Welcome back for another season of our contest "Guess the Starting XI and Final Score". As always, thanks to former regular Spencer for starting this several years ago. Like last season, we will keep the non-MLS and MLS standings separate. We will also do a first half, second half, and overall standings. Finally, I will have various monthly contests where we add in an ‘extra’ thing to predict, like goal scorers, cards, suspensions, etc. With the basics out of the way, let’s get to the scoring.
MLS Scoring Details
- Contest article will be posted 2-3 days prior to game day
- We will keep track of overall, first/second half, and monthly winners so that late joiners will have something to play for
- I will have a separate ‘contest’ for Voyageurs and Champions League.
- As the MLS season is 34 matches, the overall standings will be based on each participant’s top 30 match guesses. This will allow everyone a few misses or bad guesses throughout the season.
- The first/second Half standings will exclude your worst two match guesses.
- Predictions will be 'valid' if posted prior to the lineup being officially announced (1 hour before kickoff)
How Scoring is Determined
- You receive 1 point for every player you correctly guess to be in the Starting XI. Receive 1 bonus point for correctly predicting 10 starters. Receive 3 bonus points for correctly predicting 11 starters.
- You get 5 points for correctly guessing Win/Lose/Draw.
- You receive 1 point for correctly guessing each team’s final score. Receive 1 bonus point for correctly guessing both teams final score (for a total of 3).
- That means, if you correctly predict the Starting XI, Final Score, and Winner, you can earn 22 points!
At the end of each week, I will tally the scores and update the standings, to be posted with the next week's match thread
NYRB Prediction Scoring
| Ranking | User | Overall Score | Lineup | Bonus | Winner | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | User | Overall Score | Lineup | Bonus | Winner | Score |
| 1 | GreyHouseEffect | 14 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 1 | robbosg1 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 1 | Westsider13 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 1 | forbrydelsen | 14 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 1 | Jph003 | 14 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 6 | Arjon | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | dfree646 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | olikchivas | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | chuckbiscuits | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | jacinto | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | rtomsheck | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | edmondk | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Joel Prosser | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | DougCuth | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | The Squirrel | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | BlackPanther99 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | AtlantisB | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | MarcoD77 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Rob R. Scott | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Slowkid | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Second Half Standings
| Previous Rank | Current Ranking | Change in Ranking | User | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Previous Rank | Current Ranking | Change in Ranking | User | Overall Score |
| 1 | 1 | 0 | dfree646 | 178 |
| 2 | 2 | 0 | olikchivas | 166 |
| 7 | 3 | 4 | GreyHouseEffect | 162 |
| 3 | 4 | -1 | BlackPanther99 | 161 |
| 8 | 4 | 4 | robbosg1 | 161 |
| 4 | 6 | -2 | chuckbiscuits | 160 |
| 5 | 7 | -2 | jacinto | 159 |
| 5 | 8 | -3 | DougCuth | 158 |
| 12 | 9 | 3 | Arjon | 157 |
| 8 | 10 | -2 | The Squirrel | 155 |
| 10 | 10 | 0 | rtomsheck | 155 |
| 10 | 12 | -2 | AtlantisB | 154 |
| 13 | 13 | 0 | Westsider13 | 153 |
| 14 | 14 | 0 | Jph003 | 149 |
| 15 | 15 | 0 | forbrydelsen | 146 |
| 16 | 16 | 0 | edmondk | 139 |
| 17 | 17 | 0 | MarcoD77 | 136 |
| 18 | 18 | 0 | Rob R. Scott | 130 |
| 19 | 19 | 0 | MarcusEarth | 82 |
| 22 | 20 | 2 | Slowkid | 34 |
| 20 | 21 | -1 | justcaps | 27 |
| 20 | 21 | -1 | tecate | 27 |
| 23 | 23 | 0 | Joel Prosser | 23 |
Match in Review (New York Red Bulls) and Preview (San Jose Earthquakes)
It seems we were all drinking too much of the Vancouver Whitecaps kool-aid. Or maybe those near the top of the standings took the safe route and predicted a Caps victory or draw. Unfortunately, that is now how the match turned out. This provided some of the mid-table predictors the opportunity to move up the standings. GreyHouseEffect and robbosg1 made the biggest move in the Second Half Standings, vaulting up four places. This gave GreyHouseEffect third place in the standings. Tied with GreyHouseEffect and robbosg1 for most points (14) in match 32 were Westsider13, forbrydelsen, and Jph003. Just behind them was Arjon, who made a return, after a two-match absence, and turned their 13 points into a three position move up the standings. With two matches left, dfree646 holds a 12 points! lead over olikchivas. However, only six points separate 2nd and 6th and 11 points separate 2nd from 11th. Should be a fun finish!
The Whitecaps have their final home match on Sunday, when they host San Jose Earthquakes. This is an important match for Vancouver as a win guarantees them 1st in the West. Fail to win this match and they will have to rely on getting results in Portland next week. I think we would all prefer the West to be wrapped up before that match. As a result, we should see a strong lineup. The problem right now is that it is unclear what the strongest lineup is for the Caps.
Kendall Waston and Christian Bolanos will have returned from clinching a World Cup berth, while Jordy Reyna and Stefan Marinovic should also be back. Bolanos is suspended, thanks to his red card at Kansas City; however, the other three are certainly in play. Waston should start while Reyna and Marinovic are a bit less certain in my eyes. Certainly as Reyna goes, so do the Whitecaps. However, he had a long journey back this week, so he might be a bit travel fatigued. Same goes with Marinovic. Although maybe he gets his first home start, after a fine showing in KC? I doubt it, but you never know.
Cristian Techera is back with the club, and I suspect Andrew Jacobson will also be available. Nosa Igiebor made his bench debut at New York, but did not get into the match. Could this be the match that he makes his debut? Possibly, but I am not sure it is in a starting capacity.
The attacking midfield three has been quite fluid late in the season, so it is anyone’s guess who will be the ones that factor in. Will it be Techera, Reyna, and Shea? Will it be others? That is your call!
Good luck!
Injured: Brett Levis, David Edgar, Matias Laba
Suspension: Christian Bolanos (red card)