Heartland

bearskin wrote:Not a bad season all things considered. I'd have taken a top 10 finish in both leagues at the start of the season.

Did anyone else do the Draft version as well? I was second in my league for that, and in my local league there was a relatively close finish - the top 3 separated by 12 points after 38 games isn't bad.

Salah was 'this year's Vardy'

You'll have to explain how the whole draft thing works. Might have a crack at that next season

yes, tell !

FWC will be around soon - nothing live yet

Massive thanks to @Pista and @emilystrange for keeping enthusiastic and on top of things even when the rest of us were flagging. Have a relaxing close season in the shed and staffroom respectively. Congrats to @Mish Mosh on a worthy overall win and a great final week. Bring on the World Cup!

Pista wrote: You'll have to explain how the whole draft thing works. Might have a crack at that next season

Way it worked for our league was...
my son was keen to do it and organised it with his mates. I think someone registered the league and sent out invites (like any other type of league) but then we all gathered together in one place at a set time, and with our digital devices. At the set time, our draft 'went live' and randomly each person got to choose one player (you had 30 seconds to make your choice) before the next person got a turn. The order of picks was random through the participants, until everyone had had a pick, then it went back on it's self, so in our case the person picking last (12th) got the next pick (the 13th pick) and so on, so that the first picker got the 24th pick and then the 25th pick..

You have to pick a squad - like the regular league, but without restrictions on price of player or players club. So you could have a whole team from one club.

During the year you can make transfers out but only for players that are available - each player can only be in one participants squad

I was lucky enough to get first pick - Kane! and I think I picked up Jesus at 24 and Sterling at 25, then Azpilicueta and so on.

So a first come, first served option then?
A bit like Black Friday but without the fights

i remember the days 20 years ago when i used to do the FPL annual auction down the pub at the beginning of August

So Big Scam & David (footballing genius) Moyes both canned on the same day.
The merry go round begins again

Never change Everton please - ha, ha, ha

England squad is laughable too. The most creative aspects are the diving of Alli and Lingard.

Post 1
So, GW38 happened all at once on one funpacked, exciting, thrilling, frustrating Sunday afternoon. One game on the phone, one on the ipad, and Jeff on the telly. Panini sticker book at half-time.
It was a mixed fortune week for FPL managers. Rested players, substitution nightmares and general annoying RL manager behaviour ruined many a week, but some won big time with massive scores - a ton in this league and even more in one of my others. Facepalms and fistpumps!
Burnley may have lost this last game, but job done as far as the season and European football are concerned. Burnley's keeper is in England's squad, with Tarkowski and Heaton are on the standby bench with Bournemouth's Cook. A great achievement. Absolutely no one including Palace can believe anything from this season - except maybe Steve. His calendar is looking much more W than L. I'm not a Baggies' fan per se, being of Wolves stock, but I do have time for Darren Moore so best wishes to him and all he does. Likewise to England stand in Livermore. Arsenal managed to send Wenger off properly, with an Arsenal type of goal from the new boy who's doing good. Mark him down for next season. No new manager really marked as yet, but Welbeck squadded. Liverpool don't need a new manager, but Salah does need several new cabinets. He's won every award going including the Golden Boot, and deserves every single plaudit. What an excellent buy - the only thing wrong is that he's not English, darn it. Liverpool are sending Alexander-Arnold and Henderson to Russia, with Lallana on standby. Am hoping to see Robertson in the Europeans in a couple of years. Brighton did ok this season
I'm not sure the Red Mancs can really say the same. Second place is not so bad, but the manner of reaching there is not their recognised manner. JoMo may not last after next season, methinks. Russia beckons for Rashford, Jones, Young and Lingard. Chelsea have been disappointing in a more traditional results way - thumped by Newcastle and not making the CL spots was just the epitome of their season. Another club looking for someone Special. They are proudly waving off Cahil and Loftus-Cheek , there's no room for Toon's Shelvey - a little too erratic for this squad.
I'm not sure how City managed to only win 1-0, and late on, espcially with that 100th goal in sight. it all turned out ok and a million records got busted, but a bit of a damp squib to end on! Call up for Delph, Stones, Walker and Sterling. Complete opposite in the Spurs-Leicester game - 9 goals in what was very nearly the 3rd 5-5 result of the day. Exciting, but a little head in hands on our sofa. Lots of squad players in this game - Kane, Alli, Trippier, Dier, Rose, Vardy and Maquire all there.
No surprises for Stoke or Swansea. Everyone knew both were going down, so pride the only thing to play for. Stoke won, and send their goalie to grace England. The last game on the fixture list was not notable for the result, particularly, and only Pickford joins the other England choices. What is worth noting is that both West Ham and Everton both lost their managers today. Allardyce and Moyes both moving.. where? And who is in? All will be revealed, and pesky kids will be involved.

Stay tuned for Post 2!

Post 2

Now we've got that bit out of the way, let's get down to the real competition. Let me leave you in no doubt about my anguish at dropping 5 places in the last GW. I am ashamed of myself and will have to form a new team before I get sacked.

Here's the final table!

As you can see, Blood Brothers and Sisters won both the GW and the whole kit and caboodle by a respectable margin! Well done for a fab team effort and consistency. In the end, the margin wasn't as big as was feared earlier in the season. The Industrial Groove Machine needs an oiling, probably, but we've managed to keep going! Eleven Imaginary Boys came third, but not by a great deal!

The H2H table:

EIB won this GW. This league ended up in the same order, but was much much closer and doesn't always reflect the Classic.
The Crown belongs this season to Dead Men Walking. Congratulations and a hearty handshake!


The Big Shout Out goes to Mish Mosh with a stupendously whopping 105 points. I could have done with those!


The final Yellow Jersey goes to (unsurprisingly) Mish Mosh, who will have to juggle several awards in Salah style. Well played! Have a Jersey AND a very big Trophy.





And so, my dears, we have reached the final curtain. I'd like to thank myself for my efforts in managing to get off the bottom spot but many time more, Steve and Graham for their excellent work with spreadsheets, counters, coloured bits of string and the big abacus. They've been great - thank you, lads, from all of us I'm just their flunky. Thank you to our players, without whom it would be a bit rubbish. Thanks to the PL, who could do better for us if they stopped messing with our teams, but hey... and to the FPL who do so much of the actual work for us without us paying!

August the 11th then. Details will follow as soon as poss. When we know about the World Cup league, we'll scream about it.

A fond farewell to Lee, who's helped and encouraged more than he thinks. Cheers, lad.
The Batcave and Shed are closed for decontamination for a short while. However, we need to go out with a bang. In B/W, of course. None of this colour thing.

Great eulogy Jo.
& well played everyone who joined in.
It is sad to see Brother Lee depart & our own God has also taken a break since being fitted with a new heart. Looks like we'll be looking for a couple of transfers ourselves this summer. Marquee signings perhaps

I'm going to miss the weekly scramble to build the team & write the weeks up, but we have a world cup on the horizon, so maybe some FIFA action could be dredged up.
I'm going to try to get the shed in order, but since it had a motor fitted everyone keeps taking it to Tesco for snacks or doing doughnuts in the car park. Hopefully they'll run out of juice soon. It's not a Tesla after all

So now to pack the pencil away before the cats eat the rubber off the end (again).
See you all next season I hope

A big thank you to Jo and Steve for all their hard work and fun posts each week. They were far more entertaining than my team most weeks.

So what do we do now until the World Cup, well three games worth anyway, maybe four if we are lucky!

Eagerly awaiting the post to say that the new season is upon us.

Pista wrote: It is sad to see Brother Lee depart & our own God has also taken a break since being fitted with a new heart.

wow Nathan's had a heart transplant?!?! please send him my very best wishes and regards when you next get a chance....nothing as dramatic as that for me i'm pleased to say, just me being crap. i'll probably have changed my mind a week into the new season and be begging to come back the following year. meanwhile love to all and best of luck for next season.

eastmidswhizzkid wrote:

Pista wrote: It is sad to see Brother Lee depart & our own God has also taken a break since being fitted with a new heart.

wow Nathan's had a heart transplant?!?! please send him my very best wishes and regards when you next get a chance....

He did indeed. Was a scary time as you can imagine & he now spends a lot more time with his daughter rather than goofing around on the web.
I'll pass on the regards for sure.

ROBBIE wrote:A big thank you to Jo and Steve for all their hard work and fun posts each week. They were far more entertaining than my team most weeks.

They were far more interesting than some of my lessons :p if only i could teach FPL

If you're all looking for something to do, you could write some world cup based lessons for next half term (primary). i WILL NOT let the kids escape!

GOD still has his sense of humour intact, Lee.

emilystrange wrote:

ROBBIE wrote:A big thank you to Jo and Steve for all their hard work and fun posts each week. They were far more entertaining than my team most weeks.

They were far more interesting than some of my lessons :p if only i could teach FPL

If you're all looking for something to do, you could write some world cup based lessons for next half term (primary). i WILL NOT let the kids escape!

GOD still has his sense of humour intact, Lee.

Perhaps you could do a fantasy footie thing.,.. like England becoming World Cup winners

Bloody hell is it finished? There's still 2 matches to look forward to. One thing's for sure, when the league is done and dusted so early it makes picking teams for the last few weeks a pain. So effyoo city for that as well. Congrats to the m*****n folk, no arguing with those numbers, and cheers to all, especially Jo and Steve for running the machine so finely thank you. Right, Cup Final time.