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Originally Posted by the phantom
GROUP B
BREELAND
EDORAS (H)
MIRKWOOD
TOL-IN-GAURHOTH
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There you are. Feel free to begin giving your breakdowns of the groups, and try and predict which teams have the best chance of moving on.
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Well then, let's start with the local favourites and their competition. The long flight to Edoras is not going to favour Tol-in-Gaurhoth at all, since we're coming the farthest--all the way from Beleriand. First you have to fly from Tol Sirion to the main hub in Angband, then there's the transcontinental sleeper to Minas Tirith, then back to Edoras. There's some talk of a direct flight from Angband, but no carrier as yet.
On the other hand, the competition doesn't look too bad. None of the other teams are leading the league. Edoras is probably the most difficult of the three. Théoden, Éomer, and Éowyn are all prominent names, and for good reason, but none of them are in the Sauron/the phantom range, and the rest of the team is a bunch of relative no-names. The population in Edoras simply isn't enough to sell tickets for a world-class team, and there are well-establish teams just around the corner in Minas Tirith, Helm's Deep, and Isengard. Mirkwood has one of the biggest fanbases in the league, with Legolas Greenleaf, but his fame is perhaps more derived from those "lighter than snow" running shoe ads than any real talent. The rest of the team is worse. Oropher still hasn't done adequate penance for his horrid defence of the goalposts in the famous Last Alliance series, and half the players are D-lister rejects from Mordor.
On the other end of the spectrum, however, we have Breeland, and while they are lacking in star power, there is an admirable team spirit from Eriador's centre most team, and Old Man Willow has to be one of the best goalies in the league. Hopefully, we'll get to see a lot of Breeland/Tol-in-Gaurhoth action, since they had a spectacular local rivalry back in the days when Tol-in-Gaurhoth played as "the Barrow-Downs", and the fans haven't had much of that since the move, now that Tol-in-Gaurhoth plays in the Beleriand more than Eriador.
My bet:
Tol-in-Gaurhoth will narrowly win the group, followed by Edoras. Breeland will be a respectable third, and Mirkwood a distant fourth.