FM2005: A Virgin Trip into LLM.

[Eaglesfan27]

45 minute mark: After a flurry of shots that were deflected back by defenders.. Atkins gets a shot off from 10 yards.... wide left.


0-0 at the half.

48 minute mark: Fox trips the left winger.. he gets called for a yellow card.

53 minute mark: Steve Brodie trips Kelly.. yellow card on Brodie.

62 minute mark: A great pass gets Ciaran Kilheeney all alone with my keeper.. he winds up.. big left foot.. high and to the right.. my keeper dives.. he catches it!!!

65 minute mark: Kelly is tired so Dunning comes on. Atkins is really tired, so Krief comes on. Morris comes on for a tired Farrell.

Game over.. They played turtle for the last 25 minutes and we couldn't get any good opportunities.

0-0 tie. This one will be replayed on their pitch.

We outshot them 6-2.

Chris O'Brien wins MoM for them. He completed 18 of 24 passes, 10 of 10 tackles, 3 of 5 headers, and 4 passes intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today we travel to play Droylsden in the rematch of the FA trophy match.

Leigh Wood told me before the game that he was unhappy because I wasn't playing him in his strongest position. As a result, I've benched him in favor of Black at Right Fullback. Atkins tells me he is very tired, but I decide to play him for part of the match anyway. Hopefully, he can help us score early.

My lineup:

GK Scarsella
DL Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC Curtis
DR Black
ML Kelly
MC Hunter
MC Atkins
MR Fox
SC Smyth
SC Farrell

S1 Turley
S2 Krief
S3 Pettinger
S4 Dunning
S5 Wood

We are 6:4 favorites. It's wet cold and windy. The temp is 43 degrees.

[Eaglesfan27]

5 minute mark: Atkins feeds the ball to Smyth with a great through ball.. Smyth runs into the box and gets it.. he dribbles left once.. shoots the sharp angle.. towards the right corner.. hits the post... and it bounces out. Keeper pounces on it.

24 minute mark: Farrell gets the ball in the right corner of the box after a long kick from Scarsella... he dribbles right.. shoots for the left post.. misses just wide.

32 minute mark: O'Brien takes a hard shot from 15 yards center of the box... Scarsella easily saves it.

0-0 at the half.

52 minute mark: Steve Brodie dribbles it into the box.. shoots to the upper left corner.. hits the post.. Black clears it up the field.. Farrell races to it.. he dribbles up the right sideline.. crosses to Smyth.. Smyth heads it towards the upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0

67 minute: Realizing I could be hurting the team if it goes into extra time, I do it anyway. I sub in 2 guys... Wood for Curtis and Turley for Smyth.

79 minute mark: Black makes a last minute tackle on O'Brien.. saving a good shot at goal.

81 minute mark: Fox feeds the ball into the box to Turley.. Turley beats his man.. gets to the ball.. shoots.. the keeper deflects it.. the defender clears the ball before it can trickle across the goal.

82 minute mark: Hunter who is exhausted leaves the pitch. Kelly slides to the MC slot. Dunning come in at left wing.

I enter turtle mode for the last 10 minutes and prevent any good scoring opportunities.

1-0 final!! :)

We outshot them 12-10

Atkins wins MoM (not bad for a "tired" guy) 9 for form, 44 of 58 passes, 4 of 8 tackles, 3 of 3 headers, 2 passes intercepted, 2 runs.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today, I saw my boss pick up the 8,000 dollar check for winning the 4th round of the FA trophy. The 5th round will see us hosting Leigh RMI of the English Conference National League on 2/26/05.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Not sure you're running into this, but just in case it helps...

Especially the first couple of seasons in the English lower leagues, I found that I often had a thin roster. With the large number of matches to play, I found that this occasionally meant that I couldn't put a strong team on the pitch for both cup play and league play.

If I was sitting stable in the league standings, I'd often play my better guys in the cup games, but if I was in any kind of fight in the league standings, I'd often play my weaker players in the cup matches so that my best players were fresh for the more important league matches.

Sometimes even that wasn't enough, and I'd have to play a match or two conservatively (i.e., defensive, stalling, and playing for a tie--usually I'd try to do this on the road against a stronger team that I had little chance to beat) so as to give my players a lighter workload even on days they played. Aggressive, attacking play will really run your players down, especially if the weather sucks.

[Eaglesfan27]

Darn, I just read in the paper that Redditch recently acquired highly regarded striker Simon Brown on loan. Of course, they got him 1 day before I play him.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are currently in 18th place and hosting 15th ranked Redditch. Redditch is led by left winger Simon Hollis. Matt Clarke has been a steadying force at right full back. Richard Anstiss has been solid if unspectacular in goal. Norman Sylla has been the main threat up front with 9 goals. Simon Brown will be starting alongside him in this game. We are 5:4 favorites according to the oddsmakers.

Our starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Atkins (despite him claiming he is tired)
MR: Turley
SC: Smyth
SC: Farrell

S1 Pettinger
S2 Fox
S3 Dunning
S4 Wood
S5 Morris

It's 45 degrees and wet today.

[Eaglesfan27]

7 minute mark: Atkins shoots a hard shot at goal from 20 yards out.. the keeper misplays it.. and barely tips it over the bar. Turley takes the corner kick.. It's heading towards the middle of the box.. Shepherd jumps up.. he heads it... towards goal.. Anstiss flails at it.. it's past him.. GOAL!!!! 1-0

16 minute mark: Anstiss stops a Farrell shot from 12 yards out.. Anstiss kicks it to midfield.. Atkins intercepts the pass with a header.. the header goes right to Farrell who is at the edge of the box.. he races past his defender.. dribbles right.. the keeper comes out to cut down the angle.. Farrell shoots.. he goes for the narrow angle towards the right post.. past the keeper.. GOAL!!!! 2-0

43 minute mark: Farrell is tackled hard by Matthew Gardiner. He looks hurt. I see if he can tough it out.

2-0 at the half. Farrell is limping bad. I attempt to sub in Morris for him. The ref tells me that I didn't submit Morris on my available sub list! Sure enough, I wrote Krief as my 5th sub. I walk back to my usual spot embarassed. I decide to move Turley to striker, and bring Fox in for Farrell.

50 minute mark: Kelly sends a great cross to Turley.. Turley heads it towards goal from 6 yards out.. the keeper punches it over the bar.

53 minute mark: Nick Williams makes a great move on Shepherd.. he dribbles into the box.. he shoots a hard shot towards the left corner... Scarsella dives... he catches it. He kicks it long right away.. it's bouncing towards the box slowly.. Smyth is racing his man.. he gets to it.. from 20 yards out.. Gardiner is running along side him.. he unleashes a quick left footed shot.. right to the center of the goal.. the keeper acts surprised.. he almost catches it.. but it trickles past him.. GOAL!!!! 3-0

55 minute mark: Deciding the game is firmly in hand, I sub in Krief for Atkins.

68 minute mark: Williams takes teh croner to Simon Brown.. Brown settles the shot.. he is in the middle of the box.. he unleashes a laser towards the upper right corner.. no chance for Scarsella to stop this one. Goal.

69 minute mark: I sub in Dunning for the tired Barnard.

90 minute mark: Wild flurry of shots in front of the opposition's goal.. rebound off a defender.. another rebound off a defender.. Krief heads one of the rebounds.. past the defender.. past the keeper.. GOAL!!! 4-1.

4-1 final.

We outshot them 17-5.

Atkins wins MoM with 25 of 34 passes, 0 of 1 tackles, 1 of 1 headers, 1 pass intercepted, 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

After the big win, Mr. Fotherby pulled me into his office. He told me he was really proud of the effort the team gave today. He told me to keep this up, and I'd be back in everyone's good graces in no time. He also mentioned, "Don't let the team backslide again." I'm not sure if I should feel good or bad about that meeting.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today we are currently ranked 15th and we travel to 5th ranked Nuneaton. We won our first match against them 2-0 despite them being 1st in the league at the time. They are led by the high scoring tandem of Gez Murphy and Michael Frew who have 8 and 11 goals respectively. However, they have 3 other players who also have at least 5 goals, including midfielders Gary Fitzpatrick and Stuart Whittaker (who will miss this game due to injury.) Bobby White is the director of the defense. Darren Acton has been an average keeper for them in 12 starts this year. He will start today.

Our starting lineup: Same as last game with Krief actually intended to be S5 this time (can't sit him after he scored a goal last game.)

Nuneaton is a 5:4 favorite.

It's a cold 32 degree day today.

Edit: Surey is starting in place of Hunter as Surey is recovered now.

[Eaglesfan27]

4 minute mark: A massive gathering around the ball in our box.. our defenders deflect the ball away a few times.. in the box.. Michael Frew gets the ball... he shoots.. it's through the screen of players.. past Scarsella.. goal. 1-0

25 minute mark: Smyth gets the ball.. dribbles down the left side of the field.. beats his man.. centers to Farrell.. Farrell unleashes a quick shot from about 18 yards out... just wide right.

27 minute mark: After a beautiful outlet pass from Shepherd.. Atkins pass to Turley.. Turley passes back to Atkins in the middle of the field.. Atkins plays a great through ball.. Farrell gets it.. dribbles twice.. shoots from just outside the box around the defender... wide right.

27 minute mark: Atkins intercepts the keeper's kick.. he sends it to the right winger, Turley.. Turley dribbles a few steps.. passes back to Atkins.. Atkins dribbles forward 5 steps.. shoots from just outside the box.. towards the left lower corner... keeper can't get to it in time.. it hits off the post... and IN!!!! GOAL!!! ATKINS!! (good for a tired guy) 1-1

1-1 at the half.

54 minute mark: Scarsella charges into a scrum for the ball.. he kicks it free up the field.. gutsy if scary play.

57 minute mark: Turley gets a pass from Scarsella on the right wing.. Turley passes it down half the length of the pitch.. great pass!! Smyth gets the ball in the box.. dribbles left once.. twice.. shoots.. past the keeper... high over the net.

60 minute mark: Curtis makes an essential tackle to stop an almost sure goal inside the box.

61 minute mark: Frew comes free down the left side of the field.. charges into the box.. Scarsella comes out to challenge the shot and cut down the angle.. Frew shoots.. Scarsella deflects it.. it's rolling wide of goal.. Keith Graydon (MC) gets to the ball. he taps the rebound into the open net. goal. 2-1 we are down.

65 minute mark: I move Turley up to Forward. I sub Fox in for Farrell, and put Fox at right wing. I sub in Wood for Shepherd who is exhausted.

70 minute mark: Atkins plays a through ball for Turley.. he takes it in the box.. he has Acton closing down the angle.. he shoots.. Acton tips it.. it's rolling behind Acton.. it rolls just wide.

84 minute mark: Smyth tracks down the long pass from Atkins in the left corner.. he looks.. he centers for Kelly.. Kelly has the shot.. he shoots.. over the goal.

91 minute mark: Bobby White slides hard on Smyth who has a breakaway.. Smyth looks hurt.. Red flag!! The ref calls it outside the box.. and gives us a direct kick.

Dunning comes in for Smyth.

2-1 game over. A tough loss for us.

We were outshot 14-10.

Atkins wins MoM with a 9 for form. 27 of 37 passes, 6 of 7 tackles, 4 of 4 headers, 1 run.

[Eaglesfan27]

Darn. My physio has just told me that Smyth fractured a few ribs when he hit the frozen ground on that hard tackle. He will be out about a month (which is only a bit shorter than the length of his remaining loan.) This is a bad loss for us.

[Desnudo]

Tough break. It sounds like you're on a real see-saw.

[Eaglesfan27]

We managed to retain our 15th ranking. We face 5th ranked Southport today. Southport has several key players including Man Utd's Benjamin Collette who came here on loan after his other loan ended. Steve Dickinson has been playing superbly in goal. Kevin Leadbitter has been their main goal scorer with 11. Graham Hockless is on loan from Bradford City and he is their main midfielder. Southport are heavy 4:5 favorites.


Due to my dwindling number of strikers, I've decided to temporarily switch back to the 4-5-1.

My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins
MR: Turley
FC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Fox
S3: Krief
S4: Wood
S5: Morris (gotta get the kid some time if we get a good lead.)

It's a muddy 51 degree day. The rain has favored us most of the year.. hopefully that continues.

[Miller Time]

Tough break for Smyth....I was just about post whether you have asked Liverpool to extend his loan deal for the rest of the season? It sounds like he is doing really well for the team. Hopefully, things will continue to improve when he is out.

[Eaglesfan27]

5 minute mark: Jimmy Williams tackles Farrell to prevent him from getting to a pass. Yellow card for Williams.

20 minute mark: Black gets called for tripping Leadbitter. Hockless takes the free kick from 35 yards out.. he hits it.. it's wide.. around the wall.. it's curving.. my keeper is stunned as it curves and sails into the net! 1-0 :(

27 minute mark: Hockless dribbles up the left side of the field.. he curves a wicked pass to Collett that crosses past my goal.. to the far post.. Collett heads it in.. goal.

41 minute mark: Atkins sends the ball from midfield into the box.. Farrell gets a great jump to the ball.. a little too good. He is called for offside.

2-0 at the half.

64 minute mark: We need a spark and guys are tired. I put Dunning in for Atkins. I put Morris in for Farrell (who is exhausted.) I put in Wood for Black at right full back.

81 minute mark: kelly takes it up the left wing.. he passes to Morris.. Morris passes back to Kelly.. Kelly center for Hunter.. Hunter is about 20 yards out.. he shoots.. lower right corner of the net... GOAL!!!! 2-1 we are still down.

91 minute mark: Kelly uses some fancy footwork to get past two defenders.. he is on the left sideline.. centers.. Dunning controls the pass.. at the center of the box.. he shoots.... over the net.

2-1 loss. For most of the game, I felt we were dominated.

They outshot us 15-5, and Scarsella made some very good saves.

Graham Hockless won MoM with 22 of 29 passes, 4 of 4 tackles, 1 of 3 headers, 1 intercepted pass, 4 runs, 1 assist, and 1 goal.

[Eaglesfan27]

I've heard back from quite a few teams that agree to let me have their reserves on loan, hopefully one of these good players will consent to playing for me.

[Eaglesfan27]

*smells underarms* Do I stink? 18 different strikers or attacking midfielders just refused to come play for me on loan including some not so prestigous names. Oh well, time to make some more offers.

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb. 22, 2005 -

Today we host 13th ranked Stalybridge Celtic. We are currently 17th ranked. Stalybridge is led by left fullback Gregg Pearce. He leads the defense in front of the keeper Craig Dootson who has had a poor year, conceding over 2 goals per appearance. Stalybridge counters with an impressive tandem of scorers. Kevin Parr has 7 goals from his midfield position. Andy Hayward has been a good striker with 11 goals this season. We are 6:4 favorites heading into the game.
My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins
MR: Turley
FC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Fox
S3: Krief
S4: Wood
S5: Morris (gotta get the kid some time if we get a good lead.)


It's warming up. It's 57 today and dry.

[Eaglesfan27]

23 minute mark: Kevin Parr makes a really great move on Atkins.. sends a pass to Hayward.. he is all alone in the box.. Scarsella comes out and challenges him.. Hayward shoots.. Scarsella smothers the ball.

Very boring first half.. the opposition has 2 shots.. we have 0. 0-0 game.

53 minute mark: turley plays a great pass right to Farrell. Farrell shoots from point blank range... Dootson deflects it away and Pearce clears it.

60 minute mark: Kelly tackles Hayward with a high leg on the tackle... yellow card.. the ref rules Hayward had progressed into the box! Penalty kick awarded... Dean Calcutt heads the penalty shot.. low and to the right... Scarsella dives... he can't get to it.. goal.

I pull Farrell because he is tired, and put in Morris. I also yank Kelly and put in Dunning at left wing.

72 minute mark: Black feed the ball long to Morris.. Morris runs to catch up to it.. just outside the box.. Pearce catches him and tackles the ball clear.

Our opposition plays turtle.. and we don't have any more good opportunities :(

1-0 loss.

We were outshot 7-1

Atkins wins MoM for 48 of 61 passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 4 of 4 headers, and 1 run.

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb 23, 2005 -

DARN!

I wake up this morning to read this article:

The Harrogate Town board have publicly denied the rampant rumors that they are attempting to find a replacement for Christopher Engles. There has been much speculation among fans that Engles would be asked to step down, but it appears that the board is giving the manager the opportunity to turn things around.

I can't help but wonder how long I have left..

[Eaglesfan27]

Febuary 23rd, 2005 -

Ahh, the first match of the first knockout round the European Championship match.. That should take my mind off of things.

Lots of good matches on TV.. time to settle down with a few beers and watch some of them.

The first match was Arsenal hosting Monaco. Monaco struck early. Javier Saviola scored at the 3 minute mark on a great assist from Ousmane Dabo. Shabani Nonda scored the 2nd goal on a great rebound goal. At the 19 minute mark, Henry made a wonderful dribble btw 3 french defenders, and scored on a powerful shot into goal. However, it wasn't enough as France held on for the 3-1 win with a 90th minute goal Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor.

[Eaglesfan27]

(OOC) I'm on call tonight and I just found out that my hospital has no beds available!!! Yes!! This should make for a light night of call and more FM time :) /(OOC)

The second match on TV that I watched was Manchester United at Deportivo. I TIVO'd this match, and it was an interesting to watch the dominant play of Rio Ferdinand in totally controlling the Deportivo strikers. Tim Howard looked very good in goal this game as well. Ruud van Nistelrooy scored goals at 32 and 74 minutes to provide the 2-0 margin of victory. I'd love to coach a guy like Ruud van Nistelrooy. Darren Fletcher assisted on the 1st goal, and Ryan Giggs assisted on the 2nd goal.

Other scores from watching the local sports summary show:

Barcelona(h) beat Chelsea 2-0
Juventus(h) beat Club Brugge 2-0
Milan(h) beat Real Madrid 2-0
Olympiakos(h) beat Inter 3-2
Roma (h) beat FC Bayern 2-0
Werder Bremen(h) tied Valencia 1-1

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb 26th, 2005 -

Today is a big day. We host Leigh RMI in the 5th round of the FA trophy. I feel that winning this match and the resultant money, might help secure my job for another day. Leigh RMI is in the English National Conference and they are doing reasonably well, unlike the previous team I beat from the national conference. They are currently in 10th place. Paul Flood is their keeper. He doesn't look great, but he usually seems to get the job done. Barry Miller is a very good DC who is the intimidator in their defense. Craig Mitchell is their main striker. He doesn't look spectacular, but he scores quite regularly and has 15 on the season. Chris Simms is their other striker who has 9 goals of his own. This will be a difficult challenge and the oddsmakers agree. Leigh RMI is even odds favorites.

We are a very tired team, but I keep having to play my top guys as I literally fight for my career. My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd (saying he needs rest)
DC: Curtis
DR: Black (saying he needs rest)
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins (saying he needs rest)
MR: Fox (I need Turley ready to be a fresh striker off the bench)
SC: Farrell

S1 Pettinger
S2 Turley
S3 Dunning
S4 Wood
S5: Marc Smith (hoping to get the young full back some time if we get a lead.)

It's a balmy 62 degrees today.

(OOC Gotta run for a few minutes.. will play and type up game results in a little bit hopefully)

[jbmagic]

eaglefan

any chance you can post your offense/defense on graphic like frogman did on his dynasty? and explain what the arrows mean..

thanks

[Eaglesfan27]

6 minute mark: Andy Roscoe takes the rebound of a prior shot that is just to the left of the box.. he sends a short quick pass into the middle of the box to Chris Simms.. Simms shoots.. upper left corner.. Scarsella dives.. tips it... still into the goal. 1-0

Leigh RMI goes turtle around the 30 minute mark, and now it's a particularly boring first half.

1-0; They outshot us 1-0 in the half.

Farrell is playing flat out bad.. at 55 minute mark, I yank him.

I also decide to try an old favorite formation that I haven't used for some time but dabbled with on a napkin.. I switch to a 4-3-1-2 with Hunter back in his familiar role of AMC from the preseason. I also take the unconventional approach of moving Kelly up to striker to play alongside Turley.

74 minute mark: Shepherd makes a great feed to Atkins in the middle of the field.. he passes it to Hunter.. Hunter dribbles into the edge of the box.. he shoots.. the keeper deflects it.. cleared out of bounds.

After 0 shots in 60 minutes, we get 4 shots in 30 minutes.. unfortunately none of them go in (nor any great attempts besides hunter's)

Game over.. 1-0 loss. The FA trophy dream is dead.

We outshot them 4-3 for the game.

Atkins won MoM (again) with 24 of 38 passes, 0 of 0 tackles, 2 of 3 headers, and 1 pass intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

eaglefan

any chance you can post your offense/defense on graphic like frogman did on his dynasty? and explain what the arrows mean..

thanks
The arrows tell the guys where to go generally. I'll try to figure out how he did that, and do so later tonight.. :)

Right now, I have to run to a meeting.

[MizzouRah]

This game seems quite hard.... and I like that!


Todd

[Eaglesfan27]

I think it definitely depends on what team you play with. This one was in a challenging financial position. If I picked my favorite team to start with (and one I'd recommend to any newbie), Hull, I think I'd be doing much better.

[jbmagic]

why do you recommend HULL for newbie?

[Eaglesfan27]

They aren't a super big time club (being in league 1.) They have a really good player, Stuart Elliott, IMHO. They have a rich owner, and have a good amount of money for a league 1 team. That being said, they were even easier to start with in CM03/04 because they were still in league 2 (div 3) at the time. Maybe, they will be more challenging now that they are starting in League 1, but I suspect they will still be quite managable.

[Eaglesfan27]

March 1st, 2005 -

Mr. Fotherby called me into his office for our regular meeting. He simply said, "you aren't getting the job done. Turn it around quickly."

There was no room for discussion. I left his office.. dejected, but realizing he was right.

[Desnudo]

They aren't a super big time club (being in league 1.) They have a really good player, Stuart Elliott, IMHO. They have a rich owner, and have a good amount of money for a league 1 team. That being said, they were even easier to start with in CM03/04 because they were still in league 2 (div 3) at the time. Maybe, they will be more challenging now that they are starting in League 1, but I suspect they will still be quite managable.

Plus they have a large stadium. I'd like to add something to the arrow talk too. What they specifically represent are where you want the players to go once you gain possession of the ball. The regular position indicates the player's position when you don't have possession.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today I travel to face the 14th ranked Stafford Rangers. We are in 18th, and I feel like we must win this game to retain my job. So, what do I do? I decide to finally heed the Physio and rest Atkins, Shepherd, and Black. Fortunately, Wright is back from his injury. I decide it's time to break out, my all new and improved 4-3-1-2 tactic. Kelly who has excellent ratings for an AMC will star at AMC.

As far as my opponent, Stafford is led by their right fullback's play as of late. Craig McAughtrie has played very well on the defense. Their keeper James Lindley has been average at best the last few weeks. Their weak keeping is countered by the fact that their offense is explosive at times. They have 3 10 goal scorers: Neil Grayson, the veteran striker has 15 goals. Robert Heath their midfielder has 11 goals, and Craig Wilding one of their other strikers has 10 goals. However, he is currently injured. Stafford is 5:4 favorites. We tied them 1-1 at home earlier in the year.

Our starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Dunning
DC: Barnard (very good player who I probably should have moved to DC earlier in the year.)
DC: Curtis (shepherd is resting this game.)
DR: Wood (Black is resting this game.)
ML: Wright
MC: Surey (playing with defensive oriented instructions.)
MR: Fox
AMC: Kelly (has great finishing.. hoping to make him a much more active scorer.)
SC: Turley
SC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Krief
S3: Marc Smith (hoping to get this DL some PT)
S4: Morris (same for this striker)
S5: Hunter (can play many positions)

It's a cool dry 51 degrees. Hopefully, my team fights hard for me today.

[Eaglesfan27]

16 minute mark: Kelly is dribbling down the left side of the field (doesn't he remember he is an AMC now).. he crosses the ball.. to no one.. not one of my guys there. Inexplicably, the DC Chris Smith heads it back to the keeper... the keeper is as mystified as I am.. it sails by his head... GOAL!!!! 1-0 us :)

21 minute mark: Robert Heath dribbles btw my two DC's.. he shoots from about 15 yards... it's a hard high shot.. Scarsella catches it!

25 minute mark: Fox takes the corner kick.. he floats it to Barnard.. Barnard jumps for the header.. he hits it towards goal... the keeper can't get to it.. GO... oh no, Barnard is flagged for unfairly jumping with the defender. The goal is waived off.

34 minute mark: After a flurry of quick darting passes, Grayson gets the ball all along in the center of the box.. he shoots.. Scarsella catches it cleanly!

39 minute mark: Kelly gets the ball.. dribbles past midfield.. up the center of the field.. passes up to Turley.. Turley is about to shoot.. tackled by Smith (who is trying to make up for the own goal.)

44 minute: Wood makes a great tackle on Heath.. stopping him from shooting from 15 yards out.

1-0 at the half.

47 minute mark: Turley collides with Chris Smith.. oh no Smith is injured (hey the guy scored a goal for me, I don't want to see him go) Turley gets a yellow card.

60 minute: Krief is subbed in for Fox. Hunter for Wright (very tired.) Morris for Farrell.

63 minute mark: Campbell races by Curtis who stands their like a stone. Campbell has an easy 1-1 with the keeper.. he is running towards the right post from the right side of the box.. Scarsella comes out to cut down the angle.. he shoots.. scarsella deflects it.. rebound.. Campbell shoots again.. Scarsella blocks it again.. Barnard clears the rebound.

82 minute mark: Krief sends a great through ball for Morris.. Morris catches up to it.. dribbles into the box.. to his right.. around the keeper.. and on that dribble around the keeper.. he loses control.. fumbles it.. defender catches up and Craig clears it.

89 minute: Barnard sends a long pass to Turley.. Turley races past the defense.. he has the ball in the box.. he shoots.. he scores.. but the goal is waved off. Turley is called for being offside.

Final Whistle!

1-0 victory :) (I need to buy Smith something nice)

We were outshot 11-10.

Scarsella wins MoM with 6 big saves!

[Eaglesfan27]

We are now ranked 14th after the win! That seems to have the mood around the clubhouse a little brighter. We need to win this game and keep the good feelings going. We are now hosting 8th ranked Kettering. They beat us 2-1 earlier in the year. Gareth Seddon has been a true standout for them recently at striker. He is on loan from Rushden and he is averaging about an 8 for form. He has 9 goals in 7 appearances for this club. Liam Folds has been playing excellent defense at DC. They are heavy 4:6 favorites.

Despite this, I decide to give my tired players one more game off, and keep the same starting lineup as last game. Hopefully, we won't have to rely on the opposition to score for us this time.

It's a pleasant 62 degrees today.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Gareth Seddon has been a true standout for them recently at striker. He is on loan from Rushden and he is averaging about an 8 for form. He has 9 goals in 7 appearances for this club.

Just curious, are you man-marking some of these hot strikers?

[Eaglesfan27]

8 minutes: Kelly receives a great pass from Wright.. he dribbles into the box.. shoots.. the keeper catches it.

16 minute mark: Surey intecepts a pass in our own end.. takes a few steps.. he passes it long down the field to Turley.. Turley dribbles to his left.. towards the left goal post.. the keeper comes out.. he goes for the extreme angle.. shoots towards the right upper corner of the net... it's past the keeper... it's good!!! GOAL!!!! 1-0

36 minute mark: Kelly receives it 40 yards from goal.. he dribbles down the center of the field.. draws a defender.. passes to Turley inside the left portion of the box.. Turley shoots.. the keeper dives.. it's past him.. low and to his right. GOAL!!! 2-0, Turley's second.

2-0 at the half.

64 minute Kelly is tackled driving into the box... penalty kick awarded for an illegal tackle!!! Barnard ends up taking it.. he shoots.. a blistering shot right over the keeper's shoulder.. GOAL!!! 3-0

66 minute: I sub Hunter for the tired (and slightly injured Kelly) and I sub Marc Smith for Wood who is also mildly injured.

Game over: 3-0 victory! :)

We outshot them 18-4

Ben Surey wins MoM, 23 of 26 passes, 4 of 4 tackles, 2 of 3 headers, 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

Just curious, are you man-marking some of these hot strikers?
It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

[Eaglesfan27]

Life is tenuous in the English Conference North. My main competitors lost, and I'm now suddenly in 12th place. Mr. Fotherby has let me know he is quite pleased with the 3-0 win, and that he believes I'm truly turning the team around. He is now satisfied with my performance. Hopefully, we can keep him happy.

[Godzilla Blitz]

It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

Got it. Thanks.

[Desnudo]

It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

Have you found one or the other to be more successful?

[Eaglesfan27]

Have you found one or the other to be more successful?
I generally find my deep zonal marking is working better, maybe I should give up on man marking the strikers as my team doesn't seem to do it that well..

[Eaglesfan27]

March 9th, 2005 -

Today I managed to TIVO 2 of the European Champions Cup matches and watch them all during the night.

I watched the other interesting match live.

I watched the Manchester - Deportivo Match live. Manchester was up 2-0 hosting Deportivo in the 2nd leg of the 1st elimination round.

Deportivo took control of the match early with a dazzling cross from Jorge Andrade to Walter Gerardo Pandiani who quickly settled it and blistered it past Tim Howard.

Manchester quickly equalized with a goal at the 47 minute mark, in which Ryan Giggs centered to Paul Scholes who shot it into the upper right corner of the net from 20 yards out.

Manchester scored again at the 70 minute mark when Ruud van Nistelrooy drew a penalty shot with a great strong dribble into the box. Phil Neville took and made the penalty kick going low and to the left.

Deportivo was down 4-1 on aggregate but they didn't give up.. they went on the attack and scored 2 goals in 10 minuts, however they couldn't get that last goal. Man Utd wins 4-3 on aggregate. Changui scored both of the last 2 goals with persistent effort on scrums in the box.

The second game I watched was Chelsea hosting Barcelona. Chelsea was 2-0 on aggregate going into the match. Adrian Mutu took a pass from Joe Cole in the box.. dribbles left once.. fires it past the keeper to make it 1-0. At the 30 minute mark, Michael Ballack cleaned up a rebound from a Mutu shot and made it 2-0. Barcelona looked shaken. At the 35 minute mark, Arjen Robben receives a pass from Geremi and he takes it into the box. He blasts a shot past the keeper. Goal. 3-2 on aggregate for Chelsea, with 3-0.

49 minute mark: Sameul Eto'o draws a penalty in the box.. Deco takes the penalty shot.. he shoots .. he scores! 3-3 on aggregate.

74 minute mark: Arjen Robben receives a pass from Michael Ballack and takes it to his right.. unleashes a shot from 20 yards out.. it's a goal!

Chelsea wins this stage 4-1 and wins on aggregate 4-3 to advance.

The third game was disgusting as the French referee seemed to be calling some insane calls. Henry scored a goal for Arsenal, but Monaco had 2 from Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor. Monaco beats Arsenal 5-2 on aggregate.

Least Chelsea and Man Utd advance.

In other news:

Juventus wins 4-0 on aggregate over Club Brugge

Roma beats FC Bayern 4-3 on aggregate.

Inter wins the second leg 4-1 to beat Olympiakos 6-4 on aggregate.

Milan beats Real Madrid 3-1 on aggregate.

Valencia beats Werder Bremen 4-1 on aggregate.

[FrogMan]

I generally find my deep zonal marking is working better, maybe I should give up on man marking the strikers as my team doesn't seem to do it that well..
I also don't like to put my whole team on man marking. What I like to do is have at least my two centrebacks man marking and often add the two defensive midfielders, so that gives me 4 fairly defensive players forming a square of man marking hell for my opponents, while the other on the perimeter are doing zonal marking... Works out not too bad...

FM

[Eaglesfan27]

March 12th, 2005 -

Today we are ranked 12th. We have a tough match as we travel to face #1 Barrow. Barrow has recently added super speedster striker, Emmanuel Omoyinmi on loan from Gravesend. His speed is definitely frightening. Mark Salmon is a 30 year old veteran DC with amazing physical skills who has been averaging a very impressive 8.02 for form on the year. Gavin Knight has excellent physical skills as a striker, and has an amazing 23 goals in 29 games. Jamie Paterson is a dangerous midfielder who has 10 goals and 10 assists on the year. Simon Bishop is a top notch keeper who has 15 clean sheets in 40 games. He has been conceding under a goal a game on the season. Surprisingly, they are only 6-4 favorites. When we played them at home earlier in the year, we tied them 1-1. I'd be very happy with a tie this game.

I consider a 4-5-1 for this game, but I decide I'm going to play a VERY defensive 4-4-2. I'm going to be relying on the long ball and counter attack more for offense than usual this game.

My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Dunning
DC: Shepherd (should feel rested now.)
DC: Curtis (has played well in recent games.)
DR: Black
ML: Wright
MC: Kelly
MC: Atkins
MR: Fox
SC: Turley
SC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Surey (giving him some rest.)
S3: Hunter
S4: Morris
S5: Wood

It's a cool 45 degrees outside today.

[Eaglesfan27]

15 seconds into the match: Paterson tackles Fox. Fox is hurt, and it looks bad. He is holding his side. Sub Surey in at right wing (so much for rest.)

3 minute mark: Scarsella makes a good save on a shot by Knight. Scarsella quickly kicks it down the field.. it sails over the defender.. bounces.. bounces.. towards the box... Farrell catches up to it.. he is alone in the box.. dribbles left.. the keeper is fooled as he falls for a head fake.. Farrell has the open net.. he flicks it in! GOAL!!!! 1-0 :)

30 minute mark: Despite our concerted defensive effort, Knight gets the ball within 5 yards of the goal near the left goal post.. Scarsella closes down the angle.. he comes out.. Knight shoots.. Scarsella blocks it.. Curtis cleans up the rebound.

1-0 at the half.

68 minute mark: Morris in for the tired Turley. Hunter in for the tired Wright.

YES!! The defense holds out!! 1-0 victory over #1 Barrow!!

We both had 7 shots, only 1 of theirs was on target. 2 of ours were on target.

Mark Atkins continues his streak of MoM. 35 of 45 passes, 0 of 1 tackles, 3 of 4 headers, 8 passes intercepted. He is one of 5 players to get an 8 for form this game. The others are Grant Black, Lennie Curtis, Greg Kelly, and Andy Farrell.

[Eaglesfan27]

This match had some hard hits.

Fox has a severe thigh strain. He should be out for about 5 days (7 days until our next match.)

Grant Black is out for 5 days with a shoulder sprain.

Andy Farrell is out 2 weeks with a groin strain :( (that hurts.. in so many ways.)

The physio thinks Shepherd and Atkins need rest again.

[Godzilla Blitz]

I also don't like to put my whole team on man marking. What I like to do is have at least my two centrebacks man marking and often add the two defensive midfielders, so that gives me 4 fairly defensive players forming a square of man marking hell for my opponents, while the other on the perimeter are doing zonal marking... Works out not too bad...

FM

In my last career, I had one central defender who was a stud marker. I used to have him mark the top scorer on opposing teams, slide my other central defender to the middle of the pitch (starting from a basic 4-4-2), and have everyone else play zone. It worked pretty well.

[Eaglesfan27]

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[Godzilla Blitz]

A win against #1 Barrow in an away match?

Nice job!

[Eaglesfan27]

What a beautiful site in today's paper. We are now in 11th place, and we are moving on up. The owner called me today to tell me how happy he was with last night's results. He feels confident that I'm continuing to get this thing on the right track.

[FrogMan]

A win against #1 Barrow in an away match?

Nice job!
agreed, great show!!!

FM

[Eaglesfan27]

March 19th, 2005 -

We are currently ranked 11th with only 6 more games to play. Today we host 15th ranked Hinckley United. They have been receiving very solid play from DC, Adam Willis who has been a real intimidator. Nathan Lamey has been a dangerous scorer for them with 19 goals in 35 league games. Matthew Trevett has been their catalyst in the midfield. Andy Johnston a very experienced keeper at the age of 37 has recently taken over goal for them. He has conceded 8 goals in 4 games. Despite all of this: Hinckley is heavy 4:7 favorites.

Morris is still injured, and Hunter has some experience at striker so I decide to give him a start at the position. I'll add Barnard back in at left full back. The subs will remain the same with Dunning moving from left full back to sub status.

It's a sunny 70 degrees today.

[Eaglesfan27]

I decide to play very defensive for now as I'm missing Farrell, my best striker (besides Smyth arguably.)

The first half is very boring.

0-0 at the half.

1-1 on the shots (0-0 shots on goal.)

65 minute mark: Atkins takes a good shot from just outside the box.. just barely wide left.

68 minute mark: Surey for Atkins (too tired to keep on the field), Wood for Black, Morris for Hunter (who is tired and just picked up a yellow card for arguing an offside call.)

0-0 final score.

We outshot them 5-1. However, neither team had any shots that were on goal.

Richard Lavery won MoM. 34 of 44 passing, 5 of 6 tackles, 4 of 9 headers, 1 pass intercepted.

[jbmagic]

what happens when a team get relegated from your conference?

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Report:

Shepherd is out for a week with a sprained wrist (what does a player need that for..)

Greg Kelly is out for 5 days with a sprained neck.

Fortunately, our next game isn't for 2 weeks.

Also, I found out today that Bradford PA has been relegated from my conference.

[Eaglesfan27]

what happens when a team get relegated from your conference?
They go down into the English Regional Divisions which means I likely won't see them again.

[Eaglesfan27]

Wow!! My managerial career is certainly looking up! I was just offered the job of manager of Lincoln City! They are currently in league 2, and they feel that I've shown the ability to get much out of limited talent. They are in debt, but would still make 28,000 dollars for transfers available to me. They currently have a wage budget of 31,000 per week, but would want me to lower that some. 31,000!?!? I look at my measly 4,600/week.

It's a very tempting offer, and I'm frankly shocked and flattered. However, I promised myself that I was going to stick by these guys, and I decide to respectfully decline the offer. I can't help but wonder if I'm making the wrong choice.

[Desnudo]

I also don't like to put my whole team on man marking. What I like to do is have at least my two centrebacks man marking and often add the two defensive midfielders, so that gives me 4 fairly defensive players forming a square of man marking hell for my opponents, while the other on the perimeter are doing zonal marking... Works out not too bad...

FM

That's close to what I do. I put everyone on zonal except my defensive mids if I have them. I have them tight man marking which usually takes the oppositions MCs out of the game. Personally, I prefer leaving my d-line all on zonal so they preserve the integrity of the line and don't lose shape.

One thing I noticed, not suprisingly is that early on in a career with a lower league team, man marking rarely works well because the players don't have the skills to make it work.

[Eaglesfan27]

March 26th, 2005 -

CRAP!! CRAP!! CRAP!!

Today, Mark Atkins went down in practice. He held his leg howling in pain, and I knew it was bad. The physio examined him, and let me know the bad news. An MRI confirmed it. Atkins tore his hamstring! :(

He needs surgery and will miss about 5 months (which means he will miss the first month of the next regular season as well as the remainder of this season.) Atkins has been our captain all year, and the glue of the team. He is 3rd in the entire conference with an average form of 7.59. His loss will be huge. I can't believe this happens 2 days after I turn down that job offer. I'll need to rally the guys.

[Eaglesfan27]

March 29th, 2005 -

I'm suddenly feeling like a hot commodity. Wycombe Wanderers' Chairman Ivor Beeks has just approached me about becoming the manager. Unlike the previous offer, this team is not in danger of being relegated out of League 2. Like the previous team, this team is in debt and I'd only have 4,000 dollars for transfers. The Wage Budget is currently 32,500 dollars/week!! They would want me to bring that figure down some. It's very tempting, particularly in light of my recent injury problems. I'm not sure if Atkins will ever really make it back, and I'm not sure how we will do without him. Despite all of this, I respectfully decline the job.

[Eaglesfan27]

March 30th, 2005 -

Ok, this is getting ridiculous! I've been approached by Kidderminster Harriers to take over their team. They have a whopping 120,000 dollars available for transfers. Their current wage budget is 25,500 dollars/week and they want me to lower that some. They are currently 22nd in League 2 and likely to be relegated. It's a tempting offer. In some ways, it is the most tempting offer yet as I could get quite a few valuable players with 120,000 dollars. However, despite that I decide to decline the offer.

I'll kick myself if I decline all of these offers and my current club declines to renew my deal which expires in 2 months.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 1st, 2005 -

I wonder if Mr. Fotherby knows about these job offers I've received. I decide not to tell him at this time. In any case, he calls me into his office and gives no indication that he knows about the offers I've received. He lets me know he is pleased with how the club has been playing later, and he is glad to see us at a respectable league position.

After my meeting, I meet with Mark Smyth. I tell Mark how much I've enjoyed coaching him. He says thanks for the opportunity to play. I let him know that I hope to get the chance to coach him again in the future. He lets me know that anything is possible.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 2nd, 2005 -

Today we travel to play 21st ranked Runcorn which is facing relegation. We tied them 0-0 at home earlier in the year. They are led by DC, Alan White, who is on loan from Leyton Orient. Ged Courtney, SC, is their leading scorer with 10 goals. They don't have anyone who truly scares me. Their keeper, Lance Cronin, is on loan from Crystal Palace. He appears to be a talented keeper. We are 5:4 favorites. I decide that I need to go with an offensive scheme to try to crack this keeper's shell.

I go with a 4-3-1-2.

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Wright
MC: Surey (will be mostly defensive)
MR: Fox
AMC: Kelly
SC: Turley
SC: Farrell

S1: Hunter
S2: Wood
S3: Morris
S4: Dunning
S5: Pettinger

It's a beautiful 58 degree day today.

[Eaglesfan27]

8 minute mark: Mike Garrity receives a long pass from Alan White.. he takes it into the box.. shoots from 15 yards.. Scarsella saves it.

10 minute mark: Fox centers to Kelly.. Kelly dribbles past his man to the edge of the box.. shoots.. blistering shot.. just over the bar.

12 minute mark: Surey sends a pass up the field to Farrell.. he gets it.. dribbles past the DC.. into the box.. shoots from 15 yards.. the keeper blocks it. Alan White clears it.

26 minute mark: A fancy blur of passes gets Wright the ball 22 yards out.. just outside the box.. he shoots... powerful shot.. it's past the keeper.. hits the crossbar.. the keeper punches the rebound off the bar away.

37 minute mark: Fox centers for Farrell.. Farrell heads it.. hits the crossbar.. Kelly gets the rebound.. shoots from point blank range.. the keeper smothers the shot.

44 minute mark: Kelly feeds a pass from midfield to Surey who is way behind the defenders.. he dribbles up the field.. I can't believe offside hasn't been called.. he dribbles to his left.. shoots.. goa... no.. offsides was finally called.. they wave off the goal.

0-0 at the half.

46 minute mark: Black steals the ball deep in our own zone.. he sends a long pass up the field.. Kelly races past his man and gets to it.. dribbles into the box.. to his left.. he seems to have the keeper out of position.. shoots for the upper left corner.. it's fast.. it's a little high.

63 minute mark: Ged Courtney receives a pass inside the left side of the box. Two quick steps towards goal.. a powerful shot.. Scarsella calmly catches it.

66 minute mark: Fox picks up a minor injury. Dunning is subbed on for Fox. I also sub on Hunter for Kelly due to fatigue.

78 minute mark: Shepherd tries to tackle Ged Courtney. Shepherd hurts himself during the tackling process. He needs to come off the pitch. I put Wood in for him.

80 minute mark: Dunning puts a great move on his man the left winger.. dribbles up the field.. towards the box.. powerful dribble into the box.. towards the right post.. he sees Hunter towards the middle of the box.. the keeper is coming towards Dunning. Dunning passes it.. perfect pass.. Hunter quickly shoots.. the keeper can't recover.. right into the center of the net.... beautiful GOAL!!!! 1-0

85 minute mark: Courtney passes back to Parie.. he passes up into the box to Greene.. Michael Greene dribbles once.. twice.. he shoots from 15 yards.. powerful low shot to the right of the keeper... Scarsella can't get to it.. goal. 1-1

1-1 tie on the road. A little disappointing to give up our brief lived lead, but I'm happy to have gotten at least a point.

We outshot them 18-6.

Steve Croudson their keeper gets MoM for stopping 10 on target shots.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Report: Shepherd managed to cause himself a strained pectoralis muscle in this game. The physio thinks he will probably be out for about 2 weeks!

[Axxon]

March 26th, 2005 -

CRAP!! CRAP!! CRAP!!

Today, Mark Atkins went down in practice. He held his leg howling in pain, and I knew it was bad. The physio examined him, and let me know the bad news. An MRI confirmed it. Atkins tore his hamstring! :(

He needs surgery and will miss about 5 months (which means he will miss the first month of the next regular season as well as the remainder of this season.) Atkins has been our captain all year, and the glue of the team. He is 3rd in the entire conference with an average form of 7.59. His loss will be huge. I can't believe this happens 2 days after I turn down that job offer. I'll need to rally the guys.

Ouch, that's harsh. :(

And after turning things around like that too.

[Axxon]

March 30th, 2005 -

Ok, this is getting ridiculous! I've been approached by Kidderminster Harriers to take over their team. They have a whopping 120,000 dollars available for transfers. Their current wage budget is 25,500 dollars/week and they want me to lower that some. They are currently 22nd in League 2 and likely to be relegated. It's a tempting offer. In some ways, it is the most tempting offer yet as I could get quite a few valuable players with 120,000 dollars. However, despite that I decide to decline the offer.

I'll kick myself if I decline all of these offers and my current club declines to renew my deal which expires in 2 months.

That is a very tempting offer but I wouldn't get too excited by the money. You already have to lower their wage bill; if they get relegated you'll actually have to lower wages so forget the shiny new players.

Of course, you wouldn't need them either if you got relegated and you'd be a hero in a season when you brought them back up.

Then, you might start getting some good players. :)

Tough decision to make. Great read.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 6th, 2005 -

Today I watched the next round of the European Champions Cup.

First game I watched, Manchester Utd hosted Inter. The first goal was due to a great move from Kleberson. After taking the Gary Neville pass at midfield.. Kleberson dribbled past 3 defenders.. shot from the right edge of the box.. curving shot... past the keeper!

At the 43 minute mark: Kleberson set up a great cross for Wayne Rooney who headed it past the keeper to make it 2-0.

At the 75 minute mark Kily Gonzalez got one back on a rebound goal when Tim Howard couldn't control the Nicolas Burdisso shot.

Wayne Rooney had a nice insurance goal at the 88 minute mark; Ryan Giggs set it up with a great through ball into the box.

3-1 win for Man Utd over Inter in the 1st leg of the quarterfinals.

The Chelsea - Roma game was much less interesting. Both teams played somewhat defensively. Roma's Mido struck first with a blistering shot for 30 yards out that just beat the keeper. This occured at the 47 minute mark.

At the 61 minute mark: Michael Ballack headed a corner kick past the keeper to tie it up 1-1 which was the final score.

In other news: Juventus beat Monaco 1-0 at home.

Milan hosted Valencia and won 2-0.

It will be interesting to see if any of the teams can come back from their deficits.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 9th, 2005 -

Coming down the home stretch. We are currently ranked 10th, and we host 21st ranked Ashton United today. Ashton United is a dangerous team as they are going to be desperately fighting relegation today. Over the last few weeks, Brendan Aspinall has been the most consistent defender. He is starting at right fullback today. Nicholas Clee continues to play very well in the midfield. Jamie Miller has played very well at striker, and he 3 goals in his last 5 games. He has 13 for the season. Ashley Conner has been above average in goal lately. He will be tough to beat. We beat them 1-0 playing at their pitch earlier in the year. We are heavy 4:7 favorites going into this match.

The same lineup as last year, except I'm subbing in Wood for the injured Shepherd. Krief gets promoted back up to the bench as S5.

There is a strong wing today and it's 51 degrees.

[Eaglesfan27]

13 minute mark: After a series of passes, Turley has the ball in the left corner.. he centers to Wright who is at the edge of the box.. Wright unleashes a cannon of a shot.. the keeper tips it... into the crossbar.. it bounces back! Wright gets it and shoots again.. keeper tips it... over the bar.

22 minute mark: Barnard tackles Miller in the box... whistle blows.. penalty shot awarded! Turley argues with the ref.. Turley gets a yellow card! I'm arguing with the ref.. he just ignores me. Jason Dormer takes the penalty kick.. powerful shot.. just to the right of the keeper.. he can't react in time.. he dives, but it is already past him. goal 1-0 we are down.

37 minute mark: Turley dribbles into the left side of the box.. he looks at the shot.. the keeper comes out to cut down the angle.. he crosses to Fox.. open net.. Fox heads it... over the net!

42 minute mark: Dormer gets a yellow card for pulling Farrell's shirt at midfield.

1-0 at the half.

59 minute mark: Surey passes a through ball to Kelly.. Kelly is at the edge of the box.. defender closing on him.. he shoots... it's .. skimming over the bar.

62 minute mark: Wright plays beautiful cross to Farrell inside the penalty area.. Farrell shoots from point blank range... GOAL!!!! WHAT?!? Farrell is flagged for being offside.. BULL#!## He wasn't offside.. I argue with the ref, but it does no good.

65 minute mark: turley crosses it Kelly.. Kelly has an open opportunity in the box.. he dribbles to his left.. shoots.. the keeper dives.. Conner tips the ball wide of the net.

68 minute mark: Farrell is tired, and I sub in Morris for Farrell.

76 minute mark: Turley centers from the left corner.. Kelly receives it at the edge of the box.. dribbles past a defender.. shoots from 15 yards out.. a powerful blast.. the keeper looks like he is screened by a defender.. the ball sails over his right shoulder.. GOAL!!!! 1-1 Kelly's first goal for us!!!

1-1 final score.

We dominated time of possession and outshot them 10-4.

Ben Surey wins MoM, 31 of 41 passing, 2 of 2 tackles, 2 of 3 headers, 3 passes intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Report: Now my guys are dropping like flies (do flies really drop that often?)

Fox is out for 2 weeks with the painful groin strain.

[MizzouRah]

OUCH!!

Now we'll see what you're made of!


Todd

[Eaglesfan27]

April 13th, 2005 -

The second leg of the quarterfinals of the European Champions Cup was today. I didn't get to watch the games as closely as I would like, since I'm busy trying to figure out what to do the last few games of this season with the various injuries. Also, I'm trying to figure out who I should try to transfer next season (if anyone.)

However, I payed some attention to the Manchester United and Chelsea match (just didn't watch them in detail)

Manchester already up 3-1 over Inter, traveled to play them today. Manchester united looked good at the beginning of the match, and quickly scored on a Ruud van Nistelrooy goal, 15 minutes into the match. Ruud scored again at the 34 and 43 minute marks. This seemed to take the air out of inter. Belozoglu Emre scored a long range goal at the 75 minute mark, but Inter never could fight back from the huge deficit. They lose 6-2 on aggregate.

Chelsea was tied with Roma 1-1 as they traveled to play Roma. Roma's Mancini scored at the 5 minute mark on an assist from Simone Perrota. They scored again 5 minutes later Antonio Cassano converted a great pass from Gaetano D'Agostino. Chelsea was now down 3-1, and they were in trouble. Roma went to a defensive posture that made it difficult for Chelsea to score. Mutu did break through with a goal at the 63 minute mark on a rebound shot, but Chelsea loses 3-2 on aggregate.

Juventus beat Monaco 2-0 in France to win 3-0 on aggregate.

Valencia hosted Milan while being down 2-0, but they couldn't stop Milan from scoring, and the final score was 4-2 on aggregate in favor of Milan.

[jbmagic]

is injuries due to improper practice?

is there things you can do to help lessen injuries?

[Eaglesfan27]

Soccer is a very violent game, and there are always going to be injuries. That being said, I think I have the most injuries in my division this year. Part of that is because we are one of the poorest clubs in our league. As a result, we only have one physio for our entire team! I'd really like to be able to hire at least one more physio, preferably 2 as I believe a better # of players/# of physios ratio reduces injuries. However, as I mentioned, for now we can't afford it.

[Eaglesfan27]

Also, I put my guys through a fairly demanding training regimen. I could make training easier with less intensive exercises which occur less frequently. There are many options you can use for training in one of three time slots each day.. I tend to use most of the slots, and I tend to pick some intensive training regimens. I think the injuries are balanced by the entire team improvement..

[Eaglesfan27]

April 16th, 2005 -

Today my 10th ranked team travels to 18th ranked Lancaster City. We beat this team 1-0 when at home. Lancaster has recently acquired and start Jamie Speare in goal and he appears to be of average ability. Their right winger Keiran Walmsley is a young 21 year old who on loan from Morecambe has been playing as well as anyone in the league the last 2 weeks. Michael Yates is a dangerous striker who has 17 goals on the season, and 3 goals in the last 3 games. His partner Peter Thompson is also a versatile scorer. We are 6:4 favorites this game.

Our lineup is the same as last game, except that Shepherd is back from his injury and he has ability to play right wing which is good since Fox is out with his injury. I'll leave Wood and Curtis at DC and try Shepherd at MR. Otherwise, the lineup and subs are the same.

It's a warm sunny 76 degrees today.

[Eaglesfan27]

16 minute mark: Curtis passes to midfield.. Kelly takes it.. takes a few steps.. flicks it up the field to Turley.. Turley dribbles.. into the box.. to about 15 yards.. Martin Clark, the left fullback, tackles him from behind.. the tackle knocks the ball away.. it goes past the keeper.. GOAL!!!! Own goal for Clark! 1-0 us :)

43 minute mark: Turley dribbles into the left side of the box.. towards the left post.. the keeper is playing him and the pass.. Turley passes to Kelly.. Kelly shoots.. the keeper tips it over the bar.

44 minute mark: Shepherd is in a bit of a clash with Kieran Walmsley.. he looks hurt. I pull him over to the sideline. He insists he can still play. I decide I'll watch him closely, but let him play some more.

1-0 at the half.

61 minute mark: Walmsley receives a pass in the box.. he unleashes a powerful shot from 10 yards.. Scarsella makes the save look easy.

64 minute mark: I'm trying to get Shepherd out because he has played well, but his injury appears to be slowing him down.. Walmsley dribbles down the right flank... he crosses it to Chris Beech.. Beech shoots.. Scarsella misplays it.. it bounces off his fingers an d into the goal. The stoppage in play allows me to sub Dunning in for Shepherd at right wing.

66 minute mark: Turley dribbles into the box.. crosses to Farrell.. Farrell shoots.. wide left.

75 minute mark: Surey passes the keeper's outlet kick up to Farrell.. Farrell dribbles into the right side of the box. The keeper comes out to cut down the angle.. Farrell shoots for the left goal post.. sharp angled shot.. it's past the keeper... just wide of the goal post.

I pull Farrell out as he is quite tired and bring in Morris.

85 minute mark: Steve Jones has it on the left wing.. he sends a long pass diagonally into the box.. Beech jumps.. he outjumps my men.. powerful header towards goal.. Scarsella can't get to it.. goal. We are down 2-1.

86 minute mark: Black steals the ball at midfield with a header.. he sends the header a long way up the field! Turley gets it about 30 yards from goal.. strong dribble into the box.. dribbles one more step.. shoots from 18 yards with 2 defenders closing on him.. it splits the defenders.. sails over the keeper's head.. into the net !!! GOAL!!! 2-2 What an equalizer!

88 minute mark: Turley receives the ball at midfield on a pass from Wood. Turley takes a strong dribble up teh field.. past a defender.. dribbles past another defender.. he goes past a third defender!! what a dribble.. takes it to about 10 yards.. unleashes a powerful shot.. towards the left post.. the keeper dives.. he barely tips it wide.

2-2 tie. Game over.

We outshot them 14-12.

Wright has been appointed Captain with Atkins out, and he played spectacularly this game. 9 for form, MoM awarded. 25 of 34 passes, 7 of 9 tackles, 2 of 2 headers, 2 passes intercepted.

[Desnudo]

Do you still have a shot at the playoffs?

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Game news:

No one was injured for more than the game!!

Worcester wrapped up the Conference North Title today. They beat us 1-0 on our pitch and we tied them 0-0 on their pitch. Not bad against the conference champions. I wish them well in the English Conference National.

[Eaglesfan27]

Do you still have a shot at the playoffs?
Nope. We have 2 games to go and we are 13 points out of 5th place. We are in 10th at the moment with 51 points (12 wins, 15 draws, 13 losses) I'm just happy that it looks like I will be rehired at the end of the season.

[Eaglesfan27]

August 23rd, 2005 -

This is our second to last game of the season. We play 4th ranked Moor Green who has had several notable loan players in this season. Fortunately, they have all left now. Guy Sanders has been a beast for them on defense at the DC position. Neil Davis and Sean Dowdall have provided the scoring punch with 17 and 11 goals respectively. Their best midfielder Paul Reed is injured. Kevin McCormack has teken over in goal for them and he has 7 clean sheets in 15 appearances. He will be a tough keeper to score on it appears. Despite this, we are 5:4 favorites.

Our lineup is the same as last game.

It's a cold damp game with 46 degree temperatures and driving rain.

[Eaglesfan27]

12 minute mark: Turley's breakaway is ended by an offside call. Turley is infuriated.. he yells at the ref.. he says something the ref doesn't like. Yellow card. Black has to walk to over to Turley and calm him down.

21 minute mark: Paul Shepherd gets called for a hard tackle on Guy Sanders. He gets a yellow card.

45 minute mark: Farrell gets the ball wide open in the right side of the box.. he crosses to Turley.. It looks like Turley has a wide open net for his header.. he heads it.. towards the center of the net.. the keeper dives.. tips it over the bar.

0-0 at the half.

63 minute mark: Cooper is very far wide right.. he sends a long cross to Dowdall.. Curtis jumps.. and misses the header.. Dowdall jumps.. powerful header towards the upper left corner.. Scarsella can't get to it. Goal. Down 1-0

66 minute mark: I sub Dunning in for the tired Wright. Krief in for the tired Shepherd. Morris in for the tired Turley (also he has been playing timid since getting the yellow card.)

72 minute mark: Using up all 3 subs bites me in the ass, when Farrell picks up an injury and can't play any longer. I'm forced to go to a 4-3-1-1 due to the injury.

93 minute mark: Krief the speedster gets a pass from kelly.. he dribbles into the net.. he is caught from behind by Guy Sanders who knocks the ball away.

Game over. 1-0 loss. This loss ended a 7 game streak of no losses.

We outshot them 8-5.

Ben Surey wins MoM, 30 of 35 passes, 10 of 11 tackles, 5 of 7 headers, 4 passes intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 27th, 2005 -

Watched the Manchester Utd vs Roma European Champions Cup Semi-final match today.

The game was at Old Trafford, and I felt it was essential Manchester win this match going into the game at Roma. Roma played a very tight defense and most of the game was a battle of ball possession. There were only 3 shots for each side when Roma hit Manchester Utd on the counter strike. Daniele Corvia received a long pass from Cristian Chivu. Corvia had the keeper, Howard, coming out to meet him.. he flicked a quick pass to Marco Delvecchio who was running to his left.. Marco jammed home the shot with a crisp flick of his foot. The margin held up as Roma won 1-0. That can't be good for Man Utd in their next match.

Juventus hosted Milan and won their game 1-0. Emerson scored the only goal of the match at the 22 minute mark on a long curving shot that beat the keeper.

Time to get ready for our final match of the year.

[Eaglesfan27]

April 30th, 2005 -

Today is the final game of the season. This is an important game. We have dropped to 13 with our loss last game. Another loss and I might start fearing that I won't be rehired. My contract runs out in a little over a month. I'm currently being paid 1,800 dollars a week, and I'd like to at least keep that wage. With a win, I could climb to as high as 10th place. I believe this would be quite satisfying to the board that wanted me to be in the top half of the league this year. With a loss, we could fall as low as 15th. This might not be good enough.

Today's match is against 7th ranked Vauxhall Motors. They are a dangerous team who have brought in several truly quality players on loan this year. They currently have David Poole on loan. He is a striker from Manchester Utd. who has the potential to dominate. In 22 appearances, he has 14 goals and 6 assists. Bradley Cullen is leading the defense and he has been very consistent along the back line. Anthony Wright has been a potent striker alongside Poole and he has 12 goals himself. Mike Kinsella has played very well in goal the last month.

Fox is back from his injury and I'm putting him back at right wing. Due to Wood playing poorly the last few weeks, I pull him out of the starting lineup and put Shepherd in at DC. I also remove Krief from the sub list, and add Marc Smith the left fullback to the sub list.

It's a dry warm 65 degree day today. We are even odds favorites.

[Eaglesfan27]

8 minute mark: David Poole gets a cross from Anthony Wright who tracked down the ball in the left corner. Poole heads it... over the bar.

17 minute mark: Black receives the pass from Surey who was under pressure. The right fullback plays a perfect long pass into the box.. Farrell races to it.. he dribbles to his right.. the keeper comes out to cut down the angle.. Farrell shots to the far post.. it's heading towards the post.. it's in.. just inside the post!!! GOAL!!!! 1-0

That is Farrell's 15th goal of the season! What an outstanding goal!

20 minute mark: Shepherd heads clear a dangerous cross from Poole.

24 minute mark: Poole dribbles past 3 of my defenders... into the box.. 10 yards away he shoots.. Scarsella blocks it.. Shepherd clears the rebound.

1-0 at the half.

68 minute mark: Poole gets the ball on a cross from Steve Porter. Poole shoots from point blank range.. Scarsella smothers the shot.

70 minute mark: Turley gets the ball at the left corner.. he sees an open Farrell by the far post.. he crosses it.. sends it over Farrell's head as he passes it too high.

At this point, I sub Morris in for Farrell and Hunter for Kelly (who will be ending his loan after this match)

88 minute mark: Turley gets called for diving.. yellow card.

Game over. 1-0

We were outshot 11-9.

Andrew Wright wins MoM, 24 of 35 passes, 1 of 3 tackles, 2 of 2 headers, 2 runs.

(OOC I'm on call tonight and just got called into a local ER that I'm providing coverage for.. the year in review as well as further updates will happen later tonight.. hopefully. Must remember not to insult patient if the issue of a card is brought up ;) )

[Eaglesfan27]

The following is my final season standings table:

http://64.17.163.76/images/Conference%20North%20League.jpg

[Eaglesfan27]

Our 35 goals allowed was 2nd best in the entire league. However, our 43 goals scored was 17th in the league. Our differential of +8 goals was 8th in the league. In the next post, I'll show the wild ride that we took in the league standings throughout the year.

[Eaglesfan27]

The following details our early and midseason troubles as well as our late season revival:

http://64.17.163.76/images/Harrogate%20League%20Position%20Graph.jpg

[Eaglesfan27]

A look at our final roster. Clearly Atkins has been a valuable player. He leads the team with 11 MoM awards.

http://64.17.163.76/images/Harrogate%20Roster%20(end%20of%20season).jpg

[Eaglesfan27]

A look at our sister conference, the English Conference South:

http://64.17.163.76/images/English%20Conference%20South.jpg

[Eaglesfan27]

Next up is a look at the leaders in a few statistical categories for the English Conference North.

Top Form:

1. Mark Salmon, Barrow, 7.82
2. Chris Timons, Gainsborough, 7.76
3. Mark Atkins, Harrogate Town, 7.53
4. Bradley Cullen, Vauxhall Motors, 7.49
5. Danny McDonnell, Worcester, 7.49
6. Jamie Paterson, Barrow, 7.47
7. Craig McAughtrie, Stafford Rangers, 7.45
8. Adam Willis, Hinckley, 7.44
9. Dene Cropper, Worksop, 7.44
10. Steve Dickinson, Southport, 7.43

Top 10 Goal Scorers:

1. Dene Cropper, Worksop, 21.
2. Mark Owen, Worcester, 17.
3. Gavin Knight, Barrow, 17
4. Neil Davis, Moor Green, 16
5. David Poole, Vauxhall Motors, 16.
6. Julian Alsop, Moor Green, 15
7. Carl Alford, Gainsborough, 15.
8.. Andy Farrell, Harrogate, 15
9. Christian Moore, Worcester, 15.
10. Michael Frew, Nuneaton, 15.

[Eaglesfan27]

Top 10 for League MoM awards:

1. Mark Salmon, Barrow, 9.
2. Mark Atkins, Harrogate, 8.
3. Lee Butler, Alfreton, 7.
4. Jamie Patterson, Barrow, 7.
5. Dene Cropper, Worksop, 7.
6. Jamie Holmshaw, Gainsborough, 6.
7. Danny McDonnell, Worcester, 6.
8. Lee Collins, Moor Green, 5.
9. Derek Slattery, Nuneaton, 5.
10 Andrew Wright, Harrogate, 5.

[jbmagic]

awesome screenshots...

love to see how you do you tactics, formations and what orders you give your players..if there a screen for that too...




thanks

[Eaglesfan27]

awesome screenshots...

love to see how you do you tactics, formations and what orders you give your players..if there a screen for that too...

thanks
I owe FrogMan thanks for teaching/reminding me how to do screenshots. Ifranview was a great tip from him as well. I'll do a screenshot of whatever primary formation I settle into next season as it should be a bit more interesting than what I was using this season. That will also give a decent idea of my tactics as well.

[jbmagic]

thanks

what is MoM award?

on league standing what is C, PI, R mean?

thanks

[Eaglesfan27]

May 3rd, 2005 -

Real Madrid fired Mariano Garcia Remon today! Juventus manager Fabio Capello is believed to be the top choice for the job.

I met with Mr. Fotherby today. The meeting was delayed as he was out of the country the last 2 days. He told me, "Son, I'm pleased with how you turned the team around. I hope we can work out a new contract for you for next season."

I said goodbye to Kelly today who returned to Huddersfield.

[Eaglesfan27]

thanks

what is MoM award?

on league standing what is C, PI, R mean?

thanks
MoM is the Man of Match award. Basically, it is the Most Valuable Player of that game. Atkins winning it 9 times is fairly impressive to me. It's only awarded to one player, not one one player from each team.

C is for the league champions. They are definitely being promoted to the English Conference National League.

PI is for the teams that made a playoff. The prize of the playoff is promotion to the English Conference National Team.

R means the team was relegated. The bottom 3 teams "earn" this dishonor in the English Conference North.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 4th, 2004 -

I missed the game today due to a night out drinking with the team. Perhaps it hurts team discipline, but I find my guys fight harder for me if I get to know them.

Anyway, I caught the sports round up show, and I see that Man Utd lost 2-0 at Roma, and therefore lost 3-0 on aggregate.

Milan beat Juventus 1-0 at home to end up with a 1-1 tie on aggregate. Milan won the match on penalty shots.

The Roma - Milan European Champions Final should be interesting.

Tomorrow night, Moor Green hosts Barrow and Worksop hosts Nuneaton in the playoffs.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 5th, 2005 -

I didn't watch the games, but I did see the highlights show.

Barrow won on the road against Moor Green 3-2. The 2nd leg looks like it will be all Barrow.

Nuneaton dominated Worksop 2-0 despite being on the road. The next match at Nuneaton should be equally lopsided.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 7th, 2005 -

Gregorio Manzano was hired by Real Madrid to be their new coach today.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 9th, 2005 -

Not surprisingly, Barrow's Gavin Knight dominated the game against Moor Green and they won 3-1 thanks to Knight's 2 goals. Barrow wins 6-3 on aggregate and advances to the final of the playoffs.

Nuneaton won 1-0 thanks to a goal by Avun Jephcott and they win 3-0 on aggregate to play Barrow in the finals.

[Eaglesfan27]

Conference North Playoff Final Game -

Darren Acton made a few spectacular saves, but Nuneaton's defense did a great job of shutting down Barrow's offense. Acton stopped all 4 shots that made it through to him, while Nuneaton peppered Simon Bishop with shots throughout the match. Stuart Whittaker and Gary Fitzpatrick each scored a goal for the 2-0 winning margin. Nuneaton wins promotion!

[Eaglesfan27]

May 14th, 2005 -

Arsenal officially wrapped up the EPL title today. Manchester City was relegated from the EPL today. Crystal Palace was also relegated from the EPL today.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 25th, 2005 -

Today I watched Milan and Roma face off for the European Champions Cup. Milan took an early lead when Andriy Shevchenko put back his own rebound for a goal that sailed over Ivan Pelizzoli's shoulder into the goal.

Roma turned up the heat at that point, and started working the ball for some good efforts, however, Dida was amazing in goal. He stopped several good shots by Antonio Cassano. In the end, Dida was the difference as Milan won it all 1-0.

[Eaglesfan27]

May 30th, 2005 -

Yes!! Mr. Fotherby informs me that he reworked the expiring sponsorship deal. The old one was worth 22,000 dollars/year. The new deal is for 5 years at 60,000 dollars/year!

Mr. Fotherby also announced my transfer budget would be 18,000 dollars this year. Of course, he still hasn't offered me a new contract, but this is sounding good so far.

[Eaglesfan27]

June 1st, 2005 -

Mr. Fotherby called me into his office. He told me he was pleased with my performance for the entire season, and he wanted to work out a contract with my agent. I reminded him I didn't have an agent. His eyes seemed to gleam and he said that we would work out something that would be mutually beneficial in the next few weeks.

[Eaglesfan27]

June 7th, 2005 -

Arsenal's Thierry Henry has won the European Golden Boot award. He has 35 goals in 40 appearances this year. He also has 13 assists, 11 MoM awards. He has an average form of 8.28.

Mista of Valencia came in second.

Christian Gimenez of FC Basel came in third.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jun 20th, 2005 -

Today we had our end of the year awards dinners. No one was surprised when the team award for most valuable player was officially given to Mark Atkins.

Mr. Fotherby said at the dinner that he was excited to have me continue coaching the team. He said he wanted to meet next week to hash out the final details of my next contract.

[Eaglesfan27]

June 30th, 2005 -

Today I sign a new 1 year deal for 1800/week. I would have liked a longer deal, but I decide beggars can't be choosers.

Note: This will end my 1st season. I guess in the tradition of this section of the forum, I will start a new thread for my second season.

[SirFozzie]

Congrats!

Now let's move up in Season 2!