🏆 Biddenham Fantasy League 🏆

Premier League recap

Gameweek 11 was brutal at the top of the real table. Man City dismantled Liverpool 3–0, even with Haaland missing a penalty in the process. Two superb 2–2 draws stole the drama elsewhere: Spurs vs Man United and Sunderland vs Arsenal both swung back and forth, keeping everyone guessing on clean sheets and bonus. Rumours are swirling that Aston Villa are “back” after smashing Bournemouth 4–0, while Chelsea rolled Wolves 3–0, Brentford beat Newcastle 3–1, Forest eased past Leeds 3–1, and Palace–Brighton served up a rare 0–0.

League overview

In the Biddenham Fantasy League, GW11 scores were more measured, averaging 42.6 points. Cathy Eckett-Brown took top honours this week with a composed 60 points for Eccles MCMLXXIX FC, capping off a quietly impressive recent run. Close behind were Abi Speight and Jamie Mitchell on 54 apiece, both banking solid green arrows in a low-scoring gameweek.

At the top of the overall standings, Chris Beeden still leads the way on 705 points with Toon Park Rangers, his 64.8 average the benchmark so far. Will Finney sits just seven points back on 698, and the chasing trio of Abi Speight (671), Louis Grimoldby (666) and George Foy (662) means the top five are now separated by little more than a single big haul.

GW11 highlights

Cathy’s 60 came from a low-template (36.4%) setup with five differentials starting – the kind of structure that can really punish the cautious weeks like this one. Abi bounced back strongly after earlier swings, her 54 narrowing the gap to the podium. Jamie Mitchell matched her on 54, pushing Slot Ball in the right direction after a season of high hits and high variance. There were tidy returns too for Georg Coakley and Ed Evans (both 48), while Paul Alexis posted 47 without taking another hit – which is news in itself.

In the middle of the pack, David Bailey, Dan Birkinshaw, David Tonks and Will all landed on 45, doing just enough to hold ground rather than make a statement. Hayley Phelan (39) and Mike Flynn (41) cooled slightly after recent big weeks, but both remain well placed in the top half. At the bottom end, Callum Bowness endured the toughest weekend with just 28 points, slipping five league places in the process.

Bench, chips and risk

Benches were savage again. Georg Coakley left a huge 22 points unused, while Ekene Amadi, Louis Grimoldby and David Bailey all wasted 17–20 points that could have transformed their weeks. Will parked 16, and Phil Johnson 15, as rotation and late goals bit hard. Two managers rolled the dice with chips: David Bailey played his Wildcard to reset, and Georg unleashed a bold Triple Captain on Gabriel Magalhães – sadly rewarded with just 3 TC points and a place in the “what might have been” file.

Rank movers

The biggest climbers this week were Abi Speight, David Tonks and Emmy Rupasinghe, all rising ▲2 places as their more balanced squads handled the volatility best. Mike Flynn and Jamie Mitchell each nudged up one. On the flip side, Callum Bowness dropped ▼5 spots, with Shannon H, Mark Horton and Paul Ray all falling three places after sub-40 scores. Phil Johnson slid a further two as his recovery stalled.

Outlook

With eleven gameweeks gone, the league is finely poised. Chris still leads, but the pack from second to eighth are all close enough to dream of top spot before Christmas. The season hit count has reached 192 points, and as Haaland, Arsenal assets and a resurgent Villa continue to shape the template, managers now face a choice: stay safe and grind, or follow Cathy’s and Georg’s lead and lean into lower-template, high-upside plays. Either way, if City keep dismantling opponents and Liverpool keep wobbling, there’s plenty more chaos to come.