The Pre-Match Preamble – Gameweek 36

I’ve been shocked by the impact of the last few Gameweeks.

This period of the season, notable for the Double Gameweeks and blanks, has always troubled me. While I acknowledge that they bring the Fantasy Football season and communities to life, I’m also wary of the advantage that they present to myself and other managers who study and plan around them.

When the Triple Captain and Bench Boost chips were added to our armoury, those concerns were magnified further. Now it appears that the Free Hit has sharpened those weapons.

Quite frankly, I don’t feel that I deserve to be ranked just outside the top five thousand managers. It feels far too kind.

I set myself high standards and this season has felt like a disappointment. Memorable Gameweeks have been rare and, in the main, it feels like I’ve been treading water.

Looking back, while I avoided the pitfalls of #Kaneixt and benefited from that rather cruel twist, the Spurs striker has still done for me.

My unshakable faith in Kane’s ability to explode points and outscore Salah as a captain – particularly over a run of three double-digit scores for the Egyptian from Gameweek 26 – should have inflicted irreparable damage.

I felt it had. It seemed that a rank of around 30k was now the only realistic target, with any hope of edging into the top 10k abandoned.

But I’d played down how this period of the season can transform matters.

Three of my top four weekly scores have this season have arrived in the last four Gameweeks. The Double Gameweeks, blanks and chips have changed everything.

I’ll take some credit; there were some decent transfers and my solid preparation for Gameweek 31, allowing me to reserve the Free Hit for last weekend, was perhaps a turning point.

But may gains over these last few weeks are still surprising, with my current position feeling almost unjust as a summary of my season.

Before the chips were introduced, we would surely define a top 10k finish as an outstanding campaign. But with them, I’m wondering if we should be aiming higher.

In some of my mini-leagues, it’s a different story. Up against managers with great experience and pedigree, my rank shrinks back to mediocrity.

There are many proven FPL managers placed above me – Jay Eggersdorf, Jack Wain, Mark McGettigan (aka FPL General) – to name just three – who have, once again, experienced fantastic campaigns, pushing up into the top 1000 and beyond.

This is no accident. There is now a structure and formula used to build a strong FPL season and these guys have it cracked.

An early Wildcard and a consistent selection of the optimum captain can hopefully achieve a 10k rank by Gameweek 30. After that, the fixtures and chips can take over and help push on towards a three-digit finish.

Of course, it’s not that simple, and the achievement should still be applauded. However, I wonder if, like me, experienced FPL managers are now redefining their view of a “good” and “bad” season.

I’d be more shocked if any of that aforementioned trio of managers ever slipped to a finish outside the 100k, than if any of them won the FPL crown. Was that the case a few seasons back?

It feels like something has changed.

It seems that there is now a proven strategy for the final set of Gameweeks; it works and works well for those willing to invest time and effort.

I can’t deny that it’s been fun, but now we almost need a new ingredient to shake things up.

A Premier League winter break might do that. Early season chips would certainly change the landscape.

Something needs to disrupt the pattern of a Fantasy Premier League season before we all start getting a little too comfortable.