Picklive Cup - what are the odds?

The first round of the first ever Picklive Cup saw some strong teams knocked out and some intriguing ties thrown up in the second round.

 Shock of the first round was Villarthebest (3rd in the all-time table) crashing out to K&KFC. Another big name to fall was Abervilla (8th all-time), more understandably knocked out by giant and legend Chelman42 in the tie of the round. Other names lost at the first hurdle included (very) occasional FC Roger contributor Warriors plus Neds XI, who lost out to behemoth Wildheart FC in another glamour tie.

So with 32 (actually 33 atm) left in it who will be proudly clad in Picklive polyester come the final?

With no apologies for accidental exclusions, poor formatting or prehistoric use of statistics I present the form book. Looking at the last months stats I've calculated the average points per plays (PpP):

Marcus Speller Forever              15.79
Invincibles                                  12.52
The Rams Are Going Up           12.38
Chelman42                                 12.13
Grunny27                                   11.76
Portydown                                  11.63
Wrideos                                      11.36
Teenage Mutant Ninja Skrtels    10.65
Wildheart FC                              10.44
Fisherman’s Spurs                      10.27
PAFC                                          10.17
Holters Mews FC                         7.67

At the bottom of the pile is Holters Mews FC and they'll have to raise their game to get past Wildheart FC. Marcus Speller Forever is on a strong run of form and must fancy his chances against Ivar the Engine in the second. But lets have a look at the Champions League form:

Invincibles                                22.29
Gobzmacked                             21.42
Ivar the Engine                         21.19
AC Alittlesilhouetteof Milan    19.82
Chelman42                                18.87
PAFC                                        18.24
Wildheart FC                            17.87
Grunny27                                  17.56
CMFC                                       16.77
Portydown                                16.68
Bensbulls                                  16.49
Fisherman’s Spurs                    15.47
Fritzl FC                                   13.47

All of a sudden Ivar the Engine looks a sterner test. He's one of the three teams maintaining a 20+ average in the Champions League. The other two are drawn together in round 2. If Gobzmacked can get past Gmansenior in a replay Invincibles will face a tough game.

And finally lets have a look at the all-time table:

Chelman42                                15.16
AC Alittlesilhouetteof Milan    14.84
Bensbulls                                  14.71
Grunny27                                  14.69
Footlikeatractionengine            14.59
Gobzmacked                             14.50
CMFC                                       14.47
PAFC                                         13.82
Wildheart FC                             13.26
WayneH FC                               13.20
Fisherman’s Spurs                     13.07
Invincibles                                 12.93
Portydown                                 12.67
Farmersjuice                              10.67

Already flagged by Picklive is myself versus fellow FC Roger contributor Grunny27. And a look at the averages shows why, both of us within a whisker of each others PpP. Unfortunately for me, Simon is in much better form at the moment. Another quick look at the fixtures shows another veteren clash: AC Alittlesilhouetteof Milan v Portydown - another big name will fall at the second hurdle.

My dark horses would have to be WayneH FC and Teenage Mutant Ninja Skrtels, both have posted big scores recently.

Who do you fancy for the Cup?


by BensBulls