Week Five: Another two bite the dust.
Group A
Like a schoolground Royal Rumble, this is not an easy group to break up. Four teams still with no guarantee of qualifying for the next round can be a scrappy mess, but we can try to reduce the myriad permutations down to one paragraph. “Try”. For Vanishing Spray and The Money Team – a draw or a win will send them through, and a loss may not stop them if they score enough matchpoints. Smash & Grab are the biggest threat to the top two – a win for S&G will put them above Money but doesn’t in itself put them through, nor does it automatically force either team out. Although they have the best points tally in the Group, they will be looking over their shoulder at the other two, just in case. Spray have a QF place in their own hands, they don’t even have to beat Branwellington to go through but, again, they would need a good score next weekend to make sure.
Next week:
Branwellington F.C. Vs. Vanishing Spray F.C.
In Matchday 1: Vanishing Spray F.C. 33 – 38 Branwellington F.C.
Smash & Grab Vs. The Money Team
In Matchday 1: The Money Team 41 – 33 Smash & Grab
In the Premier League, GW8: The Money Team 43 – 26 Smash & Grab
Group B
Group B has some good news to offer. The only team to qualify after five games are Premier League title-hunters Boss. In a strange week that gave three teams the same score, Boss were held at home by fourth-placed Bigger than Brolin, but that was enough to earn themselves a place in the next round. All four teams have something to play for in their final Group matches. Boss will want to win and face the weaker Group A team (whoever that turns out to be), as will All Star Gunners. To ASG, this match against Boss could be the difference between first and third. Mighty Fine Feeling, of course, need a win to make the top two, but they also need ASG to lose. Failing that then they’ll be hoping for IML football in two weeks’ time. Bigger than Brolin, who can’t make the top two, can still finish third and get a second shot at qualifying for next season’s Champions League via the underground route.
Next Week:
All Star Gunners Vs. Boss
In Matchday 1: Boss 47 – 22 All Star Gunners
In the Premier League, GW6: Boss 49 – 15 All Star Gunners
Bigger than Brolin Vs. Mighty fine feeling
In Matchday 1: Mighty fine feeling 19 – 31 Bigger than Brolin
In the Premier League, GW8: Mighty fine feeling 24 – 35 Bigger than Brolin
Group C
For the neutral here, it’s good to see so many teams still in it at this point, but we do know two teams that won’t be appearing in the next round. Unfortunately, after starting so brightly, Championship leaders AFC Chester fell out of favour with the football Gods and lost their last four matches (three of those by only four matchpoints or less). Being six points adrift means that it’s all over for them, except for one more chance to save some face, and it’s against the team they beat in Matchday One.
For the other three teams, they all know that one more win will get them over the line, but only two of the three can do it. The other will play the winner of the Cornballers v SB Town Baggers match in the IML QFs. If AFC Chester do the double over Tralfamadore Zoo then it will probably come down to total matchpoints again and possibly another tiebreaker scenario.
Next week:
AFC Chester Vs. Tralfamadore Zoo F.C.
In Matchday 1: Tralfamadore Zoo F.C. 28 – 38 AFC Chester
F.C. Santa Barbara Vs. Hung Like a Bony
In Matchday 1: Hung Like a Bony 36 – 39 F.C. Santa Barbara
Group D
The only team to reach 40 points in the Champions League this week were Cabezazo Increíble. They move up to second place and set up a top-two final Group game in Group D. The winner goes through, the loser will have to wait and see how well the winner of the other match scores.
Or, if either Group D game next weekend ends in a draw, both Cabezazo and K.H. Granitza Sting F.C. go through to the Quarter-Finals.
Assuming the top two don’t trade out all their players and settle for a (contrived yet mutually-beneficial) 0-0, then Sporting Wicker Park and Route 57 F.C. will feel like there is still hope, for one of them. The match winner will finish the Group Stage on nine points and Second Place will be decided on matchpoints. This also means that, on top of hoping neither game finishes in a tie, they will probably want Sting to beat Cabezazo to make moving up into Second a heck of a lot more plausible. 34-points more plausible. That’s like a week’s worth of plausible!
Next week:
Sporting Wicker Park Vs. Route 57 F.C.
In Matchday 1: Route 57 F.C. 28 – 23 Sporting Wicker Park
Cabezazo Increíble Vs. K.H. Granitza Sting F.C.
In Matchday 1: K.H. Granitza Sting F.C. 39 – 19 Cabezazo Increíble
In League One, GW8: K.H. Granitza Sting F.C. 37 – 38 Cabezazo Increíble
Gameweek 10
This very important Gameweek begins on Friday Night. Southampton (W2D2L5) host Leicester City (W5D2L2) at St. Mary’s, then there’s five games on Saturday and four games on Sunday! Two teams in the real Champions League, Liverpool and Spurs, and the three English sides in the Europa League (playing this Thursday) – Wolves, Arsenal and Man United all play on Sunday afternoon. With four of the top seven Premier League sides not kicking off until 4:30pm, this round is going to finish on a cliffhanger.
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