[the phantom]

Vinyamar was a hive of activity leading up to the first round of the playoffs. Many of the fans who had made the trip for group play from Ithilien, Aman, and Beleriand had remained in the city, hoping to nab a ticket for the playoff match. And true to their word, all of the dwarf renovation crews were still there, and could be seen strolling the streets in the evenings draped in banners supporting the home team.

During the days they were quite busy however, as they had been hired for new building projects- mostly home rebuildings, though in a few cases the construction of brand new dwellings upon the slopes of Mount Taras. Men, Elves, and Dwarves who had visited the abandoned city had simply fallen in love with it- the beautiful stone-work of the Noldor set upon the side of picturesque Mount Taras overlooking magnificent rocky shores. With so much already prepared and excellent starting material, it was the perfect spot for a “new” city.

But despite all of the development, talk of football still reigned supreme leading up to the match against Dol Guldur. The Mirkwood fortress had only a very small following that made the trip to the far northwest, but they were loud and boisterous- a smattering of Beornings, Orcs, Elves, and spiders. The fans of Dol Guldur and the team itself seemed to have a higher level of confidence than one would expect from a group runner-up on the road facing a group winner. Part of this was certainly derived from the fine run made by Mirkwood in last year’s tournament. Four of the players on this team were on that side, and most all of the supporters in attendance were huge supporters of Mirkwood.

Another reason for the confidence was perhaps the number of publications and sports bloggers who had chosen them to advance in this match- understandable perhaps due to Dol Guldur being the “sexier” team. Khamul, Beorn, Bolg son of Azog, and Radagast the wizard have a lot of appeal, and of course The Witch King is one of the biggest stars of football. And topping it off, Dol Guldur played an aggressive game, and liked getting into exciting scoring contests.

Vinyamar was the opposite. They played a controlled game, and preferred to keep the scoring low and not leave themselves open to counters. When interviewed before the match, Dol Guldur midfielder Beorn had this to say. “Vinyamar doesn’t press their advantage ruthlessly, so I don’t think they will be able to score a ton on us. They depend on winning games 1-0 or 2-1, but they won’t be able to hold us under two. We have some great individual offensive talents, and especially Witch King always comes through for us!”

When presented with Beorn’s quote, Vinyamar defender Ulmo conceded the point to an extent, but begged to differ on the result. “It’s quite true that Witch King can’t be held off the scoreboard individually. I will be marking him personally, but I can guarantee he will get the better of me at least a time or two. What is key at those moments is that all the rest of my teammates are not beat at the same time. If you take away WK’s support, keep players from delivering the ball to him, cut off his passing lanes, and hold the ball efficiently with your own offense, he can be taken out of the game. It’s not about the individual- it’s about the team!”

And as the opening minutes of the game ticked past, Ulmo looked to be an expert prognosticator, for his words were proving to be right on the money. From the word go the midfielders and forwards of Vinyamar played a brilliant possession game. Egalmoth to Duilin, up to Tuor, back to Idril, expertly sent over to Voronwe, quickly up to Penlod, touched back to Idril... It was an absolute clinic on intelligent spacing and precision passing!

The home side ever so slowly built up the pressure, refusing to overreach, but always on the lookout for an opening. Just inside of twenty minutes they had their best chance yet and Tuor took the shot, but Oropher tipped it away. Soon after Dol Guldur made their first successful journey into Vinayamar territory, but found it impossible to get a decent try. Khamul for the first time tested Rog around minute 27, but it was a distant and rushed effort and Rog had no problems, and soon the ball was back on the other side, and the chanting of the crowd began to grow.

In minute 32 there was mass rejoicing in the stands as the Lord of the Waters himself punched in the rebound following a corner! Dol Guldur looked frankly overwhelmed, and they went to the half lucky to be down only one. And when the second half started things didn’t get any better. Witch King and company looked focused and reenergized, but all of their fire and effort was totally in vain as Vinyamar again was flawless on offense and suffocating on defense. Barely ten minutes into play Tuor managed to get the ball away from Attercop, who had unwisely chosen to hold the ball and fend Tuor off, and with the players from Dol Guldur already running the other way hoping for a quick strike Vinyamar caught the opposition with their pants down and Penlod slotted it to Idril for the 2-0 lead!

Celebration broke out all throughout the arena! In seven games played (four friendlies and three group games), no opponent had managed to score more than one goal on Vinyamar, and only three of seven teams had managed the single goal. Except for a complete breakdown, this match was in the bag!

The Witch King attempted to breathe new life into his side, pointing out that they had in both of their previous two matches stormed back from a 2-0 deficit with three goals in the final 20 minutes. Beorn, Grimbeorn, Oropher, and Radagast stood with their captain, looking defiant and determined, but the rest of the team looked unconvinced. Never before had they encountered such a perfect storm of talent, execution, and teamwork, with the crowd on top of it working their magic for the home team.

With around 20 minutes left Witch King finally broke loose, making a highlight reel solo run all the way from midfield. At the last he beat Osse and got his shot off, but Osse had forced him over just enough and delayed him so that Rog would have a prayer at the save, and the valiant Noldo came through, deflecting the thunderous effort away. It bounded away in front of the exposed net, but Ulmo was first to it, and he wasted no time in booting it far downfield, and the crowd simply exploded! They had taken Dol Guldur’s best shot and turned it away! This match was over.

There was still some time to burn through, but the wind was completely out of the sails for the visitors. Even Witch King looked resigned, and Vinyamar had no problems finishing the contest off. The refs signaled the game over and the players climbed up into the stands and joined in the merry making. They were through to the quarterfinals!

Dol Guldur 0-2 Vinyamar
tot shots 8-12
on target 3-6
GOALS:
*32, 0-1 Ulmo (Duilin)
*56, 0-2 Idril (Penlod)
YELLOW CARDS:
*Dol Guldur- Grimbeorn, Thrain
*Vinyamar- Galdor, Idril