by Rik E Boy » Thu Jun 12, 2014 9:19 pm
Round 11 Preview
Squeakeroos DTC vs. Captain Who?
A few weeks ago I would have pencilled Squeaky in for a comfortable win but during the last two matches there are signs that Captain Who might be ready to awaken. Squeaky hasn't moved all that quickly on the cash cows which suggests to me that he has been conserving trades so if he wants to rejoin the top eight the time to strike will be soon for sure. The Captain has Hawkers galore and you'd expect them to do well against the Blues but he has to move on Watson and he's still carrying Tom Mitchell who has copped a second injury. I reckon the Captain looks more willing to trade this season and for that reason I'm selecting him to get up. My tip - Captain Who?
Richo Richo Man vs. REBCats
In recent weeks I've gone from being happy with how my campaign is going to quite the opposite. After cleaning up the Underdogs and Darksiders I thought here we go, some easy games at last. However, I didn't manage to win either of them and now I am up against Richo Richo who has an excellent record against the REBCats. I'm tipping that CoverKing will once again clean me up with the Cats so far being unable to rack up 2300 this season. We'll come good at some stage, but when? Probably not this week. My tip - Richo Richo Man.
Q Before You vs. Spuds
The Q Man was stopped in his tracks last week but they would have flogged the Spuds had they played each other. However I believe that the Spuds can pinch this one. This game will be a very close call indeed with both teams sharing a very similar structure in terms of keepers. The one area where I believe Spuds has a slight advantage and that is in the Def 6 position. While the Spuds lived up to their name a bit last week, I believe as a team they have the higher ceiling and I'm tipping them to win by under 30! My tip - Spuds.
The Ginger Ninjas vs. cyrilanddayleshow
Just like the REBCats, The Ginger Ninjas have a few holes to fill and like many other teams Ginge has a Watson sized problem in the midfield. Ginge jumped on Tex Walker and his failure to fire really impacted his scoring potential. Seeing as Tex isn't playing Freo expect a bigger score from Tex and Ginge. Over the park cyril appears to have the better personnel. He has outscored the Ninjas most weeks and I expect him to do so again this week. My tip - cyrilanddayleshow.
Buddy Franklin vs. Cork in the Ocean MATCH OF THE ROUND
This is possibly the match of the season between two very strong sides. Buddy has lost one match in the last nine rounds and Corky has only lost one match for the entire season. Both of these lineups are chock a block full of talent, particularly in the Backline. Corky has the luxury of playing off in the match of the round without really needing to improve his squad but Buddy needs to make some repairs with Watson and McIntosh not suiting up this week. Buddy has some impressive PODS in Ward and Hannebury but Steve Johnson for Corky wil be returning to Cat Park and overdue for a score. It wouldn't be the worst move for Buddy to get Dog in but perhaps another brilliant POD selection will be on the way. If Buddy can get the job done with two holes in his team then he could be considered the premiership favourite but right now Corky looks more settled. My tip - Cork in the Ocean in an absolute cracker!
Hawkeye vs. Poon Army
The Poon has done it tough in recent weeks with the draw not doing him any favours but now Troy faces two vital matches against fellow stragglers Hawkeye this week and Ginger Ninjas the next. Of those two games this week is the most important one for Poon because if Woggy gets up here then Hammo will most likely fall into the relegation zone. Hawkeye has so many dud players I'm still shaking my head over dropping that game and I expect Poon to pounce where the Cats simply snoozed. My tip - Poon Army.
Has Been vs. Underdogs
There probably isn't room for both of these teams in the top four so whoever loses this one is likely to miss out on the double chance. Has Been are currently sitting in fourth and normally a match against a sixth ranked opponent would go close to match of the round status. Gibbo might be forced to play some players who aren't performing that well (Damm you Enright!!) and they could be forced to play Tom Dericxxxxx seeing as Watson needs to be replaced in the Underdogs midfield. At this stage of the season I'm leaning towards the more settled sides and at the moment that side is Has Been. My tip - Has Been.
Longwood Lions vs. Darksiders SCE
Hondo has written above that Longwood Lions are a dangerous side due to the potential of some of his PODs. While the PODs are indeed impressive the danger would come if Alaska wasn't a week or two behind the other HPL sides in terms of development. The Lions are starting to really get it together now but the fact remains that Backline just isn't good enough. Darksiders is a team that plays the percentages better than no other coach and has done so for years. You can count on flaky performances from many HPL sides but not the Darkside. The Lions will show some fighting spirit but come up short and rack up their tenth loss for the season. My tip - Darksiders SCE.
MILLER MOSQUITOES vs. Hondo SCC
Despite a recent upswing in scoring in recent rounds, MILLERS have lost that winning feeling. One of the most difficult teams to get that feeling back against has to be this week's opponent, second ranked Hondo SCC. Unlike most Hogg squads, MILLERS appears to be at least one player short on every line which means he is arranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic. Hondo is a bit better than your average HPL side and there is only really one player in the whole squad who looks like he should be moved on. Hondo also has Watson but you can rely on him to select a dependable replacement and stay at least one step ahead of the MOZZIES all weekend long. My tip - Hondo SCC.
regards,
REB