Gameweek 29

Well we’ve been waiting a while for this one and finally it is here……….Blank Gameweek 29…….I hope you’ve been paying attention and gradually transferring out those Liverpool, Newcastle, Villa and Palace players?? Or are you planning to navigate around it with free transfers and minus fours……….or are you rolling out the FREE HIT CHIP? Just a reminder that the Free Hit means that for one week only you can change your entire squad, and then your current squad will automatically return for Gameweek 30. But just remember also that Blank GW34 is also on the horizon,  so you’ll have the same dilemma to consider again then.

Just remember too that there is a £50 cash prize for the best Free Hit score, Bean Flickers currently have their grip on the money with 129 points, but this is a big weekend……you have your target to aim for!

Last week I questioned whether we should be careful about captaining Mo Salah…….I’m pleased to see that almost none of you paid any attention (or even read it?!) with 146 teams in the Evie Dove League giving the Egyptian King the armband……..that man is clearly beyond rotation…..and it was another incredible gameweek with 15  points contributing to his running total of 306 points which smashes the alt time record of 303 points set by Salah himself in 17/18, his first season at Liverpool. The fact that he beat the record with nine gameweeks to go is just ridiculous………. at the current run rate he could even go over 400 points in a season! Sit back and enjoy this, we might not see a Fantasy Football player have a season like this for some time!

There were of course a few of us that went against Salah………indeed there was one team in the upper echelons that went with Jarrod Bowen (what?)………….. And that team……… was my team……. Endo the Line……..Now bear with me…….I need to get this off my chest…..my thinking was as follows…….Liverpool v Southampton easy home win…….. Salah will get a maximum of 60 minutes in preparation for PSG and Newcastle at Wembley so let’s bank on him having a quiet/short game, swim against the tide, and try and steal a march on the other teams near the top of the leaderboard…….Palmer not an option in current form….good swerve it turns out with that missed penalty…….….and then in a moment of genius I settled on Bowen……..a man in form…….at home to a Newcastle side that you could guarantee would not turn up with the Carabao Cup on their mind………and the cherry on the cake….he was playing on Monday so I had all weekend to dream of his massive haul, and to sneak up on the others at the last knocking……….. It was so beautiful, a piece of Fantasy Football cunning that would be talked about (by me only) for years……The result…..Bowen got 4 points to Salah’s 30 as West Ham lost to a highly motivated Newcastle team!!! I think this is a very clear case of overthinking/trying to be too clever…….meanwhile…..to hammer this point home…..my sister who is playing in the league as I know many of you are because you are good people that have no interest in football but are very happy to make a donation to a good cause……is in the top 10 in the March stakes with the aptly named Clueless FC!! ………….Honestly……..this game!!!!!!!!!!

Talking of the March stakes, whilst the month has only just started we are actually already at the sharp end……thanks to the International Break and FA Cup we actually only have one GW to go in the £50 March stakes so all to play for this weekend with the league dominated by some Holiday Extras legends in Hodges FC, MollyMaesGoalDiggers, and Gravy’s Greats……..and of course Clueless FC is in hot pursuit! Good luck everyone!!

Your deadline this week is 13:30 on Saturday……..too much time some would say…..take my advice…..Don’t overthink it!!

 Have a good one and all the best from all of us at the Evie Dove Foundation.