what a made game that was

last minute pen against senegal
they then walked off the pitch in protest

came back eventually
penalty missed
senegal won in extra time


bizarre game

THE MATCH

TUESDAY 20TH JANUARY KO 7:45PM

v

LAST MATCH



Another home game and another home defeat as Portsmouth eased away from the relegation zone. Devlin fired just wide for Pompey and Ingelsson also fired wide as chances were hard to find. Onto the 2nd half and we had our only shot on target which was comfortably saved by the Pompey keeper. Pompey then went up the other end and got what turned out to be the winner, as Segecic fired in from a deflected cross. Pompey nearly added a second but the ball went over the bar. We didn't have one attempt after Pompey took the lead, which is beyond comprehension.

DEJPHON CHANSIRI, GET OUT OF OUR CLUB    

THE MATCH



Next up and Birmingham make the journey north. Birmingham  started the season brightly but have gone off the boil recently and currently lie in 14th place. They are eight points off the playoffs and the relegation zone, if they spend some money in the transfer window they might be able to make a push for the playoffs, although if they finish around mid table that wouldn't be a bad return to the Championship. They are managed by Chris Davies, who has been in charge since June 2024, got them promoted in his first season, setting an EFL points record of 111 points. There leading scorer this season is Stansfield with 8 goals and 3 assists.

DEJPHON CHANSIRI, GET OUT OF OUR CLUB    

ALL TIME H2H

OWLS 36
BRUM 40
DRAW 28

CURRENT FORM

OWLS     L L L D D L                                                             

BRUM    D W L D D L

EFL STOOGES

DOES IT MATTER THERE ALL CORRUPT  

LEIGH DOUGHTY
Richard Woodward and Paul Hodskinson
Fourth Official: Oliver Langford

THE TEAM

Cooper
Palmer McGhee Emery Otegbayo Johnson
Thornton Ingelsson Bannan
McNeill Cadamarteri

SCORE & SCORER (HOME TEAM SCORE FIRST)

1-3 Stansfield

WEDNESDAYS FIRT GOAL TIME

56

ATTENDANCE

21212

BML LEAGUE

Owlkev 16
Imre 16
SCO 10
Washington 9
Maddix 8

BMPL

Stateside 14
Pei 0
Wereham -11
Southey -12

OTHER GAMES OF MILD INTEREST

Charlton Athletic v Derby Co
Coventry City v Millwall
Ipswich Town v Bristol City
Oxford United v Queens Park Rangers
Preston North End v Hull City

HHHDH

THE MUPPETT LEAGUE.

2 points for correct result
4 points for correct score
2 points for each correct scorer
Correct joker doubles your score   (correct score on a joker would give you 8 points)
Wrong joker result gives you minus 2
Correct Badger gives you 2 points

The prize for winning the league is one rep point.

Cup games: In the event of a draw, it's half the points if you've predicted a draw when it gets to 90 mins and the full points if it's still a draw after extra time. Half the points will be awarded for correctly predicting the winner of the match if it goes to penalties. However, if you do predict a draw and it's a match that won't be going to a replay, you can get a possible extra point by stating which of the two teams you think will eventually win.

Random score generator: I will be using the random score generator again for those who miss predicting, so we shouldn't get some people too far behind that after missing a couple of weeks they lose all interest, because I know it's not easy getting on here every week.
To be fair to everybody, this is going to be like, say if three people in one week miss their predictions, the first one in the table will be given all 0-0, the second one down the line will get 1-0 and the third will get 0-1 and so on, like if there's four missing the 4th will get 1-1, then 5th 2-1, 6th 1-2. and if there are so many missing, might as well pack in.
And if you miss two weeks on the trot, I'll stop until you come back on again. Not doing it for half a season like I did t'other year.  


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 Twixtmas fixtures and the NYD fixtures.

The second season will start the following week, which is usually the FA Cup 3rd round, finishing on the last game of the League One 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 League One fixtures and bonus matches, hopefully around ten, eleven or twelve games per Matchday.

The random badger is restricted to three goal scorers in any of the fixtures in your group.

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.

Postponed matches will only count if the match is re-played before the next Matchday is under way. Abandoned matches will be awarded half the points for the score at the time of abandonment, so 1 point if you have the correct result, 2 points if you have the correct score.

Substitute or scorer in one of the Town games:- These will be only be allowed if you change them before the match involved has kicked off.

Prediction League Archive: https://www.sportsbabble.co.uk/showthread.php?tid=12830

Division One table after Matchday 2:

1. neonfoxinthebox = 41 pts
   
2. ritchiebaby = 41 pts
   
3. Baggiebob(BBB) = 31 pts
   
4. jjamez = 30 pts
   
5. Lord Snooty = 28 pts
   
6. theo_luddite = 27 pts
   

Friday 23rd January:
Championship:
Derby County v West Bromwich Albion (20:00)

Saturday 24th January:
League One:
Town v Bradford City (12:30)
Town scorers:
City scorers:

Scottish Premiership:
Falkirk v Hibernian

Monday 26th January:
Premier League:
Everton v Leeds United (20:00)

Tuesday 27th January:
League One:
Town v Luton
Town scorers:
Luton scorers:

Blackpool v Stockport County
Bolton Wanderers v Burton Albion
Cardiff City v Barnsley
Lincoln City v Bradford City
Plymouth Argyle v Mansfield Town
Port Vale v AFC Wimbledon
Rotherham United v Northampton Town
Stevenage v Peterborough United
Wycombe Wanderers v Wigan Athletic
Doncaster Rovers v Leyton Orient (20:00)
Reading v Exeter City (20:00)

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

1. themaclad = 40 pts
   
2. St Charles Owl = 38 pts
   
3. SHEP_HTAFC = 30 pts
   
4. Devongone = 24 pts
   
5. Amelia Chaffinch = 22 pts
   
6. WakeyTerrier = 18 pts
   

Saturday 24th January:
League One:
Town v Bradford City (12:30)
Town scorers:
City scorers:

Cardiff City v Stockport County (12:30)
Plymouth Argyle v Luton Town (12:30)
Blackpool v Northampton Town
Bolton Wanderers v Leyton Orient
Doncaster Rovers v Wigan Athletic
Port Vale v Exeter City
Reading v Barnsley
Rotherham United v AFC Wimbledon
Stevenage v Mansfield Town
Wycombe Wanderers v Peterborough United

Championship:
Middlesbrough v Preston North End (12:30)
Bristol City v Sheffield Wednesday

Sunday 25th January:
Premier League:
Arsenal v Manchester United (16:30)

Tuesday 27th January:
League One:
Town v Luton
Town scorers:
Luton scorers:

League Two:
Salford City v Chesterfield

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

The 2025/26 Prediction League Cup will kick off next week, it was won by Zinman the last time we did it and he achieved the League and Cup double in the process, not likely this year I'm afraid!! The same set of fixtures and scores from each chosen week will count towards each round of the Cup. League points are not affected, they still count towards the league tables as they always do.

After our recent Board meeting we decided to once again make each round a random one on one, two legged match just like the real cup competitions.

Last 16 matches will take place over 2 legs during weeks 22 & 24.

Quarter Finals will be over 2 legs using weeks 26 & 28.

The winners of those then meet in 2 legged semi finals in weeks 30 & 32.

The final will be a straight sudden death result using the last weeks league fixtures for scoring.

An online random number sequence generator machine was used to determine the first round ties and will also be used for the random draw for each round, here are the first set of ties:

Round of 16

Stairs v BaggieVicar
Amelia v Salop
AAA v BaggieOne
Twerton v Themaclad
Zinman v 4eva
Lady Jane v SCO
BBB v Lord Snooty
Derby v Minizin

In the event of a tie between players, the number of Correct Scores over the two legs will determine the winner, followed by total points scored on the Bonus Ball. After that Zinman and I will toss a coin!!!!

Scores and the draw for each round will be updated on this thread as we go through the competition.

Cheers Zinman & SCO

Group A

B.B.B. 11
Stairs 7
BaggieVicar 6
A.A.A. 0
Zimnan 0
Minizin -1
Twerton -2
BaggieOne -2

Wow!! After lasts week’s 3rd highest score of the season, Group A decided to set a new lowest week of the season with just 19 points scored!! Not a single point was scored on the Gamball or the Bonus Ball, and only 3 players picked up the single scoreball point. Four games ended with negative scores and had it not been for the Swansea-Brum game this weeks total would have been in single figures!!

BBB definitely took advantage of everyone else’s woes and posted a decent 11 points. He scored 3 CSs but his season long weakness on the balls meant his score was lower than it could have been!! This is the first time he has topped the weekly table since week 1. Stairs is 2nd with 7 points mainly because of the 2 CSs he got. BaggieVicar is 3rd with 6 points, this is the 7th time in the last 10 weeks he has been in the top 3 and he is definitely the form player currently.

After the top 3, the remaining 5 players scored a combined -5 points!!! AAA and Zinman at least didn’t get a negative against them but Minizin, Twerton and BaggieOne all posted negative scores. AAA, BaggieOne and Minzin all set season low scores this week.

230 Minizin
221 Stairs
201 BaggieVicar
198 A.A.A.
185 BaggieOne
175 B.B.B.
171 Twerton
171 Zinman

A few changes this week, Minizin still leads but Stairs is now only 9 points behind, a gap that was 22 points a few weeks ago. BaggieVicar passes the double century and takes over 3rd spot with his fine recent form, relegating AAA to 4th. BBB’s top spot this week sees him jump 2 places over Zinman and Twerton, who now share last place.

Cheers
SCO


Group B

Lady Jane 11
Salop 8
SCO 8
Snooty 5
Themaclad 4
4eva 4
Derby 3
Amelia 0

After last week's scoring bonanza, it was back down to earth with a bump as Group B recorded their third lowest total of the season, amassing just 43 points. It was a very bad week for balls - no correct gamballs and just 1 correct bonus. I must admit to being surprised that the gamball came into play this week. When I saw that Sheffield United had had 2 players sent off in the first half, I assumed that they'd get 3 more players to walk off and get the match abandoned. Joining the gamball in providing a negative total are the Oxford/Bristol and Burton/Hudds fixtures - nobody scored on those games and they also blew a few bonuses.

For the 3rd time in the last 4 weeks, Lady Jane sits on top of the pile as the only player to reach double figures. She stood out gaining the equal highest number of correct scores (2) and the highest number of correct results (5). Unfortunately those balls prevented her from having a real stand-out week. Salop remains the only player not to top a weekly table but this was his 2nd week in 2nd place. He was the other player with 2 correct scores, but like most others his balls were a complete failure. Salop's joined on 8 points by SCO and once again it was his bonus ball that saved him. He now has 33 points from his bonus, 15 more than the next best and a whopping 57 more than Derby!

Not much to say about the rest. Snooty, Themaclad and 4eva matched SCO's split of 1 correct score/3 correct results but missed out on the main balls. Snooty edges ahead of the other 2 thanks to the extra scoreball point. Derby scored just 3 points, once again failing to get a correct score (the only player to miss out) - that's now 13 weeks with a zero in the correct score column for him, but he was kept off the foot of the table by Amelia. Zero points for her as she only scored on one game - fortunately, that was a correct score or she'd have firmly been in negative territory.

219 4eva
197 SCO
181 Lady Jane
162 Themaclad
157 Snooty
149 Derby
141 Amelia
140 Salop

No changes in the overall table though at the bottom Salop is just 1 point away from Amelia.

Zin


Keep an eye out for the start of the 2025/26 PL Cup Completion thread. No need to post scores on it as we will use the weekly scores in a head to head competition.

https://www.htafc.com/news/2026/january/...lee-grant/
Lee Grant has been relieved of his duties as Huddersfield Town Manager with immediate effect.

The decision was made following Saturday afternoon’s loss at Burton Albion, with the result extending a poor run of form that has seen the Club victorious just three times in our last 12 Sky Bet League One fixtures.

Appointed in May 2025, Grant took charge of 36 competitive matches in all competitions.

Huddersfield Town Owner and Chairman Kevin Nagle commented:

“Entering this season with renewed optimism and hope having proactively reshaped our First Team throughout the summer, we were clear about not only our ambitions but how we wanted to achieve them, and the type of team on the pitch we wanted to enjoy alongside our supporters.

“Sadly, on current form, none of those objectives are being met, and with just under half of the season remaining we feel no other option but to make a change to put the side back on track. I would like to thank Lee for his efforts and wish him nothing but the best for his future career. Our previously stated aims and desires for the season remain the same, and we will be making a change with those ambitions still firmly in mind.”

Sporting Director Chris Markham will lead the recruitment process to appoint a successor for our Men’s First Team.

Gamball:
QPR - Wrexham

Others:
West Ham - Sunderland
Burnley - Spurs
Fulham - Brighton
Birmingham - Stoke
Blackburn - Watford
Sheff Utd - Ipswich
Huddersfield - Bradford
Crystal Palace - Chelsea
Newcastle - Villa

New year, new manager: a situation that feels strangely familiar. Mercifully, this time the club have acted quickly and decisively to replace Ryan Mason, and so with a handy cup win under our belt to buoy the mood around the club, newcomer Eric Ramsay can at least approach tonight's baptism of fire with a dash of positivity.

He may need it, because even on home soil, second-placed Middlesbrough are liable to be a tough nut. Although Kim Hellberg struggled over the festive season to maintain the red-hot form Boro had enjoyed before the departure of Rob Edwards, beating Southampton 4-0 was the perfect start to their year, and having Ipswich hard on their heels will doubtless be all the motivation they need to keep the momentum going. Albion's best hope lies in Boro's makeshift defence, immensely depleted by injuries and perhaps vulnerable to a forward like Heggebo, but realistically we ourselves also have to be tighter at the back than we've been for months, and for that reason a draw is probably as good as we can hope for.

No such leeway can be afforded when Norwich visit on Tuesday night, where Ramsay has to aim for his first win and give Albion a little bit of breathing space for the remainder of the month. Anything less, and it'll be tough times ahead.

Paul Hurst has returned to manage National League side Boston United almost 15 years after he left the club.

The 51-year-old, who replaces Graham Coughlan, was joint boss of the Pilgrims with Rob Scott before the pair resigned to take the Grimsby job together in 2011.

Hurst went on manage Ipswich Town and Scunthorpe United and had two spells with Grimsby and Shrewsbury Town, where he most recently worked.

His second spell in Shropshire ended in November 2024 after nine months.

Boston chairman David Newton said he was "delighted" to have Hurst back, but was quick acknowledge that "some will point to the way" the manager left the non-league side more than a decade ago.

"I had no issue with their ambition to manage at a higher level – but did not feel that it was done in the correct manner," Newton told the club website., external

"The matter was dealt with at the time – and the club received the right compensation for their move.

"That drew a line under things for me, and I was delighted when Paul continued to bring teams over for pre-season fixtures, and we have kept in touch ever since."


Hurst and Scott guided Boston to promotion to what is now known as National League North.

They were second in the division when the pair stepped down to join Grimsby.

Hurst's return to Lincolnshire with Boston sees him take the helm of a side that is 17th in the table, four places and three points above the relegation places.

A five-game winless league run cost Coughlan his job, with the Irishman departing following Saturday's 0-0 draw at Braintree Town.

Coughlan's assistant Lee Bullen has since also left, with Hurst bringing in Chris Doig as his number two.

"This is a key appointment for the club as we seek to not only cement our place in the National League but hopefully build on that going forward," Newton said.

THE MATCH

SATURDAY 17TH JANUARY KO 3PM

v

LAST MATCH



Unsurprisingly, we were knocked out of the FA Cup at the 3rd round stage by Premier League Brentford. We manged to keep them out for half an hour when Lewis Potter who had hit the bar earlier scored from close range following a set piece. We didn't offer much in the way of a response as Brentford were controlling the game and had other chances to increase the lead. Onto the 2nd half and the game carried on in similar pattern but Brentford couldn't find the second. They did eventually make it 2 after a foul by McGhee in the box and Jenson clinically fired past Stretch after Charles had to go off injured. The Bees had other chances to make the win more emphatic but we managed to keep it to 0-2.

DEJPHON CHANSIRI, GET OUT OF OUR CLUB    

THE MATCH



Next up and Portsmouth head north to Hillsborough. Pompey are the only team we have managed to beat in the league this season, 0-2 with goals from Bannan and Brown. Portsmouth are struggling in the league and are just 1 point above the relegation zone. Its going to be a battle for them to stay up and there home form might be the key to see if they can avoid the dreaded drop and not join us in league one next season. They are managed by John Mousinho who has been in charge since January 2023 and in his second season in charge got Portsmouth promoted to the Championship. There leading scorer this season is Segecic who has 4 goals so far this season.

DEJPHON CHANSIRI, GET OUT OF OUR CLUB    

ALL TIME H2H

OWLS 30
PORT 27
DRAW 17

CURRENT FORM

OWLS     L L D D L L                                                            

PORT L W D D W L

EFL STOOGES

DOES IT MATTER THERE ALL CORRUPT  

JOHN BUSBY
Daniel Leach and Matthew McGrath
Fourth Official: Anthony Backhouse

THE TEAM

Charles
Palmer McGhee Emery Otegbayo Johnson
Thornton Ingelsson Bannan
McNeill Cadamarteri

SCORE & SCORER (HOME TEAM SCORE FIRST)

1-1 McNeill

WEDNESDAYS FIRT GOAL TIME

56

ATTENDANCE

23212

BML LEAGUE

Owlkev 16
Imre 16
SCO 10
Washington 9
Maddix 8

BMPL

Stateside 12
Pei 0
Wereham -11
Southey -12

OTHER GAMES OF MILD INTEREST

Sunderland v Crystal Palace
Oxford v Bristol City
Luton v Lincoln
Accrington v MK Dons
Truro v Tamworth

HADAH

THE MUPPETT LEAGUE