General game play rules are described here.
Firstly to register for the new season all competitors will need to complete an entry form. Once this is received you will be assigned to the 23/24 season and as soon as the season is live you can begin selecting your team.
1 How do you pick your team?
1.1 You are allocated £55 million to spend (no change from last season).
1.2 Your team must consist of:
i Exactly 4 different teams for your defences - these should be selected from the list provided of Premier League, Championship, League 1, League 2 and National League clubs. See List of Teams. The prices will range from £2.5m to £9m each.
ii A squad of exactly 14 Strikers/Midfielders- these 14 should be picked from the list provided of Premier League, Championship, League 1 and 2 and National League players. See List of Players. The prices will range from £1m to £7m.
iii There are no restrictions on who you can purchase other than your maximum spend. To assist your calculations you have around £3m on average for each purchase (£55m divided by 18 selections).
2 Initial Selection
i Any team/player can be picked as many times as required at the initial selection (i.e. there is no sell out at this point)
ii The limit will then be set dependant on the number of entries. No more than 20% of competitors can have a particular player/team after this i.e. 25 to 29 - 5 times, 30 to 34 - 6 times, 35 to 39 - 7 times, 40 to 44 - 8 times etc.
iii If we have 40 entries for example once all teams are in, any player/club selected 8 times or more are sold out. They would only become available if this drops to 7 or less. The list of players/teams will indicate those sold out.
iv The website will validate your initial selection and ensure you do not break any rules e.g. total overspend, duplicate selections, exactly 4 teams and 14 players etc. If any rules are not met the site will provide an error and explain the reason why. For a detailed explanation of how to select your team see the Site Navigation page.
v Your team will not be seen by anyone (including all committee members) until the entries all go live onto the system. Therefore you can save a 'draft' team from Sun 9th July 2023 and come back to it later as many times as you like to tinker with it (see vi below). The initial `draft' team will have to be a complete team (you cannot do an initial save with less than 4 teams (2 picks) and 14 players (7 picks) initially). Make sure each player has a separate pick number. The administrator will only be able to see who has entered (saved) a team and when it was saved for the purposes of sending reminders to possible participants.
vi See Site Navigation page for step by step details on how to select your initial team.
vii Once the deadline is reached your team is then live and any changes will require a transfer. It is up to you to ensure none of your team are injured.
viii Please note only entries completed via the Manage, Selections and Picks section on the website will be accepted).
3 Weekly Team Pick
i Those not picked (selected in positions 8 to 14) will be initially placed on the subs bench until you amend that. They will count towards your sub squad team result which provide up to two bonus points each week
ii Each week you have the option by the deadline set in the diary (which will be 5 mins before the first match of the weekend) of choosing your 7 players to play for you that week, with the other 7 taking no part (i.e. if any of them score it will not count in the main league except bonus points). This will enable you to 'rest' those suspended, with a short term injury, out of form or dropped/rotated from their team. You should choose 2 of your 4 defences to play for you each week. It is vital you save changes otherwise it will not register on the website. If you try to save an invalid team the website will provide an error explaining why it has not been accepted.
iii If you do not change your team from one week to the next the 7 strikers and 2 defences selected from last week will play again for you.
iv You will order your players - those selected 1 to 7 will play, player in position 8 will automatically play if for some reason a team does not play with one of your players in position 1 to 7 and so on (this also applies to the 3rd defence if one the 2 defences do not play). If two defences do not play the 4th defence will be selected for you. If 3 defences do not play you will lose 1 goal etc. This will help during the winter months when matches are called off at short notice. This does NOT apply if a player in your 7 is not selected for their team only if their team does not play.
v You can amend your team picks as many times as you like each week up to the deadline set. A team selection log will be available so you can check yours and any other changes made that week.
vi If you make your team picks after the weekly deadline the website will add the changes for next weekend (for example the deadline for week 20 is Saturday 11am, you enter changes Saturday 1.30pm but it will add the changes for week 21). Therefore you should keep a close eye on the deadline each week. It will change based on the timing of the first game of that set of fixtures. Make sure you know which week you are selecting your team for. We will add the deadline and the details of the first match to the front page of the website to make it clear.
vii Weekly deadlines (for picks and transfers) may be changed at short notice depending on fixture changes/postponements to give you the maximum length of time to make your weekly selections. Details of possible changes will be shown either as a news item or prominently on the front page of the site. This could include the first game of the weekend moving back to Thursday (a game moved back from the forthcoming weekend). As much notice as possible will be given. The week will NOT start any earlier than Thursday evening. It's the individuals responsibility to keep track of postponements involving either the deadline match or players within their squads.
viii As games are allocated to a month at the start of the season based on Friday dates it may occur occasionally that the Friday date falls on the last day of the month but games do not start until the Saturday (the following month) but will count for the previous month. For example Friday is a date at the end of one month and games commence for the week on Sat (a date at the start of the next month) they count for first month.
4 Transfers
i You can change/transfer your defences or strikers a maximum of 25 times
ii Transfers are on a first come first served basis via the Manage, Selections and Picks screen on the website. These will be validated immediately for accuracy by the website. They will immediately appear on the transfer log in chronological order. Your team will be updated instantly.
iii An exclusivity rule exists. It works in two ways:
iiia Any player or club not 'currently' purchased by anyone (they could have been owned at some point in the past) bought by you will gain exclusivity for 21 days. This means nobody else can buy them until the exclusivity period is up (this will be shown on the player/club list). This enables you to spot a bargain in form player/club and keep them solely in your team to stop anyone else jumping on the bandwagon.
iiib Any player added to the list as a 'new' player also has an new exclusivity period of 5 days from the time they are added to the list. You cannot purchase the said player until this period is up (again shown on the player list). This gives competitors the chance to see a new player has been added. Current exclusivity does not apply to new players added to the list until a set period of time is up after the player has been added to the list (again this set period will be shown in the player list). Exclusivity is about spotting bargains not to be the fastest finger first!!
iv The transfer window is the same as the weekly picks deadline and will apply as 5 minutes prior to the kick off time of the 1st game of that set of fixtures. For all other weeks such as counting Midweek/Xmas individual deadlines will be set when the fixtures are known. All deadlines will be available within the Diary. The teams will be accessible on the site at all times. The Active Teams list is available for you to check all teams and may be printed out for use over the weekend. This will kept up-to-date automatically after any transfers/picks.
v Please ensure all transfers are correct before entering on the site as these cannot be changed without the use of further transfers to rectify the mistake. If you feel a system error has occurred with your transfers contact us and we can rectify it.
vi If you make your transfer after the weekly deadline the website will add the changes for next weekend (i.e the deadline for week 20 for example is Saturday 11am, you enter changes Saturday 1.30pm and it will add the changes for week 21).
5 New Year Sale
i On Jan 1st there will be a half price sale (any player/team that does not divide exactly by two will be round up e.g £1.5m to £0.8m).
ii All players/teams not selected at this point will have their price reduced. It will allow you to pick up a bargain. Following the sale some players will go under £1m.
iii Transfers will be accepted right up until 10am New Years Day at full price then the sale prices will be instantly set.
6 Scoring
i Scoring works as follows, if one of your 7 picked strikers scores 2 goals and another striker 1 goal in the selected period (usually Fri to Mon) your team scores 3 goals. One 'club (defence)' concedes 1 goal and your other `club (defence)' 0, your team concedes 1 goal. Therefore, you win 3-1 (gaining 3pts). Any of your 7 strikers (scoring), those positioned 8 to 14 in your list or 2 clubs (conceding) positioned 3 and 4 in your list, not picked will only count as a bonus points (2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw).
ii If your defensive clubs do not play you concede 1 goal (per team). Your other club not selected will automatically be selected first before this happens.
iii Please note all scores/scorers will be taken from Sky Sports. This will be taken from the results summary scorers NOT the report that is attached to this. The scorer listed will identified through the Press Association. Any disputes go to the committee, the committee will examine the goal footage (if it is available) and will decide whether to overrule the official goalscorer. Any claim must be received by 10pm of the Monday evening. Any goals removed identified by the official dubious goal panel will NOT retrospectively be removed from previous weeks.
iv Only matches played on a Friday to Monday count unless stated in the list of fixtures (except Christmas when there will be 2 games over that period). Part matches will count (1 team playing the other already played). Midweek games only count if all 4 divisions have fixtures scheduled. Some weeks the week commences with fixtures on a Thursday evening.
v Any League, FA Cup and League Cup/EFL Trophy games falling within the period count. Extra time in cup games does not count. Any other football competition is excluded. Any game moved from one active week to another will count towards the period the game is played in.
vi Any week where a team has no fixture (either postponed or no game) then any game played after that and before the next set of fixtures will NOT count towards the previous weekend/set of games. For example a team has no match in the Friday to Monday period but a match on the Tuesday evening. You are expected to utilise your squad by placing your subs in order of preference.
vii If any team has more than one fixture during the period of one set of fixtures then the first match will count. For eg a normal weekend (Fri to Mon) a team plays on Saturday and then again on Monday, the Saturday game will be the one that counts.
viii Abandoned games count as if the match was completed. (i.e. the match is abandoned due to a waterlogged pitch after 60 mins at 2-1, the score and scorers will count).
ix It is the responsibility of each individual to check their scores and notify the organisers in the usual way if they suspect there is an error. Corrections will be made if necessary to points retrospectively but if it affects changes in prizes once payment is made then this cannot be rectified. Hence it is recommended you check your scores each weekend.
7 Points
Awarded as follows:
i 3 points for a win (your 7 picked strikers score more goals in total than your 2 teams concede)
ii 1 point for a draw (your 7 picked strikers score the same number of goals as your 2 teams concede)
iii 0 points for a defeat (your 7 picked strikers score less goals than your 2 teams concede)
iv 1 bonus point awarded every time your 7 picked strikers score at least 4 goals more than your defences concede in a weekend (or relevant period). For eg (4-0, 5-0, 6-0, 5-1, 6-2 etc)
v 1 bonus point every time your two picked clubs both keep a clean sheet (both in the same weekend) including if you draw 0-0.
vi Deduction of 1 point if your two picked clubs concedes at least 4 goals more than your 7 picked strikers score in a weekend. For eg (0-4, 0-5, 0-6 1-5, 2-6 etc).
vii If your sub squad (players 8 to 14 against defences 3 and 4) wins you will gain 2 point bonus to be added to the monthly and overall table, a draw you will score 1 bonus point. The maximum points in a week is 7pts.
viii Positions in the league are determined first by points, then goal difference, then goals scored. Maximum points in a week is 7 (for eg 4-0, 5-0, 6-0). It would be 3pts for the win, 1pt for the double clean sheet and 1pt for at least +4 goal difference and 2 bonus points because your sub squad also won.
viii Results (with the weekly report)/League tables will be updated and checked by Paul Keech logged on the website at the earliest opportunity (usually Monday evening).
8 Prizes
i There will be a monthly prize for those finishing 1st and 2nd in the monthly tables for merged months top 2 (where possible) for the rest. The list of prizes will be available for your perusal on the website before the start of the season. These would only change if someone drops out or does not pay up by the deadline set. It is intended that you win at least your money back if you win the top monthly. Prizes can be paid after the month has completed on request otherwise all payments will be despatched at the end of the season.
ii No monthly prize will awarded for less than 4 weeks games. If a month has 3 weeks or less it will be merged. This generally happens in Aug/Sept, Oct/Nov and Apr/May.
iii At the end of the season, prizes will go to a maximum of the top 25% players in the overall league (eg 40 players. top 10 may win). The amount again depends on the number of entries and therefore the total pot of money available.
9 Entrants
i You now have 2 options, a) Pay £30 (or £25 if you are a newcomer/returner) b) No entry fee but you will be excluded from any monetary prizes. Monies paid/owed will be shown on the website (you will need to login first).
ii Payment will be accepted by Cash, PAYPAL (see How to Pay) or Bank Transfer.
iii You can pay it all up front or pay over 2 months. £15 deposit is required by the end of Sept. Final payment by the end of Oct. Any monies outstanding by 31st October and the committee have the right to remove you from the competition (no monies will be refunded).
iv £3 per entry will be deducted for website administration costs.
v The season will run from the first full week of fixtures (Premier League, Championship, League 1, 2 and National League - `11th-14th August 2022') and will complete on the final full week of fixtures (last week in Apr 24). All weekends will count (except for International weekends). Any full set of fixtures midweek will also count. Dates may be changed subject to games on Sky TV. Weeks to count to be shown within the diary on the website. Weekly deadlines may be changed at short notice based on the first scheduled game of the weekly period.
vi All entries must have a team name via the entry form.
vii All contact details must be provided on the entry form (address and telephone numbers).
viii All entries must be received for the initial deadline by 7.45pm, `Thu 10th August 2022'. No late entries will be accepted after week 1 has commenced.
10 Website
i If the website is unavailable due to unforeseen technical issues and squad changes/transfers cannot be made then that is just unfortunate. You are therefore advised to make to make your transfers/squad changes in good time and not leave it until the last minute before the deadline.
ii Reasonable notice (7 days minimum) will be given of any downtime for upgrades.
iii For weekly deadlines, the current exact date/times given by the website are final (not your watch or computer).
11 Facebook
If you would like to join the Facebook or WhatsApp Group please contact us.
12 Adjudication of Rules
i Any rule queries/grievances/discrepancies will be adjudicated by the committee (Paul Keech, Chris Gerrard, Paul Gerrard, Andrew Highton and Graham Highton). Their decision is final. The committee have the right to amend rules during the season if an issue is raised to warrant it.