Welcome to season 17 fellow lower div teams..

I'll try my hand at a brief and basic overview and leave it at that.

II.1
sogol with their $83k per week QB and high wage roster should be the team to beat in II.1 - should be, except they haven't logged in for a long time now and might be finished, which really would be a shame. The Blacktown Behemoths somehow had them covered last season, winning both encounters against Indonesia's only (previously) active team, and another top two finish looks to be on the cards for them. The Parramatta Pigs super-cheap squad were terrible last season, and despite some improvement, will most likely be battling it out for 4th place with newcomers Delcos Warriors, winners of III.1 who have sold off several of their higher waged players, and are now entering season 17 with a new quarterback under centre. Dilligaf were lucky to win III.2, with a then 15-1 division leader going bot at just the right time, however they have a solid QB in Samuele Bincoletto, plus a good eye for transfer market talent and will certainly be in the mix for a top two finish, regardless of what happens with sogol.

II.2 AKA the Red and Black division
New Zealand's Blood Army botted their first few games last season and it ultimately cost them a spot in Top Division. Their player energy levels are recovering after dropping for most of last season, and though they appear a little light at linebacker in terms of BPOS, the team is deserving of the favourites tag. A top 2 finish is expected, at the very least. The Taree Hunters came through III.4 without conceding a single point in league play last season. They have a reasonably young squad with a lot of growing to do BPOS-wise - particularly on offense - but they are still capable of beating any of the teams in this division. Third spot looks most likely for this squad at this point. The Nowra Wallabies, up from III.5 are the youngest team here, but a recent transfer market blitz has seen their wage base skyrocket, and with a stadium that holds only 1,350 spectators, trouble may be lurking around the corner. Hopefully they can correct these potentially crippling financial issues before it's too late. Portland have no issues with player wages or energy levels, plus have served almost two full seasons in III.6 with Luis Antonio Mercer at QB, and so will surely be the main challenger to Blood Army's chances at a TD berth this season.

II.3
Melbourne Thunder were the clear favourites last season, but threw away three games towards the end allowing Colah Creek to leap-frog them into Top Division. They would have to be favourites again this time around, with the highest wage bill of all Division II, however they also have over-trained their players to exhaustion, which might level the playing field somewhat. The Burleigh Beavers are one of a few teams to have never bought a transfer-listed player in their existence, and their team chemistry and superior player energy levels may come into play if the Thunder stumble and falter again. For the Beavers, a top 2 finish is almost a formality, and a TD berth is not out of the question. The Penrith Panthers nearly blew their chance at promotion, botting several games on the way to winning III.7, but they have been spending heavily on recruitments, especially on defense and will be battling it out for 3rd spot if their offense can keep up. Inzantium took over from a 15-2 bot team who had already clinched promotion in III.8, and have never logged in since signing up. They're just another bot team in waiting, and will be headed back to Div III by season's end. Last but not least we have Fiji's The Beasts from the East, winners of III.9, another team who are no doubt thankful for the late-season demise of a division-leading multi-teamer at just the right time. It looks like 17-year-old Hipólito Alves is the way forward at QB for the Beasts and they will be battling the Panthers for that 3rd spot.

The rest
As for Division III, most teams are bots, or new teams well on their way to bothood. Of the actives, the Montereau Strickers look like the pick over the Mighty Vikes in III.2 (though both log in to the game infrequently) while the two most active Div III teams are in III.9, where Tully's Bananas would have to be slight favourites to finish ahead of the Belconnen Barbarians.

My work here is done. So much for brevity, time for a nap. Good luck with your seasons!

I am looking forward to a season of competition finally, good preview bloodbeak.

My goal for the coming season is 3rd, not an easy target with a team still early in the building stage. Many positions are still only temporarily filled while I look for the right player physically to cement their place in the team. I have found a decent QB to build the team around and some speed at WR to target, just gotta work on their skills a bit. My OL is set now just to build their BPOS up.

Still a long way to go tactically with deciding on final formations especially offensively but will see what strengths I end up with in what positions. If I can finish 3rd (or better if I'm lucky as hell) and use the 2 build windows I have to expand the stadium as much as income will allow I will be in a good position to challenge for a top 2 finish next season.

Good luck everyone I look forward to an exciting season.

Definitely looking forward to the season ahead in II.1, we all started within months of each other, should be a competitive and fun division. Kicking off against sogol, who are about 3-4 days from botting. If they have default orders I'm screwed, otherwise looking at a 1-0 start. Much more enjoyable playing against human opponents as Tpereira is about to discover. Nowra are a worry, their wages are now up to over $400k per week, with $46k home game income they will be in trouble unless they act now.

Did you see the 105-42 game in III.3?

Well, a good win this week for my first league game against a real opponent. I was helped majorly by portlands default tactics being extremely run orientated but still a wins a win.