Turn-based Soccer? A Football: Tactics and Glory Dynasty

[larrymcg421]

A post in the Steam thread referenced this game, so I tried it out and got immediately hooked.

What is it? Football: Tactics and Glory plays more like an RPG than an in depth soccer game. The turn-based aspects are not just related to team management, but also how the games play out. Each match is 48 turns long and each side gets three turns to act at a time.

The management aspects are primitive compared to FM, but there's enough there to make it fun to try and build your team up from nothing. You can buy players on the transfer market, upgrade your youth academy to get better, and players can learn special skills like Rainbow Feint or Layoff Pass that can really pay off during a game.

No matter what country you start in, the game has a static league structure:

Premiere League (18 teams)
First League (16 teams)
Second League (14 teams)
Third League (12 teams)
Amateur League (8 teams)

I've downloaded a mod for the US league that uses real MLS, USL, and Developmental teams. I will be managing the Des Moines Menace in the Amateur League.

[larrymcg421]

https://i.imgur.com/owoHRYL.png

Career Goals Scored...

Cannon - 244
Hoffman - 72
Pennington - 59
Edmondson - 57
McCullough - 56
Epperson - 49
Eller - 32
Atkins - 22
Seymour - 14
Galloway - 9
Yoder -7
Forsythe - 5
Ellison - 5
Guy - 5
Lindsey - 4
Whittington - 4
Kelley - 3
Qualls - 3
Wilkerson - 2
McCurdy -1
Lynn - 1

[larrymcg421]

Now let's take a look at our team...

https://snag.gy/TopmV0.jpg

Class - Obviously, this is the position for each player, but there are some specifics to note. The players with a question mark still need to learn a position, which they can only do by getting game experience. As players get experience, you can upgrade them to one of the main classes. More on that later.

Acc - The accuracy of shots on goal.
Pas - Passing skill.
Def - Defense skill, which is used when trying to stop a shot on goal, make a tackle, or intercept a pass.
Ctr - Control rating, which is the player's ability to retain possession against a tackle.
Lvl - When a player reaches a new level, their stats increase. You don't get to pick the stats but you can earn upgrades that allow you to focus improvements on one skill.
Age - Players retire at age 36.
Skills - These are special skills the players have learned.

Thoughts on the team...

Keeper - Granger is terrible, but I have no one else. That Def ratign won't stop many shots. Has an unnecessarily high pass rating. Also still needs more experience to become a full goalkeeper.

Defense - Heath and Canales are pretty good. Heath has the long pass skill, which is very useful for counter attacks and he's a Sweeper class, which means he'll automatically react to get in the way of opposing strikers. Huggins, Lawler, and McGill are not very useful. Huggins does have the Head play skill, which helps him defend opposing headers, but that's not going to happen much at this level.

Midfield - These guys are pretty good, but Redd and Barajas won't be around much longer. Major depth issue here. Barajas has the layoff pass skill, which allows him to pass ahead of a player and help him get into position to score.

Forwards - McCurdy is worthless, so Seymour (A Right Midfielder) will play as a forward on the right side. Atkins is pretty awesome and will be our top goal scorer.

Reserves - Jennings and Banuelos haven't learned a position yet and they're useless anywhere on the pitch, so will only be used when my starters are winded or injured.

Until I get more midfielders or better forwards, we'll be running a 5-3-2


Granger
McGill, Canales, Heath, Huggins, Lawler
Lance, Redd, Barajas
Atkins, Seymour

[larrymcg421]

https://snag.gy/hkK9zv.jpg

Her'es the upgrade screen, which shows different ways to upgrade your team. Throughout the season, you earn both cash and supporters shields, which are used for different upgrades.

We start the game with

Cash - $50,000
Shields - 5
Supporters - 50 (this will increase and decrease each match depending on performance).

Our stadium is big enough so I spend money upgrading my youth academy. You will get a new youth pull every 6 months. The first upgrade is $15,000 and the second is $27,000 (which increases the range to 1-10). This leaves me with $9,000. There are no urgent contract renewals, so this should be fine for now.

[larrymcg421]

https://snag.gy/YcXM8b.jpg

As you can see, the transfer list is very limited at this level. You can buy upgrades to increase the number of players and lower the age level. The only useful guy here is Nix, who I might regret not getting, but I preferred to improve the youth academy instead.

[larrymcg421]

The Amateur League...

https://snag.gy/VcRShQ.jpg

2 matches against each team for a 14 match season. There is also the Prestige Cup, which is the generic national cup. There is also an international cup for the top teams in the Premiere league.

In my first playthrough, I promoted in my 2nd season. I'm not sure I want to promote faster than that, which is another reason I didn't buy that keeper.

[larrymcg421]

Here's what the match play looks like. This screenshot is taken right after Canales stopped their first attack

https://snag.gy/9VTdU3.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Amateur League: Des Moines at Grand Rapids

Great start for our squad! Our defensive lines has an amazing game, preventing our crappy keeper from having to make any saves. Atkins and Seymour both bag a couple goals as their defense is unable to deal with Atkins accuracy or Seymour's mobility.

Score: Des Moines 4, Grand Rapids 0
Goals: Atkins 2, Seymour 2
Assists: Redd, Barajas
Possession: 66%
Top three: Atkins, Seymour, Heath

Barajas improves to level 26.
Heath improves to level 16.
Mcgill improves to level 8.

[thehitcat]

This looks fun. I've had this game on my Steam Wishlist for ages so not only am I looking forward to your destiny it's possible you'll tip me over into buying it. Good luck! :)

[DavidCorperial]

I've seen some old play of this and enjoyed that, am excited for this play as well.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Your description and your first few posts really caught my eye, so I went over to Steam and found out more about FTG. It isn't very expensive (I'm not sure how much more I can say on the forum here), so I decided to buy it.

The early reviews from my house are very favorable! My kids (ages 14, 11, and 8) are all soccer players, and my oldest likes some turn-based games. He's already said he thinks it will be fun to try.

I'll be following along, and thanks for the idea! :)

[larrymcg421]

Thanks for reading, guys! The game is really addictive and I'm glad the dynasty is getting some people to check it out. I'll have an update soon.

[SirBlurton]

Love this game - but am absolutely awful at it - I sold off most of my players to "rush" youth development facilities....really bad idea....but in a few seasons, might be "ok"...

Will be watching with interest!

[larrymcg421]

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (1-0-0, 1st) at Chattanooga FC (1-0-0, 3rd)

Chattanooga has a much better defensive line, so we struggle to break through until late in the first half. Unfortunately, Chattanooga quickly equalizes on the last turn of the first half when my keeper is finally tested. Neither team is able to break through in the second half.

Des Moines 1, Chattanooga 1
Goal: Atkins
Assist: Barajas
Top Three: Atkins, Barajas, Seymour

Huggins improves to lvl 13.
Lawler improves to lvl 13.

*I bought the Defender coach to increase the experience my defenders get after each match. I did this because I'm currently playing more defenders than any other position.

[larrymcg421]

July 29

Amateur League: Albion SC Pros (1-0-1, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (1-1-0, 2nd)


Their defense isn't very strong, so it's a little frustrating that we miss our first shot on goal and then can't get back in scoring position for the entire first half. We finally break through on a great counter attack to open the 2nd half. With time running out, a brutal foul injures Lance and he'll be out for a month. Ugh!

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Albion 0

Goals: Atkins
Assists: Redd
Top Three: Heath, Atkins, Redd

[larrymcg421]

Aug 5th

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (2-1-0) at Fresno Fuego (1-0-2)

I'm forced to play a weird 5-2-3 due to Lance's injury. Their keeper makes a couple great saves in the first half, but Atkins opens the 2nd half by beating two defenders and the keeper with a great shot. On our next possession, Seymour gets around the defense and puts the game out of reach. My CD Huggins pretty much shut down every attack they launched until a useless goal on the last turn of the game.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Fresno 1
Goals: Atkins, Seymour
Assists: Barajas 2
Top Three: Huggins, Redd, McCurdy

Mcgill improves to level 9.

[collegesportsfanms]

Sounds cool, I may have to look into this too. I have played most of the versions of Football Manager since 2007, but I find myself enjoying that game less and less. It has just gotten too tedious for me to enjoy, even with FM Classic

[larrymcg421]

Aug 12

Amateur League: Calgary Foothills FC (0-0-4, 8th) at Des Moines Menace (3-1-0, 2nd)

Redd is winded from our last match, so I have to start the useless Jennings in his place. Luckily, Calgary is terrible and both Atkins and Sweeney bag 2 goals in the 1st half. With this huge lead, I play it safe in the 2nd half to conserve energy. Atkins misses his shot for a hat trick. Heath was pretty dominant defensively and even managed a long range assist to Atkins.

Final Score: Des Moines 4, Calgary 0
Top Three: Atkins, Seymour, Barajas
Goals: Atkins 2, Seymour 2

[thehitcat]

Loving this game. I picked it up, started with Tipperary FC in the bottom/amateur tier of the FAI (I also loaded all the team names mod from Steam.) I played through the first game of Season 8 yesterday (I'm at work on just under 2 hours sleep) Season 1 Promoted to League 3, Season 2 Promoted to League 2 Season 3 grabbed the last spot above relegation from League 2. Season 4 staved off relegation again. Season 5 got relegated pretty thoroughly back to League 3 (a group of older players retired.) Season 6 bounced right back up from League 3 to League 2. Season 7 got absolutely mauled as I sold my Star Keeper in the Winter window of my promotion season (6) so he didn't enter the dreaded too old to sell period. My backups weren't ready. We ended a 26 game season with 6 points. If this game could fire me I'd have been out. So season 8 I start back at Level 3 again but I have the the best bench coach you can have (so all my players get XP as though they were playing), a 5000 seat stadium that I overfill and a 2.5 star Youth pull twice a year. My team is almost all former youth and some buys that I churn. It's been a whirlwind and I can't wait to get back to it. This would be an amazing IPad game wonder if they have any plans to do that. OK sorry back to Des Moines :)

[larrymcg421]

Aug 19

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (4-1-0, 2nd) at K-W United FC (5-0-0, 1st)

We begin a stretch of 3 games in 8 days. Redd is still winded, so we run the same lineup as last week. Heath's long pass ability pays off nicely as he gets the ball to Seymour for an early goal. K-W take advantage of our terrible keeper to equalize at the half. Then a terrible pass in our own area leads to a one on one, which they convert. Thankfully, Atkins pulls off a heroic shot to equalize late in the 2nd half. Heath stops their last attack and we hold for the draw.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, K-W United 2
Goals: Atkins, Seymour
Top Three: Heath, Seymour, Barajas

Jennings improves to lvl 8.

[larrymcg421]

I go ahead and buy Dyson off the transfer list. This will help with my depth issues and I feel like he can take the LD spot that Mcgill will soon retire from.

https://snag.gy/QvPqkh.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Loving this game. I picked it up, started with Tipperary FC in the bottom/amateur tier of the FAI (I also loaded all the team names mod from Steam.) I played through the first game of Season 8 yesterday (I'm at work on just under 2 hours sleep) Season 1 Promoted to League 3, Season 2 Promoted to League 2 Season 3 grabbed the last spot above relegation from League 2. Season 4 staved off relegation again. Season 5 got relegated pretty thoroughly back to League 3 (a group of older players retired.) Season 6 bounced right back up from League 3 to League 2. Season 7 got absolutely mauled as I sold my Star Keeper in the Winter window of my promotion season (6) so he didn't enter the dreaded too old to sell period. My backups weren't ready. We ended a 26 game season with 6 points. If this game could fire me I'd have been out. So season 8 I start back at Level 3 again but I have the the best bench coach you can have (so all my players get XP as though they were playing), a 5000 seat stadium that I overfill and a 2.5 star Youth pull twice a year. My team is almost all former youth and some buys that I churn. It's been a whirlwind and I can't wait to get back to it. This would be an amazing IPad game wonder if they have any plans to do that. OK sorry back to Des Moines :)

Awesome results. In my first playthrough, I promoted to League 3 in my 2nd season and was maintaining a mid table standing before I started this dynasty.

[larrymcg421]

Aug 22

Prestige Cup - Qualifying Round: Des Moines Menace at Calgary Foothills FC

I rest Heath and Seymour as we have a league game in just a few days. New signee Dyson and useless Banuelos get the start here. After a boring first half where we miss our only shot on goal, Atkins makes two easy conversions. Granger actually makes a one on one save and Dyson does a good job in his debut.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Calgary 0
Goals: Atkins 2
Top Three: Atkins, Jennings, Mcgill

Canales improves to lvl 28.
Granger improves to lvl 15.
Huggins improves to lvl 14.
Lawler improves to lvl 14.
Mcgill improves to lvl 10.
Jennings improves to lvl 9.
Mccurdy improves to lvl 9.
Banuelos improves to lvl 8.

[larrymcg421]

Lawler has improved to specialization lvl 2. What that means is he can pick an upgrade from this tree.

https://snag.gy/PhNOUo.jpg

Specialist: This tree is where a player learns specific positions. Lawler had already learned to be a full Right Defender.

Talent: These upgrades improve the special skills a player can earn. They can either make the skills more powerful or decrease the time it takes to learn them.

Dedication: You can increase the experience a player learns after each match or which specific skills increase when he levels up.

Fan Favorite: You can increase their popularity, which puts more fans in the seats and can improve how much they sell for on the transfer market.

Utility: They can learn a second special class.

I pick the increased experience. This is cumulative with my defensive coach, so he now has a 50% exp increase.

[larrymcg421]

I bought a few players on the transfer list simply to have warm bodies for matches when my guys are winded. This also helps clear out the transfer list and get new guys on there. The best player I can find is Bonds, a lvl 7 midfielder who has an 18 in passing.

Midfield is a huge concern because Barajas and Redd won't be around much longer.

[larrymcg421]

Aug 26

Clarkston SC Eagles (3-0-3, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (4-2-0, 2nd)

We have a couple weeks off after this, so I use my full starting lineup. Redd is back and dominates the midfield, stopping several counterattacks. This leads to an early Atkins goal. Seymour misses several shots in the first half, but finally breaks through in the 2nd half when he's able to run behind the defense and beats the keeper one on one.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Clarkstown S-C 0
Goals: Atkins, Seymour
Top Three: Redd, Heath, Atkins

Heath increased his specialization level. I decide to improve his long pass skill.

Redd increased his specialization level. I only have him for 7 more months, so I increase his popularity to build up supporters.

[larrymcg421]

A great guy popped up on the transfer list. A lvl 24 defender named Levesque, with a 47 rating in defense. I can sell Huggins for 24000 and buy this guy for 12000, so I do it.

[larrymcg421]

Here are the standings at the midway point...

https://snag.gy/vwlCbE.jpg

League Leaders...

Goals - Atkins is 2nd with 9 goals. Seymour is 3rd with 7 goals.
Assists - Barajas is 1st with 8 assists. Redd is tied for 4th with 3 assists.
Tackles - Heath is 1st with 16 tackles. Huggins is 3rd with 10 tackles. Canales is 5th with 8 tackles.

[thehitcat]

Hell of a season you're having. You guys are murder going forward. Definitely no lead is safe against you. Just have to get a better keeper and a decent midfielder in order to help ease the transition from Redd and Barajas.

My biggest drops in quality season to season were when I either had multiple retirements hit to key players or last season when I saw them coming and basically cleaned out everyone 30 and older on the squad knowing what that would mean.

[larrymcg421]

Right before the transfer window closes, I buy a backup forward, which clears the way for another player to be added to the list. And it's the midfielder I've been looking for. His name is Nesbitt..

https://snag.gy/iIZeMp.jpg

I've definitely played around on the transfer market more than before, but I still have cash in the bank and everyone, except my pending retirees, locked up for 13+ months.

[larrymcg421]

Aug 12

Prestige Cup - Qualifying Round: Calgary Foothills FC at Des Moines Menace

Calgary sucks so bad that even with a 2-0 aggregate deficit, they play a strict defensive game, even holding the ball up when they had a shot on goal. They do manage to stifle us to a scoreless first half, but Atkins breaks through with two second half goals.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Calgary 0
Goals: Atkins 2
Top Three: Atkins, Canales, Jennings

Atkins improves to lvl 28.
Seymour improves to lvl 26.
Heath improves to lvl 17.
Dyson improves to lvl 17.
Lawler improves to lvl 15.
Jennings improves to lvl 11.

Jennings learns the Amateufer Midfielder role.
Atkins gets 30% extra experience from matches.

[larrymcg421]

Hell of a season you're having. You guys are murder going forward. Definitely no lead is safe against you. Just have to get a better keeper and a decent midfielder in order to help ease the transition from Redd and Barajas.

My biggest drops in quality season to season were when I either had multiple retirements hit to key players or last season when I saw them coming and basically cleaned out everyone 30 and older on the squad knowing what that would mean.

Yeah I learned the hard lesson that you can't extend contracts or sell players once they hit 34.

[larrymcg421]

October 10

Prestige Cup - Round of 32: Richmond Kickers at Des Moines Menace

Richmond is a 2nd league club, so this should be painful. Lance is back from his injury. I switch to a 5-4-1 to try and keep this a low scoring affair. Kinda turned out differently than expected. They take the lead on an early free kick, but Atkins somehow beats their superb defense (lucky dice roll) to equalize. They take the lead again when they manage to flank our defense, but Atkins somehow pulls another goal out on the next possession. Our defense holds tight and we actually get a chance to win, but Atkins can't connect a third time.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Richmond 2
Goals: Atkins 2
Top Three: Akins, Nesbitt, Heath

Granger improves to lvl 16.
Nesbitt improves to lvl 16.

[larrymcg421]

October 31

Prestige Cup - Round of 32: Des Moines Menace at Richmond Kickers

I try something different here and put Mccurdy in at Forward because he knows the skill Rainbow Feint, which could be useful getting through a tough defense. They get on the board early with a great strike from the corner. We have trouble getting Mccurdy in position, but he finally breaks through late in the 2nd half. Our defense is able to hold on for a draw!

Richmond still advances based on more away goals, but a superb effort from my guys.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Richmond 1
Goals: Mccurdy
Top Three: Redd, Mccurdy, Heath

Levesque - lvl 25
Heath - lvl 18
Lawler - lvl 16

Granger has fully learned the GK position.

[larrymcg421]

After winter break, the transfer window opens up again and we make the following moves.

*Lawler is 32 yrs old, so I sell him for $41,790.

*I buy Venegas, a lvl 16 Amateur defender, who will learn Lawler's RD spot. Only cost $2,280.

*I buy O'malley, a lvl 9 defender for $980. Just for depth.

*My youth pull is Higginbotham, a lvl 6 player without much skill, but he's only 16.

*I use the profits to extend contracts. I'm left with $25,072.

[larrymcg421]

Here's my squad as we start the 2nd half of the season...

https://snag.gy/5byIDQ.jpg

And some more explanation of the positions...

GK - Keeper. Gets 50% bonus to defense and control when in goal.

SW - Sweeper. Automatically moves in between player with the ball and the goal.

CD - Central Defender. Automatically tries to tackle someone who comes into and adjacent tile.

DF - Universal defender. Tries to intercept shots or passes that come within an adjacent tile.

LD/RD - Fullbacks. Decreases the ability for an opponent to use a special skill. Can move 3 tiles.

LM/RM - Wingers. Can move 4 tiles with the ball and spends no action points on pressing.

MF - Universal Midfielder - Can play anywhere and move 2 tiles with or without the ball.

CF - Central Forward - Automatically moves into any gap near the opponents goal at the beginning of a turn.

D, M, or F - Amateur positions. With more experience, they can learn one of the above positions.

? - Need to learn an amateur position first.

You get experience based on where you play, so if you want someone to become a fullback, you have to play them on the flanks so they get experience there.

[larrymcg421]

I haven't mentioned much of the special skills, but here's an explanation of the ones we have right now.

Heath - Long pass. This allows him to send a pass up to 5 tiles away.

Canales - Slide tackle. The bonus to this instead of a normal tackle is if performed successfully, you gain an extra turn.

Atkins - Cannon shot. A powerful shot at the goal. Can only be done if no defenders in the way. Useful against great keepers.

Seymour - Head Play. Useful for crosses. Haven't really learned how to utilize this yet.

Barajas - Layoff pass. You can pass it ahead of player, who will then move in and get the ball, all in one turn.

Mccurdy - Rainbow Feint. Also useful against great keepers. Allows you to get by a defender or the keeper.

[larrymcg421]

February 3

Amateur League: Grand Rapids FC (1-0-6,7th) at Des Moines Menace (5-2-0, 2nd)

I sit Barajas and Redd. I don't need them to win, so I'd rather Jennings and Nesbitt get the experience. Seymour misses an easy shot to open the game, but Atkins gets on board late in the 1st half. Our defense is so strong that my keeper never gets tested. They play a lot of keep away and we can't get any other scoring opportunities.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Grand Rapids 0
Goal: Atkins
Top Three: Nesbitt, Atkins, Levesque

[larrymcg421]

Feb 10

Amateur League: Chattanooga FC (4-3-1, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (6-2-0, 2nd)

What a frustrating match. They have a forward with a devastating skill that allows him to get a one on one with my keeper, who loses the battle. Seymour and Atkins both miss easy shots and Chattanooga plays keep away in the 2nd half.

Final Score: Chattanooga 1, Des Moines 0

Goals: None
Top Three: Levesque, Lance, Heath

Levesque now gets 30% bonus XP.

[larrymcg421]

February 17

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (6-2-1, 2nd) at Albion SC Pros (4-2-3, 4th)

Our offense just isn't clicking anymore. Several bad passes from the midfield prevent Atkins from getting any attempts. They score first off a corner kick. We finally break through on a great strike from Atkins to finish the 1st half. The 2nd half is more of the same, except they very nearly win. With very little time left, they win a corner and get it to a player right in front of the goal, but Granger for once makes a great save.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Albion 1
Goal: Atkins
Top Three: Granger, Heath, Atkins

[larrymcg421]

February 24

Amateur League: Fresno Fuego (3-1-6, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (6-3-1, 2nd)

Our offense is still not as powerful as it was earlier in the season, but our defense is still dominant. Atkins bags two goals and Venegas does a great job shutting down the opponent's forwards.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Fresno 0
Goals: Atkins 2
Top Three: Venegas, Atkins, Heath

Dyson - lvl 18

[larrymcg421]

March 3

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (7-3-1, 2nd) at Calgary Foothills FC (1-0-10, 8th)

Atkins scores on the first possession of the game, but that's all we can manage. He misses his next shot and I replace him at halftime so he can rest for the big K-W United match next week. Not much worry, though. Calgary has no ability to score goals, much less any interest in trying. They play defensively in the 2nd half and we win a snoozer.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Calgary 0
Goal: Atkins
Top Three: Levesque, Atkins, Nesbitt

[larrymcg421]

March 10

Amateur League: K-W United FC (10-2-0) at Des Moines Menace (8-3-1, 2nd)

We take the early lead on a great strike from Atkins. K-W equalizes late in the 1st half by beating Heath and Granger too easily. Nesbitt picks up a red card when I have him do an aggressive tackle in an attept to win possession at midfield and have a chance to score. K-W takes advantage of his absence and immediately scores. Atkins gets a shot to tie the game, but his last shot is no good.

K-W United 2, Des Moines Menace 1
Goal: Atkins
Top Three: Atkins, Heath, Nesbitt (Not sure how it picked those second two)

Seymour and Canales both have a 30% experience increase.

[GoldenCrest Games]

You got me! This game is going on my buy list.

:)

[larrymcg421]

March 17

Amateur League: Des Moines Menace (8-3-2, 3rd) at Clarkstown SC Eagles (6-2-5, 5th)

Atkins and especially Seymour really just hit a wall int he 2nd half of the season and had trouble connecting when it was most needed. Here we have a very dull 0-0 draw where both of them missed shots that could've won it.

Final Score: Des Moines 0, Clarkstown 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Granger, Heath, Venegas

We finish 3rd and manage to promote. It got a little dicey for a minute there. If Albion had won their last match, we would've failed to promote.

[larrymcg421]

Final Standings of the Amateur League...

https://snag.gy/vNmocu.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace Stats

Goals

Atkins - 21
Seymour - 7
Mccurdy - 1

Assists

Barajas - 9
Nesbitt - 8
Redd - 3
Jennings - 2
Heath - 2
Seymour - 1

Tackles

Heath - 25
Levesque - 17
Canales - 14
Venegas - 9
Atkins - 5
Mcgill - 5
Jennings - 3
Seymour - 2
Lance - 2
Dyson - 2
Nesbitt - 2
Mcmahon - 1

Man of Match (3-2-1)

Atkins - 31
Heath - 19
Redd - 9
Seymour - 7
Nesbitt - 7
Levesque - 7
Granger - 6
Barajas - 4
Venegas - 4
Huggins - 3
McCurdy - 3
Jennings - 3
Canales - 2
Lance - 2
McGill - 1

[larrymcg421]

By appearing in season leaderboards, my players have earned extra glory for me to spend on upgrades...

https://snag.gy/aNOE1g.jpg

[larrymcg421]

At the beginning of each season you can pick a sponsor that gives you cash based on different parameters. I go with the Captain Willy sponsorship as the other two seem very unlikely.

https://snag.gy/WxjPZO.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Offseason Moves

*I have $26,924 and 70 glory (shields).

*I spend my extra glory (shields) on upgrading my defender coach two more levels. This means my defenders will get 70% extra experience after each match, in addition to the 30% bonus some of them already have. It made sense to max this out instead of spreading it around, because I'm running 5 defenders.

*I renew Venegas for 2 years, $847

*I renew backup Forward Mckenna for 1 yr, $138

*Atkins wants $9719 to renew for another year. He has 8 months left and is 32. I may have to sell him, but I have no one to replace him yet, so will wait to decide.

*It is time to sell another defender. Canales is very good (49 defense) and has a very useful Slide Tackle skill. But he's 30 yrs old and is valued at $96,900.

*To replace him, I buy Edmonds, a 28 yr old Amateur defender with a 37 Def rating for $2,140.

*Our youth pull is a worthless lvl 3 player.

*I extend Lance for 2 yrs, $16,648. No choice here with limited options in the midfield. He will soon learn the slide tackle skill, which will be huge.

*I extend Jennings for 1 yr, $249.

*Mcgill and Barajas will retire in 2 months.

*I extend my 17 yr old, Higginbotham, for 2 yrs, $142.

*I spend $70,000 to upgrade my youth academy. This means that all youth pulls will now be from lvl 5-15.

*I spend $15,000 to upgrade my stadium to 500 seats. I now have 140 supporters, so the 100 seat stadium wasn't enough.

*This leaves me with $20,602 left. That's enough to renew Atkins for another year if I decide to do it later.

*Seymour is also due for a renewal in 8 months. I will more likely sell him, but again need to find a replacement first.

[larrymcg421]

My starting lineup and top substitutes as we begin the new season. Nesbitt will be a starter once he finishes his suspension.

https://snag.gy/tVwCBd.jpg

[larrymcg421]

July 21

Third League: Chattanooga FC (0-0-0) at Des Moines Menace (0-0-0)

This one seems hopeless for a bit. They play 6 defenders and have a terrific keeper. Atkins first two chances are low% shots that are easily thwarted. Chattanooga uses a special skill to maneuver around our defense. Granger is able to make one amazing save, but the other gets by him. They commit a foul late in the game and on the ensuin free kick, Lance gets the ball to Atkins in great position and he scores a goal on the last turn of the game.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Chattanooga 1
Goal: Atkins
Top Three: Lance, Atkins, Jennings

Edmonds - level 19.
Venegas - level 17.

[larrymcg421]

I finally find a decent Forward on the transfer list.

*Forsythe is a lvl 21 with 30 Acc and 23 Ctr. More importantly, he's only 26 and costs $12,435.

*This means it is time to say goodbye to Atkins. I can sell him for $78,600. This may increase our struggles, but it's time to look to the future.

[larrymcg421]

Aug 4

Third League: FC Tucson (1-0-1, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (0-1-1, 9th)

Heath and Granger have a great game stopping several FC Tucson attacks. We get a couple great looks at the goal, but can't convert until late, when a Barajas pass puts Seymour in erfect position and he converts. Sadly they immediately score on the next set of turns to steal a draw.

Final Score: FC Tucson 1, Des Moines 1
Goal: Seymour
Top Three: Heath, Levesque, Granger

[larrymcg421]

Aug 4

Third League: Des Moines Menace (0-2-1, 9th) at Bethlehem Steel (0-2-1, 10th)

I had to sit Heath due to fatigue. This really hurt as we don't have a sweeper to get in the line of fire. They convert a one on one opportunity midway through the first half. We only manage one shot on goal because Seymour got stripped several times.

Final Score: Bethlehem 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Edmonds, Granger

Mcgill - lvl 11.

We had several positional upgrades.

Granger - Every level he gains will now increase his defense by 2.
Nesbitt - Has now learned the Central Midfielder position.
Lance - 30% increased XP.
Baraja - Increased popularity. This should help stave off supporter loss a little bit.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: FC Montreal (1-0-3, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (0-2-2, 10th)

Levesque was so dominant in this one that I may consider selling Heath. As a universal defender, he automatically tries to intercept shots that go within one tile of him, which makes him formidable in the middle of the line. We still can't get much of an attack going, but neither can Montreal.

Final Score: FC Montreal 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Levesque, Barajas, Mcgill

Barajas - lvl 27.
Levesque - lvl 26.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (0-3-2, 11th) at Real Monarchs (2-0-3, 5th)

Real Monarchs score two quick goals and it looks ridiculously hopeless. They almost get a 3rd, but Granger akes a ridiculous save. We finally get on the board early in the 2nd half when Seymour gets behind the defense and converts a difficult shot. This gives us some momentum and we get two more chances, but we can't find the equalizer.

Final Score: Real Monarchs 2, Des Moines 1
Goal: Seymour
Top Three: Heath, Nesbitt, Seymour

Lance - lvl 28.
Granger - lvl 19.
Dyson - lvl 19.

*Barajas and Mcgill retire.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Wilmington (2-0-4, 8th) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-3, 12th)

The pain for selling Atkins is very apparent now. Neither Seymour nor Forsythe are good enough to take good shots against Third League defenders and keepers. Wilmington scores off a corner and holds on for a victory as we miss shot after shot.

Final Score: Wilmington 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Lance, Levesque

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (0-3-4, 12th) at AFC Cleveland (4-1-2, 3rd)

AFC Cleveland is the team that bought Atkins. Sure enough, he bags an early goal. Our defense holds well after that, but Seymour misses two shots where he had good chances and our losing streak continues.

Final Score: AFC Cleveland 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Heath, Venegas, Jennings

Venegas - lvl 20.
Jennings - lvl 12.
Dyson - lvl 21.

Venegas has learned the RD position and Dyson has learned the LD position.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Pittsburgh Riverhounds (4-1-3, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-5, 12th)

I thought we were gonna be able to hold on to a draw here as we managed to hold them to a scoreless first half. Then early in the 2nd half, they utilize the Layoff Pass skill to get it right in front of our keeper. They easily convert. On the next possession, we almost equalize, but Seymour misses again. Then Pittsburgh hits a ridiculous goal from outside the box that went through 2 defenders and the keeper.

Final Score: Pittsburgh 2, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Levesque, Venegas

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (0-3-6, 12th) at Phoenix Rising FC (3-1-5, 8th)

Bleh. Well, at least we figured out how to score on a cross. Unfortunately, Phoenix does this twice and we have no hope of a counterattack. I'm not surprised that we will likely be relegated, but I'mmore worried about our supporter exodus.

Final Score: Pittsburgh 3, Des Moines 1
Goal: Seymour
Top Three: Nesbitt, Seymour, Lance

Edmonds - lvl 20.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: St Louis FC (8-1-1, 1st) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-7, 12th)

We hold them scoreless for the first half and actually manage to control the action. The 2nd half is a different story. They get behind our defense twice and Granger can't stop the shots. Several chances for Forsythe, but he still can't find his first goal.

Final Score: St. Louis 2, Des Moines 0
Goal: Seymour
Top Three: Nesbitt, Levesque, Seymour

Seymour - lvl 27.
Heath - lvl 20.

Levesque now gets 70% extra XP. This is in addition to the 70% he already gets from the coaching bonus.

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32: Ottawa Fury at Des Moines Menace

Just what we need: a 2nd league team. Again, one goal is enough against us as our attack is pathetic and we have no ability to win the ball back at midfield.


Final Score: St. Louis 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: Seymour
Top Three: Nesbitt, Seymour, Granger

Prestige Cup - Round of 32: Des Moines Menace at Ottawa Fury

We actually take the lead in this one when a Seymour cross is headed in by Forsythe for his first goal. However, they immediately, come back to tie it up. We get another cross attempt, but Forsythe can't get to it. We're able to hold a great team to a draw, but it's not enough to help us advance as we lose the aggregate 2-1.

Final Score: St. Louis 1, Des Moines 1
Goal: Forsythe
Top Three: Forsythe, Nesbitt, Heath

Levesque - lvl 27.
Forsythe - lvl 22.
Nesbitt - lvl 19.
Jennings - lvl 13.

Seymour gets a new specialization level and I make him a popular player to stop the supporter bleeding. We're down to 61 from a high of 143 at the beginning of the season.

[larrymcg421]

Here's the standings at the halfway point.

https://snag.gy/zqWURw.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Winter break activities

*I renew Edmonds for 3 yrs, $5,769. This is a bargain as he will cost much more very soon.

*I sell Heath for $99,900. Yep, it's rebuilding time.

*Seymour has 28 days left on his contract. I will sell him towards the end of that, just so he can help keep my supporters happy until then. (Unless I upgrade someone else like that.

*My youth pull is the best one yet - a lvl 9 player named Guy who is 17 yrs old and already has a 20 in Defense. I will make sure he gets playing time.

*I extend Forsythe for 3 yrs, $5,769.

*I buy Hensley for $48,600. He's a midfielder with 36 in passing and 31 in control. He also has the Slide tackle skill and is only 26 yrs old. This is the guy I've been looking for all along.

*I buy Huffman for $6,870. He's a lvl 21 defender with 35 in defense and 29 in control.

*I buy Yoder for $5,580. He's a 27 yr old universal forward with 32 accuracy. Will fit right in once Seymour leaves and should be good enough for our inevitable return to the amateur league.

*After all of this, I'm left with $9,219, but will have more once I sell Seymour.

*I upgrade the Youth Academy for $110,000. This means every youth pull will be lvl 10-20.

[larrymcg421]

My starting lineup and top reserves as we enter the 2nd half of the season...

https://snag.gy/Z4TzqU.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Chattanooga FC (2-6-3, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-8, 12th)

We definitely play like a better team in the midfield. We're able to maintain possession and stop counterattacks. But we still can't penetrate opposing defenses. We had a chance to win it on the last turn of the game, but Forsythe misses his shot.

Final Score: Des Moines 0, Chattanooga 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Granger, Nesbitt, Hensley

[thehitcat]

Oh have I had this season. Twice at this point :) And it sucks while it's happening. Take your lumps. Start playing the younger guys you want to get more experience especially if you haven't built up your bench coach so everyone does. Make all three subs etc. You'll be thrilled next year when you can sell some of your older players because the young ones are good enough to win in Amateur level and are still growing (on cheap contracts and will be good enough for Lvl 3 the year after.

[larrymcg421]

Oh have I had this season. Twice at this point :) And it sucks while it's happening. Take your lumps. Start playing the younger guys you want to get more experience especially if you haven't built up your bench coach so everyone does. Make all three subs etc. You'll be thrilled next year when you can sell some of your older players because the young ones are good enough to win in Amateur level and are still growing (on cheap contracts and will be good enough for Lvl 3 the year after.

Yeah, that's what I'm planning now. What sucks is that you lose a ton of experience in the Amateur league (14 games instead of 22).

[larrymcg421]

Third League: K-W United FC (4-1-7, 11th) at Des Moines Menace (0-4-8, 12th)

I try crosses on my first two possessions, but neither are successful. K-W scores on a ridiculous shot right before the half for more frustration. Thankfully, Seymour finally breaks through late in the 2nd half with a great shot that gets by 2 defenders and the keeper.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, K-W United 1
Goals: Seymour
Top Three: Nesbitt, Seymour, Huffman

Hensley - lvl 24
Huffman - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (0-5-8, 12th) at FC Tucson (3-4-6, 11th)

Our improved midfield continues to make its presence known. We control possession for 62%. Granger does have to make one great stop in a one on one position. But Seymour breaks through from the flanks with a goal before halftime. He does the same right after the 2nd half kickoff. I can't remember the last time we had 2 goals. Levesque dominates at defense and prevents any more shots from getting through and we hold on for our first Third League victory!

Final Score: Des Moines 2, FC Tucson 0
Goals: Seymour 2
Top Three: Seymour, Nesbitt, Hensley

Dyson - lvl 22
Guy - lvl 10

Nesbitt gets a specialization upgrade and I make him popular to help with Supporters and also to get to the sale bonus tree.

That will be Seymour's last game with the team. I sell him for $80,600 and Yoder takes his place.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (1-5-8, 12th) at Bethlehem Steel (4-2-8), 11th)

Our new signee Yoder finds the net just after halftime to give us a 1-0 lead. Our defense is pretty solid, even without Venegas, and Granger only has to make one save. Two game winning streak and we're now only 3 pts away from avoiding relegation.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, FC Tucson 0
Goals: Yoder
Top Three: Yoder, Nesbitt, Guy

Granger - lvl 20
Nesbitt - lvl 20
Jennings - lvl 15 and has learned the Central Midfield role.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Des Moines Menace (2-5-8, 12th) at FC Montreal (9-2-4, 2nd)

As expected, they handle us pretty easily. They score two first half goals and we miss a great chance to pull one back when Lance sends the worst cross possible (rolled a 1 out of 53). The AI wisely attacks our young youth pull Guy.

Final Score: Montreal 2, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Dyson, Lance

Guy - lvl 11.

[larrymcg421]

Third League: Real Monarchs (7-3-6, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (2-5-9, 12th)

We actually take the midway through the 1st half as Forsythe gets great position on a corner and heads it in. They manage to equalize just after the half, but we do a good job of putting pressure on them. Yoder has a chance to win it on the last turn of the game, but the keeper easily stops the shot. I don't know if we can avoid relegation, but we're definitely a better team.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Real Monarchs 1
Goals: Forsythe
Top Three: Hensley, Forsythe, Edmonds

Edmonds - lvl 23

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-6-9, 12th) at Wilmington (4-3-10, 10th)

Wilmington takes an early lead on a great strike that Granger had no hope of stopping. However, I've finally mastered the crossing/heading mechanics and Kelley equalizes on a header midway through the 2nd half. Late in the game, Huffman stops a counterattack and Nesbitt is able to send a long pass to Forsythe behind the defense. The keeper stops his shot, but we win the corner. Lance sends an amazing corner, which Forsythe heads in for the winner! Huffman strips their forward before he can take the final shot.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Wilmington 1
Goals: Kelley, Forsythe
Top Three: Forsythe, Nesbitt, Kelley

Levesque - lvl 28
Forsythe - lvl 23
Kelley - lvl 15
Guy - lvl 12

[larrymcg421]

With 4 matches to play, we are only 1 pt away from avoiding relegation. Can we pull off the impossible? It will be difficult, as our matches are against #1, #2, #5, and#7.

https://snag.gy/ASdtrc.jpg

[larrymcg421]

AFC Cleveland (8-2-8, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (3-6-9, 11th)

A wet field makes passing very inaccurate for both teams. We are able to completely shut down our old foe Atkins, but I have trouble getting it out of our own defensive end to generate any decent attack.

Final Score: Des Moines 0, AFC Cleveland 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Hensley, Huffman, Dyson

Hensley - lvl 26 and has now learned the universal midfielder role.
Huffman - lvl 23
Venegas - lvl 21

Relegation battle:

We move up to 10th, but Wilmington's victory puts us now 2 pts out of relegation instead of 1.

FC Tucson - 20
Wilmington - 18
--------------
Des Moines - 18
K-W United - 16
Bethlehem Steel - 15

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-7-9, 10th) at Pittsburgh Riverhounds (12-2-5, 2nd)

Our defensive line continues to play incredibly well, shutting down a strong Pittsburgh team in the 1st half. 17 yr old Fox actually intercepts two shots on goal. We manage to take the lead early in the 2nd when Forsythe gets around the defense and beats the keeper! I make a tactical blunder by ignoring my defensive line structure and they're able to score on a counterattack. We stop their final attack and are able to launch one of our own, when Hensley gets the ball to Forsythe in great position and his superb strike wins it on the last turn of the game! What an upset!

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Pittsburgh 1
Goals: Forsythe 2
Top Three: Forsythe, Nesbitt, Guy

Lance - lvl 29
Huffman - lvl 25 and learns the Central Defender role.
Dyson - lvl 23

Guy learns the amateur defender role.
Lance now gets 70% bonus XP.


Relegation battle:

K-W United won and Wilmington drew, so there is a 3 way battle for the final non-relegation spot. We're losing the tiebreak on both Goal diff and total goals.

FC Tucson - 21
Wilmington - 19
--------------
K-W United - 19
Des Moines - 19
Bethlehem Steel - 15

[larrymcg421]

Phoenix Rising (10-2-8, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (4-7-9, 10th)

Well, all good things must come to an end. Our defense gets embarassed in this one and we can't manage a single shot on goal. Their FW McCullough scores one in the 1st half and then picks up two more for the hat trick. What's worse is that Hensley (who has been so valuable during our run) picked up a red card and will be out for the last game.

Final Score: Phoenix 3, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Hensley, Levesque

Guy - lvl 13

Relegation battle:

K-W United and Wilmington both managed victories. Our avoiding relegation chances are pretty much shot due to the tiebreakers and the fact that we play St. Louis next.

FC Tucson - 24
Wilmington - 22
--------------
K-W United - 22
Des Moines - 19
Bethlehem Steel - 15

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (4-7-10, 10th) at Saint Louis FC (14-4-3, 1st)

A cruel way to finish the season. St. Louis is just too good for us. They score two easy first half goals. I don't shut us down and for our part, we put heavy pressure on in the 2nd half. Most of the half is played on their side of the pitch, but we can't break through for any goals. It was a nice run in the 2nd half of the season, but we'll have to dominate the Amateur league and come back here.

Final Score: St. Louis 2, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Lance, Jennings, Forsythe

[larrymcg421]

Final Third League Standings...

https://snag.gy/vJcfoS.jpg

Stat leaderboards...

*Granger finished 2nd in saves with 19.
*Lance finished 9th in assists with 5.

[larrymcg421]

Offseason

*For my sponsor, I pick Electrohouse, who will give me $33 for every goal and $116 for every home victory.

*I upgrade my defender coach once again. They now get 100% extra XP.

*My new youth pull is my best one yet. Presley is an Amateur keeper who already has a 34 in Defense and 22 in Control! Both of these are already higher than Granger. Once he learns the full Goalkeeper role, he'll be way better.

*Because of that, it's time to sell Granger. I get $115,000 for him.

*I renew last year's youth pull Guy for 3 yrs, $1,159.

*I extend Huffman for 2 yrs, $5,538.

*I love Levesque, but there are some good options on the transfer market and he's 31 yrs old. I sell him for $122,000. (Originally bought him for $12,500).

*I replace Levesque with Beverly, a lvl 22 Central Defender who has 40 in defense and 26 in control. He costs $11,300.

*I renew Hensley for 3 yrs, $18,557. He's worth it.

*I also decide to sell Lance for $139,000. It hurts to lose him, but this will allow me to do one more youth academy upgrade.

*I upgrade the youth academy for $360,000. This means I will now get a youth pull from lvl 15-25.

*Jennings and Kelley will need renewals in 8 months. I put off that decision until winter break.

*I'm left with $31,730.

[larrymcg421]

My squad as we enter season 3...

https://snag.gy/BD8EWK.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-0-0) at Fresno Fuego (0-0-0)

We actually find a way to lose this one! Our forwards are just awful and can't get a good shot off. Without Hensley, we get dominated in midfield. They get behind our defense late in the 2nd half and score the winner on the last turn. Ooof.

Final: Fresno 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, Edmonds, Jennings

[larrymcg421]

K-W United (1-0-0, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (0-0-1, 5th)

After a scoreless first half, K-W is able to beat our inexperienced keeper twice. The good thing is we're able to pull one back each time on terrific strikes from Yoder on the corner. This wasn't how I expected our return to the Amateur league to go, but it's the sacrifice for upgrading that youth academy.

Final: Des Moines 2, K-W 2
Goals: Yoder 2
Top Three: Yoder, Jennings, Huffman

Yoder - lvl 16.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-1-1, 6th) at Bethlehem Steel (2-0-0, 1st)

They score on the first turn of the game, with another easy shot against our inexperienced keeper. Luckily, we're able to pull one back at halftime when Kelley heads in a corner from Hensley. We get several 2nd half shots to win it, but can't put any away.

Final: Des Moines 1, Bethlehem 1
Goals: Kelley 1
Top Three: Kelley, Hensley, Huffman

Nesbitt - lvl 21

[larrymcg421]

Grand Rapids FC (3-0-0, 1st) at Des Moines Menace (0-2-1, 6th)

Not sure how they've won three matches, but they're terrible. Forsythe scores on a header from a Hensley cross, then Yoder converts a penalty to give us a 2-0 halftime lead. Their attack is pathetic and a terrible pass late in the game lets Kelley get a one on one with their keeper, which he converts.

Final: Des Moines 3, Grand Rapids 0
Goals: Forsythe, Yoder, Kelley
Top Three: Edmonds, Jennings, Kelley

Edmonds - lvl 24
Kelley - lvl 16
Guy - lvl 14

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-2-1, 6th) at Calgary Foothills FC (0-0-4, 8th)

Now this is an embarassing result. Calgary is by far the worst tea in the league and we just can't crack through their defense. This was a pretty boring match where we dominated possession, but got no good shots on goal. I really need to find a Forward somewhere.

Final: Des Moines 0, Calgary 0
Goals:
Top Three: Edmonds, Nesbitt, Hensley

[larrymcg421]

Michigan Bucks (1-0-4, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (1-3-1, 6th)

Yoder breaks through with two first half goals. We don't have much luck after that, but Michigan never threatens as our midfield dominates the game.

Final: Des Moines 2, Michigan 0
Goals: Yoder 2
Top Three: Yoder, Jennings, Hensley

[MacroGuru]

So I dropped $20 on this game...so far 12 hours played and I am hooked big time.

Thank you for running this Dynasty as it convinced me.

[larrymcg421]

Sonoma County Sol (3-0-3, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (2-3-1, 4th)

Our offense fails again, missing badly on all three shots on the goal. Our new keeper is not doing so well as he gets beaten by a weak shot. He'll be much better once he learns the full GK role (50% bonus to defense), but it's painful to watch now.

Final: Sonoma 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Yoder, Jennings, Hensley

[larrymcg421]

Transfer deadline moves...

*I sell Kelley for $70,500. He's not worth that at all, as he's only good with headers.

*I sell Dyson for $63,200. He's 32 yrs old and I can bring in Still to replace him.

*I extend Jennings for 1 yr, $394.

*I extend Yoder for 1 yr, $368.

*This leaves me with $168,931 in the bank. I sit on this until the next transfer window opens, hoping to finda Forward in the transfer market or via youth pull.

[larrymcg421]

So I dropped $20 on this game...so far 12 hours played and I am hooked big time.

Thank you for running this Dynasty as it convinced me.

Awesome! Glad you like it.

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup: Round of 32 - Leg 1

Des Moines at Chattanooga FC

We manage to control possession in this one, but neither Forsythe nor Yoder can convert the 4 shots on goal they get. Thankfully, Pressley has the best game of his young career and makes two crucial saves to salvage a draw on the road.

Final: Des Moines 0, Chattanooga 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Pressley, Jennings, Huffman

Bevery - lvl 23
Pressley - lvl 19 and now has learned the full GK role.
Jennings - lvl 16
Guy - lvl 15

Prestige Cup: Round of 32 - Leg 2

Our goal here was to hold them scoreless. A 0-0 draw goes to penalties, while a 1-1 or higher draw means they advance on away goals. We did a pretty good job for most of the first half, but they break through right before halftime. We missed several good chances on corners and failed to seriously threaten down the stretch.

Final: Chattanooga 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Still, Hensley, Forsythe

Still - lvl 17

[larrymcg421]

Winter Break activities...

*Not excited about the new youth pull. Arias is an 18 yr old, level 17 Amateur Midfielder. He has 24 in passing and a useless 25 in accuracy, but he does have the Intercept skill.

*I sell Jennings for $77,400.

*I buy McCullough, a lvl 31 forward who owned us with a hat trick last season, for $99,721. This should help solve our scoring issues.

*I extend Pressley for 3 yrs, $2,656.

*I extend Still for 3 yrs, $1,529.

*I extend Beverly for 3 yrs, $6,806.

*I buy a couple other players for depth purposes - Forward Galloway (38 Acc) and Midfielder Rowan (32 pass, 17 control)

*I am left with $124,641.

[larrymcg421]

Midseason standings...

https://snag.gy/zcDx0n.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Our starting lineup as we enter the 2nd half of the season...

https://snag.gy/8A40Su.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Fresno Fuego (2-0-5, 6th) at Des Moines Menace (2-3-2, 5th)

Our former defender Levesque is now with Fresno and he gives us fits all game, keeping McCullough in check. Meanwhile, a dumb foul in the box gives the a penalty and they convert. McCullough is frustrated several times, but finally breaks through with a goal midway through the 2nd half. We get one more solid attack, but McCullough's shot is stopped by Levesque.

Final: Des Moines 1, Fresno 1
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Nesbitt, McCullough, Forsythe

Huffman - lvl 26
Forsythe - lvl 24

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-4-2, 5th) at K-W United FC (7-1-0, 1st)

The type of game that makes you scream. McCullough gets denied on 4 solid chances, while K-W converts their one and only shot attempt. We should not be doing this bad in the Amateur league.

Final: K-W United 1, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Nesbitt, Rowan, Huffman

[larrymcg421]

Bethlehem Steel (6-1-2) at Des Moines Menace (2-4-3, 5th)

We have to rest McCullough because he's too tired from missing so many shots last week. Forsythe and Yoder have no chance to make anything happen, yet Bethlehem gets a ridiculous goal from the corner of the field right before the half.

Final: Bethlehem 1, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Nesbitt, Edmonds, Pressley

Edmonds - lvl 25
Yoder - lvl 17

[thehitcat]

Bethlehem Steel (6-1-2) at Des Moines Menace (2-4-3, 5th)

We have to rest McCullough because he's too tired from missing so many shots last week. Forsythe and Yoder have no chance to make anything happen, yet Bethlehem gets a ridiculous goal from the corner of the field right before the half.

Final: Bethlehem 1, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Nesbitt, Edmonds, Pressley

Edmonds - lvl 25
Yoder - lvl 17

Ahh the Olympic Kick! Normally they are the last kick of the game, just as you've finally salted away that tie against a more potent foe or an unlikely win with your reserves in due to fatigue and then some rando from the opposing team steps up to take the corner and BOOM straight into the net! That particular move has caused more :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: and :mad: :mad: :mad: than any other in this game.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-4-4, 5th) at Grand Rapids FC (4-0-6, 4th)

Even in the matches we win, I feel like we're underperforming. McCullough misses an easy shot again, but finally breaks through with a goal before the half. And that's all we need as Grand Rapids' attack doesn't sniff my keeper.

Final: Des Moines 1, Grand Rapids 0
Goals:
Top Three: McCullough, Galloway, Hensley

*We have moved up to 4th, but Sonoma has an 8 pt lead for the last promotion slot with only 3 matches left. 1 win or 2 draws clinches it for them and we need to win all three.

[larrymcg421]

Calgary Foothills (2-1-8, 8th) at Des Moines Menace (3-4-4, 5th)

Calgary has 4 former Des Moines players on their team (Huggins, Dyson, Jennings, Kelley). McCullough gets a goal just two turns into the game. He misses hisnext two chances and is a bit winded, so I sit him so he can rest for next week. We are unable to break through in the 2nd half.

Final: Des Moines 1, Calgary 0
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Huffman, McCullough, Edmonds

Arias - lvl 18
Guy - lvl 18

*Sonoma won, so we will be stuck in the amateur league for another season.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (4-4-4, 4th) at Michigan Bucks (4-0-8, 6th)

We have several good chances, but McCullough can't break through until late int he 2nd half. Thankfully, that's enough to take the victory, because our defensive line is superb. McCullough is delivering, but needs someone else to help him out.

Final: Des Moines 1, Michigan 0
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Huffman, Nesbitt, McCullough

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (5-4-4, 4th) at Sonoma County Sol (8-0-5, 3rd)

And we close the season with a boring 0-0 draw. We only get 1 shot on goal the entire game, which is easily stopped. To make things worse, Hensley gets a red card in the 2nd half and will miss the first three matches next season.

Final: Des Moines 0, Sonoma 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Huffman, Nesbitt, McCullough

[larrymcg421]

Final Standings...

https://snag.gy/8kSPrX.jpg

[MizzouRah]

Excellent read! Reminds me of New Star Soccer.

St. Louis FC - oh yeah I'm in!

[larrymcg421]

Offseason moves...

*Worst luck yet on the youth pull. I've upgraded my academy to the point where I can get a lvl 15-25 and this time got a 15. His name is Coronado, an Amateur Defender with 22 Defense.

*I sell Forsythe for $115,000. Worth way more than his value to the team.

*I sign Galloway, an Amateur Forward, for $9,120. He has 40 accuracy and will rotate with Yoder.

*I renew Yoder for 3 yrs, $9,500. He's about to learn Rainbow Feint and will become very valuable.

*I sign Kaufman, an amateur Goalkeeper for $890. Just in case Pressley gets hurt.

*I renew Galloway for 3 yrs, $69,500. My most expensive renewal, but he's only 26 and we need him badly.

*I renew Still for 3 yrs, $9,800.

*Current contract situation is very good. Nesbitt has 13 months left, Huffman has 19 months left, and everyone else has 2 years are more. I also have several guys who will be very profitable to sell soon.

*I pay $25,000 to look at the Global transfer list, but don't see anyone there worth getting.

*We have $133,763 remaining.

[larrymcg421]

Excellent read! Reminds me of New Star Soccer.

St. Louis FC - oh yeah I'm in!

Thanks!

Yeah, they owned me. Hopefully, I can get back up and get some revenge.

[larrymcg421]

Here's my squad for the 2021-22 season...

https://snag.gy/pK9TNo.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-0-0) at FC Tucson (0-0-0)

A mistake in the box earns them a penalty, which they convert for a 1-0 lead. Thankfully, McCullough doesn't get lazy after his contract and quickly scores two goals to put us on top. He converts the hat trick early in the 2nd half. Then I make a tactical blunder, which allows them to pull one back, but we hold on for the victory.

Final Score: Des Moines 3, FC Tucson 2
Goals: McCullough 3
Top Three: McCullough, Nesbitt, Yoder

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-0-0, 2nd) at Clarkstown SC Eagles (1-0-0, 1st)

A defensive struggle for the first half as we have trouble getting McCullough any shots. He finally breaks through late in the 2nd half when their line breaks formation attempting a counterattack. Our defense holds for the victory.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Clarkstown 0
Goals: McCullough 1
Top Three: McCullough, Nesbitt, Huffman

[larrymcg421]

Albion SC Pros (1-1-0, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (2-0-0, 1st)

McCullough scores on the first set of turns in the game and does so again early in the first half. He's definitely earning his paycheck. I try to get him another hat trick, but he can't break through in the 2nd half. Still, our defense is dominant and only allows 2 shots on goal.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Albion 0
Goals: McCullough 2
Top Three: McCullough, Hensley, Huffman

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-0-0, 1st) at Michigan Bucks (0-2-1, 5th)

It's more of the McCullough show. He gives us another early lead when he wins great position on and scores easily. Michigan desperately tries to equalize, but our midfield maintains possession and prevents any strong offensive threat. McCullough adds another goal right at the end of the first half and we coast to victory.

Final Score: Des Moines 2, Albion 0
Goals: McCullough 2
Top Three: McCullough, Nesbitt, Hensley

[larrymcg421]

Fresno Fuego (1-0-3, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (4-0-0, 1st)

McCullough is a bit winded, so I rest him for this match, giving Yoder and Galloway the start. And so we immediately revert back to the team of the past two seasons. Neither of them can finish and Fresno plays it pretty safe, rarely trying to score. We can't break through and have to settle for a draw.

Final Score: Des Moines 0, Fresno 0
Goals: McCullough 2
Top Three: McCullough, Nesbitt, Hensley

[larrymcg421]

Calgary Foothills FC (1-3-1, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (4-1-0, 1st)


McCullough gets a total of three chances in this match. The first two are terrible shots. Then midway through the 2nd half, he hits a great shot, but their keeper makes an amazing save. Calgary actually manages 6 shots, but none of them bother Pressley.

Final Score: Des Moines 0, Calgary 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Pressley, Huffman, Nesbitt

[larrymcg421]

Grand Rapids FC (0-2-4, 8th) at Des Moines Menace (4-2-0, 2nd)

After a scoreless first half where Grand Rapids controls possession, McCullough breaks through at the beginning of the first half with a terrific strike. On the next possession, Yoder gets his first chance to use the Rainbow Feint skill, but fails. Grand Rapids gets a strong counterattack right at the end of the game and Pressley has to make a great diving stop to seal the victory.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Grand Rapids 0
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Hensley, Edmonds, Nesbitt

Pressley - lvl 20

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup: Round of 32 - Leg 1
Tampa Bay Rowdies (2nd League) at Des Moines Menace

We get a terrible draw against a 2nd league team. As expected, they go up early on a long range shot. However, the defense does a great job of stopping any other shots. Then midway through the 2nd half, Yoder successfully pulls off the Rainbow Feint and equalizes. Hensley picks up a late red card, but we hold on for the draw.

Final Score: Des Moines 1, Tampa Bay 1
Goals: Yoder
Top Three: Nesbitt, Yoder, Hensley

Hensley - lvl 27
Yoder - lvl 18

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup: Round of 32 - Leg 2
Des Moines Menace at Tampa Bay Rowdies

Tampa Bay breaks through with a power shot early in the first half. McCullough gets several chances, but their keeper and defensive line are just too strong. He does have opne bad miss late in the game when he was one on one with the keeper. Tampa Bay scored off a free kick late to put the game away.

Final Score: Tampa Bay 2, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Yoder, Nesbitt, Arias

Edmonds - lvl 27
Guy - lvl 20
Arias - lvl 19
Rowan - lvl 19 and is now a Universal Midfielder

[larrymcg421]

Midseason standings...

https://snag.gy/m6kJEP.jpg

[larrymcg421]

FC Tucson (4-1-2, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (5-2-0, 1st)

McCullough is on fire, scoring two within the first 23 minutes. FC Tucson manages to take one back right at halftime. So far, they are the only Amateur League team to score on us this season. McCullough completes his hat trick to open the 2nd half. I try to get Whittington some playing time and utilize the Nutmeg skill, but he's unable to add to the lead. Tucson gets another shot on goal, but Pressley stops it.

Final: Des Moines 3, FC Tucson 1
Goals: McCullough 3
Top Three: Edmonds, McCullough, Still

Huffman - lvl 28
Beverly - lvl 25
Still - lvl 21

[larrymcg421]

Clarkstown SC (5-1-2, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (6-2-0, 1st)

It's a snowy field and we have trouble getting the ball into scoring position. Both McCullough and Galloway miss the two shots we get. The same is true for Clarkstown, except they fire a desperation shot at the end of the half that goes in because of a terrible roll by my keeper (1!). That is enough for them to carry the day.

Final: Clarkstown 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Lance, Nesbitt, Still

Nesbitt - lvl 23

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (6-2-1,1st) at Albion SC Pros (2-3-4, 6th)

McCullough is really slumping lately. He takes three shots on goal this time and misses all of them. Luckily, our defense and keeper have no trouble shutting down Albion's attack. Still frustrating that our offense has disappeared in the 2nd half of the season.

Final: Des Moines 0, Albion 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Edmonds, Nesbitt, Beverly

[larrymcg421]

Michigan Bucks (3-2-5, 6th) at Des Moines Menace (6-2-1, 2nd)

McCullough gets on the board early with a solid strike. Whittington gets a chance for his first goal, but gets stripped right in front of the keeper. Our defense holds them to only 1 shot in the entire game and we coast to victory.

Final: Des Moines 1, Michigan 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Nesbitt, McCullough, Rowan

[larrymcg421]

On the last day of the transfer window, I sell Nesbitt for $132,000. That's a good price for him. He's been a valuable player, but at 32 years old it's time to get the best value for him and shore up my finances. This leaves me with $261, 245.

Rowan can fit in nicely into the lineup and if I ever need to rest one of my Midfielders, I can always play with an extra Forward.

[larrymcg421]

Fresno Fuego (3-3-5, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (7-3-1, 2nd)

McCullough gets on the board right away. Then I utilize Whittington's Nutmeg skill to win a corner. Hensley sends in a cross that McCullough heads home. Late in the first half, Whittington gets another chance and uses the skill to get right in front of the keeper. This time he beats him for his first ever goal. I put in Yoder and Galloway at the half, but they can't increase the lead, but Fresno can't do anything against Huffman, who owns their top Forward.

Final: Des Moines 3, Fresno 0
Goals: McCullough 2, Whittington 1
Top Three: Huffman, McCullough, Whittington

[larrymcg421]

Calgary Foothills FC (2-7-3, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (8-3-1, 1st)

McCullough scores in the first few minutes by dribbling by a defender and beating the keeper with a power shot. I try to get Whittington involved (for experience purposes), but he gets stripped twice after using his Nutmeg skill. Edmonds is pretty dominant on the defensive line, but Pressley does have to make a great save late in the game to preserve the victory.

Final: Des Moines 1, Calgary 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Edmonds, McCullough, Rowan

Edmonds - lvl 28

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (9-3-1, 1st) at Grand Rapids FC (3-3-7, 6th)

A very frustrating match. McCullough misses 4 shots throughout the match, all of them with pretty good chances. The one rebound he gets doesn't create a corner. Grand Rapids gets a fluke goal from distance when my keeper rolled a 1. We get a chance to salvage a draw when Yoder gets the ball in good position, but his shot is blocked.

Final: Grand Rapids 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Hensley, Rowan, Yoder

Guy - lvl 21
Arias - lvl 21 and has learned the Attacking Midfielder role. This role gets some good bonuses, including a 50% decrease to opponent chance to intercept his passes, 50% decrease in range penalty for shooting on goal, and a False Kick ability that can pull a defender out of his defensive position.

[larrymcg421]

We promote, but that last loss cost us the league title...

https://snag.gy/F3LrVS.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Offseason activities...

*I select Premiero as our sponsor. They will give me $420 for every match and $19,300 if I reach the semifinals of the cup.

*Our youth pull is a lvl 21 winger named Seals. He has 25 Acc, 25 Pass, but only 11 control. He does have the Nutmeg skill, which isn't quite as useful on the wing.

*I extend Whittington for 3 yrs, $1,529.

*I extend backup GK Kaufman for 1 yr, $368.

*I extend Huffman for 2 yrs, $22,584

*I sell Rowan for $40,900. He has the Rainbow Feint skill, which isn't very useful for a midfielder and his low control will be a hindrance in the Third League.

*I sign Epperson, a 27 yr old midfielder with 51 passing and 30 control, for $104,881.

*This leaves me with $174,998. I will need to sell some defenders soon, as 4 of them are in their 30's. I hold off on this decision until midseason.

*I will sell Yoder when he hits his next level, which will be soon.

[larrymcg421]

Our starting squad for the new season...

https://snag.gy/im7Lqo.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Nashville SC (0-0-0) at Des Moines Menace (0-0-0)N

We manage to hold our own against a superior team. McCullough is denied on a couple good chances and Yoder misses another, but our defense does a solid job of keeping Nashville in check. Neither team can get much momentum until the last turn of the game, in which Pressley makes a diving save to preserve the draw.

Final: Des Moines 0, Nashville 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Huffman, Pressley, Epperson

McCullough - lvl 32
Pressley - lvl 21

[QuikSand]

...last thing I'm looking for is to get interested in something like this.

Ugh.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-1-0, 9th) at Chattanooga FC (0-0-1, 12th)

Our defense continues their dominant run, shutting down Nashville on all 4 of their shot attempts. McCullough gets nice position deep in the penalty area and, after a great pass from Hensley, converts the shot for a 1-0 lead just before halftime. In the 2nd half, I utilize my strong midfield to hold possession and prevent them from having enough turns to mount a serious attack. A great victory for us!

Final: Des Moines 1, Chattanooga 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Guy, Epperson, McCullough

Huffman - lvl 29
Still - lvl 22
Guy - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

Wilmington (0-0-2, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (1-1-0, 6th)

We give away a penalty early on, but Pressley comes up with the stop! They eventually break through right before the half when their Winger Gillis sends a pass right into the box and they use Rainbow Feint to beat Pressley. Gillis continues to dominate us on the wings and gets the ball in to his forwards three more times for attacks. They convert one of them for a 2-0 lead. Our offense can't do much aside from low percentage shots by McCullough.

Final: Wilmington 2, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Pressley, Edmonds

Beverly - lvl 26

Yoder reached his next specialization level and this makes him worth $30,000 more. Glad I waited. I sell him for $104,000.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-1-1, 8th) at K-W United FC (3-0-0, 1st)

About as boring as a match could be. There was only 1 shot on goal total in the first half. McCullough is winded and has to be replaced at halftime. Our defense and midfield do a pretty good job of keeping attacks out of our area and K-W only manages 2 shots on goal the entire game.

Final: Des Moines 0, K-W United 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Huffman, Epperson, Arias

[larrymcg421]

Reno 1868 FC (3-0-1, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (1-2-1, 7th)

Another snoozefest where our defense and midfield shine, but we can't get any attack going. It's a hot day, so people tire faster and I have to replace McCullough and Hensley at the half. Then Epperson gets injured and we're just trying to hold on for the draw. Galloway actually almost gets something going with Rainbow Feint and wins a corner, but Seeals hits a terrible corner pass that goes right out of bounds.

Final: Des Moines 0, Reno 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Huffman, Epperson, Whittington

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-2-1, 7th) at San Antonio FC (1-1-3, 10th)

Another scoreless first half where our injuries and stamina are really hurting us. Epperson is injured and Hensley has to leave at halftime. Luckily, our defense is still superb and McCullough opens the 2nd half with a beautiful goal from the right side of the penalty area. San Antonio only manages one shot on goal and we stop it easily.

Final: Des Moines 1, San Antonio 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Huffman, McCullough, Hensley

Edmonds - lvl 29.
Lantz - lvl 20.

*I go ahead and pay the $40,000 to see if there's anyone worthwhile on the global market. No go.

[MacroGuru]

...last thing I'm looking for is to get interested in something like this.

Ugh.

That's what I said...I am hooked...my wife already hates this game now..

[thehitcat]

Des Moines Menace (1-2-1, 7th) at San Antonio FC (1-1-3, 10th)
*I go ahead and pay the $40,000 to see if there's anyone worthwhile on the global market. No go.

Good call, you need some defenders otherwise having guys to sell isn't going to mean much if you can't replace them. Occasionally if there are a bunch of cheap guys on the standard transfer list I'll buy them just to bring new guys into the standard transfer list I might like better. This doesn't work with the global list as it doesn't refresh.

[larrymcg421]

Good call, you need some defenders otherwise having guys to sell isn't going to mean much if you can't replace them. Occasionally if there are a bunch of cheap guys on the standard transfer list I'll buy them just to bring new guys into the standard transfer list I might like better. This doesn't work with the global list as it doesn't refresh.

Yeah, I've been using the tactic of buying cheap guys to refresh the list. It's worked out very well for me so far, but I've hit a wall in these past two transfer markets where everyone is high priced. I'm hoping the midseason market is good, because I need to sell Huffman and/or Edmonds soon. I did use a glory upgrade on the transfer list to increase it to 9.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-3-1, 7th) at Tulsa Roughnecks (3-0-3, 8th)

Midway through the 1st half, Tulsa earns a corner kick. Their Forward wins the positioning battle and gets the ball right in front of Pressley and is able to put it through. We're not built to be a comeback team at the moment, but we find happiness at the beginning of the 2nd half. I send my young Winger Seal down the to the corner, where he sends a cross pass that McCullough heads home for the equalizer! We can't find another goal, but our defense holds for the draw.

Final: Des Moines 1, Tulsa 1
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Still, Epperson, McCullough

Huffman - lvl 30.
Epperson - lvl 30
Guy - lvl 23
Still - lvl 23

[larrymcg421]

FC Tucson (0-1-6, 12th) at Des Moines Menace (2-4-1, 7th)

This is a team we should beat. They have a goalkeeper with a 9 in defense. Still, McCullough misses both of his shots against this guy and a low rated defender. plays it safe and we have trouble getting the ball in scoring range. One last desperation pass doesn't get to McCullough and time expires.

Final: Des Moines 0, Tucson 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Edmonds, Beverly, Hensley

Whittington - Lvl 19.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-5-1, 7th) at FC Montreal (7-1-0, 1st)

And here's a team we shouldn't beat, or even have much of a chance hanging with. Such is our season. We dominate defensively and hold them to only 1 shot the entire game. That 1 shot came on the last turn of the game with the player right in front of Pressley. Pressley makes a heroic stop to preserve the draw. We missed our one good chance offensively.

Final: Des Moines 0, Montreal 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Hensley, Edmonds

[larrymcg421]

Clarkstown SC Eagles (2-1-6, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (2-6-1, 7th)

A huge game as it is against the team currently in the highest relegation spot. This could help give us some distance. Unfortunately, they score a long range goal from the right side due to a rare poor effort from Pressley. Never easy for us to come from behind, but our counterattacks are on point in the 2nd half. Two long range passes give McCullough the ball in a great spot and he converts. Then on the next set of turns, we get the ball to Galloway and he nails a difficult shot to put us ahead! Clarkstown is unable to mount a serious attack the rest fo the match and we come away with a big victory.

Final: Des Moines 2, Clarkstown 1
Goal: McCullough, Galloway
Top Three: Epperson, Huffman, McCullough

Edmonds - lvl 30
Beverly - lvl 27
Pressley - lvl 22 (and only 19!)

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-6-1, 5th) at Phoenix Rising FC (6-0-4, 4th)

Phoenix Rising owned us last time we were in the Third League. This time, our defense is too good for them and they only manage two shots on goal. We have two chances with a cross and then a corner, but can't put it through on either try. Pretty boring football, but can't be too upset with how we've performed through the first half of the season.

Final: Des Moines 0, Phoenix 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Edmonds, Arias, Pressley

Guy - lvl 24

[Radii]

Yeah, I've been using the tactic of buying cheap guys to refresh the list.

I was about to ask about that. If house rules are ever needed, it seems like this might be the first one. I've been doing it too.


Do you play/watch/sim your games? I promoted to league 3 immediately, and I figured I'd probably drop back down while I built my team and dealt with all my old players, so I started simming all my games, and now I'm magically mid-table halfway through the season, and I wonder if simming is generally a bad idea.

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32 - Leg 1

Des Moines Menace at Colorado Springs

Once again, we draw a 2nd League team and this is a stacked squad. They have a keeper with 88 defense and every defender has 70 or higher defense. How do we score a goal against this team? Well, McCullough now has the Head Play skill and as a CF he gets an extra level of it. So I send Epperson down the right side of the field and he nails a cross that McCullough easily heads in! Colorado gets several chances, but our defense shuts the down each time and we steal a victory on the road!

Final: Des Moines 1, Colorado 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Beverly, Hensley, McCullough

Huffman 31
Hensley 28
Galloway 24
Still 24
Arias 22

[larrymcg421]

I was about to ask about that. If house rules are ever needed, it seems like this might be the first one. I've been doing it too.

Good point. There is a penalty to it and I don't think it's ever made me overpowered, but it is somewhat of an exploit to avoid purchasing a longer transfer list.


Do you play/watch/sim your games? I promoted to league 3 immediately, and I figured I'd probably drop back down while I built my team and dealt with all my old players, so I started simming all my games, and now I'm magically mid-table halfway through the season, and I wonder if simming is generally a bad idea.

In this dynasty I play every game. In other playthroughs, I sometimes sim unwinnable games like cup matches two levels above.

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32 - Leg 2

Colorado Springs at Des Moines Menace

With a 1-0 aggregate lead, we just have to hold them to a draw to advance. Our defense does a great job shutting them down offensively. Right before the 1st half ends, Hensley sends a beautiful pass into the box for Galloway. Galloway uses Rainbow Feint to beat the keeper and give us the lead! Colorado keeps putting the pressure on, but they can't break through our defensive wall and we advance!

Final: Des Moines 1, Colorado 0
Goal: Galloway
Top Three: Galloway, Beverly, Huffman

Edmonds - lvl 31
Beverly - lvl 28
Guy - lvl 25

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 16 - Leg 1

Des Moines Menace at Richmond Kickers

The power of Rainbow Feint is apparent again. At the end of a scoreless first half, we intercept in the midfield and get the ball to Galloway in front of the keeper. He would have no hope scoring against this keeper with a normal shot, but Rainbow Feint gives him even chances and he succeeds again to put us up 1-0! Richod pile on the pressure and manage 6 shots on goal. They finally break through late in the match when our defense falls asleep and fails to stop a low percentage shot. We hold on for the draw.

Final: Des Moines 1, Richmond 1
Goal: Galloway
Top Three: Hensley, Beverly, Galloway

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 16 - Leg 2

Des Moines Menace at Richmond Kickers

We only get 1 shot on goal in this one and it's another Rainbow Feint attempt by Galloway, but this one fails. No worries, because a scoreless draw is all we need, so I take fewer chances than usual. Richmond puts the pressure on and it gets really dicey late as they get a few good shots off. They earn a corner on the last turn of the game and get the ball to their striker all alone in front of the keeper, but Pressley makes a heroic stop to preserve the draw and we advance (based on away goals tiebreaker)!

Final: Des Moines 0, Richmond 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Pressley, Beverly, Edmonds

Beverly - lvl 29

[thehitcat]

Nice! Tons of delicious XP in Cup Games so your guys level up faster. Good luck in the Quarterfinals.

[larrymcg421]

Winter break activities...

*My youth pull is a lvl 22 player. That's my best one yet. Unfortunately, it's a Keeper, the last thing I need. Also, despite being a higher level at the time of his pull, he's not as good as Pressley because his attributes are terribly distributed (An unnecessary 17 in accuracy). He'll be a backup in case PRessley gets hurt and I may throw him into the defensive line a few times to build up some XP.

*I buy a couple backup midfielders, but there's no one else I like on the transfer list.

*I pay $40,000 to look at the foreign transfer list. It takes 7 days to receive this list, so I hold off on future transactions until after my next match.

[larrymcg421]

https://snag.gy/TNbIwt.jpg

Here's the contract screen. That value is how much I would get if I sold them. Here are a few important notes...

*You can't renew or sell anyone who is 34 yrs or older.

*You can't renew anyone until they have less than a year left on their contract.

*So if I decide to keep Edmonds until he's 36, I wouldn't want to renew him for several years now, because then I won't be able to renew him again when he hits 33.

*You can see my dilemma with defenders as 4 of my starters are getting up there in age. Ideally, I would like to space out selling them and putting a younger guy in their place. If I do it all at once, it will destroy my formidable defensive line.

[larrymcg421]

League table at the midway point...

https://snag.gy/7UQxiT.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-7-1, 6th) at Nashville SC (8-2-1, 2nd)

Midway through the first half, Nashville connects on a long range power shot (due to a series of bad rolls by my defenders and keeper). We desperately try to equalize and hit a couple good crosses, but McCullough and Galloway can't head them home. In the 2nd half, Galloway has great position to equalize late, but Hensley can't get the pass to him.

Final: Nashville 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Huffman, Hensley, McCullough

Huffman - lvl 32
Guy - lvl 26

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Quarterfinals - Leg 1

Des Moines Menace at Wilmington

Only a few days in between matches during this cup run, so I have to sit Hensley. We get a series of awful rolls (a 2 and a 1 on two cross passes, a 3 of 81 on a pass that would've given us a one on one situation). Late in the game, they get a great counterattack going and find a guy all alone in the penalty. He beats Pressley and they go on to win.

Final: Wilmington 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Seals, Epperson, Edmonds

Edmonds - lvl 32

[larrymcg421]

Since Edmonds just popped, it's time to make the following moves..

*I sell Edmonds for $182,000. It will be sad to see him go. He's played 89 matches for us and has 66 career tackles. I only bought him for $3,400 and renewed him for $5,769.

*I buy Universal Defender named Christy off the global list. He costs $288,129 and 12 glory. He's only 23 and already level 34, so solves some of my age issues and doesn't cost me much in performance. Plus he will be worth a fortune after a season with us, especially when he learns a skill.

*I extend Seals for 3 yrs, $4,731.

*I extend Epperson for 1 yr, $14,700.

*I sell a few backups for a few thousand each. This leaves me with $96,745. A somewhat precarious financial position, but I have lots of players with value that I can sell next offseason. I just hope I can get luckier with transfer lists/youth pulls.

[larrymcg421]

Chattanooga FC (5-1-6, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (3-7-2, 6th)

Another frustrating match similar to the last few we've had. They go up early on a shot that should've been stopped. Then McCullough can't convert despite having 5 shots on goal. One of them was a really good strike that the keeper made a great save on. Shrug.

Final: Chattanooga 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Arias, Seals, Christy

Epperson - lvl 31
Seals - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-7-3, 7th) at Wilmington (4-1-8, 9th)

Early in the match, they're able to get around my defense and fire a cannon shot. So once again, we're doing everything we can to equalize. McCullough misses the only 2 shots he gets and Hensley gets injured. Our prospects of avoiding relegation are looking pretty dire at the moment.

Final: Wilmington 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Pressley, Arias, Huffman

Epperson - lvl 31
Seals - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

K-W United FC (7-4-3, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (3-7-4, 7th)

It's another back and forth boring affair, but late in the first half we're able to launch a counterattack and get the ball to McCullough in great position. He's denied, but we win the corner. Epperson sends a great cross in that Galloway is able to head home. We hold the lead until late in the first half when K-W equalizes on a power shot from just outside the box. On the ensuing kickoff, we get the ball to Epperson, who sends in a cross that is deflected, but we win another corner. This time, McCullough finds the pass and heads it home for the winner! This was a much needed victory.

Final: Des Moines 2, K-W United 1
Goal: Galloway, McCullough
Top Three: Seals, Galloway, McCullough

Still - lvl 26
Arias - lvl 23


With 7 matches to go, here's the relegation race

Des Moines - 19
Wilmington - 17
Reno 1868 - 16
---------------
San Antonio FC - 16
Clarkston SC - 10
FC Tucson - 5

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Quarterfinals - Leg 2

Wilmington at Des Moines

The first half is a boring defensive slugfest. We badly need to score a goal to keep our hopes alive. Things look up when we intercept a pass at midfield and get the ball to Galloway right in front of the keeper. He scores on a Rainbow Feint to put us ahead! We get another chance when Epperson has crossing position, but their defender gets in the way of the cross. Time expires and we head to penalties!

They score. 0-1
We score. 1-1
They score. 1-2
We miss. 1-2
They miss. 1-2
We score. 2-2
They miss! 2-2
We miss. 2-2
They score. 2-3
We score. 3-3
They miss! 3-3
With a chance to win, we miss! 3-3
They score. 3-4
We score. 4-4
They score. 4-5
We miss! Nooooooo!


Final: Wilmington 1 (5), Des Moines 1 (4)
Goal: Galloway
Top Three: Hensley, Galloway, Pressley

Guy - lvl 27
Galloway - lvl 25

[thehitcat]

Ugh penalties... great run you had to get that far however. Now you can focus on staying up.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (4-7-4, 7th) at Reno 1868 FC (4-4-7, 9th)

A tactical blunder on my part lets Reno get the ball to a Forward right in front of our keeper. He uses Rainbow Feint to score the goal. Luckily, we're able to get the ball to Epperson on the flank. He sends in a cross pass and a motivated McCullough scores with a bicycle kick! We stop the next Reno attack and get it to McCullough on the counterattack. He scores a very difficult shot to put us ahead. We shut them down the rest of the way to secure the victory.

Final: Des Moines 2, Reno 1
Goal: McCullough 2
Top Three: Hensley, Galloway, Pressley

Beverly - lvl 30
Pressley - lvl 24

Relegation fight...

Des Moines - 22
Wilmington - 20
San Antonio FC - 19
-------------------
Reno 1868 FC - 16
Clarkston SC - 10
FC Tucson - 5

[larrymcg421]

San Antonio FC (5-4-7, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (5-7-4, 7th)

They have an attacking Winger who really disrupts our defensive line. This allows him to get the ball in close range a nail a power shot to put San Antonio ahead. We struggle to get much going for the first half. The 2nd half is a different story. I utilize my team's aerial skills and we score early in the 2nd half on a cross pass from Epperson which Galloway heads in. With time running out, McCullough gets an amazing pass from Hensley and has the ball in front of the keeper. He's denied, but once again wins a corner. He gets great position on the corner and scores with another bicycle kick to win the game!

Final: Des Moines 2, San Antonio 1
Goal: Galloway, McCullough
Top Three: Hensley, McCullough, Galloway

Hensley - lvl 29

We have moved up to 5th in the standings and have an 8 pt lead on the final relegation spot with 5 matches to go. We're actually closer to promotion (4 pts) than relegation!

[larrymcg421]

Ugh penalties... great run you had to get that far however. Now you can focus on staying up.

Yeah, that's always a tough way to lose. I do wish they'd revamp the penalty system a little bit instead of the complete randomness of it now.

[larrymcg421]

Tulsa Roughnecks (6-6-5, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (5-7-4, 5th)

Our aerial game is on point again. On our first possession, McCullough once again gets in great position to head a cross home. A dirty play (from our former player Lance!) injures Epperson and he will be out for a month. We also have to substitute McCullough at halftime because he's winded. Despite this, our defense holds on for the victory.

Final: Des Moines 1, Tulsa 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: McCullough, Huffman, Still

Huffman - lvl 33
Guy - lvl 28

We are now only 1 pt away from promotion!

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (6-7-4, 4th) at FC Tucson (1-3-14, 12th)

What in the world? FC Tucson is by far the worst team in the league. Yet somehow they find a way to beat our keeper twice, once in the first half and another time midway through the 2nd half. Meanwhile, their keeper is absurdly bad (7 defense!) and yet only one of our three shots gets to him. It beats him, but far too late for us to mount a comeback.

Final: FC Tucson 2, Des Moines 1
Goal: Galloway
Top Three: Galloway, Huffman, Arias

[larrymcg421]

FC Montreal (13-4-2, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (6-7-5, 5th)

What a snoozer. Both teams manage 3 shots combined throughout the match. Both of them actually get to Pressley and he has to make the save. Without Hensley or Epperson in the lineup, we fail to connect on passes that put our Forwards in good position. Still, I'll take a draw against this team.

Final: FC Montreal 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Beverly, Pressley, Seals

Still - lvl 27

*We have a 5 pt lead on 10th place. A win in either of our matches or if we draw both means we will stay up.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (7-8-5, 5th) at Clarkstown SC Eagles (4-1-15, 11th)

Another team with a terrible Keeper and this time we can take advantage. Instead of working the ball into the box, I let McCullough fire away from range. He scores midway through the 1st half and early in the 2nd half. Clarkstown takes one back as we get a little lazy late in the match, but they don't threaten again.

Final: Des Moines 2, Clarkstown 1
Goal: McCullough 2
Top Three: Beverly, McCullough, Hensley

McCullough - lvl 34

We did what we needed to do to avoid relegation and actually have an outside chance to promote.

K-W United 35 (+3 GD)
------------
Chattanooga FC 34 (+5 GD)
Des Moines Menace 32 (+2 GD)

So we need K-W United and Chattanooga to lose and for us to win. If Chattanooga ties, then we're done because they'll kill us on the total goals tiebreaker.

[larrymcg421]

Phoenix Rising FC (10-1-10, 6th) at Des Moines Menace (8-8-5, 5th)

McCullough opens the game with another header that goes in for an early lead. We hold this lead until early int he 2nd half, when a penalty in the box lets them equalize. On the next possession, we win a corner and McCullough gets displaced, but Galloway comes through the score. I almost make a huge blunder late in the game as I attempt a tackle in my final 3 turns. This gave them a free kick and allowed a pretty decent shot on goal to tie it, but Pressley comes away with the save.

Final: Des Moines 2, Phoenix 1
Goal: McCullough, Galloway
Top Three: Hensley, Galloway, McCullough

Christy - lvl 35
Beverly - lvl 31
Guy - lvl 29
Arias - lvl 24

[larrymcg421]

Final Third League Standings...

https://snag.gy/FzQg70.jpg

Notes:

*Definitely a stark contrast between the two half seasons. We were 3-7-1 with 5 GF and 4 GA at midseason. Since then, we went 6-1-4 with 12 GF and 10 GA. Perfecting the aerial game was key to getting us on the board more.

*Pressley led the league with 22 saves. (2nd was 16).

*McCullough tied for 4th with 12 goals.

*Epperson tied for 4th with 7 assists.

*Hensley tied for 10th with 4 assists.

[larrymcg421]

Offseason moves...

*I select Entropy as the sponsor. They will pay $333 for each goal and $700 for each win.

*I improve the Defender coach. Defenders will now get 180% bonus XP.

*I get my best youth pull yet! Reese is a 19 yr old, lvl 24 Central Defender with 45 defense.

*It's time to say goodbye to Hensley. He's 30 yrs old and worth $254,000. I originally bought him for $48,500. He's played 95 matches with us and has 75 tackles and 14 assists.

*I have to sell either Beverly or Huffman. I go with Beverly because Huffman is learning a lvl 2 skill, which will make his price explode. I bought Beverly for $6,806, paid $11,300 to renew him, and now sell him for $141,000.

*I renew Guy for 3 yrs, $47,577. He's only 20, so this was a no brainer.

*I renew Christy for 3 yrs, $105,360. He's only 23 and already lvl 35.

*I buy Pennington for $190,000. He's a lvl 37 Universal Forward, with 62 Accuracy and 34 Control. The guy I've been trying to find forever.

*I extend Galloway for 1 yr, 5,740. I'll still need a backup striker and Whittington isn't good enough.

*I renew backup midfielders Norton (who is about to learn Olympic Kick) and Adams for a few thousand each.

*This leaves me with $143, 495 and 4 contract renewals coming up during the next window. (Pressley, Epperson, Still, Pennington).

[larrymcg421]

Here's our squad heading into the new season...

https://snag.gy/uVWrfy.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-0-0) at Sonoma County Sol (0-0-0)

There was some promise in this game as we had good chances throughout. But it's still frustrating to have so much difficulty finding the net, and against a team we shouldn't have much trouble against. Pennington misses each of his shots on his debut and we almost give away the match until Pressley makes a huge save.

Final: Des Moines 0, Sonoma 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Huffman, Still, Seals

[larrymcg421]

Real Monarchs (1-0-0, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (0-1-0, 7th)


We go down early on a shot from outside the box that should've been stopped. Pennington is still struggling to show he was worth that contract. We finally break through in the 2nd half when Still is able to use his counterattack ability to get the ball to Arias, who got it to McCullough in the middle of the box, who then put away the equalizer.

Final: Des Moines 1, Real Monarchs 1
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Huffman, McCullough, Epperson

Huffman - lvl 34
Pressley - lvl 25

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-2-0, 8th) at Reno 1868 FC (1-0-1, 4th)

Starting off similar as the beginning of last season. People can't score goals off of us and we can't score off of them. Pennington actually gets into the top three with his defensive play, stealing the ball in the opponent's side of the field, but he still can't find a goal.

Final: Des Moines 0, Reno 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Huffman, Pennington, Norton

Reese - lvl 25

[larrymcg421]

Albion SC Pros (1-0-2, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-0, 8th)

Well, this is the explosion I've been waiting for. Albion is not a very good team and I take advantage of some of their defensive lapses. Pennington finally gets on the board on the first possession of the game. Midway through the first half, McCullough adds to the lead. I rest a tired Pennington and bring in my youngster Whittington, who hasn't played much recently. His Nutmeg skill is put to perfect use against Albion's defense and he adds two 2nd half goals.

Final: Des Moines 4, Albion 0
Goals: Whittington 2, McCullough, Pennington
Top Three: Whittington, Reese, Epperson

Still - lvl 28

[larrymcg421]

Bethlehem Steel (2-1-1, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (1-3-0, 5th)

And then we revert back to typical form. McCullough and Pennington can't find the net. It's looking like a scoreless draw until late int he 2nd half when they use a long pass ability to get the ball behind our defense. Then they use Rainbow Feint to get by Pressley. We have time to equalize, but Epperson has his pass intercepted by a poor defender and we run out of time.

Final: Bethlehem 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Guy, McCullough

Guy - lvl 30

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-3-1, 7th) at Saint Louis FC (2-1-2, 5th)

Saint Louis is just too godo for us to have a chance against. They score their first goal early on when their wingeris able to dribble past our defense and score a power shot against Pressley. They score their next two goals because they have a Forward with a level 3 Rainbow Feint skill, which we have no hope of stopping. The 1 shot we get on goal the entire match is a low percentage attempt by Pennington that doesn't even sniff the keeper.

Final: St. Louis 3, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Pennington, Guy

[larrymcg421]

Wilmington (2-2-2, 6th) at Des Moines Menace (1-3-2, 8th)

Pretty much the same story as recent matches. Pennington misses all three of his shots on goal and they manage to penetrate us with a Rainbow Feint. We have a chance late in the game to get the ball right in front of the keeper, but Arias hits a terrible pass (rolled a 2).

Final: Wilmington 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Huffman, Pennington

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-3-3, 8th) at Pittsburgh Riverhounds (6-0-1, 1st)

I bench Pennington and put Galloway back in to focus on our aerial game. This pays off early in the 2nd half when we win a corner and McCullough heads it home. Later in the 2nd half, we take advantage of a disruption in their defensive line and Galloway gets the ball one on one with the keeper and beats him. A much needed victory against a team that had been dominating the league.

Final: Des Moines 2, Pittsburgh 0
Goal: McCullough, Galloway
Top Three: McCullough, Galloway, Huffman

Epperson - lvl 32
Galloway - lvl 26
Reese - lvl 26

[larrymcg421]

Chattannooga FC (1-3-4, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (2-3-3, 7th)

I put Pennington back in, but once again it's McCullough's heading ability that leads us to victory. We win an early corner and he scores on a bicycle kick. We struggle to get a good offensive shot the rest of the match, but our defense shuts down Chattanooga.

Final: Des Moines 1, Chattanooga 0
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Christy, McCullough, Reese

Christy - lvl 36
Still - lvl 29

[CraigSca]

I have this game and have only played a little because every game ended at 0-0 for me. For the life of me I can't figure out the gameplay of the actual games and I'm left frustrated.

Does anyone have recommendations for youtube videos showing how to actually play the matches? I looked and the first video I saw basically had the same reaction I did - the 3 turns kills me - the defenders never move from the goal, so if I try a shot I'm too far out, with too many defenders and rinse, lather, repeat.

[larrymcg421]

I have this game and have only played a little because every game ended at 0-0 for me. For the life of me I can't figure out the gameplay of the actual games and I'm left frustrated.

Does anyone have recommendations for youtube videos showing how to actually play the matches? I looked and the first video I saw basically had the same reaction I did - the 3 turns kills me - the defenders never move from the goal, so if I try a shot I'm too far out, with too many defenders and rinse, lather, repeat.

I had the same issue finding a good video, because most were people playing for the first time. I had to learn most of what I could from the tutorial and just figuring it out as I go.

What I can say is that you might want to consider not always trying to score in 3 turns. Sometimes you can get it to a midfielder with high control and hold the ball up. If you start the next turn at midfield, you'll have a chance to get your Forwards in good position.

Also, sometimes moving your forwards against the defense can be a good idea even if they get stripped. Because when they do, the defense loses its structure and when you win the ball back, you have a better position.

The Steam community can be helpful, too. This guide (https://steamcommunity.com/app/375530/discussions/0/1729828401708678122/) was very helpful to me in learning how to succeed with crosses.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-3-3, 8th) at San Antonio FC (7-1-1, 2nd)

We have a rough first half in which every tackle attempt creates a yellow card or a penalty, meaning many of the turns are used up on free kicks. One of the tackles leads to a late 1st half penalty, which they convert for the lead. However, I'm immediately able to equalize when Pennington is able to dribble to the left side of the defense and convert the shot. In the 2nd half, I continue the same strategy of getting the ball to my forwards and forcing their defense to come out of position for the tackle. Because of this, an Arias interception and pass leave McCullough all alone in front of the goal. He converts for the lead. San Antonio wins a late corner, but we defend it.

Final: Des Moines 2, San Antonio 1
Goals: Pennington, McCullough
Top Three: Arias, Epperson, Pennington

Huffman - lvl 35
Guy - lvl 31
Arias - lvl 25

[larrymcg421]

Phoenix Rising FC (4-3-3, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (4-3-3, 6th)

I utilize Pennington's mobility to get him on the flanks, where he has a one on one shot against the keeper from distance. These are low percentage shots but with no defenders in the line, increases the chances for a corner. And on corners, we are deadly. Pennington successfully executes this twice in the 1st half and we score on both corners, one header by McCullough and on a bicycle kick by Pennington. We're unable to get anything going in the 2nd half, but neither is Phoenix.

Final: Des Moines 2, Phoenix 0
Goals: Pennington, McCullough
Top Three: Epperson, Reese, McCullough

Reese - lvl 27
Pressley - lvl 26
Seals - lvl 24

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32 - Leg 1

Des Moines Menace at Pittsburgh Riverhounds

On a rainy field, it's hard to get our aerial game going. Pennington is denied a couple times from the flanks, but can't win a corner. Pittsburgh scores midway through the 2nd half on a power shot that should've been stopped. We have a great chance late in the game when Mccullough gets the ball in excellent position, but the keeper makes a great stop to deny him.

Final: Pittsburgh 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Epperson, Reese, Pressley

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32 - Leg 1

Pittsburgh Riverhounds at Des Moines Menace

Another rainy day. We only manage two shots on goal the entire match. One of them came at the very end when Pennington gets a great shot after a free kick, but he is denied on the last turn of the game. After a great cup run last season, we are out early this year.

Final: Pittsburgh 0 (1), Des Moines 0 (0)
Goals: None
Top Three: Guy, Epperson, Arias

McCullough - lvl 35
Guy - lvl 32 (only 20 yrs old!)
Still - lvl 30

[larrymcg421]

Winter break activities...

*We get a great youth pull in lvl 22 Defensive Midfielder Arroyo. From what I hear, Defensive Midfielders are essential to the late game. They can intercept passes coming within 2 tiles of them.

*We buy CD Grubbs for only $21,600. He has 51 defense and can replace our aging CD Huffman.

*I sell Huffman for $183,000. He was a valuable player for us, but at 32 it was time to go.

*I renew Pressley for 3 yrs, $18,557. A bargain if you ask me.

*I renew Reese for 3 yrs, $28,229. Only 19 yrs old, so a no brainer.

*Still is also 32, but there's no one to replace him with yet. SO I renew him for 1 year, $14,659. He'll either be sold then, or I'll renew him for 3 yrs so he can retire with us at 36.

*I sell Galloway for $88,000. He was useful for headers, but not much else. His Rainbow Feint skill was of limited use because of his low Control. He would often get stripped right after using it.

*Epperson is too valuable to let go yet, so I renew him for 3 yrs, $75,669.

*I renew Pennington for 3 yrs, $150,969. May seem like too much, but once he learns cannon shot, he'll be hard to stop. Also, there are no strikers on the horizon.

*I sell Seals for $113,000. I hate to get rid of a guy so young, but didn't envision him getting much playing time as I already have 2 young midfielders in Arias and Arroyo to go along with Epperson, plus some quality backups.

*This leaves me withh $215,547.

[larrymcg421]

Midseason standings...

https://snag.gy/nzWcTH.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Sonoma County Sol (3-2-6, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (5-3-3, 5th)

Sonoma has been struggling so far this season, but they're the ones who bought our CD Huffman, who should make them better. Unfortunately for them, we're able to flank the other defenders and render him unable to help. Pennington converts a good chance early int he 1st half. He gets denied a dew more times in the match, but we tack on a late goal when McCullough grabs great position and nails a power shot. They had no hope against our defense. I can already tell that DM Arroyo is going to be a massive presence for us.

Final: Des Moines 2, Sonoma 0
Goals: McCullough, Pennington
Top Three: Epperson, Pennington, Arroyo

Pennington - lvl 38

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (6-3-3, 5th) at Real Monarchs (9-2-1, 1st)

Pennington is injured from our last match, so we stick in Whittington. Our midfield and defense are strong enough to hold Real to 2 shots on goal for the game. Unfortunately, we only manage 1 shot for ourselves, a low percentage try that McCullough missed. Still, I'll take another draw against a team that has been destroying the Third League.

Final: Des Moines 0, Real Moncarchs 0
Goals:
Top Three: Epperson, Reese, Guy

Christy - lvl 37

[larrymcg421]

Reno 1868 FC (2-3-8, 11th) at Des Moines Menace (6-4-3, 5th)

We beat up on Reno last time and do so again. They have a terrible keeper, so we just fire shots from a distance. Pennington connects on two and McCullough connects on another. Reno managed 4 shots on goal, but they were laughably bad. The bigger mystery is how they've managed to avoid a loss 5 times this season.

Final: Des Moines 3, Reno 0
Goals: Pennington 2, McCullough
Top Three: Reese, Pennington, Norton

Reese - lvl 28
Arroyo - lvl 23

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (7-4-3, 4th) at Albion SC Pros (1-3-10, 12th)

We continue our run against the bottom of the ladder with an easy victory. McCullough scores on a long range precision shot midway through the first half. I sub him out at halftime, because I'm so unconcerned with Albion's pathetic attack. Whittington gets a chance to use his Nutmeg skill and scores midway through the 2nd half. We coast to victory.

Final: Des Moines 2, Albion 0
Goals: McCullough, Whittington
Top Three: Whittington, Arroyo, Epperson

Guy - lvl 33
Grubbs - lvl 26
Arias - lvl 26

We are in 3rd place (promotion) with 7 matches left!

[larrymcg421]

Bethlehem Steel (7-3-5, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (8-4-3, 3rd)

We give up our first goal in weeks when a Forward with Rainbow Feint gets too close to the box. He uses it to beat Pressley late in the 1st half.. Luckily, the good control of our Forwards pays off when a foul just outside the penalty box leads to a free kick. McCullough nails it past the keeper for the equalizer just before the half. Whittington has a chance late in the 2nd half for the winner. I'm hoping he can at least win a corner, but the keeper knocks it back into the field of play and time runs out.

Final: Des Moines 1, Bethlehem 1
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Epperson, McCullough, Pennington

Epperson - lvl 33
Still - lvl 31

Promotion race...

Real Monarchs - 33 (+9 GD)
St. Louis FC - 32 (+13)
Des Moines - 29 (+12)
---------------------------------
San Antonio FC - 29 (+7)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds - 29 (+4)
Bethlehem Steel - 25 (+5)
Phoenix Rising - 24 (+5)
Wilmington - 23 (+0)

[larrymcg421]

St. Louis FC (10-2-4, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (8-5-3, 3rd)

St. Louis has a Forward with a level 3 Rainbow Feint. What this means is he gets three rolls and only needs to be successful on one of them to fake his way past a defender and/or the keeper. Twice he gets past two defenders, but Pressley is able to beat him on all three rolls. Pennington scores on a power shot from the right side early on to give us a lead. This was the only shot on goal we'd get the entire match, but it was enough due to Pressley's heroic actions.

Final: Des Moines 1, St. Louis 0
Goals: Pennington
Top Three: Christy, Pennington, Pressley

Reese - lvl 29
Pressley - lvl 27

*We have moved up to 2nd as there is a 4 way tie with 32 pts but we have the best Goal Differential.

*I also earned enough glory to upgrade my defensive coach again. Defenders now get 230% extra XP.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (9-5-3, 2nd) at Wilmington (8-2-7, 7th)

We go down early due to yet another Rainbow Feint. But once again, we keep fighting and Norton gets the ball to McCullough in a one on one situation. McCullough's power shot beats the keeper for the equalizer just before the half. To open the 2nd half, Epperson gets the ball on the wing and sends in the cross, which McCullough is able to head home for the goal. Wilmington does not get another shot on goal and we come away with another comeback victory. The bad news is Pennington is out and will miss the next two (maybe three) matches.

Final: Des Moines 2, Wilmington 1
Goals: McCullough 2
Top Three: McCullough, Norton, Reese

Christy - lvl 38
Norton - lvl 18

4 matches to go and we are still in 2nd!

2. Des Moines 35 (+14)
3. Pittsburgh 35 (+10)
---------------------
4. St. Louis 33 (+12)
5. San Antonio 32 (+7)

[larrymcg421]

Chattannooga FC (6-4-9, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (10-6-3, 2nd)

A frustrating game where we can't manage a single shot on goal. Without Pennington, I attempt an aerial strategy, but McCullough and Whittington can't connect with either of Whittington's crosses. Chattanooga has 4 shots on goal, which we easily stop until they win a corner on the final turn. Still comes up with the interception to preserve the draw.

Final: Des Moines 0, Chattanooga 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Guy, Norton, Pressley

*This draw caused us to drop to 4th, one spot out of promotion

[larrymcg421]

San Antonio FC (12-2-6, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (10-7-3, 4th)

And it's another boring scoreless draw. We still can't connect on crosses and without Pennington, have no hope of scoring on normal shots. We're able to stop the 1 shot San Antonio gets, but only manage 1 shot of our own.

Final: Des Moines 0, San Antonio 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Arroyo, Epperson, Still

Promotion race with 1 match remaining...

St. Louis FC - 40 (+15)
San Antonio - 39 (+10)
-----------------
Des Moines - 38 (+14)
Pittsburgh - 37 (+9)

The good news is that San Antonio and St. Louis play each other. This mens a win automatically puts us in. We sill have chances with a draw if St. Louis wins and Pittsburgh doesn't win.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (10-8-3, 4th) at Phoenix Rising (8-4-9, 7th)

Pennington is back and makes an immediate impact when his mobility allows him to fire a range shot right at the keeper and win the corner. Epperson takes the corner and McCullough is able to head it home. Phoenix comes right back and tries to flank our defense. The attempted tackle in the box earns them a penalty, which they convert. Early in the 2nd half, we utilize the same strategy as earlier, except this time Pennington's shot beats the keeper to give us the lead. We hold for the victory and earn our way to the Second League!

Final: Des Moines 2, Phoenix 1
Goal: McCullough, Pennington
Top Three: Pennington, Still, McCullough

Still - lvl 32
Reese - lvl 30

[larrymcg421]

Final standings...

https://snag.gy/CVon7Y.jpg

*After 7 matches, we were 1-3-3. Since then, we went 10-5-0.

*McCullough was 3rd in the league with 14 goals.

*Epperson was tied for 1st with 9 assists.

*Christy was 9th with 22 tackles.

*Pressley was 5th with 14 saves.

[larrymcg421]

Offseason activities...

*I pick Football Bank as sponsor. They'll give me $5,040 per match and $414,000 if I reach the cup finals.

*My youth pull is a lvl 21 Forward named Ellison. He has 35 accuracy, 21 passing, and 17 control. Already better than Whittington, so immediately becomes #1 backup striker.

*I extend McCullough for 2 yrs, $69,230. Will need him to help us stay up.

*I renew Arias for 3 yrs, $19,650.

*I renew Grubbs for 3 yrs, $9,600.

*No one on the transfer list is affordable.

*We're left with $116,033.

*We got a huge spike in supporters and now have 220.

[larrymcg421]

Our roster heading into the new season...

https://snag.gy/CmHsU6.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-0-0) at Sacramento Republic (0-0-0)

This is a team we should have no shot competing against as they just came down from 1st league. Yet we take an early lead when McCullough sneaks behind the defense and gets a great pass, which he converts for an easy score. Late in the 1st half, we're a little careless with the ball and Sacramento capitalizes by getting behind our defense and beating Pressley one on one. We miss a shot and a cross in the 2nd half, but our defense does enough to secure a promising draw.

Final: Des Moines 1, Chattanooga 1
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Epperson, McCullough, Guy

Grubbs - lvl 28

[larrymcg421]

Richmond Kickers (1-0-0, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (0-1-0, 10th)

We put Arias on crosses due to his False Kick ability to clear out defenders. This pays off immediately when McCullough heads one home early in the 1st half. Richmond comes back late in the 1st half when they connect on a power shot just outside the box. The 2nd half is a big fight in the midfield that prevents any team from getting a sustained attack.

Final: Des Moines 1, Richmond 1
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Epperson, McCullough, Arroyo

Pressley - lvl 32 (5 lvl jump due to completing a specialization group).

Des Moines Menace (0-2-0, 7th) at Tampa Bay Rowdies (1-1-0, 4th)

Epperson is out and their defense is insanely strong, so we don't have much shot of scoring on our two shots in the match. Tampa Bay controls 68% of the possessions, but still can't manage to crack our defense. We fight it out to a boring draw.

Final: Des Moines 0, Tampa Bay 0
Goal:
Top Three: Grubbs, Pressley, Arroyo

Christy - lvl 39
McCullough - lvl 36
Arias - lvl 27
Arroyo - lvl 24

[larrymcg421]

OKC Energy (1-1-1, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (0-3-0, 11th)

We were so close to our first victory of the season. McCullough nailed a power shot when he found great position early on. We held this lead all the way to the last turn of the game. OKC takes a desperation shot, rolls a 5, my keeper rolls a 3, and so it goes in to steal the win.

Final: Des Moines 1, OKC 1
Goal: McCullough
Top Three: Norton, McCullough, Pressley

Still - lvl 33
Reese - lvl 31
Grubbs - lvl 29

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-4-0, 11th) at Charlotte Independence (3-0-1, 3rd)

The problem we're dealing with is that 2nd league defenses are just too good to generate a consistent offense, but our defense is still solid enough to shut down the oposition. This makes for some boring football. This match turns out the same as others. We can't convert any shots, but also manage to stop all of theirs for our 5th straight draw.


Final: Des Moines 0, Charlotte 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Grubbs, Epperson, Still

[larrymcg421]

FC Edmonton (4-1-0) at Des Moines Menace (0-5-0, 10th)

Just to demonstrate the difficulty we're dealing with here, Edmonton's worst player is lvl 44, while our best player is lvl 39. We manage to hold them off for most of the match, but late in the 2nd half they manage to run into our penalty area. Their turns are up, but we're forced to attempt a tackle and it creates a penalty, which is converted. We get 1 more shot on goal, but it's no fun rolling a 32 vs. a 110.

Final: Edmonton 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Guy, Norton, Arias

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-5-1, 11th) at North Carolina FC (3-1-2, 6th)

Once again, we're facing a far superior team, with their worst player being lvl 41. We hold them for the first half, but they earn a free kick on a tackle right outside the box. Pressley makes a great effort, but the shot is impossible to stop. We get two chances at crosses in the 2nd half, but Arias blunders both of them and Pennington's last desperation shot is easily blocked.

Final: North Carolina 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Epperson, Arroyo, Still

Guy - lvl 36

[larrymcg421]

Saint Louis FC (1-1-5, 13th) at Des Moines Menace (0-5-1, 11th)

One of the few teams we should have a chance at beating, St. Louis gives us fits the same way they did last year. Their Forwarsd with the lvl 3 Rainbow Feint is unstoppable if he gets the ball. They score two first half goals that way and we can't convert any of our 4 shots. It's a long season (26 matches), but staying up would be a miracle.

Final: St. Louis 2, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Arroyo, Arias, Grubbs

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (0-5-2, 13th) at Charleston Battery

Teams without difficult special skills Like Rainbow Feint have trouble scoring against us. Even against this high powered team (they have a strength of 3 stars versus our 1.5), Pressley isn't seriously tested once. We get it near their goal a few times, but Arias can't hit a decent cross. This has to be considered a moral victory, but we still need our first win.

Final: Charleston 0, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Guy, Pressley, Epperson

Grubbs - lvl 30

[larrymcg421]

Nashville SC (0-1-8, 14th) at Des Moines Menace (0-6-3, 13th)

We finally find some offense against the worst team in the league. We win an early corner, but McCullough gets dislodged from his position and can't head it. However, the ensuing scuffle in the box results in a rebound to McCullough and he hits the shot. Later in the first half, Nashville equalizes when they are able to get an angled shot just outside the penalty box. Luckily, We win another corner and this time Pennington heads it home for his first goal of the season. Late in the 2nd half, Pennington tacks on another goal when the defense fails to strip him of the ball and he finds prime position to hit the shot.

Final: Des Moines 3, Nashville 1
Goals: Pennington 2, McCullough
Top Three: Pennington, Epperson, Reese

Christy - lvl 40
Still - lvl 34
Epperson - lvl 34
Reese - lvl 32

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-6-3, 12th) at Real Monarchs (4-0-6, 10th)

Another team that we should be competitive with, but this time we can't break through offensively. Pennington and McCullough both miss shots and Real scores on a cross late in the 2nd half to take the victory. This is one we needed in the race to stay up.

Final: Real Monarchs 1, Des Moines 0
Goals: None
Top Three: Arroyo, Norton, Grubbs

Guy - lvl 37
Norton - lvl 19

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-6-4, 12th) at San Francisco Deltas (8-1-2, 2nd)

San Francisco has some defensive gaps that I look to exploit, but their midfield is able to play keep away for the 1st half. In the 2nd half, they're able to beat me with a Rainbow Feint to take the lead. On the next possession, McCullough is finally able to exploit their defensive gap and find the equalizer. We don't have time to get back in scoring position. Not a bad result against the 2nd place team.

Final: Des Moines 1, San Francisco 1
Goals: None
Top Three: McCullough, Reese, Norton

Arias - lvl 28

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup - Round of 32: North Carolina FC at Des Moines Menace

What a terrible draw for us. We can't get an Amateur or 3rd League team? The good news is I'm able to take an early lead on a McCullough header. But they pile the pressure on (6 shots on goal) and at the end of the first half, get in position to successfully execute the Rainbow Feint. We have trouble executing our skills and their midfield intercepts our counterattacj passes several times. Midway through the 2nd, they turn this into another goal. We get one more chance, but Epperson hits a terrible cross that sails out of bounds.

Final: North Carolina 2, Des Moines 1
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: Christy, Grubbs, Guy

Grubbs - lvl 31

[larrymcg421]

Ottawa Fury (7-1-4, 3rd) at Des Moines Menace (1-7-4, 12th)

They seem to have weaknesses against headers, so I actually start Ellison over Pennington. Epperson misses his first cross. Midway through the 1st half, Ottawa is able to connect on a power shot from just outside the box. We immediately equalize when Epperson's next cross is easily headed home by McCullough. Unfortunately, they work their way into our penalty box and Grubbs' attempted tackle gives them a penalty, which they convert. We get another chance at a cross, but Epperson shanks that one as well.

Final: Ottawa 2, Des Moines 1
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: McCullough, Adams, Guy

Reese - lvl 33
Ellison - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup: Round of 32 - Leg 2

Des Moines Menace at North Carolina FC

The problem we have here is North Carolina scored 2 goals on us at our place. This means we need at least 2 goals to have a hope of advancing. We get one of them early in the 2nd half on another McCullough header. However, no matter what we do, we can't get into a good scoring position again. We win the match, but lose on tiebreakers.

Final: Des Moines 1, North Carolina 0
Goals: McCullough
Top Three: McCullough, Arroyo, Arias

Christy - lvl 31
Pennington - lvl 39
Still - lvl 35
Pressley - lvl 33
Arroyo - lvl 25

[larrymcg421]

Winter break activities...

*Worthless youth pull. A lvl 16 keeper.

*I sell Arias for $168,000. He doesn't contribute in the right ways to my midfield.

*I will sell Pennington on the last day of the transfer window. He's worth over $300,000 and it's time to try to get enough money to upgrade my youth academy again.

*I buy CD Joseph for $135,600. He's lvl 32 and has 48 Defense and 32 Control.

*I sell DF Christy for $385,000. Part of my rebuilding project.

*I upgrade my defensive coach again and my defenders now get 280% extra XP.

*This leaves me with $601,650. Once I sell Pennington, I will use the proceeds to buy the $800,000 Youth Academy upgrade.

[larrymcg421]

Midseason standings...

https://snag.gy/GLXfod.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Sacramento Republic (7-2-4, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (1-7-5, 12th)


Sacramento gets on the board midway through the 1st half by testing the weaker spot of our defense. We don't manage a single shot on goal the entire match as both of Epperson's crosses go out of bounds and we can't connect any range pass to our Forwards.

Final: Sacramento 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Guy, Norton, Joseph

Guy - lvl 38
Grubbs - lvl 32

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-7-6, 12th) at Richmond Kickers (7-1-6, 6th)

Richmond also decides to test our new defender, but they don't manage to break through despite 65% possession. I try for an aerial attack in the 2nd half, but no luck as they intercept the cross. We get one last shot to win it, but McCullough's low percentage shot is stopped when he rolls a 1.

Final: Richmond 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Grubbs, Pressley, Norton

Joseph - lvl 33

[larrymcg421]

Tampa Bay Rowdies (6-5-4, 7th) at Des Moines Menace (1-7-7, 12th)


We salvage another boring 0-0 draw.

Final: Tampa Bay 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Still, Pennington, Epperson

McCullough - lvl 37
Reese - lvl 34

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-8-7, 12th) at OKC Energy (4-5-7, 10th)

The worst moment of our season was, without a doubt, OKC Energy snatching a victory from us at the last minute. And it looked like that might happen again. After a scoreless first half in which I make a blunder because I forgot that offside rules still count in this game (I was so excited to pass to a guy right in front of the keeper!), Pennington is able to penetrate their oddly shaped defense and beat the keeper to give us the lead. Late in the 2nd half, their forward got into the penalty area and received a spectacular pass. He beats Pressley with the cannon shot. However, Pennington would not let it happen again. He penetrated the OKC defense again and fired a terrific shot past the Sweeper and the Keeper to win the game!

Final: Des Moines 2, OKC 1
Goal: Pennington 2
Top Three: Pennington, Norton, Arroyo

Grubbs - lvl 33
Still - lvl 36

[larrymcg421]

Transfer window is closing. I have a huge decision to make. I just assumed I'd sell Pennington, but I notice several things...

*McCullough is only worth $30,000 less.

*Pennington is a year younger and is signed for longer.

*McCullough has been performing better than Pennington overall, but that's mostly due to headers, which have not been working so well in the 2nd League.

*So I sell McCullough for $280,000. It's sad to see him go. He's been with us for 4.5 seasons and scored 54 goals.

*Still is 33 yrs old and has only 7 months remaining on his contract. The problem is I don't have anyone to stick in his spot. He may end up retiring with us. If so, we will have a chance to renew him for 3 years in the offseason.

*I pay $800,000 to upgrade the Youth Academy. My youth pulls will now range from lvl 20-30.

[larrymcg421]

Charlotte Independence (6-3-8, 9th) at Des Moines Menace (2-8-7, 12th)

Not a great start to the Pennington era. We get 4 shots on goal, but he misses three of them. Rookie Ellison misses the other shot. Our defensive line gets breached several times, but we're able to regroup and shut down the attacks.

Final: Des Moines 0, Charlotte 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Guy, Epperson, Joseph

Guy - lvl 44 (6 level jump because he attained a group bonus). He now has 101 defense.
Arroyo - lvl 26
Norton - lvl 20

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-9-7, 12th) at FC Edmonton (14-2-2, 1st)

They are just too good for us to deal with. Edmonton opens with a long range goal from the left side of the field. They follow it up just a few moments later with a deadly Rainbow Feint. We can't generate anything against their absurdly good Keeper.

Final: Edmonton 2, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Norton, Arroyo, Reese

[larrymcg421]

North Carolina FC (10-4-5, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (2-10-7, 12th)

Another scoreless draw. Never really got much chance to make use of Whittington's Nutmeg ability. They only managed 1 shot on goal and Arroyo was dominant throughout the match.

Final: Des Moines 0, North Carolina 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Arroyo, Ellison, Joseph

Reese - lvl 35

*The points do add up from all these draws. With 6 matches left, we are only 1 pt behind OKC Energy for the final non-relegation spot.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-11-7, 12th) at Saint Louis FC (5-2-13, 13th)

Stupid fucking triple Rainbow Feint asshole destroys us again. I have no idea how to stop it or why the AI teams have been owning St. Louis with this in their arsenal. Shrug.


Final: St. Louis 3, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Epperson, Still, Reese

Epperson - lvl 35
Joseph - lvl 34

[larrymcg421]

Charleston Battery (13-3-5, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (2-11-8, 12th)

Zero shots on goal. We try two crosses, but both get intercepted before Ellison can even get a head on them. They score early in the 1st half and never let us get close to threatening them.

Final: Charleston 1, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Norton, Reese, Still

Grubbs - lvl 34

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-11-9, 12th) at Nashville SC (0-2-20, 14th)

And so goes probably any chance we had to promote. Against the worst team in the league, we can't connect on any of our 4 shots. They never threaten us and barely even try to score, opting instead to play keep away.

Final: Nashville 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Adams, Arroyo, Joseph

*We are now 5 pts out of the last non-relegation spot with only 3 matches to go.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-12-9, 13th) at Real Monarchs (7-2-14, 11th)

Pennington gets denied in a one on one situation right in front of the goal. On his other good opportunity, he gets stripped as he tries to get in good position. And that's the story of the match. Real gets 5 shots on goal, but we defend them all, and it's a scoreless draw.

Final: Real Monarchs 0, Des Moines 0
Goal: None
Top Three: Still, Reese, Adams

Still - lvl 37
Adams - lvl 20

[larrymcg421]

San Francisco Deltas (14-7-3, 4th) at Des Moines Menace (2-13-9, 13th)

Once again, Pennington gets denied in two solid situations. Then San Fran uses Rainbow Feint twice in the first half to stake a 2-0 lead. Pennington finally breaks through midway through the 2nd half when we take advantage of their defensive lapse. We almost get a chance to equalize, when Ellison gets great position, but Norton can't get the ball to him.

Final: San Francisco 2, Des Moines 1
Goal: Pennington
Top Three: Still, Pennington, Norton

Reese - lvl 36

*This clinches our demotion. We are 5 pts out of the last non-relegation spot with only 1 match to go.

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (2-13-10, 13th) at Ottawa Fury (12-3-10, 6th)

They go up early on a header, only the 2nd time that's ever been successful against us. Pennington finally gets on the board to open the 2nd half. We survive several more Ottawa attacks and actually get the ball to Ellison in prime position for his first career goal to win it, but the keeper makes the save.

Final: Ottawa 1, Des Moines 1
Goal: Pennington
Top Three: Arroyo, Pennington, Norton

Grubbs - lvl 35

[larrymcg421]

Final standings...

https://snag.gy/90VMT7.jpg

*Arroyo was 8th with 33 tackles.

*Pressley was 6th with 13 saves.

[larrymcg421]

Offseason activities...

*We pick SlideX as the sponsor. They'll pay $1,540 for each home victory and $33,600 if we get promoted.

*My youth pull is Central Midfielder Shepard, a lvl 21 player with 44 passing. I wish he had better control.

*I sell Norton for $95,200. My youth pull is already better than him.

*There's not another DF on the transfer list (I even wasted $$ on the global list to see.) So I decide to renew Still for 3 yrs, $150,249 and he will retire with us.

*There is a CD on the list, so I sell Joseph, the weakest of my CD's for $197,000 and buy his replacement Crow for $74,500. Crow is older, but better.

*We are down to 15 fans. Hopefully a successful season can build that back up.

*This leaves me with $157,940 in the bank.

[larrymcg421]

My squad as we enter the new season...

https://snag.gy/aORUu6.jpg

[larrymcg421]

Reno 1868 FC (0-0-0) at Des Moines Menace (0-0-0)

Our return to the Third League starts off swimmingly, though it is against a terrible Reno squad. Pennington badly misses his first shot, but gets on the board at the 28 minute mark. Our midfield dominated the game and gets it to him two more times, which he converts for his first ever hat trick. Ellison is still looking for the first goal of his career.

Final: Des Moines 3, Reno 0
Goals: Pennington 3
Top Three: Pennington, Arroyo, Epperson

Guy - lvl 45
Pressley - lvl 34
Arroyo - lvl 27
Ellison - lvl 23
Shepard - lvl 22

[larrymcg421]

FC Montreal (1-0-0, 5th) at Des Moines Menace (1-0-0, 1st)

They have a very defensive setup that is hard for us to penetrate, so we end the first half at a scoreless tie. Then they manage to break through at the 70 minute mark when they win a corner and we lose the positioning battle. Thankfully, a great counterattack late in the game got the ball to a motivated Pennington, who was able to find the equalizer.

Final: Des Moines 1, Montreal 1
Goals: Pennington 1
Top Three: Grubbs, Shepard, Pennington

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-1-0, 3rd) at Phoenix Rising (1-1-0, 5th)

What an absurd result this one was. We just can't catch any breaks and Phoenix goes up early on a header. Then they somehow manage to snag a low percentage goal late in the 1st half. We manage three shots throughout the match and Pennington has terrible rolls on all three.

Final: Phoenix 2, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Shepard, Arroyo, Crow

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (1-1-1, 6th) at Nashville SC (2-1-0, 2nd)

Shepard has to rest and Pennington gets injured early on, so we pretty much have no attack. I move Epperson to the wing to try and hit some crosses with my CF's, but both attempts get intercepted. We get good position a couple times, but without Pennington, we're unable to make anything of it.

Final: Nashville 0, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Grubbs, Adams, Ellison

Still - lvl 38

[larrymcg421]

Real Monarchs (4-0-0, 1st) at Des Moines Menace (1-2-1, 7th)

Pennington nails a power shot late in the 1st half and that would be all that we needed. Most of the 2nd half is played on their end of the pitch and we get some good chances that neither Pennington nor Ellison can convert.

Final: Des Moines 1, Real Monarchs 0
Goals: Pennington
Top Three: Adams, Pennington, Pressley

[larrymcg421]

Tulsa Roughnecks (3-2-0, 2nd) at Des Moines Menace (2-2-1, 6th)

We dominate possession and hold Tulsa to only 1 shot on goal the entire match. Still, it takes us until the 64th minute when Pennington gets a superb pass from Epperson and converts the one on one opportunity. I try to get Ellison a goal late, but he still can't find one.

Final: Des Moines 1, Tulsa 0
Goals: Pennington
Top Three: Epperson, Pennington, Crow

Crow - lvl 33

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-2-1, 6th) at Sonoma County Sol (2-2-2, 8th)

And Pennington goes back to his habit of mising high percentage shots. Sonoma manages 4 shots against us, but our defense and Pressley are too strong to let anything go through.

Final: Des Moines 0, Sonoma 0
Goals:
Top Three: Guy, Epperson, Shepard

Pennington - lvl 40

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (3-3-1, 4th) at San Antonio FC (4-0-3, 5th)

San Antonio plays with 6 defenders. That, combined with our poor finishing ability, makes for a fairly obvious 0-0 tie.

Final: Des Moines 0, San Antonio 0
Goals:
Top Three: Arroyo, Epperson, Crow

[larrymcg421]

Chattanooga FC (0-5-3, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (3-4-1, 4th)

And we hit three straight matches without a goal. And this time, Chattanooga is able to find the net twice, the first time on a low percentage shot and the second when they take advantage of my desperate attempts to salvage a draw and use Cannon Shot to beat Pressley.

Final: Chattanooga 2, Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Shepard, Grubbs, Arroyo

[larrymcg421]

AFC Cleveland (2-2-5, 10th) at Des Moines Menace (3-4-2, 7th)

We finally break out of our offensive slump. Pennington scores easily in the 4th minute of the match. Later int he 1st half, we get the ball to Ellison in great position and he finally bags the first goal of his career. I bring in Adams off the bench and he uses his long pass skill to get the ball to Pennington behind the defense. Pennington converts. We give up a late meaningless goal.

Final: Des Moines 3, AFC Cleveland 1
Goals: Pennington 2, Ellison
Top Three: Pennington, Epperson, Grubbs

Guy - lvl 46
Still - lvl 39
Reese - lvl 38
Grubbs - lvl 37
Arroyo - lvl 28

[larrymcg421]

Des Moines Menace (4-4-2, 5th) at Pittsburgh Riverhounds (2-0-8, 11th)

I play a 5-4-1 in this one, using only Pennington as a striker, so I can put Adams in the midfield to take advantage of his Long Pass skill. This works perfectly late int he 2nd half, when Adams gets the ball to Pennington behind the defense and he converts. Pennington gets two more chances like this, but can't add to the lead. We easily snuff out Pittsburgh's 4 shots.

Final: Des Moines 1, Pittsburgh 0
Goals: Pennington
Top Three: Pennington, Guy, Grubbs

[larrymcg421]

Prestige Cup: Round of 32: Leg 1 - Des Moines Menace at FC Montreal

We lose the first leg due to a Rainbow Feint. Their 5 man line makes it hard for Pennington to find good position and a raindy day makes it hard for Epperson to connect on his long range passes.

Final: Montreal 1 , Des Moines 0
Goals:
Top Three: Arroyo, Shepard, Guy

Ellison - lvl 24