FM2005: A Virgin Trip into LLM.

[Eaglesfan27]

45 minute mark: After a flurry of shots that were deflected back by defenders.. Atkins gets a shot off from 10 yards.... wide left.


0-0 at the half.

48 minute mark: Fox trips the left winger.. he gets called for a yellow card.

53 minute mark: Steve Brodie trips Kelly.. yellow card on Brodie.

62 minute mark: A great pass gets Ciaran Kilheeney all alone with my keeper.. he winds up.. big left foot.. high and to the right.. my keeper dives.. he catches it!!!

65 minute mark: Kelly is tired so Dunning comes on. Atkins is really tired, so Krief comes on. Morris comes on for a tired Farrell.

Game over.. They played turtle for the last 25 minutes and we couldn't get any good opportunities.

0-0 tie. This one will be replayed on their pitch.

We outshot them 6-2.

Chris O'Brien wins MoM for them. He completed 18 of 24 passes, 10 of 10 tackles, 3 of 5 headers, and 4 passes intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today we travel to play Droylsden in the rematch of the FA trophy match.

Leigh Wood told me before the game that he was unhappy because I wasn't playing him in his strongest position. As a result, I've benched him in favor of Black at Right Fullback. Atkins tells me he is very tired, but I decide to play him for part of the match anyway. Hopefully, he can help us score early.

My lineup:

GK Scarsella
DL Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC Curtis
DR Black
ML Kelly
MC Hunter
MC Atkins
MR Fox
SC Smyth
SC Farrell

S1 Turley
S2 Krief
S3 Pettinger
S4 Dunning
S5 Wood

We are 6:4 favorites. It's wet cold and windy. The temp is 43 degrees.

[Eaglesfan27]

5 minute mark: Atkins feeds the ball to Smyth with a great through ball.. Smyth runs into the box and gets it.. he dribbles left once.. shoots the sharp angle.. towards the right corner.. hits the post... and it bounces out. Keeper pounces on it.

24 minute mark: Farrell gets the ball in the right corner of the box after a long kick from Scarsella... he dribbles right.. shoots for the left post.. misses just wide.

32 minute mark: O'Brien takes a hard shot from 15 yards center of the box... Scarsella easily saves it.

0-0 at the half.

52 minute mark: Steve Brodie dribbles it into the box.. shoots to the upper left corner.. hits the post.. Black clears it up the field.. Farrell races to it.. he dribbles up the right sideline.. crosses to Smyth.. Smyth heads it towards the upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0

67 minute: Realizing I could be hurting the team if it goes into extra time, I do it anyway. I sub in 2 guys... Wood for Curtis and Turley for Smyth.

79 minute mark: Black makes a last minute tackle on O'Brien.. saving a good shot at goal.

81 minute mark: Fox feeds the ball into the box to Turley.. Turley beats his man.. gets to the ball.. shoots.. the keeper deflects it.. the defender clears the ball before it can trickle across the goal.

82 minute mark: Hunter who is exhausted leaves the pitch. Kelly slides to the MC slot. Dunning come in at left wing.

I enter turtle mode for the last 10 minutes and prevent any good scoring opportunities.

1-0 final!!

We outshot them 12-10

Atkins wins MoM (not bad for a "tired" guy) 9 for form, 44 of 58 passes, 4 of 8 tackles, 3 of 3 headers, 2 passes intercepted, 2 runs.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today, I saw my boss pick up the 8,000 dollar check for winning the 4th round of the FA trophy. The 5th round will see us hosting Leigh RMI of the English Conference National League on 2/26/05.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Not sure you're running into this, but just in case it helps...

Especially the first couple of seasons in the English lower leagues, I found that I often had a thin roster. With the large number of matches to play, I found that this occasionally meant that I couldn't put a strong team on the pitch for both cup play and league play.

If I was sitting stable in the league standings, I'd often play my better guys in the cup games, but if I was in any kind of fight in the league standings, I'd often play my weaker players in the cup matches so that my best players were fresh for the more important league matches.

Sometimes even that wasn't enough, and I'd have to play a match or two conservatively (i.e., defensive, stalling, and playing for a tie--usually I'd try to do this on the road against a stronger team that I had little chance to beat) so as to give my players a lighter workload even on days they played. Aggressive, attacking play will really run your players down, especially if the weather sucks.

[Eaglesfan27]

Darn, I just read in the paper that Redditch recently acquired highly regarded striker Simon Brown on loan. Of course, they got him 1 day before I play him.

[Eaglesfan27]

We are currently in 18th place and hosting 15th ranked Redditch. Redditch is led by left winger Simon Hollis. Matt Clarke has been a steadying force at right full back. Richard Anstiss has been solid if unspectacular in goal. Norman Sylla has been the main threat up front with 9 goals. Simon Brown will be starting alongside him in this game. We are 5:4 favorites according to the oddsmakers.

Our starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Atkins (despite him claiming he is tired)
MR: Turley
SC: Smyth
SC: Farrell

S1 Pettinger
S2 Fox
S3 Dunning
S4 Wood
S5 Morris

It's 45 degrees and wet today.

[Eaglesfan27]

7 minute mark: Atkins shoots a hard shot at goal from 20 yards out.. the keeper misplays it.. and barely tips it over the bar. Turley takes the corner kick.. It's heading towards the middle of the box.. Shepherd jumps up.. he heads it... towards goal.. Anstiss flails at it.. it's past him.. GOAL!!!! 1-0

16 minute mark: Anstiss stops a Farrell shot from 12 yards out.. Anstiss kicks it to midfield.. Atkins intercepts the pass with a header.. the header goes right to Farrell who is at the edge of the box.. he races past his defender.. dribbles right.. the keeper comes out to cut down the angle.. Farrell shoots.. he goes for the narrow angle towards the right post.. past the keeper.. GOAL!!!! 2-0

43 minute mark: Farrell is tackled hard by Matthew Gardiner. He looks hurt. I see if he can tough it out.

2-0 at the half. Farrell is limping bad. I attempt to sub in Morris for him. The ref tells me that I didn't submit Morris on my available sub list! Sure enough, I wrote Krief as my 5th sub. I walk back to my usual spot embarassed. I decide to move Turley to striker, and bring Fox in for Farrell.

50 minute mark: Kelly sends a great cross to Turley.. Turley heads it towards goal from 6 yards out.. the keeper punches it over the bar.

53 minute mark: Nick Williams makes a great move on Shepherd.. he dribbles into the box.. he shoots a hard shot towards the left corner... Scarsella dives... he catches it. He kicks it long right away.. it's bouncing towards the box slowly.. Smyth is racing his man.. he gets to it.. from 20 yards out.. Gardiner is running along side him.. he unleashes a quick left footed shot.. right to the center of the goal.. the keeper acts surprised.. he almost catches it.. but it trickles past him.. GOAL!!!! 3-0

55 minute mark: Deciding the game is firmly in hand, I sub in Krief for Atkins.

68 minute mark: Williams takes teh croner to Simon Brown.. Brown settles the shot.. he is in the middle of the box.. he unleashes a laser towards the upper right corner.. no chance for Scarsella to stop this one. Goal.

69 minute mark: I sub in Dunning for the tired Barnard.

90 minute mark: Wild flurry of shots in front of the opposition's goal.. rebound off a defender.. another rebound off a defender.. Krief heads one of the rebounds.. past the defender.. past the keeper.. GOAL!!! 4-1.

4-1 final.

We outshot them 17-5.

Atkins wins MoM with 25 of 34 passes, 0 of 1 tackles, 1 of 1 headers, 1 pass intercepted, 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

After the big win, Mr. Fotherby pulled me into his office. He told me he was really proud of the effort the team gave today. He told me to keep this up, and I'd be back in everyone's good graces in no time. He also mentioned, "Don't let the team backslide again." I'm not sure if I should feel good or bad about that meeting.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today we are currently ranked 15th and we travel to 5th ranked Nuneaton. We won our first match against them 2-0 despite them being 1st in the league at the time. They are led by the high scoring tandem of Gez Murphy and Michael Frew who have 8 and 11 goals respectively. However, they have 3 other players who also have at least 5 goals, including midfielders Gary Fitzpatrick and Stuart Whittaker (who will miss this game due to injury.) Bobby White is the director of the defense. Darren Acton has been an average keeper for them in 12 starts this year. He will start today.

Our starting lineup: Same as last game with Krief actually intended to be S5 this time (can't sit him after he scored a goal last game.)

Nuneaton is a 5:4 favorite.

It's a cold 32 degree day today.

Edit: Surey is starting in place of Hunter as Surey is recovered now.

[Eaglesfan27]

4 minute mark: A massive gathering around the ball in our box.. our defenders deflect the ball away a few times.. in the box.. Michael Frew gets the ball... he shoots.. it's through the screen of players.. past Scarsella.. goal. 1-0

25 minute mark: Smyth gets the ball.. dribbles down the left side of the field.. beats his man.. centers to Farrell.. Farrell unleashes a quick shot from about 18 yards out... just wide right.

27 minute mark: After a beautiful outlet pass from Shepherd.. Atkins pass to Turley.. Turley passes back to Atkins in the middle of the field.. Atkins plays a great through ball.. Farrell gets it.. dribbles twice.. shoots from just outside the box around the defender... wide right.

27 minute mark: Atkins intercepts the keeper's kick.. he sends it to the right winger, Turley.. Turley dribbles a few steps.. passes back to Atkins.. Atkins dribbles forward 5 steps.. shoots from just outside the box.. towards the left lower corner... keeper can't get to it in time.. it hits off the post... and IN!!!! GOAL!!! ATKINS!! (good for a tired guy) 1-1

1-1 at the half.

54 minute mark: Scarsella charges into a scrum for the ball.. he kicks it free up the field.. gutsy if scary play.

57 minute mark: Turley gets a pass from Scarsella on the right wing.. Turley passes it down half the length of the pitch.. great pass!! Smyth gets the ball in the box.. dribbles left once.. twice.. shoots.. past the keeper... high over the net.

60 minute mark: Curtis makes an essential tackle to stop an almost sure goal inside the box.

61 minute mark: Frew comes free down the left side of the field.. charges into the box.. Scarsella comes out to challenge the shot and cut down the angle.. Frew shoots.. Scarsella deflects it.. it's rolling wide of goal.. Keith Graydon (MC) gets to the ball. he taps the rebound into the open net. goal. 2-1 we are down.

65 minute mark: I move Turley up to Forward. I sub Fox in for Farrell, and put Fox at right wing. I sub in Wood for Shepherd who is exhausted.

70 minute mark: Atkins plays a through ball for Turley.. he takes it in the box.. he has Acton closing down the angle.. he shoots.. Acton tips it.. it's rolling behind Acton.. it rolls just wide.

84 minute mark: Smyth tracks down the long pass from Atkins in the left corner.. he looks.. he centers for Kelly.. Kelly has the shot.. he shoots.. over the goal.

91 minute mark: Bobby White slides hard on Smyth who has a breakaway.. Smyth looks hurt.. Red flag!! The ref calls it outside the box.. and gives us a direct kick.

Dunning comes in for Smyth.

2-1 game over. A tough loss for us.

We were outshot 14-10.

Atkins wins MoM with a 9 for form. 27 of 37 passes, 6 of 7 tackles, 4 of 4 headers, 1 run.

[Eaglesfan27]

Darn. My physio has just told me that Smyth fractured a few ribs when he hit the frozen ground on that hard tackle. He will be out about a month (which is only a bit shorter than the length of his remaining loan.) This is a bad loss for us.

[Desnudo]

Tough break. It sounds like you're on a real see-saw.

[Eaglesfan27]

We managed to retain our 15th ranking. We face 5th ranked Southport today. Southport has several key players including Man Utd's Benjamin Collette who came here on loan after his other loan ended. Steve Dickinson has been playing superbly in goal. Kevin Leadbitter has been their main goal scorer with 11. Graham Hockless is on loan from Bradford City and he is their main midfielder. Southport are heavy 4:5 favorites.


Due to my dwindling number of strikers, I've decided to temporarily switch back to the 4-5-1.

My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins
MR: Turley
FC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Fox
S3: Krief
S4: Wood
S5: Morris (gotta get the kid some time if we get a good lead.)

It's a muddy 51 degree day. The rain has favored us most of the year.. hopefully that continues.

[Miller Time]

Tough break for Smyth....I was just about post whether you have asked Liverpool to extend his loan deal for the rest of the season? It sounds like he is doing really well for the team. Hopefully, things will continue to improve when he is out.

[Eaglesfan27]

5 minute mark: Jimmy Williams tackles Farrell to prevent him from getting to a pass. Yellow card for Williams.

20 minute mark: Black gets called for tripping Leadbitter. Hockless takes the free kick from 35 yards out.. he hits it.. it's wide.. around the wall.. it's curving.. my keeper is stunned as it curves and sails into the net! 1-0

27 minute mark: Hockless dribbles up the left side of the field.. he curves a wicked pass to Collett that crosses past my goal.. to the far post.. Collett heads it in.. goal.

41 minute mark: Atkins sends the ball from midfield into the box.. Farrell gets a great jump to the ball.. a little too good. He is called for offside.

2-0 at the half.

64 minute mark: We need a spark and guys are tired. I put Dunning in for Atkins. I put Morris in for Farrell (who is exhausted.) I put in Wood for Black at right full back.

81 minute mark: kelly takes it up the left wing.. he passes to Morris.. Morris passes back to Kelly.. Kelly center for Hunter.. Hunter is about 20 yards out.. he shoots.. lower right corner of the net... GOAL!!!! 2-1 we are still down.

91 minute mark: Kelly uses some fancy footwork to get past two defenders.. he is on the left sideline.. centers.. Dunning controls the pass.. at the center of the box.. he shoots.... over the net.

2-1 loss. For most of the game, I felt we were dominated.

They outshot us 15-5, and Scarsella made some very good saves.

Graham Hockless won MoM with 22 of 29 passes, 4 of 4 tackles, 1 of 3 headers, 1 intercepted pass, 4 runs, 1 assist, and 1 goal.

[Eaglesfan27]

I've heard back from quite a few teams that agree to let me have their reserves on loan, hopefully one of these good players will consent to playing for me.

[Eaglesfan27]

*smells underarms* Do I stink? 18 different strikers or attacking midfielders just refused to come play for me on loan including some not so prestigous names. Oh well, time to make some more offers.

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb. 22, 2005 -

Today we host 13th ranked Stalybridge Celtic. We are currently 17th ranked. Stalybridge is led by left fullback Gregg Pearce. He leads the defense in front of the keeper Craig Dootson who has had a poor year, conceding over 2 goals per appearance. Stalybridge counters with an impressive tandem of scorers. Kevin Parr has 7 goals from his midfield position. Andy Hayward has been a good striker with 11 goals this season. We are 6:4 favorites heading into the game.
My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd
DC: Curtis
DR: Black
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins
MR: Turley
FC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Fox
S3: Krief
S4: Wood
S5: Morris (gotta get the kid some time if we get a good lead.)


It's warming up. It's 57 today and dry.

[Eaglesfan27]

23 minute mark: Kevin Parr makes a really great move on Atkins.. sends a pass to Hayward.. he is all alone in the box.. Scarsella comes out and challenges him.. Hayward shoots.. Scarsella smothers the ball.

Very boring first half.. the opposition has 2 shots.. we have 0. 0-0 game.

53 minute mark: turley plays a great pass right to Farrell. Farrell shoots from point blank range... Dootson deflects it away and Pearce clears it.

60 minute mark: Kelly tackles Hayward with a high leg on the tackle... yellow card.. the ref rules Hayward had progressed into the box! Penalty kick awarded... Dean Calcutt heads the penalty shot.. low and to the right... Scarsella dives... he can't get to it.. goal.

I pull Farrell because he is tired, and put in Morris. I also yank Kelly and put in Dunning at left wing.

72 minute mark: Black feed the ball long to Morris.. Morris runs to catch up to it.. just outside the box.. Pearce catches him and tackles the ball clear.

Our opposition plays turtle.. and we don't have any more good opportunities

1-0 loss.

We were outshot 7-1

Atkins wins MoM for 48 of 61 passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 4 of 4 headers, and 1 run.

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb 23, 2005 -

DARN!

I wake up this morning to read this article:

The Harrogate Town board have publicly denied the rampant rumors that they are attempting to find a replacement for Christopher Engles. There has been much speculation among fans that Engles would be asked to step down, but it appears that the board is giving the manager the opportunity to turn things around.

I can't help but wonder how long I have left..

[Eaglesfan27]

Febuary 23rd, 2005 -

Ahh, the first match of the first knockout round the European Championship match.. That should take my mind off of things.

Lots of good matches on TV.. time to settle down with a few beers and watch some of them.

The first match was Arsenal hosting Monaco. Monaco struck early. Javier Saviola scored at the 3 minute mark on a great assist from Ousmane Dabo. Shabani Nonda scored the 2nd goal on a great rebound goal. At the 19 minute mark, Henry made a wonderful dribble btw 3 french defenders, and scored on a powerful shot into goal. However, it wasn't enough as France held on for the 3-1 win with a 90th minute goal Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor.

[Eaglesfan27]

(OOC) I'm on call tonight and I just found out that my hospital has no beds available!!! Yes!! This should make for a light night of call and more FM time /(OOC)

The second match on TV that I watched was Manchester United at Deportivo. I TIVO'd this match, and it was an interesting to watch the dominant play of Rio Ferdinand in totally controlling the Deportivo strikers. Tim Howard looked very good in goal this game as well. Ruud van Nistelrooy scored goals at 32 and 74 minutes to provide the 2-0 margin of victory. I'd love to coach a guy like Ruud van Nistelrooy. Darren Fletcher assisted on the 1st goal, and Ryan Giggs assisted on the 2nd goal.

Other scores from watching the local sports summary show:

Barcelona(h) beat Chelsea 2-0
Juventus(h) beat Club Brugge 2-0
Milan(h) beat Real Madrid 2-0
Olympiakos(h) beat Inter 3-2
Roma (h) beat FC Bayern 2-0
Werder Bremen(h) tied Valencia 1-1

[Eaglesfan27]

Feb 26th, 2005 -

Today is a big day. We host Leigh RMI in the 5th round of the FA trophy. I feel that winning this match and the resultant money, might help secure my job for another day. Leigh RMI is in the English National Conference and they are doing reasonably well, unlike the previous team I beat from the national conference. They are currently in 10th place. Paul Flood is their keeper. He doesn't look great, but he usually seems to get the job done. Barry Miller is a very good DC who is the intimidator in their defense. Craig Mitchell is their main striker. He doesn't look spectacular, but he scores quite regularly and has 15 on the season. Chris Simms is their other striker who has 9 goals of his own. This will be a difficult challenge and the oddsmakers agree. Leigh RMI is even odds favorites.

We are a very tired team, but I keep having to play my top guys as I literally fight for my career. My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Barnard
DC: Shepherd (saying he needs rest)
DC: Curtis
DR: Black (saying he needs rest)
ML: Kelly
MC: Hunter
MC: Surey
MC: Atkins (saying he needs rest)
MR: Fox (I need Turley ready to be a fresh striker off the bench)
SC: Farrell

S1 Pettinger
S2 Turley
S3 Dunning
S4 Wood
S5: Marc Smith (hoping to get the young full back some time if we get a lead.)

It's a balmy 62 degrees today.

(OOC Gotta run for a few minutes.. will play and type up game results in a little bit hopefully)

[jbmagic]

eaglefan

any chance you can post your offense/defense on graphic like frogman did on his dynasty? and explain what the arrows mean..

thanks

[Eaglesfan27]

6 minute mark: Andy Roscoe takes the rebound of a prior shot that is just to the left of the box.. he sends a short quick pass into the middle of the box to Chris Simms.. Simms shoots.. upper left corner.. Scarsella dives.. tips it... still into the goal. 1-0

Leigh RMI goes turtle around the 30 minute mark, and now it's a particularly boring first half.

1-0; They outshot us 1-0 in the half.

Farrell is playing flat out bad.. at 55 minute mark, I yank him.

I also decide to try an old favorite formation that I haven't used for some time but dabbled with on a napkin.. I switch to a 4-3-1-2 with Hunter back in his familiar role of AMC from the preseason. I also take the unconventional approach of moving Kelly up to striker to play alongside Turley.

74 minute mark: Shepherd makes a great feed to Atkins in the middle of the field.. he passes it to Hunter.. Hunter dribbles into the edge of the box.. he shoots.. the keeper deflects it.. cleared out of bounds.

After 0 shots in 60 minutes, we get 4 shots in 30 minutes.. unfortunately none of them go in (nor any great attempts besides hunter's)

Game over.. 1-0 loss. The FA trophy dream is dead.

We outshot them 4-3 for the game.

Atkins won MoM (again) with 24 of 38 passes, 0 of 0 tackles, 2 of 3 headers, and 1 pass intercepted.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

eaglefan

any chance you can post your offense/defense on graphic like frogman did on his dynasty? and explain what the arrows mean..

thanks

The arrows tell the guys where to go generally. I'll try to figure out how he did that, and do so later tonight..

Right now, I have to run to a meeting.

[MizzouRah]

This game seems quite hard.... and I like that!


Todd

[Eaglesfan27]

I think it definitely depends on what team you play with. This one was in a challenging financial position. If I picked my favorite team to start with (and one I'd recommend to any newbie), Hull, I think I'd be doing much better.

[jbmagic]

why do you recommend HULL for newbie?

[Eaglesfan27]

They aren't a super big time club (being in league 1.) They have a really good player, Stuart Elliott, IMHO. They have a rich owner, and have a good amount of money for a league 1 team. That being said, they were even easier to start with in CM03/04 because they were still in league 2 (div 3) at the time. Maybe, they will be more challenging now that they are starting in League 1, but I suspect they will still be quite managable.

[Eaglesfan27]

March 1st, 2005 -

Mr. Fotherby called me into his office for our regular meeting. He simply said, "you aren't getting the job done. Turn it around quickly."

There was no room for discussion. I left his office.. dejected, but realizing he was right.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

They aren't a super big time club (being in league 1.) They have a really good player, Stuart Elliott, IMHO. They have a rich owner, and have a good amount of money for a league 1 team. That being said, they were even easier to start with in CM03/04 because they were still in league 2 (div 3) at the time. Maybe, they will be more challenging now that they are starting in League 1, but I suspect they will still be quite managable.

Plus they have a large stadium. I'd like to add something to the arrow talk too. What they specifically represent are where you want the players to go once you gain possession of the ball. The regular position indicates the player's position when you don't have possession.

[Eaglesfan27]

Today I travel to face the 14th ranked Stafford Rangers. We are in 18th, and I feel like we must win this game to retain my job. So, what do I do? I decide to finally heed the Physio and rest Atkins, Shepherd, and Black. Fortunately, Wright is back from his injury. I decide it's time to break out, my all new and improved 4-3-1-2 tactic. Kelly who has excellent ratings for an AMC will star at AMC.

As far as my opponent, Stafford is led by their right fullback's play as of late. Craig McAughtrie has played very well on the defense. Their keeper James Lindley has been average at best the last few weeks. Their weak keeping is countered by the fact that their offense is explosive at times. They have 3 10 goal scorers: Neil Grayson, the veteran striker has 15 goals. Robert Heath their midfielder has 11 goals, and Craig Wilding one of their other strikers has 10 goals. However, he is currently injured. Stafford is 5:4 favorites. We tied them 1-1 at home earlier in the year.

Our starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Dunning
DC: Barnard (very good player who I probably should have moved to DC earlier in the year.)
DC: Curtis (shepherd is resting this game.)
DR: Wood (Black is resting this game.)
ML: Wright
MC: Surey (playing with defensive oriented instructions.)
MR: Fox
AMC: Kelly (has great finishing.. hoping to make him a much more active scorer.)
SC: Turley
SC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Krief
S3: Marc Smith (hoping to get this DL some PT)
S4: Morris (same for this striker)
S5: Hunter (can play many positions)

It's a cool dry 51 degrees. Hopefully, my team fights hard for me today.

[Eaglesfan27]

16 minute mark: Kelly is dribbling down the left side of the field (doesn't he remember he is an AMC now).. he crosses the ball.. to no one.. not one of my guys there. Inexplicably, the DC Chris Smith heads it back to the keeper... the keeper is as mystified as I am.. it sails by his head... GOAL!!!! 1-0 us

21 minute mark: Robert Heath dribbles btw my two DC's.. he shoots from about 15 yards... it's a hard high shot.. Scarsella catches it!

25 minute mark: Fox takes the corner kick.. he floats it to Barnard.. Barnard jumps for the header.. he hits it towards goal... the keeper can't get to it.. GO... oh no, Barnard is flagged for unfairly jumping with the defender. The goal is waived off.

34 minute mark: After a flurry of quick darting passes, Grayson gets the ball all along in the center of the box.. he shoots.. Scarsella catches it cleanly!

39 minute mark: Kelly gets the ball.. dribbles past midfield.. up the center of the field.. passes up to Turley.. Turley is about to shoot.. tackled by Smith (who is trying to make up for the own goal.)

44 minute: Wood makes a great tackle on Heath.. stopping him from shooting from 15 yards out.

1-0 at the half.

47 minute mark: Turley collides with Chris Smith.. oh no Smith is injured (hey the guy scored a goal for me, I don't want to see him go) Turley gets a yellow card.

60 minute: Krief is subbed in for Fox. Hunter for Wright (very tired.) Morris for Farrell.

63 minute mark: Campbell races by Curtis who stands their like a stone. Campbell has an easy 1-1 with the keeper.. he is running towards the right post from the right side of the box.. Scarsella comes out to cut down the angle.. he shoots.. scarsella deflects it.. rebound.. Campbell shoots again.. Scarsella blocks it again.. Barnard clears the rebound.

82 minute mark: Krief sends a great through ball for Morris.. Morris catches up to it.. dribbles into the box.. to his right.. around the keeper.. and on that dribble around the keeper.. he loses control.. fumbles it.. defender catches up and Craig clears it.

89 minute: Barnard sends a long pass to Turley.. Turley races past the defense.. he has the ball in the box.. he shoots.. he scores.. but the goal is waved off. Turley is called for being offside.

Final Whistle!

1-0 victory (I need to buy Smith something nice)

We were outshot 11-10.

Scarsella wins MoM with 6 big saves!

[Eaglesfan27]

We are now ranked 14th after the win! That seems to have the mood around the clubhouse a little brighter. We need to win this game and keep the good feelings going. We are now hosting 8th ranked Kettering. They beat us 2-1 earlier in the year. Gareth Seddon has been a true standout for them recently at striker. He is on loan from Rushden and he is averaging about an 8 for form. He has 9 goals in 7 appearances for this club. Liam Folds has been playing excellent defense at DC. They are heavy 4:6 favorites.

Despite this, I decide to give my tired players one more game off, and keep the same starting lineup as last game. Hopefully, we won't have to rely on the opposition to score for us this time.

It's a pleasant 62 degrees today.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Gareth Seddon has been a true standout for them recently at striker. He is on loan from Rushden and he is averaging about an 8 for form. He has 9 goals in 7 appearances for this club.

Just curious, are you man-marking some of these hot strikers?

[Eaglesfan27]

8 minutes: Kelly receives a great pass from Wright.. he dribbles into the box.. shoots.. the keeper catches it.

16 minute mark: Surey intecepts a pass in our own end.. takes a few steps.. he passes it long down the field to Turley.. Turley dribbles to his left.. towards the left goal post.. the keeper comes out.. he goes for the extreme angle.. shoots towards the right upper corner of the net... it's past the keeper... it's good!!! GOAL!!!! 1-0

36 minute mark: Kelly receives it 40 yards from goal.. he dribbles down the center of the field.. draws a defender.. passes to Turley inside the left portion of the box.. Turley shoots.. the keeper dives.. it's past him.. low and to his right. GOAL!!! 2-0, Turley's second.

2-0 at the half.

64 minute Kelly is tackled driving into the box... penalty kick awarded for an illegal tackle!!! Barnard ends up taking it.. he shoots.. a blistering shot right over the keeper's shoulder.. GOAL!!! 3-0

66 minute: I sub Hunter for the tired (and slightly injured Kelly) and I sub Marc Smith for Wood who is also mildly injured.

Game over: 3-0 victory!

We outshot them 18-4

Ben Surey wins MoM, 23 of 26 passes, 4 of 4 tackles, 2 of 3 headers, 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Godzilla Blitz

Just curious, are you man-marking some of these hot strikers?

It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

[Eaglesfan27]

Life is tenuous in the English Conference North. My main competitors lost, and I'm now suddenly in 12th place. Mr. Fotherby has let me know he is quite pleased with the 3-0 win, and that he believes I'm truly turning the team around. He is now satisfied with my performance. Hopefully, we can keep him happy.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

Got it. Thanks.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

It depends on the team I'm playing, some teams I play a deep line with zonal marking if they have real burners. Other teams I man mark the strikers.

Have you found one or the other to be more successful?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

Have you found one or the other to be more successful?

I generally find my deep zonal marking is working better, maybe I should give up on man marking the strikers as my team doesn't seem to do it that well..

[Eaglesfan27]

March 9th, 2005 -

Today I managed to TIVO 2 of the European Champions Cup matches and watch them all during the night.

I watched the other interesting match live.

I watched the Manchester - Deportivo Match live. Manchester was up 2-0 hosting Deportivo in the 2nd leg of the 1st elimination round.

Deportivo took control of the match early with a dazzling cross from Jorge Andrade to Walter Gerardo Pandiani who quickly settled it and blistered it past Tim Howard.

Manchester quickly equalized with a goal at the 47 minute mark, in which Ryan Giggs centered to Paul Scholes who shot it into the upper right corner of the net from 20 yards out.

Manchester scored again at the 70 minute mark when Ruud van Nistelrooy drew a penalty shot with a great strong dribble into the box. Phil Neville took and made the penalty kick going low and to the left.

Deportivo was down 4-1 on aggregate but they didn't give up.. they went on the attack and scored 2 goals in 10 minuts, however they couldn't get that last goal. Man Utd wins 4-3 on aggregate. Changui scored both of the last 2 goals with persistent effort on scrums in the box.

The second game I watched was Chelsea hosting Barcelona. Chelsea was 2-0 on aggregate going into the match. Adrian Mutu took a pass from Joe Cole in the box.. dribbles left once.. fires it past the keeper to make it 1-0. At the 30 minute mark, Michael Ballack cleaned up a rebound from a Mutu shot and made it 2-0. Barcelona looked shaken. At the 35 minute mark, Arjen Robben receives a pass from Geremi and he takes it into the box. He blasts a shot past the keeper. Goal. 3-2 on aggregate for Chelsea, with 3-0.

49 minute mark: Sameul Eto'o draws a penalty in the box.. Deco takes the penalty shot.. he shoots .. he scores! 3-3 on aggregate.

74 minute mark: Arjen Robben receives a pass from Michael Ballack and takes it to his right.. unleashes a shot from 20 yards out.. it's a goal!

Chelsea wins this stage 4-1 and wins on aggregate 4-3 to advance.

The third game was disgusting as the French referee seemed to be calling some insane calls. Henry scored a goal for Arsenal, but Monaco had 2 from Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor. Monaco beats Arsenal 5-2 on aggregate.

Least Chelsea and Man Utd advance.

In other news:

Juventus wins 4-0 on aggregate over Club Brugge

Roma beats FC Bayern 4-3 on aggregate.

Inter wins the second leg 4-1 to beat Olympiakos 6-4 on aggregate.

Milan beats Real Madrid 3-1 on aggregate.

Valencia beats Werder Bremen 4-1 on aggregate.

[FrogMan]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I generally find my deep zonal marking is working better, maybe I should give up on man marking the strikers as my team doesn't seem to do it that well..

I also don't like to put my whole team on man marking. What I like to do is have at least my two centrebacks man marking and often add the two defensive midfielders, so that gives me 4 fairly defensive players forming a square of man marking hell for my opponents, while the other on the perimeter are doing zonal marking... Works out not too bad...

FM

[Eaglesfan27]

March 12th, 2005 -

Today we are ranked 12th. We have a tough match as we travel to face #1 Barrow. Barrow has recently added super speedster striker, Emmanuel Omoyinmi on loan from Gravesend. His speed is definitely frightening. Mark Salmon is a 30 year old veteran DC with amazing physical skills who has been averaging a very impressive 8.02 for form on the year. Gavin Knight has excellent physical skills as a striker, and has an amazing 23 goals in 29 games. Jamie Paterson is a dangerous midfielder who has 10 goals and 10 assists on the year. Simon Bishop is a top notch keeper who has 15 clean sheets in 40 games. He has been conceding under a goal a game on the season. Surprisingly, they are only 6-4 favorites. When we played them at home earlier in the year, we tied them 1-1. I'd be very happy with a tie this game.

I consider a 4-5-1 for this game, but I decide I'm going to play a VERY defensive 4-4-2. I'm going to be relying on the long ball and counter attack more for offense than usual this game.

My starting lineup:

GK: Scarsella
DL: Dunning
DC: Shepherd (should feel rested now.)
DC: Curtis (has played well in recent games.)
DR: Black
ML: Wright
MC: Kelly
MC: Atkins
MR: Fox
SC: Turley
SC: Farrell

S1: Pettinger
S2: Surey (giving him some rest.)
S3: Hunter
S4: Morris
S5: Wood

It's a cool 45 degrees outside today.

[Eaglesfan27]

15 seconds into the match: Paterson tackles Fox. Fox is hurt, and it looks bad. He is holding his side. Sub Surey in at right wing (so much for rest.)

3 minute mark: Scarsella makes a good save on a shot by Knight. Scarsella quickly kicks it down the field.. it sails over the defender.. bounces.. bounces.. towards the box... Farrell catches up to it.. he is alone in the box.. dribbles left.. the keeper is fooled as he falls for a head fake.. Farrell has the open net.. he flicks it in! GOAL!!!! 1-0

30 minute mark: Despite our concerted defensive effort, Knight gets the ball within 5 yards of the goal near the left goal post.. Scarsella closes down the angle.. he comes out.. Knight shoots.. Scarsella blocks it.. Curtis cleans up the rebound.

1-0 at the half.

68 minute mark: Morris in for the tired Turley. Hunter in for the tired Wright.

YES!! The defense holds out!! 1-0 victory over #1 Barrow!!

We both had 7 shots, only 1 of theirs was on target. 2 of ours were on target.

Mark Atkins continues his streak of MoM. 35 of 45 passes, 0 of 1 tackles, 3 of 4 headers, 8 passes intercepted. He is one of 5 players to get an 8 for form this game. The others are Grant Black, Lennie Curtis, Greg Kelly, and Andy Farrell.

[Eaglesfan27]

This match had some hard hits.

Fox has a severe thigh strain. He should be out for about 5 days (7 days until our next match.)

Grant Black is out for 5 days with a shoulder sprain.

Andy Farrell is out 2 weeks with a groin strain (that hurts.. in so many ways.)

The physio thinks Shepherd and Atkins need rest again.

[Godzilla Blitz]

Originally Posted by FrogMan

I also don't like to put my whole team on man marking. What I like to do is have at least my two centrebacks man marking and often add the two defensive midfielders, so that gives me 4 fairly defensive players forming a square of man marking hell for my opponents, while the other on the perimeter are doing zonal marking... Works out not too bad...

FM

In my last career, I had one central defender who was a stud marker. I used to have him mark the top scorer on opposing teams, slide my other central defender to the middle of the pitch (starting from a basic 4-4-2), and have everyone else play zone. It worked pretty well.

[Eaglesfan27]