Screamin' Seamen FC - A Hattrick Dynasty

[daedalus]

Ugh. So close.

You have a heck of a foundation to build on, though. Especially with the bonus coming in after the season.

Do you have any plans for changes this offseason?

[NevStar]

Tough luck. I was watching your match with more interest than my own.

I'd also like to plug the NevStar Index as a substitute to the DKI Rating. They're the same, except midfield is tripled instead of doubled. This is justified since the defense & attack each get 3 ratings also (for left, central & right). Using this, the ratings for your match are much closer.

We'll get 'em next year.

[vex]

Sorry about the game, better luck next season

[DataKing]

daedalus: I'm working on my off-season plan right now. I don't have the details nailed down just yet, but I'm looking at expanding the stadium to approximately 30,000 seats. I will also be spending about $200,000 on a player or two. My midfield needs some help.

NevStar: I saw the NevStar Rating in your post, and it sounds like a pretty good idea to me. I think I will try both of them next season, and see which one gives the more accurate results.

vexroid: Thanks for the sympathy.

I will probably extend this thread until the end of qualification week, then start a new thread for Season Three. Expect to see some end-of-season specials (including the club's award banquet) in the next week or so.

Thanks for reading.

[sterlingice]

Tough, tough loss. I went straight to your score before looking at mine. Too bad but at least you're the favs for next year. Plus, you'll be better equipped for div III after next year.

SI

[DataKing]

Season 2 – Week 14 – Friendly Match

Screamin’ Seamen vs. Bull Dogs

Date: March 19th, 2003
Venue: The Docks (Chicago, IL)
Attendance: 834 (17,350)
Weather: Partly Cloudy

We’re back to a regular, domestic friendly this week. This is a match that we’re still looking forward to, however, because we get to play host to Eilim’s Bull Dogs. The Dogs are a team after our own heart, built on defense and sound financial planning. They have fared pretty well during their brief history (3 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss in league and friendly matches), so we’re interested in seeing what they bring to the pitch here in Chicago.

Formation: 5-4-1

Starters

Keeper: #1 Darryl Read

Right Wingback: #23 William Brown
Central Defender: #21 Zarpas Lerma
Central Defender: #17 Mattias Leier
Central Defender: #20 Keith Stubbs
Left Wingback: #24 Christian Kvam

Right Winger: #25 Paul Peralta
Inner Midfielder: #19 Jerry Smith
Inner Midfielder: #12 Brooks Brannon
Left Winger: #16 Otis Johnson

Forward: #14 Jesper Gravesen

Team Captain: #14 Jesper Gravesen
Set Pieces: #14 Jesper Gravesen

Substitutes
-Keeper: #13 Cornelius “Corny” Jernigan
-Defender: #22 Tyler Willard
-Midfielder: #7 Lucian Tere
-Forward: #15 Forrest “Gump” Tobias
-Winger: #10 Olav Mauffret

There are no questions about our defense, but we’re trying to figure out a way to squeeze more offense out of the defensively-biased 5-4-1 formation. With the U.S.A. Cup rapidly approaching, we want to know if we can find enough offense to run a 5-4-1 in the first couple of weeks of the cup and still have a decent chance at winning. So today’s match should prove to be valuable experimentation time.

Wingbacks William Brown and Christian Kvam will stay back to help out Mattias Leier on defense, but Zarpas Lerma and Keith Stubbs will push upfield in order to help out our midfielders. Jerry Smith will stay home in the midfield, acting as our primary possession player, but the other three in the middle of the field (Peralta, Brannon, Johnson) will all push up towards Jesper Gravesen. Hopefully, this will help to generate more opportunities for Jesper without sacrificing too much on our half of the pitch.

Time to go pick up the spokesladies and head down to The Docks.

Match Report

PRE-GAME

834 spectators arrived at The Docks, where weather conditions were pretty good for football. Screamin' had chosen a strategic 5-4-1 formation.

The following players had been chosen: Read - Brown, Lerma, Stubbs, Leier, Kvam - Peralta, Brannon, Smith, Johnson - Gravesen.

Bull tactics involved an interesting 4-5-1 combination. The following players had been chosen: Arenas Arnal - Sobok, Taylor, Zaldua, Lloyd - Jorden, Chaudhury, Ghenea, Troubat, Baker - Yngvesson.

FIRST HALF

Screamin' tried to break through in the middle repeatedly, but kept getting stuck on the visitors defenders.

Bull´s Guillermo Arenas Arnal refused to leave the field after injuring his achilles tendon in the 22nd minute.

Bull had several good opportunities to take the lead, especially in the 24:th minute when Gigel Ghenea came up alone against Darryl Read who managed a block.

0 - 0 was the half-time score. Screamin' held the ball, with a clear 54 percent possession rate.

SECOND HALF

A foul after 63 minutes resulted in a free kick. Jesper Gravesen cannonballed it, giving the hometeam the lead 1 to 0.

The referee showed Screamin's William Brown the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge.

Jerry Smith received some harsh words from his coach after he acted foolishly, probably out of lack of experience, in the 74:th minute and almost caused an opponent to score.

Mattias Leier should probably have put his team up another goal in the 74:th minute, but some great goaltending by Guillermo Arenas Arnal kept the visitors in the game.

Bull were close to putting the equaliser away in the 77:th minute as the opposing defence lost control of the ball in a scuffle in front of the goal, but in the end the ball was cleared over the sideline.

Screamin' put themselves up 2 - 0 when Jerry Smith broke through on the right, leaving the entire defensive box behind him.

The fortyfive minutes were dominated by Screamin', with an impressive 53 percent possession of the ball.

POST-GAME

Screamin'´s best player was William Brown. However, Brooks Brannon made a disastrous appearance.

Bull´s best player was Herbert Sobok. Anthony Jorden on the other hand, had a terrible day.

The match ends 2 - 0.

Final Score: Screamin’ Seamen 2, Bull Dogs 0

Goals
Gravesen – 1
Smith – 1

Cards
Brown (yellow)

Player Ratings

Read: **~

Brown: **~
Lerma: **
Leier: **
Stubbs: **
Kvam: **~

Peralta: **
Smith: **
Brannon: *~
Johnson: **

Gravesen: **

Team Ratings

Screamin’ Seamen
-Midfield: Poor (3)
-Right Defense: Formidable (9)
-Central Defense: Formidable (9)
-Left Defense: Outstanding (10)
-Right Attack: Poor (3)
-Central Attack: Poor (3)
-Left Attack: Weak (4)
-DKI/NSI: 44/47

Bull Dogs
-Midfield: Wretched (2)
-Right Defense: Passable (6)
-Central Defense: Passable (6)
-Left Defense: Passable (6)
-Right Attack: Wretched (2)
-Central Attack: Poor (3)
-Left Attack: Poor (3)
-DKI/NSI: 30/32

Comments

Eilim’s Bull Dogs showed some grit and toughness in the first half, staying with us. Were it not for a great save by Darryl Read, the Dogs would have gone into the break with a 1-0 lead. But we seemed to finally batter down their defenses in the second half. To their defense, though, there was precious little they could do about Jesper Gravesen’s cannonball that proved to be the game winner.

Despite the win, our little experiment has to be considered a failure. I was really hoping we could manage a little more offense, but it just doesn’t look like that is possible in the 5-4-1, at least not with the talent level we have currently. We’ll have to look at alternatives during our cup run next season.


Other News

We would like to welcome Masked’s Complex Spikes to the happy family of Screamin' Seamen supporters. The Spikes finished second in series V.249 this past season. Welcome!

Up Next: Training updates this evening. Stay tuned!

[Awakening]

hey...as for squeezing out offense...what about bailing on your right attack by moving your winger to middle infield and playing him offensively or toward wing...like this:

..............G

..RD RCD CD LCD LD

.....RCM CM LCM LW

....................LS

you can accomplish that by playing your right forward as an extra inner mid and your right winger as an extra center defender. that should definitely boost left side attack. then what you do is key your one good attack up to go against the side your opponent takes his defender from to play 3-5-2.

and, like i said, you can either play your 3rd inner toward your LW or offensive, depending on his skills (winger vs. passing).

[DataKing]

Thanks for the idea Awakening. I may give it a try in another friendly match. But what I was hoping for was a generally improved offense across the board, rather than a particularly strong one on only one side. With the addition of the 6th Division next season to the U.S., the first two cup matches will most likely be against computer teams, and these teams aren't likely to have a particular weakness to one side of the other. Or if they do, it will be difficult to tell which side that weakness is on in the first cup match (when they will not have participated in a match yet).

Looking back at the line-up, I probably should have run my wingbacks offensive as well, to go pretty much all-out and see what sort of offensive ratings I could really get.

All of this is to hopefully be able to run a 5-4-1 in a cup match or two, to give my defenders some additional training. Obviously, running a 3-5-2 in both cup and league matches will only allow me to train six (which means I may train winger instead, as most of my defensive trainees have the ability to play wingback).

[Awakening]

well, if you're looking for overall improved offense with only 1 striker, you need to work on your midfielders' passing. what kind of ratings do your middies and striker have for the passing skill?

i recently upgraded my inners to solid passing across the board and i've been getting great (solid and better) offensive ratings even with backup strikers. my wingers weren't even that good...both were passable wingers with weak passing (i just bought some new ones with the $ i got from selling my 17 year old formidable goalie, tho :P). granted, i play with 2 forwards, but passing is the key to offense!

[DataKing]

Brooks Brannon only has weak passing, and Jerry Smith's is only poor (the reason he was left playing 'normal'). Actually I'm in the process of acquiring an upgrade to midfield as we speak, and these guys are reserves anyways. One of the things I have been looking for is a good offensive (read: decent passing skill) midfielder. A couple of my starting middies have OK passing skills (inadequate and passable).

Brannon pretty much sucks, and will get his walking papers as soon as I finish the acquisition.

[DataKing]

Home-Grown and International Improvement Announced by SSFC

AP (Chicago): Data King, owner and general manager of the Screamin’ Seamen, announced earlier today that his club had made a valuable addition to their midfield. Midfielder Niklas Ivarsson was purchased from WKS Silver, a club from Poland’s Second Division. The price tag on the 25-year-old midfielder was said to be in the neighborhood of $150,000.

“We knew we had to make at least one purchase in the off-season, and wanted to get that taken care of as soon as possible,” stated King during a press conference to announce the purchase. “We looked very closely at about six different guys, but eventually settled on Niklas [Ivarsson]. He’s a solid midfielder who can move up on the attack when necessary, which is exactly what we were looking for. We’re certain than Niklas will help the club challenge for the series title again next season.”

King and other club officials also mentioned that defensive trainee Keith Stubbs had improved by leaps and bounds over the course of the season. “Keith finished the season very strong,” stated King. “He isn’t ready for the big time just yet, but has shown very rapid improvement, which we naturally like to see.” King would not comment on whether or not Stubbs would be challenging Chuck Scales for the club’s starting central defender position.

Niklas Larsson

Jersey Number: 8

25 years old, solid form, healthy.

A sympathetic guy who is tranquil and honest.
Has weak (4) experience and disastrous (1) leadership abilities.

Nationality: Swedish
Assessed Value: $152,000
Wage: $1,656/week

Stamina: Excellent (8)
Playmaking: Solid (7)
Winger: Weak (4)
Scoring: Poor (3)
Goaltending: Disastrous (1)
Passing: Inadequate (5)
Defending: Poor (3)
Set Pieces: Inadequate (5)

We landed Niklas for $153,000, which was quite a bit less than the $200,000-$300,000 that other comparable players were going for recently. He’s a good midfielder for us who should put up a steady three stars for us next season, and will be part of a four-player rotation in the midfield. Pete “The Old Goat” Tomlin and Charlie Bautista will return to the midfield as well, and we hope to get Jerry Smith some more playing time after some conditioning training in the off-season. Romanian midfielder Lucian Tere will move to a back-up role. All of this will allow me to get rid of Brooks Brannon, who I have been looking for an excuse to let go for some time now.

Week 14 Training Results

Only nine weeks after his last improvement, youth squad product Keith Stubbs improved his defensive abilities again this week. Two of our five defensive trainees now have solid (7) defending, while the other three are currently at passable (6).

Keith Stubbs

Jersey #20

18 years old, passable form, healthy.

A sympathetic guy who is temperamental and upright.
Has disastrous (1) experience and inadequate (5) leadership abilities.

Nationality: U.S.A.
Assessed Value: $39,000
Wage: $580/week

Stamina: Weak (4)
Playmaking: Weak (4)
Winger: Wretched (2)
Scoring: Weak (4)
Goaltending: Disastrous (1)
Passing: Wretched (2)
Defending: Solid (7)
Set Pieces: Wretched (2)

Keith came off of our youth squad back in January, and improved in defending after only one week. His assessed value has jumped from $17,000 to $39,000 in only ten weeks, and should start increasing at a more rapid pace now that he has solid defensive abilities. If we continue to train him, he could potentially replace Chuck Scales as our central defender in a couple of seasons.


Form Changes

Only one player improved in form this week (Pete “The Old Goat” Tomlin).
18 players saw their form remain the same.
3 players dropped a level in form this week.

Our general team form is definitely on the down-slide, although the effects aren’t as severe as they were last week. Hopefully things will level out before next season starts.

In The Zone

Defensive trainee Zarpas Lerma is the only player “in the zone” this week, with excellent (8) form. However, we do have seven players in solid (7) form.

Again, no “form dogs” this week, as no one is below inadequate (5) form.

Value

These values include our newest addition, Niklas Ivarsson.

Average player value: $108,652 (+$3,016)
Total Player Value (23): $2,499,000 (+$175,000)


Other News

The acquisition of Niklas Ivarsson means we can let Brooks Brannon go, which is something I have been looking to do for a while. Brooks is anything but exceptional, but his one saving grace is that he can be a mediocre back-up at three different positions (forward, inner midfielder, and defender), and could be a good addition for teams lacking in depth. We’ll take what we can get for him, though.

Brooks Brannon

Jersey #12

26 years old, inadequate form, healthy.

A pleasant guy who is temperamental and dishonest.
Has disastrous (1) experience and weak (4) leadership abilities.

Specialty: Technical

Nationality: U.S.A.
Assessed Value: $81,000
Wage: $1,070/week

Stamina: Solid (7)
Playmaking: Inadequate (5)
Winger: Wretched (2)
Scoring: Inadequate (5)
Goaltending: Wretched (2)
Passing: Weak (4)
Defending: Inadequate (5)
Set Pieces: Passable (6)

Listed As: Inner Midfielder
Asking Price: $1,000
Deadline: 3/24/2002 at 21:42 (Hattrick time)

Up Next: The weekly financial update on Saturday evening. Stay tuned!

[DataKing]

Weekly Financial Update

Youth Pull

For the second week in a row, our youth squad has failed to produce. Guido Uburti isn’t fit to wash the team’ cups. He’s coming soon to a Burger King near you.

Weekly Balance Sheet

Previous Balance: $571,865

Income

Crowd (friendly match vs. Bull Dogs) - $2,218
Sponsors - $62,250
Temporary (8 new supporters) - $240

Total Revenue: $64,708

Expenses

Arena Upkeep - $11,271
Player Wages - $24,854
Temporary (youth squad promotion of Vinnie Agee) - $2,000
Temporary (transfer listing of Brooks Brannon) - $1,000
Temporary (purchase of Niklas Ivarsson) - $153,000
Staff & Specialists - $33,000
Youth Squad Support - $20,000

Total Expenses: $245,125

Net Income/Loss: -$180,417

New Balance: $391,448

We have $300,000 slated for stadium expansion during the off-season. The other off-season move that we are looking at is a possible upgrade at winger. We also intend to keep around $100,000 in the kitty in case of emergency.

State of the Team

Team Spirit: Irritated (down 1 level from last week)
Team Confidence: Strong (down 1 level from last week)

Sponsor Attitude: High on Life (no change)
Supporter Attitude: Content (down 3 levels from last week)
Supporters: 1,315 (up 8 from last week)

The supporters didn’t like our end-of-season loss at all, and only eight new ones have seen fit to join up this week. They don’t seem to care that this was our first league-match loss EVER!

Up Next: A much-anticipated friendly match this week, as the Screamin’ Seamen face off against Raven Hawk’s Gargoyles for the first time ever. After that, we will close out the season and prepare for the next. Stay tuned!

[illinifan999]

I'm just at a loss. I can't figure out how you can only draw 834 spectators with good weather. With overcast skies I was able to draw 2024. I must be reading something wrong, or something!?

[DataKing]

Season 2 – Post Season – Friendly Match

Screamin’ Seamen vs. Gargoyles

Date: March 26th, 2003
Venue: The Docks (Chicago, IL)
Attendance: 633 (17,350)
Weather: Rain

We have one of our most highly-anticipated friendly matches to round out the season this week. We have the honor of playing host to Raven Hawk’s Gargoyles, as the two top teams in the FOFC Ratings will square off. Surprisingly enough, this is the first time that our two teams have met. This one should be interesting.

Formation: 3-5-2

Starters

Keeper: #13 Cornelius “Corny” Jernigan

Right Wingback: #22 Tyler Willard
Central Defender: #2 Chuck Scales
Left Wingback: #5 Arlen Lucas

Right Winger: #10 Olav Mauffret
Inner Midfielder: #8 Niklas Ivarsson
Inner Midfielder: #19 Jerry Smith
Inner Midfielder: #6 Charlie Bautista
Left Winger: #3 Ben McMahon

Forward: #15 Forrest “Gump” Tobias
Forward: #11 Johannes Henriksson

Team Captain: #11 Johannes Henriksson
Set Pieces: #11 Johannes Henriksson

Substitutes
-Keeper: #1 Darryl Read
-Defender: #23 William Brown
-Midfielder: #7 Lucian Tere
-Forward: #14 Jesper Gravesen
-Winger: #16 Otis Johnson

Because this is the off-season, we’ve decided to play our starters primarily. It’s is much more important to us to keep their form up, rather than the form of our reserves. This is the time of the year when the back-ups get precious little playing time. We did make two key changes to the line-up, however.

In order to save Pete “The Old Goat” Tomlin’s 32-year-old legs, we’re letting him sit, and will be starting Jerry Smith in the midfield instead. We’re looking to get Jerry as much playing time as possible, with the hopes that he will become a regular starter for us next season.

Today will also be newcomer Niklas Ivarsson’s debut for the club. We expect good things from Niklas. For the $153,000 that we paid for him, we’d better see good things.

Match Report

PRE-GAME

Due to an all-day shower, 633 paying spectators got to see a match on a pitch-turned-bog at The Docks.

Screamin' tactics involved an interesting 3-5-2 combination. Lineup: Jernigan - Willard, Scales, Lucas - Mauffret , Ivarsson, Bautista, Smith, Mcmahon - Henriksson, Tobias.

Gargoyles tactics involved an interesting 3-5-2 combination. They fielded: Kullenhult - Olesen, Dehlbratt, Payne - Holden, Newsom, Mccormick, Jackson, Ekmo - Salter, Dunn.

FIRST HALF

In the games 3rd minute Torben Olesen almost gave the visitors the lead, as he clipped a spectacular scissors shot just past the bar.

Neal Dunn of Gargoyles received a yellow card in the 6:th minute for unsportsmanlike behaviour.

Jerry Smith received some harsh words from his coach after he acted foolishly, probably out of lack of experience, in the 30:th minute and almost caused an opponent to score.

Screamin' tried to break through in the middle repeatedly, but kept getting stuck on the visitors defenders.

Screamin'´s Jerry Smith left the field after 32 minutes because of a nasty blow to the shin. His replacement was Lucian Tere.

The referee showed Gargoyless Tony Salter the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge.

Many thought Niklas Ivarsson ought to have been awarded a penalty shot in the 41st minute, as he went down trying to circle the visitors keeper Torbjörn Kullenhult.

Gargoyles had obvious problems in finding their positions.

Halftime score was 0 - 0. Screamin' held the ball, with a clear 55 percent possession rate.

SECOND HALF

Gargoyles -coach had an extra briefing during the break, and after that his players looked a lot more organized.

Gargoyles seemed to suffer a certain amount of confusion about the organization of the team.

The referee showed Gargoyless Carlton Payne the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge.

Gargoyles had several good opportunities to take the lead, especially in the 75:th minute when Tony Salter came up alone against Cornelius Jernigan who managed a block.

Gargoyles, bringing the final ball possession rate to 53 percent, dominated the battle.

POST-GAME

The most dominating Screamin' player was without a doubt Arlen Lucas. Lucian Tere was a disappointment, however.

Most important Gargoyles player was Neal Dunn. However, Carlton Payne made a disastrous appearance.

The match ends 0 - 0.

Final Score: Screamin’ Seamen 0, Gargoyles 0

Goals
None

Cards
None

Player Ratings

Jernigan: ***

Willard: ***
Scales: ***~
Lucas: ***~

Mauffret: **
Ivarsson: ***
Smith: *~ (injured)
Tere: ** (replaced Smith)
Bautista: **~
McMahon: **

Tobias: **
Henriksson: **

Team Ratings

Screamin’ Seamen
-Midfield: Inadequate (5)
-Right Defense: Brilliant (11)
-Central Defense: Outstanding (10)
-Left Defense: Outstanding (10)
-Right Attack: Inadequate (5)
-Central Attack: Passable (6)
-Left Attack: Inadequate (5)
-DKI/NSI: 57/62

Gargoyles
-Midfield: Inadequate (5)
-Right Defense: Excellent (8)
-Central Defense: Formidable (9)
-Left Defense: Formidable (9)
-Right Attack: Passable (6)
-Central Attack: Solid (7)
-Left Attack: Excellent (8)
-DKI/NSI:57/62

Comments

Talk about two evenly-matched teams! Our clubs played to a very hard-fought scoreless draw, and were also tied in both the DKI and NSI Ratings. I’ve got to give props to “Corny” Jernigan, whose great save with fifteen minutes to play kept the draw intact. Of course, this doesn’t answer the question; “Which team is truly better?” I guess Raven Hawk and I will have to face off again sometime to answer that.

Chuck Scales played extremely well, putting up his first ever 3 ½-star performance. Niklas Ivarsson’s debut was exactly what we expected (I intend to have words with the referee, for not awarding Niklas a penalty kick).

Jerry Smith’s injury had me worried, but it’s just a deep shin bruise, and he should be good to go in no time. Ah, the benefits of youth.

All around, a great defensive match. Many thanks to the Gargoyles for a game well-played.

Other News

Brooks Brannon was sold earlier this week for $12,000 to Professor58’s High Tops. $11,040 of that found its way into the club’s coffers.

We would like to welcome the following three clubs to the happy family of Screamin’ Seamen supporters:

Maniacal Misfitz (Owner: Havok12, Series V.253)
Reign (Owner: heavyreign, Series V.193)
Fighting Crawfish (Owner: The Afoci, Series V.77)

This brings our total number of supporting clubs to 22, making us 4th in the United States. Welcome!

Up Next: One more training update, then we will close out the season with our annual awards banquet. Stay tuned!

[DataKing]

Originally posted by illinifan999
I'm just at a loss. I can't figure out how you can only draw 834 spectators with good weather. With overcast skies I was able to draw 2024. I must be reading something wrong, or something!?

I think there are a number of factors that figure into the sort of crowd you get for a friendly match.

How big is your supporter club? Mine is currently at 1,323.
Is the match you are playing an international friendly?
Is the match being played cup rules or normal? Cup rules draws slightly bigger crowds.

I'm sure there are other factors as well.

[illinifan999]

I have 1016 supporters. It was an international friendly under normal rules. That must be it. That is it. Last home domestic friendly I drew 572. Havne't played a home domestic in a while. Usually just go for international. Don't know why I didn't think of that.

[DataKing]

Data King, owner and General Manager of the Screamin' Seamen Football Club, reclines in his office chair, dictating to his secretary. Suddenly, there is a terrible commotion from outside the office, and loud voices can be heard.

Data King lets out a deep sigh, adjusts his clothing, and stands.

"What in the hell is going on out here," DK shouts as he opens the door to his office. "I'm trying to..."

He stops his tyrade when he sees wingback-turned-winger Ben McMahon lying on the floor of the room, being restrained by two security guards. A third guard stands over McMahon.

"We're sorry for the intrusion sir. It seems that Mr. McMahon here is a bit....addled..."

The guards pick McMahon up off the floor, but King has a hard time recognizing him. Small cuts can be seen all over the man's body, and a wild look is in his eyes.

"CRAWFISH!" he screams. "CRAWFISH! They're coming to get me!"

The two guards escort the screaming Ben McMahon away, as the third looks to Data King for instructions.

"Take him to Belleview Mental Hospital. We have an understanding with them. Just make sure he's still available for matches."

"Yes sir," replies the guard, who marches off.

"Crawfish indeed," Data King sighs and shakes his head sadly. "Mental illness is such a terrible thing to witness."

[The Afoci]

Ah, its spreading, Ben got what he deserved trying to convert my players. Too bad the Crawfish with Laser Blasters instead of Claws weren't installed yet. Just remember after you are the U-20 coach to include some Fighting Crawfish or you may get a visit from "You better guard your daughters or they will be" Les "their" Cherry "s" Now it is time to return to the secret hide out to plot my world domination!

[DataKing]

Post-Season Training Results

It’s been nothing but wind-sprints and the like for your beloved Screamin’ Seamen this week, as we hope to get some of our younger players in similar shape to that displayed by our veterans.

Thirteen different players increased in stamina this week. Normally, one would expect more than that from a 22-man squad, but seven of our players were already in excellent (8) form.

Unfortunately, the one guy that we really wanted to see improve, midfielder Jerry Smith, did not. The knock that he took in our friendly match on Wednesday proved worse than initially anticipated, and Jerry was unable to participate much in practice.

Form Changes

3 players improved a level in form.
11 players saw their form remain the same.
8 players dropped a level in form (including 6 starters! ).

Ouch. Six of our starters dropped form this week, which makes this the most expensive week of stamina training I have ever witnessed. I would have liked to have gone another week, but the form of our starters is a disturbing trend that needs to be rectified.

We open next season with a rematch against Ramblers (who lost their qualification match), and we’re going to need our guys to be in decent form if we’re going to win. Because of that, I’ve decided to revert to some general training next week, concentrating on our starters. This is something that I very rarely do, but the form of our starters is severely lacking. I hate to do it, but I feel like I have to.

In the Zone

None of our players are “in the zone” at the moment, but we have two that qualify as “form dogs.” Wingback Tyler Willard and winger Ben McMahon (poor bastard) are both in weak (4) form. I sincerely hope that these guys rebound in the coming week, before the next season begins.

Value

Average Player Value: $111,636 (+$2,984)
Total Player Value (22): $2,456,000 (-$43,000)

Up Next: After the weekly financial update Saturday, we’ll be closing out the season and preparing for the next. We’re still scouring the transfer market for a bargain as well. Stay tuned!

[illinifan999]

I actually had players forms increase after stamina training. Weird......Only one player dropped, and he was a back-up B teamer.

[FrogMan]

Originally posted by illinifan999
I actually had players forms increase after stamina training. Weird......Only one player dropped, and he was a back-up B teamer.

Same for me, three players increased both their stamina AND form. I've also experienced 11 players that dropped in form though...

FrogMan

[DataKing]

Screamin’ Seamen Youth Squad Re-Stocked, Produces More Defensive Talent

(AP – Chicago): After a rather lackluster performance towards the end of the season, the youth squad of the Screamin’ Seamen Football Club seems to have re-stocked for the upcoming Season 19 campaign. The same youth squad that has produced such fine talent as Keith Stubbs (B-team), Hyman Morey (traded to Middlesex Athletic), and Millard Meadows (sold), has struck defensive gold yet again.

The club announced earlier today that 18 year old Cameron McDonald has been promoted to the club’s B-team. Cameron could be the best pure defensive talent to come off of the club’s youth program so far, and is said to already rival William Brown in defensive abilities. An anonymous source within the SSFC organization stated that, with a bit of training and maturity, McDonald could very well challenge Chuck Scales for the club’s starting central defender position.

When asked if the promotion of McDonald would mean that another SSFC defender would be made eligible for transfer, team officials refused to comment.

Cameron McDonald

18 years old, passable (6) form, healthy.

A pleasant guy who is temperamental and honest.
Has disastrous (1) experience and wretched (2) leadership abilities.

Specialty: Head

Nationality: U.S.A.
Assessed Value: $100,000
Wage: $1,000/week

Stamina: Weak (4)
Playmaking: Weak (4)
Winger: Poor (3)
Scoring: Weak (4)
Goaltending: Disastrous (1)
Passing: Weak (4)
Defending: Solid (7)
Set Pieces: Poor (3)

While not exactly the 17 year old excellent lottery pull everyone is hoping for this week, I’m certainly happy with Cameron. I’m especially happy with his assessed value of $100,000. That leads me to believe that Cameron is actually close to an excellent (8) defensive rating. It looks like we’ve found the heir-apparent to Chuck Scales’ central defender position.

Weekly Balance Sheet

Previous Balance: $391,448

Revenue

Crowd (friendly match vs. Gargoyles) - $1,729
Sponsors - $62,550
Temporary (annual supporter dues) - $39,450
Temporary (2nd place prize money) - $75,000
Temporary (8 new supporters) - $240
Temporary (sale of Brooks Brannon) - $11,040
Temporary (mother club money) - $420

Total Revenue: $190,429

Expenses

Arena Upkeep - $11,271
Player Wages - $26,510
Temporary (youth squad promotion of “what was his name again?”) - $2,000
Staff & Specialists - $33,000
Youth Squad Support - $20,000

Total Expenses: $92,781

Net Income/Loss: $97,648

New Balance: $489,096

Expect to see most of this money disappear within the next week or so, as we try to shore up our winger situation and break ground on the new-and-improved Docks.

State of the Team

Please note that all ratings have reset, due to the off-season.

Team Spirit: Composed
Team Confidence: Strong

Sponsor Attitude: Satisfied
Supporter Attitude: Calm
Supporter Club: 1,323 (up 8 from last week)

Up Next: The season’s end awards banquet, and perhaps another transfer market deal or two. Stay tuned!

[daedalus]

Wow @ 100 000 value.

[DataKing]

Originally posted by daedalus
Wow @ 100 000 value.

Yes, I am quite pleased. That $100,000 value is what leads me to believe that he is "high-solid." We'll find out whether or not I am right when I start training defense again.

[daedalus]

That (popping to excellent) would be nice. Especially with a [Head] specialty. Hope you keep an eye on the value, it'll be interesting to see.

[Alf]

lucky guy ! How is your Youth Squad ? Passable ? Solid ?

[DataKing]

Originally posted by Alf
lucky guy ! How is your Youth Squad ? Passable ? Solid ?

Youth squad is excellent, and has been for about a half a season now.

[Coffee Warlord]

BTW DK, nice writeup on the Q&A session for the U20 race.

[robbgmaier]

would you mind posting your U-20 write up here?

[daedalus]

Here be DK's answers. I'm posting because I want to read it but I have a tough time reading in the conference and in case other folks want to read it for reference.

Let me know if this clutters up your dynasty too much and want me to delete this post, DK.

1. Why do you want to be the US U-20 coach?

The national teams are one of my favorite aspects of Hattrick, and I have been following them pretty closely ever since I first started playing. I love the fact that the game is able to simulate the real World Cups that exist in soccer, where each country takes the “best of their best” and plays them against the others (even if the Swedes keep winning everything).

I think it would be an enjoyable challenge, as well as a good deal of fun, to follow in the footsteps of Indy and Apoc and try to improve upon the fantastic groundwork which they have laid. I want to do my part to keep the U.S. as one of the premier leagues in the game, as well as try to improve our international standing even more than it already has been.

2. Tell us about your most notable HT accomplishment (teamwise or otherwise)

As many of you know, I have just completed my second season in Hattrick. I think my most notable accomplishment is the track record that my team has shown within those two seasons. I won automatic promotion out of Division V with a record of 13 wins and 1 draw. In Division IV this past season, I had a record of 11 wins and 2 draws going into the last week of the season. That last match was a 1-0 loss for my club, where a 1-1 draw would have earned us a series title and a qualification match. A win in that match would have given us automatic promotion to Division III. This was my first ever league match loss.

It is true that there is a lower higher percentage of inactive and semi-inactive teams in the lower leagues than there is in Division III and higher, but my team had its fair share of difficult matches along the way. In some of those matches, my club had a lower talent level than the opposition, yet we still managed to find a way to win or draw. I should also point out that this was accomplished without the “star player” and bigger stadium that some of the older teams out there began with.

3a. If a US team requested you not play their player for a US team friendly, what would you do?

I would try to convince the team owner to re-consider, but if they remain steadfast, then I would honor their decision.

3b. What if it was a Swedish coach?

No different.

3c. What if it was a US coach asking you to rest his US player for the World Cup final?

Assuming that the player would be a starter for the World Cup final, I would play him, no matter what the team owner asked. Friendly matches are one thing, but the Cup final is a different matter entirely. I will put the best team possible out on the field, and will do my best to help the team owner understand the reason for my decision.

3d. What if it was a Swedish coach asking you to rest his US player during the World Cup final?

4. A U-20 player gets hurt for 4 weeks. The player’s owner asks you to PERMANENTLY remove him from the U-20 team. The player is your best midfielder. What do you do?

Hmmm…good one Billy. I think it would depend on both the timing of the injury as well as the available alternatives. If the World Cup was starting in just a few weeks, then I would be very hesitant to honor the request of the owner. However, if it was early in the “U-20 Season”, if you will, then I would be more inclined to honor the request, as there would be a great deal of time available to find an alternative.

The alternatives available would also play into the decision, naturally. If there was another player available who had very close skill levels to the player in question, then I would be more likely to honor the request. If the player was, bar none, the best American U-20 midfielder, then I would be unlikely to do so.

5a. If a US team bought a U-20 player and stopped training him in his main area, what would you do? (ie. A team bought a 19 year old world class striker, but is training playmaking). If he was the best US player in that position, would the player stay on the team?

Obviously, I would try to convince the player’s new owner to re-think their decision, and either start training the player or re-sell him. If they were unwilling to train, I would try to convince them that they can get “more bang for their buck” by re-selling the player and buying an alternative, but older player, for less money.

Again, timing would decide whether or not the player remained on the team. If there was an alternative that would meet or pass that player’s skill level by the time the U-20 Cup rolled around, then the player would be removed from the club, or possibly kept on board as an alternate. But if the Cup was right around the corner, there would be little choice in the matter. Whatever decision was made, it would need to be made quickly, in order to get an alternative player (if necessary) as much experience as possible before the start of the U-20 Cup.

5b. Same question, but a Swedish club team.

No difference, although appeals to national pride and such naturally would not work with a Swedish owner in this case.

6. What are your feelings on formations? Would you plan on running a 3-5-2, experiment with different things, or have some other views on the nature of basic formations?

In my opinion, the 3-5-2 remains the overall strongest formation in Hattrick, and there are a number of ways to run it. Offensive wingers, pinching wingers (towards the middle), symmetrical and asymmetrical defenses, etc. 3-5-2 would remain the staple, but in group play I think there is the possibility of running a 3-4-3, against a team with a weaker midfield and when goal differential can come into play. This would be the exception, rather than the norm, however. I do not feel that U-20 players have enough experience, generally, to run “unorthodox” formations without the danger of confusion out-weighing any possible benefits.

7. Who do you view as the US’s biggest rival in HT? Why?

The first thing that comes to mind is Sweden, naturally, but they’re the “big dog” that everyone is trying to take down. I think that the other two teams from this year’s quarterfinals, England and Denmark, are significant rivals for the U.S. Both have significant Hattrick populations, and should remain U-20 contenders.
The other nation that has to be mentioned is Canada. But I see that as more of a friendly rivalry than anything else.

8. Is winning the HT World Cup a realistic goal? If not, what is? Either way, how do you plan to accomplish this goal?

I have never been one to set unreasonable goals, and I do not think that winning the U-20 World Cup is realistic. It would be a nice surprise, but would not be an expectation of mine for whoever wins the election. Sweden’s massive population within the game means that they are practically guaranteed numerous 17 year old excellent pulls every time a “lottery pull” like this weekend comes around. Without a significant amount of luck, the U.S. cannot hope to have as many 1st-week 17 year old excellent players.

That being said, I think what is a realistic goal is taking the next step for the U.S., which would be to reach the finals. Using the current U-20 Cup as an example, both England and Denmark look “beatable,” and reaching the finals would be my goal. No small task, to say the least.

9. What are your long term goals for your OWN club? How do you plan on accomplishing this?

I imagine my long-term goals are the same as for most clubs; to get to the Major League and to win a ML title. It may take five years to accomplish that, but so be it.

To accomplish this, I have established what I feel is a pretty solid training program, as well as fiscal responsibility with my club. I do not allow me team to go into debt, and I keep the long-term future of the club in mind. I am not keyed on “immediate success.”

I like to think of myself as a “plugger.” I keep plugging away at my club, using my training program, the transfer market, and smart tactics to make my team as competitive as possible. Eventually, I’ll get there.

That’s what I love most about Hattrick. It never ends. In theory, I could play the game for 20 years, and still be running the Screamin’ Seamen.

10a. As a “public figure” in US HT, the U-20 coach can expect to receive a large amount of HT mails, many of which aren’t remotely relevant to your job. How will you handle this?

As far as the time commitment goes, I have plenty of that. No wife, no kids, no serious constraints on my free time aside from a job and friends.

10b. How about emails from newbies asking for advice, or about basic questions?

I answer a lot of questions about Hattrick on the FOFC board, and would continue to do so. If I saw that the player was relatively new to the game, I would refer them to the rules as well. It is very likely that they would find answers there to questions that they hadn’t even thought of yet.

11. What are your views on wings, specifically “well-rounded” wings (good wing, good playmaking) versus “pure” wings (great wing, mediocre playmaking)?

The ideal situation would be to have some of both. If some help for the midfield were necessary in a match, then I would want to play a pair of “well-rounded” wings, but if the midfield could hold its own against the opposition, then the “pure” wings would be preferential. If I had to choose between the two, I would prefer “well-rounded” wings. Even better, I think, would be to have one of each.

12a. During the first week of the season, a coach pulled a 17 year old excellent playmaker. You find out he’s training playmaking, but only has an inadequate coach. What do you do?

If a team only has an inadequate coach, than they are most likely a new team. I would explain to the owner that by selling the player (presumably to a team with a good staff that is training playmaking), they will make a significant amount of money which they can use towards improving their entire team, as well as putting a good training program together.

12b. Same question, but he has a solid coach and is NOT training playmaking. However, it’s his best midfielder by far and he doesn’t plan on selling him.

This really amounts to about the same situation. The financial benefits of selling such a player would be huge to any team where an excellent playmaker could be a starter.

13. Many teams don’t have solid coaches and/or a lot of assistants. How important do you think this is to the U-20 team and what do you propose doing about it?

I would be the last person in the world to preach fiscal irresponsibility to a team owner, just to benefit a single player. I would suggest to such an owner that they sell the potential U-20 player they have in their possession. Given the large price of such players, the buyer would almost certainly be a well-established team with the means to train the player properly. The original owner, in turn, can use that money to improve their club, as well as afford the high-end coach and numerous assistants necessary for a good training program. The next time that owner gets a high-end youth pull, they will be equipped to train the player properly.

14. Many teams don’t put the max. 20k into their youth squads a week. How important is this to the U-20 team and what do you propose doing about it?

I think that owners putting 20k into their youth squad is very important, not only to the U-20 team but for their own club as well. Whenever I am asked for advice from a new player (which happens frequently on the FOFC board), I always recommend a 20k investment from day one, and will continue to do so. The investment is a big one at first for a new team, but the long-term rewards will generally pay for the initial investment and then some.

15. Unless you’re KC Wizards, there’s teams (in some cases, MANY teams) that are better than your own. Explain your views on upper level versus lower levels (versus your own team) as far as experience/playing time/success compared to managing.

Obviously I do not have the amount of playing time and experience that some of the other candidates have, and I suspect that this is where I will fall short in some people’s eyes. What I can say is that I have become quite a “student of the game,” if you will, since I began my Hattrick career, and I have learned a great deal about the game and its mechanics. The success that I have had with my club thus far, due in large part to the tactics that I have employed, speaks for itself. My club was unbeaten in its first 27 league matches (24 wins, 3 draws), and our first loss did not come until the very last match of this past season.

The “lower levels,” which I guess I represent, are becoming more competitive with each new team that signs up. The skill levels may be different (solid/excellent versus world-class/supernatural or whatever the case may be), but the desired effect is the same; find a way to beat your opponent. In two short seasons, I feel I have become quite good at scouting out the opposition, identifying tendencies, and then placing my own players in the best possible position to take advantage of the opponent’s weaknesses, while minimizing their own.

16. You have a personal emergency and will not be able to be online for a week. What do you do?

A very unlikely scenario for me, since I have a laptop and remote access. But, if I were in a situation where it would be impossible for me to go online for a week, I would do all that I could prior to leaving to set the team up as best I could during my absence (scheduling a match and submitting a line-up if possible). I would then ask one of the previous U-20 or National team coaches to “hold down the fort” during my absence. They are the only ones with experience running a national team, and would be the likely candidates to take care of things during the absence. I would also send a message to all U-20 team owners and post to the conference informing everyone of the absence, so there were no surprises.

17. What is more important: the US U-20 team winning or you helping other owners or having fun or something else? Explain.

Having the U-20 team enjoy as much success as possible is, in my mind, the most important thing for the U-20 Trainer. The whole point is to put together the best team possible, and give all of the American Hattrick players something to take pride in.

That being said, I think that having fun goes hand-in-hand with this. What’s the point in playing a game if you aren’t having fun?

The way that I make games more entertaining for myself (and for others as well, I hope), is what are called “Dynasty Reports,” which a number of people post on the FOFC board. I have one there that is based on the Screamin’ Seamen, where I detail the exploits of my club, and occasionally write little articles and side-stories to make things more entertaining. If I were elected U-20 coach, I would certainly continue with this, either working it into my pre-existing dynasty report, or starting a separate one just for the U-20 team. I think this sort of thing makes the game itself a lot more fun, and more immersive.

18. The US is being passed by other countries in amount of users. Do you view this as a major problem, and what do you plan on doing about it?

The existing and growing disparity between the number of active users in different countries is naturally a concern. More team owners means more youth pulls, which in turn means more U-20 and National team candidates.

I like to think that I have already done a small part to help recruit new team owners for the United States. The dynasty report that I mentioned earlier, along with the dynasty reports of others, have acted as a good recruiting tool within the FOFC community, and we have had a number of members start new teams. (I think we’re approaching 100 teams within the FOFC community).

Pre-existing online communities are, in my opinion, the best way to go about finding new players for Hattrick, especially those (like FOFC) that are based around test-based simulation games. These are people who already have an affinity for this sort of game, and it is natural that some of them would enjoy Hattrick as much as we all do.

19. What are your views on daytrading?

Personally, I do not like daytrading. I never have day-traded, and I never will. To my mind, it goes against the “spirit” of the game, even though it is not expressly prohibited within the rules, and would be rather difficult to enforce even if it were.
I tend to look down on day-traders personally, but I prefer to keep my opinions to myself on the matter. For me, it is that much more satisfying when I beat a day-trading club with my “honest” team.

20. No one likes a loser, and not everyone wins all the time. How do you handle criticism?

Constructive criticism is a good thing. No matter how good a manager someone is, mistakes and errors in judgment will be made, and a hundred minds are better than one. Constructive criticism often leads to new ideas, and can only serve to make the manager, and therefore the U-20 team, stronger.

Negative criticism, on the other hand, is something I do my best to ignore. It does not add anything to the situation, and usually comes from someone feeling the need to “vent,” or just plain mean-spiritedness. Neither adds anything to the situation, and is best ignored.

21. A potential long-term problem for US national and US U-20 teams is teams selling their young stars and teams buying them not training them (for example, a team might sell their 19 world class keeper. A team buying him might buy him because he’s a super keeper, and not plan on training him further). How would you plan on dealing with this problem?

I think this was at least partially touched on earlier, but I think I can add something here. I would hope (through a dynasty report, regular posts on the conference, or any other means) to create a more immersive atmosphere surrounding the U-20 team. This would hopefully lead to owners being more hesitant to sell their young stars, and more pride in having a U-20 player on one’s team.

In the end, though, whether or not to buy and/or train a player rests with the team owner and no one else. I would hope to help make the problem a smaller one, but I think it is something that will never go away completely.

22. All-out coach or defensive coach? Why?

I think that an all-out coach is preferable to a defensive one, but the difference is not as great as some people might think. I have a defensive coach on my team, but I have yet to have it “bite me in the butt” like some people have mentioned. I think where it makes the most difference is in group play, where goal differential can make a difference. Whatever sort of coach you have, you want to play to his strength. My defensive coach is a part of the reason I decided to train defenders with my own team. Give the coach the best possible talent to take advantage of his strength. By the same token, if you have an all-out coach, then playing an offensive game is important.

23a. How important do you view the passing attribute? Would you prefer a midfielder with one level less playmaking, but two levels more passing than another?

This is very similar to the winger question earlier, and my answer is pretty much the same. The ideal situation would be to have both types of players available. If the opposition has a midfield advantage, then higher playmaking ability would be more desirable. But if the team already has a midfield advantage, passing would be more desirable to spur the offense. If I had to choose one, I would rather have the player with the higher midfield rating. Without ball possession, the offense will not have that many opportunities, and your defense will be tested that much more.

23b. Same question, but this time, a striker. World class scoring/excellent passing or titanic scoring/passable passing?

I would rather have the titanic scoring/passable passing player. Passing has some effect on a striker’s ability, but I don’t believe that it is at a 2:1 ratio.

24. Do you use any external programs (HAM, etc) to help you with your current team? Which, and how?

I do not use HAM or any of the other “out of the box” programs available to help manage my team. I have never been a fan of these sorts of programs, because they never seem to do exactly what I want them to do.

Instead, I have a (rather large) excel spreadsheet that I use to track my players progress, team ratings, and all the rest. I prefer this sort of thing, because I can set it up exactly how I want it set up. Also, I find that entering the necessary information manually means that I pay closer attention to my players’ progress.

25. How important is form to you? At what point would you bench a “better” player than a worse one, due to form. (Let’s say, you have a titanic striker and a world class striker. How much worse form would it have to be for you to use the world class one)?

This gets a little tricky. My general rule of thumb is that (very roughly) two levels of form equals a level of skill, but that is variable. What I mean by variable, is that it depends on “how titanic” or “how world-class” a players skill is. A titanic striker who has received six weeks of training since going “titanic” will have a lot more “form leeway” over a striker who just “popped” to supernatural last week.

26. What are your views on player specialties, and how do you view them in the context of the U-20 team?

Player specialties are definitely something to consider when selecting the players for a match. Obviously, if we’re playing in the rain, and two players (one technical and one powerful) are of roughly the same skill level and form, I’m going to play the powerful player.

The one specialty that I will pay particular attention to is Head. I have found that a head specialist and a good set-pieces player can be a lethal combination. I am particularly fond of having a head-specialist defender. Not only do these players score some header goals off of corner kicks, but they also lower the likelihood of the opposition scoring a header goal against the team. I have a head-specialist wingback on my team, and I have had great success with him.

27. What are your views on secondary skills? (Ie. a midfielder’s passing or D; other skills for a defender besides D, etc)

I think we’ve pretty much covered the wingers and midfielders in previous questions. As far as central defenders go, while some playmaking ability would be a nice bonus, it is not a major concern for me. Obviously, if two players are identical except that one has better playmaking ability, then I will choose that player, but it is not a big concern. Central defenders are there to sweep.

For wingbacks, I look for defending and winger ability at a ratio of about 3:2. Also, I prefer defenders with at least inadequate stamina. Below that and you run the risk of the “tired defender” event goal.

28. How can Hattrick be improved?

Oh boy. I could probably write ten pages on this, but I don’t think you folks would want to read all of that.

As far as the match engine goes, I am pretty happy with the way it works, but there are two things that I would like to see. First, I would like to see midfield made a little less important for match results. Yes, the midfield is an important part of the real game of soccer, but I feel that it is a little over-powered (though not to the extent that some seem to think).

The other thing that I would like to see happen to the engine is for there to be less scoring. I would prefer for the scores to be a bit more realistic. You hardly ever see 5-4 matches in the EPL and other professional leagues, yet these sorts of matches seem to be rampant in the Hattrick engine. For me, it takes a way a bit of the realism when the final score of a match is 8-0.

Outside of the match engine, I think there are a number of things that could add to the “immersion factor” of the game. Things like official cups (set up a cup, have teams sign up for it, and then the engine schedules those matches in lieu of friendly matches) along with medals and trophies, more player statistics, more options for kit design, having the team logos displayed in the match report, and a place for short player biographies. The word limit on press releases and HT-mails is a personal pet peeve of mine, as I am always having to shorten what I write. As you’ve probably guessed by now, I can be rather long-winded.

But the single easiest way to make Hattrick better is to get more people involved. More team owners mean more participation, which means more fun for all.

29. What are your views on how a U-20 coach should (and shouldn’t) communicate with all US users?

I think that the U-20 coach should communicate general information regarding the team on a regular basis. By “general information,” I mean information that could be found out by anyone who cared to go and look for it anyhow (roster decisions, team spirit, that sort of thing). What should not be communicated, at least prior to 15 minutes before match time, is specifics regarding tactics that will be used, and the line-up. I have seen coaches post this sort of thing prior to match-time before, and I have been irked by it. What is to stop the opposition coach from looking at this information, seeing the lineup and tactics that they will be facing, and adjusting their line-up accordingly?

30. How would you work together with the national coach?

It is important for the U-20 and National Coaches to work closely together, for a couple of reasons. First and most obvious, is that the U-20 team is really a “training ground” for future National Team players, so it is important for the U-20 coach to keep the National coach up-to-date as far as player training and performance.

There are also some situations where a player is good enough to play for both the U-20 and the National team (Jude Sutherland anyone?). The U-20 and National team coach need to work together to determine who gets priority over these players at different times. Obviously, a player like Jude, as the best American keeper in the game, needs to be made available for whichever team needs him the most at the moment. I believe that it is the responsibility of the U-20 coach to keep the player’s owner informed as to these decisions.

31. Uh, anything else?

I would like to say that I hold the opposition in the highest esteem, and am honored that I am considered (at least by some) as a viable candidate for the U-20 coaching position. I am sure that whoever is elected will do a fine job in keeping the U.S.A. as one of the premier national teams in Hattrick, despite our numerical inferiority to some other nations.

I would also like to ask something of everyone who reads this. I urge you all to vote, even if it is for one of the other candidates. The percentage of those who vote, compared to the active U.S. population in previous elections has been rather disappointing. Urge the other teams in your series’ and federations to vote as well. I would really like to see a record turn-out for this election.

And remember, if you don’t vote, you don’t have the right to complain when you don’t like the results.

Thank you.

Edit: To format. Ow.

[Barkeep49]

I'm excited to be voting for you .

[robbgmaier]

Good job DK, I'll be sure to cast a ballot for you.

[DataKing]

Thanks for the support guys. I appreciate it.

I don't think I'll actually win, but it will be nice to show that the FOFC has assumed a strong voice in Hattrick.

Honestly, the most important thing for me, personally, is that people vote, even if it isn't for me. The turnout in some of the past elections has been quite poor (maybe even wretched ) IMHO.

[illinifan999]

I don't know, you might have a chance if everyone in FOFC votes for you.

[daedalus]

A decent chunk of FOFC is non-US so that'll hurt The Effort some. But, heck, it doesn't hurt and it'll be fun. On the other hand, I liked the answers (finally finish reading - DANG, that was long). Learned stuff, too - which I dig.

[DataKing]

Season End and Player Awards Banquet

The Screamin’ Seamen held their annual Season End and Player Awards Banquet this past weekend. After showing a number of highlights for what has to be considered a successful season, a number of short speeches were given my team owner Data King, Pete “The Old Goat” Tomlin, team captain Johannes Henriksson, and others.

Data King then announced the winners for the five annual awards SSFC gives to its players.

Best Defenseman – #5 Arlen Lucas

1st Season Winner - #3 Ben McMahon

Although the team has a plethora of defensive talent at its disposal, Arlen Lucas was still a no-brainer for the Best Defenseman award. He scored three goals on headers this season for SSFC, and more importantly, he regularly shut down opposing forwards and wingers on his side of the field. Arlen was also a dominant force in the defensive box, and (if memory serves) the club only allowed one header goal all season. Arlen was awarded seven Team Match MVP awards in competitive matches.

Best Midfielder - #6 Charlie Bautista

1st Season Winner - #4 Pete Tomlin

Charlie scored four goals in sixteen appearances this season (14 league and 2 cup matches), and was regularly the most dominant midfielder for the club. Charlie also tallied the game-tying goal in our 2-2 draw with Ramblers back in week four.

Best Forward - #11 Johannes Henriksson

1st Season Winner - #11 Johannes Henriksson

The only repeat winner from last season, our team captain had another great year, scoring 17 goals in 16 appearances, including 5 game-winning goals. Forrest “Gump” Tobias was not far behind, though, tallying 16 goals in 14 appearances with 4 game winning-goals, including a most memorable performance against Gazzaly FC late in the season. There is definitely some friendly competition between these two, and they’ll be duking it out yet again next season for the Best Forward award.

Most Improved Player - #20 Keith Stubbs

1st Season Winner – Max Dodge (sold)

Keith Stubbs was promoted from our youth squad back in January, and has shown remarkable improvement over the course of the season. He has yet to appear in a competitive match, but has performed quite well in the 10 friendly matches he has participated in, including scoring a game-winning goal against Cedar Pond Horned Toads in the FOFC Cup.

Last season’s winner, Max Dodge, proved to be a great disappointment for the club. We can only hope that the Most Improved Player award does not prove to be some sort of “kiss of death” for the player so honored.

Most Valuable Player - #5 Arlen Lucas

1st Season Winner - #3 Ben McMahon

The competition for the team’s MVP award was especially fierce between Arlen Lucas and “Corny” Jernigan, but Arlen won out in the end. Jernigan’s play tapered off a bit late in the season, but Arlen finished strong, and takes home double honors this season.

Congratulations to the winners and all of our players on a job well done this season.

Other News

We have made a second roster move during this off-season, improving our talent level on the wing. We were in negotiations with four different clubs over the past week or so, but Saturday we settled on Argentinean winger Valentin Rubio. Valentin comes to us from Los Mediocres, a club in Argentina’s 5th Division, for a total of $74,000.

Valentin Rubio

Jersey # 9

29 years old, solid (7) form, healthy.

A sympathetic guy who is temperamental and dishonest.
Has poor (3) experience and poor (3) leadership abilities.

Specialty: Head

Nationality: Argentinean
Assessed Value: $108,000
Wage: $1,512/week

Stamina: Excellent (8)
Playmaking: Inadequate (5)
Winger: Passable (6)
Scoring: Weak (4)
Goaltending: Disastrous (1)
Passing: Passable (6)
Defending: Poor (3)
Set Pieces: Poor (3)

While a bit older, Valentin is a definite improvement for us on the wing. He is a much needed offensive-winger threat that we have been lacking, and I believe his ratings are high-passable, as he is capable of regularly putting up 3* performances. He should be an immediate starter for the club.

The additions of youth pull phenom Cameron McDonald and veteran winger Valentin Rubio means that a pair of Seamen will be finding their way to the transfer market soon. Signs right now are pointing to substitute winger Otis Johnson and wingback William Brown being placed on the transfer wire, but no official decision has been made yet.

End of Season

I would like to thank you all for following along with the Screamin’ Seamen. At this point, I am ending Season 18 and will be starting a new thread for Season 19. We will start with a roster overview, and I hope to add some faces to all of the names you have seen here.

Thanks for reading!

[jkincaid]

I saw a reference to your dynasty report on the Hattrick conferences and thought I stop by to check it out. A very interesting read although a bit long from start to finish I knew the way the story went from following you teams progress the last two seasons but the background you provided was quite enjoyable keep up the great work I'll be comming back to check up on it as season 19 progresses. Best of luck Screamin Seamen!!

[vex]

You might go and put your election speech up on the election page.

[DataKing]

Thanks vex. I've been meaning to do that, but it seems like every time I've tried to get to Hattrick over the past couple of days, there have been technical problems.

Hopefully I will get the thing up today.

[Coffee Warlord]

*waves to jkinkaid*

Yep, it's begun. We're importing Hattrick users to FOFC now. Muah.

[DataKing]

I've started a new thread for the team's third season. You can find it here