🏆 Biddenham Fantasy League 🏆

Summary

Gameweek 12 was pure chaos. Liverpool were battered 3–0 at home by Nottingham Forest just as loads of managers brought in Van Dijk for the injured Gabriel, Man City lost at Newcastle, Arsenal destroyed Spurs 4–1 in the North London Derby and look every inch title contenders, and Man United somehow lost at home to 10-man Everton after one of their own was sent off for punching a teammate. In our league the average was a modest 42.6 points, with scores ranging from 28 to a huge 70.

Key Moments

• Holte End Vikings run riot: Georg Coakley posted the GW’s top score with 70 points, gaining around 1.2m places in overall rank. It was the standout performance of the week and shows how one big round can completely flip a season.
• Big climbers across the board: There were huge green arrows for several managers: Shannon H (SHANNON FC, 56 pts, +900k), Ed Evans (IroningBoredDreamers, 53 pts, +750k), David Bailey (Dave’s Dream Team, 53 pts, +630k), Hayley Phelan (HLP FC, 52 pts, +500k), Mike Flynn (Only Franks, 51 pts, +470k) and Abi Speight (Fantaspeight FC, 50 pts, +126k) all surged up the overall rankings.
• Van Dijk bandwagon backfires: With Gabriel ruled out, many managers moved their Arsenal spot over to Van Dijk for “safe” Liverpool clean sheets. Forest rocking up to Anfield and scoring three turned that idea into a disaster, leaving a sea of one- and two-pointers at the back.
• Captaincy stories: 22 managers stuck the armband on Erling Haaland for steady but unspectacular returns. The real fireworks came from the differentials: Dan Birkinshaw captained Danny Welbeck for a massive 16 effective points, Shannon H backed João Pedro again, and Phil Johnson went with Bruno Fernandes. There was even an Iliman Ndiaye captain from Callum Bowness.
• Chip roulette: Only three chips were played this week. Paul Ray’s Triple Captain on a quiet week returned just 34 points, while James Marshall’s Free Hit also landed on 34, both finishing well below the GW’s top performers. The lesson: chips in chaotic weeks can cut both ways.
• Bench agony leaderboard: Phil Johnson (Groß Misconduct) suffered the most, leaving 18 points rotting on his bench. George Foy (Foys Boys) had 15 on the pine, and Callum Bowness (Bruno’s Brothers) wasted 9. Several others — including David Bailey, Emmy Rupasinghe and Mike Flynn — also watched big returns sit in the wrong place.
• Tough week at the bottom: George Foy endured the lowest score of the GW with 28 points, dropping over 400k places overall. Alan Eckett-Brown (Que Salah Salah) took the biggest hit in rank, falling more than 500k, while Callum Bowness, Emmy Rupasinghe and Ali Smith all suffered heavy red arrows.
• Title race picture: Chris Beeden (Toon Park Rangers) remains the best placed manager in the world rankings despite a below-average 37 and a small red arrow. Close behind in overall rank are the likes of Abi Speight, Louis Grimoldby (FC Grim), Hayley Phelan and Mike Flynn, all firmly in the mix as we approach the busy Christmas schedule.
• United hair-watch: With United somehow losing at home to a 10-man Everton, the legendary fan who vowed not to cut his hair until five straight league wins is going to be waiting even longer — that barber appointment is now deep into long-term planning.

Predictions

Expect heavy transfers into Arsenal assets after their derby demolition and a sharp drop in Liverpool defensive ownership after the Forest upset. Managers like Georg Coakley, Shannon H, Ed Evans, Hayley Phelan, Abi Speight and Louis Grimoldby have shown how one big week can rocket you up the rankings, while those around the bottom — George Foy, Alan Eckett-Brown, Callum Bowness and others — are only a couple of good captaincy calls away from flipping the narrative. With wildcards and more chips still in hand for many, GW13 and beyond could completely redraw the table.