In a pivotal week for the title race, a three-way fight for Premier League honours now looks more like business as usual. While Liverpool and Arsenal remembered that they were tired, City played their Bench Boost, but unfortunately we got the wrong memo. The battle for fourth looks like it might be a thing again thanks to our diminishing UEFA coefficient; and there was drama at Stamford Bridge where arm wrestling is now the method for deciding who takes penalties, and rumours of a ticker-tape parade to celebrate the Petrovic/Gusto clean sheet have yet to be confirmed.
The pace is also hotting up in the Fantasy Football Scout Head-to-Head Leagues, where fifth place has always been enough for a share of the glory but, then again, it’s also a world where 11th place is a problem. With five Gameweeks to go, many overachieving FPL managers will have reached their goals, but for most of us, the battle for elevation or survival continues. Let’s see who’s keeping their head above water.
League One
Four successive victories since the last update has taken Adam Ferguson (61) to the summit. He has a three-point lead over Michael Giovanni, but Cak Juris, Alex Tyc, Ignazio La Rosa and Sameer Sohail (all 57) are also still in contention.
League Two
Tim Hill (62) has recaptured top spot in Division 1, and has a four-point lead over the chasing pack: Alex Merchant, Sakari Uutela, Stewart Robinson and James Wong-You (all 58). Stig Hermansen and Dave Dolman (both 62) are the joint leaders in Division 2, with David Gladstone (58), David Stanton (56) and Simon McNair (55) completing the Top Five.
League Three
Jorge Polo Carraminana (73) has daylight over Michael Dabrowski (69) in Division 1, both have now clinched promotion to League 2. Amit Tailor and Gareth Mills (both 64) are joint leaders in Division 2, but Michael Scott is just one point adrift. Anoop K’s (60) lead in Division 3 is now just a single point over Bill Ketsu, with Paul Norris a further three points back, but all three are looking good for promotion. John McHugh (64) continues to lead the way in Division 4, but Nathan C (60) has reduced the deficit.
League Four
Terje Balteskard (67) is on the rise in Division 1, with Imran Hamid and Ishaan Bhatt (both 64) leading the chase. Martin Bubak (67) now has a four-point advantage over Wendy Darlington in Division 2; while Priyansh (73) and Tim Oldfield (72) have secured their elevation from Division 3. It’s much tighter in Division 4, where Josh Strickland and Dom Richards (both 58) have a two-point lead over Socrates Olympios, Steven North and Mark Pearson. Alex Chennell (68) continues to lead Wayne Sturman (66) in Division 5, and needs just one more point to clinch promotion. Grey Head (67) is five points clear of Sam Trafford in Division 6, and is one victory short of securing an upgrade. Taymur Reza Hossain and GavB-Bram (both 61) lead a crowded field in Division 7; while Christian Larisch (70) has a nine-point advantage in Division 8, and needs just one more to confirm promotion.
League Five
Matt Cherng and Dylan McCullough (both 69) continue to lead the way in Division 1; as do Mattias Rabbia and Doncho Georgiev (also both 69) in Division 2; however, their promotion is now assured. James Bambridge (64) has a four-point margin over Ali Mooshen and Daniel Clarke (both 60) in Division 3; while James Cresswell (70) is well set to clinch promotion from Division 4. Tony Wilkins (72) has already sealed the deal in Division 5; but one win in four means that Vasanth M (69) still has work to do in Division 6. Eugene Heng (68) has edged ahead of George Petrou (66) in Division 7; and Johan Wester (64) has a one-point margin over Tin Nguyen in Division 8. Jamie McComb (61) is being pursued by Shrikant Verma, David Woods and Graham Langley (all 58) in Division 9; however, Sirakhun Kawatkul (63) now has a six-point margin over the field in Division 10. With four successive wins, Moray West (73) has secured promotion from Division 11; but Georgi Georgiev (63) needs two more victories to seal the deal in Division 12. The competition is tighter in Division 13, where Andy Spratt (64) leads Joe Stafford by three points; and it’s a four-point margin for Gavin Sousa (66) over Rob Roche in Division 14. Daniel Cleghorn and Pratham Batra (both 58) lead a crowded field in Division 15; and it’s equally tight in Division 16, where FPL Ted (61) has a one-point edge over Luke York and Mike Harrison.
League Six
Jamie Gamble (Division 24) and Tim Worboys (Division 16) (both 76) are the top scorers in League Six, and lead their respective Divisions by 13 and eight points. Both have secured promotion; as have Marcus Baptiste (75) and Zaid Mahmood (70) in Division 2. Colin B (72) and Marcus Hamrin (71) have also clinched promotion from Divisions 7 and 8 respectively; as have the following FPL managers on 70 points: Alex Tremble (Division 1), Atang Bingana (Division 5) and Ken Davies (Division 14). Thomas Morris (Division 9) and Abraham de Villiers (Division 22) (both 70) still need one more win to confirm promotion to League Five.
Jervis Sheil (69) has a six-point margin in Division 11; while 68 points is sufficient to clinch promotion from Division 12 for Ben Reeves. Of the managers on 67 points: Josef Rusiecki has a seven-point advantage in Division 15; Ade Harris (Division 21), Dušan Ušjak (Division 30) and Tom Clark (Division 31) lead by five points; and Mrinal Mohit’s margin in Division 23 is just one point. Five managers are leading their Division on 66 points: Joseph Fitzgerald leads by seven points in Division 32; Gary Hughes has a five-point margin in Division 36; Sean Killick’s edge is three points in Division 17; while Neil Alisson and Mrinal Mohit are joint leaders in Division 23.
Paul Reilly (65) leads by five points in Division 10, and the same score is good for a three-point edge for Linda Parkes in Division 3; while Darragh Copley (64) has a five point margin in Division 18. Of the managers on 63 points: Bart∤omiej Ostrzechowski (Division 20) has a two-point lead; Tom Kelly (Division 6) has a one-point edge; and it’s a three-way tie between Kevin Davis, Ali Uner and Andy Wong in Division 28. Alex Baresel (61) has a four-point advantage in Division 4, while the same score gives James Beacock a one-point edge in Division 19. Jon Xanthos (60) leads by two points in Division 25 and, finally, it’s a one-point lead for Chris ‘League Admin’ Doran (Division 13) and Jathin Narayan (Division 27) (both 59).
League Seven
Mark Cahill (82) has continued to set a fast pace in League Seven, and now has an unassailable 24-point lead over his nearest challenger in Division 9. Øyvind Emblem (75) has consolidated his eight-point lead in Division 53, and has already done enough to ensure a Top Five promotion berth. Promotion is also assured for FPL managers on 73 points: Sachin Surpaneni needs one more win to secure top spot in Division 46; Sean Elvidge has a nine-point advantage in Division 47; and Simon Linford and Stephen Brogan are joint leaders in Division 35. Of the managers on 72 points, one more win will see Ski House (Division 11) and Uday Das (Division 28) promoted as Champions; while @elevenify (Division 42) and Ben Watts (Division 44) have six point leads to complement their promotion tickets. Will i.am (Division 20), Moschino Munez (Division 26) and Andy Green (Division 59) (all 71) have also secured promotion, but James Harrison (also 71) needs one more win in Division 15. Four additional managers reached 70 points: Marcus Bexell has already confirmed his passage to League Six; however, Craig Perrin (Division 12), Garry Murray (Division 30) and Melvin Tromö (Division 56) still have work to do.
League Eight
Danny Messer (88) has maintained his status as the top scorer across all nine H2H Leagues, and he has an astonishing 30-point advantage over his nearest challenger in Division 33. Ernesto Busche (85) is still on his heels following four successive wins in Division 127; as is Aaron Houston (84) in Division 19, and Mykhailo Granik (82) in Division 40. Marco ‘Pep’ Purves (Division 13) and Cal Stoffel (Division 41) (both 81) have unassailable leads in their respective Divisions; and promotion is also assured for Thanasis Kritharellis (Division 2) and Matthew Howells (Division 122) (both 79).
James Cain (77) needs one more win to clinch first place in Division 34; and the same applies for Jonathan Pacey in Division 60; however, Chris Hooksworth (also 77) still has work to do to secure promotion from Division 27. No such concerns for Chisha Mazimba (76), who has an unassailable lead in Division 115; and promotion is also assured for Jørgen Grønneberg (Division 20), Michael Silva (Division 23) and Matt Thompson (Division 64). The following managers on 75 points have also clinched promotion: Issam A (Division 44), Christopher Dunlop (Division 51) and Dawid Rapciak (Division 100).
League Nine
Mohammed Matin Sororian (84) is the high scorer in League Nine, but is still being kept honest by Martin Renönält (76) in Divisions 83. Ray Lund (82) is also being chased by Henry Simanjuntak (78) in Division 8, but John Erik Torsteinsen (also 82) has a more comfortable lead in Division 211. Andrew Calverley (81) and Chinedu Onwurah (76) are well clear of the field in Division 30; but Brandon Witton (also 81) only needs one more win to secure top spot in Division 38. It’s already ‘job done’ for Steffan Caines (80) in Division 13, and Victor Oh (79) in Division 65. Promotion is also assured for the following managers on 79 points: David Allen (Division 41), Babatunde Akinola (Division 72), Diayan Biswas (Division 82), Sean Edwards (Division 89), Ellie TMGB (Division 117), Scotty Boy (Division 124) and Pranjal Bhawal (Division 222).
A further 12 managers on 78 points have secured their passage to League Eight, namely: Graeme McCarthy (Division 6), Mohammad Maki (Division 115), Danila Kasyanov (Division 141), Fernando Ayerdi (Division 159), Pierce Barwick (Division 161), Kit Clarke (Division 170), Benedikt Bjarnason (Division 174), Chris Jago (Division 203), Edward Young (Division 220), Gordon Tyrie (Division 221), Mohammed Seif Allah Slimani (Division 225) and Matthew Robinson (Division 234).
Top 100 Hall of Fame Managers
I am continuing to follow the progress of six managers who are ranked in the Hall of Fame Top 100 as they seek to climb the H2H League ladder. Five of them are competing in League Seven, and bragging rights go to Garry Murray (70), who retains top spot in Division 31, and should clinch promotion with one more victory. Stephen Browner (57) is fourth in Division 12, and is three points shy of first place, but the buffer over 6th place is just two points. Colin Innes (55) is holding onto the final promotion slot in Division 38, but only has a one-point margin. Pete Richards is tied for third on 58 points in Division 30, and is two points adrift of first, but sits outside the promotion slots on tie-break. Ómar Olgeirsson (46) sits 15th in Division 12, and has five points to make up to avoid relegation. Turning to League Eight, Widi Susanto (48) has climbed to seventh place in Division 123, and is four points shy of the final promotion berth.
I’ll be back after Gameweek 36 with a final update, but In the meantime, you can keep track of your progress via MIR’s Head-to-Head Leagues page.
I’m off to consider which Sheffield United assets to get with my Free Hit. Stay safe.