Home Nations Clock Challenge

Home Nations Clock Challenge

This is a points based challenge, you do not have to complete every part of it, but the more parts you complete the higher up the final table you will be.

Leagues Required

England (Blue Square North/South)

Ireland (First Division)

Northern Ireland (Second Division)

Scotland (Third Division)

Wales (Premier League)

You may load other leagues if you wish, but any time spent in them will not earn you points from the challenge.

Rules

You must start in either Ireland or Northern Ireland, and pick any club from the bottom division. You must stay with that club until you have either a) Won the domestic title or b) are sacked. When you move club, you may only move clockwise or anticlockwise around the British Isles.

So, far example;

If you start in Ireland, you could move Clockwise to Northern Ireland, or AntiClockwise to Wales.

Clockwise the sequence goes Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales

AntiClockwise the sequence goes Ireland, Wales, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland

When you have won the domestic titles of 4 out of 5 nations, the movement restrictions are lifted.

You may manage the national team of any nation that you have won the league title in.

Past Experience must be set to Automatic. Everything else is up to you.

Please post a report of each season in the thread if you participate.

Points

1st Domestic Title of any country (10 points)

All subsequent titles of that country (5 points)

Bonus for winning all five domestic titles (25 points)

Divisional Title (5 points)

Promotion (3 points)

Domestic Cups (5 points)

European Points

Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland:

Champions League Group Stage (10 points)

Champions League Winner (30 points)

Europa League Group Stage (5 points)

Europa League Winner (15 points)

Scotland:

Champions League Winner (25 points)

Europa League Winner (10 points)

England:

Champions League Winner (20 points)

Europa League Winner (5 points)

All:

World Club Championship (30 points)

National Team Points

Northern Ireland and Wales:

European Championships: Qualify (5 points), Win (15 points)

World Cup: Qualify (10 points), Win (30 points)

All other trophies (5 points)

Ireland and Scotland:

European Championships: Qualify (3 points), Win (10 points)

World Cup: Qualify (6 points), Win (25 points)

England:

European Championships: Win (10 points)

World Cup: Win (25 points)

League Table

1st - Martin_ - 5pts Longford Town (2009-Present. Honours: Irish First Division)

I have started as Longford Town in the Irish First Division, they are predicted to come 6th and in their long history have never won the Irish League title. Squad looks fairly cack but I've got two months before the season kicks off (January 2009 currently), so hopefully I should be able to get some decent free transfers in. Wish me luck!

For a greater challenge you can even do it by regions. For example, in England, start in the north east then move downwards then back up to the north west again.

For a greater challenge you can even do it by regions. For example, in England, start in the north east then move downwards then back up to the north west again.

Lol I think it would be a nightmare waiting for the right job to come along!

Lol I think it would be a nightmare waiting for the right job to come along!

Yeah, but that adds to the challenge doesn't it?

Like, an advanced level.

Season Report 2009 - Longford Town

A funny season. I brought in 8 new faces at the start of the campaign and was quietly confident of a playoff spot. We were top briefly early on but faded away to mid table, before a solid run midseason put us back in playoff contention. I brought in a few new faces in July, including David Ball who bagged 5 in 12 appearances. A second league win and third overall against rivals Athlone, plus good wins against challengers Finn Harps and UCD gave us a sniff of top spot.

Our form suddenly took a horrendous crash, losing to relegation battlers Kildare County and being put of the cup by Limerick in a replay. A home tie against amatuer side Wexford seemed the ideal chance to get back on form, but we crashed 3-0 in front of our own fans and were booed off the pitch by the few who remained at the final whistle. The board and fans so far had been generous, only expecting a top half finish and not seeing the true talent of a team that just wasn't living up to its potential, but nobody was forgiving of the Wexford result and I began to feel the pressure.

Bottom club Monoghan beckoned, us knowing a defeat would truly end the season and consign us to mid table. My players battled bravely and held on for a 3-2 victory. A fortunate draw away to Waterford followed, and from there we hit our stride. A home win against Shelbourne put us on level points with them and Athlone at the top, only 3 points seperating the top six. Wins away at Limerick and Mervue and a home draw against Fingal put us in pole position going into the penultimate day. Shelbourne and Athlone drew their previous fixture, meaning we only needed a draw against our rivals at home.

The players finally turned on the style! Goals from Ball and Gareth Farrely(2) left us 3-0 up at half time, and Athlone weren't allowed a single shot on goal all game. Stephen Magennis wrapped up the scoring late on, and a bumper crowd celebrated Lonford's unexpected return to the top flight. The last league game wasn't for two weeks, and we were comfortably beaten by playoff hopeful UCD at their place.

League Table:

http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/1652/longfordiretable09.jpg

As you can see, our title was more down to other teams poor performances than anything exceptional from ourselves. The team rarely played as well as they could've done, and that home defeat to Wexford left me tearing my hair out. Still, you can only beat what's put in front of you, and I'm looking forward to next season!

2009 - Longford Town - 1st Div - Pld 33 W 17 D 9 L 7 Pts 60 Position 1st - 5 challenge points

Just played my first All-Ireland Cup game... not a clue what's going on here, see this thread in GD:

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=117932

New season is going abysmally, rock bottom after 14 games, I've only won 2 and drawn 2, plus got beat in the League Cup and lost both All Ireland Cup games so far. On the plus side, if I get sacked it'll be in time for the new seasons in Wales and Northern Ireland.

Season Report 2010 - Longford Town

The season began with the strange All Ireland Cup Qualifying Round, held at the national stadium. We dispatched First Division Shelbourne, who qualified by being Senior Cup runners up, 2-1, although our performance was poor. After only a few friendlies, my signings had not started to gel yet and by my own admission I made far to many, around fifteen. The board had tripled by wage budget and I got carried away (though still only filled over half of it).

We lost our first All Ireland game against Glentoran at home, although the performance was much improved, and March was pretty promising, with 5 points from 5 games leaving us midtable, although Cork had evicted us from the League Cup in the first round.

Things turned with an abysmal home defeat to champions and rivals Bohemians, 3-1. We lost the next seven league games as well, sometimes very unlucky but other times plain abysmal, and lost to relegation rivals Drogheda in the All Ireland. We won our Challenge Cup game away against non-league Bandon 3-0, but a home defeat against Shamrock followed and we'd gone two league months without earning a single point. After 14 games we had lost 11, won 1 and drawn 2 for the sum of 5 points, 7 points behind Galway in 9th.

An unexpected away win against Sligo looked like a turning point, but a trip to Bohemians, running away at the top of the league, led to an embarrassing 5-0 defeat and the fans calling for my blood. We then lost at home to Cork, got another away win at Drogheda, but lost at home again to St Pats - still rock bottom at the end of June, only 1pt earned at home.

July 3rd brought us a home tie against struggling Bray, who we completely dominated. Fans collectively rubbed their eyes as striker Gaynor finally scored his first goal for the club after 30 seconds, and Stephen Gough, earning a recall due to injury after he had been dropped for poor form, sealed the win just after half time. A vital point away to fellow strugglers Galway was followed by an unlucky defeat at Derry, before we returned to stomp Sligo at home live on TV. We ended the month with an away point at Shamrock which lifted us into 9th place. Hope had finally blossomed, the team appeared to have clicked and we had a chance to survive in this league.

Bohemians came and left with only a point, and a week later Cork were beaten on their own turf. Newly promoted Division 1 side Cobh Ramblers were narrowly beaten in the 3rd round of the cup, and after a draw at St Pats and an All Ireland defeat at Glentoran, we beat relegation rivals Bray, Galway and Drogheda in quick succession to lift us into the dizzy heights of 6th place (although Sligo had four games in hand on us and quickly shot past us.) Suddenly through the gloom, we had a chance to avoid the relegation playoffs entirely, and not just automatic relegation that two months before we had seemed doomed to.

The reserves scored our first All-Ireland Cup goal, but we still lost at home to Drogheda, who qualfied for the semi-final like I had hoped - another distraction for them. We still had a distraction of our own however, and went to Derry in the Senior Cup, avoiding defeat against them for the first time. In the replay three days later, we beat them 2-1, hanging on for dear life, beating them at the 7th time of asking. We were into the semi-final, but it was proving a distraction - beaten at home by Shamrock and securing a narrow draw at faltering Bohemians left us in 7th only by virtue of Drogheda's stuttering.

We faced Galway in the semi-final, earning a 1-1 draw away and another unwanted replay. Five days later we beat them comfortably, and for the one and only time all season had two strikers score in the same game (although one was playing left midfield, so even that might not count). Drogheda away followed, and if we beat them we would be guaranteed 7th, however they equalised and we were lucky to escape with a point. An away defeat to Sligo followed, and we still needed a win to guarantee safety. On the penultimate day were awful at home to Cork, only by virtue of the woodwork did they not score, and Drogehda were beating ten-man Sligo. A Drogs player had a moment of madness and got sent off, Sligo equalised and the gap between the two sides was 4 points with 1 game remaining! We were safe!

The final day had plenty of excitement. Drogheda could not go down automatically due to Bray and Galway playing each other. Bray triumphed and leapfrogged the Drogs, meaning they were away in the relegation playoff. Drogehda were stuffed 4-0 by second-placed Derry, and combined with Bohemains loss to Shamrock, Derry took the title on the last day. Bohemians had been top since week two; Derry had only been top after the first and last games of the season, and proved that no lead is insurmountable.

Longford played a dress-rehearsel of the Challenge Cup Final at home to St Pats, and were unlucky to lose 2-1. This seemed to bode well for the final in Dublin (not at Lansdowne Road, even though the All-Ireland qualifier was), and we took the lead early on, but St Pats equalised and battered our goal. It finished 1-1, their 19 chances to our 5, and a replay in 3 days time.

Dublin was the venue again, and this time the match was a lot tighter. Both teams could not find the net inspite of many decent chances, and extra time beckoned. I brought on all three subs on 90 minutes, hoping to catch them out, and we were on top in this time for the first time between 180 and 210 minutes, but no goal was going to come. The final was down to penalties. Both teams netted their first three, and when we missed our fourth I thought we had blown it, but they missed theirs as well. Young striker Luke Daley slotted home our fifth, and St Pats midfielder missed to give Longford their third Challenge Cup in six years.

2009 - Longford Town - 1st Div - Pld 33 W 17 D 9 L 7 Pts 60 Position 1st - 5 challenge points

2010 - Longford Town - Prem - Pld 38 W 9 D 9 L 18 Pts 36 Position 7th, Senior Cup Winners - 5 challenge points

Overall I'm quite pleased, kept faith during our rough patch knowing we just needed a bit of luck and time to click. Most disappointing was our home form, the worst in the league with only 4 wins, and the inability of my strikers to score consistently (tried 6 throughout the season). Halfway through the season I switched from 4-4-2 to an attacking 4-5-1, and goals from midfield are what kept us up. I think in this transfer window all I really need is a couple of strikers.

Forgot to mention, Bray Wanderers lost on penalties at home to Drogheda, and then lost over two legs to Fingal, so they and U.C.D. will be in the Premier Divison next season.