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09-20-2014, 07:27 PM
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#551 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. December 4, 2024
UEFA Champions League - Group C Dover (4-1-0, 13 points, 1st) vs. Hoffenheim (2-1-2, 7 points, 2nd) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: Evens (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Hoffenheim: 11-5 Past Meetings: 1W 0D 0L Hoffenheim are tied on points with Palermo and will likely need to beat us to move on to the knockout stages, as Palermo faces the weak sister of the group in Hibernian. We beat the German club 3-2 away in our first group stage game. Attacking midfielder Ibrahim Sanogo, arguably their best player with 10 goals from 16 games this year, sprained his ankle recently and will miss today’s game. With the group all wrapped up, we’ll start a much less than full strength side today. Andy Broomes will start up front and in behind him will be Zoltan Bardi at AMC. Getting rare starts are AML Felix Hernandez from our U18 club and reserve AMR Lyubomir Kunchev. Emmerson Harvey and Neil Cairney are in midfield today. Also getting a rare start, his first of the year, is DL Carlos Guzman. Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz, Emerson and Saber Nasri round out the defence while Ingo Wilke starts in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 DM (4-2-3-1) Control GK - I. Wilke D - C. Guzman, M. Yilmaz, S. Nasri, Emerson M - E. Harvey, N. Cairney AM - F. Hernandez, Z. Bardi, L. Kunchev S - A. Broomes Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, V. Silhavy, A. Rocca, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, A. Velazquez Hoffenheim come out in a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield formation. David Ospina is their goalkeeper and Federico Castro and Sam Mbambo are their strikers. We’re battling some overconfidence with a young lineup in today, especially young fullback Emerson. I tell the team this is a winnable game and pull aside the overconfident Emerson to say I expect a performance from him if he thinks it will be that easy tonight! 9’ - Andy Broomes and Neil Cairney work a give and go resulting in Cairney sending a delightful ball through the defence to our in-form striker. Broomes dribbles in and shoots weakly to the far corner but it’s beyond the reach of the outstretched Ospina and in! Solid start. DOVER GOAL 1-0 19’ - The left side of our defence is very vulnerable with Guzman and Yilmaz in there and we’ve been fortunate on a couple of early chances that went awry for Hoffenheim but it catches up to us. They start a brilliant three-way passing play resulting in Mbambo being wide open up the seam and he’s in on goal and shoots low past Wilke and it’s in. HOFFENHEIM GOAL 1-1 32’ - If I didn’t see it, I wouldn’t believe it!. We win a throw in down the right and it’s tossed into Zoltan Bardi. He cuts to the middle of the pitch and feeds Carlos Guzman, our left fullback who has pinched in. Guzman bursts past his marker and in on goal but his initial shot is saved. The rebound pops right back out to him and Guzman RIPS a shot into the back of the net! HOLY CRAP! Guzman is in his fourth year with our club and rarely plays but that is his first ever senior team goal for Dover! DOVER GOAL 2-1 HALFTIME - The stats are kind of ugly, as Hoffenheim hold 57% of the ball (!!) but we outshoot them 9-7 (5-3 on target). I really like how Neil Cairney is playing today, as I have him in our advanced midfielder role as opposed to his normal holding role - he looks lively out there today but his rating is rather pedestrian at half (6.9). I’m going to switch to a flat 4-4-2 to help our possession numbers in the second half. I tell the team I’m pleased so far. 46’ - One of their defenders, Fernando, had been booked early in the game and now he takes down Broomes after our striker gets past him. I’m expecting a second yellow and indeed, here it comes! Hoffenheim is down to ten men! HOFFENHEIM RED CARD: Fernando Hoffenheim move to a very tight 3-4-2 formation with three DCs and two MCs. 63’ - Hoffenheim continues to push and I set the wheels in motion to take out Lyubomir Kunchev and move back to a 4-2-3-1 formation. Before that happens though, we have possession and it’s Kunchev sending a low cross into the area. Broomes outworks his marker and sends a quick shot past Ospina and in! That’s Broomes’ second goal and we have a bit of a cushion! DOVER GOAL 3-1 As indicated, we move back to a 4-2-3-1 and Kunchev comes off for Graham Allan. 73’ - I take out Emmerson Harvey and bring in veteran Andrea Rocca. 84’ - One more sub, as I take out the booked Emerson and bring in Rafinha, while also switching back to a flat 4-4-2. That’s it. Good win. Dover 3 - 1 Hoffenheim Goals - Andy Broomes 2 (8.8), Carlos Guzman (8.3) Assists - Neil Cairney (7.2) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (8.5), Saber Nasri (7.5), Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz (7.3) Attendance - 22,117 We dominated the ball in that second half and ended up with 52% of overall possession but shots were in Hoffenheim’s favour 15-15 (9-7 on target). Ingo Wilke was terrific again and he’s seriously outplayed Manuel Perez so far this year. I may have to go back to Wilke a bit more often but we’ll see. Our defence was very shaky but Nasri, Guzman and Yilmaz get good notices. And what can I say about Andy Broomes? He’s up to 16 goals in only 20 matches and has been a key factor in our long stretch without Paul Moses - Broomes has definitely earned more playing time in the future due to this run and MAY even sub in for Chiquinho at times during the second half. -- We get £696,000 for the group stage win. -- In other action, in a bit of a shocker, Hibernian beat Palermo and that means that Hoffenheim move on despite losing to us! Crazy. The other groups all play next week. League Cup - Semi-Final Draw -- The winner of the match between us and Sheffield Wednesday will host the winner of the Arsenal/Manchester United match. Tough draw. Next Up -- We are back to Premier League play, hosting Aston Villa at Crabble Athletic Ground.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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09-22-2014, 10:28 PM
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#552 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. December 7, 2024
Barclays Premier League Dover (10-2-3, 32 points, 2nd) vs. Aston Villa (2-5-8, 11 points, 17th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 1-2 (Favourites) Draw: 13-5 Aston Villa: 9-2 Past Meetings: 6W 2D 6L Villa have always played us tough but they are a mess right now, barely above the relegation zone and their last win in any competition was in AUGUST. They recently fired their manager Ioan Andone and Johan Djourou will be the caretaker manager for today’s match. They’ve been in the top flight since 1988 so they’ll need to pull up their socks and quickly at that! Mohamed Messaoudi is their leading scorer with 5 goals from 13 matches so we’ll be watching him closely. Villa brought in six players in July, spending only £3.5 million. Veteran Austrian international Garrinchinha, a wide midfielder, was brought in from Inter for £1.6 million, their biggest purchase. Full lineup today and back to a flat 4-4-2. Andy Broomes and Chiquinho are up front and Graham Allan will get a chance to start at right midfield today for Gianluca Bolis, who pissed me off recently by demanding more money when his play hasn’t deserved it. Mads Pedersen is still in at ML for the injured Arsene Bamba and Benedikt Raab is alongside Jose in midfield. Ingo Wilke gets a well-deserved second consecutive start in goal. Our main back four are all starting today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Bolis, Z. Bardi Flat 4-4-2 for Villa, with Antonio starting up front alongside Messaoudi. Antonio Kraljevic is in goal. I tell the team to perform well for the home fans and pull aside Chiquinho to tell him to pick up where he left off in his last game. HALFTIME - We are dominating them but can’t get on the scoreboard in the first half. Villa actually had a couple of really good chances late in the half and I’m not really happy with that. We held 58% of possession and a 15-3 (3-2 on target) shot advantage. I tell the team they are outplaying them everywhere - now go out and put some goals in! 46’ - Right off the opening kick, we get a throw in down the left and it’s Mads Pedersen crossing into the box. Chiquinho slides after it and sends it past Kraljevic and in! We’re finally on the board! DOVER GOAL 1-0 57’ - Chiquinho causes a turnover at midfield and sends a great ball through the line and there is Andy Broomes. He’s in on goal, moves to his right and slots the ball past Kraljevic and IN! Beauty! DOVER GOAL 2-0 88’ - Since we’ve given so much time off to our starters, they are all super fresh and I’m not really forced to make any changes. That said, I decide to bring in young Felix Hernandez for a few minutes and take out Mads Pedersen, who had a fine game. Not a lot of goals but we get the three points in convincing fashion. Dover 2 - 0 Aston Villa Goals - Chiquinho (8.6), Andy Broomes (7.6) Assists - Mads Pedersen (7.2) Man of the Match - Chiquinho Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.2), Rayane Hamon (7.2), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.2) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) Very solid game, as we hold 55% of possession and a 27-8 (8-3 on target) shot advantage. Chiquinho was fantastic today. -- League leaders Man United win 3-0 on the road versus Sheffield United and 10 man Manchester City can only muster a draw against Sheffield Wednesday. Newcastle gets back on the winning track against Sunderland, Arsenal beat Middlesbrough 2-1 and Chelsea beat Wolves 2-0 as well. That win by Arsenal is their first in seven games. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 16 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 41 points 2. Dover - 35 points 3. Chelsea - 34 points 4. Manchester City - 32 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Newcastle - 30 points 6. Sheffield Wednesday - 27 points 7. Arsenal - 27 points ---------------------------------------------------- Dover U18 Update -- Man, our kids keep it going, rocking Sutton United 8-0! Young sensation Alberto Velazquez scores FOUR goals and Freddie Laird scores three goals in the last ten minutes of the game, with Vlastimil Silhavy scoring our other goal. Club World Championship - Semi-Final -- Heartland FC from Nigeria beat East Bengal 3-0 in the Club World Championship quarterfinals and will now face our club mid-week in the semis. The match is taking place in Abuja, their capital city. I don’t envision starting a top end roster in that game, as we are monster favourites on the road in a hostile environment. Premier League Team of the Week -- Chiquinho is named to the Barclays Premier League team of the week. Dover Injury Update -- Both Paul Moses and Arsene Bamba have returned to light training and are close to returning - both will likely need some time in the reserves to regain match fitness, especially Moses. Manuel Lugo is still out for awhile. Next Up -- We head to Nigeria to face Nigerian Premier League club Heartland in the semi-finals of the Club World Championship.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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09-22-2014, 11:36 PM
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#553 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. December 11, 2024
FIFA Club World Cup - Semi-Final Heartland (Nigerian Premier League) vs. Dover Abuja Stadium, Abuja, Nigeria Betting Odds: Heartland: 7-1 Draw: N/A Dover: 1-3 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 0W 0D 0L We enter the FIFA Club World Cup competition by getting a bye into the semi-finals, where we face Nigerian Premier League club Heartland. Taking a look at their roster, they look to have the quality of a Conference Premier team, maybe League 2 at best. Their highest valued player is only worth £75,000 and the club is filled with teenagers. This competition is much different from the Champions League in that U18 players are only eligible if I pre-register them. Therefore, I actually have to start a better roster than anticipated. Chiquinho is up front with Zoltan Bardi, the midfield sees Mads Pedersen, Neil Cairney, Andrea Rocca and Gianluca Bolis suit up and on defence we have Rafinha, Mwemere Mutesa, Saber Nasri and Emerson. Manuel Perez starts in goal. I expect a huge win here even in hostile territory and we are monster favourites. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, S. Nasri, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, G. Bolis S - Chiquinho, Z. Bardi Bench - I. Wilke, Renato Gaucho, R. Hamon, B. Raab, E. Harvey, G. Allan, A. Broomes Flat 4-4-2 for Heartland, who have Solomon Nwachi and Franck Diallo up front and Joseph Igwe in goal. I tell the team to put on a show for the fans today. 26’ - We seem to be in control and it’s Zoltan Bardi running through the middle of the field. He delivers a pass to Chiquinho and he bursts through the defence, bares down on goal and shoots low past Igwe and it’s in. DOVER GOAL 1-0 30’ - We are moving quickly down the pitch with Mads Pedersen and he crosses into the area from the left flank. Heartland defender Sunday Ibrahim is there to intercept but he doesn’t realize that Gianluca Bolis is on his backside. Ibrahim’s first touch is poor and the ball is loose and Bolis gets the ball and immediately shoots past an unprepared Igwe for the beauty goal! DOVER GOAL 2-0 HALFTIME - Heartland are doing okay with possession but they are just holding on for dear life, as we started to really pepper them with shots as the half went on. We held 55% of the ball and an outrageous 17-1 (7-1 on target) shot advantage. We’re in complete control here. I’m pleased. 47’ - We’re right back at it and this time it’s Chiquinho setting up his strike partner, as Bardi is in on goal and puts a weak shot past Igwe. The rout is on… DOVER GOAL 3-0 60’ - We make a couple of changes, taking out Chiquinho and Gianluca Bolis, both of whom were excellent. We bring in Emmerson Harvey and Graham Allan. We switch to a one striker formation due to the changes (4-2-3-1). 67’ - We have a corner kick and Andrea Rocca delivers the ball into the middle but one of our attackers is fouled. That’s a PENALTY! Up steps the reliable Neil Cairney and he is STOPPED BY THE HEARTLAND KEEPER! Oh my…disaster for Cairney, who has REALLY struggled this year. 74’ - Graham Allan wins a battle down the right flank and delivers a high cross to the far post. Pedersen is there and heads it towards goal and despite it looking like it was in slow motion, Igwe can’t get across and the ball crosses the goal line. DOVER GOAL 4-0 90’ - It’s Pedersen again with a cross and Allan’s attempted shot is blocked. The ball pops right to an oncoming Andrea Rocca and he right foots it past Igwe and IN! DOVER GOAL 5-0 Easy peazy. Heartland 0 - 5 Dover Goals - Chiquinho (8.3), Gianluca Bolis (8.0), Zoltan Bardi (8.2), Mads Pedersen (8.6), Andrea Rocca (8.2) Assists - Zoltan Bardi, Chiquinho, Graham Allan (7.0) Man of the Match - Mads Pedersen Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.0), Emerson (7.9), Saber Nasri (8.3), Mwemere Mutesa (7.9), Rafinha (8.0) Attendance - 48,584 They were no match for our backups, as we hold 57% of possession and a 30-2 (13-1 on target) shot advantage. The only starter on our team with a rating less than 7.0 was Cairney, who has regressed considerably this year and essentially has lost his starting job to Benedikt Raab. Tough times for the former Wonderkid, as he misses another penalty today. -- We’ll have a much tougher test in the finals, as we face Argentinian side Lanus on the weekend. They have one of the great strikers in the world in Javier Gimenez, a player I’ve looked at buying many times but his price tag was north of £50 million!! No thanks! Champions League Update -- The Group Stage finishes and we’re down to the final 16 teams. Joining us and Hoffenheim in the knockout stages are OM and Man City from Group A and the surprising Club Brugge is joined by Atletico Madrid from Group B, with powerhouse FC Bayern getting knocked down to Europa League. In Group D, Juventus and Real Madrid move on while in Group E, Barcelona is joined by fourth seeded Tottenham, with HSV and Panathinaikos kicked to the curb. In Group F, Sevilla and Schalke advance while Sampdoria are sent to Europa League competition, Group G sees Man United and Porto advance and finally, in Group H, Olympique Lyonnais and Shakhtar move on. Dover Injury Update -- Arsene Bamba returns to full training after missing four weeks with a sprained ankle. He won’t be ready for our Club World Cup final but should be ready to play a part in our mid-week League Cup game against Sheffield Wednesday. Next Up -- We face Argentinian club Lanus in the final of the Club World Championship.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 09-22-2014 at 11:36 PM. |
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09-23-2014, 01:15 AM
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#554 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. December 14, 2024
FIFA Club World Cup - Final Dover vs. Lanus (Argentine Premier League) Abuja Stadium, Abuja, Nigeria Betting Odds: Dover: 6-4 (Favourites) Draw: N/A Lanus: 13-8 Past Meetings: 0W 0D 0L Lanus are a pretty large club and are four-time Copa Libertadores winners, including this year. They have sensational 23 year old striker Javier Gimenez, a world-class Argentine international, who has 18 goals in 20 matches so far this year. He’s exceptional and has long been a transfer target of mine but Lanus want the WORLD for him. These guys are pretty good and will likely give us a good match today. We’ll start a pretty full strength lineup today in hopes of taking home more hardware. The only holdovers from the semi-final game are Chiquinho and Mads Pedersen. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - M. Perez, Rafinha, M. Mutesa, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, G. Bolis, Z. Bardi Lanus are also in a flat 4-4-2 with Gimenez up front with Edgar Amarilla. Enzo Echevarne is their goalkeeper. It looks like a full house here in Nigeria so lets show them our skill today! HALFTIME - Ugh - it’s a very chippy first half, with seven yellow cards handed out and FIVE to our players. We are NOT playing well - in fact, Lanus holds 57% of possession (!!) but we outshoot them 10-8 (4-1 on target). Chiquinho must have gotten banged up a bit, as his fitness is really suffering right now. I may change tactics soon but keep the 4-4-2 for now - I tell the team that this game is winnable. 59’ - I take off Chiquinho and bring in Zoltan Bardi, moving to a 4-2-3-1 in the process. 77’ - Still nothing. Graham Allan comes off and in comes Gianluca Bolis. FULLTIME - The switch to a 4-2-3-1 worked, as we were VERY dangerous in the second half but just couldn’t cash in. Possession is dead even and we have outshot them 20-8 (8-3 on target) through 90 minutes. I reinforce that we can win this game to the lads in the dressing room. 93’ - Andy Broomes works the ball close to goal and is right on the byline but Lanus clear to safety. Jose feeds Benedikt Raab out on the right flank and he works into the box before feeding a little ball back to Gianluca Bolis, who one-times a rocket that’s past Echevarne and IN!!! Bolis has his 50th career goal for Dover, his third in his last three games and we finally break through! DOVER GOAL 1-0 109’ - We switch to a flat 4-4-2 again and a counter attacking philosophy. 110’ - Oh JOY. In a game that already had 12 (!!!) yellow cards, we see Benedikt Raab given a second yellow to make it 13 and he’s sent off. We’re down to ten men. DOVER RED CARD - Benedikt Raab I take out Andy Broomes and bring in Andrea Rocca, moving to a 4-4-1. 120’ - WONDERFUL. We have a last minute corner and for some reason, only have two men back. Rocca’s corner is cleared and it’s a one on one between Gimenez and Renato Gaucho. The swift of foot Gimenez bursts past our defender, dribbles in on goal and SCORES. LANUS GOAL 1-1 EXTRA TIME - Sigh. We go to penalty kicks. Lanus - The studly Gimenez scores. LANUS GOAL 0-1 Dover - Most of our great shooters are not in the game so Mads Pedersen is our first shooter. He goes right and it’s off the keepers hands and IN! DOVER GOAL 1-1 Lanus - Mario Dominguez scores. LANUS GOAL 1-2 Dover - Gianluca Bolis is next, goes right as well and it’s IN. DOVER GOAL 2-2 Lanus - They send up defender Pablo Moreno and his shot is tipped over the crossbar by Ingo Wilke!!! SAVE! Dover - Zoltan Bardi steps up, goes left and it’s IN!!! DOVER GOAL 3-2 Lanus - Lucas Petrucci goes left, Wilke guesses right but the shot is too good and it’s in the top corner. LANUS GOAL 3-3 Dover - Our captain Salim Loucif is up next. He simply doesn’t ever score but he goes left and the keeper guesses WRONG! It’s IN! DOVER GOAL 4-3 Lanus - Juan Carlos Maidana is up, one of their defenders and his shot is OFF THE CROSSBAR! That’s IT! We win the FIFA Club World Cup with ten men!!! Dover 1 - 1 Lanus (Dover Win 4-3 on Penalties) Goals - Gianluca Bolis (7.3) Assists - Benedikt Raab (6.9) Man of the Match - Pablo Vazquez (Lanus DC - 8.6) Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.0), Rayane Hamon (7.4), Renato Gaucho (7.1), Jose (7.9) Attendance - 60,000 (Sell-Out) We dominated the last 75 minutes and ended up with 53% of possession and a 28-18 (10-7 on target) shot advantage in a thriller of a cup final. There were an incredible 14 BOOKINGS in this game, eight of them given to our club. Raab’s red card means he’ll miss our next Champions League game and Bolis also will be suspended for that game. -- Fans are celebrating our “double” - funny that they consider the Club World Cup and the European Super Cup as a double but hey, we’ll take it! -- Oh sweet, more money! We’re given £3,030,000 for the victory! -- Stellar Lanus striker Javier Gimenez wins the Best Player award in the competition. Gianluca Bolis finishes in second and Andrea Rocca finishes third. Premier League Update -- While we’re taking down the Club World Cup, there is a full slate of action in league play. Chelsea humble Liverpool 3-0 and that is the last straw for Liverpool manager Michael Laudrup, who is sacked after the match. If you recall, Liverpool offered me their managerial job in July 2018 and I turned it down. Since that time, they’ve gone through five managers, including Laudrup. What a mess… -- In other action, Arsenal win 1-0 over Villa, Middlesbrough knock off Newcastle 4-2 and the Manchester derby ends in a 2-2 draw. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 17 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 42 points 2. Chelsea - 37 points 3. Dover - 35 points (after 16 games) 4. Manchester City - 33 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Newcastle - 30 points 6. Arsenal - 30 points 7. Middlesbrough - 29 points ---------------------------------------------------- Dover U18 Update -- We continue to roll in U18 play, as the lads win 4-2 over Manchester United in U18 Cup 5th round action. Stud striker Alberto Velazquez is at it again, scoring three more goals and DC Danny Hope scores a single. Midfielder James Campbell notched two assists. Next Up -- We host Sheffield Wednesday in the quarterfinal of the League Cup.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-20-2014, 11:23 PM
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#555 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. December 18, 2024
League Cup - Quarter Final Dover vs. Sheffield Wednesday (8th - Barclays Premier League) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: N/A Sheffield Wednesday: 7-2 Past Meetings: 9W 5D 4L Wednesday played us tough earlier in the season, battling to a 1-1 draw here at Crabble. Striker Steve Pates, arguably their most dangerous scorer, will miss today’s game due to injury. Darijo Jukic will be the man we need to watch, along with right winger Eugenio Balestra. They are in 8th place currently on the table, just outside the cutoff for continental play next year. We make a number of changes from our Club World Cup winning squad, bringing in Zoltan Bardi, four new men for the midfield and four new men on defence. Notably, we welcome back winger Arsene Bamba from injury after missing our last eight games. Ingo Wilke and Andy Broomes are the only holdovers from our last match. Control mentality as big favourites today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, S. Nasri, Emerson M - A. Bamba, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Z. Bardi Bench - C. Guzman, M. Yilmaz, P. Secchi, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, G. Allen Flat 4-4-2 for Wednesday with Jukic and Iain Beddard up front and Fernando Cardoso in goal. Lets put a good performance together for the home fans today. 1’ - We win a free kick in their half of the field and Emmerson Harvey touches it to Andrea Rocca. He finds striker Andy Broomes just outside the area and with his back to the goal, he turns and quickly gains some space past his marker. He moves in on Cardoso and places a low shot past him into the near side of the net. Crazy speed and skill from Broomes and we immediately strike! DOVER GOAL 1-0 45’+1 - We’ve been dominating this half, garnering chance after chance and we push forward again, this time through the long ball. Saber Nasri sends a ball over the Wednesday defence and Broomes latches onto it. The defence can’t catch him and he’s in on goal, only to be stoned by Cardoso! There is a rebound though and it’s right on the foot of Zoltan Bardi, who calmly deposits it into the back of the net for the back-breaking goal! DOVER GOAL 2-0 HALFTIME - Excellent half - we only hold 51% of the ball but a 12-3 (5-1 on target) shot advantage. I’m pleased! 69’ - We knew Arsene Bamba wasn’t going to be able to make it through the whole game, having just returned from injury and we take him out now. In comes Mads Pedersen. 76’ - Rocca has been sensational in this game, with an assist and two great free kicks that narrowly missed their mark. He gets a chance on another free kick but sends the ball out wide to Rafinha. Our young fullback sends a pass into the area to Pedersen, who shows his flair with a couple jukes before crossing to the middle. It bounces off a Sheffield defender and right onto the left foot of ROCCA, who volleys the ball into the goal! No less than he deserved! DOVER GOAL 3-0 81’ - Off comes the fantastic Rocca and in comes Paolo Secchi. 84’ - We pull off Broomes and bring in Graham Allen at striker. Excellent game. Dover 3 - 0 Sheffield Wednesday Goals - Andy Broomes (8.3), Zoltan Bardi (7.7), Andrea Rocca (8.2) Assists - Andy Broomes, Andrea Rocca, Mads Pedersen (6.9) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (7.2), Emerson (7.4), Saber Nasri (7.8), Mwemere Mutesa (7.5), Rafinha (7.3) Attendance - 20,973 We held 51% of overall possession and outshot them 23-4 (9-1 on target). Superb performance by mostly backups today. Rocca was robbed of man of the match honours but what can you say about Broomes, who has been so important all year for us with Paul Moses out due to injury for the last four months. Broomes is up to 18 goals in only 23 matches so far this year. U18 Update -- The youngsters continue to roll, with a fine 4-2 win over Manchester United’s U18 squad in U18 Cup 5th round action. The sensational Alberto Velazquez scores three more goals and DC Danny Hope notches a single. Champions League - First Knockout Round Draw -- We’re down to the Sweet 16 and we get a pretty tough draw, going up against Spanish powerhouse Atletico Madrid. The first match will take place at Estadio de Madrid in late February. Next Up -- We’re finally back in action in Premier League play, facing Wolverhampton Wolves.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-21-2014, 12:51 AM
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#556 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. December 21, 2024
Barclays Premier League Dover (11-2-3, 35 points, 3rd) vs. Wolves (5-3-9, 18 points, 14th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 2-5 (Favourites) Draw: 11-4 Wolves: 13-2 Past Meetings: 11W 3D 1L Historically, we’ve simply destroyed these guys, with only one loss in 15 games and 43 goals scored. The club has played four years in a row in the top flight and for 15 of the last 16 years, with the only blip being their lone Championship winning season in 2020/21. Guy Luckett has traditionally been their top scorer but only has two this season. Stefano Zeno leads the club with 7 goals. Evgeni Maltsev is always dangerous against us at left midfield. We’ll go with a pretty full strength squad today but I do worry about complacency, as we’re huge favourites. Manuel Perez is back in goal and Andy Broomes is up front with Chiquinho. Arsene Bamba is still working on his stamina so Mads Pedersen will start on the left wing today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, A. Bamba, G. Allen, Z. Bardi Flat 4-4-2 for Wolves, with Luckett and Zeno up front and Bas Hofstra in goal. As usual, lets do it for the home supporters! 3’ - We get a good chance but Wolves clear behind the net and give us a corner. Benedikt Raab sends a cross to the near post and Rayane Hamon directs the ball off a Wolves defender and IN! Beauty start! DOVER GOAL 1-0 8’ - Wolves have the ball in our end and we have a couple chances to clear but fail to do so. Guy Luckett takes a pass, cuts back to the middle and with his left foot, sends a ROCKET BLAST from just outside the area that goes past a diving Perez and in. What a SHOT! WOLVES GOAL 1-1 15’ - Wolves have a free kick from half way in our zone and defender Wiljan Sno sends a ball to the far post. Hamon misses the header but Evgeny Maltsev sure doesn’t and it’s a weak one past Perez and IN. Umm…this ain’t good! WOLVES GOAL 1-2 20’ - We’re pushing forward and Chiquinho sends the ball out wide to Gianluca Bolis. He dribbles into the area and crosses into the middle and the ball is forcefully headed home by Mads Pedersen. We pull level. DOVER GOAL 2-2 39’ - Salim Loucif gets hurt on a tackle and has the dreaded cross of doom above his head. He needs to come off - in comes Rafinha. DOVER INJURY: Salim Loucif 43’ - Once again, our defence is having trouble getting the ball out when under attack and it’s Luckett AGAIN, this time with a soft lob that is into the top corner past Perez and Wolves lead. Terrible defending and horrific goalkeeping… WOLVES GOAL 2-3 HALFTIME - Perez has been TERRIBLE in goal and we’re behind despite 51% of possession and an 11-6 (4-4 on target) shot advantage. I don’t go full throttle on my team talk but do question the team’s passion. Hopefully we can get things going here. 67’ - Incredible. We are just POURING ON THE PRESSURE but can’t get a shot on target. We make a double substitution, bringing in Zoltan Bardi and Andrea Rocca while taking out a nervous Benedikt Raab and an ineffective Andy Broomes. We need a goal!!! 70’ - Rocca makes an IMMEDIATE impact after coming on. A Chiquinho shot is turned behind the net by Hofstra and we win the corner. Rocca takes it and sends it to the middle, where it’s headed past the Wolves keeper by Hamon, his second of the game! We pull level once again! DOVER GOAL 3-3 Wolves pull back into a 4-5-1 formation. Man - what a disappointing game. Terrible defence and brutal goalkeeping cost us in a game we should have dominated. Dover 3 - 3 Wolves Goals - Rayane Hamon 2 (9.2), Mads Pedersen (7.7) Assists - Gianluca Bolis (6.9), Benedikt Raab (6.9), Andrea Rocca (6.9) Man of the Match - Rayane Hamon Other Dover Notables - Jose (7.0), Chiquinho (5.4), Andy Broomes (5.7) Attendance - 22,077 Boy, Wolves just completely dominated the ball in the last 15 minutes and end up with 54% of overall possession in our building, quite an embarrassment! We outshoot them 21-8 (8-5 on target) but that simply wasn’t good enough and I tell the players as much in the dressing room. Broomes and Chiquinho were awful up front and Perez somehow gets a 6.6 rating despite sucking hard. A brutal result against a lower half squad we should be beating handily and we lose ground on the table as a result. -- Captain Salim Loucif suffered a gashed leg in the game and will miss the next 1-2 weeks. DOVER INJURY: Salim Loucif (Gashed Leg - 10 days) -- Man City beat Sunderland 4-1, Middlesbrough top Sheffield United 3-2 and Arsenal edge Reading 1-0. Man United top Newcastle 3-0 and Chelsea beat Blackpool 1-0 as pretty much everyone else in contention win. We drop into fourth place with the draw. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 18 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 45 points 2. Chelsea - 40 points 3. Manchester City - 36 points 4. Dover - 36 points (after 17 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 33 points 6. Middlesbrough - 32 points 7. Newcastle - 30 points ---------------------------------------------------- U18 Update -- So yeah, Alberto Velazquez is pretty good! He scores FIVE GOALS in our 7-1 drubbing of Crawley and gets a rare perfect 10.0 rating. Neil Evans and Darren Beckett also score. Clause Money Coming In! -- Former goalkeeper Mathis Imbert plays in his tenth game for Valencia and we get paid another £250,000 after including a games played clause in the transfer deal. Injury Update -- WOO! Superstar striker Paul Moses returns to full training after missing close to four months with a torn calf muscle. He will likely need some time to get up to speed but we only have one reserves game in the next month or so. Maybe I’ll schedule a closed door game with our reserves… -- Salim Loucif is out for about a week or so with a gashed leg. Striker Manuel Lugo is still on the long-term injury list and won’t be back until sometime later in January. Team of the Week -- Defender Rayane Hamon makes the Barclays Premier League team of the week for his two goal performance. Next Up -- We have a huge Boxing Day matchup against rivals Arsenal at Crabble Athletic Ground.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-21-2014, 02:12 AM
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#557 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Thu. December 26, 2024
Barclays Premier League Dover (11-3-3, 36 points, 4th) vs. Arsenal (10-3-5, 33 points, 5th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: Evens (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Arsenal: 11-5 Past Meetings: 6W 2D 9L Arsenal are starting to nip at our heels a bit but even with a win today, they won’t be able to pass us due to the fact their goal differential is only +4 versus our +19. It looks like stellar defender/striker Nchimunya Munyao is playing more up front this year, as he leads the Gunners with 9 goals thus far. They still have dangerous forwards Lee Ross and Boakye as well. After losing five straight league games at one point in November, Arsenal have righted the ship and rung up five straight wins in all competitions. They also are through to the Europa League knockout stages. As usual, they were modest spenders in the transfer window, with only £12.5 million spent on five players, most notably former Dover loanee George MacKenzie, who came over from Sunderland for £7.25 million. We make six changes from our ugly draw against Wolves. Ingo Wilke is in goal for the struggling Manuel Perez. With captain Salim Loucif injured, I bring in vice captain Saber Nasri and rest Rayane Hamon, as we play again in two days against Sheffield United in league play. Also coming in for today’s game on defence is Emerson, with the only holdovers being Claudio Contreras and Renato Gaucho. In midfield, the only holdover is Jose. After a three game benching, we give another shot to Neil Cairney. Also playing in midfield are Arsene Bamba and Graham Allen. Superstar striker Paul Moses, very unfit after four months recovering from a torn calf, is on the bench today and we’ll try to get him 30 minutes of playing time. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, Emerson M - A. Bamba, N. Cairney, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, A. Rocca, E. Harvey, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, P. Moses Arsenal are in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Munyao up front, Jack Wilshere in behind and Sergio Asenjo in goal. I pull aside Chiquinho and tell him I expect a better game while also telling Neil Cairney I expect a performance from him today. Beyond that, I tell the players to put on a good show today. HALFTIME - Well, after a horrific defensive performance last game, I guess I can’t complain too much about a scoreless first half. We dominate the proceedings, with 53% of possession and a huge 15-4 (3-0 on target) shot advantage. Andy Broomes is a bit of a goat again today, with an incredible 8 first half shots but only two on target. At least he’s doing SOMETHING while Chiquinho continues to struggle immensely. I try to instil some confidence in these guys by saying they can win this game and I tell Broomes I have faith in his ability. I also tell Chiquinho I’m disappointed in his performance. 59’ - Arsenal are starting to take it to us and have had all the highlights this half. Time to bring in our saviour! Out comes Chiquinho and in comes Paul Moses to a warm ovation from our crowd! 66’ - It’s absolutely INCREDIBLE how much Moses means to our club. He’s completely out of shape and hasn’t played in four months yet we have essentially six minutes straight of highlights and he’s darting all over the place. Jose sends a ball up field down the right flank into open space and Moses beats his man to the ball. He attempts a cross into the area, which hits an Arsenal defender but deflects right to out of form NEIL CAIRNEY, who hits the ball on the volley and it’s past Asenjo and IN!!! YES! That’s Cairney’s first goal of the year! DOVER GOAL 1-0 79’ - We bring in Andrea Rocca for a tired Jose. 90’+1 - We have Rafinha waiting to come on and I’m trying to change to a counter attacking mentality but we can’t get a stoppage in play. Still, the persistence of Neil Cairney pays off, as he tackles the ball away in midfield and gets to the vacant ball in Arsenal’s end. He sends a ball up to Moses and his shot is weak and wide. It’s about to go out of play but at the last second, Graham Allan gets there and sends a desperation, one touch cross to the middle and the ball hits an Arsenal defender and bounces into the net! We’ll take it! DOVER GOAL 2-0 Rafinha comes in for young fullback Emerson. We get the much-deserved win! Dover 2 - 0 Arsenal Goals - Neil Cairney (8.7), Jan Lems OG Assists - Neil Cairney, Paul Moses (7.3) Man of the Match - Neil Cairney Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (7.3), Emerson (7.2), Saber Nasri (7.2), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.2) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) It was a bit tense early in the second half but the move to bring on Paul Moses changed the momentum BIG-TIME in our favour and we score two goals in those 30 minutes to prevail. Moses gets a 7.3 rating for his 30 minutes - that’s rare to see for such a short time on the pitch but shows how influential he was in limited minutes. We held 53% of possession and a 21-10 (6-3 on target) shot advantage. Neil Cairney was sensational today - easily his best performance in quite some time! Wilke was excellent in goal as well - man, I can’t believe he continues to play at such a high level. I really thought Perez was going to take over this year but I’m finding it very hard to keep throwing the guy in the fire only to let in three goals every game. -- Everyone continues to roll: United beat up on Derby, City win on the road at Middlesbrough, Chelsea can only manage a draw against Spurs and Sheffield Wednesday destroy Huddersfield 5-0. We stay in fourth, a whopping nine points out of first place. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 19 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 48 points 2. Chelsea - 41 points 3. Manchester City - 39 points 4. Dover - 39 points (after 18 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 33 points 6. Middlesbrough - 32 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 31 points ---------------------------------------------------- Contract Expiries -- We have a number of decent depth players and two key prospects with expiring deals so I go ahead and start offering contract extensions. Next Up -- We begin the second half of the season, welcoming 17th placed Sheffield United to Crabble Athletic Ground as we continue our month-long home stand.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-22-2014, 12:27 AM
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#558 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. December 28, 2024
Barclays Premier League Dover (12-3-3, 39 points, 4th) vs. Sheffield United (4–2-13, 14 points, 17th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 1-6 (Favourites) Draw: 5-1 Sheffield United: 10-1 Past Meetings: 4W 2D 2L We begin the second half of the season at home against Sheffield United, who are back in the Premier League for the first time in six years and only for the second time since 2007! They are just above the relegation zone but are in dire straits today, with SIX injured players, one suspended player and a couple of ineligible players. Their leading scorer, striker Marcello Trotta, is doubtful for today’s game and if so, the scoring will be left in the hands of Angel Egana, who has 5 markers on the year. After playing only two days ago, we’ll be rotating the squad and only Chiquinho is a holdover from last game. He’s been pretty poor lately and I’m expecting a big game today against weaker opposition. Zoltan Bardi will also start up front. Mads Pedersen, Benedikt Raab, the in-form Andrea Rocca and Gianluca Bolis start in midfield. On defence, we have Carlos Guzman getting a rare start along with Mwemere Mutesa, Rayane Hamon and Rafinha. Paul Moses is on the bench again today and we’ll attempt to get him about 40 minutes of playing time in the second half. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - C. Guzman, M. Mutesa, R. Hamon, Rafinha M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, A. Rocca, G. Bolis S - Chiquinho, Z. Bardi Bench - Emerson, M. Yilmaz, P. Secchi, E. Harvey, A. Bamba, L. Kunchev, P. Moses Eww. Sheffield come out in a 4-2-2-2 formation with two defensive central mids and it’s obvious they are going to sit back today. They start Jason Silva (3 goals) and Max Clayton (0 goals!) up front and Egana isn’t even on the bench today! Adrian Smith is their keeper. I may eventually move to an attacking formation but I’ll start in control and see if we can break them down. Lets score some goals for the home fans! 14’ - Andrea Rocca has the ball at midfield and passes up to Zoltan Bardi. He finds strike partner Chiquinho about ten yards outside the area. Our out-of-form striker cuts to the middle and unleashes a blast from just outside the box and it curls past Smith and is in! Great shot! DOVER GOAL 1-0 17’ - Chiquinho is playing the advanced forward role today and it looks good on him, as he sends another shot at Smith that he’s forced to bump over the goal, giving us a corner. Rocca sends a cross into the area and it’s Rayane Hamon heading it into the net for his fifth goal already this year! DOVER GOAL 2-0 31’ - Rafinha gets hurt trying to make a tackle and needs help. He can stay in for now but has the cross of doom over his name. 36’ - Mads Pedersen has the ball in the area and attempts a cross but it’s deflected back to him. He then passes to Benedikt Raab, who immediately shoots and the ball first hits a Sheffield defender, then Chiquinho and bounces IN! For some reason the goal is awarded to Raab but we’ll take it! DOVER GOAL 3-0 HALFTIME - Fantastic effort, as we hold 55% of possession and a 14-3 (9-1 on target) shot advantage. I am pleased! 55’ - We take out Zoltan Bardi and in comes Paul Moses, as we continue to try to work him back into shape. 61’ - We have a free kick near the byline on the right and Rocca crosses it in. Mwemere Mutesa gets a header that is blocked but the loose ball comes right back to him. He rifles a shot at goal and it hits Paul Moses and deflects into the net! That IS credited to Moses, his first goal since his return from injury and we’re well ahead! DOVER GOAL 4-0 66’ - We take out the excellent Andrea Rocca and bring in Paolo Secchi for a rare appearance. 72’ - Hamon heads the ball from the midfield stripe back up field and Raab wins the ball. It bounces and from hip level, he hits a 30 yard shot ON THE VOLLEY and it screams into the corner of the goal! SENSATIONAL, world-class strike from distance from Raab, his second goal of the game! WOW!!! DOVER GOAL 5-0 77’ - Rafinha saves a ball from going out on the right flank and sends it back into the middle to Paolo Secchi. He finds Moses in the area and our star’s one timer is blazed past the beleaguered United goalkeeper and IN! Moses now has two! DOVER GOAL 6-0 We bring in Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz for Rayane Hamon, our last change. 86’ - Ugh. United win a corner and the cross is headed in by their striker Jason Silva. Manuel Perez continues to let in too many goals. SHEFFIELD UNITED GOAL 6-1 90’ - Raab almost notches his hat trick off a free kick from distance but Smith makes a brilliant save to keep it out. We do earn a corner and Raab’s cross is headed by young central defender Mutesa and IN! What a rout! DOVER GOAL 7-1 Superb! Dover 7 - 1 Sheffield United Goals - Benedikt Raab 2 (9.5), Paul Moses 2 (8.6), Chiquinho (9.0), Rayane Hamon (9.2), Mwemere Mutesa (9.3) Assists - Mwemere Mutesa, Andrea Rocca (7.7), Benedikt Raab, Mads Pedersen (8.9), Zoltan Bardi (7.2), Paolo Secchi (7.1) Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.3), Rafinha (8.1), Carlos Guzman (8.0), Gianluca Bolis (7.8) Attendance - 22,111 Domination of the highest order despite them keeping six men back! We hold 54% of the ball and a 26-8 (16-4 on target) shot advantage. 13 players, including all eleven starters, get ratings over 7.0 today! Raab was fantastic and he needed to be, as Neil Cairney was awesome last game and will be threatening his playing time again. -- Rafinha suffered a thigh strain and will miss about 10 days or so. No big deal! DOVER INJURY - Rafinha (Thigh Strain - 10 days) -- The top teams continue to roll, with United, City, Middlesbrough and Spurs all winning with ease while Sheffield Wednesday and Chelsea battle to a 1-1 draw. I laugh as Liverpool, who just hired Tony Mowbray away from Middlesbrough, get smoked 5-0 by Wolves…so funny. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 20 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 51 points 2. Manchester City - 42 points 3. Dover - 42 points (after 19 games) 4. Chelsea - 42 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 36 points 6. Middlesbrough - 35 points 7. Tottenham - 33 points ---------------------------------------------------- 8. Sheffield Wednesday - 32 points 9. Newcastle - 31 points 10. Sunderland - 30 points 11. Huddersfield - 26 points 12. Liverpool - 25 points 13. Reading - 24 points 14. Wolves - 22 points 15. Aston Villa - 20 points 16. Everton - 19 points (after 19 games) 17. Sheffield United - 14 points ---------------------------------------------------- 18. Derby - 11 points 19. Blackpool - 8 points 20. Burnley - 6 points -- We’ve played one less game but have essentially reached the halfway point of the season. Interestingly enough, we are only four points back of our pace from last year, as we had 46 points through 19 games in our Premier League winning year. We have 47 goals after scoring seven against Sheffield United, which is still nine less than last year at this time. We’ve also given up one more goal (20) than last year. So we’re a bit behind in all areas. Lets look at some Barclays Premier League stat leaders: GOALS - 1. Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United, 24 2. Roland Hoxha, Middlesbrough, 21 3. Jelle Hoegee, Manchester City, 19 4. Hani Megahed, Reading, 15 5. Andy Broomes, Dover, 10 6. Peter Jansen, Tottenham 9 7. Boakye, Arsenal, 9 8. Darijo Jukic, Sheffield Wednesday, 9 9. Robert Stoll, Middlesbrough, 9 10. Stefano Zeno, Wolves, 9 Chiquinho is tied for 11th with 8 goals. Gianluca Bolis and Jose have four goals apiece and that ties them for 41st in the league. ASSISTS - 1. Robert Stoll, Middlesbrough, 12 2. Luis Carballo, Chelsea, 10 3. Eugenio Balestra, Sheffield Wednesday, 9 4. Mario Brito, Manchester City, 9 5. Giorgos Spanoudakis, Manchester City, 9 6. Omar Hernandez, Manchester United, 9 7. Jonathan Bottone, Manchester City, 8 Five Players Tied with 7 Benedikt Raab, Jose and Chiquinho are tied for the club lead in league assists with five each, placing them in a tie for 17th. Neil Cairney and Renato Gaucho have four assists to tie them for 28th and Zoltan Bardi has three with ties him for 46th place. AVERAGE RATING - 1. Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United, 8.09 2. Luis Carballo, Chelsea, 7.63 3. Roland Hoxha, Middlesbrough, 7.61 4. Salah Abbes, Manchester City, 7.57 5. Jelle Hoegee, Manchester City, 7.54 6. Luiz Carlos, Manchester United, 7.52 7. Robert Stoll, Middlesbrough, 7.52 8. Cristian Rodriguez, Manchester United, 7.49 9. Mario Brito, Manchester City, 7.48 9. Rayane Hamon, Dover, 7.48 Benedikt Raab is in 13th at 7.44, Mads Pedersen is in 17th at 7.35 and Andy Broomes is right behind in 19th at 7.31. Jose is in 21st at 7.30, Renato Gaucho is at 7.27, good for 24th and Chiquinho is in 26th at 7.26. We also have Claudio Contreras at 7.21, good for 32nd and finally Gianluca Bolis is in 43rd place at 7.18. So nine players in the top 50…not bad! U18 Update -- We DESTROY Hampton & Richmond 9-0, with Felix Hernandez and Jason Campbell bagging braces. We get singles from Nathan Protheroe, Freddie Laird, Alberto Velazquez, Neil Evans and a Graham Gill OG. Contract Extensions -- We are delighted to come to terms on contract extensions for both Zoltan Bardi and Mwemere Mutesa! Bardi gets a slight raise and will stick around now until 2028 while young centre halfback Mutesa gets a significant raise and also will be here another three years. Mutesa is filled with potential and has been stellar in limited play so far this year while Bardi continues to be unheralded here but always produces when called upon. -- A couple days later, we get young midfielder Felix Hernandez to sign on the dotted line on a three year extension. Hernandez has been lighting it up for our U18s with 14 goals and 15 assists thus far in 22 non-competitive appearances. Premier League Team of the Week -- You’d expect us to fill this team after scoring seven goals in a game and indeed, we get SIX players named to this week’s team, including Ingo Wilke, Mwemere Mutesa, Rayane Hamon, Mads Pedersen, Benedikt Raab and Neil Cairney. Injury Update -- We finally see progress on striker Manuel Lugo, who is now only a couple weeks away from returning to full training. Rafinha will be out about a week and a half with his thigh strain. Dover Reserves Update -- Paul Moses gets another 70 minutes of playing time and scores twice, as does young defender Mwemere Mutesa to lead us to a 6-0 win over Wolves in a reserves matchup. We get singles from Paolo Secchi and Alberto Velazquez. Secchi also had FOUR ASSISTS in the game for a five point night! WOW! January Update -- We have six Premier League games this month, with games against Newcastle (away), Manchester City (home), Derby (away), Everton (away), Huddersfield (away) and Burnley (home). We also host Norwich in FA Cup action and will play our League Cup semifinal in the middle of the month. So eight matches this month! -- We get positive training reports for Emmerson Harvey, Manuel Perez, Emerson and U18 players Matthew Neil, Robert Hoffmann and Alberto Velazquez. Only one negative report and it’s for U18 player Adam Hyde. December Awards -- Manchester United superstar Yaya Sanogo scores seven goals in six games to win Barclays Premier League player of the month. -- Jose Alberto Gonzalez from Aston Villa wins young player of the month. -- Yawn. Jurgen Klinsmann wins Manager of the Month for the upteenth time. 2024 Year-End Awards -- Paul Moses once again is named to England’s Best Eleven for 2024. -- Barcelona star Enrique wins European Striker of the Year and also wins the Ballon d’Or. His teammate Juan Ramon Vazquez wins World Player of the Year. -- Real Madrid’s Zonzamas Garrido wins European Goalkeeper of the Year while teammate Emiliano Moreno wins the midfielder award. -- Sampdoria’s Juan Pablo Garcia Ramos wins Defender of the Year. Transfer Window Re-Opens -- I’ve already had one subpar offer for Chiquinho that is swiftly rejected and I expect offers to come in on a few players. Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership. They are delighted with our Club World Cup win over Heartland but still slightly disappointed over the sale of Giorgos Gesios. -- We made £2.8 million in profit last month. Next Up -- We look to gain revenge for an early season loss, as we head on the road for the first time in over a month in league play to take on suddenly struggling Newcastle.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-22-2014, 10:15 PM
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#559 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. January 1, 2025
Barclays Premier League Newcastle (8-7-5, 31 points, 9th) vs. Dover (13-3-3, 42 points, 3rd) St. James’ Park, Newcastle, UK Betting Odds: Newcastle: 9-2 Draw: 13-5 Dover: 1-2 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 7W 1D 3L Newcastle offered the biggest shock of our season thus far, defeating us 2-1 in our home stadium in late August. They were riding a wave of great play through a couple months of the Premier League season but have seen a major drop in form, with only one win in their last nine games. They’ve dropped from a top four position all the way to ninth and out of continental qualification positions. They have a few key injuries but get balanced scoring so we’ll still need to be careful here. Paul Gould and Vincenzo Scala are their joint scoring leaders with 6 each. We want this win to gain a measure of revenge for our early season loss. We’ve had a run of games over the past week and have Manchester City coming to Dover on Saturday so we’re still rotating the squad somewhat right now. We’re going with a one striker formation and it’s Andy Broomes leading the charge with Zoltan Bardi playing AMC. Neil Cairney is back in at midfield. Rayane Hamon gets a break on defence and Saber Nasri will take his place and captain the squad, as Salim Loucif is still regaining fitness after his short term injury. Chiquinho is on the bench today and Paul Moses won’t dress, as he is tired after starting a reserves game yesterday. We’ll be ready to move back to a flat 4-4-2 if this formation doesn’t work. Dover: 4-4-2 DM (4-2-3-1) Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, Emerson M - N. Cairney, Jose AM - A. Bamba, Z. Bardi, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes Bench - S. Loucif, R. Hamon, A. Rocca, B. Raab, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, Chiquinho Newcastle are in the same formation as us and go with Stanislas Vigneau up front. Ross Barkley is in midfield and Jak Alnwick is in goal - he’s always superb in games against us. No fooling around here - I want a win and tell the team as much. It’s snowing today. 16’ - Zoltan Bardi gets the ball and passes to Andy Broomes near the top of the area. He turns to the middle and hits a shot with his stronger right foot and it’s off a diving Alwnick and in! Nice start! DOVER GOAL 1-0 18’ - Almost immediately, Newcastle win a corner and the cross is to the near post and to the dangerous Vigneau, who heads the ball into the goal. They strike back immediately. NEWCASTLE GOAL 1-1 HALFTIME - We’re playing well and getting plenty of chances but Alwick, as usual, is playing great. We hold 55% of possession and a huge 17-4 (6-1 on target) shot advantage. I reinforce that we can win this game - now go out and score another goal! 51’ - We win possession in midfield and Jose feeds it up to Broomes, who has two defenders on him. He turns and fires a low shot at goal and it deflects off Alnwick and goes in! Alnwick is always sensational against us but that was a pretty weak goal. We’ll take it! DOVER GOAL 2-1 63’ - Bardi feeds a through ball to Broomes and he’s off to the races. He shoots from point blank range and it’s saved by Alnwick but the rebound pops out to Jose and he calmly shoots it into the empty net. Fantastic! DOVER GOAL 3-1 Newcastle switch to a 4-4-2 diamond. 66’ - We move to a flat 4-4-2 to counter their formation change. 87’ - Ugh. Zoltan Bardi takes a knock and has the cross of doom above his name. He can stay in the game but I decide to take him out in favour of Graham Allan. Solid victory in a game we dominated. Newcastle 1 - 3 Dover Goals - Andy Broomes 2 (9.3), Jose (8.8) Assists - Andy Broomes, Jose, Zoltan Bardi (6.9) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Saber Nasri (7.2), Claudio Contreras (7.1), Renato Gaucho (7.1), Neil Cairney (7.1) Attendance - 50,789 Vintage display today, with 53% of possession and a huge 32-7 (14-1 on target) shot advantage, as we just pelted them with shots from everywhere. Broomes with yet another HUGE performance - it will be tough keeping him on the bench with Moses’ return. Broomes is up to 20 goals on the season. -- Thankfully, there don’t seem to be any lingering effects after Zoltan Bardi came off! Whew! -- In other action, Sheffield Wednesday beat up on Blackpool 5-1, Middlesbrough can only manage a scoreless draw against lowly Burnley, Chelsea draw 1-1 with Sunderland and Manchester City continue their winning ways with a 3-0 decision over Aston Villa. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 21 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 51 points (after 20 games) 2. Manchester City - 45 points 3. Dover - 45 points (after 20 games) 4. Chelsea - 43 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Middlesbrough - 36 points 6. Arsenal - 36 points (after 20 games) 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 35 points League Cup Update -- Manchester United beat Arsenal so we’ll face United in a two leg semi-final matchup, with both games taking place this month. Loan Offer -- PSG in France want to bring in Paolo Secchi on loan for the remainder of the season. They are offering me a healthy £375,000 up front along with his full wages to take him - they also include a future transfer fee that’s a bit too low so I negotiate the offer and also offer his services to other clubs. Secchi has only played in four games for us this year, all as a substitute so I’d love for the 23 year old to get some playing time elsewhere. Next Up -- We have a huge matchup at home, as we host powerhouse Manchester City in Premier League action.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-22-2014, 11:44 PM
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#560 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. January 4, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (14-3-3, 45 points, 3rd) vs. Manchester City (13-6-2, 45 points, 2nd) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 6-4 (Favourites) Draw: 2-1 Manchester City: 13-8 Past Meetings: 5W 2D 8L We already own two wins against City this year, beating them 3-1 in the season opening Community Shield and also besting them 1-0 at the Etihad in early season Premier League play. The Jose Mourinho-led squad has been very strong this year and haven’t lost in league play since that game against us. They also made it through the group stages of Champions League play and will face Juventus in the first knockout round. Jelle Hoegee is back to his old self this year and has 28 goals in only 25 games, just staggering numbers. Central defender Salah Abbes is second with 8 - simply put, if we stop Hoegee, we likely win. Mario Brito is also a dangerous midfielder. City have a few key injuries but they will be a formidable foe today. We’ll be going with essentially our main starting roster but Paul Moses is still regaining match fitness and will be on the bench to start. I’ll definitely bring him in early in the second half. Salim Loucif is back to full fitness and will start at right fullback while Benedikt Raab gets the call over Neil Cairney. Back to a flat 4-4-2 today and a control mentality to start at home and as slight favourites. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, P. Moses City are in a 4-2-3-1 with Hoegee alone up front. Antonio is their keeper and he is a good one. Lets play well for the home supporters today! 10’ - A pretty even start, with chances for both teams including a Broomes blast off the crossbar. We get the ball at midfield and Gianluca Bolis feeds a pass to the middle to Benedikt Raab. He dribbles in a couple steps and from 35 yards out, sends a kick WITH VENOM toward the goal. Antonio can’t get to it quick enough and it’s IN! Spectacular shot from distance from Raab and we lead! DOVER GOAL 1-0 13’ - We have possession deep in their end once again and after some give and go passing between Jose and Bolis, it’s Jose feeding a pass into Chiquinho. Against claims of offsides, Chiquinho turns and is about to fire but he’s taken down. I’m expecting a diving call but the ref points to the spot and awards a PENALTY! It’s Raab who steps up to take it and he makes no mistake, putting it into the right corner of the goal for his second of the game! Wow! DOVER GOAL 2-0 18’ - City have a free kick from just outside our area but the kick is sent into our wall and we start a counter attack with Chiquinho and Andy Broomes on a 2 on 1. Chiquinho sends Broomes in all alone but his shot is blocked by the City defender. However, the bounces are going our way and the ball goes right to Chiquinho and he has an empty net to shoot at and makes no mistake. This is nuts! DOVER GOAL 3-0 30’ - My God we are on fire. We score again with a wicked blast from Claudio Contreras off a failed free kick but it’s called back due to an offsides call. 31’ - And that’s a big moment, as shortly thereafter, City win a corner and Mario Brito’s cross is headed past Wilke and into the net by Anthony Pattison. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 3-1 34’ - Oh boy. Jelle Hoegee sends a through ball to Jonathan Bottone and our defence is no where to be found. Arsene Bamba, our left midfielder, chases him down but Bottone’s shot deflects off Bamba and is past Wilke and IN! Oh my goodness…an OG for Bamba and our lead is cut to one. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 3-2 HALFTIME - We are playing great but they cash in on their only two chances, as we hold 57% of possession and a 13-6 (3-2 on target) shot advantage. Claudio Contreras takes the blame for the Bamba own goal and has a 5.4 rating at half. We make one change and that’s to bring in Paul Moses for a nervous Andy Broomes. I tell the team I’m pleased with their play and tell Moses I expect him to pick up where he left off in his last game. 63’ - Boy, City are playing VERY AGGRESSIVELY right now and we’re holding on for dear life at the moment. 69’ - City continue to send men forward without hesitation in an effort to tie the game and we decide to pull back into a counter attack mentality. I also pull out a tired Arsene Bamba and bring in Mads Pedersen. 70’ - IMMEDIATELY after the change, City throws the ball in and get it into Bottone in our area. Contreras tries to tackle it away and sends the ball into our net. A SECOND OWN GOAL and City come back from THREE GOALS DOWN TO PULL LEVEL. Disaster. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 3-3 We move back to a control mentality. This is nuts. Wow. What an epic collapse. Dover 3 - 3 Manchester City Goals - B. Raab 2 (8.8), Chiquinho (7.9) Assists - Gianluca Bolis (7.7), Chiquinho Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Attendance - 23,000 (Sell Out) We end up in a dead heat in possession, as City really pushed hard all half in a successful attempt to pull even. We outshot them 20-13 (6-7 on target). I decide to sympathize with the club in the locker room. Our two central defenders, Hamon and Contreras, were horrible all game but ended up with 6.7 ratings. -- We had our chance to move up in the standings, as United lost at home to Chelsea but in the end we only gain a point on them. Sheffield United upset Arsenal 2-1, Middlesbrough draw 1-1 against Huddersfield and Sheffield Wednesday draw 1-1 against Liverpool. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 22 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 51 points (after 21 games) 2. Manchester City - 46 points 3. Dover - 46 points (after 21 games) 4. Chelsea - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Middlesbrough - 37 points 6. Sheffield Wednesday - 36 points 7. Arsenal - 36 points (after 21 games) U18 Update -- In U18 Cup Quarter Final play, we edge Everton 3-2 behind two goals from Ben Patterson and a single from Neil Evans. Premier League Update -- Interesting. Man United can only manage a draw on Tuesday against one win Blackpool so with a win against Derby on Wednesday, we can pull to within three points of the league leaders. Loan OUT -- After receiving a loan offer from PSG in France for the services of midfielder Paolo Secchi, we offer him around to other clubs and only Fiorentina comes calling. So with two clubs to choose from, Secchi chooses to go home to Italy and he’ll spend the rest of the season in Serie A with Fiorentina. We pick up a cool £375,000 in up front fees. Next Up -- We head to Pride Park to face relegation candidates Derby.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-23-2014, 01:34 AM
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#561 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. January 8, 2025
Barclays Premier League Derby (3-3-16, 12 points, 18th) vs. Dover (14-4-3, 46 points, 3rd) Pride Park, Derby, UK Betting Odds: Derby: 13-2 Draw: 11-4 Dover: 2-5 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 11W 0D 2L We shouldn’t get too much resistance today against relegation candidates Derby, who are winless in four games and just lost 7-0 a couple games ago to Reading. This club has major troubles scoring goals and the proof is that Joao Henriques Almeida and Hallam Hope are joint leaders with only four goals. Not good. Old friend Fraser Forster is still their goalkeeper and he’s not very good either. We have a weekend FA Cup match against second tier Norwich so we can go full out today and save our substitutes for that contest. Paul Moses still isn’t match fit so he’ll be on the bench today but will definitely start regardless of fitness on the weekend. I only make three changes to our starting lineup from the City game - Manuel Perez will be in goal, Mads Pedersen plays for Arsene Bamba and Mwemere Mutesa is in for slumping Claudio Contreras. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, M. Mutesa, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, A. Bamba, G. Allan, P. Moses Derby are in a flat 4-4-2 with Almeida and Niels Hendriks up front and Forster in goal. I expect a win today, gentlemen! 22’ - We have a throw in near midfield and Renato Gaucho throws it to Andy Broomes. He cuts to the middle of the pitch and feeds a long ball up to Chiquinho. He reaches the byline, cuts back to the middle and cleverly slots the ball into the near side of the goal past Forster and we finally break through. DOVER GOAL 1-0 24’ - Broomes wins a battle at midfield and sends Chiquinho in again, this time on a breakaway. He hits a trademark blast and it’s low into the corner of the net! Chiquinho is on fire the last few games! DOVER GOAL 2-0 45’+2 - Broomes shows incredible skill by taking the ball just on Derby’s side of the field and weaves through three players before getting into the area. He jukes one way, cuts back and strikes the ball off a diving Forster and in! Simply magical!!! DOVER GOAL 3-0 Derby switch to a 4-4-2 tight diamond. HALFTIME - This is no contest. We hold 62% of the ball and an outrageous 17-2 (4-0 on target) shot advantage. I tell the team I’m pleased but pull aside an ineffective Jose (6.3) and tell him to go out there and prove a point. 54’ - My goodness. Broomes simply takes the ball away from a Derby defender and streaks in alone. Forster comes out to challenge but Broomes shoots it past him and IN. He has two goals as well and now I have to keep Moses on the bench to give these guys a chance at a hat trick. DOVER GOAL 4-0 60’ - Jose is having a dud of a game and is playing complacently so I pull him out and bring in Andrea Rocca. 69’ - Graham Allan is in for Gianluca Bolis. 80’ - We win a corner and Rocca’s cross is to the far post and Hamon heads it in! DOVER GOAL 5-0 Easy. Derby 0 - 5 Dover Goals - Chiquinho 2 (8.8), Andy Broomes 2 (9.6), Rayane Hamon (8.8) Assists - Andy Broomes 2, Benedikt Raab (8.2), Andrea Rocca (6.9) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.0), Salim Loucif (8.0), Mwemere Mutesa (8.3), Renato Gaucho (8.0), Gianluca Bolis (7.1), Mads Pedersen (7.8) Attendance - 31,265 Super! We held 62% of overall possession and held a 35-7 (9-2 on target) shot advantage. FOUR points for Andy Broomes, who now has 22 goals and 7 assists in 28 matches (23 starts). And he’s going to the bench soon!! Hamon is up to six goals, which matches a career high already for the central defender while Chiquinho now has 17 goals and 8 helpers in his 28 games. -- Chelsea continue to draw games, this time tying Middlesbrough 1-1 while Sheffield Wednesday knock off Spurs 3-2. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 23 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 52 points (after 22 games) 2. Manchester City - 49 points 3. Dover - 49 points (after 22 games) 4. Chelsea - 47 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Sheffield Wednesday - 39 points 6. Middlesbrough - 38 points 7. Arsenal - 37 points (after 22 games) Clause Money IN -- We receive a cool £1,500,000 from Cruz Azul due to a games played clause I built into the sale of midfielder Rafael Ramirez. I have to give 35% of the fee to OM, the club I bought Ramirez from due to a clause from THAT deal. So complicated! But we net close to a million pounds so I’m happy. Next Up -- We host Championship side Norwich in the third round of the FA Cup.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-23-2014, 02:40 AM
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#562 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. January 11, 2025
FA Cup - 3rd Round Dover (3rd in Barclays Premier League) vs. Norwich (5th in Championship) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 1-3 (Favourites) Draw: 3-1 Norwich: 7-1 Past Meetings: 8W 1D 1L Norwich finished 19th in the Premier League last year and got relegated back to the Championship and this is the third year in four that they’ve spent in the second tier division. They are in a playoff position right now but it’s a very close battle and they’ll need to keep winning to have a chance at promotion once again. Former Dover U18 player Carlo Cerbone is their leading scorer with 8 goals but their best player is Manchester City loanee Kevin Martin, a stellar central defender. He’s not eligible to play in this competition, however. We’ll get the chance to play most of our backups today but we’ll give a start to Paul Moses, his first start since returning from his four month injury. He’s still trying to regain match fitness but I’m guessing that if he plays 90 minutes today, or close to it, he’ll be fully fit very soon. This match shouldn’t be too difficult. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - C. Guzman, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, Emerson M - A. Bamba, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, G. Allan S - P. Moses, Z. Bardi Bench - Rafinha, M. Yilmaz, E. Harvey, B. Raab, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, A. Broomes Norwich are in a 4-4-2 narrow diamond formation with Cerbone and veteran striker Paul Bryce up front. Matt Payne is their keeper. Lets play well for the fans today. 27’ - A bit of a lackadaisical start for us but we finally strike off a corner. Rocca’s cross is to the near post and Saber Nasri heads it towards goal. The ball is loose and there to put away the garbage is Paul Moses! DOVER GOAL 1-0 45’ - We win a free kick down the left flank and Rocca passes to Neil Cairney, unmarked outside the box. He rifles a shot that hits the crossbar and bounces down and into the net! “Pure inspiration from Cairney!” bellows the announcer and I tend to agree! DOVER GOAL 2-0 HALFTIME - Rocca was sensational that half and we lead comfortably. We hold 58% of possession and a 13-3 (3-2 on target) shot advantage. I’m happy. 66’ - Lots of chances for us here but we can’t put the ball into the net. We take out the excellent Rocca and bring in Emmerson Harvey. 73’ - GRRR. Arsene Bamba is tackled hard and needs to come off. Ugh. I bring in Rafinha. DOVER INJURY: Arsene Bamba 79’ - Seriously?!?!. We just bring Rafinha in for the injured Bamba and now Rafinha is tackled and has the cross of doom above his name as well! OMG. He can stay in for now but man…not good! 80’ - We switch to a 4-2-3-1 formation. Not very impressive at all. Dover 2 - 0 Norwich Goals - Paul Moses (7.3), Neil Cairney (8.3) Assists - Andrea Rocca 2 (8.7) Man of the Match - Andrea Rocca Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.3), Emerson (7.3), Saber Nasri (7.4), Claudio Contreras (7.4), Carlos Guzman (7.3) Attendance - 19,411 We held 63% of possession and a 30-4 (6-2 on target) shot advantage. Territorial domination but hardly the same thing on the scoreboard. We move on… -- We earn £69,000 for the win. -- Eww. Rafinha re-injures his thigh, his second strain in less than three weeks. Guess I brought him back too soon. He’ll miss a week or two. DOVER INJURY: Rafinha (Thigh Strain - 10 days) -- Arsene Bamba suffered a gashed arm and will only miss a few days. DOVER INJURY: Arsene Bamba (Gashed Arm - 4 days) International Update -- Young U18 star Alberto Velazquez plays well for Mexico in World Cup U20 qualifying. -- We have four players called up by their respective home countries for the African Nations event: Salim Loucif (Algeria), Arsene Bamba (Ivory Coast) and Saber Nasri (Tunisia) are in familiar territory but getting his first senior level call up is Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz for Morocco! FA Cup - 4th Round Draw -- We are the last name out of the hat and we will head on the road to face another Championship side in Bolton in 4th round FA Cup play. Barclays Premier League Team of the Week -- Rayane Hamon and Andy Broomes are named to the Premier League team of the week. Injury Update -- In addition to the aforementioned injuries to Rafinha and Arsene Bamba, we still have striker Manuel Lugo on the injury list but he’s engaged in light training and he should soon be available for selection. I may look at options to loan him out for the balance of the season. Transfer News -- Greek club AS ARis Salonika offers a deal to young DC Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz, who is in the last six months of his contract. I tried to re-up him in late December but his agent played serious hardball with me and walked away from the table early in the process. He won’t listen to my offers and it looks like there is a good chance I’ll lose Yilmaz for nothing. I’ve had him here for many years and while he’ll never play a major role for our club, he’s been developing nicely and always plays great when called upon. Disappointing development. Next Up -- The first leg of the League Cup semifinals takes place here at Crabble Athletic Ground, as we welcome Premier League leaders Manchester United.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-25-2014, 02:03 AM
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#563 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Tue. January 14, 2025
League Cup - Semi Final First Leg Dover (3rd in Barclays Premier League) vs. Manchester United (1st in Barclays Premier League) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Manchester United: 7-4 Past Meetings: 6W 4D 10L We host Manchester United in the first leg of the League Cup semi-finals as we face a tough road in trying to win a third consecutive title. We defeated United 4-1 at Wembley in the finals last year and also beat them in a two-leg semi final in the Champions League last year. However, we dropped a 1-0 decision in league play earlier this year at Old Trafford. Yaya Sanogo is on fire this year, with an absurd 37 goals in 30 matches thus far. Said Henni, a Dover player for a short time last year, is second with 9 but he’s hurt…again. He always is injured. Another former Dover player, defender Cristian Rodriguez, looks to be blossoming this year and has a very solid 7.37 average rating - he was my choice as future captain of our club but United made an offer our chairman couldn’t refuse and off he went. Paul Moses has regained full fitness and despite being a bit tired after our FA Cup win on Saturday over Norwich, he’ll start today. Pretty full lineup today but Mads Pedersen is at left midfield for the injured Arsene Bamba. We called up U18 star Felix Hernandez and he’ll be on the bench today. Control mentality and flat 4-4-2 at home as slight favourites. Ingo Wilke is in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - P. Moses, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, A. Broomes United are taking this seriously today as well, starting a full lineup of stars. Sanogo is up front with Ishak Belfodil, Omar Hernandez is in midfield, Rodriguez at DC and Liviu Dragomir is in goal in their flat 4-4-2. As usual, I ask the players to put on a show for the supporters. 18’ - We’re playing quite well but so is United in the early goings, with some great back and forth play. We build an attack from the goalkeeper out and a key play sees Renato Gaucho sending a long, cross field pass to the opposite flank and to Gianluca Bolis. Bolis heads it on to Chiquinho and he BURSTS through the United defence and in on a partial break. His shot is saved by Dragomir but the rebound pops out to the ever lethal Paul Moses and he slots it home! DOVER GOAL 1-0 29’ - We win a corner and Benedikt Raab’s cross is to the far post and Claudio Contreras and his header is off a United defender and IN! DOVER GOAL 2-0 HALFTIME - We are playing beautiful football today, playing with pace, passion and precision. We hold 55% of the ball and a 16-3 (7-2 on target) shot advantage. With this being a two-leg tie, I won’t back down in the second half - lets score a couple more! 69’ - United are really coming on strong here and I switch to a counter attacking mentality. 70’ - Incredible. Just like in the Manchester City collapse from a couple weeks ago, our opposition score right after my tactics change, as Omar Hernandez crosses into the area on a free kick and it’s headed in off the crossbar by Eduardo Padilla. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 2-1 78’ - I bring in Andy Broomes for Paul Moses and switch back to a control mentality. I don’t want to sit back with a one goal lead…lets push forward boys! 85’ - We bring in Neil Cairney for Jose and switch back to the counter attack mentality, as United have changed to a 4-2-4. 90’+3 - We milk time and bring in Saber Nasri for Rayane Hamon. We hold them off and take a one goal lead into the second leg. Dover 2 - 1 Manchester United Goals - Paul Moses (7.3), Claudio Contreras (8.0) Assists - Chiquinho (6.8), Benedikt Raab (8.6) Man of the Match - Liviu Dragomir (Manchester United GK - 9.4) Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (7.4), Salim Loucif (7.2), Renato Gaucho (7.0) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) We hold 53% of overall possession and a 24-14 (13-9 on target) shot advantage. The United keeper is named man of the match and he was spectacular - one sequence saw us get three point blank shots off in a row and he saved them all…incredible stuff. Wilke was excellent as well and made a few HUGE stops to keep our one goal advantage. Benedikt Raab continues to impress. Fun game to watch - really tense and great flow all game. -- The other semi-final sees Sunderland defeat Spurs 3-1 to take a commanding lead into the second leg. Transfer Market Fun -- I see a news blurb about former Dover fullback Kostas Zagos, who I sold to Chelsea two years ago for a whopping £21.5 million, easily the largest transfer fee ever received by our club. Zagos was excellent for us but that was an offer I couldn’t turn down. Well, Zagos would only start 20 games for them over the past two years and now they’ve given up on him, selling him to Reading for only £4.4 million!! Holy crap! He’s only 25 years old too - can’t believe they gave up on the English international so soon. -- Chelsea come calling for 17 year old right fullback Eneko Remirez, who I bought for £2.5 million in the offseason. Considering I bought him just this summer for the same amount from Athletic Club Bilbao, that’s a pretty insulting offer. I negotiate, asking for £5.5 million up front and additional clauses. I don’t see them going for it but I’m perfectly fine letting Remirez develop in our youth system. Indeed, we find out the next day that they’ve withdrawn from talks. Sounds good. U18 Update -- The under 18s win 3-0 over Eastleigh, as we get goals from Joshua Stokes, Freddie Laird and star striker Alberto Velazquez. Premier League Update -- We have a Monday game this week so we get to watch all of the weekend action. Chelsea get back on the winning track with a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa. Arsenal best Derby 3-0, City beat Sheffield United 1-0, Newcastle win a 4-3 thriller over Wolves, Sheffield Wednesday beat Sunderland 1-0 and United edge Spurs 1-0. Injury Update -- Manuel Lugo, on the shelf for the last four months, is finally back to full training. With five healthy strikers now, my ideal situation would see Lugo accept a loan assignment for the rest of the season. I’ll try to find a club for him. Transfer News -- 22 year old DC Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz has accepted a deal with Aris in Greece and will be leaving our club on July 1st on a Bosman transfer. Yilmaz’s agent walked out on our negotiation and wouldn’t come back to the table so I lose the £2 million rated defender for nothing. He’s been with us since he was 16 years old so it’s bittersweet to say the least but he is our fifth option on the senior team and ultimately won’t be missed. Still, he always played great when called upon. Tough loss. Next Up -- We are big favourites as we head on the road to face Huddersfield Town in Premier League play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-27-2014, 01:08 PM
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#564 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Mon. January 20, 2025
Barclays Premier League Huddersfield (6-9-7, 27 points, 14th) vs. Dover (15-4-3, 49 points, 4th) The Galpharm Stadium, Huddersfield, UK Betting Odds: Huddersfield: 9-2 Draw: 13-5 Dover: 1-2 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 9W 3D 3L Huddersfield have played us very tough lately, with our last two meetings ending up 1-1 draws. They are coming off a 4-0 win over Fleetwood in FA Cup play but have gone winless in their last eight Premier League games. Their leading scorer is striker Martin Bekking with 9 in 20 matches. We are missing a couple of starters today in Arsene Bamba and captain Salim Loucif, who are both away on international duty, along with vice captain Saber Nasri and Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz. All four are playing in the African Nations competition. As a result, Mads Pedersen will start again and we also bring in Emerson to play right fullback. Chiquinho will wear the captain’s armband today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - P. Moses, Chiquinho Bench - C. Guzman, M. Mutesa, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, A. Broomes Huddersfield are in a 4-1-3-2 with a DMC. Bekking and veteran striker Paul Lumsden are up front and Alex Smithies is in goal. I tell the players I expect a win today 34’ - Huddersfield are dominating possession in the first 25 minutes with their tight midfield configuration and have also looked the more dangerous team. We’re not taking them for granted but we’re simply being outplayed. However, Gianluca Bolis has the ball on the right side and crosses into the middle. It’s headed by Chiquinho and it’s off the crossbar, then off the backside of keeper Smithies and bounces in. An own goal and we finally break through. DOVER GOAL 1-0 It is now obvious that Huddersfield completely intended to try to hold us to a scoreless draw with that formation. Now that we lead, they make an early substitution and move to a flat 4-4-2. This should help open things up for us. HALFTIME - We end up leading in ball possession with 54% and outshoot them 10-4 (3-1 on target) but in reality, we are having to work hard for everything we get. The team is definitely up for the game but we are having trouble breaking them down. Paul Moses was called out before the game by Huddersfield’s manager as being our key player and that usually means the player puts up a stinker. It’s happening so far but Moses has the ability to turn things around quickly. I encourage the players at half time and I contemplate changing to an attacking mentality but decide against it. 51’ - We win a corner and Raab’s cross is headed out to Jose, lurking outside the area. He unleashes a blast off the volley and it deflects off a Huddersfield defender and is in. A second own goal. DOVER GOAL 2-0 A third formation for Huddersfield, as they move to a 4-5-1. 58’ - We work possession and move the ball around nicely. Moses takes a pass at the top of the box and feeds the ball into space for Chiquinho. He’s on his weaker foot but slots it past Smithies and in. Nice passing! DOVER GOAL 3-0 73’ - A double substitution, as we take out Moses and Mads Pedersen and bring in Andy Broomes and young Felix Hernandez. A bit dull but three points are always welcome. Huddersfield 0 - 3 Dover Goals - Alex Smithies OG, Phil Walker OG, Chiquinho (8.3) Assists - Jose (8.2), Chiquinho, Paul Moses (7.2) Man of the Match - Chiquinho Other Dover Notables - Emerson (7.5), Rayane Hamon (8.2), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.5), Mads Pedersen (7.1) Attendance - 22,367 We end the game with 53% of the ball and a 17-7 (5-1 on target) shot advantage. We’re unbeaten in ten games in the league. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 24 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 55 points (after 23 games) 2. Manchester City - 52 points 3. Dover - 52 points (after 23 games) 4. Chelsea - 50 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Sheffield Wednesday - 42 points 6. Arsenal - 41 points 7. Newcastle - 38 points ---------------------------------------------------- Barclays Premier League Team of the Week -- Chiquinho is named to the team of the week for his performance against Huddersfield. InjuryUpdate -- We are completely healthy for the first time all year. Super! Reserve Team Update -- We absolutely annihilate Watford’s reserves 9-0. Zoltan Bardi scored a hat trick inside the first 75 minutes and I then brought on 18 year old Alberto Velazquez, who scored three goals of his own in only 15 minutes of playing time! Sick! The returning Manuel Lugo also scored, as did Danny Hope and we also got a Watford OG. Superb performance. International Update -- Salim Loucif and Arsene Bamba both suit up for their respective nations in African Nations play and both Algeria and Ivory Coast pull out wins as a result. Premier League Update -- We have a Sunday fixture this weekend so we can watch the Saturday games once again. Arsenal shock 2nd placed Manchester City 2-0, relegation favourites Blackpool beat Middlesbrough 2-1 and Sheffield Wednesday continue to roll with a 3-0 win over Wolves. Chelsea also win 2-1 over Reading. Next Up -- We are huge favourites at home against cellar dwellers Burnley in Premier League action.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-27-2014, 07:52 PM
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#565 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sun. January 26, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (16-4-3, 52 points, 3rd) vs. Burnley (1-6-17, 9 points, 20th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 1-6 (Favourites) Draw: 5-1 Burnley: 10-1 Past Meetings: 3W 0D 2L Burnley have only one win to show for their return to the top flight of English football and they are most certainly headed back to the Championship next year, as they are a full 12 points from safety at the moment. We managed a tight 2-0 win in their stadium earlier this year and one would expect us to roll today. Burnley are really struggling to score goals and their leading scorers are Haris Seferovic and Harry Kane with 5 each. That won’t cut it. We have the second leg of the League Cup coming up on Wednesday at Old Trafford so we’ll be starting a number of backups today, including Neil Cairney, Andrea Rocca, Graham Allan, Mwemere Mutesa and Emerson. Paul Moses is up front with Andy Broomes today - that’s a lot of speed up front! Manuel Perez is in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, M. Mutesa, R. Hamon, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, G. Allan S - P. Moses, A. Broomes Bench - C. Guzman, C. Contreras, E. Harvey, B. Raab, F. Hernandez, L. Kunchev, Z. Bardi Burnley are in a tight 4-4-2 diamond formation with Kane and Seferovic up front and Dwayne Miller in goal. I tell the lads I expect a victory today. HALFTIME - UGH. Burnley are just keeping everyone back and allowing a shooting gallery but we can’t break them down for a goal. We hold 64% of the ball, a 15-1 (5-0 on target) shot advantage and highlight after highlight but can’t get that elusive goal. Moses hasn’t been a factor at all with them sitting back. We’ll move to an overload system for 10 minutes or so to start the half in order to get more men forward and hopefully open things up a bit in the middle. 62’ - Still nothing! WOW. We take out the overconfident Neil Cairney and ineffective Andy Broomes and bring in Benedikt Raab and Zoltan Bardi. We also change back to a control mentality but move to a 4-2-4. Can’t believe we aren’t able to break them down. 78’ - Emmerson Harvey is ready to come on and we’re set for a formation change but we finally break through before doing so. Renato Gaucho has the ball on the left flank and crosses to the far post. Graham Allan looks offsides and is all alone and easily heads the ball past the fantastic Dwayne Miller and we’re on the board. DOVER GOAL 1-0 Wild. Burnley’s striker Haris Seferovic complains after the goal and gets a second yellow, knocking him out of the game. BURNLEY RED CARD: Haris Seferovic Harvey comes on for Andrea Rocca and we switch back to a flat 4-4-2 with a control mentality. Burnley are in a flat 4-4-1. I feel fortunate to score one. Dover 1 - 0 Burnley Goals - Graham Allan (7.5) Assists - Renato Gaucho (7.3) Man of the Match - Graham Allan Other Dover Notables - Emerson (7.3), Rayane Hamon (7.3), Mwemere Mutesa (7.5), Andrea Rocca (7.2), Mads Pedersen (7.2) Attendance - 21,482 We end up with 64% of possession and a huge 31-2 (9-0 on target) shot advantage but can only get one contested goal past a very strong Burnley keeper. Moses and Broomes both got 6.4 ratings and neither could get loose at any point against Burnley’s stingy defence. Ugly but it’s a win. -- Manchester United also win on Sunday over Liverpool and stay 3 points ahead of us but we’ve moved up to 2nd place after our win. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 25 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 58 points (after 24 games) 2. Dover - 55 points (after 24 games) 3. Chelsea - 53 points 4. Manchester City - 52 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Sheffield Wednesday - 45 points 6. Arsenal - 44 points 7. Newcastle - 39 points ---------------------------------------------------- 8. Middlesbrough - 38 points 9. Tottenham - 37 points 10. Reading - 36 points 11. Sunderland - 33 points 12. Liverpool - 31 points 13. Huddersfield - 30 points (after 24 games) 14. Wolves - 29 points 15. Everton - 25 points (after 24 games) 16. Aston Villa - 24 points 17. Sheffield United - 21 points ---------------------------------------------------- 18. Blackpool - 13 points 19. Derby - 12 points 20. Burnley - 4 points Transfer Clause Money IN -- We earn an extra £250,000 from Udinese, as Orlando Scolari plays in 20 league games for their club and we cash in on a games played clause. International Update -- Arsene Bamba suits up for Ivory Coast but they lose in African Nations play and are eliminated from the competition. He’ll be back in time for our big League Cup tie against United but likely won’t be in any condition to play. Saber Nasri plays for Tunisia and they emerge victorious to move to the knockout stages. Transfer Market Fun -- Olympique Lyonnais come calling for our stud striker prospect Alberto Velazquez, offering a paltry £1 million. I contemplate a counter offer but just flat out reject it. Velazquez has 43 (!!!) goals in 21 non-competitive starts and is a 3.5 star prospect. No need to bail out early on such a great looking talent. Next Up -- We have a slim one goal edge as we head into a second leg against Manchester United in the League Cup semi-finals at Old Trafford.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 10-27-2014 at 07:52 PM. |
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10-27-2014, 11:47 PM
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#566 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. January 29, 2025
League Cup - Semi Finals Second Leg Manchester United (1) vs. (2) Dover Old Trafford, Manchester, UK Betting Odds: Manchester United: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Dover: 7-4 Past Meetings: 7W 4D 10L We take a slim one goal lead into the second leg of the League Cup semi-finals. United are completely healthy now and only former Dover winger Said Henni is out, as he’s with fellow countryman Salim Loucif at the African Nations playing for Algeria. As usual, we’ll need to stop the sensational Yaya Sanogo, who is up to 39 goals in 33 matches this year. We’re missing our captain Loucif and vice captain Saber Nasri as well, with Nasri suiting up for Tunisia in the African Nations. Arsene Bamba has returned to the club after the elimination of Ivory Coast but he’s not fit enough to play today. Mads Pedersen will play for Bamba and Emerson will play for Loucif. Otherwise, we go with a full strength squad. We are going to start in a counter attack mentality with the one goal lead. Dover: 4-4-2 Counter GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - P. Moses, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, A. Broomes United are also in a flat 4-4-2 with Sanogo up front with Oscar Briceno. Dragomir is back in net. Lets win this for our supporters! HALFTIME - United were the much better and more dangerous team in that first half. Despite us holding 53% of possession, United outshoot us 13-4 (8-3 on target). Ingo Wilke was terrific in that half, with many tough diving stops. We need to be better and could really use a goal. I’m actually going to open up a bit and play a control mentality - this competition doesn’t mean much to our board (we’ve won it two years in a row) so I’ll just attack a bit more. 69’ - United are pouring on pressure and we have had very little possession by the looks of it. Renato Gaucho is a bit banged up so I take him out and bring in Rafinha. 75’ - We take out Jose and bring in Neil Cairney. We also switch back to a counter attacking mentality. 87’ - United work possession and some nice passing sees Omar Hernandez feed superstar Sanogo in our area and he rips a shot into the corner past Wilke and United finally score. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 0-1 (2-2 AGGREGATE) We’re level but behind on away goals so we will lose the tie-breaker. We need to OVERLOAD and I bring in Graham Allan for Gianluca Bolis and move to a 4-2-4. FULLTIME - Umm, so yeah, I mis-read that. Away goals are only used if tied after EXTRA TIME. So we have a reprieve. Back to a control mentality and a flat 4-4-2. 105’ - We have possession and get a few shots blocked but regain possession after United clear. Benedikt Raab sends a touch pass to the top of the box to Chiquinho and he avoids a tackle from Kostas Manolas and strides in. Dragomir makes a great point blank save but there is a rebound and Chiquinho pounces on it and sends a BULLET into the back of the net! WHOA! DOVER GOAL 1-1 (3-2 ON AGGREGATE) We move back to a counter attacking mentality. United are in a 4-2-4. 115’ - Sigh. United work the ball in off a throw and Angel Savino gets the ball off a scramble and slots it home. We’re five minutes from penalties. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 1-2 (3-3 ON AGGREGATE) United smartly stay in a 4-2-4 to try to win this thing. We move Chiquinho back into a defensive midfield role. EXTRA TIME - Ok, we’ve been pretty successful historically in penalty shootouts. Lets do this! PENALTY SHOOTOUT - Ingo Wilke guesses right but can’t get enough of Luis Carlos’ shot. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 0-1 Neil Cairney steps up for us and it’s IN! DOVER GOAL 1-1 Rogerio scores for United MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 1-2 Next up is Benedikt Raab and he scores! DOVER GOAL 2-2 It’s Yaya Sanogo and the lethal striker makes no mistake MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 2-3 Now it’s Mads Pedersen as I start feeling sick to my stomach. Dragomir guesses correctly but Pedersen DRILLS THE SHOT and it’s IN! DOVER GOAL 3-3 The goal scorer Savino is up and he shoots at the middle of the net and WILKE HOLDS HIS GROUND! That’s a SAVE!!!! We’ve back loaded our shooters and now it’s Chiquinho stepping up! And MY GOD WHAT A SAVE BY DRAGOMIR!!! Holy crap! It’s Eduardo Padilla now up and he shoots low into the corner. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 3-4 Paul Moses is up and needs to score for us to stay alive. He hasn’t had a good game but he SCORES! DOVER GOAL 4-4 It’s SUDDEN DEATH NOW! United rolls out the stellar Omar Hernandez in their sixth slot. Damn! Wilke JUST misses it and it’s in. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 4-5 The pressure is on Graham Allan and while Dragomir guesses correctly again, the shot is too good and it’s IN! DOVER GOAL 5-5 Damn. United still have strikers available after going with four men up front and Ishak Belfodil scores. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 5-6 We have defender Rafinha up next and his shot is SAVED. Curtains for us and we won’t get the three-peat. Manchester United 2 (3) - (3) 1 Dover (Manchester United Win 6-5 on Penalties) Goals - Chiquinho (7.5) Assists - Man of the Match - Ingo Wilke (9.4) Other Dover Notables - Claudio Contreras (7.2), Benedikt Raab (7.1) Attendance - 73,757 Possession ends in our favour with 53% but United outshot us 27-17 (12-7 on target), a definite rarity. Wilke was sensational in goal. Oh well - on to bigger and better things! -- We earn a paltry £25,500 for the loss. -- After the game, I get a call from Wilke’s agent, who wants a new deal for his client. As usual, I say no and as usual, the player is upset and wants to talk to me. Wilke is defiant and ends up walking out on me when I tell him I’m not considering a new deal at this time. He has a year and a half left on his current deal and at 31 years old, I don’t plan on extending him at this point. That said, he’s been a key player for years here so I may reconsider. For now, I’ll have to watch his morale and attitude. U18 Update -- We have a rare Wednesday match and in U18 Cup Semi Final play, we throttle MK Dons 6-1. Who else but Alberto Velazquez, with two more goals. We get singles from Ben Patterson, Neil Evans, Vlastimil Silhavy and Matthew Neil. International Update -- Salim Loucif and Algeria continue to roll in African Nations play and win 3-0 to move to the knockout stages along with Saber Nasri and Tunisia. Transfer Market Closes -- Thankfully, no more offers come our way and the market closes with us staying pat. February Update -- February sees us playing four Premier League games: Chelsea (home), Blackpool (away), Liverpool (home), Everton (away), our FA Cup match against Bolton plus a possible second FA Cup match should we get through. We also begin our first knockout round of Champions League play with an away matchup in Spain against Atletico Madrid. So seven possible games this month. -- We get positive training reports for Zoltan Bardi, Lyubomir Kunchev, Felix Hernandez and U18 players Dominic Beard, Stuart Cousins and Robbie Welsh. Negative reports come in for Paul Moses and Manuel Lugo, both of whom have just returned from long-term injuries. January Awards -- Our very own Andy Broomes scores four goals in five games and wins Barclays Premier League Player of the Month! Fantastic! Rayane Hamon finished third as well. -- David Lopes from Wolves wins young player of the month. Mads Pedersen finished third. -- And for the first time in awhile, I win the Manager of the Month award. Next Up -- We face struggling Championship side Bolton in FA Cup play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-28-2014, 01:07 AM
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#567 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. February 1, 2025
FA Cup - Fourth Round Bolton (19th in Championship) vs. Dover (2nd in Premier League) Reebok Stadium, Bolton, UK Betting Odds: Bolton: 4-1 Draw: 5-2 Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 4W 0D 2L Bolton is in their fourth year of Championship football since last playing in the Premier League in 2020/21. They are in a serious fight for their lives, sitting in 19th place and just outside the relegation zone. Striker Chris Wright has 14 goals to lead the club. Looking through their roster, I see two former Dover players - goalkeeper Martin Read is on loan from Celtic and he played three seasons for us, also while on loan from fellow Scottish side Hearts. Also on the club is former Dover youth player Shaun Halsall, who spent two years with our U18s and three years out on loan to various clubs before being sold to Swindon. He’s in his fourth year with Bolton and is a rotational player. We have a huge match with Chelsea coming up mid-week so I’ll be starting backups today and that should be good enough. Manuel Lugo, still trying to regain match fitness, will get his first start since returning from injury. He’ll lineup alongside Zoltan Bardi. Young Felix Hernandez is in at left midfield along with Neil Cairney, Andrea Rocca and Graham Allan. Carlos Guzman, Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz, Mwemere Mutesa and Rafinha are on defence and Manuel Perez is in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 Counter GK - M. Perez D - C. Guzman, M. Yilmaz, M. Mutesa, Rafinha M - F. Hernandez, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, G. Allan S - M. Lugo, Z. Bardi Bench - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, E. Harvey, Jose, A. Bamba, L. Kunchev, A. Broomes Bolton are in a defensive 4-1-4-1 formation with Harouna Traore alone up front. James McKeown is in goal and Shaun Halsall is at DMC. Lets play well for the travelling support today. 37’ - We’re completely dominating this game but their keeper has been phenomenal. We finally break through with a Neil Cairney ball through the middle to a streaking Zoltan Bardi, who cuts against the grain and slots a left footed shot past McKeown and in. DOVER GOAL 1-0 43’ - Bolton win a corner and we clear but it’s worked back into the box to midfielder Alan O’Leary and he unleashes a ROCKET BLAST into the top corner of the net for the shocking equalizer! BOLTON GOAL 1-1 HALFTIME - Well, that was unexpected. We hold 54% of possession and a 10-2 (4-2 on target) shot advantage but they pull level on the scoreboard. I unleash some anger in the dressing room and switch to a 4-2-3-1 formation. 51’ - We win a free kick from just outside the area and Rocca’s shot is saved by a diving McKeown but Graham Allan pounces on the rebound and slots it home. We lead again. DOVER GOAL 2-1 Bolton switch to a 4-5-1 formation after an injury. 73’ - Cairney works the ball to the byline to Andrea Rocca, who then sends it back to Cairney inside the area. Our midfielder hits a fierce, one-time blast into the top corner and we have a cushion! DOVER GOAL 3-1 75’ - We have possession and send the ball back to our keeper Perez, who boots a long ball up field. It’s over the head of the Bolton defence and Manuel Lugo wins the race to it. The Bolton keeper is in no man’s land, as Lugo rounds him then shoots into the open net! That’s our big signing’s first ever goal for Dover!!! DOVER GOAL 4-1 78’ - We make a double substitution, taking out Rocca and Allan and bringing in Emmerson Harvey and Lyubomir Kunchev. Looks like my anger paid off with a good second half performance. Bolton 1 - 4 Dover Goals - Zoltan Bardi (7.5), Graham Allan (8.0), Neil Cairney (9.0), Manuel Lugo (7.8) Assists - Andrea Rocca 2 (8.0), Manuel Perez (7.7), Neil Cairney Man of the Match - Neil Cairney Other Dover Notables - Rafinha (7.1), Mwemere Mutesa (7.7), Carlos Guzman (7.1), Felix Hernandez (7.4) Attendance - 28,316 Solid second half performance, as we end with 55% of overall possession and a 17-9 (10-5 on target) shot advantage. Great game from Cairney today! -- We earn £92,000 for the win. U18 Update -- We get two more goals from Alberto Velazquez and a single from Neil Evans as the U18s win 3-0 over Wycombe. February Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership. Stature increase is still the main positive and Giorgos Gesios’ departure continues to dwell on their minds for some reason. -- We made £1.53 million in profits last month. FA Cup - Fifth Round Draw -- We continue to have lady luck smile on us, as we draw another Championship side in Peterborough in round five of the FA Cup. The game will be played on their pitch later this month. International Update -- Both Tunisia and Algeria lose in African Nations semi-final play so both Saber Nasri and Salim Loucif will be returning to the club. They should be ready to play on the weekend in a game against Blackpool but will miss out on our match against rivals Chelsea. Next Up -- We host Chelsea at Crabble Athletic Ground in a pivotal Premier League matchup.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-29-2014, 09:34 PM
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#568 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Tue. February 4, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (17-4-3, 55 points, 2nd) vs. Chelsea (15-8-2, 53 points, 3rd) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Chelsea: 7-4 Past Meetings: 3W 4D 8L This is a pretty significant match today and we look to gain a measure of revenge for an early season 3-2 loss in London against the Blues. Chelsea were just shocked this weekend by League 1 side Coventry in FA Cup play but that was their first loss in 18 games across all competitions. They play close to the vest and have a league high 8 draws in Premier League play. They are still led up front by veteran striker Romelu Lukaku but he only has 11 goals this year. We’ll go with a pretty full strength side today but will be sitting Paul Moses today in favour of Andy Broomes. Moses hasn’t scored in his last three matches so we’ll hold him out until the weekend. We’re still missing captain Salim Loucif, who is en route back to the club after Algeria got eliminated from the African Nations event. Emerson will start in his place. Control mentality at home as slight favourites. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, Emerson M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, P. Moses Chelsea are in a tight 4-4-2 diamond formation with Lukaku and Tony Nijhuis up front. Luis Carballo is always dangerous at attacking midfield and Rafael Romo is in goal - he’s always excellent against us. We need a good performance today for the home supporters! 7’ - Chelsea take advantage of an awful giveaway by Renato Gaucho and eventually cross a ball into the area. Lukaku heads it into the corner of the net but the assistant’s flag is up. Offsides - NO GOAL! HALFTIME - Poor half from our club, as Chelsea hold 53% of possession and shots are dead even at 6 each (1 shot on target for both clubs). I’m angry here - we need to get up for these games and we’re not playing well. 57’ - The team is motivated but we continue to produce little. I take out Andy Broomes and bring in Paul Moses while also moving Benedikt Raab up to AMC to try to promote some more offence. 74’ - We move to an attacking formation. 83’ - Double substitution, as we bring in Andrea Rocca and Mads Pedersen, taking out Jose and Arsene Bamba. We move back to our flat 4-4-2 with a control mentality. Yawn. Dover 0 - 0 Chelsea Goals - Assists - Man of the Match - Ingo WIlke (8.3) Other Dover Notables - Emerson (7.2), Rayane Hamon (7.1), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.4) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) We end up with only 47% of possession but outshoot Chelsea 12-8 (3-3 on target). What a snoozefest! No wonder Chelsea draw so many games! -- In other match ups, United win 2-1 over Sheffield Wednesday, Newcastle SHOCK Man City 3-0 and Arsenal can only manage a 1-1 draw against Burnley. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 26 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 61 points (after 25 games) 2. Dover - 56 points (after 25 games) 3. Chelsea - 54 points 4. Manchester City - 52 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Sheffield Wednesday - 45 points 6. Arsenal - 45 points 7. Newcastle - 45 points ---------------------------------------------------- Reserves Update -- In a simply astonishing performance, we get two hat tricks FROM THE SAME PLAYER, as Manuel Lugo scores SIX GOALS in a 10-1 win over Chelsea’s reserves! Perfect 10.0 rating for that game! Neil Cairney scores twice and we get singles from Felix Hernandez and Alberto Velazquez. Superb! International Update -- We have 22 (!!) players called up for international duty next week. Premier League Update -- Once again, we have a Sunday game so we are able to watch the Saturday matches from the comfort of our homes. Chelsea gets back on the winning track with a 2-1 win over Everton, Newcastle win 1-0 over Derby, Arsenal win by the same scoreline over Huddersfield, City win 3-0 over Wolves and Sheffield Wednesday draw 1-1 against Middlesbrough. Chelsea move into 2nd place over us after their win but we have two games in hand. Dover U18 Update -- Man we keep rolling with our kids, as they throttle Brighton 9-1. Superstar prospect Alberto Velazquez adds three more goals to his ridiculous total this season and Felix Hernandez scores two of his own, as does Neil Evans. We get singles from Eneko Remirez and Freddie Laird. Next Up -- We head to Blackpool to face the relegation favourites in Premier League play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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10-29-2014, 10:39 PM
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#569 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sun. February 9, 2025
Barclays Premier League Blackpool (2-7-17, 13 points, 19th) vs. Dover (17-5-3, 56 points, 3rd) Bloomfield Road, Blackpool, UK Betting Odds: Blackpool: 4-1 Draw: 5-2 Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 5W 0D 0L We’re perfect against Blackpool and they are looking destined for the drop after barely surviving last year. They are eight points from safety. Lazaros Sentementes leads the club with 8 goals, backup striker Adam Higgins has five and the next best player has TWO. Not a prolific club. We make five changes from the scoreless draw against Chelsea, with Paul Moses, Mads Pedersen, Neil Cairney, Salim Loucif and Manuel Perez all starting. We also have Manuel Lugo on the bench today after his sensational six goal performance with our reserves in mid-week. He’s back to full fitness after missing four months due to injury. Benedikt Raab is getting the night off today and won’t even dress. Cairney has been really strong lately and deserves a start. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, Jose, G. Bolis S - P. Moses, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, A. Bamba, G. Allan, M. Lugo Blackpool usually play a 4-5-1 but are rolling with a flat 4-4-2 today. Interesting. Sentementes and Higgins are up front and Nathan Potter is in goal. No screwing around - I want a win today. 22’ - We have a free kick from distance and Jose takes it. The ball is sent into the box and Gianluca Bolis gets free and heads it past Potter and in. We finally score. DOVER GOAL 1-0 35’ - We work a counter attack and it’s a two on two with Chiquinho dribbling down the right flank. He crosses into the area and Paul Moses is clever enough to drop back into space and the ball is perfectly delivered to his right foot and his one-timer is past Potter and IN. Moses breaks his four game goal-less streak! DOVER GOAL 2-0 44’ - We have another free kick and this time, Jose’s cross is headed home by Rayane Hamon! DOVER GOAL 3-0 HALFTIME - Shockingly enough, we are behind in the possession battle, with only 48% of the ball but we outshoot them 13-6 (6-4 on target) and have a huge lead. We’re taking advantage of our chances, that’s for sure. 57’ - A ball is sent over the defence and Moses looks to latch onto it but is taken down just outside the area. Yellow card for the Blackpool defender and Jose takes the kick. He bends a hard shot off a Blackpool defender and it’s off the woodwork and IN! What a game from Jose today!!! DOVER GOAL 4-0 67’ - I take out Paul Moses and bring in Manuel Lugo to see what he can do. 71’ - One more sub, as we take out the excellent Jose and bring in Emmerson Harvey. 75’ - We win a free kick and Cairney sends a pass to Harvey who is lurking outside the area. He sends a 30 yard ROCKET that looks like it deflects on it’s way toward goal but it’s IN!! That’s Harvey’s first ever senior goal outside of cup competitions!! DOVER GOAL 5-0 85’ - Bolis is streaking down the right flank and crosses into Mads Pedersen. Just as he’s about to shoot, he’s pulled down and that’s a PENALTY!! Up steps Cairney and his low blast is IN! We’re POURING IT ON! DOVER GOAL 6-0 That’s what I’m talking about! Blackpool 0 - 6 Dover Goals - GIanluca Bolis (8.6), Paul Moses (8.2), Rayane Hamon (8.9), Jose (8.5), Emmerson Harvey (7.4), Neil Cairney (9.2) Assists - Jose 2, Neil Cairney, Mads Pedersen (8.6), Chiquinho (8.1), Paul Moses Man of the Match - Neil Cairney Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (8.8), Salim Loucif (8.5), Claudio Contreras (8.0), Renato Gaucho (8.1) Attendance - 15,559 We only held 47% of possession but outshoot Blackpool 21-12 (12-6 on target). We were ruthless in our finishing today. 12 players with ratings over 7.0! -- Manchester United continue to press forward as well, winning 3-0 over Sunderland. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 27 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 64 points (after 26 games) 2. Dover - 59 points (after 26 games) 3. Chelsea - 57 points 4. Manchester City - 55 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 48 points 6. Sheffield Wednesday - 46 points 7. Newcastle - 45 points ---------------------------------------------------- Team of the Week -- We fill up the team of the week, with an incredible six of our players making the squad! Manuel Perez, Salim Loucif, Rayane Hamon, Mads Pedersen, Neil Cairney and Jose get the honour. International Update -- Gaining youth caps are Felix Hernandez (France) and Alberto Velazquez (Mexico). -- Gaining senior caps are Graham Allan (Scotland - 1 goal), Neil Cairney (Scotland), Mads Pedersen (Denmark - 1 assist), Lyubomir Kunchev (Bulgaria - 1 goal), Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz (Morocco), Saber Nasri (Tunisia), Paul Moses and Emmerson Harvey (England), Chiquinho (Belgium - 1 goal), Manuel Perez (Mexico), Claudio Contreras (Argentina), Jose (Brazil), Salim Loucif (Algeria), Zoltan Bardi (Hungary) and Arsene Bamba (Ivory Coast). -- The cap for Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz is his first senior international appearance. Good for you kid! Injury Update -- You MUST BE KIDDING. Paul Moses tears the SAME CALF MUSCLE he tore earlier in the season while playing for England and initial reports are that he’s out for three months…essentially the rest of the season. This is a bloody disaster - he’s been very healthy his whole career but now he has a chronic calf issue? Please don’t tell me this will effect him for the rest of his career. DOVER INJURY - Paul Moses (Torn Calf Muscle - 3 Months). -- You MUST BE KIDDING PART TWO. Zoltan Bardi also gets hurt, suffering a sprained ankle for Hungary and he’ll miss a month. Geez. Just when our strikers finally get healthy, we get hit with two major injuries. DOVER INJURY - Zoltan Bardi (Sprained Ankle - 1 Month). Next Up -- I’m going to be ill. I can’t believe Paul Moses is hurt again… -- Oh yeah, we host Liverpool in Premier League play. Whatever. GRRRRRRRRRR.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 10-29-2014 at 10:41 PM. |
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11-05-2014, 10:37 AM
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#570 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. February 15, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (18-5-3, 59 points, 2nd) vs. Liverpool (8–10-9, 34 points, 12th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: 9-4 Liverpool: 7-2 Past Meetings: 7W 3D 9L Liverpool has been “manager hell” for quite some time but especially in the last five years or so, as it seems like they are sacking their skipper at least once a year. The traditional powerhouse is mired in mid-table this year and this is an aging squad that looks destined for it’s first season outside the top ten in over FIFTY YEARS! Crazy. James Efmorfidis leads the club with 12 goals from 25 matches, tied with veteran striker Piotr Parzyszek. I’m still in disbelief over the second torn calf muscle injury for star striker Paul Moses, essentially ending his season. What a loss that will be. We’ll rely on Andy Broomes to continue his fine form and also need the services of Manuel Lugo at some point - like Moses, he’s spent most of the year on the injury list and we’ll be very careful with him. For today, we have a few players tired after international duty but this is an important game so they’ll need to soldier on. Changes from our last game include Ingo Wilke, Benedikt Raab, Arsene Bamba and Broomes coming in. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, M. Lugo Liverpool are in a 4-2-3-1 formation and have Oliver Hammeri alone up front. Never heard of the guy! He’s in his first year with the club after coming over from Lazio for £19.25 million - he has only 2 goals in 15 matches thus far. Chris Dunn is still their keeper. I want a good performance today. 8’ - Liverpool get a free kick just outside our area after a Rayane Hamon foul, which temporarily knocks Hammeri out of the game. We clear the kick and start a counter attack with Gianluca Bolis racing down the right flank. Andy Broomes is WIDE OPEN in the middle and Bolis’ pass is perfect - Broomes makes no mistake and we’re on the board early! Great goal! DOVER GOAL 1-0 31’ - On an innocent looking possession, Liverpool cross into the box and with four defenders draped all over him, Salvador de la Torre heads the ball past Wilke and IN! Wilke should have had that one. LIVERPOOL GOAL 1-1 HALFTIME - We held 57% of the ball and an 8-4 (4-3 on target) shot advantage but a weak goal has Liverpool level. They are playing Tony Mowbray’s tight formation with 3 AMCs and it always seems to give us trouble, all the way back to his Middlesbrough days. I tell them to keep going. 46’ - I’ve NEVER SEEN this before but Liverpool streak down the field and de la Torre gets loose in the box but is taken down by OUR GOALKEEPER! That’s a PENALTY and de la Torre converts. Holy crap…we’re losing!?!? LIVERPOOL GOAL 1-2 52’ - My goodness, when it rains, it pours. Gianluca Bolis is taken down and has the cross of doom above his name. He can stay in for now. 63’ - OH MY GOD. Liverpool with a corner and it’s Hammeri heading it past Wilke and IN. LIVERPOOL GOAL 1-3 We switch to an overload mentality. Liverpool switch to a flat 4-4-1-1. 74’ - Graham Allan and Manuel Lugo come on while I take out Gianluca Bolis and Andy Broomes. Ooh boy… Dover 1 - 3 Liverpool Goals - Andy Broomes (7.2) Assists - Gianluca Bolis (7.2) Man of the Match - Salvador de la Torre (Liverpool ST - 8.8) Other Dover Notables - Rayane Hamon (7.0), Ingo Wilke (5.8), Chiquinho (5.7) Attendance - 23,000 The stats were definitely in our favour, with 57% possession and an 18-8 (4-5 on target) shot advantage but we lose by two goals at home. Disastrous result and I shudder to think of the rest of the season without Paul Moses. -- Gianluca Bolis suffered a twisted ankle and will miss three weeks. Wonderful. DOVER INJURY: Gianluca Bolis - Twisted Ankle (Three Weeks) -- In other action, United win 2-1 over Wolves, City win 2-0 over Derby, Arsenal and Chelsea battle to a 1-1 draw, Newcastle defeat Burnley 1-0 while Sheffield Wednesday get upset by Reading 3-1. We fall eight points back of United but hold onto second spot. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 28 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 67 points (after 27 games) 2. Dover - 59 points (after 27 games) 3. Manchester City - 58 points 4. Chelsea - 58 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 49 points 6. Newcastle - 48 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- Injury Update -- So we’re back in injury hell, with Paul Moses likely out for the year and Zoltan Bardi is also on the long term injury list with his sprained ankle. Gianluca Bolis will miss three weeks with a twisted ankle. Manager Milestone -- I get noted in the newspapers as I’m about to reach 800 games in management. Pretty cool! Champions League Update -- The round of 16 has begun and Real Madrid and Club Brugge battle to a scoreless draw while United defeat Schalke 3-2 on the road. We face Atletico Madrid next week in Spain. Next Up -- We finally get our makeup game in against Everton, where we’ll be slight underdogs.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-05-2014, 12:35 PM
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#571 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. February 19, 2025
Barclays Premier League Everton (9-2-16, 29 points, 15th) vs. Dover (18-5-4, 59 points, 2nd) Goodison Park, Liverpool, UK Betting Odds: Everton: 6-4 (Favourites) Draw: 2-1 Dover: 13-8 Past Meetings: 8W 2D 4L Everton are mired in 15th place but have definitely turned things around in the last month, as they are 3-1-1 in their last five matches, with the only loss coming against Chelsea. This is no accident, as the club sacked their previous manager on January 10th and hired Nigel Adkins to take over. Wide midfielder Daniele Bentivoglio leads the club with 8 goals and other fine players include veteran striker Chris Wood, midfielders Nicola Papaleo and Jack Rodwell and former Dover DC Daniel Traore. We make sweeping changes to the lineup that put up a stinker against Liverpool the other day. Manuel Perez gets his chance to take hold of the #1 goalkeeping position and I also bench captain Salim Loucif, Claudio Contreras and Renato Gaucho on defence. Saber Nasri will captain the club today. Also getting scratched are Arsene Bamba, Benedikt Raab and Chiquinho. Manuel Lugo will start up front with Andy Broomes. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, S. Nasri, R. Hamon, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, Jose, G. Allan S - M. Lugo, A. Broomes Bench - S. Loucif, M. Mutesa, B. Raab, A. Rocca, A. Bamba, L. Kunchev, Chiquinho Everton are also in a flat 4-4-2 with Wood and Mike Hall up front. Franco Di Capua is in goal. I want to see our players angry today - I think it’s pretty insulting that we’re underdogs today against a 15th placed side but coming off a loss and with major injury issues, I guess I understand. Lets put a good performance together for the travelling support! HALFTIME - We’ve had some nice chances and have edged them possession but we’re scoreless through 45 minutes. We held 52% of the ball and a 12-5 (5-3 on target) shot advantage. I’m pleased with our play so far - lets get a goal! 61 - We have a throw in down the right and it’s sent in to Jose. He crosses into the area but it’s headed back out to Neil Cairney. He attempts a pass back into the area and it finds Mads Pedersen and his shot through traffic somehow gets past Di Capua and it’s in! DOVER GOAL 1-0 77’ - We’re putting serious pressure on Everton and while I need to make some changes, I resist because momentum has been on our side. Mads Pedersen, who has been sensational today, shows his flair with some crossovers and gains some space as he cuts into the area. His low blast is saved by Di Capua but the rebound pops out to Graham Allan and he easily slots the ball into the empty net! DOVER GOAL 2-0 We immediately switch to a counter attacking mentality. 83’ - We bring in Andrea Rocca and take out Jose. 87’ - Graham Allan is out and in comes Lyubomir Kunchev. Solid second half! Everton 0 - 2 Dover Goals - Mads Pedersen (8.3), Graham Allan (7.7) Assists - Mads Pedersen, Andy Broomes (7.0) Man of the Match - Mads Pedersen Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.5), Emerson (7.1), Rayane Hamon (7.4), Saber Nasri (7.2), Rafinha (7.2), Jose (7.0) Attendance - 39,400 A superb second half and we end up with a huge 27-8 (12-3 on target) shot advantage. Possession was 52% in our favour. What a great game from Pedersen today! Manuel Lugo wasn’t very good today (6.5) and looked “complacent” according to my assistant. Not a good sign for a kid trying to settle into the club. -- Gianluca Bolis suffered a twisted ankle and will miss three weeks. Wonderful. DOVER INJURY: Gianluca Bolis - Twisted Ankle (Three Weeks) -- This was a make-up game from earlier in the season and as such, was the only match in the Premier League today. We strengthen our second place position with the win. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 28 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 67 points (after 27 games) 2. Dover - 62 points 3. Manchester City - 58 points 4. Chelsea - 58 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 49 points 6. Newcastle - 48 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- Next Up -- In FA Cup fifth round action, we head on the road to face Championship side Peterborough.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 11-05-2014 at 12:35 PM. |
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11-05-2014, 01:46 PM
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#572 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. February 22, 2025
FA Cup - 5th Round Peterborough United (7th in npower Championship) vs. Dover (2nd in Barclays Premier League) London Road, Peterborough, UK Betting Odds: Peterborough United: 4-1 Draw: 5-2 Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 5W 2D 0L We have a pretty extensive history against Peterborough, having faced them six times in League 1 play in addition to an FA Cup tie back in 2019. We haven’t lost in any of our previous seven match ups and I don’t expect that to change today. Peterborough gained promotion to the Championship from League 1 back in 2018, one year after we moved up from League 1, and they’ve been there ever since. They were a mid-table side until last year, when they finished fifth but lost out on promotion in a playoff finals loss to Burnley. Peterborough is just outside the playoff positions right now, a single point back of QPR. Striker Dave Lomax leads the club with 14 goals from 32 appearances. Bernard Dunn plays DM for Peterborough and he spent one year at Dover on loan back in 2016/17 during our League 1 days. We have a huge mid-week Champions League match against Atletico Madrid in Spain but I’ll be starting a number of first teamers, most of whom are struggling somewhat. Chiquinho, Arsene Bamba, Benedikt Raab, Renato Gaucho, Claudio Contreras and Salim Loucif will play today. In big news, 18 year old striker prospect Alberto Velazquez will make his first ever senior team start today!!! The kid has an absurd 49 goals in non-competitive play so far this year (U18 and reserves games) and deserves a chance to play. We’ll have Manuel Lugo on the bench, just in case. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, M. Mutesa, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, A. Rocca, L. Kunchev S - A. Velazquez, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, M. Lugo Peterborough are playing a very defensive 4-1-4-1 formation with a single striker in Lomax and Olivier Vannucci at defensive midfield. Jason Steele is their keeper. Lets play well for our fans today! 19’ - A failed Andrea Rocca corner sees the ball come back out to him and his cross is to the far post and a wide open Arsene Bamba, who heads the ball forcefully into the net past Steele! HALFTIME - We have a significant edge on the stat sheet but I’m not impressed with our performance here, as there seems to be too much individual effort as opposed to team work. We hold a whopping 66% of the ball and a 10-2 (1-1 on target) shot advantage. Too many poor shots from distance so far. I encourage the team in the dressing room. 60’ - I’m not getting much out of young Alberto Velazquez today so I bring in Manuel Lugo to hopefully help get us an insurance marker. 63’ - Peterborough have a free kick at the midfield stripe and make three short passes before sending a great pass to their lone striker Lee Smith, who just replaced Dave Lomax. We gave him entirely too much room and Smith takes two steps into the box and fires a bullet past Perez and it’s IN. Here we go again! PETERBOROUGH GOAL 1-1 66’ - We have possession off the ensuing kick and eventually work the ball into the area. It’s a 50/50 ball between their keeper and Manuel Lugo that looks to be won by the keeper but Lugo is tripped on his way to attack it and the referee points to the spot! That’s a PENALTY! Up steps Benedikt Raab as the crowd whistles in protest and he makes no mistake! DOVER GOAL 2-1 Peterborough move into a 4-4-2. 72’ - I bring in Emmerson Harvey for Andrea Rocca. 90’+3 - We’re in the last minute and it’s been a bit of a nervy finish here, as Peterborough have had a few set piece opportunities. We clear out a free kick attempt and a long ball is sent up field to Lugo. He draws two defenders toward him as he approaches the area and then lays off a pass to the oncoming Chiquinho, who is unmarked and has all day to slot the ball into the empty net. DOVER GOAL 3-1 We’ll take the win. Peterborough 1 - 3 Dover Goals - Arsene Bamba (7.8), Benedikt Raab PS (7.5), Chiquinho (7.6) Assists - Manuel Lugo 2 (7.4), Andrea Rocca (7.2) Man of the Match - Arsene Bamba Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.0), Mwemere Mutesa (7.1), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.0) Attendance - 14,336 Well, I would have preferred a much more convincing win but we’ll take it. We held 58% of possession and a 28-5 (5-3 on target) shot advantage. Chiquinho’s goal was his 20th of the season. -- We earn £184,000 for the victory. U18 Update -- With star U18 striker playing for us in the FA Cup, the kids had to make due without their best player but still won 5-0 over Brentford. Midfielder Joshua Stokes scored a hat trick and we got singles from the superlative Felix Hernandez and Neil Evans to round out the scoring. FA Cup - Quarter Finals Draw -- There’s only one non-Premier League team left in the final eight and that’s Southampton, who draw Spurs as their opponent. We get a home tie against Liverpool and I’m delighted, as it gives us a chance at redemption for that ugly 3-1 loss from a couple weeks back. Injury Update -- Some positive news, as both Zoltan Bardi and Gianluca Bolis are nearing a return to training, with both players about two weeks away. No such luck for Paul Moses… U18 Update -- We defeat Manchester City’s youth team 4-2 to win the U18 Cup for the second year in a row and for the third time in four years. We get two more goals from Alberto Velazquez and singles from Neil Evans and Freddie Laird. -- Velazquez gets hurt in the match and will miss the next three weeks with a groin strain. Next Up -- We are off to Spain and have a tough match in the first knockout stage of the Champions League against Atletico Madrid.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-05-2014, 11:49 PM
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#573 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. February 26, 2025
UEFA Champions League - First Knockout Round Leg One Atletico Madrid (4th in Spain LIGA BBVA) vs. Dover (2nd in Barclays Premier League) Estadio de Madrid, Madrid, Spain Betting Odds: Atletico Madrid: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Dover: 7-4 Past Meetings: 0W 0D 0L I’m actually shocked to say that this is the first ever meeting between our two clubs. Atletico are two time winners of the Champions League (2016 & 2018) and 13-time Spanish champions, having last won in 2022. They are in fourth spot this year, six points behind leaders Real Madrid. Atletico get balanced scoring and have plenty of attacking options, with striker Thabo Mbambo leading the club with 11 goals from 19 matches. They have a 36 year old Alexis Sanchez hanging around and former Dover forward Gerardo Escobar is a bench option and a good one at that, having scored 6 goals in 12 matches thus far. Jesus Cruz is a 22 year old stud defender worth north of 26 million pounds, having arrived this season in a transfer with Stuttgart. We have some injuries, as previously noted and also will be missing Benedikt Raab today due to suspension. Neil Cairney will start in his place. Manuel Perez will continue to play goal for us and we’ll start out in a counter attacking mentality today. Dover: 4-4-2 Counter GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, N. Cairney, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, M. Lugo Atletico play a flat 4-4-2 as well and have Mbambo up front with John Kumwenda. Joel Robles is in goal. I tell the team this is a winnable game! 43’ - It’s been a very evenly played half so far as Atletico begin possession at midfield. For some reason, despite being in fine defensive position, Rayane Hamon goes to the left to challenge striker Mbambo and that allows him to feed his partner Kumwenda who was left unmarked by Hamon. Kumwenda dribbles in on goal and shoots low past Perez and it’s IN. ATLETICO MADRID GOAL 0-1 HALFTIME - We hold a significant possession advantage, with 56% of the ball and an 11-10 (2-3 on target) shot advantage. We just made one mistake and it cost us. I go light on the players, sympathizing with them in the dressing room but I need to open up a bit, moving to a control mentality as we look for a key away goal. 62’ - Kumwenda is sent in behind the defence and scores again but it’s ruled offsides. No goal! 71’ - I’m starting to think about when to change to an attacking philosophy when we finally get an offensive highlight. We have a throw in down the left and get it to Arsene Bamba. He sends a low cross into the middle of the area and Chiquinho gets there just before the charging Atletico keeper and slots it past him and IN! DOVER GOAL 1-1 We move back to a counter attacking system. 74’ - Chiquinho has already been yellow carded and is flopping around all over the place. I fear a second yellow so I take him out and bring in Manuel Lugo. Either way, Chiquinho will miss the return matchup due to yellow card accumulation. 81’ - We bring in Mads Pedersen and take out a tired Arsene Bamba. Pretty decent match. Atletico Madrid 1 - 1 Dover Goals - Chiquinho (7.3) Assists - Arsene Bamba (6.9) Man of the Match - Joel Robles (Atletico Madrid GK - 8.1) Other Dover Notables - Renato Gaucho (7.0), Jose (7.1) Attendance - 70,309 Possession ended up dead even, as Madrid really took it to us in the second half. They also outshot us 20-18 (6-4 on target), another rare event. Still, a solid result away from home and I’m reasonably confident in our ability to gain a positive result at home in the return leg, even if it’s without the suspended Chiquinho. Andy Broomes was given a 6.1 rating today but he was lively and getting into good positions so I’m not concerned. Premier League Update -- Four other teams with makeup games played as well, including Man United, who defeated Huddersfield 1-0 away to push three points further ahead on the table. March Update -- Kind of a light month coming up in March, with only four Premier League games: Tottenham (away), Sheffield Wednesday (home), Sunderland (away) and Middlesbrough (away). We also face Liverpool in the FA Cup quarterfinals at home and will also host Atletico Madrid in the second leg of the Champions League First Knockout round. So only six games this month. -- We get positive training reports for Graham Allan, Emmerson Harvey and Lyubomir Kunchev on the senior team, along with U18 players Joshua Stokes, Stuart Cousins and Luigi Nicoletti. A negative report comes in for U18 player Robbie Welsh. Premier League Monthly Awards -- Yaya Sanogo from Manchester United wins Player of the Month for the millionth time after scoring four times in as many matches. -- Former Dover youth goalkeeper Louis Read, now on Derby, wins Young Player of the Month. Wow - not bad for the 1.5 star player! -- Jurgen Klinsmann from Man United wins manager of the month. U18 Update -- We edge Southampton 1-0, with our only goal coming from striker Neil Evans. Premier League Update -- There are only two Saturday games this weekend and we watch as both top seven teams lose 1-0 decisions. Newcastle loses to Huddersfield while Aston Villa upends Sheffield Wednesday. Board Confidence Update -- The board continue to be very pleased with my overall leadership. Our stature increase is the major factor behind their thoughts and there are no negatives…hmm, surprising. -- We lost £652,000 last month. Next Up -- Another road match, as we head to White Hart Lane to face Tottenham.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-08-2014, 07:08 PM
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#574 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sun. March 2, 2025
Barclays Premier League Tottenham (12-8-8, 44 points, 8th) vs. Dover (19-5-4, 62 points, 2nd) White Hart Lane, London, UK Betting Odds: Tottenham: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Dover: 7-4 Past Meetings: 8W 4D 2L We beat up Tottenham 4-1 earlier this season but will are once again road underdogs as we battle a semi-poor run of form lately. Spurs are also still alive in Champions League play and are down by one goal against OM but have to head to France for the second leg. I’d say they’re in tough to move on. Dutch striker Peter Jansen, just picked up in the offseason from Stuttgart for a whopping £35 million, has been worth every penny. He has 23 goals in only 27 matches so he’s extremely dangerous. We make only one change from our Champions League lineup, bringing in Benedikt Raab for Neil Cairney. We will start out in a control mentality today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, M. Lugo Jansen is up front with equally dangerous Jean Junior and Angel Detry is in goal, as Spurs play their flat 4-4-2. Lets play well for our fans today. 13’ - We win a corner and Benedikt Raab’s cross is to the far post and headed into the net by Claudio Contreras! Great start. DOVER GOAL 1-0 18’ - We have a free kick at midfield and botch it, as Jose lays a pass off to Contreras and our central defender loses it, allowing for a Spurs counter attack. They work up field and Jean Junior is sent in alone and makes no mistake. That was Contreras’ man…ugh. TOTTENHAM GOAL 1-1 23’ - Andy Broomes takes a pass off his chest at the midfield stripe, then turns on the jets. He speeds through the defence, cuts in on a diagonal angle toward goal and hits a low shot that curls past Detry and into the far corner of the net for the MAGICAL GOAL! HOLY CRAP! Sometimes, you think it’s Paul Moses out there…maybe not as skilled but damn, damn good! DOVER GOAL 2-1 43’ - We are absolutely POURING ON PRESSURE and their keeper Angel Detry has made at least three incredible stops to keep Spurs in the game. We continue to push and work a GORGEOUS three-way passing play, with Graham Allan feeding Raab, who then sends a through ball into the box to Chiquinho. I actually scream out “WHAT A GOAL” before Chiquinho even shoots but thankfully, our striker doesn’t let me down and he pounds it into the corner of the goal. Just sensational stuff! DOVER GOAL 3-1 HALFTIME - That was one of the best halves of the season right there! 56% of possession and a 14-4 (6-2 on target) shot advantage, as we just pepper them with shots and pressure. Superb! I tell the team i’m very pleased! 61’ - Salim Loucif is taken down by a Spurs attacker and he’s hurt and needs to come off. That doesn’t look good for our captain. I bring in Rafinha to take his place. DOVER INJURY - Salim Loucif 65’ - Excellent. Another corner and Raab’s cross again is headed by Contreras, only this time it hits a Spurs defender and goes in. It’s an own goal but we’ll take it! DOVER GOAL 4-1 70’ - Graham Allan is banged up so I bring in Lyubomir Kunchev. 76’ - I take out the excellent Andy Broomes and bring in Manuel Lugo for mop up duty. Very well played match! Tottenham 1 - 4 Dover Goals - Claudio Contreras (8.8), Andy Broomes (8.7), Chiquinho (7.7), Anderson OG Assists - Benedikt Raab 3 (9.1), Claudio Contreras Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Rayane Hamon (7.2), Renato Gaucho (7.2), Jose (7.0), Arsene Bamba (7.1) Attendance - 35,741 Just a wonderful game. We held 52% of possession and a 20-9 (7-4 on target) shot advantage. Raab was excellent and is just so good at set pieces. A great pickup for us, without question. -- Salim Loucif suffered a concussion but should only miss a week of time. DOVER INJURY: Salim Loucif - Concussion (6 days) -- In other action, Arsenal can only manage a draw against Blackpool, City beat Burnley 2-0 and Chelsea upend Sheffield United 4-2. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 29 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 70 points (after 28 games) 2. Dover - 65 points 3. Manchester City - 61 points 4. Chelsea - 61 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 50 points 6. Newcastle - 48 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- Squad Bonus -- We pay out £29,000 in bonuses for our semi-final appearance in the League Cup to all the players. Premier League Team of the Week -- Benedikt Raab and Claudio Contreras make the team of the week. Dover Reserves Update -- We get another hat trick from Manuel Lugo in a 6-1 triumph over Arsenal’s reserves. Vlastimil Silhavy, Emmerson Harvey and Felix Hernandez also score. We also get three assists from Andrea Rocca. -- Felix Hernandez suffered a bruised rib in the game and will miss about a week of time. DOVER INJURY: Felix Hernandez - Bruised Rib (5 Days) Injury Update -- Gianluca Bolis returns to full training after missing three weeks with a twisted ankle. Next Up -- We are huge favourites as we host Sheffield Wednesday in Premier League play at Crabble Athletic Ground.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-09-2014, 12:34 AM
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#575 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. March 8, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (20-5-4, 65 points, 2nd) vs. Sheffield Wednesday (12-10-7, 46 points, 7th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 2-5 (Favourites) Draw: 11-4 Sheffield Wednesday: 13-2 Past Meetings: 10W 5D 4L This is our third matchup against Wednesday thus far this year, with a 1-1 draw at Sheffield earlier in the year and a 3-0 win here at home in League Cup play. They are completely healthy and Steve Pates (14 goals) and Darijo Jukic (13 goals) are the danger men. I’m actually shocked at how large the odds are against them today - Wednesday is a good club. We’ve had a week off since our last match and we have to make one injury-related change, as captain Salim Loucif is out and Rafinha is in. As a result, I start vice-captain Saber Nasri in the middle of the defence against his former club for Rayane Hamon. Gianluca Bolis is still recovering from injury so he won’t feature on the bench just yet. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, Rafinha M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, M. Mutesa, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, L. Kunchev, M. Lugo Flat 4-4-2 for Sheffield, with Pates and Jukic up front and Fernando Cardoso in goal. For the fans! HALFTIME - We dominate the first half but have nothing to show for it. 57% of possession and a 12-5 (3-2 on target) shot advantage. We need to be very careful here - Sheffield hit us on two counters and our keeper Manuel Perez had to make two brilliant stops to keep it scoreless. Chiquinho had a horrible half (5.8) and this continues the trend of bad ratings for players who get singled out by the opposing manager in the game. 46’ - Renato Gaucho gets hurt on an innocent looking play and needs to come off. Ouch. In comes Emerson and Rafinha moves over to the left side. DOVER INJURY - Renato Gaucho 57’ - Chiquinho is having a shockingly poor game and I’m getting ready to take him out when we move on the counter. Benedikt Raab sends a delightful through ball to Arsene Bamba and he’s in all alone. His shot is saved by Cardoso but CHIQUINHO is there to put home the rebound! Hilarious. DOVER GOAL 1-0 60’ - Another counter sees Graham Allan avoiding a tackle around midfield and streaking down the right flank. He sends in a low cross to the far post and Bamba is there, sliding and sending it past Cardoso and IN! DOVER GOAL 2-0 67’ - Steve Pates sends a ball in off the goal post but he’s way offsides. No goal! 69’ - Manuel Lugo comes on for Chiquinho. 82’ - Emmerson Harvey is in for Jose. 85’ - We have a free kick from well out and Raab sends in a high arching ball that meets the head of SABER NASRI, who propels it into the net! Nasri strikes against his former club!!! DOVER GOAL 3-0 Alright! Dover 3 - 0 Sheffield Wednesday Goals - Chiquinho (7.4), Arsene Bamba (8.2), Saber Nasri (8.8) Assists - Graham Allan (7.4), Benedikt Raab (8.1), Arsene Bamba Man of the Match - Saber Nasri Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.6), Rafinha (7.0), Claudio Conteras (7.4) Attendance - 22,395 We stayed patient and came through big-time in the second half. We maintained our 57% possession rate and outshot them 23-8 (9-3 on target). Great games by Nasri, Bamba and Perez. -- UGH. Renato Gaucho suffered broken ribs and will miss the next 3-4 weeks. DOVER INJURY: Renato Gaucho - Broken Ribs (3-4 weeks) -- In other action, Man United continue to lead after a 2-0 win over Reading but City LOSE 2-1 to Huddersfield at the Etihad in a shocker. Arsenal battle Liverpool to a scoreless draw and Newcastle and Chelsea do the same in the other major fixtures. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 30 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 73 points (after 29 games) 2. Dover - 68 points 3. Chelsea - 62 points 4. Manchester City - 61 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 51 points 6. Newcastle - 49 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- 8. Tottenham - 44 points 9. Reading - 43 points 10. Middlesbrough - 40 points (after 29 games) 11. Sunderland - 40 points 12. Liverpool - 38 points 13. Huddersfield - 37 points 14. Everton - 35 points 15. Aston Villa - 34 points 16. Wolves - 33 points 17. Sheffield United - 25 points ---------------------------------------------------- 18. Burnley - 16 points 19. Blackpool - 15 points 20. Derby - 15 points Premier League Team of the Week -- Saber Nasri, Arsene Bamba and Benedikt Raab make the team of the week. Injury Update -- Zoltan Bardi is close to a return to full fitness, as his sprained ankle is almost healed. Paul Moses and Renato Gaucho are on the long term injury list. Champions League Update -- Moving on to the second round are Real Madrid and Manchester United. Madrid beat the upstarts Club Brugge by a single goal while United squeaked past Schalke on away goals. Juventus shocks Manchester City 2-1 on aggregate and OM, not surprisingly, gets past Tottenham with ease. Dover U18 Update -- We get three assists from Felix Hernandez and goals from James Campbell, Joshua Stokes, Danny Hope, Neil Evans and Matthew Neil in a 5-0 win over Oxford. Next Up -- We look to gain a measure of revenge, as we host Liverpool at Crabble Athletic Ground in the FA Cup quarterfinals.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-15-2014, 06:23 PM
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#576 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sun. March 16, 2025
FA Cup - Quarter Final Dover (2nd in Barclays Premier League) vs. Liverpool (12th in Barclays Premier League) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: 9-4 Liverpool: 7-2 Past Meetings: 7W 3D 10L Liverpool stunned us about a month ago, beating us 3-1 here at Crabble Athletic Ground in Premier League play. I want revenge today! The FA Cup is the one major trophy we have yet to lift here at Dover and I’m taking this game quite seriously despite having a Champions League game coming up in three nights. Piotr Parzyszek is leading the club with 14 goals. We’ll start a pretty strong lineup as a result but one with some changes. Manuel Lugo will start up front with Chiquinho today. We’ll go with a central midfield of Neil Cairney and Andrea Rocca today and Rafinha is in for the injured Renato Gaucho on defence. Mads Pedersen will slip in at left midfield for Arsene Bamba today. Captain Salim Loucif is healthy and starts in his familiar right fullback spot and Gianluca Bolis also returns from injury today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, G. Bolis S - M. Lugo, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, B. Raab, A. Bamba, G. Allan, A. Broomes Liverpool are in their 4-2-3-1 formation with three attacking central mids, a formation that always gives us trouble. Chris Dunn is in goal and young Oliver Hammeri is up front. Leading scorer Piotr Parzyszek isn’t even dressed so Liverpool aren’t taking this game super-seriously. Lets win this for our fans today. HALFTIME - We are having trouble breaking them down and their counter attack has been dangerous. We held 57% of possession and a 12-7 (4-2 on target) shot advantage. I’m pulling back into a counter attacking formation to tighten up at the back and hopefully we’ll be the one to hit them on the break. 62’ - We need to liven things up here. Andy Broomes comes in for Manuel Lugo and Benedikt Raab is in for Andrea Rocca. Back to a control mentality as well. 86’ - Nothing happening despite lots of pressure on our part. In comes Graham Allan for Gianluca Bolis. Geez. We just can’t beat these guys… Dover 0 - 0 Liverpool Goals - Assists - Man of the Match - Chris Dunn (Liverpool GK - 8.0) Other Dover Notables - Rayane Hamon (7.9), Claudio Conteras (7.0), Rafinha (7.2) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) We just can’t break them down despite holding 56% of possession and a 19-10 (6-3 on target) shot advantage. We’ll have to head to Liverpool for a replay now. FA Cup - Semi Final Draw -- If we’re able to get past Liverpool in our replay, we’ll host the winner of the Reading/Manchester City replay. The other semi will see Tottenham host Manchester United. Injury Update -- Renato Gaucho is about two weeks away from a return from broken ribs. Paul Moses is likely out until next summer. Champions League Update -- Barcelona lose 3-2 at home to Shakhtar in a shocker but it’s not enough for the minnow to move on, as Barca win 4-3 on aggregate. Porto easily get past Sevilla 3-0 on aggregate. Next Up -- We welcome Atletico Madrid to Crabble Athletic Ground in the second leg of the Champions League first knockout round, with a 1-1 current score.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-15-2014, 11:02 PM
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#577 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. March 19, 2025
UEFA Champions League - First Round Knockout Second Leg Dover (1) vs. (1) Atletico Madrid Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 Atletico Madrid: 7-4 Past Meetings: 0W 1D 0L We earned a draw three weeks ago against Atletico and will move on with a win of any kind or a scoreless draw. This team can score goals so we’ll need to be careful. If we’re to move on, it will be without the services of Chiquinho tonight, as he’s suspended for yellow card accumulation. Thankfully, Zoltan Bardi is match fit despite missing the last five weeks with a sprained ankle. He’ll start today alongside Andy Broomes. Our top midfield pairing of Jose and Benedikt Raab will also play, along with Arsene Bamba and Gianluca Bolis. The same back four from our Liverpool draw will play again today. Manuel Perez gets the nod in goal again. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Z. Bardi Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, M. Lugo Atletico are also in a flat 4-4-2 with the dangerous John Kumwenda and Thabo Mbambo up front. Gregorio Roca is their keeper. Alexis Sanchez and former Dover striker Gerardo Escobar are on the bench today. I encourage the players to play a positive game today. 7’ - We have a throw in down the left and eventually the ball makes its way to Jose. He fires a low shot that hits a Madrid defender and ricochets into the goal past Roca! Great start! DOVER GOAL 1-0 (2-1 AGGREGATE) 11’ - Well, that didn’t take long. Atletico have a corner and the cross is to the ever-dangerous Kumwenda and he heads the ball forcefully into our goal. ATLETICO MADRID GOAL 1-1 (2-2 AGGREGATE) 15’ - We start moving up field down the right and Jose lays a ball off for Benedikt Raab. From 30 yards, he fires a laser guided missile that finds the far left corner of the net for the spectacular goal! Wow! DOVER GOAL 2-1 (3-2 AGGREGATE) HALFTIME - This is a very scary scoreline - a tying goal by Atletico would put them in the drivers seat to move on in the competition due to away goals. So I don’t want to play a defensive shell and would prefer we add an insurance marker. It’s been an even game, with us winning the possession battle 54% to 46% but shots are in their favour 8-7 (3-3 on target). I continue to encourage them to score one more goal. 64’ - Atletico are ALL OVER US and we’re making countless errors, with two blatant ones in a row by Arsene Bamba. I pull his butt out of the game and bring in Mads Pedersen. 77’ - Zoltan Bardi is tired so I bring in Manuel Lugo. SO STRESSFUL! But we prevail! Dover 2 (3) - (2) 1 Atletico Madrid Goals - Jose (8.4), Benedikt Raab (8.7) Assists - Jose, Benedikt Raab Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.1) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) Manuel Lugo (6.9) not getting a higher rating is criminal! He was sensational today, with a number of HUGE second half saves. We end up with 55% of the ball but they outshoot us 20-17 (7-6 on target), a very rare game where we are outshot. Nervy game but we move on in the competition! -- Bring in the money! We earn £2,609,000 for moving on. Reserves Update -- I guess we mathematically clinched our sixth consecutive Reserves League championship and our fans and board celebrate like it’s a Champions League title. So funny. International Update -- We have an international break coming next week and 23 of our players are called up to play for their country. Champions League Update -- We’re down to eight teams and the only semi-cupcake left is Porto. We draw French side OM, who are in fifth right now in Ligue 1. Should be winnable… Next Up -- We are on the road and head to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland in Premier League action.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-16-2014, 01:05 AM
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#578 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. March 22, 2025
Barclays Premier League Sunderland (11-7-12, 40 points, 11th) vs. Dover (21-5-4, 68 points, 2nd) Stadium of Light, Sunderland, UK Betting Odds: Sunderland: 3-1 Draw: 2-1 Dover: 4-5 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 7W 2D 5L We won handily at home earlier this year against Sunderland 4-1 but they did grab a win and a draw against us last year so they aren’t a team to be taken lightly. That said, they are on a poor run of form at the moment, winless in four games and only one win in their last six. Their top scorer, American striker Jeremy Russell, is away early on international duty but fellow top striker Craig Flett is available, along with star midfielder Matt Barber. Former Dover defender Leo Creemers plays in a rotation and may face us today. We’ll make a few changes from our Champions League win, with Chiquinho back in the lineup after serving his suspension and I’ll start young Manuel Lugo alongside him. Mads Pedersen is back in for the ineffective Arsene Bamba and Graham Allan draws the start on the right flank. Ingo Wilke draws the assignment in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Rafinha, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - Chiquinho, M. Lugo Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, A. Bamba, G. Bolis, A. Broomes Flat 4-4-2 for Sunderland and Flett is up front with Alexandre Deiana. Sam Cowler is in goal. For the fans today! 20’ - We’ve been dominating the highlights and putting enormous pressure on the Sunderland defence. We break through on a failed corner kick, as the ball is cleared out to Jose lurking outside the area and he pounds a shot through traffic into the top corner of the goal. Splendid! DOVER GOAL 1-0 25’ - We are sloppy in our midfield defence and lose possession. Their top striker Flett has the ball and sends a curling blast from 25 yards out that gets past Wilke and IN. Spectacular shot by Flett! SUNDERLAND GOAL 1-1 HALFTIME - They score on their only opportunity and despite dominating the game, we’re level at half. 53% of possession and an 18-5 (5-1 on target) shot advantage is in our favour. I tell the team they can win this game! 53’ - We win a corner and Raab’s cross is to the near post and 6’ 4” Manuel Lugo out jumps everyone and heads it home! That’s our big signing’s first league goal for Dover! DOVER GOAL 2-1 59’ - We have possession around midfield and Sunderland defender Jamie Holt whiffs on a tackle and that allows a clear breakaway for Chiquinho. His shot is past Cowler but hits the goalpost! Chiquinho wins the race to the rebound and pots it into the empty net for the insurance marker! DOVER GOAL 3-1 70’ - We pull out Jose and bring in Emmerson Harvey. 74’ - Rayane Hamon has a yellow so I pull him out and bring in Saber Nasri. 90’+3 - With time winding down, Benedikt Raab sends a low ROCKET at goal and Cowler does well to save it. No chance of him swallowing the rebound though and it pops right to Graham Allan on the doorstep and he simply taps it home. Nice! DOVER GOAL 4-1 Great second half! Sunderland 1 - 4 Dover Goals - Jose (7.9), Manuel Lugo (8.1), Chiquinho (7.8), Graham Allan (7.9) Assists - Benedikt Raab 2 (9.0) Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.1), Rayane Hamon (7.1), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Rafinha (7.1), Mads Pedersen (7.2) Attendance - 43,616 Excellent win - we held 54% of possession and a 27-6 (10-2 on target) shot advantage. -- Late in the game, Claudio Contreras suffered a knock but was able to continue. Turns out he suffered a strained thigh and will miss about 10 days. DOVER INJURY: Claudio Contreras (Thigh Strain - 11 days) -- In other Premier League action, Man U continues to pull away, winning 3-0 over Aston Villa. Blackpool shocked Newcastle 1-0 and Reading move into the top seven with a 5-1 win over Middlesbrough. -- With the win, we have guaranteed a position in the Europa League at worst for next season. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 31 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 79 points 2. Dover - 72 points 3. Chelsea - 62 points (after 30 games) 4. Manchester City - 61 points (after 30 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 51 points (after 30 games) 6. Newcastle - 49 points 7. Reading - 46 points ---------------------------------------------------- Reserves Update -- I guess we mathematically clinched our sixth consecutive Reserves League championship and our fans and board celebrate like it’s a Champions League title. So funny. -- A couple days later, we beat up on Fulham’s reserves 6-1 despite us having a much less than full strength roster due to the international break. Manuel Lugo nets a hat trick and we get singles from Joshua Stokes, Sean Woolley and Neil Evans. -- We suffer two injuries in the game. Stud U18 striker Alberto Velazquez will miss a couple weeks with a twisted knee while fellow U18 striker Neil Evans will miss 2-3 months with a torn hamstring. Team of the Week -- Benedikt Raab and in a pleasant surprise, Manuel Lugo are honoured by being named to the Premier League team of the week. International Update -- Gaining a youth cap is Felix Hernandez (France). -- Gaining senior team caps are Arsene Bamba (Ivory Coast), Salim Loucif (Algeria), Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz (Morocco - one goal), Mads Pedersen (Denmark), Zoltan Bardi (Hungary - one goal), Neil Cairney and Graham Allan (Scotland), Mwemere Mutesa (Rwanda), Lyubomir Kunchev (Bulgaria), Emmerson Harvey (England), Manuel Perez (Mexico) and Chiquinho (Belgium - two goals). -- Yilmaz scored his first ever international goal in the Morocco game! Congrats to the youngster, who will be leaving our club at the end of the season. Next Up -- We are on the road once again and face Middlesbrough in Premier League play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-19-2014, 10:07 PM
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#579 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. March 29, 2025
Barclays Premier League Middlesbrough (11-7-13, 40 points, 10th) vs. Dover (22-5-4, 71 points, 2nd) The Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough, UK Betting Odds: Middlesbrough: 4-1 Draw: 5-2 Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 9W 2D 4L Middlesbrough are on a terrible run of form, having gone eight games in all competitions without a win and in the league, they haven’t won since late December, a full THREE MONTH stretch without a victory. This coincides with the departure of manager Tony Mowbray, who left Middlesbrough for Liverpool on December 20th. Norwegian Kjetil Rekdal replaced him and he’s still looking for his first Premier League victory. It certainly isn’t Roland Hoxha’s fault, as the speedy striker has 25 goals in 32 games this year. We have an incredibly taxing schedule coming up, with major games against Liverpool in the FA Cup, a league game against table toppers Manchester United and the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against OM. So we will use a slightly less than full strength side today. Getting a rare start in midfield is Emmerson Harvey and we also start Saber Nasri and Emerson on defence. Ingo Wilke is in goal for the second game in a row, as Manuel Perez is still a bit tired after getting back from his international appearance. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Rafinha, S. Nasri, R. Hamon, Emerson M - A. Bamba, E. Harvey, B. Raab, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - C. Guzman, M. Mutesa, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, M. Lugo Holy smokes - Middlesbrough are playing a 3-5-2 formation with a SWEEPER, something I haven’t seen since my Conference days! They have two centre half backs, two wing backs, three central mids and two strikers. Very defensive formation and much different from Tony Mowbray, who prefers a very aggressive offensive system. Sheesh. These guys will be tough to break down. Sinan Bolat is in goal. I tell the team to play well for the Dover fans travelling to the game tonight. 15’ - We’re in complete control early and have a corner. Benedikt Raab crosses to the near post and the ball comes off Chiquinho’s foot and right to Rayane Hamon, who slams the ball into the back of the net! DOVER GOAL 1-0 That didn’t take long, as Middlesbrough go to a flatter formation, with four defenders and a sweeper in behind. 28’ - Incredible. Already, we have Andy Broomes with the “cross of death” above his name, signifying an injury but he can play on. Now, it’s Arsene Bamba getting taken down and he needs to come off. In comes Mads Pedersen. DOVER INJURY - ARSENE BAMBA 35’ - We win possession in midfield and pass to Andy Broomes. He dekes past a Middlesbrough defender just on their side of half and is off to the races. The sweeper gives him WAY too much room, taking away a potential pass so Broomes dribbles in on goal and sends a ROCKET past Sinan Bolat and into the net. BRILLIANT goal! WOW! DOVER GOAL 2-0 HALFTIME - Middlesbrough are terrible and haven’t even shown up today. We held 60% of possession and a 16-3 (5-2 on target) shot advantage. I’m pleased! Middlesbrough come out in a flat 5-3-2 to start the second half. 52’ - Middlesbrough are playing with much more urgency to start this half and their manager must have read the riot act. They’ve had a few great chances already and have a free kick from just outside the area that we head out. Broomes gets to the ball first and simply outraces the back two defenders to go on a full field BREAKAWAY! He’s in on goal and shoots past Sinan Bolat and it’s IN! That’s two BEAUTIES for Broomes! DOVER GOAL 3-0 72’ - We have a free kick from the left byline and Raab crosses into the box but Emmerson Harvey is taken down…that’s a PENALTY!! Up steps Andy Broomes to take it and he calmly sends a shot into the right corner of the goal for his HAT TRICK! What a GAME from Broomes, with all three of his goals scored after he got injured! DOVER GOAL 4-0 75’ - We earn another free kick and Raab’s cross is to the far post and there is Saber Nasri heading it home as we continue to PILE ON! DOVER GOAL 5-0 We take out Raab and Broomes and bring in Andrea Rocca and Manuel Lugo. 83’ - Middlesbrough have possession off a throw in and a cross comes into the area for Taksiarxis Fountas and he delivers a beautiful header that is past Wilke and IN. It looked offsides but the goal counts and it was a lovely one. MIDDLESBROUGH GOAL 5-1 85’ - Goodness gracious. Mads Pedersen coughs the ball up in midfield and Roland Hoxha just blazes down the pitch. Rayane Hamon inexplicably doesn’t challenge him and Hoxha just dribbles in on Wilke and shoots past him and in. What a horrible two minute stretch. MIDDLESBROUGH GOAL 5-2 Poor finish to a nice game. Middlesbrough 2 - 5 Dover Goals - Andy Broomes 3 (9.6), Rayane Hamon (7.7), Saber Nasri (8.8) Assists - Benedikt Raab 3 (9.2), Saber Nasri, Mads Pedersen (7.0) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (8.4), Emerson (7.1), Rafinha (7.0), Gianluca Bolis (7.0), Emmerson Harvey (7.0), Chiquinho (7.0) Attendance - 27,897 Great game by Raab, who has simply been superb in his first season with us. Middlesbrough really turned it on in the second half and we ended up with only 54% of possession and a 26-13 (11-10 on target) shot advantage. -- Injuries continue to pile up. Andy Broomes suffers a bruised thigh and will miss about five days, thereby missing our big FA Cup quarterfinal replay against Liverpool midweek. More pressing is the loss of Arsene Bamba to a sprained ankle and he’ll miss 4 weeks. Geez - Bamba has been very injury prone lately. DOVER INJURIES: Andy Broomes (Bruised Thigh - 5 days); Arsene Bamba (Sprained Ankle - 4 weeks) -- In other Premier League action, Man U wins easily over Everton 3-0, Chelsea wins 3-1 over Burnley, Reading wins 4-0 Aston Villa while Newcastle drops a 2-0 decision to Tottenham. In Sunday action, Sheffield Wednesday upends Sheffield United 3-0 while Man City shockingly loses to Liverpool 2-1. Arsenal beats Sunderland 2-1 on Monday night. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 32 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 82 points 2. Dover - 74 points 3. Chelsea - 65 points (after 31 games) 4. Manchester City - 61 points (after 31 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 54 points (after 31 games) 6. Reading - 49 points 7. Sheffield Wednesday - 49 points ---------------------------------------------------- Contracts Expiring -- We have two senior team members with expiring contracts and one of them is a long-time Dover player in Andrea Rocca, with the other being reserves fullback Carlos Guzman. Rocca’s agent wants a huge salary increase and that’s definitely not in the cards for the 27 year old midfielder. Rocca is still playing at a high level, is loved by the fans and I’d still like to keep him around but I’ll wait a bit longer before re-opening contract talks. Guzman is cheap and I’ll definitely look at bringing him back as depth. -- We also have numerous staff members and U18 players on expiring deals but nothing worth noting here. April Update -- A very busy and difficult month lies ahead. Only three Premier League matches as it stands right now, with matches against table toppers Manchester United (home), Reading (home) and Aston Villa (away). I play in Liverpool tomorrow in an FA Cup quarterfinal replay and have both legs of the Champions League quarterfinal against OM. If we prevail in either or both, we’ll also have semi-final matches in both competitions take place at the end of the month. WOW. So that’s eight potential matches! -- We get positive training reports for Emmerson Harvey, Mwemere Mutesa, Gary Archer, Stuart Cousins and Eneko Remirez. Negative reports come in for Benedikt Raab and Lyubomir Kunchev. Yikes. Raab has been SENSATIONAL all season and is a front-runner for our player of the year award. I don’t say anything to him but admonish Kunchev, who is our third-string right midfielder. Barclays Premier League Team of the Week -- Ingo Wilke, Saber Nasri, Benedikt Raab and Andy Broomes make the league’s team of the week. Premier League Monthly Awards -- Benedikt Raab made “four dazzling appearances” in March and wins the league’s player of the month award in a walk! Fantastic! Even better is the fact that we SWEEP the top three, with Andy Broomes coming in second and Saber Nasri coming in third! -- Continuing the Dover theme, we see Rafinha named as Young Player of the Month! Cool! -- Despite winning all four of our games in March, I only come in second in the manager of the month voting behind Jurgen Klinsmann, whose Man United side also won all four games. Injury Update -- Claudio Contreras should be returning in the next few days from his thigh strain. Andy Broomes (bruised thigh) and Renato Gaucho (broken ribs) could be back within the week as well. Paul Moses and Arsene Bamba are on the long-term injury list. April Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership of the club. Our stature increase continues to be the main positive and no negatives this month! -- We made a profit of £569,000 last month. Next Up -- We try to finally find a way to get past Liverpool, this time in a FA Cup quarterfinal replay.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 11-19-2014 at 10:09 PM. |
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11-19-2014, 11:32 PM
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#580 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. April 2, 2025
FA Cup - Quarterfinals Replay Liverpool (10th in Premier League) vs. Dover (2nd in Premier League) Liverpool Stadium, Liverpool, UK Betting Odds: Liverpool: 7-4 Draw: N/A Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 7W 4D 10L This is our fourth game against Liverpool this year and we own a 1-1-1 record against them but the addition of manager Tony Mowbray has certainly reinvigorated the club. They are undefeated in five matches and are coming off a big league win against Man City this past weekend. We have a HUGE game this weekend against league leaders Manchester United and then a game four days later against OM in Champions League play. That said, I made it a goal at the beginning of the year to win the FA Cup so I’ll be fielding the best lineup possible today but injuries are a concern. We are without Andy Broomes, Arsene Bamba, Renato Gaucho and obviously still missing Paul Moses so we’ll be relying in second teamers in a big way. We’re also going to switch up our tactics, playing with one striker in a 4-2-3-1 formation in hopes of beating Liverpool for the first time in three games. Zoltan Bardi is in at AMC, Mads Pedersen is at AML, Rafinha stays in at left fullback and back in goal is Manuel Perez. Dover: 4-4-2 DM (4-2-3-1) Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - B. Raab, Jose AM - M. Pedersen, Z. Bardi, G. Bolis S - Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, M. Lugo Tony Mowbray has always favoured a 4-2-3-1 formation with three central attacking mids, a very aggressive formation that I have difficulties with. I’m hoping my different tactics today will help break them down. Oliver Hammeri is alone up front and Chris Dunn is in goal today. Leading scorer Piotr Parzyszek is on the bench. I realize I’ve made a big error here in starting Claudio Contreras, who is just returning from injury. He’s only at 82% and “very tired” so I likely will only get a half out of him today. Ugh. Dumb! 3’ - Liverpool has the ball in their end and Jose steals it. He touches a pass to Zoltan Bardi and from a few steps outside the box, sends a rocket into the top left corner of the net, past a diving Chris Dunn! What a start!!! DOVER GOAL 1-0 37’ - This tactic is great for generating chances against Liverpool but not so great at defending, as we’re essentially playing man coverage with six players back against their six attackers. That said, we still lead when Bardi, on the left side near the byline, sends a pass back to Rafinha. The young defender crosses into the area and Chiquinho hits it on the volley and it’s in the net! Beauty! DOVER GOAL 2-0 Liverpool spread out their attacking mids and are now in the exact same formation as us, something that makes me a bit more comfortable, to be honest. 40’ - Liverpool work into our area and we clear it out to Bardi. He passes up to Chiquinho at midfield and our striker avoids TWO TACKLES and dribbles in on goal. Dunn comes out to challenge but Chiquinho’s shot is past him and IN! MAGICAL goal from Chiquinho, his second in three minutes and we’re way ahead!! DOVER GOAL 3-0 HALFTIME - SUPERB! We only held 48% of possession and actually were outshot as well, 11-7 (4-6 on target). As you can see though, we were effective with our shots and we are comfortably ahead! I’m pleased! Liverpool are in a flat 4-4-2 now. 56’ - Liverpool comes at us on a counter and the ball is out wide to the left. The cross comes in and it’s leading scorer Parzyszek, in as a substitute, slotting the ball past Perez and it’s in! LIVERPOOL GOAL 3-1 64’ - We are just about to bring on Saber Nasri for Claudio Contreras but Zoltan Bardi gets taken down and has the cross of doom above his head. My GOD! These STRIKER INJURIES are killing me! He can stay in but the cross remains and he’ll need to be re-evaluated after the game. UGH! We also move to a flat 4-4-2 and a counter attacking mentality. 79’ - Out comes the excellent but injured Bardi and in comes Manuel Lugo. Liverpool took it to us in the second half but we hang on and move to the semis! Liverpool 1 - 3 Dover Goals - Chiquinho 2 (8.8), Zoltan Bardi (8.7) Assists - Zoltan Bardi, Rafinha (7.9), Jose (7.4) Man of the Match - Chiquinho Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (8.4), Salim Loucif (7.0), Claudio Contreras (7.1), Mads Pedersen (7.1) Attendance - 58,864 Liverpool dominated the stat sheet, with 55% possession and a 17-12 (8-7 on target) shot advantage but we make the most of our chances in the first half then just sit back and held them off in the second half. We’re on to the semis! Bardi was great today but lets hope he’s okay… -- Fantastic! No adverse effects for Zoltan Bardi after the game!! -- We earn £367,000 for the victory. -- Manchester City defeats Reading 2-1 in their replay and we’ll be facing them in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium later this month. Next Up -- A most pivotal Premier League matchup, as we face Manchester United in a 1 vs. 2 battle. A loss would likely eliminate us from repeating as league champions but a win will propel us right back into the race.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-20-2014, 12:45 AM
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#581 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. April 5, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (23-5-4, 74 points, 2nd) vs. Manchester United (26-4-2, 82 points, 1st) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 6-4 (Favourites) Draw: 2-1 Manchester United: 13-8 Past Meetings: 7W 4D 11L Like Liverpool, this will be the fourth time we’ve played United this year and we’ve lost two out of three and it was United that knocked us out of the League Cup, ending our two-year reign in that competition. We always seem to miss Said Henni when we play these guys: he’s either injured or away on international duty but he’s healthy and ready to play today. That said, as usual, it’s the sensational veteran Yaya Sanogo that needs attention - he’s up to FIFTY GOALS on the season!! Henni has 17 and sits second on the team. We need a win today - we have a Champions League matchup in a few days but will hold nothing back today. Andy Broomes and Renato Gaucho are back from injury but will be on the bench today. We only make one change from last game, inserting Graham Allan at right midfield in place of ineffective Gianluca Bolis. We’re back to a flat 4-4-2 today and will go with a control mentality. We can beat these guys! Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - Chiquinho, Z. Bardi Bench - Renato Gaucho, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, F. Hernandez, G. Bolis, A. Broomes Flat 4-4-2 for United and they have Tom Bull up front with Sanogo. Henni is at left midfield, old friend Cristian Rodriguez is at DC and Liviu Dragomir is in goal. Lets win this for the sell out crowd! It’s POURING rain today! 21’ - This game has been filled with great chances and even better goaltending, as the pitch is soaked and the long ball looks to be most effective. United spring Rogerio down the left and he’s in on goal. Perez makes a great save but the rebound pops out to the great Sanogo and he easily pokes the rebound home for the early lead. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 0-1 32’ - Rafinha gets taken down hard and is hurt and needs to come off. In comes Renato Gaucho, just returning from injury himself! DOVER INJURY: Rafinha HALFTIME - We hold 59% of possession, a huge advantage but United are making the most of their chances, outshooting us 13-11 (6-4 on target). We need to be much better! I tell the team we need a result here - no excuses! 51’ - We have the ball and Benedikt Raab sends a little ball to Mads Pedersen. He cuts toward the box and passes in to Chiquinho, who gains a half step on Cristian Rodriguez, bares down on goal and shoots past Dragomir and IN! We pull level! DOVER GOAL 1-1 59’ - Zoltan Bardi is having a poor game and playing nervously so I pull him out and bring in Andy Broomes. Hopefully his speed can open up some more chances for us here in the last 30 minutes. 62’ - AAARGH! There’s an incredible sequence where Manuel Perez makes two SPECTACULAR SAVES in a row but it results in a corner. The cross comes in and who else but Yaya Sanogo pounds it home. That’s his second and we’re in BIG trouble. MANCHESTER UNITED GOAL 1-2 72’ - With our season on the line, we move to an OVERLOAD mentality. 86’ - We take out Graham Allan and bring in Gianluca Bolis. We move to a 4-2-4. And there goes the season. FUCK. Dover 1 - 2 Manchester United Goals - Chiquinho (7.2) Assists - Mads Pedersen (6.9) Man of the Match - Yaya Sanogo (Manchester United ST - 8.8) Other Dover Notables - Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-out) When the chips were down, United showed their class. Despite killing them in possession in the first half, we end up dead even after 90 minutes and they outshot us 23-16 (10-5 on target). Manuel Perez got saddled with a 6.3 rating and that’s absolutely CRIMINAL - the poor guy made countless big saves for us and doesn’t deserve a rating like that. In a post game press conference, I see why, as I’m asked about a Perez “gaffe” that led to a goal. I guess they feel he should have had the ball on Sanogo’s second goal off the corner kick but that’s bullshit. Poor kid. -- That loss puts us 11 points behind United with only six games remaining. We are DONE and will need to concentrate fully on the Champions League at this point. What a kick in the balls. The loss of so many key players can be blamed, especially Paul Moses, our saviour last year. -- Rafinha has a thigh strain that will sideline him for two weeks. DOVER INJURY: Rafinha (thigh strain - 2 weeks) -- Chelsea win 4-0 over Derby to creep to within six points of us with a game in hand. Spurs win by the same scoreline over Sheffield United while Arsenal knock off Sheffield Wednesday 2-0. Wolves shock Reading 2-1, Newcastle draw 1-1 against Liverpool and City get past Blackpool 3-0. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 33 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 85 points 2. Dover - 74 points 3. Chelsea - 68 points (after 32 games) 4. Manchester City - 64 points (after 32 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 57 points (after 32 games) 6. Tottenham - 50 points (after 32 games) 7. Newcastle - 50 points ---------------------------------------------------- Dover U18 Update -- The kids continue to win without key players like Felix Hernandez (up with our senior team right now) and the injured Alberto Velazquez. We knock off Portsmouth 2-0 behind goals from Ben Patterson and Dominic Beard. Next Up -- So sad. Well, we move our thoughts to the Champions League and a quarterfinals matchup against French Ligue 1 side OM. The first leg is at home.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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11-28-2014, 10:38 AM
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#582 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Tue. April 8, 2025
UEFA Champions League - Quarterfinal First Leg Dover (2nd in Barclays Premier League) vs. OM (3rd in France Ligue 1) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: 11-5 OM: 7-4 Past Meetings: 0W 0D 0L This is the first meeting between our two clubs and OM are currently in third place in Ligue 1, 11 points back of first placed Olympique Lyonnais and three points back of AS Saint-Etienne. Arguably their most dangerous player, striker Omar Gueye, will miss today’s match due to yellow card accumulation - he has 22 goals in 28 matches this year. That said, their leading scorer is available in 31 year old Vasily Tkachenko, who sits with 25 goals from 35 matches. OM has a few key injuries as well, most prominently American centre halfback Greg Reeves. Our full concentration will now be on repeating as European champions as the league is likely out of reach. We’ll field our strongest possible team today but of course, we’re still missing injured players such as Paul Moses and Arsene Bamba. Control mentality as favourites at home. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Emerson, S. Nasri, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, Z. Bardi OM is in a flat 4-4-2 with Tkachenko up front with Frank Haruna. Pero Knezovic is their keeper. “For the Fans!”. 26’ - I’d say OM has been the club generating the best chances thus far but we strike first, with Mads Pedersen feeding Andy Broomes in the area and his quick shot to the near side barely squeaks inside the post and in. DOVER GOAL 1-0 HALFTIME - A pretty even match thus far, with us holding a 53% possession edge and a slight 8-7 (3-3 on target) shot advantage. We need to get one more goal so I encourage the team to keep pushing forward. 67’ - This is a really tight game. We make two changes, taking out Jose and Chiquinho and bringing in Andrea Rocca and Zoltan Bardi. We move to a 4-2-3-1 formation. 74 - Oh my goodness. OM defensive midfielder Raul Ale goes on a spectacular run in our area, weaving through three defenders on the byline and cutting back to his stronger foot before sending a chip shot past Manuel Perez and into the net. SPECTACULAR GOAL from Ale and OM pulls level. HOLY SHIT. The replay shows that the ball deflected off Renato Gaucho on the way in. OM GOAL 1-1 85’ - We move to an attacking mentality. Oh man. We just aren’t playing well. Dover 1 - 1 OM Goals - Andy Broomes (7.6) Assists - Mads Pedersen (6.9) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.0), Salim Loucif (7.2) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-out) A very even game but OM outplayed us in the second half and deservedly get a point. They won the possession battle with 52% of the ball but shots were dead even at 16-16 (5-5 on target). Not good enough and I tell the players as much in the dressing room after the game. We’re in big trouble and will need a win in France to move on. -- Salim Loucif, our captain, will miss the second leg due to yellow card accumulation. Dover Reserves Update -- We defeat Aston Villa’s reserves 4-1 on the strength of a brace from wonder kid midfielder Emmerson Harvey. We get singles from defenders Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz and Fouad van der Horst. Premier League Update -- Chelsea plays City in a makeup game and they draw 1-1 to hold onto third and fourth place respectively in the division. Next Up -- A home date in Premier League play against Reading.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 11-28-2014 at 10:39 AM. |
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11-28-2014, 11:53 AM
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#583 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. April 12, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (23-5-5, 74 points, 2nd) vs. Reading (14-7-12, 49 points, 8th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, UK Betting Odds: Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Draw: 5-2 Reading: 4-1 Past Meetings: 10W 2D 3L We defeated Reading 3-2 away earlier in the year and have had decent success against them over the years. They come in having lost two in a row so neither of us are in good form right now. Hani Megahed, their dynamic striker, is far and away their best player and has 31 goals in only 36 games thus far. They also have former Dover players Kostas Zagos and Simon Woodman on their roster. We have to go to France for the important quarterfinal second leg against OM in a few days so we need to be careful here. Chiquinho, Claudio Contreras, Manuel Perez and Benedikt Raab will not feature at all today in our 4-2-3-1 formation. Zoltan Bardi is in at AMC, Graham Allan comes in at AMR, Neil Cairney is at central midfield, Mwemere Mutesa gets a start at DC and Ingo Wilke is in goal. Dover: 4-4-2 DM (4-2-3-1) Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, M. Mutesa, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - N. Cairney, Jose AM - M. Pedersen, Z. Bardi, G. Allan S - A. Broomes Bench - C. Guzman, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Bolis, M. Lugo Reading are in the same formation as we are, with Megahed alone up front, Chris Davies in goal, and both Kostas Zagos and Simon Woodman are in as well at DL and AMR respectively. I tell the team I expect a win today. 29’ - We have a corner and it’s Jose taking it. He crosses to the far post and young Mwemere Mutesa heads the ball toward goal. It is on the foot of Andy Broomes and our in-form striker simply walks the ball right into the net! Cool! DOVER GOAL 1-0 HALFTIME - We continue to struggle to score without Paul Moses this year, as poor Andy Broomes just can’t do it all himself. We are playing fine but need more. Possession is dead even and shots are in our favour 7-1 (5-0 on target), as we’re playing solid defence today. I try to encourage the lads. 71’ - Yawn. Boring game. We bring in Manuel Lugo for Andy Broomes and also Emmerson Harvey for Neil Cairney. 79’ - Reading’s captain, Mark O’Brien, who is a guy we ALWAYS seem to burn at least once a game, gets the ball taken away from him by Mads Pedersen and our left winger has a half field breakaway. He bares down on goal but his shot is stopped by Davies. The rebound pops right out to Zoltan Bardi and he slams the ball into the empty net and we have our cushion! DOVER GOAL 2-0 82’ - We have the ball in their end and Bardi touches a little pass to Emmerson Harvey. The youngster who has been tearing it up with our reserves team simply dribbles into the box and sends a right footed blast into the far corner for the spectacular individual effort! Beauty goal! DOVER GOAL 3-0 Solid. Dover 3 - 0 Reading Goals - Andy Broomes (7.3), Zoltan Bardi (8.8), Emmerson Harvey (7.4) Assists - Mwemere Mutesa (9.0), Zoltan Bardi, Mads Pedersen (7.3) Man of the Match - Mwemere Mutesa Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.4), Rayane Hamon (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.4) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-out) Really good second half there. We outshoot them 18-4 (13-0 on target!) with possession dead even. Young defender Mwemere Mutesa has been a revelation this year! He’s only started ten games but he looks to be a keeper! He’ll continue to get more playing time next year, that’s for sure. Bardi was also excellent in that second half. -- In other action, Chelsea defeat Huddersfield 3-0 while City and Spurs draw 1-1, as do Newcastle and Sheffield Wednesday. We get a glimmer of hope in seeing Arsenal draw Man United 0-0. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 34 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 86 points 2. Dover - 77 points 3. Chelsea - 72 points 4. Manchester City - 66 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 58 points (after 33 games) 6. Tottenham - 51 points (after 33 games) 7. Newcastle - 51 points ---------------------------------------------------- Dover U18 Update -- We defeat Aldershot’s U18s 5-1, getting goals from Vlastimil Silhavy, Matthew Neil, Robert Hoffmann, Freddie Laird and star Alberto Velazquez. Velazquez also had two assists and is up to a remarkable 55 goals and 15 assists in 36 non-competitive matches. 70 points!!! Premier League Team of the Week -- Mwemere Mutesa and Zoltan Bardi make the team of the week. Dover Injury Update -- Rafinha is close to returning from his thigh strain and could be back by next weekend. Arsene Bamba is still a couple weeks from a return from his sprained ankle while Paul Moses is still on the long-term injury list. He’s likely out for the remainder of the season. UEFA Champions League Update -- Barcelona gets past rival Real Madrid 3-1 on aggregate to move onto the semi finals. Joining them are Olympique Lyonnais, who edge a pesky Juventus club 5-4 on aggregate. Next Up -- We head to France to take on OM in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal. We need a victory or need a draw with us scoring two goals or more to move on.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-17-2014, 03:53 AM
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#584 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Rennes, France
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I am missing this dynasty. FWIW, your dynasty made me purchase FM14, and I am trying to grow "Luzenac Arieges Pyrénées" team (and believe me, it is hard).
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12-17-2014, 04:38 PM
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#585 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Quote:
Thanks Alf! I'll dive back in shortly...funny enough, my six year old (!!) has been watching me play for about a year and insisted on starting a career of his own. So a lot of my recent game time has been spent helping him build AFC Telford in a different save game  Lots of fun!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-19-2014, 08:24 PM
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#586 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Wed. April 16, 2025
UEFA Champions League - Quarterfinal Second Leg OM (1) vs. (1) Dover Stade Velodrome, Marseille, France Betting Odds: OM: 6-4 (Favourites) Draw: 2-1 Dover: 13-8 Past Meetings: 0W 1D 0L Well, here we go. Desperate times, as we need a win today or a draw where we score 2 goals or more to move on. OM look like they have a number of key injuries but their two top goalscorers, strikers Vasily Tkachenko and Omar Gueye (27 and 22 goals respectively) are both healthy and available. We are missing our captain Salim Loucif today, as he sits this one out due to yellow card accumulation. Emerson will play in his place while Chiquinho will act as captain today and will play up front with Zoltan Bardi. Mads Pedersen continues to play for the injured Arsene Bamba and we start Graham Allan at MR in place of Gianluca Bolis. Manuel Perez is in goal today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, Emerson M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Allan S - Chiquinho, Z. Bardi Bench - C. Guzman, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, F. Hernandez, G. Bolis, A. Broomes Ok, OM are in a flat 4-4-2 as well, with Gueye and Tkachenko up front and Pero Knezovic in goal. I tell the team that this is a winnable game but I notice that our team is a bit overconfident - why, I don’t know! 11’ - OM have possession and our central defenders switch off on their mark but Claudio Contreras is slow to move over, allowing the ever-dangerous Tkachenko a little bit of space. He takes the ball and sends a bullet of a low blast into the net past Perez and we’re behind. OM GOAL 0-1 (1-2 AGGREGATE) 18’ - OM have a throw in deep in our end and their resulting cross is deflected right onto the foot of Tkachenko, who quickly blasts one past a stunned Perez and we are in BIG TROUBLE! Holy crap. OM GOAL 0-2 (1-3 AGGREGATE) 32’ - Contreras, who is having a SHOCKINGLY poor game, just got let off the hook on a foul and was only given a warning. He’s been “in danger of being booked” all game and now he goes in studs up on an OM midfielder and is promptly given the straight red card. This is an utter disaster. DOVER RED CARD: Claudio Contreras And OH MY GOD, now Chiquinho complains and with a yellow card already having been issued earlier to him, he’s shown a second yellow AND HE’S SENT OFF! DOVER RED CARD: Chiquinho We are down to NINE MEN. 35’ - I’m at a loss. We’re in a 3-4-1 and OM steal the ball from us at midfield and Tkachenko is sent in. Perez comes out to challenge, Tkachenko lays a beauty pass over to Frank Haruna and he has a wide open net to score and makes no mistake. OM GOAL 0-3 (1-4 AGGREGATE) 41’ - Haruna scores again. They are picking us apart with us down two men. OM GOAL 0-4 (1-5 AGGREGATE) 45’+1 - Raul Ale scores. Seriously, some of these shots are DISGUSTINGLY good. What a fucking clinic. OM GOAL 0-5 (1-6 AGGREGATE) HALFTIME - Maybe the most ugly half in my managerial history, considering the scoreline and the grand stage. The two red cards obviously killed us but we came out flat and OM are firing on all cylinders. I pull back into a 4-3-1, taking out Mads Pedersen and Graham Allan and bringing in Saber Nasri and Andrea Rocca. I blast the team in the room for their lack of effort. Oh yeah - OM held 62% of possession and a 10-4 (7-0 on target) shot advantage. Hopefully we can just hold them off the board. 64’ - OM with a beautiful passing play and they have a man all alone in the area. His shot is off the crossbar and in the battle for the rebound, Nasri fouls a man and it’s a PENALTY! Jose protests and of course, he already has a yellow so he’s shown a second yellow and HE’S GONE! DOVER RED CARD: Jose Seriously, can I just pull the plug on this game? We’re down THREE MEN and are only playing with EIGHT!!! Oh yeah, Haruna gets to take the shot and puts it by Perez for his hat trick. OM GOAL 0-6 (1-7 AGGREGATE) We are forced to move to a 4-3-0. NO STRIKERS! WTF! 78’ - LOLOL. Benedikt Raab gets the ball at midfield and somehow has the energy to run past the defence and in on goal. His shot is past Knezovic and IN. We score with three men down. DOVER GOAL 1-6 (2-7 AGGREGATE) 82’ - Another OM goal, this time by Nikolay Dubinin on a header. OM GOAL 1-7 (2-8 AGGREGATE) Felix Hernandez comes on for Raab. 90’+2 - It’s impossible to play three men down in this game. My players are all darting out of position and it’s just opening ACRES OF SPACE for OM players. They score again. FUCK ME. OM GOAL 1-8 (2-9 AGGREGATE) MERCY. OM 8 - 1 Dover (OM WIN 9-2 ON AGGREGATE) Goals - Benedikt Raab (8.3) Assists - Andrea Rocca (6.8) Man of the Match - Frank Haruna (OM MR - 9.8) Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (5.8), Emerson (5.3), Rayane Hamon (5.4), Renato Gaucho (4.4), Graham Allan (5.8), Jose (5.5), Mads Pedersen (5.1), Zoltan Bardi (4.8), Saber Nasri (5.5) Attendance - 64,611 OM had 63% of the ball and a 22-6 (13-1 on target) shot advantage. Most brutal loss of my career. -- Our fans are “devastated” by the loss, of course and I am really going to have to tread carefully here with my players - we have an FA Cup semi-final coming up in three days and morale is going to be in the gutter. -- We earn £2,870,000 for participating in the quarterfinals but we’re done and won’t defend our title. -- Claudio Contreras, Chiquinho and Jose are all given one game suspensions for the red cards and I fine all three players two weeks wages. Chiquinho and Jose are pissed but I don’t care. Chiquinho was captain and he needs to be more of a leader. Next Up -- We’re off to sold out Wembley Stadium to face Manchester City in the FA Cup semi finals.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-19-2014, 11:29 PM
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#587 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. April 19, 2025
FA Cup Semi Final Dover (2nd in Premier League) vs. Manchester City (4th in Premier League) Wembley, London, England Betting Odds: Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Draw: N/A Manchester City: 7-4 Past Meetings: 5W 3D 8L This is our fourth matchup against City already this year, with a Community Shield win, a league win away and a thrilling 3-3 draw at Crabble in January. Jelle Hoegee continues to be the main man up front for City, with 33 goals from 40 matches. City are healthy and should field a full strength side today. Against my better judgement, I’m only making four changes to our lineup after the disastrous 8-1 loss to OM a few days ago. Ingo Wilke is in goal for Perez, captain Salim Loucif is back from his one game suspension and replaces young Emerson and Gianluca Bolis is at MR in place of Graham Allan. Also, our leading scorer Andy Broomes is back into the lineup in place of Zoltan Bardi. We’re slight favourites today and will go with our control mentality. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, Z. Bardi Wow! City DO NOT start Hoegee up front and instead go with Frenchman Ryan Bonin! Crazy. Ahh, upon further inspection, Hoegee is suspended for the next two games due to piling up 15 yellow cards (!) this year. Antonio is in goal. These guys are still ultra-dangerous. Lets do it for our supporters today! HALFTIME - Well, after giving up five goals in the first half in our last game, perhaps it’s a small victory to get to the half scoreless in this one. It’s been a physical, intense but clean game so far. We are dominating possession, holding a whopping 64% of the ball and have a 10-4 shot lead but City have two on target and we have a big fat zero. We need to be better with our shot selection. 73’ - Still nothing. Coming close but can’t get one past Antonio. I take out Jose and bring in Neil Cairney. FULLTIME - Ugh. Sheer domination but we just can’t score. 62% possession and a 19-4 (2-2 on target) shot advantage. These guys are slow playing us and want to get to a shootout. I tell the team we only need one goal and that they can get it! My goodness. City are in a 4-2-1-2-1 with two defensive mids right now. Just holding on for dear life! EXTRA TIME - We simply DOMINATE extra time and get multiple HUGE chances but Antonio is standing on his head. We’re off to PENALTIES! Just before the whistle, I’m able to get Zoltan Bardi in the lineup in place of defender Rayane Hamon, so that gives me one more lethal shooter. PENALTIES - MAN CITY - Pjanic is up for City and SCORES MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 0-1 DOVER - Benedikt Raab is up for us and it’s IN! DOVER GOAL 1-1 MAN CITY - It’s Bottone for City and he easily scores. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 1-2 DOVER - Neil Cairney is up and he SCORES! DOVER GOAL 2-2 MAN CITY - Kadlec is up next and he scores. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 2-3 DOVER - Here’s Chiquinho and he is STOPPED. Oh my god. MAN CITY - Manuel Brito is up and his shot is OFF THE CROSSBAR! We’re still alive!!! DOVER - Andy Broomes is up and he SCORES! DOVER GOAL 3-3 MANCHESTER CITY - It’s Brands next and his shot is off Wilke and IN. Crap. MANCHESTER CITY GOAL 3-4 DOVER - Zoltan Bardi, just on the pitch, NEEDS to score to keep us alive. It’s a ROCKET into the top corner!!! DOVER GOAL 4-4 MANCHESTER CITY - Here’s Spanoudakis. His shot is OVER THE NET! DOVER - Mads Pedersen is up and we can win it with a goal. You GOT TO BE KIDDING. He’s STOPPED by ANTONIO! This is TENSE! MANCHESTER CITY - Their captain Abbes is up. He shoots it right down the middle and Wilke holds his ground and MAKES THE SAVE! DOVER - Here is Gianluca Bolis, who was exhausted but I kept on just in case we went to penalties. And he REWARDS MY FAITH AND SCORES!!! DOVER GOAL 5-4 WOOO! We’re on to the FA Cup final!! Dover 0 - 0 Manchester City (Dover Win 5-4 on Penalties) Goals - Assists - Man of the Match - Antonio (Manchester City GK - 8.5) Other Dover Notables - Salim Loucif (7.4), Rayane Hamon (7.6), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.5), Mads Pedersen (7.0) Attendance - 90,000 (Sell-Out) The match itself was ALL DOVER but Antonio, the City GK was truly sensational. We held 60% of the ball and an outrageous 26-5 (6-2 on target) shot advantage. -- This is our first ever FA Cup final! It really is the only competition we haven’t won so I’ll be going all out in that game. -- We earn £918,000 for winning the semi-final. -- And in a bit of a shocker, our opponent will be Tottenham, as they knock off Manchester United 2-1 in the other semi final. Spurs currently are sixth in the league. Dover Injury Update -- Arsene Bamba (sprained ankle) is nearing a return to full fitness. Our only other injury is Paul Moses, who should be resuming training in the next couple weeks but it would likely be pushing it if I decided to play him at any point - there’s a chance he’d be ready to come on as a sub in that FA Cup final but I doubt it’s worth the risk after he’s torn the same calf muscle twice this year. Suspension News -- Claudio Contreras sees his one game European suspension increased to THREE GAMES after his horror tackle in the OM massacre. Not a surprise. Thankfully, that won’t take effect until next year’s competition…hopefully we’re in the Champions League again! Premier League Update -- Spurs continue to roll, destroying Arsenal 5-0 in midweek Premier League action. -- And that Arsenal loss is a big one, as we mathematically are guaranteed to be in the Champions League once again in 2025/26! Next Up -- We face mid-table side Aston Villa in an away match in Premier League play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-20-2014, 01:17 AM
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#588 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. April 26, 2025
Barclays Premier League Aston Villa (9-7-18, 34 points, 16th) vs. Dover (24-5-5, 77 points, 2nd) Villa Park, Birmingham, England Betting Odds: Aston Villa: 4-1 Draw: 5-2 Dover: 4-7 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 7W 2D 6L Villa have traditionally been a tough win for us and we just got over .500 against them for the first time with a 2-0 win at home earlier in the year. It’s been a horrific season for Villa and they are in 16th place in the league but with a 12 point advantage over 18th placed Blackpool, they should avoid the drop. Striker Mohamed Messaoudi leads the club with only 8 goals. We have a very relaxing finish to our season, with only five games remaining and all of them are spaced out nicely. That said, I want to start giving a bit of playing time to some of the younger kids, seeing that we are highly unlikely to challenge United for the league lead but have a Champions League spot wrapped up. With nothing major to play for beyond the FA Cup final, we can see what we have with the youngsters. So today, I will play young defender Mwemere Mutesa and wonderkids Rafinha and Emmerson Harvey. We’ll go with a one striker formation, with Andy Broomes alone up front. Getting the day off are Jose, Claudio Contreras and Chiquinho - none of those three will even dress today. Dover: 4-4-2 DM (4-2-3-1) Control GK - I. Wilke D - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - E. Harvey, B. Raab AM - M. Pedersen, Z. Bardi, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes Bench - C. Guzman, S. Nasri, A. Rocca, N. Cairney, F. Hernandez, G. Allan, M. Lugo Villa are in a flat 4-4-2 with Messaoudi and Antonio up front and Antonio Kraljevic in goal. Reece Butcher is an English midfielder I’ve long admired and he’s at ML today. Lets win for the travelling support today! 6’ - We’re all over them early and an Emmerson Harvey through ball into the box finds Gianluca Bolis and our star shooter from the FA Cup semi last week easily slots the ball home and we lead right away! DOVER GOAL 1-0 16’ - On a bit of a broken play, the ball comes up to Villa’s Reece Butcher, who I talked about above. He eludes a tackle from Salim Loucif and unleashes a howitzer from the edge of the area and it’s past Wilke and IN. What a shot! ASTON VILLA GOAL 1-1 26’ - We earn a corner and Benedikt Raab’s cross is to the near post and Zoltan Bardi and our attacking mid heads it home! That’s Bardi’s tenth goal of the year! DOVER GOAL 2-1 45’ - Great. Zoltan Bardi is tackled hard and needs to come out of the game. I switch to a flat 4-4-2 and bring in Manuel Lugo to play striker. DOVER INJURY: Zoltan Bardi 45’+1 - On the ensuing free kick, we gain revenge, as Raab sends a curling rocket past Kraljevic and IN!!! Great shot! DOVER GOAL 3-1 HALFTIME - We control the highlights and the scoreline but Villa held a ridiculous 62% of possession. Wow! Despite that, we outshoot them 10-5 (5-1 on target) and hold a nice lead. The switch to a flat 4-4-2 should help our possession numbers in the second half. I encourage the team in the dressing room to keep pressing. 54’ - We start a counter attack down the left side and Mads Pedersen dances to the byline before sending a glorious cross right to the foot of Manuel Lugo, who easily taps the ball into the net! Beauty and great to see our young forward Lugo score his third of the season. DOVER GOAL 4-1 58’ - Villa get a corner and the cross is headed past Wilke and in by their captain Phil Jones. Ugh. Wilke takes the blame on that one. ASTON VILLA GOAL 4-2 72’ - Rafinha got a bit banged up on a tackle so I pull him off and bring on little used Carlos Guzman. 85’ - With the game seemingly in hand, I pull out Mads Pedersen and bring in young U18 midfielder Felix Hernandez. We’ll take the win. Aston Villa 2 - 4 Dover Goals - Gianluca Bolis (7.7), Zoltan Bardi (7.3), Benedikt Raab (8.9), Manuel Lugo (7.4) Assists - Benedikt Raab, Emmerson Harvey (7.5), Zoltan Bardi, Mads Pedersen (7.4) Man of the Match - Benedikt Raab Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (5.8) Attendance - 42,358 Villa did great with possession, holding 57% of the ball but we outshoot them 22-10 (6-2 on target). Wilke takes the blame for their second goal and is strapped with a brutal rating. Raab has been a phenomenal capture for us this year in midfield and has firmly taken over the starting position formerly held by Neil Cairney. -- Zoltan Bardi continues his poor luck with injuries, tearing his knee ligaments and he’ll be gone for the rest of the season. DOVER INJURY: Zoltan Bardi (torn knee ligaments - 2 months) -- Sheffield United, in a big relegation battle, are able to earn a draw against leaders Man United. United still can wrap up the division with a win in any of their last three games. In other action, Chelsea keep on our heels with a 2-0 win over Wolves, Arsenal knock off Middlesbrough 2-1, Man City and Sheffield Wednesday battle to a scoreless draw and Newcastle and Sunderland tie 1-1. Spurs also knock off Derby 5-2 to stay molten hot and that result locks up relegation for Derby, who will head back to the Championship next season. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 35 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 87 points 2. Dover - 80 points 3. Chelsea - 75 points 4. Manchester City - 67 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 61 points 6. Tottenham - 57 points 7. Newcastle - 52 points ---------------------------------------------------- 8. Sheffield Wednesday - 51 points 9. Liverpool - 51 points 10. Reading - 50 points 11. Sunderland - 44 points 12. Middlesbrough - 44 points 13. Everton - 43 points 14. Wolves - 42 points 15. Huddersfield - 41 points 16. Aston Villa - 34 points 17. Sheffield United - 26 points ---------------------------------------------------- 18. Blackpool - 25 points 19. Burnley - 20 points 20. Derby - 16 points Dover U18 Update -- Stud youth striker Alberto Velazquez scores three more goals as we defeat Crawley 6-1 in U18 action. Nathan Protheroe, Ben Patterson and Freddie Laird notch singles. Dover Injury News -- Arsene Bamba returns to full training after missing four weeks with a sprained ankle. Premier League Team of the Week -- Benedikt Raab continues to pile up the accolades, earning another spot on the Premier League team of the week. Champions League Update -- OM, who destroyed us in the quarterfinals, draw away against Barcelona 3-3 while Olympique Lyonnais defeat Manchester United 2-1 at home. Dover Reserves Update -- Graham Allan scores three goals from right wing in a 4-0 reserves team win over Wolves, coincidently our next league opponent as well. Felix Hernandez scored the other goal and Alberto Velazquez notched two assists. May Update -- We’re getting down to the end of the season and have four games remaining, three of which are in the Premier League. We’re away against Wolves, at home to Everton and finish the season away at Arsenal. Our final game of the year is the FA Cup final against Tottenham. -- We get positive training notices for Mwemere Mutesa, Lyubomir Kunchev and Emerson along with U18 players Edward Smith, Nathan Protheroe and Robbie Welsh. A negative report comes in for Emmerson Harvey and we have a little chat about him falling behind on his aerobic activity. April Premier League Awards -- Chelsea fullback Elvis Oseni wins the player of the month award. -- Richard Brands from Man City wins young player of the month. Former Dover U18 keeper Louis Read comes in second while current Dover defender Mwemere Mutesa comes in third. -- Tottenham manager Quique Flores wins manager of the month honours while I finish in third. Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership of the team. Our stature increase is the main positive and our heavy Champions League quarterfinal defeat is the big disappointment and the fans “hope you can make amends”. Well then! -- We turned a nice profit of £4.99 million in April, mostly due to prize money. Chiquinho RALLIES THE TROOPS! -- We get one of those fun notices that only Football Manager can provide, as Chiquinho calls on our team to beat Wolves this weekend in order to keep the pressure on Manchester United in the league race. We’ll be playing Chiquinho this weekend, that’s for sure, after seeing this. Next Up -- Another winnable game sees us travel to Wolverhampton.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 12-20-2014 at 08:27 PM. |
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12-20-2014, 03:10 AM
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#589 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. May 3, 2025
Barclays Premier League Wolves (12-6-17, 42 points, 14th) vs. Dover (25-5-5, 80 points, 2nd) Molineux, Wolverhampton, England Betting Odds: Wolves: 3-1 Draw: 2-1 Dover: 4-5 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 11W 4D 1L We’ve traditionally had our way with Wolves but they STUNNED us earlier in the year by battling us to a 3-3 draw at Crabble. We’ll need to be better than that today. They are doing pretty well, sitting in a comfortable 14th spot and have strikers Guy Luckett and Stefano Zeno tied for the team lead with 14 goals. Winger Evgeny Maltsev is a Dover killer. We continue to rotate the squad a bit, with Jose, Chiquinho, Renato Gaucho, Claudio Contreras, Saber Nasri and Manuel Perez all coming in today. We’ll need a big game from Chiquinho and Andy Broomes, who I considered benching today but will give one more chance to break his mini-slump, as he sits on 29 goals for the year. Arsene Bamba is available to come off the bench today after missing the last four weeks of action. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, A. Bamba, G. Allan, M. Lugo No surprises, as Zeno and Luckett are up front and Bas Hofstra is in goal. No fooling around today - I want a win against these guys but just tell the lads to play well for the fans. 15’ - We’re playing very aggressively but Wolves seemingly strike first on a deflection but the goal is ruled out due to a foul. No goal thankfully! 28’ - Oh my. Claudio Contreras, who has been brutal lately, loses the ball and Guy Luckett walks in alone. He beats Perez and Wolves lead. WOLVES GOAL 0-1 44’ - Oh UGLY. We continue to press and Andy Broomes sends a nice little through ball to Gianluca Bolis. I hope for a quick shot but he tries to cross back into the middle but we have no one there. For some reason, the Wolves defender panics and shoots the ball toward the goal but Hofstra is not in position and the ball goes IN. Own goal. We’ll take it! DOVER GOAL 1-1 45’+2 - We have a free kick at midfield and Renato Gaucho sends it over the defence to Mads Pedersen. He heads it on to Andy Broomes and he takes a desperation shot from a bad angle and it hits a Wolves defender and GOES IN AGAIN! That’s two own goals in three minutes! DOVER GOAL 2-1 Wolves take out Maltsev and move to a 4-3-1-2. HALFTIME - We hit the woodwork three times that half and it took two own goals to get us into the lead despite territorial domination. We held 58% of the ball and a 15-3 (4-1 on target) shot advantage. I wanted to read the riot act but two late goals kills that idea so I encourage the players in the dressing room. 61’ - Just seconds after Andy Broomes misses a sitter and hits the post, we regain possession and it’s Gianluca Bolis, weaving through three players and finding a wide open Raab, who throttles the ball into the back of the net!! That’s Raab’s 10th goal of the year and we have a bit of a cushion! DOVER GOAL 3-1 69’ - We take out Mads Pedersen and bring in Arsene Bamba. 77’ - I pull out Chiquinho, who has a yellow card and bring in Manuel Lugo. 87’ - FINALLY!!! After hitting two goal posts today himself on absolute sitters, we see yet another gorgeous cross from Gianluca Bolis and it’s FINALLY put into the net by Andy Broomes! That’s Broomes’ 30TH GOAL of the year! Well done lad! DOVER GOAL 4-1 We pull out the yellow carded Contreras and bring in young Mwemere Mutesa. A bit scary for awhile but a comfortable win in the end. Wolves 1 - 4 Dover Goals - Wiljan Sno OG, Stewart Jones OG, Benedikt Raab (8.0), Andy Broomes (7.9) Assists - Gianluca Bolis 2 (8.1), Mads Pedersen (7.0) Man of the Match - Gianluca Bolis Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.2), Salim Loucif (7.4), Renato Gaucho (7.2), Jose (7.3) Attendance - 28,895 An excellent performance sees us hold 60% of possession and a huge 31-6 (11-2 on target) shot advantage. Bolis continues to confound - he can be so brilliant, like he has been the last few weeks but is SO inconsistent. Nice to see Broomes get a goal after coming so close a number of times in the game. -- Manchester United edge Newcastle 1-0 and that’s enough to lock up the Premier League title for the year, ending our hopes of a repeat. Oh well - we just weren’t good enough this year. Spurs beat Burnley 2-1 and that means Burnley is headed back to the Championship after only one year in the top flight. Chelsea edge Blackpool 2-1 and Man City continue to struggle, drawing Sunderland 0-0 as Jose Mourinho is close to getting the sack from City ownership. Liverpool continue their climb with Tony Mowbray at the helm, moving up to 7th after beating Huddersfield 4-1. They haven’t lost in the league since March 2nd, a seven game stretch. Reading also upset Arsenal 2-1 at Emirates. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 36 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 90 points 2. Dover - 83 points 3. Chelsea - 78 points 4. Manchester City - 68 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Arsenal - 61 points 6. Tottenham - 60 points 7. Liverpool - 54 points ---------------------------------------------------- Dover Injury News -- For the first time in months, we get positive news on superstar striker Paul Moses, who is nearing a return from his second torn calf muscle this season. Reserve midfielder Adam Hyde is also out for a couple weeks with a back strain while Zoltan Bardi won’t be back until the preseason. Premier League Team of the Week -- Benedikt Raab, Gianluca Bolis and Andy Broomes all make the Premier League team of the week. Champions League Update -- In a bit of an upset, Olympique Lyonnais draw Man United 1-1 at Old Trafford and move onto the Champions League finals based on a 3-2 aggregate! And it will be an all French final, as OM win 2-1 over Barcelona in a shocker and win 5-4 on aggregate. Dover Reserves Update -- Manuel Lugo and sensational youngster Alberto Velazquez score in our 2-1 win over Derby’s reserves, with Lugo also picking up an assist. International Update -- U18 defender Eneko Remirez is called up by Spain’s U19 club - Remirez has no international caps so this is his first call up of any kind. Dover U18 Update -- Alberto Velazquez continues to shine, scoring yet another hat trick in a 9-0 whitewash of Sutton United in U18 play. Vlastimil Silhavy also scores three goals and we get singles from Ben Patterson, Felix Hernandez and Matthew Neil. Hernandez also had FOUR assists in the game. Injury Update -- Rayane Hamon strains his wrist lifting weights and will miss the next week or so. Not a huge deal, as he should be back for next week’s game against Arsenal and most importantly, our FA Cup final match against Tottenham. Next Up -- We have our final home game of the season, as we host Everton in Premier League action.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 12-20-2014 at 03:11 AM. |
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12-20-2014, 07:02 AM
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#590 |
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College Prospect
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Whitman, MA
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Rather harsh of the fans to blame the manager for a game in which there were so many red cards. Make amends, indeed!
Tell
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FOOL - Ann Arbor Winged Lingerines FOOLX - Portland Axemen Hattrick - Fizzle United (222968) |
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12-20-2014, 08:28 PM
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#591 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Quote:
Ha! I know! Thanks for reading!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-21-2014, 11:49 PM
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#592 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. May 17, 2025
Barclays Premier League Dover (26-5-5, 83 points, 2nd) vs. Everton (13-5-18, 44 points, 12th) Crabble Athletic Ground, Dover, England Betting Odds: Dover: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: 9-4 Everton: 7-2 Past Meetings: 9W 2D 4L Everton seemingly have settled into a lower mid-table club, currently sitting 12th after years of 13th, 12th and 11th in the past three years. Full marks for consistency I guess. They are having issues scoring goals this year, with team leader Mike Hall sitting with 11. Midfielder Daniele Bentivoglio has 10 and is a world-class player I’ve often admired. They are obviously looking forward to next year so we are big favourites today. It’s our last home game of the year and with only one point needed in our last two games to lock up second spot, we’ll go for it today and hope to use depth players in our final Premier League game next week against Arsenal. Ingo Wilke will start today and I’ll also try to get an appearance in for Andrea Rocca, as he’s still unsigned and this may be his last game at home in a Dover uniform unless I can get a more reasonable deal from his agent. Saber Nasri once again starts on defence and an unfit Arsene Bamba will start at left midfield. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - I. Wilke D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Nasri, S. Loucif M - A. Bamba, B. Raab, Jose, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, N. Cairney, A. Rocca, M. Pedersen, G. Allan, M. Lugo Flat 4-4-2 for Everton today with Chris Wood up front with Hall. Franco Di Capua is their keeper. Lets finish off the year well for our supporters. HALFTIME - We are absolutely DOMINATING this game but just can’t score. 58% of possession and a crazy 16-3 (4-0 on target) shot advantage. We’re outplaying them everywhere and I implore the team to keep pressing. 50’ - The only switch we made at half was a small one, moving Chiquinho over to the left in our “advanced” role and shifting Andy Broomes into the holding role. We head a ball up field and a 50/50 ball is won by Chiquinho. His marker goes down and is hurt but Chiquinho has a partial breakaway and moves in. Di Capua makes the save but the rebound pops out to the oncoming Broomes and he makes no mistake and we finally break through. DOVER GOAL 1-0 55’ - We take off the fitness challenged Arsene Bamba and bring in Mads Pedersen. 58’ - Chiquinho makes a brilliant run down the left flank and feeds Brooomes for the easy goal but Broomes was JUST offsides. NO GOAL. 59’ - Aaaannnnd…it doesn’t matter. Seconds later, we regain the ball and Jose moves it up to Broomes. He has his back to the goal, turns near the edge of the area and fires a shot into the top corner past Di Capua for the stunner! DOVER GOAL 2-0 63’ - Tit for tat, as Chris Wood gets loose in our area and scores but he’s WAY offsides. Again, NO GOAL! 72’ - We take out Jose and bring in Andrea Rocca. Everton move to a 4-4-2 diamond. 87’ - Neil Cairney comes on to replace Benedikt Raab. Very good. Dover 2 - 0 Everton Goals - Andy Broomes 2 (9.0) Assists - Jose (6.9), Chiquinho (7.3) Man of the Match - Andy Broomes Other Dover Notables - Ingo Wilke (7.0), Salim Loucif (7.1), Saber Nasri (7.5), Claudio Contreras (7.3), Renato Gaucho (7.4), Benedikt Raab (7.0) Attendance - 23,000 (Sell-Out) We held 53% of possession and a 30-6 (12-2 on target) shot advantage. Superb game from Broomes. -- Chelsea could only manage a 1-1 draw against Liverpool so our result didn’t even matter, as we would have finished in 2nd place regardless. The Manchester derby sees a 2-2 draw, Arsenal continue their free-fall with a 2-0 loss to Aston Villa and Reading move into the top 7 with a 3-0 win over Sheffield United. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 37 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Manchester United - 91 points 2. Dover - 86 points 3. Chelsea - 79 points 4. Manchester City - 69 points ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Tottenham - 61 points 6. Arsenal - 61 points 7. Reading - 56 points ---------------------------------------------------- Premier League Team of the Week -- Andy Broomes makes the Premier League team of the week for the second week in a row. Dover Injury News -- Wow, a flurry of information coming in. First of all, the good news: superstar striker Paul Moses returns to full training after missing three months with a torn calf muscle. He’s missed a total of SEVEN MONTHS this season, injuring the same leg twice. The bad news is that midfielder Jose is hurt by teammate Saber Nasri during training, fracturing his cheekbone and he’ll be out for a month, thereby missing both our league finale AND the FA Cup final. A tough blow. Rayane Hamon is still out with a strained wrist but should return soon while Zoltan Bardi (torn knee ligaments) is out until next season. DOVER INJURY: Jose (fractured cheekbone - 4 weeks) International News -- We see a news item that indicates that Neil Cairney is “left out in the cold” by Scotland manager Darren Ferguson for an upcoming set of international games. Cairney has been a bit of an afterthought this year for us, having seen his starting job taken by sensational newcomer Benedikt Raab but he still has made 32 appearances for us, scoring four goals and adding 8 assists. Cairney is only 25, in the prime of his career and this is a huge blow to his ego, I’m sure. He’s made 51 appearances for Scotland internationally, scoring 8 times. Perhaps this will motivate him going forward, as I’ll likely need him to start in our FA Cup final against Tottenham now that Jose is hurt. Next Up -- We finish off our Premier League season with an away match against Arsenal.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-22-2014, 01:19 AM
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#593 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sun. May 25, 2025
Barclays Premier League Arsenal (17-10-10, 61 points, 6th) vs. Dover (27-5-5, 86 points, 2nd) Emirates Stadium, London, England Betting Odds: Arsenal: 3-1 Draw: 2-1 Dover: 4-5 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 7W 2D 9L Neither Arsenal or ourselves have anything to play for today - well, check that - Arsenal CAN move up to fifth place with a win and some help over Spurs so they can pocket some extra money if they move up. They’ll play in the Europa League next year. The Gunners are on a poor run of form, having lost four of their last five matches and they also have some injury issues, with leading scorer Lee Ross missing today’s game. We’ll expect to see DC/ST Nchimunya Munyao playing up front today in a one striker formation due to Ross’ injury. We’re saving all of our starters for next week’s huge FA Cup final, with the only possible exception being Neil Cairney, who will start today. I won’t keep him in beyond 60 minutes today. Two U18 call ups get starts, including young sensation Alberto Velazquez at striker and he’ll play alongside big offseason signing Manuel Lugo. Paul Moses is on the bench today and I’ll look to get him about 30-40 minutes in the second half. Felix Hernandez is our other U18 star playing today, lining up at left midfield and I have two other U18 players on the bench in DR Eneko Remirez and MC/MR Vlastimil Silhavy. Again, this game is meaningless in the grand scheme of things and I’m just looking for good performances today. Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Rafinha, M. Mutesa, S. Nasri, Emerson M - F. Hernandez, E. Harvey, N. Cairney, G. Allan S - M. Lugo, A. Velazquez Bench - C. Guzman, E. Remirez, A. Rocca, V. Silhavy, M. Yilmaz, L. Kunchev, P. Moses 4-2-3-1 formation for Arsenal and they go with Dover killer Boakye up front and have Munyao at DC today. Sergio Asenjo is in goal. One more time for our supporters! 35’ - Arsenal are dominating the highlights, something that I guess shouldn’t be a surprise with us starting so many youngsters. Still, we have SOME influence in there and I’m a bit taken back. Manuel Lugo gets tackled hard and has the cross of doom above his head. He can continue for now but we’ll have to look at bringing Paul Moses on a bit sooner than expected, most likely. HALFTIME - We are VERY fortunate to be level at the half. Arsenal hold 54% of the ball and an 11-3 (3-1 on target) shot advantage. Our back four are playing very nervously and we’re having trouble with Arsenal’s speed. We change to a counter attacking tactic and take out Neil Cairney and bring in young Vlastimil Silhavy, who has been excellent for our U18s. This is his first ever senior appearance! 50’ - Goalkeeper injuries are pretty rare I’ve found but Arsenal’s Sergio Asenjo is hurt and needs to come off. Lucky for the Gunners, they have a backup dressed so in comes 37 year old Johny Placide. 55’ - Alright here we go! Off comes the labouring Manuel Lugo and in comes PAUL MOSES, his first game in three months! 69’ - Arsenal strike first, with Carl Cousins heading the ball in off the woodwork off a corner kick. ARSENAL GOAL 0-1 We move back to a control mentality. 73’ - U18 defender Eneko Remirez makes his senior debut, replacing Emerson. 75’ - We work the ball around after a throw in and young Silhavy finds Emmerson Harvey in the middle of the pitch. From at least 30 yards out, Harvey unleashes his trademark howitzer and it’s off a diving Placide and IN! We pull level! DOVER GOAL 1-1 90’+3 - We almost score off a corner but the man heading the ball, Mwemere Mutesa, is hurt and needs to come off. We pull Emmerson Harvey back into central defence and Paul Moses into midfield, as we’re down to ten men after using all of our subs earlier in the game. We hold them off. Arsenal 1 - 1 Dover Goals - Emmerson Harvey (7.6) Assists - Vlastimil Silhavy (6.9) Man of the Match - Carl Cousins (Arsenal ML - 8.1) Other Dover Notables - Mwemere Mutesa (7.2) Attendance - 60,361 Well, we were very fortunate to get out of there with a draw, as our young players simply don’t have the pace or composure to deal with elite players. Arsenal held 52% of possession and a huge 22-8 (10-4 on target) shot advantage. Manuel Perez played very well but only got a 6.9 rating for some reason. Lugo and Velazquez were very ineffective up front and we started to gain a little ground with Moses in there. He had a couple of glorious chances stopped by Arsenal's keepers. The defence was very shaky right across the board. -- On the injury front, Manuel Lugo suffered a gashed leg and will miss the next week or so. He may be ready for next week’s FA Cup match but I’ll be dressing Paul Moses instead, assuming he’s healthy. Thankfully, Mwemere Mutesa, who was forced to come off late in the game, is suffering no ill affects but again, he’s unlikely to play next week either. -- In other match ups, Liverpool knock off Blackpool 1-0, sending their opponents back to the Championship in the process. That win elevates Liverpool into 7th place and a likely Europa League spot and that is because Reading got throttled 4-0 by Newcastle. Chokers! Chelsea, Man United and Man City were other winners on the last day of the season. -- We earn £15,200,000 for finishing second in the league and await one more large payday for Champions League television revenue. We pay out £3.1 million of the bonus to our squad.  Next Up -- Stats, recaps, awards, etc. Oh yeah, we also have the FA Cup final coming up next week - the one major trophy we’ve yet to win!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 12-22-2014 at 01:23 AM. |
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12-24-2014, 01:43 PM
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#594 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2024-25 Barclays Premier League - Team Stats
-- Interestingly enough, despite finishing seven points lower than last year, our overall stats are closer than I would have expected, especially missing the lethal Paul Moses for most of the year. We again were the the top scoring team in the Premier League, with 102 goals coming up only five short of last year’s Premier League record total. Man United finished in second with 85. We drop to fourth in goals against, giving up 37 versus 32 last year - Man United were the leaders this year with only 25 goals allowed. Once again, we lead the league in goal differential with a +65 mark after going +75 last year. United were close behind this year at +60. -- Our average attendance continues to rise, up to 22,624 in the league, up from last year’s average of 21,399. Keep in mind that our stadium only holds 23,000. We LEAD THE LEAGUE in Average Attendance by Capacity at 98% (up from 93% last year and 78% the year before) and also led the league in stadium sellouts with 16 in our 19 matches! Great numbers!! Now, if we could only convince our board to build a new stadium…GRRR. -- Other key team stats: we were T-9th in penalty goals with only 3(down from 6 last year…definitely due to the absence of Paul Moses), 1st in goals from corners with 21 (down from 27 last year, which also led the league), 1st in goals from IFK's with 11 (up from 9 last year when we finished T-2nd) and we were T1st in goals from DFKs with 3 (up from 2 last year). We continue to be among the most gentlemanly clubs in the league, finishing T-18th with 47 yellow cards (up from last year’s total of 42 which was also 18th) while our red card tally was ZERO for a second consecutive year, which tied us with Sheffield United as the only two teams without a red card in the league. Very, very impressive numbers once again. 2024-25 Barclays Premier League - Player Stats -- 19 players participated in all 38 games across the league but none of them were from our club, as we continue to rotate our squad due to cup ties and continental play. Our league “iron-man” didn’t even finish in the top 100, as both Chiquinho and Jose tied for the lead with appearances in 31 of our 38 league games. That’s a lot of squad rotating!!! GOALS 1. Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United, 37 2. Hani Megahed, Reading, 35 3. Jelle Hoegee, Manchester City, 25 4. Roland Hoxha, Middlesbrough, 24 5. Andy Broomes, Dover, 23 T6. Chiquinho, Dover, 16 T40. Benedikt Raab, Dover, 7 T40. Jose, Dover, 7 ASSISTS T1. Benedikt Raab, Dover, 16 T1. Jonathan Bottone, Manchester City, 16 3. Luis Carballo, Chelsea, 15 T4. Robert Stoll, Middlesbrough, 14 T4. Gabriel Ochieng, Reading, 14 T11. Jose, Dover, 10 T15. Mads Pedersen, Dover, 9 T15. Chiquinho, Dover, 9 T34. Zoltan Bardi, Dover, 6 T34. Andy Broomes, Dover, 6 MAN OF MATCH AWARDS 1. Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United, 15 2. Hani Megahed, Reading, 10 T3. Peter Jansen, Tottenham, 7 T3. Andy Broomes, Dover, 7 T3. Salah Abbes, Manchester City, 7 T7. Benedikt Raab, Dover, 5 T12. Chiquinho, Dover, 4 T43. Neil Cairney, Dover, 2 T49. Mads Pedersen, Dover, 2 T49. Gianluca Bolis, Dover, 2 T49. Rayane Hamon, Dover, 2 AVERAGE RATING 1. Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United, 7.88 2. Benedikt Raab, Dover, 7.68 3. Salah Abbes, Manchester City, 7.49 4. Hani Megahed, Reading, 7.48 T5. Rayane Hamon, Dover, 7.44 T5. Andy Broomes, Dover, 7.44 T8. Mads Pedersen, Dover, 7.34 T11. Chiquinho, Dover, 7.32 T18. Jose, Dover, 7.28 T21. Renato Gaucho, Dover, 7.26 T26. Gianluca Bolis, Dover, 7.23 T30. Claudio Contreras, Dover, 7.22
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 12-24-2014 at 01:46 PM. |
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12-25-2014, 11:20 PM
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#595 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Barclays Premier League Awards
-- One year after being won by our very own Paul Moses, the English Footballer of the Year award goes to Manchester United superstar Yaya Sanogo. Benedikt Raab comes in second after a spectacular year for our club and Reading’s Hani Megahed comes third. -- Manchester United’s Omar Hernandez wins the English Player’s Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season. Luis Carballo from Chelsea comes second and former Dover striker/winger Said Henni from Manchester United comes in third. -- We continue to dominate the yearly English Young Player of the Year award, with Andy Broomes taking the trophy this year after Neil Cairney won it last season. Lamine Faye from Manchester City comes in second and Arsenal’s Carl Cousins comes in third. -- Jurgen Klinsmann from United wins Manager of the Year, with Newcastle’s Brian McDermott coming in second and Neil Lennon from Sheffield Wednesday comes in third. -- Barclays Premier League Players' Team of the Year GK - Angel Detry, Tottenham DL - Victor Talavera, Manchester City DC - Rayane Hamon, Dover DC - Salah Abbes, Manchester City DR - Luiz Carlos, Manchester United ML - Said Henni, Manchester United MC - Benedikt Raab, Dover MC - Omar Hernandez, Manchester United MR - Jonathan Bottone, Manchester City ST - Yaya Sanogo, Manchester United ST - Hani Megahed, Reading[/b] Hamon and Raab make the team for the first time and we also have Jose and Andy Broomes named as substitutes to the squad. Next Up -- It’s another historic day for our club, as we get set to play in our first ever FA Cup final, heading to Wembley to face Tottenham.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-26-2014, 12:43 AM
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#596 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Sat. May 31, 2024
FA Cup - Final Tottenham (6th in English Premier League) vs. Dover (2nd in English Premier League) Wembley Stadium, London, England Betting Odds: Tottenham: 7-4 Draw: N/A Dover: 5-4 (Favourites) Past Meetings: 9W 4D 2L Ok here we go! The one major title we’ve yet to win and we face Spurs for all the marbles. We have two huge 4-1 wins against them this year and we’ll look to keep up our fine form here at Wembley today. They are led up front by American striker Peter Jansen, who scored 24 times this year but Jean Junior is arguably their most dangerous striker. He has 15 goals thus far. Talented right fullback Gustavo Mercado is hurt and will miss today’s game. We are going to miss Jose in the middle of the pitch today and in his place will be Neil Cairney, who has big shoes to fill. Mads Pedersen will start at ML over Arsene Bamba, who is struggling to regain match fitness. Paul Moses will also be on the bench today. Otherwise, we go with all of our main starters. Control mentality as slight favourites today! Dover: 4-4-2 Control GK - M. Perez D - Renato Gaucho, C. Contreras, R. Hamon, S. Loucif M - M. Pedersen, N. Cairney, B. Raab, G. Bolis S - A. Broomes, Chiquinho Bench - Rafinha, S. Nasri, E. Harvey, A. Rocca, A. Bamba, G. Allan, P. Moses Spurs are in a flat 4-4-2 as well and it’s Junior and Jansen up front, with goalie of the year Angel Detry in net. Lets bring home another title for the fans! 33’ - Good action both ways but I’d say Tottenham are the more dangerous team thus far. I swap Broomes and Chiquinho, moving Chiquinho into the advanced role and also swap Benedikt Raab and Neil Cairney, moving Raab into a deeper role that he excels in. HALFTIME - We end up edging them on the stat sheet, with 52% of possession and a 10-7 (2-1 on target) shot advantage. We’re not getting much from guys like Gianluca Bolis or Andy Broomes and I’ll be quick to make changes in the second half if necessary. I once again tell the team to bring home the title for our supporters. 56’ - Boy, I’m getting sick and tired of Chiquinho and his diving and super inconsistent play. He is pulled off and in comes Paul Moses, as we look for a spark up front. 76’ - We are looking more dangerous but this game smells like it’s going to penalties. Neil Cairney already has a yellow and I should likely take him off but he’s our top penalty shooter so I keep him on for now. In comes Graham Allan for an ineffective Gianluca Bolis. FULLTIME - Possession is only in our favour by a 51-49% margin but shots are widely in our favour, 21-11 (5-3 on target). Still, we move to extra time and have some key players tiring, including both our central mids. I tell the team we only need one goal - now go and get it! 97’ - We have a corner and Raab’s cross is to the far post and Claudio Contreras. His header deflects of Paul Moses in front of the goal and bounces out to RENATO GAUCHO, who delivers a right-footed blast into the top corner of the net! Holy CRAP! That’s Renato Gaucho’s FIRST GOAL OF THE YEAR! He RARELY joins the play on corners but was able to go into the box on this play when Tottenham brought all their defenders back. What a development! DOVER GOAL 1-0 118’ - Getting TENSE, as Tottenham are sending everyone forward in hopes of getting the tying goal. We pull out an exhausted Cairney and bring in Andrea Rocca. We also pull back into a counter attacking mentality. Just a few more minutes…hold them off boys! 119’ - I laugh my ass off as Spurs are offsides on a long pass attempt and Manuel Perez, our Mexican keeper, takes about a full minute to go and grab the ball from the stands and place it at the spot of the offsides. I’m seriously expecting a yellow card but one doesn’t come. WE HOLD THEM OFF!! Tottenham 0 - 1 Dover (Extra Time) Goals - Renato Gaucho (8.6) Assists - Benedikt Raab (8.2) Man of the Match - Renato Gaucho Other Dover Notables - Manuel Perez (7.1), Salim Loucif (7.4), Rayane Hamon (7.7), Claudio Contreras (7.9), Neil Cairney (7.4) Attendance - 90,000 (Sell-Out) We ended up with 53% of possession and a 30-15 (9-5 on target) shot advantage. Incredible that Renato Gaucho comes through for his first of the year to seal the win. DOVER HAVE WON THE 2025 FA CUP TITLE -- We earn £1,836,000 for winning the FA Cup title, our first FA Cup and that seals the deal on the last major trophy our club had yet to win. In effect, there is nothing else for us to achieve, other than repeat titles. I chuckle as our board “always expected the team to win the competition, are pleased you didn’t let them down and are keen to impress on you that celebrations are kept to a minimum in order that the club focus on future challenges.” Haha - LIGHTEN UP FRANCIS!!! We pay out £1.3 million to our players in squad bonuses for the title win. -- Well, it’s not quite the Premier League or Champions League titles like last year but we close out a season where we won the Community Shield, The European Super Cup, the FIFA Club World Championship AND our first ever FA Cup. All in addition to a quarterfinal Champions League appearance and a second place finish in the league. Not a bad year. Champions League Wrap Up -- Olympique Lyonnais win the battle of France, defeating rivals OM 4-2 to win the Champions League title for the first time! Congratulations to OL! -- We earn a whopping £21,739,000 in Champions League television revenue. ROCK ON! We pay out £775,000 to the squad on a pro-rata basis for reaching the quarter-finals. We’ve been WAY in the red on our bank balance all year and finally get back into the black to the tune of ~£10 million. Still, we’re going to lose a ton of money on the year - likely close to £20 million due to transfer fees despite revenue being up on the year. -- OM’s Vasily Tkachenko wins the Champions League Best Player Award and the Golden Boot as top goalscorer in the competition with 11 goals. He was certainly a thorn in our side in our quarterfinals matchup.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 12-26-2014 at 12:44 AM. |
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12-26-2014, 01:13 AM
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#597 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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June Update
-- The Premier League transfer window opens on June 9th but we don’t expect to start buying until we get our new budget late in the month. We do have a few contract extensions to consider, most importantly whether we decide to re-up veteran Andrea Rocca. -- U18 players Felix Hernandez, Eneko Remirez, Dennis Richter, Nathan Protheroe and Steven Potter all train well last month while reserves midfielder Adam Hyde does not - he has an expiring contract that won’t be renewed so no big deal. Premier League Monthly Awards — Man City’s Jonathan Bottone scored two goals in three games to win Player of the Month accolades. — Reading midfielder Jason Stevenson wins the Young Player of the Month award for May. — Chelsea manager Paulo Bento wins Manager of the Month for May and I finish in third place. International Update -- We have 19 players called up for international duty and the biggest surprise (and a pleasant one) is that Andrea Rocca is called up by Italy. Now, he’s been called up before but has NEVER represented Italy as a senior player and it would be wonderful to see him earn his first cap. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for him. June Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership, with our FA Cup win the highlight and our Champions League loss the lowlight. -- We made a profit of £30.14 million last month. Board Inject Cash and Pledge Improvements -- With funds a bit on the tight side, our sugar daddy chairman Chris May loans the club £16.25 million to help with our running costs. Sweet! -- Construction work has also begun on training ground and youth facility improvements, with projected costs of the expansion work totalling £8.5 million. I try to approach the board once again about the chances of building a new stadium and once again, I’m rebuffed. We sold out most of our games this year and there is no more room for seat expansion at Crabble Athletic Ground but our chairman feels “the fan base is unlikely to expand in the future and a stadium rebuild is unnecessary”. Blah. Yearly Training Summary -- We still have a very young team so it’s no real surprise to see a bunch of players get positive notices and NO ONE gets a negative training notice. Getting singled out are Mads Pedersen, Alberto Velazquez, Eneko Remirez and Steven Potter along with U18 players Joshua Stokes, Edward Smith and Nathan Protheroe. Vacation -- And with that, the team depart on summer holiday to enjoy another successful season.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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12-26-2014, 06:41 AM
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#598 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Rennes, France
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Hurray !!!
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01-01-2015, 01:49 PM
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#599 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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  The stats shown above take into account all competitions with our senior team and include everyone who played at least one game for the big club this past season. GK -- For two years, we’ve been slowly making the transition to having Manuel Perez take over as our main keeper. He struggled to learn the English language so we went slow with him, playing him in only a third of our games during our Champions League winning year but he played great and finally had a basic understanding of the language going into this year. We gave him the starting job this year but he really struggled early and we were forced to utilize veteran Ingo Wilke more than expected. Wilke had one of his best seasons ever, playing in just less than half of our games. Perez played much better during the latter half of the year so I expect that he’ll be just fine but there is no question that Wilke will continue to play a major role going forward, even as he hits his age 32 season. We are in great hands with our goalkeeping. D -- Our main starters spent their fourth consecutive year together. It’s a very young group and they could spend many more years patrolling our side of half but there was a bit of regression from our fullbacks, most notably captain Salim Loucif. Loucif played 41 scoreless games - he’s certainly not here for his offence but his normally phenomenal defence suffered this year, as he was out of position quite a lot and missed a number of tackles that he normally would make. He’s only 26 so I’m not panicking and we do have young phenom Emerson as a backup. Renato Gaucho scored only once but it was a big one - the game winner in our FA Cup final! He continues to develop and at 23, has many more great years ahead of him. Wonderkid Rafinha likely needs more starts, as he played 31 games last year as a main backup - he’s versatile and can play both sides with equal aplomb but he needs to play better when he’s in. Carlos Guzman is our third string fullback - he only got into 7 games last year but he always has played great when called upon, doesn’t complain about his playing time and is still young. His contract is expiring but he’s not asking for much and I may extend him and keep him here as added insurance. -- Our central defence continues to be a major strength at the club. Rayane Hamon is aging like fine wine, once again moving his game up a notch, scoring eight times and staying relatively injury free, as he started the third most games out of anyone at the club this year. 22 year old Claudio Contreras is one of the great young centre half backs in the game. He’s still a bit too inconsistent for my liking but he’s a commanding presence at the back at 6’ 6” tall. Saber Nasri finished his second year as our main backup and once again continues his fine form. 21 year old Mwemere Mutesa was given easy assignments for the most part in his first year with the senior team - cup ties and the odd Premier League match against a lower-half side but he was simply superb in those games - in fact, he DOMINATED games at times. He’s going to be a really good one I believe and he’ll get more opportunities this year. Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz has been a guy like Carlos Guzman over his Dover tenure - not flashy but always plays well when called upon. He got passed on our depth chart this year by Mutesa and with an expiring contract, accepted an offer from Aris in the Greek Superleague. M -- After a year where he exploded for an incredible 14 goals and 19 assists, left midfielder Arsene Bamba had a huge fall, scoring only four goals and adding three paltry assists in an injury plagued season. He just never got on track. Newcomer Mads Pedersen played much more than expected and was very solid, showing great flair and smarts in a 5 goal, 12 assist season to lead all wide midfielders in production. On the other side, Gianluca Bolis continues to confound - he started off like a house on fire then struggled through the middle portion of the season before finally turning up the heat again late in the year. He did end up with 9 goals but he was a passenger way too often for my liking. Graham Allan was the main backup on the right side and was just okay and our deep backup at the position, Lyubomir Kunchev, doesn’t look to be part of our plans in any major capacity. -- We started the year with incumbents Neil Cairney and Jose as starters once again but newcomer Benedikt Raab simply would NOT be denied! The 23 year old had an astonishing year, scoring 10 goals and adding a ludicrous 24 assists in only 37 starts, as he essentially sent superstar Cairney to the bench by the second half of the year. Raab was an incredible find for us and he may be the best midfielder in the world of football. Jose saw a slight stat decline, mostly due to giving up set piece duty to Raab but he continued to produce well - that said, he’s in his age 28 season and he may start to slow down soon. Cairney was decent but not the influential player he was in past seasons, giving up his spot to Raab. He’s also been recently left off the Scottish national team - a crazy development. Veteran Andrea Rocca, so important for years here, has settled into his spot as our fourth or fifth option and just produces whenever called upon. He’s got an expiring contract and I’m still mulling over whether I’ll offer him a new deal. I see less playing time for him in the future due to the oncoming Emmerson Harvey, another wonderkid who needs more playing time. Harvey had 3 goals and 4 assists in only 8 starts this year - he’s one to watch for the future. S -- Coming off an incredible 59 goals and World Player of the Year honours last season, we had big expectations for the sensational Paul Moses. But he’d twice suffer serious injuries to his calf, once with us and once with the English national team and he missed close to nine months of action. He’d only start 11 games for us all year but thankfully, we got an enormous contribution from young Andy Broomes, who we likely only considered a fourth or fifth option at the start of the season. Broomes muscled his way into Moses’ spot and scored 32 goals, showcasing his great speed and a great nose for the net. The stats continue to be there for highly touted star Chiquinho - 27 goals and 12 assists in a team-high 48 starts. He is extremely durable as he starts his age 30 season but inconsistency and a strong penchant for diving rubs me the wrong way. If someone comes calling with 20+ million pounds, I might consider selling him. Zoltan Bardi continues to be an unheralded option off the bench but once again was injured a lot - still, he scored 10 goals and added 9 assists in only 18 starts - great production. Newcomer Manuel Lugo came in with lots of fanfare and a huge price tag and was very ineffective - he scored only 3 goals but we started him in only 7 games all year. He’ll get more playing time this year as he continues to settle into English football. I don’t want to give up on him yet. RESERVE TEAM PLAYERS -- We have five “reserve” team members who didn’t play at all for the senior club this year: GK Steven Potter, MC Adam Hyde, MC Gary Archer, MR Steven Miller and MC Warren Ward. None are going to make an impact here but I plan on extending the contract of GK Potter just so we have a dedicated reserves keeper. Plus, he’s playing for England’s U21 team so he may turn into an asset, at the very least. LOAN PLAYERS -- We had five players out on loan for the season. DR Hans Briers was sent to Hull in the Championship and only played three games for their club, as they went with better options and ended up winning promotion to the Premier League next season. Briers won’t amount to anything anyway and with one year left on his contract, will likely be sent away once again. AMR Marcel Quade spent the year with Colchester in the Championship after being in Savona in Italian Serie B last year. Quade was a regular starter at Colchester, scoring three goals and adding 7 assists in 32 starts. Not bad but like Briers, won’t amount to much and will be loaned out again next year if he’s not sold first! Defender Steve Reed was deep depth for us for two years but we loaned him out to MK Dons in the Championship this year. He played a bunch (24 starts and 36 total games) but didn’t impress. DC Adam Betts played for League 2 club Bournemouth and started 45 games for them, anchoring their backfield. He was solid but unspectacular, with 2 goals, 1 assist and a 6.75 rating. He could be a very deep option for us off the bench this year, a la Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz, but Betts doesn’t have much quality and will have to step up his game if he’s ever to stay with our club. Finally, there is new midfield pickup Paolo Secchi, who spent the first half of the season on our bench before agreeing to go to Florentina. He’s got plenty of offensive talent and could easily replace Andrea Rocca if we don’t elect to keep him - Secchi scored 4 goals and added 4 assists in 18 starts with the Italian club. U18 PLAYERS -- Alberto Velazquez was a sensation for the U18’s, scoring a record 62 goals (!!!) and adding 19 assists in 32 non-competitive starts. Simply incredible numbers…a man amongst boys! He’ll either play a backup role with our club this year or be loaned out to further his development. He’s currently a 1.5/3.0 rated prospect and even got into four games with our senior team, going scoreless. Our other super prospect is ML Felix Hernandez - he was superb once again for the U18s, scoring an incredible 22 goals and adding 30 assists in 35 non-competitive starts and also got into nine scoreless games for our senior club due to injuries. Like Velazquez, Hernandez is a 1.5/3.0 prospect and I can see him sticking around here as a depth option off the bench this year. DR Eneko Remirez is a 1.0/3.5 prospect and still only 17 years of age. He was excellent in his first year with us, scoring 2 goals and adding 12 assists in 38 non-competitive matches and also got into one game as a sub for the senior team. He’ll spend next season with the U18s as he continues his development. Vlastimil Silhavy was here on a one-year contract and scored 11 goals and added 15 assists in 23 non-competitive starts at midfield. He’s a 1.0/2.5 prospect and I may extend him and keep him around either to play on the reserves team or loan him out. We have a number of others on the U18 team but the four players indicated above are the cream of the crop.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 01-01-2015 at 02:00 PM. |
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01-01-2015, 03:28 PM
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#600 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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 -- Another turnover increase sees us eclipse the 150 million pound barrier but expenses continue to climb and we needed a very recent £16.3 million chairman investment to get us close to break even on the year. We’re back to a manageable pre-transfer window bank balance and average attendance continues to inch closer to capacity. Still, no new stadium coming. Contract Extension -- We extend the contract of reserves goalkeeper Steven Potter for another three years. He started 16 reserves games for us last year and only gave up 8 goals, with 10 clean sheets. Pretty impressive and he’s starting right now for England’s U21 team as well. He’s only a 1.0/2.0 prospect but worth keeping around. International Round-Up -- Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz (Morocco), Arsene Bamba (Ivory Coast), Claudio Contreras (Argentina), Salim Loucif (Algeria - one assist), Chiquinho (Belgium - one goal), Manuel Perez (Mexico), Lyubomir Kunchev (Bulgaria - two goals), Mads Pedersen (Denmark - one goal), Paul Moses (England - one assist) and Emmerson Harvey (England) all play for their senior clubs in international play. -- Vlastimil Silhavy (Czech Republic U21), Eneko Remirez (Spain U21) and Alberto Velazquez (Mexico U20s - two goals) all suit up for their countries in international play.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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