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X11 season 45 - de rigueur Mortis

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    Prompted by Sits noting that the Swine have clinched promotion, it's time for the seasonal pouring of cold water on people's dreams.

    We currently have 40 active managers (that includes Ferrari1Rad who has not logged in to the site for 14 days, but maybe on holiday) and 2 inactive ones - Diable Rouge and Gerontophile.

    Subject to recruitment, that would mean that we would basically be forced to go to 4 divisions of 10. This would mean that there would only be one honoured promotion in the whole league - the champions of Division 1 (a position currently held by, well, myself). All relegations would still happen - and also 8th place in Division 2 would become a relegation slot.

    Comment


      C'est la vie. The league is bigger than the team.

      Comment


        X11 Ladies League matchday 14 report. Season 48 is probably not one to remember, as it turns out.


        Code:
        Division 3d
        
        Dursley Town 		0 - 1	Viking South Utsira
        				Fudida (pen) 33'
        
        
        Division 4h
        
        Drakaina		0 - 2	FC Nee-Nee
        				Stevens 4'
        				Rowson 47'
        
        Q.P.R Ladies 		2 - 1	Coxy Ladies Wulpen
        Whyte 58'			Wostijn 94'
        Klimt 83'
        Lever (sent off) 87'
        
        
        Division 4j
        
        Attenborough Naturals 	0 - 2	Witches of Chiswick
        				Yamazaki 37'
        				Peters 56'
        
        Borgis Ladies 		2 - 1	Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC
        Björling 12'			Azeite 89'
        Järryd 72'
        
        
        Division 5:17
        
        LNWR Locomotive		0 - 5	Pinkie Pie
        				Vanikian (O.G.) 31'
        				Nordback 35', 52'
        				Coppell (pen) 60'
        				Thorpe 72'
        
        
        Division 5:22
        
        Mupparna 		2 - 0	Solent Sirens
        McCarthy 54'
        Barde 80'			Högardh (sent off) 92'
        
        
        Division 5:29
        
        Dublin City Womens FC	0 - 2	Black Widow FC0
        				Ferreira 60'
        				Sandford 64'
        
        
        Division 6:40
        
        Mawenzi 		2 - 1	Invisible Ladies
        Kher 65', 69'			Parks 26'
        
        
        Division 6:55
        
        Femme Fatale FC 	0 - 3	Menywod Maeshafn
        				Hagerth 16'
        				Cesljar 49'
        				Corleone 92'
        
        
        Division 6:62
        
        Nightingales 		0 - 3	Csiki Girls
        				McInns 12', 50'
        				Morientes 55'

        Comment


          Avoiding injury, suspension and loss of form ahead of the play-off was the order of the day for Viking South Utsira as they took on a Dursley Town side looking for a positive result in their battle for survival.
          The first half was pretty even, with a chance a piece. The Blood Eagles opportunity was a golden one, though, when they were awarded a 33rd minute penalty. Manuças Fudida took responsibility and made no mistake. Dursley pushed on after the break, which saw them shade possession but not particular creating chances, with just a missed direct free-kick attempt to their names in either half.
          Relief for Viking manager Velvet Android, who got through the game without even a minor knock or a yellow card and without any particularly negative form impacts. A bad one for Dursley though, who went down.

          Going into the final day Drakaina sat fourth in the Division 4h table, but did so only trailing the leading two by a solitary point. And with one of those sides, FC Nee-Nee, visiting Delphi The Dragons had some control over their fate: win and it would be at worst third, possibly second or even first depending on other scorelines, draw and getting into the top two was possible but an extreme long-shot, lose and it would be another season at this level for sure.
          Victory was therefore essential, and winning by a good margin would be even better. Given that, Drakaina boss Etienne rolled the dice with an aggressive 4-3-3 set-up. Within ten minutes it had all gone rather wrong, as Nee-Nee opened the scoring and then Dragons forward Sandrine Petit went down with a 12-day knock. With no other forwards on the bench it was left to sub defender Amalia Merckx to join the attacking line, not a position that suited her abilities too well. Nee-Nee took advantage of their opportunity, adding a decisive second early in the second half.
          So The Dragons fell short. Well short as it turned out because the two other sides ahead of them had won, meaning the mark the Greeks had needed to hit was a 4-0 scoreline.
          One of those other promotion chasers gathering three points was Coxy Ladies Wulpen’s final opponents at this level, Q.P.R Ladies.
          The Waders actually put up a good showing at Loftus Road, reaching half-time all square and then creating ample opportunities to score after the break to threaten a shock against the league leaders. However Janik’s side foundered on a stellar performance by Hoops ‘keeper Jodie Pryor, whilst at the other end Wulpen’s own stopper, Sarah Asselman, despite playing well by her standards, had to pick the ball out of her net twice.
          Coxy Ladies hopes on the day were not helped by a nasty first-half injury for forward Ursula Madjarevic (22 days). There was a late flicker when QPR were reduced to 10, Felicia Lever collecting a second yellow, and Wulpen parlayed this into a consolation by Aurelie Wostijn. However it came with the last kick of the game, not enough to deny QPR the win, which gave them the title.
          The Waders end the season in seventh spot and another immediate return to Division 5, whilst Drakaina will fight again at this level next term after they ended up fourth.

          Season 48 has proved a struggle for Witches of Chiswick, one that finished on what looked like a tough trip to Attenborough Naturals.
          However The Bewitched appeared to put their troubles behind them (their relegation had already been confirmed) as they thoroughly outplayed their hosts from start to finish. With possession and chances came goals, young defender Tamika Yamazaki heading home a corner after 37 minutes for the opener for Wiblflibl’s side, and Tasha Peters making it two when she raced clear after 56.
          Peters thought she had a third late on, only for it to be ruled out. No matter, Chiswick left Trilobite Terrace with three points and a spring in their step ahead of their return to the sixth tier next term.
          Would Kanjeng Ratu Kidul WFC be joining them there? Avoiding the drop was going to take a win over promotion seekers Borgis Ladies on their own park and some luck with other scorelines, which sounded a pretty tall order.
          Things got even more difficult for The Sea Spirits after 12 minutes as Borgis nudged in front. SeanoftheShed’s side battled gamely after that, and had some opportunities. However they were still more on the back foot than the front, and shipped a crucial second with 72 on the clock. Leila Azeite showed some defiance by pulling one back on 89 minutes, but that was never going to be more than just a consolation.
          When other results came through it became apparent that even a win wouldn’t have been enough to keep Kanjeng in Division 4j. They end the season in seventh, with The Bewitched propping up the table.

          There was nothing riding on the final day of the campaign as far as LNWR Locomotive were concerned. Rather the opposite was the case for their opponents Pinkie Pie, who came into the game leading the Division 5:17 table by the razor fine margin of +2 GD.
          The game was an open affair (as would be most of the others in this section), with chances at both ends. The outcome turned on a selection decision from the two managers. The Pie boss, with a title to chase, opted for his first choice ‘keeper, who returned a grade-18 showing as she saw off all six chances The Steamers created in the 90 minutes. Viktor Boskovic, meanwhile, had tossed the gloves to reserve stopper Maral Parseghian.
          Parseghian was busy in the opening half, and had been doing OK up until Zivart Vanikian steered one past her in the 31st minute. Another was added soon after, with the sides turning around at 0-2. LNWR weren’t dead and buried at that point, but were by the hour as Pinkie Pie had moved four up. It finished 5-0, confirming their promotion.
          Locomotive ended fourth, but the real stories were elsewhere as Consett Vixens finished as runners-up following a nuts 4-4 draw in which both sides led twice, with an equaliser arriving in the 86th minute to give the Vixens a share o f the spoils. That wouldn’t have been enough for runners-up spot if Öcean ladies had won. They scored enough goals to do that, three of them. But also shipped four!

          Possibly the most open Division in the entire Xpert Ladies League was 5:22, where Solent Sirens went into their final game at Mupparna able to finish anywhere between second and sixth!
          For The Sirens to grab the play-off spot they would have to win this match. The signs for Andrew7610’s team were not promising during a first half in which Mupparna created three chances to their zero, and one in which they also lost Angela Cruchaga to a 13-day injury. However Solent reached the interval still all-square.
          Parity didn’t last too long after the break as Mupparna finally converted an opportunity in the 54th minute. They added a second on 80 minutes to kill the game stone dead, with the only further significant action coming in stoppage time when Evelyn Högardh got herself shown a straight red card. It was 21 year-old Högardh’s second red of the season, and fourth already of her career. Ryderesque.
          Defeat left The Sirens waiting and hoping on other results. Had Belle Ends lost? Nope, they had drawn 0-0 at ASOS Warriors. OK, then it was all down to Rotnäset BK, the Division’s bottom side? Could they deny Big and Beautiful the win that would send Solent down? Actually, yes, they could, a first minute goal giving something to doggedly cling to. So Solent survive to do battle in Division 5 again next season.

          A drop to Division 6 had already been confirmed for both Dublin City Womens FC and Black Widow FC prior to their meeting at Phoenix Park. In fact the only substantive issue was whether Dublin could collect their first ever win in their current guise.
          The first half looked highly promising for Mortal Joe’s side as, despite seeing limited amounts of the ball, they created the only three chances going. However none were converted, and in a familiar theme Dublin paid the price for this, shipping two from three chances after the break.
          Dublin wave goodbye to Division 5:29 with two points and three goals to their name.

          Comment


            A nip-and-tuck promotion race concluded for Invisible Ladies with a trip to Mawenzi.
            The See-Throughs position meant a win was required: their gap over Girls Aloud, who sat one place behind in third was only one point and Girls Aloud had a simple game against the sections pointless zombies. The See-Throughs could technically also catch leaders Spandex FC, though not in practice as despite the gap being only three points the GD gap was insurmountable (and besides Spandex were playing a relegated side). Manager Pebblethefish set his side up to counter-attack, and in the first half this appeared to be working well. Mawzeni didn’t heed the warning of Beáta Nádasdy disallowed strike on 22 minutes, Sandie Parks heading The See-Throughs ahead four minutes later.
            One potential issue was that Mawzeni were having a lot of the ball. If they created chances, then a lot was riding on reserve ‘keeper Persephone Ostrovski. Those chances came midway through the second period. Two of them in four minutes. Ostrovski stopped neither... Suddenly a promising season had fallen disappointingly short.
            Girls Aloud did win as expected, as did Spandex, forcing Invisible Ladies down to third in the final Division 6:40 table. Next season, next season...

            Most of the interest in Menywod Maeshafn was focused on whether hosts Femme Fatale FC could survive the drop, something they likely needed a win (and some luck) to achieve.
            They never came close to doing this as IsThactherDeadYet’s side dominated affairs. Madeleine Hagerth headed an opener on 16 minutes (something she would be ‘rewarded’ for with the sack two days later!). Another header on 49 minutes from Patricia Cesljar made it two, and sealed the victory for all practical purposes as Maeshafn were creating chances and Femme Fatale weren’t. 11 of them all told, the final one in stoppage time being a long range blast from Monalisa Corleone that made the conversion ratio decent enough.
            The only bad news for the Welsh side from the game was another injury for young midfielder Katherine Barker. Barker, promoted lateish in the season and in desperate need of DV, had been rushed back slightly ahead of time having suffered a 9-day knock just minutes into the previous match. She lasted 43 minutes this time, before going down with a 10-dayer.
            Victory meant that Maeshafn were guaranteed third place in the final Division 6:55 table.

            Another confirmed finishing position was Csiki Girls being champions of Division 6:62. There final game at relegated Nightingales was purely one of celebration and a key goodbye for the travelling fans.
            The Csikis were comfortably on top as expected, and led 1-0 at the interval through Saoirse McInns 12th minute strike. McInns struck again on 50 minutes with a direct free-kick, something she will have to take more responsibility for from now on (see below) and five minutes later it was three when Maria Morientes powered home a header.
            With the match well won, it was time for the days key happening – saying goodbye to club legend Ann-Sofie Carlberg. Carlberg started on the bench, but was introduced by Ad Hoc to rapturous applause after 75 minutes for her 198th and final Csiki’s appearance. In the remaining time she couldn’t add to her goals or assists total, so finishes with a staggering 130 goals and 151 total points. Her status as a colossus in Csiki’s history is assured. Many, many of those goals have been directly from free-kicks. The gauntlet is thrown down to the next generation.
            Csiki Girls final margin of victory was nine points.


            Code:
            Play-Offs for Division 2
            
            Viking South Utsira	0 - 2	Sabugal BDV
            				Bulhosa 22', 90'
            So it came down to this for Viking South Utsira; a one-off match with Sabugal BDV from Division 3f for a place in the third tier.
            The first half was relatively tight in terms of possession, but with Sabugal creating the two chances, and crucial converting one midway through the half. The Blood Eagles needed to come out strong after the break. Unfortunately for Velvet Android’s troops it was Sabugal who managed this. However, despite creating many chances, there was still the possibility of a smash-and-grab Viking raid as the score remained unchanged, despite losing defender Britta Klovning to an 8-day knock on 72 minutes.
            The match was into its dying stages when a second goal finally arrived... for Sabugal. VSU fans can’t really argue they didn’t deserve it, with chances tipped seven-zip against their side. Another saying next season, next season.

            That concluded season 48, with the OTF summary reading one promotion (Csiki Girls), one lost play-off final (VSU) and four relegations (Coxy Ladies, Chiswick, Kanjeng and Dublin). Bah!

            Comment


              Originally posted by Etienne View Post
              Prompted by Sits noting that the Swine have clinched promotion, it's time for the seasonal pouring of cold water on people's dreams.

              We currently have 40 active managers (that includes Ferrari1Rad who has not logged in to the site for 14 days, but maybe on holiday) and 2 inactive ones - Diable Rouge and Gerontophile.

              Subject to recruitment, that would mean that we would basically be forced to go to 4 divisions of 10. This would mean that there would only be one honoured promotion in the whole league - the champions of Division 1 (a position currently held by, well, myself). All relegations would still happen - and also 8th place in Division 2 would become a relegation slot.
              A busy time at work and a lack of available time has meant I've not had a chance to put together a recruitment thread for this season, so apologies for that.

              Comment


                Thanks must go to Janik for once again covering the Xpert Ladies in such detail for the whole season, he obviously has far more spare time than I do. The new season has been set up and Kanjeng find themselves sharing a division with Solent Sirens and Witches of Chiswick, which will at least give Janik some derby games to report on.
                A sad end to the MLX as pinang were beaten in a close final by Combo. His correct assessment of our attacking style was probably the key difference between the teams. The CR was a complete shitfest. I don't think I've had such a bad CR based on the DVs I had. The only crumb of comfort is that they should all jump next season.

                Comment


                  Well done Janik on another Xpert Ladies Odyssey, whether I'm in it or not.

                  Meanwhile, I sacked an absent manager from the Human League last night, and woke to find an application from Andrew7610. How about that to a good start?

                  Comment


                    Excellent news Sits. Is this the return of the Pi, or whatever they were called afterward, or...?

                    Apologies to Janik for not allowing him the opportunity to end this season's Xpert Ladies odyssey on a high note – I clean forgot on Thursday that VSU had our playoff game that day, and logged in at 4:38pm to set tactics for Vita Mortis' game at 5 only to discover that I'd just missed the playoff by eight minutes. I'm not disappointed not to go up as I fear we'd have been out of our depth, but it's an annoyance and a shame not to gave given it our best shot at the end of a pretty encouraging league season.

                    Been away for three days as went to the World Athletics Championships at the weekend, so have shitloads of X11 to catch up with. Breathless climax to the OTF league title race is in the offing, so this week is going to be an absolutely fascinating one there.

                    Comment


                      Rudi Küchler of Wharfedale Generals hasn't added to his monumental 426 appearances this season and isn't retiring. He could have been the first OTF league player to reach 450 games.

                      http://www.xperteleven.com/player.as...411769250&dh=2

                      Comment


                        Blimey, that's remarkable – i.e. his tally and his longevity, which had flown right under my radar because the Generals have always kept such a low profile. I hadn't realised either, until just then, that they're apparently going with an all-youth extreme rebuild right now.

                        Meanwhile, things are quite intense in the league title race still. The Mortis players somehow listened to my desperate whimpers of "Please make a comeback, please come back" while watching today's game just now, as they pulled off a late turnaround to beat the Kneebiters 2-1 to stay a nose in front of Dandy Town with a game to go. Unfortunately our last fixture is against Hideous Towns, who will leapfrog us themselves with a win, so we're not even guaranteed a top-two finish.

                        Among other things I missed over the weekend was the Xpert Ladies season transition. Viking South Utsira are going to be in Division 3e next time out, sliding sideways from our recent home of 3d, and will have one of the next best things to an OTF 'derby' as we're in with La République de Random, run by the Randomeister himself RichardSP. VSU also had six double-jumps in our Change Report, jawdroppingly, which is easily my best ever in X11. All three of my 17/4 defenders pulling it off was amazing, but midfielder Bergljot Kvalvik managing it at 25 (and for the second time in three CRs, to boot, having missed a jump last time in the wake of of the first of those) is really astonishing. She's now had three career doubles, and might well be my first ever X11 player to achieve this. At 25/14 she's now rated at 14.5m econs, in a squad record total of 109m.

                        Comment


                          VSU are, furthermore, now booked to host Janik's Coxy Ladies Wulpen tomorrow/today – for, as unlikely as it may seem, the first time ever. We've visited the Waders a couple of times in friendlies previously, though not since 2015, and they've never once come to Utsira before. Looking forward to this one.

                          Comment


                            Amwythig Dragons' emphatic win at Great Ouse Town has pretty much scuppered the Swine's faint hope of grabbing the Division 1 title.

                            Meanwhile the OTF title battle is a popcorn fest for all but the top 3.

                            Comment


                              I dunno, Saltney Drawers are on a good run of form and need a win to have a chance of staying up. They are probably the last team I'd choose to play now.

                              Comment


                                Originally posted by Etienne View Post
                                I dunno, Saltney Drawers are on a good run of form and need a win to have a chance of staying up. They are probably the last team I'd choose to play now.
                                I'd honestly given this up as a lost cause, but strangely enough we've won four on the bounce and now have a chance at staying up if we win our last game. The fact that it's away against the top of the table Dragons - the only team in the division with a better recent record than us - and who also need the win to guarantee the title, then our new-found optimism takes a bit of a hit. We'll give it a rattle, but I'm preparing for the worst.

                                Comment


                                  Well in the Corinthian spirit and no personal interest, I wish you the best of luck. Up the Drawers!

                                  Comment


                                    In the Xpert Ladies I've decided to celebrate relegation by putting our five most valuable players on the transfer market to hopefully finance a major rebuild of the squad. This will not end well.

                                    Comment


                                      Originally posted by Sits View Post
                                      At KK, I've decided for the long term good of the conveyor belt to sell two quality young players:

                                      One is 20/8 Headers Burglar striker, Seamus Murtagh. I usually farm strikers out at 22, but both he and partner, Cool Headers Pokere Ngati Te Ara (21) are ahead of the 17/4 path, and I don't want to risk losing value if one doesn't jump next time. Murtagh is worth more (6.8m) so gets the chop. Pleasingly he triggered a bit of a flurry within hours of listing and is currently at 4.2m with four days left. That's always nice. A junior or 17/4 Vanilla will come in.

                                      The other is definitely a bittersweet sale and is 23/12 Vanilla defender Jonathan Rosell. He came in from the academy as an 18/6 and has DJ'd since. Already a veteran of the title-winning season, he has to go because a 17-year-old is needed and he's the one who doesn't fit on the belt, sadly. He is worth 9.7m though, which eases the pain.
                                      And sold. Bank balance now 20m which I will not immediately splurge. Only some of it.

                                      Rosell only fetched 8.5m, but Murtagh made up for it by topping over 11m for some strange reason.

                                      Comment


                                        That cynic AE seems to be implying I have started this season's recruitment thread with an ulterior motive. Not at all, just helping out when a fellow Admin is a bit busy.

                                        If there happen to be side benefits of successful recruitment, well que sera sera.

                                        Meanwhile, Lincolnshire Curly Coats face their toughest ever cup tie shortly in Round Six of the Golden League Cup. They face Antisocial who are 5th in the top flight. Very Defensive, big bonus, tweaked penalty lineup, and hope 16 skill goalie Hugh Callender is having a good day.

                                        Comment


                                          Originally posted by Sits View Post
                                          Well in the Corinthian spirit and no personal interest, I wish you the best of luck. Up the Drawers!
                                          It was always going to be a tough ask.

                                          Comment


                                            So... the first of what might end up being a semi-regular asking of this question (depending on the initial answers) but...

                                            What has happened so far to (the teams formerly known as) Strathcarnage, Taste Of Dunfermline and Bene Gesserit?

                                            Comment


                                              Right from the mid-point of the season I knew it would end this way, with Hornville going down by a point - now consider how many late goals we conceded to draw games. What might have been...

                                              We now have no choice but to rebuild, so I don't expect to be back in the top flight any time soon. I would say it was fun while it lasted, except it really wasn't.

                                              Comment


                                                Originally posted by evilC View Post
                                                So... the first of what might end up being a semi-regular asking of this question (depending on the initial answers) but...

                                                What has happened so far to (the teams formerly known as) Strathcarnage, Taste Of Dunfermline and Bene Gesserit?
                                                They are in need of their old manager evilC.

                                                Comment


                                                  Strathcarnage remain managerless and were relegated with a 3-1-16 record. They are likely to cease to exist in the next season update.
                                                  Bene Gesserit have been taken over and won their division with a 7-1-1 record.
                                                  I don't know about Taste of Dunfermline.

                                                  Comment


                                                    Originally posted by evilC View Post
                                                    So... the first of what might end up being a semi-regular asking of this question (depending on the initial answers) but...

                                                    What has happened so far to (the teams formerly known as) Strathcarnage, Taste Of Dunfermline and Bene Gesserit?
                                                    http://www.xperteleven.com/team.aspx...d=1661622&dh=2

                                                    They are now known as Penguin Village and got promoted to division 16. You did a grand job with them.

                                                    Comment

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