Butch

Be sad to see the day, really. I know I'm selfish with this view, but he is a personal favorite of mine as well. It's just that nobody could or should get ahead of Cech at the moment, such is the quality of our number one. But if he does leave, and I have to say Star's track record of breaking these types of news is nothing if not stellar, I wish him all the best. Can't see us signing as good a number two from anywhere; which is another reason I'm a bit disappointed by this news. Better buy Cech another cap, and some cotton wool! Cheers, Butch

Bit harsh on Lamps, mate. He was a much more established player then than Sidwell is now. Still, I think I understand what you're trying to say. Cheers, Butch

It'll be interesting to see how the transfer season pans out. My personal belief is that the only thing holding up the Alex deal is problems getting him a work permit. I think as soon as we can secure that, we've got our man. Interestingly though, I wonder if he'll be the only CB that walks into Stamford Bridge this summer, particularly if we allow Boulahrouz to leave. Sure, we don't want to have to play Essien there at all next season, which would mean we should have 4 center backs. Alex would be a good center back to have when Terry is out, or when we're playing against a long ball side with physical strikers. But then, consider what would happen against the more mobile forwards if, say, Carvalho was out injured or suspended. Without another more nimble CB, it is likely Essien would have to fill in? As for midfield, I am not so sure we need any reinforcements anyway, so Sidwell, questionable or not, would seem to be a wise move as back up during the ANC. I have to say that during the latter part of the season, Jon Obi Mikel hugely impressed me, and I think he is going to establish himself alongside Essien and Lampard as one of the best midfields we've ever had. Up front is indeed interesting. I saw enough from Sheva when he was played as the lone striker, against West Ham I think, late in the season to suggest he can do it for us while Drogba is away. However, I think with Drogba becoming an integral part of our attack, we naturally need to cover our bases in case he is injured or suspended in big games and we don't currently have a like-for-like replacement, meaning our tactics have to change quite a bit to go with the new personnel. Another target-man type forward may indeed be the way to go to help strengthen the team. I think McCarthy would be ideal. However, Blackburn would be loathed to sell him to us, and if they did, it would likely be for big bucks and probably take him out of the equation. We'll see. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, So, TT wins the grand prize again, holding off Ossie13 in the regular season and then sweeping the rest of the competitions (except that High Scores where he shares first prize with Coombsie). We'll have to devise a plan to topple TT next season (again). We thank you all for your participation; hope you enjoyed yourselves and see you again next season! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL FINAL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp Bo Cu Av Rt ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 00 Oluwole 1 0 230 230 231* 01 TT 64 500 10604 166 230 02 Dayo 1 0 225 225 226 03 Ossie13 64 175 10084 158 222 04 Butch 64 75 9690 151 215 05 Killa 1 0 213 213 214 06 Crystalballs 64 0 9373 146 210 07 Loz 62 0 8938 144 206 08 Coombsie 49 100 7355 150 199 09 Tim W 44 50 6767 154 198 10 TeaBarBoy 57 0 7893 138 195 11 Sergeyms 37 50 5683 154 191 12 Nick White 49 0 6857 140 189 13 Trubish Bob 46 0 6513 142 188 14 Ajah Augustine 1 0 184 184 185 15 MadMac 43 0 5909 137 180 16 Star 12 0 1990 166 178 17 Waldron 38 0 5263 139 177 18 Adil 1 0 175 175 176 19 BlueBeard 10 0 1619 162 172 20 Solomon Odeli 1 0 170 170 171 21 Jack 21 0 3139 149 170 22 Pudge 19 0 2808 148 167 23 Derek Dove 37 0 4683 127 164 24 Joshua Alajemba 1 0 163 163 164 25 TomP 8 0 1230 154 162 26 Sanni 1 0 158 158 159 27 Gullit4 3 0 461 154 157 28 Footiemadman007 1 0 156 156 157 29 Odred18 1 0 156 156 157 30 Wycliffe 9 0 1324 147 156 31 Pauly 15 0 2081 139 154 32 Liam 10 0 1437 144 154 33 Chelsea Legend 1 0 153 153 154 34 Tommy Crofts 1 0 153 153 154 35 MHedges 9 0 1287 143 152 36 E. Kenneth Chima 1 0 150 150 151 37 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 1517 138 149 38 Yogic 3 0 437 146 149 39 Eric Ankomah 1 0 148 148 149 40 Bosnian Fanatic 5 0 712 142 147 41 Rahul Singh 1 0 145 145 146 42 Oladimeji 1 0 143 143 144 43 Sam Buckell 12 0 1574 131 143 44 Mosquino 3 0 415 138 141 45 Kemir 1 0 140 140 141 46 Nikesh 1 0 140 140 141 47 Rockstar 1 0 140 140 141 48 Adedayo K. Tayo 1 0 138 138 139 49 Brendan Salisbury 1 0 138 138 139 50 Andrew Lang 1 0 137 137 138 51 Hafrul 1 0 136 136 137 52 Etikes Austine 1 0 135 135 136 53 TOPE 1 0 135 135 136 54 Anto 1 0 133 133 134 55 Olumide 1 0 133 133 134 56 Modulate 5 0 632 126 131 57 Miz 4 0 507 127 131 58 Singablue 12 0 1420 118 130 59 Laila 3 0 380 127 130 60 Akpu Eugene 1 0 128 128 129 61 Ijeoma Paul Obi 1 0 128 128 129 62 Joshua 1 0 128 128 129 63 Oyebisi 1 0 128 128 129 64 Tolu 1 0 128 128 129 65 Onwordi E. 5 0 616 123 128 66 Boy Payung 1 0 126 126 127 67 Kunle 1 0 125 125 126 68 Mutiu 1 0 125 125 126 69 Olatunbe Fela 1 0 125 125 126 70 Salisu Ali 1 0 125 125 126 71 Tunji 1 0 125 125 126 72 Cliff Ejims 1 0 123 123 124 73 Ekponsi 1 0 123 123 124 74 Manfred K. Livi 1 0 123 123 124 75 Kudus 1 0 120 120 121 76 Lookman 1 0 118 118 119 77 Olamilekan Sulaiman 1 0 118 118 119 78 Jeremiah 1 0 116 116 117 79 Okewole Emmanuel 1 0 116 116 117 80 Tboy 1 0 116 116 117 81 Ayokunle Olusanya 1 0 113 113 114 82 Chinedu 1 0 113 113 114 83 Mark 1 0 113 113 114 84 O. Olalekan 1 0 113 113 114 85 Anthony 1 0 111 111 112 86 Azeez-babatunde 1 0 111 111 112 87 O. Raphael Digbani 1 0 110 110 111 88 Sadik 1 0 110 110 111 89 Gogo Lateef 1 0 108 108 109 90 Imole 1 0 108 108 109 91 John Ayinbila 1 0 108 108 109 92 Dennis 4 0 417 104 108 93 Chelskied 1 0 105 105 106 94 Fapohunda Faluso 1 0 104 104 105 95 Lawaltobi 1 0 104 104 105 96 Akomaye 1 0 103 103 104 97 Leke 1 0 103 103 104 98 Phuntsok 1 0 103 103 104 99 Emmanuel O. 1 0 101 101 102 100 Franklin Udensi 1 0 101 101 102 101 Olajide Emmanuel 1 0 101 101 102 102 Tunde 1 0 101 101 102 103 Mod Faisal Yusof 1 0 98 98 99 104 Yoyovan Tobi 1 0 98 98 99 105 Mike O 2 0 191 96 98 106 Olawale Ijaduala 2 0 189 95 97 107 Jordan Mills 1 0 96 96 97 108 Tola Akinwumi 1 0 96 96 97 109 Saleh 1 0 95 95 96 110 Iyke 1 0 93 93 94 111 Moses K. Pewa 1 0 93 93 94 112 Nathanel R. 1 0 93 93 94 113 Jide 1 0 91 91 92 114 Samuel 1 0 91 91 92 115 Temetan Taiwo 1 0 91 91 92 116 Abdulkadir 1 0 88 88 89 117 Jade Simeone 1 0 88 88 89 118 Scattier 1 0 88 88 89 119 David Daure Y. 1 0 86 86 87 120 Kharma S. Bhutia 1 0 86 86 87 121 Tom 1 0 86 86 87 122 Ahmed 1 0 85 85 86 123 Sigurd Glomstad 1 0 84 84 85 124 John Tadman 1 0 83 83 84 125 Julius O. 1 0 83 83 84 126 Segun Abiodun 1 0 83 83 84 127 Obekpa Elias 1 0 80 80 81 128 Olawale 1 0 80 80 81 129 Raph K 1 0 80 80 81 130 Rex Chikange 1 0 78 78 79 131 Ibrahim 1 0 76 76 77 132 Nyamu 1 0 76 76 77 133 Samson 1 0 76 76 77 134 Thomas Cassidy 1 0 76 76 77 135 Amanuel 1 0 75 75 76 136 Ojeh Benjamin 1 0 74 74 75 137 Uduak Udoaka 1 0 74 74 75 138 Yusuph 1 0 74 74 75 139 Soneye 1 0 70 70 71 140 Henry 1 0 68 68 69 141 Shannon 1 0 68 68 69 142 Jeremiah Jimoh 1 0 66 66 67 143 Jon 1 0 66 66 67 144 Fashanu M. 1 0 64 64 65 145 Walex 1 0 63 63 64 146 Prince Tetteh 1 0 61 61 62 147 Onwumelu M. 1 0 60 60 61 148 Toure Boubacar 1 0 56 56 57 149 Olatunde Isiaka 1 0 55 55 56 150 Ganiu Akande 1 0 53 53 54 151 Hans Emerson 1 0 53 53 54 152 Ifeanyi 1 0 53 53 54 153 Joseph Benjamin 1 0 53 53 54 154 Shedrack 1 0 46 46 47 155 Layiwola O. 1 0 34 34 35 156 Don 1 0 26 26 27 157 Andrews 1 0 16 16 17 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ * cannot win the BPL with one prediction; TT wins. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the stats for the winners of the 5 BPL competitions: the Regular Season, the Long-Term Predictions, the Top Average Score, the Highest Score, and the Winners' Circle. The breakdown is as follows: 100 points for the winner, 50 points for second place and 25 points for third place to go to the FINAL STANDINGS tabulation. CONGRATS to all the bonus points winners! ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 TT 11 02 Ossie13 10 03 Tim W 8 04 Crystalballs 7 05 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) TT (Man Utd ? FAC) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) TOP Average Score ? 20 game minimum ------------------------------------------ Name GP AVG ------------------------------------------ 1. TT 64 158 2. Ossie13 64 155 3. TimW 44 153 4. SergeyMS 37 152 5. Butch 64 150 6. Jack 21 149 7. Coombsie 49 148 8. Crystalballs 64 146 9. Loz 62 144 10.Trubish Bob 46 142 11.Nick White 49 140 12.Waldron 38 139 13.TeaBarBoy 57 138 14.MadMac 43 137 15.Derek Dove 37 127 ------------------------------------------ LONG-TERM PREDICTIONS ------------------------------------------ Name Score ------------------------------------------ 1. TT 130 2. Butch 125 3. TrubishBob 115 4. MHedges 110 5. MadMac 95 6. Mike O 85 SergeyMS 85 7. Ossie13 70 Tim W 70 8. Loz 65 Star 65 9. Crystalballs 60 10. Pudge 60 11. Waldron 50 ------------------------------------------ For regular season bonuses, TT won 100 points, Ossie13 won 50 points and Butch won 25 points. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the BPL standings after the win over Man Utd in the FA Cup final at the new Wembley stadium. CONGRATS this time go to TT; well done, mate! He wins the regular season BPL title yet again (full table will be posted soon). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 01 TT 64 11 5 15 2 5 0 0 80 258 10104 158 222 +3 02 Ossie13 64 9 2 15 2 5 0 0 0 128 9909 155 219 +1 03 Butch 64 10 3 15 2 5 0 5 0 153 9615 150 214 +1 04 Crystalballs 64 9 2 15 2 5 0 0 0 128 9373 146 210 +0 05 Loz 62 10 3 15 2 5 0 5 0 153 8938 144 206 +1 06 Coombsie 49 9 3 30 0 5 0 10 0 165 7255 148 197 +1 07 Tim W 44 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6717 153 197 na 08 TeaBarBoy 57 11 3 15 2 0 0 0 15 168 7893 138 195 +1 09 Nick White 49 10 4 15 2 5 0 5 0 163 6857 140 189 +2 10 Sergeyms 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5633 152 189 na 11 Trubish Bob 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6513 142 188 na 12 MadMac 43 9 3 15 2 5 0 5 0 143 5909 137 180 +1 13 Star 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1990 166 178 na 14 Waldron 38 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5263 139 177 na 15 BlueBeard 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1619 162 172 na 16 Jack 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3139 149 170 na 17 Pudge 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2808 148 167 na 18 Derek Dove 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4683 127 164 na 19 TomP 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1230 154 162 na 20 Wycliffe 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1324 147 156 na 21 Pauly 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2081 139 154 na 22 Liam 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1437 144 154 na 23 MHedges 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1287 143 152 na 24 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1517 138 149 na 25 Sam Buckell 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1574 131 143 na 26 Kemir 1 8 2 30 0 5 0 5 0 140 140 140 141 na 27 Singablue 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1420 118 130 na 28 Akpu Eugene 1 8 3 15 2 5 0 0 0 128 128 128 129 na 29 Ijeoma P. Obi 1 9 2 15 2 5 0 0 0 128 128 128 129 na 30 Tolu 1 9 2 15 2 5 0 0 0 128 128 128 129 na 31 Onwordi E. 5 7 3 15 2 5 0 0 0 118 616 123 128 na 32 Lookman 1 7 3 15 2 5 0 0 0 118 118 118 119 na 33 John Ayinbila 1 7 2 15 2 5 0 0 0 108 108 108 109 na 34 Emmanuel O. 1 6 2 15 4 5 0 5 0 101 101 101 102 na 35 Jordan Mills 1 7 1 15 4 5 0 0 0 96 96 96 97 na 36 John Tadman 1 5 2 15 2 0 0 0 0 83 83 83 84 na 37 Julius O. 1 5 2 15 2 0 0 0 0 83 83 83 84 na ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 TT 11 02 Ossie13 10 03 Tim W 8 04 Crystalballs 7 05 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) TT (Man Utd ? FAC) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) Cheers, Butch

We may not have won the title but you can't say we've not been "successful". It is unlikely that fans, even the JCL's as you put it, would ditch us that quickly. We're still one of the best clubs in the world and still "on the up". Cheers, Butch

I'm thinking the striker will be one Benni McCarthy, actually. Cheers, Butch

I think he meant that Drogba didn't take any penalties. Cheers, Butch

Well, Jose has gone and spoilt it for us with his "we won't sign big this summer" comments (or something to that effect). When you're Chelsea, I think you HAVE to sign big if you want to improve the first team. Sure, we can improve the second or third team to add squad depth and we all know we've needed it this season (CB, RB), but there are some positions (well, one) where I feel a first team addition would do wonders for us. That position is one of the wide attackers, though it would be a boon if he could also play behind the strikers. You may be wondering why I would want another attacker when we have Robben, Joe Cole and SWP, but I have to tell you that of the three, two were out injured for most of the season and the other has only just begun to show some promise. And I still don't feel we're creative enough. So, all things considered, and I don't believe Milan would sell Kaka for all the money in the world, or Barca Messi for that matter, I feel that if we pushed hard enough, we could land Ronaldinho. I know his form has been ordinary this season but I have a feeling that a change of view would do him the world of good. It's only a half chance, but you just feel some changes are in store at Camp Nou. By the way, we don't need world class substitutes for right back, center back or center forward. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the final FINAL-8 TOURNAMENT standings after the 1-1 draw with Everton in our last league game of the season. CONGRATS go to yours truly courtesy of predicting one correct score and 3 correct results out of the last eight games of the season. ?LAST-8 Prediction League? ------------------------------------------ Name GP W D L GD Total ------------------------------------------ 1. Butch 8 1 3 4 +3 6 2. Ethicalstrategy 8 1 2 5 +1 5 3. Crystalballs 8 0 4 4 +2 4 4. Loz 8 0 4 4 +2 4 5. Midlandblue 8 0 4 4 +2 4 6. MadMac 7 0 3 4 +1 3 7. Chippy 8 0 3 5 +0 3 8. Ossie12 8 0 3 5 +0 3 9. Pauly 8 0 3 5 +0 3 10.Sergeyms 8 0 3 5 +0 3 11.TimW 8 0 3 5 +0 3 12.TT 8 0 3 5 +0 3 ------------------------------------------ Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after the 1-1 draw with Everton in our final league game of the season. CONGRATS this time go to TT, a win which takes him back to the top of the league with one prediction to go; well done, mate! Ossie13, you know what you have to do, mate! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 01 TT 63 8 4 0 2 5 0 0 50 173 9846 156 219 +1 02 Ossie13 63 8 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 88 9781 155 218 +0 03 Butch 63 7 2 0 0 0 10 5 0 105 9462 150 213 +0 04 Crystalballs 63 8 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 108 9245 147 210 +1 05 Loz 61 6 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 68 8785 144 205 +0 06 Tim W 44 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6717 153 197 na 07 Coombsie 48 8 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 78 7090 148 196 +0 08 TeaBarBoy 56 9 1 0 4 5 0 0 0 101 7725 138 194 +0 09 Sergeyms 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5633 152 189 na 10 Trubish Bob 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6513 142 188 na 11 Nick White 48 9 3 0 6 5 0 0 0 119 6694 139 187 +0 12 MadMac 42 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5766 137 179 na 13 Star 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1990 166 178 na 14 Waldron 38 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5263 139 177 na 15 BlueBeard 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1619 162 172 na 16 Jack 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3139 149 170 na 17 Pudge 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2808 148 167 na 18 Derek Dove 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4683 127 164 na 19 TomP 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1230 154 162 na 20 Wycliffe 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1324 147 156 na 21 Pauly 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2081 139 154 na 22 Liam 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1437 144 154 na 23 MHedges 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1287 143 152 na 24 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1517 138 149 na 25 Sam Buckell 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1574 131 143 na 26 Singablue 12 7 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 88 1420 118 130 -2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 Ossie13 10 02 TT 10 03 Tim W 8 04 Crystalballs 7 05 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest Last-8 standings after the Man Utd match. Just one match to go now! ?LAST-8 Prediction League? ------------------------------------------ Name GP W D L GD Total ------------------------------------------ 1. Butch 7 1 3 3 +4 6 2. Ethicalstrategy 7 1 2 4 +2 5 3. Crystalballs 7 0 4 3 +3 4 4. Loz 7 0 4 3 +3 4 5. Midlandblue 7 0 4 3 +3 4 6. MadMac 6 0 3 3 +2 3 7. Chippy 7 0 3 4 +1 3 8. Ossie12 7 0 3 4 +1 3 9. Pauly 7 0 3 4 +1 3 10.Sergeyms 7 0 3 4 +1 3 11.TimW 7 0 3 4 +1 3 12.TT 7 0 3 4 +1 3 ------------------------------------------ Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after the 0-0 home draw against Man Utd. CONGRATS this time go to Crystalballs; well done, mate! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 01 Ossie13 62 7 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 76 9693 156 218 -1 02 TT 62 7 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 78 9673 156 218 +0 03 Butch 62 8 1 15 2 0 0 5 0 108 9357 151 213 +0 04 Crystalballs 62 9 4 0 2 0 0 5 50 183 9137 147 209 +1 05 Loz 60 8 0 15 4 0 0 0 0 91 8717 145 205 +0 06 Tim W 44 7 2 15 4 0 0 0 0 101 6717 153 197 +0 07 Coombsie 47 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7012 149 196 na 08 TeaBarBoy 55 9 3 0 4 0 0 5 0 121 7624 139 194 +1 09 Sergeyms 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5633 152 189 na 10 Trubish Bob 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6513 142 188 na 11 Nick White 47 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6575 140 187 na 12 MadMac 42 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5766 137 179 na 13 Star 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1990 166 178 na 14 Waldron 38 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5263 139 177 na 15 BlueBeard 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1619 162 172 na 16 Jack 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3139 149 170 na 17 Pudge 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2808 148 167 na 18 Derek Dove 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4683 127 164 na 19 TomP 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1230 154 162 na 20 Wycliffe 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1324 147 156 na 21 Pauly 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2081 139 154 na 22 Liam 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1437 144 154 na 23 MHedges 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1287 143 152 na 24 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1517 138 149 na 25 Sam Buckell 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1574 131 143 na 26 Singablue 11 7 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 76 1332 121 132 -4 27 Fashanu M. 1 5 2 0 6 0 0 0 0 64 64 64 65 na 28 Toure B. 1 5 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 56 56 56 57 na 29 Olatunde I. 1 2 0 30 0 0 0 5 0 55 55 55 56 na 30 Don 1 2 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 26 26 26 27 na 31 Andrews 1 2 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 16 16 16 17 na ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 Ossie13 10 02 TT 9 03 Tim W 8 04 Crystalballs 7 05 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) Cheers, Butch

GK: Cech, Cudicini RB: Ferreira, Geremi LB: ACole, Bridge CB: Carvalho, Terry, Boulahrouz DM: Makalele, Diarra CM: Lampard, Ballack, Mikel AM: Robben, SWP, JCole FW: Kalou, Shevchenko, Drogba As is, we are definitely missing one central defender (two, if you are of the opinion that Boulahrouz simply ain't gonna make it here). My personal opinion is that Boula has the attributes to be a useful player for us, but that if there is any problem at all with Jose (even if it is indirectly insofar as he was an Arsensen choice), then he should be allowed to leave. I've already said this before, Jose should be given free reign over player signings. Alex is an interesting option though (a) wonder if Jose would be interested, and (B) wonder how long it would take for him to settle into the squad. Right back is another position I am not very happy with. Ferreira has looked low on confidence and is making a lot of mistakes. Plus, he has never been a very good attacking right back anyway; willing at times but his crosses are useless. I say bring back Johno from Pompey for when we need an attacking threat down the flanks and possibly move Geremi (or keep him if he wants to stay). He won't be available during the ANC anyway. Or, leave Johno where he is and bring in Richards. Drogba will be a big loss during the ANC, don't even mention Kalou. We definitely need to plan how we will go through that period of time with one striker. It won't be impossible, but it would certainly be good to have someone who could play in that role as back-up to Sheva. Alternatively, it would be more beneficial in the long-term to be able to sign a player for a position we need more than a striker, which is the creative forward who can play in the hole as well as out wide. While Kalou and Drogba are away, it is possible that Jose, if needed, could device tactics that allow us to make use of more mobile, speedier players the likes of Robben, SWP, Joe Cole and/or this other player. SWP has won me over with his performances over the last month or so. He looks determined, and as long as the improvements in his game continue, I'd like us to keep him. Whatever happens, I hope we settle all signings (at least those coming into the squad) well before the pre-season preparations begin. Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest Last-8 Tournament Standings. Just two games to go now! ?LAST-8 Prediction League? ------------------------------------------ Name GP W D L GD Total ------------------------------------------ 1. Butch 6 1 3 2 +5 6 2. Ethicalstrategy 6 1 2 3 +3 5 3. Loz 6 0 4 2 +4 4 4. Midlandblue 6 0 4 2 +4 4 5. Chippy 6 0 3 3 +2 3 6. Crystalballs 6 0 3 3 +2 3 7. Ossie12 6 0 3 3 +2 3 8. Pauly 6 0 3 3 +2 3 9. Sergeyms 6 0 3 3 +2 3 10.TimW 6 0 3 3 +2 3 11.TT 6 0 3 3 +2 3 12.MadMac 5 0 2 3 +1 2 ------------------------------------------ Cheers, Butch

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after the commendable draw at the Emirates Stadium. CONGRATS this time go to Ossie13; well done, mate! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 01 Ossie13 61 8 1 30 0 0 10 15 50 195 9617 158 219 +2 02 TT 61 9 2 0 2 0 0 10 0 118 9595 157 218 +0 03 Butch 61 7 1 30 0 0 5 15 0 130 9249 152 213 +1 04 Crystalballs 61 8 1 30 0 0 0 10 0 130 8954 147 208 +1 05 Loz 59 9 3 0 0 0 5 0 0 125 8626 146 205 +0 06 Tim W 43 9 2 0 0 0 20 0 0 130 6616 154 197 +1 07 Coombsie 47 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7012 149 196 na 08 TeaBarBoy 54 9 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 98 7503 139 193 +0 09 Sergeyms 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5633 152 189 na 10 Trubish Bob 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6513 142 188 na 11 Nick White 47 9 3 0 2 0 0 5 0 123 6575 140 187 +1 12 MadMac 42 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5766 137 179 na 13 Star 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1990 166 178 na 14 Waldron 38 7 1 0 0 0 0 5 0 85 5263 139 177 +0 15 BlueBeard 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1619 162 172 na 16 Jack 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3139 149 170 na 17 Pudge 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2808 148 167 na 18 Derek Dove 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4683 127 164 na 19 TomP 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1230 154 162 na 20 Wycliffe 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1324 147 156 na 21 Pauly 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2081 139 154 na 22 Liam 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1437 144 154 na 23 MHedges 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1287 143 152 na 24 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1517 138 149 na 25 Sam Buckell 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1574 131 143 na 26 Singablue 10 8 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 88 1256 126 136 -3 27 Hans Emerson 1 4 0 15 2 0 0 0 0 53 53 53 54 na 28 Joseph B 1 4 1 0 2 5 0 0 0 53 53 53 54 na ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 Ossie13 10 02 TT 9 03 Tim W 8 04 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 06 Crystalballs 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) Cheers, Butch

The way I see it... The first three kicks must be taken by your best three takers - for me Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, then possibly Essien or JT. Why? The first ones are always the most difficult to score from and nobody wants to miss, i.e. they are "defensive" kicks. You're not going to win by scoring one of these three (unless your opponents miss all of theirs) BUT you could be in quite a spot of bother if you miss one or two. It's all about putting yourself in position. Now, "defensive" situations such as these require big personalities. People with doubt are likely to choke. Penalty kicks numbers 4, but especially 5 and beyond become "offensive" kicks because there is the likelihood that it becomes score to win. These situations require or force a different sort of mentality and are much more likely to make someone "rise to the occasion". So, you don't have to have your best takers waiting to take these kicks. For example, I'd be much more confident of Geremi scoring from the 4th or 5th kicks rather than the first or second. Also, seeing your mates score before hand tends to give confidence. Of course, if your team has to take the penalty kicks first, and the other side is not missing any of theirs, then even the 4th or 5th kicks could be "defensive" ones, but the chance is that they might not be, compared to the first three. I'm sure Didier was waiting to hit the "winner" in 5th place but in my opinion that was a mistake. But I've been told my hindsight is pretty good. Cheers, Butch

I don't think ANYONE should be shot down for their opinions. It is ALL opinions. Emotions are running high after the rather disappointing loss in a tournament where we ALL believed was time for us to win. Everyone has their own reasons for wanting to win it, some actually not wanting to lose to Liverpool just as bad as wanting to win. But no matter what reasons you may have for feeling disappointed and angry, I believe they are all valid insofar as they are your own opinions. So I believe we should all exercise a little patience and understanding for our fellow fans. We're all in the same boat afterall! Cheers, Butch

Commiserations, commiserations... Nobody should ever have to go through that! Cheers, Butch

Happy Birthday, Tim. Forget about the loss. It's just a sport (said through clenched teeth) . Cheers, Butch

C'mon people, we are ALL disappointed by our exit from the Champions League semifinals for the second time in three years, and to the same bloomin' team. Nobody needs to be called less of a fan just because they choose to deal with the disappointment in different ways. I actually also have to say Liverpool deserved to go through, and give them my congratulations. Football is a sport. Losing is part and parcel of the game. Though we outplayed them in the first leg, particularly the first half of the first leg, and really ought to have put the tie out of sight, they totally outplayed us in this second leg, which just so happened to be the deciding leg of the tie. I don't have any criticisms of our players on an individual basis. I thought they tried hard and did what they could. Tired legs? I thought we were the stronger side as the game wore on because we were physcially fitter. Their players, particularly their defenders, were tiring and cramping all over the place. I was disappointed that despite throwing on two fresh, quick wingers in Arjen and Shaun that we were unable to give them possession and the neccessary support to run at Liverpool's tiring defenders. Jose Mourinho said we were the better side. I must not understand my football anymore. How can we be better when Liverpool totally dominated possession and created the better chances throughout? We only came into it in extra time when they tired significantly. I believe that what lost it for us tonight, apart from the lapse in concentration on the free kick that led to the goal (too tuned in to their aerial threat, no doubt), was our overly negative (spoiling) approach. Like has been said before, our attacks (I don't even want to use that word) were too isolated from the "support" (I shouldn't use that word either). There is no way we can EXPECT Drogba or Kalou or Joe Cole to beat three or four defenders en route to scoring a goal, yet that is pretty much how we played. It is not surprising then that each time one of these three players got the ball, they were crowded out of possession quickly and Liverpool were free to launch another of their attacks. I never felt we were positive at any point of the match, unlike Liverpool, and when it went to penalties I felt deep down in my heart that this negativity was going to turn round and bite us. And looking at the personnel entrusted with the penalty kicks, as well as the ordering of who took them first, I totally lost hope. Robben and Geremi, though they may be good dead ball takers, have had very limited competitive games under their belt this season. I'm not sure how they could have been expected to be "match fit" in terms of emotionally/psychologically. You really have to be sharp to take penalties under pretty tough conditions. They both choked. I'm disappointed, not because we lost. As I've said, that is part and parcel of the game. I'm disappointed in the manner we have lost. I didn't feel that the opposition warranted such a negative approach, and I didn't feel confident that our defense was going to be able to keep Liverpool out. I really would have liked to see a bit more attacking commitment to try and get that "killer" goal. Individually-speaking, I didn't think any player did much wrong. We actually were able to deal with the aerial side of things pretty well. We just switched off for their goal, plus we allowed them too much possession that invited them to come onto us, while we never worked on our counter-attacks (no commitment and no support). Let's just hope the players can pick themselves up for the Arsenal game at the weekend. We don't want to hand the EPL on a platter to the devils.

Dear Friends, Here are the latest BPL standings after the disappointing exit from the Champions League at the hands of Liverpool on penalty kicks. CONGRATS this time go to yours truly, though I shall not be celebrating . ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ BPL Standings 2006-2007 EPL Season Chelsea Supporters' Registry ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Name Gp St Sb FS Pe Sc TG Pr Bo To Cu Av Rt Ch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 01 TT 60 11 5 0 0 0 0 0 30 190 9477 158 218 +2 02 Ossie13 60 9 4 0 2 0 0 5 0 133 9422 157 217 +1 03 Butch 60 11 5 0 2 0 0 10 80 248 9119 152 212 +3 04 Crystalballs 60 9 4 0 2 0 0 10 0 138 8824 147 207 +1 05 Loz 58 11 4 15 2 0 0 10 0 173 8501 147 205 +2 06 Coombsie 47 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7012 149 196 na 07 Tim W 42 11 5 0 2 0 0 0 30 188 6486 154 196 +1 08 TeaBarBoy 53 10 4 0 2 0 0 5 0 143 7405 140 193 +1 09 Sergeyms 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5633 152 189 na 10 Trubish Bob 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6513 142 188 na 11 Nick White 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6452 140 186 na 12 MadMac 42 10 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 128 5766 137 179 +0 13 Star 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1990 166 178 na 14 Waldron 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5178 140 177 na 15 BlueBeard 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1619 162 172 na 16 Jack 21 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3139 149 170 na 17 Pudge 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2808 148 167 na 18 Derek Dove 37 6 2 15 2 0 0 0 0 93 4683 127 164 +0 19 TomP 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1230 154 162 na 20 Wycliffe 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1324 147 156 na 21 Pauly 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2081 139 154 na 22 Liam 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1437 144 154 na 23 MHedges 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1287 143 152 na 24 Mulugeta Z. 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1517 138 149 na 25 Sam Buckell 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1574 131 143 na 26 Singablue 9 9 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 120 1168 130 139 +0 27 Akomaye 1 8 1 15 2 0 0 0 0 103 103 103 104 na 28 Samson 1 7 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 76 76 76 77 na ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------- Winners' Circle ---------------------------------- 01 Ossie13 9 02 TT 9 03 Tim W 8 04 Butch 6 05 Coombsie 6 06 Crystalballs 6 07 Sergeyms 5 08 Loz 4 09 Waldron 4 10 Nick White 3 11 BlueBeard 2 12 Jack 2 13 Pauly 2 14 Pudge 2 15 TeaBarBoy 2 16 Dayo 1 17 Derek Dove 1 18 MadMac 1 19 Oluwole 1 20 Star 1 21 Tom P 1 ---------------------------------- *Record: 11 wins ? Butch (04/05) -------------------------------------------------------------- Rank Score Predictor(s) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 290 TT (Liverpool ? EPL) Coombsie (Watford, EPL) 2 285 SergeyMS (Portsmouth ? EPL) 3 275 Ossie13 (Man Utd ? EPL) 4 265 Butch, Ossie13 (Bremen ? CL) 5 260 BlueBeard (Man City ? EPL) 6 258 Tim W (FC Porto ? CL) 7 256 Loz (Liverpool ? CL) 8 255 Tim W (Arsenal ? CC) 9 250 Butch (Valencia ? CL) 10 248 Butch (Liverpool ? CL) -------------------------------------------------------------- *Record: 290 points ? TrubishBob (05/06), Coombsie, TT (06/07) Cheers, Butch

Boy, Yogic, did someone take away your mountain or what?! I don't think there is any conspiracy. I simply think that Jose Mourinho has views about who is best for the job that don't jive with a lot of us. From what I am reading, I see that most of us feel Boulahrouz would be a better player to start at CB than Essien. However, Boula has not played for quite a while, and he tends to be a bit clumsy in the challenge at times. Jose sees him in practice first hand everyday. He will know if he is in the right frame of mind to step into the job at Anfield. Though I would also prefer to see Boula start at CB and Essien in midfield, I would also be quite nervous everytime Boula went in for a challenge, especially anywhere near the box. With the match likely to be quite tight, at least in the first half, a penalty to Liverpool would change the complexion of the tie. We have the advantage, but it is a slight advantage that has the potential to be a pretty good one. An early penalty for Liverpool though and that is wiped off. Still, just thinking about all those long balls and crosses to Crouch and Kuyt is enough to give me the heebie-jeebies. So all things considered, I'd choose the lesser of two evils and have Boula in there, particularly since I believe Essien would help us get a hold of midfield. The keys for me, however, are at our two full back positions and Makalele (I assume he plays). Our CB's, whoever they may be, will require some protection. Makalele, and maybe Essien if he plays in midfield, will be important to stop Gerrard but the two full backs must stop those crosses raining in. As for us going forward, I'm not expecting a lot of it, certainly no real committment. It will be up to Drogba, Joe and to a lesser extend Frank to try and pick up the bits and pieces that fall their way, and considering how organized Liverpool are, I don't expect a lot of chances for us. We will have at least one though, and it is up to us to make the most of it. If we don't, well, then we're in for a long night. Remember when we beat Liverpool 4-1 at the Bridge? I'm not saying we will do this, but our current situation, if we can maintain it into the second half, will allow us more space as Liverpool push forward. The key is the first half. Liverpool will fancy their chances with the direct play to their strikers marshalled by our "make shift defense". But if we can cope and keep them at bay, they will have to take risks in the second half. It will certainly be interesting, if not entirely enjoyable.

Personally, my hat is off to United. With a mere three games to go they haven't won it yet, and that much is testament to the resilience of this Chelsea side. But if for a minute we took Chelsea out of the equation, what Man Utd have been able to do this season in the EPL is quite stunning. We can't take that away from them. But back to Chelsea, yes we do have good squad depth, but the reality is that there is still a difference between our obvious first eleven and the players that come in to give those first eleven a break. And yes, the controlled style of play can and does come back to haunt us because rather than blow teams apart, we allow them to hang in there and there is always that possibility that they nick a goal to draw us like Bolton did. But should we really think about changing our style? I don't know. Yes, I would like to see more attacking committment, but you have to keep in mind that we have lost Joe Cole and Arjen Robben, our two most creative attacking players, for large parts of the season. Also, SWP and Kalou are still adapting to a new team and way of playing, and in the case of the latter, a new country and league. Neither of them, yet, have the class to be able to lift their games above their limitations. I feel that rather than change our style of play, and in reality we haven't done too bad this season considering all the injuries, Jose should be thinking to make strategic additions to the squad. As has already been pointed out, we have weakness at right back and center of defense that need plugging. But I also feel strongly that we should be after a Ronaldinho or Kaka. I know it may be difficult, but another world class creative player will (a) give us additional attacking oomph, and (B) provide us with more options when other creative players are out injured. Cheers, Butch