Also of note, Saudi side Al Qadisiyah went 0-7-19 for 7 points with 19 GF and 57 GA for a GD of -38. Ouch!
A late free kick equalized for Port Vale in a driving rain at The Den as an extremely physical 1st Leg of the Promotion Playoff semifinals ended in a 1-1 draw. Ed Upson scored in first half stoppage time for the home side and Millwall will hit the road for Sunday's 2nd Leg where a scoreless draw will not be enough and a 1-1 result will mean extra time.
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I forgot to mention that both CB Mark Beevers and RM/RB Carlos Edwards are suspended for the 2nd Leg at Port Vale. Each pickled up a 5th domestic yellow card in the 1st Leg.
I'm about to play the 2nd Leg now. I'm going to be HUGELY disappointed if I don't, at least, get through to the final. It would be a disappointment to not get promoted but not playing in the final would add to the misery.
After David Forde saved his 2nd penalty of the playoffs, Port Vale grabbed their first lead of the tie when Millwall failed to clear the ensuing corner in the 10th minute.
Ed Upson scored a brilliant equalizer in the 39th minute with a 20-yard rocket to the keeper's right and the clubs went to the dressing rooms at halftime on completely level terms.
Kelechi Iheanacho gave the Lions a huge advantage when he pushed them ahead with an eleven yard strike in the second frame's opening minute. At that point Millwall knew that they'd have to lose the match to lose the tie because a draw would push them through on road goals.
Millwall secured their place at Wembley Stadium next Sunday when Uygar Mert Zeybek came off the bench and scored a stoppage time goal, sliding into the 6-yard box and beating the keeper.
Millwall did lose RM Fred Onyedinma when he came up lame with a pulled quad after attempting a shot from outside the area in the second half. Onyedinma, who started both legs of the semifinal due to consecutive suspensions to Shaun Cummings and Carlos Edwards, will miss next week's final.
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Millwall will face Sheffield United at the iconic Wembley Stadium next Sunday with promotion to the Football League Championship awaiting the victors. Sheffield United eliminated Bradford City 5-3 on aggregate in the semifinals. In the 2 prior meetings between the clubs, there was a scoreless draw in Sheffield in August and a 1-0 Millwall win at The Den in March.
Last edited by steelerfan; 12-21-2015 at 11:41 PM.
Congrats! Best of luck in the finals!
Once you go up to the show, are you concerned about the team not being able to hold its own being sent back down?
If I get promoted, the Board is going to have to open the wallets a bit for me to have any real chance of being competitive enough to gain promotion to the Premier League. While I did well against clubs above me on the ladder during cup competitions, I'm not sure this team could sustain it.
I would have to have cash to make a little noise during the Summer Transfer Window.
If I lose and remain in League 1, I'm sure I can add a piece or two and compete for automatic promotion next season.
After 63 matches, the 2015-16 season is over. The Promotion Playoff Final at Wembley Stadium was one for the Ages. I won't give anything away because I streamed to YouTube. Instead, I'll encourage you to watch it (if you are bored it is a fantastic game of football).
I'll post it when it finishes uploading. Until then, the spoiler below shows the result in case you don't care to watch it.
Spoiler: show
Here is the video. It's quite lengthy but it might be the most dramatic match of FIFA I have ever played.
https://youtu.be/vJjXdU-TIOI
I'm going to try not to post anything else for awhile today so I don't spoil anything.
First post of the 2016-17 season. Still going to spoiler everything to keep the Playoff results under wraps until those of you that follow this catch up.
Spoiler: show
Last edited by steelerfan; 12-22-2015 at 05:14 PM.
More info for the upcoming season.
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Finally, the 2016-17 preseason is underway with Match Day 1 in Turkey for the start of the European Continental Shield.
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A late equalizer helps keep York City atop Group A and Germany has won Euro 2016.
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Blackpool were 4-0 winners over Hartlepool as the Tangerines dominated from the outset and were never truly threatened.
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With the win, Blackpool have won Group A and advanced to Sunday's semifinal for a clash with Turkish side Genclerbirligi. The other semifinal will also pair an English and a Turkish side as York City clash with Osmanlispor.
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Blackpool were granted roughly £270 k by their board for advancing in the European Continental Shield and have already put some of that budget to work.
19-year-old Swiss CB, Nico Elvedi was brought in on loan from German side Borussia Monchengladbach. The deal is for 2 years and includes a future fee of £750 k. Elvedi is expected to be in Turkey and available for selection on Sunday.
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Blackpool are on to the European Continental Shield final after a 1-0 win over Genclerbirligi on Sunday. Captain David Norris netted the lone goal of the match with a penalty conversion in the 53rd minute and goalkeeper Kyle Letheren kept an impressive clean sheet with 14 saves.
Striker Nile Ranger sprained an ankle early on and is out for 3 weeks meaning he will miss Wednesday night's final with Osmanlispor and his status for the August 6 League 1 opener away to MK Dons is uncertain.
Spoiler: show
The Blackpool Board has released roughly £338 k to the transfer budget for the club's advancement to the European Continental Shield Final.
Blackpool's run in the European Continental Shield came crashing to an abrupt end when a controversial handball against Charles Dunne led to a winning penalty in the 93rd minute of the final against Osmanlispor.
ST Mark Cullen suffered a torn quad in the match and will miss about 3 months, while LW Bright Osayi-Samuel sprained a knee will will miss 2-3 weeks.
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The Transfer Window continues to bring change to the Seasiders squad as the club has sold 2 players.
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Blackpool has also brought in 4 more players on loan. Three of them on 2-year deals with future fees already in place and the fourth a Striker on a short loan to replace the injured Mark Cullen.
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Here is how Neil Harris' team will look going into the League 1 opener against MK Dons. It is quite a different look than the club had a few short weeks ago when Harris became boss.
Starting XI
ST Rushian Hepburn-Murphy 65
LM Philipp Ochs 67
CAM David Norris 62
RM Francisco Rodriguez 67
CDM Jose Miguel Cubero 62
CDM Jim McAlister 64
LB Clark Robertson 62
CB Nico Elvedi 66
CB Tom Aldred 62
RB Felix Passlack 65
GK Kyle Letheren 63
Substitutes
ST Jack Redshaw 61
RM Brad Potts 59
RM John Herron 59
CDM Connor Oliver 56
LB David Ferguson 60
RB Emmerson Boyce 59
GK Myles Boney 59
Reserves
LM Henry Cameron 57
RM Jarrett Rivers 50
Injured
ST Nile Ranger 68 (day-to-day, ankle)
ST Mark Cullen 62 (2 months, Quad)
LW Bright Osayi-Samuel 59 (day-to-day, knee)
GK Colin Doyle 65 (7-10 days, knee)
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