u/PubLogic

Everyone has that one prediction they’ll probably regret by the end of the season. Could be a team finishing much higher than expected, a player suddenly having a breakout year, or a manager doing something nobody saw coming. No need for a safe prediction here, go with the one you genuinely believe in even if it looks ridiculous right now.

I feel like coming in early as a bombshell gives you a bit of an advantage. You already know what the villa dynamics are like, you can see who’s actually getting along, and you don’t have to go through all the awkward first-day coupling stuff. At the same time, you’re walking into a group that already has their friendships and couples, so it could easily go the other way. I think it really depends on how confident the person is and whether they’re willing to actually step on a few toes.

Just a bit of fun before the game. There are a few obvious names who’ll probably get plenty of shouts, but I’ve got a feeling it could be someone a bit less expected. Always interesting to see who everyone backs before kick-off, then come back and see who actually called it.

I’ll walk 15–20 minutes for a really good bag, but after that I feel like I’m cancelling out the savings. If it’s somewhere I already know gives decent bags, I’m willing to go a bit further.

The stuff that would sound completely mental to anyone who doesn’t support us. Certain chants, old stories, matchday routines, players we still talk about years later, and the way one result can completely change your mood for the weekend. There are probably a few only Leeds fans will understand.

I’m trying to build my GW1 team without loading up on too many premiums, but there’s always one big hitter that feels too risky to leave out. Trying to work out where everyone else is putting their money before I lock anything in.

I’ve already got one decision in my draft that doesn’t feel right, but I’m sticking with it for now. Feels like the kind of pick that’ll look fine on paper and then have me staring at the points on my bench every week.

It has to be a defender getting booked late in the game after sitting on a clean sheet all match. Seeing that yellow pop up in the 89th minute is painful, especially when you’re already counting the points in your head.

I always find it funny how people eventually develop a default Spoons order.

You can sit there looking through the whole menu and somehow end up ordering exactly the same thing you had last time anyway.

What's your safe order that rarely lets you down?

I think constantly chasing a faster time can take some of the enjoyment out of it. There's something quite nice about turning up, running however you feel that morning and not checking your watch every few minutes.

For people who've been doing parkrun for years, have you become more competitive or less competitive over time?

I've noticed that in a lot of careers, progression eventually seems to mean becoming responsible for other people. But being excellent at your actual job and being good at managing a team are completely different skills. Someone might want more responsibility, better pay and more challenging work without wanting one to ones, performance reviews and direct reports.

From an HR perspective, how common are genuine senior individual contributor career paths in UK companies?