Front Office Football Central - View Single Post - Moving On: From Loughborough Uni to Bristol Rovers (FM 16)

Greyfriars Bobby · 01-30-2020, 09:44 PM

Offseason Thoughts

I was very happy with how my first season at Loughborough University went. Expected to finish mid-table, we finished the season in second. Even more encouraging was our especially strong second half; we accumulated 43 points after the midpoint of the season, only three fewer than runaway winner Hereford United.

But as soon as the transfer window opened in early June, I discovered what will be the most frustrating thing about managing a club like the Scholars. My inbox was almost immediately filled with messages about contract offers my players were receiving from clubs that could, and would, pay them to play.

I also learned that professional and semi-pro clubs released their unwanted youth players at about the same time. I'd planned to check the list out, if only to learn about players I might want to bring in to replace the ones who would turn 22 during the upcoming season. Now, my investigation took on a new sense of urgency.

Over the next six weeks, eight Loughborough Uni players signed contracts with other clubs. I was flattered by the fact that all of them signed for teams in league football, four levels above NLS Step Five, where we'll play again in 2016/17. Still, it was infuriating to watch a large part of the core of my team leave the club.

Among them were the four best players from the group of newcomers who arrived in March. Were I managing a semiprofessional club, I'd at least be able to sell these players, and realize some profit from them. At an amateur team, they simply leave.

In mid-July, I was invited to interview for jobs at Daventry Town and Leatherhead. Both are semipro clubs who play one level higher than Loughborough, and both offered me the job.

I seriously considered taking one or the other, and if the members of my backroom staff had been willing to move with me, I might very well have bid Loughborough Uni goodbye. I like the staff I've put together, though, and I managed to bring some new players I'm excited about. So, I've decided to stick with the Scholars for at least one more year.

01-30-2020, 09:44 PM	#9
Greyfriars Bobby College Prospect Join Date: Sep 2013	Offseason Thoughts I was very happy with how my first season at Loughborough University went. Expected to finish mid-table, we finished the season in second. Even more encouraging was our especially strong second half; we accumulated 43 points after the midpoint of the season, only three fewer than runaway winner Hereford United. But as soon as the transfer window opened in early June, I discovered what will be the most frustrating thing about managing a club like the Scholars. My inbox was almost immediately filled with messages about contract offers my players were receiving from clubs that could, and would, pay them to play. I also learned that professional and semi-pro clubs released their unwanted youth players at about the same time. I'd planned to check the list out, if only to learn about players I might want to bring in to replace the ones who would turn 22 during the upcoming season. Now, my investigation took on a new sense of urgency. Over the next six weeks, eight Loughborough Uni players signed contracts with other clubs. I was flattered by the fact that all of them signed for teams in league football, four levels above NLS Step Five, where we'll play again in 2016/17. Still, it was infuriating to watch a large part of the core of my team leave the club. Among them were the four best players from the group of newcomers who arrived in March. Were I managing a semiprofessional club, I'd at least be able to sell these players, and realize some profit from them. At an amateur team, they simply leave. In mid-July, I was invited to interview for jobs at Daventry Town and Leatherhead. Both are semipro clubs who play one level higher than Loughborough, and both offered me the job. I seriously considered taking one or the other, and if the members of my backroom staff had been willing to move with me, I might very well have bid Loughborough Uni goodbye. I like the staff I've put together, though, and I managed to bring some new players I'm excited about. So, I've decided to stick with the Scholars for at least one more year.