Interview – Chris Pearce – Sky Sports Runner Up

We continue our summer interviews by grabbing some time with Chris Pearce, who topped our Sky Sports Scout League.

Chris emerged victorious with a comfortable 35 point ahead of closest rival Paul McAnulty in our League, enabling him to clinch a total of £5,500 in winnings from the overall standings. Sadly, however, it was not enough to claim the Sky Sports crown, despite a valiant effort in the final few weeks. Even so, this was an outstanding debut season in the game for a seasoned Fantasy Premier League campaigner.

Where were you on the final day and can you take us through your emotions?
Unlike Matt Martyniak, the FPL winner, the final day was nothing glamorous or altruistic like a pilgrimage in Bosnia. I was pretty laid back on the final day, 30 points behind first overall with little chance of making up the difference and conversely 30 points ahead of third. So baring any outrageous performances from any differentials or captain choices the top three overall were likely to remain as is. I waited until the Demi-god had spoken, selected my captain Bale (I thought that the leader was likely to go RvP) and started preparing the Sunday Roast!

I had timed proceedings so that I could stay in the kitchen from shortly before kick-off aiming to have dinner on the table after the matches had finished; that way being able to focus on the football in quiet solitude whilst earning a few “brownie-points” into the bargain! The way the games went, there were no outstanding performances from any of the main protagonists (it was doubtful that anyone had Lukaku or Nolan for example), therefore I was pretty sure I was going to end in second place overall.

How did you feel during the run in when in mid May the gap between you and first place overall widened from just three points to 30?
In the international break at the end of March I was 85 points behind the leader but I still had 8 or 9 transfers left, so I decided to go for broke. There were some double gameweeks coming up and over the next few weeks I jettisoned the likes of Cazorla, Walcott, Michu, RvP and Suarez in favour of, shall we say, less popular choices such as Hazard, Oscar, Arteta, Lambert and Berbatov. While this worked in the short-term and yes, I closed the gap during the penultimate week to 3 points, I always knew there was a risk that I could get burnt by one or more of them. And so, when Wigan pitched up at the Emirates still hung-over from their FA Cup success it was pretty inevitable (but no less gutting) that Santi Cazorla ran riot with four assists and for good measure Walcott also scored.

You win £5,000 for coming second overall, plus a £500 share of £2,500 for helping to ensure the Fantasy Football Scout league topped the Sky Sport league of leagues. What do you plan to spend the money on?
The money will be spent on multiple gifts and holidays for my new wife for accepting my love of Fantasy Football, which I had to admit to her on our wedding day, which was on 27^th April 2013 at 12pm, 45 minutes before Man City kick off against West Ham.

One my wedding day I really wanted to bring in Yaya Toure, but at 11:45am I was due to see the registrar to go through the pre-wedding formalities, which coincidently is Demi-time. I was therefore in a quandary; do I confess my Fantasy Football addiction to my wife-to-be hoping she’ll understand and give me the requisite five minutes to check the teams and make the necessary transfer or do I keep quiet and hide in the toilet to make the changes, blaming pre-wedding nerves? Not wanting to start married life amidst a web of deceit, I chose the former and fortunately (once I told her of the prize money involved) she was very understanding. She has also promised to allow me to keep £12.50 back to renew my Fantasy Football Scout members subscription.

What were your key players this season? Did you keep any players from your first gameweek team right the way through?
With transfers a premium and no save points, I thought that a decent keeper was important, so Hart was in from the start. I think he was the only one I had right through, though I transferred in Pablo Zabaleta and Glen Johnson in early as well. The scoring profile means that defenders fair less well in the Sky game – as an example, the leading defender was Baines who scored 154 points and 11 midfielders & 10 forwards scored more than this. So, having some decent defenders who consistently play & accumulate points enable you to focus the majority of your transfers on attacking players.

I had the usual suspects at various points during the season Cazorla, Bale, Michu, Mata, RvP & Suarez all did well for me. But some more unheralded players like the aforementioned Arteta, Gerrard and Carrick also scored well.

What was your captain strategy?
There was no great science to this, mostly defaulting to RvP when I had him, unless there was another outstanding option. Bale in the last week was a slight variation, but overall pretty safe picks all season.

What are you favourite aspects of the Sky game (perhaps bonus points for defensive midfield duties) and what would you change (for example its limit on transfers)?

I really like the fact that bonus points are awarded for completing 60 passes or making four tackles. This brings unfashionable defensive midfield players like Arteta, Carrick, Schneiderlin and Lucas Leiva into play. I also prefer the man of the match rule, where the Sky reporters award the five points, rather than the Fantasy Premier League bonus system, which seems to reward players twice (i.e. if you score in a 1-0 you inevitably get the maximum three bonus points). The man of the match brings other players into the game as it is based on general play. I remember Sebastian Bassong getting a man of the match award when Norwich drew 2-2 at home to Swansea in April. He conceded twice, didn’t score or assist, yet he was immense that day. I looked at the Opta stats later and he was ranked something like 14^th of the 22 starters.

Personally, I enjoy the limit on transfers as it makes the game more strategic. A wasted transfer in FPL costs 4 points, in Sky Sports it might mean having an injured Hazard in your team and not being able to get Cazorla in for the penultimate game. I also like the rolling gameweek, whereby you can make transfers at any time ahead of the next game and still score points i.e. there is no Saturday 11:30am deadline. This means that the timing of transfers is important and you are able to maximise the number of matches you can get out of players.

In my opinion the assist rule is also better, being based on key contribution rather the sometimes spurious FPL “last one to cross into the box, irrespective of how many defensive clearances etc. get the 3 points”!!!

What would I change?
Unsurprisingly, not a lot really…it’s a pretty simple game and that’s what makes it so attractive, so no need to make unnecessary changes.

How many years have you been playing the Sky Sports game and how have you done in previous years?
This was my first year playing the game and only did so thanks to Fantasy Football Scout promoting it.

Sky Sports players can hide their line-ups. How much of a key factor was it for you not being able to see the overall leader’s team, and by turn your rivals not being able to see your team?

Being able to see your opponents team is important and can lead to changes in your strategy, but to be honest up until the last couple of weeks I was still looking behind me rather than in front and just trying to maximise my personal points tally. You do get a feel for who your opponents have in their team, but there are far less template teams than in the Fantasy Premier League game.

With a rank of 11^th in our Fantasy Premier League hall of fame, with two top 1,000 finishes and four more finishes in the top 10,000 under your belt, its clear that you enjoy and excel at a range of Fantasy football games. Which is your favourite game and why?

At the moment my favourite game for obvious reasons is Sky Sports. Because of the transfer limit, it is far less time-consuming (I went six weeks last Autumn without making a transfer) and in many ways it is where FPL was three to four years ago, which has a certain charm about it (e.g. the bonus being based on a reporter’s view rather than Opta Stats, as well as the assist rule). I also think the standard of player is far better in FPL which means that the chances of doing well in Sky Sports are greater. This was my first year playing and I made some rookie mistakes (like not changing my captain) and yet still did well, therefore if more of the community get involved in Sky Sports I have no doubt that next year the leader of the Fantasy Football Scout league will also win overall.

Anything else to add?
I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank sincerely Fantasy Football Scout for the fantastic job it has done over the last few years. I know I’m not alone in really appreciating it’s on-going efforts and the continued innovation to improve the site. I’d also like to thanks the community for all their input, wisdom & banter.