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Greyfriars Bobby · 04-02-2019, 01:35 PM

Offseason 2015

We ended up four points clear of St. Pat's Athletic and a comfortable seven ahead of Dundalk. Those two clubs will play in the EURO Cup in 2016, along with (growl) Shamrock Rovers, who beat Longford to win the Senior Challenge Cup.

I really like the style of football I've been able to get this team to play. They score a lot of goals, while managing to keep things tight at the back. When teams score against us, they're often taking advantage of a set piece or beating us on a counter-attack. Meanwhile, we put together some very pretty team goals.

Poor Athlone Town are supposedly one of our rivals, but I feel badly for them. Outclassed nearly every single match, they're heading back down to the First Division next season. Four other clubs were battling to keep above the drop in the season's final weeks. University College Dublin ended up losing out, and I'm sorry to see them go down, too.

Here are the statistics for our outfield players. Well, most of them, at least. I forgot to grab the stats before Peter Johansson's loan expired and he returned to his native Sweden. He appeared in 31 games, scoring five goals, adding five assists, and playing to a 7.00 average rating.

The first name on the list is Mr. Everpresent, Alan Woods. He's not spectacular, but he's consistent, and he is a perfect example of a guy who plays better than his "star rating" would indicate.

Kenneth Díaz is just as solid on the other side of our back four. Those eight assists are evidence of his ability to move forward and join the attack and, of course, the effectiveness of his long throws.

There's a lot more to be said about Roy Murphy later on. For now, take a look at those offensive contributions--contributing to 12 goals as a center back--and the big numbers in the "interceptions" and "aerial challenges won" columns.

Then there's Kieron Russell, my pick for the top player in the Premier Division this season. His 12 assists tied for the league lead with a teammate, whose totals are jacked up because he spent the first part of the season on a loan deal before we bought him. That would be Pasquale Van Daele, of course.

Russell and Billy Ryan contributed lots of key passes, which I understand to be passes that resulted in a shot on target. Aaron O'Connor's high pass completion rate speaks to his ability to make smart passes in transition, exactly what I'm looking for from our defensive midfielder.

Declan Nolan was a big success for us, and I renewed his loan for another season. He was third on the list of top scorers in league play. Two more loanees from English Premier League clubs, Aaron Sikumoya and Sean Glynn, were also instrumental to our success. West Ham, Chelsea, and Everton were happy to renew our loan arrangements for these three players for 2016.

Damion Watson never seemed to get his season going. As soon as he'd recover from one injury and play his way back into fitness, he'd go down again. He was productive when he was on the pitch, but it felt like a lost season for the Jamaican wide man.

The stats above represent the curtain call for Rudmer Talsma, who has chosen to retire after tearing ligaments in his knee. Rudmer wants to stay in football, and he has the makings of a fine coach or scout. However, he's refusing to discuss any position other than Head of Youth Development, and I'm not going to dump Ole Morten Reinum for him. Maybe another time, Rudmer.

Gary Joyce won't be back, either. I would have loved to have another season like 2015 from him, with nine goals as our #2 option at striker. Unfortunately for us, Gary wants to be The Man, and he's proven himself too brittle to handle that job. He wouldn't accept an offer for us for any role other than Key Player, so I wished him well and let his contract expire.

We brought in Gareth Kearney on September 1, and while it's not fair to many of his teammates to say he was the reason for our successful title run, it's also not fair to Gareth to minimize his contribution. When injuries ravaged our team in the later weeks of the season, I could move Gareth around the formation and count on him to do a job wherever he landed. He also starred for his country, scoring four goals in seven appearances for Ireland Under 21s.

04-02-2019, 01:35 PM	#43
Greyfriars Bobby College Prospect Join Date: Sep 2013	Offseason 2015 We ended up four points clear of St. Pat's Athletic and a comfortable seven ahead of Dundalk. Those two clubs will play in the EURO Cup in 2016, along with (growl) Shamrock Rovers, who beat Longford to win the Senior Challenge Cup. I really like the style of football I've been able to get this team to play. They score a lot of goals, while managing to keep things tight at the back. When teams score against us, they're often taking advantage of a set piece or beating us on a counter-attack. Meanwhile, we put together some very pretty team goals. Poor Athlone Town are supposedly one of our rivals, but I feel badly for them. Outclassed nearly every single match, they're heading back down to the First Division next season. Four other clubs were battling to keep above the drop in the season's final weeks. University College Dublin ended up losing out, and I'm sorry to see them go down, too. Here are the statistics for our outfield players. Well, most of them, at least. I forgot to grab the stats before Peter Johansson's loan expired and he returned to his native Sweden. He appeared in 31 games, scoring five goals, adding five assists, and playing to a 7.00 average rating. The first name on the list is Mr. Everpresent, Alan Woods. He's not spectacular, but he's consistent, and he is a perfect example of a guy who plays better than his "star rating" would indicate. Kenneth Díaz is just as solid on the other side of our back four. Those eight assists are evidence of his ability to move forward and join the attack and, of course, the effectiveness of his long throws. There's a lot more to be said about Roy Murphy later on. For now, take a look at those offensive contributions--contributing to 12 goals as a center back--and the big numbers in the "interceptions" and "aerial challenges won" columns. Then there's Kieron Russell, my pick for the top player in the Premier Division this season. His 12 assists tied for the league lead with a teammate, whose totals are jacked up because he spent the first part of the season on a loan deal before we bought him. That would be Pasquale Van Daele, of course. Russell and Billy Ryan contributed lots of key passes, which I understand to be passes that resulted in a shot on target. Aaron O'Connor's high pass completion rate speaks to his ability to make smart passes in transition, exactly what I'm looking for from our defensive midfielder. Declan Nolan was a big success for us, and I renewed his loan for another season. He was third on the list of top scorers in league play. Two more loanees from English Premier League clubs, Aaron Sikumoya and Sean Glynn, were also instrumental to our success. West Ham, Chelsea, and Everton were happy to renew our loan arrangements for these three players for 2016. Damion Watson never seemed to get his season going. As soon as he'd recover from one injury and play his way back into fitness, he'd go down again. He was productive when he was on the pitch, but it felt like a lost season for the Jamaican wide man. The stats above represent the curtain call for Rudmer Talsma, who has chosen to retire after tearing ligaments in his knee. Rudmer wants to stay in football, and he has the makings of a fine coach or scout. However, he's refusing to discuss any position other than Head of Youth Development, and I'm not going to dump Ole Morten Reinum for him. Maybe another time, Rudmer. Gary Joyce won't be back, either. I would have loved to have another season like 2015 from him, with nine goals as our #2 option at striker. Unfortunately for us, Gary wants to be The Man, and he's proven himself too brittle to handle that job. He wouldn't accept an offer for us for any role other than Key Player, so I wished him well and let his contract expire. We brought in Gareth Kearney on September 1, and while it's not fair to many of his teammates to say he was the reason for our successful title run, it's also not fair to Gareth to minimize his contribution. When injuries ravaged our team in the later weeks of the season, I could move Gareth around the formation and count on him to do a job wherever he landed. He also starred for his country, scoring four goals in seven appearances for Ireland Under 21s.