L3 | S2 | W13: Winter fires Mighty Greens hat-trick as West London Blue hold their nerve

📰 Week 13 at a glance

Week 13 in the Unreal Academy and it was a week of statement wins, an on-form striker making his mark felt in three separate bursts, and a title race that shows no sign of slowing down. Plenty to digest across four divisions – here’s the full picture.

🏆 Division 1 – Winter draws his line

Winter scored all three in Mighty Greens’ 3-0 demolition of Plymouth Parkway – 15 minutes in, again just after the hour, and once more at 79 minutes – to keep Andy D’s side right on the heels of West London Blue at the top of Division 1. That kind of performance deserves more than a footnote, and it probably shifts Mighty Greens firmly back into title conversation after a mixed run last week.

West London Blue are still the leaders though, and Loz Newbold’s side backed it up with a 3-1 win over Special Criminals – Gudjohnsen (25′), Zola (54′ and 70′) doing the damage before Cahill pulled one back for Special Criminals in the 55th minute. That’s 30 points from 13 games, and they remain the team everyone else is measuring themselves against.

💡 Melchester Rovers climbed four places this week – up to 9th after a 1-0 win over Leicester Lightening. Ryan Lee will take it. Downie scored the only goal on 38 minutes. They’ve now won two of their last three and are quietly moving in the right direction.

At the other end, Leicester Lightening have now lost five on the bounce. That’s five defeats, three goals scored, ten conceded across those five games. Grange Hill Rovers sit bottom of Division 1 on five points from 13 games – no wins at home in their last five and a goal difference of -14. Both clubs are in real trouble, and with 17 games still to play there’s time to drag it back, but neither side has shown much sign of it yet.

⚠️ Delboys Hellboys’ Del Sharratt asked a question in the club messages: name the five teams to have won all four tiers of the English Football League. That’s the kind of pub quiz energy that keeps a dressing room loose – but on the pitch, Delboys are just 10 points from 13 games. Still in mid-table but the results need to follow soon.

💙 Division 2 – The race goes on

Nick Bristow’s Frenchy’s Dons nudge back to the top of Division 2 on 29 points after a 1-0 win over Camden Town – Mackie with the goal on 73 minutes. But Alveley Wolves are right there on 28, and Supremos sit third on 24. Five teams are still within six points of the lead – this is as open a division as you’ll find.

🔍 Supremos slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Chip Spice – Iaconi scoring early – but Willie Winit’s side are still third, and their away form this season (unbeaten going into this week, W2 D3) is one of the best records in the division. Their next fixture is away at Camden Town. One to watch.

Dodger scored a brace in the first 16 minutes as München Biscuits beat Harchester United 2-1, with Fletcher pulling one back on 26 minutes. Ronnie Crumb’s Biscuits are in the thick of the top five and quietly making a case. Kaapstad meanwhile – managed by Simon Cleworth – moved up a place after a 2-0 home win over Colesbourne Rangers (Ndoumbe 32′, Weber 59′).

At the wrong end, Crazy Aces FC sit bottom on 7 points after losing to Alveley Wolves, and Ravensdale Athletic are second from bottom on 8. Both clubs have very little margin for error as the second half of the season approaches.

❤️ Division 3 – Richmond keep marching

What more can you say. Richmond beat White Horse 2-0 – Kemsley on 11 minutes, Yakubu on 24 – and that’s now 37 points from 13 games. Ted Lasso’s side are 12 points clear of Fulchester United in second, and the Division 3 title race is, for all practical purposes, over. The only interesting question left in this division is who finishes in the other promotion spots.

💡 Three clubs are level on 22 points in positions 3, 4 and 5 – Gwent Saints, Real Braintree and AFC Navenby separated by goal difference. St Venage Borough sit just behind on 20 after their 2-1 win over Ampleforth United (Gittings 21′, McMahon 73′, Kirkpatrick 72′ for Ampleforth). Wayne McCauley’s Borough are making a late push for the promotion places.

Portsea City’s Darren Watton picked up another useful win – 2-1 against Silversprings United, Martos (8′) and Layden (54′) either side of Ahmad’s equaliser – and that’s now five wins from the last five for Portsea in their most recent run of form. They’ve climbed to 7th, and with the promotion picture still unsettled above them, that could matter.

⚠️ Tottenham Coldspur remain rooted to the bottom of Division 3 on 7 points. Andrew Burton has taken over an unmanaged club in a difficult position, and this week’s 1-1 draw with Waterside Rovers at least stopped the rot from a goalscoring perspective – Cullen (59′) cancelling out Jun-Seo’s effort on 31 minutes. Small mercies.

💛 Division 4 – Tantany sneak ahead

Division 4 remains tight at the top. Tantany Rangers move two points clear after Rotherham Town were beaten 0-2 at home, with Barnes (54′) and Simmonds (89′) doing the damage for the Rangers on the road. Meanwhile Quinton Athletic jumped to second – up three places – after a 2-0 win over Woodfarm Warriors (Dominguez 15′, Sahnine 21′). David Verney’s Athletic now look like genuine promotion candidates.

🔍 Grove Old Boys drew 1-1 with Joburg Shongololo – Stephenson (9′) answered by Saka (54′). Stuart Bartholomew’s side have dropped away slightly from the very top but remain in a promotion position. Their home form in the last five (W3 D2 L0) is one of the best in the division. They’re not done.

Anfield Rockets continue their quiet improvement under Ady Lippiatt – a 1-0 win at Tottenham Mustangs (Slack 81′) moved them up to 14th. They were 0 points and staring at the bottom just a handful of weeks ago. Bankrupt United also picked up three points, beating Tintagel Knights 1-0 through Inabocks (56′) away from home. Boracic Lint’s Bankrupt have now won three of their last five – the form table tells a different story to the one their position suggests.

🏆 Supremos Cup – Round 2 countdown

No Cup action this week – Round 2 is scheduled for Week 15. With the league fixtures building in intensity, sixteen clubs are still in contention and the draw is already made. A few fixtures worth noting:

• West London Blue v Woodfarm Warriors
• Grove Old Boys v Supremos
• Westhill Town v Richmond – a potential giant-killing in the making
• White Horse v Carrotasaray

💡 The prize pot builds round by round – Round 2 brings £100,000, and the winner eventually pockets £1,000,000. With the league table tight in Divisions 1, 2 and 4, some managers will have decisions to make about how hard they push in the Cup versus protecting league form.

🔎 The wider league picture

The Gossip Sheet this week had some interesting reading. Team Van Holland top the average home attendance charts at 33,081 – Carrotasaray, Crazy Aces and Tayside Royal sit at the bottom end, all under 12,000. Supremos are in the top ten for average gates (29,084) which is respectable for a Division 2 side.

On discipline, Indie Kids United are the cleanest team in Division 1 with zero disciplinary points. Trumpton in Division 2 and five clubs in Divisions 3 and 4 are also on zero. At the other end of the scale, Team Van Holland (32 points) and Special Criminals (32 points) are the worst-behaved sides in Division 1.

🔍 Indie Kids United top the Best Defending Squads chart across the entire league – ahead of South Park Cows and Team Van Holland. That’s not something their position alone would tell you. Mark E Smith’s side have the tools – whether those tools convert into points over the run-in is the question.

There were 24 transfer deals completed this week. Notable activity included St Venage Borough picking up Ellis Quigley from the Supremos Circuit for £2,300,005, and Amity Rovers landing Juan Nuez for just over £2m. West London Blue brought in a Personal Spy (Vlad Kalinin, £933,000) – the only SPY on the market this week. Tottenham Coldspur recruited a Skills Coach (Juan Santayana) and Joburg Shongololo strengthened their squad with a pair of youth players.

👋 Community and news

Welcome to four new managers who joined the Unreal Academy this week: Moxey takes over at Woodfarm Warriors, Andrew Burton arrives at Tottenham Coldspur, Paul Hayes steps in at Ilkeston Rams, and Mark Cowie takes the reins at Vale Madrid. All four clubs have been unmanaged for a spell – good to see new blood coming in at each of them.

Score draws this week produced two winners. Congratulations to Wayne McCauley of St Venage Borough and Alan Latchley of Crazy Aces FC – both guessed correctly and take home £800,000 each. The pool will reset for next week.

Three pieces of gossip doing the rounds this week – a physical altercation involving a Delboys Hellboys attacker, an alcohol-related story at Tottenham Mustangs, and a player from Trumpton in some bother with the law. As always, a bit of digging into personality traits might tell you more than the headlines do.

On a more positive note, ten players across the league were highlighted for community work this week – school visits, mentorship, supporting local causes. Clubs represented included Mount Florida AFC, Harchester United, Smackdown Rovers, Shin Kickers, München Biscuits, AFC Navenby, Camden Town, Melchester Rovers, White Horse and Tottenham Coldspur.