This match at Hampden Park can't come quick enough for Scotland fans (tickets could be sold out 3 x over, such is the high demand from all over Scotland!) as a victory will almost guarantee Scotland a Euro quali place with the percentage of certainty rising to roughly 97%. The place will be buzzing tomorrow night with a tremendous atmosphere from the tartan army. I think Stevie Clarke will keep the players' feet firmly on the ground all the same and is well aware of a potential "banana skin" fixture v them. The Scotland fans will play a big part in attaining a positive result. IMO any kinda win will do, the 3 pts more important than the performance. Our record at Hampden Park is very good and I reckon these players will be well up for this match; they'll get better as the games are gradually ticked off - confidence sky high and no wonder! C'mon Scotland! Lets do this and make it a party night all over Scotland!!

We have a new format for this season, which I put forward as an idea at the end of last season. Nobody offered any objections so here it is explained......

Firstly, I thought it was getting a bit boring towards the end with the league format as it was with the champion being so far ahead and everybody else not much to play for apart from the push for a play off spot, which was a bit of an anticlimax anyway. The most exciting bit was the tussle for 8th, 9th and 10th positions with Shep, Ritchie and Amelia. 

So I'm splitting the group up into two groups with the top six from last season in the top group and the bottom six in group 2. At the end of the season, the winner of group 2 and the bottom of group 1 will swap places in what is commonly known as "promotion" and "relegation". It's something that most football fans will be familiar with, unless you're a fan of Liverpool or Arsenal or one of those other fashionable clubs.

The second placed player in group 2 will then have a play off with the player who finishes second from the bottom in group 1 to decide whether they will be going up, down or staying where they are.

We're going to have two seasons in one though, just to try and make it a bit more interesting and not so long drawn out. The first season will end on the Boxing Day fixtures, with the play offs being on the dates of the New Years Day games and the FA Cup 3rd round weekend.

The second season will start the following week, finishing on the last game of the Championship season. Then another period of relegation/promotion play off games, taking in such fixtures as the EFL play offs, FA Cup Final, UEFA finals and such like.

Each group will have it's own set of fixtures. Both groups will have the Town games, with scorers to predict as before. Then it will be a split of Championship fixtures and bonus matches. And not as many fixtures to go at. Hopefully around ten, eleven or twelve games per Matchday.

The rest of the rules will be the same as before apart from the which will still be in use, but I'm going to get arsey about it. Sometimes in the past, I've been able to just award two points immediately because it was such a nailed on thing to happen. Not accusing anyone of cheating. Far from it. I didn't put any boundaries on it, so anything was alright. So now I'm restricting it to three goal scorers in any of the games in your group. Sorry to all our more adventurous badgerers.

Here's how that will appear at the end of the fixture list. All you have to do is fill in the blanks.......


*** scores for ***
*** scores for ***
*** scores for ***

Any of those will score two points if correct. No minus points for getting it wrong.

The joker  will still be the same as before, ie doubling your points for a correct prediction or minus 2 for getting it wrong.

I hope you'll all come back and play and if anybody else out there wants to join in, you're more than welcome.

This is how last season finished.......


Final Table after Matchday 38:

1. jjamez = 872 pts
   
2. Baggiebob(BBB) = 851 pts
   
3. themaclad = 826 pts
   
4. theo_luddite = 819 pts
   
5. St Charles Owl = 808 pts
   
6. neonfoxinthebox = 804 pts
   
7. Lord Snooty = 762 pts
   
8. ritchiebaby = 713 pts
   
9. SHEP_HTAFC = 712 pts
   
10. Amelia Chaffinch = 710 pts
    
11. Devongone = 664 pts
    
12. WakeyTerrier = 171 pts
    
    
    So the new two groups will be......
    
    
    Division One:
    
    1. jjamez
       
    2. Baggiebob(BBB)
       
    3. themaclad
       
    4. theo_luddite
       
    5. St Charles Owl
       
    6. neonfoxinthebox
       
    
    Division Two:
    
    1. Lord Snooty
       
    2. ritchiebaby
       
    3. SHEP_HTAFC
       
    4. Amelia Chaffinch
       
    5. Devongone
       
    6. WakeyTerrier
       

Mon July 10, 19:00, Bodmin Town (a)
Wed July 12, 19:00, Tavistock AFC (a)
Sat July 15, 13:00, Liskeard Athletic (a)
Sat July 22, 15:00, Stockport County (a)
Sat July 29, 15:00, SC Heerenveen (H)

Anybody going to Cornwall?

It is imminent and the fixtures will be announced can't wait look forward to Plymouth away on a Wednesday night also Carathing Cup draw Thursday as well
Can't wait honest

Heres the prediction league   

Championship

1. Champions  1st place   

2. Automatic 2nd place   


3. 3rd position playoffs     
4. 4th position playoffs     
5. 5th position playoffs     
6. 6th position playoffs       


7. playoff winner     
8. playoff runner up     


9. Wednesdays final position     

10. 3rd from bottom relegation     
11. 2nd from bottom relegation     
12  bottom of the league relegation       




13. Premiership winners 
14. Premiership relegation     

15. Facup winners     
16. League cup winners 

17. Pub league winners     
18. Pub league relegation     

19. Pub league 2 winners     
20. Pub league 2 relegation     

21. National league winners     
22. National relegation       

All incorrect positions merit note that relegations are classed as without significance of position apart from.our league the championship as and winners of the leagues need correct positions to to merit


closing date August 1st all results will be carried over to the BML and BMPL remember last season this made a big difference to the final table  so choose wisely  or just copy maddix 

Leicester City have appointed Treble-winning Manchester City assistant coach Enzo Maresca as their manager on a deal which runs until 2026.

The 43-year-old Italian joins the Foxes just six days after Manchester City's Champions League final win.

He replaces interim boss Dean Smith, who oversaw just two victories from eight games in a failed attempt to keep the Foxes in the Premier League.

"We have a big season ahead of us," Maresca said following his appointment.

"At the beginning, the target is to play in the best way we can. From there, we can build, day by day, our idea and our philosophy, and the most important thing is to try to win games.

"First of all, we're going to give 100%, absolutely, because the club deserves this. It's our job, our duty to do that. Then, as I said, day by day, step by step, absolutely we're going to improve."

Leicester also confirmed the contract of Smith will not be renewed when it expires at the end of the month, with his assistant Craig Shakespeare and coach John Terry also leaving.

Maresca's move to the King Power Stadium brings an end to a hugely successful year as part of Pep Guardiola's backroom team in what was his second stint as a coach at Manchester City, having previously worked as their under-23s boss.

He had an unsuccessful 180-day spell as Parma manager in 2021, overseeing just four wins from 14 games after they were relegated from Serie A.

Leicester are back in the Championship for the first time in 10 years after a disastrous campaign that saw them finish 18th in the table, with just nine Premier League wins.

Relegation brought a miserable end to a decade of unparalleled success for the club, with Maresca to take training for the first time on 3 July.

After promotion as Championship title-winners in 2014, the Foxes went on to become unlikely Premier League champions two years later before then going on to reach the Champions League quarter-finals, win the FA Cup and reach the semi-finals of a European competition for the first time in 2022.

Who is Maresca?
The Italian has had a long association with English football during what has been an eclectic playing and coaching career.

He was a teenage midfielder when he joined West Bromwich Albion, a stay that lasted less than two years before he went on to join Juventus.

A number of loan spells followed, before he moved to Spain to play for Sevilla, where he won five trophies - including the Uefa Cup twice.

His four successful seasons there is the longest he has remained at one club.

Maresca had spells at Olympiakos in Greece, a return to Spain with Malaga before going back to Italy where he eventually ended his playing career in Serie B with Hellas Verona in 2017.

His coaching career has been just as diverse, starting as assistant manager at Ascoli, before going back to Sevilla as a coach and then moving to England as West Ham assistant boss under Manuel Pellegrini.

His first experience as a first-team manager proved miserable, at Parma, but working with Guardiola he helped Manchester City to reach new heights with their Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League success.

Analysis - 'Appointment well-received by fans'
BBC East Midlands Today sports editor Natalie Jackson

The arrival of Enzo Maresca, less than a week after he helped Manchester City complete their Treble with a Champions League final victory against Inter Milan, has been well-received by many Foxes fans.

He is a novice manager but offers the club a fresh start. A man with new ideas, incredible contacts and a coach who is keen to develop young players and his own playing pedigree will help earn the respect of the dressing room.

In interview he was the one who impressed Leicester's hierarchy the most - with his philosophy and style of play right out of the Guardiola playbook - and his desire to take Leicester straight back to the Premier League, but while also re-building the club for the long term.

With many players out of contract he has to hit the ground running, but the club have appointed swiftly as a new era begins.

Scotland "sitting pretty" on six points at the top of Group A with two victories in matches 1 and 2 (a big 2-0 win v Spain btw!). Still a lot more work to do albeit a great start to the campaign. Now the boys travel to Oslo for a testy match v Norway tomorrow, KO 5.00pm. Haaland clearly the big threat to our 100% winning record - gotta deal with that defensively! Hendry looking like Erlin Haaland's main marker although I'm sure Stevie Clarke will have deployed a defensive strategy that will give the big CB additional protection. I hope Scotland can put in a decent away performance as our away record needs improving as we progress through this quali-group campaign. C'mon Scotland! Keep playing well and with newly-found confidence!

Reading have been charged with failing to pay their players on time and in full on three occasions last season by the English Football League.

The charges relate to October, November and April's wage bills.

Reading's owner Yongge Dai has also been charged with causing the club to be in breach of EFL regulations.

The managerless Royals were relegated to League One last season for the first time in 21 years following their disappointing 2022-23 campaign.

Reading and Dai have until 16:00 BST on Thursday, 29 June to respond to the charges.

Wigan Athletic, who were also relegated from the Championship, have faced similar charges from the EFL for failing to pay their players on time.

The Latics were subsequently docked four points on two occasions and will start their League One campaign with an eight-point deficit on their opponents.

Reading were deducted six points by the EFL in April for breaching the terms of an agreed business plan for a previous profit and sustainability rule breach - all but sealing their relegation fate.

They were were also given a six-point penalty in 2021, for losing £57.8m between 2017 and 2021 - the EFL's limit for that period was £39m.

On Thursday, Royals chief executive Dayong Pang posted a letter to fans where he said he was "confident" the club would "fully correct the mistakes that were made many years ago".

He added: "As a club, financially we continue to face a number of significant challenges and our owner, Mr Dai, is working very hard to resolve those issues to ensure the future of Reading Football Club is stable, successful, progressive and positive."

Former England international Theo Walcott and Mohamed Elyounoussi will leave Southampton when their contracts expire at the end of the month.

Forward Walcott, 34, rejoined the Saints in 2020 and scored two goals in 24 appearances last season as the club were relegated from the Premier League.

Norway forward Elyounoussi, 28, scored nine goals in 90 games after his switch from Swiss side Basel in 2018.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Willy Caballero is in talks over a new contract.

The 41-year-old Argentine has featured five times since joining the club in December 2021.

Southampton saw their 11-year stay in the top flight come to an end after finishing bottom last season, having had three different managers over the course of the campaign.

Russell Martin is set to be appointed as Southampton boss, but the move is being held up by a disagreement over compensation due to Championship rivals Swansea City for his services.

Reported in several places today - talks going on that could eventually lead to change of owners.
Investors don't exactly sound like Mary Poppins but GOTTA be better than the current crook, surely??

https://www.expressandstar.com/sport/foo...nvestment/