[the phantom]

Investing Groups Comment
The Phantom, MESPN News

Here in the break between friendlies and the opening games of Arda Cup 2012, we've managed to get a few quotes from various investment groups regarding the performance and outlook of their teams.

Golden Wood Group- "We feel quite confident about our investments- Anduin and Wilderland. The Lord & Lady of Lothlorien have been good fits on their respective squads which is nice to see, but more importantly the squads as a whole have both won more than they've lost. Anduin's win over Imladris was an excellent way to finish up friendlies, and Wilderland's solid performance over group-foe Dwarves United was quite promising. I think it's entirely realistic to expect both of our squads to advance out of group play."

Rohirrim Ltd. - "Anduin finished up nicely and looks to threaten the betting favorites Erebor and Wilderland, while Rohan is the current favorite to win Group F. This is precisely what we expected from our kinsmen, and we're looking forward to group play."

Annuminas Ltd. - "We're not overly concerned about Arnor's close loss to Armenelos- they're a top-flight team after all, and in one game anything can happen. The early loss to Imladris wasn't pretty, but they rebounded well in the middle with a draw against Mordor and a finely fought win over Gondor- TTN's pick to win Group H."

Belegost- "Well of course the friendly performance of Dwarves United left something to be desired, but Aule definitely had them holding back the full scope of their tough Dwarvish play. In a free-flowing dash of a friendly our opponents generally have the advantage, but they'll find things tougher going in group play. We remain in full support of our Dwarf-centric squad!"

Erebor Craftsman Union- "We're fairly comfortable with the position Erebor is in. Most betting agencies have us going forward- they recognize our blend of talent is a difficult match-up for most. As far as our opening loss to Wilderland- we'll see how it goes once we're playing for real."

Moneybags Monetary Management- "Well, we're not that pleased with where team Erebor's overall salary stands- we were all for fielding a more... budget-friendly team. But so long as Erebor keeps avoiding the losses we're hopeful that we'll turn a profit."

Turgon- "Inter Beleriand did lose the battle to AC Beleriand to open friendlies, but we weren't dominated numbers-wise. Our final match against Angband was promising as far as numbers went as well, so that along with our game 2 victory leaves reason for optimism. Our performance in the Doriath match wasn't the best, but that's just one game out of four. With the talent we have there's no reason to think we won't advance if we only play one poor group game."

Angmar Athletic- "I think we're more than comfortable with the position of team Eriador. They started off with two well-earned shut-outs, and finished up with a solid win over a talented Shire-Bree squad. The lone loss was to Erebor- we just didn't play our best that day- and we don't think that's anything to worry about. With Elrond at the back and our beloved Witch King at the front, I don't see how we won't make it out of group play and into the profit zone."