Middle-Earth Football World Cup 2007

[Sleepy Ranger]

Really sorry but I was unable to sim the matches today since I had family over later on. Due to which I'll double on the matches tomorrow, and we'll have both today's fixtures as well as tomorrow's done tomorrow to make up for it.

Group C
Nargothrond vs. Buckland

Group E
Old Grey Hill vs. Misty Mountains

Group F
Gondolin vs. Mirkwood

Group H
Doriath vs. Ham

[Sleepy Ranger]

We'll have four matches played together now. Moria vs. Angband, I reckon if Moria can get over their teamwork issues they may actually threaten Angband but in the end I can see Angband picking up the three points regardless of what happens. Tuna take on the Shire in the next fixture. The Shire made it to the semifinals last time around but have failed to impress in their first match, whereas newcomers Tuna have been on fire. Can the Shire pick themselves up? Phantom says no.

Mordor will still be hurting after their loss at the hands of Roverandom and I'm certain they'll be looking to murder whoever they face. I pity Tol Eressea, they'll be lucky to make it out alive. In the final fixture the Barrow-Downs take on the Inklings. Both teams won their first match 2-0 and I reckon this match will probably decide who tops the group.

***

Group A
Moria 1 - 3 Angband
(Durin's Bane 23) (Melkor 64, 83, Thuringwethel 72)

Moria did not seem to have any team work issues at all in a brillant first half display. They managed to outclass Angband several times and created some breath taking chances including a good freekick which resulted in a goal. Moria's first chance came around the tenth minute when Balin headed just over the goal after a fine cross from Azog. Only moments later Azog went for the fancy and bycycled the ball over the goal. Much to the relief of Moria, Durin's Bane found the back of the net with a sweet curving free kick that swerved past an outstreched Glaurung.

After the break Angband came out guns blazing, desperate to try and get the match back in their control. So far Angband had not done much wrong but Moria were just fantastic. However in the second half the Morian defence began to get a bit edgy and more or less stopped playing as a team. The midfield held solid though and prevented any real threats from developing. Around the 55th minute Melkor blazed a long effort just over the crossbar. The rather unkempt Angband supporters began to boo their team.

Finall at the 64th minute their attacks paid off and Melkor found himself clean through after a pass from Thuringwethel. He calmly slotted in to bring the scores level. Not even ten minutes later Gothmog's shot struck the post but the rebound was shuffled in by an alert Thuringwethel, who scored her second goal of the tournament. Angband were back in control of things. The match decreased in tempo a bit and the Moria team began to disintegrate, their teamwork all but lost. Melkor capped off the win with a cheeky penalty after he was brought down in the area by Oin.

Shots: 5(2) - 6(4)
Posession: 49 - 51

Group B
Tuna 2 - 1 Shire
(Finwe 10, Maedhros 15) (Pippin 87)

Tuna started off the match superbly. Right from kickoff, Finwe and Feanor began to play some nimble one-two's to blitz past the Shire defence. Feanor then played the ball front for Ingwe who had burst forth. The midfielder's shot whizzed into the goal only for the linesman to raise the flag. Goal disallowed due to offside.

Aggrivating as that is, Tuna kept their heads up and played good football. It did not take long for them to score. Maedhros' tenth minute corner provided the break through. The defence failed to clear the inswinging corner on the first bounce and it proved fatal as Finwe latched onto it and struck in beautifully. Only five minutes later, a poor clearance landed at Maedhros' feet. The midfielder struck the ball from about 30 yards out, his shot seemed to take a deflection off of Tom Cotton on the way in but the Tuna midfielder was given the goal.

Tuna relaxed after the early two goal lead. While they could have pressed on to score more they decided to sit back and keep their players rested. Smart tactic, as an injury or suspension could prove very costly. The game was played out slowly, with Tuna seeing most of the ball and dictating tempo. The Shire hardly got a look in at all, it really does make one wonder if Frodo and Merry were perhaps not the driving force behind their success all along. However right towards the end, around the 87th minute a rather soft tackle by Amrod earned him a yellow card and Shire a penalty. Pippin converted it but in all honesty you have to question the referee's judgement.

Shots: 5(4) - 2(1)
Posession: 59 - 41
Bookings: Amrod

Group D
Mordor 4 - 0 Tol Eressea
(Dark Lord 3, 56, Witch-King 60, Shagrat 81)

The first half was oddly quiet apart from a third minute goal scored by Dark Lord. It was the Witch King who did most of the work here, dribbling past the Tol Eressea defence and faking out their goalkeeper, instead of taking a shot though he pulled the ball back for Dark Lord to tap the ball into an open goal. One goal, one shot. The Mordor fans are ecstatic after having to go through the painful experience of fourteen shots with no goals. Tol Eressea did not commit to attack even after going down while Mordor found it hard to find rhytym.

Everything changed in the second half though as Mordor began to unleash hell on their opponents. About ten minutes after the restart a fantastic cross in from Gothmog was headed in by an enthusiastic Dark Lord to double the lead. Only minutes after this goal, at the hour mark, Gothmog sent in a swinging cross upfield which was volleyed in by Witch King to solidify Mordor's lead. Only moments later Dark Lord came within touching distance of a hat trick but his shot fizzled wide of the left post. Mordor mellowed out a bit but still had room for one more goal.

Near the 80th minute they won a corner. Snaga lofted the ball and Shagrat knocked it in with full force to wrap up an easy day's work. Mordor completely bull dozed Tol Eressea, sending out a clear message that they can crush just about anyone they want quite easily.

Shots: 15(10) - 2(0)
Posession: 64 - 36

Group G
Barrow-Downs 4 - 1 The Inklings
(Sleepy Ranger 44, 47, Saucepan Man 51, Phantom 60) (Christopher Tolkien 88)

The first half started out quite slowly with both teams sizing each other up. The Inklings had the first chance when Formendacil was judged to have pulled C.S Lewis' shirt, earning him a yellow card and the Inklings a penalty. Everything went wrong though and J.R.R Tolkien's spot kick was punched out by the Barrow-Wight who then held onto the ball firmly when Charles Williams headed the rebound goalwards.

The 'Downs managed to begin a brilliant move towards the end of the half which involved Phantom, Feanor and Sleepy moving the ball among themselves. Finally, Phantom sent the ball towards Saucepan Man who lobbed it into the box for a diving Sleepy Ranger to head into the goal. The crowd was ecstatic as the 'Downs went in ahead.

Only minutes after the restart Sleepy Ranger doubled the advantage, when together with Saucepan Man he moved goalwards. The young striker played the ball front to Saucepan Man who had made a run into the box. Instead of shooting he selflessly snaped the ball back for Sleepy Ranger who lashed his foot forward knocking the ball in for his brace. Only minutes after that goal, Sleepy Ranger turned creator and curved in a ball for Saucepan Man to volley in. The Barrow-Downs seemed to have run away with it at 3-0 but there was still a lot of football to played.

However at the hour mark it looked buried and done with as Glirdan broke forward to play in Saucepan Man who held up the ball for Phantom. The midfielder did what he does best and drilled in a low shot which nearly knocked over Adam Fox. The Inklings did have something to sing about at the end of the game though as Christopher Tolkien picked up a loose ball after the 'Downs defence failed to clear a corner, and tapped it past a rather disappointed Barrow-Wight. None the less, that's three points for the 'Downs.

Shots: 8(6) - 5(3)
Posession: 59 - 41
Bookings: Formendacil

***

We've had a rather exciting day of football here with a bunch of penalties as well. There were no real upsets on the day except perhaps the upset fans after a Shire loss. However, I reckon that will leave a smiling Phantom. Angband did very well to stay calm after going down and made a fantastic comeback. Tuna should have pressed on for more but I can understand why they would have wanted to play it easy. Mordor demolished Tol Eressea much as I had expected. The 'Downs won by quite a margin and to be honest, it is not something I had expected at all.

[Sleepy Ranger]

First we have Nargothrond face off against Buckland in what should be a pretty one sided game. Misty Mountains will then be taking on Old Grey Hill. Though Old Grey Hill did manage a draw against Fangorn I suspect that Misty Mountains will be too much for them. I predict an easy win for Misty Mountains.

***

Group C
Nargothrond 2 - 0 Buckland
(Mormegil 2, 88)

It was a fairly straightforward game. Buckland made their intentions clear right from the start, they just parked their horses in front of goal. Then again even Nargothrond made their intentions clear right off the bat, with a goal coming just two minutes into the game. Mormegil slugged his way past defenders after being played in by Gundor. Unfortunately after this goal Nargothrond calmed their approach and their attacking flair from the last match seemed to have been lost.

Buckland could barely piece together an attack as Nargothrond played a very central game, barely leaving the midfield. It was fairly boring and not really anything worth watching. The only other highlights came when Mormegil blasted a shot from some 30 yards out only to have it hit Mim and go out of play. Near the end of the game Mim made up for his earlier goal costing mistake by providing a cross for Mormegil to head in with relative ease.

Shots: 5(3) - 1(0)
Posession: 60 - 40

Group E
Old Grey Hill 0 - 1 Misty Mountains
(Dwalin 66)

This was a fairly good match. Both teams managed to create a decent number of chances it's such a shame that they could only manage to score one goal between them. The first chance fell to Old Grey Hill when their striker, Guest played in Sun who waited for too long before he took his shot. Only minutes after that Sun had another wonderful chance when he broke free and was only stopped by a last ditch tackle by Bolg.

Right after that Misty Mountains began a fantastic counter attack which saw Stone Giant's lobbed shot blocked by a resilient Man in the Moon. Stone Gian got another chance from the resulting corner but this time Man in the Moon held onto the striker's attempt. Despite a good show from both teams we went in all square at half time.

In the second half Misty Mountains began to show their dominance and build up swift attacking plays. However they were unable to find the breakthrough till the 66th minute when Dwalin who recieved the ball after a goal kick by Bolg took a potshot from 45 yards out. His screamer of a shot whistled by a stumbling Man in the Moon to open up the scoring.

Apparently this was enough to break down Old Grey Hill who just found it impossible to build up any worthwhile attack after letting in a goal. Misty Mountains dominated the rest of the game but failed to really make much of an impact or even cause any danger in front of goal. In fact their only goal could be called a bit of a fluke. Forty five yards out? What are thd odds?

Shots: 5(3) - 7(3)
Posession: 46 - 54

***

Nargothrond won in a very one sided game. I'm surprised they did not score more but that is down to their reluctance rather than Buckland's defensive prowess. Misty Mountains secured a fairly simple one goal win over Old Grey Hill. They were pretty evenly matched in the first half but Old Grey Hill just had no character to deal with going a goal down. Job well done by Misty Mountains.

[Sleepy Ranger]

Group F
Gondolin 2 - 0 Mirkwood
(Hurin 83, 87)

Exciting game. It would keep you on the edge of your seat for at least eighty minutes after which Gondolin proceeded to run away with it. There were a fair number of chances in this game but none looked overly threatening. Despite this the quality of play was superb. Fantastic dribbling by Mirkwood and skilled attacking by Gondolin. While a loss here is harsh on Mirkwood leaving them in a must win situation for their next game. The main highlight of the first half was Legolas being shown a yellow card for recklessly challenging Turgon.

The goals ended up being a fairly simple affair. Turgon passed to Hurin who had positioned himself brilliantly just outside the area and struck in a magnificent shot. The next goal was an even simpler deal. Glorfindel headed down a lofted cross to the feet of Hurin who only had to tap into a practically open goal. Mirkwood can feel disappointed, they've had a horrible shooting record and it hasn't improved much here.

Shots: 4(4) - 7(2)
Posession: 50 - 50
Bookings: Legolas

Group H
Doriath 2 - 2 Ham
(Mablung 22, 26) (Farmer Giles 35, Tailbiter 57)

It was a fantastic game. Brilliant play by both teams, especailly Farmer Giles who managed to creat space brilliantly and always got into areas that caused some major problems for the Doriath defence. Though Doriath did play the offside trap very well catching Farmer Giles offside on several ocassions. Mablung provided the first goal after Beren crossed from outside the area, finding Mablung unmarked and ready to provide an excellent header. Only four minutes later Mablung blazed in a rising shot from thirty yards out after being played into position by Dior.

Farmer Giles pulled one back for Ham before the break. Hame showed great character and kept attacking even though they went two goals down. Tailbiter faked his way into the box and then rolled the ball up past the keeper for Farmer Giles who had made a fantastic run forward to tap the ball into an empty net. Despite some more decent attacks by both teams they went in at half time with Doriath leading by a goal.

Ham managed to equalize before the hour when Miller's inswinging corner found the head of Tailbiter and in a spiked header it rocketed into the roof of the net, nearly tearing through. Both teams played a solid game after this, neither really risking their necks for the winner. The game was dampened though when Miller took down Daeron from behind. Many people believe that he should have been sent off, even his own fans began to boo him. That was a horrible tackle.

Shots: 8(5) - 6(3)
Posession: 52 - 48
Bookings: Miller

[Sleepy Ranger]

Here are the next set of fixtures:

Group A
Valinor vs. Erebor

Group B
Lothlorien vs. Brethil

Group D
Roverandom vs. Dor Lomin

Group H
Arnor vs. Rivendell

Here are the group tables, in MS Word and there is a RTF file in the zip folder for all those who can not use MS Word. Since I could not upload a RTF file directly I had to zip it. Hopefully it works.

[Nogrod]

The Blue Mountains council of elders releases this statement to make clear their intents and their aspirations.

At Tumunzahar the things have been considered and reconsidered by the board of the team.

With many players in this tournament a further shot at a show-off / show-up is given.

The team Nogg's Ball will stick to the following principles:
- No hobbits or any other shorter than dwarf persons in the team.
- No outsiders to the ME will join the team (not even J.R.R. himself).
- No BD "hot-players" in the team - just to be sporty.
- Possibly an elf or two - just to be sporty.

From the opening line-up the Nogg's Ball's board trusts wholeheartedly at this moment Nogrod (the name should tell you why), Ancalagon, Maedhros and the Witch-King. Whatever happens, Nogg's Ball will probably go through the tournament with these players - unless a team of one of these drops out after the round-robins.

But Nogg's Ball's directorate would also express it's willing to reconsider the goalie-situation as even if they honour the skills of Smaug they are a bit worried about his condition and the chances of Erebor in the first place. But with only one game behind the board will wait for more results.

The same worry seems to hang over the strikers as well. Tulkas (two games) and Gothmog (one game) have been pretty unimpressive so far and a trade might be coming in timely. Gothmog will be given a second chance but trading Tulkas off looks quite tempting... not the least as we seem to have premier-class strikes like Mormegil (a two-edged sword as a choice, admittedly ), Felagund, Finwë or Tar-Ancalime (whom we were initially signing in to our team)... Bullroarer Took and J.R.R. Tolkien we will let out of this discussion as well as Sleepy Ranger and the Saucepanman - they are excellent players and fantastic scorers but we must obey our principles.

For our defence and the midfield we need to look more closely at the team performances before we make our decisions. A few changes will take place after the second round is completed.

[The Saucepan Man]

Hmm, a few to deal with here, so without further ado ...

Group A
Moria were unlucky to be drawn in the same Group as a clearly in-form Angband and, with Valinor in the Group too, they are going to struggle to qualify. Which is a shame, as they don't look half bad. They put up a good fight against Angband for most of the match, but Thuringwethil looks to be on excellent form and Melkor is now coming up with the goods too. If Valinor win against Erebor, which is more than likely, it looks to be all over for Moria. Angband, on the other hand, are almost certainly through (like anyone expected them not to qualify from the Group ...).

Group B
Unfortunately, with Frodo and Sam gone, The Shire are nothing like the exciting team that they were last year and, while Pippin grabbed a consolation penalty, I am sorely disappointed in his form. Still, perhaps this will put paid to the cries of foul play against them. It certainly looked like a clumsy tackle from Amrod to me, so I think that the penalty decision was a fair one. Tuna, on the other hand, are nicely living up to their pre-tournament hype and look very likely to qualify at the top of the Group table, although I am disappointed that they didn't press more towards the end. While some have attributed this to prudence, they should remeber that the fans want to see exciting football from the flair teams. I would have expected less caution from a team that contains the likes of the feiry Feanor and his sons.

Group C
Buckland really disappointed in their match against Nargothrond. It was always going to be difficult for them, but they could at least have made a fight of it. Sitting back and defending against an excellent attacking side, with perhaps the best striker in the competition in Mormegil, was always going to invite trouble. They are lucky that Nargothrond, uncharacteristically I might say, took their foot off the pedal, or it could have been a complete bloodbath. In any event, as just desserts for their disappointing play, Buckland now need an absolute miracle to have any chance of progressing. It will also be a miracle if Nargothrond don't now go on to win this Group in style.

Group D
Well, it looks like Mordor, and particularly their sinister front pair, the Dark Lord and the Witch-King, are back on form. They needed a win and they got it in spades. I am disappointed that Tol Eressea didn't do better, since they looked to be quite a good prospect in their first match. If Roverandom continue to surprise, they could be looking at an early trip back across the Sundering Sea. Still, the Group is interestingly poised at the moment, with Roverandom, Mordor and Tol Eressea all on 3 points.

Group E
I am surprised that Old Grey Hill put up such a good fight against the Misty Mountains. Buckland could learn a thing or two from them. It looks like they have the Man-in-the-Moon-in-the-goal largely to thank for that. Misty Mountains look to be a capable team, having seemingly resolved their differences and have deservedly cemented their place at the top of the Group. I am particularly impressed with the unlikely 'little and large' partnership of Dwalin and the Stone Giant up front, but Bolg looks to be a good prospect in goal too.

Group F
After losing two matches on the trot, Mirkwood are staring down the barrel of an early exit. Which is a shame, because, on form, they can be a team with great attacking flair. Legolas has been a major disappointment, as he is usually a prolific provider and scorer from midfield. I can only think that he is missing his partnership with Gimli, with whom he plays at club level. The two of them are known to have a friendly competition going to see who can score more goals than the other, and he perhaps lacks the spur that this normally provides him. It's no excuse though, as playing for his realm should be incentive enough. Still, it was always going to be a tough match against the sturdy defence of Gondolin, and Hurin looks to be in great goal scoring form.

Group G
The Inklings were a revelation in the first match, but they came up against a Barrow-Downs side who look to be building up to last year's championship-winning form. I was glad to see the Saucepan Man back on form and linking up well with the phantom and Sleepy Ranger. To be fair, the Inklings might have done a lot better, but for some great goal-keeping from the Barrow-Wight. Who knows what might have happened had they converted that early penalty? It was awful at the time, but in hindsight, the spectacle of Formedacil tugging on the shirt of CS Lewis was rather amusing.

Group H
I am yet to watch the highlights of the Doriath v Ham match but, from the result, it looks to have been a good one. A draw is actually quite a good result for both teams as, regardless of the result between Arnor and Rivendell, it will keep them both at the top of the team table.

And now for that Yellow Boot Trophy update ...

It's no surprise that Mormegil remains in top spot, although his father, together with Mablung and (surprisingly) Farmer Giles of Ham are hot on his heels.

Mormegil (Nargothrond) - 5
Mablung (Doriath) - 3
Hurin (Gondolin) - 3
Farmer Giles (Ham) - 3
Melkor (Angband) - 2
Thuringwethil (Angband) - 2
Sleepy Ranger (Barrow-Downs) - 2
The phantom (Barrow-Downs) - 2
Tailbiter (Ham) - 2
JRR Tolkien (Inklings) - 2
Dwalin (Misty Mountains) - 2
Dark Lord (Mordor) - 2
Finwe (Tuna) - 2
Rune Son of Bjarne (Barrow-Downs) - 1
The Saucepan Man (Barrow-Downs) -1
Tom Bombadil (Bree) - 1
Skinbark (Fangorn) - 1
Turgon (Gondolin) - 1
Christopher Tolkien (Inklings) - 1
Stone Giant (Misty Mountains) - 1
Witch-King (Mordor) - 1
Shagrat (Mordor) - 1
Durin’s Bane (Moria) - 1
Felagund (Nargothrond) - 1
Atkins (Niggle’s Parish) - 1
Tar-Ancalime (Numenore) - 1
Guest (Old Grey Hill) - 1
William (Rivendell) - 1
Gilraen (Rivendell) - 1
Roverandum (Roverandum) - 1
Frodo (Tol Eressea) - 1
Pippin Took (The Shire) -1
Finarfin (Tuna) -1
Maedhros (Tuna) -1
Fairy Queen (Wooton Major) - 1

PS Thanks for providing the Group Tables in rtf, Sleepy. One observation, though. Gondolin should have 6 points.

[Nogrod]

The board of Nogg’s Ball has observed the current situation of the competition and has arrived to the following predicament.

On the first knock-out phase the teams to challenge each other will be:

1. Angband – Ham/Doriath
2. Valinor – Ham / Doriath
3. Tuna – The Inklings
4. Lothlorien / Shire – Barrow-Downs
5. Nargothrond – Bree
6. Numenor – Gondolin
7. Mordor / Roverandom – Fangorn / Old Gray Hill
8. Mordor / Roverandom – Misty Mountains

And if standard rules apply, then it will be the winners facing each other from matches:
1-8 = Angband – Misty Mountains
2-7 this is a hard one to predict…
3-6 = Tuna – Gondolin
4-5 = Barrow-Downs – Nargothrond

So Angband and The Barrow-Downs will meet in the semifinal!

On the other semifinal a group of nobodies (unless Mordor gets it’s act together and will proceed to this stage) will face Tuna, and Tumunzahar will be betting heavily on Tuna – elves they are but however…

So a final between Tuna vs. Angband / Barrow-Downs to be seen?

Due to these considerations Nogg’s Ball’s directorate will announce the following change to their line-up.

Sold out:
FW Tulkas (Valinor)

Signed in:
FW Finwe (Tuna)

Other changes will take place after the rest of this round’s matches are played out.

Generally the team will be considering selling off the Erebor goalie Smaug in the first place but as said earlier, he will be given an opportunity to show his skills as well as his team to show up some actual playing before any action is taken by the board of Nogg’s Ball. The same goes with Valinor’s defender Mänwe.

Depending on today’s fixtures Nogg’s Ball will be highly interested in changing their Barrow-Downs midfielder Feanor of the Peredhil (a winning teams midfielder to be sure but a bit ineffective) to either Dwalin (Misty Mountains) or Wizard Artaxerxez (Roverandom). Also Ham’s midfielder Miller would be an option – depending on today’s results and the consecutive standings in the charts (whether Ham will meet Angband in the first knock-out round or not).

But the time will tell…

PS. Sleepy & Arcticstorm: I have made the change in Nogg’s Ball’s initial line-up.