GW 21 – Review

Our latest weekend of footballing action took on an interesting twist, with the introduction of the FA Trophy fixtures for the first time this season. We had plenty of high scores and some dramatic games that had us perched on the edges of our seats, not least the top v bottom match-up in the Premier League!

We will as ever start at the top of the Global Weekly Table and there’s a familiar face up there……congratulations Ally Jessop! PL high-flyers Leicester City got Ally going on x2, but the 100 times chosen team (rather surprisingly) only netted the once against strugglers Norwich City. Cove Rangers (64 selections) edged Stenhousemuir 2-1 to progress Ally on from x3, while Peterborough Utd (55) kept him moving with a single goal on x4. Preston North End (20 picks) and Liverpool (106!!) each scored twice on x5 & x6 and Stockport County (10 picks) then gave him a nice boost with 4 goals against Blyth Spartans on x7, returning 28 points. But it was Eastleigh’s 6-1 demolition of Yate Town that gave this week’s leader the bulk of his points on x8, meaning Ally’s total was a very strong 110! Eastleigh were backed 23 times for the record!

Only one other player joined Ally at Club 100 this week, Matt Kokins the player ending the weekend ‘in the green’ to join the table topper at everybody’s favourite diner. Matt had a highly similar combination of teams on his multiplier ladder, but preferred Celtic (79 picks) over Cove Rangers. After that we had a handful of players in the 90s, helping to boost this week’s average up to a decent 35 points, with 52% of you scoring higher than that figure.

So for another week the ‘Perfect 7’ jackpot went begging, but the goals were certainly out there! Both our Club 100 members got the top scoring team, Eastleigh, on their x8 spot, while Torquay Utd and Barnsley each scored 5. Any other 4 goal team on x5 down to x2 would have given you the whole set, a score of 169, and a cool £1,400!

There were plenty of other high scoring teams who could have boosted your scores should you have selected them; Accrington Stanley comfortably saw off Portsmouth, winning 4-1. Dundee and Dumbarton each won 7 goal thrillers 4-3, against Dunfermline Athletic and Forfar Athletic respectively, while Halifax Town thumped Wrexham 4-0 and Maidenhead Utd secured a 4-2 home victory against Hemel Hempstead in the FA Trophy – the same competition that served up goals galore for the aforementioned Eastleigh, Torquay Utd and Stockport County.

But where did people go wrong? Well clearly the biggest culprits were Chelsea, who succumbed to a shock 1-0 home defeat to an injury ravaged Bournemouth side who had lost 5 on the bounce as they headed to Stamford Bridge. The Blues let a massive 48 of you down! Oxford Utd were banging in the goals a few weeks ago, but a 1-0 loss at MK Dons means back-to-back 0 goal returns for the The U’s, a result that came at a big cost for a dozen of you. Notable disappointing scorelines came at Peterborough Utd, who only netted once against lowly Bolton Wanderers for the 55 players of you who chose The Posh. This was also the case for other popular choices Aberdeen (26 picks) and Barrow (18), while in Scotland wins for Celtic (79), Rangers (26) and Cove Rangers (64) came with 2 goals from each side, with many of you hoping for a bit more from this free-scoring trio.

At the foot of the table there were 19 minus scores to report, made up of 16 minus 20s and 3 minus 40s, not too damaging in the grand scheme of things, but far from helpful for those of you who went backwards!

So that’s it for gameweek 21’s review. Don’t forget to get those selections sorted in time for next week’s early fixtures, should you wish to choose them! Two underachieving sides meet at Goodison Park, where Everton host Arsenal, and third placed Preston North End travel to Wales to play rapidly improving Cardiff City in the Championship. Good luck to you all and happy scoring!

– Samuel Wilkinson