Thanks for the Memories

Way back in March we saw the fourth season of ACSSL get underway, with an interesting transfer window it seemed Soccer Kings were once again the team to beat, if there was any doubt in the minds of the public it started to ebb away after their first round dismantling of the All Stars.
As the season progressed, Armada started to hit their straps and looked likely that they would once again be there or there abouts come finals time. Armada lead by their captain Kirkn, won important games against The Dream Team and Soccer Kings nearing the end of the season as they took out the minor premiership for the first time, with their new found success they entered the final series full of confidence and as firm favourites.
It seemed a case of 'same old same old' for Soccer Kings who had a habit or producing their best football when it counts, with the big news of their imminent disbanding right before the grand final it seemed to add that added incentive required for the Soccer Kings to go out with a bang. And that they did, in one of the most memorable games the league has ever seen, the Soccer Kings and Armada drew in normal time and went to extra time in only the 2nd time in ACSSL history as the Soccer Kings proved too strong once again and now bow out of the league as the most successful team ever.
It comes as no surprise that this year's Player of the Season comes from the team who dominated the regular season, Armada comfortable took out the minor premiership and it's thanks to their captain Kirkn. Kirkn lead by example, often noted for his words spoken throughout the community, but it's obvious that when it boils down to it, his feet can also do the talking as he had one of the most consistent seasons we have ever seen in the leagues existence, each month he came close to winning the award and is was his solo efforts during the grand final that almost looked to complete the fairy tale.

Roxas who seems to be bowing out along with the Soccer Kings has once again won the Golden Boot, only 1 goal shy of the magic 100 mark, he has impressively won 3 out of 4 Golden Boot awards and is easily the most prolific goal scorer this league has seen to date.
Congratulations to Roxas on this season's Golden Boot.

The world of football is always seeing change, so this may come as no surprise to us all now, but over the past month or so rumours and the eventual change of hands has now been complete.
We now see Awesome X fill in the role that Robbie Fowler previously did, I'd like to personally thank Robbie Fowler for his continued efforts that he has put into the league, without his services this league would not be anywhere near the level it is at today, his departure brought questions about the stability of the league but rest assured that what ACSSL needed was change, all this has seemingly come at a good time as we now get fresh ideas brought onto the league as it reaches its maturity.
I wish Awesome X a smooth transition in the role and ask of us all to give him the time and respect as he starts to implement some of his own ideas into this ever growing league.

One final thing, it is important that ALL TEAMS competing in this season's relegation to have their forms in by the 31st of august, relegations are set to commence on the 5th of September.

@ 3am August 24th 2008

The Business End of the Season

Once again we approach the business end of the season, now we can finally look back at the fourteen rounds and praise the remaining four teams. While it’s pretty much ended as we all expected, I’d like to congratulate Armada on their first Minor Premiership and credit them on an impressive display throughout the season. Showing that maybe a team can challenge the Soccer Kings from obtaining a fourth consecutive finals title.

We also are set to see The Dream Team star in their first finals campaign and with the All Stars just scraping through in the end we are set for an interesting matchup. It will be an emotional match for the All Stars who now set themselves for their last finals appearance as a team - it’s going to be a sad day when one of the cornerstone teams in this league hang up their proverbial boots and I wish them well in their last finals series.

As we all know, form going into a final series is important. These fourteen weeks have been building up to this very moment and maybe there’s no better person to win the July Player of the Month than the Soccer King’s key figure, Roxas. He has once again shown that he’s the go-to man when Soccer Kings need goals, having impressed throughout the season and with him currently leading the Golden Boot he’ll wish he can emulate that form in the finals to help put Soccer Kings over the line.

Good luck to all the teams competing in this season’s final and may the best team win.

@ 1am August 6th 2008

POTM: JUNE 2008 and State Of Origin

Well it's been a busy period for ACSSL the past few weeks, with the title contenders and pretenders coming to the fore as well as our much loved State of Origin tournament taking place last week. During that time we've seen a number of players put themselves up as possible finals heroes or gamebreakers in both league and origin contests, but it was the New South Wales players who once again stood tall in Origin V3.

Challenged in the first semi by a dogged Queensland, NSW managed to show their experience and quality of depth by managing to outlast them 10-6 at the end of play. In the other semi it was Victoria who finally managed to win their first ever Origin game against a lacklustre SAWA side 16-9. There were wild scenes from Victorian goalkeeper Senator Bob Brown after the realization that they "finally didn't fkn lose!!!!!!" took full effect. That effect wouldn't last into the final however as it was again NSW who showed a smoother gameplan and better execution to take the match in comfortable fashion 14-8. NSW once again reign supreme this year but the gap does appear to be closing a bit, it will be interesting to see what Origin in Season 5 will bring.

The POTM however, surprisingly does not come from a member of the winning NSW side. It does go to someone who has scored 32 goals and assisted 17 in his past 5 matches. This has helped propel his side to 2nd place on the table and ready to pounce on the current leaders Armada. The June 2008 POTM is awarded to current QLD Captain and SK spearhead Roxas. As the aforementioned figures show, Roxas has been on top of his game the past month having a hand in nearly 50 scoring plays for SK, and incredible stat by itself. SK will hope that Roxas continues his form on the run home and into the finals. Congratulations to Roxas, June 2008, POTM.

@ 6pm July 9th 2008

POTM: MAY 2008

After having lost her star strike partner Zidane who was on the move overseas, Intangible was on the look out for a quality partner who could unleash her full potential up front. A move to the Soccer Kings where she would join the likes of two time golden boot winner Roxas up front would surely be enough to satisfy her lust for goals.
Season four started off with a bang for Intangible, or as some might phrase it a "Tang bang" as she proved to the Soccer Kings that they made the right choice in signing her, helping them crush last season finalist's the All Stars 17 - 1 and picking up four goals and three assists for herself as the Soccer Kings pulverized Robbie Fowlers All Stars outfit.

Her trademark consistency has shown throughout this season so far as she looks to continue this current flourishing form that has taken her to the point she is at now, The May 2008 Player of the Month. It seems Intangible's move to the Soccer Kings has given her a new lease of life in this league, one that many teams should fear when they are faced with the daunting task of attempting to control the deadly Intangible.

Congratulations to the May 2008 Player of the Month, Intangible.

@ 1am May 29th 2008

Player of the Season: 3

As you all know, once a season one special player stands out above the rest. A benchmark of super consistency, inspiration and iron willed determination to be the best. It is not an award that can be won easily. It requires the best efforts of a player every single game, as it is the refs who award the points at the end of each match, and not a pocket of personal fans of a particular player. It is an award that cannot be doctored, as a player may get lucky once or twice, but it is not a measure of luck to be the only man on top of the proverbial player mountain at the end of the season. The conqueror of this player mountain this season, is none other than AS striker Statica. Statica has capped a truely monumental season, with this deserved award.

It was only a season ago that Statica was just another player with potential, plying his trade with a mid-table side. However, his move to AS at the end of S2 set the scene for what can be described as the complete embodiment of a breakout season. Grab yourself a chair as I rattle off the achievements of Statica this season:

Played a leading role in helping SAWA to an upset boilover against more fancied opponents Queensland in SOO, and proved to be a thorn in the side of SOO final opponents NSW. NSW eventually won the series comfortably, but it was not without a fight as the first two periods were a tight knit affair, often trading goal for goal with Statica in the thick of the action.

The enviable position of finishing 2nd in goals, one goal ahead of his Captain and 19 behind his other strike partner and eventual golden boot winner Scoper.

Far and away leading the assists table for the season, finishing a whopping 21 assists ahead of 2nd placed HS Striker _!ntangible.

Aaand, playing a key role alongside fellow AS Strikers Robbie Fowler and Golden Boot winner Scoper in their march to the final, where they were defeated in a controversial but tight affair, with SK winning 14-12 to complete the double, and their consecutive hat-trick of titles.

A truely remarkable season for a player who in all fairness, would not have been at the forefront of peoples minds as a player of star quality just a short season ago.

We caught up with Staticas club captain Robbie Fowler for his thoughts on Statica and his impact at AS

Fowler: "I don't think there's really much that I can say, that hasn't been said. But whilst Statica does like to use his mouth to rile up his opposition, he generally lets his actions on the pitch do the talking, and if you could quantify his impact on the pitch this year for AS into a piece of literature, you'd be looking at the next Pulitzer Prize winner. He's consistent, hard working, down to earth amongst his team mates which is important in trying to keep his feet grounded, and generally someone that is very positive to have around the side. I know that other newer members such as Skipgamer have really appreciated his influence and calmness that he brings to the side, and it is certainly easier for myself as it allows me to concentrate on my game as well as control the side. I couldn't think of a more deserving winner this year, and that is said without any club bias whatsoever. Even if it was, I don't decide the POTS, the referees of every match do, and if he can impress all of them enough to win this award, it doesn't really matter if someone screams bias. After my good friend, former partner in crime and AS foundation member Hrvat left, there was a big void left in the side. I believe that Statica has now filled this void, and I think the POTS award confirms my thoughts."

It is also interesting to note that the winner of the POTS has been on the losing side of the grand final in every season thus far. Will we see this trend continue, or will there be a winner in S4 who shatters this scenario. Only time will tell.

@ 2am March 20th 2008

The Season that was...

November of '07 seems like such a long time ago, Round 1 was about to get underway and things looked far from anomalous as once again HellSpawns looked the team to beat even as the Soccer Kings, noted for their sometimes hot and cold form throughout the season, were bound to test them come finals time, All Stars and Obsidian looked to be safe bets to round off the Top 4, the question, I'm willing to bet, that was at the forefront of everyone’s minds was "will anyone come close to knocking HellSpawns off come Round 14?"

Round 1 was set to start and straight away we saw HellSpawns demolish the Soccer Kings and All Stars easily take care of Obsidian. Had anything really changed since the short break from Season 2?

It took them a while but Armada finally found their straps, and with crucial signings at the midway point of the season they looked to be the dark horse as the season drew to a near, Round 12 saw them tee off against Obsidian as both fought tirelessly for that last finals spot, Armada went on to win it and secured themselves their first finals appearance. Soccer Kings massive victories over Venomous Shooters and Carn United not only greatly increased their goal difference but made it impossible for the All Stars to catch them as they went on and won their first Minor Premiership just edging the All Stars out on goal difference.

Finals approached as Soccer Kings and the All Stars got set to do battle the very first round as seemingly nothing separated the two squads entering this match as both previous clashes ended in memorable draws, seeking to avoid a repeat the All Stars edged out a Soccer Kings’ outfit that looked slightly off target, All Stars had a ticket straight to the grand final as Soccer Kings would now have to prepare to face the winner of the Armada v HellSpawns game.

With Armada beating them only in the previous week tipsters liked the chances of this impressive Armada squad to knock HellSpawns out of the finals, Armada once again had too much flair as their fairy tale run home continued into the Preliminary Final. The ending seemed unjust as Armada just ran out of gas during important parts of the match and their inexperience showed as Soccer Kings proved why they are the only team to hold up the prized premiership cup.

Sunday the 16th, Soccer Kings and the All Stars would meet for the 4th time this season as one would go home the premiers as the other would rue a season that offered so much. It started at a frantic pace as the first goal was scored within seconds of the kick off, All Stars looking fired up and they took the early lead as the first period came to a end, the second period displayed how evenly these teams have been this season and roles were reversed as Soccer Kings fought their way back from a early setback and would find themselves neck and neck at 8 all going into the last 20 minutes of Season 3, who could of asked for a more fitting way to end a truly memorable season?

With the third period under way the All Stars took the lead and caught a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel that is finals victory, alas, it was at that moment that the Soccer Kings train came through and with an impressive final period display, finished strongly to take out the grand final and their third straight championship cup.

We also would like to congratulate both Xpoze and Carlos Tevez who have jointly won the March Player of the Month award with 5 votes each. During the business end of the season these two players were important parts of both team’s finals aspirations as it was imperative that the form of each and every player was at their maximum, Carlos Tevez has been a shining light in an impressive month that saw Armada stun the community by beating both the All Stars and HellSpawns to end the season, his ability to win the ball and keep Armada attacking at every opportunity has been a great assist since his inclusion into the squad and the backbone behind Armada’s resurgence since a very poor start. Xpoze who generally finds himself preventing the goals has had a successful month up front and proves that he can work both ways as it gives the Soccer Kings another trick up their sleeves coming into the final series.

Coming off his March PoTM award Carlos Tevez has continued his run of good form earning his second Player of the Month award in as many weeks, this time earning himself the Player of the Finals Award, Carlos Tevez was instrumental in their win over the HellSpawns and their only positive in a disappointing loss to Soccer Kings ending their finals campaign, in note of that I’d like to take my hat off to Enki from the Soccer Kings who deserves to share this award with Tevez, not only was he by far the best striker for them during the final series he was by far one of the best players in the final series and deserves a mention for his performance for his team.

With Season 3 being a great success, we now eagerly anticipate Season 4 and the ever exciting relegation playoffs, will this season produce another team like Armada who can challenge for the title? Maybe it will be your team!

However it won’t be if your team captain does not submit a team application by Friday 28th of March @ 11:59pm, use the application format found at click here, we wish all of you good luck for the relegation playoffs and cannot wait to see the teams battle it out for the Season 4 title.

I’d personally just like to thank Xpoze, Robbie Fowler, the Referees and everyone else involved in keeping this league running as smoothly as it has, it by far has been one of the most competitive seasons to date and look forward to seeing us all back out on the pitch as soon as possible.

Also keep an eye out for Player of the Season award announced very shortly, until then.

@ 1am March 18th 2008

2 POTM's and SOO

First cab off the rank, we are congratulating not one, but two Player of the Month awards. Initially we were only going to do one for the holiday period but we felt that would be diminishing players efforts in the two months so we felt obliged to hand out two separate awards. Having said that, our first POTM award goes to Sharwing of HellSpawns, putting in numerous key defensive displays to help keep HS pushing for the minor premiership. For the month of January, the POTM goes to Statica from All Stars. Statica has been in the thick of the action with AS over January, contributing many key assists and goals that have helped propel AS to the top of the table. It is also ironic that both these players were key members of the SAWA origin which made a surprising Grand Final appearence, however succumbing to NSW in the decider.

On that note, we congratulate NSW for their successful title defence beating SAWA 16-8 in the decider. I have personally picked Carlos Tevez out as the Player of the Series, although I don't believe there will be any arguments there as he played brilliantly in the two matches.

We also bid a fond fairwell to ACSSL Owner Yianni, who will be taking a leap of absence to concentrate on his Year 12 studies. We thank Yii for all his efforts in helping run the league and wish him all the best in his studies, and hopefully will return to ACSSL sometime in the not too distant future.

With 4 rounds left before the finals, we have the top 3 sides all within 3 points of one another, and two teams battling it out for 4th spot. It will be an exciting end to S3 so I hope everyone in the community finds time to tune in to what will no doubt be a nailbiting finish to the end of the regular season.

@ 6pm February 12th 2008

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