WHAT I FELT, WHAT I SAW, WAS A TOTAL SURPRISE
A surprising set of results this WSFFL weekend, leaving your esteemed co-ordinator with his hardest task ever in picking the POTW. Headaches, headaches...
We’ll start off with the least surprising result, without wishing to sound arrogant but doing so anyway, so what the heck…... You Know Your Boston Rock FC out Arsenal-ed Arsenal this weekend, extending their 100% start to 6 games, with a 2-0 win over San Dimas. This time it was squad players Zat Knight and Lee Hendrie who came up trumps for the “Sky Heroes”, Hendrie coming off the bench to pelt in a belter. Fred West Landscape Gardening XI however sit only 3 points behind the leaders after a 5-1 tonking of The Dead Parrots. This win featured one each from Fred’s expensive strike force of Didier Drogba and Ruud Van Nistelrooy, the Ruud boy registering his first this season. The name change hasn’t brought much luck for Deano, who has lost all his games since burying the old Elland Road moniker, and has slipped to 15th. Change it back, mate?
Claymore are third, but fall 3 points further back off Fred, after Aardvark Abacus fairly thrashed the champions, 6-1, to hike themselves up to 5th. Aardvark are really hitting form now after their indifferent start. 4th placed Trusted By Millions also slipped up, being beaten 3-1 by Nil Satis with goals from O’Shea, Hibbert and Yobo, and also sit 6 points off the pace.
Last week’s bottom 2 also both registered first wins of the season this weekend. Prettier Than You continued their recent superiority over Mega Bucks, Ian Pearce netting in Rachel’s 1-0 win. And previously-pointless Yorks Returning Glory scored an impressive 3-1 win over a Groove Machine seriously in need of maintenance, the Big Man finding himself in an unaccustomed 14th place. Yorks stay bottom, but Rachel’s team rise to 12th following her result.
The final 2 games also produced slight surprises - inconsistent Kylie beat Thommo's Titans 3-1 with Shearer finally amongst the goals for the 2002-03 champions. Thommo’s have hit poor form after their August Manager of the Month performance - has the MOTM curse struck again? Also, Real Muppets beat the solid-starting Final Fantasy 3-0, featuring a double from Ashley Cole.
So, a serious dilemma for POTW. Fred, Nil Satis, Aardvark and Prettier would have won it in any other week; however I’m giving the POTW £100,000 to York's Returning Glory and claiming some credit myself - my prediction that Julian would finish bottom in my Season Preview has obviously galvanised him into action!!!
TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT THAT WE GOT THE TRUCK
The draw for the first round of the Paul Cartmell Memorial Trophy took place last week. Our trucker colleague Ady popped in on his way home to collect last week’s newsletter, and I duly grabbed him to perform the honours. So blame him!
Aardvark Abacus v The Dead Parrots
Claymore Athletic FC v Real Muppets
Final Fantasy XI v Kylie Bumcheeks
Fred West Landscape Gardening XI v Nil Satis Nisi Optimum
San Dimas High School v Prettier Than You
Thommo’s Titans v 22 Legged Groove Machine
Trusted By Millions v York’s Returning Glory
You Know Your Boston Rock FC v Mega Buck Bandits
The games will be played this weekend, w/e 2 October 2004
As usual in this Cup (and to mirror the League Cup early round draws), the top eight in the league were drawn at random against the bottom eight. This produced a few intriguing ties; holders and current league leaders Boston Rock FC start their defence against Mega Bucks; Pete tackles his near-brother in law Rich as Thommo’s face off against the Groove Machine; but the tie of the round for me pits Claymore Athletic FC against the improving Real Muppets for the first of 2 games in a row, as by happy coincidence they play each other in the subsequent league weekend!
HE’S A NICE YOUNG MAN WITH A LOVELY SMILE
Lots of positive thoughts received about my small tribute to Brian Clough last week. Thanks in particular to Dean for his comment, “My Dad & I never agreed too much about the goings on in football, I guess it was the generation gap, but the one thing we did agree on was that Cloughie should have been the England manager”.
Also, I received a lot of positive feedback from my Season Preview – thanks again to Dean (although he reckons that Carlton Cole is going to be his key player – 15 to 20 goals a season from him? You’re optimistic, bucko!) Peej (“there are worse teams to be compared to than Newcastle so I’ll take that!”) Ceri (“although I think I’ll do better than 9th!” We’ll see, shall we?), Clive (“pretty spot on!”) and Julian (“very nice”, despite my tipping him to come bottom!). Nice to see my efforts are appreciated!
TRANSFER NEWS
Player From To Fee
Paul Smith (G) 22 Legged Groove Machine Pool £0.625m
Harald Wapenaar (G) Pool 22 Legged Groove Machine £0.5m
TRANSFER NEWS (continued)
Player From To Fee
Jerome Bonnisel (D) Claymore Athletic FC Pool £0.25m
Willo Flood (D) Pool Claymore Athletic FC £0.5m
Radostin Kishishev (D) YKY Boston Rock FC Pool £0.25m
Jamal Campbell-Ryce (M) Pool YKY Boston Rock FC £0.5m
Don’t forget that the players highlighted are now subject to the pool “cooling off” period, Any managers interested in buying them can bid until close of play Saturday 2 October 2004, after which time they go into the pool proper and are readily available. All bids to me please.
THE FF£100,000 QUESTION
Before signing for Luton Town, the splendidly named Enoch Showunmi’s main footballing claim to fame was appearing in a Nike advert as a body double for whom?
Clue: Showunmi, if you didn’t know, is 6 feet 5 tall, and black.
Answers to me by close of play Saturday 2 October 2004. As usual, first correct one out of the metaphorical hat gets the dosh.
Fulham’s first pre-season friendly this Summer was held up at half time as referee Peter Walton walked out in protest at the number of substitutions (a total of 28 by the end of the match). The game was restarted as an “exhibition match” after a delay, with Fulham’s kit-man pressed into action as an emergency linesman!
Correct answers from Peej (“either a row about the number of permitted substitutes or a swarm of killer bees!”) Ryan and Clive. Well done to Peej, first out of the metaphorical hat, San Dimas receiving £100,000 as a result. Some consolation after this week’s result, Peej?
One incorrect guess from Ceri – “ref was ill”? That’d be no, then.
SHORTS
· Another difficult choice this week for September MOTM, as 4 teams achieved 100% records this month. As in August, 3 of the teams (namely leaders Boston Rock, fast-starting Fred West and powerhouses Aardvark Abacus) could be expected to do so, but our 4th 100%-er was pointless and bottom at the end of August. So step forward Ryan Moore of Real Muppets – for 3 straight wins this month, lifting the Muppets from 16th to a creditable 8th, you’re September 2004 Manager of the Month, and £250,000 richer!
WSFFL RESULTS;
Week 6, W/E 25 September 2004
Aardvark Abacus 6-1 Claymore Athletic FC
Baros Jaidi
Carvalho
Sol Campbell
Riise
Cech
Gallas 52,308
Fred West Landscape Gardening XI 5-1 The Dead Parrots
Van Nistelrooy (1) Kluivert
Volz
Pistone
Silvestre
Drogba 43,152
Mega Buck Bandits 0-1 Prettier Than You
(1) Pearce 26,193
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum 3-1 Trusted By Millions
O’Shea (1) Garcia
Hibbert
Yobo 34,843
Real Muppets 3-0 Final Fantasy XI
Ashley Cole 2 (1)
Cisse 36,103
San Dimas High School 0-2 You Know Your Boston Rock FC
(1) Knight
Hendrie 47,015
Thommo’s Titans 1-3 Kylie Bumcheeks
Horsfield Hyypia
Shearer
Lehmann 32,341
22 Legged Groove Machine 1-3 York’s Returning Glory
Izzet Carroll
Radzinski
Young 23,692
Performance of the Week: York’s Returning Glory
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