And still in with a good chance of taking the last EFL Champs League place! I find this to be so ironic and enlightening in comparison to Celtic finally ending their awful season at Easter Road Stadium this afternoon. I don't think Celtic's demise would've happened had Brendan Rodgers remained at Celtic Park but he had to move on to more challenging action (plus a bigger salary) in a better footie league elsewhere. One of the main reasons I say that is the fact that Rodgers, a super organiser/manager of resources, insists on taking control of the footie club recruitment, something he currently practises at LCAFC and a factor that played a huge part in Celtic's abject failure in pulling in decent quality players in all areas of the Hoops' player squad. He would've been well prepared for the challenges ahead in a poor Scot footie league that was an absolute dawdle for a man with his exceptional talent. But he moved on to better things although a lotta Celtic fans would argue that LCAFC is generally incomparable with a Celtic FC that is high-flying at home and abroad. But it is ultimately all about money coming in to a far richer footie league set up. That's the way it is!

Solihull Moors 3-1 Barnet
Wrexham 2-2 Notts County
Aldershot Town 2-0 Eastleigh
Weymouth 2-1 Boreham Wood
Yeovil Town 0-2 Maidenhead United

League Table After Matchday 53
Lord Snoots = 516
Amelia = 468
Spireitematt = 426
Devon = 414
Dancing = 394
St Charles = 368

So we arrive at the last Scot Prem fixture of the season at ER Stadium in a match that becomes meaningless after Hibs win at Pittodrie that ensured Hibs season has ended in grand style - great success all round and the opportunity next week to add the Scottish Cup to our 3rd place Euro footie qualification. This match will also be Broony's final match for the Hoops and how ironic that he returns to his "alma mater of footie education/grounding" before Celtic came in to snatch a "future captain of Hibs for years" with an offer of lotsa money that our footie club couldn't refuse. How many more Scot footie trophies would Hibs have won with Broony in our ranks from 2007 onwards eh!!? Anyway, this is nothing more than a "bounce match" and a mini-testimonial for Broony whereby we ensure our players can play the game without too much commitment and no threat of injury. Lets try to win it though and keep that "feelgood factor bubbling away" in the lead up to the Scot Cup final. C'mon Hibs!!

GGTTH

Hi! Nice to be a member here. I would like to share my opinions about football League with you guys. The Fox and Blues are going to play for the final of FA Cup. I pick Chelsea will the be winner.

Leicester City
Taking three points from Manchester United in last game not only makes them in high morale but also causes them fatigued. They have tried their best in last game playing against Man Utd. It seems that they are not fully ready for upcoming game as a lack of rest.
 
Chelsea
They have less time to rest than Leicester City because they play a high intensive game three days ago. But Thomas Tuchel have rotated their squad in last game and make great preparation for upcoming game.
 
Verdict:
Chelsea are slightly better than Leicester City. In addition, Chelsea play well as traveller, getting a twelfth-match unbeaten run with 70% winning percentage in away games. Chelsea are looking good for a shot at the title this season of the Tournament.
 
Prediction: 0-2, 1-2

This will also be a Qualifying Event for the Beijing Olympics in February 2022. It will be played in the usual competition bubble, this time in Aberdeen, Scotland, from Monday 17 May to Sunday 23 May. In a greatly slimmed-down competition there will be only 20 teams playing this year. This is the discipline where one player plays two stones (1st and 5th) and the other plays three stones (2nd, 3rd and 4th). The players can alternate positions on each end if they wish and the rules usually mean that there are more stones in play each end.

Not only do Scotland have the chance to earn Olympic Qualification for GB, but England are also competing to reach the Olympics. Scotland will be represented by Jennifer Dodds, fresh from the Women's Worlds in Calgary, and Bruce Mouat, Silver Medallist in the Men's Worlds last month in Calgary. Bruce had Scotland's best result in 2016, finishing 4th with Gina Aitken. England's Double are sister and brother Anna and Ben Fowler, who finished in 8th place in 2016 and in 9th place in 2019. They were the first English curlers to join the British Curling Podium Potential programme in 2018.

Group A consists of Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Korea, RCF, Spain and Scotland.
Group B consists of China, England, Estonia, Finland, Japan, Norway, New Zealand, Switzerland, Sweden and United States.
The Qualification Games and Semi-finals are to be played on 22 May with the Medal Games on 23 May.

Starting the competition on 17 May, Scotland play Italy while England play Switzerland. On 18 May, Scotland play Australia and Spain while England play New Zealand and China.

Its the end of the season and the dust has settled, the club has revealed who is staying and who is going, so I'm gonna issue my ratings on all the players used by Town this season.


Ben Hamer- 5- He played 15 league games before moving to Swansea. An improvement over his time in the Premiership with us, but that was hardly difficult. An error always seemed likely to happen with him and at times they did, but he also put in some good stops to win valuable points in the first half of the season.

Joel Pereira- 1- played 2 conceded 11, no more to add

Ryan Schofield- 5- Another who always looks to have a big blunder in him, especially under the high ball, his shot stopping is generally good and his distribution is slowly getting better. Bit of strengthening over the summer and preseason may give him confidence with crosses, but there is a lot to work on there. Still a fair bit of potential with him though.

Pipa- 6.5- signing of the season, though the list of good signings is short. Was one of our best players in the first half of the season, probably deserving an 8, but un the second half of the season his performances dropped off due to numerous things, playing through injury, out of position, formation changes. Is a bit naïve defensively and lacking, often tries too much when going forward and lacks discipline on occasions. But the signs are good for him.

Demeaco Duhaney- 4- Not retained by Town and probably will make a good career for himself in league 1 or 2, maybe somewhere like a Salford or Tranmere. Played in varied roles when he was actually put on the pitch, hardly ever his favoured right back position and he looked out of his depth when doing so. He did put in a few solid displays in all fairness to him, could have won the game for Town against Brentford was it?

Aaron Rowe- 6- Scored a crucial goal against Forest and a belter in the FA cup, looks out of place in a back four, but is more than capable in the right wing back role, looks promising though playing on the wing in an attacking role and hopefully we see more of him in those areas going forward.

Chris Schindler- 6- Can't think of many glaring mistakes, but he did look to be slowing down and came across mentally jaded after the last few seasons here. A serious injury is a cruel way to end his time here and it will be good to welcome him back when circumstances allow.

Richard Stearman- 5- Another who's legs seem to be giving up on him, a spot in a league 1 club would be suitable for him now. Solid, but prone to diving in and getting caught out now, a rather serious injury kept him out for a few months and it became hard for him to get back into the side.

Richard Keogh- 5- Came in as a needs must with the injuries to Schindler and Stearman, another prone to glaring mistakes at the back, but overall was relatively solid, probably a big help to the younger players away from the pitch and on the training ground hence him being offered a player coach role, which I understand, the side does need to keep some form of experience.

Rarmani Edmonds- Green- 5.5- Another promising youngster who will probably have developed more overall this season due to more exposure, scored a couple of goals this time out, hopefully a good preseason and he may develop further. Possibly needs half a season on loan to continue his playing time. The potential is there.

Naby Sarr- 6.5- He's either a 4 or an 8 each week, sometimes has that bit of quality, other times looks like a pub player, overall though, he has scored some vital goals and made some vital goal line interceptions. We need to work on getting him performing consistently nearer his best, maybe a more dependable partner and a confident keeper behind him may make him feel more assured in himself. A solid player all in all.

Romoney Crichlow- 5- Looked highly promising when he debut against Forest up against Lyle Taylor and Lewis Grabban, and then seemingly faded away, more due to being Sarrs natural back up as a left footed centre half and the problems being on the right side. Could do with a good loan next season to get more game time, I feel there is a very good player in there.

Harry Toffolo- 7- Formed a good partnership triangle with Koroma and O'brien, we notably missed him when he was out injured as he causes issues for defenders when he attacks, scored a few goals to help Town and will be a key player next season once again. If he stays.

Jaden Brown- 2- Always telling when a manager prefers to play players out of position in your best role than to play you. Every time he played it seemed to go wrong or terribly. Another who will probably forge a good career in league 1 or 2, maybe back down south with a Leyton Orient.

Ben Jackson- N/A- played the first game against Norwich and then had time out on loan as cover at Bolton, needs to get some game time next season, will he be our left back cover, possibly, offers a bit of versatility too, which is going to be needed more when we revert back to 3 subs.

Jonny Hogg- 6.5- When he plays we look to disintegrate completely and in that regards is key to Town. Has mistakes in him regards to passing and blames others for it, which is typical Hogg and why I don't think he's necessarily the right fit as captain. Leader yes. Captain possibly not.

Alex Vallejo- 6- Slow start to his time in blue and white, but the more he played the better he looked. Calm on the ball and has a bit of composure too. Glad he is staying another season, offers a lot to the squad being able to play 3 different roles.

Juninho Bacuna- 5.5- Infuriating sums him up exactly, capable of being probably one of the better midfielders in the league, but a seeming attitude problem ruins him and puts him in the cross hairs of Town fans. Get him playing consistently nearer his best and we know what he is capable of.

Carel Eiting- 6- Looked lightweight at times, but you could also see his footballing pedigree, had a good goal scoring run a bit before Christmas but suffered another long term injury, we did miss his composure on the ball and when he made his come back you could see he had a bit longer on the ball than other players. probably struggled with the physicality of the Championship, a possible summer move back to Kirklees? I wouldn't be against it.

Lewis O'Brien- 6- Took a fair while to get going and probably failed to hit the heights of last season. You know what you're going to get from him, as fiery as his hair, but does lack that little bit in the final third when it comes to picking the right passes. Possibly leaving us in the summer and I'm not sure it would be the right time for him yet.

Duane Holmes- 4- Pretty much the same player we let go a few years back, but older. Sought out the move back to Town and in the large part struggled to make an impact bar 1 maybe 2 games. Maybe got played in too many different roles, will be looking to hit the ground running after a good preseason.

Scott High- 4- Struggled to make a real impact when coming off the bench in games, looked a lot better when he started against Reading. Looks like there is a player in there, maybe needs half a season on loan again.

Matty Daly- 3- For a player that seemed to promise so much, he seems to have disappeared completely, maybe he's been injured, but the games he did appear in this season, something looked to be missing from his game. Next season will be a big one for him

Brahima Diarra- N/A- made a sub appearance in the thrashing against Bournemouth and looked slightly overawed by it, understandable at his age. From the videos of him playing in the age groups at Town though, there seems to be a lot of promise there and maybe more game time for him next season.

Isaac Mbenza- 6- First half of the season probably a 7.5 second half of the season probably a 3.5, maybe due to injury, provided us a threat from set pieces and started to look better, but not as good as the money spent would have expected. Option taken probably to sell him on, but if he stays and we can get more out of him consistently then he may not be a full lost cause

Adama Diakhaby- 1- lost cause, not his fault that we overpaid for him and that he wasn't good enough though.

Rolando Aarons- 3- Was decreed a main target by the Town board, hence why we tried getting him on deadline day... since he has come in, looks quick, has a bit of skill, but has a hell of a lot to work on ahead of next season.

Sorba Thomas- 4- Looks like he wants to attack which is good, but is obviously struggling with the step up in quality, a good preseason may help him when it comes to next season, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was to be loaned out for a spell

Josh Koroma- 8- His injury arguably ruined our season, if he stayed fit we would probably have been safely midtable and a lot of the toxic environment around the club wouldn't be here. Need to keep him to continue the budding relationship down the left with Toffolo.

Pat Jones- N/A- appeared twice for Town from the bench and looked raw, but with potential, be interesting to see how that develops

Alex Pritchard- 1- Waste of space all being said and done, contributed nothing for the wages and the money spent signing him, seemed like he didn't want to play with the nature of some of the injuries. Rumours of poor mental health which won't have helped and if true, I sincerely hope he is able to get them issues sorted for the benefit of his life full stop.

Danny Ward- 2- signed as the main striker and failed to get going, another who picked up injury after injury. He'll be hoping to get everything sorted to make up for lost time next season.

Fraizer Campbell- 6.5- Not clinical enough is his problem and always has been, work rate has not. Played more than he would have imagined due to Wards injuries and as such probably struggled with the work load. Glad he has got another year and respect he has offered to take reduced terms in order to get the option of another year.

Kieran Phillips- 4- Has had spells where he has looked very promising and will no doubt develop more over the next few months. With rumours of Rhodes and maybe one other striker, it seems like a loan away may be on the cards, but he will also be able to learn a thing or two from Jordan as they strike me as similar sorts of players.

Yaya Sanogo- 2- I was disappointed by him, never seemed to do much for me, for a big lad he seemed lacking as a target man and as a striker seemed lacking in front of goal, hence the nickname. We can find better out there, be it domestic or abroad.

Carlos Coberan- 5- Good start, poor finish. Proper preseason and some backing hopefully in the market and lets see if we can get to where we were before Christmas.


next season with the right additions, I'm hoping for solid improvement, at Christmas last year we were 6 points or so off the playoffs and look where we ended up. I think the right signings and getting back to playing the style we want, with a less hectic schedule and the return of fans, then maybe we should be looking at around the 12th position, 15th at worst.


Whats your ratings?

Saturday
Chelsea v Leicester
Sothampton v Fulham
Burnley v Leeds
Brighton v West Ham

Sunday
Spurs v Wolves
Albion v Liverpool
Palace v Villa
Chelsea Women v Barcelona Femenino

Monday
Bournemouth v Brentford
Barnsley v Swansea

Aldershot Town 1-1 Hartlepool United
Boreham Wood 0-0 Wrexham
Chesterfield 3-0 Wealdstone
Dagenham & Redbridge 2-1 FC Halifax Town
Eastleigh 4-0 Barnet
Maidenhead United 2-1 Sutton United
Notts County 1-1 Bromley
Solihull Moors 3-3 Woking
Weymouth 0-2 Altrincham
Yeovil Town 4-2 King's Lynn Town


League Table After Matchday 52
Lord Snoots = 504
Amelia = 452
Spireitematt = 418
Devon = 398
Dancing = 386
St Charles = 346

Premier League

Player Pts CS CR GB BB SB
Derby 14 2 2 5 3 0
Snooty 13 2 3 -3 3 1
Sanjay 12 1 3 NP 3 1
A.A.A. 10 1 2 NP 3 1
Amelia 9 0 5 -3 3 1
Twerton 9 1 3 -3 6 0
St Charles 5 0 3 -3 3 1
Themaclad 5 0 2 5 -3 1
Bomber 3 1 2 -3 -3 1
B.B.B. -3 0 1 -3 -3 1

So, all in all a fairly boring weekend of football where absolutely nothing of note happened!!! I wish!!!!!! 32 seconds is the important number, that is the length of time Wednesday were actually out of the relegation places on Saturday - Cardiff equalized at home to Rotherham and then 32 seconds later Derby scored their penalty to make it 3-3 and see them safe. In the end we finished bottom!!

So onto the league that matters. Derby (oh the irony in that name!! ) leads the way this week with a solid 14 points. He was one of only two players to get a CR on the Gamball, backed that up with a CR on the Bonus as well as 2 CSs. Lord Snooty regained some form and delivered 13 points in second. He actually scored on more games than Derby ( ) but missed on the Gamball to keep his score down. Sanjay had a welcome return to the podium with 12 points, he would have been top had he played the Gamball!!

AAA is the only other player in double figures in 4th and ended a single point above Amelia and Twerton even though they scored on more games than he did. Bit of a drop to St Charles and Themaclad in 7th spot with 5 points, Themaclad was the other person along with Derby ( ) who got a CR on the Gamball but unlike SCO he missed on the Bonus.

The bottom 2 were Bomber with 3 points and BBB with a -3 score. Bombers rise to challenge for the runner-up spot came to a crashing halt by missing out on both balls, can he regain the lost ground?? BBB obviously sent in his predictions from a beach somewhere in the UK, lets hope it was raining!!!

BBB - 329
St Charles - 272
Sanjay - 268
Bomber - 256
AAA - 242
Lord Snooty - 236
Amelia - 231
Derby - 224
Twerton - 190
Themaclad - 187

Only one positional change this week and I think its appropriate to lead with this. Twerton was in the PL for the first time and has struggled all season, in fact he has been bottom for most of it. But right at the death he has finally hauled in Themaclad and overtaken him!! Can he keep up that form in the last couple of weeks and manage not to finish bottom - we shall call him Wycombe from now on!! At the top BBB is sunning himself safe in the knowledge that he has the title in the bag. Sanjay is right on SCOs heels but Bomber dropped back a bit, 2np place still up for grabs though. Lord Snooty go spooked with Amelia right behind him and put a bit of social distancing between them and now Amelia better keep an eye over her shoulder at Derby who is creeping up on her.

Two weeks to go and still multiple things to be played for!!

Cheers
SCO


Championship

BaggieOne 13pts 0CS 4CR 5GB 3BB 1SB
Somerset 12pts 0CS 5CR 0GB 3BB 1SB
DD 6pts 1CS 3CR -3GB 3BB 0SB
Minizin 6pts 1CS 3CR 0GB -3BB 1SB
Stairs 6pts 1CS 3CR 0GB -3BB 1SB
Silver 6pts 0CS 4CR 0GB -3BB 1SB
Joker 1pt 0CS 3CR -3GB -3BB 1SB
Zinman 1pt 0CS 3CR -3GB -3BB 1SB
Lady Jane -1pt 0CS 2CR -3GB -3BB 1SB


You'd have thought that after 30 weeks we might start getting good at this prediction lark. Obviously not. With the season approaching its exciting climax (I live a rather sad life so, yes, this qualifies as exciting) we all turned in yet another below average week's scores, particularly struggling with the gamball and bonus.

This week's table splits nicely into 3 sections. At the top BaggieOne - for the second week running to put him within touching distance of promotion - and Somerset. In mid table, DD, Minzin, Stairs and Silver, and, some way behind the bottom feeders, Joker, Zinman and Lady Jane. BaggieOne was one of 4 players to predict a draw in the gamball match but the only one to take the risk, securing him top spot. Somerset got the week's high of 5 correct results but has to be content with second place - playing that gamball would have brought him right back into the promotion race!

Of those in mid-table with 6points, DD was the only one to lose out on the gamball. He compensated by getting his bonus right - a rarity this week - though he was also the only player to miss out on the scoreball. Minizin and Stairs had identical records while Silver had more correct results but no spot on scores.

A miserable week for the rest. At least Joker and Zinman crept above zero, just a single point each thanks to the scoreball, while Lady Jane's brief improvemnet seems to have cometo a grinding halt - just 2 correct predictions to leave her on minus 1 for the week.

Minizin 288
BaggieOne 274
Silver 263
Zinman 258
Somerset 254
Stairs 250
DD 225
Joker 224
Lady Jane 207

BaggieOne's good week has given him some breathing sace in second place and could even catch long time leader Minizin with 2weeks still to go. It looks like Silver. Zinman Somerset and Stairs are battling it out for the play-off spot while in a private battle for 7th DD leapt above (I'm thinking more of an elephant's leap than a salmon here) Joker.

Lady Jane looks completely adrift at the bottom needing a minor miracle to avoid the wooden spoon.

And no mention of relegation for either Albion or Wednesday....until now.

Zin

How very strange! Tranmere reach the Play Offs then sack the manager. WTF?

Quote:BBC Sport:-

Tranmere Rovers have sacked manager Keith Hill despite reaching the League Two play-offs.

Hill, who took over in November with Rovers 13th in the table, guided them to a seventh-placed finish, although they won only two of their last 11 games of the regular season.

He also led Tranmere to the EFL Trophy final, losing to Sunderland at Wembley.

Assistant manager Ian Dawes will take charge for the play-off semi-final against Morecambe.

He will be assisted by Andy Parkinson.

Tranmere chairman Mark Palios said: "Despite success achieved on the pitch in the form of securing a place in the play-offs and reaching the EFL Trophy, in the play-offs an entire season gets distilled into two or three games.

"I have to do what I think gives us the best chance of achieving promotion in those games and I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that means making the change before the semi-finals begin."

The semi-final first leg takes place at Prenton Park on 20 May and the second leg at the Mazuma Stadium on 23 May. The final will be held at Wembley on 31 May.