Does Captain Choice Matter?

I'm not sure my captain choice has always been quite right. Let's look at my last few weeks choices, and compare it to the 'form player', the 'expensive player', and the 'in hindsight player', and of course, the point scoring machine; 'Nani'.

Gameweek 35.

My captain: David Silva

Reason: No-one else has him, he's my favourite Man City player, he's at home to WHam. It was him or and everton boy, but I don't quite trust them enough, other than Baines, and I don't really like captaining defenders.

Results: 90 minutes, assist, 2 bonus points (7 points)

Highest Form Player (in my team): Leighton Baines. 11 points (Captained Difference: -8)

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Wayne Rooney. 1 point (Captained Difference: +12)

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): Leighton Baines. 11 points (Captained Difference: -8)

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): David Silva. 7 points (Captained Difference: +-0)

Highest Scoring Player: Simon Davies (Who?!). 16 points (Captained Difference: -18)

Nani: 2 points (+10)

Outcome: Silva lost out to Baines, but as said earlier, I don't like captaining defenders. So of the players I had this week, I probably made the right choice. But a poor week regardless. Shame I don't have any liverpool players...

Gameweek 34.

My captain: Etherington.

Reason: Few other teams seem to have him, and he has a 'Taiki' (double-week).

Result: 102 minutes (3 points). No assists, no goals, no nothing. Better than Zamora, but barely.

Highest Form Player (in my team): Baines (9.0). 2 points. (Captained Difference +2)

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Rooney (11.9). 2 points. (Captained Difference +2)

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): Cech. 8 points. (Captained Difference -10)

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): Van Persie. 7 points. (Captained Difference -8)

Highest Scoring Player: Maxi Rodriguez. 21 points. (Captained Difference -36)

Nani (Highest Scoring Player of the Season): 3 (Captained Difference 0)

Outcome: Should have chosen Van Persie and got an extra 8 points. But I decided to back the player with a 'Taiki'. But VP was on definite form, having scored in the preceeding 3 games. However, he doesn't show in Form or Value, either of whom would have lost me points.

Gameweek 33.

My captain: Terry.

Reason: Has a 'Taiki'. Chelsea's defence should be able to cope with West Brom away and Birmingham at the Bridge. Practically guaranteed 180 minutes. Known to get the odd goal and assist.

Results: 180 minutes (4 points). Conceded a goal in each week. (I'd also put Cech in...)

Highest Form Player (in my team): Van Persie (7.7). 13 points. (-18)

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Rooney (11.9). 2 points (+6)

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): Baines and Van Persie. 13 points. (-18).

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): Van Persie. 13 points. (-18).

Highest Scoring Player: Malouda and Drogba. 22 points. (-28).

Nani: 3 points. (+2).

Outcome: I should DEFINITELY have put Van Persie in as captain and got an extra 18 points. Form said to put him in, and he had a 'Taiki'. But I didn't trust him or Arsenal against Liverpool and Spurs. I thought Chelsea were more likely to keep a clean sheet. And I was wrong. I could aslo have kept my original plan to get Malouda in, and get myself an extra 28 points, which would have completely justified the 4 point deduction. But I didn't know that he was back. Terry still seems like a justifiable option, even if it didn't remotely pay off... Would have been better to put my form player as captain, but not the value player.

Gameweek 32

My captain: Asamoah Gyan

Reason: At home to West Brom, Sunderland's only real striker ought to get a few goals.

Results: 90 minutes and an assist. 5 points.

Highest Form Player (in my team): David Silva. 1 point (+8)

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Carlos Tevez. 1 point (+8)

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): Van Persie. 12 points (-14)

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): Van Persie. 12 points (-14)

Highest Scoring Player: Peter Odemwingie and James Collins. 15 points (-20)

Nani: 11 points.

Outcome: Should have picked Van Persie at home to Blackpool. This was the week i'd transfered VP into my team, having tired of Defoe. But who was to know it was going to be the start of a terrific run of form for the Vice President of Arsenal? (VP, gettit?) I did better than if i'd picked my form or value player, but still didn't get it right.

Gameweek 31.

My captain: Nani

Reason: At home to WHam, United should rip them open and make them have their children, and Nani should be integral to that.

Results: A freak injury in the 4th minute. 1 point.

Highest Form Player (in my team): Charlie Adam. 1 point (+-0)

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Carlos Tevez. 6 points (-10)

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): David Silva. 10 points (-18)

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): David Silva. 10 points (-18)

Highest Scoring Player: Wayne Rooney. 17 points (-32)

Nani: 1 point (+-0)

Outcome: Well, you can't play for injuries in the 4th minute, can you? Maybe I should have picked Silva, but would you expect City to beat Sunderland 5-0? I guess it's not too unexpected really, but I didn't see it coming. Picking form would have had the same result, value would have been a better choice.

Gameweek 30.

My captain: Jermaine Defoe

Reason: At home to WHam, having just score 2 goals against Wolves, Defoe ought to score a hatful. In the past seasons he has been known to score in fits and spurts, so when he showed his shooting boots I got balls deep into him.

Results: 90 minutes. 2 points.

Highest Form Player (in my team): David Silva. 2 points. (+-0).

Most Expensive Player (in my team): Luis Nani. 9 points (-14).

Highest Scoring Player (in my team): Charlie Adam. 15 points (-26).

Highest Realistic Player (in my team): Nani, 9 points. (-14).

Highest Scoring Player: Charlie Adam. 15 points (-26).

Nani: 9 points (-14).

Outcome: Defoe was a bad choice. Oh well, i still think the reason was justifiable. Should however have picked Nani or Adam. Form wasn't a worse choice, ignoring Value was. I didn't think Adam would necessarily perform, having missed the last two games, but of course Blackburn are woeful, so maybe I could have seen it. And Nani is almost always reliable, especially against mid-table teams like Bolton. Oh well.

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Having looked at the last 6 weeks, let's total up some numbers, and see how I fared.

Totals:

My captain's total points: 22

Form player: 30 (-16)

Expensive player: 21 (+2)

Possible Perfect Pick: 69 (-94)

Realistic Perfect Pick: 58 (-72)

Absolute Perfect Pick: 106 (-168)

Nani: 29 (-14)

Outcome: Short story: I've done badly. I've done better than if i'd just picked my most expensive player each week. But with 106 possible captain points available, i picked up just 22. That's not really good enough. Obviously, that would have required doing the right transfers, as usually I didn't have the best player of the week in the team. But even allowing for that, I've missed out on 69 points that I could have had by picking a better player from the team I DID have. Even just picking Nani each week would have got me an extra 14 points, which at this stage of the season could prove crucial. But what to take from this? Do I keep going with my hunches, or go with the 'form' player in the future? Tough decisions.

Well... live and learn? Later I'll do this for the whole season, but it takes much longer than i'd expect.

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JC

The most important week of the season?

As the season draws to a close on this pretty topsy turvy affair that we like to call the X Kent House Premier it's safe to say that time is running out for bridging the gaps and competing for the top spots.  

For long periods of time this league has been average - 50 point weeks could elevate you to the top whilst 20 pointers would not punish you as harshly as they should.  But since late January we have been blessed with some glorious results both on the pitch and in the world of Fant.  Julian "The Rookie" Campbell gained momentum from his WC and rose to the top of the pile against fathomable logic.  Joe "How are you win win winning?" Cameron fell from grace after contracting a fantasy transmitted disease.  Then there was Lukas "I have Odemwingie" Holden - who quietly constructed a deadly team to prove that quality choices lead to quality results.  Meanwhile Scott "I don't care that much about Fant but I play 5 transfers a week" Bissett felt the harsh reality of endless point deductions and a lack of concentration on upcoming fixtures and has fallen closer to the pointless Europa League competition between myself and Taiki "Doubly Weak" Endo.  

But let us take the chance to gaze at the Fant table and get a real look at the competitions that are heating up:

#	Team	Manager	GW	TOT
1	Marrocco Villa	Lukas Holden	103	1812
2	Mass Confusion	Julian Campbell	71	1785
3	The Winwinwinnerteam	joe dawg	75	1738
4	The Science Masters	Scott Bissett	68	1718
5	Antin's Allstars	Cole Antin	80	1689
6	kenya 29ers	Taiki Endo	73	1655
7	Whizzard Wanderers	Marc Whitehead	71	1631
8	Athletico Barnes	Andrew Barnes	68	1595
9	Real David	David Burt	93	1531

A 27 point gap at the top will be hard to overcome for Mass Confusion, especially with a midfield that would make Mascherano proud.  It is not totally over however, with enough games to play to make it interesting if JC is up for the challenge.  

You would have to say that a 47 point gap to the rest of the pack is pretty daunting and that the real concentration for TheWinWinWinnerTeam and The Science Masters should be cementing a place in the Champions League for next season.  Evaluating that gap has become a little more relevant... 29 points separate Antin's Allstars and 4th place.  No small feat - but one that will be desperately played for with both verve and vigor.  Confidence runs through the ex challenger's blood and my plans for the upcoming weeks would make my competitors tremble if they knew.  

But that doesn't mean that I have forgotten about the non-relevant, Arsenal biased Kenyan behind me.  If he is anything like the athletes from his homeland he will be in it for the long haul.  I would like to think 34 points between us would give me the cushion I need to eliminate him from my thoughts - however this of all weeks is where his strong squad will come into play and he will be relishing the chance to live up to his preposterous self proclaimed nickname.  With the fixtures aligning, he will have his eye on the extreme long shot of the champs i'm sure.

THIS my friends is a MASSIVE GAMEWEEK.  Bolton, Fulham, Stoke and Wolves.  Four teams with extremely inconsistent histories and various league positions on the line.  Double's all around - the last real chance for a large enough points haul to pull yourself back in the race.  Backing anyone of these teams with a transfer will be risky:  Bolton coming off a massive loss, Fulham ever so hard to judge in the goals department, Stoke even more so and Wolves with more incentive than ever to put points on the board.  

So as fingers linger over transfer buttons this week - an extra minutes thought would be wise.  Your in the last chance saloon boys, and the barmaid is already starting to put the chairs up on the tables.  Time to choose your best shotgun and go down fighting.  Pain is temporary - FANT IS FOREVER (or until next season).

2 things that have amused me today

1: Q: What do you get if you cross a ball and Fernando Torres?

A: A goal kick.

2: HasTorresScoredForChelsea.com

Who from chelsea?

So Chelsea have the doubleweek of choice. But who to pick?

I've made my transfers. It's defence based. What's everyone else thinking?

Also... I must admit i'm not loving the tag-line. "Chatting Fant is all about the Bant"

Suggestions?

Bloody Manchester City!

I was having a distinctly average week, but I thought it may all be ok. I had 3 Manchester City players, where other teams just had one liverpool player. Last time they played, City won 3-0. And City were a better team now than they were then. Sadly, so are Liverpool.

I was in the car and thought, I better check how it's going. Tuned in at the start of the second half...

"City have come out looking tired and not really with it. They're without Tevez, who got injured after the first Liverpool goal".

So i'm thinking, ah crap. Liverpool scored. There goes Hart's clean sheet. And Tevez is injured. Well, i've still got my boy Silva. He's the best midfielder they have, he'll score one or two and improve my week... Then they read out the team sheet and Mancini's gone with bloody Milner! Goddamn it all! 3-0 liverpool, and city don't play next week. Bloody useless.

Time to get ready for some interesting fixtures ahead though. Double weeks and voids. I'll be taking deductions...

Out of Towners... A Plague in Any League

A league usually consists of a group of like-minded individuals, some who take it more seriously than the rest and others who give up caring, early on in the season. However, those who take it more seriously than others often talk amongst themselves about possible transfers and give bant, this is all part of the fun of being in a league. As well as these players there are what can only be considered the, 'Out of Towners'. Dangerous; is a word that can be used to describe them. Plucky and relentless could also be used.

I will take my current contender in the X-Kent House league as the example; his only slither of banter or communication for that matter I can find any trace of, is recorded on the 'X-Kent House Premier Fantasy Meetup', Facebook event, on 22 March stating, 'watch out, Odemwingies about. lets get the bant out.' Now, when this happened I considered this a useless taunt considering in the 5PL games previous to this post Odemwingie only scored 15 Points, however since the post, he has scored 25 points in only 2PL games.

Out of Towners should be considered as a genuine threat in any league and their mystery and secrecy as attributes that could take them to victory. In any case, I can see the next gameweek being very important for those of us at the top of the X-Kent House Premier.

I'm addicted to transfers

I just can't get enough. I do the wild-card window shopping. Then i'm like... yeah, but I can't do that. Or... could I?

This week i've done 3 transfers. As it happens that's only one deductionable one, but i take deductions most weeks! I've done 53 transfers in 31 gameweeks. That's the most in X-Kent House. Kenya's 29ers are 2nd with 49 transfers.

The issue is, I always feel it's a necessary transfer. And it's almost certainly not. During the next week I'll analyse this issue in more detail. Look forward to that!

(Also, i've totally gone for a stroll in the Park this week)

P.S. I hope everyone is ready for the Grand National this afternoon. I'm backing a couple of horses, but Oscar Time is my 'actual pick'.

Park Ji-Sung: Is it time yet?

I know what you're all thinking. Or at least, I know what you SHOULD all be thinking...

Is it time for a stroll in the Park?

The south-korean legend should always be in your peripheral vision. Why? Because he's the cheapest midfielder in the Man Utd team (at 4.7 million), who are currently dominating the premier league. Well, except for Obertan. And we ignore him, because he has only 284 league minutes under his belt this season.

As well as being cheap, he plays. Always a priority. Obviously Nani is the undroppable player from the Red Devil's midfield, clocking up 2174 minutes (out of a possible 2790). The next most featured player is Scotland's mighty Darren Fletcher, with 2019 minutes. Ferguson trusts Fletcher, and picks him for all the 'big' games. But he's not renowned for picking up the points. Don't get me wrong, he isn't a 2-point Mascherano, but with just 2 goals and 6 assists, he's nothing compared to Nani (9 goals, 16 assists from just 155 minutes more). Ferguson's other options are Carrick, Giggs, Scholes, Anderson, Valencia or the youth. Carrick has never really impressed since joining from Spurs, though he has recently got a run in the first team, completing 5 games in a row, but scoring just 12 points in those 5 games. He may appeal to Ferguson, but he shouldn't appeal to you. Ryan Giggs... There is no doubting that this man is a legend. He has been playing first team football for one of the greatest teams in the country, if not the world, for 20 years. Clearly, the man has quality. But at the age of 36 he's not going to be playing 90 minutes every week. But when he does, he'll do well. He's definitely an option, but an option that is too risky for my liking. I expect my players to be playing every game, for at least 75 minutes. And I don't feel I can rely on Giggs for that. Which is a shame, because he's good. He's very good. It's a similar story with the other Man Utd stalwart, Paul Scholes. He may never have learnt how to tackle, but on his day he can take on the world. He can score from range and pick out any pass on the pitch. But he doesn't, and won't, play enough for my liking. Anderson i'm sure will be good. But this hasn't been his season, with just 35 points in 804 minutes. Valencia is interesting. Since returning from injury, he has played the full 90 minutes in both games, picking up a bonus point in each, and an assist. 10 points from 2 games is a fine record. Clearly Ferguson likes him, and maybe you should too. But I may wait a little while, as at 7.8 million he requires a little more thought.

In addition, to playing, and being cheap, he's good. 56 points in 838 minutes good. Compare this with other players with similar minutes. Huddlestone has 31 points from 839 minutes, and costs 5.6 million. Blackpool's Matt Phillips has picked up 40 points in 839 minutes, but costs just 4.5 million. Anderson, also from United, costs 5.5 million and as was mentioned earlier, has only picked up 35 points in 804 minutes. If you look at points per game, Park will get 4.7 points per game. This is 12th in the rankings for midfielders, and the cheapest in the top 25 (ignoring Danny Rose who played 45 minutes last season and scored a wondergoal, thus ranking 3rd).

Certainly, if Ferguson chooses to play a five-man midfield (which he often does), you can expect to see Park on the pitch. Often he'll feature in a four-man midfield as well, but with Nani and Valencia on the wings, there is a lot more competition for the central positions. In terms of value for money, it's hard to find a better option than a certain Ji-Sung Park. And with Rooney facing a 2 match ban, it seems probable that Fergie will go 5 men in the middle, and one of them will almost certainly be Park, but beyond those two games? It's far less sure. But the two games are against Fulham at Old Trafford, then over to St James Park to face the Mighty Magpies. They are games I'd expect United to win, and there's nothing to say Park couldn't score a hattrick in each...