X11 season 45 - de rigueur Mortis

[Antepli Ejderha]

All four players I've put on the transfer market have attracted bids already, I know the prices and estimated values are all over the shop but three of the four have attracted multiple bids.

[jdsx]

Not a very good CR for Gastele. I knew quite a few of the veterans were near the top of their ranges and was hoping several would just get up to the next skill level and I could sell them. Unfortunately, only MF Harriet Alander went up (from 17 to 18). I'm putting my reserve GK (25/12) and one D up for sale (33/17) - even though the latter is a very high 17. May sell Alander before the season starts! My 5-star academy produced a 20/4 youth today... Might have to have a total rebuild but I'm not sure I can face the long slog back....!

[Janik]

X11 Ladies Season 56 Matchday 14 and play-offs report. Another season concludes…

Division 1a

Gastelle                1 - 1   Mosshagen United LFC
Alsegård 42'                    Lindqvist 58'


Division 3d

Drakaina                2 - 2   Careerwoman Blues
Gitsis 65'                      Beasley 1'
Barry 67'                       Mihailovic 89'

Gazzas Gals             0 - 1   Viking South Utsira
                                E.Klovning 64'


Division 4j

Coxy Ladies Wulpen      1 - 0   Merched Efo Peli
Kabasele 54'


Division 4k

Bethanys Binos          0 - 1   Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
                                Navisyah 90'
Jameson (sent off) 57'


Division 5:17

LNWR Locomotive         1 - 1   Slytherin LFC
Teigland 87'                    MacFee 3'
Teigland (missed pen) 68'


Division 5:19

Annie Power             1 - 1   Ullapool Northern Star
McMulligan 83'                  Wendel 52'


Division 5:27

Empire Of The Sun       2 - 1   Menywod Maeshafn
Higgenbotham 22'                Boye 67'
Chereches 34'


Division 5:31

Csiki Girls             5 - 0   The Girls Dream Team
Neaves 12'
Biancolino (O.G.) 21'
Strouts 29'
Birch 72', 87'


Division 6:54

Zeugma Dostluk Spor     0 - 1   Haruhiists
                                Zhirkova 45'

Defeat on the penultimate weekend of the campaign had ended Gastelle’s unlikely surge towards a late promotion and left them in a relegation battle instead. Jdsx’s side’s fate was in their own hands, but it was precarious – a win against Mosshagen United LFC would guarantee safety by dint of leapfrogging their opponents, anything less and it would come down to other results. Which were not likely to be in Gastelle’s favour.
The crowd at The Lemon Grove were treating it as a relegation decider for sure. They were up in arms early on when star striker Odette Diarra was fouled and crumpled into a heap. Some minutes of treatment later she left the field on a stretcher, and would subsequently be confirmed as having sustained a 26-day injury. With no forwards on the bench, Diarra was replaced by defender Blenda Alsegård – far from ideal in the circumstances.
However, from adversity can come triumph. And so it was for Gastelle as it was Alsegård who rose above everyone to head in Fernanda Perdao’s 42nd minute cross. Gastelle deserved the lead at that stage, but they opted to try and hold on to it rather than build further. And this proved an error as Mosshagen equalised on 58 minutes. The hosts never found their mojo again, the nearest to an additional goal being a disallowed effort for the visitors in the last minute of the 90.
That left the hosts checking phones nervously. Would bottom side Cutty Sark Girls get something, anything, at FC Linköping Calcio? Sadly no. The game was close, but the hosts won it 1-0. And that meant Gastelle slipped back to sixth in the Division 1a table at just the wrong time. A side who arguably should have been challenging for promotion to the top flight ultimately relegated to the third tier because of an absentee boss for a key part of the campaign.

Gastelle’s demise means they may well share a Division next term with Drakaina. The Dragons were already assured of the Division 3d title ahead of their final game against second-placed side Careerwoman Blues, who needed a win to be sure of a play-off place as they only had a point advantage over third-placed Gazzas Girls. More on whom later…
Drakaina boss Etienne was using the opportunity to gain some last minute DV points for younger players, which may explain the early confusion in his backline that led to the Blues taking the lead inside a minute! It stayed that way until midway through the second half, when two goals in three minutes from Elena Gitsis (65) and Susanna Barry (67) turned things on its head.
The visitors levelled again late on, but a draw meant they were relying on Viking South Utsira getting a result at Gazzas Gals.
The Blood Eagles may only be a mid-table side, but they came into this one like a house on fire. The first half was all Velvet Android’s side. They didn’t score during it, but that only prompted further attacks after the break, which eventually paid off in the 64th minute, Emilie Klovning firing home. And that was all she wrote, which meant Gazzas missed out on the play-off.
Drakaina end the season champions by four points. VSU ended fifth, four points clear of the drop and four adrift of the play-off.

The season wrapped up for Coxy Ladies Wulpen with a dead rubber fixture against relegated Merched Efo Peli.
About the only point of interest was whether Janik’s side could get revenge for an opening day defeat. They did, Jessica Kabasele getting the only goal of the game on 54 minutes. That, and a Man-of-the-Match display from Waders ‘keeper Sarah Asselman, were enough to seal one last victory.
That lifted Wulpen up to fourth in the final Division 4j table.

There was rather more riding on Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC’s trip to Bethanys Binos.
Not particularly for the hosts, who were preparing for a play-off either way, but certainly for The Sea Spirits, who were involved in a three-way tussle to avoid two relegation spots. Kanjeng came into the game a point worse off than Albion and one ahead of Propaganda. With goal differences similar, only a win was likely to do it for SeanoftheShed’s side.
Could they take advantage of the Binos treading on eggshells ahead of their play-off game? Well no, because, bizarrely, that isn’t how the hosts approached it. Instead they played hard, and paid for it when Kirsteen Jameson was shown a straight red card on 57 minutes. Either side of that the Binos had a Paulina Björkholts strike disallowed and also lost a player to a red cross injury. 0/10 for preparation, then!
Following the dismissal The Sea Goddesses through the kitchen sink at the Binos in search of the breakthrough. And with time nearly up, indeed in the 90th minute, they found it, Catur Navisyah heading home. That relegated Propaganda, and meant Kanjeng would stay up as long as Albion didn’t beat champions Stirling Stallions. As long as… 1-0 to Albion at the break, 3-0 at full time. The Indonesians have returned to Division 5.

LNWR Locomotive had a nominal chance of automatic promotion going into their final game Slytherin LFC, but it was a long shot. It entailed winning their game, preferably by two cler goals, and hoping Erbil failed to do likewise. And Erbil were playing the bottom club.
First of all, The Steamers had to worry about their end of the deal. It didn’t start well, Slytherin going ahead in the 3rd minute. That was still the score at half-time, but there was still hope as news filtered through from Westeros that Erbil were being held 0-0.
Viktor Boskovic’s team kept pushing for a leveller, step one of the turn around, and had a great opportunity when they were awarded a penalty in the 68th minute. However, Maja Teigland was unable to convert from the spot. And anyway, by this stage Erbil were 2-0 up in their game. Teigland made up for her miss with a leveller on 87 minutes, though that went in as news broke of Erbil’s third, even though they were down to 10 women.
So the play-offs it was for Locomotive, after what has been a good campaign in Division 5:17.

There was nothing much riding on the last game of the season as far as Ullapool Northern Star were concerned. That wasn’t the case for opponents Annie Power, though. Northern Star’s hosts were looking for the point they needed to secure automatic promotion.
The home side’s approach was understandably cautious – Ullapool were denied even a glimpse of the home goal until the 52nd minute. But when they finally did get a sighter, delicatemoth’s side went ahead, Vanja Wendel firing home. The other game was going against Annie Power as well, and from the hour mark their promotion was resting on just +1 Goal Difference. What they needed desperately was a leveller, and that is what they got in the 83rd minute.
1-1 satisfied everyone with the game drifting to a conclusion thereafter. The draw was enough to jump Star one place up so that they occupied 3rd in the final Division 5:19 table. That is a more than reasonable showing in their first season since promotion.

Menywod Maeshafn position going into the final day of the campaign was stark. They had to match Racing 92 da Feira’s result and better Jocvijeve Zecice’s one to survive in Division 5:27.
The good news for Maeshafn was their opponents for that final match were bottom of the table and long since relegated Empire Of The Sun, who were without a win all season. The bad was that Empire Of The Sun were determined not to end with a blank in the W column, and went about avoiding it in very competent fashion. IsThatcherDeadYet’s side found themselves 2-0 down after 34 minutes, and though they improved after that, pulling one back through Lisha Boye midway through the second-half, the Welsh side couldn’t recover the situation completely.
As it happened that did match what Racing did. Better it in fact, if a 2-1 away reverse is better than a 2-0 home defeat. And it wouldn’t have been possible to better Zecice, seeing as they beat the runners-up in the Division. Maeshafn were down regardless of their score. They end up sixth.

[Janik]

Csiki Girls were in theory involved in a four-way promotion drama on the last day of the Division 5:31 campaign, where any of the sides could go up automatically or miss out completely. In practice, the Csiki’s were playing strugglers The Girls Dream Team and could basically render the encounter between 3rd and 4th academic. Which is exactly what they did, in pretty short order.
Robin Neaves made it 1-0 on 12 minutes with a long-range daisy-cutter. Florenza Biancolino turned through her own net on 21 and Hillary Strouts made it three with 29 on the clock with her first career strike.
That winning position meant The Csiki could regard their play-off spot as secure, but for extra embellishment Georgia Birch added an extra couple of strikes after the break. That took any pressure off after Bethany Austin had been forced off with a 12-day knock. But would it be enough for automatic? The scenario here was also straightforward – if the Csiki’s won, which they were clearly going to by the interval, then FC Universitatea Cluj had to do the same to avoid being usurped at the last.
However, it was clearly apparent by half-time that Cluj were also going to win, as they were 2-0 up and dominating their game. It would go on to finish 4-0, leaving the Csiki’s second in the final 5:31 standings and preparing for a play-off.

The play-offs were also the target for Zeugma Dostluk Spor, as they hosted the only team who could stop them, Haruhiists. And that was a long shot – the visitors to the Insan Haklari Stadyumu needed not only to win, but to do so by six clear goals to overturn a large goal difference margin against them.
That was never going to happen to anybody, much less to a side from the Zeugma franchise. There was a tiny flutter when Haruhiists made it 1-0 on the stroke of half-time, but that died away quickly as the visitors were denied so much as another shot in the game. ZDS couldn’t level however, and finished on a loss.
That left Antepli Ejderha’s charges second in Division 6:54 on goal difference. And looking forward to a play-off and another chance of elevation.

Qualification for Division 4

Csiki Girls             0 - 2   Stark House Ladies
                                Frykman 1', 59'
Gordon (sent off) 88'

LNWR Locomotive         0 - 2   Victims
                                Kjartansdottir 1'
                                Clarkson 53'


Qualification for Division 5

Spondon Ladies          2 - 0   Zeugma Dostluk Spor
Kamstra 12'
Vessel 80'
Benjamin (sent off) 66'

Csiki Girls play-off for a spot i Division 4 pitted them against Stark House Ladies of Division 5:5.
The Csiki’s had the better overall record so started as favourites. That tag didn’t even last 60 seconds as within the first minute Start House had taken the lead. Ad hoc’s side threw the kitchen sink at their opponents, creating a string of chances but found the massed Stark House defence impenetrable. They were also exposed on the break, which proved costly when their opponents added a killer second on 59 minutes.
It all proved too much for Csiki’s defender Francesca Gordon, who earned herself a second yellow card of the day in the 88th minute and first go at the Xpert Arena showers.

LNWR Locomotive were also aiming for the fifth tier, when they took on uncomfortably named side Victims, from Division 5:9 [I should note that their manager also runs an official men’s side with the same moniker].
And just as with Csiki Girls, this was all going wrong from basically the opening kick-off. Within seconds, The Steamers were 1-0 down. And Viktor Boskovic’s outfit never really looked likely to recover from that. Victims made it 2-0 on 53 minutes, and that was all she wrote for Locomotive. It will be another season in Division 5, then.

That is what Zeugma Dostluk Spor were aiming for when they took on Spondon Ladies of Division 6:20.
With this one, it was Zeugma who thought they had the very early boost, Stacey Bell turning home in just the 2nd minute. However the goal was disallowed to the frustration of AntepliEjderha and his coaching staff. That was compounded when Spondon’s effort on 12 minutes stood.
Zeugma reached the break a goal down, but struggling. However they got a boost midway through the second half when Spondon’s Guadalupe Benjamin ‘discussed’ a decision too vehemently with the ref and was sent-off. Could AE’s side take advantage of playing against 10? Er, no, it was Spondon who scored again on 80 minutes, and it was they who went up.

[Etienne]

So 1 promotion, 3 lost play-offs and 3 relegations? Not a great season for the OTF Ladies contingent.

[Sits]

Looks like I'll be able to shed a team shortly. The Admin of the u23 Premiership is dropping that league at season's end next month. That gives me a guilt free "out". I've already quit that league twice previously so didn't want to let him down again. He's advertised for a replacement but no bugger's put their hand up so sod 'em.

That will leave eight teams...

[Janik]

And then there were 10. As far as I know. Please flag up if I’ve missed anyone!
The small band of OTFers competing in the official Xpert 11 Ladies Leagues will get underway with Cup R1 ties tomorrow. This is who they will face.


Round 1 draw - first listed teams home in opening leg

Drone Queens (6:60)          vs   Drakaina
hook bk dam (6:19)           vs   Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
Kenty DFF (6:10)             vs   Coxy Ladies Wulpen
Kreshnik Ladies FF (6:38)    vs   Csiki Girls
Kiss FC (6:42)               vs   LNWR Locomotive
Racing 92 da Feira (6:26)    vs   Viking South Utsira
Rävarna BK (5:8)             vs   Menywod Maeshafn
RZ Ladies (6:11)             vs   Gastelle
The Supremes (6:44)          vs   Ullapool Northern Star
Zeugma Dostluk Spor          vs   Åshöjden BK (5:10)

Most of our sides are the higher seeds and therefore away in the opening leg, and most will play Division 6 opponents. Just two exceptions to these rules, in fact.
Drakaina, newly promoted to the third tier, open their campaign at Drone Queens from Division 6:60. The hosts actually have a manager. It shouldn’t matter.
The first step of Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC’s climb back from relegation is a trip to Division 6:19 outfit hook bk dam, or The Lower Case Affectations, as they are known by their fans.
Coxy Ladies Wulpen have the first of the managerless opponents when they take on Kenty DFF of Division 6:10. Should be a cinch.
The same for Csiki Girls as they head for their opening leg to Kreshnik Ladies FF of Division 6:38 and no Merc in the manager’s space.
An active boss will confront LNWR Locomotive, who may be a Division above Kiss FC but will need to battle to set things up for the return at Mollington Street against a useful side.
Viking South Utsira are also playing human flesh-and-blood in the boss of Racing 92 da Feira, who are now in Division 6:26. Sexist thicko flesh-and-blood, though. Go VSU!
Our first deviation sees Menywod Maeshafn paired with Division 5:8 side Rävarna BK. Despite the Welsh team being in the lower Division they are the higher seeds, so at home for the second leg.
The biggest mismatch of the round looks to be Gastelle against Division 6:11 zombies RZ Ladies. I’m predicting 7-0 in the away opener, possibly by half-time.
Ullapool Northern Star are the seeds against The Supremes of Division 6:44. That means the second leg is at Minchview.
And finally our only non-seeded side, Zeugma Dostluk Spor, have a winnable tie against Åshöjden BK of Division 5:10.

[Janik]

X11 Ladies Season 57 Matchday 1 report. Another chapter opens.

Division 2b

Drakaina                2 - 0   Fembots
Beattie (pen) 34'
Gitsis 76'

FC Sprezzatura          3 - 0   Gastelle
Axén 26', 79'
de Faria 89'


Division 3e

Viking South Utsira     2 - 1   Deportivo Cruz Azul
N.Austrheim 61'                 Nosworthy 64'
T.Kvalvik 80'


Division 4i

Coxy Ladies Wulpen      2 - 0   Fair Maidens of FISO
Kerckhoeven 19'
Gerniers 77'


Division 5:16

SLB Femenino            1 - 1   LNWR Locomotive
Kleiner 19'                     Reisinho 61'


Division 5:19

The Devilettes          1 - 3   Ullapool Northern Star
Panza 43'                       Kha 59'
                                Menashi 78'
                                Barkho 80'


Division 5:21

Aveley Ladies F.C       0 - 4   Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
                                Sangaji 21', 55'
Strängby (sent off) 53'         Pailloux 57'
                                Luangpruksachat 80'


Division 5:32

Csiki Girls             2 - 0   Crazy Lady
Neaves 63'
Woozley 85'


Division 6:53

Zeugma Dostluk Spor     5 - 0   Arslan
Kulakova 15'
Veziroglu 25', 62'
Bell 38'
Özköylü 80'


Division 6:56

Menywod Maeshafn        1 - 0   Iron empress
Bellamont 18'

2b or not 2b… OK, OK, I’ve done that one before. But some references may be hard to resist. But let’s start in more prosaic fashion by noting that Drakaina’s debut at this level after promotion last term saw them host Fembots.
It would prove to be a successful afternoon for The Dragons. Etienne’s side would deny the visitors so much as a shot, and manage a few enterprises of great pitch and moment themselves. These had consummation twice, Roseanne Beattie converting from the spot on 54 minutes and Elena Gitsis sealing the win after 76 on a breakaway, which fitted well with the wishes of the Delphinian devout. In between Laria Sietaridis had had a goal disallowed, which left her bewailing the slings and… well, you get the picture!
This Division possesses two OTF sides this season, the only one that is true of in fact, as Gastelle are also involved. Jdsx’s side began their attempt to bounce straight back to Division 1 with a visit FC Sprezzatura.
This was far from an easy start, given that Sprezzatura have finished third in this section for the past three seasons. And it would prove not to be Gastelle’s day. 1-0 down at the interval after the hosts shaded the first half, they were given a bit of a chasing after the interval to end up suffering a comprehensive 3-0 reverse.

Also in a new Division, but after a move sideways in this case, were Viking South Utsira. Their first game in Division 3e pitted them against a fellow transfer from 3d, Deportivo Cruz Azul.
The match would prove to be an even contest with little between the teams at any stages. It was all square at the interval, The Blood Eagles having the only chance of the first half, but began to open up after the break with both teams getting openings. It was Viking who took the lead however, Nina Austrheim firing home in the 61st minute.
Cruz Azul swiftly levelled, but in the end all the points would go to Velvet Android’s side after Tove Kvalvik headed an 80th minute winner. A draw may have been fairer, though if any team shaded the match it was VSU.

Also moving sideways were Coxy Ladies Wulpen, who now find themselves in Division 4i. The Waders opening game of this was a home one against promoted outfit Fair Maidens of FISO.
The match would prove to be an open encounter, with ample chances at both ends. But not equally distributed; Coxy Ladies would create two openings for every one by their visitors. That difference, and good ‘keeping from Man-of-the-Match Sarah Asselman, would prove to be enough for Janik’s side to claim the win. Asselman saw off all four shots she faced, whilst of the eight Wulpen fashioned two were finished off, Noémie Kerckhoeven heading home after 19 minutes and Sandrine Gerniers scoring directly from a free-kick on 77.

Also moving sideways were LNWR Locomotive, which is a pretty impressive trick if you stop to think about it... The Steamers new depot is Division 5:16, with the first stop on the new timetable being at fellow 5:17 transfers SLB Femenino.
These two had been in competition for promotion last season before Locomotive puffed off into the distance, which made this a challenging start to the new campaign for Viktor Boskovic’s girls. Particularly after SLB went 1-0 up on 19 minutes. LNWR found the ball hard to find for much of the game having just 40% possession, but when they did get hold of it they created as many chances as their hosts. Which makes Flávia Reisinho’s 61st minute equaliser to force the draw feel like a reasonable final outcome.

No change for Ullapool Northern Star, who began their second straight Division 5:19 campaign with a trip to newly promoted side The Devilettes.
Suzy Bastock had a 10th minute effort disallowed for the Scots as the hosts competed in the opening 45 minutes. Indeed they went ahead just before the interval. Delicatemoth’s side didn’t panic however, levelling just before the hour mark via Ninorta Kha’s direct free-kick and then ramping up the pressure. It told in the 78th minute, Sonia Menashi firing home. With that the hosts heads dropped, which allowed Zebela Barkho to swiftly head home another and kill the game.

Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC’s return to Division 5 level after relegation sees them in 5:21. Sea Spirits boss SeanoftheShed will be determined the stay only lasts for a single season. The first step in reversing last term’s outcome was a visit to Aveley Ladies F.C.
The hosts provide a handy yardstick after finishing fourth in this section last term. And the initial evidence is The Sea Goddesses are in for a good campaign as they rattled up a 4-0 scoreline. There is a slight caveat to that, though. The visitors were certainly on top for the first 50-odd minutes, deserving their 1-0 lead through Utami Sangaji’s 21st minute strike, but a straight red for the hosts Lydia Strängby on 53 minutes definitely made things easier.
Within four minutes of it becoming 11 vs 10 it was 3-0, Sangaji netting her second direct free-kick of the day and Adèle Pailloux finding the target. Those goals ended the game as a contest, with the only notable incident in the remaining time being Thao-Ap Luangpruksachat getting her name on the scoresheet.

Another side to shift across to a parallel section is Csiki Girls, who are now in Division 5:32. Their opening match saw them welcome a Crazy Lady who were newly promoted to A kertem.
The hosts dominated possession for minutes on end, finishing the game with nearly two-thirds of the ball, but found their visitors hard to break down. Indeed they had only had a single shot come the hour mark. However their second effort on the day three minutes after that produced the opening goal for Robin Neaves. The next opportunity for ad hoc’s side (indeed for either side) came 5 minutes from time when Trudy Woozley lined up a free-kick. This shot also found the target to make the final score 2-0. A good start.

Zeugma Dostluk Spor are in Division 6:53 this season rather than 6:54. Their first opponents in that were Arslan.
One look at the visitors situation said what the outcome of this game would be. They are utterly rubbish (one 8-rated player, on 7-rated and everyone else 6 or lower), and have no manager. The game was exactly the cakewalk for Antepli Ejderha’s side that one would expect in the circumstances. The final total was 5-0, Veronika Kulakova getting the opener on 15 minutes, Candan Veziroglu netting twice with Stacey Bell and Suzan Özköylü also on target.

Menywod Maeshafn are also back at this level after a shock relegation last term. They will be competing and hopefully winning Division 6:56. The first opponent to defeat for the Welsh side was Iron empress.
Justine Bellamont gave IsThatcherDeadYet’s side a good start on 18 minutes. After that, and with their team dominating possession, the Maeshafn fans waited for the floodgates to open. They never did, but as it happened that opening strike was enough to secure the win anyway.

[Janik]

The official Ladies League Cup, Season 57, Round 1. Turkey Shoot? Maybe not…

Drone Queens            1 - 4   Drakaina
Ahlstedt 11'                    Beattie (pen) 33'
                                Barry 37'
                                Petit 58', 82'

Drakaina                3 - 0   Drone Queens
Barry 32'
Heggarty 34'
Vulturescu 87'

Drakaina win 7-1 on aggregate



hook bk dam             0 - 1   Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
                                Dalmiya 78'

Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC  6 - 0   hook bk dam
Dalmiya 1', 50', 78', 92'
Pailloux 8'
Borot 52'

Kanjeng win 7-0 on aggregate



Kenty DFF               0 - 3   Coxy Ladies Wulpen
                                Gerniers 6'
                                Roosens 77'
                                Kleiners 82'

Coxy Ladies Wulpen      4 - 0   Kenty DFF
Gerniers 3'
Charlotte Beyen 26', 87'
Roosens 40'

Wulpen win 7-0 on aggregate



Kreshnik Ladies FF      0 - 4   Csiki Girls
                                Granheim 3', 15'
                                Crampsey 21'
                                Smet 60'

Csiki Girls             5 - 0   Kreshnik Ladies FF
Strouts 3', 50'
Smet 5', 79'
Austin 38'

Csiki Girls win 9-0 on aggregate



Kiss FC                 1 - 1   LNWR Locomotive
Quinn 46'                       Nixon 67'

LNWR Locomotive         2 - 0   Kiss FC
Nixon 66'
Teigland 70'

Locomotive win 3-1 on aggregate



Racing 92 da Feira      0 - 1   Viking South Utsira
                                B.Austrheim 86'

Viking South Utsira     2 - 0   Racing 92 da Feira
L.Hovland 36'
K.Hovland 55'

Viking win 3-0 on aggregate



Rävarna BK              3 - 1   Menywod Maeshafn
Reynolds 42', 66'               Lydell 49'
Sanders 90'

Menywod Maeshafn        0 - 1   Rävarna BK
                                Villmones 87'

Rävarna win 4-1 on aggregate



RZ Ladies               0 - 4   Gastelle
                                McRenton 14', 86'
                                Dickson 30'
                                Melkersson 54'

Gastelle                6 - 0   RZ Ladies
Fernanda Perdao 7', 14', 52'
McRenton 9'
Billing 30'
Riordan 65'

Gastelle win 10-0 on aggregate



The Supremes            3 - 3   Ullapool Northern Star
McDowell 4'                     Mair 11', 54'
Tobin 45'                       Almeida 56'
Kidlaw 52'

Ullapool Northern Star  2 - 1   The Supremes
Menashi 1', 25'                 Herdie 66'

Ullapool win 5-4 on aggregate



Zeugma Dostluk Spor     0 - 1   Åshöjden BK
                                Jannesson 85'

Åshöjden BK             1 - 0   Zeugma Dostluk Spor
Sjöholm 38'

Åshöjden win 2-0 on aggregate

Drakaina’s first assignment of the season was a trip to bottom tier outfit Drone Queens.
With The Dragons freshly promoted into Division 2, they were extremely strong favourites to win the tie. It was the hosts who took the lead on 11 minutes though. Was a massive shock in the offing? Er, no, though the goal did shake the Greeks for a good long while. In fact it took a penalty to draw Etienne’s side level, but from the moment Roseanne Beattie converted this in the 33rd minute, normal service was resumed.
Susanna Barry headed the visitors in front just four minutes after the leveller, Coxy Ladies Wulpen youth product adding breathing space with a third on 58 minutes. Petit moreorless sealed the overall tie with a fourth on 82 minutes, the assist coming from another player recruited from a fellow OTF managed club, Zara Kvalvik being a product of Viking South Utsira’s legendary Football factory.
The second leg always looked likely to be a formality, two goals in two minutes just after the half-hour from Barry and Gael Heggarty confirming it. Florica Vulturescu got her name on the scoresheet late on to complete the 7-1 aggregate. Next up for The Dragons will be Division 5:16 outfit The Liver; the first leg is on the road.

The Round 1 draw paired Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC with lower-case lovers hook bk dam, who play at Division 6 level.
The Sea Spirits were looking to grow their belief after relegation last term, but found their hosts oddly resilient and hard to breakdown. Indeed SeanoftheShed’s side only got away a single first half shot. The Sea Goddesses improved after the break. A little. But a little was at least enough for the away goal and first leg lead, Diksha Dalmiya steering home the game’s only strike on 78 minutes.
There was still work to do when the sides emerged on to the Merapi-Kraton-South Sea …er… turf, but that didn’t last very long. Not once Dalmiya and Adèle Pailloux had the Sea Spirits two up on the night and three ahead overall within eight minutes. Kanjeng also scored twice within the same period after the start of the second half, Dalmiya again and Tyan Borot on target. The tie was entirely settled, and would have provided a chance for players like young forward Utami Sumanti to net her first goal. Instead, however, she picked up an 11-day injury soon after Borot’s strike. Rather than Sumanti, it was Dalmiya who cashed in, netting twice more in the remaining time to finish with four on the night.
What’s next for the Sea Spirits? Magical Defender of Division 5:22 is the answer. The second leg is in Indonesia.

Coxy Ladies Wulpen got off to a good start at managerless Division 6 outfit Kenty DFF, Sandrine Gerniers giving them the lead with a direct free-kick in the 6th minute.
However Janik’s side were another to struggle to kick on from there and were still just that single goal ahead with a quarter of an hour to play. Laetitia Roosens (77) and Charlotte Kleiners (82) did something about that in the remaining time, Kleiners strike her first as a senior pro, as the scoreline eventually just about scrapped to respectability.
Gerniers also opened the scoring with a direct free-kick early on in the second leg. In fact twice as quickly this time, just three minutes in. Roosens also got there nearly twice as fast, her second of the tie arriving on 40 minutes. The one new scorer in the return was Charlotte Beyen, but she managed it twice, once in each half.
The next challenge for The Waders will be stiffer as they face Doncaster Belles of Division 5:17. Leg 1 is at the Keepmoat.

Csiki Girls gave a demonstration of how to despatch zombies properly as they visited Kreshnik Ladies FF of Division 6.
How? With three goals in the opening 21 minutes of the away first leg to kill the tie, that’s how. These came from Elly Granheim heading home a corner in the 3rd minute and then striking again on 15 and Ginger Crampsey also turning in a corner on 21. After that ad hoc’s side eased home, embellishing the scoreline just once more, Floriane Smet nodding home on the hour mark.
Hillary Strouts and Smet were both on target within five minutes of the start of the second leg, and who both also register again later in the match. Bethany Austin also got her name of the scoresheet of this one as the Csiki Girls played a virtual training session. But injuries can occur in those, which is precisely what happened to Norma Ackland.
Ackland is only out for 7 days, which means she should be back when the Csiki’s take on Division 4j side Leffe Blondes away from home in the first leg of their Round 2 encoutner.

The task confronting LNWR Locomotive was harder than many as their opponents, Kiss FC looked pretty handy for a Division 6 side.
Appearances were accurate as The Steamers struggled to get much going, and then fell behind seconds into the second-half. Charlotte Nixon rescued a draw for Viktor Boskovic’s side with a direct free-kick midway through the second-half, which was also an away goal that has LNWR’s nose slightly ahead in the tie. But there is still a lot to play for in the return fixture.
Stick or twist? VB twisted in the return, sending his side out to win the game and end any uncertainty. It took a while, but they got there in the end, and deservedly so. Well on top in possession and chances, they edged ahead on 66 minutes when Nixon netted another free-kick and then gave themselves some breathing space four minutes later when Maja Teigland struck.
That was enough to earn The Steamers a Round 2 tie with Fossa Delle Leonesse of Division 4n. Despite currently being one run lower down the pyramid LNWR are the higher seeds so are away first up.

[Janik]

Fourth tier met seventh when Viking South Utsira took on Racing 92 da Feira.
The Blood Eagles had much the better of things in the opening away leg, but with just one aspect missing – goals. For 80-plus minutes Velvet Android’s team were comfortably the better side without reward. That was finally put right with 86 on the clock when Birgit Austrheim headed home. But, again, the tie is far from over after this opening leg.
The Blood Eagles were way on top in the second leg, with chances galore. But goals were still irritatingly hard to come by. Lina Hovland finally found the target with a direct free-kick on 36 minutes, but it wasn’t until older sister Kristin Hovland also found the target on 55 minutes that Viking’s fans could properly relax and look forward to Round 2.
Their opponents in that will be The Troachetes of Division 5:31. The second leg will be in Utsira.

Higher seeds despite being in the lower tier, Menywod Maeshafn were away first up against Division 5 side Rävarna BK.
The Welsh side had the better of possession in the opening half, but not chances as Rävarna’s rather attacking formation gave saw them breaking forward fast. Those lightening raids brought an opening goal on 42 minutes. The more step-by-step and pressure based approach of Maeshafn was also rewarded soon after the break, Ellinor Lydell levelling on 49 minutes.
Rävarna scored again on 66 minutes, and there was still one more goal in the game. On balance of play this could easily have gone to IsThatcherDeadYet’s side. But it didn’t, the hosts going 3-1 up in the 90th minute, which feels like enough of a lead for the away goal Maeshafn have to be mostly negated.
The Welsh side needed two goals in the return leg to have any chance of progressing. They thought they had one on 51 minutes when veteran forward Ada Westerberg found the back of the net. This, however, was disallowed. And with that, the visitors strangled the life out of the game. Maeshafn managed only one chance all 90 minutes. As did Rävarna, but they scored it, albeit late on when the outcome was already effectively known.
Until next season for Maeshafn, then.

Division 2 against a managerless side from the bottom tier? No contest, right? Pretty well, when Gastelle took on RZ Ladies.
It wasn’t as dramatic as it maybe could have been, but it was comprehensive enough for Jdsx’s side. They got two in each half, Lisa McRenton opening and closing the scoring on 14 and 86 minutes respectively, Jessica Dickson and Gunilla Melkersson getting the strikes in between on 30 and 54 minutes respectively. The second leg was set up to be a formality.
It didn’t prove to be tha… ha! no, of course it did. 6-0 to Gastelle, Fernanda Perdao opening the scoring on 7 minutes with a direct free-kick and going on to notch a hattrick with Lisa McRenton, Vicki Billing and Jade Riordan also on the scoresheet. Of those, the notable goal was Billing’s; it was the 20/8 midifelder’s first for the club following her 9.5 million econ transfer in the closed season. The first of many, she will hope.
If she adds to it in Round 2 it will mean scoring against Long Lake Ladies of Division 5:5. The first leg is away from home for Gastelle.

Ullapool Northern Star were playing bottom Division foes, but far from incompetent ones in the form of The Supremes.
Indeed it was the hosts who took the lead after just 4 minutes. Mary-Leslie Mair equalised for the Scots 11 minutes in, but despite holding the majority of the ball it was The Supremes creating the chances in the opening half. It was one the hosts finished ahead as they scored a second on the stroke of half-time.
Things looked bleak for delicatemoth’s side when the score was extended to 3-1 on 52 minutes. However all this did was inspired an immediate fight-back, Mair getting her second of the day just two minutes later and Núbia Almeida levelling the scores on 56.
At that point it looked like Northern Star could go on to win, but they settled instead for the 3-3, which was perhaps understandable with three away goals banked. And within seconds of the start of the return match it looked like a sensible choice as Sonia Menashi headed home to give Ullapool a cushion.
The effective lead became three goals when Menashi raced clear to slot home a second of the night for both herself and her team on 21 minutes. The Supreme’s clawed it back to two goals midway through the second half, and though the final score of 5-4 on aggregate looks close, it truth it was never thus during the return fixture, Northern Star were always comfortable.
Will they be so in Round 2? Well, an opponent from Division 6:49 looks beatable, even if FC Comexotas are the higher seeds and therefore the first leg is at Minchview.

The one OTF team playing host on the opening day of the campaign was Zeugma Dostluk Spor, who welcomed Division 5 outfit Åshöjden BK to the Insan Haklari Stadyumu.
It would prove to be a pretty evenly contested match. However the edge, if there was one, was in favour of the visitors moreorless throughout and five minutes from time Antepli Ejderha’s side’s defences were finally breached from a corner.
With no time to claw anything back that was how it finished, leaving Zeugma lots of work to do on their travels in the second leg. However it was the hosts who started the brighter, and took the lead on 38 minutes. Now needing two, Zeugma gave it a shot after the break, creating a couple of chances. But one goal wasn’t there, let alone the pair they needed. So out they went.


Round 2 draw - first listed teams home in opening leg

Doncaster Belles (5:17)      vs   Coxy Ladies Wulpen
Fossa Delle Leonesse (4n)    vs   LNWR Locomotive
Leffe Blondes (4j)           vs   Csiki Girls
The Liver (5:16)             vs   Drakaina
Long Lake Ladies (5:5)       vs   Gastelle
Magical Defender (5:22)      vs   Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
The Troachetes (5:31)        vs   Viking South Utsira
Ullapool Northern Star       vs   FC Comexotas (6:49)

[Sits]

Right, I am successfully extricated from Cumberland Hogs in the U23 Premiership and down to eight teams.

In other news, freshly relegated Sulawesi Babirusas in the Brythonnic are rejigging from 4-5-1 to 3-5-2. Three for sale and three to come in.

[delicatemoth]

Huh, three week injury to one of Ferrets' best players. My club policy of trying to amass as many SQs as possible means that I now only sign players with at least 3*, so grabbing a quick replacement won't be simple.

*In special circumstances, such as receiving a youth glorying in the name BEZZUL DE PIROD AMICO INGUANEZ, or grabbing a cheap reserve goalie, I'll allow just 2.

[Sits]

There was a league I was in a year or two back where it was compulsory for all players to have at least two SQs. To the extent that youths with less had to be sold. Needless to say I was soon focusing on the "free" SQs of Ice Cube and All-Rounder.

[Wouter D]

Huh, three week injury to one of Ferrets' best players. My club policy of trying to amass as many SQs as possible means that I now only sign players with at least 3*, so grabbing a quick replacement won't be simple.

*In special circumstances, such as receiving a youth glorying in the name BEZZUL DE PIROD AMICO INGUANEZ, or grabbing a cheap reserve goalie, I'll allow just 2.

Sorry you were on the receiving end of the Kneebiters remembering their team name. You highlight one injury, but we inflicted three.

At least you got the three points.

[delicatemoth]

True. The other two injuries were minors though. Suppose we were probably due a big one, it's been a while.

[Various Artist]

special circumstances, such as receiving a youth glorying in the name BEZZUL DE PIROD AMICO INGUANEZ

This will never not make me laugh, DM. It's an 11/10 name, that one.


Speaking of laughs, I enjoyed Janik's joke about 'sideways-moving LNWR Locomotive' in the Xpert Ladies roundups above that I've just caught up with. Truly, we are not worthy.
Complicated Utsiran family trees note: I believe Kristin Hovland is a first cousin to Lina Hovland, Janik, not her elder sister. Lina is though the (non-identical) twin of her defensive colleague Mette, even down to their skill levels -- they're both 26/14s now, and will take over as VSU's joint most senior defenders sooner rather than later as only 34/15 Britta Klovning ranks above them now. Teenage defender Ylva Hovland is another first cousin of all three of them. 17-year-old striker Anneke Hovland, meanwhile, is second cousin to all four of those.

I have next to no chance of keeping that story straight over the next 20 seasons or so of their potentional careers, so I'm relying on you to do it for me

While on this particular flight of fancy, I think Lina and Mette are the only Blood Eagles I've decided are sisters among the current squad, now that veteran Asta Austrheim has retired and finally broken her long-lasting midfield tag team with younger sister (by 1 year) Birgit.
Senior striker Emilie Klovning was also one of a pair of twins, uniquely sharing the same initial to boot -- but unfortunately despite fellow striker Ebba initially finding success after a transfer to AuntieBeryl's Terre de Haut (she scored five in one game for them aged 19) she was eventually sacked before her career could go much further, alas.

[delicatemoth]

I know you like him, that's partly why I posted it ;-). By the way, Renate Klovning is maturing into a really decent player for Ullapool NS; if she has any good relatives I could be interested in a deal.

[delicatemoth]

the "free" SQs of Ice Cube and All-Rounder.

Whoa, do you mean those SQs don't count towards the overall skill level? I always avoided All-Rounder (aka Brown Policeman's Hat) for that reason.

Speaking of SQs, does anyone have any idea how Long Ball is supposed to work on forwards? I think it would be sensible to mean they're good at receiving long balls, but I suspect that's not the case. Is this SQ only advantageous if you play long ball tactics, or is it something worth having anyway?

[Wouter D]

To the best of my knowledge, SQs never count towards the overall skill level. They merely readjust the distribution of the player's quality across the various skills. So if you have a vanilla ten-skill forward and a ten-skill forward with the header SQ, the latter will be quite a bit better in heading home a cross, but a tiny bit worse in all other aspects of the game.

Regarding long balls, my wild stab in the dark would be that long balls is worth having anyways, but most useful if you have an additional forward to capitalize on the assist that your long ball SQ forward just whipped into the box. However, I see no reason why a midfielder cannot be on the receiving end. This paragraph, however, is not based on any actual knowledge.

[Wouter D]

Whoa, do you mean those SQs don't count towards the overall skill level?

I think that what Sits alludes to with "free", is that on the transfer market, when you see an estimate of the transfer value of "similar players", the allrounder and ice cube SQs are ignored. The reason for that is simply to have a larger sample of "similar" players, which ought to stabilize the average value of similar players.

[Various Artist]

Haha, I think I was selling Bezzul de PAI short, it's worthy of a 12/10 at least that name.

I just sold a quartet of Utsiran academy graduates last week, all aged 20-21, and reaped 6m econs to get us back on a stable footing for the next month or two, so I'm not looking to sell anyone else right now sorry DM. If any good youths come through though I'll let you know!


I think what Sits meant by "free SQs" is that, unlike the other 'good' Special Qualities, a quirk of the transfer market is how neither Cool nor All Rounder seem to bump up the price beyond what you'd pay for the equivalent 'vanilla' player. It appears that in general they're not rated as especially desirable or game-changing, for some reason, so don't inflate prices like Headers, Eye For Goal, Intelligent etc. – and especially how Free Kicks and Hard Trainer do.

So in a league like Sits was talking about where it's compulsory that players have at least 2 SQs, going for players with either or both of those ones (ice cube, joker) would be an ideal way to live up to that requirement without having to pay the premiums that other good SQs typically command. That is, you tend to effectively get those SQs 'for free'.

[Various Artist]

Ahh, gazumped by Wouter there!

[Various Artist]

Re: Forwards with Long Balls (so to speak) – as far as I know the SQ doesn't confer any extra quality in terms of getting on the end of them. But remember the skill is technically 'Long Pass': it's not all about pumping John Beck-style up'n'unders out of defence. As Wouter says, a forward can still sling long passes to his or her colleagues from the metaphorical wings or similar, so he or she will be that bit better at setting up goals for other strikers or midfielders.

The other aspect is that Long Pass gives the equivalent boost to a player's ability to take indirect free-kicks as Hard Shooting gives to taking direct free-kicks. So if you're lacking (good) players with the FK quality, and don't have a high-skilled Koeman to blast them in either, Long Pass is the next best thing.

I've had a few forwards with it, and it's come in very handy during periods where I haven't had a decent freekicker in a team -- which, given I rely almost entirely on the whims of my various youth academies to supply my squads, isn't completely rare. Rædfearne Island for instance had striker and captain Dromond Arcancester as our FK-taker for the last however long until his retirement this week... which has left us in real FK limbo for a while to come, I've suddenly realised. His final stats read 302 appearances, 164 points from 101 goals + 63 assists, many of the latter of which would've been from taking FKs aided by his LP skill.

[Various Artist]

Whoa, do you mean those SQs don't count towards the overall skill level? I always avoided All-Rounder (aka Brown Policeman's Hat) for that reason.

To the best of my knowledge, SQs never count towards the overall skill level. They merely readjust the distribution of the player's quality across the various skills. So if you have a vanilla ten-skill forward and a ten-skill forward with the header SQ, the latter will be quite a bit better in heading home a cross, but a tiny bit worse in all other aspects of the game.

This is it – though more specifically I believe certain SQs are paired off simply on a 'see-saw' basis.

That is, Heading and Speed are counter-weighted opposites, as it were – so a player with the Headers SQ will be a few % better at heading home that cross, but a few % worse at getting on the end of through-balls. (And for defenders, s/he will be better at defending against crosses but worse against through-balls.) And vice versa. But neither SQ should affect their abilities with, e.g., shots from outside the box.
Similarly, Hard Shooting (long range shots) and Eye For Goal (close range shots) are also 'see-saw opposites', though I know this hardly makes real-world sense. If a player has one of those skills s/he will be a teeny bit worse at the other attribute. Again, though, this should have no bearing on their heading or speed-related abilities.


In the same way, I believe goalkeepers' four SQs that counter each of the above also work in opposing pairs like this. A GK who's Good In The Air will simultaneously be a little worse against through-balls, and vice versa: one who's Good At One-on-Ones will be more heavily weighed down when it comes to high balls.
A GK who's good at Standing In The Right Place (to block long shots) will have slightly worse reflexes (against close-range efforts), while one with Great Reflexes will be apparently prone to Standing In The Wrong Place.


In either case, having both 'opposing' skills (i.e. Headers + Speed; Koeman + Burglar; Wing + Dead End; Jigsaw + Lightning) is a win-win, as it cancels out the negative effects of each – if you'll forgive me muddling the metaphor further, it enables the player to sit on both ends of the see-saw at once. And that really is a skill.



To return to Cool and All-Rounder, these don't have an equivalent 'opposite' SQ: there's no negative effect to having them. Nor is there to having Intelligent or Stamina. For whatever reason, though, the latter pair always add a premium to transfer fees, while the former pair don't.

I must add "Brown Policeman's Hat" to the synonyms for All-Rounder, by the way DM – that's a new one on me!

[Wouter D]

Ahh, gazumped by Wouter there!

Well, what you illustrate here is the victory of my efficiency over your more extensive set of information. But we all do appreciate the richer form of information you contribute to any thread over here. Hi VA! How are you doing? It's very good to see you indeed!