Hi everyone,

I think it would be nice to have some discussion as the league progresses: whose team is over/underachieving, which players to watch or just a place to vent/rant :)


As I see it, there are a few contenders this season. I think the final positions will be something like:
1 Cambuur
2 Lost Keys
3 Invincible Delft
4 Beawulf
5 Dokkum

It was nice to read the blogs of lost keys and invincible Delft last season, so please continue Vincent and Corniel!

Good idea to have a general topic!

I think Cambuur, Lost Keys and Beawulf are the top 3 teams, it would be difficult to predict the final order though.

After that I think there are myself, Houtsnippers, Dokkum, Houten, Almere and Alphen (not necessarily in that order). Maybe my team is a little stronger than the others in this group, but I could see either of these teams end on the 4th place.

If I were to make a prediction:

1. Lost Keys
2. Cambuur
3. Beawulf
4. Invincible
5. Dokkum
6. Houten
7. Almere
8. Alphen

Well, Cambuur has a good team, but did some investments that are (I think) good at the long run, but not necessary for this season.

1. Invincible Delft
2. FC Beawulf
3. Lost Keys United
4. Cambuur
5. FC Dokkum
6. FC Houtsnippers

Although I hope to win myself off course. ;)

Difficult to predict!

All the contenders named above have different tactics. Some have invested heavily in youth, Dokkum and Cambuur are in that category, I think. It is interesting to see how they will play against the more “experienced/older” teams of The lost keys, Beawulf and Delft. My final prediction:
1. Cambuur
2. Invincible Delft
3. Lost Keys United
4. FC Beawulf
5. FC Dokkum

Difficult questions, but interesting to think about, well here's my best guess:

1.

1. Lost Keys United
2. Beawulf
3. Invincible Delft
4. Cambuur
5. SC Dokkum
6. FC Houten
7. Dalfsen United

It will be a very nice season and hard to predict. I made an list for the teams who are going to play for the Champions League next year.

My guess is:

1. Beawulf
2. Lost keys United
3. Cambuur
4. Invinvible Delft

I just saw this topic. I'm flattered by the prediction that Cambuur is a title contender, but I do not agree. I have not invested in any players that would immediately improve my team.

As all other managers before me have done I will choose the underdog position ;) I hope my team will manage to end fourth, so I might play Champions League next season. We shall see if this is possible.

My prediction:
1. Lost Keys United
2. FC Beawulf
3. FC Houten
4. Cambuur
5. SC Dokkum
6. Invincible Delft

some statistics so far (that's why a love games like this):

#.____________________Pt____Nr1___Own
1._Lost Keys United_____13_____3_____3
2._FC Beawulf_________18_____1_____4
3._Cambuur___________19_____2_____4
4._Invincible Delft______23_____1_____4
5._FC Dokkum_________35_____0_____5
6._FC Houten__________39_____0_____6
7._Almere City FC______46_____0_____-
8._Alphen City FC______47_____0_____5
_._FC Houtsnippers_____47_____0_____-
_._Dalfsen United______47_____0_____-

Lost Keys gets the best ranking (13/7 = 1.86), numbers 1 (3 times) and is the most optimistic about his own team (position 3). So I HAVE to win now. ;)

Funny detail is that everybody so far thinks that FC Dokkum will be fifth. :D

rant time!

The timing of the cup match this weekend couldn't have been worse...just between a game against nr 3 Lost Keys and nr 1 Cambuur with all 3 games scheduled within 24 hours. As a result my players were not well rested at all in what in retrospect seems to be the crucial game in this season.

The cup game was won with some difficulty, but the league result was that the team only 1 got point in 2 matches. This means that the nr 1 position is well out of sight and a lot of competitors are really close all of a sudden.

The Beawulf management states, that this situation was planned to give Cambuur a free ride to the championship and to hurt Beawulf's chances as much as possible.

rant response!

Cambuur management was unpleasantly surprised by the statement made by FC Beawulf. It completely contradicts the pleasant atmosphere in which the match between both teams was played; a game that with a full house, six goals and no bookings was the best advertising football could wish for.

Though Cambuur understands the dissapointment in Den Haag, it cannot ignore these allegations. Cambuur's schedule has been as hard as Beawulf's, with Cambuur having to play 2 away games (the Cup against Zeist en the League against Beawulf) and playing at home against the strong FC Houten. Beawulf enjoyed 3 home matches!

Furthermore Cambuur has been surprised at times how easily it receives bookings (20 yellow and 2 red cards), while Beawulf has hardly seen any (9 yellow cards). It seems Beawulf has little to complain there!

Cambuur hopes that Beawulf will again focus its attention on the football pitch, as judging by its last match it could use some improvement there.

I agree that the game itself was as much as you could hope for as a spectator. These two teams deserved to play in a full house. When too high ranked teams play each other, they normally play way more defensively then they did this game. The last week has been very disappointing though from a Beawulf perspective.

To add insult to injury, there are 4 games scheduled within 10 hours tonight/tomorrow, including two away league games 8 hours apart. The second of those two is against Invincible Delft, one of the best teams in the league. Beawulf management feels unjustly vindicated by the league's planning, without knowing what the team's done wrong to deserve this treatment :(

Only one match needs to be played before the first half of the league is over.

Cambuur took an important lead. If they win their last game they can be 9 points ahead so they are the big favorite now to win the title, but half of the matches still need to be played. The lost surprisingly to the Houtsnippers so anything seems possible.

Beawulf, Lost Keys, Invincible and Houten are all at 1 point difference. Three of these teams will probably play champions league together with Cambuur, one won't, but who will it be...

SC Dokkum is at a rather lonely fifth place, no one nearby either above or below.

Astar and Gilze en Rijen will go to level 2 unless they can dramatically improve in the second half.

All the rest seem to have a good shot at Europa League qualification. As some teams have gotten a new manager during the season it's really hard to predict who'll make it.

As the season is closing, time for some analysis!

Lost Keys and Cambuur have done what was predicted at the beginning of the season: they ended up as #1 and #2 in the league (although in the wrong order, as Lost Keys had 1 more vote for ending up as winner of the league).
Beawulf will most likely end up as #3 or #4 as predicted, but they might be passed by Invincible Delft in the last match, in which they play against eachother. Most likely Delft will end up as 5th, a little disappointing compared to predictions.

My team caused that disappointment (or well, Delft itsself has, but since I'll most likely end up 3rd, FC Houten is in the way for a CL spot). Funny that Arno is the only one who has me in pretty much the right spot, but is wrong about pretty much every other team in the league, opposed to all the others (including myself) who got a number of teams right, but guessed the placement of Houten all wrong (in most predictions FC Houten was not included).

The teams after those 5 (Dokkum, Houtsnippers) ended up around where they were expected, in the Europe League regions.

Seems that Anders_D had the best feeling at the start of the season for the end result, with Cambuur and Lost Keys as 1 and 2 and Beawulf on the 4th place.