[Nogrod]

Armenelos vs. Mirkwood

All the minor things aside, the match was coming and that was what everyone was looking for. And this time the loyalties were so much clearer they had been in the quarterfinals. The “good” audiences (men from M-E, elves, hobbits, ents, Valar, Maiar…) were clearly on the side of Mirkwood while the “evils” were a bit undecided but leaning towards Armenelos just because the good crowds were so clearly on the side of Mirkwood: and sure there was Sauron – although he didn’t look like the Sauron they knew – being gracious, beautiful, noble… There was also a remarkable contingent of Númenórians from both Númenóre itself and from the south to keep up the spirit for the Armenelos team.


It had been cloudy already from the morning of the match day and a few hours before the game, as the crowds were gathering into the stadium, it started raining. And it rained heavily. The living roof consisting of the branches and leaves of the huorns and ents did protect parts of the stand pretty well but especially at the highest rows on the mountainside the spectators got pretty much soaked.


The game itself started up quite evenly. On a slippery field both teams went first carefully not willing to give the opponent a cheap lead with a careless mistake on the slippery arena.

Mirkwood played well and earned the support of the “good” crowds. Although there were downsides to it. When Treebeard was making a fine header following a corner kick the huorns and ents went just wild from suspense and cheered loudly waving their branches – resulting in hundreds of liters of water pouring down on the spectators and players under them, and a few spectators did actually fall down from their branches and received injuries that required medical attention. The header itself went wide the post.

But the team Armenelos proved to be just solid steel – and a Team with a capital letter. As in their earlier games, there were no particular players by whom they would pull their act together or to whom they would every time try to give the ball to make a difference. Everyone stood for his or her place and when someone was marked there was always someone else to pick up the duties and play the ball forwards in relentless waves of attack one after another.

In last year’s tournament Armenelos fell into self-indulgence giving the opponents basically a two goal lead before they started playing in earnest. This year they had learned.

At 30th minute due to a minor marking-mistake by Grimbeorn “the Lord of the West” performed a beautiful bicycle-kick from Sauron’s fine high pass and took the Kings to the lead they held onto to the half-time with relative ease.

On the second half much of the same followed. Armenelos wasn’t exactly running over the Mirkwod team but it made no mistakes and it always seemed to have more of the edge when it either attacked or defended; they were sharper, more determined, more alert at everything they did.

And so on 68th minute Armenelos scored again. And what an execution it was!

It actually began by a counter-attack when Sauron took the ball away from Bilbo (heh, as Boromir had predicted) and went forwards with Ar Pharazôn at his side. The two outwitted the Mirkwood defences and finally Sauron passed the ball to the center for Ar Pharazôn to score – but he hit the crossbar! Meanwhile those nearest following the two forwards had reached the area and it was getting packed inside the box. Tar Minastir won a fight over the rebound at the right corner of the box and chipped it to the center to Ar Pharazôn still waiting there – and Ar Pharazôn made a follow-up shot towards the lower left corner…making Oropher dive there… but no! It was indeed a powerful pass as he had seen from the corner of his eye that Tar Telperien was running there with all she got – and she dived to the ball feet on changing the ball’s trajectory from a meter away from Oropher sending the ball into the middle of the goal just past diving Oropher.

Once again Tar Telperien had showed why she was called the queen of football in Armenelos. As a defender she was probably less visible than her fellows Aredhel, Miriel or Nerdanel – but she sure knew how to score or pass a goal when needed. Those remembering last year’s tournament know that well. In a sudden act of decency Sauron took her to his shoulders and carried her around the pitch when she was just about to pull off her shirt to celebrate the goal…

Mirkwood tried it’s best to narrow the 2-0 lead but Armenelos played it securely and confidently the last twenty minutes giving Mirkwood no actual chance to score. Then the referee whistled the game over.

The Armenelos team maybe arrogant and full of pride but they are thus far the most solid team there is. It has won all its matches with a safe two goals difference (either 2-0 or 3-1). And they have allowed the opponents only three goals in six games – partly due to Tar Atanamir’s incredible 86% saves ratio as well. Whichever team will meet them in the final will have to really exceed in their game to beat team Armenelos. Fitting for the rulers of old they were, they just looked sovereign…


Armenelos 2-0 Mirkwood

shots 13-13
on target 7-5
GOALS:
*30, Armenelos (Ar Adunakhor, Sauron)
*68, Armenelos (Tar Telperien, Ar Pharazon)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Armenelos- Ar Zimrathan, Ar Gimilzor, Tar Ancalimon
*Mirkwood- Bilbo, Treebeard, Fram