All hail Stephen Fox (not pictured above) and his band of merry men, Makin Up D Numbers*, the winners of the inaugural Fantasy Football Champion J-League on JOE.ie.
Fantasy Football (in association with Champion)
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In our last Fantasy Insider, we had a feeling that the final day would be something of an unknown quantity and so it proved on what was a surreal survival Sunday.
It was so much of an unknown quantity in fact, that West Brom’s Somen Tchoyi, selected by a grand total of 0.0 per cent of managers, ended up as top scorer of the week thanks to a hat-trick against Newcastle that doubled the amount of goals he had previously scored this season.
The 20 points accumulated by Tchoyi were followed by 15 points from Man City’s Klingon-like defender Joleon Lescott, while other surprise packages included Manchester United’s Anderson (12 points) and likeable Dutchman Boudewijn Zenden, who marked what is probably his last appearance for Sunderland with a goal, an assist and 13 fantasy points.
Whatever you do, don’t ask him to dance
Zenden’s team mates Simon Mignolet and Ahmed Elmohamady also featured on the dream team with nine points apiece, while Jason Roberts, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Bobby Zamora and Ji-Sung Park all impressed with 12 points each.
The Champion J-League
Forget about all the Premier League stars though; this week’s article is all about Stephen Fox, the winner of the inaugural Champion J-League on JOE.ie. Stephen’s selection, Makin Up D Numbers*, did far more than their moniker would suggest and usurped Hal’s Allstars – who led the league from October until April – with only two weeks to go.
Champion J-League Final 5:
1. Makin Up D Numbers* – Stephen Fox: 2193 points
2. Hals Allstars – Shane Halligan: 2123 points
3. UpDown FC – Keith Donnelly: 2115 points
4. Team of Gary Breens – John Murphy: 2100 points
5. Newton Heath – Tom Dowling: 2098 points
Stephen’s side finished with a grand total of 2193 points and was ranked 1001st out of nearly two and a half million managers in the competition overall. We caught up with Arsenal fan Stephen for a brief chat about his success, which will earn him and three of his friends tickets to a Premier League match of his choice next season.
“It was all down to the captain, really,” he told us.
“I’d often go without sleep on a Friday night thinking about the changes made and couldn’t resist making a few little adjustments just before the deadline on Saturday mornings.
“Of course, I followed all the tips on JOE’s Fantasy Football Insider every week and I think that’s what made the difference in the end.” (We didn’t tell him to say that. Honest.)
Special mention must also go out to the rest of the top five who pushed Stephen all the way, so take a bow Shane Halligan, Keith Donnelly, John Murphy and Tom Dowling. The monthly winner for May meanwhile, Dermot Groarke, will receive a Premier League replica jersey of his choice for the second time this season.
All in all, the league has been a resounding success, with over 130 teams taking part in a league that ranked 499th out of nearly 224,000 in total.
JOE’s Journeymen finished in a respectable 22nd place overall, despite dubious tactics, constant in-fighting and numerous changes of management, prompting the board to decide that individual JOE writers will have to fend themselves for next season, as the unilateral approach simply doesn’t work.
So, that’s all for this season and as Vinnie Jones might say, it’s been emotional. The Champion J-League will be back a few weeks before the start of the next season, so make sure to stay tuned to the website and our Facebook and Twitter pages for more details. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the summer!
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