Lockdown 2.0 FIFA 21 Grassroots Football Tournament: The Quarter-Final Report
Welcome aboard the home of The Hype Train Hype Train Football Club. A second national lockdown in the UK has paused grassroots football, with sixteen football clubs within England coming together to form and compete in the first Grassroots Football Lockdown FIFA Tournament. Read the official report from the second night of action as the Quarter-Finals took place on Friday 20th November 2020. All aboard.
What is the Grassroots Lockdown Tournament all about?:
Spearheaded by Stoke Poges Saints' Sunday side, and backed by several excellent sponsors and partners, a group of 16 teams have actually been able to organise a single knock-out tournament on Sony's PS4, with the Round of 16 set to take place on Thursday 19th November 2020, with the final currently scheduled for Sunday 22nd November 2020.
Best yet, the entire tournament is geared up towards charity, with the winning team having the honour of picking the eventual charity. Each of the 16 teams has already paid a £5 entry fee, and we here at Hype Train HQ have already stated that if our club representative prevails we will be donating another £50 towards the charity pot. If you would like to find out how to contribute to charity, please contact Stoke Poges on Twitter, or by emailing our team - contact@thehypetrain.co.uk
The grand final winner will also be presented with a bespoke trophy from the team at Awards FC, who are the title sponsor for this charity tournament, with the team at Awards specialists in delivering bespoke football awards, such as medals and Man of the Match and Player of the Month trophies, all designed to your club's likeness.
Event Details to Bookmark:
Last 16: Thursday 19th November 2020 (8-9pm)
Quarter-Finals: Friday 20th November 2020 (8pm)
Semi-Finals: Saturday 21st November 2020 (8pm)
Grand Final: Sunday 22nd November 2020 (8pm)
Lockdown 2.0 FIFA 21 Grassroots Football Tournament: The Quarter-Final Report (20th November 2020):
After an eventual first night of action, we said goodbye to half the field of competition in the tournament as a lively Last 16 saw some big scores and some standout performances. With the competition hitting a new level, the quarter-finals produced a massive 29 goals spread across just 4 games.
After big wins in the Last 16, Piccadilly FC, who overcame Windsor Corinthians 5-2 in the first round, took on our own football team, Hype Train FC, who downed The Rose Athletic 4-0. Many onlookers speculated that the experience and high level of Benjy Lovell for Piccadilly, combined with our own talisman Callum Fox-Spence after a dominating performance against Rose, would create a tense encounter - and nobody was wrong as the encounter lived up to the hype.
A tense first-half saw Lovell's PSG squad go in 1-1 against Fox-Spence's Liverpool, with the Blue and Gold unlucky not to take a vital lead just before the half after Sadio Mane crashed an effort against the bar. From there in the second-half, Lovell controlled possession of the game and was dominant in the second period as Piccadilly replicated their 5-2 score-line from the last round on their way to a semi-final berth.
The other tie in the bracket saw a lot of trash-talking on Twitter between Colchester Crusaders and their popular opponents, Caversham United, settle their online banter in what was a back-and-forth game between Colchester's representative, Tyler Shillingford who played as Barcelona, against , McBriggs of Caversham, using Bayern Munich again.
Trading goals, the tie was evenly poised at 2-2 in the second-half of the game, with Shillingsford able to break Billy Goat hearts with a pair of quick-fire goals from Barcelona to seal a place in the semi-final against Piccadilly. Having played Piccadilly ourselves, it will be a tough test and a big shock on the cards should the Crusaders seal a place in the final, so good luck to both on great runs to this stage so far!
Meanwhile, on the top end of the bracket...
The most remarkable story from the Last 16 came in the form of FC Lions club representative, Dale Jenkins, who scored 4 unopposed goals when 3-0 down after 65 minutes in dramatic fashion to beat The Charitable FC in dramatic fashion in what Stoke Poges have christened as 'lockdownbul'.
The Lions set up a quarter-final tie against Slough United, who beat Malt Shovel 3-2 in a close game last time out, with one East Berkshire outfit guaranteed to qualify for the final four. In what was another back and forth match that was finely poised at 3-3, a pair of late goals from Slough's Manager, Duane Herbert, condemned Lions to defeat, with no Champions League comeback on the cards.
The final encounter saw Stoke Poges Saints' Sunday side, who snuck in to the other side of the bracket after Foxhall United had to pull out of the tournament due to work related commitments at the eleventh hour, in the process beating Stoke Poges Saints Saturday side in a derby game. Poges were up against the highest-scoring team from the opening round, Barton Rovers and their club representative, 'Big Neil', who brushed aside JK Silvertown 9-1.
Building on success from opening day, the most clear cut result from the quarter-finals saw Barton maintain their blistering start to the tournament, this time with a 6-2 margin of victory, and based on results alone will go in to their semi-final against Slough United as slight favourites - though in truth it is a tie that can go either way as both sides look to secure a place in the showpiece final on Sunday.
Well done to each team that has progressed, it's been a fantastic effort from every single team and the team here at Hype Train HQ and in the grassroots football community will have our eyes peeled for the big games tomorrow.
Make sure to tune in again tomorrow (Saturday) as the tournament enters the latter stages with the semi-final bracket, with all matches set to kick-off at 8pm, with each club streaming their games live.
Watch Piccadilly FC's high-level encounter against Hype Train FC on YouTube:
Want to know more about The Hype Train?
The Hype Train is an entertainment website founded in 2015, specialising in Fantasy sports reporting, starting with Fantasy Premier League (FPL), before expanding to MLS Fantasy coverage in 2018.
We pride ourselves in providing beautiful graphics, statistics, in-depth analytical reporting and free weekly insight for hopeful players attempting to climb rankings tables. We are also occasional media reviewers, with a keen interest to review games, live sport, and professional wrestling.
In 2019, Hype Train Football Club was formed, becoming the first Fantasy Football website to take to the field. HTFC is a socially active team across social and web channels, providing regular match highlights, match reports, comprehensive player statistics and unique player profiles.
The Hype Train were nominated and shortlisted for the 'Best Football Blog' in 2016 by the Football Bloggers Association at their annual Football Blogging Awards (The FBA's), and were again shortlisted as a finalist in 2019 in the 'Best Fantasy Football Blog' category.
You can follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook, follow Hype Train FC on Instagram, subscribe to our YouTube channel for exclusive content, or visit our website here at www.thehypetrain.co.uk
All aboard.
