2025-01-13, 01:42 PM - Word count:
As we reach the end of our most recent (and my first) season in the Simulation Soccer League, now seems as good a time as any to look ahead at the upcoming draft class before the draft starts behind closed doors in the coming days. Now, a quick disclaimer before I get started, my own player is in the upcoming S19 rookie class and as such there will definitely not be any bias whatsoever and I definitely don't think this is the best class this league has likely ever seen. Right, good, now that is all out of the way, we can start to look at the class as a whole!
As of writing this, the S19 draft class consists of 32 total rookies spread out across a wide range of TPE levels and positions. The current overall breakdown looks a little something like this; 9 defenders, 18 midfielders, 3 strikers and 2 goalkeepers; with the most popular positions being CM (including CM, CAM and CDM) with 7 players total, and CD with 6 players total. Under represented in the total are RDs (only 2), STs, GKs and LDs (a single, solitary LWB).
A common trend I am seeing when looking at the users behind the players in this class is other sim league involvement. Now, as a member of just the ISFL and SSL myself, I can only comment on the specific numbers as they relate to the ISFL. However, that being said, a whopping 10 out of the 32 prospects in this season's class have a link to the ISFL, most commonly through active players. This implies a strong class of sim league veterans ready to fill the ranks of the teams across the Majors and Minors of the SSL, and hints at a potentially mutually beneficial relationship between the two leagues into the future.
Right, now onto the nitty gritty, the info everyone really cares about - the TPE:
If we sort this class by TPE am interesting trend emerges - CDs dominate the top of the rankings. Despite being just 6/32 of the total class, when we sort by TPE the top 3 prospects are all CDs, with a further 2 appearing in the top 10 for TPE in the entire class. This is seriously impressive stuff for an oft over looked position, and hints at a potential flurry of CDs flying off the board in the first couple of rounds of the upcoming draft - especially given the area of need for many teams across the SSL. This is furthered by the only other CD prospect being number 31/32 in terms of total TPE, meaning options may be limited if teams miss out on the top 5.
The next strongest position in this class from a TPE perspective appears to be (variations included) CM. While CDs dominate the top 10, CMs are the clear second in this regard contributing 3 of the top 10 TPE earners in the class. Oddly, there then seems to be a gap to the rest of the CM prospects with the next not appearing until 19th in the TPE list. I could see the top 3 CMs off the board early given the apparent drop off in TPE, with teams circling back round in later rounds to bolster the midfie
ld ranks.
As of writing this, the S19 draft class consists of 32 total rookies spread out across a wide range of TPE levels and positions. The current overall breakdown looks a little something like this; 9 defenders, 18 midfielders, 3 strikers and 2 goalkeepers; with the most popular positions being CM (including CM, CAM and CDM) with 7 players total, and CD with 6 players total. Under represented in the total are RDs (only 2), STs, GKs and LDs (a single, solitary LWB).
A common trend I am seeing when looking at the users behind the players in this class is other sim league involvement. Now, as a member of just the ISFL and SSL myself, I can only comment on the specific numbers as they relate to the ISFL. However, that being said, a whopping 10 out of the 32 prospects in this season's class have a link to the ISFL, most commonly through active players. This implies a strong class of sim league veterans ready to fill the ranks of the teams across the Majors and Minors of the SSL, and hints at a potentially mutually beneficial relationship between the two leagues into the future.
Right, now onto the nitty gritty, the info everyone really cares about - the TPE:
If we sort this class by TPE am interesting trend emerges - CDs dominate the top of the rankings. Despite being just 6/32 of the total class, when we sort by TPE the top 3 prospects are all CDs, with a further 2 appearing in the top 10 for TPE in the entire class. This is seriously impressive stuff for an oft over looked position, and hints at a potential flurry of CDs flying off the board in the first couple of rounds of the upcoming draft - especially given the area of need for many teams across the SSL. This is furthered by the only other CD prospect being number 31/32 in terms of total TPE, meaning options may be limited if teams miss out on the top 5.
The next strongest position in this class from a TPE perspective appears to be (variations included) CM. While CDs dominate the top 10, CMs are the clear second in this regard contributing 3 of the top 10 TPE earners in the class. Oddly, there then seems to be a gap to the rest of the CM prospects with the next not appearing until 19th in the TPE list. I could see the top 3 CMs off the board early given the apparent drop off in TPE, with teams circling back round in later rounds to bolster the midfie
ld ranks.
