Back Of The Net Boy: Gameweek 34 Season 2012/2013

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Hey there everybody, I hear that train a coming, rolling round the bend, when will this season ever end… 5 gameweeks time that’s when [yes, I measure time in gameweeks now, not simply ‘weeks’], I will say I’ve enjoyed the Back Of The Net Boy side of things more than the New Cork Cosmos stuff this season. I’d go so far as to play on that well worn complaint about players in the teams in the middle table of the (real) League Table, ie Newcastle and Fulham right now, where people say “the players are already on the beach in their minds”, well that is the case for me. I’ve had more of a jump in my step organising our end of seasons drinks (the only roasting at this one will be the roasted but behind the bar… which does sounds like a bit of an InYourEndo.) than this week’s transfers. Don’t get me wrong I’m not done or given up, just pumelled for 2012/13 and looking forward to next season already.

REVIEW OF NEW CORK COSMOS IN GAMEWEEK 33

Ok well the wildcard was played as were double gameweeks and it was a damp squib. The simple numbers are that my team got an average score of just over 5 points each, and as I say, I consider 5 points the minimum for a player to having had what I’d consider a good week BUT, 9 of my team played twice, so that actually gives my players an average return of just over 3 points per person which is just rubbish. I’ve raised my aim though for rest of season, I’m going to try and get 42^nd position, hitchhikers guide and all that shizzle.

WHAT’S THE POINTS?

Points scored last week - 58 Points

Average points scored in that week - 54 points

Points off the top - 331 points, no change

Points off 42^nd position - 39 points

Position in BOTNB League - 52nd

WHAT WENT RIGHT

Oh look at that wall, is that a crack? Oh I need to give that a lick of paint soon.

WHAT WENT NOT RIGHT

Yes, but will I stick with the same colour?

What is the difference between Magnolia and Eggshell anyway?

(answer Eggshell isn’t that good a movie, booom – a comedy joke from Ronan)

CLUTCHING AT STRAWS

I do like to think I’m am entertainer more than a fantasy football savant, I leave all that to @DarraghFPL , our captain

LAST WEEK’S TEAM

TRANSFERS

I’m going to keep my tinder dry this gameweek, amd save it to have two next week.

KEEPING AN EYE ON

The Spurs bench at this stage, will the bionic Bale make it back sooner than implied. The relegation fighters will really become apparent now, the QPR/Stoke game could have interestign reperucssions; and if I see any game this weekend I’d like it to be Everton visiting Sunderland, there will be a lot of, how you say, passion on display in the Stadium Of Fight ( I trademark that nickname here and now, watch how everyone will be using in on Monday’s Red Top Soccer pull outs).

THIS WEEK’S SELECTION

I’m ironically a bit hamstrung but Bale who isn’t hamstrung himself, I’m sticking with him, and also Santi seems to have a yellow box over his head. So that means my only decisions are really which keeper to use and which player to use as my number 13. So in a bid to shake a few extra points to get to 42^nd, I’m going to Boruc the gloves and Sagna the oversized but warm looking jacket, so I’m putting my eggs in the Southamton defence and Fulham attack.

MY CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN

As I look at the screen Fellani has the armband, but I’m really mulling over Berbatov or even Ben Arfa… I’m not gonna lie, I think I will change it later tonight.

CAPTAIN’S CORNER with @darraghFPL

Blah, these double gameweeks continue to be the bane of my fantasy life. Rotation wasn’t the only frustration last week as ‘surefire’ selections such as Santi Cazorla, Walcott, Fellaini and Suarez all disappointed. Luckily, my increasing man crush on Leighton Baines wasn’t stemmed as the country’s best left back hauled rewards from the usually dry well of clean sheets rather than assists and goals. Moving onto this week, and the captains choices may be a bit more alternative than expected.

My first choice is someone featuring in the choices for the first time this year. His inflated fantasy price tag due to his staggering high priced move from Newcastle to Liverpool has meant that Andy Carroll has been largely unaffordable all season as a third striker. Coupled with his previous paltry returns, his was by in large deemed ‘fantasy kryptonite’. Something has changed in his last six games however. He has been involved in 55.6% of the Hammers goals in that time frame and bagged 4 goals in the process. His 62 penalty area touches is top of the charts for any player, 7 ahead of fantasy incumbent Luis Suarez and 10 ahead of in-vogue Christian Benteke. His ICT threat index rating is fourth among strikers over the last month and a half, behind the afore mentioned Uruguayan, Arouna Kone (??) and Robin van Persie, who I’ll get to later. Wigan may be in their annual reanimation mode highlighted by a spirited display against Man City last night but West Ham have never failed to score in a game at Upton Park that Carroll has started in. Yikers.

One of the advantages about wading through statistics once or twice a week is that you come across numbers here and there that really surprise you. You might have heard of the name Michu throughout the course of this season, but of late the Spaniard has copped a bit of flack for his diminishing returns. I wrote a while back about how the number attempts had not receded, merely his conversion rate of these attempts. Despite scoring in just 3 of his last 12 games, Michu continues to pepper the opposition goal far more than many think. His 23 shots from inside the box over his last 6 games blow every other midfielder out of the water. Bale managed only 16, while strikers such as Suarez, RvP, Giroud and Benteke only managed 22, 20, 17 and 16 respectively. Michu’s goal-conversion rate currently stands at 13.8% for that time frame but his season conversion average is 17.2%. As mentioned in previous blogs, this is a stat that tends to regress or progress to the mean. Look for the Spaniard to creep towards the 15.5% mark for shot conversion over the next to weeks. Average that against his 3.9 attempts inside the box per game and that equates a goal every 130 minutes, indicating the Spaniard has a 70% chance of scoring in the upcoming fixture against Southampton. We all know Football is not mathematics, but sometimes it’s a bit o’ craic to mix the two together.

Speaking of Swansea versus Southampton, the games other talisman, Rickie Lambert, has one statistic that absolutely blew me away this week. Over the past half dozen games, RvP, Bryan Ruiz and Wayne Rooney have all successfully threaded 4 through balls for scoring chances. They all lie joint-second in this category for forwards. Lambert tops the list with 20. That 20 (twenty!) successful through balls. Two weeks ago his striking partner Jay Rodriguez topped my Captain’s Choices as he entered his rich vein of scoring form. It’s easy to see why the young Englishman has begun to flourish as Lamberts 95% pass completion rating in the final third is 6% ahead of his nearest competitor Wayne Rooney. Lambert’s 8 goals away from home this term is also the 4^th highest in the league this term, behind the usual suspects of ________, _____ and ______ (fill in the blanks, I refuse to mention these three again) who all have 12 each. Swansea still may have motivational issues with their post Capital One Cup victory but I foresee goals aplenty at the Liberty Stadium. (The 0-0 draw is available @ 10/1 by the way. It’s like printing money.)

Finally, I’ll give an overdue nod to the back in-form Dutchman who Sir Alex simply refuses to rotate despite United’s title being effectively secured a month ago. The game at Old Trafford could see the young, vastly improving Villa side get spanked back down to earth as their game next week at Villa Park to relegation rivals Sunderland offers a far more plausible route to three points. If RvP starts again, his run of two scoring appearances in a row is sure to continue against a defense that concedes the 2^nd largest amount of scoring chances in the league. It’s time to enjoy the two week vacation from a double game week so best of luck ya’ll and captain carefully.