dan-likes-trees

So far as I'm aware most people on here would be able to make a new team - so long as they've been playing for 4 months. For those who haven't - I don't think IPs would be a problem - Me and Roger used to have another privte league that we ran on the same IPs for a couple years alongside our xpert teams on another account with different email addresses. If we did do a month tourny and wanted 32 I reckon we could - we could probably bump up the numbers with some old faces (dragoo, odwin etc) who might be up for a nostalgic month. Plus - what better advertisement for new players than a month long comp that they'd have a shot at winning - then once the claws are in... To summarise - I think it's a fantastic idea! Even if it's blatently been cooked up because Zell knows Yellow Sub haven't a hope of winning anything this year

And so it proved. Urgghhh why must I be playing in the same era as the reign of Eights!

The sports pages are slagging you off again this week, just to warn you. Just spotted Eight's defensive crisis!! @DuD you've got to be nailing him in this double header with only 2 first team defenders about!

Cannot believe I didn't grab a point off Eights earlier a few games back. Breathing right down my neck. Massive away win for the Lions today. Pull of a big home win on Tuesday and it'll be Winston top of the table at the mid-way point. COYL

What was that? Sorry, I can't hear you from up here at the top of the table

Ait Peepsy I know how to play the game - check our league positions! Generally agree but think that Zell has proved that buying (and selling) can be very beneficial in progression and strengthening. Not every season obviously, but big buys every now and then can work just as well as long term developers if you buy properly. Horrible day for us on Friday but have been bouyed by the weekend. Hope is here.

A perfectly reasonable explanation, in that case. I've sold a few good men as I thought they wouldn't jump the next season. Love the training cone too. Another query for all in the top league (and I suppose the series in general) - why does nobody ever buy players? More to the point, what does everyone spend their sponsership money on every week? Responce from Roger to the writer Pulis can fuck off The crew is Roger's! Forever!

Went to watch my game with Peeps on w.2 - realsied there had been no game and it wasnt till tuesday. Ruined my day. Better stick up these reports before Ell and Zell go and smash it tomorrow and prove me totally wrong. DISCLAIMER: Couldn't keep up with Roger's writerly brilliance - certainly week by week, so I'll be playing the straight man in the double act. Big balls needed to challenge in this league - but the contenders are still unclear Four matches in to the season and a six or seven teams still fancy their chances at the title. Both Zell and Silverdale have had poor starts but recent press releases show they still consider themsevles to be in the running for silverware, alonside most of the league. The early fixtures suggest that the two clubs with the strongest squads on paper will be the ones duking it out, but points are being dropped all over the place, and with the unfortunate exception of Roger, the top three could feature any one of these teams. An early recurring issue this season has been balancing caution with competitive play. Week one’s 1-1s set the agenda, and whilst matches have picked up since, cagey contests remain to be fought. DuDs and Zell this friday both set out with five at the back, in a match that only saw 5 chances. To place top of a league this competitive there can be no space for error, no space for one point draws, aside perhaps for games against the giants. Inter and Elites have led the way with fast paced, relentlessly attacking football, and look at this time to be the two main title challengers. Title blow for Eights as Kirk hits inter the counter There is no doubt that this was the pick of the week’s fixtures. For the start of this season it appeared that Eights juggernaught might be insurmountable. Inter, meanwhile, will be rueing the two points dropped on the season’s opening fixture away at Peeps, as they sit precariously on top of the table. Eights won the midfield battle here, yet the front two proved ineffectual against a solid Inter back four. Shinobi had a fantastic match, cute diagonal runs latching on to pacey through balls, that was rumored to have caused Hogson to pull an all nighter in the office to reshuffle his squad and free up a seat on the plane. Tales will have wondered what he had done wrong - his team had the bulk of the chances, but team ratings, particularly in defence, were not of the Eights standard. The title race is just heating up. Yellow Sub spread too thin? The manager has himself admitted that Yellow Sub have started their season ‘off the pace’ - this pundit is pointing to a lack of pre-season friendlies as a explanation for this poor form. Fans on twitter are divided - some have called for the manager to take this season to develop - the squad is thin, and club legends Delipiano, Viana and McEnroe havent got many years left in them. The latter’s injury will be a big blow to the a manager who is used to contending for and winning titles. The season is still young, however, and Yellow Sub had a poor start to the cup last season before making it all the way to the final. The manager has pointed to tomorrow’s game against as ‘pivotal’ and he is right to do so - there will surely be no route to the title if the sub sinks here. Tomorrows match will be huge for ever team in the league. What now for AC Elites? After another poor showing, this time away to Silverdale, the team find themselves nine points off first place, albeit with a game in hand, and fans will have been left wondering what the aim will be for the season. The manager has gone public in his waning interest in the game - the dressing room seems to be suffering as a result. There is more than a shade of the Madpool of a couple of seasons ago to be seen here. The squad is strong but some players are really showing age. Some pundits have suggested the team would benefit from a complete overhaul, focus on youth, and some time in the middle league, but for fans and manager alike this is sure to look like a frustratingly long process for a team that are currently not too far off the very top. Madpool are in the early phases of a complete regeneration of quality youth players - yet Ell has always favoured Elite league, and fans will expect mid-table at worst this season. Strange dealings backfires for Peeps In a league characterised by low spending, Peeps’ transfer dealings for the no.1 shirt have been curious. Out went 26-12 Caboose - in came 22 - 9 Davidson. Rumors hint and a dressing room bust-up between Peeps and Caboose after their exit to Winston last season. There is no doubt that the keeper will come good in future years, but in the meantime supporters will be scratching their heads and wondering if the extra bar on the skill curve will be worth the goals inevitably conceeded over the next couple of seasons - one would have suspected Caboose would have fared better than Davison against Winston, who shipped 3 goals at home on Tuesday. We can only assume that Peeps is bringing man between the sticks in line with the age of his ‘peak team’ for the future - perhaps it will prove wise. Any words @peeps ? Federer should stick to the court - The Crew want Pulis Football is a cruel game at the best of times, and The Crew have felt the leagiue at its most painful this season, in which they have been the little fish in a pool of heavyweights. Federer is showing signs of stress not disimilar from those displayed by Holloway earlier this season - fans are calling for Pulis to come in and cement top flight status - others have claimed that his blossoming career as a sportswriter has been getting in the way of his day to day managerial commitments. The team has performed admirably throughout, however, and whilst relegation already seems inevitable (no bad thing), this pundit is sure that the crew will pick up a handful of points against teams too complacent against a solid team and skilled manager. In Leavour, Waugh and Lajes, they have an exciting forward line that will be in its prime when this team returns to top flight. Manager of the week Inter - Comprehensive victory over DuDs in a rehash of last season’s semi final compounded by the massive away victory at Eights makes this an easy choice. Ferocious start.

This thread is too much for me to handle

Have you seen your squad? Jokes - You did draw 1-1 today though didn't you? What you talkin' bout? A challenger in my mind (if not in Eights's) btw - Goes without saying but, great first post Haden

No idea how I'm going to field any youths the entire season with the quality of squads in the top tier. I'd imagine Tales will have been delighted with opening day. 1-1s all round from the challengers to the throne.

First time trying out 3d Gotta start somewhere! Edit: Oops. Gotta start somewhere in learning to post images too.

Ah that sucks - M'dog's reading this - get better soon dawg! We all miss ya. Yeah right, we all know the real reason - he spent about 20 mill last year on oldies who'll need to be put out to the pasture soon without any silverware - and youth development will need to start afresh - sound on the money Ell? In unrelated, great news - the one and only Roger Federer will be splitting match reports for Elite league with me this season!

He did indeed. A continual source of bafflement for my reports last season. I summarised that he's now playing the (very) long game and bringing through about 12 youths. Doubt we'll hear from in on the board until about may 2015. By the way - I couldn't bring myself to reply to your post last week. A truely humbling experience that put my misguided 'title aspirations' into perspective. I'll chalk up my first win against you some time. Excellent work squire. I shall see you on the battlefield. I'll tell all my strikers to be ready for some gametime.

Sent some invites out to a bunch of the shitty teams from the lower leagues - if one of you proles could accept so I get a form boost for the start of the season that would be great. What on earth is Madpool doing in the lower league??

My second a last knockout round the only dv change was one of my strikers dropping from 16 to 15 after I played him the whol game! So - people who didnt make it - I wouldn't feel too gutted. I wouldn't have minded a last season in mid league. Roger's a bit gutted to be stuck in top. Your midfield is looking phenominal. One more season sorting out your back line and you'll surely be in the mix for first place next season in elite. Has Elite league ever been stronger? Not a single easy game all season. Going to try something a bit mad in the transfer window. COYS.

19 Peeps

You just going to sit there and take that @The Peeps @RogerFederer @dragooooo?

Oh yeah lol - forgot you had to take it to penaltys to overcome such a minor obstacle

Sounds good! I've been liking the 5 things format - could just take it in turns each week and do it once a fortnight each? Or alternate doing 2 and 3 points. I'm assuming we'll both be battling it out in elite league - which is going to be full of top quality teams if it's everyone from the quarter finals plus probably Lylat and someone else. Well played Nikos, huge win. @peeps don't forget about the clownferret chap, any user who sings the praises of champ manager is surely shoe in for future elite league contender. Hope we don't have to wait till blooming monday / tuesday for the change reports!!!

Yeah, I think mine were similar when I drew aginst with Eights in the group (team ratings were about the same as your anyway) - my team seems to play a lot better against teams much better than me than against lower league teams. YS's consistency is the impressive thing though, can't have been easy to win week in week out with an inferior set of players. I'd imagine everyone in top league has excellent compatibility, generally very good form and good-ish win bonuses. Done a bit of research into intelligence and (vague answers) it does appear to have much more impact than I assumed - I'd previously thought it was more or less just useful for playmakers. Will bear in mind for future forays to the transfer market. I'd quite fancy a friendly once the change reports come in, to see where Winston are more accurately. Sure thing guv! You wanna do the final? Got a busy-ish weekend but I could do it next week if not. Great interview btw, I've enjoyed them this season. In fact doing to match reports in general has made all the games a lot more interesting to watch and hearing the managers all the more intriguing. Yellow Sub 4 - 1 Eights United For the opening half an hour this clash of titans looked like it would be the kind of fiercely contested back and forth tie that we had all expected, yet after the Eights scored the equaliser after half an hour the game turned on it’s head. For the thirty minutes that followed, Yellow Sub were completely unplayable, and irresistible to watch. They played fast and direct, a variety of deliciously weighted through balls and lethal crosses. The back three of eights were completely overwhelmed; as this writer remarked on earlier in the season, defence is Tales’ weak spot right now, one taken full advantage of by the rampant, exciting football on show - and by the 50th minute the game was beyond Eight’s reach. Everything on the Yellow Sub tactics sheet was pitch perfect - preparation for the 352 that Eights favour had been drilled into the team all weekend. Eights’ Emil Beck was tightly marked out of the game, and fans of Eights calling out their manager for being too stale and predictable as the Sub players seemed to read their every attempted pass. Whilst possession was vastly in favour of Eights, Irvine and Viana, playing at the back of the YS midfield, kept Granas and Beck from probing past, rendering their possession useless. Going forward, the other key factor to this overwhelming victory was the partnership of club veterans Ataisik and Beasley, one that Eights failed to find an answer to, which saw Beasley score four. The latter has had a quiet season but, like Zell, he is one to come alive in the big matches. It was a huge win for the Yellow Sub fans but you rarely escape games as big as this without battle wounds. Zell has been given a major selection headache for Friday after Villa’s injury in defence leaves him with a narrow pool of tactics to select from, in a game that will be just as big for the club. Intergalactico Stars 1- 0 DuD’s baggies For two teams playing 3-5-2 this was a surprisingly cagey, tense affair, neither side wanting to slip up and gift the other a spot in the final. DuDs had the overwhelming majority of possession throughout the game but the deciding goal ultimately came from pace on the wing and an old fashioned header inside the box, Gandalf the Grey continuing his fine season under Nikos. This was a strong effort from DuDs and they were unlucky considering both side’s lack of distinct chances - he will be left wondering what could have been were his first choice keeper not removed from play after 54 minutes. Inter was strong across the pitch, and his stoic defence will prove harder for Yellow Sub to break down that Eights’ did. Despite being uninvolved in the goal, Ramos and Papdopulos were the best part of the Inter team, hassling players high up the pitch to prevent DuD from moving the ball forward, and bringing the advanced midfielders into play. Nikos has yet to settle on a formation having mixed it up throughout his campaign - it will be interesting to see if he piles on the forward line to take advantage of a weekend defensive lineup from Yellow Sub. All eyes on lunchtime tomorrow.

Me and Rog were talking earlier about how great a manager Zell is. Really don't understand how The Sub are so successful! Is there some sort of secret about the intelligence special quality? The team must have been totally average three seasons ago when they first won the league. For the record, you're my personal pick to take up the vacant Spurs managerial position in the summer @Zell. Excited for change reports! Should get them on sunday right?

Haden’s Legends 0 - 3 Intergalactico stars There was little to choose between these managers in terms of tactics on the teamsheet, both teams running 442 head to head. In such a direct battle of individuals there was only going to be one winner here, but it took until the 69th minute to break the deadlock, with both of Nikos’s namesakes combining for a break goal on the break. By doubling up Legends star Grant Conden Haden’s Legends failed to get up the pitch, whilst Meridius, who has had a quiet season until this game, scored an excellent header and set up the third to kill off the game with a delightful through ball. Fans of Hadens will feel the team has met expectations this season and the youngsters will be better for the experience - they will need it next season, when for the first time the team will find themselves in the upper league. For fans of Inter, meanwhile, it has been a long time since topping the league - the fans were making noise at the end of this game. The manager will regret the suspensions to Scabos and Kirk for the forthcoming semifinal - DuD will have been the manager’s pick of the three teams to face in the semis but with depleted attacking options they are still some way from the final… Silverdale Salmon 1 - 2 Yellow Submarine The hopes of Zell’s team seemed on edge in this quarter final clash when holding midfield veteran Irvine had to be replaced by one of the Yellow youths after 14 minutes, but that was not to stop the winning machine that is Yellow Submarine. The battle here was won by an overpowered Sub midfield, Ataisik seemingly doing everything right in his box-to-box role today, providng the corner for the opener and teeing up Falcao from outside the box for the winner. Silverdale will be disappointed to have only registered two shots on goal despite strong link up play between Scrimshaw and Calderwood - last week I questioned Sub’s defensive abilities but today they shut out one of the league’s best strike partnerships. They go into their huge semifinal clash with Elites with a fresh team, no injuries, no suspensions - Elites vs Sub is always a real event, and this one will be one to watch live.

Haha, yeah, when I say 'possibly' it's more like 'almost definitely would have lost anyway' - but at 1-0 with equal chances I could have snuck one in the final 15 - but instead ruined my back line, conceded, then the striker I meant to sub off got injured without my boy Elroy to replace him - game over. Roll on our elite league rematch!

That sounds good to me yeah. Cannot believe my stupidity with my tactics today. Accidentally subbed on a forward for a defender when he was meant to come on up front. Had been a tight game but then instantly conceded. Possibly would have lost anyway but really threw it away. Arghh ah well. Roll on change report! Have loved the cup in general - as has Roger - Could it become a regular fixture? Once every three seasons say? Perhaps with the earlier-touted idea of having a lower league underneath? Perhaps four groups of five and then a lower league underneath it all for beginners? If there isn't a third place playoff someone should organise it as a friendly! EDIT: Peepsy, i'd also say 2 weeks off season sounds about right. Got 10 mill to blow.