Leamington Hibernian - Go Hibs! (FM 14)

[Izulde]

Tempted as I was to go with a recycled team, it'll be the Hibs who will be the beneficiaries of my latest start. We'll go with the 4-4-2 Diamond with retain possession, play narrower, much deeper defensive line, more short passing, and lower tempo.

[u]GK[/u]
Damien Stevens (25) - 3.5/3.5

DL
Chris Vinnicombe (42) - 5/5
Quincy Rowe (24) - 5/5
Jack Hont (16) - 2/5

DC
Quincy Rowe (24) - 5/5
David Bastian (32) - 5/5
James Burgess (36) - 4.5/4.5
Emmerson Brooks-Meade (30 - Anguilla) - 3.5/3.5

DR
James Burgess (36) - 5/5
Craig Martin (34) - 5/5
Adam Hinchcliffe (25) - 4.5/4.5
Joe Doran (30)- 1.5/1.5

DM
James Burgess (36) - 5/5
Emmerson Brooks-Meade (30) - 2/2

ML
Robert Ritchie-Smith (26) - 3/3
Quincy Rowe (24) - 1.5/3.5
Chris Waldrum (23) - 1/5
Nick Goold (26) - 0.5/0.5

MR
Adam Hinchcliffe (25) - 4/4
Joe Doran (30) - 0.5/0.5

AMC
Mark Keddie (24) - 0.5/1.5
Joe Doran (30) - 0.5/0.5

ST
Danny Edmond (24) - 4/5
Rob Cam (28) - 4/4
Robert Ritchie-Smith - 2.5/2.5
Alex Honour (21) - 2.5 silver/3
Sam Mitten (17) - 1.5 silver/5

I put together a team that focuses on Teamwork and Work Rate, as that seemed to be the big keys to success with my unjustly fired save. What that's translated to is a bunch of old dudes and a crying need to upgrade my AMC slot. And ML, too, come to think of it.

We transfer in a truckload more players, two of whom I won't talk about now because they're prospects for the future. Of greater immediacy are the following:

AMLCR/MC Kieran Fitzharris - 23
Irish player who excels at the Enganche role, so we're switching from an attacking midfielder at AMC to that. I feel like he's going to be a real game-changer

AMC/ST Dan O'Brien - 26
English despite the obvious Irish last name. He'll be trained as a Target Man, as that's his best role.

MLR Brian Roberts - 28
Depth signing on both midfield spots. He'll start while we wait for our actual starter to heal from injury. Or maybe not.

ML/AML Elliot Osborne-Ricketts - 22
Currently dealing with an injury, but he's a sizable upgrade at the position, both now and in the future.

@Alcester Town
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/David Bastian/Craig Martin
DM: James Burgess
M: Brian Matthews/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

30 - Bullshit PK. 0-1

Brooks-Meade replaces Burgess at the half, yet he loses confidence when I tell him I have faith in him? WTF.

80 - O'Brien in for a tired Fitzharris

91 - Rowe pops a pass up to Cam from behind the half, and it's a calm stride forward for the late equalizer 1-1

The team is confused when I tell them they were unlucky. What the HELL? I so don't know how to talk to these guys.

Transfer In - All left stuff Elliot Payne (24)
A fantastic defensive winger. Wide midfielder, not so much. We have waaaay too many left midfielders now.

Transfer In - AMC/MC Sam West (26)
Will be a primary backup to Fitzharris.

9th vs FC Stratford (12th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/David Bastian/Craig Martin
DM: James Burgess
M: Brian Matthews/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

32 - Sigh. 0-1

49 - Fitzharris with the corner to Rowe's head and we tie. A lot of shuffling that sees Hinchcliffe move to DR, Matthews to DL, Payne in at ML, Rowe shifting to DL, and Brooks-Meade in at DC. And of course Burgess gets a green cross immediately after.

66 - That's good, but Cam is whistled offsides in a total BS call.

Lovely.



These are the same damn talk styles I used during my great late run with Ashridge! What the fuck, guys?! Evidently you want me to yell at you more?!

Quincy Rowe and James Burgess are named captain and vice-captain for the season.

9th @ Barton United (5th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/David Bastian/Craig Martin
DM: James Burgess
M: Elliot Osborne-Ricketts/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

30 - Out goes Edmond with injury; O'Brien his replacement.

Just before the half ends, Burgess is hurt yet again, requiring Brooks-Meade in his place.

52 - Unbelievable. Dude ran through 3 fucking defenders. 0-1

Hopefully this is just a case of the team still getting used to each other and the system. Or maybe I chose the wrong guys to bring in? Who knows.

[Izulde]

[b]13th vs Paget (10th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/David Bastian/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Osborne-Ricketts/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Dan O'Brien
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

I'm having the 90% guys sit, hence the shuffle in the normal starters.

46 - Just before the half, Brooks-Meade gets knocked, but he does a lot of directing of passes as we try to work something up the middle. That doesn't happen, so it goes to Hinchcliffe on the wing for a 1-2 with Cam, our AF crossing to the head of Edmond for the snatching lead. 1-0

57 - Ritchie-Smith in for Osborne-Ricketts, as the latter is having a poor game. I forgot to put a DMC in the reserves, soo oops.

64 - And I'm rewarded for my subbing, as Ritchie-Smith to Edmond to Cam in the box for a clean, straight line goal 2-0

68 - Way too many corners for them 2-1

76 - Doran in for Martin, who is looking nervous and having a meh game.

92 - Hinchcliffe got caught fucking napping on a passing and they screw us over on the counter. FUCKING HORSESHIT!!! 2-2

Bad Trains
Damien Stevens
Chris Vinnicombe
James Burgess

14th @ Northfield Town (13th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/James Burgess/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Osborne-Ricketts/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

Doing some tinkering with the lineup a bit. I may need to get some more youth on the backline if this group isn't going to be able to compete for a title this season.

30 - Hinchcliffe passes out of pressure to Cam, who launches it into space for Fitzharris to pick up. Rather than continue driving in the penalty area, our Irish Enganche dribbles out further on the right side of the box before firing in the angled goal. 1-0

40 - Brooks-Meade to Edmond, who sends it back to Fitzharris for the spray out to Cam. Cross back to Edmond, stride forward in the box, and rocket shot! 2-0

75 - Doran replaces Martin at DR, and Sam West jumps in at AMC for the tiring Fitzharris.

7.4 each for Rom Cam and Danny Edmond, who have been great up front all season long. 7.2 for Kieran Fitzharris, who needs to develop his stamina, but is quickly becoming one of my favorite players. 7.1 for Chris Vinnicombe too, who's showing that old dudes can still get it done.

About fucking time we break through with a win.

Transfer In - AMC Ashley Hill (24) - From Newcastle Town
How good is this kid? He's better than Fitzharris, and we're going to train our Irishman as a DMC as a result, where he's currently yellow (actually Fitzharris is yellow in every.single.position. our setup calls for, so he'll become our versatile reserve).

10th vs Kenilworth Town (3rd)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/James Burgess/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Osborne-Ricketts/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

21 - Because fucking being consistent 0-1

56 - Hill has been struggling with his debut, but here he 1-2s with Brooks-Meade, who pops a ball over the head of the defender and right into Cam's path for the equalizer. The note says Cam looks "motivated and committed" 1-1

56 - O'Brien in for Edmond, Fitzharris for Hill, and Matthews for Osborne-Ricketts

We had several shots in the closing minutes, but just couldn't break through for the win. I'll take the draw, however. It's another point, one that moves us up to 9th, and we were tabbed to finish 14th by the media before the season began.

Tranfer In - DRLC/DM Guy Heffernan (29) - From Holker OB
I haven't been happy with Craig Martin at the DR spot, and Heffernan allows me to shift James Burgess there and put Heffernan in at DC, which gives us a considerable upgrade in role suitability in addition to getting younger.

Good Train
DL Chris Vinnicombe

Bad Trains
Craig Martin
Brian Matthews
Alex Honour

9th @ Coventry United (1st)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/James Burgess
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

Elliott Osborne-Ricketts is out of the starting lineup due to poor form, giving Elliot Payne a shot at winning the job.

39 - Fucking awful backpass by Hill. 0-1

49 - Fitzharris in for Hill

78 - Double yellow for one of their players.

Unfortunately we can't take advantage of being a man up. Frustrating loss.

Joe Doran is released on a free, because really, he's just not going to crack the team anymore, and is too old to grow.

12th vs Enville Athletic (5th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/James Burgess
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Adam Hinchcliffe
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

52 - Fitzharris on for Hill and Matthews for Hinchcliffe.

Just couldn't get anything done. Hill will no longer be our starting AMC. I gave him 3 games and he's gotten pulled in each one for awful play. We need to find a MR, too, because Hinchcliffe is just not good enough or consistent enough - probably because he's a defensive winger, not a wide midfielder.

Transfer in - MR/AMR Chris Agutter (24)
Instantaneous better fit for the role we're asking our wide midfielders to play. It's about gradually improving the team, piece by piece. I'm just hoping to do well enough to keep on with the team while I try to build a system and roster here, though summer raids will of course make it difficult.

Nick Goold and Chris Waldrum are given their walking papers after they complain about a squad change and refuse to talk to me.

12th @ Rostance Edwards (13th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/James Burgess
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

26 - Fitzharris gets the green cross, so West goes in.

37 - This is a team we should be destroying 0-1

57 - Brooks-Meade crosses to Agutter in the box, who holds up play before a short pass forward to Cam, and we're tied up. This is a team that responds well to being told they suck at the half 1-1

66 - Edmond beautifully sets up West, who blows the 1 on 1. ARGH!

69 - Lousy game by Burgess means Heffernan shifts to DR and Bastian gets back in.

Frustrating game. We're really struggling to find our way to wins, though at least we're able to keep picking up draw points.

James Burgess is out 4 weeks, which is a bummer.

Good Train
Emmerson Brooks-Meade

Bad Trains
Craig Martin
Chris Vinnicombe

12th vs Polesworth (4th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

11 - First time I can remember a fluke goal going our way, as Payne hits a long ball just in the opponent's half on a free kick that somehow finds the net 1-0

27 - Brooks-Meade passes 25 yards up to Fitzharris, and the pristine pass to Edmond in the box nets a genuine goal! 2-0

55 - Amazing interception by Fitzharris, and the pass to Edmond results in a rainbow with Cam's beating the defense and the keeper on the 1 v 1 the sweet ass pot of gold! 3-0

63 - Ugh. Brooks-Meade with an own goal, and I have no one to replace him. Need to do that 3-1

74 - Bastian for Heffernan and Matthews for Agutter

84 - West on for the tired Fitzharris

Our best game of the year by far! 7.8 for Elliot Payne, 7.9 for Kieran Fitzharris, 8.3 for PotM Rob Cam and 7.9 for Danny Edmond

Transfer In - DM/MC Jordan Harris (19)
He's not going to unseat Emmerson Brooks-Meade, as I learned my lesson from before. He's an excellent Ball-Winning Midfielder, but we're going to have him develop into a Deep-Lying Playmaker that our system calls for.

Terrible news as Kieran Fitzharris is out 5-6 weeks. He's really the force that powers us.

8th @ Inkberrow (4th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

I've been making the mid-game adjustment to Play Out of Defense, and we seem to do better with it, because Damien Stevens is horrid at kicking for the most part, so I've gone ahead to make it part of our baseline strategy. It'll set back our familiarity training, but that's okay. And yes, that's fucking Inkberrow we're playing against, a team I managed to promote who later screwed me over in another dynasty.

4 - Yay own goals that go for us! Hill, by the way, made a stupid misplay of a ball that resulted in a throw-in for them, and he looked agonized over it. Maybe I should have started Sam West instead. 1-0

20 - Vinnicombe throw-in to Payne, who gives back to Vinnicombe. A pass to Edmond on the wing, and hello fluke goal on the cross that was intended for Cam's head. We'll take it. 2-0

24 - Nothing anyone could do about that 2-1

44 - Edmond gets a great, high pass from Payne in the box, and is promptly drilled in the dirt. That's a yellow for them, and our first PK of the year! Edmond converts! 3-1

66 - Matthews for Agutter, West for Hill, the latter of whom hasn't been the worst thing ever for his first game, but who is getting tired.

Danny Edmond and his 8.6 singlehandedly carried us to victory here.

We've still got a ways to go in our familiarity with what I'm calling the Izuldean Diamond, but it's always going to be slow going with an amateur side, particularly one that sees a lot of flux. I seem to recall reading on reddit that it took someone a full 2 seasons before they finally got to fluid with their amateur side, due to the turnover and all of that.

[Izulde]

8th @ Badsey Rangers (15th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

2 - Long, slow build up on the right wing that culminates in Agutter kicking a high ball in the goal area. The keeper misjudges his jump and Edmond calmly knocks the ball in with the header. 1-0

60 - West in for sucking again Hill, and O'Brien in for Cam, who's been lackluster the last couple games.

71 - Too slow, Heffernan. Too fucking slow 1-1

85 - Agutter sends a high one to West, who crosses to Edmond, and the lad's head finds his second goal of the game!!!! Evidently it was Vinnicombe who took the blame for that goal, so Rowe moves to the DL spot, and Bastian comes in at DC. 2-1

Once again, it was Danny Edmond's 8.8 that took us to this surprisingly narrow victory. We'll take it. Chris Vinnicombe had the worst game of any player this season - 5.7. But we escape with the 3 points.

Side note: Dan O'Brien kept getting wrecked in the box, and we never got a penalty called for it when we should have.

That's our fifth straight game without defeat, and we've launched ourselves up into 6th place. Nobody seriously considers us a title contender, but it's still cool to see my homebrewed 4-4-2 Diamond from my Ashridge save working here.

Theo McDonald is a dick. He says we didn't deserve the late goal win. I tell the journalists he's an idiot, and then McDonald comes back and says I'm "bitter and petty". Fuck you, chode.

My assman thinks I should drop Chris Agutter and Craig Martin. The latter will happen shortly - the former, lol no. I mean, he hasn't been stellar, but he hasn't been awful, either. Actually, I might leave Martin as the starter. Or maybe I'll put James Burgess back in. Not sure yet.

Good Train
James Burgess

Bad Trains
Chris Vinnicombe
Emmerson Brooks-Meade
Dan O'Brien

I'm up to Very Secure. And obviously since we're an amateur side, we keep printing small amounts of money every month.

6th vs Austrey Rangers (10th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Chris Vinnicombe/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/James Burgess
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliot Payne/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

52 - O'Brien in for Cam, who is having a major funk right now.

60 - We get a PK off a corner kick, and Edmond converts! 1-0

64 - Heffernan out to DR and Bastian in at DC, because Burgess already has a yellow and is looking aggressive, to say nothing of meh play.

67 - Thoroughly outplayed there 1-1

73 - Somebody is getting screamed at 1-2

85 - We're blessed with another PK and Edmond bails us out again 2-2

We were damned lucky. Chris Vinnicombe will be dropped, as will Rob Cam, who doesn't think he's played badly at all.

Transfer In - ML/MC Matt Brandish (28) - From Old Woodstock
He'll be inserted as our new left midfielder, because as awesome as Elliot Payne has been as our ML, he's dropping down to DL. That is, until Brandish comes in and we look at him. Elliott Osborne-Ricketts looks better, and has upside to boot.

Transfer In - ST Brian Haule (29) - From Beaconsfield
Sooo... you think the 29 year old Tanzanian striker sounds familiar, do you? Well, he should... because he was my main guy in my Inkberrow dynasty, alternating between the lone striker in the 4-2-3-1 setup, and the main dude in the 4-3-1-2 formation... i.e. the tactics I stole from someone else. :P Here, he's the best striker on the whole damned team, and he'll take over as our advanced forward.

Transfer In - ST Jake Vernon (23)
Um... sooo... yeah. I kind of brought in another guy because Haule only had slight interest in coming here. And he's even better than the Tanzanian veteran.

So now what? This is really awkward.

6th vs Burntwood Town (12th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Brian Haule/Jake Vernon

In for a penny, in for a pound. This will hurt our chemistry and probably cause us to lose, with so many new starters, but if we seriously want to challenge for the title, it's what we need to do, I think.

18 - Haule gets crushed in the box, earning a green cross injury, and a penalty. I can't get Edmond in before the kick, so it's left to Payne to convert, which he does 1-0

Fitzharris replaces the chronically underachieving Hill at the half.

58 - Wow. Edmond blows his first PK of the year.

78 - A gamble here. Fitzharris moves to MR for the tired, and poorly playing Agutter, while Jordan Wright gets his debut at AMC.

7.6 for Quincy Rowe, the first defender to win PotM for us. 7.1 for Damien Stevens, and 7.2 for Elliot Payne, as this is another narrow victory we probably didn't deserve.



That's the table halfway through the season. Winning promotion certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility. I've done it before with a few teams, and this is as good a squad as any to do it with.

[Izulde]

6th vs Alcester Town (8th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/David Bastian/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Keiran Fitzharris
S: Brian Haule/Jake Vernon

Quincy Rowe is still recovering from a cold, so Bastian gets the start today.

5 - Brilliant tackle and takeaway by Heffernan, and two straight line passes to Fitzharris and Vernon gives a wide open shot, only for a shank to occur.

56 - Haule slides over to AF and Edmond comes in as TM. Hill, who I forgot to swap West out for, replaces the tired Fitzharris.

We just can't get anything done, and have to settle for yet another draw. A damned shame, because we could have moved up with a win.

Good Train
Craig Martin

Bad Trains
Chris Vinnicombe
Sam West

6th vs Barton United (2nd)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Keiran Fitzharris
S: Brian Haule/Jake Vernon

A real shot here to gain some ground on one of the two promotion places.

29 - Brooks-Meade has been passing poorly, but in this sequence, he finally distributes well in a central-based build-up. Then it's on to Fitzharris on the wing, who passes to Agutter. A precision strike for a streaking Vernon, and *finally* one of our new strikers gets his first goal. 1-0

31 - Way to fuck up the header, Heffernan. Ugh! 1-1

41 - Fucking dickass PKs. 1-2

Burgess in for Hefferan, Hill in for Fitzharris, and Wright in for Emmerson-Meade at the half.

79 - Well, we've clearly shown today we're not ready to challenge for promotion. 1-3

On top of it, my amazing assman gets hired away, and my top choice rejects us. So I'm forced to take out a fucking ad. Robert Ritchie-Smith is additionally released at his own request, as is Adam Hinchcliffe.

7th @ FC Stratford (12th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/James Burgess/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Keiran Fitzharris
S: Brian Haule/Jake Vernon

6 - Way to leave a dude completely fucking open, guys 0-1

19 - Wow. Dude own goaled that like someone paid him to do it 1-1

50 - Free-kick goal. Fucker. Hill for Fitzharris, Edmond to TM, Haule to AF. 1-2

We played like ass. No two ways about it. Time to shake up the lineup again, at the suggestion of the coach. Alex Honour also leaves.

7th @ Paget (8th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/David Bastian/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Jordan Wright
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Sam West
S: Danny Edmond/Brian Haule

11 - Sigh. 0-1

30 - Burgess in for the error-prone Martin

55 - I smash my keyboard repeatedly 0-2

88 - FUCK YOU! EDMOND WAS ONSIDE!!!!!!!!!!

92 - And now Edmond is hurt. WTFE. Osborne-Ricketts got pulled a while back with Brooks-Meade in at DC after the shuffle. Now it's Haule to TM and Vernon in at AF.

3 weeks to go before our next match. Time for a team meeting before the season goes completely sideways.

[Izulde]

Shane Adcock-Case becomes the latest player to leave. Our team meeting was a great success, however. Mark Keddie also leaves, incidentally.

Good Train
Damien Stevens

Bad Trains
Chris Vinnicombe
Craig Martin
James Burgess

The board downgrades me to Stable. Great. The first manager sack happens, as Paget fires their boss after the favorites have been stuck in the upper half spot. Austrey Rangers also dumps their manager and has their assman as an interim appointment.

9th @ Kenilworth Town (3rd)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan/Craig Martin
DM: Jordan Wright
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Sam West
S: Danny Edmond/Brian Haule

1 - Fucking fluke goal 0-1

30 - Brooks-Meade on for injured Wright

49 - The line screwed us. We fucking scored there.

52 - West recovers his own blocked box bass and pokes it forward to Edmond for the authoritative strike 1-1

61 - Hill comes on for a tiring West

64 - 1-2

One thing I notice is that Agutter is taking way too many shots, so I tell him to shoot less often.

Another team meeting. I'm going to take off the low tempo to see if speeding up the game helps. We lose Quincy Rowe for another few weeks.

I'm pondering adding a backup tactic, one that moves faster, as I think the opposition has figured out this one. 4-4-2 Diamond stays, but this is Attacking, Push Higher Up, Exploit Flanks, and Use Offside Trap - also more player role tweaks.

Good Trains
Craig Martin
Damien Stevens
Jack Hont

Bad Trains
Chris Vinnicombe
David Bastian
Kieran Fitzharris

9th vs Northfield Town (13th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Jack Hont/Emmerson Brooks-Meade/David Bastian/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jordan Wright
M: Matt Brandish/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Jake Vernon

Damien Stevens has jumped up to a 4.5/4.5, which is very cool. Everyone else appears to be crashing, however.

10 - Agutter tries a cross to the far post, but it hits the bar, so Edmond needs to sneak in the header while the goalie's off balance, and he does! 1-0

32 - Wright intercepts the ball and passes to Edmond in the center circle. The long shot cracks home! 2-0

41 - Agutter's cross is a flameout, but Brandish, who I've dusted off because none of our other ML seem to be working, races forward to catch it on the line and center to Edmond for the header hat-trick!!! 3-0

71 - Burgess in for Wright and Fitzharris for Hill.

89 - Thanks for the unnecessary own goal!

Wow, the most complete game we've played all season long!

How complete?



Northfield Town was *completely* unprepared for it. With 8 games to go and 10 points out of the promotion spot, it's unlikely we'll break through, but who knows?

By the way, a look at our newest tactics:



I'll show our old one when we hit an away game.

8th vs Coventry United (2nd)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Jack Hont/Emmerson Brooks-Meade/David Bastian/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jordan Wright
M: Matt Brandish/Chris Agutter
AM: Ashley Hill
S: Danny Edmond/Jake Vernon

14 - Stevens stupidly came out 0-1

At the half, Heffernan moves to DL with Burgess at DR, and Haule takes over for Vernon

47 - Two straight easy shots for Haule, and he can't make either one.

73 - Agutter bombs it to the box where Edmond cuts across to get the ball and draw the defense. With the sneaky layoff, not even Haule can miss this one. 1-1

81 - Horrific pass by Brandish and we're right back where we started 1-2

85 - Hill with a brilliant pass to Haule to get the Tanzanian alone with the keeper, and it's a conversion. Fitzharris hops on for fuckhead Brandish, even though it's late 2-2

91 - Brilliant interception by Hill and a great pass to Edmond in the box... and the ballsy shot goes in!!! OMG OMG OMG!!! 3-2

8.7 for Brian Haule, 8.3 for Ashley Hill, 7.8 for Danny Edmond, 7.4 for Damien Stevens, and 7.1 for David Bastian. This was not at ALL a win we deserved, and Edmond was probably offsides on the game-winner.

Emmerson Brooks-Meade gives me full credit for the inspiring halftime talk when I told everyone off. Burntwood Town sacked their manager, by the way.

9 points out of 2nd place. 7 more games to go. Can we do it?

[Izulde]

Transfer In - DM/DR Anthony Sheehan (31) - From Witton
Thought he would be an answer to our away formation, but he turns out to only be depth. Oops.

Transfer In - DM Simon Mirfin (31) - From Frickley
Ditto Sheehan. Makes me think I'll need to give up on the DLP out of the DM spot, and need to tweak the role to either the BWM as in our other formation, or perhaps the Anchorman?



Yep. Anchorman it is. It's a slight tactical tweak, but one that should hopefully improve our defense.

Youth Pulls
GK Richard Clarke (15)
GK Alek Wheeler (16)
DLC Rowan Cartwright (16) - A starter at DC.
DL Adrian Mitchell (15)
DCR/DM Jason Connolly (15) - A key player right off the bat, who will probably take over both roles of the DM.
DC Andy Carroll (15)
DC Scott Scott (15) - LOL! Best.name.ever.
DM/MC Daniel Stanley (15) - BWM prospect.
MLR/AMR Clive Gedny (16)
ML/AML Adam Storey (15)
AMR/MCR Adam Stamp (16)
MR/AMR Paul Tunnicliffe (16)
AMC/MC/ST Carl Jenkinson (16) - Injured, but an immediate starter in our attacking formation when he heals, and possibly in the Enganche spot as well.
ST Chris Dowley (16) - Could probably start now, but I'm not going to rush him.
ST Brian Stevens (15) - TM prospect.
ST Tyrone Crookes (15)

7th @ Enville Athletic (6th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Jake Vernon

Teams are ALREADY sniffing around Jason Connolly, which I'm just ugh about. There's only a few more days before the trade deadline, so hopefully he can hang on.

15 - Deserved penalty on Heffernan, but Stevens blocks it!

19 - Stunner of a pass from Edmond to Vernon on a counter, but true to form, the dude shanks it. The ball sprays out to the left, where Osborne-Ricketts grabs it and sends it back to Payne. Around the mulberry bush of Connolly to Agutter, and this shot I'm okay with, because it's an easy put-in for his first goal. 1-0

40 - Cartwright wings it out to Agutter deep in our half and the rocket is looking for Vernon, but instead it finds Edmond, who is then taken from behind in the box. There's the PK, and there's Edmond converting!!! 2-0

52 - Hill in for mistake-ravaged Fitzharris, and Dowley on for complacent Vernon.

87 - Perfectly placed free kick shot 2-1

92 - Dowley is getting double-teamed, but he's able to send a long ball through them to the box, where a streaking Hill slams the insurance goal home. 3-1

7.5 for Chris Agutter, 7.2 for Jason Connolly on his debut, and 7.1 for Ashley Hill off the bench. While the win doesn't move us up the standings, we're now 6 points back of a promotion place with 6 to play.

7th @ Polesworth (5th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Danny Edmond/Chris Dowley

Fortunately, efforts to pry away our players fail, and we're able to keep the kids for the stretch run.

28 - Terrific presence by Dowley to backtrack and fetch the ball after the opponent can't control intercepting Fitzharris' pass. An exchange with Agutter later and a far post boom to the head of Edmond sees a score. 1-0

34 - Great-looking cross by Dowley, but the goalie pushes it away. Edmond tracks it down and backpasses to Osborne-Ricketts in the penalty area. And the kick is good!!! 2-0

36 - That didn't look like an own goal. Looked like Edmond walked it in, but we'll take it anyway 3-0

58 - Connolly is knocked out, and I forgot to change my subs, so Brooks-Meade will have to get the call. Shit.

80 - Hill in for Fitzharris

8.3 for Danny Edmond and Elliott Osborne-Ricketts, with Edmond getting PotM. 7.5s for Elliot Payne and Rowan Cartwright, and 7.2s for Guy Heffernan and Quincy Rowe. Best game all year by the backline.

5 games left. We inch up to 6th and are 4 points out of a promotion spot. Just 5 points separate 1st and 7th, so it's a real dogfight heading into the end of the season. Or to point it another way, the gap between 7th and 8th is the exact same as what separates 1st through 7th.

Bad Trains
Chris Vinnicombe
Damien Stevens
James Burgess

From Stable to Untouchable in a single month. DAAAAAAAYUM!

6th vs Rostance Edwards (13th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Quincy Rowe/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Matt Brandish/Chris Agutter
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Danny Edmond/Chris Dowley

Getting some more of our star youth pulls in now that Jenkinson is healthy and Payne isn't really suited to play any better in this formation than anyone else. And I need to keep Rowe, our team captain, in there, and he's equal to a very mediocre fullback lot. Brandish is better than Osborne-Ricketts, so the two will split the ML duties, depending on the formation, as O-R has more upside, and is very comfortable in our original tactic setup.

This smells like a trap game, which scares me.

We should be up by like 3 goals at half, but our finishing has been horrid. Rowe moves back inside and Hont takes over at DL, as Carroll is mistake-laden.

54 - FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!!!! 0-1

71 - Burgess on for Connolly

82 - Haule in for Edmond

4 games and now 6 points back That was a devastating defeat.

6th vs Inkberrow (1st)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Quincy Rowe/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Danny Edmond/Chris Dowley

Simply put, we need to win this game if we want *ANY* hope of promotion.

40 - Diagonal series of passes - Dowley to Jenkinson to Edmond in the half-circle, and the left footed shot goes in! 1-0

46 - FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!! RIGHT BEFORE THE FUCKING HALF!!! 1-1

46 - I throw a jar of peanuts 1-2

57 - Hont in for Rowe and Fitzharris for Osborne-Ricketts

83 - That own goal may save our season 2-2

85 - FUCK YOU, POST!!!! FUCK YOU AND YOUR FUCKING SPLINTER ASS TREE FUCKING BITCHASS FUCKING ANCESTORS!!w!!!!!%!@#$%#$%!

3 games left. 5 points back.

6th @ Austrey Rangers (14th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/Quincy Rowe/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Danny Edmond/Chris Dowley

We're running out of time. We need to make a move NOW! 3 points is an absolute necessity. BTW, I dropped down to Very Secure in the monthly review.

6 - Knock on Jenkinson. Playable through though.

21 - 20 million shots and none go in until Edmond half-volleys one through traffic. 1-0

Mistake after mistake by Rowe, so he's benched for Burgess.

61 - Fitzharris on for Jenkinson

92 - Payne moves up to ML and Hont comes in because Osborne-Ricketts is knocked badly.

Ugly, ugly win.

2 games left. 4 points back. We pretty much need to win this motherfucker out to have any shot.

5th vs Badsey Rangers (13th)
G: Damien Stevens
D: Jack Hont/Quincy Rowe/Rowan Cartwright/Guy Heffernan
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Danny Edmond/Chris Dowley

You fucksticks better not be caught looking ahead. That's all I can fucking say. We not only need a win, we need help from other teams.

11 - 99999999999999999999999999999 fucking shots and not one goes on.

40 -hsgoasroeghugheryt389ph6qw35894pyhgaerf 0-1

44 - Out goes Dowley with injury. In comes Haule

Fitzharris replaces Agutter at MR at half, after I scream my fucking throat at these fucking pathetic pieces of shit, and he looks stressed.

46 - HE WAS NOT FUCKING OFFSSIDE,S YOU COCKSUCKING PUNK FICKER!!!!

54 - Rowe to Osborne-Ricketts, and the pretty ball in box for Edmond. Left-footed volley goes in. NOW GET ANOTHER, MOTHERFUCKERS!!! 1-1

68 hosghty89349y8592348qprfsdjksdjksdjkujuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu 1-2

88 - Excuse me while I rip my keyboard out and throw it 1-3

[Izulde]

Two gouges in the inside bathroom door. That'll come out of my deposit, heh. The enter key popped off as well (fittingly enough), though that was an easy snap back into place. Incidentally, I see from looking at the door that it's had repairs made to it before. It's very cheaply made - pressed wood or cardboard or whatever. I should probably email my landlord about it.

Anyway, with nothing left to play for, we draw 1-1 in our final game. And ultimately, it wouldn't have mattered. 47 points was the promotion total, and we would have maxed out at 45.



We finish 6th with 40 points. Hard to pin the blame of anything in particular, though our central defense and DR were the biggest issues. Now for the summer raids.

Good Training
Junior Bushby - Former gray player I finally just signed when we lacked a backup keeper
Jason Connolly
Chris Dowley
Carl Jenkinson
Andy Carroll

Bad Training
David Bastian
James Burgess
Guy Heffernan
Chris Vinnicombe
Anthony Sheehan

I snag a prospect in anticipation of the coming storm, but overall am just going to ride it out because of the difficulty in getting players to join me.

There's a fair amount of manager turnover in the division, but my job is Very Secure, and both I and the team believe we can finish in the upper half of the league again next year. Our systems were working - we just ran into a bad stretch down the road, where quite a few opponents were striking lucky. The insertion of the youth guys couldn't gel quickly enough either, I don't think.

Transfer In - DRC Samuel Labinjo
Raw and pretty far down the list, but the 23 year old is a body.

Our scout is hired away, but that's okay because we get an amazeballs new one. Ufnortunately the only player who might want to sign with us is a meh goalie.

FC Stratford hire a manager who inexplicably is willing to drop down two divisions. WOW!

Losses
Chris Vinnicombe - $7.5k
Brian Matthews - $0
Danny Edmond - $7.5k
Sam Mitten - $0
Elliot Payne - $5k
Quincy Rowe - $4.2k
Emmerson Brooks-Meade - $5.25k
Damien Stevens - $4.8k
Elliott Osborne-Ricketts - $5.25k
Dan O'Brien - $5.75k
Ashley Hill - $6.75k
Guy Heffernan - $4.8k
Sam West - $4.8k

We're joining the U21 league next season, since we have prospects we want to train up.

Player of the Year
Emmerson Brooks-Meade

Uhhh...

Best XI
G: Damien Stevens
D: Elliot Payne/David Bastian/Quincy Rowe/Guy Heffernan
DM: Emmerson Brooks-Meade
M: Elliott Osborne-Ricketts/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
ST: Danny Edmond/Rob Cam

$80k profit

Brian Haule goes down for 2 months in preseason training. We lose Carl Jenkinson for a month, too.

Transfer In - MR Charlie Austin (18)
It's all about building those prospects

Bad Trains
Craig Martin
Adam Stamp

We're 1-10 favorites to promote in our tiny league

@ Rostance Edwards
G: Richard Clarke
D: Jack Hont/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Craig Martin
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Matt Brandish/Chris Agutter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Chris Dowley/Jake Vernon

43 - Unfucking believable. Very little turnover and we can't get a single fucking offensive highlight in the first half 0-1

46 - Massive header by Carroll after a poor free kick clearance by them, and it soars through the air and into the net 1-1

60 - Cam in for Dowley, Burgess for Fitzharris and dropping down to MC. I fucked up and picked the unintended talk which demotivates Burgess. SHIT.

61 - Carroll with the corner and Hont's volley finds its way home! 2-1

77 - Carroll slides out to DR and Scott comes on because I'm sick of Martin fucking up.

Andy Carroll and his 8.2 were amazing, with Jack Hont picking up the 7.9. With only 10 games in the season, every match matters.

Our striker depth takes a hit when Rob Cam leaves, on another amateur contract no less.

James Burgess is promoted to Captain, and Samuel Labinjo is made Vice-Captain. You know what that means - the end of Craig Martin in the lineup. Unfortunately, James Burgess is signed away on a $3k deal immediately after being named captain. As a result, Labinjo is made captain, and I go all the way down the list to appoint Matt Brandish as vice-captain.

Jack Hont is snatched away on a $3.8k deal. And I get the fans are mad these guys are leaving, but what can you do, except go forth and try to fill in the gaps as best as possible? With only 10 games in the whole season, signing players is difficult.

3rd vs FC Stratford (1st)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Rowan Cartwright/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Matt Brandish/Chris Agutter
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Chris Dowley/Jake Vernon

Up against the manager who dropped 2 levels to take the job. Sure hope I can pull this off.

26 - Grrr. 0-1

50 - Agutter to Vernon for the header to Dowley who makes it a doubleheader for the equalizer. 1-1

58 - SHIT ASS LONG STRIKE BULLSHIT!!!!!! 1-2 get the fuck in there Fitzharris because Brandish is a fucking injured fucking gimp.

63 - Here's people complaining about the PK. Here's Dowley saying fuck you and converting 2-2

65 - Connolly moves back to DC because Carroll has cost us both goals, and Wright jumps in at DM. But before that happens, Scott heads Jenkinson's corner. It misses, but Carroll heads in the rebound 3-2

8.6 for Chris Dowley in this massive comeback. 7.2 for Jake Vernon as well, as we overcome Rowan Cartwright's obscene 5.8 game at DL.

We're the only team with 2 victories to start the season!!!

Transfer In - DL Brandon Mundy (20)
He'll play the Fullback role in our home tactic, while U21 callup Adrian Mitchell takes the Complete Wing Back spot in our away tactic.

Adrian Mitchell gets hurt in training and will be questionable for our next game. That's not good, because we have an away match next.

Good Trains
Craig Martin
Tyrone Crooks

Bad Train
David Bastian

Chris Agutter gets a $5.25k deal. Grr. Scott Scott is out 2 weeks with injury. Double grr. Chris Dowley is out 8 to 10 days. Triple grrr. Our starting lineup is gonna be fucked for our next game.

Transfer In - MR Owen Davies (21)
And just like that, here's Agutter's replacement in the nick of time.

1st @ Northfield Town (6th)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Adrian Mitchell/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Matt Brandish/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Brian Haule/Jake Vernon

This has all the makings of a trap game. They're favored, even though they've yet to score a single goal. I'm also risking Mitchell's 88%.

10 - Weighted boomer ball by Jenkinson that bounces forth for Haule to pick up, dribble into the box, and shoot the half-volley! 1-0

34 - Already knocked is Jenkinson. But then Davies is knocked out despite what is looking a decent debut. On comes Fitzharris.

55 - He's making a lot of mistakes, but Connolly pulls it together enough to pass to Jenkinson, who is then on to Vernon in the box, and the motivated and committed striker sinks it home. Wright comes on to replace Connolly because we can't afford mistakes. 2-0

73 - Why Cartwright why?! OG 2-1

7.7 for PotM Carl Jenkinson. And heh - this is the match where I have to tell them we got away with one there. Still, that's our third straight skin-teeth win to keep us in 1st.

Good Train
Jason Connolly

Bad Trains
Craig Martin
Matt Brandish
David Bastian

Jordan Wright goes off on a $4.3k deal.

1st vs Paget (4th)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Brandon Mundy/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Matt Brandish/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Chris Dowley/Jake Vernon

20 - Sigh. 0-1

33 - Lot of mistakes from Jenkinson, so Fitzharris replaces him.

64 - The whole team is making big mistakes today, but here, Fitzharris's shot is brilliantly deflected after Dowley's cross. The smart play? Davies right there to tap in the rebound 1-1

68 - Haule in to replace the completely ineffectual Vernon

This is a match we should have won, but we'll settle for the point, especially since the best showing below us was a draw as well. Still, we could have put some real distance here between us and the others.

Devastating blow as Chris Dowley lands a $9.5k deal. I mean, he deserves it, but fuuuuuck. More stunning is Matt Brandish taking an amateur deal elsewhere. Fuuuuck! And then the fucking bank breaks when Jake Vernon gets a whopping $13.25k deal, even though he was inconsistent.

Transfer In - ML Nathaniel Blanks (27)
He's one of the few gold star wide midfielders available, and even at 1.5, he'll be thrown into the fire.

Transfer In - ST Brad Walker (17)
Maybe our new starting Target Man up front? Who knows. Huge drop, in any case.

Transfer In - ST Dominic Heaume (31)
A veteran presence who is immediately our best striker and a huge *huge* find to recover for our devastating losses. Best as a Target Man.

Transfer In - ML Dexter Hymns (17)
Better than Blanks to have Hymns, and there should be little to no dropoff between him and our former starter.

Transfer In - ML Luke Porritt (18)
Stocking up on left midfielders, because we needed them. He'll serve as the primary backup to Hymns, because he has, you know, upside and all that jazz.

1st vs Kenilworth Town (3rd)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Brandon Mundy/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Dexter Hymns/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Dominic Heaume/Brian Haule

The good news is, we're not 100% new on our striker partnership, still having Haule around. But man... I think this game could get really ugly.

14 - 25 yard skimmer by Jenkinson goes ahead of Heaume, who smartly centers to where an unmarked Haule calmly slots it in. 1-0

17 - Fuck you. Haule was not offsides.

24 - YOU DON'T CALL THAT SHIT OFFSIDES?! WTF?!?! 1-1

b]41[/b] - Carroll is having the worst game of his life. I yank him for Bastian and this is pissing me off. We're GETTING WORSE 1-2

47 - done with Jenkinson and his awful showing, inital move aside. Get in, Fitzharris. But before that happens, Hymns to Heaume to ironically Jenkinson, who despite being offsides, rifles in the tie. 2-2

51 - Connolly heads the cleared corner in the box to Haule, and the bounce shot finds its way home! 3-2

81 - Sheehan in for an exhausted Connolly

8.8 and 8.3 for Brian Haule and Dominic Heaume. 7.1 for Richard Clarke. Another very fortuitous win that we were quite lucky - damned lucky, to get.

Halfway Point
Leamington Hibernian - 13 points
Rostance Edwards - 9 points
FC Stratford - 7 points
Kenilworth Town - 6 points
Paget - 4 points
Northfield Town - 4 points

That was a critical, critical win in terms of buying ourselves breathing room. We have a 4 point buffer on second, and more importantly, a 6 point barrier against dropping out of promotion. But we can't let up.

We just can't.

[Izulde]

Good Train
Anthony Sheehan

Bad Trains
David Bastian
Carl Jenkinson
Alek Wheeler

You want to know how prized our players right now? Junior Bushby, a former flipping gray player who is still 1.5 silver stars, is getting offers from other teams. Ridiculous.

Brian Haule hauls in a fat $13.5k contract, further damaging us.

Transfer In - MR/AMR/ST Joshua Home-Jackson (From Worksop Parramore) - 24
Major downgrade from Haule? Yes. Far better than any other AF option we have on the roster? That's a yes, too.

1st vs Rostance Edwards (2nd)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Brandon Mundy/Andy Carroll/Rowan Cartwright/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Dexter Hymns/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Brian Stevens/Dominic Heaume

Very simple situation here. Win, and we are pretty much in the driver's seat. Lose, and we're in a fair spot of trouble. Without question our single biggest game of the season. Joshua Home-Jackson will have to be a reserve, because his condition is only at 76%.

14 - Bullshit PK. But it's stopped.

19 - Ugh. 0-1

22 - Nice way to assfuck us, Cartwright. Fuck fuck fuck 0-2

28 - HTF do you miss that Stevens?!

30 - Labinjo with the long center to Heaume's head, who knocks it into wide open space for Stevens, and *this* time the kid converts. 1-2

40 - Bastian in for Cartwright, who is very close to losing his place in the starters.

57 - Mundy is badly knocked, so Fitzharris will step up.

We could not have picked a worse time to lose. Granted, we're still 5 points ahead in the promotion game, but UGH!!!!

Jay Tidey goes on an amateur deal. Not a big concern - he had almost no ceiling to him after all.

Good Trains
David Bastian
Rowan Cartwright

1st @ FC Stratford (3rd)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Adrian Mitchell/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Samuel Labjino
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Dexter Hymns/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Dominic Heaume/Joshua Home-Jackson

We failed our big test. Luckily, we get a second chance to really salt away promotion.

1 - Heaume kicks it out to Mitchell on the left wing. He dribbles further down and then crosses to the head of Jenkinson for the flying start!!! 1-0

39 - Nasty knock for Jenkinson

I have to pull him at half and put in Fitzharris. I just have to.

61 - Labjino, who keeps getting criticized but I stick with him, gets it on the right wing and crosses. Fitzharris picks it out and shoots in the insurance!!! Carroll keeps clearing to the opposition, so Bastian gets the call. 2-0

75 - Fitzharris to Heaume just outside the box, and the thread to Home-Jackson inside for the debut goal!!!!!! 3-0



Our first dominating win, and it came at *exactly* the right time, against just the right opponent. We're not in the clear yet - with 3 games to go, 8 points is the buffer we have. We still need another point or 3 to guarantee moving up.

Rostance Edwards picked up a draw, so we increase our lead over them to 3 points.

Samuel Labjino tears a groin muscle and is out 2-3 months. Well, shit! He's been a great captain, and a rock at the back DR, despite all the people complaining.

Transfer In - DR Steven Pickering (38)
Sometimes you swing blind at a vet and come up empty. This is one of those times.

Transfer In - DR Martin Flannery (21)
Why am I signing these scrub DR guys? I have other options that I can pursue in sorting out the problem.

1st vs Northfield Town (5th)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Brandon Mundy/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Jason Connolly
DM: Anthony Sheehan
M: Dexter Hymns/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Dominic Heaume/Joshua Home-Jackson

Here we go... Northfield Town has yet to beat me in 3 tries, so they're really hungry to finally do it and hopefully play spoiler. Their best player, as identified in the pre-game press conference, will be hunted all game long.

The first half, we're playing nervous and not very well, so I tell them at half just to reeeelax. They did the hard work last game. Scratch out a point here, and we're gold.

61 - Bastion for Scott, Fitzharris for Davies. Both players are jittery and underachieving.

63 - Generous offsides call.

70 - Home-Jackson arcs the center to Heaume, who nods it to Jenkinson. Our AMC draws the double-team and gives back to Heaume, the veteran grinning at the wide open space and putting it away! 1-0

81 - Piss-poor clearance by [b]Carroll[/bl]. Oh well. 1-1

85 - Heh. 1-2

I rip the team a new one. 5 points clear, but 2 games to go. WE NEED A FUCKING RESULT!

Loan-In - DR Michael Allen (17) - From Carlisle
He's not that great, but we need a body because holy shit did Sheehan stink.

So the FC Stratford boss took a new job 2 levels up again LOL! And now their new possible manager is pissing off his old team by saying he's interested in the Stratford gig.

Simon Mirfin gets a $6.25k deal.

1st @ Paget (5th)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Adrian Mitchell/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Michael Allen
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Dexter Hymns/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Dominic Heaume/Joshua Home-Jackson

So FC Stratford and Northfield Town play each other. If they tie, they're both out and we clinch. If we tie or win, we clinch. I'm not worried about Rostance Edwards playing the bottom feeder squad. Remember, because of how stupid scheduling is with these short seasons, Game 10 will be over 4 months after this one. So let's get promotion cleared away right here.

20 - Allen does the 1-2 with Davies in the pouring rain, ere the loanee centers back to Jenkinson for the lottery kick. It's cool to see it come up aces, but remember the collapse last game 1-0

61 - Stevens in for Home-Jackson and Fitzharris for Hymns

7.4 for Jenkinson 7.2 each for Mitchell and Allen, the loanee playing great ball all game long. We did precisely what we needed to do. Rostance Edwards destroyed Kenilworth Town 4-1 and are somehow equal on points to us now, but it's immaterial because FC Stratford and Northfield Town fought to the necessary 0-0 draw TO FUCKING CLINCH PROMOTION FOR US!!!!!!!

Way too tired to do screenshots. And yeah it's kind of cheap getting the promo in a six team league, but the margin for error is also a lot slimmer - in a big league, you can have a bad stretch. Six team league? Nope.

[Izulde]

I find it cute that the board says they never doubted me. Considering I dropped to stable at one point, I'll disagree there. It's all good, though - earning promotion will doubtless have elevated my stock.

126 days until our final game of the year. Since I can't remember when youth pulls happen, I won't go on vacation. Plus, I have to be ready to react in case our players get poached - something that might be even more likely to happen now that we've secured promotion.

Brian Stevens has made some great strides and is ready to take over in the starting lineup. Dominic Heaume doesn't like the idea of tutoring him, and that's probably something I need to look at once we become a semi-pro team (if we ever do).

Reading up on stuff, it appears I've been doing training somewhat less than perfectly. Instead of choosing the role I want them to play, I should be focusing on the areas I want the kids to improve in.

Other useful info:

Tutoring is something you should be doing. Look for players with the following personalities to be tutors Model Professional, Professional, Ambitious, Resolute, Spirited, Perfectionist.
The following are all increased/decreased by tutoring based on the tutor and his personality. (Most important are in bold)
Determination, Adaptability, Ambition, Controversy, Loyalty, Pressure, Professionalism, Sportsmanship, Temperament, PPMs


Determination is something you'll want a lot of in your team, generally 15-16 is great anymore is a bonus. A highly determined team will win more and lose less because they'll fight for those tough results.

Hmm. I wonder....



Wow. So *that's* why we've shown such fightback in our games this year. Look at all those high determination players! (Particularly for this level). I'm adding that to my list of key ratings to look at for all players now.

Good Trains
Brad Walker
Steven Pickering

Bad Train
David Bastian

Weird. Rostance Edwards' manager has secured promotion, yet he's considering a lateral move to a Level 12 club that won't promote.

Transfer In - DC Jordan Humphrey (21)
The interview raves about this kid's potential and how he's an absolute steal for us, which I haven't seen tot this degree before. Personally, I think he's got a ways to go, and I'd like him to work on getting quicker, as he's the slowest defender we have on the team at the moment, so that'll be his current training focus. Oh, and he's a yellow card machine - banned for the next two matches due to 15 yellows. I note that he's a Model Professional. Rowr.

I also, as a result of this signing, train up my 18 and under kids in different positions, as I want to see a lot of flexibility. Maybe not *quite* to the degree of Kieran Fitzharris, but enough so that I don't have to buy 20 billion players and bloat my roster.

Actually, I should look up when to train different positions, or whether I should at all.

Anthony Sheehan gets a $5.5k deal. He was the better of the two veteran DMs I signed, but still very much a backup.

Rostance Edwards' manager is linked to a Level 11 job, even though his team is promoting up there next year, and the squad in question is also Amateur/Obscure.

Good Train
Scott Scott

Bad Trains
David Bastian
Dominic Heaume
Steven Pickering

The Rostance Edwards manager did in fact leave for the Level 11 job, at Oakley United. Be funny if we wind up in the same division next season.

Youth Pull Signings
GK Shervon Frederick
GK Connor Gregan
DL/MLR Glen Carter - Immediate starter at ML
SW/DLC Chris Prindiville
DC Bradley Hill
DC/DM/MC Bert Wright
DLC Matthew Westwood
DM/MC Paul Denton
MLR/AMR/ST Gary Grieves
MR/AMR Gary Brooke
MR/AMR Olly Pierganni
MR/AMR James Manning
ST Lee Booth - Already a solid TM, though lagging far behind on AF
ST Junior Charles

Eventually I'll have to cut bait on a lot of these guys and on last year's youth pulls, but for now, they are what they are - bodies for when summer raiding happens.

Maybe the other $0 signings have been non-contract deals, because that's what Rowan Cartwright inks with Bradford PA. I'm not sad to see him go - he chronically underachieved, and was putrid at the DL spot.

That's the only transfer deadline news, so I go on holiday for the remaining two months-ish before our final match.

Unfortunately our assman is signed away during that time, so I have to put another fucking ad out. Oh, and Nathan Blanks is leaving in the summer.

1st @ Kenilworth Town (6th)
G: Richard Clarke
D: Adrian Mitchell/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Michael Allen
DM: Jason Connolly
M: Glen Carter/Owen Davies
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Brian Stevens/Dominic Heaume

I'm going to go in hard on their primary striker, and it's a full-strength lineup because the title is still up in the air.

13 - Jenkinson free kicks the ball aloft, and Stevens wins the jump, heading the ball in! 1-0

58 - Fitzharris goes on at DM, Home-Jackson at MR.

61 - Drawing the double-team outside the box, Heaume centers to Jenkinson, who first touches it to an unmarked Stevens for the easy score, and his second goal of the game. 2-0

9 for PotM Carl Jenkinson, 8.8 for Brian Stevens, 7.4 for loanee Michael Allen, who even though he only played two games with us, was great, and someone I'd love to bring in at some point. Oh, and Adrian Mitchell with a 7.1.

Rostance Edwards tied FC Stratford, so we would have won the league even with a draw, but I love winning outright.



Heh. Keep celebrations to a minimum. What the hell, board? Why you gotta do me like that?



Strong season. I kind of regret throwing my keyboard now. Still haven't contacted my landlord because it's Memorial Day, and because I'm super lazy.



I wonder how this would look without all the comings and goings. League leaderboards anyway. Special note on Mick Maybury - he's an AML and AMR, and he dominated the league from that position in their 4-DM-2-2-1 setup.



We still need to solve our MR hole. It's been a problem ever since Chris Agutter left. Overall though, I'm very happy with our team as assembled. Now to see what the summer attrition brings.

Two more screens:



We stumbled in the second half of the season a bit, but the weird thing is, we were perfect away. Then again, the away formation was our first one, before I added the more attacking one for home, so maybe the familiarity has something to do with it, however slight the difference between the two is? Not fully fluid yet in either tactic, but pretty familiar with them we are.



Remember my initial comment on signing him?

AMLCR/MC Kieran Fitzharris - 23
Irish player who excels at the Enganche role, so we're switching from an attacking midfielder at AMC to that. I feel like he's going to be a real game-changer

The Enganche role still exists in that possession-based, short-passing tactic with a deep line and low tempo (our Away one). And although the now 25 year old has been surpassed by superior talent, he's become our best reserve for his ability to plug in to any given position our formation asks for. I hope he sticks around, especially since I think Carl Jenkinson is going to get snapped up.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Nice job with the championship and the promotion!

I need to take a closer look at the determination of the players in my squad, too. That's one of those things I remember learning, but I don't always remember to keep an eye on. My team is currently on a run of matches in which they seem to be unable to seal the deal; we'll score first and allow an equalizer, or concede an early goal and only be able to fight back to a draw. Maybe it's their determination that's lacking.

I like having a player or two like Keiran Fitzsimmons in my team, too. They're the Swiss army knives of football.

[Izulde]

We gain slight increases in our jersey sponsorships - both worth $9.75k as opposed to $9.68k. Every little bit helps.

Craig Martin and Steven Pickering both announce they're retiring next season. Cool story, bros.

We sign a new assman, and with him, we're able to hire a great 29 year old coach to give us 2* in most areas.

Losses
Clive Gedny - $1.8k
Adam Stamp - $8k
Richard Clarke - $7.5k
Jason Connolly - $0
Samuel Labinjo - $0
Brandon Mundy - $11.5k
Carl Jenkinson - $10k
Owen Davies - $0k

Fans Player of the Year
DC Andy Carroll - despite all the bitching they did? Really?

Best 11
G: Richard Clarke
D: Adrian Mitchell/Rowan Cartwright/Andy Carroll/Samuel Labinjo
M: Dexter Hymns/Kieran Fitzharris
AM: Carl Jenkinson
S: Dominic Heaume/Joshua Home-Jackson

No changes to the starters in the All-Time Best 11, though Richard Clarke and Carl Jenkinson show up on the bench.

We're playing in the Wearside Football League next season, a 20 team league that also features Rostance Edwards and, amusingly enough, Ashridge Park, which took second in their league last season. Westwood United is also here, having finished 4th last year. Like the Level 12s, the top two promote. Bottom two drop back down.

We made $85k profit last season, and our total bank balance is $180.3k.

Transfer In - DM/DR/MC Tutu Henriques (33) - From Merstham
He was the U21 coach there, but he wanted to play more again. Our starting DM by far now that Connolly left us, and if we can find another DM, Henriques could also slot at DR in our away formation that calls for a CWB.

Unfortunately, trying to find capable players for the DR is proving difficult, especially fullbacks. To say nothing of a second DM. Or really, any of the positions I'm trying to fill.

Transfer In - DR Tom Thacker (21)
A 2* current Fullback, so at least we can cover that role. True fullbacks are the hardest thing to find at this level. I can snag complete wingbacks okay, but fullbacks? Not so much. So I'm thrilled to get him.

Preseason Odds
Leamington Hibernian: 5-4
Loftus Athletic: 6-4
Shotton Colliery Welfare: 7-4
Hurt: 5-2
Alecester Town: 5-2
Oving Social Club: 3-1

Great. Thanks, guys.

Transfer In - DL Adam Fare (18)
He's not going to replace Adrian Mitchell as a CWB, but he's okay enough to replace Brandon Mundy as a FB on that formation.

Oh look, we're able to partake in the FA Cup now. Obviously from the first preliminary round, but still.

Transfer In - MRL/AMR Michael Jones (18)
Since we can't get anyone good to sign with us, we'll go and grab prospects. Jones rates as the highest of all our prospects at the position with not much to choose between anyone, so he'll get the start.

GK Alek Wheeler and ML Glen Carter are considered our key players in the preseason writeup. We're called deep at the DR spot, but that's mostly because of all the damn high rated Limited Fullbacks we have. I laugh at the suggestion we're weak in the center midfield. No shit! We don't use MCs in our formations.

I never received notice of when players got back from holiday, so we didn't do fitness training. Shit.

@Corps of Signals
G: Alek Wheeler
D: Adrian Mitchell/Andy Carroll/Scott Scott/Craig Martin
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Glen Carter/Michael Jones
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Brian Stevens/Dominic Heaume

Another year, another U21 prospect forced into the net. The summer raids weren't quite as bad as I feared, actually. We get to keep a mostly intact starting lineup from last season, with only Henriques and Jones completely new to the team.

50 - We really need a good keeper 0-1

62 - Bastian in for Scott, Home-Jackson for Heaume

89 - BULLSHIT BULLSHIT BULLSHIT!!! JNOT OFFSIDES!!!!!

On top of it, we lose Adrian Mitchell for 3-4 weeks.

17th vs Kader (6th)
G: Alek Wheeler
D: Adam Fare/Andy Carroll/Jordan Humphrey/Tom Thacker
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Dexter Hymns/Glen Carter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Brian Stevens/Joshua Home-Jackson

Lot more match congestion with 20 teams as opposed to 6 :P Anyway, after looking at things, I realized our best MR option is actually Carter, which brings Hymns back in at ML. I'm setting an 85% rule for energy, hence Home-Jackson's start.

1 - Seriously? 0-1

40 - We've now dropped to last place 0-2

61 - No words. NO FUCKING WORDS AT ALL. 0-3

89 - Meaningless goal by Home-Jackson. 1-3

We need to get this thing figured out and quickly.

[Izulde]

Originally Posted by Greyfriars Bobby

Nice job with the championship and the promotion!

I need to take a closer look at the determination of the players in my squad, too. That's one of those things I remember learning, but I don't always remember to keep an eye on. My team is currently on a run of matches in which they seem to be unable to seal the deal; we'll score first and allow an equalizer, or concede an early goal and only be able to fight back to a draw. Maybe it's their determination that's lacking.

I like having a player or two like Keiran Fitzsimmons in my team, too. They're the Swiss army knives of football.

Thanks. And yeah it's quite possible. I'm starting to think our win was a fluke based on the first two games, but we'll see what happens.

[Izulde]

Transfer In - DM/MC Junior Kadi (35) - From Dulwich Hamlet
You might remember this guy from back in Season 1 when he... oh wait. That must have been my Ashridge Park save. Oops. Anyway, I signed him to be a backup DM/starting MC. Starting MC?! Yep, I'm instituting a 4-1-2-3 formation - 4 defenders, 1 DM, 2 MC, and 3 ST.

@ Melksham (FA Cup 1st Round Qualifying)
G: Alek Wheeler
D: Adam Fare/David Bastian/Scott Scott/Tom Thacker
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Junior Kadi/Kieran Fitzharris
S: Dominic/Heaume/Brian Stevens/Lee Booth

U21 callup Paul Denton replaces Fitzharris at the half.

61 - Another U21 summons, Bert Wright takes over for Henriques

75 - Pickering pops on for Thacker

Tutu Henriques and Dominic Heaume are appointed captain and vice-captain for the season.

vs Melksham (FA Cup 1st Round Qualifying)
G: Alek Wheeler
D: Adam Fare/David Bastian/Jordan Humphrey/Matt Flannery
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Dexter Hymns/Glen Carter
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Dominic Heaume/Lee Booth

47 - Heaume drops to AMC, replacing Fitzharris. Wright in at DM for Henriques, and Home-Jackson up at striker.

54 - Heaume passes into the box for Booth. The kid's shot is deflected, but Home-Jackson is there for the rebound! 1-0

Aleks Wheeler and Joshua Home-Jackson both netted 7.1s, with JHJ getting PotM. Wow! I didn't think this was a team we had a shot at beating, particularly with how exhausted our guys were, but we pulled it off.

$2.88k for the win.

15th @ Horden CW (5th)
G: Alek Wheeler
D: Glen Carter/Jordan Humphrey/Scott Scott/Craig Martin
DM: Junior Kadi
M: Dexter Hymns/Charlie Austin
AM: Dominic Heaume
S: Brian Stevens/Joshua Home-Jackson

8 - I need a new keeper 0-1

10 - We get a PK and Stevens converts! 1-1

18 - Now that penalty was fucking bullshit. You don't call a PK on a corner kick!!! 1-2

Sometime in the 2nd half - Another PK which they make 1-3

Don't know why suddenly nothing is working right. We're in the drop zone.

[Izulde]

I've decided to keep the original Diamond formation, but scrap the attacking one in favor of a 5-4-1 with a DM, 2 CM, AMC, and a False 9 striker.

Transfer In - GK Matthew Green (21) - From Stockport Sports
My assman thinks Alek Wheeler is a lot better, but Green's handling is far superior, and my scout, who actually knows shit, says they're about equal, but gives the edge to Green.

Dexter Hymns leaves on a $7.75k deal, and Dominic Heaume goes on a non-contract.

@ Lancing (FA Cup 2nd Preliminary Round)
G: Matthew Green
D: Adam Fare/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
DM: Bert Wright
M: Tutu Henriques/Junior Kadi
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Brian Stevens

70 - Denton in for Kadi; Booth on for Stevens. but not until Martin's old ass completely jukes the defense and feeds a beautiful ball into the box for hard-charging Stevens to knock it home. 1-0

Lot of 6.8 and 6.9 to go around. I think I've found my new away tactic, and maybe I'll use the original Diamond as my home tactic, now that we're short on strikers. Craig Martin is PotM with 7.3, with 7.2s going to Adam Fare and Brian Stevens. Netting a 7.1 is Tutu Henriques.

$5.31k for this win, so the money is doubling. Beautiful.

20th @ Hurst (5th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Adam Fare/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
DM: Paul Denton
M: Tutu Henriques/Junior Kadi
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

31 - Fucking free kick goals 0-1

48 - Fare is knocked out. In comes Carter.

63 - WTF?! 2 FUCKING FREE KICK GOALS IN ONE FUCKING GMAE/! 0-2

5 weeks without Glen Carter, 6 to 8 without Adam Fare.

[Izulde]

Luke Porritt goes off on a $4.6k deal.

Transfer In - MC/DM Neil Barnfield (31) - From Rochdale Town
Getting more bodies in. He'll be an MC starter, allowing Henriques to drop back to DM.

20th vs Rostance Edwards (8th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Adrian Mitchell/David Bastian/Andy Carroll/Tom Thacker
DM: Neil Barnfield
M: Michael Jones/Charlie Austin
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Brian Stevens/Joshua Home-Jackson

I deleted the non-attacking formation. Oops.

11 - Fitzharris with a fluke free kick goal 1-0

25 - Home-Jackson is knocked out, requiring Booth on.

27 - We're awarded a PK on a free kick, and Stevens cooly converts 2-0

42 - Why do we fucking suck at free kick defending all of a sudden?! 2-1

46 - STOP FUCKING ALLOWING GAOLS RIGHT BEFORE HALF!!!!!!!lHGIOUAHIOSDFG 2-2

82 - Now Booth is hurt. Fitzharris to ST, Barnfield to AMC, and Denton in at DMC.

84 - OH YES! GIVE THEM THE FUCKING GAME WITH A PK THAT'S NOT DESERVED, YOU FUCKING SHITSNIFFING FUCKIGN TWATWAFFLE REFS!!! 2-3

90 - It's like we've fucking given up. 2-4

Adrian Mitchell out 2 weeks. WE HAVE NOT A FUCKING SINGLE HEALTHY DL ON THE WHOLE FUCKING ROSTER! THANKS, ASSCLOWNS!

Go out and get better players? I can't. Nobody will sign with us. I put a basic 4-4-2 as a third tactic to work on. Might as well just start over.

Scott Scott signs a non-contract. I think I'll quit if Kieran Fitzharris leaves. Charlie Austin leaves on a $3.6k deal.

@Ashford (Middx) - FA Cup Preliminary 3rd Round
G: Matthew Green
D: Tom Thacker/David Bastian/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Neil Barnfield/Junior Kadi
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Brian Stevens

31 - OH LOOK! ANOTHER FREE KICK GOAL GIVEN UP! 0-1

53 - LET'S ADD A FUCKING CORNER KICK GOAL TO IT! 0-2

75 - And that's Barnfield off on a double yellow.

We weren't supposed to beat this team anyway, so whatever.

20th vs Hove White Rovers (16th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Matthew Westwood/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
M: Michael Jones/Tutu Henriques/Junior Kadi/Joshua Home-Jackson
S: Brad Walker/Brian Stevens

44 - Yep. Let's allow the JUST BEFORE HALF GOAL 0-1

89 - This game can suck my fat hairy whiteboy dick. I'm convinced that the AI cheats and AUTOMATICALLY KNOWS ALL YOUR TACTICS WHENEVER YOU WIN A TITLE. I've seen lots of posts about it and it's true. I was almost fully fluid with my first two tactics and now all of a sudden on pormotion they turned to shit.

Fuck this shit.

[Izulde]

The fans are pissed about the negative tactic of the 4-4-2, so after searching around for a new home formation, I'm going to try the 3-6-1 Cobra - we seem to have the players for it.

Brian Stevens signs an $8.5k deal. Jordan Humphrey signs a non-contract.

20th @ Loftus Athletic (17th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Tom Thacker/David Bastian/Bert Wright/Andy Carroll/Martin Flannery
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Neil Barnfield/Paul Denton
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

1 - Heh. 50 seconds in and Flannery's hurt so bad he has to leave. Pickering to replace him.

25 - Pickering gets the ball on the wing and dribbles towards the sideline before line driving into the near side of the box, where Fitzharris breaks free of the defense and easily kicks it in. 1-0

43 - Remember guys, you automatically have to give up a goal right before the fucking halftime whistle. 1-1

Booth moves to DM to replace Henriques and Home-Jackson moves in at ST.

56 - Prindiville in Bastian

Well, we got our first point at least. Heh.

Transfer In - DCR/DM Rickie Hayles (25) - From Haverhill
Thickening up the depth with much better quality talent, and giving us more options to play around with.

20th vs Alecester Town (18th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Rickie Hayles/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Gary Grieves/Neil Barnfield/Junior Kadi/Joshua Home-Jackson
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

35 - Nice to see a PK call on a corner kick go our way. Even nicer to see Kadi step up and drill it 1-0

50 - Storey on for Grieves, Wright for Henriques

You know it's an ugly game when Kieran Fitzharris's 7.0 is enough to win Player of the Match. But our first game with the 3-6-1 Cobra nets a crucial 3 points. Not out of the drop zone yet, or even to 19th, but maybe we can build from here.

Transfer In - MC Adrian Adams (31) - From Winsford
Our best central midfielder, and one particularly suited to the Cobra formation, although he'll be able to play in our 5-3-2 Izuldean Wall as well. Deffo need to upgrade talent around here.

Joshua Home-Jackson signs a $13k deal, which may be the highest payday yet.

20th @ Cleaton Moor (10th)
D: Adrian Mitchell/Rickie Hayles/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

14 - They're really coming fast and furious at us. Time to switch to Counter.

Wright in for Carroll at the half.

74 - Walker on for Booth.

Pretty boring game all in all. Almost no highlights to speak of, especially in the second half, as we just locked them out. We should have been able to win this, but every point at this stage is worth it to try and get out of the drop zone (Spoiler alert: We're still 20th).

[Izulde]

Transfer In - DLC Dalian Thomas - 18
Even better than our current central defenders, and a probable replacement for the inconsistent Andy Carroll, the kid voted last year's Fans' Player of the Year notwithstanding. I'm also focusing on bringing in players who fit the 3-6-1 Cobra's requirements of Teamwork/Work Rate/Stamina/Anticipation.

Brad Walker goes on a $2.7k deal.

20th - vs Hartlepool Town (8th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Rickie Hayles/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll
DM: Neil Barnfield
M: Glen Carter/Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi/Michael Jones
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

60 - Henriques in for Barnfield at DM, Wright on for Kadi at MC.

65 - I'm so getting fired. 0-1

88 - Booth kicks it back to Henriques in the opponents' half, which sets off a series of short passes ending in Fitzharris sliding it to Booth in the box to end the long, long, OMG SOOO LONG drought of actual in-field scoring 1-1

We're now going to need to start winning to get out of the drop zone, after Loftus Athletic is up to 9 points, and we're sitting on 6.

Pressure is mounting. My boy Kieran Fitzharris comes out to publicly support me.

Transfer In - GK Mariusz Kisiel (20) - From Mattishall
20 year old Polish backup

20th @ Oving Social Club (15th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Rickie Hayles/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll
DM: Neil Barnfield
M: Glen Carter/Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi/Michael Jones
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

You know what? Fuck it... Let's keep slithering with that cobra.

27 - Kadi with the long diagonal strike to Carter on the left wing, just outside the box. Carter dribbles almost to the touchline before near-post crossing to the head of Booth for the box boom! 1-0

Grieves replaces Jones at MR; Wright at DC for Carroll at the half. Lot of mistakes from those two guys.

76 - We're fucking awful at defending set pieces 1-1

We inch up to 19th, but now that 9 point team in 18th has a game in hand on us. There's a bug, because it keeps saying we're in the top half of the table with our five game non-losing streak.

19th vs Shotton Colliery Welfare (7th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Rickie Hayles/Chris Prindiville/Dalian Thomas
DM: Neil Barnfield
M: Glen Carter/Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi/Michael Jones
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

Pretty simple here. If we don't win, I'm probably fired.

25 - GUESS WHAT?! A FUCKING SET PIECE GOAL GIVEN UP, AND YEP, IT'S A FREE KICK!!! 0-1

42 - Adams heads on a goal kick to Booth, who lob shots it in. 1-1

45 - WHY IN FUCKITY FUCK FUCK FUCK'S NAME DO WE KEEP FUCKING GIVING UP FUCKING FREE KICK GOALS?! 1-2

52 - Time to fast forward through this shit 1-3

A late, meaningless goal by Booth makes it a 2-3 final.

Transfer In - MR Jeff Mitchell (18)
As Michael Jones has been a bust, Mitchell will be the new starting MR in the Cobra formation.

Martin Flannery goes away on $2.9k. Adrian Mitchell takes a $5.5k contract.

20th vs AFC Corinthians (12th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Andy Carroll/Chris Prindiville/Dalian Thomas
DM: Neil Barnfield
M: Glen Carter/Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi/Jeff Mitchell
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

25 - At this point, I'm just waiting for the pink slip 0-1

53 - Crookes (replaced Booth) to Carter to Fitzharris, and our Irishman dribbles through the cloud of defenders to strike home from the half-circle. 1-1

We really should have won the game. Instead, it's another lousy draw.

20th @Guisborough Globe (6th)
G: Matthew Green
D: Adam Fare/Damian Thomas/Chris Prindiville/Andy Carroll/Craig Martin
DM: Tutu Henriques
M: Adrian Adams/Junior Kadi
AM: Kieran Fitzharris
S: Lee Booth

37 - Goal conceded on a corner. So not surprised 0-1

45 - Goal given up just before half. Also not surprising 0-2

47 - Adams pops a ball to Fitzharris, who beats the D and scores. 1-2

87 - I noticed that despite the defense allegedly being our best area, it's the one that's time and time again putting up the shittiest ratings 1-3

As you might expect, I'm Very Insecure jobwise.

Kieran Fitzharris leaves on a $9.75k deal.

I immediately resign.

[Izulde]

Once again no one will hire me. My replacement installs a 4-4-2, brings in 3 new players, 2 on loan, and suddenly they go on a six game win streak and pull up to 10th.

[chesapeake]

Your dynasties are always an entertaining read, even when they don't end well.

Like you, I've tried significant tactical changes midseason when the team has gone into the tank. I don't recall it ever working for me. I did have one successful January formation change with a Watford save after I brought in a stud AML and I moved from a 4-4-2 to a 4-5-1; but the formation was the only real change. The style of play was pretty much the same. Bigger tactical changes midseason always seem to be a disaster, as my opponents have had half a season to become fluid.

[Izulde]

Thanks. Guess I'll have to try again. I'm running out of teams to be new with, so I'll probably redux Ashridge Park - Leamington Hibernian and Inkberrow I promoted with, so both are out of the cycle for now.

One thing I noticed is that Level 12 seems to be much more forgiving in terms of tactical fluidity than Level 11 - probably due to the shorter seasons maybe?