I think it might be time to change the formation from this 3412 that I've been trying for the last few seasons.
It was useful to get me started and got me challenging fairly quickly but it's just able to compete against the top teams. For example, last night I lost 4-1 to Jimbo when losing the tactical advantage 50-40. Not saying that I deserved to get anything out of the game but I wouldn't have expected to lose 4-1 unless I'd been dominated for almost all of the game.
I'll see how the season fares with the formation and then likely go back to 253 at the end, so may not be completely competitive for a couple more seasons!