spun around his man, dribbled past another, then sent the ball whistling at the near post. Ungoliant got her claws on it but could not hold onto it, and the ball spilled right in front of Maeglin who wasted no time in burying the shot.

Gondolin was still down by a goal, but the fans and players all believed the equalizer could be had after the confidence boost from the first goal, and the shifting spirit within the stadium seemed to impact the players from Utumno, and they now looked to be playing not to lose rather than to win. Gondolin was less tentative and showed no fear and in minute 82 they celebrated wildly after Fingolfin pulled them level off an unsuccessfully cleared free kick from Rochallor.

Utumno looked stunned while all the players from Gondolin looked to be bubbling over with energy and confidence. Even the unshakable Melkor was visibly off his game. Fingolfin’s blazing eyes, clear powerful voice, and valiant bearing were just as they had been the night he had ridden to the doors of Angband and wounded the dark lord in combat, and Thorondor swooping about made the memory even more real to Melkor.

Utumno barely made it to overtime with the tie still intact, and it was obvious they were time-wasting and hoping to settle things in an end-game shoot-out. But Gondolin would not be denied, and 11 minutes into overtime Balrog #2 committed a desperate foul against Maeglin in the midst of a dangerous attack, and the “sharp boot” was awarded a free kick.

Utumno set their wall and Ungoliant waited grimly for whatever was to come, but she was hardly allowed a chance to move as Maeglin went direct at the goal and managed to put the ball right over the top of the wall and speeding into the very top corner for the lead!

The rest of the way Utumno did push for an equalizer, but their confidence had suffered such a gut-punch that they simply could not muster enough to challenge to gallant squad from Gondolin, and soon Utumno found themselves numbly exiting the stadium with the singing of the Gondolin fans ringing in their ears.

Gondolin 3-2 Utumno (OVERTIME)
tot shots 19-14
on target 9-6
GOALS:
*21, 0-1 Gothmog (Melkor)
*40, 0-2 Melkor (Balrog #5)
*68, 1-2 Maeglin (Eol)
*82, 2-2 Fingolfin (Rochallor)
*11, 3-2 Maeglin
YELLOW CARDS:
Gondolin- Eol, Asfaloth
Utumno- Balrog #3, Gothmog, Balrog #2

[the phantom]

After Utumno lost to Gondolin the orcs, trolls, and other typical supporters of evil vanished from Amon Hen as if by magic. Obviously they were not interested in anything less than a title, and seeing their team battle for third place meant nothing.

A couple of sports journalists wrote articles about how quickly this could change if Melkor simply gave the word and ordered support for his team, but these articles were swiftly crushed by a press conference at which Lord Melkor clearly echoed the supporters, seeming entirely unenthused about the upcoming match against Mithrim.

On the flip side of the coin was Vinyamar, the old extinct city that had in one year had life breathed into it and made it all the way to the finals. Under usual circumstances Gondolin would have received great support from the masses, but as Vinyamar was such a feel-good story and seemed to have a foot in every camp, their support in the newly constructed inns and pubs around Rauros was overwhelming.

Due to all of the construction dwarves that had been hired to rebuild Vinyamar and had fallen in love with the city and team, the dwarf population was nearly all behind them. The elves had representatives on both sides, but thanks to Ulmo and the Cinderella story Vinyamar boasted at least 80% of them. And the Gondorians and other men liked the story as well, along with Vinyamar actually featuring one of their own on the team in the form of Tuor.

Since the stadium was so incredibly large tickets for the event were cheaper than they had been in years past, and on top of that there were thousands who hoped to gain a "free seat", which meant simply that they would find someplace on Amon Hen, in a tree or in a clearing, where they could see the pitch down along the shores of the lake. Under normal circumstances such a seat would be useless for viewing, but with the magic of the "Hill of Seeing" in operation the pitch could be seen as if through a spyglass if the fan concentrated carefully, and so without a doubt a record breaking number of people were going to be viewing the final live.

Obviously everyone was very much looking forward to the final, but no one was keen to skip the lead-up match, Mithrim versus Utumno, as both teams had been just spectacular all the way to the semifinals. What's better than a championship match? A third place match plus a championship match! The more football the better.

[the phantom]

It was a capacity crowd of 140,000 that had gathered to see the afternoon match for third place between Mithrim and Utumno. The football fans were hoping to see two teams with a chip on the shoulder. Before the semifinals these two sides had been the most statistically dominant, and both had lost only in overtime. Both of these teams easily could’ve been playing in the night match for the Arda Cup Trophy.

But of course they were not, a fact that quite obviously bothered star forward Turin based upon his comments ahead of the match. “We were so good match after match, and then we really let ourselves down. Vinyamar out-efforted us, and even then we should’ve won that match. Our middle defenders fell asleep on that regular time goal of theirs, and one of us should’ve capitalized on another one of our chances in regular time. We shouldn’t have let it go to extra time, and we feel we really let our fans down. This was a championship caliber squad.”

The team that took the field reflected this attitude, as they looked quite grim and perhaps a bit angry to be playing in the first match of the day. Across on the other side Utumno looked down as well, but they looked more resigned and depressed rather than determined to prove themselves. Melkor and his minions obviously had not taken their semifinal loss to Gondolin well. Before that match they had not surrendered a single goal since group play began, and they were up 2-0 with little more than 20 minutes left, but Gondolin shockingly stormed back to tie the match and won it in overtime.

But when the match kicked off Utumno did not look completely apathetic. Their talent was undeniable and their experience was long, and so perhaps out of mere habit they fell right into their usual style and quality of play, keeping the determined Mithrim offense from having an easy time of it. But there was no denying that Mithrim controlled the play overall, holding possession and not allowing any good looks from Utumno.

In the opening half hour the keepers were only challenged once, and neither challenge was stiff. But shortly before the half ended Mithrim’s determination at last payed dividends when Beleg sent a corner into the box. The ball came down a bit sooner than the defense expected, but Curufin was placed well to rise up and flick it on across the face of the goal where Hurin met it leaving Ungoliant with no hope of making the save, sending Mithrim into halftime with the 1-0 lead.

When the second half began Utumno looked to have hardened their will a bit during the break, as they started off on the attack and controlling the action. The sons of Feanor were shutting down attacks from the corners per usual, but Utumno managed to work it up to the top of the box several times with effectiveness thanks to the large bodies and good passing of Gothmog and Tilion. Five minutes in Gothmog made a brilliant turn and sent a hard curler at the right side, but Huan made a great leaping save. Just a few minutes after Tilion did nearly the same thing, sending a rocket at the goal.

The shot got past Huan to the post and skipped away to the right side directly to Thuringwethil’s feet. The vampire queen wasted no time at all in sending it back towards the posts, hanging it up for Utumno’s towering strikers to win. And in fact it was the master himself, Melkor, who outfought all comers and struck an irresistible header to forge a tie!

The crowd, while they were not at all supporting of Utumno, applauded, as they were happy to see a true contest made of the match. But the crowd was made uneasy over the next few minutes as Utumno nearly took the lead- once on a blistering effort by Tilion that went just over the post, and again on a free kick from Melkor that Huan heroically batted away.

It was then that the sons of Feanor began jawing at the Utumno squad. It was unclear if this strategy was planned beforehand or thought of spur of the moment, but either way it worked. Both Celegorm and Curufin could be seen running their mouths constantly at the squad from Utumno, and according to all accounts they were primarily tossing out jabs about the fact that Utumno could do no better than third place no matter how well they played, and that all in all their past and present efforts were a waste, and they would not gain any sort of acclaim this year.

Under normal circumstances such words would have aroused the wrath of Melkor, but in this case it seemed to do the opposite, and in no time at all he was just going through the motions, and his fellows at the front followed suit. It wasn’t long before Mithrim had taken over the game again, and at last they took firm command in minute 76 thanks to a dashing counter from Turin and Beleg in which they left the dispirited defense in their dust.

The final minutes of the game were just an exercise, and Utumno looked quite anxious to be off the field and thus seemed content not to threaten sending it into overtime. The crowds applauded Mithrim solidly, and Mithrim accepted it and waved, but their joy was clearly lessened, as it seemed Utumno’s mood had infected them in the end and they were primarily focused on the fact that they had fallen one win short of their true goal.

But one team wouldn’t fall short- either Gondolin or Vinyamar. That match was next, and the throng could hardly contain their excitement.

Mithrim 2-1 Utumno
tot shots 13-13
on target 7-6
GOALS:
*43, 1-0 Hurin (Curufin)
*55, 1-1 Melkor (Thuringwethil)
*76, 2-1 Turin (Beleg)
YELLOW CARDS:
Mithrim- Gelmir, Celegorm
Utumno- Balrog #1, Thuringwethil, Balrog #5

[the phantom]

The stadium was completely packed and there was barely an empty tree upon the slopes of Amon Hen as kickoff time approached for the championship match between Gondolin and Vinyamar. There were quite a few dwarves, and twice as many elves, but most numerous were men for certain- at least half the stadium (mostly from Gondor). There were no trolls or dragons to be seen at all, and only one small section of die-hard orcs had showed up.

All the fans were very much enjoying the architecture of the new stadium, particularly the goodly folk seated in the portions that were built in the image of Angband and Mordor, as they had never ventured to those locations before.

Turgon and his wife Elenwe were pressed upon greatly as they made for their seats. Everyone wanted to know which side they’d be supporting, as Turgon was the founder of both cities. His wife made no secret that she was pulling for her daughter and son-in-law playing for Vinyamar, but Turgon remained noncommittal. “Both teams have proven themselves worthy in this tournament, and I’m fond of a great many players on both sides. How can I be against my trusty generals, Glorfindel and Ecthelion, or my dear sister Aredhel and her family, my valiant father Fingolfin, or Huor who died defending me so long ago? But then how can I be against my own daughter, or her husband Tuor who is dear to me as well, or the great and admirable Ulmo?”

The fans in the stadium and prognosticators from MESPN and Arda Kicker Magazine were not so undecided, however. The support of the masses was firmly behind Vinyamar thanks to their grit and feel good story, while the experts backed Gondolin nearly to a man, as they had the better overall goal margin through what they viewed as stiffer competition. But even so no one was predicting a blowout, as Vinyamar’s defensive prowess and possession game were not doubted.

And when the game began, it certainly did look like the match would be close. In the opening minutes Vinyamar went to work with their careful passing game, but Gondolin was quick and well disciplined, and the probing yielded no results. When Gondolin got their turn they fared no better, as Ulmo and friends were on top of things at the back and Idril and the midfielders were applying good pressure in the center.

It was so slow going that in fact no shots were taken at all until minute 24, when Eol managed to split the midfielders in the center and send a powerful drive at the bars. The distance was great and Rog was not caught off guard and so he caught it easily. At minute 29 Vinyamar finally got off their first effort, a swerving speculation by Duilin. As on the other end the keeper was more than ready and Huor gathered it in quite easily.

Several minutes later the crowd noise increased greatly as Vinyamar finally managed to get it down one of the sides, as Idril managed to draw help away on a nice center run and then sent it over to Tuor who was one on one on the right side with Rochallor. Tuor won possession, but the battle-horse would not at all let him by, and when he tried to hang one up out front for the other attackers Rochallor blocked the effort, and it went out for a corner kick.

The stadium buzzed with excitement, as this was the first real chance of the match, but the excitement was for nothing as Asfaloth rose up and headed it away from the goal, and Fingolfin got to it first and sent it down to the other end. Vinyamar started building the attack again, but soon they gave it over to Gondolin, and the hidden city controlled play for the remainder of the half, though they still could gain nothing more than a couple of distant shots which went wide of the mark.

As the minutes went by in the second half the buzz increased in the stadium little by little. The way this match was going it was likely to be decided by one single moment, and so every little touch gained importance as the seconds ticked away. At minute 53 Vinyamar gained another opportunity, this time from a yellow card given to Aredhel for tripping Egalmoth about 35 yards out and to the left of goal. Duilin took the kick, sending it towards the right post but bending away, precisely as planned. Tuor and Penlod were both in the vicinity surrounded by defenders. Penlod managed to fight through them and rise up to redirect the ball. The crowd yelled as it had clearly gotten into the net, but groaned as they realized it was on the wrong side of the post, having gone just wide.

A few minutes later it was Gondolin’s turn to be disappointed, as Aredhel’s great cross for Ecthelion was only just batted away by Rog. The fans from Gondolin remained hopeful, however, as this marked the second time in just a few minutes that Gondolin had managed to win the ball all the way down into the corner (the first time it was Fingolfin). It looked like perhaps the speed and skill of their wings was at last wearing down the unflappable defense of Vinyamar.

At minute 62 Fingolfin managed to dribble past Voronwe up the side, forcing the defense to shift over to help. Fingolfin continued his run as long as possible to draw them, and then sent it over the top to the more sparse right side. Aredhel beat everyone to it and with an excellent first touch sent it on the ground along the end line past Ulmo while she went around his left to collect the ball on the other side. The defense rushed to meet her but too tight to the goal, leaving her a passing lane to Maeglin who had slipped out away from goal a bit towards the corner of the box.

Maeglin took the shot immediately off the pass, and the “sharp boot” was sharp with his timing and aim indeed, sending it just under the bar and inside the left post to break the scoreless tie! The Gondolin supporters screamed in approval while the Vinyamar fans slumped deeper into their seats. The fans who had no vested interest but hoped for a Vinyamar win clapped with moderate enthusiasm, as it was a well earned goal.

Now it was up to the Gondolin defense and Huor between the posts. They had held firmly the entire game, and Vinyamar was not a quick strike team. Surely they could hold for just a bit longer. It certainly seemed that they would as time went past 70, as Vinyamar was getting nowhere at all. But as time approached 80 minutes Vinyamar sent everyone forward and really got aggressive. They were leaving themselves open to a counter to be sure, but they needed a goal.

Idril had a window from distance, but her shot sailed high. Then it was Egalmoth’s turn, but his effort bent too far left. Time was running out. Then at minute 86 Vinyamar was granted a corner, which was taken by Duilin. His ball made it to the far side where Ulmo met it. His header deflected off a defender and back to the middle, where it was pounced on by Salmar who immediately kicked it out of midair over the defenders at the top bar, but Huor got a fingertip on it, sending it off the top post and back down the middle!

Maeglin was first to it and he immediately sent it all the way down to Rog on the other end, and Gondolin breathed a sigh of relief. They had survived the onslaught! Vinyamar was not finished trying of course, but their efforts yielded nothing so dangerous in the final minutes, and soon head ref Boromir88 blew his whistle and the match was over!

Gondolin had won the Arda Cup Championship!

Gondolin 1-0 Vinyamar
tot shots 9-7
on target 4-2
GOALS:
*63, 1-0 Maeglin (Aredhel)
YELLOW CARDS:
Gondolin- Glorfindel, Aredhel, Salgant
Vinyamar- Osse, Penlod