Soccer Star

Season 35

Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

The top two spots in the Premier League was dominated by Bentley Vikings Old Boys and Whitby Town, with one or both being there all season.

Five of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the only change was Whitby Town replaced Mexicana Wave.

Duffield Dynamos relegated after 3 seasons; Doncaster Town relegated after 5 seasons and Scrubs relegated after 1 season.

The three promoted clubs finished 12th, 13th and 14th.

1. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 3rd) – CJ took his 10th title with Bentley in a good battle with Whitby for the top spot. They had a strong start with 5 wins and a draw; had a sticky spell away from home in the first half of the season but their home form compensated for this and when their away form kicked in they hit the top at the half way point and stayed there until the end. CJ remained unbeaten at home all season with 12 wins and 3 draws. In the last 20 seasons Bentley have never been lower than 6th with 18 top 3 finishes.

2. Whitby Town (last season 13th) – after two tough seasons back in the Premier League nobody expected the fantastic season that SteveR has had. They started the season in tremendous form and were undefeated in their first 13 games and topped the League for 6 weeks. Three away defeats in a row threatened to undermine their season and they dropped to 2nd, but this was a minor blip and they remained 2nd for the rest of the season. Their home form was excellent with just 1 defeat. Dave Carson had an ezcellent season with 14 goals.

3. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 2nd) - another fantastic season for Rich Dimambro. After losing their first game Aberdeen than went 12 games without defeat and were 3rd in the table. Three losses in a row was followed by 3 wins in a row to leave them still in 3rd place and that is where they finished. It was a very consistent season for Rich with the lowest position they occupied being 5th.

4. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 4th) – Paul (Razor) started off unbeaten in 5 but there were 4 draws so they were Mid table. Chadd were a difficult side to beat with only Bentley having a better record but they were the draw kings with 12. They were never in doubt of a top 6 finish but if only Paul could have turned some of those draws into wins. Adrian Gonzales top scored again with 9 (he turns 35 next season) and Brendan Shanahan weighed in with 8.

5. Loyal Rangers (last season 6th) – it was a cracking start for Andy (Steve Davis) with six wins and 2 draws and they topped the table for 5 weeks but it all went wrong with just 2 points from the next 5 and they dropped to 4th and 9 points off the pace. Title hopes had already gone so Andy's target was a top 6 place and they secured that to make it 5 top 6 finishes in a row. Loyal reached a second consecutive Cup Final and after last season's loss beat Dell Diamonds 2-0 - for a 6th Cup win. Mikel Kitess was their top scorer with 10 and Gaudinio hit 9.

6. Jedi Knights (last season 1st) – after 3 consecutive top three finishes ChrisC could not manage another but it was still an excellent season. Strangely it was the home form that deserted Chris - after going unbeaten last season he lost 7 this season with only 5 wins - good job their away form was good. Their attack did well again with Alan Thomas scoring 10 and Eunan O'kane 8.

7. Mighty Chucks (last season 9th) – Stu made it 14 consecutive seasons in the Premier League but he had to battle after a first half of the season that saw them drop into the bottom three. The second half of the season saw them climb away from the relegation battle and with 5 games to go they were 9th and safe......Denver Boss had a good season with 12 goals.

8. FC Abertawe (last season 7th) – it was a disappointing season for MikeT as FC Abertawe never got going. The first half of the season saw them pick up just 15 points and a possible relegation battle was on the cards. The second half of the season saw them rally based on some good home results - a run of 5 wins in 6 games. The highlight of the season was the continued progression of young striker Wayne Ruffer, who followed up last season's 11 goals with another 11 this season.

9. Mexicana Wave (last season 5th) – it was a Jekyll and Hyde season for Wes as Mexicana were without an away win until week 30 so it was a good job their home form was good to give them a Mid table finish. It was another season with goals at both end - they scored 49 with only Bentley in the Premier League higher but their 44 goals conceded was the 2nd worst in the Premier League. A total of 93 goals featured in their games, which was was the most in the Opal. Jon Dadi Boverson was their top scorer with 12.

10. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 11th) – an 9th consecutive season in the Premier for Gary (Smiffy) but it didn't look that way early in the season as they lost 6 of their opening 7 games and were rock bottom. Gary had an emergency meeting with the players to thrash out the problems and hey presto they had 5 wins in 7 games to move them up to 9th. The second half of the season was fairly constant and they managed to improve on last season's finish. Top goal scorer was Dominico Brini with 8.

11. Cusco (last season 8th) - a 4th season for Matt (smelly) with Cusco back in the Premier League and after 3 Mid table finishes this season was a disappointment as they slipped 3 places. Yet another poor start threatened their stay in the top flight - bottom at the half way point with 13 points. Four wins in a row helped Matt turn it around but just 2 wins in the next 10 saw Matt keeping an eye on the results of the tams below them.

12. Istra Pula (promoted) – it was a first season for MikeT back in the Premier League after an absence of 10 seasons and it was tough one. The first half of the season saw excellent home form with just 1 defeat and sitting comfortably in Mid table with 20 points. It all then went to pot and they failed to win another home game collecting just 4 points - their away form was slightly better with 6 points so with one game to go they had 30 points and it all came down to the last game and they saved their bacon with a goal 4 minutes from time!

13. East Riding Enterprise (promoted) - it was a first time in 21 seasons for Ben in the Premier League and it was a mighty, difficult season with goal difference keeping them up in the end. Talk about Polar opposites but check out the difference in home and away form - no wins in their first 14 home games with just 5 points; away from home 23 points and better than the champions Bentley. The trouble was their last 2 games were at home - strangely the first one was against Mexicana who had not won away but is was a defeat. This set up the last game as gigantic battle at home to Doncaster - would you believe it a 1-0 win and their only home of the season.

14. Doncaster Town (last season 12th) – CJ has struggled against relegation for the last 2 seasons but this time there was no escape. With 4 wins in the first half of the season Doncaster were just above the bottom three. The next 9 games saw them pick up just 3 points and with 6 games to go they were bottom,8 points from safety and surely doomed. CJ suddenly found the missing ingredient and with 4 wins in the next 5 games they were out of the bottom three and with a game at East Riding, who were below a win would ensure their safety - sadly they lost to an early goal and they are down after 5 seasons.

14. Scrubs (last season promoted) – after two consecutive promotions Ben was back in the Premier League after a gap of 25 seasons but it was a short stay.It started disastrously with 5 defeats and it was always going to be an uphill struggle but they battled back to 9th after 13 games. The recovery didn't last long and they were soon back into the bottom three where they remained and with 3 games to go they look doomed but a great win at relegation threatened Istra gave them hope and it all was down to the last game at Jedi. A great performance gave them a win but with other results not going their way they were down.

16. Duffield Dynamos (last season 10th) – 3rd season for John (jelly) but it wasn't third time lucky as they are relegated. The only highlight of the season was the first 5 games when they were 4th - it was all downhill from there. Duffield hit the bottom three after 13 games and stayed there for the rest if the season. It was a season John will be pleased to see the back of!!

Division 1

Abysmal Aftermath are promoted as champions, Chester Town are promoted and Sylvan Lake are promoted. In a strange occurrence all three were relegated together 2 seasons ago!

There was only 3 points between 3rd and 8th

Inter Southampton relegated after 1 season, Lokomotiv Dinamo relegated after 3 seasons and Southampton Sity relegated after 7 seasons.

The three relegated clubs finished 4th, 7th and 11th.

The three promoted cubs finished 12th, 13th and 14th.

1. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 7th) – MikeT is promoted back to the Premier League after 2 season as Champions. A strong first half of the season with 30 points set them up nicely and even though they had a spell of 6 home games without a win, their away form was excellent. They topped the table for 18 weeks of the campaign and were in the top three for all but the first 3 games. Sunday Eboh excelled with 14 goals.

2. Chester Town (last season 8th) – PaulW takes Chester back after 2 seasons but it all went down to the last game of the season. They started well with just 1 defeat in the first 10 game and were 2nd in the table; after that it was an odd season as they picked up 25 points from the next 10 home games but only 7 points from the next 9 games so it came down to the last game of the season which they lost but other results went for them. Kain Reed topped their scoring with 9.

3. Sylvan Lake (last season 4th) – it was a 2nd season for Dave (Shep) in Division 1 and after last season's heartbreak it was their turn to break other team's hearts. With only 1 defeat in their first 12 games they could have been setting the pace but with 6 draws it meant they were in 3rd spot. Two defeats in a row and they were down to 5th; Shep went on another unbeaten run of 7 and back to 3rd. With just 2 wins in their last 8 Sylvan needed to win and hope the other results went for them and would you believe it that is exactly what happened. The 12 draws was the most this season - equal with 2 other teams. Luis Melo topped their scoring with 10.

4. Xbana FC (last season relegated) – Baz will be kicking himself that he has not made a quick return to the Premier League. After a sluggish start they hit the top three after 8 weeks; a couple of defeats in a row and the alarm bells started to ring but Baz proceeded to pick up 25 points from the next 10 games, topped the table for 5 weeks and looked certain for promotion!! Then the slump hit and 7 games without a win left Xbana in the top three but only on goals scored entering the last weekend and a defeat at home to Cunnack saw them miss out; Xbana only picked up 3 points in the last 8 games!! David Laccroix scored 14 and Camuso Viscosi 12.

5. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 10th) – a 5th season for Kesgrave in Division 1 for Gary and it turned out to be his best season yet and almost perfect but a defeat in their last game saw them miss out on promotion. For most of the season they were not regarded as serious promotion hopefuls - 7th after 5 games, 5th after 10 games, 6th after 15 games, 8th after 20 games and 7 points off the pace but 21 points from the next 10 games and they were 4th with only goals scored keeping them out of the top three. So it was all down to the last game at home to Armthorpe - nerves played their part as they lost 3-0. Rodrigo Rotundo was again their star player with 12 goals...

6. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 11th) – after just avoiding relegation last season CJ was looking for a big improvement and a possible promotion push but it wasn't to be as they could not find any consitency and made it 3 seasons in Division 1. A poor start left them bottom after 8 games but then 7 wins in 9 games and they were up to 5th and promotion was on CJ's mind. A poor spell was followed but a good spell and with 3 games to go they were still in with a chance but they couldn't take it and in the end were only 2 points off the pace.

7. The Survivors (last season relegated) – Stu was looking for a quick return to the Premier League but they eventually fell just short by 3 points. Their away form was good enough take them up with 8 wins and 27 points but their home form let them down with just 4 wins and 18 points - Stu knows this could easily have been a promotion season.

8. Northern Soul (last season 5th) – Wes (chunky) was looking for a more consistent season than last season but after their dreadful start they were lucky not to be relegating. With just 2 wins in the first 12 games they were bottom with 9 points and the situation looked hopeless but their form suddenly returned and with just 1 defeat in the next 10 games chunky climbed to 7th. They were still 5 points off the promotion places but they kept picking points up in the remaining games and only finished up 3 points off the pace. How chunky wished they could have won one of their opening games.

9. York Rovers (last season 9th) – a 6th season back in Division 1 for SteveR and another 9th placed finish. The season can be split into 3 distinct performance levels They started off in excellent form and only losing 1 of their opening 12 games were 4th and maybe a promotion push. All of the high expectations were dashed in the next 6 games as York lost 5 of these and they plummeted to 13th and 3 points off the drop zone; just as quickly as they lost the form it was back and 1 defeat in the next 8 with 5 consecutive wins York were up to 7th and only 4 points from a promotion place. The season then petered away and a Mid table finish. Will Neviani excelled with 10 goals.

10. Askham Bryan United (last season 12th) – a 4th season for SteveR in Division 1 and they never really got going. At Mid season they were 11th with 18 points, after 20 games they were 7th, after 25 games they were 14th with 32 points and a few worries but a win in the next game and they were safe. The player of the season was d**k Stowell again, who scored 15 goals and was the joint Golden Boot winner.

11. Hundon Harriers (last season relegated) – a first full season for Gary and he will be very pleased with the finishing position after the poor start to the season. With 11 games played they were bottom and looking at a 2nd consecutive relegation but with 7 wins in the next 9 games Hundon had rocketed up to 6th. That was as good as it got and Gary can plan for a better start next season. He found a good striker in Robert Cumber with 12

12. Cunnack Allstars (last season promoted) – a first season for ChrisC and Cunnack in Division 1 for 19 seasons and he will be pleased to keep them up. It started like a dream for Chris with 3 wins but that was the high for the season as they could not find any away form and picked up just 3 more wins on their travels. Their home form balanced this out but consistency was a problem and this will be one area that ChrisC will need to concentrate on. Alisdair Northridge was their top scorer with 10.

13. Riverplate (last season promoted) – MikeT just managed to keep Riverplate in Division 1 after a poor start to the campaign - bottom after 6 games and without a win. Four wins in the next 5 and they looked to be on the up but 4 defeats left Riverplate back in the bottom three at the half way point. The second half of the season was much better for Riverplate as they picked up 23 points and avoide relegation by 1 point. Carlos Matheus Nunes was a major help with 12 goals

14. Inter Southampton (last season promoted) – after two successive promotions for Shep this season turned out to be a major disappointment, but Dave can count himself unlucky as they had 37 points and the highest ever in Division 1 - dating back to October 2005 . It was a strange season with just 3 wins in the first 13 games, then 4 wins on the trot and then back to just 2 wins in the next 12 so you would have to say on balance that the vast majority of the season their form was not good enough. One plus was that the Youth team won the Youth League so Dave should have some good prospects for the future.

15. Lokomotiv Dinamo (last season promoted) – briefly taken on by DaveC and the later in the season taken into Dave's (shep) portfolio. Plenty of culling so rebuilding in process.

16. Southamton Sity (last season 6th) – due to circumstances Dave(shep) had to leave Sity and towards the end of the season they were taken on by Wayne - good to see him back. Rebuilding in process.

Division 2

The three relegated clubs are all promoted as Dell Diamonds are champions and joining them La Donny Luz and Bayern FC.

Arduthie are relegated after 7 seasons, Cowie Thistle are relegated after 2 seasons and Queens Cross United relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

The three promoted teams finished 6th, 9th and 13th.

1. Dell Diamonds (last season relegated) – a quick return for MikeT and a fantastic season for Dell, who also reached the Cup Final but lost to Loyal. It was a very consistent performance by Dell, who only lost 3 games all season - one at home in week 24 and two away - weeks 1 and 31! Dominic Daybrook with 11 and David Davis with 10 spearheaded the attack and with only 16 goals conceded they had the best defensive record in the Opal. It was a 4th Cup Final appearance and a 4th loss!

2. La Donny Luz (last season relegated) – a quick return for CJ in a very consistent season. CJ hit the top three in week 8 and remained there with only 5 defeats. They were not prolific goal scorers but with just 19 conceded only Dell bettered them in the Opal.

3. Bayern FC (last season relegated) – a surprisingly, quick return for MikeT and one that he did not expect. With 7 games to go they looked on for an easy return but 5 defeats in 6 left them with only a point to play with and a trip to La Donny - a tough ask but they played brilliantly and returned with a 1-0 win. It was a good season for Dwight Yorkes (Bayern FC) who scored 10.

4. South Ruislip (last season 5th) – a 3rd season for Richard (St Albans) and a 3rd top 5 finish; must be one of the favourites to go up next season. A good first half of the season saw them in 5th place but 6 defeats in the next 8 games left them 10th and 14 points behind a top three place - the bookies were offering 1000-1 for them to go up. What happened next is nothing short of a miracle as they won 5 and drew 1 of the next 6 games to leave them just a point behind Bayern going into the last game - they had brief thoughts of promotion when they took the lead against Moles but with Bayern winning it wasn't to be.

5. Wigan Wildcats (last season 13th) – it was a 4th season for Dave (woody) after they survived with a goal in the final minutes last year. I don't think Dave was expecting the season to be as good but in the end so heartbreaking.
The first 14 games seemed to be the usual hit and miss Wigan as they were 11th with 17 points and skirting with relegation again. Suddenly Dave had them playing like 'world beaters' as they reeled off 9 wins in the next 10 games to be 4th and only a point off a promotion place. Could Dave get them to Division 1 for the first time in their history - well the answer is NO and Dave will be kicking himself, as they failed to win in the last 6 games and . Caer Caveral was again their star man with 11 goals.

6. Ripley Knights (last season promoted) – an excellent season for Paul (razor) after gaining promotion. Four wins in the first 6 games and 13 points set a solid foundation for the season - their home performances and away performances were very similar and with 22 points at home and 25 points away. Paul is still improving the team and he will fancy his chances at a promotion push next season. They had a potent attack with Edison Arantes do Nascime and Stan Fazackerley both netting 9 goals.

7. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 9th) - a 3rd season for MikeT in Division 2 and another improvement. A cracking start with 5 wins in 6 and brief spell at the top held at high hopes for the season - their home form continued to be excellent with 30 out of their 46 points. MikeT knows if he can get the awy form going he can improve even more. Jiri Hrdina hit 12 goals.

8. Par Athletic (last season 12th) – SteveR made it 16 consecutive season in Division 2 but it could easily have been a promotion season. Similar to last season their home was brilliant with 32 points including winning their opening 7 home games. They started off ok away with 3 wins in the first 5 games and topped the table for 4 weeks. The away losses started to pile up but they managed to hang onto a top three until week 17; nine away defeats in a row saw them slowly slip to Mid table. With only 2 draws it was the lowest in the Opal.

9. Tamriel FC (last season promoted) - a very good finish considering they are the control team!!!!

10. Stainsacre United (last season 7th) – a 4th season in Division 2 for SteveR but earlier in the season Steve would have been hoping for promotion to Division 1. After 11 games and only 2 defeats they were 4th with 23 points but the rest of the season was a disappointment as they only recorded 3 more wins but plenty of draws - 11 in total the most in Division 2!

11. Huntley Fairways (last season 4th) – after last season's great season Carl started off as one of the favourites to go up but a horrendous start to the season put paid to those aspirations. Just 2 win in the first 14 games and they were 3rd from bottom with 10 points. Suddenly it all clicked into place and they were unbeaten in 7 and 5 consecutive wins to rocket them onto 38 points and safety. Four defeat to end the season left Carl with plenty to ponder about for next season, although he will start as one of the favourites. Victor Ezeji was again a star player with 12 goals.

12. Southern Vipers (last season 8th) – a difficult season as Shep had to give up management due to unseen circumstances. Luckily for the supporters he was able to return near the end of the season to ensure they stayed in Division 1.

13. Molesley Shoals (last season promoted) – it was a tough season for Dave (Lloydy) after last season's promotion. They could not find any consistency with only the first 2 weeks of the season where they recorded two consecutive wins. They did have some good results and now Dave just has to strengthen for next season as there are three good teams coming up from Division 3. Paul Pitman did plenty to keep them in the Division with 10 goals.

14. Arduthie (last season 11th) – taken over for a short while by Dave Curtis and the later in the season by Rob Page. Plenty of work to do, although they showed their promise with 4 wins and 2 draws in the last 6 games.

15. Cowie Thistle (last season 10th) – taken over for a short while by Dave Curtis and the later in the season by Andy - the manager of Loyal Rangers. Andy is one of the most successful managers in the Opal and will be hoping to weave his magic on Cowie- to be Emu's BPW 2020 next season. Andy has had Loyal for 43 seasons and this is the first time he has taken on a 2nd team - why has it taken him so long?

16. Queens Cross United (last season relegated) – taken over for a short while by Dave Curtis and the later in the season by Rob Page. Plenty of work to do.

Division 3

Promotion was a 4 horse race and Tadcaster Albion were unlucky to fall at the last hurdle.

Norfolk promoted after 1 season, Mann City promoted after 13 seasons and Boscombe Athletic promoted after 2 seasons.

Fishburn Park are T64.

The tree relegated clubs finished 1st, 13th and 14th.

1. Norfolk FC (last season relegated) – two consecutive promotions, followed by 2 consecutive relegations and now another promotion. Norfolk started well and topped the league 4 times in the first 8 weeks. An 'iffy' spell away from home threatened to de-rail the promotion hopes but they overcame this and didn't lose in their remaining 12 games. With 62 goals scored they were the top scorers in the Opal - helped by Jamie Lennon and Benoit De Vreese, both with 12 goals.

2. Mann City (last season 8th) – Brian takes Mann City up after 14 seasons in Division 2. Last season they only lost 6 but 14 draws stopped them being higher; this season Brian rectifies that with only 4 defeats and 16 wins. They focussed their promotion on a strong defence and only conceded 18 - the 2nd best in the Opal. Their home was fantastic after losing the first one and they finished up unbeaten in the remainder and won 7 in a row near the end of the season. Alfie Plum hit 10.

3. Boscombe Athletic (last season 14th) – a brilliant first season for Dave Legg and promotion. They were consistent in the first, two thirds of the season, topped the table for 7 weeks and at one time had an 8 point lead over 4th place. Their problems started as their away form disappeared and they failed to win 6 in a row; going into the last game they had a one point lead over Tadcaser but had a tough match at promoted, Mann City. The game finished 2-2 and as Taddy failed to win they were up. In attack they had two excellent strikers - Youri Tielemans hit 11 and Leo Schatzberger hit 10.

4. Tadcaster Albion (last season 10th) – SteveR spent his 2nd season with Taddy (the first 2 in their history) and promotion looked to be on the cards for most of the season and they topped the league on 8 occasions - the last being after 24 games. The trouble was the other three teams in the promotion race were all playing well so when they hit a bad patch and picked up only 6 points from 5 games they headed into the last game two points behind Boscombe. With Boscombe drawing a win would have taken them up but they couldn't break down The Islanders defence and Steve has it all to do again next season. Pete Jackson topped their scoring with 11 goals.

5. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season 6th) – after Ben achieved his best position last season they were strongly tipped to be battling for a promotion place. It turned out to be frustrating season for Ben with them hovering around Mid table for most of the time - a surge took them to 5th after 22 games and only 3 points off a top three place but one point from the next 4 games saw the hopes dashed. Ben won his last 2 games to take a creditable 5th spot and another improvement - he must be there or thereabouts next season.

6. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 12th) – it was a 24th consecutive season in Division 2 for Kiloparsec and good progress from Gary (smiffy) after finishing 12th in the last 2 seasons. Last season their home form was a problem and they soon started to rectify this by winning their first 4 - the only trouble was that they only won two more all season. Similar to last season their away form was impressive with 8 wins, so some more work on the home form required. Elvis Erde was the joint Golden Boot winner with15. He looked to be on for more goals as he had netted 13 after 20 games but it was a barren spell for him in the last 10 games.

7. Worksop Tigers (last season 5th) – a second full season with CJ at the helm and Chris will be disappointed. An average first half of the season saw them in 9th place and promotion looking miles away. CJ cracked the whip and a run of 8 games without defeat took them up to 5th and 5 points off the pace. They couldn't maintain this form but should be a team to watch next season.

8. Phantom Lords (last season 13th) – a first full season for ChrisC and will be happy with the Mid table finish. 23 points at home and 19 points away so decent performances all round. It is all about strengthening the team for Chris.

9. Wealdstone FC (last season 9th) – a similar finish for Richard Woolford (St Albans) with goals at both ends continuing to be a feature. The last three seasons saw the goals for and against as 46-41, 48,39 and 45-43; this season was no difference with a 36-41 split. (So in total it has been 87,87,88 and this season 77). If you are after goals bext season this is the place to be!

10. Manics (last season 15th) – a big improvement for Matt (smelly) although he will feel a very disappointed after their first half of the season. They were sitting 4th and only 2 points behind a promotion place - that was the best it got as they failed to win in their last 14 games. If Matt can continue improving his squad they should be knocking on the door next season.

11. Chapel North (last season 4th) - taken on by Dave (Shep) near the end of the season to try and take them back to their former glories.

12. Whitewell Town (last season 7th) – the season was over for Chris (CJ) before it even got going - without a win in 10 and just 5 points!! They had a purple patch with 6 wins in 9 games but ended the season as they began without a win in the last 9 games. CJ knows he should do better.

13. Wight Wanderers (last season relegated) – Dave (Lloydy) stepped in when Shep had to leave and he is now looking to strengthen the team.

14. The Islanders (last season relegated) - the supporters when very sad to hear that Shep had announced his departure due to un-forseen circumstances. Wayne stepped in near the end of the season to start the re-build.

15. Radford Semele (last season 11th) – Craig found goals hard to come by this season so wins were not as forthcoming as the previous season. It wasn't all doom and gloom as they did draw 11 games and if a few of these had been wins they would have been much higher in the table.

16. Fishburn Park (last season 16th) - a massive challenge taken on by SteveR and last season they didn't score a goal and only managed 2 points. They are still bottom but have made progress with 15 points and 15 goals scored.

All of the teams are managed and each year the Divisions get stronger – Division 3 is very competitive so if you finish lower than you wanted it doesn’t mean you are a bad side it just emphasises the quality of most teams.

Vacant Teams

None

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Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

Week 31 – End of Term Report. October 2020

Premier League

The top spot in the Premier League was dominated by Bentley Vikings Old Boys who held the top spot for the last 26 weeks.

Five of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the only changes Whitby Town replaced by Sylvan Lake

East Riding relegated after 2 seasons; Istra Pula relegated after 2 seasons and Whitby Towns relegated after 4 seasons.

The three promoted clubs finished 6th, 9th and 12th.

1. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 1st) – CJ took his 11th title with Bentley and it was a one horse race. They won their first 13 games, held a 10 point lead and never looked back - their form only faltered towards the end of the season when it didn't matter. They beatd the most number of wins in the Premier League - 23, which they achieved in Season 25. Only 1 draw as well. The goals came from Marvin Matip - 13 and Kevin Stevens - 11. In the last 21 seasons Bentley have never been lower than 6th with 19 top 3 finishes.

2. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 3rd) - another fantastic season for Rich Dimambro; a 4th time they have been runners up. Their home form was excellent with just 2 defeats all season, away from home they had a couple of poor spells but they were never really in a chance of catching Bentley. Yaris Gamin was their top goal scorer with 10.

3. Loyal Rangers (last season 5th) – in contrast to last season it was a slow start for Andy (Steve Davis), with just 1 win in the first 5 games. Their form improved but at the half way point Loyal were 7th with 21 points; their form continued to be patchy and with 22 games played they were languishing in Mid table. Suddenly Andy found his mojo and they reeled off 5 straight wins and a 17th top 3 finish. Loyals's hopes of a 3rd consecutive cup final were halted by a quarter final defeat at Mexicana Wave. Greg Debakers was their top scorer with 14 and Archie Cloughton weighed in with 12.

4. Jedi Knights (last season 6th) – a steady start saw ChrisC in 4th place after 11 games but just 2 points in the next 6 and Jedi had slipped to 10th and only 4 points clear of the relegation zone. It was all uphill from then with just 1 defeat in the next 14 and an excellent 4th place. Their attack was not as potent as usual however the supporter's favourite Eunan O'Kane didn'yt disappoint with 10 - a 10th consecutive season that he is been amongst the top goal scorers.

5. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 4th) – in the first 5 weeks it looked as though it would be a 2 horse race between Paul (Razor) and CJ with Bentley Vikings as they both reeled off five wins. However 2 points from the next 4 matches and it set the trend for the season with them winning a few then losing a few - they went the last 21 games without a draw. The season ended in terrible fashion with Chadd losing 7 in 8 games.It was also to say goodbye to Adrian Gonzalez, who has been their top goal scorer for the last 7 seasons who has been magnificent with 93 goals in 226 appearances - Paul will miss him dearly.

6. Sylvan Lake (last season promoted) – an excellent performance by Dave (Shep) in Sylvan's first season back in the big time. They were consistent all season - without any big unbeaten runs or defeats so hovered around Mid table all season. Their success was based on a strong defence with only 30 conceded - only the top two bettered this.

7. FC Abertawe (last season 8th) – it turned out to be a decent season for MikeT with FC Abertawe but it could have been far worse as they only one once in the first 9 games and were 3rd from bottom!!! Suddenly they hit form and picked up 20 points from the next 8 games and were unbeaten at home for the last 13 games. At home they collected 31 points in contrast away only yielded 14!! They found goal scoring easy with 52 but also conceded easily with 44, so a total of 96 goals in their games. Top goal scorer was Wayne Ruffer with 10.

8. Mighty Chucks (last season 7th) – Stu made it 15 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and a 3rd consecutive Mid table finish. Mid table most of the season without any major, highs or lows so you would say steady. The Chucks had an interesting run at the end of the season with 5 consecutive home wins and 4 consecutive away draws. Denver Boss hit 9 goals and Harry Van Stack weighed in with 8.

9. Chester Town (last season promoted) – PaulW will be very pleased with his first season back in the Premier League. The first 9 games only yielded 9 points and it looked as though it could be a tough season but 4 wins in a row looked to have taken away the worries. However just 5 points from the next 9 games and they had slipped to 10th with 26 points - there were never really any relegation worries as the bottom three never got started. PaulW ended to season with a flourish for a very respectable finish. Goal scoring was a problem with only 33 goals.

10. Cusco (last season 11th) - a 5th season for Matt (smelly) with Cusco in the Premier League and a similar finish to last season. It looked as though they were in for a good season with 13 points from the first 7 games and sitting nicely in 3rd spot. The rest of the season was a major disappointment with the one highlight being 4 wins in 5 games which secured their safety. Ended the season with 1 win on 8. An area that Matt is trying to improve is to find a player that can score - only 5 goals for the top scorer!

11. Mexicana Wave (last season 9th) – it was another below par finish for Wes (chunkymunky) as their cavalier approach saw them fail to get any consistency. Away form over the last few seasons has been a real problem with only 4 wins in the last 33 games! Three defeats in a row left Mexicana only 2 points from safety with 2 games to go but an away win secured their safety. One thing you do get at Mexicana's games is goals with 50 for and 42 against - leading marksmen were and Jon Dadi Boversson with 12 and Ivan Cavalerio with 11.

12. Abysmal Aftermath (last season promoted) – MikeT kept his place in the Premier League but it was a real struggle. The season was plotted out after only 5 games as they were 3rd from bottom and they hovered around the relegation zone all season. Their home form mimicked their team name abysmal with only 15 points - luckily away their away form was decent and kept them up. A bonus for MikeT was a first Cup Final appearance and victory over The Survivors from Division 1.

13. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 10th) – an 10th consecutive season in the Premier for Gary (Smiffy), but only just and a second successive struggle against relegation. The Vipers could not put any unbeaten runs together and it all came down to the last game where they were away to Cusco and just 1 points clear of the drop zone - a hero was needed and up stepped Adonai Fuentes with the winner.Only 28 goals scored and Dominico Brini hit 10 of these.

14. East Riding Enterprise (13th) - a second season for Ben in the Premier League - after staying up on the last day of last season this time a repeat but it ended in tears. Talking about repeats this was almost identical with the home form being as terrible as last season - two wins this time against one last season, but again their away form was the saviour. With 10 games to do they looked certain to go down - bottom and 9 points adrift! A rare home win and 13 points from 5 away games saw them almost do the impossible and it all came down to the last game at home to Chester. They pulled off a home win but with the Vipers also winning they were down. Amazingly with only 24 goals score Alan Readman-Walsh helped himself to 11.

15. Istra Pula (12th) – a second season for MikeT back in the Premier League but after surviving last season with a goal 4 minutes from time there was no escape this season. Poor from start to finish - nothing more to be said.

16. Whitby Town (last season 2nd) – a major shock as SteveR is relegated after finishing as runners up last season, so back to Division 1 after 4 seasons. They didn't win any of their first 9 games and that set the tone for the season with only 5 wins all season!

Division 1

The Survivors are promoted as champions, Bayern FC are promoted after 16 seasons and Askham Bryan United are promoted after 8 seasons

Hundon Harriers are relegated after 9 seasons, Scrubs are relegated after 1 season and Duffield Dynamos are relegated after 1 season.

Two consecutive relegations for Scrubs and Duffield Dynamos.

The three relegated clubs finished 8th, 15th and 16th.

The three promoted cubs finished 2nd, 7th and 11th.

1. The Survivors (last season 7th) – Stu is back after two seasons and after missing out by 3 points last season he made no mistakes as they go up as Champions. A terrific start with 6 straight wins was followed by great form all season - they hit the top in week 2 and never let it go. Roberto Dagwanne hit 10 and they were a favourite for the tv with 15 appearances. To cap off a great performance they also reached their first cup final but lost to Abysmal Aftermath.

2. Bayern FC (last season promoted) – a major surprise as MikeT gets a second successive promotion and takes Bayern back to the Premier League after an absence of 16 seasons. Their success was based on a fantastic home record with no defeats but their away form was threatening to spoil the party. With 7 games to go they were still 4 points off the pace but 5 wins in a row and promotion was secured. Top scorer Romelu Lukaku with 11 goals.

3. Askham Bryan United (last season 10th) – a 5th season for SteveR in Division 1 and what a season it turned out to be with promotion after 8 seasons away. A good first half of the season saw them in 4th place and then a run of 6 home wins and Askham were 2nd and looking certain for promotion. The nerves kicked in with just 4 points from the next 4 games but Steve steadied the ship and promotion was in the bag. d**k Stowell was again the star player, with a second successive Golden Boot with 15 goals.

4. Xbana FC (last season 4th) – Baz will be kicking himself for the second year running that he has not made a return to the Premier League. With just 1 defeat in the first half of the season they were 2nd and in hot pursuit of the top spot. Xbana's form dropped off on the second half of the season but they were still hanging on to 3rd place with 7 games to go but without a win in 4 they dropped out of the top three and never made it back. With 48 goals they were the top scorers in the Division with contributions from Geoff Wright (Xbana FC) - 11, Siebe Schrijvers (Xbana FC) - 11, Davis Laccroix (Xbana FC) - 9

5. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 6th) – CJ just misses out on promotion and has to settle for a top 6 place again - it is now 4 seasons in Division 1. They were battling out for a promotion spot for most of the season but their form dipped just at the wrong time with one just win the last 8. An area that CJ struggled as a target man with only 8 being the top by Mario Guseppi.

6. La Donny Luz (last season promoted) – it was a poor start for CJ with one win in the first 9 games and a quick return to Division 2 looking more likely than promotion. However, a run of 10 games without defeat and La Donny were up to 5th; 4 games later only goal difference was keeping them out of the top three but that was as good as it got. Noel Borrington hit 11 goals.

7. Northern Soul (last season 8th) – Wes (chunky) was looking for a good start for a change and his wish was granted as they only lost 1 of the first 7 games and in 2nd place. How things can change so quickly as they failed to win in the next 6 and dropped to 9th! The remainder of the season they played well and only lost 3 in the last 18 games but with 9 draws it was another Mid table finish.

8. Doncaster Town (last season relegated) – it looked for a long time that CJ would suffer consecutive relegations with them in the bottom three with 8 games to go and without a win on their travels. Suddenly the team seemed to realise the predicament they were in and picked up 17 points from the next 7 games and they were safe. Magnus Graham topped with 8 goals.

9. York Rovers (last season 9th) – a 7th season back in Division 1 for SteveR and with 4 9th placed fishes in the last 5 seasons it was no surprise to see them 9th again.They struggled in the first 10 games with only gd keeping them out of the bottom three; by the half way point they had climbed to 11th and were just keeping their heads above water. With 5 games to go only a point was keeping them safe but two wins on the bounce and they were safe for another season. Goal scoring was again a problem with only 25.

10. Riverplate (last season 13th) – after just staying in Division 1 last season MikeT will be pleased with the gradual improvement, although for the first half of the season it looked as they would be heavily involved in the promotion race. They were sitting in 3rd place but then lost the last 8 away games!!!!!!!! Carlos Matheus Nunes was again the top scorer - this time with 11 goals.

11. Cunnack Allstars (last season 12th) – a second season for ChrisC and it almost ended in disaster. There was not any evidence of any problems in the first 14 games as they were well placed in 4th - the rest of the season was downhill with just 1 win in 14 and with 2 games to go they still had problems but a fantastic 4-1 away win secured their safety. Dan Wye hit 8.

12. Dell Diamonds (last season promoted) – almost a quick return to Division 2 for MikeT but they just managed to hang on. They looked comfortable when they hit the top three after 12 games but it was all downhill from then and with just 5 points from the next 11 games they plummeted to 13th. Two home wins and they were safe. The veteran Silo Sawe top scored with 8.

13. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 5th) – a 6th season for Kesgrave in Division 1 for Gary and after last season's highest ever finish big things were expected. However, with 6 defeats in the first 8 games it was always going to be an uphill fight and after 18 games they looked to be heading down. Four wins in a row and it looked as though Gary could relax but 4 points from the next 7 games left it all down to the last game - a draw and they were safe. Rodrigo Rotundo was not at his best and could only manage 7.

14. Scrubs (last season relegated) – Ben must be scratching his head as two consecutive promotions have been followed by two consecutive relegations and they find themselves back in Division 2. Goals were the biggest problem with only 24 - the lowest in the Division. Ben will be looking for a quick return.

15. Duffield Dynamos (last season relegated) – similar to Ben, John (jelly) must wonder what has happened as it is a second consecutive relegation for Duffield and Division 2 looks as though it will be very strong next season. They lost their first 6 games and their first 10 away games. When you look a little deeper their home form was reasonable with 20 points but their tally away was only 9, with 6 of these coming in their last 2 games.

16. Hundon Harriers (last season 11th) – a tough season for Gary with Hundon and they are back in Division 2 after 9 seasons. The season started well at home but poor away form, kept them hovering around the relegation zone. A purple patch of 6 games looked to have rescued the season but just 5 points from the next 11 games and they were down. Even the scoring prowess of Jamie Pritchard who hit 12 goals could not save them.

Division 2

Inter Southampton are promoted as Champions after just 1 season, Boscombe Athletic are promoted after 1 season and Molesley Shoals are promoted after 26 seasons.

Ripley Knights are relegated after 2 seasons, Wroxham Town are relegated after 1 seasons and Tamriel FC relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 1st, 8th and 15th.

The three promoted teams finished 2nd, 8th and 10th.

1. Inter Southampton (last season relegated) – it turned out to be a walk in the park for Dave (Shep) as they topped the table for 28 weeks out of the 30. So the last 4 seasons have seen two promotions, 1 relegation and now another promotion. They were unbeaten in the first 13 games and had 21 wins. Seth Shipperley was the main man with 12 goals. Their youth team again performed well and after winning last season this time 2nd so the crop of young prospects continues at Le Tissier Lane.

2. Boscombe Athletic (last season promoted) –Dave Legg follows up last season excellent promotion with another and and they are back in Division 1 after 4 seasons. Their away form was excellent with 31 points and the home form was good with 26 points so a very consistent season. They had a purple patch in the middle of the season with 8 straight wins. The goals flowed all season and with 50 they were 3rd highest in the Opal. Nastro Azzurro shared the Golden Boot with 15 and Luke Montebello weighed in with 12. All eyes will be on Dave to see if he can continue his seemingly magic touch in Division 1.

3. Molesley Shoals (last season 13th) – what a season for Dave (Lloydy) with Moles and to be truthful very unexpected. Promoted after 26 long 26 seasons and only 2 seasons ever in Division 1!! After flirting with relegation last season Dave was looking for Mid table and it looked that way as a steady start saw them sitting 11th after 18 games. What happened next is remarkable as the Moles hit form and won 10 and drew 2 - picking up 32 points from 12 games and hit the top three with 2 weeks to go. It all came down to the last game though and they sealed promotion in style at in form Ruislip. Dave and his team have not been since - let's hope they all sober up before the first game.

4. Par Athletic (last season 8th) – SteveR made it 16 consecutive season in Division 2 but he knows it should have been a promotion season. Unbeaten in their first 8 home games and playing decent away from home Par were 3rd with 8 games to go but the they folded. Without a win in the next 7 games and finishing just 3 points off the pace shows you how annoyed Steve is. Kieron Durrant was their top scorer with 8.

5. Southern Vipers (last season 12th) – the supporters were ecstatic as Shep made a quick return as manager and an excellent season it was. A run of 5 wins took the Vipers into the top three after 20 games but their home form suddenly evaporated and they lost 4 on the bounce. They were still in with a shout of promotion going into the last game but a draw left them 3 points adrift. Dave had them scoring goals for fun thanks to Del Dyer - 14 and Jonathan Kodjia -12

6. Barnstoneworth United (last season relegated) – rebuilding has been in process for Dave and he will be very pleased with a top 6 finish for Barnstoneworth. It started badly with 9 defeats in the first 12 games and next to bottom; the rest of the season was a total contrast with just 1 defeat in the last 18 games, meaning 41 points from 18 games and unbelievable form. Dave will be hoping he can carry this form forward to next season.

7. Huntley Fairways (last season 11th) – after last season's horror show Carl was determined to make amends. However, a poor start again looked to have scuppered his plans but the confidence returned and they climbed to 2nd. Huntley's form after that was erratic and they had slipped to 8th with 8 games to go and 10 points off the pace. The season looked over but Carl managed 4 wins in a row and they were 4th and only a point off the promotion places - surely he would keep it going but no - 2 away defeats and the season looked over - 2 wins and with a game to go they were still in with a chance but a defeat in the last game saw them 6 points behind the top three. Huntley still have not made it out of the bottom two divisions - maybe next season. Victor Ezeji was again their top scorer with 11.

8. Norfolk FC (last season promoted) – a steady season for MikeT after promotion without any major highs or lows. It made a change after either promoting or relegating in the previous 5 seasons. Janie Lennon was again their player of the season with 12 goals - the same as last season.

9. Wigan Wildcats (last season 5th) – it was a 5th season for Dave (woody) and after narrowly missing out on promotion last season he was hoping for more of the same. It looked promising with a good first half of the season and 3rd spot but it was all downhill then with just 4 points from the next 9 games and the season was over. Dieter Sparwasser had an excellent season with 14 and the highest return of a Wigan player for 4 seasons.

10. Mann City (last season promoted) – Brian will be very pleased with City's first taste of Division 2 football in 14 seasons. They started off like an express train and had a run of 5 wins which saw them in 2nd place. They couldn't keep up this form but at the half way point they were 6th with 25 points; with relegation not a worry the rest of the season saw them coast along. Charlie Godbeer topped their the scoring with 12.

11. Stainsacre United (last season 10th) – a 5th season in Division 2 for SteveR and he will be happy to still be there after just 1 point from the first 5 games. A sudden return to form gave them 14 points from the next 6 pushed them into Mid table. The rest of the season saw more losses than wins and 11th spot. Considering they were not big scorers the two forwards performed admirably with Rob Towlerton on 10 and Paul Greatorex on 9.

12. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 7th) - a 4th season for MikeT in Division 2 and a backward step in performances. The first 2/3 of the season were good - 8th after 10 games and 7th after 20 games but 7 defeats in the last 10 games saw them drop down the table. Goals were in short supply with their top scorer being Thomas Lam on 6!

13. South Ruislip (last season 4th) – Richard left after a few good seasons with Ruislip and Dave(shep) took them on near the end of the season with them in the bottom three. He pulled off a fantastic away win at promoted Boscombe to move out of the bottom three and then beat Ripley to stay up.

14. Ripley Knights (last season 6th) – taken on by John Ghent and with a rebuilding task in process it was always going to be a tough season. They were looking safe until Ruislip found a manager and the game between them and Ruislip in the penultimate game was like a cup final. Unfortunately Ripley lost and were relegated'

15. Wroxham Town (last season relegated) – a second successive relegation with Wayne departing late in the season.

16. Tamriel FC (last season promoted) - a this season's control team were the whipping boys and manage to break a few of the worst records - lowest points, least goals and 0 wins!!!!! They are now available to take on and will be a major challenge

Division 3

For the second season running in promotion was a 4 horse race and Emu's BPW 2020 were unlucky to fall at the last hurdle.

Tadcaster Albion are promoted after 3 seasons, Yorkshire's Finest are promoted after 9 seasons and Radford Semele are promoted after 5 seasons.

Fishburn Park are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 4th, 5th and 12th.

1. Tadcaster Albion (last season 4th) – SteveR was devastated last season as Taddy missed out despite being in the hunt for most of the season. This season had a similar feel to last season but this year it was tears of joy as they are promoted after 3 seasons. They were top for 19 weeks, unbeaten away from home and only had 2 defeats all season - a record they now share with 5 others. The promotion was based on a tight defence as they only scored 36 goals to win the title - a record they now share with Molesley Shoals (as Blue Stars) from Season 19. The 19 goals they conceded was the lowest in the Opal. Even with only losing 2 they had 14 draws so their points tally of 56 points beat the 57 points achieved by Wealdstone FC (as The Destroyers) in Season 10. Steve will be looking for his defence to perform again next season.

2. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season 5th) – after Ben achieved his best position last season they were strongly tipped to be battling for a promotion place this year and they did not disappoint. The season started well with 3 wins but they had slipped to 8th after 11 games. The run then started and they were unbeaten in the last 19 games - they would have been well clear of 4th spot but had drawn 9 of these so that kept them in the pack of 4. A great win over rivals Emu's secured their promotion after 9 seasons. Similar to Taddy their success was based on a tight defence with only 22 conceded and just 38 scored. They only had 5 defeats - the best in their history.

3. Radford Semele (last season 15th) – what a season for Craig and a position nobody would have predicted after last season's finish. Last season's problems were goals with only 12 goals scored - yes I said 12 - this season the goals flowed and so did the wins with 14. Their away form was great with 29 points and just 2 defeats. and they topped the league for 5 weeks. In the end it came down to the last game with them holding a 2 point cushion - home to already promoted Finest, where they came back from 3-1 down to draw 3-3 and promotion after 5 seasons. Will Wayman had a great season up front and scored 12 goals.

4. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season relegated) – a first full season for Andy and a fantastic season it was. At the start it was all about stabilising and strengthening the squad and it was panning out that way with Emu's 11th after 18 games. If you had said that by the end of the season they would be involved in a titanic battle for promotion Andy would have laughed. Eight wins in the next nine games changed all of that and they went from 8 points off the pace to a chance of promotion. In the end it came down to the last game of the season at home to Belmont but with the squad depleted they lost and will already be looking forward to next season. Andy was pleased with their goal scoring prowess - the 55 was the most in the Opal spearheaded by Leroy Fer with 12 and Chibuzor Okonkwo with 9.

5. Dinamo Parkside (last season relegated) – a first full season for Rob Page and an excellent finish. The pleasing thing for Rob was that the away form was just as good as the home - could be one to watch next season. Rob is not on the forum.

6. Pangolin United (last season 13th) – a first full season for Dave (Lloydy) and he will be delighted with the way they have performed. They were steady and were still in with an outside chance of promotion with 6 games to go but slipped away at the end. Another one to watch and a new name in Phoenix Vikings.

7. Wealdstone FC (last season 9th) – Richard departed and Dave (Lloydy) took them into his portfolio late into the season. They have had 5 seasons in Division 2 and it is difficult to know what how they will perform next season - depends on how many players Dave can bring in. A new name as well in Queensdown FC.

8. Phantom Lords (last season 8th) – a second season for ChrisC and a 2nd Mid table finish, although with 7 games to go they were 4th and looking good for a possible promotion. The next 6 games only yielded 3 points and curtailed their hopes. Interestingly the stats for last season are almost identical - 43 points (23 at home and 20 away; goals scored 38 (38 last season); goals conceded 26 (29 last season).

9. Whitewell Town (last season 12th) – CJ departed and they are now T64 so the only way is down for the time being.

10. Worksop Tigers (last season 7th) – CJ departed and taken over by Steve Murphy, who is not on the forum. Obviously rebuilding needed but not sure you can do it without transfers!!

11. Belmont Buccaneers (last season relegated) – a first full season for Rob Page and re-building in process. Not on the forum.

12. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 6th) – it was a 25th consecutive season in Division 2 for Kiloparsec and Gary (smiffy) and they never really got going. On their day they should be challenging for promotion but a safe Mid table team, who are difficult to beat. Scott Thompson (Kiloparsec Villa) - 8 was their top scorer and they missed the goals from last season's Golden Boot winner Elvis Erde, who only managed 3 this season.

13. Mill Lane (last season 14th) - another change in manager as Wayne left and Dave Curtis has stepped in at the end of the season.

14. Chapel North (last season 11th) - a first full season for Dave (Shep) as he hopes to take them back to their former glories. Rebuilding in process. They had their lowest number of wins in their history with 6 but beat their most draws with 13. Dave's task is turn these draws in to victories. It was their 4th consecutive season in Division 3.

15. Manics (last season 10th) – difficult to know what to say about the performance of the Manics. Matt (smelly) started off the season with 3 wins and most of us thought they would be in a promotion place by the end of the season. It is difficult to believe they only won 4 more and none at home. Matt has decided to go for a younger team next season and remove the prima donnas! The last we heard from Matt is that only one player has remained.

16. Fishburn Park (last season 16th) - SteveR continues with the massive challenge he took on and slowly he is starting to turn things around. It was a 5th consecutive bottom finish - the plus it was the least number of goals (49) that they have conceded in bottom place.

All but one of the teams are managed and each year the Divisions get stronger – Division 2 looks to be the most competitive with some very strong teams.

Vacant Teams

Tamriel FC - Division 3

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

It turned out to be one of the most open title races for many seasons and in the end it went down to the wire!

Five of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the only changes Chaddesden Celtic replaced by FC Abertawe

Bayern relegated after 1 season; Askham Bryan United relegated after 1 season and Kamikaze Vipers relegated after 11 seasons.

Three teams finished on 33 points with The Survivors surviving on goal difference.

The three promoted clubs finished 13th, 14th and 15th.

1. FC Abertawe (last season 7th) – a second Premier title for MikeT with FC Abertawe - the first coming in Season 21 ending November 2011. They had an excellent first half of the season and topped the table for 11 weeks; a patchy spell saw them off the top for 9 weeks but they were back on top with 5 weeks to go nad hung onto a win a nervy last game to take the title by 1 point. Abertawe had the Golden Boot winner in Wynton Rufer, who hit 20 goals - only the 5th player to break the 20 goal barrier.

2. Jedi Knights (last season 4th) – a runners up spot for ChrisC although you wouldn't have said that with 7 games to go when they were 10th and 9 points behind the leader; in fact they were only 5 points clear of the bottom three. A 1-0 win looked to have banished relegation fears but Chris had other ideas and they reeled off 7 straight wins to be in with a chance on the last day of the season. Goals were plentiful with 3 players on form - Glyn Dix on 14, the reliable, Eunan O'Kane with 11 and Dennis Cupitt with 11. They reached the Cup Final but could not reproduce their league form as they lost 3-0 to Bentley.

3. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 1st) – CJ was going for his 12th title and to be truthful it should have been as they only lost 4 all season but with 14 draws it meant they finished 2 points behind Abertawe. Bentley topped for 10 weeks in the second half of the season and with 5 games to go were top but they surprisingly lost their last 2 home games. Goals were not as free flowing as usual with Flippo Costa and Gilberto Silva-Hand both hitting 9. It was the 20th top 3 finish for Bentley. CJ did get his hands on some silverawe as the won the Cup for the 5th time.

4. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 2nd) - another excellent finish for Rich Dimambro but he probably feels they missed out. At the half way point they were 2nd with only gd keeping them off the top and they were still going well with 6 games to go - again only gd keeping them off the top. The wheels then came off the bus with just 3 points from the next 5 games and they had to settle for 4th place. Ryan d**k hit 14 in a season that goals flowed at both ends.

5. Sylvan Lake (last season 5th) – a very good 2nd season for Dave (Shep) as he followed up last season's top 6 finish with another 5th spot. Their success was built on a great home record, with just 1 defeat and 28 points compared to just 4 wins on their travels. Although Dave will be happy with their position he knows that if they could have changed all of the draws in the 2nd half of the season into a couple of wins, they would have been in the mix for the title. Luis Melo hit 13.

6. Loyal Rangers (last season 3rd) – after last season's top 3 finish Andy will be slightly disappointed to have dropped to 6th. It was a strange start; unbeaten in their first 5 home games but away from home it was a different story - after winning the opener they proceeded to lose the next 6!! At the half way point Loyal were 11th and one eye on the teams below them. A much stronger second half of the season saw them steadily climb up to 6th. Greg Debakers was again their top scorer with 9.

7. Apocolypse FC (last season 11th) – another new name by Wes (chunkymunky) and this one had mixed success varying from the unplayable to dross. A poor start followed by a good spell and they were looking good in 2nd place after 11 games. Difficult to know what happened next as they lost the next 5 to plummet down to 11th but the 'unplayables' suddenly came food with an unbeaten run of 10 games and they were up to 5th and in with a shot of the title. So with 4 games to go surely they would make their presence felt but no Wes finished with 3 defeats and a draw. Goals were again plentiful with Ivan Cavaleiro on 13 and Paul Pitman on 12.

8. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 6th) – it was the lowest finish for Paul (Razor) in the last 8 seasons. Chadd could not find any consistency and although they were never in any danger of being dragged into a relegation battle they never threatened the top three. One bonus was the goal scoring of Jurgen Schneider who hit 14, who stepped to replace the retired Adrian Gonzalez. Paul did win one trophy as won the Youth League for the 2nd season running.

9. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 12th) – a second season for MikeT and after last season's struggles they had a good Mid table finish thanks to their home form, which was in total contrast to last season. Abysmal had just 2 defeats at home and 31 points but away it was 1 win and 9 points (the worst in the Premier League!). The top scorer was Monadu Bama on 10.

10. Mighty Chucks (last season 9th) – Stu made it 16 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and a 4th consecutive Mid table finish. One win in the first 7 and entrenched in the bottom three was followed by an unbeaten run of 9 games and they were comfortable in Mid table. It was a mixture of small losing runs and small unbeaten runs for the rest of the season. Harry Van Stack weighed in with 8 again and Denver Boss also hit 8.

11. Chester Town (last season 9th) – a second season back in the Premier League for PaulW and it turned out to be a battling season. They were in the bottom three for several weeks but with an improvement in form it looked as they would have a comfortable Mid table finish. However, 4 defeats in a row left only goal difference keeping them out of the bottom three but with the bottom three struggling to putting any wins together Paul found 2 wins and Chester were safe. The top scorer was Kain Reed with 7 and this is an area Paul would love to improve on.

12. Cusco (last season 11th) - a 6th season for Matt (smelly) with Cusco in the Premier League and a similar finish to the last 2 seasons. In similar circumstances to last year they were red hot in the first 7 games with 15 points and top of the table. I feel as though I am writing the same as last season when I say the rest of the season was a major disappointment with just 3 wins but with 13 draws they mustered enough points to just keep clear of the bottom three. An area that Matt is still trying to improve is to find a player that can score - last season it was only 5 goals for the top scorer - this year Sam Hart managed 8.

13. The Survivors (last season promoted) - Stu avoided relegation on the last day of the season after a great run in. The Survivors lost their first 4 games and struggled to recover; they could not find any consistency until they had played 21 games and were 8 points adrift. Relegation looked a certainty but Stu didn't lose any of the remaining nine - there was still plenty to do on the last day as they were 3 points behind Askham. They did what was required of them with a comfortable win but still needed Askham to lose and with 3 minutes to go Bentley scored and The Survivors were safe.

14. Bayern FC (last season promoted) – after two second successive promotions it was always going to be difficult season for MikeT. and they battled all of the way to the end.They were in and out of the bottom three all season but an unbeaten run of 9 (unfortunately with 7 draws) took it to the last day of the season where Bayern had a great win at Loyal but with The Survivors winning Bayern were down on goal difference. Top scorer was Warren Oxendale and Dwight Yorkes with 6 apiece.

15. Askham Bryan United (last season promoted) – a tough season was expected by SteveR and a tough season it was with heartache 3 minutes from time in the last game of the season. They were in and out of the bottom three all season but a win in the next to last game saw them with a 3 point cushion going into the last game, where a point would have kept them safe. It was a tough trip to the mighty Bentley and it was still 0-0 when the news came through that The Survivors were 2-0 up so SteveR knew he had to avoid defeat. Askham were taking the game to Bentley and unlucky not to be in front but with 3 minutes to go Flippo Costa broke all of the Askham supporters when he scored and sent Askham down on goal difference. Goals were a major problem with Chris Anson hitting 5.

16. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 13th) - last season Gary (Smiffy) saved Kamikaze on the last day of the season; this season there was not a great escape as they are relegated after 11 seasons. Four draws in the first 6 games saw them just above the drop zone and they dropped into the bottom three after 12 weeks and never escaped. They gave their supporters something to cheer about as they won the last 2 games. Damien Conway topping the scoring with 7.

Division 1

East Riding Enterprise are promoted as champions after 1 season, Armthorpe Rovers are promoted after 5 seasons and Istra Pula are promoted after 1 season.

Molesley Shoals are relegated after 1 season, Boscombe Athletic are relegated after 1 season and Kesgrave Vespas are relegated after 7 seasons.

Two of the relegated clubs are promoted after just 1 season and two of the promoted clubs are relegated after just 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 3rd and 11th.

The three promoted cubs finished 4th, 14th and 15th.

1. East Riding Enterprise (relegated) - a quick return for Ben back to the Premier League as Champions. They started slowly with 2 points from the first 3 games but the rest of the season was very consistent. East Riding hit the top 3 in week 6 and were there all season; they hit the top spot with 4 weeks to go and stayed there. East Riding have not been known for their goal scoring prowess but Ben seems to have tweaked things and with 50 they topped the Division 1.Liam Buttanshaw hit 14 and Isacc Christie-Davies hit 10.

2. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 6th) – CJ is up after 5 seasons in Division 1 and to be honest it was a stroll. They topped the table for 20 weeks and it seemed certain they would go up as champions but 3 defeats in a row saw them lose the top spot with 5 weeks to go. This season it was the turn of the other Guseppi twin to top score as Luigi hit 12; Anthony Playfair weighed in with 11 goals.

3. Istra Pula (relegated) – a quick return for MikeT but it didn't look that way after 5 games with Istra on just 5 points. Just 1 defeat in the next 11 and Istra were into the top three and they stayed there all season. Istra had the lowest number of draws with 5. Vin Hinkel was their main man with 13 goals.

4. Inter Southampton (last season promoted) - Dave (Shep) managed to break his spell of consecutive promotions and relegations with an excellent performance and top 6 finish. They start set the tone for the season with wins in their first 4 home games but just 2 draws from the first 4 away games, the rest of the season was similar with an excellent home record bur poor away record. Inter finished up with 31 of their 46 points gained at home - and the away form is an area Dave will hope to improve next season. Massimo Delveccio and Niall Ennis scored 10 apiece, which was over 50%of their goals scored. Delveccio has moved onto Cusco. Their youth team again performed well and after finishing 1st and 2nd in the last 2 seasons they were 2nd again so the crop of young prospects continues at Le Tissier Lane.

5. Doncaster Town (last season 8th) – 2nd season in Division 1 for CJ and it was too many draws that prevented them from gate crashing the promotion party. They were difficult to beat and only lost 7 but the 12 draws saw them always chasing the top three. Magnus Graham was their top scorer again with 8.

6. Dell Diamonds (last season 12th) – after almost relegating last season it was a much more comfortable ride for MikeT in the end and a 2nd season in Division 1 after a slow start. Just 1 win in the first 6 left them looking upwards but by week 16 they had climbed to 4th and promotion was on the supporters minds. These thoughts evaporated with just 2 points from the next 7 games and they slipped to Mid table. They were never in a relegation battle and a good end to the season saw them take a top 6 place. In his last season Silo Sawe top scored again with 7 and he will be sadly missed.

7. Riverplate (last season 10th) – a good improvement for MikeT on last season and a decent finish in their 3rd season. They topped the table for the first 3 weeks and were 4th after 10 games but 1 win in the next 8 it was promotion hopes gone and a Mid table finish was the best they could hope for. Their home form was good in the second half of the season and pushed them up to 7th. Eric Gubson topped with 7.

8. Xbana FC (last season 4th) – Baz has been knocking on the Premier League door for the last 2 seasons and when they topped the table after 7 weeks it was looking promising. however, the rest of the season was very hit and miss and a 6 game losing run saw them drop like a stone. Goals were not as free flowing as they normally with the top scorer being Mason Mess on 9.

9. Cunnack Allstars (last season 11th) – a third season for ChrisC and an improvement on the first two after a terrible start . It was a strange season - no wins in the first 6 games and bottom, unbeaten in the next 7 and up to 9th, no wins in the next 7 and strangely still 9th but only 1 point clear of the bottom three. You.ve guessed it another good spell with 6 wins and not only safe but a top half finish. Dave Liddicoat was the main man with 13.

10. York Rovers (last season 9th) – an 8th season in Division 1 for SteveR and with 5 9th placed fishes in the last 6 seasons it was no surprise to see them thereabouts again. They hovered around Mid table for the 13 games but then a run of 1 point from 6 games saw them drop to 13th and only a point clear of the drop zone. Steve didn't have to worry as they collected 8 points from the next 4 and were safe. Goal scoring was again a problem with only 26, with the reliable Craig Miller hitting 7.

11. La Donny Luz (last season 6th) - similar to last season CJ had a dreadful start with only 2 wins in the first half of the season and they were rooted in the bottom three. The second half was not much better with only 2 wins in the next 10 games and with 5 to play and La Donny were just one point of the drop zone and CJ was grateful that the teams below them were playing as badly. It seemed to suddenly click to the players the predicament they were in and they won three and drew two of their last 5 games to secure safety. Noel Borrinton topped again but this season only with 6; Barry Nolan also hit 6.

12. Voodoo Vikings (last season 7th) – Wes (chunky) was looking to push on and get back to the Premier League but it turned out to be a relegation battle. Their away form was dreadful with the first win not coming until week 25 and ending with just 14 points. It's a good job their home form was decent with just 2 defeat but with 8 draws. Cameroon Aboola was again their best player with 10 goals but with only 23 scored they were joint lowest in the Division. Aboola looks to be on the move which could prove to be a big loss.

13. Whitby Town (last season relegated) – after last season's surprise relegation SteveR was looking for a quick return but it did not go according to plans. Their home form was ok but it was away from home where their troubles lay - after winning their first away game they failed to win again until the penultimate game and they were safe. Top goal scorer was 6 - Scott Wassell.

14. Molesley Shoals (last season promoted) - a first appearance in Division 1 for 26 seasons and Dave (Lloydy) tried everything he knew to keep them there but in the end they fell just short. Dave had to wait until week 6 for his first win which meant it was going to always be an uphill battle but they knuckled down an climbed to 8th after 11 games. It was pretty much downhill after that with only 2 more wins. Top scorer was 6 - Brett Pitman and Graham Cook.

15. Boscombe Athletic (last season promoted) – after two successive promotions for Dave Legg it was sadly a relegation. They had an appalling start to the season and were without a win in the first 12 games leaving them rock bottom. The bookies already had them down but Dave had other ideas and Boscombe suddenly looked like world beaters with no defeats in the next 9 games and 18 points. Out of the bottom three and 22 points from 21 games they probably only needed another 3 or 4 wins but unbelievably their form turned to dross again and with 7 defeats in the next 8 they were down. Youri Teilemans 8 and Nastro Azzurro 7 were the main men.

16. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 13th) – a 7th season for Kesgrave in Division 1 for Gary and a similar season to last year but this time no escape!!! They were bottom after 3 games and remained in the bottom three all season. They should be a team to watch though next season in Division 2.

Division 2

Scrubs are promoted as Champions after just 1 season, Death Valley Wanderers are promoted after 5 seasons and Duffield Dynamos are promoted after 1 season.

OLympic Moston are relegated after 5 seasons, Radford Semele are relegated after 1 season and Wigan Wildcats are relegated after 6 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 1st, 3rd and 13th.

The three promoted teams finished 4th, 10th and 15th.

1. Scrubs (last season relegated) – Ben has had the yo-yo feeling for five seasons - two consecutive promotions were followed by two consecutive relegations and now a promotion as champions. With just 1 defeat in the first 12 games promotion looked to be on the cards but 3 defeats saw a few doubters and they were 7 points behind the leaders. Ben had no doubts though and they didn't lose again until the last game, ending an unbeaten run of 14 games, as they raced to the end as Champions. They had the best defence with just 20 goals conceded - goals were spread about with Jeremy Willgoose top with 8.It was the most ever points that Scrubs have achieved with 65.

2. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 12th) - a 5th season for MikeT in Division 2 and a massive improvement on last season as they coasted to promotion. A fantastic start with 8 wins in the first 9 set them on the way and by the half way point they were top and 7 points clear of 4th place. The 2nd half of the season did not live up to the first as they drifted from the top spot but still sealed promotion with 2 games to go. Top scorer was Thomas Lam with 12.

3. Duffield Dynamos (last season relegated) – the despair of 2 consecutive relegations for John (jelly) has quickly been forgotten as Duffield are promoted. A great first half of the season and promotion looked to be in the bag but John took his eye off the ball and with just 1 win the next 8 they had dropped to 6th and 5 points behind the promotion places. An urgent team meeting was called and John read the riot act to his team with the word 'prima donna' cropping up numerous times. It worked as 5 wins in the next 6 gave them promotion with 2 games to go. Leo Bonatini starred with 13 goals.

4. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season promoted) – an excellent first season for Ben in Divison 1 and a better finish than Ben was expecting. The first half of the season saw then finding their feet and they looked comfortable in Mid table - they then pushed and went the next 14 games without defeat - the only problem was that 9 of these were draws with 6 in a row which saw them on the periphery of the promotion race. Goals were flowing at both ends with 53 for and 36 against - Adam Cherrett stared with 17 goals. The Finest had the most draws with 14 - bearing in mind they only finished 2 points short it shows how close they were at the end. Last season they only had 5 defeats - the best in their history - this season one better with only 4!!

5. Southern Vipers (last season 5th) – another good season for Shep although it was similar to last season, where promotion was theirs for the taking until a dramatic loss of form. Only 1 defeat in the first 11 games and they were 2nd; it was still looking good after 10 games with them well placed in 3rd spot. When you talk about the wheels coming off the bus the Vipers succeeded in this with just 1 point from the next 7 and thoughts of what might have been. Victor Osimhen topped with 10 goals.

6. Norfolk FC (last season 8th) – MikeT will be very pleased with the progress this season although his high finish is courtesy of a purple patch in the middle of the season of 9 wins in 10 games!! Sunday Atuma topped with 9.

7. Huntley Fairways (last season 7th) – another disappointing season for Carl! It started well with 2 wins and then just 1 defeat in the next 9 they were sitting in 5th place and ready to push on. Well that was what the script said but reality is different and 6 defeats in the next 7 saw Huntley surprisingly still only 6 points behind the top three. Carl had decided to revamp the team and it looked to be paying dividends with 6 wins in the next 8 and an outside chance of gate crashing the top three but that was as good as it got and left Carl planning for next season. Huntley still have not made it out of the bottom two divisions - maybe next season. Triston Casis topped the scoring with 8 goals.

8. Barnstoneworth United (last season 6th) – another decent season for Dave in a tough division. They finished last season with just 1 defeat in the last 18 games and started well - 6th after 10 games and just 3 points off the pace. However, they lost 6 of their next 7 home games but good away form meant they never dropped below 9th. Kazuki Mutto topped with 7 goals.

9. Mann City (last season 10th) – a 2rd season in Division 2 and Brian will be very pleased with another slight improvement. It was a similar story to last season with an excellent start - unbeaten in their first 9 - 4th place with 19 points. The rest of the season was hit and miss but a Mid table finish was always on the cards. Charlie Godbeer topped again with 9.

10. Tadcaster Albion (last season promoted) – SteveR will be pleased with his return to Division 2 after failing to win in the first 12 and sitting bottom with 5 points. The supporters were fearing a quick return to Division 3 but 5 wins and a draw in the next 6 games saw them shoot up to 11th. The remainder of the season saw them poor away but decent at home and 2 consecutive wins saw relegation fears dispatched. Last season they were low scorers with a mean defence - this season they scored for fun but also conceded plenty (50 for and 50 against) ! Sam Pike hit 12, David Freedman 10 and Danny Frost 9.

11. Stainsacre United (last season 11th) – a 6th season in Division 2 for SteveR and similar to last season he will be pleased to still be in Division 2 after a dreadful start of 2 points from 8 games and next to bottom. Strange how the form can suddenly return and just 1 defeat in the next 10 and they were up to 10th; a position they stayed thanks to their away form. Surely it can't be another bad start for Steve next season! Mark Broadfield topped with 10 goals.

12. Par Athletic (last season 4th) –it was a 17th consecutive season for SteveR in Division 2 and after last season's dramatic failure to get promoted big things were expected but a poor start scuppered Steve's plans. With 2/3 of the season gone it was looking bleak as they were planted in the bottom three; they were still in the bottom three with 4 games to go but 2 home wins and they were safe. Marc Percival topped with 10.

13. BFC Dynamo (last season relegated) – after two managers left in a short period of time Rob Page took them under his wing and did an unbelievable job to keep them up on last week of season. The bookies had them down after getting 0 points from the first 8 games - it was like watching the UK in the Eurovision Sing Contest all over again!! They had clawed themselves out of the bottom three but still needed to win their last game to stay up - Rob needed a hero an up stepped their main man Jamie Pritchard to hit a hat trick at Moston. It was a good job as their other two rivals both won.

14. Radford Semele (last season promoted) – a quick return for Craig but they went down fighting considering they had only picked up 4 points from their fist 14 away games. Their home record was so good that they went into their last game, which was away with a chance of staying up and would you believe it they won but with BFC winning they were down. Craig won 3 of his last 4 games - a positive to take into next season.Top scorer was Steven Thompson with 6.

15. Wigan Wildcats (last season 9th) – it was a 6th season for Dave (woody) and the supporters were demanding more from a team which should be pushing for promotion. However, it was a terrible season all round with very few highlights and they were lucky to be going into the last game with a chance of survival. Dieter Sparwasser again tried to save the club single handed and his return of 10 goals from the 27 Wigan scored. Dave won the last game but with the other two rivals winning he was down.

16. Olympic Moston (last season 13th) – after last season's dramatic escape on the last day of the season Dave (shep) could not manage it this season. The reason they are down is that they couldn't find the back of the net - just 17 scored and only the bottom two in Division 2 scored less. Defensively they were sound with only 30 conceded - good enough for a promotion team. Dave knows what he needs to do next season. Terrence Brassington hit 6.

Division 3

Emu's BPW 2020 are promoted as champions after 2 seasons, Phoenix Vikings are promoted after 3 seasons and Belmont Buccaneers after 2 seasons.

Red Star Belgrave miss out on goal difference...

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 4th, 7th and 12th.

1. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season 4th) – after missing out on promotion on the last day last season Andy made no mistake this year. They were excellent at home with just 3 defeats but away from home they were magnificent and didn't lose one game with 39 points! The superlatives kept on coming - only 3 defeats, 37 points from the last 14 games, 12 points clear of 2nd place...... Adam Hughes scored 13 and Leroy Fer 10.

2. Phoenix Vikings (last season 6th) – a second season for Dave (Lloydy) and after going for an original name they didn't disappoint as they finish as runners up. Promotion was won in the first half of the season - bearing in mind how well the Emu's performed, Phoenix were top at the half way point and actually topped the table for 14 weeks in the season. Chris Smith hit 14.

3. Belmont Buccaneers (last season 11th) – a second full season for Rob Page and a great performance to get promotion after an indifferent first half of the season. Sitting in 8th position a promotion push didn't look on the cards but a dramatic improvement saw them lose only 3 in the second half of the season and they hit the top three with one game to go. Belmont knew a win would take them up but they faced the champions; incredibly they produced their best performance of the season and scored with 3 minutes to go and they were up. Justin Kane hit 10.

4. Red Star Belgrave (last season relegated) – a first full season for John Ghent and with rebuilding on the go he had an unbelievable season but in the end it was heartbreak. Their success was built on eeking out 1-0 wins and a fantastic home record, where they only lost one and picked up 38 of their 53 points - the best in the Opal this season. They were never in the top three but went into the last game at home to Alba with only goal difference keeping them out; they were in great form and leading with a 2-0 lead after 55 minutes and a final score of 3-1. With the Belmont score at 0-0 Red Star were up but with 3 minutes to go Ross Phillips scored for Belmont and their promotion dreams were gone. Top scorer was Nicky Harvey with 5

5. Dinamo Parkside (last season 5) – a second season for Rob Page and another very good finish in the end. It didn't look that way for a long time with only 4 wins in the first 17 and sitting 9th on just 19 points but Rob suddenly found his mo-jo as they went the rest of the season unbeaten with the last 7 all being victories. The end of the season came a little early for Dinamo and they fell 1 point short of promotion. Their strength was defence with only 18 conceded and they will be one to watch next season.

6. Phantom Lords (last season 8th) – a third season for ChrisC and he will be kicking himself on not getting promotion. Phantom looked certain to go up for most of the season after an excellent unbeaten start of 9 games and they remained in the top 3 until they dropped out in week 29; a draw in the last game and promotion was gone. In fact with 5 games to go they were 7 points clear of Belmont but with just 3 points gained they slipped to 6th. Joe Feeney and Jami McCarthy both scored 7.

7. Darwen United (last season relegated) – taken on by MikeT and given their original name back. Their form was terrible and only 4 wins in the first 19 games and they were languishing in 11th place. A sudden trust in their ability and they won 8 of the next 9.Top scorer Wilfred Niddi with 9.

8. Manics (last season 15th) – Matt (smelly) completed the transformation of his team to young starlets and the first half of the season held promise with them in 4th place. The rest of the season was a disappointment as they could not find any consistency. Defence was not a problem with only 22 conceded but goals were hard to find with only 20 scored and the top scorer was midfielder Duncan Amankwaa with 4.

9. Chapel North (last season 14th) - a 5th season for Chapel in Division 3 and a second with Dave(Shep) at the helm. A dreadful start with 4 defeats and the season looked over but just 1 defeat in the next 12 games saw Chapel up to 4th and looking good for promotion. What happened next is difficult to explain and 9 defeats in the next 11 saw them rocket down the table. Goals were not difficult to find with Jed Pickworth hitting 13 and Manuel and Manuel Quaterhouse on 9, however defending was not their forte with 44 conceded.

10. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 12th) – amazingly it was a 26th consecutive season in Division 2 for Kiloparsec and Gary (smiffy) and they were hit and miss all season. A reasonable first half of the season with 22 points and 7th spot but the second half did not live up to expectations. Scott Thompson was again their top scorer with 8 - same as last year.

11. Queensdown FC (last season 7th) – a first full season for Dave (Lloydy) and an original name as well. This was a 6th season in Division 2 and at home they were solid with 23 points - away from home is where they struggled with just 2 wins and 11 points. Bradley Reid was their top scorer with 8.

12. Tamriel FC (last season relegated) - after relegation last season with 0 points this was going to be a massive challenge and up stepped Steve Barnes (ropery) to take them on and what a job he has done. With 34 points for the season he will be very pleased with his progress - one area he needs to improve is goals as they only managed 23 goals - defensively he will be fairly happy with only 33 conceded. Simon Attlee topped with 6.

13. Riot City (last season 10th) – it was a big welcome to the Opal for Simon Richmond and he chose an old team name. Plenty of rebuilding to do in the coming season. Simon has found a good striker with Nigel Jones, who scored 9.

14. Fishburn Park (last season 16th) - SteveR has turned the corner with Fishburn as after 5 finishes as T64 they have lost that tag. They managed 6 wins but only 2 at home - an area that Steve will look to correct next season. Seasn McMungie was their leading marksman with 7.

15. Alba United (last season 13th) - DaveC left early and Gary (smiffy) took on the challenge. With just 4 wins there is plenty of building work required and Gary is looking forward to the challenge. There were 2 equal top scorers with 2 - Andrew Pimmock and Shaun Boggis.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 9th) – First season as T64 so no surprises.

All of the teams are managed and each year the Divisions get stronger – Division 2 looks to be particularly competitive with some very strong teams.

Vacant Teams

None

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

SEASON 39 Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

It turned out to be a two horse race with Loyal Rangers just pipping East Riding Enterprise for a 10th title.

Four of the top six were in the top 6 last season and last season's champions FC Abertawe were relegated.

Bentley Vikings Old Boys had their worst performance in 25 seasons.

The Survivors relegated after 2 seasons; FC Abertawe are relegated after 28 seasons and Istra Pula are relegated after 1 season.

The three promoted clubs finished 2nd, 7th and 14th.

1. Loyal Rangers (last season 6th) – one of the Opal's most successful team have stirred after going 15 seasons without a title and Andy was over the moon with his 10th overall title. They were top after 4 games and stayed there the rest of the season although they were pushed all of the way by East Riding. Loyal were in scintillating form in the first 13 games and were 7 points clear at the top but they suddenly went to pieces with only one win in the next 9 games. Amazingly nobody could keep a consistent run going and they still were top by just 2 points. Andy steadied the ship and week 29 proved to be crucial as they won whilst East Riding lost to give Loyal a 3 point advantage with 2 games to go. Both teams won their penultimate game but Loyal had the title in the bag thanks to a vastly superior goal difference. Greg Debakers was again their top scorer with 10.

2. East Riding Enterprise (promoted) - after a quick return as Champions of Division 1 it looked ominous as they were thrashed 5-1 and after 5 games they were 3rd from bottom. Ben looked to tighten the defence in exchange for scoring goals and it paid off as they worked their way up the table and only lost 2 in the next 20 games. East Riding moved into 2nd place after 19 games and stayed there all season; they lost their momentum in the final few weeks but still chased Loyal all the way home for a highest ever finish. Jose Gordinio was the main man with 14 of the 31 goals Riding scored.

3. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 8th) it turned out to be an excellent finishing position for Paul (Razor) thanks to a great finish to the season. They had a good start to the campaign and only gd was keeping them off the top spot but their form waned and they slipped to 6th at the half way point. With just 1 win in the next 5 games Chadd were down to 9th and the season seemed looked to be slipping away but with 7 wins in the next 10 games they surged back up to 3rd. Tommy Radzikki was their top striker with 8 goals.

4. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 4th) - a similar finish to last season for Rich Dimambro and he will be more than pleased after an unusually poor start to the season with just 1 win in the first 9 games and only 1 point above the bottom three. Rich gave the team a good bo**ocking and it worked with 6 wins and 2 draws and suddenly Aberdeen were up to 3rd and back in with a shout of the title. As quickly as the form came it disappeared with just 1 win in the next 8, however - late winning flurry saw them up to 4th. Goals were at a premium - a contrast to last season - with the top scorer only getting 5 and that was the defender Sze Lim Chien. Rich returned to the Premier League 10 seasons ago and have never finished lower than 7th.

5. Jedi Knights (last season 2nd) – yet another great finish for ChrisC and they have not been outside of the top 6 in the last 8 seasons. With just 3 defeats in their first 17 games Jedi were 2nd and only 2 points behind Loyal. But in a season where all the chasing teams had poor runs Jedi suddenly only picked up 1 point in 7 games and they were down to 9th and closer to a relegation fight than a title race. Out of nowhere they won 4 of the next 6 for a very satisfying position. Sean Lillywhite and Dennis Cupitt both scored 8. Jedi were also the runners up in the Cup for the 2nd year running.

6. Sylvan Lake (last season 5th) – a 3rd season back in the big time for Dave (Shep) and another good one with a 3rd top 6 finish. It was a steady season for Dave - never in danger of going down but never in the hunt for the title. Last season their home form was their strength, with 29 points - this year it was pretty even with 20 points at home and 22 away. They scored plenty but also conceded plenty with 40 for and 40 against. The main strikers performed well with Jake Guentzel on 12 and Luis Melo on 10.

7. Armthorpe Rovers (last promoted) – after 5 seasons in Division 1 CJ was back in the big time but it looked like it would be a short stay when they were sitting bottom after 13 games with 11 points. The next 13 games were the complete opposite as CJ only lost twice and they were up to 4th; they peterd away in the last few weeks but after their start CJ will be delighted with their finish it was the turn of the other Guseppi brother, Mario to be the main man this season with 8 goals. As a side note I can't recall a season where CJ's top team was not Bentley!!

8. Salford Lads Club (last season 7th) – yet another new name by Wes (chunkymunky) and the same Mid table finish. They started well and were 2nd after 7 games on goal difference; this was followed by a winless 6 games with 5 draws and at the half way point Salford were 4th but 7 points off the top. The second half of the season saw them play well but not getting the wins - only 4 and the last 3 games were all defeats. Goals were again plentiful at both ends, 49 scored and 46 conceded. Paul Pitman on 13 and Diego Jota on 11 both excelled.

9. Mighty Chucks (last season 9th) – Stu made it 17 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and a 5th consecutive Mid table finish. It was a similar poor start to last season with them in the bottom three after 6 games - one defeat in the next 7 and the Chucks looked to be on the up but just when Stu was feeling confident they lost 4 in a row and back into a relegation battle. How things can change as they won 5 of the next 6 to be comfortable in Mid table. Denver Boss was again the main man with 10 goals.

10. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 3rd) – it turned out to be the worst season for CJ and Bentley in 25 seasons but it could have been worse with just 1 point in the first 7 games and sitting bottom. The situation suddenly dawned on the players and 6 wins in the next 8 gave them Mid table security. Goals were a problem with the top scorer being Vitali Oremus with 7. The board will not want a repeat of this season and CJ has been told this very strongly.

11. Cusco (last season 12th) - a 7th season for Matt (smelly) with Cusco in the Premier League and a very similar story to last season with too many draws keeping them in a relegation battle. Last season 13 draws and this season 14.They had a poor start with 4 draws and a win leaving them in the bottom three but in a very competitive league 3 wins in 4 games rocketed them up to 5th. A dreadful run of no wins in 12 games with 7 draws saw them back in the bottom three and Matt had plenty to do and he didn't disappoint with just 1 defeat in the last 9 games but they still had to win the last game to make sure they were safe. Goals were again a problem for Matt with the top scorer in the last 3 season getting just 5,8 and this season only 7 from Jessie Williams with..

12. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 9th) – a 4th season for MikeT and after last season's Mid table better they were hoping to consolidate but similar to last season but their away form caused problems with only 6 points from their first 10 games and an away win didn't come until week 23. They did just enough to keep their heads above water but need to up their game next season or they will be relegated. Goals were a problem with their top scorer Ike Shorunum only hitting 6.

13. Chester Town (last season 13th) – a 3rd season back in the Premier League for PaulW and it turned out to be another battling season. A decent start saw Chester 6th after 5 games but just 1 win in the next 10 games saw Chester drop to the bottom with 13 points. An improvement in form saw them out of the bottom three for a few weeks but they dropped back into the relegation zone with 5 games to go. Paul was determined not to go down and won 3 on the bounce but he still had work to do in the last game, which they lost but other results were with them. Paul is still searching for a player that can get into double figures - this season there were 3 players on 7 - Bobby Catt, Goerdie Schwarze-Katze and Graham Wallace.

14. Istra Pula (promoted) – a quick return for MikeT after a disastrous run in. They were having a mixed season but 4 wins on the bounce seemed to have turned things around and they were sitting 7th with 32 points after 22 games. Now normally 32 points would be good enough to keep you up so one more win would seal it; what happened next is difficult to fathom as they lost all 6 games to drop into the bottom three and Mike can have no complaints. Mani Requiem had a good season with 9 goals.

15. FC Abertawe (last season 1st) – after winning the title last season and storming to a 5-1 in the first game of the season MikeT was looking forward to a good season. How wrong he was as they went 10 games without a win and at the half way point only gd was keeping them out of the bottom three. In the second half of the season their home form picked up but their away form was still poor and surprisingly a win on their last game would have kept them safe. Last season's Golden Boot Winner Wynton Rufer had another excellent season with 17 goals and shared this season's Golden Boot. Their relegation ended a run of 28 seasons in the Premier League!!

16. The Survivors (last season 13th) - Stu avoided relegation on the last day of the season but there was no escape this season. Although not being consistent The Survivors were 11th after 16 games and there were not too many worries from the supporters. That turned out to be wishful thinking as they failed to win again until the last 2 games. Their season was summed up by their top scorer being a defender - Harry Kincade with 6.

Division 1

Xbana F.C are promoted as champions after 4 seasons, Kamikaze Vipers are promoted after 1 season and Whitby Town are promoted after 2 seasons.

Scrubs are relegated after 1 season, Inter Southampton are relegated after 2 seasons and Askham Bryan United are relegated after 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 2nd, 5th and 16th.

The three promoted cubs finished 2nd, 4th and 14th.

1. Xbana F.C (last season 8th) – Baz has been knocking on the Premier League door for the last 3 seasons and this time they made it in a tight battle. Their promotion was based on an excellent home record with only 2 defeats and one purple patch of 6 home wins on the bounce. Baz hit the top three after 12 games and remained there for the rest of the season; strangely their worst spell of the season cropped up near the end of the season with only 1 win in 6, including a 6-1 away defeat to Doncaster, but with other teams faltering they hit the top for the first time with 2 weeks to go and hung to go up as Champions. They were also the Cup winners so a fantastic season for Baz. Xbana were back in the goals this season with 43 (2nd highest in Div 1) with David Laccroix on 14, Mason Mess on 12 and Henrique on 14.

2. Kamikaze Vipers (last season relegated) - a quick return for Gary (Smiffy). They took a while to settle and were holding their own in Mid table after 12 games Their home form then kicked in and they didn't lose again and combined with decent results away they climbed the table to 3rd after 16 games. Gary kept them there or thereabouts for the rest of the season but the competition remained tight and with 1 game to go they only had a one point advantage but Gary kept his nerve with a 1-0 win and they were up. Damien Conway topped the scoring again with 8.

3. Whitby Town (last season 13th) – a 2nd season in Division for SteveR and it turned out to be a surprise promotion in the end. After 10 games Steve was more worried about relegation with Whitby next to bottom with just 7 points but Whitby suddenly went up the gears, much to the delight of the supporters. 28 points from the next 13 games and they were up to 4th with only goal difference keeping them out of the top three. Nerves looked to have taken hold as they wobbled over the next 6 games but with the top three all struggling they went into the last game just a point off a top three spot - a fantastic away win combined with Duffield imploding and SteveR was up. Goals were plentiful with 44 (the highest in Division 1); Manolo Giovinco hit 10 and Pablo Mistral hit 9.

4. Duffield Dynamos (last season promoted) – two consecutive relegations were followed by a promotion in the last 3 seasons for John and they looked certain to go up again. They seemed unstoppable in the first half of the season and went 13 games without defeat to lead the table by 11 points. John had a couple of 'iffy' games but seemed to put this right with 2 wins so after 17 games they were 13 points clear of 4th place. Promotion looked to be a certainty and this seemed to be in the player's minds as they only won 2 of the next 7 but they were still top and with a 10 point buffer over 4th spot. What happened next is difficult to explain as they lost 5 on the trot and after topping the table for 27 consecutive weeks they dropped to 2nd with one game to go. They were home to the bottom club Askham and promotion was still in their hands but they were held to a 0-0 draw. John had this to say " I feel embarrassed to have overseen such a fall from grace with Duffield. I'm sure it's been done before and I'm sure it'll happen again. No significant changes made although I couldn't get away form right. In the end confidence was zapped from the team and they crumbled. 5 losses and a draw to finish. Never have I had such a contrast in season halves". Leo Bonatini starred again with 11 goals.

5. Bayern FC (last season relegated) – almost a quick promotion for MikeT thanks to a blistering finish after a lethargic start to the season - without a win in 8 but 5 draws and next to bottom. Bayern were still next to bottom after the half way point but with just 1 defeat in the next 8 they had clawed themselves up to 11th but only 3 points off the bottom three. There were no thoughts of promotion for MikeT at this stage but incredibly they won the next 5 to zoom up to 4th and still a chance to go up but their last 2 games let them down. Results based on a sound defence only 23 conceded but there was a shortage of goals - top was Troy Parmini with 5.

6. Riverplate (last season 7th) – a 4th season for MikeT and it was a season of two halves. After 18 games they were in the bottom three with 21 points but it was such a competitive league that one win would take you into the top half of the table. Riverplate responded to the challenge with 6 wins in 10 games and a top 6 finish. Carlos Matheus Nunes and Eric Gunson both scored 7.

7. Doncaster Town (last season 5th) – 3rd season in Division 1 for CJ and similar to last season it was too many draws that prevented them from gate crashing the promotion party. Their best form was early in the season when they were in the top three for the first 8 weeks - after that it was slow slide down to Mid table, CK knows that he needs to find a striker as their top scorers were Norman Nolan and Max Meyer with 5 apiece.

8. Salford Bombers (last season 12th) – a change of name for Wes (chunky) and a Mid table finish. The first 2/3 of the season were good with them sitting 4th after 5 games, 4th after 10 games, 2nd after 15 games, 3rd after 20 games. The last 1/3 of the season was dreadful for Wes with goals hard to come by and just 2 wins in 10 (both away) left them battling to keep a top half place. Last season they scored 23 (joint lowest) this season 27 - only 3 teams scored less and there were 4 players on 4 goals including the usually reliable Cameron Aboola.

9. Cunnack Allstars (last season 9th) – a 4th season for ChrisC and another terrible start with 2 wins in the first 13 games and ensconsed in the bottom three. The revival looked to be on the way with 3 wins and up to 11th but they were soon back into bad habits as they failed to win in the next 6 and next to bottom. Time for another revival with 5 wins in 6 games and safety. Dan Wye with 11topped the scoring.

10. Dell Diamonds (last season 6th) – a 3rd season in Division 1 for MikeT and it was nearly his last as a poor start saw them in the bottom three after 17 games. The remainder of the season was much better as they slowly climbed the table thanks partly to the 11 goals from Fred Firemouth 10.

11. Death Valley Wanderers (last season promoted) - after a 34 season absence from Division 1 MikeT will be very satisfied with their finish - the highest in their history - previous 12th in Season 2. With just 1 point in their first 4 games it looked like it was going to be a quick return but 19 points from the next 7 games they were 2nd in the table. The rest of the season was an anti-climax but they still picked up enough points to keep clear the relegation battle. Top scorer was again Thomas Lam with 8.

12. La Donny Luz (last season 11th) - a similar story to last 2 seasons with CJ performing the 'Houdini' escape act again. A dreadful start with only 3 wins in the first half of the season saw them rooted in the bottom three, where they stayed until the last game of the season. Their form improved over the last few games with 1 defeat in 5 which had given themselves a chance with one game to go - still in the bottom three but with an opportunity to survive. Would you believe it a 1-0 win for CJ, combined with Scrubs and Inter Southampton losing they jumped from 15th to 12th!!!! James Garcia scored the winner and topped with 5.

13. York Rovers (last season 10th) – a 9th season in Division 1 for SteveR and after 6 Mid table finishes this season they disappointed. After a good first half of the season buoyed by excellent home form (5 wins and 2 draws) they were sitting comfortably in 4th places with thoughts about promotion not relegation. The second half of the season was a disaster with their home form vanishing and their poor away form continuing. With just 1 win in 13 games they slowly dropped down the table and hit the bottom three with 4 games remaining. Two wins out of nowhere gave them hope and they survived by 1 point. Lawrence Black 7 and Craig Miller both hit 7 goals.

14. Scrubs (last season promoted) – Ben's habit of 'yo-yoing' continued for the 6th season - two consecutive promotions were followed by two consecutive relegations, last season a promotion and this season a relegation. The start of the season saw Scrubs in scintillating home form as they reeled off 5 consecutive wins and they were 2nd after 11 games - their away form had been poor though and this continued all season with only 9 points. Their home form then disappeared as well as they plummeted down the table and with 6 games to go they were 4th from bottom. Just when they needed a win they got 2 and looked to be safe but 1 point from the next 3 and it was all down to the last week. A 1-0 defeat saw them drop into the bottom three for the time and Ben was left scratching his head. If you wanted goals Scrubs were the team to watch as they had an amazing 100 goals in their games - 49 at home and 51 away! They also had the Golden Boot winner in Robbie Fowler with 17 goals in a tie with Rufer of FC Abertawe - interestingly both teams were relegated.

15. Inter Southampton (last season 4th) - Dave (Shep) started the season as one of the favourites to go up but the season turned into a nightmare and a shock relegation. The season started well with 3 home wins and 3rd spot; their home form vanished but Inter started playing well away from home and Dave was still in the top three after 13 games. Then the wheels came off with just 3 wins in the next 17 and they slid down the table before dropping into the bottom three with 1 game to go. A win would have kept them safe but Dave could only manage a 0-0 draw. Paul Potter was their top score with 6.

Their youth team again performed well and after finishing 1st, 2nd and 2nd in the last 3 seasons they were 1st this time so the crop of young prospects continues at Le Tissier Lane. No defeats in the season and a massive 311 scored.

16. Askham Bryan United (last season relegated) – a second successive relegation for SteveR. Nine defeats in the first 10 games and the season was over; however, they didn't give up and the second half of the season was slightly better than the first - 9 points in the first and 13 in the second. Goals were in short supply with the highest scorer on 4 - d**k Stowell.

Division 2

Par Athletic are promoted as Champions after 18 season, Boscombe Athletic are promoted after 1 seasons and Emu's BPW 2020 are promoted after 1 season.

The Scillonians are relegated after 5 seasons, Belmont Buccaneers are relegated after 1 seasons and Hundon Harriers are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 2nd, 6th and 7th.

The three promoted teams finished 3rd, 8th and 14th.

1. Par Athletic (last season 12th) –it was an 18th consecutive season for SteveR in Division 2 and what a fantastic season as they are up to Division 1. The first half of the season was good where they averaged between 5th and 7th position but the second half was great. They flirted with a top three position until they reeled off 6 successive wins to race to the top and seal promotion with 2 games to. Steve started off as an outsider but finished up a clear winner in a very competitive Division.They were the top goal scorers in the Division with 50 helped by David Banner with 12 and Simon Murray on 9.

2. Boscombe Athletic (last season relegated) – the last 3 seasons for Dave Legg has had highs and lows with two successive promotions and a relegation. It was back to the highs again as Boscombe are promoted back to Division 1. A cracking start with 12 points from the first 5 games and they topped the table for 4 weeks but it went downhill after this with only 2 wins in the next 12 games and they sunk to 9th, 7 points off the top three and looked as though they were destined for another season in Division 2. Out of nowhere they were playing like world beaters and amazingly won 9 of the next 10, including 6 in a row - up to 2nd and looking good - a couple of draws meant that they still had work to do in their last match at home to 3rd placed Mann City but Dave won 2-0 to go up. Nastro Azzurro again excelled with 9 goals.

3. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season promoted) – a 2nd consecutive promotion for Andy in a nail biting finish. A decent start with 1 defeat in 5 and 7th; the form continued and after 12 games they hit the top of the table. Andy took his foot of the throttle and the next 9 games only resulted in 2 wins (both away) and they dropped to Mid table, 7 points off a promotion place and looked to be out of the race. But as a fair few teams hit a slump Andy suddenly became unbeatable with 7 wins in 8 games and right back in the mix - 4th spot with 1 game to go and only 1 point off a promotion place. The final game tested the nerves of Andy and the supporters, as with a minute to go they were up but then conceded a a 90th minute equaliser - amaazingly Yorkshires finest also conceded in the last minute and the Emu's were up. Adam Hughes with 13 and Nour ten Velde with 12 goals spearheaded the promotion.

4. Mann City (last season 9th) – a 2nd season in Division 2 and it was heartbreak for Brian as they missed out of promotion on goal difference. It was however an excellent season - they didn't lose in the first 6 games but 4 draws and 5th; they hovered between 5th and Mid table in the next 7 games but then suddenly hit a purple patch. 8 games unbeaten with 6 wins and they held the top spot for 3 weeks - the last being after 21 games. The form evaporated as quickly as it arrived and with 2 points in the next 4 games Brian looked to be falling away but he rallied and with 3 wins and they were into the top three with 1 game to go at 2nd place Boscombe, where a defeat saw them pipped at the post. Charlie Godbeer topped again with 12.

5. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season 4th) – after last season's excellent 4th placed finish Ben was aiming to go one better and for long parts of the season he looked on course. The Finest continued their impressive home form from last season into this and didn't lose until week 29 - a spell of 20 unbeaten league games. Their away form was decent as well so they topped the table on week's 8-12, 14-16 and 23-25. They had been in the top three virtually all season but four defeats in 5 near the end of the season saw the Finest drop to 5th with 1 game to go!! They almost made amends in the final game but conceded an injury time equaliser. To say that Ben is upset would be an understatement. Adam Cherrett starred again with 13 goals to follow his 17 last season.

6. Molesley Shoals (last season relegated) - it was a good season for Dave (Lloydy) but he will be disappointed about their late collapse. With just 2 defeats in the first 18 games the Moles were top of the table and promotion looked to be a real possibility. The SS mystery then struck as from winning most games they failed to win in the next 8 matches and dropped to Mid table. A late winning flurry gave them a top 6 finish .Dave still hasn't found a main striker with 6 being the tops from Graham Cook and Steve McManaman.

7. Kesgrave Vespas (last season relegated) – Gary started the season with 2 defeats but then went on a 9 game unbeaten run and Kesgrave were 3rd in the table. They hit the top of the table after 16 weeks but it was such a competitive league this year that one defeat saw them drop to 6th!! One defeat in the next 7 they were 3rd and only 1 point off the top ; they continued to play good football and were 2nd with 7 games remaining. Surely Gary could get them straight back to Division 1 but the SS slump hit them with 4 defeats in a row and with they were down to 7th place and it was just a question of 'what might have been'. Kryten Thompsen with - 8 and the reliable Rodrigo Rotundo also scored 8.

8. Phoenix Vikings (last season promoted) – it was a Jekyll and Hyde performance for Dave as at home they were great at home and picked up 30 points (more that the Champions Par) but away from home they collected just 13 points. Phoenix had a purple patch in the middle of the season with 6 wins and a draw pushing them up to 5th and the same points as 3rd place. Could they maintain the promotion push ? - the answer was no as they only picked up 1 point from the next 4 games and they fell away. They finished the season with 3 home wins and a draw but failed to win away. Chris Smith was their main man with 9 goals.

9. Huntley Fairways (last season 7th) – well after a disappointing season for Carl last year the bookies had Carl to turn it around and push for promotion but it didn't happen. An opening win and all of the supporters were on a high but the mood was dampened as they struggled in the next three games but Carl didn't panic and by week 10 they were up to 5th and only 3 points off the top spot! Huntley them self imploded with just 1 win in the next 11, during which time Carl revamped the team. This was a dangerous move as the new players didn't bring any form with them but they managed to limp across the finishing line. Will Neviani was their top scorer with 7 before moving onto Chadd. Top scorer in the current bunch was Stefan Karlssan with 5. I am sure the bookies will again have Carl as one of the favourites but he needs to live up to this next season - his 5th in Division 2.

10. Norfolk FC (last season 6th) – MikeT was hoping to build on last season's good finish to push for promotion but they never got any momentum going - never in the promotion push but never in a relegation battle. Goals were plentiful at both ends with 42 for and 42 against; the 3rd worst for conceding... Bruno Cidre scored 12 and Stefano Okaka weighed in with 9. We will have to see what happens next season but in a Division that gets stronger each season Mid table is probably a likely outcome.

11. Stainsacre United (last season 11th) – a 7th season in Division 2 for SteveR and they had a decent first half of the season and 6th place with 24 points - only 2 points off 3rd place - maybe a promotion push was on the cards? Seems to be a common story in the Opal this season with teams having one good half and one bad half and it was no different for Stainsacre as they only won 1 in the next 17 games in but drew 10 of these so slowly dropped to 11th.Troy Hellinka topped with 6 goals.

12. Southern Vipers (last season 5th) – a big surprise as the bookies had Dave to be pushing for promotion and with 3 wins in the first 4 games things were looking good. However, the next win didn't come for 12 games and by that time thoughts of promotion were long gone with them in 14th place. Dave's fortunes looked to have changed with 3 wins and 2 draws in the next 5 games but 5 losses in a row and they were just 2 points above the drop zone. Their form suddenly returned with 2 wins and they were safe. Victor Theobold topped with 8 goals.

13. Tadcaster Albion (last season 10th) – after just 2 seasons in Division 3 for SteveR it looked like a certain relegation but a strong finish kept them safe.They started badly with just 1 win in the first 7 but threatened a recovery with 3 wins in the next 6 and up to 12th. That was as good as it got, particularly at home with just 5 points from 10 games. The major surprise was that they were still in with a chance to stay up with 3 games left and Steve took full advantage to win all three and scrape survival. Their big scorers from last season all drew blanks and their top scorer was Hugo Hardley with 8.

14. Belmont Buccaneers (last season promoted) – after an excellent promotion last season Rob was brought down to earth in a tough, battling season. They started like tortoises with only 1 win in the first 13 games and next to bottom. The second half of the season picked up but with 5 games to go they were 5 points from safety - how quickly your fortunes can change as Rob won the next three and with other scores favourable they were out of the bottom three with a 3 point advantage going into the last 2 games and a win against their rival's Tadcaster would have secured safety but a 1-0 defeat sent it into the last game knowing a win would keep them up. They were up against their stable-mates Hundon and it finished 2-2 and they were down. Justin Kane was again the main man with 7.

15. The Scillonians (last season 8th) – down to Division 3 after 3 seasons with a disappointing season for Dave. It was a season of 2 halves - the first one to forget as they as they failed to win in the first 13 games and had 5 points - bottom spot and 9 points from safety. The second half they played more like a team going for promotion with 21 points from the next 11 and out of the bottom three but their form dipped and they sunk back into the bottom three. John Detheridge topped the scoring with 6.

16. Hundon Harriers (last season 13th) – Rob was the miracle worker last season to keep them up but he wasn't so lucky this season. Hundon started like they finished last season and were sitting comfortably in Mid table after 6 games but the old habits returned with just 1 point in the next 11 games!! Rob doesn't give in easily and Hundon put a nice unbeaten away run together, just a pity their home form didn't approve. They are down but not disgraced. One bright light for Rob was that they scored more than the other bottom 6 teams with Mitchell Covell hitting 9 - downside they conceded most in the Opal -60.

Division 3

Radford Semele are promoted as champions after 1 season, St. Mary's Saints are promoted after 1 season and Kiloparsec Villa after 27 seasons.

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 2nd and 4th.

1. Radford Semele (last season relegated) – a fantastic season for Craig as he stormed to the title. Radford started like an express train with 6 wins and topped the Division for 28 weeks. It is unusual for a team to go without a bad patch but apart from 3 games without a win they never faltered. Craig finished with 21 wins, a goal difference of 35 and they won by 9 points. The goals were spread between the attack with Patrik Cutrone with 10, Steven Thompson with 10 and Tomas Panenka with 9.

2. St. Mary's Saints (last season relegated) – a famous name from the past as Dave (Shep) re-names Olympic Moston and gate-crashed the promotion party. The first half of the season held no clues as to a promotion push - sitting 8th and 8 points off the pace. The second half of the season they were magnificent with just 1 defeat and 11 wins, including the last 4 to hit the top three with one game to go. To emphasise how good they were playing is that they won 1-0 at the leaders to confirm promotion. Terrence Brassington was their main man again with 7

3. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 10th) – amazingly it was a 27th consecutive season in Division 2 for Kiloparsec with Gary (smiffy) and this season they made it. A good first half of the season saw them in 6th place and just 2 points off 3rd spot; the 2nd half was still going well, however a spate of draws kept them out of the top three but two wins in a row saw them into the top three for the first time with just one game to go. Could they win and end their long stay in Division 3 - the answer was yes with a 1-0 win at Dinamo and the celebrations began. Scott Thompson was again their top scorer with 11 and they had the lowest number of defeats in the Opal - just 4.

4. Wigan Wildcats (last season relegated) – after last season's disappointment Dave set about masterminding a return to Division 2 but collapsed at the end of the season to miss out by just 1 point. They were unbeaten in the first 10 games and 3rd in the table; at the half way point still 3rd. With just 1 defeat in the next 10 games Dave was feeling confident in 2nd place but the chasing teams were not far behind. A disastrous slump saw them drop out of the top three with one game to go. Considering Dave had to sell a few key players to balance the books it was a good achievement but he will still feel he should have made it. Rod Jones and Erowoli Maja both stepped up with 8 goals each.

5. Phantom Lords (last season 6th) – a 4th season for ChrisC in Division 3 and after blowing promotion last season, would you believe it happened again. They had two good winning spells - one in the first half of the season and more importantly at the end of the season, which moved them from 7th to 2nd with 3 weeks to go but 2 defeats in a row left their season in tatters. Defensively sound with only 19 conceded and a good striker in Joe Feeney with 10 must put them as one of the bookies favourites for next season.

6. Queensdown F.C (last season 11th) – a second season for Dave (Lloydy) and an improvement in their finishing position. Goal scoring was not a problem with 51, the 2nd highest in the Division 1 but they also had problems at the other end with 36 conceded. Dave had them playing some scintillating football in the first half of the season with just 1 defeat, 2nd in the table with a 6 point lead over 4th spot. The second half of the season was the complete opposite with just 4 wins and only 1 at home. Dave would have taken 6th place before the season started but is probably disappointed they didn't go up. Bradley Reid was again the main man with 14 goals.

7. Darwen United (last season 7th) – a very good season for MikeT although they faded at the end of the season to finish just outside of the promotion places. They started without a defeat in their first 8 games and without conceding a goal and were in the top three for the first 2/3 of the season. Top scorer again was Wilfred Niddi with 8 after his 9 last season.

8. Manics (last season 8th) – Matt (smelly) departed and the new manager was Si Hothersall - a first time in the Opal. He inherited a reasonable team and has started the rebuild - defensively they looked good - just need to add some goals. So a Mid table position is a good start for Si and plenty of positives to take into next season. Jonathan Bamba was their top scorer with 7. Next season they will become Inter Knottla.

9. Dinamo Parkside (last season 5) – after 2 5th place finishes Rob did not find it as easy going this season The first 11 games were a nightmare for Rob with just 7 points and 4th from bottom but they suddenly re-covered their mo-jo with 5 wins. The remainder of the season was 'hit and miss' with an improvement at the end of the season with 1 defeat in 9 and 4 consecutive wins. Similar to last season the defence did its job but goals were at a premium with top score Kostos Andino hitting 8.

10. Kalingo Victory (last season 13th) - a first full season for Gary (smiffy) and a slight improvement. They started dreadfully with just 4 points from the first 9 games. recovered but then had another poor spell later in the season with just 3 points from 7 games. Sullivan Abbott and Gary Felstead both scored 5.

11. Chapel North (last season 9th) - a 6th season for Chapel in Division 3 and a third with Dave(Shep) at the helm. The first half of the season saw them win 6 and lose 6 and 8th spot - could they kick on that was the question? Sadly the answer for Dave was no as they could only win 2 in the second half of the season and Dave was already preparing for next season. Jed Pickworth top scored with 7.

12. Red Star Belgrave (last season 4th) – John Ghent left and Red Star Belgrave were unmanaged for most of the season before Dave Curtis returned and started the rebuild. Next year they will become Red Star.

13. SE Bexter (last season 12th) - it was a welcome return for Wayne and a new team named after his favourite singer. The story of their season was draws with 15 and the most in the Opal this season. Top score was 5 for Jay Thompson and Claude Forward.

14. Riot City (last season 13th) – a first full season for Simon Richmond with plenty of rebuilding undertaken and the team looking to be heading in the right direction. Simon was looking for a player who know where the back of the net is and he may have found one in Fred Sirieix who hit 8.

15. Fishburn Park (last season 14th) - a similar position as last season for SteveR and he knows it is a slow rebuilding process. There were positives to take in that after an appalling first half of the season with just 4 points the second half of the season was a dream with 19 points. Goals are SteveR's main priority as they only scored 14 and Ira Zyranov topped with 3.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 9th) – Second season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage one win. Now who did they beat??????

All of the teams are managed and each year the Divisions get stronger – three good times coming down from Division 2 so it will be a tough Division to get out of.

Vacant Teams

None

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

SEASON 39 END OF TERM REPORT

Premier League

It turned out to be a two horse race with Loyal Rangers just pipping Chester Town for an 11th title.

Only two of the top six were in the top 6 last season - Loyal Rangers and Jedi Knights.

Cusco relegated after 8 seasons; Abysmal Aftermath are relegated after 5 seasons and Sylvan Lake are relegated after 4 seasons.

The three promoted clubs finished 4th, 8th and 11th.

1. Loyal Rangers (last season 1st) – a second consecutive title for Andy and his 11th overall. They hit the front after 6 games and from that point on it was a battle with Chester for who would be the champions. In the next 14 weeks they were top for 13 of these and then they had a wobble and Chester took over for 5 weeks. Andy managed to steady the ship and they hit the top again with 5 weeks remaining - the crunch game at Week 28 as they travelled to Chester and a draw left Loyal in control of their own fate, which they didn't throw away. Andy had the chance of a league and cup double but surprisingly they lost to Norfolk in the final. Greg Debakers was once again their top scorer with 13.

2. Chester Town (last season 12th) – a 4th season back in the Premier League for PaulW and it turned out to be his best one yet. They were the model of consistency in their first 22 games with just 2 defeats (both at home) and were sitting at the top and 4 points clear of Loyal. Then they self imploded with 2 point from the next 6 but surprisingly they still had a chance of the title going into the last game. With Loyal only drawing a win would have given Paul the title but they lost at Whitby and had to settle for the runners up spot. A big bonus for Paul was a striker in double figures - Bohdan Vyunnyk with 15.

3. Jedi Knights (last season 5th) – yet another great finish for ChrisC and they have not been outside of the top 6 in the last 9 seasons. It was an unusually slow start for Jedi with 12 points from their first 9 games but with just 1 defeat in the next 10 they were up to 3rd. They could never the find another gear so it was an excellent 3rd place finish. Dennis Cupitt and Adrian Newey both scored 8 goals.

4. Xbana FC (last season promoted) – an excellent first season for Baz, which was helped by an unbeaten start in their first 8 games and only gd keeping them of at the top. The next 5 games brought Xbana back to reality and Mid table looked a good place to be; the rest of the season saw them very good at home but poor away but with other teams struggling they clawed their way up to 4th.Goals were not as plenty as in previous seasons but Fernado Guilleme proved himself with 12 goals.

5. Mighty Chucks (last season 9th) – Stu made it 18 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and a highest finish in 8 seasons. An indifferent start saw them in the bottom three after 6 games - by the half way point the Chucks had moved effortlessly up to 6th. The 2nd half of the season was a mixture with 4 straight defeats but a strong finish saw then finish 5th. Top goal scorer was Leo Campana with 9.

6. Wolf Pack (last season 8th) – we had the usual change of a name by Wes (chunkymunky) and a top 6 finish, although you would have had to have been a brave man to say they would finish there after their terrible start. After 12 games without a win and just 4 points Wes was next to bottom with just 4 points and relegation looked a certainty. The change in their fortune was unbelievable with 8 wins in the next 10 - the best in the Opal! They fiinished strongly and Wes will be looking for a better start next season. Top scorer was Das Neves with 9.

7. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 10th) – after last season's poor form CJ was hoping to get back to their historical best but they were without an away win in the first half of the season and were 11th - just 2 points clear of relegation. In the 2nd half of the season they proved to be very consistent and slowly climbed the table to finish a creditable 7th. Goals were a problem with the top scorer being Magnus Graham on 6.

8. Kamikaze Vipers (last season promoted) - another good performance for a promoted team and Gary (Smiffy) will be very pleased with their performance. It was a season of either winning or losing, with just 3 draws - the lowest in the Opal. Their success was based on excellent away form - 26 points away compared to 16 points at home. A familiar face topped the scoring for the Vipers with Dominico Brini hitting 9.

9. East Riding Enterprise (last season 2nd) - another reasonable finish for Ben but maybe it could have been better after an electric start of 13 points from 5 games and top of the table. The rest of the season saw East Riding have poor runs and good runs and slip into Mid table; an unbeaten run of 6 games saw them safe in Mid table. Timmy Flatt scored 7.

10. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 3rd) - after last season's great finish Paul (Razor) was plotting a push for the title but it turned out to be a fight against relegation. The big reason behind their low finish was their home form with just 1 win in their first 10 games and it's a good job they played well away from home in the first half of the season. The second half of the season was a complete opposite with decent home form and poor away. With 1 games to go they were just 1 point above the bottom three but a good home win saw them to saferty. A big bonus was Jurgen Schneider with 17 goals and the winner of the Golden Boot.

11. Whitby Town (last season promoted) – it turned out to be a relegation battle for SteveR and survival at the end. They were 3rd from bottom after 10 games and still there at the half way point. Whitby then hit a purple patch with 17 points from the next 7 games and up to 7th; they looked safe but complacency set in and they forgot how to win leaving them just 1 point above the drop zone with 1 game left - it was at tough one at home to title chasing Chester but they secured a 2-1 win and safety. Goals were a struggle with Dale Dowie and Manolo Giovinco both top scoring with 4.

12. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 4th) - a lowest finish for Rich since they were promoted 12 seasons ago. They started off with 3 wins but then only won 1 of the next 8 and were hovering above the relegation zone. The rest of the season was a mixture of wins and defeats in similar proportions. Goals were a major problem with 4 being the highest from Ryan d**k amd Joe Partington.

13. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 7th) – a 2nd season for CJ back in the Premier League and safety secured in the last game of the season! After a great start with 3 wins (and topping the League) they went through a spell of wins or losses, however the three points for a win helped greatly and after 19 games Armthorpe were Mid table but only 4 points clear of the relegation zone. Suddenly they forgot how to win with just one win in the next 10 they were in the bottom three with 1 game to play; they won and Abysmal lost so Armthorpe survived by just 1 goal on goal difference. Luigi Guseppi and Viktor Ladowski top scored with 5.

14. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 12th) – a 5th season for MikeT and another relegation battle but this time they are down - losing out by just 1 goal on goal difference. Wins were sporadic but a good away win at Xbana took them out of the bottom three and with 1 game to go they were just out of the bootom three; a draw would have kept them safe but they lost 1-0. Sunday Eboh, Rashidi Yekini and Monodu Bama all scored 5. 5

15. Sylvan Lake (last season 6th) – a 4th season for Sylvan in the Premier League but this time with a new manager in CJ. He inherited a strong side from Dave (Shep) but struggled for any consistency and a loss in their last game saw them relegated. Youssoufa Moukoko top scored with 5

16. Cusco (last season 11th) - after 8 seasons in the Premier League for Matt (smelly) with Cusco they are relegated. A dreadful start and they had to wait until week 14 for their first win; it was then another 10 games without a win. Cusco improved slightly with 4 wins in a row but it was far too late. Only 20 goals scored with the top scorer being Viktor Morrow with 5.

Division 1

FC Abertawe are promoted as champions after 1 season, Riverplate are promoted after 17 seasons and Dell Diamonds are promoted for the first time since the Opal began.

Emu's BPW 2020 are relegated after 1 season, Istra have successive relegations and Par Athletic? are relegated after 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 5th and 15th.

The three promoted cubs finished 11th, 14th and 16th.

1. FC Abertawe (last season relegated) – back to the big time after 1 season and it was never in doubt as they were unbeaten in their first 13 games - topping the Division from week 6 to the end. A strong end to the season with 5 straight wins saw them take the title. Bruno Cidre topped with 10 goals. (FC Abertawe They owe their success to a strong defence with only 22 conceded - only Dinamo Parkside were the same.

2. Riverplate (last season 6th) – a 5th season in Division 1 for MikeT and they are promoted after 17 seasons. It was a strange season - started with 3 wins; no wins in the next five and then 5 wins in the next 6 so they were sitting 3rd at the half way point. They were playing steady football and picked up 16 points in the next 10 games - remaining in the top three all of the time. With 6 games Riverplate looked in a strong position but the nerves hit with just 2 points from the next 3 games but luckily the other chasing teams were struggling as well. Their top scorers were Chuckwuma Oghife with 12 and Ola Anuna (Riverplate) with 10.

3. Dell Diamonds (last season 10th) – a 4th season in Division 1 for MikeT and it was a fantastic one with promotion to the Premier League for the first time in their history! It didn't look that way after 11 games with them sitting 11th with 12 points. The rest of the season saw Dell very consistent without any back to back losses and they climbed the table and hit the top three after 21 games. They swapped places with 4th placed Duffield several times until they made it their own with 4 games to go. Fred Firemouth again excelled with 13 this season.

4. Duffield Dynamos (last season 4th) – after last season's dramatic end to the season where they fell apart and eventually missed out by drawing their last game John was hoping to put things right. It turned out to be very similar to last season with Duffield only losing 1 game in the first 14 and sitting in 2nd place. You guessed it - just 1 point in the next 4 games and they dropped to 6th. John read the riot act to the players and they responded with 10 points from the next 4 games and they were to 2nd. Surely they would push on in the last 8 games but sadly the answer was No as they stuttered along with just 1 win and they had to settle for being the bridesmaid once again. Ivan Wileman was the main man with 12 goals

5. The Survivors (last season relegated) - last season's disappointments were still on the player's minds with just 2 points from the first 7 games and rock bottom. Stu had a 'clear the air meeting' with the players and it certainly worked as they started playing the football we all know they can and they steadily climbed the table - 10th at the half way point and then up to 5th by the end of the season. Should be one to watch next season. Robert Brynneli with 9 and Quentin Mars with 8 were the main men.

6. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 11th) - a 2nd season in Division 1 for MikeT and he will be very pleased with the final position but not about the second half of the season. After 17 games Death Valley were 2nd with a 7 point cushion over 4th place - the rest of the season was a disaster with just 1 wins from 11 before winning the last 2. The lack of a main striker was evident with Callum Hudson-Odoi
only getting 7.

7. Doncaster Town (last season 7th) – a 4th season in Division 1 for CJ and similar to last 2 seasons it was too many draws that made them keep an eye on the teams below them. A poor start with just 3 draws in the first 6 games and it was always going to be a story of catching up - up to 8th by the half way point. The second half of the season saw only 3 defeats but the draws kept them from pushing the leading pack. Goals were again tough to come by with Orsen Oremus topping with 6.

8. La Donny Luz (last season 12th) - it was a very similar story to last 2 seasons for CJ but a lot better ending than before. The usual dreadful start with 4 straight defeats but that was the worst it was as they found consistency and slowly climbed the table. By the half way point they were still in the bottom three but in a close league they were only 3 points behind 8th place. Just 1 defeat in the next 8 and La Donny were up to 5th and only 6 points behind the top three; the season then faltered and with 2 games to go still only 2 points off the bottom three but a victory saw them safe. Noel Borrington and James Garcia both hit 8 goals7

9. Salford Bombers (last season 8th) – a 6th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky) and another mediocre one. Similar to last season their best form was over the opening games and they were nicely placed in 2nd spot after 7 games; they didn't win again for 9 games and only gd was keeping them out of the bottom three. Their form picked up and they climbed to 7th but there were very few points between teams in the bottom half. Just 1 win in the next 8 and Salford were13th and only 2 points off the drop zone, going into the last game but a win saw them safe. John Bracewell scored 8.

10. Bayern FC (last season 5th) – a second season in Division 1 for MikeT and it was a great start with 13 points from 5 games but the rest of the season was a flop. With 5 games to go they dropped into the bottom three but 3 wins on the bounce saw them to safety. Troy Parmini topped again with 6.

11. Boscombe Athletic (last season promoted) – two seasons ago when they were promoted it was a quick relegation so Dave Legg was keen to avoid a repeat. Two wins to start the season and it all looked 'hunky dory' but 12 games later and just 1 win extra the alarm bells were ringing as they slumped to 14th place. They needed a quick improvement and it came with 13 points from 6 games and a decent start in Division 1 for Dave. Youri Tielemans hit 7 goals

12. Cunnack Allstars (last season 9th) – a 5th season for ChrisC and he will be relieved to be still in Division 1. An excellent first half of the season saw them in 5th place and thoughts of promotion; these thoughts evaporated as with just 1 win in the next 13 games only gd was keeping them out of the bottom three with 2 games to go. An amazing 6-0 win at high flying Dell and they were safe. Goals were a struggle with top scorer being Dan Wye and Dave Liddicoat with 4.

13. York Rovers (last season 13th) – a 10th season in Division 1 for SteveR and just above the bottom three for the 2nd season running. They started strongly and were unbeaten in their first 8 games but with just one win in the next 11 York were next to bottom. Out of nowhere Steve conjured up 4 straight wins and they shot up to 7th; their form disappeared as quickly as it had come and with 1 game to go only 1 point was keeping them out of the bottom three. They lost the game but with Par losing they were safe. Wesley Page had a good season with 8 goals.

14. Par Athletic (last season promoted) – a quick relegation for SteveR; after 10 games they were bottom, after 15 games they had recovered to 12th and after 20 games they were up to 9th and it looked plain ailing for Steve. How wrong can you be as they only won 1 of the next 11 to be relegated by 1 point. Marc Percival with 5.

15. Istra Pula (relegated) – a major surprise as MikeT suffers a 2nd successive relegation. They could never get going - a mediocre start saw them 9th after 10 games and that was about as good as it got. With 2 games to go they were surprisingly only 3 points from safety. Aaron Samuel had a good season with 10 goals.

16. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season promoted) – after 2 consecutive promotions for Andy it was disappointment all round as they dropped back into Division 2. A terrible start with just 1 win in the first 13 games set the tone for the season - they recovered some pride with a steady 2nd half of the season and with a total of 29 points. Safe to say goals were a problem although Fabio Tortellini excelled with 8.

Division 2

Yorkshires Finest are promoted as Champions after 3 seasons, Molesley Shoals are promoted after 2 seasons and Norfolk are promoted after 6 seasons.

Kiloparsec Villa are relegated after 1 season, Huntley Fairways are relegated after 6 seasons and St. Mary's Saints are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 4th, 5th and 11th.

The three promoted teams finished 9th,14th and 16th.

1. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season 5th) – after two season's of just missing out on promotion there was no mistake for Ben this season and they go up as champions. They opened the campaign with 4 straight wins and at the half way point they were nicely placed in 2nd place. The second half of the season was strange with just 5 points away from home - luckily for Ben their home form was fantastic with 20 points. They topped the table for 19 weeks as well. Adam Cherrett was their top scorer for the 3rd season running - this time with 12 goals.

2. Molesley Shoals (last season 6th) - back to Division 1 after 2 seasons for Dave (Lloydy) and makes amends for last season's late collapse. It was a poor start with just 1 win in the first 5 games and next to bottom. The next 10 games saw the best and worst of the Moles - 5 straight wins but then 5 games with 3 points, so at the half way point they were 6th. Up to 4th after 20 games and then Dave went into overdrive with only 1 loss in the next 9 games so with one game to go they were a point clear at the top; a draw in the last game saw them overtaken by the Finest. Stan McManaman had an excellent season with 11 goals.

3. Norfolk FC (last season 10th) – a great season for MikeT and after 6 seasons they are promoted. Their success was based on an excellent 2nd half of the season where they picked up 29 points compared to 20 in the first half. With one game to go they moved into the top three but lost their last game - luckily Askham lost as well. They also had a fantastic cup run and reached the final where they played Loyal Rangers and pulled off a surprise 2-0 win so an excellent season all round for Norfolk. Murilo Maldonado was the main man with 14.

4. Askham Bryan United (last season relegated) – after 2 successive relegation for SteveR it was heartache at the end as they miss out by 1 point. They only lost one of their first 12 games and also won 6 in a row to top the table for 7 weeks; they were also top after 20 games with a 7 point lead over 4th spot. Unluckily for Steve their form dropped but it was either wins or draws so with 1 game to go they were 4th but only 1 point behind Norfolk. They were at their stable-mates Stainsacre and with Norfolk losing a point would have taken them up but they lost 2-0. Paul Dean topped with 7 goals.

5. Inter Southampton (last season relegated) - after a surprise relegation last season Dave (Shep) was tipped to be pushing for a quick return. They were ticking along quite nicely and after 14 games they were 5th and just 3 points behind 3rd place. Inter then hit a brick wall with 5 straight defeats and a possible relegation battle. Dave steadied the ship and with just 1 defeat in the last 11 games. Paul Potter was their top score with 7.Their youth team again performed well and after finishing 1st, 2nd, 2nd and 1st in the last 4 seasons and they were 3rd this time so the crop of young prospects continues at Le Tissier Lane. No defeats in the season and just 2 points off the top.

6. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 7th) – 2nd season in Division 2 and into the top 6 - Gary will be delighted considering their position after 11 games when they were next to bottom. Their home form was their saving grace in the remainder of the season with 6 wins from 8 and a Mid table place was secured. Fabio Pistolessi was their main man with 10 goals.

7. Mann City (last season 4th) – a 3rd season in Division 2 and another reasonable one for Brian. Their best part of the season was in the middle where they went 12 games without defeat and moved up the table to 6th. Three home wins in a row helped them consolidate their final position. Charlie Godbeer topped again with 12.

8. Stainsacre United (last season 11th) – an 8th season in Division 2 for SteveR and similar to last season they had a decent first half of the season and 3rd place with 23 points - only 2 points off 3rd place - maybe a promotion push was on the cards? The second half of the season started badly with only 1 win in 8 games and slowly slipped to 11th. Steve got them back into gear and they settled for Mid table. David Moss topped with 6 goals.

9. Radford Semele (last season promoted) – in his first season in Division 2 Craig will be very satisfied with a Mid table finish. Radford won 4 of their first 5 away games but then didn't win again - their home form was the complete opposite with 1 win in the first 5 but didn't lose again until the last game of the season. Patrik Cutrone was on top form again with 12.

10. Southern Vipers (last season 12th) – after a good first 18 games and 5th place Dave left and another Dave in DaveC took them on. Rebuilding commenced and they slipped to 10th. Victor Theobold topped the scoring again with 8 goals11. 11.

11. Scrubs (last season relegated) – after 6 seasons of 'yo-yoing' between Divisions Ben stayed in the same one but he will be disappointed not to have made more of an impact to push for promotion. There was no consistency and they hovered around Mid table and below all season. Ben will be demanding more from Scrubs next season. Robbie Fowler topped again but after last season's Golden Boot he could only manage 7 goals

12. Tadcaster Albion (last season 13th) – a 3rd season in Division 2 and another battling one. They were doing well for the first 20 games and in 8th spot, just 3 points behind 3rd spot. The next 11 games were best forgotten with just 1 win! Hugo Hardley topped the scoring again with 8 goals.

13. Phoenix Vikings (last season 8th) – 2nd season in Division 2 and a tough one for Dave as they spent most of the season just above the bottom three and eventually that is where they finished. Their home form was the main reason that they hovered above the drop zone with just 3 wins. Chris Smith was their main man again with 10 goals.

14. Kiloparsec Villa (last season promoted) – a short stay for Gary after Kiloparsec had promoted following 27 consecutive season in Division 3. With just 1 win in their first 17 games they were always going down. Damir Jokic scored 4 goals.

15. Huntley Fairways (last season 9th) – contrary to public views and expectations Carl is down to Division 3 after 6 seasons. Huntley started off as one of the favourites to go up but after winning their 2nd game of the season they had to wait another 18 games for a win!! They showed a bit of promise with just 2 defeats in the last 10 games and hopefully Carl will stay faithful to his players and push for a quick promotion. Stefan Karlssan was their top scorer again but only with 6 goals - he will have to do better next season.

16. St. Mary's Saint (last season promoted) – a famous name from the past as Dave (Shep) re-named them but sadly left the Saints and Wayne took them over.

Division 3

Belmont Buccaneers are promoted as champions after 1 season, Queensdown F.C are promoted after 3 seasons and Phantom Lords after 5 seasons.

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 7th and 15th.

1. Belmont Buccaneers (last season relegated) – a quick return for Rob and as Champions. The first half of the season started well but by the half way point their home form was stopping them from breaking into the top three; in contrast their away form was fantastic and this continued with only 1 defeat. In the second half of the season their home form improved dramatically and Rob picked up 34 points...... Justin Kane scored 16 and Santillana hit 12

2. Phantom Lords (last season 5th) – a 5th season for ChrisC in Division 3 and after blowing promotion for the last 2 seasons it was touch and go again but a win in the last game saw them promoted. Phantom had a great first half of the season and topped the table from weeks 14 to 23 but their away form dipped and it eventually all came down to the last game. Kai Hemsley and Joe Feeney both hit 10.

3. Queensdown F.C (last season 6th) – a third season for Dave (Lloydy) in the bottom tier and a fantastic promotion. Again goals were not a problem with 52 scored - only Chester could better this; Bradley Reid was again the main man with 13 goals. Rob had 2 purple patches - the first a run of 7 successive wins which took them up to the top after 10 games and the 2nd when promotion looked to be slipping away they reeled off 5 straight wins. They topped the table for the last 9 weeks of the season

4. Darwen United (last season 7th) – a very good season for MikeT and they hovered around the promotion places all season. Going into the last game they were 4th and just one point behind Phantom - they won but so did Phantom!

5. Dinamo Parkside (last season 9th) – a 4th season in Division 3 for Rob and a very good one saw them just miss out on promotion. It was a strange season though with their first home win not coming until week 14 and then they reeled off 6 straight wins; in contrast their away form was great in the first half of the season but dipped in the second half. Similar to last season the defence did its job but and goal scoring was better with Kostos Andino hitting 11.

6. Riot City (last season 14th) – a second season for Simon Richmond and an excellent one it was as they just missed out on promotion. Riot started the season with 6 wins and a draw to be the run-away leaders but then just 1 win in 8 games to leave them 5th at the half way point. By week 20 they were 7 points off the pace and looked out of it but Simon had other ideas with 6 wins in 9 so going into the last game at home to 3rd placed Phantom promotion was still a possibility, however a defeat left them just short. Fred Sirieix had a fantastic season with 14 goals.

7. Hundon Harriers (last season relegated) – a steady season for Rob with their best form being in the opening 6 games with them topping the table for 2 of these week. Their defence was a strong point with only 25 conceded. Dieter Sparwasser topped the scoring with 9.

8. Red Star (last season 12th) – Dave Curtis left and then made a welcome return. Re-building in progress for next season. Top scorer was 5 for Stuart Waldman and Garth Badder.

9. Inter Knottla (last season 8th) – a first full season for was Si and a similar finish to last season. Their season was ruined by the first 10 games with just 2 wins (both at home) and sitting next to bottom; they went 8 unbeaten with 5 runs to rectify the poor start. The rest of the season was hit and miss - Si will be looking for more consistency next season. Neil Mackay topped with 8 goals.

10. Wigan Wildcats (last season 4th) – 2nd season in Div 3 for Dave and they never recovered after a poor start - 11th after 5 games, 13th after 10 games, 11th after 15 games, 12th after 20 games, 7th after 25 games and a final position of 10th. The bonus for Dave was Francisco who hit 12 goals.

11. Chapel North (last season 11th) - Shep departed and in came DaveC to try and bring back the good times. His first move was to keep the historical name, which was greatly appreciated by the supporters. Jed Pickworth top scored with 9.

12. Kalingo Victory (last season 10th) - another tough season for Gary (smiffy) and it was a battling season. Shaoun Boggis scored 5.

13. Fishburn Park (last season 15th) - an improved position on last season for SteveR and he knows it is a slow rebuilding process. There were positives to take in that the first half of the season realised 19 points; the second half of the season was was not so good with 13 points. Dave Keadly and Matthew Hodgson both hit 5.

14. SE Bexter (last season 13th) - Wayne left Bexter and Dave Curtis added them to his portfolio. They will be re-named as Mearns City

15. The Scillonians (last season relegated) – two changes of manager with DaveC now at the helm. They have a decent squad so should do better next season and have a new name of Lokomotiv Dinamo. A name from the past!

16. Whitewell Town (last season 9th) – Second season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage one win. Now who did they beat??????

All of the teams are managed and each year the Divisions get stronger!!!

Vacant Teams

None

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

SEASON 40 END OF TERM REPORT

Premier League

It turned out to be a two horse race with Loyal Rangers just pipping Jedi Knights for a 12th title.

Three of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the three to drop out were Wolf Pack, Xbana FC and Mighty Chucks.

Whitby Town relegated after 2 seasons; Armthorpe Rovers are relegated after 4 seasons and Riverplate are relegated after 1 season.

The three promoted clubs finished 3rd, 13th and 14th.

1. Loyal Rangers (last season 1st) – a third consecutive title for Andy and his 12th overall. A good first half of the season saw them top the table on 3 occasions; they were then 2nd fiddle to Jedi until they overtook them with 2 weeks to go after 8 wins and 2 draws. Greg Debakers was once again their top scorer with 14 and Gaudinio weighed in with 12.

2. Jedi Knights (last season 3rd) – yet another great finish for ChrisC and they have not been outside of the top 6 in the last 10 seasons, however Chris will feel that it should have been their 3rd title. Jedi had a 9 point lead after 20 games after a purple patch of 6 wins and despite a difficult period of just 1 win in 9 they topped the table for 13 weeks. Loyal displaced them with 2 weeks to go - they had the chance in the last game with Loyal losing but Jedi also lost. Top goal scorer was Sean Lillywhite with 16.

3. FC Abertawe (last season promoted) – an excellent return to the Premier League and almost the title after a very good second half of the season going 12 games without defeat A few less draws and they could have been champions. Top goal scorer was Wynton Rufer with 18 and a 3rd Golden Boot in 4 seasons.

4. Chester Town (last season 2nd) – a 6th season back in the Premier League for PaulW and after the runners up spot last season it was another excellent season. A good start saw them top the table 3 times in the first 9 games; their form disappeared and they had slumped to 10th after 22 games but 7 wins in 8 saw them finish just 4 points off the top.Top scorer Geordie Schwarze-Katze with 8

5. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 10th) - after last season's disappointing finish Paul (Razor) looked to be back in the groove and had topped the table 4 times in the first 13 weeks and were 2nd after 16 weeks. The rest of the season was a little disappointing as they only won 2 of the next 12 and both of these were away from home. Paul won the last 2 games to get a top 6 finish. Jurgen Schneider was again their main man with 11 goals and Phil Kessel scored 9.

6. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 12th) - a 13th season for Rich in the Premier League and after last season's poor finish they needed to be better. Just 2 defeats in the first half of the season and they sat in 6th spot but 5 draws and a defeat saw Aberdeen slip to Mid table. They were struggling away from home (only 4 points from their last 8 ) but 5 home wins on the trot and they snook into the top 6. Garrie Thom and Graeme Kelbie led the way with 9 apiece.

7. Xbana FC (last season 4th) – it looked like another good season for Baz going into the final game sitting 5th and an SLFA Cup Final against 2nd Division outfit Emu's. However, it turned into a nightmare as they lost 3-0 to Dell, wdo had lost the last 5 and then lost on penalties in the Cup Final. Xbana had an excellent middle of the season where Baz went 10 games without defeat to leave them sitting nicely in the top 6. Siebe Schrijvers hit 13 and David Laccroix hit 11.

8. East Riding Enterprise (last season 9th) - another reasonable finish for Ben but maybe it could have been better after just 2 defeats in the first half of the season and 5 home wins on the trot, leaving them 4th. The second half of the season saw their form disappear, particularly at home with just 1 win and they slipped down the table.They had the best defensive record in the Premier League with just 18 conceded but goals were a problem. Liam Buttanshaw was their main man with 9.

9. Mighty Chucks (last season 5th) – Stu made it 19 consecutive seasons in the Premier League but it didn't look that way after 10 games - just 1 win and next to bottom. The next 10 games were the complete opposite with 8 wins and a draw. which saw them rocket up to 5th! Their form disappeared as quickly as it had arrived and they didn't win in the next 6 games and had to settle for Mid table. Leo Campana topped the scoring again with 10.

10. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 7th) – CJ is still struggling to get Bentley back to their old invincible selves. It started well and after 8 games they were 3rd but 6 games without a win left them10th at the half way point. Wins were proving difficult and but they suddenly find their sparkle with 4 wins in the last 5 games to add a little bit of respectability to the season. There were 3 players on 6 goals - Magnus Graham,

11. Wolf Pack (last season 6th) – a disappointing season for Wes (chunkymunky) after last season's top 6 finish. A steady first half of the season saw them 8th and a 9 game unbeaten run saw them up to 5th. The wheels suddenly came off the bus as they only won 1 of the last 8 games. Pedro Chirivella and Matheus Pereira topped with 8 goals

12. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 8th) - it turned out to be a decent finish for Gary (Smiffy) after their performance in the first 2/3 of the season. After 21 games they were next to bottom with just 14 points and looked certain to relegate but from nowhere they started playing like champions and collected 13 points from the next 5 game to move out of the relegation slots. The form slowed but they still had enough points in the bag to make sure of safety. Goals were a problem with just 27 with their top goal scorer being just 4 goals from Zoltan Sajben, Honza Czerova and Dominico Brini.

13. Dell Diamonds (last season promoted) – almost a quick return for MikeT after a dreadful season. They needed a win in last game and hope Riverplate would lose - didn't look promising as they had lost their last 5 and were up against Xbana, who were also in the Cup Final. Would you believe it Dell won 3-0 and Riverplate lost. Fred Firemouth topped again with 7 this season.

14. Riverplate (last season promoted) – a quick return for MikeT and he can have no complaints.Only 5 wins all season they could never get going. Carlos Mattheus Nunes topped with 7

15. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 13th) – CJ secured safety in the last game of last season but it was not to be this time as they are down after 4 seasons. They hovered around the bottom three all season and never showed any form. Top scorer could only manage 3 from Giuseppe Leone and Alesso Rosa.

16. Whitby Town (last season 11th) – it turned out to be a relegation battle for SteveR yet again but this time there was not a happy ending as they go down after 2 seasons. They had sealed their fate with just 1 point from the first 6 games and could never gather any momentum. A couple of wins near the end of the season gave them a glimmer of hope but to no avail. Pablo Mistral topped with 7 goals.

Division 1

The Survivors are promoted as champions after an absence of 2 seasons from the Premier League, Molesley Shoals are promoted after an absence of 39 seasons from the Premier League and Abysmal Aftermath are promoted after an absence of 1 season from the Premier League.

The season finished with only 3 points between the top 5 and Abysmal securing promotion on goal difference from Cusco and Bayern in the last game of the season.

Ashfield United are relegated after 6 seasons, Whitwell Rangers have successive relegations and Yorkshire's Finest are relegated after 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 3rd, 4th and 14th.

The three promoted cubs finished 4th, 9th and 15th.

1. The Survivors (last season 5th) - promotion for Stu after just 2 seasons. After 11 games they were 9th and promotion did not look to be on the cards but Stu reeled off 13 games without defeat to take them to take them to the top. With 3 games to go there were 5 teams on 49 points - a great victory over Norfolk left them top with 1 game to go but only a point clear of 4th spot; a win at York sealed promotion. Maldonado with 10 and last season's top scorer Robert Brynneli with 9 spearheaded their promotion.

2. Molesley Shoals (last season promoted) - successive promotions for Dave (Lloydy) and a what a fantastic season as they are back to the big time for the first time since Season 1 - some 39 seasons ago. In fact the last time they were in the Premier League was September 1999!!!!!! It didn't look that way after 8 games with the Moles in 10th place but the rest of the season was almost perfect but a defeat in the next to last game saw them slip out of the top three and it was all down to the last game. A home win against Ashfield and other results going their way saw them up. Their home form was stupendous as they picked up 36 points with only 1 defeat! Del Dyer topped the scoring with 13.

3. Abysmal Aftermath (last season relegated) –a quick return for MikeT after an excellent season. It looked as though they would promote when they hit the top with 3 games to go but in a fiercely competitive promotion race they slipped to 5th and needed to win their last game and rely on others to slip up. A goal a minute before the break by their top man Rashidi Yekini sealed the win and with Cusco and Bayern failing to win they were up. Rashidi Yekini had a very good season with 13 goals.

4. Cusco (last season relegated) - a big disappointment for Matt (smelly) with Cusco as they just missed out on promotion. Unbeaten in the first 11 games they topped the table and at the half way point were 2nd and just a point off the top. The second half of the season saw a 'Jekyll and Hyde' performance as they didn't lose at home but didn't win away so with 1 games to go they were 3rd on gd but only a point behind the top two. Matt was feeling confident as their last game was at home but sadly a 0-0 draw with Doncaster saw them miss out on promotion by +4 goals. Viktor Morrow with 9 topped again.

5. Bayern FC (last season 10th) – a 4th season in Division 1 for MikeT and it was a great first half of the season as they topped the table from week 13-15. They were 2nd with 1 game to go and only gd keeping off the top spot but only a point clear of 4th place. An away game at La Donny saw a 1-0 defeat and they slipped to 5th.Mason Greenwood topped with 8 goals.

6. Boscombe Athletic (last season 11th) – a 2nd season for Dave Legg and they started off with 5 home wins, which pushed them to the top spot at the half way mark. Odd how a team goes off the boil and Dave certainly did with just 4 points from the next 8 games and the promotion hopes all in tatters. They recovered in the latter part of the season to take a top 6 finish. Elder Costa lead the line with 12 goals

7. Duffield Dynamos (last season 4th) – a big disappointment for John after just missing out in the last 2 seasons. It looked promising after 10 games with Duffield in 4th place and only 1 point off the top and even more promising as they hit the top after 16 games. Unfortunately that was their peak as they had a very 'iffy' second half of the season. Ivan Wileman was again the main man with 12 goals. John will be expecting a much better finish next season.

8. La Donny Luz (last season 8th) - it was a steady season for CJ without any drama and very little excitement for the fans. Few goals conceded but not many scored with the top man being Julius Kumwenda with 7.

9. Norfolk FC (last season promoted) – a good first season in Division 1 for MikeT with Norfolk and it could have been better as they topped the table from weeks 2 to 9. A run of 5 defeats looked to have ended their season but a 9 game unbeaten run moved them back to 4th with 6 games to go. Their form dipped again and they had to settle for Mid table. Stefano Okaka hit 12 and Francis Uzoho hit 9.

10. Salford Bombers (last season 9th) – a 7th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky) and another mediocre one. The standard for the season was set in the first 11 games as they slumped to 3rd from bottom and it was always going to be an uphill climb. Three wins on the bounce moved them up to 10th and that is where they finished. They struggled defensively with 43 conceded and the most from teams not in the bottom three. Francisco Trincao topped the scoring with 9.

11. Doncaster Town (last season 7th) – a 5th season in Division 1 for CJ and similar to last 2 seasons it was too many draws that made them keep an eye on the teams below them. It looked a lost cause after 9 games when they were next to bottom with just 4 points, by the half way point they were just above the drop zone; the next 11 games passed by without a win so with 4 games to go only gd was keeping them out of the bottom three. CJ suddenly found 3 wins on the bounce and they were safe. Cristian Pavon topped with 8.

12. York Rovers (last season 13th) – an 11th season in Division 1 for SteveR and just above the bottom three for the 3rd season running. It was a good achievement for Steve to keep them safe as they had only 2 wins in the first 16 games (both away) and were next to bottom with 12 points. The rest of the season was much better with only 2 defeats but they did draw 9 including the last 6 away games. Jonathan Franks topped with 6 goals.

13. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 11th) - a 3rd season in Division 1 for MikeT and he just escaped relegation. They owed their survival to their home form where they picked up 22 of their 30 points; away from home they lost 10 games. The lack of a main striker was evident with Callum Hudson-Odoi topping with only 6.

14. Whitwell Rangers (last season relegated) – a second successive relegation for CJ but with a strong squad they should be a force to reckon with next season in Division 2. They started reasonably with 10 points from their first 7 games but then only picked up only 17 points from the remaining 23. Danny Woodyatt and Steven Striker both managed 4 goals.

15. Yorkshires Finest (last season promoted) – a quick return for Ben, which was a big surprise considering the strength of his squad. They had a dreadful start and were never out of the bottom three!! Benjamin Olloco topped with 7.

16. Ashfield United (last season 9th) – a 6th season in Division 1 but this time as Ashfield United and with 2 changes of manager the Opal welcomed Bakerboy (Neil) back to the Opal. He will looking forward to starting the new season, a new name in Ghazal and with a decent squad so who knows what will happen. Their top scorer was Steve Jackson with 4.

Division 2

Istra are promoted as Champions after an absence of 1 season from Division 1, Radford Semele are promoted after an absence of 11 seasons from Division 1 and Inter Southampton are promoted after an absence of 2 season from Division 1.

Knodishall Vas are relegated after 6 seasons, Tadcaster Albion are are relegated after 6 seasons and Queens Cross United are relegated after 7 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 1st, 4th and 7th.

The three promoted teams finished 9th,10th and 14th.

1. Istra Pula (last season relegated) – a quick return for MikeT and it was needed after 2 successive relegations. Istra took the title in style after hitting the top with 4 weeks to go on the back of an eight game unbeaten run. The front three performed admirably with Lenny Linneker hitting 10, Mani Requiem and Ikcehukwu Okorie hitting 9.

2. Radford Semele (last season 9th) – in his second season in Division 2 Craig surpassed all expectations with promotion to Division 1 after an 11 season absence. Radford owed their promotion to a fantastic performance away from home, where they won 10 of their 15 games. They topped the table from weeks 19 to 25 after an unbeaten run of 10 games with 9 wins. Patrik Cutrone was on top form again with 7.

3. Inter Southampton (last season 5th) - after Dave (Shep) missed out on promotion last season he made no mistake this time. With just 1 defeat in their first 11 games they topped the table for 9 weeks in the first 2/3 of the season. Inter were back on top with 4 games to go after 12 games without defeat and the only hic-up on a fabulous season was a 1-0 defeat at home to the champions in the next to last game. Paul Potter topped again with 11 and Taiwo Awoniyi hit 9.Their youth team again performed well and after finishing 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 1st and 3rd in the last 5 seasons and they back to being champions again this time so the crop of young prospects continues at Le Tissier Lane. All 31 games won in the season and just 1 conceded and 323 scored.

4. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season relegated) – an excellent season for Andy as they just missed out on promotion and reached the SLFA Cup Final where they sprung a major surprise against Xbana as they won on penalties. The season started well with 4 wins in the first 5 games and topping the table and they were 4th at the half way point. The cup run took its toll and EMU's slipped out of the promotion race but 3 wins in a row pushed the Emu's to 4th and a force to reckon with next season. Mousa Sanchez was the main man with 11 goals.

5. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 6th) – a 3rd season in Division 2 for Gary and a good one with a 2nd top 6 finish. It was a very steady season with the first 10 games setting the platform with a haul of 20 points. The bonus for Gary was that their home and away form was similar so not much tweaking required for next season. Danny Stone 13 and Adam Vincent 9 topped the scoring.

6. Phoenix Vikings (last season 13th) – 3rd season in Division 2 and a very good one for Dave (Lloydy) as they took a top 6 finish. A steady first half of the season saw them 9th with 22 points and relegation off the radar. Their form dipped a bit but a purple patch of 4 wins in 5 saw Dave secure 6th place. Chris Smith was their main man again with 12 goals to follow his 10 last season.

7. Par Athletic (last season relegated) – SteveR had a good start with Par sitting 3rd after 10 games but this was the high point. They did have a great home record with the first 13 games being unbeaten and just 1 defeat - it's a pity their away form wasn't as good. Tony Stacpoole hit 8.

8. Askham Bryan United (last season 4th) – after 16 games SteveR was just keeping his head above water and then suddenly they recaptured last year's form, where they missed out on promotion by just 1 point. Askham went 13 games unbeaten with the 6 wins on the trot as they rocketed up the table to 8th.Paul Dean topped again with 9.

9. Queensdown F.C (last season promoted) – an excellent first season for Dave (Lloydy) in Division 2 with a Mid table finish. It was a topsy-turvry season - 5 defeats in a row followed by 8 games unbeaten then 6 games without a win followed by 2 wins. Dave will be looking for more consistency next season. Jose Luis Sierra and Bradley Reid both scored 8.

10. Belmont Buccaneers (last season promoted) – Rob will be pleased with their performance this season after promotion. They were fairly consistent with no good runs or poor runs. They had some excellent wins but their defence was of concern with 45 conceded - the most not counting the bottom three. It was the same two strikers as last season Justin Kane and Santillana both hit 8

11. Scrubs (last season 11) – same finish as last season and Ben will be disappointed they didn't perform better, although for the first 18 weeks they were decent - 7th with 28 points. The rest of the season was a disaster with no more wins and just 7 points from 12 games. Jason Tucker and Adrian Barcelio were the main men with 8 apiece.

12. Stainsacre United (last season 8th) – a 9th season in Division 2 for SteveR and similar to the last 2 seasons they had a decent first half of the season but a dreadful second half. Mid table at the halfway point but they only won 1 in the next 13 games including 6 consecutive defeats. Alexis Valencia topped with 8 goals.

13. Mann City (last season 7th) – a 4th season in Division 2 and not a patch on Brian's previous 3 seasons as they just avoided relegation. With 5 defeats on the trot at the half way point they were 3 points clear of the bottom three and the second half of the season was simialr as they hovered around 13th place and eventually finished 4 points clear of the drop zone. Robbie Bonner topped with 9.

14. Knodishall Vas (last season promoted) – ChrisC stepped down at Phantom Lords and Gary took them into his portfolio; re-naming them Knodishall Vas and it was always going to be a tough ask to keep them up. Their away form was the cause of their eventual relegation with just 8 points from their 27!! The success story was Allan Aspinall who led the team with 12 goals.

15. Tadcaster Albion (last season 12th) – a 4th season in Division 2 for SteveR and it was relegation this time. They failed to win in the first 18 games with just 8 points so their eventual tally of 23 points pointed to a reasonable 2nd half of the season. Joe Lumsden topped with 5 goals.

16. Queens Cross United (last season 10th) – a first full season for DaveC and they could only manage 3 wins as they finished bottom to end a stay of 7 seasons in Division 2. Taken on by the returning John Ghent for the new season and re-named Braunstone Town.

Division 3

Dinamo Parkside are promoted as champions after 5 seasons, Huntley Fairways are promoted after 1 season and Wigan Wildcats after 3 seasons.

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 2nd, 9th and 12th.

1. Dinamo Parkside (last season 5th) – a 5th season in Division 3 for Rob and after just missing out on promotion last season there was no mistakes this year. They started the season with 7 wins in 10 games and were the model of consistency all season topping the table for 25 of the 30 weeks. Kostos Andino was the main man agin with 10 goals.

2. Huntley Fairways (last season relegated) – after last season's surprise relegation Carl started as one of the favourites to go up and he didn't disappoint. It was a sluggish start to the season away from home with 1 point from the first 3 but after that they only lost 2 more away from home. Their home form was fantastic with just 1 defeat so all in all a great season, with their best performance being a 6-1 thrashing of the eventual champions Dinamo in the penultimate game. All eyes will be watching to see what Huntley can do next season, particularly as it will be a young side. Francois LeGood and Stefan Karlssan both hit 10

3. Wigan Wildcats (last season 10th) – 3rd season in Div 3 for Dave (woody) and after last season's dreadful showing Dave showed the critics what he can do when he puts his mind to it. They were in the promotion race all season thanks to a magnificent home record with no defeats and 35 points. Their away form threatened to let Dave down as they lost their last 2 and needed a win in the last game against Inter Knottla to go up, which they did. Francisco was the main man again with 15 goals and Sebastien Gloch backed him up with 14.

4. Inter Knottla (last season 9th) – a second full season for was Si he will be delighted with the team's performance. The first 9 games were disappointing with just 11 points but their away form kicked in with 6 wins on the bounce and they went into the last game at Wigan knowing a win would take them up. Unfortunately it was a 2-0 defeat but still a very good season for Si. Lance Packman hit 8 goals.

5. Belper Nailers (last season 4th) – Paul (razor) became the manager and he continued the good work from the previous season. With just 1 defeat in the first half of the season Belper were 2nd and looking good for a promotion push. The 2nd half of the season was not as good as Paul looked to strengthen his team wih a few promising youngsters. All in all it was a good season. Nathan Rich topped with 7 but has since departed.

6. Hundon Harriers (last season 7th) – Hundon were ticking along nicely but a surprise change in management saw two changes of manager before they were taken on again. It will be interesting to see how all the changes will affect Hundon. Scott Booth had a fantastic season in front of goal with 17.

7. Chapel North (last season 11th) - after finishing 11th in the last 2 seasons DaveC saw an improvement. They had an excellent Mid season with 8 wins in 10 games which ensured a top half finish.Jed Pickworth was the main man again with 9 and Manuel Quarterhouse also bagged 9 goals.

8. Kalingo Victory (last season 12th) - it was a better showing for Gary (smiffy) with a Mid table finish, which he was not probably expecting after failing to win in the first 8 games. The rest of the season was much more settled and Gary will be hoping for this next season. Joseph Yates and Andrew Pinnock both scored 6.

9. Kiloparsec Villa (last season relegated) – the season started promising for Gary (smiffy) with 6 wins in the first 9 games and 2nd place but 5 defeats in the next 6 and the season was over. Nolan Jackson had a good season with 10 goals.

10. Fishburn Park (last season 13th) - another improved position for SteveR in the rebuilding process. At home they were sound with just 2 defeats - away from home they lost their first 5, then won 4 and drew 1 on the next 5 and finally lost 2 and drew 3 of the last 5. Marcus Samuel topped with 8.

11. Riot City (last season 6th) – a 3rd season for Simon Richmond but after just missing out on promotion last season he had to settle for Mid table. A good first half of the season saw them joint 3rd at the half way point but with only 2 wins in the 2nd half of the season they slipped down the table. Graeme Woolley performed with with 12 goals.

12. Pilgrims F.C (last season relegated) – a first full season for Wayne and it was all about stabilising them and bringing in a few players. Billy Moron looke a good player with 10 goals.

13. Lokomotiv Dinamo (last season 15th) – taken on by John Ghent for the new season and re-named Grand Union FC. Finidi George hit 12 goals so hopefully he will still be with Grand Union after the culling.

14. Mearns City (last season 14th) - Dave Curtis added them to his portfolio and with major re-building to be undertaken their position was not a shock. Dale Oxborrow topped with 4.

15. Red Star (last season 8th) – taken over by Wayne and re-named Yellow and Black Army for the new season. Garth Badder topped again with 4 goals.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 9th) – 4th season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage one win and four draws.

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

Season 41 End of Term Report.

Premier League

It was a season of two halves - Abysmal led until week 18 - Chester Town led for the rest of the season to take the Premier Title for the first time in their history.

Three of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the three to drop out were Chaddesden Celtic, FC Abertawe and Aberdeen Terrors.

Xbana relegated after 3 seasons; Molesley Shoals are relegated after 1 season and Kamikaze Vipers are relegated after 3 seasons

The three promoted clubs finished 4th, 10th and 15th.

1. Chester Town (last season 4th) – a 7th season back in the Premier League for PaulW and after the runners up spot two seasons ago and 4th last year it was a fantastic season as they took the title - the first time in their history and they also won the SLFA Cup for the first time. Chester became the 5th team to achieve the league and cup double. They were in pursuit of Abysmal for the first 18 weeks and when Abysmal faltered they took over at the top and remained there; four wins in a row saw them open up a 6 point gap with 4 games to go. They lost to Loyal so the lead was cut to 4 points with 3 games to go but that was a minor blip as they sealed the title in style. Top scorer was Geordie Schwarze-Katze with 16.

2. Jedi Knights (last season 2nd) – yet another great finish for ChrisC and they have not been outside of the top 6 in the last 11 seasons. Their home form was very good but Chris was being let down by Jedi's away form, where they went 7 games without a win. A strong finish with 6 wins and 2 draws saw them take the runners up spot in the last week. Top goal scorer was Sean Lillywhite with 11.

3. Loyal Rangers (last season 1st) – after 3 consecutive titles the pressure was on Andy to continue their success and they came close. It started badly with 2 defeats but just 1 defeat in the next 12 games they were up to 3rd and with a continued run of form they were battling with Abysmal and Jedi to try and catch Chester. A great win over the leaders saw them close to 4 points but Chester proved too strong in the end but Andy will be very pleased with the season. Greg Debakers was again on top form with 11 and will be sorely missed after his retirement and Gaudinio topped with 12.

4. Abysmal Aftermath (last season promoted) – a fantastic start for MikeT as they were unbeaten in the first 16 games and topped the table for 16 consecutive weeks up to week 18. Only 3 wins in the remaining 13 games saw them slip down to 4th.Taiwo Awonoyi led the line with 15 goals.

5. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 10th) – a much better season for CJ with glimpses of their magnificent past. Only 7 defeats all season but with 11 draws they were never going to challenge for the title. Highest finish in 4 seasons and another bonus is that CJ looks to have found a main goal scorer in Luigi Guseppi with 12.

6. East Riding Enterprise (last season 8th) - Ben will be delighted with a top 6 finish. It was a similar story to last season for Ben with the best defensive record of only 19 conceded (only Division 3 Tadcaster conceded less) but goals were a problem again with only 28 goals and Alan Readman-Walsh scored 11 of them . Their mean defence seemed to work better away, where they picked up 29 points with only 2 defeats; at home it was a different story with just 15 points and only 3 wins!!

7. FC Abertawe (last season 3rd) – after last season's excellent finish MikeT was hoping to challenge for the title again but a poor start scuppered his plans. After 9 games only gd was keeping out of the bottom three but a great Mid season with 13 points from 5 games saw them move up the table rapidly and a Mid table finish. Their main striker Wynton Rufer was not as deadly as normal but weighed in with 10; top scorer was Fred Firemouth with 12.

8. Mighty Chucks (last season 9th) – Stu made it 20 consecutive seasons in the Premier League but it didn't look that way after 9 games - just 1 win and bottom.
The next 6 games were the complete opposite with 5 wins which saw them up to 9th!
Their form disappeared as quickly as it had arrived and they only won 1 of the next 7 games and were back in the bottom three!!!! Four wins in the next 5 and they were up to Mid table and safe. Denver Boss hit 8 and Louis Trevelier hit 9.

(this is virtually word for word that I wrote last season about the Chucks!!)

9. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 6th) - a 14th season for Rich in the Premier League and it was looking good after 10 games as they were nicely placed in 4th spot but what happened next takes some believing as they picked up just 1 point from 8 games with 5 consecutive defeats. Aberdeen had plummeted to next to bottom!!!!! What a strange game football is as they won the next 4 and Rich took the Manager of the Month for August and up to Mid table; just 1 win in the next 5 saw the season over. Ryan d**k topped with 12 goals Graeme Kelbie weighed in with 9.

10. The Survivors (last season promoted) - a good first season for Stu after last season's promotion. They were very consistent season over the first 2/3 of the season and were nicely placed in 4th position. The rest of the season was one to forget with just 1 win and 4 draws!! Maldonado and Frankie Wrebbe both hit 7 goals.

11. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 5th) - Paul (Razor) will certainly not be happy with the performance of his team this season - you can usually guarantee they would have a top 6 finish. There was no consistency and wins were hard to come by but with plenty of draws they looked fairly safe in Mid table after 19 games. Things can change very quickly in SS and 6 games without a win saw them with just gd keeping them above the drop zone. Paul gave the team a good bo**ocking and they replied with 2 wins and safety. Defence was a problem with only the bottom two clubs conceding more Gabriel Martinelli topped with 10 goals.

12. Wolfskull Nords (last season 11th) – a change of team name for Wes (chunkymunky) and a similar finish to last season. Although for the first 14 games they looked like relegation fodder as they were rock bottom with just 10 points. Wolfskull suddenly realised the plight they were in and amazingly won 8 of the next 11 to zoom up to 9th!! Four defeats in a row though saw them dragged back down the table and a season to forget. Goals were plentiful as usual with 50 scored and
Pedro Chirivella topped with 11 goals.

13. Dell Diamonds (last season 13th) – a 2nd season for MikeT and another relegation battle. It was a tale of two halves as after 16 games they were 8th; in the second half of the season had plenty of draws but with only 1 win in 14 they were just 1 point above Kamikaze and a home game against Xbana. Dell secured their safety with a narrow 1-0 win! Prince Keku Adebola was the main man with 9.

14. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 12th) - Gary (Smiffy) is relegated after 3 seasons. They hovered around the relegation zone for the first half of the season but then their form picked up and they started to pick up points. The hopes of the supporters were dashed with only 1 win in the last 10 games and it's back down to Division 1. Goals were yet again a problem with just 8 - 27 last season. One bright spark was the form of Adonai Fuentes who scored 9 goals.

15. Molesley Shoals (last season promoted) - Dave (Lloydy) left SS with 10 games to go and in stepped Simon Richmond, with them in 12th spot. With a dramatic cull there was little Simon could do to stop them being relegated. He has been active in trying to find new players but it will be tough again next season. Giovanni Dos Lessa topped with 10.

16. Xbana FC (last season 7th) – a major surprise for Baz as he is relegated after 3 seasons and he can have no complaints as they under-performed all season. They could only muster 19 points in total - away from home there were not ant wins and just 3 points. They shipped 61 goals and only T64 Whitwell Rangers conceded more!! David Laccroix hit 6.

Division 1

Duffield Dynamos are promoted as champions after an absence of 4 seasons from the Premier League, Radford Semele are promoted to the Premier League for the first time in their history (41 seasons), and Istra Pula are promoted after an absence of 3 seasons from the Premier League.

Armthorpe Rovers are relegated after 1 season and for the first time in their history they will not be playing in the top two leagues; Boscombe Athletic are relegated after 3 seasons and Norfolk FC are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated clubs finished 7th, 8th and 15th.

The three promoted cubs finished 2nd, 3rd and 13th.

1. Duffield Dynamos (last season 7h) – after missing out in the last 3 seasons John takes Duffield to the big time after 4 seasons, although there were a few flutters at the end of the season. Duffield started off like an express train, winning 7 of their first 8 and topped the table for a total of 24 weeks. Nerves crept in as the season drew to a close as they went 4 games without a win and John was thinking I hope we don't blow it again. Three wins in the last 4 games and they were up as champions. Goals were in short supply, which made it an interesting season with a gd of just +6, which is very unusual for the champions. The lack of goals could be problem for John in the Premier League but I am sure he will have the answers. Leo Bonatini topped with 7

2. Radford Semele (last season promoted) – an excellent first season for Craig in Division 1 and Radford are promoted to the Premier League for the first time in their history. Craig started without any losses in the first 8 games and 2nd spot, which was cemented by 4 more wins in the next 6 games and only 1 point behind Duffield. Their form suddenly evaporated with only 1 win the next 9 but with all teams taking points off each they were always in the race and an excellent run in of 5 wins and a draw saw them promoted with 2 games to go. A win in their last game would have seen them champions but it wasn't to be. Patrik Cutrone was on top form again with 9 and his striking partners Tomas Panenka and Steve Thompson also scored 9.

3. Istra Pula (last season promoted) – two successive promotions for MikeT and Istra are back in the Premier League after an absence of 3 seasons. A steady first half of the season saw Istra in 7th spot; their home form continued to be impressive with 7 straight wins at the end of the season but they could not reproduce this away. In the end their home form was the deciding factor with 33 of their 49 point.Top goal scorers in Division 1 with 46 and Mani Requiem topped with 11.

4. Doncaster Town (last season 11th) – a 6th season in Division 1 for CJ and a good finish after a poor start to the season, particularly away from home where the picked up just 1 point in their first 6 games! The revival started and 16 points from the next 6 games saw CJ up to 4th and right in the mix for promotion, but yet again the early poor form returned and with 1 win in 9 they were out of the promotion race but still managed 4th spot after a strong end to the season. Orsen Oremus topped with 8.

5. La Donny Luz (last season 8th) - it was a 6th season for CJ and with just 1 win the first 9 it was a worry but 4 wins on the bounce took them up to 6th. CJ was hoping to push on and look for a top 3 finish but their home form looked to be ending that, however in a very tight promotion race they put together 3 straight wins to be only 3 points off a top 3 spot with 2 games to go; a home defeat by Radford put an end to that. Goals were again in short supply but a mean defence balanced that out - 25 scored (only 5 teams in the Opal with less) and 22 against (only East Riding and Tadcaster with less). Julius Kumwenda again topped with 7.

6. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 12th) - a 4th season in Division 1 for MikeT and the highest finish to date. In a total contrast to last season their away form was infinitely better than their home form with 26 points and 3 defeats; at home it was 17 points and just 4 wins. Callum Hudson-Odoi again topped with 10.

7. Whitby Town (last season relegated) – a decent finish for SteveR but he will be disappointed it wasn't a better season. An excellent first 10 games saw them 3rd; 5 games without a win and down to 10th; another purple patch and they were back up to 3rd after 22 games and a quick return was on the cards. The season suddenly disintegrated with just 6 point from the last 8 games it was a case of 'what might have been'. The reliable Pablo Mistral topped with 11 goals.

8. Riverplate (last season relegated) – it looked like a quick return for MikeT after an excellent first half of the season saw them 4th and only gd keeping them out of the top three. The next 8 games disappointed with only 3 wins but with all teams dropping points they actually climbed into 3rd spot for 1 week!! 1 win in the last 7 games scuppered their hopes though. A big bonus for MikeT was his high-scoring front three -Carlos Mattheus Nunes and Alfredo Socrates with 11 and Eric Gunson on 9

9. York Rovers (last season 12th) – a 12th season in Division 1 for SteveR and after 3 seasons of battling relegation it was a relief for the fans not to have to go through it again. A good start saw them 2nd after 5 games but winless in the next 8 games saw them slip to 12th. The International break came at just the right time for SteveR and some gritty performances saw them lose only once in 11 games as they clawed themselves up to 9 spot, where they remained. Goals were once again hard to come by with Jonathan Franks topped with 5 goals Luke Jones 5

10. Cusco (last season 4th) - after missing out on promotion by gd last season Matt (smelly) and Cusco were the bookies favourite to go up but in the end Matt was pleased to still be in Division 1! With only 1 win Cusco were bottom after 11 games and goals very hard to come by; they slowly turned the corner and helped by 5 home wins in a row Matt move up to 10th with 6 games to go and amazingly only 6 points off 2nd spot. Their home form continued to impress as they reeled off 7 wins but in the end their away form let them down. Safe to sat Matt will be looking for a better start next season. Viktor Morrow with 11 topped again.

11. Bayern FC (last season 5th) – a 5th season in Division 1 for MikeT and an excellent first 9 games saw them sitting pretty in 2nd spot. After 16 games Bayern were still doing well in 4th place but disaster struck with just 1 win in the next 8 games and they crashed down the table. Wayne Calver topped with 9 goals.

12. Fort Frostmoth (last season 10th) – an 8th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky) and a change of name from Salford Bombers did not help as it turned out to be a mighty, relegation battle. Their opening two wins at home looked to be the highlights of the season as they failed to win again for 11 games and were surprisingly not in the bottom three! Three wins in the next four games looked to have turned the season round but 8 games without a win and they dropped into the bottom three. Fort suddenly found goals in their locker and four wins in a row gave the supporters what they were after - safety for another season. Paul Pitman topped with 11.

13. Inter Southampton (last season promoted) - it was 'touch and go' as to whether Dave (Shep) could keep InterS in Division 1 after their promotion. They had a good start to the season and topped the table in weeks 1 and 4 but with just 1 win in the next 10 games Inter had dropped to 10th. Their away form then totally evaporated as they lost 8 in a row and with a game to go they needed an away win of all things to give them any chance of survival and 'would you believe it' they pulled off a 2-0 win to survive on goal difference!! Alexander Mokshantsev topped with 11 goals.

After finishing in the top three in the last 6 seasons their youth disappointed slightly with 8th place - the most surprising stats were 58 goals scored and 11 against. Last season they scored 323

14. Norfolk FC (last season 9th) – after last season's good performance MikeT was hoping to improve again but after a run of 8 consecutive losses they were bottom after 14 games with just 8 points. Relegation looked to be a certainty! Norfolk were still bottom 3 games later but they suddenly remembered how to win with 6 victories in the next 8 to haul themselves out of the bottom three. There was still work to do though and going into the last game they had a 3 point lead over InterS, but goal difference was not on their side which proved the deciding factor as they lost 1-0 at Duffield. Francis Uzoho had an excellent season and hit 14 goals.

15. Boscombe Athletic (last season 6th) – Dave Legg departed and Wayne took over; Wayne departed and Simon Richmond took on Boscombe, with them in the bottom three. Their fate was already determined so it was all about improving the squad for next season. Youro Telemans topped with 5.

16. Armthorpe Rovers (last season relegated) – a second successive relegation for CJ as Armthorpe are down to Division 2 for the first time in their history!!!! The season started off badly with 2 points from the first 5 games and bottom spot; Armthorpe threatened a recovery with 8 points from the next 6 games - off the bottom but still in the bottom three. It was all downhill from then, particularly at home with only 1 win all season and only 8 points. Goal scoring was a major problem with only 21 scored snd not surprisingly the top goal scorer managed just 3 - Alessa Rosso and Manolo Portanova.

Division 2

Kesgrave Vespas are promoted as Champions after 4 seasons, Belmont Buccaneers are promoted after an absence of 2 seasons from Division 1 and Emu's BPW 2020 are promoted after an absence of 2 season from Division 1.

Wigan Wildcats are relegated after 1 season, Ain Ghazal are relegated after 1 season and a second successive relegation for Yorkshires Finest.

The three relegated teams finished 6th, 14th and 15th.

The three promoted teams finished 10th,12th and 16th.

1. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 5th) – a 4th season in Division 2 for Gary and after two top 6 finishes they cruised to promotion with 3 games to go. A fantastic start with 5 wins saw them top and they dominated this spot by occupying it for 22 weeks. Kesgrave's home form was outstanding with only 1 defeat, including a run of 7 consecutive home wins; they won 12 of their 15 home games. With 51 goals scored they were the highest in the Opal; Danny Stone followed last season's haul of 13 goals with 12 this time and Adam Vincent chipped in with 9.

2. Belmont Buccaneers (last season 10th) – a fantastic season for Rob with Belmont promoted after 2 seasons. In the early parts of the Opal's history, Belmont were a force to reckon with it and it looks as though Belmont is bringing it home again for the fans. It was a strange season for Rob with just 1 defeat at home in the first 13 games but away it was a different story as they won their first game but only picked up 1 point from the next 6 games. How things can change as Belmont reeled off 6 away runs on the bounce and promotion it was. Last season their defence was a big problem with 45 conceded but this year they had the 2nd best defence in the Division with only 27 conceded. Joseph Keane led the front line with 11 goals.

3. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season 4th) – after just missing out on promotion last season Andy made no mistake as Emu's are up after 2 seasons. It was a very steady season based on excellent home form, where they were undefeated and away from home they consistently picked up points Andy only suffered 5 defeats in the season - joint lowest in the Opal with Knodishall. Mousa Sanchez was the main man with 11 goals (same as last season).

4. Askham Bryan United (last season 8th) – it was a 3rd season for SteveR in Division 2 and it looked like being his last as they won 8 of their first 10 games, including winning the first 5 home games. They were sitting proudly on top with a 6 point gap over 4th place but 5 defeats in the next 6 games saw them down to 5th. The supporters were briefly excited with 2 wins as they moved back into the top three but just 2 wins in the next 8 they looked to be out of the promotion race. Steve rallied and 3 wins in 4 took them to within 2 points of Emu's but that was as close as it got. Brett Bulmer topped with 7.

5. Scrubs (last season 11th) – a 3rd season for Ben in Division 2 and an excellent 2nd half of the season saw a big improvement on last season. A good start saw then top after 4 games and still doing ok in 4th spot after 11 games. A dramatic loss of form saw them without a win in the next 8 and they were down to 12th. As quickly as Scrubs lost form it was back in abundance as they went 14 games unbeaten to end the season, with one spell of 16 points from 6 games. Jamie Smith hit 8 with Adrian Barcelio and Mickey Todd both on 7.

6. Whitwell Rangers (last season relegated) – CJ almost managed a quick return after a slow start with 13 points from 10 games leaving them in 10th spot. Two winning spells of 4 games and 3 games and they were up to 4th and only a point off the top three. Their form slumped and without a win in 6 their promotion hopes were gone. The aptly named Stephen Striker topped with 9 goals.

7. Stainsacre United (last season 12th) – a 10th season in Division 2 for SteveR and a good improvement. They started the season on fire with 3 straight wins and top for these weeks; just 2 wins in the next 11 was quickly followed by 3 wins so Stainsacre were nicely placed in 6th spot after 17 games. The rest of the season was a flop with just 4 points from the next 8 and Mid table it was. Alexis Valencia improved on last season's 8 goals with 9 this term.

8. Phoenix Vikings (last season 6th) – Dave (Lloydy) left SS with 10 games to go, with Phoenix in 6th place with 33 points and safe so it was a 4th season in Division 2. With the season coming to a close Dave Curtis took on the manager's role. Erik Aguire excelled with 10 goals.

9. Mann City (last season 13th) – a 5th season for Brian in Division 2 and a slightly better one than last year. Their lowest position was11th after 10 games and that it was steady progress through the season - 10th after 15 games; 9th after 20 games; 8th after 25 games and 9th to end the season. Last season's top scorer Robbie Bonner hit 7 and Frudd Wilson 8.

10. Huntley Fairways (last season promoted) – Carl started the season hoping he could take Huntley out of Division 2 for the first time in their history and after a good start sitting 3rd after 8 games with 16 points he was feeling confident. His confidence soon evaporated as they only won 5 of their remaining 22 games. One big area for Carl to improve on is the defence where they conceded 49 - the 3rd worst in Division 2. Connor McDavid proved to be a success with 11.

11. Par Athletic (last season 7th) – SteveR is still in Division 2 after what can only be described as a miracle. With only one win in the first 14 games and then only another 1 win in the next 8 saw Par looking at certain relegation with just 14 points and 8 points from safety. The supporters were praying for a miracle and SteveR took their wishes to heart with 22 points from the next 8 games (including winning the last 6!!!) and unbelievably they were safe with a game to go!!!!!! Marc Percival and Steve French both scored 5.

12. Dinamo Parkside (last season promoted) – a first season in Division 2 for Rob and he will be pleased to be playing Division 2 football again. It was a tough start for Dinamo with just 1 win in the first 10 games but with other teams struggling as well they were not in the bottom three. Their form did not improve and they were in the bottom three at the half way point; it started to look grim when Dinamo was still in the bottom three after 20 games. Rob suddenly weaved his magic and just 1 defeat in the next 7 and they had a 5 point cushion with 2 games to go and safe they were.
Lucas Bergmann hit 11 goals.

13. Queensdown F.C (last season 9th) – Dave (Lloydy) left SS with 10 games to go with Queensdown in 10th place and 27 points. They continued to pick up enough points to stay in Division 2 and were given a big boost when Dave Curtis took them over. Bradley Reid topped with 14 Derek Rolph chipped in with 10.

14. Ain Ghazal (last season relegated) – Bakerboy left and Shep took over when they were as good as relegated - bottom with just 5 points. Shep has been trying to improve the squad and hopefully get them back to Division 2 next season. Heleno De Freitas lead the forward line well with 8 goals.

15. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season relegated) – after last season's surprise relegation Ben was hoping for a good start but the team seemed to still have 'hangups' from last season and after 10 games they were next to bottom with just 5 points. Ben drew on of his managerial skill to take the Finest on a 10 game unbeaten run and up to 11th with 25 points and looking fairly safe. However the nerves crept in again and with just 3 points from the last 10 games they were relegated. It can only be described as a major surprise. Alan Readman-Walsh tried his best with 9 goals but it was to no avail. Goals were short with the top being 4 by Buck McFate

16. Wigan Wildcats (last season promoted) – a quick return for Dave (woody). At the half way point Dave was just above the drop zone and he was hoping to push on in the second half. It wasn't to be though as they managed just 1 win in the last 15 games and only 9 points. Dag Ungarn was the only bright light for Dave with 9 goals.

Division 3

Knodishall Vas are promoted as champions after 1 season, Tadcaster Albion are promoted after 1 season and Riot City are promoted after 4 seasons.

There was only 33points separating the top three teams with 2 of last season's relegated teams being promoted

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 2nd and 7th.

1. Knodishall Vas (last season relegated) – a quick return to Division 2 for Gary and as Champions following a great start with 7 wins in the first 9 games. They were sitting second and never dropped out of the top three for the rest of season, topped the Division for 1 week after 19 games and then again with 3 games to go. Gary's away form was fantastic with only 2 defeats and a total of 29 points; they were undefeated in the last 12 away games! Last season's top scorer, Allan Aspinall hit 7 and Chris Izzard topped with 11.

2. Tadcaster Albion (last season relegated) – a quick return for SteveR which was based on their fantastic form in the first half of the season. Tadcaster won 11 of their first 14 games to lead the table by 7 points and hold a 10 point gap over 4th spot. It is difficult to explain what happened next as their form totally disintegrated!! Just 2 wins in the next 12 games and both away as their lead was slowly eroded - after 13 consecutive weeks at the top they slipped to 3rd. Taddy suddenly remembered how to win and they were promoted with 2 games to go. Their defence was the best in the Opal with only 16 conceded and they had the best goal difference of +29. Patrick Liburn was their main man with 12 goals.

3. Riot City (last season 11th) – Simon Richmond is promoted after 4 seasons and what a season it was. They had a good start and slowly climbed the table to hit the top three after 14 games; the season then took off for Simon as they won 8 of the next 9 games, including 5 consecutive away games and promotion was in the bag. The next task for Riot was to go up as champions, but their form faltered with just 1 win in the next 5 and they were off the top with 3 games to go Top goal scorers in Division 3 with 47 goals - Matt Dark 11 and Clayton Gransbury 10.

4. Grand Union FC (last season 13th) – a first full season for John Ghent and he will be delighted with their performance. A steady start saw them 5th after 11 games and then the highlight of the season for John as they won 6 games in a row to move within 1 point of a top 3 spot. As quickly as the form arrive it evaporated with just 1 point in the next 5 but a strong end to the season saw John take 4th place and only 4 points off the top three. Finidi George was again the main man with 12 goals.

5. Chapel North (last season 7th) - it was a 9th season in Division 3 for Chapel and a highest finish for DaveC in 7 seasons. Their success was based on two things - the first was great home form with only 3 defeats and 30 points; the 2nd was the goal scoring of Jed Pickworth - top man last season and this season 18 goals made him the Golden Boot winner.

6. Belper Nailers (last season 5th) – another very good season for Paul (razor) as they pushed hard for promotion on the back of tremendous home form. They only lost 3 and 2 of these were in the first 3 home games Belper and picked up 30 points. Their away form was the polar opposite with just 5 wins and a spell of no wins in 6 near the end of the season - a major reason in Paul not going up. Taiwo Awoniyi and Paul Masefield both topped with 9. They must start as one of the favourites to go up next season.

7. Braunstone Town (last season relegated) – a first full season for John Ghent and he will be very pleased with their finish considering they lost their first 6 away games. A positive was their home form with just 3 defeats and 30 points; they hit top form at the tail of the season with 9 unbeaten and 7 wins. Another plus was the strike force with Iain Lewendon on 9, Nicholas Holmes on 8 and Tommy Hunter on 8.

8. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 9th) – a reasonable season for Gary but after being in the top three after 11 games he will probably feel they could have done better. The turning point for Kiloparsec was a run of 6 games without a win and they slipped to 8th. Gary recovered with a 10 game unbeaten run but the damage was already done. Wayne Bentley 7 and Scott Thompson 7.

9. Kalingo Victory (last season 8th) - a 7th season for Kalingo in Division 3 and another Mid table finish for Gary. They had a great start with 4 straight wins and topped the table for 3 weeks.; the remainder of the first half of the season was mainly draws with 7 out of 11 games but they were nicely placed in 5th spot. The possibility of promotion vanished with only 1 win in the next 10 but 4 wins to end the season gave them a big boost for next year. Gary Felstead topped with 10.

10. Yellow and Black Army (last season 15th) – taken over by Wayne and re-named Yellow and Black Army for the new season. It was a terrible first half of the season with just 3 wins and after 17 games they were next to bottom. Wayne suddenly found the magic formula for his team as they were unbeaten in 13 with 8 wins and rose to Mid table. Scott Wellor scored 6 from Mid field.

11. Inter Knottla (last season 4th) – a 3rd season for Si and he will be disappointed not to have built on last season's finish. They never found any real momentum and when they did go on a 7 game unbeaten run 4 of these were draws! They ended the season with 3 wins in 12 and Si will be glad for the start of a new season. There was a couple of positives as Neil Mackay bagged 10 goals and Xavier Amachi 9 goals.

12. Fishburn Park (last season 10th) - a 15th season for Fishburn in Division 3 and SteveR is still trying to work on their best style. Defensively they are excellent with only 29 conceded - the 4th best in Division 3 but attacking wise they could only manage 23, with only T64 worse in Division 3. Decent at home so Steve knows it is scoring and their away form to concentrate on. Viv Laight topped with 7.

13. Mearns City (last season 14th) - an unsettled season as DaveC took a bit of gardening leave and left Mearns to muddle along but they did actually improve their finishing position. Dale Oxborrow again topped with 7. The highlight for Mearns was the success of their youth team who topped the table with 85 points.

14. Bank Vale United (last season 6th) – taken on by Gav but he left and taken over by Shep with 8 games to go. Plenty of rebuilding to do but if any man can do it Dave can. Scott Booth was again the main man with 8.

15. Pilgrims F.C (last season 12th) – a 2nd season for Wayne and much of the same really. Plenty of work needed by Wayne in a very competitive Division. A big plus was Terrance Brassingtom and Francis Ridgeway on 10 goals apiece.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 16th) – 6th season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage three draws. Goal difference of -94.

All teams are managed so it looks like another competitive season to come.

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

Season 42 Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

Loyal Rangers are Champions with a 3rd title in 4 seasons and a 13th overall.

A season of 2 halves as Chester Town topped the table for 11 weeks followed by Loyal Rangers topping the table for 18 weeks.

Four of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the two to drop out were Abysmal Aftermath and Jedi Knights.

Duffield Dynamos relegated after 1 season, The Survivors relegated after 2 seasons; Dell Diamonds are relegated after 3 seasons.

The three promoted clubs finished 4th, 11th and 14th.

1. Loyal Rangers (last season 3rd) – a third title in 4 seasons for Andy and a 13th overall; what a performance. They started off well and unbeaten in 6 but Chester were off at a blistering pace and after 8 games Loyal were 2nd but 7 points behind Chester. It suddenly all changed as Loyal reeled off 5 wins and Chester picked up just 1 point from 7 games; Loyal hit the top at week 14 and remained there all season. Sam Nero stepped up with 14 goals after Loyal's all time goal scorer Greg Debakers retired.

2. East Riding Enterprise (last season 6th) - a 5th season in the Premier League for Ben will and he will be delighted with the Runner's Up spot and equally pleased with winning the Cup in injury time against the Chucks.Ben had the best defensive record in the Premier League again with only 23 conceded; goals were hard to come by again with 32 this season and Juan Castillio scored 10 of these, but with a mean defence anything is possible. Similar to last season their away form was their secret weapon with 31 points (more than the bottom 2 achieved in the season!) - at home it was 23

3. Mighty Chucks (last season 8th) – Stu made it 20 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and his joint highest finish (previously in season 31; they were also runners up in the Cup. A good start with 3 wins was followed by 5 defeats in the next 6 and by half way they were sitting down in 8th position. Four away wins on the bounce and unbeaten in the last 9 games saw them accelerate up to 3rd. and Louis Trevelier hit 10 and Denver Boss 9.

4. Radford Semele (last season promoted) – a first time in the Premier League for Radford and what a performance by Craig as Radford defied the odds with a top 6 finish. The supporters had to wait until week 5 for their first win and they then reeled off 4 wins; Radford continued to play well with a strong defence and at the half way point they had climbed to 4th. There were a few hic-ups in the 2nd half of the season but Craig navigated through these for an excellent season. Interestingly they were the only team in the top 9 with a negative goal difference. Jethro Grealish was the main man with10 goals.

5. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 5th) – a 2nd successive top 6 finish for CJ. They started well and with 6 wins in the first 10 games and were 3rd but a disastrous spell of 6 defeats in 7 games saw them drop to 8th. CJ rescued the season with 5 runs in a row and a strong finish saw him take 5th place. Alan Taylor topped the scoring with 10 goals.

6. Chester Town (last season 1st) – after winning the title last year PaulW started his 8th season in the Premier League in scintillating form with 8 wins and will be dumbfounded how they only finished 6th. Strange how things happen though as they failed to win in the next 7 and toppled from top to 3rd and 8 points off the pace. Paul never recovered his early form and a poor run in saw them slip to 6th. They were the top scorers in the Premier League with 45 goals thanks to their forward trio - Vyunnyk and Akinummi Amoo with 9 goals and Geordie Schwarze-Katze with 8.

7. Jedi Knights (last season 2nd) – this is the first time ChrisC and Jedi have been outside of the top 6 in 12 seasons. The best part of the season for Jedi was the first 9 games with just 1 defeat; the rest was forgettable particularly away from home, where they only won three times and 2 of these came in their last 2 games. Top goal scorer was Sean Lillywhitewith 9 and Adrian Newey with 8.

8. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 4th) – after an excellent season last year this one turned out to be a damp squib for MikeT. The only plus is it could have been far worse after just 1 win in the first 8 games. The season was rescued by decent home form with just 2 defeats. Taiwo Awonoyi led the line well again with 11 goals and Rashidi Yekini chipped in with 8.

9. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 9th) - a 15th season for Rich in the Premier League and a similar finish. It was one of those seasons were nothing particular happened and they hovered about Mid table all season. Might sound dull but plenty of us would have swapped for it. The highlight was the form of Graeme Kelbie who scored 16 goals - 2nd highest.

10. FC Abertawe (last season 7th) – another disappointing season for MikeT but it could have been far worse as they only won once in the first 9 games and were 14th with just 7 points. The rest of the season was decent with a 4 game winning spell the highlight. Scoring goals has normally been a strength of Abertawe but this season they could only muster 25 - only the bottom two scored less. Wynton Rufer topped with only 5!!

11. Istra Pula (last season promoted) – MikeT escaped by the skin of his teeth thanks to a good end to the season. They started well and were 5th after 10 games but slowly dropped down the table to be just above the drop zone and a decent end to the season saw them safe (just) with a game to go. Lenny Linneker impressed with 9 goals.

12. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 11th) - Paul (Razor) had spent 18 seasons in the top flight with plenty of success so it was a big surprise when they were almost relegated. It was always going to be a struggle after a first win after 6 games and sitting 14th at the half way point. They looked to have turned it round with just 1 loss in the next 9 and 8th position - 11 points above the bottom three with 6 games to. Surely not, but similar to Wolfskull they hit the self destruct button and only picked up 1 point in 5 games and it was down to the last game. They were at home to Duffield and knew that anything but a loss would see them safe; a 6th goal of the season from Gabriel Martinelli was enough to see them stay up.

13. Wolfskull Nords (last season 12th) – almost a disaster for (chunkymunky), in their 10th season as they imploded at the end of the season. It had not been the best of seasons - 11th at the half way point and 7th with 8 games to go but relegation hadn't entered Wes's mind. They had 31 pts - what could go wrong - well fast forward with 6 defeats in 7 and only goal difference keeping them out of the bottom three. So it all came down to the last day with a tough away game at Aberdeen, which they won 1-0 and safety. Goals did not flow as they normally do but Enric Rondas managed 11 goals.

14. Duffield Dynamos (last season promoted) – a disappointing season for John and a quick return for Duffield to Division 1. A disastrous start with 7 defeats and a first win not coming until their 12th match. They settled the ship with an unbeaten run of 7 games but wins were proving elusive and after 20 games they were still bottom with 16 points and only 14 goals scored. They were still bottom after 23 games but suddenly the players seemed to realise the situation they were in and won 5 of the next 6 games to take it to the last day. The miracle didn't happen though and a 1-0 defeat sent them down. Jed Pierson topped with 5

15. Dell Diamonds (last season 13th) – MikeT is relegated after 3 seasons with only 1 home win all season! The previous 2 seasons had both been relegation battles so it was no surprise to see Dell back into Division 1. Dominic Daybrook topped with 8 goals.

16. The Survivors (last season 10th) - Stu is relegated after 2 seasons. Their fate was decided after only 10 games with 1 win; 3 wins on the bounce gave the supporters hope but with only 2 more wins in 16 games they were down. Frankie Wrebbe and Robert Brynnelli both scored 5.

Division 1

Kamikaze Vipers are promoted to the Premier League as Champions after just 1 season, Doncaster Town are promoted after an absence of 7 seasons and Riverplate are promoted after an absence of 2 seasons from the Premier League.

Molesley Shoals are relegated after 1 season, Cusco are relegated after 3 seasons and Whitby Town are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 11th and 14th.

The three promoted cubs finished 7th, 9th and 12th.

1. Kamikaze Vipers (last season relegated) - a quick return for Gary (Smiffy) and a surprise to most of us as they took the title on the last day of the season. Gary had a super season, particularly at home where they didn't lose a game. Unbeaten in their first 8 games they topped the league on 5 occasions; with 5 games to go they were 11 points behind Doncaster but the Vipers won all 5 games to top the table on goal difference. Dominico Brini scored 12.

2. Doncaster Town (last season 4th) – a 7th season in Division 1 for CJ and after just missing out last season he made no mistake this time and was promoted with 2 games to go. CJ hit the top three after 7 games and never looked back; they topped the table after 16 games and remained there until the last day of the season. They owed the promotion to consistently playing well both home and away. Akinummi Amoo with 9 and Cristian Pavon with 10 spearheaded the attack.

3. Riverplate (last season 8th) – MikeT is promoted back to the Premier League after 2 seasons. The success of Riverplate was based totally on their home form with only 1 defeat and 38 points out of their 47 points. It was a nervous last day as they held a 2 point cushion but were away from home and lost 2-0 - luckily their rivals didn't take an opportunity to overtake them. Thompson Usiyen topped with 10 goals.

4. Inter Southampton (last season 13th) - a 2nd season for Dave (Shep) and a very good season indeed. The first 10 games were a little rocky for Dave and they were sitting in 11th position with 12 points. The remainder of the season they performed steadily both at home and away and hovered around the top 6 on the periphery of the promotion zone. Inter's highest position was 3rd after 21 games and going into the last game they were 3 points behind 3rd bit a lot worse goal difference. Inter did all they could with a win and with Riverplate losing they only missed out by 3 goasd on goal difference. Dave knows that with a better start they would probably be going up. Don Shepherd topped with 7.

5. Wanderers (last season 12th) – a 9th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky)and after what looked like fairly average season without many highlights, they almost nicked promotion. They were 4th after 5 games, 10th after 10 games, 10th after 15 games, 6th after 20 games, 9th after 25 games but in a Division where so many teams were bunched up they put together 2 wins to be 4th with 2 games to go. A defeat next game restored normality but a top 6 finish is a big improvement on last season. Tommy Doyle topped with 8 goals.

6. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 6th) - a 5th season in Division 1 for MikeT and what a strange one it was as they swung from certain relegation to almost promotion. With just 1 win in the opening 11 games they were 14th with 9 points but how things can change as MikeT won 6 on the trot to zoom up to 3rd in the table! It was impossible to keep up this pace but going into the last game they were 5th and 3 points away from an unlikely promotion - a draw it was and another top 6 finish. Francis LeGood topped with 8.

7. Belmont Buccaneers (last season promoted) – what a season for Rob as he has restored the fortunes of the famous 'Belmont Buccaneers' as they just missed out on promotion. The first half of the season did nothing to suggest how well they were going to do as only goal difference was keeping them out of the bottom three but a dazzling run of 7 wins in 9 games rocketed Belmont up to 3rd with 6 games to play. Their form dipped over the next 5 games leaving them 4th and 2 points behind Riverplate with 1 game to play. Riverplate lost but so did Belmont but Rob will be delighted in their performance this season. Justin Kane was the main man with 12 goals.

8. Bayern FC (last season 11th) – a 6th season in Division 1 for MikeT and a small improvement. At home Bayern were excellent and won their first 6 games and their last 3; away from home it was a different story with only 2 wins all season. The home form in the early part of the season saw them top the table for 5 weeks. Wayne Calver topped again with 8 goals.

9. Kesgrave Vespas (last season promoted) – a good first season for Gary and it could have been better with. An odd start with 5 home wins and just 1 point in 5 away games saw them in the top 6 and they hovered about there all season. Their best position was 4th with 5 games to go and only 2 points behind 2nd and 3rd but a poor run in saw them slip to 9th. They were the top scorers in the Division with 47 goals thanks to Rasad Hasanov and Adam Vincent both with 12.

10. La Donny Luz (last season 5th) - it was a 7th season for CJ and not a patch on last season. It was a similar story to last season goals in short supply - just 21 and only 5 teams had lower. A slow start saw them with just 1 win on 7 games but they improved and only lost 2 of the next 10 to move up to 5th. The remainder of the season was hit and miss and they slipped down the table. Julius Kumwenda again proved to be their 'diamond' with a remarkable haul of 10 goals- almost 50% of La Donny's total goals.

11. Xbana FC (last season relegated) – after the major surprise of relegation for Baz, he was looking for a quick return to the big time but it turned out to be a relegation battle in a strange season of 3 parts!! The first 10 games saw excellent home form and they were 6th in the table; they then lost 8 of the next 10 to drop into the relegation zone but then won 6 of the next 8 to climb to safety. Baz found goals easy to come by with Henrique and Shinzi Kagawa both hitting a10, but they also conceded lots of goals - 44 (3rd worst in the division).

12. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season promoted) – Andy started well with just 1 defeat in the first 7 games and were sitting 2nd in the table. The season started to slowly slip away as their away form disappeared; luckily their home form was good and 4 wins on the trot shot them back up to 4th with 8 games to go. Only goal difference was keeping Andy out of the top three but the nerves got to the players as they failed to win again and slipped to 12th. Joseph Yelland and Ned Malone both starred with 9 goals apiece.

13. York Rovers (last season 9th) – a 13th season in Division 1 for SteveR and almost his last! The main reason for their position was that York struggled for goals all season and only managed 21. They were 12th at the half way point, 12th after 20 games and with 6 games to go they were still 12th but with a 6 point cushion. It looked as though Steve was going to scrape through for another season in Division 1 but they lost the next 5 games. Incredibly they remained out of the bottom three going into the last game with a 1 point cushion. They faced a Riverplate side, hunting promotion, at home and turned in their best performance of the season to win 2-0. Wesley Page topped with 5.

14. Molesley Shoals (last season relegated) - a first full season for Simon Richmond and there was little he could do as he started to rebuild the team. In the end he did a remarkable job to still have a chance of staying up after losing 9 of their first 11 games and bottom after 16 games with 11 points. The last game saw them just 1 point behind York and despite a draw they were down. A big bonus for Simon was 12 points in last 6 games. John Karony hit 12 goals.

15. Cusco (last season 10th) - relegation after 3 seasons; last season Matt (smelly) and Cusco looked to be heading down but a recovery in the 2nd half of the season kept them safe. This season they were poor all season and in contrast to last season where their home form was impressive they only won 2. Matt was probably surprised to still be in with a chance of survival in the last game. Viktor Morrow was the main man again but this season only with 6. Cusco's youth team broke the 300 goal barrier with 303.

16. Whitby Town (last season 7th) – SteveR is relegated with Whitby after 2 seasons and into Division 2 for the first time in 23 seasons!! Their away form was atrocious - without a win and just 4 points. Strangely they didn't struggle in front of goal with Scott Wassell on 9 and Dale Dowie on 7 but defensively it was a different story with 54 conceded - the worst in the top 2 divisions. One consolation for Steve was that they won the Youth League.

Division 2

Par are promoted as Champions after 4 seasons, Stainsacre United are promoted after an absence of 11 seasons from Division 1 and Norfolk are promoted after 1 season.

Steve Readman finished 1st and 2nd.

Boscombe Athletic are relegated for the 2nd season in a row, Rovers Athletic are relegated after 3 seasons and Vikings FC are relegated after 5 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 3rd, 5th and 14th.

The three promoted teams finished 6th,12th and 13th.

1. Par Athletic (last season 11th) – after last season's miraculous escape for SteveR nobody had them going up but Steve proved them wrong with a faultless season. Unbeaten in the first 10 games with 9 wins promotion was already in the bag and they didn't let up all season and topping the table for 26 weeks, to go back to Division 1 after 3 seasons. Their haul of 70 points was the joint best in Division 2 and their 22 wins was also the joint best. Goals were plentiful with 62 - most in the Opal and 3 players getting 10 or more goals - Sean McMungie with 16, Marc Percival and Steve French with 12.

2. Stainsacre United (last season 7th) – it was a double celebration for SteveR as Stainsacre join Par in Division 1 after an absence of 11 seasons. An excellent first half of the season saw them 2nd in the table but a 3 games losing spell saw the chasing pack catching them up; Steve didn't need to worry as they moved up the gears to secure 2nd spot. Jason Draper and Dean Price both scored 11 goals..

3. Norfolk FC (last season relegated) – last season's form continued into Division 2 for MikeT with 1 point from the first 4 games. Their form improved and by the half way point they were 8th; they were still 8th with 9 games to go and no thoughts of promotion. The season then exploded with 7 wins and a draw to hit the top three with a game to go and a 2 point lead over Armthorpe; with superior goal MikeT knew a point would be good enough - what a time to play your worst as they slumped to a 3-1 defeat at home to Huntley. Luckily for MikeT Armthorpe could only draw and they were up on goal difference. Riley Shehan hit 16 goals to share the Golden Boot Award.

4. Mann City (last season 9th) – a 7th season for Brian in Division 2 and equals his highest finish. A good start with only 1 defeat in 8 saw them 3rd in the table but a few 'iffy' results saw them down to 9th. Brian cracked the whip and Mann City were unbeaten in 9 games, gaining 23 points and back to 3rd with high hopes of promotion. They were still 3rd with 4 games to go but just 1 point from the next three games and the dream was over in terms of promotion but with Norfolk losing they joined them on the same points but 12 goals worse off. Fudd Wilson was the main man with 12 goals.

5. Armthorpe Rovers (last season relegated) – after 2 successive relegations for CJ it was heartache at the end of the season. Unbeaten in the first 6 games and sitting 3rd at the half way point it was looking good; with 5 games to go even better as they were 2nd but 3 defeats in a row saw them slip to 4th and 2 points behind Norfolk going into the last game; Norfolk surprisingly lost but Armthorpe could only take 1 point and it was all over. Armthorpe were missing a main striker with the leading scorer being Tommaso Milanese with 6.

6. Tadcaster Albion (last season promoted) – after a quick return for SteveR he will be pleased with a top 6 finish, although it could have been better. They were 3rd after11 games and 4th at the half way point but they could not keep the pace up, despite an unbeaten run of 6 games. Joe Lumsden hit 10.

7. Dinamo Parkside (last season 12th) – a 2nd season in Division 2 for Rob and a big improvement . An excellent first half of the season saw them sitting nicely in 3rd spot but their form dipped and they slipped down the table to 10th. A 4 game winning run saw Dinamo up to 7th and that is where they stayed. Lucas Bergman scored 7 goals.

8. Whitwell Rangers (last season 6th) – a 3nd season in Division 2 for CJ and to be truthful he will feel disappointed not to have pushed on. They started well and were 3rd after 5 games, down to 7th after 10 games and 6th at the half way point. The second half of the season continued in a similar vein with no hint of consistency. Youssoufa was a big succes up front and topped with 13 goals.

9. Scrubs (last season 5th) – a 4th season for Ben in Division 2 and a big disappointment after last season's flirtation with promotion. After an average start of 6 points from 6 games, they went on an 11 game unbeaten run, which saw Scrubs up to 4th. Seven defeats in the next 9 games saw them drop down the table and Ben will be looking for a much improved showing next season. Andrew Peters scored 11 goals.

10. Askham Bryan United (last season 4th) – it was a 4th season for SteveR in Division 2 and they were hoping to carry last season's form onto this year but with just 2 wins in the opening 11 games the season looked to be in tatters. SteveR suddenly found his mo-jo and 10 games later they were up to 5th and a chance of promotion but as quickly as their form had improved it evaporated and they slipped back down the table. Phil Dean topped with 9.

11. Huntley Fairways (last season 10th) – a 2nd season for Carl in Division 2 and another a similar finish to last year. They opened up with 2 wins and Carl was feeling positive but then only 1 win in 11 games saw their season over. The rest of the season was better but very little consistency. One area he can take comfort with is that with 40 conceded it was an improvement on last season but still a big area of concern. Sebastien Gloch topped with 9 goals.

12. Riot City (last season promoted) – a battling season for Simon Richmond to keep Riot in Division 2 and he will be pleased to still be there. They hovered just above the top three all season and were never really in any danger. d**k Bate topped with 8 goals.

13. Knodishall Vas (last season promoted) – after a quick return to Division 2 for Gary as Champions it was almost a speedy return with it going to the last game of the season. Their home form was the reason they were battling against relegation all season with just 3 wins .Andrew Pinnock scored 6 goals

14. Boscombe Athletic (last relegated) – a tough season for Simon with a 2nd successive relegation. It was a season of 2 halves with no wins in the first 13 games and 7 points; the remainder of the season was decent with 21 points and they took the relegation battle into the last game of the season. A bonus for Simon was Craig Watson with 8 goals.

15. Rovers Athletic (last season 13th) – after a flurry of managerial changes DaveC returned and his job is to steady a sinking ship. Tommy Tacey and Bojan Miovski both hit 5.

16. Vikings (last season 8th) – a 5th season in Division 2 but this season with Dave Curtis at the helm. They suffered 27 losses, which is a record for Division 2.Dave is currently overhauling the squad. Moussa Kounfolo Yeo and David Humble topped with 4 goals.

Division 3

Yorkshire's Finest are promoted as champions after 1 season, Grand Union FC are promoted after 4 seasons and Belper Nailers are promoted after 6 seasons.

Yorkshire's Finest only lost 1 game.

Grand Union had a goal difference of +40.

Whitwell FC are T64.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 4th and 5th.

1. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season relegated) – after 2 surprising consecutive relegations Ben was in no mood for more of the same as they roared back to Division 2.They were unbeaten in the first 21 games with only 7 goals conceded; the defeat was only a minor blip as they didn't lose again and hit 71 points and only 14 conceded (which equalled the Division 3 record achieved by Huntley Fairways in Season 25). With only 1 loss all season this is the record for Division 3; it is also the best ever in the Opal. They also reached the semi final of the cup where they lost to Mighty Chucks. Ben topped the table for 26 weeks.The attack was spearheaded by Adam Cherrett with 15 goals and Ben James with 11.

2. Grand Union FC (last season 4th) – in his first full season John Ghent just missed out on promotion last time out but he made no mistake this year as they coasted to promotion. Their form remained excellent all season and they pushed Yorkshire's Finest all of the way. They were equally good at home and away and were also the top scorers in Division 3 with 60 goals, only Par scored more with 62. They also had the best goal difference in the Opal with +40. The goals came from everywhere: 23 goals from midfield trio of Taribo West, Henry Bridgford and Daniel Spinelli and 27 goals from front three of Michael Emenalo, Finidi George and Jon Detheridge

John Ghent had this to say "what a fantastic season it was and one of our strengths was to play the same 11 players in every game. We only lost to 3 teams - twice to Yorkshire, twice to Wigan and once to my own team, Braunstone Town! It was a great battle with the Finest but we could not keep up with them despite only dropping 4 points in last 12 games of season!!! 32 from 36 points and still finished 4 points behind them! Crazy really. I can't wait for the new season".

3. Belper Nailers (last season 6th) – after knocking on the promotion door for the last few seasons Paul (razor) was on the promotion trail again but it went to the last game. They looked certain to promote as they want on an 11 game unbeaten run but two defeats left them level on points with Wigan going into the last game - Nailers and Wigan both drew and with identical goal difference, identical goals scored and conceded Nailers were promoted on games won!!!!!! Clayton Filby hit 9 and Lewis Koumas 8

4. Wigan Wildcats (last season relegation) – Dave (woody) almost had a quick return but missed out on the last day of the season. You wouldn't have put Wigan in with a chance as at the halfway point they were 11th with just 19 points but they went on a 14 game unbeaten run to take it the last day of the season, where they missed out on games run after having identical goals scored and conceded as Belper. Dave hasn't been since but rumour has it that they have had to restock the beer at his local. Francisco was the main man again with 17 goals and a share of the Golden Boot Award.

5. Tigre Town (last season relegated) – a first full season for Shep and an excellent season it was as they pushed for promotion. They were very consistent and moved into the top three after 22 games but then the wheels came off as they only won once in the next 7 games. Abu-Bekir El-Zein lead the forward line well with 8 goals.

6. Kiloparsec Villa (last season 8th) – an improvement on last season with a top 6 finish for Gary but as per last season they should have done better as they were joint top after 11 games. Incredibly they only won 1 in the next 12 and they dropped down the table; suddenly the form returned as they reeled off 4 wins but finished 3 points off the pace. Diego Molina topped their scoring with 12 goals.

7. Braunstone Town (last season 7th) – after an excellent season for John Ghent last year this season was a topsy-turvey one but a similar finish, which will please John. They started badly and only had 1 win in the first 9 games; a break for the cup seemed to revitalise Braunstone as they won the next 4. The rest of the season was a case of win or lose; a bonus as they collected points but lacked consistency (8 wins and 8 losses). Tommy Hunter impressed with 13 goals despite zero goals in his first 9 games.

After the game their manager John Ghent said " after the terrible start I was delighted to still be in contention with 6 games to go and eventually only being 5 points behind the top three. Our strong youth policy is paying off with a 6th place and we have a cracking defender in Lockie Stuerne, valued at £4.6 million, who will be straight into the first team. I am hoping for another good youth league run this year".

8. Kalingo Victory (last season 9th) - an 9th season for Kalingo in Division 3 and it was a case of what might have been for Gary. A spell of 5 wins in 6 games saw Kalingo 3rd at the half way point but disaster hit as they went 11 games without a win and Gary was left to sort out the puzzle for next season. Gary Felstead topped again with 6.

9. Fishburn Park (last season 12th) - a 16th season for Fishburn in Division 3 and a best finish for SteveR, who is still trying to work on their best style. They started the season well - unbeaten in 7 and 4th place. The rest of the season was a case of sporadic wins and slowly slipping down the table.Tony Stacpole hit 8 goals.

10. Pilgrims F.C (last season 15th) – a 3rdnd season for Wayne and a much improved season it was and he will be delighted with Mid table. It didn't look that way at the start of the season as they picked up just 3 points from the first 6 games, however they didn't lose in the next 12 games and were sitting 4th and the supporters had promotion on the brain. What happened next defies belief as they failed to win 6 home games but conversely didn't lose in 4 away games and they slipped to 8th. The bonus for Wayne was the two main strikers - Billy Morton with 11 and Luther Monakandafa with 10.

11. Manx Saints (last season 14th) – taken on by Shep and renamed Manx Saints - an improvement on last season is a good start..Their home form was excellent with 27 points - their away form poor with 11 points; if Shep can get their away form moving he could be in for a good season next year. Their top scorers were Peter Fry with 9 goals and Warwick Beldham with 8.

12. Chapel North (last season 5th) - it was a 10th season in Division 3 for Chapel and after last season's finish DaveC was hoping to be involved in the promotion race but a 6 game losing spell in the first half of the season saw them down in 14th place. A recovery saw 5 wins in the next 6 but only 1 win in the next 8 saw the season over.
Manuel Quarterhouse was their main man with 9 goals and Jed Pickworth chipped in with 8.

13. Yellow and Black Army (last season 10th) – a 6th season in Division 3 and they were like chalk and cheese for Wayne with their home and away form - 28 points at home (with an unbeaten run of 9 near the end of the season) but only 9 points away with 1 win!! Goals were not a problem with 14 for Guiseppe De Luca. Plenty for Wayne to ponder about.

14. Inter Knottla (last season 11th) – a 14th season for Knottla in Division 3 and a backward step for Si. The season was ruined by losing their first 7 away games and they never found any real momentum after this roll on next season. A highlight for the supporters was the last home game where they scored 6 goals. Top goalscorer was Dennis Avery with a very creditable 10 goals.

15. Mearns City (last season 13th) - DaveC in control and plenty of work to do as they dropped 2 places. The highlight for Dave was Duncan McKenzie, who scored 9 of their 19 goals - an excellent return.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 16th) – 8th season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage one win. Goal difference of -81.

All teams are managed so it looks like another competitive season to come.

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

SEASON 43

Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

Chester Town are are Champions with a 2nd title in 3 seasons.

Chester Town topped the table for 13 weeks with 6 of these being the last 6 weeks of the season.

It was the tightest title race for many seasons with 6 teams being in with a shout until the final few weeks of the season.

Only three of the top six were in the top 6 last season - the three to drop out were Loyal Rangers, Radford Semele and Mighty Chucks.

Mighty Chucks are relegated after 21 seasons, Riverplate are relegated after 1 season and Doncaster Town are relegated after 1 season.

The three promoted clubs were all relegated finished 12th, 15th and 16th.

1. Chester Town (last season 6th) – an 8th season for PaulW in the Premier League and his 2nd title in 3 seasons. It was an indifferent start to the season and they were sitting 10th after 7 games but they suddenly clicked into gear with just 1 defeat in 10 including 5 wins on the bounce and topped the table from weeks 13 to 19. Paul started to worry with just 1 point in the next 4 as they slipped down to 4th but there was no need to worry as they won the next 4 to get back to the top. It was incredibly tight at the top with East Riding, Bentley and Wolfskull and Chester all having 44 points with 6 games to go. Chester kept their cool whilst their rivals imploded and in the end it was a late run from Aberdeen that they had to fend off - with 2 games to go they held a slender 2 point lead over Aberdeen and they faced off in a title decider, which Chester came out with a 3-1 win to become champions. They were the top scorers in the Premier League again with 52 goals spearheaded by Geordie Schwarze-Katze with 12.

2. East Riding Enterprise (last season 2nd) - a 6th season in the Premier League for Ben and another fantastic one. Unbeaten in their first 8 games they were 2nd but an 'iffy' period saw them slip down the table to 7th. Ben's best spell came next with 7 wins and a draw in 8 games to pull level with, Chester, Wolfskull and Bentley with 6 games to go but 3 defeats left them out of the title race. Determined to end the season well they regrouped to win their last 3 and take the runners up spot for the 2nd season running. Their success was again built on a mean defence and for the 3rd season running they conceded the least in the Premier League with Juan Castillio again leading the line with 9 goals.

3. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 9th) - it was a 16th season for Rich in the Premier League and nobody would have said they would be title contenders after they were sitting in 10th place after 14 games with just 18 points and 10 points behind Chester!! Fast forward to 14 games without defeat and a steady climb up the table saw them 2nd with 2 weeks to go and just 2 points behind Chester. As fate had it they were away to Chester and sadly a defeat and a draw in the last game saw them 3rd. Graeme Kelbie had another great season and followed up his 16 last season with 15 this.

4. Wolfskull Nords (last season 13th) – 11th season for Wes (chunkymunky), and back to the good old days after finishing 11th, 12th and 13th in the last 3 seasons. In reflection Wes will see this an opportunity missed to claim his first title for 24 seasons. The first half of the season saw them having mixed form but good enough to be in 4th spot and then a purple patch of 6 wins in 7 games saw them topping the table for 6 weeks. Chunky knew the title was there for the taking but inexplicably they failed to win in the next 5 games and another team was out of the title race. Enric Rondas again topped with 8 and there were three on 7 - Pedro Chirivella, Miguelito Lima and Francisco Trinaco.

5. Jedi Knights (last season 7th) – a 17th season for ChrisC and Jedi in the Premier League and another top 6 finish. After a poor opening with 3 defeats in 4 games the rest of the season ticked along nicely without any major hic-ups and an excellent finish of 5 wins in 6 propelled them to 5th. Chris also had a great cup run, where they reached the final to play Division 2 outfit Askham Bryan United - the game was tighter than expected and finished 1-1 after extra time but Jedi took the trophy on penalties for a 3rd Cup win. Sean Lillywhite was again on top form with 13 goals, Matt Wirton weighed in with 10 and Dan Wyee wirh 9.

6. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 5th) – amazingly it was a 40 consecutive season in the Premier League for CJ and Bentley - some feat! A good season as well with a 3rd consecutive top 6 finish but it could have been better. It was a strange start to the season with 14 points from the first 6 home games but only 1 point from 6 away games - looked like a Mid table finish. In a wonderful spell Bentley then reeled off 9 wins and a draw in 10 games to be the joint leaders with Wolfskull and maybe a 12th title. It's a mystery how form can disappear but Bentley then lost 5 of the next 6 to drop out of the title race. Luigi Guseppi topped with 9 goals.

7. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 8th) – a 3rd season for MikeT and it looked like it could be his best as they started off with 6 straight home wins and topped the table from weeks 5 to 12. Their home form was fabulous with their only defeat coming in their next to last game but horrendous away form outweighed this as they only picked up just 10 points and lost 9 away games. Taiwo Awonoyi led the line well again with 7 goals and Jurak Kolnik chipped in with 7.

8. Istra Pula (last season 11th) – a second season for MikeT and a slightly better one although it could easily have been a much better season if they had ended the season better. They were playing well and hunting a top 6 finish but just 1 win in 7 games near the end of the season it scuppered MikeT's plans. Lenny Linneker impressed with 9 goals last season and was the main man again with 9 goals again.

9. Loyal Rangers (last season 1st) – a very disappointing season for Andy after his 13th title triumph last year and it is not very often that he has had to look at the teams below him to make sure he stayed in the Premier League. Unusually for Loyal their away form was poor and threatening their survival and although they never really looked in trouble a run of 4 games without a win left them needing a win from their last 3 games to be safe. Gaudinio topped with 7.

10. FC Abertawe (last season 10th) – another disappointing finish for MikeT in a season of two halves. The first half was excellent with them sitting in 3rd place and just 3 points off the top; they had also topped the table for 3 weeks. The second half of the season was a complete contrast with a run of just 1 win 12 and a spell of 5 consecutive defeats which left Abertawe 4th from bottom and in deep trouble. A rare win came with 3 games to go and they were safe. Their talisman for many seasons has been Wynton Rufer, who at the age of 36 was retiring and he showed the youngsters how to do it as he topped the scoring with 10. He played 298 games and scored 116 goals for FC Abertawe.

11. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 12th) - 19th season for Paul (Razor) and similar to last season it's one to forget. The wins came sporadically after a poor start to the season, where they sat in the bottom three after 9 games. They picked up a little and had moved to 10th at the half way point - although there was only 3 points separating 9th to 14th! They were back in the bottom three after 18 games but soon out and hovered just above the bottom three. With 1 games to go they were just 2 points above the drop zone and were 1 of 4 teams trying to avoid the last relegation place, but a draw with Kamikaze kept them safe. An area Paul will be looking at is the defence as the 43 conceded was the 2nd most in the Premier League. There was a trophy though as they took the Youth League title. Their man was Jurgen Schneider with 9 goals.
12. Kamikaze Vipers (last season promoted) - almost a quick return for Gary (Smiffy) but considering their performance in the first 19 games it's a surprise that they had something to play for in the last game. They were sitting bottom with just 17 points but out of nowhere they won 5 of the next 7 games to move 6 points clear of the drop zone with 4 games to go. All change as they lost 2 and they were 1 of 4 teams battling it out to avoid the relegation place going into the last game at Chadd. A drab 0-0 left them waiting on the Chucks score and huge cheer went round the ground when it was announced the Chucks had lost and the Vipers were safe to battle it out in the Premier League again. Jimmy Dorm topped with 6.

13. Radford Semele (last season 4th) – a second season for Craig and after their success last year it was a big surprise that it was nearly his last in the big time. It is easy to see why they struggled though, as they failed to win away from home and picked up just 5 points!!!!!! It's a good job their home form was excellent - 27 points and was keeping them just above the drop zone on goal difference, so with 2 games to go it was all to play for and both of these games were at home but against East Riding and Bentley! It was a defeat against East Riding so all down to the last game; another defeat but luckily the Chucks lost and Craig survived on goal difference. Goals were hard to come by with only 18 and the top scorers managed just 4 - Ryan Hughes and Steven Thompson.

14. Mighty Chucks (last season 3rd) – what a shock as Stu is relegated after 21 consecutive seasons in the Premier League and even more, after last season's fantastic finish. Their plight was solely down to their home form, where they only picked up 12 points and 9 defeats. They dropped into the bottom three after 10 games and were 6 points from safety with 5 games to go and looking doomed. Stu had other ideas as they reeled off 3 wins to move out of the bottom three on goal difference with 2 home games to go but you've guessed it they lost the last 2 home games and were down on goal difference. Leo Campana hit 10 of their 28 goals.

15. Riverplate (last season promoted) – a quick return for MikeT after a dreadful season. Their first 2 home games were wins but that was the highlight - the rest of the season was a nightmare, particularly away from home. Wilbur Wotton topped with 5.

16. Doncaster Town (last season promoted) – CJ will be very unhappy with the way the team capitulated in the second half of the season. After a dreadful start they seemed to have pulled it round with 3 wins in a row but they then went 14 games without a win and lost 7 in a row to finish bottom with 26 points. Rokas Puscas was their top scorer with just 5.

Division 1

Duffield Dynamos are promoted as Champions after just 1 season, Bayern are promoted to the Premier League after an absence of 6 seasons and Inter Southampton are promoted after an absence of 26 seasons from the Premier League.

Duffield topped the Division for 12 weeks and Bayern topped for 11 weeks.

Par Athletic are relegated after 1 season, La Donny Luz are relegated after 8 seasons and Belmont Buccaneers are relegated after 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 9th and 11th.

The three promoted cubs finished 8th, 14th and 16th.

1. Duffield Dynamos (last season relegated) – a quick return for John to the big time and he will want to stay longer than the last time. They battled it out with Bayern all season and with 2 games to go they had identical records but were second on alphabetical order!! A win against The Survivors saw them move to the top and that's the way it finished. Their home was fantastic, with just 1 defeat and they topped the table in 11 weeks. Goals were plentiful; 50 in total; with Leo Bonatini on 15, Zabla Goswick on 10 and Archie Maywood on 9.

2. Bayern FC (last season 8th) – a 6th season in Division 1 for MikeT and a fantastic one as they are promoted back to the Premier League with 2 games to go. They battled it out with Duffield all season and with 2 games to go they had identical records and were top on alphabetical order but Duffield just edged them out. They topped the table in 11 weeks and had one spell of 8 consecutive wins. Goals were plentiful;50 in total; with Troy Parmini on 12 and Wayne Calver on 11. The last time they were in the big time they only lasted one season so MikeT will want to improve on that.

3. Inter Southampton (last season 4th) - a 3rd season for Dave (Shep) and another brilliant season going one better than last season's heartache. The last time they were in the Premier League was 26 seasons ago so it has been 15 and a half year wait for Dave. The disappointment of last season was still lingering at Le Tissier Lane as they only won 1 of their first 5 but Dave suddenly found his magic touch as they won 6 on the trot and just 1 defeat in 13 to leave Inter joint top after 18 games. As quickly as the form came it disappeared with 3 points from 6 games and they were just about hanging on to 3rd spot. They needed a final push and 8 points from the next 4 games left them battling with Kesgrave for the final promotion place; Inter lost their last game but luckily Kesgrave could only draw in and they were up. Don Shepherd topped again with 10 goals.

4. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 9th) – a 2nd season for Gary and they only just missed out on promotion....They were fast out of the traps with 4 wins in the first 5 games and 2nd place but just 2 wins in the next 9 saw them slip to 6th. The 2nd half of the season saw just 2 defeats and with a game to go they were 4th and battling with Inter Southampton for the remaining promotion spot - a win would have seen them up but it was a 0-0 draw!!. Adam Vincent had a great season with 14 goals. Kesgrave have never been in the Premier League - maybe next season Gary.

5. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season 12th) – a 2nd season for Andy and a big improvement. They started in impressive form with just 2 defeats in 11 games and sitting on 4th spot just 2 points off the top. Strangely in a direct comparison to last season their away form evaporated with 7 defeats in a row. Luckily their home forms was excellent with just 2 defeats in 9 games so Mid table it looked like but a strong run in took them to 5th . If Andy can sort out their away performances they could be one to watch. Ned Malone continued his form from last season with 12 goals.

6. Xbana FC (last season 11th) – a 2nd season for Baz and a great improvement on last season. The first 20 games were very poor as they sat on just 22 points and were thankful the bottom three looked like goners already. Baz suddenly had the team playing well and they ended with 10 games unbeaten, the last 3 being wins, to get them an 'unlikely' top 6 finish. Evgeny Svchnikov and Herique formed a twin partnership witgh 10 goals apiece. Safe to say that Baz will be looking for more consistency next season.

7. York Rovers (last season 13th) – a 14th season in Division 1 for SteveR and a much better one as they pushed for promotion until the last few games. They started well - unbeaten in 6 and topping the table for 3 weeks; York continue to play well and after 20 games were level on points with 3rd placed Duffield. Sadly they couldn't keep up the pace with just 1 win in 12 and they slipped down to 7th. Wesley Page topped with 11 - a good return as York only scored 31!

8. Stainsacre United (last season promoted) – SteveR will be absolutely delighted with a Mid table finish for Stainsacre after last season's promotion, particularly as they lost their first 3 games! A steady improvement saw them 10th after 10 games and then 4 wins in 5 accelerated them to 5th at the half way point and only 3 points off 3rd place. They continued to play well over the next 7 games and climbed to 4th, with only goal difference keeping them out of the top three. Steve knew if he could keep Stainsacre playing well he was in with a chance of promotion but nerves crept in as they failed to win in the last 7 games. Jason Draper was again the main man with 9 goals.

9. The Survivors (last season relegated) - Stu was looking to bounce back quickly to the big time and it looked promising as they only lost once in the first 9 games and were in 5th spot. However, hopes were dashed as they could only pick up 3 points from the next 7 and drop down to 10th and only 3 points above the drop zone. The rest of the season was hit and miss and they hovered around Mid table. Tyler Wyatt Junior with 9 and 8 apiece from Robert Byrnnelli and Roberto Dagwanne will give Stu hope for next season.

10. Norfolk FC (last season promoted) – a first season for MikeT and he will be content to keeping them in Division 1. It was one of those seasons where nothing really happened as they bumbled along in or around Mid table. The one bright spark for Norfolk was the 11 goals for Xavier Amaechi.

11. Dell Diamonds (last season relegated) – a poor season for MikeT as Dell didn't live up to their tag as promotion favourites. Apart from one spell of 4 consecutive wins it was very hit and miss. It was exciting for the neutrals though, as they scored 46 goals but conceded 43 with and Dominic Daybrook hitting 12 and Dalian Heskey 11.

12. Wanderers (last season 5th) – a 10th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky)and after last year's top 6 finish they were looking to push on but it turned out to be a miserable one. It was a season with fluctuating form - a good first 6 games saw them 4th; 1 point from the next 7 and down to next to bottom!!!!; 5 wins and 3 draws in the next 8 games and up to Mid table and finally 5 defeats in 7 games to take them back down to 12th but with the three bottom teams being so poor they were never in danger of being relegated. The highlight of the season was the last home game, where they spanked Belmont 7-0!! Jean-Ricner Bellegarde impressed with 12 goals.

13. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 6th) - a 6th season in Division 1 for MikeT and after two top 6 finishes this was one to forget. Started badly with 2 wins in 10 and next to bottom; a decent middle of the season that saw them up to the heady heights of 11th; poor end to the season saw them 4th from bottom but 9 points clear of the relegated sides. Goal scoring a major problem with just 30 reflected by the top scorer being Josh Shalla with just 5.

14. Par Athletic (last season promoted) – a quick return to Division 2 for SteveR after a torrid season with Par. It was surprising that they didn't drop into the bottom three until the half way point but this was because there was a group of teams under-performing. The other teams picked up but Par continued with their poor form for the rest of the season. SteveR knows the team are much better than this and will be looking to rectify things next season. Steve French was again in the goals with 10.

15. La Donny Luz (last season 5th) - it was an 8th season for CJ in Division 1 and a horrendous one at that. After last season's 5th spot a promotion push was expected but after 2 wins in their opening 3 games the rest of the season was one to forget. They only won 1 home game and that was the first game of the season; their away form was not much better. CJ will want to erase this season from his memory. They have only been in Division 2 for one season prior to this. Dimitrios Popadopoulos was the only player to impress with 9 goals.

16. Belmont Buccaneers (last season promoted) – Rob left and Si took them on. The turmoil of the change of ownership was clearly visible as they failed to win in the opening 21 games and had just 6 points. The new ethics that Si was trying to in-bed in the team showed its face as they only lost 1 of the next 7 games to put a reasonable amount of points on the table. It will be interesting to see what happens next season. James Freddy scored 5 goals.

Division 2

Yorkshire's Finest are promoted (for the 2nd successive season) as Champions, Armthorpe Rovers are promoted after an absence of 2 seasons from Division 1 and Mann City are promoted after an absence of 8 seasons.

Yorkshire's Finest had a goal difference of +33

Dinamo Parkside are relegated after 3 seasons, Links Park Dynamo are relegated after 2 seasons and Riot City are relegated after 2 seasons.

Links Park Dynamo conceded the most goals with 64.

The three relegated teams finished 4th, 5th and 13th.

The three promoted teams finished 1st, 7th and 9th.

1. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season promoted) – after 2 surprising consecutive relegations Ben continued last season's success with another promotion to get back to Division 1. Last season they only lost 1 game and even the most ardent fans would not believe they could replicate last season but Ben had other ideas. They started the season with 4 wins and after going unbeaten at home last season they went another 9 games at home without defeat; their away form was fantastic with just 1 defeat and they topped the table in 21 weeks. When you think there are no more superlatives for The Finest they were top scorers in the Opal with 59 goals, a tight defence with only 26 conceded and the best goal difference by a long way with +33. And last but not least they reached the semi final for the 2nd year running.Stuart Gallaway and Michael Murpurgo scored 11 and Lucas Ferrare hit 10.All I can say is well done Ben after another fantastic season.

2. Armthorpe Rovers (last season 5th) – a 2nd season for CJ and after last season's heartache they are promoted. With just 2 defeats in the first half of the season they were in 2nd place and the fans had promotion on the brain. In a division where teams were taking points off each other CJ maintained their form and sealed promotion with ease after winning the last 4 games. Vivian Donkin with 9 and Alesso Rosa with 9 led the attack brilliantly.

3. Mann City (last season 4th) – an 8th season for Brian in Division 2 and after going close last season this season he made no mistake this time and are in Division 1 for the first time in 17 seasons. Their success stemmed from just 2 defeats in their first 16 games, with 11 wins, 36 points, 5 weeks at the top and a 7 point cushion. Surely they would coast to promotion but with wins proving elusive and their away form evaporating they slowly drifted back to the chasing pack but remained in the top three. So with 1 games to they held a 1 point lead over Whitby and Brian kept his calm with 2 wins to guide them up by 1 point. Clive Rogers was the main man with 10 goals.

4. Whitby Town (last season relegated) – SteveR almost had a quick return to Division 1. A steady first half of the season saw them nicely positioned in 5th place. The 2nd half of the season saw them hit a purple patch with 5 wins in 6 games and up to 4th but only a point behind 3rd place; three games later the season looked in tatters but Steve rallied his troops and with 1 game to go they were 1 point behind 3rd place. Whitby won but so did Mann City so on to next season. Tommy Tooting had a fantastic season with 17 goals and was the runner up in the Golden Boot Award.

5. Cusco (last season relegated) - after last season's surprise relegation Matt (smelly) was looking for a quick return and he almost made it. After 10 games they were Mid table but then went on an 11 game unbeaten run and in 3rd place. One win in the next 5 and they looked as though they had blown their chances but Matt never gives up and 3 straight wins left them 2 points off the top three with 1 game to play. Cusco won but so did Whitby and Mann City - on to next season for Matt, where he will start among the favourites. Viktor Morrow was again the main man - this year with 11.

6. Scrubs (last season 9th) – a 5th season for Ben in Division 2 and a top 6 finish. After the first 10 games they were sitting in 4th place but dropped to 6th at the half way point. A three game winning spell saw them back to 4th place with 7 games to go but the pressure told as they failed to win in the next 5 and had to settle for 6th place. Goals were plentiful at both end - Louie Sibley led the way with 13 and Anijou Anijou chipped in with 12

7. Grand Union FC (last season promoted) – an excellent season for John Ghent after promotion, considering their horrendous start! The first 5 games were all defeats and John was thinking that maybe they had promoted too early but as they say the only is up and by the half way point they were out of the bottom three. The second half of the season was a complete change with just 3 defeats and 28 points (promotion form). Michael Emenalo impressed again with 9 and Taribo West hit 7 from midfield.

In an interview John said "praise has to go the lads for not letting their heads drop in the first 5 games and responding magnificently to the challenge. Now we know we can compete at this level I am excited about next season and also the prospect of playing our neighbours Braunstone"

8. Huntley Fairways (last season 11th) – a 3rd season for Carl in Division 2 and an improvement on the previous 2 seasons, although maybe not as much as Carl would like! They had a cracking start with 5 wins and a draw to top the table but just as Carl was starting to feel that this could be the season they spiralled out of control and failed to win in the next 10 games, leaving them in Mid table. They played reasonably over the rest of the season to confirm a Mid table finish. Goals were again easy to come by with Carlos Riviera claiming 13 and Kaine Gordon 11 but they also continued to conceded plenty - less than last season's 40 but still work to do.

9. Belper Nailers (last season promoted) – a first season for Paul (razor) and he will happy with a Mid table finish. It's a difficult season to describe - you would probably say they were consistently average! Paul is developing a young team and when they click they will be a tough side to beat. Lewis Koumas topped with 9.

10. Whitwell Rangers (last season 8th) – a 4th season in Division 2 for CJ and another mediocre one. The contrast in their home performances and away performances was startling with 27 points at home an only 1 win and 8 points away!!!! Youssoufa Moukoko was again the main man with 11.

11. Askham Bryan United (last season 10th) – it was a 5th season for SteveR in Division 2 and a similar finish to last season. Their form was like 'jekyl and hyde' with 26 points at home and just 8 away. Their league form might have been unspectacular but in the Cup they were tremendous and reached the final to play Jedi Knights from the Premier League, who they held to 1-1 after extra time but lost on penalties. Phil Dean topped again with 11.

12. Tadcaster Albion (last season 6th) – a 2nd season for SteveR but not a patch on last season. It started off badly with just 2 points from their first 5 games and next to bottom; their home form remained good all season so Taddy hovered just above the drop zone all season. The lack of a finisher was obvious with Paul Lyons and Chris Lambert topping with 4 goals each.

13. Molesley Shoals (last season relegated) - a 2nd season for Simon Richmond and he just managed to keep them in Division 2 after a dreadful start. With only 1 win in their first 13 games they next to bottom with just 7 points; luckily for Simon their form picked up in the second half the season but they still had to negotiate the last game of the season to stay up. Taiwo Aywoniyi topped with 6 goals.

14. Dinamo Parkside (last season 7th) – a 3rd season in Division 2 for Dinamo and after Rob left DaveC took over. A run of 9 consecutive losses saw them entrenched in the bottom three but a surprise win in their next to last game took the relegation battle into the last week. Logan Nielson topped with 5.

15. Links Park Dynamo (last season 13th) – taken on by DaveC Mid season and re-building in process. 62 goals conceded - the highest in the Opal.

16. Riot City (last season 12th) – a 2nd season in Division 2 for Simon Richmond and after just avoiding relegation last season there was no reprieve this season, which was something as a surprise as they have some quality players. It must be one of the worst starts to a season with their first win not coming until week 23!! Only 19 goals scored with the top men being Marcus Dark and Simon Coombes both with 4. Simon will certainly start as one of the favourites in Division 3 next season.

Division 3

Braunstone Town are promoted as champions an absence of 3 seasons, Inter Knottla are promoted an absence of 15 seasons and Chapel North are promoted are promoted an absence of 11 seasons.

Fishburn Park missed out by 1 point after 17 seasons in Division 3.

PIlgrims F.C were the top scorers in the Opal with 59.

Braunstone Town, Inter Knottla and Fishburn Park had the most wins in the Opal with 19 apiece.

Whitwell FC are T64 again.

The three relegated clubs finished 5th,11th and 13th.

The promotion race was very tight with 4 teams battling it out for the three promotion places. The last 3 games were critical with Braunstone, Knottla and Fishburn playing each other, whilst Chapel had an easier run in. In the end only 4 points separated all four.

1. Braunstone Town (last season 7th) – a 3rd season for John Ghent and an excellent one as they are promoted as Champions. Their success was based on a very consistent season with only 5 defeats (just 2 away) and they were in or just outside the top three all season. John had the team in overdrive from week 20 onwards with and they topped the league by a point and one game to go. Their last game was home to 2nd placed Knottla and a 0-0 draw saw the title in the bag. Braunstone had the joint most wins in the Opal with 19 and also the joint best goal difference of +23, which typified John's approach to attacking football - next season should be very interesting, especially their games against their neighbours Grand Union. They continued their strong youth policy with a 4th place and will be looking to continue with this. Gusto Romanescu hit 11 and Tommy Hunter 10.

2. Inter Knottla (last season 14th) – a 15th season for Knottla in Division 3 and what a year it was as for Si as they were promoted but they nearly blew it. A defeat in the first game and memories of last season came flooding back but amazingly they won 12 and drew 1 of their next 13 games to top the league with a massive 13 point cushion over Chapel in 4th spot. Surely promotion was in the bag , however 4 defeats in the next 6 games and with the other teams all playing well their cushion was only 3 points!! Si steadied the boat and with just 1 defeat in the next 8 and they were second with 2 games to go but their last 2 games were against the other 2 sides in the top three so it was a nervous time. An excellent win against Fishburn and they were up. All in all an amazing season from 14th last season to 2nd this year by Si. Dennis Avery was again the main man with 9 goals and Noel Days weighed in with 8.

3. Chapel North (last season 12th) - it was an 11th season in Division 3 for Chapel and a great promotion for DaveC. They had a fantastic record at home with just 1 defeat and 36 points; their away form was ok but very inconsistent. With two games to go they were 2 points adrift but had two relatively easy games but both away. A win with Fishburn losing moved them to 3rd and with their last game against T64 they were promoted. Goals were easy to come by with Jed Pickworth scoring 30 and taking the Golden Boot Award and they were defensively sound as well.

4. Fishburn Park (last season 9th) - a 17th season for Fishburn in Division 3 and for most of the season it looked like SteveR would be taking them up. After a very consistent season they were 2nd and 3 points clear of 4th place with 4 games to go - what a time to have their worst run with 2 points from 3 games and they dropped behind Chapel with a game to go. Unfortunately Chapel faced T64 Whitwell so the season ended in disappointment for the Fishburn supporters. They have been renowned for a mean defence but this year they managed to score a few as well!! Lee McCardle topped the scoring with 9. After the game Steve Readman had this to say "I am absolutely gutted for the supporters after the fantastic start to the season. I can't criticise the players - it was just that there three other teams playing magnificently and we missed out bu just 1 point"

5. Boscombe Athletic (last relegated) – a very good season for Simon despite losing their first 4 games. Things improved dramatically with just 1 defeat in 10 and they were up to 7th but 7 points off the pace. The second half of the season saw them delight the home supporters with 7 straight wins but despite reasonable away results they could not close the gap on the top 4 - it shows you how well they were playing. Simon had the best defence record in the Opal with 21 conceded and also had the joint best goal difference in Division 3 with +23. Craig Watson Stefano Sensi and Alex Keita all score 7.

6. Pilgrims F.C (last season 10th) – a 4th season for Wayne and another improvement with a top 6 finish. They started well and were unbeaten in their first 8 games and sitting 2nd; just 1 win in the next 8 and down to 8th. Wayne conjured up some more magic as they lost just 1 of the next 12 but the 4 teams above them were also playing out of their skins so Wayne had to settle for the top 6 finish.They were the joint top scorers in the Opal with 59 goals, spearheaded by Terrance Brassington with 16. Wayne will be very pleased with the way the team performed and will be hoping for more of the same next season.

7. Tigre Town (last season 5th) – after a good season last year Shep was hopeful about a strong promotion push but poor home form in the first half of the season scuppered this. A pity really as they then reeled of 7 home wins and a draw but it was too late to get them into the mix - maybe next season! Heleno De Freitas scored 8.

8. Wigan Wildcats (last season 4th) – Dave (woody) missed out on the last day of last season and were the bookies favourite to win the league but it was a very indifferent performance from the team. They had two spells with 4 straight wins but the rest of the season was a write off. Dave has 'must do better' written on his wall at home. Last season Franciso shared the Golden Boot and he was their main man again with 11 goals.

9. Manx Saints (last season 11th) – a new manager in DaveC and he is just learning about the team. One area Dave will be keen to improve on is goals - their 32 was the lowest in the top 9; Neil Raymond grabbed 7 of these.

10. Yellow and Black Army (last season 13th) – a 7th season in Division 3 and a slight improvement for Wayne. It was similar to last season with terrible away from, stemming from losing their first 5 and not winning away until week 24. Guiseppe De Luca topped the scoring with 8 goals.

11. Bay FC (last season relegated) – a first full season for DaveC and plenty of work needed. In the 2nd half of the season they had a run of 9 defeats in 11 games but with the sides below them all struggling it didn't affect their league position. Tommy Tacey was again the main man, hitting 8.

12. Westdyke United (last season 8th) - a 10th season for Westdyke in Division 3 and a return to the Opal for Richard as the new manager, late in the season. Re-building in process but the fans are confident that Richard is the man for the job. Only 25 scored with the top scorer hitting only - Rown Mcready topped with 5. As part of next season's changes Richard is bringing back the name of South Ruislip.

13. Oaktree United (last season relegated) – part of DaveC's portfolio. Home form decent with 22 points, away form abysmal with 5 points and 12 defeats (8 of these in a row). Michael Otterson scored 7.

14. West End Villa (last season 6th) – taken over by DaveC and rebuilding work in process. The big positive was their home form with 23 points, including 5 wins in a row; away from home it was a different story with with 11 defeats and just 6 points so Dave knows where he needs to focus. Farris Moubanga topped with 5 goals.

15. Mearns City (last season 15th) - DaveC in control and the same position as last season. The only good thing is that the only way is up. A 7th season in Division 3. Duncan McKenzie with 4 and Bill Berridge with 3.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 16th) – 9th season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage one point against Tigre Town. Goal difference was -67 so an improvement from last year's -81. No goals scored.

All teams are managed so it looks like another competitive season to come.

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

Season 44 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

Bentley Vikings Old Boys are the Champions with a 12th title overall and just 1 behind Loyal Rangers.

Bentley topped the week on every week apart from the first.

Four of last years the top six were in the top 6 this season - the two to drop out were Chester Town and Wolkskull Nords.

Inter Southampton are relegated after 1 season, Bayern are relegated after 1 season and Kamikaze Vipers are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three promoted clubs were all relegated finished 8th, 14th and 16th.

1. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 6th) – 41 consecutive season in the Premier League for CJ with Bentley and a first Premier title in 8 seasons; making a grand total of 12 titles and only one behind Loyal Rangers. The title was never in doubt as they topped the table from week 2 until the end - a model of consistency! Julius Kumwenda topped with 10 goals.

2. FC Abertawe (last season 10th) – another a couple of disappointing finishes this one turned out to be Mike's beat in a long while. In an excellent first half of the season, which included 5 wins in a row, they were 2nd. The 2nd half of the season was hit and miss but all of the chasing teams seemed to have the same problem. Three wins in a row and the runners up spot was theirs. Randloph Tapper with 10 and Keith Applegate with 11 spearheaded the attack

3. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 7th) – a 4th season for MikeT and after finishing 8th and 7th they jumped to 3rd. They owed their high finish to wonderful home record with just 1 defeat; the last 7 home games saw 6 wins and a draw as they moved from 7th with 4 games to go to 3rd. Taiwo Awonoyi had a great season with 15 goals.

4. Jedi Knights (last season 5th) – an 18th season for ChrisC and Jedi in the Premier League and another top 6 finish. With just 1 defeat in their first 8 games they were sitting 2nd; still doing well at the half way point in 4th spot but an indifferent spell saw them down to 7th with 5 games to go. Similar to last season they had a strong finish and up to 4th. Jedi reached the Cup Final for the 2nd year running and were looking for a 4th win but surprisingly lost to the Division 1 basement team Mann City. Santillana was the main man with 11

5. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 3rd) - it was a 17th season for Rich in the Premier League and another decent season despite an average first half of the season. The 2nd half of the season saw a new Aberdeen as they won 9 in 11 games and zoomed up to 2nd but a poor results in the last 3 games saw them slip to 5th. Graeme Kelbie had an excellent campaign with 15 goals.

6. East Riding Enterprise (last season 2nd) - an 8th season in the Premier League for Ben and he will feel slightly disappointed as they had been runners up in the last seasons. Their form at home in the first 25 games was impeccable with 10 wins and 2 draws; their away form was patchy but they were 2nd and just 2 points behind Bentley with 5 games to go. Ben took his eye off the ball and just 1 point from the last 5 saw them dive-bomb to 6th position. Mason Greenwood again topped the scoring with 13, the same as last season.

7. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 11th) - 20th season for Paul (Razor) and after a couple of indifferent ones this one was a little better. An average start saw Chadd sitting in 11th place after 7 weeks but then came Paul's purple patch with 7 wins and a draw to rocket them up to 3rd at the half way point. The rest of the season was one to forget as they slipped down the table - with a little more consistency they should hit the top 6. Jurgen Schnieder topped again with 13

8. Duffield Dynamos (last season promoted) – it looked like being a quick return for John to Division 1 after a dreadful start. After winning their first game they lost 6 in a row and look doomed but with teams around them playing badly they had managed to climb out of the bottom three by the half way point, even though they only had 14 points. A scintillating patch of 8 wins in 9 games saw them up to Mid table. Their attacking approach to the games saw 56 scored and 52 conceded; - Des Neves hit 13 and Rodrigo Muniz chipped in with 10.

9. Wolfskull Wolves (last season 4th) – 12th season for Wes (chunkymunky), and after appearing to be back to the good old days last season they were back to Mid
table this time. It was a strange season where Wolfskull played their best football in the first 5 away games where they won them all and sat in 4th place with 22 points after 11 games. The remaining 19 games only yielded 5 wins as they slid down to 9th. Pedro Chirivella and Francisco Trinaco both impressed again with 12 goals apiece.

10. Chester Town (last season 1st) – a 10th season for PaulW in the Premier League and after 2 titles in 3 seasons it was back to reality with a Mid table finish. Chester opened their defence of the title with just 1 defeat in the first 6 but then lost the next 4 - this set the pattern for the season with winning bursts and losing bursts, particularly at the end of the season, where they lost 4 of the last 5. Costa S'Arenal topped the scoring with 10 goals.

11. Loyal Rangers (last season 9th) – a second disappointing season in a row for Andy and the supporters will be demanding more from Andy. The highlight for Loyal was winning their first 5 home games but their away form was abysmal with only 2 wins all season. This is the 2nd season in a row with poor away form, which gives Andy something to think about. Gaudinio topped again with 8.

12. Radford Semele (last season 13th) – a 3rd season for Craig and another battling one. They won their first 3 home games but after that was very hit and miss but were never in danger of going down and finished up with 39 points. Jethro Grealish topped with 8.

13. Istra Pula (last season 8th) – a 3rd season for MikeT and almost his last but they won the last game of the season against Inter Southampton to stay up and relegate InterS. Mani Requiem was the top scorer with 7.

14. Inter Southampton (last season promoted) - Dave Shepherd almost survived as they needed to avoid defeat against their relegation rivals Istra but a 2-0 defeat sent them down. It would have been a big surprise to have survived with their away form - they lost the first 8 and just 5 points collected!! Howard Carley topped with 6.

15. Kamikaze Vipers (last season 12th) - after just escaping last season Gary (Smiffy) is down after 2 seasons. Just 4 wins and 18 points!!

16. Bayern FC (last season promoted) – a terrible season for MikeT as Bayern are down after just 1 season. Just 4 wins and 18 points!!

Division 1

Yorkshires Finest are promoted as Champions - a 3rd successive promotion, The Survivors are promoted to the Premier League after an absence of 2 seasons, and Armthorpe Rovers are promoted - a 2nd successive promotion.

Yorkshires Finest were top for 15 weeks.

Kesgrave Vespas are relegated after 3 seasons, Norfolk are relegated after 2 seasons and Mann City are relegated after 1 season.

The three relegated clubs finished 7th, 8th and 11th.

The three promoted cubs finished 1st, 3rd and 16th.

With a game to go the top 5 teams were separated by just 3 points.

1. Yorkshires Finest (last season promoted) – the Finest are Champions and made it 3 successive promotions much to the delight of Ben after 2 surprising, consecutive relegations. After a slow start they reeled off 6 consecutive home wins and 5 consecutive wins. They topped the table on 13 weeks but after a defeat at Armthorpe they slipped to 2nd with a week to go on goal difference so it was all down to the last week. Yorkshire won and Armthorpe drew so they were back on top. Stuart Galloway and Benjamin Olloco both hit 10 goals.

2. The Survivors (last season 9th) - a 2nd season for Stu and it was a goal crazy year that ended in promotion. The first 14 games were poor and they were down in 13th place so Stu decided attack was the way forward. Just 2 defeats in the next 15 (both away) and 7 home wins in 8 games saw them into the top three with a week to go and 38 goals scored. A 1-0 away win secure 2nd spot and back to the Premier League. Frankie Wrebbe lead the way with 14 goals.

3. Armthorpe Rovers (last season promoted) – a consecutive promotion for CJ with Armthorpe after 2 consecutive relegations. Their success came from an excellent start to the season and an excellent end to the season. Top after 13 games, down to 8th after 21 games and back to the top with a game to go but only 2 points clear of 4th place. A draw in the final game and defeats for Xbana and York sealed their promotion. Tommaso Milanese topped the scoring with 11.

4. Xbana FC (last season 6th) – a 4th season for Baz and his best so far but it didn't look that way with just 1 win in the first 8 games and next to bottom. They were up to 8th at the half way point and hit the top three after 20 games but in a very tight league - 3 games without a win saw them drop to Mid table. Back to winning ways and with 1 game to go they were just 1 point from a promotion spot - a defeat left them in 4th place. Evgeny Svechinkov and Shinzi Kagawa both impressed with 13 goals apiece.

5. Stainsacre United (last season 8th) – a 2nd season for SteveR and a top 6 finish. A good first half of the season saw them sitting in 3rd spot and they were still 3rd with 7 games to go - maybe promotion would be there for the taking. However, nerves kicked in and they lost the next 4 games to drop away from the promotion race. Alexis Valencia topped with 8 goals.

6. York Rovers (last season 7th) – a 16th season in Division 1 for SteveR and he will be disappointed it is not promotion. They topped the Division on 10 weeks - the latest being with 6 games to go, however the wins dried up and with a game to go they had dropped to 5th but only 2 points off 3rd spot; another defeat sealed their fate. It was amazing to finish this high with only 24 scored!! Leonel Aguero topped with 11.

7. Riverplate (last season relegated) – never really in the promotion race but a decent season without any 'hic ups'. Highest position was 4th; should be in the mix again next season. Ola Aina scored 9 goals.

8. Mighty Chucks (last season relegated) – after last season's shock relegation Stu started as one of the favourites to go up but a poor second half of the season saw them finish Mid table. At the half way point the Chucks were 4th and looking good but a 'topsy turvey' second half of the season saw them to drop to 11th after 19 games, back up to 3rd after 22 games and then fail to win again until the last game!!! Leo Campana was again the main man with 10 goals.

9. Wanderers (last season 12th) – an 11th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky) and a similar outcome despite looking like promotion candidates in the middle part of the season. They managed to win only 1 game in 8 and they slipped from 3rd to 10th. Boubacar Traore hit 8 goals.

10. Dell Diamonds (last season 11th) – a 2nd season for MikeT and a similar finish thanks to their home form, where they picked up 29 points out of 40. An improvement in away performances are required next season. Ansu Fati hit 12.

11. Doncaster Town (last season relegated) – a disappointing season for Doncaster without any highs or lows. They bumbled along in Mid table and a poor end to the season saw them drop to 11th. Griffin Yow with 11

12. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 13th) - a 7th season in Division 1 for MikeT and almost one to forget as they avoided relegation on the last day of the season. It was all down to the first half of the season, where they were bottom with just 10 points. Mike gave himself a chance with 5 wins in 7 games and with 1 game to go they were level on points with Kesgrave and 1 point behind Emu's.
Death Valley travelled to promotion chasing Xbana and pulled off a great win and with Kesgrave losing they were safe. Josh Shalla topped with 8.

13. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season 5th) – a 4th season in Division 1 and a big disappointment after last season. Again it was their away form that let them down with just 9 points and with a game to go they only had a point gap over the drop zone. They could only manage a draw but survived as Kesgrave lost. The top scorers were Piers Slatcher with 9 and Andy Toksvig with 8.

14. Kesgrave Vespas (last season 4th) – a 3rd season for Kesgrave and after Gary just missing out on promotion last season this one was a disaster. After 22 games Kesgrave looked safe with 32 points but just 2 points in the last 8 games they were down to Division 2. Adam Vincent hit 9 goals.

15. Norfolk FC (last season 10th) – a 2nd season for MikeT and a poor one where they were in the bottom three virtually all season. Otu Mohamed did well with 8 goals.

16. Mann City (last season promoted) – a quick return for Brian and the team never got going- mainly down to a defence which conceded 55 goals. They did collect some silverware as theu won the cup with a 2-1 win against Jedi Knights. Alfie Plum with 15 Robbie Banner with 11 did their hardest to keep Brian in Division 1.

Division 2

Cusco are promoted after 5 seasons as Champions, Whitby Town are promoted after an absence of 2 seasons from Division 1 and Scrubs are promoted after an absence of 6 seasons.

Steve Readman finished 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th.

Whitwell Rangers are relegated after 3 seasons, Chapel North are relegated after 1 seasons and Molesley Shoals are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 6th, 7th and 10th.

The three promoted teams finished 11th, 13th and 15th.

1. Cusco (last season 5th) - Matt (smelly) was looking for a good response after his team missed out in the last week of last season and he wasn't disappointed as they were promoted as Champions thanks to an excellent 2nd half of the season. The first 13 games were 'iffy' and they sat in 9th position - Matt needed to get the team going and he certainly did as they won 8 of the next 10 including 7 in a row and hit the top after18 games. Cusco's form dipped at the end of the season with 4 defeats in 6 games and still needed a point make sure from the last game of the season - a win at home to Askham and they were up. Billy Williams with 11 and Jerry Robinson with 10 were the main men.

2. Whitby Town (last season 4th) – after the disappointment of just missing out last season StreveR takes Whitby back to Division 1 after 2 seasons. They started off where they left off last season with 6 wins in the first 8 games and 2nd spot but reality hit them as they could only pick up 2 points from the next 6 and they were down to 5th. The rest of the season was excellent as they reeled off 5 straight home wins and with were up - just 1 point behind Cusco.Tommy Tooting had a fantastic season last term with 17 goals and was the runner up in the Golden Boot Award this year with 16.

3. Scrubs (last season 6th) – a 6th season for Ben in Division 2 and a hard earned promotion. It was a strange season where they performed better away from home than at home - they won their first 5 away games and topped the table for 8 weeks in the first 14 games! Their away form continued to impress but their home form was threatening to ruin the season. They were hanging onto 3rd place by the 'skin of their teeth' and with 1 game to go they were still 3rd but only on goal difference from Askham. A fine Scrubs win and a defeat for Askham saw Scrubs up. . Adrian Barcelio starred with 12 goals.

4. Askham Bryan United (last season 11th) – it was a 6th season for SteveR in Division 2 and their best so far as they finished 3 points off the top 3. They owed this to a lovely end to the season as after 19 games they were only 8th and 9 points off the pace but 7 wins in 10 games moved them up to 4th with 1 game to go level on points with Scrubs. Askham lost so it will be another season in Division 2. Liam Turner topped with 9.

5. Tadcaster Albion (last season 12th) – a 3rd season for SteveR and promotion looked to be on the cards at the half way point when they topped the table for 3 weeks. Unfortunately for Steve their form evaporated with just 1 win in 10 and they slipped down to 9th but they ended the season with 2 wins for a top 6 finish. Luco Bolino hit 9.

6. Par Athletic (last season relegated) – it looked like being a quick return for SteveR with Par when they started off unbeaten in 13 and top after 9 games - the only problem was that 8 of these games were draws. The draws turned into defeats and Par slipped to 7th. Steve steadied the boat with 5 wins in the next 7 and a top 6 finish. John Wright 12 and Steve French with 10 were the main men.

7. La Donny Luz (last season relegated) - after last season's surprise relegation CJ was amongst the favourites to go up but their away form let them down with only 1 win in their first 12 games. Cliff Farrar topped with 8.

8. Belper Nailers (last season 9th) – a 2nd season for Paul (razor) and a reasonable finish considering a poor start. They were in the bottom three after 5 games, 11th after 10 games and 9th at the halfway point. The second half was much better and a run of 1 defeat in 8 games saw them just 4 points off 3rd spot with 3 games to go, however a defeat at Askham saw their season over. Malcolm Mills hit 9 goals.

9. Huntley Fairways (last season 8th) – a 4th season for Carl in Division 2 and another Mid table finish. It looked as though the season was over as they only won 1 of the first 8 games and that was in the first week but by the half way point they had recovered and moved out of the bottom three. Carl's faith in the team became evident as they won 6 and drew 1 of the next 7 to catapult them up to 6th and promotion was on the minds of the supporters! Catastrophe struck, similar to the previous season, with just 2 points from the last 6 games and Mid table it was again!! Top scorer was Kaide Gordin with 10 goals.

10. Belmont Buccaneers (last season relegated) – a first full season for Si and he will be happy with their overall performance. It wasn't looking to good when they only picked up 1 point from the first 5 games and propping up the table but their fortunes changed and by the half way point they had climbed to 10th. Belmont were pretty consistent after that and remained in 10th spot. James Robinson top scored with 10.

11. Inter Knottla (last season promoted) – after 15 seasons in Division 3 Si was determined to keep Inter Knottla in Division 2 and he did so thanks to some good form in the early part of the season and a decent finish to the season. The middle part was easily forgotten with just 1 win in 12. Top scorer was Mario Nastinni with 10.

12. Grand Union FC (last season 7th) – John Ghent will be disappointed after last season's great finish but pleased to still be in Division 2. They did enough all season to keep out of the bottom three and 12th position was where they were nearly all season. Emmanuel Emenike and Jon Detheridge both hit 6.

13. Braunstone Town (last season promoted) – a 4th season for John Ghent and a first one in Division 2 but it was nearly a quick return. In truth it is a surprise they did not relegate after an appalling start - without a win in 13 and just 7 points. John had the team together and read the riot act and they responded magnificently with 4 wins on the bounce and out of the bottom three. They drooped back into the bottom three with 4 games to go but a win at their rivals Whitwell saw them move 3 points above them with 1 game to go. A defeat in the last game was made better as the news came through that Whitwell had lost. Iain Lewendon topped with 6.

14. Whitwell Rangers (last season 10th) – a 5th season in Division 2 for CJ and a disaster as they drop to Division 3. They were inconsistent all season and going into the last game they were 3 points adrift of Braunstone Town but better goal difference. Whitwell won but so did Braunstone and CJ was down to Division 3. Cameron Lane topped with 6.

15. Chapel North (last season promoted) - a quick return to Division 3 for DaveC. A dismal season for Dave, particularly at home where they only had 1 win. The only plus was the goal scoring prowess of Jed Pickworh, who followed up last year's Golden Boot with 9 goals this season.

16. Molesley Shoals (last season 13th) - the season started with Simon Richmond in control and after just escaping relegation last season there was no reprise this year and Simon left towards the end of the season. Top scorer was Taiwo Aywoniyi with 10 goals.

Division 3

Pendle Hill are promoted as champions after 1 season, Boscombe Athletic are promoted after 2 seasons and Tigre Victoria are promoted are promoted an absence of 3 seasons.

Pendle Hill only lost 3 games and topped the table for 20 weeks.

Whitwell FC are T64 again.

The three relegated clubs finished 1st, 7th and 8th.

1. Pendle Hill (last season relegated) – a quick return for Simon Richmond with the newly named Pendle Hill. They started off as one of the favourites in Division 3 and they didn't disappoint as they swept to promotion as champions. with only 3 defeats and all at home. They were the top scorers in the Opal with 66 goals and a goal difference of +46! Marcus Dark topped the scoring with 18 and took the Golden Boot Award as well.

2. Boscombe Athletic (last 5th) – it had been a very good season for Simon Richmond and a big shock when he left near the end of the season but to the fans delight Dave Legg returned to the Opal to take them over. They were in 2nd place with promotion all but guaranteed, however the culling had left Boscombe in a poor state; no problem for Dave as they won at King Street to clinch promotion followed by a win over 3rd placed Tigre to top the Division 3. However, they lost the last game and had to be content with the runners up spot. Alex Keita topped with 7 goals. Dave knows he will have a tough ride next season as culling has left the team depleted.

3. Tigre Town (last season 7th) – DaveS has been knocking on the door for a couple of seasons and it was another nail biter. With 3 games to go they had a 2 point lead over Fishburn and 4 points over Wigan; the bonus was they had substantially better goal difference. A home win over Wigan and they were up. Dave only lost 2 away all season. Adrian Ratciff and Mike Le Riche with 9 guided Tigre to Division 2 after an absence of 3 seasons.

4. Wigan Wildcats (last season 8th) – Dave (woody) had a steady first 20 games, hovering around 3rd and 4th spot. Wigan than had a burst and were 3rd with 5 games to play - could Dave do it? A major hiccup when they lost 3-0 at home to Pendle left them 4 points off 3rd spot and another season over. Franciso was their main man again with 12 goals and Wytsa Sonnama weighed in with 9,

5. Pilgrims F.C (last season 6th) – a 5th season for Wayne and he will be pleased with another top 6 finish. They were Mid table after 17 games and the Pilgrims then had a fantastic run of 7 wins and 1 draw and an outside chance of an unlikely promotion but the top three held their nerve.Terrance Brassington hit 7.

6. Fishburn Park (last season 4th) - an 18th season for Fishburn in Division 3 and after just 1 win in the first 8 they did well to mount a recovery and hit the top three after 16 games. It was a brief stay as they hovered around 4th spot and still in with a shout with 3 games to go but a defeat at home to Dinamo ended their season. Tony Stacpole was the main man with 12.

7. Sunnybank United (last season relegated) – taken back on by Chris Cook and he will be pleased with their finish and their defence; last season they were the worst in the Opal with 62 conceded - this season only 35. Plenty of rebuilding to do but if anybody can Chris can. Nicklas Shipniski topped with 8.

8. Dinamo Parkside (last season relegated) – a 4th season in Division 2 for Dinamo and after a short absence Rob Page returned, much to the delight of the fans. He showed them his pedigree as they went 8 games without defeat with 6 wins and 2 draws. Davi Wagztaffe topped with 6.

9. City Chiefs (last season 14th) – Simon left towards the end of the season and Dave Shepherd took them over. The Chiefs had a run of 5 away defeats near the end of the season. Scott Thompson scored 6

10. King Street Albion (last season 9th) – part of Dave C's portfolio and a similar finish to last season. The difference between the way they played at home compared to away was incredible - unbeaten at home, until their last game, with 32 points out of their total of 39!! They also had a run of 8 consecutive away defeats. Mitchell Covell performed well with 11 goals.

11. Yellow and Black Army (last season 10th) – an 8th season in Division 3 and a similar finish for Wayne. They were ticking along quite nicely and sat 6th after 17 games but then lost 7 home games in a row. Guiseppe De Luca topped the scoring again with 13 goals.

12. South Ruislip (last season 12th) - an 11th season for South Ruislip in Division 3 and a first full season for Richard as the manager. The season was ruined for Richard by their away form, where they only won 2 games and picked up only 10 points; in fact they lost 6 consecutive away games near the end of the season. Mark Ring topped with 9.

13. Mearns City (last season 15th) - DaveC in control and a slight improvement. Ze Mario - 4

14. Oaktree United (last season 13th) – a new manager in CJ so the rebuilding begins. Jose Antonio Ramirez - 4

15. Parkvale United (last season 11th) – DaveC has plenty of work to do with Parkvale. Lost 8 the last 9 games. Tommy Tacey topped again with 5 goals.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 16th) – 9th season as T64 so no surprises, although they did manage seven points and another improvement on goals conceded; -81 to -67 to -58.

All teams are managed so it looks like another competitive season to come.

_________________
Long Eaton Archers WPL7 Shaolin WPL39

Istra Pula Opal46 Abysmal Aftermath Opal50
FC Abertawe Opal1 Riverplate Opal36
Dell Diamonds Opal54 Norfolk FC Opal37
Death Valley Wanderers Opal35 Bayern FC Opal45

SEASON 45

Week 31 – End of Term Report.

Premier League

East Riding Enterprise are the Champions for the first time.

Three of last years the top six were in the top 6 this season - the three to drop out were FC Abertawe, Abysmal Aftermath and Aberdeen Terrors.

FC Abertawe are relegated after 8 seasons Armthorpe Rovers are relegated after 1 season and Istra Pula are relegated after 4 seasons.

The three promoted clubs finished 12th, 13th and 15th.


1. East Riding Enterprise (last season 6th) – a 9th season in the Premier League for Ben and in an unbelievable finish they are Champions for the first time. The first half of the season saw them in 6th spot and 9 points behind the leaders but a run of 9 games without defeat saw them top the table after 23 and 24 games. Three defeats in 5 and with a game to go they were 2nd and 3 points behind Loyal but they still had a chance as they played Loyal in the last match and what a match! Alan Readman-Walsh put East Riding 1-0 up early in the second half and then Mason Greenwood put them 2-0 up with 12 minutes to go – Loyal piled on the pressure but East Riding held on to take the match and win the Title on goal difference. Iain Maasteen had a great season with 19 goals.

2. Loyal Rangers (last season 11h) – after two disappointing seasons in a row for Andy he found his mo-jo as they looked like taking the title for the 14th time. They were second fiddle to Chester for the first half of the season and were 2nd but 6 points behind them. The 2nd half of the season saw them have some great spells and they had only 1 defeat in the next 12 so with 3 games to go they were top and held a 6 point lead over East Riding. Surely it was all over but two defeats in a row left them 3 points clear of East Riding and they played them in the last game!!!!! A 2-0 loss and Andy will be distraught to have lost the last 3 games of the season. Fabio Tortellini hit 12 and Ben Banning hit 10.

3. Jedi Knights (last season 4th) – a 19th season for ChrisC and Jedi in the Premier League and another top 6 finish. They were consistent for most of the season but it looked like being a top half finish until they won 4 out of the last 5 games to jump into 3rd position. Sean Lillywhite hit 12 goals.

4. Bentley Vikings Old Boys (last season 1st) – 42nd consecutive season in the Premier League for CJ with Bentley and another good season. An excellent start to the season saw them top the table after 5 games but that was the only occasion! They were in or around the top 6 all season but could not find the extra spark, still a good season. Luis Hernandez topped with 13.

5. Radford Semele (last season 12th) – a 4th season for Craig and his best so far. A great start with only 1 defeat in the first 10 games, they were consistent all season and hovered in the top 6. Their defence played a good part again with the lowest conceded in the Premier League. – 26. Topping the scoring again was Jethro Grealish with 9.

6. Chester Town (last season 10th) – a 12th season for PaulW in the Premier League and for two thirds of the season it looked as they were going to champions as they topped the table for 14 weeks. Their downfall was due to losing 5 away games in a row. Charlie Maguiret topped the scoring with 8.

7. Duffield Dynamos (last season 8th) –a 2nd season for John and it was a repeat of last season as the had a poor start with just 1 point from 5 games and after 14 games only gd was keeping them out of the bottom three. Again, similar to last season they hit scintillating form with 6 wins in 7 and 5 home wins in a row. Des Neves topped again with 12.

8. Wolfskull Nords (last season 9th) – 14th season for Wes (chunkymunky) and another Mid table finish. It was a strange season with spells unbeaten and spells without a win. They topped the table after 7 weeks with 16 points, 6 games without a win followed by 5 wins in 7 – leaving them in 4th spot and maybe a title challenge. Just 3 points in the next 7 and the season was over. Jean-Ricner Bellegarde topped with 10 goals.

9. Aberdeen Terrors (last season 5th) - it was an 18th season for Rich in the Premier League and they were excellent at home with 26 points but away from home it was a different story with just 15 points. The season was saved by Rich with success in the Cup, where they beat Doncaster 2-1 for a 3rd cup final win; the last one came 22 seasons ago. Graeme Kelbie had another excellent campaign with 11 goals.

10. Chaddesden Celtic (last season 7th) – 21st season for Paul (Razor) and an indifferent one. Just 2 wins in the first 10 games and they were 10th; still 10th at the halfway point but 5 defeats in a row saw Paul looking at a relegation battle. Chadd picked up with 3 home wins and they were back to 10th and that is where they finished. Goals were a problem and typified by their top scorer Francis Uzoho with 6 goals.

11. Abysmal Aftermath (last season 3rd) – a 5th season for MikeT and after last seasons achievement this one was a major disappointment!! With just one win in the first 12 games they looked doomed, but a good patch of 7 games was enough to keep them in the Premier League. Dan Anyiam did his bit with 11 goals.

12. Yorkshire’s Finest (last season promoted) – after 3 successive promotions for Ben his season in the Premier League was a tough one where they escaped on the last day of the season. They were ticking along quite nicely in the first half of the season with 9th spot and 23 points but 7 defeats on a row left them just above the drop zone. Ben managed to stumble through the remaining games and thanks to the teams at the bottom all struggling they survived with 30 points! Mark Willington topped with only 5.

13. The Survivors (last season promoted) – Stu avoided relegation on the last day of the season thanks to FC Abertawe losing. It was a tale of 2 halves for The Survivors, as the first 13 games were breeze and they sat in 5th place with 23 points; unbelievable what happened next as they failed to win in the next 17 games and picked up just 4 points!! Roberto Dagwanne with 6.

14. FC Abertawe (last season 2nd) – after last season’s excellent finish for MikeT it was a major shock as they are relegated after 6 seasons. It was a very strange season as they only lost 11 games – only 4 teams lost less but they only won 4 and drew 15 games!!! They also failed to win any of their home games. Ade Coker topped with 6.

15. Armthorpe Rovers (last season promoted) – a quick return for CJ to Division 1. Only 1 win in the first 13 games so it was surprising they were still in with a chance of survival with 3 games to go, but it wasn’t to be. Tommaso Milanese topped the scoring again with 9.

16. Istra Pula (last season 13th) – a 4th season for MikeT and after surviving on the last day of last season there was no reprieve this season. Only 5 wins and 25 points. Top scorer was Juan Fernando Quintero with 9.

Division 1

Mighty Chucks are promoted as Champions after 2 seasons; Dell Diamonds are promoted to the Premier League after an absence of 3 seasons and Wanderers are promoted after 12 seasons.

Kamikaze Vipers are relegated after 1 season, Xbana are relegated after 5 seasons and Riverplate are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated clubs finished 5th, 9th and 12th.

The three promoted cubs finished 5th, 13th and 15th.

The battle at the bottom of the table went to the last week and at the end of the season only 3 points separated 9th and 15th.


1. Mighty Chucks (last season 8th) – a 2nd season for Stu in Division 1 and a great one as they roared back to the big time and were promoted with 4 games to go!! It was a slow start with the first 5 games not featuring a win but after that it was red hot form with only 2 more defeats. They had 10 wins in eleven home games and were scoring for fun – they scored 53 with Leo Campana again the main man with 18 goals and Joe Davison weighed in with 12.

2. Wanderers (last season 9th) – a 12th season in Division 1 for Wes (chunky) and he will be delighted to get them back to the big time. They looked like true promotion candidates for the first 20 weeks as they topped the Division for 10 weeks, but they took the foot off the gas. With just 1 win in the next 7 and the last 3 all being losses they had dropped to 3rd but a couple of home wins and they were up. Enso Gonzalez topped with 8.

3. Dell Diamonds (last season 10th) – a 3rd season for MikeT and promotion. A great start with just 1 defeat in the first 9 set them on the way and a burst of 5 home wins on the trot looked like promotion was a cert. Two defeats threatened to be a problem but a win on the last day of the season saw them up. Ofem Inah topped with 9.

4. York Rovers (last season 6th) – a 17th season in Division 1 for SteveR and very consistently just outside of the top three. They were 6th after 5 games, 5th after 10 games, 4th after 15 games, 4th after 20 games, 4th after 25 games and 4th at the end.Low scorers again with 26 but a tight defence again kept them near the top. Leonel Aguero topped with 8.

5. Cusco (last season promoted) – Matt (smelly) had a poor start with just 2 points from the first 6 games and bottom spot. They suddenly picked up and climbed to 11th after 10 games and 12th at the halfway point. It was their away form that was stopping the progress with just 2 points from their first 8 away games; not sure what Matt did but they reeked off 5 away wins in a row to shoot up to 5th. If only they had picked up a few more away points earlier in the season. Billy Williams had a tremendous season with 16 goals.

6. Bayern FC (last season relegated) – it looked like a double relegation for MikeT as Bayen only won 1 of their first 10 games. The rest of the season was much better as they climbed the table and peaked at 5th spot. At home they didn’t lose in 13 home games, however 10 of these were draws!!!!! German Aceros topped with 9.

7. Doncaster Town (last season 11th) – a 2nd season for Doncaster and another struggle. Scoring goals was their biggest problem with only 26 and far too many draws – 13! With only 1 defeat in the first 13 games, they were nicely placed in 6th spot but then just 1 win in 12 saw them slip into the bottom three! Amazingly they pulled off 4 wins in a row and they zoomed up to 7th.Santiago Lopez topped with 8.

8. Stainsacre United (last season 5th) – a 3rd season for SteveR and he would have hoped to be in the promotion race. They had a good first half of the season to be 5th in the table but the 2nd half was patchy and only saved by a decent finish of 2 wins. Jason Draper had ab excellent season with 14 goals.

9. Scrubs (last season promoted) - almost a quick return for Ben and a surprise as how they finished so high. They had an abysmal home record with just 1 win in their first 12 and just 6 points.; their away record was decent but with 7 games to go they were next to bottom. What happened next is unbelievable as they won 5 of the next 6 and a mid-table finish! Andy Denton led the line with 12 goals,

10. Emu's BPW 2020 (last season 13th) – a 5th season in Division 1 for Andy and another battling one. The first 9 games were good and they were in 6th spot, but they went into destruction mode and failed to win in the next 11 games to find themselves bottom. Three wins on the trot rescued their season but they still had work to do with 3 games to go a win saw them safe but in a very competitive Division they finished 10th but only 2 points clear of the dop zone. Joseph Yelland topped with 6.

11. Death Valley Wanderers (last season 12th) - an 8th season in Division 1 for MikeT and a struggle like last season. They bumbled along all season and with 3 games to go they were in the bottom three but only a point from safety. With 6 other clubs struggling they were still in with a chance of survival and a win the last game saw the looking forward to another season in Division 1. Anton Berg led the line well with 10 goals.

12. Whitby Town (last season promoted) – it was almost a quick return for SteveR but despite losing their las game the other results went in their favour and safety. Whitby had been doing ok for the first 21 games and sat 7th with 29 points but 2 points from the next 6 games left them embroiled in the relegation battle. Tommy Tooting topped again but with only 5 goals compared to 17 and 16 in previous seasons.

13. Inter Southampton (last season relegated) – now T64 so it’s a case of heading down the tables.

14. Kamikaze Vipers (last season relegated) - Gary (Smiffy) had a terrible start with 1 win in 9 and 6 consecutive defeats to be rock bottom after 9 games. Their form picked up but it was a hard ‘slog’ to get away from the relegation zone – even 3 wins in a row that moved them up to 9th still left Gary only 2 points above the drop zone with 3 games to go. Just 2 points from these games and they were down. Timothy Waine did his best with 8 goals.

15. Xbana FC (last season 4th) – a 5th season for Baz and after last season’s finish the pundits had them down for promotion but a major shock as they relegated on the last day of the season. Just 1 win in their first 12 games left them bottom with just 7 points. They were still in the bottom three at the halfway point, but Baz suddenly found last season’s form and Xbana only lost 1 of the next 11 and they climbed to 6th. Baz was planning for next season when disaster struck – 4 defeats in a row and they were down!!! Henrique topped with 12 goals

16. Riverplate (last season 7th) – a very poor season for MikeT as Riverplate are relegated after 2 seasons and into Division 2 after 11 seasons. The only excuse Mike can use is that they drew to many too many with 12 – if three of these had been wins they would have survived. Thompson Usiyen topped with 6.

Division 2

Askham Bryan United are promoted after 7 seasons as Champions, Huntley Fairways are promoted and reach Division 1 for the first time since the Opal started, and Mann City are promoted after an absence of 1 season.

Belper Nailers are relegated after 3 seasons, Grand Union FC are relegated after 2 seasons and Braunstone Town are relegated after 2 seasons.

The three relegated teams finished 3rd, 4th and 6th.

The three promoted teams finished 5th, 6th and 13th.

Huntley Fairways were the top scorers in the Opal with 60.


1.Askham Bryan United (last season 4th) – it was a 7th season for SteveR in Division 2 and their last as they raced to promotion with 4 games to go. They topped the table for the last 11 weeks. They had one ‘iffy’ spell where they lost 3 in 4 games, but they then won 10 games on the trot to be worthy champions. Paul Dean was on phenomenal form with 21 goals and Adam Boyes weighed in with 10.

2. Huntley Fairways (last season 6th) – a 5th season for Carl in Division 2 and he gets them promoted to Division 1 for the first time in their history! They had an excellent start and were top for 5 weeks in the first 7 games. They struggled in the next 4 games, but Carl fired them up and they went 9 games without defeat: topping the league after 20 games. Three wins and three defeats left them 2nd with 3 games to go and a 6-point buffer. Carl didn’t let up and they won the last 3 games. Top scorer was Kaide Gordin again with 19 goals and Riley Sheahan helped with 12.

3. Mann City (last season relegated) – a quick return for Brian and they owe their success to a fantastic first half of the season with 31 points, topping the table for 7 weeks and a 5-point buffer over Askham in 4th place. The second half of the season was the complete opposite with just 2 wins in 13 games leaving them 3 points behind Norfolk going into the last game and would you believe it Norfolk lost and Mann city won to be promoted on goal difference. Clive Rogers topped the scoring with 11 goals.

4. Norfolk FC (last season relegated) – MikeT was looking for a quick return and almost made it. One point from the first 3 games was not ideal but Mike got them going with just 1 defeat in the next 11 games and up to 2nd. The 2nd half of the season was a disappointment as they drew far too many games but with 1 game to go they were in 3rd spot with a 3-point advantage over Mann City; surely, they would promote but they lost to Huntley and Mann City beat Belper to leave them losing out on goal difference. Otu Mohamed was the main man again with 14 goals.

5. Boscombe Athletic (last season promoted) – a first full season for Dave Legg and the pundits said that they could struggle in Division 2 after their promotion. Dave had other ideas and the team soon adopted fine defensive qualities that all his teams have and conceded only 24 goals -just Askham bettered this. The 2nd half of the season had a spell of 8 games without defeat and Boscombe may be a dark horse fir next season. Jose Torres-, Brad Abnderson and Roger Breward all scored 4.

6. Pendle Hill (last season promoted) – an excellent first season in Division 2 for Simon after their promotion. They didn’t suffer any bad spells and similarly no good spells so no problems about relegation and didn’t trouble the top teams. A top 6 finish was cemented with 7 points from the last 3 games. Leon Draisaitl topped with 7 goals.

7. La Donny Luz (last season 7th) – a 2nd season for CJ in Division 2 and a similar position. They were poor in the first 9 games and were just above the drop zone; they recovered and went 8 games without defeat and were up to 5th. Could CJ push on – I am afraid not as their form was very erratic. Dimitrios Popadopoulos was the main man with 11 goals.

8. Kesgrave Vespas (last season relegated) – Gary was looking for a quick return, and he can’t grumble too much about the team’s performance. They reached their peak after 19 games reaching 4th place and only 2 points behind 3rd place. Just 1 win in the next 8 and promotion was off the cards. Rasad Hasanov topped with 9 goals.

9. Par Athletic (last season 6th) – after SteveR just missed out on promotion last season there were high hopes from the supporters, but these soon disappeared with just 3 wins in the first half of the season and it looked more like a relegation battle. Steve steadied the boat as they went on a good run with just 1 defeat in 12 but it wasn’t to be. It was the same two strikers as last season with John Wright 8 and Steve French with 8.

10. Inter Knottla (last season 11th) – a 2nd season in Division 3 for Si and a similar position but it didn’t seem that way as they lost their first 6 and didn’t win until their 10th game! Si motivated the players and they reeled off 4 wins to move up to 12th at the halfway point. The second half of the season saw them pick up enough points to keep them out of the relegation battle thanks to Lliman Ndiaye with 11and Callum Moore with 10.

11. Belmont Buccaneers (last season 10th) – a 2nd season for Si and a similar finish thanks to their home form. Away they only won one and picked up just 11 points – at home it was a different story with 8 wins and 26 points. Goals were on short supply, but Neil Steiger hit 11 out of their 29.

12. Tadcaster Albion (last season 5th) – a 4th season for SteveR and they started as one of the favourites to go up but with only 2 wins in the first 17 games they were entrenched in the bottom three. They suddenly found a bit of last season’s form with 4 wins in a row to climb to 10th, but it didn’t continue and just 1 win in the last 9 they dropped to 12th. Eric Gunson topped the scoring with 6.

13. Tigre Town (last season promoted) – taken on by Rob near the end of the season and they managed safety just 1-point clear of Belper. Abu-Bekir El-Zein topped with 8 and Lucas Bergmann scored 7.

14. Belper Nailers (last season 8th) – a 3rd season for Paul (razor) and he will be very disappointed with team’s performance. Belper started with 3 losses and at the halfway point they were just above the drop zone; they dropped into the bottom three after 20 games and that is where they remained. Benjamin Sesko topped with 4 goals and Bobby Clarke also hit 4.

15. Grand Union FC (last season 12th) – taken on by Rob with only 2 points from the first 9 games and no chance of staying in Division 2. They showed a few glimpses of what they are capable with 3 wins on the bounce and a sound defence; it will be interesting to see how they fare in Division 3. Gareth Godshill and Baley Conway both scored 4. To be re-named AFC Kildare.

16. Braunstone Town (last season 13th) – taken on by DaveC and major rebuild in progress. Just 2 wins all season and 18 points. Only 17 goals scored with Tommy Hunter topping with 4.

Division 3

Fishburn Park are promoted as champions after 19 seasons, Helston Vets are promoted after 2 seasons and Whitwell Rangers are promoted are promoted after 1 season.

Fishburn Park won 15 of their 16 home games!!!!

Whitwell FC are T64 again.

The three relegated clubs finished 3rd, 8th and12th.


1. Fishburn Park (last season 6th) - a 19th season for Fishburn in Division 3 and after going close last season Steve R made no mistake this time as they were promoted as champions with 5 weeks to go. They topped the league at week 2 and remained there all season after winning their first 7 games. Incredibly they won 15 of their 16 home games and had a very mean defence in the Opal with just 22 conceded. Tony Stacpole was the main man again with 12.

2. Helston Vets (last season 7th) – a first full season for Chris Cook and he takes them up as runners up with 3 games to go. A very consistent season with only 3 draws and a great start to the season with 19 points from the first 7 games. Tarquin Arthur topped with 9.

3.Whitwell Rangers (last season relegated) – a quick return for CJ after last season’s surprise relegation. They owed their promotion to fantastic home form with just 2 defeats and 11 wins and the attacking prowess of Youssoufa Moukoko. He scored an amazing 26 goals to become the all-time scorer - the previous highest ever was 25 by D. Laing of Needham Cell Bk (now Chester Town) in Season 1.

4. Dinamo Parkside (last season 8th) – a 5th season in Division 2 for Dinamo and the returning Rob Page worked wonders with Dinamo and just missed out on promotion. Just 2 defeats in the first half of the season they were sitting 4th in a very strong Division 3 but they took the foot off the gas and picked up just 1 point in the next 4 games to drop to7th. Rob fired up his team, and they were unbeaten in the next 9 games to climb back to 4th and only 2 points behind Whitwell. Larry Goshford was the main mane with 11 goals.

5. AFC Whitwell (last season 14th) – a new manager in CJ and an excellent improvement on last season but it could have been better as they were sitting 4th and just 2 points adrift with 8 games to go. However, the nerves took over, and they lost 4 on the trot. Joleon Sancho topped with 9 goals.

6. Wigan Wildcats (last season 8th) – Dave (woody) started as one of the favourites for promotion but a mediocre first 12 games saw them down in 10th. Dave ran the ‘riot act’ with the players and it worked as they won 6 on the trot to move up to 4th and the supporters were starting to believe. However, like last season they imploded with just 1 win in the next 7 and it looked like being a mid-table finish until Wigan collected 16 points in the last 6 games and only missed out by 2 points and it was a case of what might have been again!! Franciso was their main man yet again with an impressive 17 goals.

7. Yellow and Black Army (last season 11th) – a 10th season in Division 3 and their best finish for Wayne in a while but it was a similar story to last season with an excellent first half of the season and sitting 2nd with 30 points. In the 2nd half of the season their away form was excellent, but they failed to win at home and slowly drifted down to 7th. Goals were not a problem and the same three as last season all chipped in with goals - Guiseppe De Luca with 10, Garth Bader with 10 and Stuart Waldman with 8.

8. South Ruislip (last season 11th) - a 12th season for South Ruislip in Division 3 and an improvement for Richard in his second season. They had a good start to the season and were 3rd after 6 games but they could not maintain that form and were slipping down the table until an unbeaten finish of 6 games saw a mid-table finish. Mark Ring topped again with 11 and was their best player.

9. Chapel North (last season relegated) – Mid table finish for DaveC and he will be relatively pleased, especially at home where they had just 1 defeat. Goals proved difficult to find this season and Jed Pickworth only managed 4 goals; two seasons ago he won the Golden Boot. Ray Stafford topped with 6.

10. Pilgrims F.C (last season 6th) – a 6th season for Wayne and he drops down the table compared to last season. They hovered around mid-table all season and their best run was 8 games unbeaten. Terrance Brassington excelled again with 9, Luther Munakandafa and Vivian Heathfield both hit 8.

11. Jammy Dodgers (last season 9th) – taken on by Rob at the end of the season and will be re-named Arun Athletico. They were up in 6th position after 8 games but could not maintain the form and they slipped down to 11th. Scott Thompson topped again with a good return of 8 goals.

12. Molesley Shoals (last season relegated) - taken on by Rob at the end of the season. Their away form was much better than at home with 17 points compared to only 14 at home. Top scorer was Zoltan Gera with 4 again.

13. King Street Albion (last season 10th) – part of Dave C's portfolio and still plenty to do. Mitchell Covell topped again – this time with 5 goals.

14. Parkvale United (last season 15th) – a similar finish for DaveC as last season and rebuilding still in progress. After winning their first 2 away games they lost 10 of the next 11 away games. Bojan Miovski and Tommy Tracey topped with 4.

15. Mearns City (last season 13th) - DaveC in control and still an uphill struggle especially away where they only picked up 2 points. Duncan McKenzie topped with 6 goals.

16. Whitewell Town (last season 16th) – after 10 seasons as T64 they have a new manager in Dave Curtis

All teams are managed so it looks like another competitive season to come.

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