Summary: All it took was 14 minutes for Marcus Diamond to make an impact in his first game of the season. The promising rookie buried a rebound goal (19th of career) and then provided the game-winning assist to David Whyte seven minutes later. A twisted ankle did end his day in the 56th minute but it was only precautionary, nothing serious.


Rating: 7.9 - Stepped up. Simple as that.

Player of Game: Marcus Diamond, Limerick FC (7.9)

Summary: Veteran Gary Shaw lifts Limerick to nine points in three games to start the new season. He scores on their only shot on goal.

Rating: 6.6 - Mostly just a bystander in this one.

Player of Game: Shane Duggan, Limerick FC (7.4)

Summary: First competitive test of the season and Limerick gets smoked. Three first-half goals, included an early one in the second minute, had Limerick on the back foot and they could never recover. Isn't of fighting back they just got frustrated and kept picking up yellow cards.

Rating: 6.0 - Nothing to see here, move on and forget.

Player of Game: Gearoid Morrissey, Cork City (9.1)

Four days later, the Limerick FC "B" squad won 3-2 against Irish amateur side Avondale in the Munster Senior Cup quarterfinals. A competition Limerick FC has won 13 times, most recently in 2015.

- Each member gets 5.0 points to spread however they like over the 36 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 1.0.
- Stats are bumped up in FM when they hit that number, ex. 2.9 = 2 in-game, and 13.4 = 13 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 20. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery and is different from the cycling progression scale.
-Locked stats can't be upgraded.
-Comment below to provide stat upgrades.

Summary: Survival of the fittest. Mountain trains dominated and didn't let anybody get away on the final climb until only two were left standing.


Petr Vakoc outlasted Aussie youngster Jai Hindley.

Result: 34th - Dropped with 6kms to go, but had a strong second wind to gain some spots in the final kilometers. I don't consider myself a climber, so losing 5'45" to Vakoc is pretty good by my standards.

Summary: Morning breakaway caught on the climb and 55 cyclists reached the top together, leading to a selective sprint for the strong men.

Result: 7th - Alex Vogel might have got into the breakaway these past two stages to please management and show off to Alycia. But, I was able to hang with favourites until the end for a tough Top 10 finish. Putting in that work, and earning another date night. Well, Alex still managed to tag along as a third-wheel. Her fangirling is turning into a problem.

Summary: A morning breakaway that was powered by female sensation Alex Vogel for a 3rd straight day actually held off the peloton. Vogel was gassed to sprint at the end, but her efforts allowed Cyril Barthe to win.

Result: 19th - OK, Alex we see you. She took 16th with the sprinters swarming by in the final meters. I couldn't quite catch her. After the stage, Alex couldn't stop talking about her performance. Alycia and I managed to sneak away, somehow, for another fun night out. We are both enjoying each other's company. Our time is running out though.

Summary: For the fourth time in four days, Alex Vogel in the BOTD. She is mainly here today to try and product her green jersey -- yes, she is leading the sprint competition.

After the two sprint check points, she is tied with Miles Scotson and drops back to the peloton. An unaware cyclist runs into the back wheel of Vogel dropping back through the peloton and a massive crash occurs with 25kms to go.


With another teammate up front, Marcus Diamond shows his face for the first time this tour. He luckily avoid the crash and is going for glory.


Diamond has bridged the gap up to the breakaway and his teammate Chris Herbert. They have a 41-second gap over the depleted peloton with 11kms to go and the final climb dead ahead.


It was worth a shot, but the peloton catches the lead group halfway up the climb.


Dimension Data double with Hugo Hofstetter and GC winner Vakoc.

Result: 49th, 18th GC - I put everything I had in that final attack and when it didn't pay off, I nearly lost everything. I caught the end of a group to get a good time gap to save a Top 20 GC finish.

Pretty cool to see former teammate Hofstetter picking up the stage win as well. Oh, and Vogel finished tied in the points competition but the reward was awarded to Scotson based on average finish. Alex wasn't too pleased, and tried to argue but the race organizers didn't back down.

After spending a few extra days in Australia, Alycia and I said our goodbyes. It was fun while it lasted, and hopefully we see each other again. But, I fear this was a one-time fling. I mean, she is way out of my league. Alex and my EvoPro teammates kept reminding me every day.

Summary: Only 46 cyclists remain as the peloton hits the final incline of the day. Marcus Diamond uses this is a launching pad for an attack.


The peloton obviously doesn't want to give Diamond any room with 3kms to the finish line. But, a very tricky descent to the line could give Diamond a chance.


Diamond has held off the peloton, but he can't shake Jonas Gregaard. The Denmark native darts under Diamond at a critical turn and has the inside line to the finish.


Diamond might have figured out where to attack, but Gregaard outsmarted the Brit at the finish. A fantastic finish nonetheless.

Result: 2nd - Nearly had career win No. 4. Ugh!

Summary: Nasty crash with 15kms to go. But no time to slow down, the race must go on.


Through the trees, only 35 cyclists still up front.


Three-way sprint for the win, won by Jonas Castrique.

Result: 9th - Missed the crash and followed Blythe in the sprint. I got boxed in with my huge frame, but at least I beat Blythe (13th).

- Each member gets 3.0 points to spread however they like over the 13 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 55.0.
- Stats are bumped up in PCM when they hit that number, ex. 55.9 = 55 in-game, and 61.4 = 61 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 85. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery.
- Comment below to provide stat upgrades

Summary: After a controversial tackle in the box that sent Marcus Diamond to the locker room with a pulled ankle ligament (and no penalty called) in the 19th minute, Limerick FC held on for a 1-0 win with a goal by Gary Shaw in the 30th minute.

Rating: 6.8 - Taken out and the ref somehow missed a clear penalty. Now the doctor is saying I'll be sidelines for 2-3 weeks. Not fun. Although, I did get some pity texts, phone calls and snapchats from Alycia wanting to cheer me up. So far this long distance thing is working, I guess. I mean she hasn't ghosted me yet.

Player of Game: Tony Whitehead, Limerick FC (8.1)

While Marcus Diamond was recovering from his injury, current top of the league Limerick FC forged on with the following result.

Match Day #6: St. Pat's Athletic def. Limerick FC, 3-0.

Diamond had a speedy recovery and only missed one match.

Summary: Game of missed chances. Handball in the box gave Limerick a penalty in the 36th minute. Lee Lynch was stoned by goalkeeper Jakob Haugaard. Derry City thought they won it in the 93th minute, but had a goal disallowed for offsides. Both sides unhappy with a draw.

Rating: 6.5 - Sluggish game on poor fitness, and I was subbed off in the 77th minute. I blame the ankle injury on this one.

Player of Game: Jakob Haugaard, Derry City (8.4)

Summary: Dubbed one of the craziest games in the league in recent memory, this one had it all. A perfect through ball by Marcus Diamond to Lee Lynch opened the scoring in the 18th minute. A second yellow card was shown to Sean Gannon in the 35th minute, leaving Dundalk with 10 men.

That didn't faze them. Two quick goals to start the second half put Dundalk ahead. A long-range effort from Jack Massey tied the score again at 2-2 in the 70th minute. Five minutes later, a collision off the ball gave Dundalk a penalty kick. Gary McCabe converted, 3-2.

Limerick pulled even again on a 5-on-2 break that ended with Colin Molloy putting the ball into his own net. Then, David Whyte controlled a deep cross forward and slotted the ball in to send the Limerick fans into a frenzy in the 91st minute.

Rating: 6.8 - Second assist of the season was clinical, but that's about it from this performance. Extremely proud of the boys for pulling out the result after getting subbed off at halftime due to fitness concerns.

Player of Game: Robbie Benson, Dundalk (8.5)

Summary: Coming off a exhilarating win over Dundalk, Limerick FC flops hard against Shamrock Rovers. The only positive moments came off a corner whipped in by Marcus Diamond that found the head of Jack Barthram.

Rating: 6.6 - Put in a full 90 minutes and got another assist. But still not good enough. It's been a rough month.

Player of Game: Graham Burke, Shamrock Rovers (9.3)

- Each member gets 5.0 points to spread however they like over the 36 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 1.0.
- Stats are bumped up in FM when they hit that number, ex. 2.9 = 2 in-game, and 13.4 = 13 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 20. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery and is different from the cycling progression scale.
-Locked stats can't be upgraded.
-Comment below to provide stat upgrades.

Summary: Weather conditions were miserable with rain and wind. The race seemingly split up at random when riders started to lose focus on the task at hand.


With the morning breakaway caught, EvoPro Racing sends Marcus Diamond to the front for some pace making. Looks like they are going all-in for Alex Vogel, a bold tactic but she must be feeling pretty good.

Vogel, surprisingly named the pre-race favourite, has never official won a race in the men's sport before. Her victory a few years ago in France was voided for "breaking UCI rules" at the time for false registration.

Now that the UCI can't remove Vogel from the circuit, which would cause a chain reaction of lawsuits that would more than likely end in Vogel's favor on claims of sexual discrimination, her accomplishments can't be stripped away. But no doubt there would be backlash from the cycling community if Vogel somehow starts showing up the boys.


Late attack from Pim Ligthart has Diamond in overdrive to make the catch before the finish. It's going to be close.


Diamond gets the selective peloton close enough for Tom Devriendt to just catch Ligthart on the line for the win. Behind them are Coen Vermeltfoort, Alex Vogel and Taco Van Der Hoorn. Best result for Vogel since returning to cycling.

Result: 26th - The team asked me to sacrifice for Alex. In the moment, I wasn't too happy. But she took 4th, so good for her. I think I could have done better if the team was working for me. Shh... don't tell her that.

Summary: Let's jump straight to the finish where Anthony Roux is celebrating a close bunch sprint finish... Wait...


No. Roux gets Zabel'd by Tony Gallopin! Cimolai Davide even snuck in for second place. How embarrassing.

Result: 5th - Was in the mix, that's all you can ask for.

Summary: EvoPro Cycing nabs its first win in program history. Lionel Taminiaux gets the honor after spending all day in the breakaway. It's the first professional win for the 24-year-old as well. What a way to get it and a yellow jersey for his efforts as well.

Result: 11th - Held my own in a 23-man chase group that finished 45 seconds behind the four breakaway riders. Great day for the team, Adam Blythe took 9th place as well. Not sure how we will handle the yellow jersey situation. The next three stages should be interesting: cobbles and an ITT ahead.

- Each member gets 3.0 points to spread however they like over the 13 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 55.0.
- Stats are bumped up in PCM when they hit that number, ex. 55.9 = 55 in-game, and 61.4 = 61 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 85. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery.
- Comment below to provide stat upgrades