Ooooooh..... dude, you're really paying attention to detail. (1) I am 99.9% you're right, read on. (2) WTH - 52,633 posts? Can you marry one of my kids?
I think you may have caught it. B/c I went back and looked at the friendlies leading up to the 1st match of the season. I saw no cards and he was playing in the friendlies until he pulled [get this] his knee ligaments during training.
I wanted to strangle this guy. Now I get to see if his ban counts while injured. & the board let me send him on a leadership course while he's in 2-4 weeks of recovery. LOL.
Also of note is this is Maidstone in the lower leagues.
I've no clue why the FM community has been so incredible for over a decade. I am deeply grateful. I hadn't thought it may be from last season. Thanks!