L3 | S2 | W11: Richmond’s relentless march continues as the Cup looms on the horizon

📰 Week 11 at a glance

With 11 weeks gone in Season 2 of the Unreal Academy, the picture is becoming clearer in some divisions and murkier in others. Division 1 has a runaway leader in West London Blue, while Division 2 is remarkably tight across the top five. Division 3 belongs to one club right now – though the chasing pack won’t admit that yet. And Division 4 is anyone’s guess, with a single point separating third from fifth. Next week, attention shifts to Week 12 and the start of the Supremos Cup – the first cup action of Season 2.

🏆 Division 1 – West London Blue tighten their grip

West London Blue kept the pressure on with a 1-0 home win over Busby Babes United, Zola finishing in the 64th minute to extend their unbeaten home record. It is five wins from five on the road to the title – and the last-five form table confirms they are in a different class right now, the only side in Division 1 with a perfect five from five over that run.

💡 The standout result of the week came from Mighty Greens, who went to Delboys Hellboys and won 3-2 with Woodford completing a hat-trick. Goals at 18, 21 and 56 minutes – a clinical away performance that keeps them third and very much in the promotion picture.

At the other end, Grange Hill Rovers remain rooted to the bottom on 5 points. They have managed just five wins all season and conceded 17 at home and away combined. Leicester Lightening sit just above them on 9, and neither side looks capable of mounting a survival fight without significant help from those around them.

⚠️ Unmanaged clubs in D1: none confirmed in this week’s magazine – a healthy sign for the division’s competitiveness.

💙 Division 2 – Frenchy’s Dons edge clear, but it is tight

Frenchy’s Dons lead Division 2 on 25 points, but with Supremos two points back, Alveley Wolves a further point behind, and Camden Town and München Biscuits on 20 each, this is genuinely open. Five clubs separated by five points with 19 games still to play. Frenchy’s ground out a solid 2-0 home win over Colesbourne Rangers, with French and Quintanilla both on the scoresheet.

💡 Deportivo La Rochelle’s Turkyilmaz hit a hat-trick in a 3-0 home demolition of Chip Spice – all three before half time. La Rochelle are 11th and look out of the promotion picture, but Turkyilmaz has 6 goals in 11 games and is quietly the division’s most in-form attacker.

At the bottom, four clubs are level on 7 points: Crazy Aces FC, Ravensdale Athletic, Trumpton and Tayside Royal. Trumpton’s away form is particularly grim – five away games, no goals, nine conceded. They are yet to score a single away point. Unmanaged clubs Crazy Aces FC, Harchester United and Vale Madrid continue to drag the division’s competitive floor down.

⚠️ Three unmanaged clubs in Division 2 (Crazy Aces FC, Harchester United, Vale Madrid) means roughly one in five fixtures involves a Circuit-run side. Any manager thinking of making a mid-season entry would find plenty of clubs to choose from.

❤️ Division 3 – Richmond are simply in a different league

It is getting difficult to write about Division 3 without simply writing about Richmond. Yakubu scored twice early on as Richmond won 2-0 at Waterside Rovers, and the lead at the top is now 10 points after 11 games. The goals at the 3rd and 42nd minutes suggest a side that turns up and gets the job done without breaking a sweat. Ted Lasso’s men have conceded just 3 goals at home all season – their home record is a perfect six wins from six.

🔍 Richmond’s goal difference stands at +20 after just 11 games. Their top scorer Yakubu is on 13 for the season – already half a dozen clear of the next best in the division. If there is a disconnect in the Gossip Sheet’s squad rankings (Richmond second-best overall), there is no sign of it on the pitch.

The real story lower down involves Tottenham Coldspur, who have now gone five consecutive league games without scoring – a miserable run that has them stranded at the foot of the table on 6 points. Westhill Town are the form side in the chasing pack, winning three and drawing two of their last five, and sit eighth just two points off the final promotion place.

💛 Division 4 – Abbey United take the summit, but only just

Abbey United moved to the top of Division 4 with a comfortable 2-0 win at Tottenham Mustangs, Dublin scoring twice before half time. They now sit a point ahead of Quinton Athletic, with Tantany Rangers a further point back. Hillgrove United were the week’s big movers, hammering Bankrupt United 3-1 with Amokachi hitting all three – a hat-trick that lifted them four places to eighth.

💡 D. Amokachi’s hat-trick for Hillgrove United is the player form table’s rising star in action – listed sixth in the top attackers chart with a “Surging” trend. He has only played 7 games this season, which makes his impact all the more striking.

At the bottom, Anfield Rockets are in deep trouble on 6 points with five losses in their last five games. Bankrupt United are a point above them. Several Division 4 clubs remain unmanaged – Rotherham Town, Smackdown Rovers, Thetford Tigers, Woodfarm Warriors, and Tintagel Knights among them – which continues to skew results in unpredictable ways.

🏆 Supremos Cup – Round 1 incoming

The first cup competition of Season 2 arrives in Week 12, with all 64 clubs entering the Supremos Cup. Round 1 fixtures have been published and there are some interesting ties across the draw. Richmond face BK Rovers in what looks like the standout match on paper – the Division 3 leaders up against one of Division 1’s more consistent sides. Real Braintree host Supremos in an all-Division 2 clash that could go either way.

No prize money for surviving Round 1, but reaching the latter stages could be transformative for a club’s finances – particularly for Division 3 and 4 sides where every pound counts.

🔎 The wider picture

The Gossip Sheet throws up some interesting disconnects this week. Team Van Holland hold the best overall squad in the league yet sit sixth in Division 1 on 16 points – they have the tools but have not put them to use consistently enough. Vale Madrid are fourth on the squad ratings list despite being unmanaged and sitting 12th in Division 2. Richmond’s gap between squad quality (second overall) and league position (first by a distance) is the one case where the numbers and the table align perfectly.

Away support figures show West London Blue’s travelling fans are the most loyal in the league, averaging 12,202 away. South Park Cows and Mighty Greens are close behind. At the other end, Anfield Rockets draw just 8,364 at home on average – the lowest in all four divisions, and a reflection of a club that has struggled to generate any momentum this season.

The top scorer across the whole league is Yakubu of Richmond on 13 goals – already double the tally of most of his Division 3 rivals. In Division 4, Sahnine of Quinton Athletic leads on 10 and is rated the hottest attacking player in the division by the form tables, a 4.87 momentum score with an improving trend.

👋 Community and new managers

Welcome to David Verney, who has taken the reins at Quinton Athletic in Division 4 this week. The club are currently second in the table – a decent platform to build from. Good luck, David.

Score draw congratulations go to Matteo of Ravensdale Athletic and Chris Houldey of White Horse – two correct guesses from five score draws this week, earning them £800,000 each. Not a bad week’s work.

A reminder that League 3 still has unmanaged clubs across all four divisions. If you know anyone who has been thinking about giving Soccer Supremos a try, this is an ideal entry point – mid-season, clubs across all levels, and the Supremos Cup just getting underway. Point them at soccersupremos.com to take a look.