The sim hours (FNPTII or better) do count towards licence issue. You can use upto 100hrs sim time in your ATPL upgrade; that just leaves 1400 to fly yourself!
IMHO the MCC course that gives you the most hand-flying will help you when it comes to a Sim assessment, unless you also plan to pay for a JOC.
HOWEVER this is a short term view, it will help you get the job(as long as the sim ride is in the three months after your MCC), it will not help you in the longer term. As professionals with safety being at the core of every decision you make I would suggest that you take the longer-term view and do yourselves and your passengers a favour.
You've got the licence and you have already proved what you are capable of, nothing is more of a true test of skill than the UK IR. You will ALL get that elusive job in the end. Take the opportunity to get the very most out of what will be one of the few extensive MCC/CRM courses you will ever do in your career. Human factors is the biggest threat to aviation, spend some time learning skills and techniques that you can fall back on when the need arises.