[Nilpaurion Felagund]

More overcast skies over the Vale of Necromancy have the hordes of Orcs and Easterlings supporting the local teams in good spirits, despite the results of the previous matchday. They believe that one good result could overthrow the pall cast over their chances of qualifying, and the lack of sunlight will surely help their teams’s performance on the pitch.

Group H at Minas Morgul

Meanwhile, the Gondor players looked sharp and focused despite the seemingly unnatural weather. After all, they have some players who have played superbly under these conditions before, foremost of which was Anarion, who was part of the winning team in the Orodruin (II) Invitational. Anarion’s final game in that tournament was played against the very same team they were facing today, a Sauron-led Barad-dûr squad.

And it was the younger son of Elendil that proved to be the catalyst to Gondor’s flying start, a half-hour spell aptly named the Siege of Barad-dûr. Ten minutes into the game he played a breath-taking one-two with Turambar through the heart of the Black Tower’s defence, with Turambar chipping past the bulky Mûmakil to score the opener. Fourteen minutes later Anarion was left free to rifle a long-range shot that hit the far post before ricocheting in.

With his team down by two due to one Man’s work, Sauron commanded his Mouth to guard Anarion, and for the rest of half the Númenórean was denied space to work in. With Gondor's talisman silenced, their Siege was lifted, and soon the Kings felt the bite of Barad-dûr’s offence. They held on due to some robust defending, inaccurate shooting from their foes, and a couple of fine saves from Hyarmendacil. But just before half-time Berúthiel slipped the ball past Gondor’s defence, and Sauron coolly slotted a low shot past Hyarmendacil, giving the home crowd something to cheer about.

In the second half the Orcs and Easterlings were confident that their team would get the equaliser they sought, and five minutes after the break they erupted into cheering when Berúthiel took a lofted ball from Sauron and put it past Hyarmendacil. But the linesman’s flag was raised, signalling an offside offence—the Queen had timed her run wrongly, and the referee disallowed the goal. Boos and whistles rained down on the referee, and some of the audience even attempted to climb the walls to invade the pitch. But Sauron stopped them all with a glance. I will win this game, so stay in your seats, is what it told them, and the minions of Mordor renewed their chanting. There was no way Gondor would beat Sauron’s will.

If the first thirty minutes of the game was called the Siege of Barad-dûr, then the first twenty minutes of the second half should be called the Siege of Gondor. It seems that most of the Black Tower’s players were camped outside the Kings’s penalty box, and only poor finishing from the besieging side and inspired defending from the besieged side kept the scoreline unchanged.

The high defensive line of Barad-dûr, leaving hectares of space behind them, was begging to be exploited, but Gondor found no chance to do so until the sixty-fifth minute. Imrahil booted a clearance downfield that Anarion took in stride. The Mouth and the other Barad-dûr defenders were calling offside, but the flag was down; he had timed his sprint perfectly. Fellbeast #2 got goalside of Elendil’s son, but Anarion had already seen Eldacar running behind him. He chipped the ball over the fellbeast, and Eldacar chested the pass before sending a thunderous strike past the great beast guarding Barad-dûr's goal.

The home fans were deflated by the goal. There was still enough time to claw two goals back, but Gondor seemed too sharp, and Anarion was simply unplayable. A Castamir header in the seventy-seventh minute gave them a glimmer of hope, but when Gondor started putting eleven players behind the ball, the Black Tower found the wall unbreachable. Soon, the whistle was blown, and the few thousand fans of the South Kingdom in the stadium were jubilant. Their team was already assured of a spot in the round of sixteen, with a game still at hand.

Barad-dûr 2-3 Gondor
on target 5-8
tot shots 14-19
GOALS:
*10, 0-1 Turambar (Anarion)
*24, 0-2 Anarion (Ciryandil)
*43, 1-2 Sauron (Berúthiel)
*65, 1-3 Eldacar (Anarion)
*77, 2-3 Castamir (Sangahyando)
YELLOW CARDS:
*BDur- Angamaitë
*Gondor- Turambar, Calimehtar, Eärnil I

The afternoon game left the Mordor crowd with a bad taste in the mouth, but many still returned to the stadium for the evening tie, hoping that Mordor can get a result against Minas Tirith. Shelob entered the pitch with her six legs encouraging the crowd to cheer for them, which they did, albeit half-heartedly. But a few minutes after the opening whistle their cheers became louder. Mordor played a high-tempo attacking game that led to a few chances, but it seemed that the theme of the day was profligacy. Denethor II was never seriously tested at goal, since most shots sailed harmlessly off target or were blocked by the defenders. Minas Tirith seemed to content to sit back and absorb the pressure, with only Faramir and Boromir I waiting to pounce on counterattacking opportunities.

After more than half an hour of pressure Mordor finally got their opener when Shelob headed in a Nazgûl #3 cross. But they weren’t content with their lead and continued their attack on the Minas Tirith goal. However they were exposed at the back when Denethor II, after saving another Shelob effort, sent a long ball towards his son, who dashed past the Nazgûls and Grishnákh forming the last bank of Mordor players. With only Fellbeast #1 to beat, Faramir faked a shot and then released Mardil, who was running close behind him. The first Ruling Steward mustered his will and powered a shot past the Silent Watcher.

Both teams were partly relieved, partly enraged, to take an even game into the break. In the second half Mordor started playing a little more conservatively, worried about Minas Tirith’s counterattacking game. For Minas Tirith, Faramir took position in their first defensive line, adding another player to deal with Mordor’s offensive pressure. Only Boromir I was left forward to take the long balls downfield, but he found himself marked by the #1 Fellbeast and Nazgûl.

After fifteen minutes, Mordor grew impatient with the White Tower’s dogged defending, and their back line inched its way forward again to offer additional passing targets. But they left themselves open to Minas Tirith’s primary strategy—Telumehtar intercepted a Nazgûl #5 through ball and sent it downfield. Boromir I won the ball against Nazgûl #1 and raced towards the goal. Outside the Mordor box Grishnákh slid in to win the ball, but he collided with the Steward’s ankle instead. That was clearly a free kick for Gondor, and a yellow card for the Orc, which he was lucky to escape with—a tougher referee would have given him the red. After a few moments to compose himself, Boromir I stood up and told Faramir that he’s fine, and that he can take the shot. Concentrating on the back of the net, he curled the ball past the wall and the Silent Watcher to give the Stewards the lead.

The Mordor fans howled with rage. Nobody knew what would happen if their team lost this game after Sauron’s defeat in the first game, and nobody wanted to find out. The team channelled their anger and started playing at a higher tempo, forcing the Stewards to desperate challenges. Telumehtar tackled Nazgûl #4 a few yards from the box, and the midfielder tumbled to his knees, screeching in pain. The King protested that he was going for the ball, and that a Ringwraith couldn’t have been hurt by a kick, anyway, but the referee had already taken out the yellow card. Afterwards the Nazgûl stood up, healthy once more, and the Orcs and Easterlings cheered at that bit of deception from their team. Denethor II nervously arrayed his defenders before him to block all attempts at goal, but Nazgûl #4 sent a short pass to Shagrat instead, and the Orc was left with a free shot that went past the last Ruling Steward’s outstretched hand.

After the goal Mordor’s offensive pressure eased off a little, wary of Minas Tirith’s counterattacks, and the White Tower put all ten outfielders behind the ball, wary of Mordor’s attacks. Both teams were more concerned with conceding a winner than scoring one, and so the closing minutes of the game, compared to the back-and-forth in the first seventy minutes, was a great letdown.

Minas Tirith 2-2 Mordor
on target 5-6
tot shots 14-14
GOALS:
*34, 0-1 Shelob (Nazgûl #3)
*38, 1-1 Mardil (Faramir)
*62, 2-1 Boromir I
*69, 2-2 Shagrat (Nazgûl #4)
YELLOW CARDS:
*MTirith- Eärnil II, Eärnur, Telumehtar
*Mordor- Nazgûl #1, Grishnákh, Gorbag

Gondor has won the group with a game to spare. Minas Tirith is second with two points, but they can still drop out if they lose to or draw even with Gondor and someone wins the game between Barad-dûr and Mordor.