1. Lake Opeta Legionnaires
2. Cape Verde Kings
3. The Last Gunfighters of Texas
4. Doinitin Djibouti
5. Somalia Pirates
6. Angola Dream
7. Botswana Bugeaters
8. Sierra Leone Stallions
9. South African Ridgebacks
10. Dar es Salaam Warrior Kings
11. Ghana Buffalos
12. Angola Spider Monkeez
13. Congo Cripplers
14. Windhoek White Rhinos
15. Rwanda Royal Knights
16. UN Peacekeepers
Since we are hitting the final stretch, I can't expect coaches and GMs to waste time sending in votes for the coaches poll, so I decided I'd give it a shot to carry out the rest of the season solo.
I made a Top 16 list. Why 16 you ask, because this is the amount of teams to make the show at the end of the year. I'll do my best to rank the playoff teams in order as I see them and give you my reasons for it.
LOL is a no brainer, this team is clearly the best in the league. They are in the midst of their tough stretch in the schedule and they aren't just winning, they are dismembering teams...good teams....very good teams. Their victories read like a litany of the dead, Stallions...Peacekeepers...Emperors...Cripplers...Buffalos...and their latest victim, Djibouti. Every single one is a team that expects to be in the playoffs, every one defeated soundly. This week, in the Game of The Year, they meet the last team to take them down in a league game...The Gunfighters.
The Last Gunfighters of Texas are ranked 3rd on my list, the only reason being they are in Elephant. If they were in Lion they would probably be ranked in 2nd place if not 1st. But they have the same record as Cape Verde, and The Kings are leading their Conference by a good margin. This has to count for something and is the only reason I can give to have them ranked above TLGoT. If the Gunfighters defeat the Legos tomorrow, they will be in 1st place, there is no other option in my mind. As a GM and a football fan I gotta say, I can't wait to watch this game.
I'm trying to be as impartial as I can and I know people will disagree with me, but The Kings have earned their spot atop Lion and in this poll. Their only blemish is one loss to a very solid Rhino squad, other than that they have defeated every single team put in front of them. Being in 1st place is a bitch, even though teams like LOL make it look easy. I'm sure if you asked them they would tell you that they put a ton a man hours into gameplanning and scouting every week. The Kings are no different. Though DD will disagree, teams save their tokens for the 1st place teams EVERY week. To face that and maintain the top spot is quite an accomplishment. But the Kings better not relax or they could easily get knocked off in their last two games against Zambia and Dar es Salaam.
The 4th place team on my list is the team that everyone loves to hate, Doinitin Djibouti. Some people may feel that The Pirates should be ranked above them, but I would disagree. They defeated Somalia earlier in the season, yes by 1 point, but 1 point or 200 points ..a win is a win is a win. Their two losses came against two of the best teams in the league and there is no shame in that. If anything this last loss to LOL will fire DD up and it couldn't have come at a better time. Their last 3 games are all tough Vs Ghana, Congo, and TLGoT. If they win all three, or even two out of three, everyone will forget about this past loss. If anyone takes this team lightly because they got their nose bloodied by LOL, they are in for a rude awakening.
The Pirates are on fire. After two heartbreaking losses to DD and TLGoT they have run off a 9 game winning streak. They have defeated 5 teams on this list and if one or two breaks went their way they could easily be ranked in the Top 3. They end the season with some very tough matchups and have to maintain the momentum if they hope to come out unscathed. They sorta lucked out that the Buckeyes are in the midst of folding and now have CPUs in starting spots, but after that they face a hungry Cairo team who will do everything they can to make the playoffs, and then they finish the season against the dreaded Legos. Regardless, Somalia will be a tough match for anyone they meet in the playoffs.
Angola has stumbled a bit lately and lost 3 of their last 6. They face a tough Ridgebacks team this week in what would be The Game of the Week if LOL and TLGoT weren't playing each other. This game will most likely decide who finishes in 2nd place in Lion. After that the Dream play two CPU teams and should be well rested for their playoff run.
If there is one team that scares me as a GM in the divisional playoffs it's The Bugeaters. They are the hottest team in Lion and I'm not afraid to say that I absolutely do not want to face them anymore this year. They lost to DD in the opening game and to the top 3 teams in Lion, but haven't flinched since, cruising to 8 straight victories. That have a lot of confidence and they will need it as they finish the season with 3 very difficult games.
The Stallions are this year's Jekyll and Hyde team as has been stated in other posts. They have beaten the league's best in TLGoT and DD, and then they follow that up with losses to Somalia, Cairo, and Ghana. All very good teams to be sure but you have to ask, are The Stallions consistent enough to win the big games come crunch time. They remind me of my Eagles in the NFL. They destroy teams like the Steelers, Cowboys, and Giants then they lose to the Cards, a game they were supposed to win. Sierra Leone can do it, that is already proven. The question is will they. If there were Vegas odds on APL playoffs I would put all my money on The Stallions to make the Championship, the odds would be long enough to make some money because they are just as likely to lose in the 1st round.
OK, I didn't cover every team because this has gotten longer than I planned and I'm sure you're sick of reading it haha. Good Luck everyone!! If you want I'll post another one next week, if not...Bah
2. Cape Verde Kings
3. The Last Gunfighters of Texas
4. Doinitin Djibouti
5. Somalia Pirates
6. Angola Dream
7. Botswana Bugeaters
8. Sierra Leone Stallions
9. South African Ridgebacks
10. Dar es Salaam Warrior Kings
11. Ghana Buffalos
12. Angola Spider Monkeez
13. Congo Cripplers
14. Windhoek White Rhinos
15. Rwanda Royal Knights
16. UN Peacekeepers
Since we are hitting the final stretch, I can't expect coaches and GMs to waste time sending in votes for the coaches poll, so I decided I'd give it a shot to carry out the rest of the season solo.
I made a Top 16 list. Why 16 you ask, because this is the amount of teams to make the show at the end of the year. I'll do my best to rank the playoff teams in order as I see them and give you my reasons for it.
LOL is a no brainer, this team is clearly the best in the league. They are in the midst of their tough stretch in the schedule and they aren't just winning, they are dismembering teams...good teams....very good teams. Their victories read like a litany of the dead, Stallions...Peacekeepers...Emperors...Cripplers...Buffalos...and their latest victim, Djibouti. Every single one is a team that expects to be in the playoffs, every one defeated soundly. This week, in the Game of The Year, they meet the last team to take them down in a league game...The Gunfighters.
The Last Gunfighters of Texas are ranked 3rd on my list, the only reason being they are in Elephant. If they were in Lion they would probably be ranked in 2nd place if not 1st. But they have the same record as Cape Verde, and The Kings are leading their Conference by a good margin. This has to count for something and is the only reason I can give to have them ranked above TLGoT. If the Gunfighters defeat the Legos tomorrow, they will be in 1st place, there is no other option in my mind. As a GM and a football fan I gotta say, I can't wait to watch this game.
I'm trying to be as impartial as I can and I know people will disagree with me, but The Kings have earned their spot atop Lion and in this poll. Their only blemish is one loss to a very solid Rhino squad, other than that they have defeated every single team put in front of them. Being in 1st place is a bitch, even though teams like LOL make it look easy. I'm sure if you asked them they would tell you that they put a ton a man hours into gameplanning and scouting every week. The Kings are no different. Though DD will disagree, teams save their tokens for the 1st place teams EVERY week. To face that and maintain the top spot is quite an accomplishment. But the Kings better not relax or they could easily get knocked off in their last two games against Zambia and Dar es Salaam.
The 4th place team on my list is the team that everyone loves to hate, Doinitin Djibouti. Some people may feel that The Pirates should be ranked above them, but I would disagree. They defeated Somalia earlier in the season, yes by 1 point, but 1 point or 200 points ..a win is a win is a win. Their two losses came against two of the best teams in the league and there is no shame in that. If anything this last loss to LOL will fire DD up and it couldn't have come at a better time. Their last 3 games are all tough Vs Ghana, Congo, and TLGoT. If they win all three, or even two out of three, everyone will forget about this past loss. If anyone takes this team lightly because they got their nose bloodied by LOL, they are in for a rude awakening.
The Pirates are on fire. After two heartbreaking losses to DD and TLGoT they have run off a 9 game winning streak. They have defeated 5 teams on this list and if one or two breaks went their way they could easily be ranked in the Top 3. They end the season with some very tough matchups and have to maintain the momentum if they hope to come out unscathed. They sorta lucked out that the Buckeyes are in the midst of folding and now have CPUs in starting spots, but after that they face a hungry Cairo team who will do everything they can to make the playoffs, and then they finish the season against the dreaded Legos. Regardless, Somalia will be a tough match for anyone they meet in the playoffs.
Angola has stumbled a bit lately and lost 3 of their last 6. They face a tough Ridgebacks team this week in what would be The Game of the Week if LOL and TLGoT weren't playing each other. This game will most likely decide who finishes in 2nd place in Lion. After that the Dream play two CPU teams and should be well rested for their playoff run.
If there is one team that scares me as a GM in the divisional playoffs it's The Bugeaters. They are the hottest team in Lion and I'm not afraid to say that I absolutely do not want to face them anymore this year. They lost to DD in the opening game and to the top 3 teams in Lion, but haven't flinched since, cruising to 8 straight victories. That have a lot of confidence and they will need it as they finish the season with 3 very difficult games.
The Stallions are this year's Jekyll and Hyde team as has been stated in other posts. They have beaten the league's best in TLGoT and DD, and then they follow that up with losses to Somalia, Cairo, and Ghana. All very good teams to be sure but you have to ask, are The Stallions consistent enough to win the big games come crunch time. They remind me of my Eagles in the NFL. They destroy teams like the Steelers, Cowboys, and Giants then they lose to the Cards, a game they were supposed to win. Sierra Leone can do it, that is already proven. The question is will they. If there were Vegas odds on APL playoffs I would put all my money on The Stallions to make the Championship, the odds would be long enough to make some money because they are just as likely to lose in the 1st round.
OK, I didn't cover every team because this has gotten longer than I planned and I'm sure you're sick of reading it haha. Good Luck everyone!! If you want I'll post another one next week, if not...Bah
Last edited Jan 28, 2009 16:06:40
