Extratime Fantasy Football League in association with the Bison Bar & BBQ

Extratime’s Fantasy Football articles are in association with the Bison Bar & BBQ and will feature every week throughout the season. Each week will will publish a top ten from our Extratime league which you can join by following the How to Play instruction below. (CODE:  6686-2741)

The English Premier League kicks off on the 16th August but more importantly the Premier League Fantasy Football competition is now open for registering teams for the 2014/15 season.

This season, in association with the Bison Bar & BBQ, Extratime will be running a league with a monthly and an overall prize for the best team.  If you are interested in joining the league, simply follow the instructions below (How to Play).

Now that you are in, what kind of team should you pick?

Make sure your players start

Rotating squads are the nemesis of Fantasy Football teams. Your player could net you a jackpot of points one week but then, inexplicably, not start for two weeks. Managers who rotate their squads are the sworn enemies of Fantasy Football managers. FF managers love consistency. With that in mind, sometimes players from the ‘lower’ teams can be the wise choice. 

Top names don’t always mean top points

Last season, Crystal Palace’s Frazier Campbell was only a handful of points behind Man City’s Alvaro Negredo and Man United’s Robin Van Persie. His price however was half or less. Make sure to do your research and identify players who may ring in cheap but have proven assist and goal scoring records. Remember the team they are on don’t have to win, but if your player scores the consolation goal every week after a 8-2 hockeying, he could be the man to have in your team.

Scoring Defenders and Midfielders – yes. Defensive Midfielders – no.

Seamus Coleman. Leighton Baines. Branislav Ivanovic. Defenders who like to score. Identify players in defensive and midfield positions that take their team’s penalties. You are not picking a balanced 11. You are not looking to field this team. You may have 5 left backs in your defence. You are looking to get the defenders who go up for corners, who take the free kicks, who enjoy a spot kick or two. Obviously clean sheets are also key but until the season is a few week’s old you can’t be certain how defences will perform, so it is best to balance that out with attacking defenders. DON’T pick a holding midfielder unless you like a consistent two points a week. Winners they don’t make.

Oh Captain, my Captain!

There is nothing worse than captaining the wrong player. Now sometimes the wrong player is the most obvious choice but none the less if someone on your team earns 20 points more, you will spend the next week anguishing over what could have been. So make sure you choose your captain wisely, it can be the difference between mid-table mediocrity and top of the table awesomeness. Make sure and check the opposition when picking your leader. This choice is where Fantasy Football is won and lost.

Don’t drink and Fantasy Football

If you enjoy going out on a Friday, make your changes before you do. Two things that kill your chances, not checking (and often changing your team each week) and alcohol. Just like driving, you should never let yourself near your Fantasy Football team whilst drunk. Waking up to find you’ve sacrificed 28 points on seven changes “cos you thought their names were funny” is a bleak moment in the life of a FF manager. Don’t do it. Drink and Fantasy Football does not mix!

Sometimes teams play twice in a Gameweek

Check the fixtures. Sometimes teams play twice, sometimes not at all. Look ahead and make sure you are set for any double matches in a Gameweek with the minimum loss of transfer points. You don’t want to be left with no one playing twice especially if a top team has two potentially lucrative clashes. It is also a good move to captain players who are playing twice.

Wildcards

There is never a good or bad time to play your wildcard. Sometimes it’s Gameweek 1, sometimes it’s the last week. It depends on how utterly awful you expect to do in an upcoming Gameweek. Injuries often drive you to a Wildcard execution. The advice is use it whenever but when you do, use it wisely and maximise its benefit. When you use it, you can make free changes right up to that Gameweek deadline.  So.. erm.. go wild.

HOW TO PLAY

1. Visit fantasy.premierleague.com and sign in (if you’ve never registered at the site before, click on this link to register). Depending on your account history, you might need to add your team and pick your team colours before moving to the next step.

2. After logging in click the ‘Leagues’ tabe and click the ‘Join a League’ link. Select "Private League" and enter the code for our league. Our league code is: 6686-2741

Monthly Prize

2 x Meat Trays + 2 sides at the Bison Bar & BBQ

Bison Whiskey Tasting Mat for 2

End of Season Prize

4 x Pints in Garage Bar (www.garagebar.ie)

Dinner for 8 in Bison Bar & BBQ (www.bisonbar.ie)

8 x trays + 1 side per person

8 x Bison Cocktails

8 x Complimentary Admission to Everleigh Garden

1 x Bottle of Vodka + mixers

Terms and Conditions

Prize can only be redeemed by over 21’s only

Right of admission reserved in ALL venues

Non transferrable

No cash alternative

And finally, as you may not have been paying attention to all the comings and goings in the league over the transfer window, here is a list of in’s and out’s from all the Premier League clubs.

Arsenal (arsenal.com)

In
Alexis Sanchez (Barcelona) Undisclosed
Mathieu Debuchy (Newcastle United) Undisclosed
David Ospina (Nice) Undisclosed
Calum Chambers (Southampton) Undisclosed

Out
Lukasz Fabianski (Swansea City) Free
Bacary Sagna (Manchester City) Free
Chuks Aneke (Zuite Waregem) Free
Nicklas Bendtner Released
Chu Young Park Released
Wellington Silva (UD Almeria) Loan
Thomas Eisfeld (Fulham) Undisclosed
Carl Jenkinson (West Ham United) Loan
Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona) Undisclosed

Aston Villa (avfc.co.uk)

In
Tom Leggett (Southampton) Undisclosed
Isaac Nehemie (Southampton) Undisclosed
Philippe Senderos (Valencia) Free
Joe Cole (West Ham) Free
Kieran Richardson (Fulham) Free
Aly Cissokho (Valencia) Undisclosed

Out
Marc Albrighton (Leicester City) Free
Nathan Delfouneso Released
Nicklas Helenius (Aalborg) Loan
Yacouba Scylla (Kayseri Erciyesspor) Loan
Antonio Luna (Verona) Loan

Burnley (burnleyfootballclub.com)

In
Michael Kightly (Stoke City) Undisclosed
Matt Gilks (Unattached) Free
Marvin Sordell (Bolton Wanderers) Undisclosed
Matt Taylor (West Ham United) Free
Steven Reid (West Bromwich Albion) Free
Lukas Jutkiewicz (Middlesbrough) Undisclosed
 

Out
David Edgar Released
Brian Stock Released
Keith Treacy Released
Nick Liversedge Released
Junior Stanislas Released
Chris Baird (West Bromwich Albion) Free

Chelsea (chelseafc.com)

In
Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona) Undisclosed
Mario Pasalic (Hajduk Split) Undisclosed
Diego Costa (Atletico Madrid) Undisclosed
Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid) Undisclosed
Didier Drogba (Galatasaray) Free
 

Out
Tomas Kalas (Cologne) Loan
Ashley Cole (Roma) Free
Samuel Eto'o Released
Henrique Hilario Released
Sam Hutchinson Released
Frank Lampard (New York City) Free
Demba Ba (Besiktas) Undisclosed
Mario Pasalic (Elche) Loan
Lucas Piazon (Eintracht Frankfurt) Loan
Patrick van Aanholt (Sunderland) Undisclosed
Romelu Lukaku (Everton) £28m
Ryan Bertrand (Southampton) Loan
Oriol Romeu (Stuttgart) Loan
Kenneth Omuero (Middlesbrough) Loan

Crystal Palace (cpfc.co.uk)

In
Chris Kettings (Blackpool) Free
Fraizer Campbell (Cardiff) Undisclosed
Brede Hangeland (Fulham) Free

Out
Neil Alexander Released
Kagisho Dikgacoi (Cardiff City) Free
Daniel Gabbidon Released
Dean Moxey Released
Jonathan Parr (Ipswich Town) Free
Aaron Wilbraham Released
Jose Campana (Sampdoria) Undisclosed
Jack Hunt (Nottingham Forest) Loan

Everton (evertonfc.com)

In
Gareth Barry (Manchester City) Free
Muhamed Besic (Ferencvaros) Undisclosed
Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea) £28m
Brendan Galloway (MK Dons) Undisclosed

Out
Mason Springthorpe Released
Apostolos Vellios Released

Hull City (hullcityafc.net)

In
Jake Livermore (Tottenham Hotspur) Undisclosed
Robert Snodgrass (Norwich City) Undisclosed
Tom Ince (Blackpool) Free
Andrew Robertson (Dundee United) £2.85m
Harry Maguire (Sheffield United) £2.5m
 

Out
Joe Dudgeon Released
Abdoulaye Faye Released
Matty Fryatt Nottingham Forest (Free)
Conor Henderson Released
Eldin Jakupovic Released
Robert Koren Released

Leicester City (lcfc.com)

In
Jack Barmby (Manchester United) Free
Matthew Upson (Brighton and Hove Albion) Free
Ben Hamer (Charlton Athletic) Free
Marc Albrighton (Aston Villa) Free
Leonardo Ulloa (Brighton & Hove Albion) Undisclosed

Out
George Taft (Burton Albion) Free
Lloyd Dyer (Watford) Free
Marko Futacs Released

Liverpool (liverpoolfc.com)

In
Rickie Lambert (Southampton) Undisclosed
Adam Lallana (Southampton) Undisclosed
Emre Can (Bayer Leverkusen) Undisclosed
Lazar Markovic (Benfica) Undisclosed
Dejan Lovren (Southampton) Undisclosed
Divock Origi (Lille) Undisclosed
Javier Manquillo (Atletico Madrid) Loan

Out
Luis Alberto (Malaga) Loan
Michael Ngoo Released
Stephen Sama Released
Luis Suarez (Barcelona) Undisclosed
Iago Aspas (Sevilla) Loan
Andre Wisdom (West Bromwich Albion) Loan
Luis Suarez (Barcelona) Undisclosed
Divock Origi (Lille) Loan
Pepe Reina (Bayern Munich) Undisclosed

Manchester City (mcfc.co.uk)

In
Bacary Sagna (Arsenal) Free
Fernando (Porto) Undisclosed
Willy Caballero (Malaga) Undisclosed
Frank Lampard (New York City) Loan
Bruno Zuculini (Racing Club) Undisclosed
Eliaquim Mangala (Porto) Undisclosed

Out
Costel Pantilimon (Sunderland) Free
Joleon Lescott (West Brom) Free
Alex Nimely Released
Marcos Lopes (Lille) Loan
Gareth Barry (Everton) Free
Jack Rodwell (Sunderland) Undisclosed

Manchester United (manutd.com)

In
Ander Herrera (Athletic Bilbao) Undisclosed
Luke Shaw (Southampton) Undisclosed
Vanja Milinkovic (Vojovdina) Undisclosed

Out
Federico Macheda (Cardiff City) Free
Jack Barmby (Leicester City) Free
Rio Ferdinand (QPR) Free
Ryan Giggs Released
Nemanja Vidic (Inter Milan) Free
Alexander Buttner (Dynamo Moscow) Undisclosed
Patrice Evra (Juventus) Undisclosed

Newcastle United (nufc.co.uk)

In
Ayoze Perez (Tenerife) Undisclosed
Jack Colback (Sunderland) Free
Siem de Jong (Ajax) Undisclosed
Remy Cabella (Montpellier) Undisclosed
Emmanuel Riviere (Monaco) Undisclosed
Daryl Janmaat (Feyenoord) Undisclosed
Facundo Ferreyra (Shakhtar Donetsk) Loan
Jamaal Lascelles (Nottingham Forest) Undisclosed
Karl Darlow (Nottingham Forest) Undisclosed

Out
Conor Newton (Rotherham United) Free
Dan Gosling (Bournemouth) Free
Shola Ameobi Released
Michael Richardson Released
Mathieu Debuchy (Arsenal) Undisclosed
Sylvain Marveaux (Guingamp) Loan
Jamaal Lascelles (Nottingham Forest) Loan
Karl Darlow (Nottingham Forest) Loan

Queens Park Rangers (qpr.co.uk)

In
Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United) Free
Steven Caulker (Cardiff City) Undisclosed
Jordon Mutch (Cardiff City) Undisclosed
 

Out
Aaron Hughes Released
Stephane Mbia Released
Andrew Johnson Released
Luke Young Released
Hogan Ephraim Released
Angelo Balanta Released
Tom Hitchcock Released
Yossi Benayoun (Maccabi Haifa) Undisclosed
Esteban Granero (Real Sociedad) Undisclosed

Southampton (saintsfc.co.uk)

In
Dusan Tadic (FC Twente) Undisclosed
Graziano Pelle (Feyenoord) Undisclosed
Ryan Bertrand (Chelsea) Loan
Saphir Taider (Inter Milan) Loan
Fraser Forster (Celtic) Undisclosed

Out
Andy Robinson (Bolton Wanderers) Free
Tom Leggett (Aston Villa) Undisclosed
Isaac Nehemie (Aston Villa) Undisclosed
Danny Fox (Nottingham Forest) Free
Lee Barnard Released
Guly do Prado Released
Jonathan Forte Released
Rickie Lambert (Liverpool) Undisclosed
Luke Shaw (Manchester United) Undisclosed
Adam Lallana (Liverpool) Undisclosed
Dejan Lovren (Liverpool) Undisclosed
Calum Chambers (Arsenal) Undisclosed

Stoke City (stokecityfc.com)

In
Phil Bardsley (Sunderland) Free
Steve Sidwell (Fulham) Free
Mame Biram Diouf (Hannover) Free
Dionatan Teixeira (Banska Bystrica) Undisclosed
Bojan Krkic (Barcelona) Undisclosed

Out
Juan Agudelo Released
Matthew Etherington Released
Michael Kightly (Burnley) Undisclosed

Sunderland (safc.com)

In
Jordi Gomez (Wigan Athletic) Free
Billy Jones (West Bromwich Albion) Free
Costel Pantilimon (Manchester City) Free
Patrick van Aanholt (Chelsea) Undisclosed
Jack Rodwell (Manchester City) Undisclosed
 

Out
Billy Knott (Bradford City) Free
Phil Bardsley (Stoke City) Free
Craig Gardner (West Bromwich Albion) Free
Carlos Cuellar Released
Andrea Dossena Released
John Egan Released
Oscar Ustari Released
David Vaughan Released
Kieren Westwood Released
Jack Colback (Newcastle United) Free

Swansea City (swanseacity.net)

In
Lukasz Fabianski (Arsenal) Free
Bafetimbi Gomis (Lyon) Free
Stephen Kingsley (Falkirk) Undisclosed
Marvin Emnes (Middlesbrough) Undisclosed
Gylfi Sigurdsson (Tottenham Hotspur) Undisclosed
Jefferson Montero (Morelia) Undisclosed

Out
Leroy Lita Released
Jernade Meade Released
David Ngog Released
Darnel Situ Released
Michu (Napoli) Loan
Ben Davies (Tottenham Hotspur) Undisclosed
Michel Vorm (Tottenham Hotspur) Undisclosed
Alejandro Pozuelo (Rayo Vallecano) Undisclosed

Tottenham Hotspur (tottenhamhotspur.com)

In
Ben Davies (Swansea City) Undisclosed
Michel Vorm (Swansea City) Undisclosed
Eric Dier (Sporting Lisbon) Undisclosed

Out
Heurelho Gomes (Watford) Free
Cameron Lancaster Released
Jake Livermore (Hull City) Undisclosed
Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City) Undisclosed

West Bromwich Albion (wba.co.uk)

In
Craig Gardner (Sunderland) Free
Joleon Lescott (Man City) Free
Chris Baird (Burnley) Free
Sebastien Pocognoli (Hannover) Undisclosed
Brown Ideye (Dynamo Kiev) Undisclosed
Andre Wisdom (Liverpool) Loan
Jason Davidson (Heracles Almelo) Undisclosed
Cristian Gamboa (Rosenborg) Undisclosed

Out
Billy Jones (Sunderland) Free
Scott Allan Released
Nicolas Anelka Released
Cameron Gayle Released
Zoltan Gera Released
Diego Lugano Released
Liam Ridgewell Released
Steven Reid (Burnley) Free
George Thorne (Derby County) Undisclosed

West Ham United (whufc.com)

In
Mauro Zarate (Velez Sarsfield) Undisclosed
Cheikhou Kouyate (Anderlecht) Undisclosed
Aaron Cresswell (Ipswich Town) Undisclosed
Diego Poyet (Charlton Athletic) Undisclosed
Enner Valencia (Pachuca) Undisclosed
Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal) Loan

Out
Joe Cole (Aston Villa) Free
Jack Collison Released
Callum Driver Released
George McCartney Released
Jordan Spence Released
Matt Taylor (Burnley) Free