Eek, top of page.

This one won't get hulked ☺

Many agree, although tbf I’ve never listened to one 🙂

They are all up and down. WGTA used to be good but the last one is atrocious. So much bollocks about ownership, one guy literally saying getting Walcott in is a "no brainer". Lol@"experts"

Mark was always going to be a huge miss. However the viewing figures are still good and in the tens of thousands.

If only they had a consensus-smashing, template-eating guest from the community on ..... 😉

Agree, i enjoy listening to always cheating;
They remind me what ffs used to be. Don't like wgta personally.

Yeh mark and granny had a great thing going, all the digs and slags and stuff. It’s too nice now.

i still enjoy it. i actually wish they were longer ...

Fully agree, last year I enjoyed watching the banter and differences of opinion. This year everyone agrees with each other and it’s all a bit to nice for my liking

I still enjoy it. I feel it provides a nice straight laced contrast to the foul mouthed chaos of FML FPL (which is a great listen imo). Always cheating is also good as some have mentioned.

Listen to all of them. Always cheating for me is the most entertaining.

Now that Trigger “Danny Dyer” Lips has entered the pod-game the other pretenders might as well pack us their microphones and go home.

Podcasting is about to be solved.

https://soundcloud.com/nick-cummings-985074166/testing-the-water?utm_source=soundcloud&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=twitter

I not watched for a long time so can't comment on it as it is now . It was better when it was just 2 or 3 of them in general . Too many characters on there and not enough expertise for me, but being one of the old skool players who doesn't like change , I guess this plays a part in my thinking

To be honest I enjoy the scoutcast and have done the 3 years I’ve been watching. I think Joe is a great host.

Must admit I do prefer Andys Let’s Talk FPL the most but the scoutcast is a close second for me.

Nailed it

So true Granville and mark need to become mainstays

It’s dullard asf without them.

Az is great though

Agree not as good without Mark, also Az needs to be on it every week

Agreed. Mark is a huge miss and would like to see Andy and Az stay as regulars rather than so many random guests. Jonty is quality but miss the old format, even the long ones.

I thought David handled the controversy over his season history ranks well the week before last. He's looking more comfortable with each episode.

I rarely ever listen to them. Go on too long for me and I lose the stream as soon as I ho to a different tab or try and post here.

few points here to add

1. Everyone needs time to grow into any role
2. You are looking at through rose tinted glasses
3. It's just 4 regular guys chatting about fantasy football what do you expect?

Give them a chance and tell them what they do well

I agree.
What made the scoutcast unique was that it was a very familiar crew who had a very nice balance between casual talking and banter. Not everyone was present each week, but it is understandable that people miss the odd one. You could look forward to the reactions on the next scoutcast based on what happened each gameweek. You got to know them.

Mark was the caring host who wouldn't stop worrying,
Granville the inspector and differential,
Jonty the stats & community guy,
Az the wildcard with high highs and low lows,
Luke the daring and unpredictable,
Andy the stubborn yet humble man utd fan.

Each brought something to the table, and together they formed a great bunch. You never quite knew what was coming, yet you still could expect a certain mood based on who took part and who didn't. This season, without the conversations, banter and dialogue it is a totally different (and lacklustre) experience.

It lacks personality at the moment. Last one with Az was good but this was a little stale. For a start with Mark presenting it would have had Mark enthusiastically waxing lyrical with the general about his FPL record for 15 mins, which would have been good. Maybe could have got some gems of advice too. The scoutcast is too short now, mainly because its too rigid, there's not the space to breathe and go off on entertaining tangents any more.

They suck up to eachother way too much. Lost its identity. Mark and Granville used to tear eachother apart

Perhaps they could occasionally talk about other managers' teams instead of just their own - e.g. Mark's or the world #1's.
Teams that are a bit different and don't conform to the Scoutcast template.
Even if those other managers are not there to defend their choices.

Agree that the podcast needs some work but I like the effort going into the site and will be patient with team to get things back on track. I have a lot of nostalgia for the old days of Mark and Granville but do like what all the new hosts bring to the table, they just need to work on the format and chemistry.

Although still a good listen/watch they don’t seem to be quite as relevant as they once were. By the time it’s released Wednesday/Thursday most of the same opinions have already been made on Twitter or other podcasts. Maybe a live show post the last game of the GW could freshen things up.

Mark is a big loss and as much as I like Jonty the show loses something when he hosts and can’t contribute as much.

Az has been great and adds a lot of personality. Still respect Andy’s opinions. But like others have said Always Cheating is the most entertaining FPL podcast these days.

I enjoy FPL Family and Andy’s Let’s Talk FPL on YouTube.

Always Cheating and WGTA are both decent pods.

I still give the ScoutCast a watch, but there’s lots of other great content out there too now.

Tell you what’s just sprung to mind.

Instead of all the experts, why don’t they select one member on here at random to give a mortal view on proceedings - be more relatable to a lot of people and will give a different angle on things!

Get Karl Pilkington on.

Agreed.

As sad as it is, I used to look forward to every episode and would watch them live. Mark has always been my favourite because I like the way he plays the game and everyone is in agreement they are missing his presence.

Jonty, Mark & Granville together worked so well and if you had a rotating guest with them then that would be the perfect formula.

We are just going to have to get used to it and try and obtain information from difference sources.

The best SC in the modern era was the one with HOF #2 Jay EggyBread on it. They should have more elite players like him as guests. Ahem.

Have stopped watching them after the first one this season

I like the guy who does https://soundcloud.com/skyfantasypod, but yeah the clientele is taking a hit after mark has stepped down. Jonty and David agree with each other in a scary way. I mean david has already owned up to being a clickbait journalist because 'he had to' shows what the scoutcast will be. Don't tell people what they want to hear or slime because people can tell.
I don't want to hear crazy stupid ideas like Luke's ridiculous fpl team. When Luke talks sky sports (which he actually cares about) its a million times more interesting. Just tell the truth and stop being so manipulating. Tell Andy he's too Man U biased, Jonty is dullard, Mark is good and thinks properly. I don't know what David is, he plays like a newbie

I used to watch the scoutcast to listen to very good players, experts if you wanna say so, discuss their views and challenge each other. In my opinion, the scoutcast lost a lot of credibility with the best "expert" departure, and David becoming a regular. No offense to the guy, he is a great editor, takes good care of the site content and he is a good public speaker, but I still have no idea how that fits in the scoutcast. Playing at the top level is very different. For example, I myself have been playing for 10 seasons and just broke 15k 2 seasons ago and 5k last season, and the experience I gained in those two seasons where I was constantly competing with high ranks is totally different from any FPL experience I had before. This is what made me listen to the scoutcast eagerly before, learning from people who have lots of experience when it comes to consistent great FPL performance.
Now it looks to me like any conversation we have here in the comments section.

Fair play chaps, that's a brave hulk and really appreciated. Hopefully you can pick out the constructive and positive points from this thread and get that mojo back. New formats always take time to bed in, but it's still good to get early feedback if something is perhaps not quite hitting the spot.

Sure it will be back with a bang soon! ☺

Must admit stopped watching this year. I know Mark had good reason to stop and wish him well but was following story of same presenters I enjoyed. Now find Andy’s broadcasts much more informative

I like the Scoutcast and the WGTA lads.

FMLFPL is a riot, love those guys, some laugh out loud moments even if don't always agree with their choices.

The way Molineux was described I nearly spat my drink out!

Create a champions league type mini league for all of the fpl podcasts out there & have a guest from a different podcast every week.

I always listen to it but it’s not quite working right now (nobody’s fault). What does it need?
1. Same people on each week. So we are invested in their decisions / good and bad. Their personalities and foibles. As otherwise - who cares about somebody else’s team.
2. Some opposing views -,yes gentle piss taking is exactly what FPL is set up for and it’s funnier as we have all experienced the highs and lows. The ownership argument is a case in point - it’s crazy that the alternative view is never aired.
3. Tighter editing / production values - would help having 3-4 max on each week. Mates-like conversation would flow better. I’m not sure what the YouTube element delivers - podcast may be a more relaxed vibe?
Love the site and all their efforts and I’ll still watch it anyway!

I enjoy listening to Az, and his moves aren’t template. He tends to go with his gut. This season is a very template season, don’t understand people criticizing them for being template when the template is performing well. Can’t expect them to be going against the grain just to be maverick. I agree the scoutcast isn’t as interesting as last season but that’s cause Mark isn’t there anymore, and there’s nothing that can be done about that.

I think the addition of chips has made the Scoutcast less interesting. Because they push serious players into a certain way of playing with WCs almost all being played at the same time and in much the same way.

I also think Granville is badly missed as I always think he plays in a slightly different way.

But I would be surprised if I stopped watching. I'd certainly rather get the very welcome advice from The General on a guest slot than have to listen to him on his own. He's a FAR better pundit than a solo presenter.

I think it's just as good as always. Some really interesting new panel members and Joe is doing a great job hosting.

What I will say about this season is that although they have mixed the format up a bit I would give it time to grow. As I would advocate patience for a fpl player, the stats are there I'm sure it will translate into point eventually. No need to wildcard yet imo.

Agreed. Tuesdays used to be an exciting day of the week now it’s something I just watch for the sake of watching, if at all. Even then I’d just have it on in the background.

As you point out there’s plenty of other content out there more engaging.

It now tailors more for the part time causal if anything. Half of the chat is based around information being delivered to a first time player rather than the hardcore regular that this site was originally for.

Az was a big miss this week. It would also be great to get Granny back on from time to time.

Like everyone has already said, it's just not the same without Mark...

Safe to say the pressure is on for the next scoutcast and views will reach a new high :'D

I enjoy the scout cast.... but it's not the same without Mark.... to me it's like changing top gears presenters...

It's team we tune in for... not so much the show...

U need jonty and mark.... with added extras of az Andy Granville... with maybe one special guest... lots of banter and winding mark up.

To add on... I think the breakfast club was great and that should see continue.

Also... why wen this is marks monster has he now dropped off it? It seems strange that we can find time to watch the show.. why can't he find time to be on it? One evening a week to scoutcast?

A lot of good points have been made - both constructive criticisms and thumbs up for the show.
I still watch it and enjoy it - it occasionally have some interesting points and discussions. But for it to keep up with it’s previous levels, it has to have a bit of character. Nothing can be done about Mark stepping out of course, but that’s no reason the show to stop being a bit personal and funny with banter and real reactions, inside feuds etc. instead of just giving plain FPL advice and stats.
It became clear to me, while watching the breakfast club, where Jonty got genuinely excited. I miss that spark in the discussions and the inside jokes that Granville and Mark where both big contributors to.
That being said, I still enjoy it and you guys deserve credit for doing it and Jonty is doing a good job as a host, although I hope you loosen up a bit and sprinkle some of your magic comments around.

Haven't watched it in a couple years at least, used to quite enjoy the cam-less podcasts with Mark and Granville - that was THE FFS podcast to me.
The last few ones I watched were very dull... 4 guys with very similar teams pondering similar moves and putting a massive emphasis on statistics, basically a lack of insight and banter.

Thats what you get for Mark > new guy (-4) and Jonty reclassified as forward this season...

I really enjoyed the 1 on 1 videos that Jonty ran recently discussing someones team, was a relaxed format where had time to take it in, in a bit of depth.
The problem with the current scoutcast is you do not need 4 people, it is too many. It was best when Mark was running it and Jonty and Granville were taking the micky out of him and trying to get one up on him.

I disagree with the post. Personally I really like what is being done this year and appreciate the extra effort of the guys. You will never keep everyone happy

I have been thinking the same thing, the semi-retirement of Mark and Granville, plus the killing off of Jonty has changed the dynamic somewhat and it seems nervous and clinical without being slick or efficient. If they're going to rotate the guests I'd suggest a GUI where we can learn the guests' teams, it was hard enough when it was the same people every week. But the rotating of the guests loses the comfort and familiarity that lead to some of the great moments that made the scoutcast special.

Amazon Paid $250 Million For Clarkson, Hammond and May when they left Top Gear. How much are Mark, Jonty and Granville worth?

That last one was probably the worst I've ever watched. I like to watch it to get me thinking differently, but in this case all I could think was these guys are indecisive don't really know what they're talking about. Which I know isn't true.

Not intended to be a slight on David, he seems like a top bloke, but when you replace Mark with someone with his FPL history it is a massive downgrade. It's like replacing Aguero with Benteke. Just my opinion.

David is a lovely bloke and has improved the site in general, a lot, imo. His articles are so in depth and I find them helpful. He also has a very trustworthy face and nice demeanour about him so what I’m about to say is by no means personal. The scoutcast is not for him. Or not as regular as he has been. This game is all about rank, for most people and people want an edge. I’m sorry but David isn’t really worth listening to, to be blunt (I feel so bad saying that). He’s great for numbers and stats etc but that’s Jonty’s thing anyway.

Mark is the scoutcast. He’s the main man. A scoutcast without Mark is just empty. When someone like Mark speaks, you listen. His record speaks for itself. It’s not just the numbers and his insight though. It actually used to feel like your very own little secret, geeky hints and tips chat. Not a show, not for viewers, subscribers and money. Just men talking about a hobby. I know little videos of Marks thoughts and plans are coming out towards the end of the week here and there but it just feels a bit flimsy to me. It might cover the insight base but still misses the Spark of Mark on the SC.

Maybe some people feel a little confused with Mark. Around New Years he said he’ll be on a lot more around here but he hasn’t. And now he’s not even on the scoutcast.

I do feel for Mark, what’s he meant to do? He created the beast.... Seriously though, it must be hard for the man, he’s balancing a passionate hobby, love with a business and now his whole life. It all sounds fun but you can actually see the strain on him. FFS is his baby but at the same time, he’s gotta feed his actual babies.

The FFS we knew, is no longer, it’s expanded. At the end of the day, the Scoutcast is free, we should be lucky to have it still and thank Mark for giving it to us in the first place.

Absolutely agree.
Guests and all are good. But the core team of Mark,Joe,Andy and Az should be on each week. Granville maybe if he's available.

I was happy so see that the time was a little bit shorter than usual. Unfortunately it felt longer than ever, lacked content and in particular bante imo!
Jonty much better in his role adding humour, stirring the pot, rather than hosting. In agreement with others, perhaps that should be David's role as he adds little as pundit.
Like the idea of an alternative guest but they need to bring something different to the table. The general, as knowledgeable as he is was like watching paint dry.

Just watching the scoutcast and it's so weird how Jonty is all the way over to the right looking at his other screen/monitor when talking.

I don’t agree with this. I like it more now that 1) it starts on time 2) sticks to 1 hr and 3) is straight on Apple Podcasts the next day, not Friday morning like before.

I like David Munday as well since he seems to have some kind of stats understanding and ability to interpret properly (and Az obviously who I like for his views too). I work in finance and David strikes me as being like an analyst. They don’t often make good traders due to an inability to put their knowledge into action or to make decisions - and David’s clearly rubbish since he’s never done better than 150k! But just because, by his own admission, he doesn’t take his own advice doesn’t mean that his input isn’t valuable. Like analysts’, it’s very important. He’s not going on talking about analysis on a tiny and incomparable sample size and gives context like he did with Walcott the other night saying the stats don’t reflect. There’s too much blindly looking at inappropriate numbers on here and the Scoutcast from people who don’t really understand them or statistics. I do like having Mark on a regular basis but overall I think it’s improved. I don’t listen for humour or any of these other things. I do it to help me think about players I may have missed or upcoming situations and they do all that. I would like it if they would bring on the top players like Jay more often though (who since he has his own podcast now may not want to) because apart from Az last season, I tend to finish above the guys on a regular basis so I’d like to know what somebody who’s consistently better than me is thinking and doing.

Can't disagree with this comment.

Maybe it's because there are so many podcasts out there or perhaps it has changed it's structure/content.

I watched the last 3 and didn't find myself picking up any useful differential information, which is what people are looking for.

I don't think it has anything to do with Jonty (John) hosting it's purely the content needs to up it's game.

Have you thought of moving into merchandising? I'd love a signed photo of Andy with a baseball cap on the wrong way saying wassssaappppp people.

Love the show rarely missed one since the Mark and Granville days. It has its highs and lows over a seasons there is only so much data and a pool of 50 players worth having hard to have different opinions.

A bit of a radical concept but i would love a debate show podcast similar to screen junkies movie fight's on YouTube. Scenario judge ask who is best richarlison replacement? 3 contestants have to pick someone different and argue why there choice is bettertaking turns then debate. Who ever gives the best argument wins the round judge decides on winner or maybe you tube live poll

Love that this was hulked.
Think we're just settling into life PMS (post Mark Sutherns) so I think it'll take time. But I think it's encouraging so far

Really liked the breakfast club and the last episode with the general. With a bit of practice the banter and chemistry will flow!

100% agree (sorry guys!)

FML FPL are funnier, Always Cheating funnier, WGTA more stats etc.

It used to just be Mark and Granville winding each other up!

Not sure what the answer is but everyone needs to sit down and think about format, main presenter, guests, features.

At the moment it's not working.

I was really disappointed with the fact that none of the scouts even thought of discussing Gross. The entire discussion was only on Walcott and pedro.

I'll start by saying that I still very much enjoy the scoutcast, big fan of Jonty, Az and Andy, and David is growing on me.

However, the bottom line is that it's just not the same without Mark hosting. Not to say that Jonty is a bad host, just that it feels like a very different dynamic. I'm not sure what the solution is really, but I'm sure they'll keep trying new ideas until something sticks.

The other issue is the wealth of fpl podcasts that are out there now. They mostly repeat a lot of the same things, so it's difficult to be different AND relevant.

100% agree. The competition has caught up. All feels a bit MOTD compared to MNF on here right now. Someone had to say it, fair play.

Agree it misses Mark, and used to like the old Mark/Granville dynamic.

Rather depends on who the target audience is. Nowadays the scoutcast is probably ideal if it's one's only weekly slice of FPL info. Otherwise it's informative but boring.

I disagree with some comments above about David, who seems to research well and footballing knowledge doesn't necessarily correlate with FPL history.

Agree with a lot of the points here. Mark was always gonna be a big miss but they've lost more with Joe becoming host. He's too hosty and nice at times. Where's the " you can't run away from an rlc" Jonny version gone? Getting in a guest host every week is a good way to bring something fresh but if they're gonna be rotating very week, all of them should be subject to rotation. The combo of Joe and David isn't strong enough. And agree with a point above about the structure being too rigid. Bring on a 5 th player again. But dunno how people are still saying that it's all the same opinion , especially after drastically different teams and views last week.

I started listening 4/5 years ago when it was just a faceless Granville & Mark on a podcast.

You could tell they were good friends in real life, shown by how happily they would take the piss out of each other. Since neither are regularly on anymore that's been a big loss.

Everyone is just a bit too polite & nice to each other (Which is understandable when you're only in contact with each other once or twice a week over Skype or emails and don't really know each other personally) and maybe afraid to add any criticism to other teams/moves.

Another thing lacking recently is differing opinions, that's why I've always liked having Luke or Granville on - even if I didn't agree with what they were saying. Having 4 people on when 3 usually agree on the same thing each time just isn't as interesting.

I think Jonty has done well as a host though, and always happy to see Az & Andy on.

TLDR - Get Granville on every week to add humour and get him to rip on each scout cast members team and transfers